| Chapter 6 |
| 1 | And the children of Israel did
evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of
Midian seven years. |
| 2 | And the hand of Midian prevailed against
Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens
which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds. |
| 3 | And so it
was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and
the children of the east, even 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 for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor
ass. |
| 5 |
For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they
came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without
number: and they entered into the land to destroy it. |
| 6 | And Israel was
greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel
cried unto the LORD. |
| 7 | And it came to pass, when the children of
Israel cried unto the LORD because of the Midianites, |
| 8 | That the LORD
sent a prophet unto the children of Israel, which said unto them, Thus saith
the LORD 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 drave them out
from before you, and gave you their land; |
|
10 | And I said unto you, I am
the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell:
but ye have not obeyed my voice. |
| 11 | And there came an angel of
the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash
the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it
from the Midianites. |
| 12 | And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him,
and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valor. |
| 13 |
And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all
this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of,
saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken
us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. |
| 14 | And the LORD
looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel
from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee? |
| 15 | And he said
unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor
in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house. |
| 16 | And the LORD
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 grace in
thy sight, then show me a sign that thou talkest with me. |
| 18 | Depart
not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and
set 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
flour: 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 the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and
touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the
rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the
LORD departed out of his sight. |
| 22 | And when Gideon perceived
that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O LORD God! for because I
have seen an angel of the LORD face to face. |
|
23 | And the LORD said unto
him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die. |
| 24 | Then Gideon
built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: unto this day
it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. |
| 25 | And it came to pass the same
night, that the LORD said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the
second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy
father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it: |
| 26 | And build an
altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place,
and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the
grove which thou shalt cut down. |
| 27 | Then Gideon took ten men of
his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he
feared his father's household, and the men of the city, 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 cast down, and the
grove 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 cast down the altar
of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it. |
| 31 | And
Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal? will ye
save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet
morning: if he be a god, let him plead for himself, because one hath cast down
his altar. |
| 32
| Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying,
Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar. |
| 33 |
Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were
gathered together, and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.
|
| 34 | But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and
Abiezer was gathered after him. |
| 35 | And he sent messengers
throughout all Manasseh; who also was gathered 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
mine hand, as thou hast said, |
|
37 | Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in
the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the
earth beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as
thou hast said. |
|
38 | And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow,
and thrust the fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl
full of water. |
|
39 | And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be
hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, 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. |
