Atemmufo 7
1 Anɔpahema, Yerub-Baal (a ɔne Gideon) ne nʼakofo kɔɔ ara kosii Harod asu ho. Midian asraafo nso bɔɔ tukuw wɔ atifi fam wɔ obon bi a ɛbɛn More bepɔw no.
The next morning, Gideon and his men got up early and went as far as Harod Spring. The army of Midian was camped north of them, in the valley near Moreh Hill.
2 Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Gideon se, “Akofo a wɔka wo ho no dɔɔso dodo. Sɛ mema mo nyinaa ko tia Midianfo a, Israelfo no bɛhoahoa wɔn ho akyerɛ me sɛ wɔn ara nam wɔn ahoɔden so na wogyee wɔn ho sii hɔ.
Yahweh said to Gideon, “You have too many soldiers with you. If I allow all of you to fight the army of Midian, [if your army defeats them], they will boast to me that they defeated their enemies by themselves, [without my help].
3 Ɛno nti, ka kyerɛ nnipa no se, ‘Obiara a ɔyɛ bɔtee anaa osuro no, onyi ne ho mfi mu na ɔnkɔ fie.’” Wɔn mu mpem aduonu abien na wɔkɔɔ fie, na ɛkaa wɔn mu mpem du a wɔpɛe sɛ wɔbɛko.
So tell the men, ‘Whoever among you is timid or afraid may leave us and go home.’” So [after Gideon told that to them], 22,000 of them went home. Only 10,000 men were left there.
4 Nanso Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Gideon se, “Wɔdɔɔso ara. Fa wɔn bra asu no ho na mɛsa wɔn mu ayi wɔn a wo ne wɔn bɛkɔ ne wɔn a wɔne wo renkɔ.”
But Yahweh told Gideon, “There are still too many men! Take them down to the spring, and there I will choose from among them, which ones will go with you and which ones will not go.”.
5 Bere a Gideon de nʼakofo no kɔɔ asu no ho no, Awurade ka kyerɛɛ no se, “Kyɛ nnipa no mu akuw abien. Fa nnipa a wɔbɔ nsu gu wɔn nsam na wɔde wɔn tɛkrɛma taforo no sɛ akraman no kɔ kuw baako mu. Kuw a ɛto so abien no nso, fa wɔn a wobu nkotodwe de wɔn ano nom nsu wɔ asuwa mu no hyɛ mu.”
When Gideon took the men down to the spring, Yahweh told him, “When they drink, put into one group the ones who scoop the water into their hands, and then lap it up like dogs do. Put into another group the ones who kneel down [and bend over] and drink with their mouths in the water.”
6 Mmarima no mu ahaasa pɛ na na wɔnom nsu fi wɔn nsa mu. Wɔn a aka no nyinaa nso, na wobu nkotodwe de wɔn ano nom nsu fi asuwa no mu.
So when they drank, only 300 men drank from their hands. All the others drank with their mouths down in the water.
7 Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Gideon se, “Menam saa mmarima ahaasa yi so begye mo, na mama moadi Midianfo no so nkonim. Ma wɔn a aka no nyinaa nkɔ fie.”
Then Yahweh told Gideon, “The 300 men who lapped the water from their hands will be your army! I will enable them to defeat the Midian army. Let all the others go home!”
8 Enti Gideon gyigyee wɔn akwansoduan ne ntorobɛnto fii akofo no nkyɛn ma wɔkɔɔ fie. Ɛnna ɔmaa mmarima ahaasa no kaa ne nkyɛn. Na Midianfo no atenae wɔ obon a ɛwɔ Gideon ase pɛɛ.
So Gideon’s 300 men collected the food and rams’ horns from all the other men, and then he sent them home. The men of Midian were camping in the valley below Gideon.
9 Anadwo no, Awurade kae se, “Sɔre! Kɔ Midianfo no atenae no mu wɔ ase hɔ, na mɛma mo adi wɔn so nkonim!
That night, Yahweh said to Gideon, “Get up and go down to their camp, [and you will hear something that will convince you that] I will enable your men to defeat them.
