Hakim-hakim 8:13

8:13 Gideon son of Joash returned from the battle by the pass ¹  of Heres.

Hakim-hakim 6:34

6:34 The Lord’s spirit took control of ²  Gideon. He blew a trumpet, ³  summoning the Abiezrites to follow him. ⁴ 

Hakim-hakim 8:30

8:30 Gideon fathered seventy sons through his many wives. ⁵ 

Hakim-hakim 6:36

6:36 Gideon said to God, “If you really intend to use me to deliver Israel, ⁶  as you promised, then give me a sign as proof. ⁷ 

Hakim-hakim 8:4

Gideon Tracks Down the Midianite Kings

8:4 Now Gideon and his three hundred men had crossed over the Jordan River, and even though they were exhausted, they were still chasing the Midianites. ⁸ 

Hakim-hakim 6:22

6:22 When Gideon realized ⁹  that it was the Lord’s messenger, he ¹⁰  said, “Oh no! ¹¹  Master, Lord! ¹²  I have seen the Lord’s messenger face to face!”

Hakim-hakim 8:27

8:27 Gideon used all this to make ¹³  an ephod, ¹⁴  which he put in his hometown of Ophrah. All the Israelites ¹⁵  prostituted themselves to it by worshiping it ¹⁶  there. It became a snare to Gideon and his family.

Hakim-hakim 8:35

8:35 They did not treat ¹⁷  the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) fairly in return for all the good he had done for Israel.

Hakim-hakim 8:23

8:23 Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you.”

Hakim-hakim 8:11

8:11 Gideon went up the road of the nomads ¹⁸  east of Nobah and Jogbehah and ambushed the surprised army. ¹⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 8:19

8:19 He said, “They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. I swear, ²⁰  as surely as the Lord is alive, if you had let them live, I would not kill you.”

Hakim-hakim 8:32-33

8:32 Gideon son of Joash died at a very ²¹  old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash located in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Israel Returns to Baal-Worship

8:33 After Gideon died, the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They made Baal-Berith ²²  their god.

Hakim-hakim 8:9

8:9 He also threatened ²³  the men of Penuel, warning, ²⁴  “When I return victoriously, ²⁵  I will tear down this tower.”

Hakim-hakim 6:32

6:32 That very day Gideon’s father named him Jerub-Baal, ²⁶  because he had said, “Let Baal fight with him, for it was his altar that was pulled down.”

Hakim-hakim 6:24

6:24 Gideon built an altar for the Lord there, and named it “The Lord is on friendly terms with me.” ²⁷  To this day it is still there in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Hakim-hakim 6:29

6:29 They said to one another, ²⁸  “Who did this?” ²⁹  They investigated the matter thoroughly ³⁰  and concluded ³¹  that Gideon son of Joash had done it.

Hakim-hakim 7:14-15

7:14 The other man said, ³²  “Without a doubt this symbolizes ³³  the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God is handing Midian and all the army over to him.”

Gideon Routs the Enemy

7:15 When Gideon heard the report of the dream and its interpretation, he praised God. ³⁴  Then he went back to the Israelite camp and said, “Get up, for the Lord is handing the Midianite army over to you!”

Hakim-hakim 8:7

8:7 Gideon said, “Since you will not help, ³⁵  after the Lord hands Zebah and Zalmunna over to me, I will thresh ³⁶  your skin ³⁷  with ³⁸  desert thorns and briers.”

Hakim-hakim 8:22

Gideon Rejects a Crown but Makes an Ephod

8:22 The men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us – you, your son, and your grandson. For you have delivered us from Midian’s power.” ³⁹ 

Hakim-hakim 8:28

Gideon’s Story Ends

8:28 The Israelites humiliated Midian; the Midianites’ fighting spirit was broken. ⁴⁰  The land had rest for forty years during Gideon’s time. ⁴¹ 

Hakim-hakim 7:9

Gideon Reassured of Victory

7:9 That night the Lord said to Gideon, ⁴²  “Get up! Attack ⁴³  the camp, for I am handing it over to you. ⁴⁴ 

Hakim-hakim 7:1

Gideon Reduces the Ranks

7:1 Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and his men ⁴⁵  got up the next morning and camped near the spring of Harod. ⁴⁶  The Midianites ⁴⁷  were camped north of them near the hill of Moreh in the valley.

