Bible (American Standard)/Judges

The Book of Judges
==Chapter 1==
 And it came to pass after the death of Joshua, that the
children of Israel asked of Jehovah, saying, Who shall go up for
us first against the Canaanites, to fight against them? 
 And Jehovah said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered
the land into his hand. 
 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. 
 And Judah went up; and Jehovah
delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand: and
they smote of them in Bezek ten thousand men. 
 And they
found Adoni-bezek in Bezek; and they fought against him, and
they smote the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 
 But
Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him,
and cut off his thumbs and his great toes. 
 And Adoni-bezek
said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their
great toes cut off, gathered [their food] under my table: as I
have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to
Jerusalem, and he died there.
 And the children of Judah fought against Jerusalem, and
took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and set the
city on fire. 
 And afterward the children of Judah went
down to fight against the Canaanites that dwelt in the
hill-country, and in the South, and in the lowland. 
 And
Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron (now the
name of Hebron beforetime was Kiriath-arba); and they smote
Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai.
 And from thence he went against the inhabitants of
Debir. (Now the name of Debir beforetime was Kiriath-sepher.)
 And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kiriath-sepher, and
taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife. 
 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it:
and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. 
 And it came
to pass, when she came [unto him], that she moved him to ask of
her father a field: and she alighted from off her ass; and Caleb
said unto her, What wouldest thou? 
 And she said unto him,
Give me a blessing; for that thou hast set me in the land of the
South, give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the
upper springs and the nether springs.
 And the children of the Kenite, Moses' brother-in-law,
went up out of the city of palm-trees with the children of Judah
into the wilderness of Judah, which is in the south of Arad; and
they went and dwelt with the people. 
 And Judah went with
Simeon his brother, and they smote the Canaanites that inhabited
Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the city was
called Hormah. 
 Also Judah took Gaza with the border
thereof, and Ashkelon with the border thereof, and Ekron with
the border thereof. 
 And Jehovah was with Judah; and drove
out [the inhabitants of] the hill-country; for he could not
drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had
chariots of iron. 
 And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as
Moses had spoken: and he drove out thence the three sons of
Anak. 
 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.
 And the house of Joseph, they also went up against
Beth-el; and Jehovah was with them. 
 And the house of
Joseph sent to spy out Beth-el. (Now the name of the city
beforetime was Luz.) 
 And the watchers saw a man come
forth out of the city, and they said unto him, Show us, we pray
thee, the entrance into the city, and we will deal kindly with
thee. 
 And he showed them the entrance into the city; and
they smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the
man go and all his family. 
 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.
 And Manasseh did not drive out [the inhabitants of]
Beth-shean and its towns, nor [of] Taanach and its towns, nor
the inhabitants of Dor and its towns, nor the inhabitants of
Ibleam and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Megiddo and its
towns; but the Canaanites would dwell in that land. 
 And
it came to pass, when Israel was waxed strong, that they put the
Canaanites to taskwork, and did not utterly drive them out.
 And Ephraim drove not out the Canaanites that dwelt in
Gezer; but the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.
 Zebulun drove not out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor
the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them,
and became subject to taskwork.
 Asher drove not out the inhabitants of Acco, nor the
inhabitants of Sidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of
Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob; 
 but the Asherites
dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for
they did not drive them out.
 Naphtali drove not out the inhabitants of
Beth-shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth-anath; but he dwelt
among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless
the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath became subject
to taskwork.
 And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the
hill-country; for they would not suffer them to come down to the
valley; 
 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 subject to taskwork. 
 And
the border of the Amorites was from the ascent of Akrabbim, from
the rock, and upward.
==Chapter 2==
 And the angel of Jehovah came up from Gilgal to Bochim.
And he 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: 
 and ye shall make
no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall break
down their altars. But ye have not hearkened unto my voice: why
have ye done this? 
 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. 
 And it
came to pass, when the angel of Jehovah spake these words unto
all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their
voice, and wept. 
 And they called the name of that place
Bochim: and they sacrificed there unto Jehovah.
 Now when Joshua had sent the people away, the children
of Israel went every man unto his inheritance to possess the
land. 
 And the people served Jehovah all the days of
Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who
had seen all the great work of Jehovah that he had wrought for
Israel. 
 And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Jehovah,
died, being a hundred and ten years old. 
 And they buried
him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath-heres, in the
hill-country of Ephraim, on the north of the mountain of Gaash.
 And also all that generation were gathered unto their
fathers: and there arose another generation after them, that
knew not Jehovah, nor yet the work which he had wrought for
Israel.
 And the children of Israel did that which was evil in
the sight of Jehovah, and served the Baalim; 
 and they
forsook Jehovah, the God of their fathers, who brought them out
of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of
the peoples that were round about them, and bowed themselves
down unto them: and they provoked Jehovah to anger. 
 And
they forsook Jehovah, and served Baal and the Ashtaroth. 
 And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel, and he
delivered them into the hands of spoilers that despoiled them;
and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so
that they could not any longer stand before their enemies.
 Whithersoever they went out, the hand of Jehovah was
against them for evil, as Jehovah had spoken, and as Jehovah had
sworn unto them: and they were sore distressed.
 And Jehovah raised up judges, who saved them out of
the hand of those that despoiled them. 
 And yet they
hearkened not unto their judges; for they played the harlot
after other gods, and bowed themselves down unto them: they
turned aside quickly out of the way wherein their fathers
walked, obeying the commandments of Jehovah; [but] they did not
so. 
 And when Jehovah raised them up judges, then Jehovah
was with the judge, and saved them out of the hand of their
enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented Jehovah
because of their groaning by reason of them that oppressed them
and vexed them. 
 But it came to pass, when the judge was
dead, that they turned back, and dealt more corruptly than their
fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down
unto them; they ceased not from their doings, nor from their
stubborn way. 
 And the anger of Jehovah was kindled
against Israel; and he said, Because this nation have
transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and
have not hearkened unto my voice; 
 I also will not
henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations that
Joshua left when he died; 
 that by them I may prove
Israel, whether they will keep the way of Jehovah to walk
therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not. 
 So Jehovah
left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither
delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.
==Chapter 3==
 Now these are the nations which Jehovah left, to prove
Israel by them, even as many [of Israel] as had not known all
the wars of Canaan; 
 only that the generations of the
children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least
such as beforetime knew nothing thereof: 
 [namely], the
five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the
Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from
mount Baal-hermon unto the entrance of Hamath. 
 And they
were [left], to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would
hearken unto the commandments of Jehovah, which he commanded
their fathers by Moses. 
 And the children of Israel dwelt
among the Canaanites, the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the
Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites: 
 and they
took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their own
daughters to their sons and served their gods.
 And the children of Israel did that which was evil in
the sight of Jehovah, and forgat Jehovah their God, and served
the Baalim and the Asheroth. 
