The Old Testament of the
King James Version of the Bible
The Book of Judges
1:1 Now after the death of Joshua it came to
pass, that the children
of Israel asked the LORD, saying, Who shall
go up for us against the
Canaanites first, to fight against them? 1:2
And the LORD said, Judah
shall go up: behold, I have delivered the
land into his hand.
1:3 And Judah said unto Simeon his brother,
Come up with me into my
lot, that we may fight against the
Canaanites; and I likewise will go
with thee into thy lot. So Simeon went with
him.
1:4 And Judah went up; and the LORD
delivered the Canaanites and the
Perizzites into their hand: and they slew of
them in Bezek ten
thousand men.
1:5 And they found Adonibezek in Bezek: and
they fought against him,
and they slew the Canaanites and the
Perizzites.
1:6 But Adonibezek fled; and they pursued
after him, and caught him,
and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.
1:7 And Adonibezek said, Threescore and ten
kings, having their thumbs
and their great toes cut off, gathered their
meat under my table: as I
have done, so God hath requited me. And they
brought him to Jerusalem,
and there he died.
1:8 Now the children of Judah had fought
against Jerusalem, and had
taken it, and smitten it with the edge of
the sword, and set the city
on fire.
1:9 And afterward the children of Judah went
down to fight against the
Canaanites, that dwelt in the mountain, and
in the south, and in the
valley.
1:10 And Judah went against the Canaanites
that dwelt in Hebron: (now
the name of Hebron before was Kirjatharba:)
and they slew Sheshai, and
Ahiman, and Talmai.
1:11 And from thence he went against the
inhabitants of Debir: and the
name of Debir before was Kirjathsepher: 1:12
And Caleb said, He that
smiteth Kirjathsepher, and taketh it, to him
will I give Achsah my
daughter to wife.
1:13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's
younger brother, took it:
and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.
1:14 And it came to pass, when she came to
him, that she moved him to
ask of her father a field: and she lighted
from off her ass; and Caleb
said unto her, What wilt thou? 1:15 And she
said unto him, Give me a
blessing: for thou hast given me a south
land; give me also springs of
water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs
and the nether springs.
1:16 And the children of the Kenite, Moses'
father in law, went up out
of the city of palm trees with the children
of Judah into the
wilderness of Judah, which lieth in the
south of Arad; and they went
and dwelt among the people.
1:17 And Judah went with Simeon his brother,
and they slew the
Canaanites that inhabited Zephath, and
utterly destroyed it. And the
name of the city was called Hormah.
1:18 Also Judah took Gaza with the coast
thereof, and Askelon with the
coast thereof, and Ekron with the coast
thereof.
1:19 And the LORD was with Judah; and he
drave out the inhabitants of
the mountain; but could not drive out the
inhabitants of the valley,
because they had chariots of iron.
1:20 And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as
Moses said: and he expelled
thence the three sons of Anak.
1:21 And the children of Benjamin did not
drive out the Jebusites that
inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwell
with the children of
Benjamin in Jerusalem unto this day.
1:22 And the house of Joseph, they also went
up against Bethel: and
the LORD was with them.
1:23 And the house of Joseph sent to descry
Bethel. (Now the name of
the city before was Luz.) 1:24 And the spies
saw a man come forth out
of the city, and they said unto him, Shew
us, we pray thee, the
entrance into the city, and we will shew
thee mercy.
1:25 And when he shewed them the entrance
into the city, they smote
the city with the edge of the sword; but
they let go the man and all
his family.
1:26 And the man went into the land of the
Hittites, and built a city,
and called the name thereof Luz: which is
the name thereof unto this
day.
1:27 Neither did Manasseh drive out the
inhabitants of Bethshean and
her towns, nor Taanach and her towns, nor
the inhabitants of Dor and
her towns, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and
her towns, nor the
inhabitants of Megiddo and her towns: but
the Canaanites would dwell
in that land.
1:28 And it came to pass, when Israel was
strong, that they put the
Canaanites to tribute, and did not utterly
drive them out.
1:29 Neither did Ephraim drive out the
Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer;
but the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among
them.
1:30 Neither did Zebulun drive out the
inhabitants of Kitron, nor the
inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites
dwelt among them, and
became tributaries.
1:31 Neither did Asher drive out the
inhabitants of Accho, nor the
inhabitants of Zidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of
Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor
of Aphik, nor of Rehob: 1:32 But the
Asherites dwelt among the
Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: for
they did not drive them
out.
1:33 Neither did Naphtali drive out the
inhabitants of Bethshemesh,
nor the inhabitants of Bethanath; but he
dwelt among the Canaanites,
the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless
the inhabitants of
Bethshemesh and of Bethanath became
tributaries unto them.
1:34 And the Amorites forced the children of
Dan into the mountain:
for they would not suffer them to come down
to the valley: 1:35 But
the Amorites would dwell in mount Heres in
Aijalon, and in Shaalbim:
yet the hand of the house of Joseph
prevailed, so that they became
tributaries.
