Judges 6

1 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.

Men da Israelitterne gjorde, hvad der var ondt i HERRENS Øjne, gav han dem syv År i Midjans Hånd.

2 And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds.

Og Midjan fik Overtaget over Israel. For at værge sig mod Midjan indrettede Israelitterne sig de Smuthuller, som findes i Bjergene, Hulerne og Klippeborgene.

3 And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east, even they came up against them;

Hver Gang Israelitterne havde sået, kom Midjaniterne, Amalekiterne og Østens Stammer og drog op imod dem

4 And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou comest to Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor donkey.

og lejrede sig imod dem, ødelagde Jordens Afgrøde lige til Egnen om Gaza og levnede intet at leve af i Israel, ej heller Småkvæg, Hornkvæg eller Æsler;

5 For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number: and they entered into the land to destroy it.

thi de drog op med deres Hjorde og Telte og kom talrige som Græshopper, så hverken de selv eller deres Kameler kunde tælles, og de trængte ind i Landet for at hærge det.

6 And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried to the LORD.

Således blev Israel rent forarmet ved Midjaniternes indfald, og Israelitterne råbte til HERREN.

7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried to the LORD because of the Midianites,

Men da Israelitterne råbte til HERREN over Midjaniterne,

8 That the LORD sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth from the house of bondage;

sendte han en Profet til dem, og denne sagde til dem: "Så siger HERREN, Israels Gud: Jeg førte eder op fra Ægypten, jeg førte eder ud af Trællehuset,

9 And I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians, and from the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land;

jeg friede eder af Ægyptens Hånd og af deres Hånd, der trængte eder, og jeg drev dem bort foran eder og gav eder deres Land.

10 And I said to you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have not obeyed my voice.

Og jeg sagde til eder: Jeg er HERREN eders Gud; frygt ikke Amoriternes Guder, i hvis Land I bor! Men I adlød ikke min Røst!"

11 And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained to Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.

Da kom HERRENs Engel og satte sig under Egen i Ofra, som tilhørte Abiezriten Joasj, medens hans Søn Gideon var ved at tærske Hvede i Vinpersen for at have den i Sikkerhed for Midjaniterne.

12 And the angel of the LORD appeared to him, and said to him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.

HERRENs Engel viste sig for ham og sagde til ham: "HERREN er med dig, stærke Kriger!"

13 And Gideon said to him, O my Lord, if the LORD is with us, why then hath all this befallen us? and where are all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.

Men Gideon svarede ham: "Ak, Herre! Hvis HERREN er med os, hvorledes er da alt dette kommet over os? Og hvad er der blevet af alle hans Undergerninger, som vore Fædre fortalte os om, idet de sagde: Førte HERREN os ikke ud af Ægypten? Nu har HERREN forstødt os og givet os i Midjans Hånd!"

14 And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?

Da vendte HERREN sig til ham og sagde: "Drag hen i denne din Kraft, så skal du frelse Israel af Midjans Hånd; sandelig, jeg sender dig!"

15 And he said to him, O my Lord, how shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.

Men han svarede ham: "Ak, Herre! Hvorledes skal jeg kunne frelse Israel? Se, min Slægt er den ringeste i Manasse og jeg den yngste i mit Fædrenehus!"

16 And the LORD said to him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.

Han svarede ham: "HERREN vil være med dig, og du skal hugge Midjaniterne ned alle som een!"

17 And he said to him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then show me a sign that thou talkest with me.

Da sagde han til ham: "Hvis jeg har fundet Nåde for dine Øjne, så lad mig få et Tegn på, at det er dig, som taler med mig;

18 Depart not from here, I pray thee, until I come to thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And he said, I will tarry until thou comest again.

gå ikke herfra, før jeg kommer tilbage til dig og bringer dig min Gave og stiller den frem for dig!" Han svarede: "Jeg skal blive, til du kommer tilbage!"

19 And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out to him under the oak, and presented it.

Gideon gik da ind og tillavede et Gedekid og usyrede Brød af en Efa Mel; Kødet lagde han i en Kurv, og Suppen hældte han i en Krukke og bar det ud til ham under Egen. Da han kom hen til ham med det,

20 And the angel of God said to him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so.

sagde Guds Engel til ham: "Tag Kødet og det usyrede Brød. Læg det på Klippen der og hæld Suppen ud derover!" Og han gjorde det.

21 Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the LORD departed from his sight.

Da udrakte HERRENs Engel Spidsen af den Stav, han havde i Hånden, og rørte ved Kødet og Brødet. Og Ild slog op af Klippen og fortærede Kødet og Brødet; og HERRENs Engel forsvandt for hans Blik.

