Judges 8
1 Then the descendants of Ephraim said to Gideon, “Why have you acted toward us like this? When you went out to fight against the people of Midian, why did you not summon us [to help you]?” They rebuked Gideon severely.
Afei, Efraimfo no bisaa Gideon se, “Adɛn nti na woyɛ yɛn saa? Adɛn nti na worekɔko atia Midian kan no, woamfrɛ yɛn?” Na wɔne Gideon kasaa anibere so.
2 But Gideon replied, “I have done [RHQ] very little compared with what you have done! My small clan of descendants of Abiezer only started the battle, but [your very large group of] descendants of Ephraim [helped me to finish the task very well. It is like] the final grapes of the harvest being much better than the first grapes that are picked.
Na Gideon buaa wɔn se, “Dɛn na mayɛ a mede bɛtoto mo ho? Na Efraim bobe aba a ɛka wɔ twabere akyi no nye nsen Abieser bobe a wɔtewee nyinaa?
3 God enabled you to defeat Oreb and Zeeb, the generals of the army from Midian. That is [RHQ] much more important than what I did!” After Gideon told them that, they no longer resented what he had done.
Onyankopɔn maa mudii Oreb ne Seeb a na wɔyɛ Midian asahene no so. Dɛn na matumi ayɛ a ɛsɛ eyi?” Efraim mmarima no tee Gideon mmuae no, wɔn bo tɔɔ wɔn yam.
4 Then Gideon and his 300 men [went east and] crossed the Jordan [River]. Although they were very tired, they continued to pursue their enemies.
Gideon ne ne mmarima ahaasa no twaa Asubɔnten Yordan, ɛwɔ mu sɛ na wɔabrɛ de, nanso wɔtoaa so taa atamfo no.
5 When they arrived at Succoth [town], Gideon said to the town leaders, “Please give my men some food! They are very tired. We are pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.”
Woduu Sukot no, Gideon ka kyerɛɛ ntuanofo a wɔwɔ hɔ no se, “Momma mʼakofo no aduan nni na wɔabrɛ. Meretaa Midian ahemfo Seba ne Salmuna.”
6 But the leaders of Succoth replied, “You have not caught [RHQ] Zebah and Zalmunna yet. So why should we give food to your troops [now? Catch them first, and then we will give you food].”
Na Sukot ntuanofo no buae se, “Kyere Seba ne Salmuna ansa na yɛama wʼakofo no aduan adi.”
7 Gideon replied, “[Because you said that], after Yahweh enables us to defeat Zebah and Zalmunna, we will return. And then we will make whips from thorns from the desert, and with them we will rip the flesh off your bones!”
Gideon buae se, “Sɛ Awurade ma midi Seba ne Salmuna so nkonim a, mɛsan aba de sare so nsɔe ne akraate abesunsuan mo honam ani.”
8 From there, Gideon [and his 300 men] went to Peniel and asked for food there, but the people gave him the same answer.
Na Gideon fii hɔ kɔɔ Penuel kɔsrɛɛ aduan bio, na onyaa mmuae koro no ara.
9 So he said to the men of Peniel, “After I defeat those kings, I will return and tear down this tower!”
Na ɔka kyerɛɛ Penuelfo no se, “Sɛ mifi nkonimdi mu ba a, mebubu saa abantenten yi.”
10 By that time, Zebah and Zalmunna had gone to Karkor [town] with 15,000 troops. They were all that were left of the armies that had come from the east. 120,000 of their men had already been killed.
Saa bere yi na Seba ne Salmuna ne akofo mpem dunum wɔ Karkor, aboafo a wofi apuei fam a na emu mpem ɔha aduonu atotɔ dedaw no nkaefo.
11 Gideon [and his men] went east along the road on which caravans travel. They went past Nobah and Jogbehah [villages] and arrived at the enemy camp by surprise.
Gideon faa atutenafo kwan a ɛda Noba ne Yogbeha apuei fam no ho hyiae, na wɔtow hyɛɛ Midian nsraadɔm a na wɔn ani nna wɔn ho so no so.