1:36 And the coast of the Amorites was from
the going up to Akrabbim,
from the rock, and upward.
2:1 And an angel of the LORD came up from
Gilgal to Bochim, and said,
I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have
brought you unto the land
which I sware unto your fathers; and I said,
I will never break my
covenant with you.
2:2 And ye shall make no league with the
inhabitants of this land; ye
shall throw down their altars: but ye have
not obeyed my voice: why
have ye done this? 2:3 Wherefore I also
said, I will not drive them
out from before you; but they shall be as
thorns in your sides, and
their gods shall be a snare unto you.
2:4 And it came to pass, when the angel of
the LORD spake these words
unto all the children of Israel, that the
people lifted up their
voice, and wept.
2:5 And they called the name of that place
Bochim: and they sacrificed
there unto the LORD.
2:6 And when Joshua had let the people go,
the children of Israel went
every man unto his inheritance to possess
the land.
2:7 And the people served the LORD all the
days of Joshua, and all the
days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who
had seen all the great
works of the LORD, that he did for Israel.
2:8 And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant
of the LORD, died, being an
hundred and ten years old.
2:9 And they buried him in the border of his
inheritance in
Timnathheres, in the mount of Ephraim, on
the north side of the hill
Gaash.
2:10 And also all that generation were
gathered unto their fathers:
and there arose another generation after
them, which knew not the
LORD, nor yet the works which he had done
for Israel.
2:11 And the children of Israel did evil in
the sight of the LORD, and
served Baalim: 2:12 And they forsook the
LORD God of their fathers,
which brought them out of the land of Egypt,
and followed other gods,
of the gods of the people that were round
about them, and bowed
themselves unto them, and provoked the LORD
to anger.
2:13 And they forsook the LORD, and served
Baal and Ashtaroth.
2:14 And the anger of the LORD was hot
against Israel, and he
delivered them into the hands of spoilers
that spoiled them, and he
sold them into the hands of their enemies
round about, so that they
could not any longer stand before their
enemies.
2:15 Whithersoever they went out, the hand
of the LORD was against
them for evil, as the LORD had said, and as
the LORD had sworn unto
them: and they were greatly distressed.
2:16 Nevertheless the LORD raised up judges,
which delivered them out
of the hand of those that spoiled them.
2:17 And yet they would not hearken unto
their judges, but they went a
whoring after other gods, and bowed
themselves unto them: they turned
quickly out of the way which their fathers
walked in, obeying the
commandments of the LORD; but they did not
so.
2:18 And when the LORD raised them up
judges, then the LORD was with
the judge, and delivered them out of the
hand of their enemies all the
days of the judge: for it repented the LORD
because of their groanings
by reason of them that oppressed them and
vexed them.
2:19 And it came to pass, when the judge was
dead, that they returned,
and corrupted themselves more than their
fathers, in following other
gods to serve them, and to bow down unto
them; they ceased not from
their own doings, nor from their stubborn
way.
2:20 And the anger of the LORD was hot
against Israel; and he said,
Because that this people hath transgressed
my covenant which I
commanded their fathers, and have not
hearkened unto my voice; 2:21 I
also will not henceforth drive out any from
before them of the nations
which Joshua left when he died: 2:22 That
through them I may prove
Israel, whether they will keep the way of
the LORD to walk therein, as
their fathers did keep it, or not.
2:23 Therefore the LORD left those nations,
without driving them out
hastily; neither delivered he them into the
hand of Joshua.
3:1 Now these are the nations which the LORD
left, to prove Israel by
them, even as many of Israel as had not
known all the wars of Canaan;
3:2 Only that the generations of the
children of Israel might know, to
teach them war, at the least such as before
knew nothing thereof; 3:3
Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and
all the Canaanites, and the
Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in
mount Lebanon, from mount
Baalhermon unto the entering in of Hamath.
3:4 And they were to prove Israel by them,
to know whether they would
hearken unto the commandments of the LORD,
which he commanded their
fathers by the hand of Moses.
3:5 And the children of Israel dwelt among
the Canaanites, Hittites,
and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites,
and Jebusites: 3:6 And they
took their daughters to be their wives, and
gave their daughters to
their sons, and served their gods.
3:7 And the children of Israel did evil in
the sight of the LORD, and
forgat the LORD their God, and served Baalim
and the groves.
3:8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot
against Israel, and he
sold them into the hand of Chushanrishathaim
king of Mesopotamia: and
the children of Israel served
Chushanrishathaim eight years.
3:9 And when the children of Israel cried
unto the LORD, the LORD
raised up a deliverer to the children of
Israel, who delivered them,
even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's
younger brother.
3:10 And the Spirit of the LORD came upon
him, and he judged Israel,
and went out to war: and the LORD delivered
Chushanrishathaim king of
Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand
prevailed against
Chushanrishathaim.