Hakim-hakim 7:7

7:7 The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men who lapped I will deliver the whole army ⁴⁸  and I will hand Midian over to you. ⁴⁹  The rest of the men should go home.” ⁵⁰ 

Hakim-hakim 7:18

7:18 When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, you also blow your trumpets all around the camp. Then say, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon!’”

Hakim-hakim 8:1

8:1 The Ephraimites said to him, “Why have you done such a thing to us? You did not summon us ⁵¹  when you went to fight the Midianites!” They argued vehemently with him.

Hakim-hakim 8:24

8:24 Gideon continued, ⁵²  “I would like to make one request. Each of you give me an earring from the plunder you have taken.” ⁵³  (The Midianites ⁵⁴  had gold earrings because they were Ishmaelites.)

Hakim-hakim 7:5

7:5 So he brought the men ⁵⁵  down to the water. Then the Lord said to Gideon, “Separate those who lap the water as a dog laps from those who kneel to drink.” ⁵⁶ 

Hakim-hakim 7:19

7:19 Gideon took a hundred men to the edge of the camp ⁵⁷  at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guards. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars they were carrying. ⁵⁸ 

Hakim-hakim 6:15

6:15 Gideon ⁵⁹  said to him, “But Lord, ⁶⁰  how ⁶¹  can I deliver Israel? Just look! My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my family.” ⁶² 

Hakim-hakim 6:17

6:17 Gideon ⁶³  said to him, “If you really are pleased with me, ⁶⁴  then give me ⁶⁵  a sign as proof that it is really you speaking with me.

Hakim-hakim 6:11

Gideon Meets Some Visitors

6:11 The Lord’s angelic messenger ⁶⁶  came and sat down under the oak tree in Ophrah owned by Joash the Abiezrite. He arrived while Joash’s son Gideon ⁶⁷  was threshing ⁶⁸  wheat in a winepress ⁶⁹  so he could hide it from the Midianites. ⁷⁰ 

Hakim-hakim 6:19

6:19 Gideon went and prepared a young goat, ⁷¹  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 food ⁷²  to him under the oak tree and presented it to him.

Hakim-hakim 6:27

6:27 So Gideon took ten of his servants ⁷³  and did just as the Lord had told him. He was too afraid of his father’s family ⁷⁴  and the men of the city to do it in broad daylight, so he waited until nighttime. ⁷⁵ 

Hakim-hakim 7:2

7:2 The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to hand Midian over to you. ⁷⁶  Israel might brag, ⁷⁷  ‘Our own strength has delivered us.’ ⁷⁸ 

Hakim-hakim 7:20

7:20 All three units blew their trumpets and broke their jars. They held the torches in their left hand and the trumpets in their right. ⁷⁹  Then they yelled, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!”

Hakim-hakim 7:25

7:25 They captured the two Midianite generals, Oreb and Zeeb. ⁸⁰  They executed Oreb on the rock of Oreb and Zeeb ⁸¹  in the winepress of Zeeb. They chased the Midianites ⁸²  and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was now on the other side of the Jordan River. ⁸³ 

Hakim-hakim 7:8

7:8 The men ⁸⁴  who were chosen ⁸⁵  took supplies ⁸⁶  and their trumpets. Gideon ⁸⁷  sent all the men of Israel back to their homes; ⁸⁸  he kept only three hundred men. Now the Midianites ⁸⁹  were camped down below ⁹⁰  in the valley.

