| Chapter
12 |
| 1 | And
the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and went northward, and said
unto Jephthah, Wherefore passedst thou over to fight against the children of
Ammon, and didst not call us to go with thee? we will burn thine house upon
thee with fire. |
| 2 | And
Jephthah said unto them, I and my people were at great strife with the children
of Ammon; and when I called you, ye delivered me not out of their hands. |
| 3 | And when I saw that ye
delivered me not, I put my life in my hands, and passed over against the
children of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand: wherefore then are
ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me? |
|
4 | Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of
Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because
they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and
among the Manassites. |
| 5 |
And the Gileadites took the passages of Jordan before the Ephraimites: and it
was so, that when those Ephraimites which were escaped said, Let me go over;
that the men of Gilead said unto him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If he said,
Nay; |
| 6 | Then said they
unto him, Say now Shibboleth: and he said Sibboleth: for he could not frame to
pronounce it right. Then they took him, and slew him at the passages of Jordan:
and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty and two thousand. |
| 7 | And Jephthah judged Israel six
years. Then died Jephthah the Gileadite, and was buried in one of the cities of
Gilead. |
| 8 | And after him
Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. |
|
9 | And he had thirty sons, and thirty daughters, whom he sent
abroad, and took in thirty daughters from abroad for his sons. And he judged
Israel seven years. |
| 10 |
Then died Ibzan, and was buried at Bethlehem. |
| 11 | And after him Elon, a Zebulonite, judged Israel; and he
judged Israel ten years. |
| 12 |
And Elon the Zebulonite died, and was buried in Aijalon in the country of
Zebulun. |
| 13 | And after
him Abdon the son of Hillel, a Pirathonite, judged Israel. |
| 14 | And he had forty sons and thirty
nephews, that rode on threescore and ten ass colts: and he judged Israel eight
years. |
| 15 | And Abdon the
son of Hillel the Pirathonite died, and was buried in Pirathon in the land of
Ephraim, in the mount of the Amalekites. |