3:11 And the land had rest forty years. And
Othniel the son of Kenaz
died.
3:12 And the children of Israel did evil
again in the sight of the
LORD: and the LORD strengthened Eglon the
king of Moab against Israel,
because they had done evil in the sight of
the LORD.
3:13 And he gathered unto him the children
of Ammon and Amalek, and
went and smote Israel, and possessed the
city of palm trees.
3:14 So the children of Israel served Eglon
the king of Moab eighteen
years.
3:15 But when the children of Israel cried
unto the LORD, the LORD
raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of
Gera, a Benjamite, a man
lefthanded: and by him the children of
Israel sent a present unto
Eglon the king of Moab.
3:16 But Ehud made him a dagger which had
two edges, of a cubit
length; and he did gird it under his raiment
upon his right thigh.
3:17 And he brought the present unto Eglon
king of Moab: and Eglon was
a very fat man.
3:18 And when he had made an end to offer
the present, he sent away
the people that bare the present.
3:19 But he himself turned again from the
quarries that were by
Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand
unto thee, O king: who said,
Keep silence. And all that stood by him went
out from him.
3:20 And Ehud came unto him; and he was
sitting in a summer parlour,
which he had for himself alone. And Ehud
said, I have a message from
God unto thee.
And he arose out of his seat.
3:21 And Ehud put forth his left hand, and
took the dagger from his
right thigh, and thrust it into his belly:
3:22 And the haft also went
in after the blade; and the fat closed upon
the blade, so that he
could not draw the dagger out of his belly;
and the dirt came out.
3:23 Then Ehud went forth through the porch,
and shut the doors of the
parlour upon him, and locked them.
3:24 When he was gone out, his servants
came; and when they saw that,
behold, the doors of the parlour were
locked, they said, Surely he
covereth his feet in his summer chamber.
3:25 And they tarried till they were
ashamed: and, behold, he opened
not the doors of the parlour; therefore they
took a key, and opened
them: and, behold, their lord was fallen
down dead on the earth.
3:26 And Ehud escaped while they tarried,
and passed beyond the
quarries, and escaped unto Seirath.
3:27 And it came to pass, when he was come,
that he blew a trumpet in
the mountain of Ephraim, and the children of
Israel went down with him
from the mount, and he before them.
3:28 And he said unto them, Follow after me:
for the LORD hath
delivered your enemies the Moabites into
your hand. And they went down
after him, and took the fords of Jordan
toward Moab, and suffered not
a man to pass over.
3:29 And they slew of Moab at that time
about ten thousand men, all
lusty, and all men of valour; and there
escaped not a man.
3:30 So Moab was subdued that day under the
hand of Israel. And the
land had rest fourscore years.
3:31 And after him was Shamgar the son of
Anath, which slew of the
Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad:
and he also delivered
Israel.
4:1 And the children of Israel again did
evil in the sight of the
LORD, when Ehud was dead.
4:2 And the LORD sold them into the hand of
Jabin king of Canaan, that
reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host
was Sisera, which dwelt in
Harosheth of the Gentiles.
4:3 And the children of Israel cried unto
the LORD: for he had nine
hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years
he mightily oppressed the
children of Israel.
4:4 And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of
Lapidoth, she judged Israel
at that time.
4:5 And she dwelt under the palm tree of
Deborah between Ramah and
Bethel in mount Ephraim: and the children of
Israel came up to her for
judgment.
4:6 And she sent and called Barak the son of
Abinoam out of
Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not
the LORD God of Israel
commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount
Tabor, and take with thee
ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali
and of the children of
Zebulun? 4:7 And I will draw unto thee to
the river Kishon Sisera,
the captain of Jabin's army, with his
chariots and his multitude; and
I will deliver him into thine hand.
4:8 And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go
with me, then I will go:
but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will
not go.
4:9 And she said, I will surely go with
thee: notwithstanding the
journey that thou takest shall not be for
thine honour; for the LORD
shall sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.
And Deborah arose, and
went with Barak to Kedesh.
4:10 And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali
to Kedesh; and he went up
with ten thousand men at his feet: and
Deborah went up with him.
4:11 Now Heber the Kenite, which was of the
children of Hobab the
father in law of Moses, had severed himself
from the Kenites, and
pitched his tent unto the plain of Zaanaim,
which is by Kedesh.
4:12 And they shewed Sisera that Barak the
son of Abinoam was gone up
to mount Tabor.
4:13 And Sisera gathered together all his
chariots, even nine hundred
chariots of iron, and all the people that
were with him, from
Harosheth of the Gentiles unto the river of
Kishon.
4:14 And Deborah said unto Barak, Up; for
this is the day in which the
LORD hath delivered Sisera into thine hand:
is not the LORD gone out
before thee? So Barak went down from mount
Tabor, and ten thousand men
after him.
