Jueces 8

1 Los hombres de Efraín le dijeron: “¿Por qué nos has tratado así, que no nos llamaste cuando fuiste a pelear con Madián?”. Lo reprendieron duramente.

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.

2 Él les dijo: “¿Qué he hecho yo ahora en comparación con ustedes? ¿No es mejor la recolección de las uvas de Efraín que la cosecha de Abiezer?

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.

3 ¡Dios ha entregado en tu mano a los príncipes de Madián, Oreb y Zeeb! ¿Qué he podido hacer yo en comparación con vosotros?”. Entonces se aplacó su ira contra él cuando hubo dicho eso.

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.

4 Gedeón llegó al Jordán y lo cruzó, él y los trescientos hombres que lo acompañaban, desfallecidos, pero persiguiendo.

Then Gideon and his 300 men [went east and] crossed the Jordan [River]. Although they were very tired, they continued to pursue their enemies.

5 Dijo a los hombres de Sucot: “Por favor, den panes a la gente que me sigue, porque están cansados, y yo persigo a Zeba y Zalmunna, los reyes de Madián.”

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.”

6 Los príncipes de Succoth dijeron: “¿Están ahora las manos de Zeba y Zalmunna en tu mano, para que demos pan a tu ejército?”.

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].”

7 Gedeón dijo: “Por lo tanto, cuando Yahvé haya entregado a Zeba y Zalmunna en mi mano, entonces desgarraré su carne con las espinas del desierto y con los cardos.”

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!”

8 Subió allí a Penuel y les habló de la misma manera; y los hombres de Penuel le respondieron como habían respondido los de Sucot.

From there, Gideon [and his 300 men] went to Peniel and asked for food there, but the people gave him the same answer.

9 También habló a los hombres de Penuel, diciendo: “Cuando vuelva en paz, derribaré esta torre”.

So he said to the men of Peniel, “After I defeat those kings, I will return and tear down this tower!”

10 Zeba y Zalmunna estaban en Karkor, y sus ejércitos con ellos, unos quince mil hombres, todos los que quedaban de todo el ejército de los hijos del oriente; pues cayeron ciento veinte mil hombres que sacaban espada.

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.

11 Gedeón subió por el camino de los que vivían en tiendas al oriente de Noba y Jogbehá, y atacó al ejército, pues éste se sentía seguro.

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.

12 Zeba y Zalmunna huyeron y él los persiguió. Tomó a los dos reyes de Madián, Zeba y Zalmunna, y confundió a todo el ejército.

Zebah and Zalmunna fled, but Gideon’s men pursued them and captured them and all their warriors.

13 Gedeón, hijo de Joás, regresó de la batalla desde la subida de Heres.

After that, Gideon and his men [took Zebah and Zalmunna with them and] started to return, going through Heres Pass.

14 Atrapó a un joven de los hombres de Sucot y lo interrogó, y le describió a los príncipes de Sucot y a sus ancianos, setenta y siete hombres.

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.

15 Se acercó a los hombres de Sucot y les dijo: “Vean a Zeba y a Zalmunna, de quienes se burlaron diciendo: “¿Están ahora las manos de Zeba y Zalmunna en tu mano, para que demos pan a tus hombres que están cansados?””

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.’”

16 Tomó a los ancianos de la ciudad, y espinas del desierto y zarzas, y con ellas enseñó a los hombres de Sucot.

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].

17 Derribó la torre de Penuel y mató a los hombres de la ciudad.

Then [they went to] Peniel and tore down the tower, and killed all the men in the town.

18 Entonces dijo a Zeba y a Zalmunna: “¿Qué clase de hombres eran los que matasteis en el Tabor?” Ellos respondieron: “Eran como tú. Todos se parecían a los hijos de un rey”.

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.”

19 Él dijo: “Eran mis hermanos, los hijos de mi madre. Vive Yahvé, si los hubieras salvado con vida, no te mataría”.

Gideon replied, “They were my brothers! Just as surely as Yahweh lives, I would not kill you if you had not killed them.”

20 Le dijo a Jether, su primogénito: “¡Levántate y mátalos!” Pero el joven no desenfundó su espada, pues tenía miedo, ya que era todavía un joven.

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].

21 Entonces Zeba y Zalmunna dijeron: “Levántense y caigan sobre nosotros, porque como el hombre es, así es su fuerza”. Gedeón se levantó y mató a Zeba y a Zalmunna, y tomó las medias lunas que estaban en el cuello de sus camellos.

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.

22 Entonces los hombres de Israel dijeron a Gedeón: “Gobierna sobre nosotros, tú, tu hijo y el hijo de tu hijo también, porque nos has salvado de la mano de Madián.”

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.”

23 Gedeón les dijo: “Yo no gobernaré sobre ustedes, ni mi hijo lo hará. Yahvé gobernará sobre ustedes”.

But Gideon replied, “No, I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you. Yahweh will rule over you.”

24 Gedeón les dijo: “Tengo una petición: que cada uno me dé los aretes de su botín.” (Porque tenían aretes de oro, porque eran ismaelitas).

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.]

25 Ellos respondieron: “Los daremos de buena gana”. Extendieron un manto, y cada uno echó en él los pendientes de su botín.

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].

26 El peso de los aretes de oro que pidió fue de mil setecientos siclos de oro, además de las medias lunas, los colgantes y la ropa de púrpura que llevaban los reyes de Madián, y además de las cadenas que llevaban al cuello de sus camellos.

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.

27 Gedeón hizo un efod con él y lo puso en Ofra, su ciudad. Entonces todo Israel se prostituyó con él allí, y se convirtió en una trampa para Gedeón y para su casa.

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].

28 Así fue sometido Madián ante los hijos de Israel, y no volvieron a levantar la cabeza. La tierra tuvo un descanso de cuarenta años en los días de Gedeón.

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.

29 Jerobaal, hijo de Joás, se fue a vivir a su casa.

Gideon went back home to live there.

30 Gedeón tuvo setenta hijos concebidos de su cuerpo, pues tenía muchas mujeres.

He had many wives, and they bore him seventy sons.

31 Su concubina que estaba en Siquem también le dio a luz un hijo, y le puso el nombre de Abimelec.

He also had a slave wife in Shechem [town], who bore him a son whom he named Abimelech.

32 Gedeón, hijo de Joás, murió en buena edad y fue enterrado en la tumba de su padre Joás, en Ofra de los abiezritas.

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.

33 Tan pronto como murió Gedeón, los hijos de Israel volvieron a prostituirse siguiendo a los baales, e hicieron de Baal Berit su dios.

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.

34 Los hijos de Israel no se acordaron de Yahvé, su Dios, que los había librado de la mano de todos sus enemigos de todas partes;

They forgot about Yahweh, the one who had rescued them from all their enemies that surrounded them.

35 tampoco mostraron bondad a la casa de Jerobaal, es decir, a Gedeón, conforme a toda la bondad que había mostrado a Israel.

And even though Gideon had done many good things for the Israelis, they were not kind to Gideon’s family.