Judges 6

1 And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah: and Jehovah delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.2 And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel; and because of Midian the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and the caves, and the strongholds.3 And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east; they came up against them;4 and they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance in Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass.5 For they came up with their cattle and their tents; they came in as locusts for multitude; both they and their camels were without number: and they came into the land to destroy it.6 And Israel was brought very low because of Midian; and the children of Israel cried unto Jehovah.

7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto Jehovah because of Midian,8 that Jehovah sent a prophet unto the children of Israel: and he said unto them, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage;9 and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land;10 and I said unto you, I am Jehovah your God; ye shall not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell. But ye have not hearkened unto my voice.

11 And the angel of Jehovah came, and sat under the oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.12 And the angel of Jehovah appeared unto him, and said unto him, Jehovah is with thee, thou mighty man of valor.13 And Gideon said unto him, Oh, my lord, if Jehovah is with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where are all his wondrous works which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not Jehovah bring us up from Egypt? but now Jehovah hath cast us off, and delivered us into the hand of Midian.14 And Jehovah looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and save Israel from the hand of Midian: have not I sent thee?15 And he said unto him, Oh, Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is the poorest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.16 And Jehovah said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.17 And he said unto him, If now I have found favor in thy sight, then show me a sign that it is thou that talkest with me.18 Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and lay it before thee. And he said, I will tarry until thou come again.

19 And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of meal: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it.20 And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so.21 Then the angel of Jehovah put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there went up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and the angel of Jehovah departed out of his sight.22 And Gideon saw that he was the angel of Jehovah; and Gideon said, Alas, O Lord Jehovah! forasmuch as I have seen the angel of Jehovah face to face.23 And Jehovah said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.24 Then Gideon built an altar there unto Jehovah, and called it Jehovah-shalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

25 And it came to pass the same night, that Jehovah said unto him, Take thy father’s bullock, even the second bullock seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the Asherah that is by it;26 and build an altar unto Jehovah thy God upon the top of this stronghold, in the orderly manner, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt-offering with the wood of the Asherah which thou shalt cut down.27 Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as Jehovah had spoken unto him: and it came to pass, because he feared his father’s household and the men of the city, so that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.

28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the Asherah was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built.29 And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they inquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing.30 Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die, because he hath broken down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the Asherah that was by it.31 And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye contend for Baal? Or will ye save him? he that will contend for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him contend for himself, because one hath broken down his altar.32 Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal contend against him, because he hath broken down his altar.

33 Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east assembled themselves together; and they passed over, and encamped in the valley of Jezreel.34 But the Spirit of Jehovah came upon Gideon; and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered together after him.35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; and they also were gathered together after him: and he sent messengers unto Asher, and unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

36 And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast spoken,37 behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing-floor; if there be dew on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the ground, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast spoken.38 And it was so; for he rose up early on the morrow, and pressed the fleece together, and wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water.39 And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be kindled against me, and I will speak but this once: let me make trial, 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.40 And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.

Judges 6

Oppression and Confrontation

1 The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight,t so the Lord turned them over tot Midian for seven years.2 The Midianitest overwhelmed Israel.t Because of Midian the Israelites made shelterst for themselves in the hills, as well as caves and strongholds.3 Whenever the Israelites planted their crops,t the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the east would attack them.t4 They invaded the landt and devouredt its cropst all the way to Gaza. They left nothing for the Israelites to eat,t and they took awayt the sheep, oxen, and donkeys.5 When they invadedt with their cattle and tents, they were as thickt as locusts. Neither they nor their camels could be counted.t They came to devourt the land.

6 Israel was so severely weakened by Midian that the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help.
7 When the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help because of Midian,8 het sent a prophett to the Israelites. He said to them, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘I brought you up from Egypts and took you out of that place of slavery.t9 I rescued you from Egypt’s powert and from the power of all who oppressed you. I drove them out before you and gave their land to you.