4:15 And the LORD discomfited Sisera, and
all his chariots, and all
his host, with the edge of the sword before
Barak; so that Sisera
lighted down off his chariot, and fled away
on his feet.
4:16 But Barak pursued after the chariots,
and after the host, unto
Harosheth of the Gentiles: and all the host
of Sisera fell upon the
edge of the sword; and there was not a man
left.
4:17 Howbeit Sisera fled away on his feet to
the tent of Jael the wife
of Heber the Kenite: for there was peace
between Jabin the king of
Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite.
4:18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and
said unto him, Turn in, my
lord, turn in to me; fear not. And when he
had turned in unto her into
the tent, she covered him with a mantle.
4:19 And he said unto her, Give me, I pray
thee, a little water to
drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a
bottle of milk, and gave him
drink, and covered him.
4:20 Again he said unto her, Stand in the
door of the tent, and it
shall be, when any man doth come and enquire
of thee, and say, Is
there any man here? that thou shalt say, No.
4:21 Then Jael Heber's wife took a nail of
the tent, and took an
hammer in her hand, and went softly unto
him, and smote the nail into
his temples, and fastened it into the
ground: for he was fast asleep
and weary. So he died.
4:22 And, behold, as Barak pursued Sisera,
Jael came out to meet him,
and said unto him, Come, and I will shew
thee the man whom thou
seekest. And when he came into her tent,
behold, Sisera lay dead, and
the nail was in his temples.
4:23 So God subdued on that day Jabin the
king of Canaan before the
children of Israel.
4:24 And the hand of the children of Israel
prospered, and prevailed
against Jabin the king of Canaan, until they
had destroyed Jabin king
of Canaan.
5:1 Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of
Abinoam on that day,
saying, 5:2 Praise ye the LORD for the
avenging of Israel, when the
people willingly offered themselves.
5:3 Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye
princes; I, even I, will sing
unto the LORD; I will sing praise to the
LORD God of Israel.
5:4 LORD, when thou wentest out of Seir,
when thou marchedst out of
the field of Edom, the earth trembled, and
the heavens dropped, the
clouds also dropped water.
5:5 The mountains melted from before the
LORD, even that Sinai from
before the LORD God of Israel.
5:6 In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath,
in the days of Jael, the
highways were unoccupied, and the travellers
walked through byways.
5:7 The inhabitants of the villages ceased,
they ceased in Israel,
until that I Deborah arose, that I arose a
mother in Israel.
5:8 They chose new gods; then was war in the
gates: was there a shield
or spear seen among forty thousand in
Israel? 5:9 My heart is toward
the governors of Israel, that offered
themselves willingly among the
people. Bless ye the LORD.
5:10 Speak, ye that ride on white asses, ye
that sit in judgment, and
walk by the way.
5:11 They that are delivered from the noise
of archers in the places
of drawing water, there shall they rehearse
the righteous acts of the
LORD, even the righteous acts toward the
inhabitants of his villages
in Israel: then shall the people of the LORD
go down to the gates.
5:12 Awake, awake, Deborah: awake, awake,
utter a song: arise, Barak,
and lead thy captivity captive, thou son of
Abinoam.
5:13 Then he made him that remaineth have
dominion over the nobles
among the people: the LORD made me have
dominion over the mighty.
5:14 Out of Ephraim was there a root of them
against Amalek; after
thee, Benjamin, among thy people; out of
Machir came down governors,
and out of Zebulun they that handle the pen
of the writer.
5:15 And the princes of Issachar were with
Deborah; even Issachar, and
also Barak: he was sent on foot into the
valley. For the divisions of
Reuben there were great thoughts of heart.
5:16 Why abodest thou among the sheepfolds,
to hear the bleatings of
the flocks? For the divisions of Reuben
there were great searchings of
heart.
5:17 Gilead abode beyond Jordan: and why did
Dan remain in ships?
Asher continued on the sea shore, and abode
in his breaches.
5:18 Zebulun and Naphtali were a people that
jeoparded their lives
unto the death in the high places of the
field.
5:19 The kings came and fought, then fought
the kings of Canaan in
Taanach by the waters of Megiddo; they took
no gain of money.
5:20 They fought from heaven; the stars in
their courses fought
against Sisera.
5:21 The river of Kishon swept them away,
that ancient river, the
river Kishon. O my soul, thou hast trodden
down strength.
5:22 Then were the horsehoofs broken by the
means of the pransings,
the pransings of their mighty ones.
5:23 Curse ye Meroz, said the angel of the
LORD, curse ye bitterly the
inhabitants thereof; because they came not
to the help of the LORD, to
the help of the LORD against the mighty.
5:24 Blessed above women shall Jael the wife
of Heber the Kenite be,
blessed shall she be above women in the
tent.
5:25 He asked water, and she gave him milk;
she brought forth butter
in a lordly dish.
5:26 She put her hand to the nail, and her
right hand to the workmen's
hammer; and with the hammer she smote
Sisera, she smote off his head,
when she had pierced and stricken through
his temples.