Hakim-hakim 7:13

7:13 When Gideon arrived, he heard a man telling another man about a dream he had. ⁹¹  The man ⁹²  said, “Look! I had a dream. I saw ⁹³  a stale cake of barley bread rolling into the Midianite camp. It hit a tent so hard it knocked it over and turned it upside down. The tent just collapsed.” ⁹⁴ 

Hakim-hakim 7:24

Gideon Appeases the Ephraimites

7:24 Now Gideon sent messengers throughout the Ephraimite hill country who announced, “Go down and head off the Midianites. ⁹⁵  Take control of the fords of the streams ⁹⁶  all the way to Beth Barah and the Jordan River.” ⁹⁷  When all the Ephraimites had assembled, ⁹⁸  they took control of the fords ⁹⁹  all the way to Beth Barah and the Jordan River.

Hakim-hakim 6:39

6:39 Gideon said to God, “Please do not get angry at me, when I ask for just one more sign. ¹⁰⁰  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.” ¹⁰¹ 

Hakim-hakim 6:25

Gideon Destroys the Altar

6:25 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. ¹⁰²  Pull down your father’s Baal altar and cut down the nearby Asherah pole.

Hakim-hakim 6:13

6:13 Gideon said to him, “Pardon me, ¹⁰³  but if the Lord is with us, why has such disaster ¹⁰⁴  overtaken us? Where are all his miraculous deeds our ancestors told us about? They said, ¹⁰⁵  ‘Did the Lord not bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian.”

Hakim-hakim 7:4

7:4 The Lord spoke to Gideon again, “There are still too many men. ¹⁰⁶  Bring them down to the water and I will thin the ranks some more. ¹⁰⁷  When I say, ‘This one should go with you,’ pick him to go; ¹⁰⁸  when I say, ¹⁰⁹  ‘This one should not go with you,’ do not take him.” ¹¹⁰ 

[8:13]  ¹ tn Or “ascent.”

[6:34]  ² tn Heb “clothed.”

[6:34]  ³ tn That is, “mustered an army.”

[6:34]  ⁴ tn Heb “Abiezer was summoned after him.”

[8:30]  ⁵ tn Heb “Gideon had seventy sons who went out from his thigh, for he had many wives.” The Hebrew word יָרֵךְ (yarekh, “thigh”) is a euphemism here for the penis.

[6:36]  ⁶ tn More literally, “you are about to deliver Israel by my hand.”

[6:36]  ⁷ tn The words “then give me a sign as proof” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[8:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “And Gideon arrived at the Jordan, crossing over, he and the three hundred men who were with him, exhausted and chasing.” The English past perfect (“had crossed”) is used because this verse flashes back chronologically to an event that preceded the hostile encounter described in vv. 1-3. (Note that 7:25 assumes Gideon had already crossed the Jordan.)

[6:22]  ⁹ tn Heb “saw.”

[6:22]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Gideon.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[6:22]  ¹¹ tn Or “Ah!”

[6:22]  ¹² tn The Hebrew text reads אֲדֹנַי יְהוִה (’adonay yÿhvih, “Lord [the same title used in v. 15], Lord”).

[8:27]  ¹³ tn Heb “made it into.”

[8:27]  ¹⁴ sn In Exod 28:4-6 and several other texts an ephod is described as a priestly or cultic garment. In some cases an ephod is used to obtain a divine oracle (1 Sam 23:9; 30:7). Here the ephod is made of gold and is described as being quite heavy (70-75 lbs?). Some identify it as an idol, but it was more likely a cultic object fashioned in the form of a garment which was used for oracular purposes. For discussion of the ephod in the OT, see C. F. Burney, Judges, 236-43, and R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 349-52.

[8:27]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “Israel” (a collective singular).

[8:27]  ¹⁶ tn The words “by worshiping it” are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[8:35]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “did not do loyalty with,” or “did not act faithfully toward.”

[8:11]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the ones living in tents.”

[8:11]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and attacked the army, while the army was secure.” The Hebrew term בֶטַח (vetakh, “secure”) probably means the army was undefended (see R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 156), not suspecting an attack at that time and place.

[8:19]  ²⁰ tn The words “I swear” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[8:32]  ²¹ tn Heb “good.”

[8:33]  ²² sn Baal-Berith was a local manifestation of the Canaanite storm god. The name means, ironically, “Baal of the covenant.” Israel’s covenant allegiance had indeed shifted.

