Judges 6
1 Again the Israelis did things that Yahweh said were very evil. So he allowed the people of Midian to conquer them and rule them for seven years.
The Israelites did what was evil in the Lord's sight. So the Lord handed them over to the Midianites for seven years.
2 The people of Midian treated the Israelis so cruelly that the Israelis fled to the mountains. There they made places to live in caves and animal dens.
The Midianite oppression was so great that because of them the Israelites made themselves hiding places in mountains, caves, and fortifications.
3 Whenever the Israelis planted things in their fields, the people of Midian and Amalek and other groups from the east invaded Israel.
Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and other peoples from the east would come and attack them.
4 They set up tents in the area, and then destroyed the crops as far south as Gaza. They did not leave anything for the Israelis’ sheep or cattle or donkeys to eat.
They would set up their camps and destroy the country's crops as far away as Gaza. They didn't leave anything to eat in the whole of Israel, and they took for themselves all the sheep, cattle, and donkeys.
5 They came into Israel with their tents and their livestock like a swarm of locusts. There were [so many of them that] arrived riding on their camels that no one could count them. They stayed and ruined the Israelis’ crops.
They arrived in huge numbers with their livestock and tents like swarms of locusts, with so many camels they couldn't be counted. They invaded the land to completely devastate it.
6 The people of Midian took almost everything the Israelis owned. So finally the Israelis pleaded for Yahweh to help them.
The Israelites were made desperately poor by the Midianites and they called out to the Lord for help.
7 When the Israelis pleaded with Yahweh to help them because of [what] the people from Midian [were doing to them],
When the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help because of the Midianites,
8 he sent to them a prophet, who said, “Yahweh, the God we Israelis worship, says this: ‘Your ancestors were slaves in Egypt.
the Lord sent the Israelites a prophet. He told them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I brought you out of Egypt; I led you out from the place where you were slaves.
9 But I rescued them from the leaders of Egypt and from all the others who oppressed them. I expelled their enemies from this land, and gave it to your ancestors.
I saved you from the power of the Egyptians and from everyone who oppressed you. I expelled them before you and gave their land to you.
10 I told you all, “I am Yahweh, your God. You are now in the land where the descendants of Amor live, but you must not worship the gods whom they worship.” But you did not pay attention to me.’”
I warned you: I am the Lord your God. You must not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you're now living.’ But you didn't listen to me.”
11 One day Yahweh appeared [in the form of] an angel and sat underneath a big oak tree at Ophrah [town]. That tree belonged to Joash, who was from the clan of Abiezer. Joash’s son Gideon was threshing wheat in the pit where they pressed [grapes to make] wine. He was threshing the grain there in order to hide it from the people of Midian.
The angel of the Lord came and sat under the oak tree in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite. His son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress there to hide it from the Midianites.
12 Yahweh [went over] to Gideon and said to him, “You mighty warrior, Yahweh is helping you!”
The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “The Lord is with you, great man of courage!”
13 Gideon replied, “Sir, if Yahweh is helping us, why have all these [bad things] happened to us? We heard about [RHQ] all the miracles that Yahweh performed for our ancestors. We heard people tell us about how he rescued them from [being slaves in] Egypt. But now Yahweh has abandoned us, and we are ruled by the people from Midian.”
“Excuse me, my lord, but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us?” Gideon replied. “Where are all his wonderful miracles that our forefathers reminded us about when they said, ‘Wasn't it the Lord who led us out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has given up on us and has handed us over to the Midianites.”
14 Then Yahweh turned toward him and said, “I will give you strength to enable you to rescue the Israelis from the people of Midian. I am sending you [to do that]!”
The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength that you have and save Israel from the Midianites. Aren't I the one sending you?”
15 Gideon replied, “But Yahweh, how can I rescue the Israelis? My clan is the least significant in the whole tribe descended from Manasseh, and I am the least significant person in my whole family!”
“Excuse me, my lord, but how can I save Israel?” Gideon replied. “My family is the least important of the tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least important person of that family!”
16 Yahweh said to him, “I will help you. So you will defeat the army of Midian [as easily] as if you were fighting only one man!”
“I will be with you,” the Lord told him. “You will defeat the Midianites as if they were just one man.”
17 Gideon replied, “If you are truly pleased with me, do something which will prove that you who are speaking to me are really Yahweh.
“Please, Lord, if you think well of me, give me a sign that it's really you telling me this,” Gideon asked.
18 But do not go away until I go and bring back an offering to you.” Yahweh answered, “Okay, I will stay here until you return.”
“Don't leave until I come back and present my offering to you.” “I will remain here until you return,” he replied.
19 Gideon hurried to his home. He [killed] a young goat [and] cooked [it]. Then he took (a half a bushel/18 liters) of flour and baked some bread without yeast. Then he put the cooked meat in a basket, and put the broth [from the meat] in a pot, and took it to Yahweh, who was sitting under the tree.
Gideon went and cooked a young goat, and baked some unleavened bread from an ephah of flour. He put the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot. He carried them out and presented them to the angel under the oak tree.
20 Then Yahweh said to him, “Put the meat and the bread on this rock. Then pour the broth on top of it.” So Gideon did that.
The angel of God told him, “Place the meat and the unleavened bread on this rock and pour the broth over them.” So Gideon did.
21 Then Yahweh touched the meat and bread with the walking stick that was in his hand. A fire flamed up from the rock and burned up everything that Gideon had brought! And then Yahweh disappeared.