5:27 At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay
down: at her feet he bowed,
he fell: where he bowed, there he fell down
dead.
5:28 The mother of Sisera looked out at a
window, and cried through
the lattice, Why is his chariot so long in
coming? why tarry the
wheels of his chariots? 5:29 Her wise ladies
answered her, yea, she
returned answer to herself, 5:30 Have they
not sped? have they not
divided the prey; to every man a damsel or
two; to Sisera a prey of
divers colours, a prey of divers colours of
needlework, of divers
colours of needlework on both sides, meet
for the necks of them that
take the spoil? 5:31 So let all thine
enemies perish, O LORD: but let
them that love him be as the sun when he
goeth forth in his might. And
the land had rest forty years.
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.
6:2 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.
6:3 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; 6:4 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.
6:5 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.
6:6 And Israel was greatly impoverished
because of the Midianites; and
the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.
6:7 And it came to pass, when the children
of Israel cried unto the
LORD because of the Midianites, 6:8 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; 6:9 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; 6:10 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.
6:11 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.
6:12 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto
him, and said unto him,
The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of
valour.
6:13 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.
6:14 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? 6:15 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.
6:16 And the LORD said unto him, Surely I
will be with thee, and thou
shalt smite the Midianites as one man.
6:17 And he said unto him, If now I have
found grace in thy sight,
then shew me a sign that thou talkest with
me.
6:18 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.
6:19 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.
6:20 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.
6:21 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.
6:22 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.
6:23 And the LORD said unto him, Peace be
unto thee; fear not: thou
shalt not die.
6:24 Then Gideon built an altar there unto
the LORD, and called it
Jehovahshalom: unto this day it is yet in
Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
6:25 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: 6:26 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.
6:27 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.
6:28 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.
6:29 And they said one to another, Who hath
done this thing? And when
they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon
the son of Joash hath done
this thing.
6:30 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.
6:31 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.
6:32 Therefore on that day he called him
Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal
plead against him, because he hath thrown
down his altar.
6:33 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.
6:34 But the Spirit of the LORD came upon
Gideon, and he blew a
trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him.
6:35 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.
6:36 And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt
save Israel by mine hand,
as thou hast said, 6:37 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.
6:38 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.
6:39 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.
6:40 And God did so that night: for it was
dry upon the fleece only,
and there was dew on all the ground.
7:1 Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all
the people that were with
him, rose up early, and pitched beside the
well of Harod: so that the
host of the Midianites were on the north
side of them, by the hill of
Moreh, in the valley.
7:2 And the LORD said unto Gideon, The
people that are with thee are
too many for me to give the Midianites into
their hands, lest Israel
vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine
own hand hath saved me.
7:3 Now therefore go to, proclaim in the
ears of the people, saying,
Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him
return and depart early from
mount Gilead. And there returned of the
people twenty and two
thousand; and there remained ten thousand.
7:4 And the LORD said unto Gideon, The
people are yet too many; bring
them down unto the water, and I will try
them for thee there: and it
shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This
shall go with thee, the
same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I
say unto thee, This shall
not go with thee, the same shall not go.
7:5 So he brought down the people unto the
water: and the LORD said
unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the
water with his tongue, as a
dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself;
likewise every one that
boweth down upon his knees to drink.
7:6 And the number of them that lapped,
putting their hand to their
mouth, were three hundred men: but all the
rest of the people bowed
down upon their knees to drink water.
7:7 And the LORD said unto Gideon, By the
three hundred men that
lapped will I save you, and deliver the
Midianites into thine hand:
and let all the other people go every man
unto his place.
7:8 So the people took victuals in their
hand, and their trumpets: and
he sent all the rest of Israel every man
unto his tent, and retained
those three hundred men: and the host of
Midian was beneath him in the
valley.
7:9 And it came to pass the same night, that
the LORD said unto him,
Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I
have delivered it into thine
hand.
7:10 But if thou fear to go down, go thou
with Phurah thy servant down
to the host: 7:11 And thou shalt hear what
they say; and afterward
shall thine hands be strengthened to go down
unto the host. Then went
he down with Phurah his servant unto the
outside of the armed men that
were in the host.
7:12 And the Midianites and the Amalekites
and all the children of the
east lay along in the valley like
grasshoppers for multitude; and
their camels were without number, as the
sand by the sea side for
multitude.
7:13 And when Gideon was come, behold, there
was a man that told a
dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I
dreamed a dream, and, lo, a
cake of barley bread tumbled into the host
of Midian, and came unto a
tent, and smote it that it fell, and
overturned it, that the tent lay
along.
7:14 And his fellow answered and said, This
is nothing else save the
sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of
Israel: for into his hand
hath God delivered Midian, and all the host.
7:15 And it was so, when Gideon heard the
telling of the dream, and
the interpretation thereof, that he
worshipped, and returned into the
host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the
LORD hath delivered into your
hand the host of Midian.