 Therefore, the anger of
Jehovah was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the
hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children
of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim eight years. 
 And when
the children of Israel cried unto Jehovah, Jehovah raised up a
saviour to the children of Israel, who saved them, even Othniel
the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. 
 And the Spirit
of Jehovah came upon him, and he judged Israel; and he went out
to war, and Jehovah delivered Cushan-rishathaim king of
Mesopotamia into his hand: and his hand prevailed against
Cushan-rishathaim. 
 And the land had rest forty years. And
Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
 And the children of Israel again did that which was
evil in the sight of Jehovah: and Jehovah strengthened Eglon the
king of Moab against Israel, because they had done that which
was evil in the sight of Jehovah. 
 And he gathered unto
him the children of Ammon and Amalek; and he went and smote
Israel, and they possessed the city of palm-trees. 
 And
the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen
years.
 But when the children of Israel cried unto Jehovah,
Jehovah raised them up a saviour, Ehud the son of Gera, the
Benjamite, a man left-handed. And the children of Israel sent
tribute by him unto Eglon the king of Moab. 
 And Ehud made
him a sword which had two edges, a cubit in length; and he
girded it under his raiment upon his right thigh. 
 And he
offered the tribute unto Eglon king of Moab: now Eglon was a
very fat man. 
 And when he had made an end of offering the
tribute, he sent away the people that bare the tribute. 
 But he himself turned back from the quarries that were by
Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, O king. And
he said, Keep silence. And all that stood by him went out from
him. 
 And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting by
himself alone in the cool upper room. And Ehud said, I have a
message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat. 
 And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the sword from his
right thigh, and thrust it into his body: 
 and the haft
also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon the blade,
for he drew not the sword out of his body; and it came out
behind. 
 Then Ehud went forth into the porch, and shut the
doors of the upper room upon him, and locked them.
 Now when he was gone out, his servants came; and they
saw, and, behold, the doors of the upper room were locked; and
they said, Surely he is covering his feet in the upper chamber.
 And they tarried till they were ashamed; and, behold, he
opened not the doors of the upper room: therefore they took the
key, and opened [them], and, behold, their lord was fallen down
dead on the earth.
 And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond
the quarries, and escaped unto Seirah. 
 And it came to
pass, when he was come, that he blew a trumpet in the
hill-country of Ephraim; and the children of Israel went down
with him from the hill-country, and he before them. 
 And
he said unto them, Follow after me; for Jehovah hath delivered
your enemies the Moabites into your hand. And they went down
after him, and took the fords of the Jordan against the
Moabites, and suffered not a man to pass over. 
 And they
smote of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, every lusty
man, and every man of valor; and there escaped not a man. 
 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the
land had rest fourscore years.
 And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who smote
of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox-goad: and he also
saved Israel.
==Chapter 4==
 And the children of Israel again did that which was
evil in the sight of Jehovah, when Ehud was dead. 
 And
Jehovah sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, that
reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera, who
dwelt in Harosheth of the Gentiles. 
 And the children of
Israel cried unto Jehovah: for he had nine hundred chariots of
iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of
Israel.
 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, she
judged Israel at that time. 
 And she dwelt under the
palm-tree of Deborah between Ramah and Beth-el in the
hill-country of Ephraim: and the children of Israel came up to
her for judgment. 
 And she sent and called Barak the son of
Abinoam out of Kedesh-naphtali, and said unto him, Hath not
Jehovah, the God of Israel, commanded, [saying], Go and draw
unto mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the
children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun? 
 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 thy hand. 
 And Barak said unto her, If
thou wilt go with me, then I will go; but if thou wilt not go
with me, I will not go. 
 And she said, I will surely go
with thee: notwithstanding, the journey that thou takest shall
not be for thine honor; for Jehovah will sell Sisera into the
hand of a woman. And Deborah arose, and went with Barak to
Kedesh. 
 And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali together to
Kedesh; and there went up ten thousand men at his feet: and
Deborah went up with him.
 Now Heber the Kenite had separated himself from the
Kenites, even from the children of Hobab the brother-in-law of
Moses, and had pitched his tent as far as the oak in Zaanannim,
which is by Kedesh.
 And they told Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was
gone up to mount Tabor. 
 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 Kishon. 
 And Deborah said unto Barak, Up; for
this is the day in which Jehovah hath delivered Sisera into thy
hand; is not Jehovah gone out before thee? So Barak went down
from mount Tabor, and ten thousand men after him. 
 And
Jehovah discomfited Sisera, and all his chariots, and all his
host, with the edge of the sword before Barak; and Sisera
alighted from his chariot, and fled away on his feet. 
 But
Barak pursued after the chariots, and after the host, unto
Harosheth of the Gentiles: and all the host of Sisera fell by
the edge of the sword; there was not a man left.
 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.
 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said unto him, Turn
in, my lord, turn in to me; fear not. And he turned in unto her
into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. 
 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. 
 And he said unto her, Stand in
the door of the tent, and it shall be, when any man doth come
and inquire of thee, and say, Is there any man here? that thou
shalt say, No. 
 Then Jael Heber's wife took a tent-pin,
and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and
smote the pin into his temples, and it pierced through into the
ground; for he was in a deep sleep; so he swooned and died.
 And, behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to
meet him, and said unto him, Come, and I will show thee the man
whom thou seekest. And he came unto her; and, behold, Sisera lay
dead, and the tent-pin was in his temples.
 So God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan
before the children of Israel. 
 And the hand of the
children of Israel prevailed more and more against Jabin the
king of Canaan, until they had destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.
==Chapter 5==
 Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on that
day, saying,
 For that the leaders took the lead in Israel,
For that the people offered themselves willingly,
Bless ye Jehovah.
 Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes;
I, [even] I, will sing unto Jehovah;
I will sing praise to Jehovah, the God of Israel.
 Jehovah, when thou wentest forth out of Seir,
When thou marchedst out of the field of Edom,
The earth trembled, the heavens also dropped,
Yea, the clouds dropped water.
 The mountains quaked at the presence of Jehovah,
Even yon Sinai at the presence of Jehovah, the God of Israel.
 In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath,
In the days of Jael, the highways were unoccupied,
And the travellers walked through byways.
 The rulers ceased in Israel, they ceased,
Until that I Deborah arose,
That I arose a mother in Israel.
 They chose new gods;
Then was war in the gates:
Was there a shield or spear seen
Among forty thousand in Israel?
 My heart is toward the governors of Israel,
That offered themselves willingly among the people:
Bless ye Jehovah.
 Tell [of it], ye that ride on white asses,
Ye that sit on rich carpets,
And ye that walk by the way.
 Far from the noise of archers, in the places of drawing
water,
There shall they rehearse the righteous acts of Jehovah,
[Even] the righteous acts of his rule in Israel.
Then the people of Jehovah went down to the gates.
