< Judges 7 >

1 Therfor Jerobaal, which also Gedeon, roos bi nyyt, and al the puple with hym, and cam to the welle which is clepid Arad. Sotheli the tentis of Madian weren in the valey, at the north coost of the hiy hil.
Then Yerubba'al, who is Gid'on, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and encamped beside the spring of Charod; and the camp of the Midianites was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.
2 And the Lord seide to Gedeon, Myche puple is with thee, and Madian schal not be bitakun in to the hondis `ther of, lest Israel haue glorie ayens me, and seie, Y am delyuerid bi my strengthis.
And the Lord said unto Gid'on, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand: lest Israel should vaunt themselves against me, saying, my own hand hath saved me.
3 Speke thou to the puple, and preche thou, while alle men heren, He that is ferdful `in herte, and dredeful `with outforth, turne ayen. And thei yeden awei fro the hil of Galaad, and two and twenti thousynde of men turniden ayen fro the puple; and oneli ten thousynde dwelliden.
Now therefore, do proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from mount Gil'ad. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and ten thousand remained.
4 And the Lord seide to Gedeon, Yet the puple is myche; lede thou hem to the watris, and there Y schal preue hem, and he go, of whom Y schal seye, that he go; turne he ayen, whom Y schal forbede to go.
And the Lord said unto Gid'on, The people are yet too many; let them go down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I will say unto thee, This one shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee: and of whomsoever I will say unto thee, This one shall not go with thee, the same shall not go.
5 And whanne the puple hadde go doun to watris, the Lord seide to Gedeon, Thou schalt departe hem bi hem silf, that lapen watris with hond and tunge, as doggis ben wont to lape; sotheli thei, that drynken with knees bowid, schulen be in the tothir part.
So he caused the people to go down unto the water: and the Lord said unto Gid'on, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as the dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that bendeth down upon his knees to drink.
6 And so the noumbre of hem, that lapiden watris bi hond castynge to the mouth, was thre hundrid men; forsothe al the tothir multitude drank knelynge.
And the number of those that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people bent down upon their knees to drink water.
7 And the Lord seide to Gedeon, In thre hundrid men, that lapiden watris, Y schal delyuere you, and Y schal bitake Madian in thin hond; but al the tothir multitude turne ayen in to her place.
And the Lord said unto Gid'on, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thy hand; and let all the other people go every man unto his place.
8 And so whanne thei hadden take meetis and trumpis for the noumbre, he comaundide al the tothir multitude to go to her tabernaclis; and he, with thre hundrid men, yaf hym silf to batel. Sothely the tentis of Madian weren bynethe in the valey.
And they took the provision of the people in their hand, and their cornets; and all the rest of Israel he dismissed, every man unto his tent; but those three hundred men he retained: and the camp of Midian was beneath him in the valley.
9 In the same nyyt the Lord seyde to hym, Ryse thou, and go doun in to `the castels of Madian, for Y haue bitake hem in thin hond;
And it came to pass, during the same night, that the Lord said unto him, Arise, get thee down into the camp; for I have delivered it into thy hand.
10 sotheli if thou dredist to go aloon, Phara, thi child, go doun with thee.
And if thou fear to go down, then go thou down with Purah thy servant to the camp.
11 And whanne thou schalt here what thei speken, thanne thin hondis schulen be coumfortid, and thou schalt do down sikerere to the tentis of enemyes. Therfor he yede doun, and Phara, his child, in to the part of tentis, where the watchis of armed men weren.
And thou shalt hear what they will say; and after that shall thy hands be strengthened, and thou wilt go down unto the camp. And he went down with Purah his servant unto the outside of the armed men that were in the camp.
12 Forsothe Madian, and Amalech, and alle the puplis of the eest layen spred in the valey, as the multitude of locustis; sotheli the camelis weren vnnoumbrable, as grauel that liggith in the `brenke of the see.
And the Midianites and the 'Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like the locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is by the seaside for multitude.
13 And whanne Gedeon hadde come, a man tolde a dreem to his neiybore, and telde bi this maner that, that he hadde seyn, I siy a dreem, and it semyde to me, that as `o loof of barly bakun vndur the aischis was walewid, and cam doun in to the tentis of Madian; and whanne it hadde come to a tabernacle, it smoot and distriede `that tabernacle, and made euene outirly to the erthe.
And when Gid'on was come, behold, a man was telling a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream, and, lo, a baked cake of barley bread was rolling round through the camp of Midian, and came unto the tent, and struck against it so that it fell, and it turned it bottom upward, and the tent thus tumbled down.