7:16 And he divided the three hundred men
into three companies, and he
put a trumpet in every man's hand, with
empty pitchers, and lamps
within the pitchers.
7:17 And he said unto them, Look on me, and
do likewise: and, behold,
when I come to the outside of the camp, it
shall be that, as I do, so
shall ye do.
7:18 When I blow with a trumpet, I and all
that are with me, then blow
ye the trumpets also on every side of all
the camp, and say, The sword
of the LORD, and of Gideon.
7:19 So Gideon, and the hundred men that
were with him, came unto the
outside of the camp in the beginning of the
middle watch; and they had
but newly set the watch: and they blew the
trumpets, and brake the
pitchers that were in their hands.
7:20 And the three companies blew the
trumpets, and brake the
pitchers, and held the lamps in their left
hands, and the trumpets in
their right hands to blow withal: and they
cried, The sword of the
LORD, and of Gideon.
7:21 And they stood every man in his place
round about the camp; and
all the host ran, and cried, and fled.
7:22 And the three hundred blew the
trumpets, and the LORD set every
man's sword against his fellow, even
throughout all the host: and the
host fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and to
the border of
Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.
7:23 And the men of Israel gathered
themselves together out of
Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all
Manasseh, and pursued after
the Midianites.
7:24 And Gideon sent messengers throughout
all mount Ephraim, saying,
come down against the Midianites, and take
before them the waters unto
Bethbarah and Jordan. Then all the men of
Ephraim gathered themselves
together, and took the waters unto Bethbarah
and Jordan.
7:25 And they took two princes of the
Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb; and
they slew Oreb upon the rock Oreb, and Zeeb
they slew at the winepress
of Zeeb, and pursued Midian, and brought the
heads of Oreb and Zeeb to
Gideon on the other side Jordan.
8:1 And the men of Ephraim said unto him,
Why hast thou served us
thus, that thou calledst us not, when thou
wentest to fight with the
Midianites? And they did chide with him
sharply.
8:2 And he said unto them, What have I done
now in comparison of you?
Is not the gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim
better than the vintage
of Abiezer? 8:3 God hath delivered into your
hands the princes of
Midian, Oreb and Zeeb: and what was I able
to do in comparison of you?
Then their anger was abated toward him, when
he had said that.
8:4 And Gideon came to Jordan, and passed
over, he, and the three
hundred men that were with him, faint, yet
pursuing them.
8:5 And he said unto the men of Succoth,
Give, I pray you, loaves of
bread unto the people that follow me; for
they be faint, and I am
pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of
Midian.
8:6 And the princes of Succoth said, Are the
hands of Zebah and
Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we should
give bread unto thine army?
8:7 And Gideon said, Therefore when the LORD
hath delivered Zebah and
Zalmunna into mine hand, then I will tear
your flesh with the thorns
of the wilderness and with briers.
8:8 And he went up thence to Penuel, and
spake unto them likewise: and
the men of Penuel answered him as the men of
Succoth had answered him.
8:9 And he spake also unto the men of
Penuel, saying, When I come
again in peace, I will break down this
tower.
8:10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor,
and their hosts with them,
about fifteen thousand men, all that were
left of all the hosts of the
children of the east: for there fell an
hundred and twenty thousand
men that drew sword.
8:11 And Gideon went up by the way of them
that dwelt in tents on the
east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and smote the
host; for the host was
secure.
8:12 And when Zebah and Zalmunna fled, he
pursued after them, and took
the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna,
and discomfited all the
host.
8:13 And Gideon the son of Joash returned
from battle before the sun
was up, 8:14 And caught a young man of the
men of Succoth, and
enquired of him: and he described unto him
the princes of Succoth, and
the elders thereof, even threescore and
seventeen men.
8:15 And he came unto the men of Succoth,
and said, Behold Zebah and
Zalmunna, with whom ye did upbraid me,
saying, Are the hands of Zebah
and Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we
should give bread unto thy men
that are weary? 8:16 And he took the elders
of the city, and thorns
of the wilderness and briers, and with them
he taught the men of
Succoth.
8:17 And he beat down the tower of Penuel,
and slew the men of the
city.
8:18 Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna,
What manner of men were
they whom ye slew at Tabor? And they
answered, As thou art, so were
they; each one resembled the children of a
king.
8:19 And he said, They were my brethren,
even the sons of my mother:
as the LORD liveth, if ye had saved them
alive, I would not slay you.
8:20 And he said unto Jether his firstborn,
Up, and slay them. But the
youth drew not his sword: for he feared,
because he was yet a youth.
8:21 Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, Rise
thou, and fall upon us: for as
the man is, so is his strength. And Gideon
arose, and slew Zebah and
Zalmunna, and took away the ornaments that
were on their camels'
necks.
8:22 Then the men of Israel said unto
Gideon, Rule thou over us, both
thou, and thy son, and thy son's son also:
for thou hast delivered us
from the hand of Midian.