[8:9]  ²³ tn Heb “said to.” The translation “threatened” is interpretive, but is clearly indicated by the context.

[8:9]  ²⁴ tn Heb “saying.”

[8:9]  ²⁵ tn Or “safely.” Heb “in peace.”

[6:32]  ²⁶ tn Heb “He called him on that day Jerub-Baal.” The name means, at least by popular etymology, “Let Baal fight!”

[6:24]  ²⁷ tn Heb “The Lord is peace.” Gideon’s name for the altar plays on the Lord’s reassuring words to him, “Peace to you.”

[6:29]  ²⁸ tn Heb “each one to his neighbor.”

[6:29]  ²⁹ tn Heb “this thing.”

[6:29]  ³⁰ tn Heb “they inquired and searched.” The synonyms are joined to emphasize the care with which they conducted their inquiry.

[6:29]  ³¹ tn Heb “and said.” Perhaps the plural subject is indefinite. If so, it could be translated, “they were told.”

[7:14]  ³² tn Heb “answered and said.”

[7:14]  ³³ tn Heb “This can be nothing but.”

[7:15]  ³⁴ tn Heb “he bowed down” or “worshiped.”

[8:7]  ³⁵ tn Heb “Therefore.”

[8:7]  ³⁶ sn I will thresh. The metaphor is agricultural. Threshing was usually done on a hard threshing floor. As farm animals walked over the stalks, pulling behind them a board embedded with sharp stones, the stalks and grain would be separated. See O. Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, 63-65. Gideon threatens to use thorns and briers on his sledge.

[8:7]  ³⁷ tn Or “flesh.”

[8:7]  ³⁸ tn This is apparently a rare instrumental use of the Hebrew preposition אֵת (’et, note the use of ב [bet] in v. 16). Some, however, argue that אֵת more naturally indicates accompaniment (“together with”). In this case Gideon envisions threshing their skin along with thorns and briers, just as the stalks and grain are intermingled on the threshing floor. See C. F. Burney, Judges, 229-30.

[8:22]  ³⁹ tn Heb “hand.”

[8:28]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “Midian was humbled before the Israelites, and they no longer lifted their heads.”

[8:28]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “in the days of Gideon.”

[7:9]  ⁴² tn Heb “him”; the referent (Gideon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:9]  ⁴³ tn Heb “Go down against.”

[7:9]  ⁴⁴ tn The Hebrew verbal form is a perfect, emphasizing the certainty of the promise.

[7:1]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “and all the people who were with him.”

[7:1]  ⁴⁶ sn The name Harod means, ironically, “trembling.”

[7:1]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “Midian.” The LXX reads “and Amalek” (cf. v. 12; 6:33).

[7:7]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “you.” The Hebrew pronoun is masculine plural, probably referring to the entire army.

[7:7]  ⁴⁹ tn The Hebrew pronoun here is singular.

[7:7]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “All the people should go, each to his place.”

[8:1]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “by not summoning us.”

[8:24]  ⁵² tn Heb “said to them.”

[8:24]  ⁵³ tn Heb “Give to me, each one, an earring from his plunder.”

[8:24]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Midianites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:5]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “the people.”

[7:5]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “Everyone who laps with his tongue from the water, as a dog laps, put him by himself, as well as the one who gets down on his knees to drink.”

[7:19]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “Gideon went, along with the hundred men who were with him, to the edge of the camp.”

[7:19]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “that were in their hands.”

[6:15]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Gideon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[6:15]  ⁶⁰ tn Note the switch to אֲדֹנָי (’adonay, “Lord”). Gideon seems aware that he is speaking to someone other than, and superior to, the messenger, whom he addressed as אֲדֹנִי (’adoniy, “my lord”) in v. 13.

[6:15]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “with what.”

[6:15]  ⁶² tn Heb “in my father’s house.”

[6:17]  ⁶³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Gideon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[6:17]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “If I have found favor in your eyes.”

[6:17]  ⁶⁵ tn Heb “perform for me.”