10 Na sɛ wusuro sɛ wobɛkɔ akɔtow ahyɛ wɔn so a, wo ne wo somfo Pura nkɔ hɔ.
But if you are afraid to attack them by yourself, take your servant Purah with you.
11 Tie nea Midianfo no reka na ɛbɛhyɛ wo nkuran. Na wo ho bɛpere wo ama woatow ahyɛ wɔn so.” Enti Gideon faa Pura kaa ne ho ne no kɔɔ atamfo no atenae no mfikyiri.
Go down and listen to what some of the Midian soldiers are saying. Then you will be very encouraged, and you will be ready to attack their camp.” So Gideon took Purah with him, and they went down to the edge of the enemy camp.
12 Saa bere no na Midianfo, Amalekfo ne nnipa no nkae a wofifi apuei fam no abɛfɔre so te sɛ mmoadabi wɔ obon no mu. Na wɔn yoma nso dodow te sɛ mpoano nwea. Wɔdɔɔso dodo!
The armies of the people of Midian and Amalek and from the east had set up their tents and looked like a swarm of locusts. It seemed that their camels were as impossible to count as the grains of sand on the seashore.
13 Gideon weawea koduu hɔ no, na ɔbarima bi reka ne dae a ɔsoo akyerɛ nʼadamfo bi se, “Mesoo dae na brodo kurukuruwa bi atew abɛhwe Midianfo atenae. Ɛkɔpem ntamadan no bi na ebu faa so ma ɛkɔhwee ase.”
Gideon crept closer and heard one man telling a friend about a dream. He said, “I just had a dream, and in the dream I saw a round loaf of barley bread tumble down into our Midian camp. It struck a tent so hard that the tent turned upside down and collapsed!”
14 Nʼadamfo no kae se, “Wo dae no kyerɛ ade baako pɛ. Onyankopɔn de Midian ne ne dɔm nyinaa so nkonimdi ahyɛ Yoas babarima Gideon, Israelni no nsa.”
His friend said, “Your dream can mean only one thing. It means that God will enable Gideon, the man of Israel, to defeat all of the armies that are here with us men from Midian.”
15 Bere a Gideon tee dae no ne ne nkyerɛase no, ɔkotow sɔree Onyankopɔn. Ɔsan baa Israel atenae mu teɛɛ mu se, “Monsɔre! Awurade de Midianfo ahyɛ mo nsa.”
When Gideon heard the [man tell about his] dream and the meaning of that dream, he thanked God. Then he [and Purah] returned to the Israeli camp, and he shouted to the men, “Get up! Because God is enabling you to defeat the men from Midian!”
16 Ɔkyɛɛ mmarima ahaasa no mu akuwakuw abiɛsa. Ɔde ntorobɛnto ne dɔte kuruwa a ogyatɛn hyehyɛ mu maa wɔn.
He divided his men into three groups. He gave each man a ram’s horn and an empty clay jar. He also gave each of them a torch [that they lit].
17 Afei, ɔka kyerɛɛ wɔn se, “Monhwɛ me. Munni mʼakyi. Sɛ midu atenae no mfikyiri a, nea mɛyɛ biara no, monyɛ bi.
Then he said to them, “Watch me. When we come close to the enemy camp, [spread out to surround the camp]. Then do exactly what I do.
18 Sɛ me ne wɔn a wɔka me ho nyinaa hyɛn ntorobɛnto no a, mo a moatwa atenae no ho ahyia no nyinaa, mo nso monhyɛn mo de na monteɛ mu se, ‘Yɛko ma Onyankopɔn ne Gideon.’”
As soon as I and the men with me blow our ram’s horns, you men in the other two groups surrounding the camp blow your horns and shout, ‘[We are doing this] for Yahweh and for Gideon!’”