 Awake, awake, Deborah;
Awake, awake, utter a song:
Arise, Barak, and lead away thy captives, thou son of Abinoam.
 Then came down a remnant of the nobles [and] the people;
Jehovah came down for me against the mighty.
 Out of Ephraim [came down] they whose root is in Amalek;
After thee, Benjamin, among thy peoples;
Out of Machir came down governors,
And out of Zebulun they that handle the marshal's staff.
 And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah;
As was Issachar, so was Barak;
Into the valley they rushed forth at his feet.
By the watercourses of Reuben
There were great resolves of heart.
 Why sattest thou among the sheepfolds,
To hear the pipings for the flocks?
At the watercourses of Reuben
There were great searchings of heart.
 Gilead abode beyond the Jordan:
And Dan, why did he remain in ships?
Asher sat still at the haven of the sea,
And abode by his creeks.
 Zebulun was a people that jeoparded their lives unto the
death,
And Naphtali, upon the high places of the field.
 The kings came and fought;
Then fought the kings of Canaan.
In Taanach by the waters of Megiddo:
They took no gain of money.
 From heaven fought the stars,
From their courses they fought against Sisera.
 The river Kishon swept them away,
That ancient river, the river Kishon.
O my soul, march on with strength.
 Then did the horsehoofs stamp
By reason of the prancings, the prancings of their strong ones.
 Curse ye Meroz, said the angel of Jehovah.
Curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof,
Because they came not to the help of Jehovah,
To the help of Jehovah against the mighty.
 Blessed above women shall Jael be,
The wife of Heber the Kenite;
Blessed shall she be above women in the tent.
 He asked water, [and] she gave him milk;
She brought him butter in a lordly dish.
 She put her hand to the tent-pin,
And her right hand to the workmen's hammer;
And with the hammer she smote Sisera, she smote through his head;
Yea, she pierced and struck through his temples.
 At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay;
At her feet he bowed, he fell;
Where he bowed, there he fell down dead.
 Through the window she looked forth, and cried,
The mother of Sisera [cried] through the lattice,
Why is his chariot so long in coming?
Why tarry the wheels of his chariots?
 Her wise ladies answered her,
Yea, she returned answer to herself,
 Have they not found, have they not divided the spoil?
A damsel, two damsels to every man;
To Sisera a spoil of dyed garments,
A spoil of dyed garments embroidered,
Of dyed garments embroidered on both sides, on the necks of the
spoil?
 So let all thine enemies perish, O Jehovah:
But let them that love him be as the sun when he goeth forth in
his might.
And the land had rest forty years.
==Chapter 6==
 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. 
 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. 
 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; 
 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. 
 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. 
 And Israel was
brought very low because of Midian; and the children of Israel
cried unto Jehovah.
 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried
unto Jehovah because of Midian, 
 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; 
 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; 
 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.
 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. 
 And the angel of Jehovah
appeared unto him, and said unto him, Jehovah is with thee, thou
mighty man of valor. 
 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. 
 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? 
 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. 
 And
Jehovah said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou
shalt smite the Midianites as one man. 
 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. 
 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.
 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. 
 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.
 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. 
 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.
 And Jehovah said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not:
thou shalt not die. 
 Then Gideon built an altar there unto
Jehovah, and called it Jehovah-shalom: unto this day it is yet
in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
 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; 
 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. 
 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.
 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. 
 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.
 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.
 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. 
 Therefore, on that day he called him
Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal contend against him, because he hath
broken down his altar.
 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. 
 But
the Spirit of Jehovah came upon Gideon; and he blew a trumpet;
and Abiezer was gathered together after him. 
 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.
 And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by
my hand, as thou hast spoken, 
 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. 
 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. 
 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. 
 And God did so that night: for it was dry
upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.
==Chapter 7==
 Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people that
were with him, rose up early, and encamped beside the spring of
Harod: and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them, by
the hill of Moreh, in the valley.
 And Jehovah said unto Gideon, The people that are with
thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand,
lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand
hath saved me. 
 Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the
people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and trembling, let him
return and depart from mount Gilead. And there returned of the
people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.
 And Jehovah 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. 
 So he brought down the people unto the
water: and Jehovah 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. 
 And the number of them that lapped, putting
their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men: but all the
rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water.
 And Jehovah said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men
that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thy
hand; and let all the people go every man unto his place. 
 So the people took victuals in their hand, and their trumpets;
and he sent all the men of Israel every man unto his tent, but
retained the three hundred men: and the camp of Midian was
beneath him in the valley.
 And it came to pass the same night, that Jehovah said
unto him, Arise, get thee down into the camp; for I have
delivered it into thy hand. 
 But if thou fear to go down,
go thou with Purah thy servant down to the camp: 
 and thou
shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thy hands be
strengthened to go down into the camp. Then went he down with
Purah his servant unto the outermost part of the armed men that
were in the camp. 
 And the Midianites and the Amalekites
and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like
locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as
the sand which is upon the sea-shore for multitude. 
 And
when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man telling a dream
unto his fellow; and he said, Behold, I dreamed a dream; and,
lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian, and
came unto the tent, and smote it so that it fell, and turned it
upside down, so that the tent lay flat. 
 And his fellow
answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon
the son of Joash, a man of Israel: into his hand God hath
delivered Midian, and all the host.
 And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the
dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped; and
he returned into the camp of Israel, and said, Arise; for
Jehovah hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian. 
 And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and
he put into the hands of all of them trumpets, and empty
pitchers, with torches within the pitchers. 
 And he said
unto them, Look on me, and do likewise: and, behold, when I come
to the outermost part of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so
shall ye do. 
 When I blow the trumpet, I and all that are
with me, then blow ye the trumpets also on every side of all the
camp, and say, For Jehovah and for Gideon.
 So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him,
came unto the outermost part of the camp in the beginning of the
middle watch, when they had but newly set the watch: and they
blew the trumpets, and brake in pieces the pitchers that were in
their hands. 
 And the three companies blew the trumpets,
and brake the pitchers, and held the torches in their left
hands, and the trumpets in their right hands wherewith to blow;
and they cried, The sword of Jehovah and of Gideon. 
 And
they stood every man in his place round about the camp; and all
the host ran; and they shouted, and put [them] to flight. 
 And they blew the three hundred trumpets, and Jehovah set every
man's sword against his fellow, and against all the host; and
the host fled as far as Beth-shittah toward Zererah, as far as
the border of Abel-meholah, by Tabbath. 
 And the men of
Israel were gathered together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher,
and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after Midian.
 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all the
hill-country of Ephraim, saying, Come down against Midian, and
take before them the waters, as far as Beth-barah, even the
Jordan. So all the men of Ephraim were gathered together, and
took the waters as far as Beth-barah, even the Jordan. 
 And they took the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb; and they
slew Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they slew at the
winepress of Zeeb, and pursued Midian: and they brought the
heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon beyond the Jordan.