14 That man answeride, to whom he spak, This is noon other thing, no but the swerd of Gedeon, `sone of Joas, a man of Israel; for the Lord hath bitake Madian and alle `tentis therof in to the hondis of Gedeon.
And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gid'on the son of Joash, a man of Israel; into whose hand God hath delivered Midian, and the whole camp.
15 And whanne Gedeon had herd the dreem, and `the interpretyng therof, he worschypide the Lord, and turnede ayen to the tentis of Israel, and seide, Ryse ye; for the Lord hath bitake in to oure hondis the tentis of Madian.
And it was, when Gid'on heard the narration of the dream, and its interpretation, that he prostrated himself, and returned unto the camp of Israel, and said, Arise; for the Lord hath delivered into your hand the camp of Midian.
16 And he departide thre hundrid men in to thre partis, and he yaf trumpis in her hondis, and voyde pottis, and laumpis in the myddis of the pottis.
And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put cornets in the hand of all of them, with empty pitchers, and torches in the pitchers.
17 And he seide to hem, Do ye this thing which ye seen me do; Y schal entre in to a part of the tentis, and sue ye that, that Y do.
And he said unto them, What you see me do, do ye likewise; and, behold, when I am come to the edge of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do.
18 Whanne the trumpe in myn hond schal sowne, sowne ye also `bi the cumpas of tentis, and crye ye togidere, To the Lord and to Gedeon.
When I blow the cornet, I and all that are with me, then shall ye blow the cornets also on every side of all the camp, and say, For the Lord, and for Gid'on.
19 And Gedeon entride, and thre hundrid men that weren with hym, `in to a part of the tentis, whanne the watchis of mydnyyt bigunnen; and whanne the keperis weren reysid, thei bigunnen to sowne with trumpis, and to bete togidere the pottis among hem silf.
And Gid'on, and the hundred men that were with him, came unto the edge of the camp in the bcginning of the middle watch; when they had but newly set the sentinels: and they blew the cornets, and broke the pitchers that were in their hand.
20 And whanne thei sowneden in thre places bi cumpas, and hadden broke the pottis, thei helden laumpis in the left hondis, and sownynge trumpis in the riyt hondis; and thei crieden, The swerd of the Lord and of Gedeon; and stoden alle in her place,
And the three companies blew the cornets, and broke the pitchers, and seized with their left hand the torches, and with their right hand the cornets to blow; and they cried, The sword for the Lord, and for Gid'on.
21 `bi the cumpas of the tentis of enemyes. And so alle `the tentis weren troblid; and thei crieden, and yelliden, and fledden;
And they remained standing every man in his place round about the camp; and all [in] the camp ran, and shouted, and fled.
22 and neuertheles the thre hundrid men contynueden, sownynge with trumpis. And the Lord sente swerd in alle the castels, and thei killiden hem silf bi deeth ech other;
And as the three hundred cornets sounded, the Lord set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the camp; and [those in] the camp fled as far as Beth-hashittah to Zererah, up to the border of Abelmecholah, near Tabbath.
23 and thei fledden `til to Bethsecha, and bi the side, fro Elmonla in to Thebbath. Sotheli men of Israel crieden togidere, of Neptalym, and of Aser, and of alle Manasses, and pursueden Madian; and the Lord yaf victorie to the puple of Israel in that day.
And the men of Israel were called together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Menasseh, and they pursued after the Midianites.
24 And Gedeon sente messangeris in to al the hil of Effraym, and seide, Come ye doun ayens the comyng of Madian, and ocupie ye the watris `til to Bethbera and Jordan. And al Effraym criede, and bifore ocupide the watris and Jordan `til to Bethbera.
And Gid'on sent messengers throughout all the mountain of Ephraim, saying, Come down against the Midianites, and seize from them the waters as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan. And all the men of Ephraim assembled themselves, and seized on the waters as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan.
25 And Effraym killide twei men of Madian, Oreb and Zeb; he killide Oreb in the ston of Oreb, forsothe `he killide Zeb in the pressour of Zeb; and `thei pursueden Madian, and baren the heedis of Oreb and of Zeb to Gedeon, ouer the flodis of Jordan.
And they captured two princes of the Midianites, 'Oreb and Zeeb; and they slew 'Oreb upon the rock 'Oreb, and Zeeb they slew at the winepress of Zeeb, and pursued the Midianites; and the heads of 'Oreb and Zeeb they brought to Gid'on from the other side of the Jordan.

< Judges 7 >