Juízes 6
1 Porém os filhos de Israel fizeram o que parecia mal aos olhos do Senhor: e o Senhor os deu na mão dos midianitas por sete annos.
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.
2 E, prevalecendo a mão dos midianitas sobre Israel, fizeram os filhos de Israel para si, por causa dos midianitas, as covas que estão nos montes, e as cavernas e as fortificações.
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.
3 Porque succedia que, semeando Israel, subiram os midianitas e os amalekitas; e tambem os do oriente contra elle subiam.
Whenever the Israelis planted things in their fields, the people of Midian and Amalek and other groups from the east invaded Israel.
4 E punham-se contra elles em campo, e destruiram a novidade da terra, até chegarem a Gaza: e não deixavam mantimento em Israel, nem ovelhas, nem bois nem jumentos.
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.
5 Porque subiam com os seus gados e tendas; vinham como gafanhotos, em tanta multidão que não se podia contar, nem a elles nem aos seus camelos: e entravam na terra, para a destruir.
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.
6 Assim Israel empobreceu muito pela presença dos midianitas: então os filhos de Israel clamaram ao Senhor.
The people of Midian took almost everything the Israelis owned. So finally the Israelis pleaded for Yahweh to help them.
7 E succedeu que, clamando os filhos de Israel ao Senhor por causa dos midianitas,
When the Israelis pleaded with Yahweh to help them because of [what] the people from Midian [were doing to them],
8 Enviou o Senhor um homem propheta aos filhos de Israel, que lhes disse: Assim diz o Senhor, Deus de Israel: Do Egypto eu vos fiz subir, e vos tirei da casa da servidão;
he sent to them a prophet, who said, “Yahweh, the God we Israelis worship, says this: ‘Your ancestors were slaves in Egypt.
9 E vos livrei da mão dos egypcios, e da mão de todos quantos vos opprimiam; e os expelli de diante de vós, e a vós dei a sua terra;
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.
10 E vos disse: Eu sou o Senhor vosso Deus; não temaes aos deuses dos amorrheos, em cuja terra habitaes: mas não déstes ouvidos á minha voz
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.’”
11 Então o anjo do Senhor veiu, e assentou-se debaixo do carvalho que está em Ophra, que pertencia a Joás, abi-ezrita: e Gideon, seu filho, estava malhando o trigo no lagar, para o salvar dos midianitas.
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.
12 Então o anjo do Senhor lhe appareceu, e lhe disse: O Senhor é comtigo, varão valoroso.
Yahweh [went over] to Gideon and said to him, “You mighty warrior, Yahweh is helping you!”
13 Mas Gideon lhe respondeu: Ai, senhor meu, se o Senhor é comnosco, porque tudo isto nos sobreveiu? e que é feito de todas as suas maravilhas que nossos paes nos contaram, dizendo: Não nos fez o Senhor subir do Egypto? porém agora o Senhor nos desamparou, e nos deu na mão dos midianitas.
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.”
14 Então o Senhor olhou para elle, e disse: Vae n'esta tua força, e livrarás a Israel da mão dos midianitas: porventura não te enviei eu?
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]!”
15 E elle lhe disse: Ai, senhor meu, com que livrarei a Israel? eis-que o meu milheiro é o mais pobre em Manasseh, e eu o menor na casa de meu pae.
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!”
16 E o Senhor lhe disse: Porquanto eu hei de ser comtigo, tu ferirás aos midianitas como se fossem um só homem.
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!”
17 E elle lhe disse: Se agora tenho achado graça aos teus olhos, dá-me um signal de que és o que comigo fallas.
Gideon replied, “If you are truly pleased with me, do something which will prove that you who are speaking to me are really Yahweh.
18 Rogo-te que d'aqui te não apartes, até que eu venha a ti, e tire o meu presente, e o ponha perante ti. E disse: Eu esperarei até que voltes.
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.”
19 E entrou Gideon e preparou um cabrito e bolos asmos d'um epha de farinha; a carne poz n'um açafate e o caldo poz n'uma panella: e trouxe-lh'o até debaixo do carvalho, e lh'o apresentou.
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.
20 Porém o anjo de Deus lhe disse: Toma a carne e os bolos asmos, e põe-os sobre esta penha e verte o caldo. E assim o fez.