[6:11]  ⁶⁶ tn The adjective “angelic” is interpretive.

[6:11]  sn The Lord’s angelic messenger is also mentioned in Judg 2:1.

[6:11]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “Now Gideon his son…” The Hebrew circumstantial clause (note the pattern vav [ו] + subject + predicate) breaks the narrative sequence and indicates that the angel’s arrival coincided with Gideon’s threshing.

[6:11]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “beating out.”

[6:11]  ⁶⁹ sn Threshing wheat in a winepress. One would normally thresh wheat at the threshing floor outside the city. Animals and a threshing sledge would be employed. Because of the Midianite threat, Gideon was forced to thresh with a stick in a winepress inside the city. For further discussion see O. Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, 63.

[6:11]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “Midian.”

[6:19]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “a kid from among the goats.”

[6:19]  ⁷² tn The words “the food” are not in the Hebrew text (an implied direct object). They are supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.

[6:27]  ⁷³ tn Heb “men from among his servants.”

[6:27]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “house.”

[6:27]  ⁷⁵ tn Heb “so he did it at night.”

[7:2]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “the people who are with you are too numerous for me to give Midian into their hand.”

[7:2]  ⁷⁷ tn Heb “might glorify itself against me.”

[7:2]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “my hand has delivered me.”

[7:20]  ⁷⁹ tn The Hebrew text adds, “in order to blow [them].” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[7:25]  ⁸⁰ sn The names Oreb and Zeeb, which mean “Raven” and “Wolf” respectively, are appropriate because the Midianites had been like scavengers and predators to Israel.

[7:25]  ⁸¹ tn The Hebrew text repeats the verb “executed.” This has not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[7:25]  ⁸² tn Heb “Midian.”

[7:25]  ⁸³ tn Heb “beyond the Jordan.” The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text but has been supplied in the translation for clarity (also in 8:4).

[7:8]  ⁸⁴ tn Heb “The people.”

[7:8]  ⁸⁵ tn The words “who were chosen” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[7:8]  ⁸⁶ tn The Hebrew text has “in their hands.”

[7:8]  ⁸⁷ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Gideon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:8]  ⁸⁸ tn Heb “tents.”

[7:8]  ⁸⁹ tn Heb “Midian.”

[7:8]  ⁹⁰ tn The Hebrew text adds “him” (i.e., Gideon).

[7:13]  ⁹¹ tn Heb “And Gideon came, and, look, a man was relating to his friend a dream.”

[7:13]  ⁹² tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man mentioned in the previous clause) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:13]  ⁹³ tn Heb “Look!” The repetition of this interjection, while emphatic in Hebrew, would be redundant in the English translation.

[7:13]  ⁹⁴ tn Heb “It came to the tent and struck it and it fell. It turned it upside down and the tent fell.”

[7:24]  ⁹⁵ tn Heb “to meet Midian.”

[7:24]  ⁹⁶ tn Heb “capture before them the waters.”

[7:24]  ⁹⁷ tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarification (also later in this verse).

[7:24]  ⁹⁸ tn Heb “And all the men of Ephraim were summoned.”

[7:24]  ⁹⁹ tn Heb “they captured the waters.”

[6:39]  ¹⁰⁰ tn Heb “Let your anger not rage at me, so that I might speak only this once.”

[6:39]  ¹⁰¹ tn Heb “let the fleece alone be dry, while dew is on all the ground.”

[6:25]  ¹⁰² tn Or “Take a bull from your father’s herd, the second one, the one seven years old.” Apparently Gideon would need the bulls to pull down the altar.

[6:13]  ¹⁰³ tn Heb “But my lord.”

[6:13]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “all this.”

[6:13]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Heb “saying.”

[7:4]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “too many people.”

[7:4]  ¹⁰⁷ tn Heb “test them for you there.”

[7:4]  ¹⁰⁸ tn Heb “he should go with you.”

[7:4]  ¹⁰⁹ tn Heb also has “to you.”

[7:4]  ¹¹⁰ tn Heb “he should not go.”