12 Zebah and Zalmunna fled, but Gideon’s men pursued them and captured them and all their warriors.
Midian ahemfo baanu a wɔn din de Seba ne Salmuna no guanee, nanso Gideon taa wɔn faa wɔn akofo nyinaa nnommum.
13 After that, Gideon and his men [took Zebah and Zalmunna with them and] started to return, going through Heres Pass.
Eyi akyi no, Yoas ba Gideon faa Heres tempɔn so sanee.
14 There he captured a young man from Succoth, and demanded that he write down the names of all of the leaders in the town. The young man wrote down seventy-seven names.
Ɛhɔ na ɔkyeree aberante bi a ofi Sukot. Ɔhyɛɛ no sɛ ɔnkyerɛw nnipa aduɔson ason a wɔyɛ sodifo ne ntuanofo a wɔwɔ kurow no mu no din mma no.
15 Then Gideon and his men returned to Succoth and said to those leaders, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna. When we were here before, you made fun of me and said ‘You have not [RHQ] caught Zebah and Zalmunna yet! After you catch them, we will give your exhausted men some food.’”
Afei, Gideon san kɔɔ Sukot kɔka kyerɛɛ ɛhɔ ntuanofo no se, “Seba ne Salmuna ni. Yɛbaa ha no mudii me ho fɛw, kae se, ‘Kyere Seba ne Salmuna ansa na yɛama wʼakofo a wɔabrɛ no aduan adi.’”
16 Then Gideon’s men took the town leaders and whipped them with whips made from briers from the desert, to teach them [that they deserved to be punished for not giving them any food].
Afei Gideon faa kurow no mu ntuanofo kyerɛɛ wɔn nyansa. Ɔde sare so nsɔe ne akraate twee wɔn aso.
17 Then [they went to] Peniel and tore down the tower, and killed all the men in the town.
Ɔsan dwiriw Penuel abantenten no guu fam, kunkum kurow no mu mmarima nyinaa.
18 Then Gideon said to Zebah and Zalmunna, “The men you killed near Tabor [Mountain], what did they look like?” They replied, “They were like you; they all looked like they were sons of a king.”
Afei, obisaa Seba ne Salmuna se, “Mmarima a mukum wɔn wɔ Tabor no na wɔte dɛn?” Wobuae se, “Mmarima no te sɛ wo. Na wɔn mu biara te sɛ ɔheneba.”
19 Gideon replied, “They were my brothers! Just as surely as Yahweh lives, I would not kill you if you had not killed them.”
Gideon ka kyerɛɛ wɔn se, “Na wɔyɛ me nuanom. Sɛ Awurade te ase yi, sɛ moankum wɔn a, anka me nso merenkum mo.”
20 Then he turned to his oldest son, Jether. He said to him, “Kill them!” But Jether was only a boy, and he was afraid, so he did not pull out his dagger [to kill them].
Ɔdan nʼani kyerɛɛ ne babarima panyin Yeter se, “Kum wɔn.” Nanso Yeter antwe nʼafoa, efisɛ na ɔyɛ abarimaa nti na osuro.
21 Then Zebah and Zalmunna said to Gideon, “Do not ask a young boy to do the work that a man should do!” So Gideon killed both of them. Then he took the gold ornaments from the necks of their camels.
Seba ne Salmuna ka kyerɛɛ Gideon se, “Mma abarimaa nyɛ ɔpanyin adwuma! Wʼankasa yɛ!” Enti Gideon kum wɔn baanu, faa adehye agude a ɛsensɛn wɔn yoma kɔn mu no.
22 Then a group of Israeli men [came to] Gideon and said to him, “You be our ruler! [We want] you and your son and your grandsons [to] be our rulers, because you rescued us from the Midian army.”
Na Israelfo no ka kyerɛɛ Gideon se, “Di yɛn so hene. Wo ne wo babarima ne wo nena bɛyɛ yɛn ahemfo, efisɛ woagye yɛn afi Midianfo nsam.”
23 But Gideon replied, “No, I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you. Yahweh will rule over you.”
Nanso Gideon buae se, “Merenni mo so hene na me babarima nso renni mo so hene. Awurade na obedi mo so.”