The angel of the Lord held out the staff he was holding and touched the meat and unleavened bread with the tip. Fire flamed from the rock and burned up the meat and unleavened bread. Then the angel vanished.
22 When Gideon realized that it was really Yahweh [who had appeared in the form of an angel and talked with him], he exclaimed, “O, Yahweh, I have seen you face-to-face [when you had the form of] an angel! [So I will surely die]!”
When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the Lord, he cried out, “Oh no, Lord God! I've seen the angel of the Lord face to face!”
23 But Yahweh called to him and said, “Do not be afraid! You will not die [because of seeing me]!”
But the Lord told him, “Peace! Don't worry, you're not going to die.”
24 Then Gideon built an altar to [worship] Yahweh there. He named it ‘Yahweh gives us peace’. That altar is still there in Ophrah [town], in the land that belongs to the descendants of Abiezer.
So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it “The Lord is Peace.” It's still there today, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
25 That night Yahweh said to Gideon, “Take the second-best/oldest bull from your father’s herd, the bull that is seven years old. [Kill it]. Then tear down the altar that your father built to [worship] the god Baal. Also cut down the pole for worshipping [the goddess] Astarte that is there beside it.
That night the Lord told Gideon, “Take your father's bull and a second bull seven years old, and tear down your father's altar of Baal, and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.
26 Then build a [stone] altar to worship me, your God Yahweh, here on this hill. Take the wood from the pole you cut down and make a fire [to cook the meat of the bull] as a burnt offering to me.”
Then build an altar to the Lord your God in the proper way on hilltop. Using the wood of the Asherah pole you cut down as firewood, take the second bull and present it as a burnt offering.”
27 So Gideon and his servants did what Yahweh commanded. But they did it at night, because he was afraid what the other members of his family and the other men in town would do to him if they found out that he had done that.
Gideon accompanied by ten of his servants did what the Lord had told him. However, because he was afraid of his family and the people of the town, he did it during the night rather than in the day.
28 Early the next morning, as soon as the men got up, they saw that the altar to Baal had been torn down, and the pole for worshiping Astarte was gone. They saw that there was a new altar there, and on it was what remained from the bull they had sacrificed.
Early in the morning when the people of the town got up, they saw that the altar of Baal had been torn down and the Asherah pole beside it had been cut down, with the second bull sacrificed on the altar that had just been built.
29 The people asked each other, “Who did this?” After they investigated, someone told them that it was Gideon, the son of Joash, [who had done it].
They asked one another, “Who did this?” They made inquiries and they were told, “Gideon, son of Joash, did it.”
30 They went to Joash and said to him, “Bring your son out here! (He must be executed/We must kill him), because he destroyed our god Baal’s altar and cut down the pole for our goddess Astarte!”
“Hand over your son,” the people of the town ordered Joash. “He must die, because he has torn down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”
31 But Joash replied, “Are you trying to defend Baal? Are you trying to argue his case? Anyone who tries to defend Baal should be executed by tomorrow morning! If Baal is truly a god, he ought to be able to defend himself, and to get rid of the person who tore down his altar!”
Joash replied to all those confronting him, “Are you arguing on Baal's behalf? Do you have to save him? Anyone who argues for him will be put to death by morning! If he is a god let him fight for himself against those who tore down his altar.”
32 From that time, people called Gideon Jerub-Baal, which means ‘Baal should defend himself’, because he tore down Baal’s altar.
That day Gideon was called Jerub-baal, which means “Let Baal fight with him,” because he had torn down his altar.
33 Soon after that, the armies of the people of Midian and of Amalek and the people from the east gathered together. They crossed the Jordan River [to attack the Israelis]. They set up their tents in Jezreel Valley.
All the Midianites, Amalekites, and other peoples of the East gathered together and crossed over the Jordan. They camped in the Valley of Jezreel.
34 Then Yahweh’s Spirit took control of Gideon. He blew a ram’s horn to summon the men to prepare to fight. So the men of the clan of Abiezer came to him.
The Spirit of the Lord came on Gideon, and he blew the trumpet, calling Abiezrites to join him.
35 He also sent messengers throughout the tribes descended from [the four tribes of] Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali [to tell their soldiers to come], and all of them came.
He sent messengers through the whole territory of Manasseh, calling them to join him, and also to Asher, Zebulun and Naphtali, so they also came and joined the others.
36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you are truly going to enable me to rescue the Israeli people as you promised,
Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel through me as you promised,
37 confirm it by doing this: Tonight I will put a dry wool fleece on the ground where I thresh the grain. Tomorrow morning, if the fleece is wet with dew but the ground is dry, then I will know that I am the one you will enable to rescue the people of Israel as you promised.”
then look—I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If the fleece is wet with dew but the ground is dry, then I will know that you are going to save Israel through me as you promised.”
38 And that is what happened. When Gideon got up the next morning, he picked up the fleece, and squeezed out a whole bowlful of water!
That's what happened. When Gideon got up early the next morning, he pressed on the fleece and squeezed out the dew, enough water to fill a bowl.
39 Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me, but let me ask you to do one more thing. Tonight I will put the fleece out again. This time, let the fleece remain dry, while the ground is wet with the dew.”
Then Gideon said to God, “Please don't get cross with me. Just let me make one more request. Let me do one more test with the fleece. This time let the fleece be dry and the whole ground covered with dew.”
40 So that night, God did what Gideon asked him to do. The next morning the fleece was dry, but the ground was covered with dew.
That night God did exactly that. The fleece alone was dry and the whole ground was covered with dew.