==Chapter 8==
 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 Midian? And they did chide with him sharply. 
 And he said unto them, What have I now done in comparison with
you? Is not the gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than
the vintage of Abiezer? 
 God hath delivered into your hand
the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb: and what was I able to do
in comparison with you? Then their anger was abated toward him,
when he had said that.
 And Gideon came to the Jordan, [and] passed over, he,
and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet
pursuing. 
 And he said unto the men of Succoth, Give, I
pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me; for
they are faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, the
kings of Midian. 
 And the princes of Succoth said, Are the
hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thy hand, that we should give
bread unto thine army? 
 And Gideon said, Therefore, when
Jehovah hath delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, then I
will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with
briers. 
 And he went up thence to Penuel, and spake unto
them in like manner; and the men of Penuel answered him as the
men of Succoth had answered. 
 And he spake also unto the
men of Penuel, saying, When I come again in peace, I will break
down this tower.
 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their hosts
with them, about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of all
the host of the children of the east; for there fell a hundred
and twenty thousand men that drew sword. 
 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.
 And Zebah and Zalmunna fled; and he pursued after them;
and he took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and
discomfited all the host.
 And Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle
from the ascent of Heres. 
 And he caught a young man of
the men of Succoth, and inquired of him: and he described for
him the princes of Succoth, and the elders thereof, seventy and
seven men. 
 And he came unto the men of Succoth, and said,
Behold Zebah and Zalmunna, concerning whom ye did taunt me,
saying, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thy hand,
that we should give bread unto thy men that are weary? 
 And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness
and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth. 
 And he brake down the tower of Penuel, and slew the men of the
city.
 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.
 And he said, They were my brethren, the sons of my
mother: as Jehovah liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would
not slay you. 
 And he said unto Jether his first-born, Up,
and slay them. But the youth drew not his sword; for he feared,
because he was yet a youth. 
 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 the crescents that were on their camels' necks.
 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 saved us out of the hand of Midian. 
 And Gideon
said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son
rule over you: Jehovah shall rule over you. 
 And Gideon
said unto them, I would make a request of you, that ye would
give me every man the ear-rings of his spoil. (For they had
golden ear-rings, because they were Ishmaelites.) 
 And
they answered, We will willingly give them. And they spread a
garment, and did cast therein every man the ear-rings of his
spoil. 
 And the weight of the golden ear-rings that he
requested was a thousand and seven hundred [shekels] of gold,
besides the crescents, and the pendants, and the purple raiment
that was on the kings of Midian, and besides the chains that
were about their camels' necks. 
 And Gideon made an ephod
thereof, and put it in his city, even in Ophrah: and all Israel
played the harlot after it there; and it became a snare unto
Gideon, and to his house. 
 So Midian was subdued before
the children of Israel, and they lifted up their heads no more.
And the land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon.
 And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his
own house. 
 And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his
body begotten; for he had many wives. 
 And his concubine
that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, and he called his
name Abimelech. 
 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.
 And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that
the children of Israel turned again, and played the harlot after
the Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god. 
 And the
children of Israel remembered not Jehovah their God, who had
delivered them out of the hand of all their enemies on every
side; 
 neither showed they kindness to the house of
Jerubbaal, [who is] Gideon, according to all the goodness which
he had showed unto Israel.
==Chapter 9==
 And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem unto
his mother's brethren, and spake with them, and with all the
family of the house of his mother's father, saying, 
 Speak,
I pray you, in the ears of all the men of Shechem, Whether is
better for you, that all the sons of Jerubbaal, who are
threescore and ten persons, rule over you, or that one rule over
you? remember also that I am your bone and your flesh. 
 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. 
 And they gave
him threescore and ten [pieces] of silver out of the house of
Baal-berith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light fellows,
who followed him. 
 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: but Jotham the
youngest son of Jerubbaal was left; for he hid himself. 
 And all the men of Shechem assembled themselves together, and
all the house of Millo, and went and made Abimelech king, by the
oak of the pillar that was in Shechem.
 And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood on
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. 
 The trees went forth on a time to
anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive-tree,
Reign thou over us. 
 But the olive-tree said unto them,
Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honor God and
man, and go to wave to and fro over the trees? 
 And the
trees said to the fig-tree, Come thou, and reign over us. 
 But the fig-tree said unto them, Should I leave my sweetness,
and my good fruit, and go to wave to and fro over the trees?
 And the trees said unto the vine, Come thou, and reign
over us. 
 And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my
new wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to wave to and fro
over the trees? 
 Then said all the trees unto the bramble,
Come thou, and reign over us. 
 And the bramble said unto
the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and
take refuge in my shade; and if not, let fire come out of the
bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. 
 Now therefore,
if ye have dealt truly and uprightly, 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 
 (for my father fought for you, and adventured his
life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian: 
 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 maid-servant, king over the men
of Shechem, because he is your brother); 
 if ye then have
dealt truly and uprightly with Jerubbaal and with his house this
day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in
you: 
 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. 
 And Jotham ran away, and fled, and
went to Beer, and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother.
 And Abimelech was prince over Israel three years.
 And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men
of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with
Abimelech: 
 that the violence done to the threescore and
ten sons of Jerubbaal might come, and that their blood might be
laid upon Abimelech their brother, who slew them, and upon the
men of Shechem, who strengthened his hands to slay his brethren.
 And the men of Shechem set liers-in-wait for him on the
tops of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that
way by them: and it was told Abimelech.
 And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brethren, and
went over to Shechem; and the men of Shechem put their trust in
him. 
 And they went out into the field, and gathered their
vineyards, and trod [the grapes], and held festival, and went
into the house of their god, and did eat and drink, and cursed
Abimelech. 
 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 ye the men
of Hamor the father of Shechem: but why should we serve him?
 And would that this people were under my hand! then would
I remove Abimelech. And he said to Abimelech, Increase thine
army, and come out.
 And when Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words
of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was kindled. 
 And he
sent messengers unto Abimelech craftily, saying, Behold, Gaal
the son of Ebed and his brethren are come to Shechem; and,
behold, they constrain the city [to take part] against thee.
 Now therefore, up by night, thou and the people that are
with thee, and lie in wait in the field: 
 and it shall be,
that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, thou shalt rise
early, and rush upon the city; and, behold, when he and the
people that are with him come out against thee, then mayest thou
do to them as thou shalt find occasion.
 And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were
with him, by night, and they laid wait against Shechem in four
companies. 
 And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood
in the entrance of the gate of the city: and Abimelech rose up,
and the people that were with him, from the ambushment. 
 And when Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, Behold, there
come people down from the tops of the mountains. And Zebul said
unto him, Thou seest the shadow of the mountains as if they were
men. 
 And Gaal spake again and said, See, there come
people down by the middle of the land, and one company cometh by
the way of the oak of Meonenim. 