24 Then he said, “I request only one thing. I request that each of you give me one earring from the things you captured after the battle.” [All the men descended from Ishmael wore gold earrings.]
Mmom Gideon ka kyerɛɛ wɔn se, mewɔ abisade baako. “Mo mu biara mma me asokaa baako a mofa fii asade a munya fii mo atamfo a mudii wɔn so no nkyɛn.” (Atamfo a na wɔyɛ Ismaelfo no na obiara hyɛ sikakɔkɔɔ asokaa).
25 They replied, “We will be glad to give earrings to you!” So they spread a cloth [on the ground], and each man threw on it one gold earring that he had taken [from a man he had killed in the battle].
Wobuaa se, “Yɛpene so dodo.” Wɔde nkataho sɛw fam. Na obiara de ne sikakɔkɔɔ asokaa a onyae beguu so.
26 The weight of all the earrings was (43 pounds/19.4 kg.). That did not include other things [that they gave to Gideon]—the other ornaments or the pendants or the clothes that the kings of Midian wore or the gold chains that were on the necks of their camels.
Na sikakɔkɔɔ asokaa dodow a wonyae no karii kilogram aduonu ne akyi pɔw anan a nyanne nketewa ne kɔnmuade, Midian ahemfo adehye ahyehyɛde ne nkɔnsɔnkɔnsɔn a egu wɔn yoma kɔn mu nka ho.
27 Gideon made/decorated a sacred vest from the gold, and later he put it in his hometown, Ophrah. But soon the Israeli people started to worship the vest. So it became like a trap [MET] for the people, [causing them to worship it instead of worshiping only God].
Gideon de yɛɛ asɔfotade kronkron na ɔde sii kurow Ofra, ne kurow mu. Nanso ankyɛ na Israelfo no kɔsom no de guu wɔn ho fi na ɛdan afiri maa Gideon ne ne fifo.
28 That is how the Israelis defeated the people from Midian. The people of Midian did not become strong enough to attack Israel again. So while Gideon was alive, there was peace in the land for 40 years.
Eyi ne abasɛm a ɛkyerɛ sɛnea Israelfo dii Midianfo so nkonim a wɔantumi ansɔre bio. Gideon nna a etwa to bɛyɛ mfe aduanan mu no, na asomdwoe wɔ asase no so.
29 Gideon went back home to live there.
Afei, Yoas babarima Yerub-Baal san kɔɔ ne kurom.
30 He had many wives, and they bore him seventy sons.
Na ɔwɔ yerenom bebree nti ɔwoo mmabarima aduɔson.
31 He also had a slave wife in Shechem [town], who bore him a son whom he named Abimelech.
Na ɔwɔ mpena nso wɔ Sekem a ɔne no woo ɔbabarima, too ne din Abimelek.
32 Gideon died when he was very old. They buried his body in the grave where his father Joash was buried, at Ophrah, in the land belonging to the descendants of Abiether.
Gideon wui no na wanyin yiye. Na wosiee no wɔ nʼagya Yoas da mu wɔ Ofra wɔ Abieserfo abusuasase so.
33 But as soon as Gideon died, the Israelis [stopped worshiping God and started worshiping the images of the god Baal, like] [MET] adultresses [leave their husbands and go to sleep with other men]. They made a [statue of a] new god called Baal-Berith.
Gideon wui ara pɛ, Israelfo no kɔsom Baal ahoni, de bɔɔ wɔn ho ahohwi. Wɔnam so yɛɛ Baal-Berit wɔn nyame.
34 They forgot about Yahweh, the one who had rescued them from all their enemies that surrounded them.
Wɔn werɛ fii Awurade, wɔn Nyankopɔn a ogyee wɔn fii wɔn atamfo a wɔatwa wɔn ho ahyia no nsam no.
35 And even though Gideon had done many good things for the Israelis, they were not kind to Gideon’s family.
Na mpo, wɔanni nokware ankyerɛ Yerub-Baal (a ɔne Gideon) fifo wɔ nneɛma pa a ɔyɛ maa Israelfo no ho.