22 And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord GOD! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face.

Gideon skønnede nu, at det havde været HERRENs Engel; og han sagde: "Ve, Herre, HERRE, jeg har jo set HERRENs Engel Ansigt til Ansigt!"

23 And the LORD said to him, Peace be to thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.

Men HERREN sagde til ham: "Fred være med dig! Frygt ikke, du skal ikke dø!"

24 Then Gideon built an altar there to the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: to this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Da byggede Gideon HERREN et Alter der og kaldte det "HERREN er Fred"; det står endnu den Dag i Dag i Abiezriternes Ofra.

25 And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said to him, Take thy father’s young bull, even the second bull of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it:

Samme Nat sagde HERREN til ham: "Tag ti af dine Trælle og en syvårs Tyr; nedbryd din Faders Ba'alsalter og hug Asjerastøtten om, som står derved;

26 And build an altar to the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bull, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down.

byg så af Stensætningen HERREN din Gud et Alter på Toppen af Klippen her og tag Tyren og brænd den som Brændoffer med Træet af den omhuggede Asjerastøtte!"

27 Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said to him: and so it was, because he feared his father’s household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.

Gideon tog da ti af sine Trælle og gjorde, som HERREN bød ham; men han gjorde det om Natten, thi af Frygt for sin Familie og sine Bysbørn turde han ikke gøre det om Dagen.

28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bull was offered upon the altar that was built.

Da Byens Folk næste Morgen tidlig så Ba'alsalteret nedbrudt, Asjerastøtten ved Siden af hugget om og Tyren ofret på det nybyggede Alter,

29 And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing.

sagde de til hverandre: "Hvem mon der har gjort det?" Og da de spurgte sig for og foretog en Undersøgelse, blev der sagt, at det var Gideon, Joasjs Søn.

30 Then the men of the city said to Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it.

Og Byens Folk sagde til Joasj: "Udlever din Søn, for at han kan lide Døden, thi han har nedbrudt Ba'alsalteret og omhugget Asjerastøtten ved Siden af!"

31 And Joash said to all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal? will ye save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death by morning: if he is a god, let him plead for himself, because one hath cast down his altar.

Men Joasj svarede alle dem, der stod omkring ham: "Vil I virkelig stride for Ba'al eller hjælpe ham? Den, der strider for ham, skal dø inden i Morgen! Er han Gud, så lad ham stride for sig selv, siden hans Alter er nedbrudt!"

32 Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar.

Ved den Lejlighed fik Gideon Navnet Jerubba'al, idet man sagde: "Lad Ba'al stride med ham, siden han har nedbrudt hans Alter!"

33 Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together, and went over, and encamped in the valley of Jezreel.

Alle Midjaniterne, Amalekiterne og Østens Stammer sluttede sig sammen, satte over Jordan og slog Lejr på Jizre'elsletten.

34 But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was called after him.

Da iklædte HERRENs Ånd sig Gideon, og han stødte i Hornet; og Abiezriterne fylkede sig om ham.

35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; who also was called after him: and he sent messengers to Asher, and to Zebulun, and to Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

Og da han sendte Bud ud i hele Manasse, fylkede de sig også om ham; og han sendte Bud ud i Aser, Zebulon og Naftali, og de drog op før at møde Fjenderne.

36 And Gideon said to God, If thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast said,

Da sagde Gideon til Gud: "Hvis du vil frelse Israel ved min Hånd, som du har lovet,

37 Behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the floor; and if the dew shall be on the fleece only, and it shall be dry upon all the earth besides, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast said.

så lægger jeg nu dette Fåreskind på Tærskepladsen, og falder der så Dug alene på Skindet, medens Jorden ellers bliver ved at være tør, da ved jeg, at du vil frelse Israel ved min Hånd, som du har lovet."

38 And it was so: for he rose early on the next morning, and pressed the fleece, and wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water.

Og det skete således. Da han næste Morgen vred Skindet, pressede han Dug af det, en hel Skålfuld Vand.

39 And Gideon said to God, Let not thy anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me make a test, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew.

Men Gideon sagde til Gud: "Vredes ikke på mig, når jeg endnu denne ene Gang taler til dig, lad mig blot denne Gang endnu prøve med Skindet: Lad Skindet alene være tørt, medens der falder Dug på Jorden rundt om!"

40 And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.

Da gjorde Gud således om Natten: Skindet alene var ført, men der faldt Dug på Jorden rundt om.