 Then said Zebul unto him,
Where is now thy mouth, that thou saidst, Who is Abimelech, that
we should serve him? is not this the people that thou hast
despised? go out now, I pray, and fight with them. 
 And
Gaal went out before the men of Shechem, and fought with
Abimelech. 
 And Abimelech chased him, and he fled before
him, and there fell many wounded, even unto the entrance of the
gate.
 And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah: and Zebul drove out
Gaal and his brethren, that they should not dwell in Shechem.
 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people went
out into the field; and they told Abimelech. 
 And he took
the people, and divided them into three companies, and laid wait
in the field; and he looked, and, behold, the people came forth
out of the city; And he rose up against them, and smote them.
 And Abimelech, and the companies that were with him,
rushed forward, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the
city: and the two companies rushed upon all that were in the
field, and smote them. 
 And Abimelech fought against the
city all that day; and he took the city, and slew the people
that were therein: and he beat down the city, and sowed it with
salt.
 And when all the men of the tower of Shechem heard
thereof, they entered into the stronghold of the house of
Elberith. 
 And it was told Abimelech that all the men of
the tower of Shechem were gathered together. 
 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 up, and laid it on his
shoulder: and he said unto the people that were with him, What
ye have seen me do, make haste, and do as I have done. 
 And all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and
followed Abimelech, and put them to the stronghold, and set the
stronghold on fire upon them; so that all the men of the tower
of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women.
 Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and encamped against
Thebez, and took it. 
 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 themselves in, and gat them up to the roof
of the tower. 
 And Abimelech came unto the tower, and
fought against it, and drew near unto the door of the tower to
burn it with fire. 
 And a certain woman cast an upper
millstone upon Abimelech's head, and brake his skull. 
 Then he called hastily unto the young man his armorbearer, and
said unto him, Draw thy sword, and kill me, that men say not of
me, A woman slew him. And his young man thrust him through, and
he died. 
 And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech
was dead, they departed every man unto his place. 
 Thus
God requited the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did unto his
father, in slaying his seventy brethren; 
 and all the
wickedness of the men of Shechem did God requite upon their
heads: and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of
Jerubbaal.
==Chapter 10==
 And after Abimelech there arose to save Israel Tola
the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar; and he
dwelt in Shamir in the hill-country of Ephraim. 
 And he
judged Israel twenty and three years, and died, and was buried
in Shamir.
 And after him arose Jair, the Gileadite; and he judged
Israel twenty and two years. 
 And he had thirty sons that
rode on thirty ass colts, and they had thirty cities, which are
called Havvoth-jair unto this day, which are in the land of
Gilead. 
 And Jair died, and was buried in Kamon.
 And the children of Israel again did that which was
evil in the sight of Jehovah, and served the Baalim, and the
Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Sidon, and the
gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the
gods of the Philistines; and they forsook Jehovah, and served
him not. 
 And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against
Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the Philistines, and
into the hand of the children of Ammon. 
 And they vexed
and oppressed the children of Israel that year: eighteen years
[oppressed they] all the children of Israel that were beyond the
Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead. 
 And the children of Ammon passed over the Jordan to fight also
against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of
Ephraim; so that Israel was sore distressed.
 And the children of Israel cried unto Jehovah,
saying, We have sinned against thee, even because we have
forsaken our God, and have served the Baalim. 
 And
Jehovah said unto the children of Israel, [Did] not [I save you]
from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, from the children of
Ammon, and from the Philistines? 
 The Sidonians also, and
the Amalekites, and the Maonites, did oppress you; and ye cried
unto me, and I saved you out of their hand. 
 Yet ye have
forsaken me, and served other gods: wherefore I will save you no
more. 
 Go and cry unto the gods which ye have chosen; let
them save you in the time of your distress. 
 And the
children of Israel said unto Jehovah, We have sinned: do thou
unto us whatsoever seemeth good unto thee; only deliver us, we
pray thee, this day. 
 And they put away the foreign gods
from among them, and served Jehovah; and his soul was grieved
for the misery of Israel.
 Then the children of Ammon were gathered together,
and encamped in Gilead. And the children of Israel assembled
themselves together, and encamped in Mizpah. 
 And the
people, the princes of Gilead, said one to another, What man is
he that will begin to fight against the children of Ammon? he
shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.
==Chapter 11==
 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor,
and he was the son of a harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.
 And Gilead's wife bare him sons; and when his wife's sons
grew up, they drove out Jephthah, and said unto him, Thou shalt
not inherit in our father's house; for thou art the son of
another woman. 
 Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and
dwelt in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain fellows
to Jephthah, and they went out with him.
 And it came to pass after a while, that the children
of Ammon made war against Israel. 
 And it was so, that,
when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders
of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob; 
 and they said unto Jephthah, Come and be our chief, that we may
fight with the children of Ammon. 
 And Jephthah said unto
the elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and drive me out of my
father's house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in
distress? 
 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah,
Therefore, are we turned again to thee now, that thou mayest go
with us, and fight with the children of Ammon; and thou shalt be
our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead. 
 And Jephthah
said unto the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to
fight with the children of Ammon, and Jehovah deliver them
before me, shall I be your head? 
 And the elders of
Gilead said unto Jephthah, Jehovah shall be witness between us;
surely according to thy word so will we do. 
 Then
Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him
head and chief over them: and Jephthah spake all his words
before Jehovah in Mizpah.
 And Jephthah sent messengers unto the king of the
children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that
thou art come unto me to fight against my land? 
 And the
king of the children of Ammon answered unto the messengers of
Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land, when he came up out
of Egypt, from the Arnon even unto the Jabbok, and unto the
Jordan: now therefore restore those [lands] again peaceably.
 And Jephthah sent messengers again unto the king of the
children of Ammon; 
 and he said unto him, Thus saith
Jephthah: Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of
the children of Ammon, 
 but when they came up from Egypt,
and Israel went through the wilderness unto the Red Sea, and
came to Kadesh; 
 then Israel sent messengers unto the
king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy
land; but the king of Edom hearkened not. And in like manner he
sent unto the king of Moab; but he would not: and Israel abode
in Kadesh. 
 Then they went through the wilderness, and
went around the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by
the east side of the land of Moab, and they encamped on the
other side of the Arnon; but they came not within the border of
Moab, for the Arnon was the border of Moab. 
 And Israel
sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of
Heshbon; and Israel said unto him, Let us pass, we pray thee,
through thy land unto my place. 
 But Sihon trusted not
Israel to pass through his border; but Sihon gathered all his
people together, and encamped in Jahaz, and fought against
Israel. 
 And Jehovah, the God of Israel, delivered Sihon
and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them:
so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the
inhabitants of that country. 
 And they possessed all the
border of the Amorites, from the Arnon even unto the Jabbok, and
from the wilderness even unto the Jordan. 
 So now
Jehovah, the God of Israel, hath dispossessed the Amorites from
before his people Israel, and shouldest thou possess them?
 Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth
thee to possess? So whomsoever Jehovah our God hath dispossessed
from before us, them will we possess. 
 And now art thou
anything better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? did
he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against
them? 
 While Israel dwelt in Heshbon and its towns, and
in Aroer and its towns, and in all the cities that are along by
the side of the Arnon, three hundred years; wherefore did ye not
recover them within that time? 
 I therefore have not
sinned against thee, but thou doest me wrong to war against me:
Jehovah, the Judge, be judge this day between the children of
Israel and the children of Ammon. 
 Howbeit the king of
the children of Ammon hearkened not unto the words of Jephthah
which he sent him.
 Then the Spirit of Jehovah came upon Jephthah, and he
passed over Gilead and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of
Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over unto the
children of Ammon. 
 And Jephthah vowed a vow unto
Jehovah, and said, If thou wilt indeed deliver the children of
Ammon into my hand, 
 then it shall be, that whatsoever
cometh forth from the doors of my house to meet me, when I
return in peace from the children of Ammon, it shall be
Jehovah's, and I will offer it up for a burnt-offering. 
 So Jephthah passed over unto the children of Ammon to fight
against them; and Jehovah delivered them into his hand. 
 And he smote them from Aroer until thou come to Minnith, even
twenty cities, and unto Abelcheramim, with a very great
slaughter. So the children of Ammon were subdued before the
children of Israel.
 And Jephthah came to Mizpah unto his house; and,
behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with
dances: and she was his only child; besides her he had neither
son nor daughter. 
 And it came to pass, when he saw her,
that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast
brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me;
for I have opened my mouth unto Jehovah, and I cannot go back.
 And she said unto him, My father, thou hast opened thy
mouth unto Jehovah; do unto me according to that which hath
proceeded out of thy mouth, forasmuch as Jehovah hath taken
vengeance for thee on thine enemies, even on the children of
Ammon. 
 And she said unto her father, Let this thing be
done for me: let me alone two months, that I may depart and go
down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my
companions. 
 And he said, Go. And he sent her away for
two months: and she departed, she and her companions, and
bewailed her virginity upon the mountains. 
 And it came
to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her
father, who did with her according to his vow which he had
vowed: and she knew not man. And it was a custom in Israel,
 that the daughters of Israel went yearly to celebrate
the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.
==Chapter 12==
 And the men of Ephraim were gathered together, and
passed northward; and they 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 thy house upon
thee with fire. 
 And Jephthah said unto them, I and my
people were at great strife with the children of Ammon; and when
I called you, ye saved me not out of their hand. 
 And when
I saw that ye saved me not, I put my life in my hand, and passed
over against the children of Ammon, and Jehovah delivered them
into my hand: wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to
fight against me? 
 Then Jephthah gathered together all the
men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim; and the men of Gilead
smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye are fugitives of Ephraim,
ye Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim, [and] in the midst of
Manasseh. 
 And the Gileadites took the fords of the Jordan
against the Ephraimites. And it was so, that, when [any of] the
fugitives of Ephraim said, Let me go over, the men of Gilead
said unto him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If he said, Nay; 
 then said they unto him, Say now Shibboleth; and he said
Sibboleth; for he could not frame to pronounce it right: then
they laid hold on him, and slew him at the fords of the Jordan.
And there fell at that time of Ephraim forty and two thousand.
 And Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then died
Jephthah the Gileadite, and was buried in [one of] the cities of
Gilead.
 And after him Ibzan of Beth-lehem judged Israel.
 And he had thirty sons; and thirty daughters he sent
abroad, and thirty daughters he brought in from abroad for his
sons. And he judged Israel seven years. 
 And Ibzan died,
and was buried at Beth-lehem. 
 And after him Elon the
Zebulunite judged Israel; and he judged Israel ten years.
 And Elon the Zebulunite died, and was buried in Aijalon
in the land of Zebulun.
 And after him Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite
judged Israel. 
 And he had forty sons and thirty sons'
sons, that rode on threescore and ten ass colts: and he judged
Israel eight years. 
 And Abdon the son of Hillel the
Pirathonite died, and was buried in Pirathon in the land of
Ephraim, in the hill-country of the Amalekites.
==Chapter 13==
 And the children of Israel again did that which was
evil in the sight of Jehovah; and Jehovah delivered them into
the hand of the Philistines forty years.
 And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of
the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and
bare not. 
 And the angel of Jehovah appeared unto the
woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art barren, and
bearest not; but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son. 
 Now
therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink no wine nor strong
drink, and eat not any unclean thing: 
 for, lo, thou shalt
conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come upon his head;
for the child shall be a Nazirite unto God from the womb: and he
shall begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.
 Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man
of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the
countenance of the angel of God, very terrible; and I asked him
not whence he was, neither told he me his name: 
 but he
said unto me, Behold, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and
now drink no wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean
thing; for the child shall be a Nazirite unto God from the womb
to the day of his death.
 Then Manoah entreated Jehovah, and said, Oh, Lord, I
pray thee, let the man of God whom thou didst send come again
unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall
be born. 
 And God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; and
the angel of God came again unto the woman as she sat in the
field: but Manoah her husband was not with her. 
 And the
woman made haste, and ran, and told her husband, and said unto
him, Behold, the man hath appeared unto me, that came unto me
the [other] day. 
 And Manoah arose, and went after his
wife, and came to the man, and said unto him, Art thou the man
that spakest unto the woman? And he said, I am. 
 And
Manoah said, Now let thy words come to pass: what shall be the
ordering of the child, and [how] shall we do unto him? 
 And the angel of Jehovah said unto Manoah, Of all that I said
unto the woman let her beware. 
 She may not eat of
anything that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or
strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing; all that I commanded
her let her observe.
 And Manoah said unto the angel of Jehovah, I pray
thee, let us detain thee, that we may make ready a kid for thee.
 And the angel of Jehovah said unto Manoah, Though thou
detain me, I will not eat of thy bread; and if thou wilt make
ready a burnt-offering, thou must offer it unto Jehovah. For
Manoah knew not that he was the angel of Jehovah. 
 And
Manoah said unto the angel of Jehovah, What is thy name, that,
when thy words come to pass, we may do thee honor? 
 And
the angel of Jehovah said unto him, Wherefore askest thou after
my name, seeing it is wonderful? 
 So Manoah took the kid
with the meal-offering, and offered it upon the rock unto
Jehovah: and [the angel] did wondrously, and Manoah and his wife
looked on. 
 For it came to pass, when the flame went up
toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of Jehovah
ascended in the flame of the altar: and Manoah and his wife
looked on; and they fell on their faces to the ground.
 But the angel of Jehovah did no more appear to Manoah
or to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of
Jehovah. 
 And Manoah said unto his wife, We shall surely
die, because we have seen God. 