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.
21 E o anjo do Senhor estendeu a ponta do cajado, que estava na sua mão, e tocou a carne e os bolos asmos: então subiu fogo da penha, e consumiu a carne e os bolos asmos; e o anjo do Senhor desappareceu de seus olhos.
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.
22 Então viu Gideon que era o anjo do Senhor: e disse Gideon: Ah, Senhor, Jehovah, que eu vi o anjo do Senhor face a face.
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]!”
23 Porém o Senhor lhe disse: Paz seja comtigo; não temas: não morrerás.
But Yahweh called to him and said, “Do not be afraid! You will not die [because of seeing me]!”
24 Então Gideon edificou ali um altar ao Senhor, e lhe chamou, Senhor é paz: e ainda até ao dia d'hoje está em Ophra dos abi-ezritas.
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.
25 E aconteceu, n'aquella mesma noite, que o Senhor lhe disse: Toma o boi de teu pae, a saber, o segundo boi de sete annos: e derriba o altar de Baal, que é de teu pae; e corta o bosque que está ao pé d'elle.
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.
26 E edifica ao Senhor teu Deus um altar no cume d'este logar forte, n'um logar conveniente: e toma o segundo boi, e o offerecerás em holocausto com a lenha que cortares do bosque.
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.”
27 Então Gideon tomou dez homens d'entre os seus servos, e fez como o Senhor lhe dissera: e succedeu que, temendo elle a casa de seu pae, e os homens d'aquella cidade, não o fez de dia, mas fel-o de noite.
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.
28 Levantando-se pois os homens d'aquella cidade de madrugada, eis que estava o altar de Baal derribado, e o bosque estava ao pé d'elle, cortado: e o segundo boi offerecido no altar de novo edificado.
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.
29 E uns aos outros disseram: Quem fez esta coisa? E, esquadrinhando, e inquirindo, disseram: Gideon, o filho de Joás, fez esta coisa.
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].
30 Então os homens d'aquella cidade disseram a Joás: Tira para fóra a teu filho, para que morra; pois derribou o altar de Baal, e cortou o bosque que estava ao pé d'elle.
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!”
31 Porém Joás disse a todos os que se pozeram contra elle: Contendereis vós por Baal? livral-o-heis vós? qualquer que por elle contender ainda esta manhã será morto: se é deus, por si mesmo contenda; pois derribaram o seu altar.
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!”
32 Pelo que n'aquelle dia lhe chamaram Jerubbaal, dizendo: Baal contenda contra elle, pois derribou o seu altar.
From that time, people called Gideon Jerub-Baal, which means ‘Baal should defend himself’, because he tore down Baal’s altar.
33 E todos os midianitas, e amalekitas, e os filhos do oriente se ajuntaram n'um corpo, e passaram, e pozeram o seu campo no valle de Jizreel.
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.
34 Então o espirito do Senhor revestiu a Gideon, o qual tocou a buzina, e os abi-ezritas se convocaram após d'elle.
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.
35 E enviou mensageiros por toda a tribu de Manasseh, e elle tambem se convocou após d'elle: tambem enviou mensageiros a Eser, e a Zebulon, e a Naphtali, e sairam-lhe ao encontro.
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.
36 E disse Gideon a Deus: Se has de livrar a Israel por minha mão, como tens dito,
Then Gideon said to God, “If you are truly going to enable me to rescue the Israeli people as you promised,
37 Eis que eu porei um vello de lã na eira: se o orvalho estiver sómente no vello, e secura sobre toda a terra, então conhecerei que has de livrar a Israel por minha mão, como tens dito.
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.”
38 E assim succedeu; porque ao outro dia se levantou de madrugada, e apertou o vello: e do orvalho do vello espremeu uma taça cheia d'agua.
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!
39 E disse Gideon a Deus: Não se accenda contra mim a tua ira, se ainda fallar só esta vez: rogo-te que só esta vez faça a prova com o vello; rogo-te que só no vello haja secura, e em toda a terra haja o orvalho.
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.”
40 E Deus assim o fez n'aquella noite: pois só no vello havia secura, e sobre toda a terra havia orvalho.
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.