8:23 And Gideon said unto them, I will not
rule over you, neither
shall my son rule over you: the LORD shall
rule over you.
8:24 And Gideon said unto them, I would
desire a request of you, that
ye would give me every man the earrings of
his prey. (For they had
golden earrings, because they were
Ishmaelites.) 8:25 And they
answered, We will willingly give them. And
they spread a garment, and
did cast therein every man the earrings of
his prey.
8:26 And the weight of the golden earrings
that he requested was a
thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold;
beside ornaments, and
collars, and purple raiment that was on the
kings of Midian, and
beside the chains that were about their
camels' necks.
8:27 And Gideon made an ephod thereof, and
put it in his city, even in
Ophrah: and all Israel went thither a
whoring after it: which thing
became a snare unto Gideon, and to his
house.
8:28 Thus was Midian subdued before the
children of Israel, so that
they lifted up their heads no more. And the
country was in quietness
forty years in the days of Gideon.
8:29 And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and
dwelt in his own house.
8:30 And Gideon had threescore and ten sons
of his body begotten: for
he had many wives.
8:31 And his concubine that was in Shechem,
she also bare him a son,
whose name he called Abimelech.
8:32 And Gideon the son of Joash died in a
good old age, and was
buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father,
in Ophrah of the
Abiezrites.
8:33 And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon
was dead, that the
children of Israel turned again, and went a
whoring after Baalim, and
made Baalberith their god.
8:34 And the children of Israel remembered
not the LORD their God, who
had delivered them out of the hands of all
their enemies on every
side: 8:35 Neither shewed they kindness to
the house of Jerubbaal,
namely, Gideon, according to all the
goodness which he had shewed unto
Israel.
9:1 And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went
to Shechem unto his
mother's brethren, and communed with them,
and with all the family of
the house of his mother's father, saying,
9:2 Speak, I pray you, in
the ears of all the men of Shechem, Whether
is better for you, either
that all the sons of Jerubbaal, which are
threescore and ten persons,
reign over you, or that one reign over you?
remember also that I am
your bone and your flesh.
9:3 And his mother's brethren spake of him
in the ears of all the men
of Shechem all these words: and their hearts
inclined to follow
Abimelech; for they said, He is our brother.
9:4 And they gave him threescore and ten
pieces of silver out of the
house of Baalberith, wherewith Abimelech
hired vain and light persons,
which followed him.
9:5 And he went unto his father's house at
Ophrah, and slew his
brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, being
threescore and ten persons, upon
one stone: notwithstanding yet Jotham the
youngest son of Jerubbaal
was left; for he hid himself.
9:6 And all the men of Shechem gathered
together, and all the house of
Millo, and went, and made Abimelech king, by
the plain of the pillar
that was in Shechem.
9:7 And when they told it to Jotham, he went
and stood in the top of
mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and
cried, and said unto them,
Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God
may hearken unto you.
9:8 The trees went forth on a time to anoint
a king over them; and
they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou
over us.
9:9 But the olive tree said unto them,
Should I leave my fatness,
wherewith by me they honour God and man, and
go to be promoted over
the trees? 9:10 And the trees said to the
fig tree, Come thou, and
reign over us.
9:11 But the fig tree said unto them, Should
I forsake my sweetness,
and my good fruit, and go to be promoted
over the trees? 9:12 Then
said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and
reign over us.
9:13 And the vine said unto them, Should I
leave my wine, which
cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted
over the trees? 9:14 Then
said all the trees unto the bramble, Come
thou, and reign over us.
9:15 And the bramble said unto the trees, If
in truth ye anoint me
king over you, then come and put your trust
in my shadow: and if not,
let fire come out of the bramble, and devour
the cedars of Lebanon.
9:16 Now therefore, if ye have done truly
and sincerely, in that ye
have made Abimelech king, and if ye have
dealt well with Jerubbaal and
his house, and have done unto him according
to the deserving of his
hands; 9:17 (For my father fought for you,
and adventured his life
far, and delivered you out of the hand of
Midian: 9:18 And ye are
risen up against my father's house this day,
and have slain his sons,
threescore and ten persons, upon one stone,
and have made Abimelech,
the son of his maidservant, king over the
men of Shechem, because he
is your brother;) 9:19 If ye then have dealt
truly and sincerely with
Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then
rejoice ye in Abimelech,
and let him also rejoice in you: 9:20 But if
not, let fire come out
from Abimelech, and devour the men of
Shechem, and the house of Millo;
and let fire come out from the men of
Shechem, and from the house of
Millo, and devour Abimelech.
9:21 And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went
to Beer, and dwelt there,
for fear of Abimelech his brother.
9:22 When Abimelech had reigned three years
over Israel, 9:23 Then God
sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and
the men of Shechem; and the
men of Shechem dealt treacherously with
Abimelech: 9:24 That the
cruelty done to the threescore and ten sons
of Jerubbaal might come,
and their blood be laid upon Abimelech their
brother, which slew them;
and upon the men of Shechem, which aided him
in the killing of his
brethren.