 But his wife said unto
him, If Jehovah were pleased to kill us, he would not have
received a burnt-offering and a meal-offering at our hand,
neither would he have showed us all these things, nor would at
this time have told such things as these. 
 And the woman
bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and
Jehovah blessed him. 
 And the Spirit of Jehovah began to
move him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
==Chapter 14==
 And Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in
Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines. 
 And he came
up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a
woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines: now
therefore get her for me to wife. 
 Then his father and his
mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters
of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take
a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto
his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well. 
 But
his father and his mother knew not that it was of Jehovah; for
he sought an occasion against the Philistines. Now at that time
the Philistines had rule over Israel.
 Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother,
to Timnah, and came to the vineyards of Timnah: and, behold, a
young lion roared against him. 
 And the Spirit of Jehovah
came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a
kid; and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father
or his mother what he had done. 
 And he went down, and
talked with the woman, and she pleased Samson well. 
 And
after a while he returned to take her; and he turned aside to
see the carcass of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of
bees in the body of the lion, and honey. 
 And he took it
into his hands, and went on, eating as he went; and he came to
his father and mother, and gave unto them, and they did eat: but
he told them not that he had taken the honey out of the body of
the lion.
 And his father went down unto the woman: and Samson
made there a feast; for so used the young men to do. 
 And
it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty
companions to be with him. 
 And Samson said unto them,
Let me now put forth a riddle unto you: if ye can declare it
unto me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out,
then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of
raiment; 
 but if ye cannot declare it unto me, then shall
ye give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of raiment.
And they said unto him, Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear
it. 
 And he said unto them,
Out of the eater came forth food,
And out of the strong came forth sweetness.
And they could not in three days declare the riddle. 
 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they said unto
Samson's wife, Entice thy husband, that he may declare unto us
the riddle, lest we burn thee and thy father's house with fire:
have ye called us to impoverish us? is it not [so]? 
 And
Samson's wife wept before him, and said, Thou dost but hate me,
and lovest me not: thou hast put forth a riddle unto the
children of my people, and hast not told it me. And he said unto
her, Behold, I have not told it my father nor my mother, and
shall I tell thee? 
 And she wept before him the seven
days, while their feast lasted: and it came to pass on the
seventh day, that he told her, because she pressed him sore; and
she told the riddle to the children of her people. 
 And
the men of the city said unto him on the seventh day before the
sun went down, What is sweeter than honey? and what is stronger
than a lion? And he said unto them,
If ye had not plowed with my heifer,
Ye had not found out my riddle.
 And the Spirit of Jehovah came mightily upon him, and
he went down to Ashkelon, and smote thirty men of them, and took
their spoil, and gave the changes [of raiment] unto them that
declared the riddle. And his anger was kindled, and he went up
to his father's house. 
 But Samson's wife was [given] to
his companion, whom he had used as his friend.
==Chapter 15==
 But it came to pass after a while, in the time of
wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid; and he
said, I will go in to my wife into the chamber. But her father
would not suffer him to go in. 
 And her father said, I
verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her; therefore I
gave her to thy companion: is not her younger sister fairer than
she? take her, I pray thee, instead of her. 
 And Samson
said unto them, This time shall I be blameless in regard of the
Philistines, when I do them a mischief. 
 And Samson went
and caught three hundred foxes, and took firebrands, and turned
tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the midst between every two
tails. 
 And when he had set the brands on fire, he let
them go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and burnt up
both the shocks and the standing grain, and also the oliveyards.
 Then the Philistines said, Who hath done this? And they
said, Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he hath
taken his wife, and given her to his companion. And the
Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father with fire.
 And Samson said unto them, If ye do after this manner,
surely I will be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.
 And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter:
and he went down and dwelt in the cleft of the rock of Etam.
 Then the Philistines went up, and encamped in Judah,
and spread themselves in Lehi. 
 And the men of Judah
said, Why are ye come up against us? And they said, To bind
Samson are we come up, to do to him as he hath done to us.
 Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft
of the rock of Etam, and said to Samson, Knowest thou not that
the Philistines are rulers over us? what then is this that thou
hast done unto us? And he said unto them, As they did unto me,
so have I done unto them. 
 And they said unto him, We are
come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hand
of the Philistines. And Samson said unto them, Swear unto me,
that ye will not fall upon me yourselves. 
 And they spake
unto him, saying, No; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver
thee into their hand: but surely we will not kill thee. And they
bound him with two new ropes, and brought him up from the rock.
 When he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted as
they met him: and the Spirit of Jehovah came mightily upon him,
and the ropes that were upon his arms became as flax that was
burnt with fire, and his bands dropped from off his hands.
 And he found a fresh jawbone of an ass, and put forth
his hand, and took it, and smote a thousand men therewith.
 And Samson said,
With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps,
With the jawbone of an ass have I smitten a thousand men.
 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of
speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand; and
that place was called Ramath-lehi. 
 And he was sore
athirst, and called on Jehovah, and said, Thou hast given this
great deliverance by the hand of thy servant; and now shall I
die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised.
 But God clave the hollow place that is in Lehi, and
there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit
came again, and he revived: wherefore the name thereof was
called En-hakkore, which is in Lehi, unto this day. 
 And
he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
==Chapter 16==
 And Samson went to Gaza, and saw there a harlot, and
went in unto her. 
 [And it was told] the Gazites, saying,
Samson is come hither. And they compassed him in, and laid wait
for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all
the night, saying, [Let be] till morning light, then we will
kill him. 
 And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at
midnight, and laid hold of the doors of the gate of the city,
and the two posts, and plucked them up, bar and all, and put
them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the
mountain that is before Hebron.
 And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman
in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. 
 And the
lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her,
Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by
what means we may prevail against him, that we may bind him to
afflict him: and we will give thee every one of us eleven
hundred [pieces] of silver. 
 And Delilah said to Samson,
Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and
wherewith thou mightest be bound to afflict thee. 
 And
Samson said unto her, If they bind me with seven green withes
that were never dried, then shall I become weak, and be as
another man. 
 Then the lords of the Philistines brought up
to her seven green withes which had not been dried, and she
bound him with them. 
 Now she had liers-in-wait abiding in
the inner chamber. And she said unto him, The Philistines are
upon thee, Samson. And he brake the withes, as a string of tow
is broken when it toucheth the fire. So his strength was not
known.
 And Delilah said unto Samson, Behold, thou hast
mocked me, and told me lies: now tell me, I pray thee, wherewith
thou mightest be bound. 
 And he said unto her, If they
only bind me with new ropes wherewith no work hath been done,
then shall I become weak, and be as another man. 
 So
Delilah took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto
him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And the
liers-in-wait were abiding in the inner chamber. And he brake
them off his arms like a thread.
 And Delilah said unto Samson, Hitherto thou hast
mocked me, and told me lies: tell me wherewith thou mightest be
bound. And he said unto her, If thou weavest the seven locks of
my head with the web. 