19 Anadwo dasum a wɔasesa awɛmfo no awie pɛ, na Gideon ne mmarima ɔha a wɔka ne ho no koduu Midianfo atenae mfikyiri. Mpofirim wɔhyɛn wɔn ntorobɛnto no, bobɔɔ dɔte nkuruwa a na ɛhyehyɛ wɔn nsam no.
A while before midnight, just after a new group of Israeli guards took the places of the previous group, Gideon and the 100 men with him arrived at the edge of the Midian camp. Suddenly they all blew their horns, and broke their jars.
20 Afei akuw abiɛsa no nyinaa hyɛn wɔn ntorobɛnto bobɔɔ wɔn nkuruwa. Na wokurakura ogyatɛn a ɛredɛw no wɔ wɔn nsa benkum mu na wokurakura ntorobɛnto wɔ wɔn nsa nifa mu, wɔteɛɛ mu se, “Awurade afoa yɛ Gideon afoa!”
Then the men in all three groups blew their horns and smashed their jars. They held the torches high with their left hands, and held up the horns with their right hands and alternatively blew them and shouted, “[We have] swords [to fight] for Yahweh and for Gideon!”
21 Ɔbarima biara gyinaa nʼafa wɔ atenae no ho, hwɛɛ Midianfo no sɛ wɔabɔ huboa reteɛteɛ mu na wɔreguan.
Each of Gideon’s men stood in his position around the enemy camp. As they watched, all the Midian men started running around and shouting in a panic.
22 Bere a Israelfo ahaasa no hyɛn wɔn ntorobɛnto no, Awurade maa wɔn atamfo akofo a wɔwɔ atenae hɔ no twaa wɔn ho de afoa ne wɔn ho wɔn ho koe. Wɔn a wɔanwu no guan koduu Bet-Sita a ɛbɛn Serera ne Abel-Mehola hye a ɛbɛn Tabat so.
While the 300 Israeli men kept blowing their horns, Yahweh caused their enemies to start fighting each other with their swords/daggers. Some of them killed each other. The rest fled. Some fled south to Beth-Shittah. Some fled to Zerarah [village], near Tabbath.
23 Afei, Gideon soma kɔfaa Naftali, Aser ne Manase akofo a wɔbɛboa ma wɔtaa Midian nsraadɔm a wɔreguan no.
Then Gideon sent messages to the soldiers in the areas where the descendants of Naphtali, Asher, and Manasseh lived, to tell them to come and pursue the army of Midian.
24 Gideon tuu abɔfo kɔɔ Efraim mmepɔw aman no so kɔkae se, “Mommra mmɛtow nhyɛ Midianfo so. Munhyia wɔn wɔ Yordan aworoe so a ɛwɔ Bet-Bera hɔ no.” Na Efraim mmarima no yɛɛ sɛnea wɔka kyerɛɛ wɔn no.
He also sent messengers throughout the hilly area where the descendants of Ephraim lived, saying, “Come down to attack the army of Midian. Come down to the Jordan River, to the place where people can wade across, to prevent enemy troops from crossing it! Station men as far south as Beth-Barah.” So the men of Ephraim did what Gideon told them to do.
25 Wɔkyeree Oreb ne Seeb a na wɔyɛ Midian asahene. Wokum Oreb wɔ Oreb botan so, na wokum Seeb nso wɔ Seeb nsakyiamoa ho. Na wɔkɔɔ so taa Midianfo no. Akyiri no, Israelfo no de Oreb ne Seeb ti no brɛɛ Gideon a na saa bere no ɔwɔ Yordan ho no.
They also captured Oreb and Zeeb, the two generals of the Midian army. They killed Oreb at [the big rock which is now called] the rock of Oreb, and they killed Zeeb at [the place where people crush grapes that is now called] the winepress of Zeeb. Afterwards, the Israelis cut off the heads of Oreb and Zeeb and brought them to Gideon, while he was near the Jordan River.