9:25 And the men of Shechem set liers in
wait for him in the top of
the mountains, and they robbed all that came
along that way by them:
and it was told Abimelech.
9:26 And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his
brethren, and went over to
Shechem: and the men of Shechem put their
confidence in him.
9:27 And they went out into the fields, and
gathered their vineyards,
and trode the grapes, and made merry, and
went into the house of their
god, and did eat and drink, and cursed
Abimelech.
9:28 And Gaal the son of Ebed said, Who is
Abimelech, and who is
Shechem, that we should serve him? is not he
the son of Jerubbaal? and
Zebul his officer? serve the men of Hamor
the father of Shechem: for
why should we serve him? 9:29 And would to
God this people were under
my hand! then would I remove Abimelech. And
he said to Abimelech,
Increase thine army, and come out.
9:30 And when Zebul the ruler of the city
heard the words of Gaal the
son of Ebed, his anger was kindled.
9:31 And he sent messengers unto Abimelech
privily, saying, Behold,
Gaal the son of Ebed and his brethren be
come to Shechem; and, behold,
they fortify the city against thee.
9:32 Now therefore up by night, thou and the
people that is with thee,
and lie in wait in the field: 9:33 And it
shall be, that in the
morning, as soon as the sun is up, thou
shalt rise early, and set upon
the city: and, behold, when he and the
people that is with him come
out against thee, then mayest thou do to
them as thou shalt find
occasion.
9:34 And Abimelech rose up, and all the
people that were with him, by
night, and they laid wait against Shechem in
four companies.
9:35 And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and
stood in the entering of
the gate of the city: and Abimelech rose up,
and the people that were
with him, from lying in wait.
9:36 And when Gaal saw the people, he said
to Zebul, Behold, there
come people down from the top of the
mountains. And Zebul said unto
him, Thou seest the shadow of the mountains
as if they were men.
9:37 And Gaal spake again, and said, See
there come people down by the
middle of the land, and another company come
along by the plain of
Meonenim.
9:38 Then said Zebul unto him, Where is now
thy mouth, wherewith thou
saidst, Who is Abimelech, that we should
serve him? is not this the
people that thou hast despised? go out, I
pray now, and fight with
them.
9:39 And Gaal went out before the men of
Shechem, and fought with
Abimelech.
9:40 And Abimelech chased him, and he fled
before him, and many were
overthrown and wounded, even unto the
entering of the gate.
9:41 And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah: and
Zebul thrust out Gaal and his
brethren, that they should not dwell in
Shechem.
9:42 And it came to pass on the morrow, that
the people went out into
the field; and they told Abimelech.
9:43 And he took the people, and divided
them into three companies,
and laid wait in the field, and looked, and,
behold, the people were
come forth out of the city; and he rose up
against them, and smote
them.
9:44 And Abimelech, and the company that was
with him, rushed forward,
and stood in the entering of the gate of the
city: and the two other
companies ran upon all the people that were
in the fields, and slew
them.
9:45 And Abimelech fought against the city
all that day; and he took
the city, and slew the people that was
therein, and beat down the
city, and sowed it with salt.
9:46 And when all the men of the tower of
Shechem heard that, they
entered into an hold of the house of the god
Berith.
9:47 And it was told Abimelech, that all the
men of the tower of
Shechem were gathered together.
9:48 And Abimelech gat him up to mount
Zalmon, he and all the people
that were with him; and Abimelech took an
axe in his hand, and cut
down a bough from the trees, and took it,
and laid it on his shoulder,
and said unto the people that were with him,
What ye have seen me do,
make haste, and do as I have done.
9:49 And all the people likewise cut down
every man his bough, and
followed Abimelech, and put them to the
hold, and set the hold on fire
upon them; so that all the men of the tower
of Shechem died also,
about a thousand men and women.
9:50 Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and
encamped against Thebez, and
took it.
9:51 But there was a strong tower within the
city, and thither fled
all the men and women, and all they of the
city, and shut it to them,
and gat them up to the top of the tower.
9:52 And Abimelech came unto the tower, and
fought against it, and
went hard unto the door of the tower to burn
it with fire.
9:53 And a certain woman cast a piece of a
millstone upon Abimelech's
head, and all to brake his skull.
9:54 Then he called hastily unto the young
man his armourbearer, and
said unto him, Draw thy sword, and slay me,
that men say not of me, A
women slew him. And his young man thrust him
through, and he died.
9:55 And when the men of Israel saw that
Abimelech was dead, they
departed every man unto his place.
9:56 Thus God rendered the wickedness of
Abimelech, which he did unto
his father, in slaying his seventy brethren:
9:57 And all the evil of
the men of Shechem did God render upon their
heads: and upon them came
the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal. |
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