10 I said to you, “I am the Lord your God! Do not worshipt the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are now living!” But you have disobeyed me.’”t

Gideon Meets Some Visitors

11 The Lord’s angelic messengerts came and sat down under the oak tree in Ophrah owned by Joash the Abiezrite. He arrived while Joash’s son Gideont was threshingt wheat in a winepresss so he could hide it from the Midianites.t12 The Lord’s messenger appeared and said to him, “The Lord is with you, courageous warrior!”13 Gideon said to him, “Pardon me,t but if the Lord is with us, why has such disastert overtaken us? Where are all his miraculous deeds our ancestors told us about? They said,t ‘Did the Lord not bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian.”14 Then the Lord himselfs turned to him and said, “You have the strength.t Deliver Israel from the power of the Midianites!t Have I not sent you?”15 Gideont said to him, “But Lord,t howt can I deliver Israel? Just look! My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my family.”t16 The Lord said to him, “Ah, butt I will be with you! You will strike down the whole Midianite army.”t17 Gideont said to him, “If you really are pleased with me,t then give met a sign as proof that it is really you speaking with me.

18 Do not leave this place until I come backt with a giftt and present it to you.” The Lord said, “I will stay here until you come back.”
19 Gideon went and prepared a young goat,t along with unleavened bread made from an ephah of flour. He put the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot. He brought the foodt to him under the oak tree and presented it to him.20 God’s messenger said to him, “Put the meat and unleavened bread on this rock,t and pour out the broth.” Gideon did as instructed.t

21 The Lord’s messenger touched the meat and the unleavened bread with the tip of his staff.t Fire flared up from the rock and consumed the meat and unleavened bread. The Lord’s messenger then disappeared.t
22 When Gideon realizedt that it was the Lord’s messenger, het said, “Oh no!t Master, Lord!t I have seen the Lord’s messenger face to face!”23 The Lord said to him, “You are safe!t Do not be afraid! You are not going to die!”

24 Gideon built an altar for the Lord there, and named it “The Lord is on friendly terms with me.”t To this day it is still there in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Gideon Destroys the Altar

25 That night the Lord said to him, “Take the bull from your father’s herd, as well as a second bull, one that is seven years old.t Pull down your father’s Baal altar and cut down the nearby Asherah pole.26 Then build an altar for the Lord your God on the top of this stronghold according to the proper pattern.t Take the second bull and offer it as a burnt sacrifice on the wood from the Asherah pole that you cut down.”

27 So Gideon took ten of his servantst and did just as the Lord had told him. He was too afraid of his father’s familyt and the men of the city to do it in broad daylight, so he waited until nighttime.t
28 When the men of the city got up the next morning, they sawt the Baal altar pulled down, the nearby Asherah pole cut down, and the second bull sacrificed on the newly built altar.29 They said to one another,t “Who did this?”t They investigated the matter thoroughlyt and concludedt that Gideon son of Joash had done it.30 The men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, so we can execute him!t He pulled down the Baal altar and cut down the nearby Asherah pole.”31 But Joash said to all those who confronted him,t “Must you fight Baal’s battles?t Must you rescue him? Whoever takes up his causet will die by morning!s If he really is a god, let him fight his own battles!t After all, it was his altar that was pulled down.”t

32 That very day Gideon’s father named him Jerub-Baal,t because he had said, “Let Baal fight with him, for it was his altar that was pulled down.”

Gideon Summons an Army and Seeks Confirmation

33 All the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the eastt assembled. They crossed the Jordan Rivert and camped in the Jezreel Valley.34 The Lord’s spirit took control oft Gideon. He blew a trumpet,t summoning the Abiezrites to follow him.t

35 He sent messengers throughout Manasseh and summoned them to follow him as well.t He also sent messengers throughout Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they came up to meet him.
36 Gideon said to God, “If you really intend to use me to deliver Israel,t as you promised, then give me a sign as proof.t37 Look, I am putting a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece, and the ground around itt is dry, then I will be suret that you will use me to deliver Israel,t as you promised.”38 The Lord did as he asked.t When he got up the next morning, he squeezed the fleece, and enough dew dripped from it to fill a bowl.t39 Gideon said to God, “Please do not get angry at me, when I ask for just one more sign.t Please allow me one more test with the fleece. This time make only the fleece dry, while the ground around it is covered with dew.”t

40 That night God did as he asked.t Only the fleece was dry and the ground around it was covered with dew.