 And she fastened it with the pin,
and said unto him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he
awaked out of his sleep, and plucked away the pin of the beam,
and the web.
 And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love
thee, when thy heart is not with me? thou hast mocked me these
three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength
lieth. 
 And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily
with her words, and urged him, that his soul was vexed unto
death. 
 And he told her all his heart, and said unto her,
There hath not come a razor upon my head; for I have been a
Nazirite unto God from my mother's womb: if I be shaven, then my
strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like
any other man. 
 And when Delilah saw that he had told her
all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the
Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath told me all
his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her,
and brought the money in their hand. 
 And she made him
sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and shaved off
the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and
his strength went from him. 
 And she said, The
Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his
sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times, and shake
myself free. But he knew not that Jehovah was departed from him.
 And the Philistines laid hold on him, and put out his
eyes; and they brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with
fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison-house. 
 Howbeit the hair of his head began to grow again after he was
shaven.
 And the lords of the Philistines gathered them
together to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to
rejoice; for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy
into our hand. 
 And when the people saw him, they praised
their god; for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hand
our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, who hath slain many
of us. 
 And it came to pass, when their hearts were
merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make us
sport. And they called for Samson out of the prison-house; and
he made sport before them. And they set him between the pillars:
 and Samson said unto the lad that held him by the hand,
Suffer me that I may feel the pillars whereupon the house
resteth, that I may lean upon them. 
 Now the house was
full of men and women; and all the lords of the Philistines were
there; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and
women, that beheld while Samson made sport.
 And Samson called unto Jehovah, and said, O Lord
Jehovah, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray
thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of
the Philistines for my two eyes. 
 And Samson took hold of
the two middle pillars upon which the house rested, and leaned
upon them, the one with his right hand, and the other with his
left. 
 And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines.
And he bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon
the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the
dead that he slew at his death were more than they that he slew
in his life. 
 Then his brethren and all the house of his
father came down, and took him, and brought him up, and buried
him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the burying-place of Manoah his
father. And he judged Israel twenty years.
==Chapter 17==
 And there was a man of the hill-country of Ephraim,
whose name was Micah. 
 And he said unto his mother, The
eleven hundred [pieces] of silver that were taken from thee,
about which thou didst utter a curse, and didst also speak it in
mine ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it. And his
mother said, Blessed be my son of Jehovah. 
 And he
restored the eleven hundred [pieces] of silver to his mother;
and his mother said, I verily dedicate the silver unto Jehovah
from my hand for my son, to make a graven image and a molten
image: now therefore I will restore it unto thee. 
 And
when he restored the money unto his mother, his mother took two
hundred [pieces] of silver, and gave them to the founder, who
made thereof a graven image and a molten image: and it was in
the house of Micah. 
 And the man Micah had a house of
gods, and he made an ephod, and teraphim, and consecrated one of
his sons, who became his priest. 
 In those days there was
no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own
eyes.
 And there was a young man out of Beth-lehem-judah, of
the family of Judah, who was a Levite; and he sojourned there.
 And the man departed out of the city, out of
Beth-lehem-judah, to sojourn where he could find [a place], and
he came to the hill-country of Ephraim to the house of Micah, as
he journeyed. 
 And Micah said unto him, Whence comest
thou? And he said unto him, I am a Levite of Beth-lehem-judah,
and I go to sojourn where I may find [a place]. 
 And
Micah said unto him, Dwell with me, and be unto me a father and
a priest, and I will give thee ten [pieces] of silver by the
year, and a suit of apparel, and thy victuals. So the Levite
went in. 
 And the Levite was content to dwell with the
man; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons. 
 And Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his
priest, and was in the house of Micah. 
 Then said Micah,
Now know I that Jehovah will do me good, seeing I have a Levite
to my priest.
==Chapter 18==
 In those days there was no king in Israel: and in
those days the tribe of the Danites sought them an inheritance
to dwell in; for unto that day [their] inheritance had not
fallen unto them among the tribes of Israel. 
 And the
children of Dan sent of their family five men from their whole
number, men of valor, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out
the land, and to search it; and they said unto them, Go, search
the land. And they came to the hill-country of Ephraim, unto the
house of Micah, and lodged there. 
 When they were by the
house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite;
and they turned aside thither, and said unto him, Who brought
thee hither? and what doest thou in this place? and what hast
thou here? 
 And he said unto them, Thus and thus hath
Micah dealt with me, and he hath hired me, and I am become his
priest. 
 And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray
thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall
be prosperous. 
 And the priest said unto them, Go in
peace: before Jehovah is your way wherein ye go.
 Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw
the people that were therein, how they dwelt in security, after
the manner of the Sidonians, quiet and secure; for there was
none in the land, possessing authority, that might put [them] to
shame in anything, and they were far from the Sidonians, and had
no dealings with any man. 
 And they came unto their
brethren to Zorah and Eshtaol: and their brethren said unto
them, What [say] ye? 
 And they said, Arise, and let us go
up against them; for we have seen the land, and, behold, it is
very good: and are ye still? be not slothful to go and to enter
in to possess the land. 
 When ye go, ye shall come unto a
people secure, and the land is large; for God hath given it into
your hand, a place where there is no want of anything that is in
the earth.
 And there set forth from thence of the family of the
Danites, out of Zorah and out of Eshtaol, six hundred men girt
with weapons of war. 
 And they went up, and encamped in
Kiriath-jearim, in Judah: wherefore they called that place
Mahaneh-dan, unto this day; behold, it is behind Kiriath-jearim.
 And they passed thence unto the hill-country of Ephraim,
and came unto the house of Micah.
 Then answered the five men that went to spy out the
country of Laish, and said unto their brethren, Do ye know that
there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and a graven
image, and a molten image? now therefore consider what ye have
to do. 
 And they turned aside thither, and came to the
house of the young man the Levite, even unto the house of Micah,
and asked him of his welfare. 
 And the six hundred men
girt with their weapons of war, who were of the children of Dan,
stood by the entrance of the gate. 
 And the five men that
went to spy out the land went up, and came in thither, and took
the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the
molten image: and the priest stood by the entrance of the gate
with the six hundred men girt with weapons of war. 
 And
when these went into Micah's house, and fetched the graven
image, the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image, the
priest said unto them, What do ye? 
 And they said unto
him, Hold thy peace, lay thy hand upon thy mouth, and go with
us, and be to us a father and a priest: is it better for thee to
be priest unto the house of one man, or to be priest unto a
tribe and a family in Israel? 
 And the priest's heart was
glad, and he took the ephod, and the teraphim, and the graven
image, and went in the midst of the people.
 So they turned and departed, and put the little ones
and the cattle and the goods before them. 
 When they were
a good way from the house of Micah, the men that were in the
houses near to Micah's house were gathered together, and
overtook the children of Dan. 
 And they cried unto the
children of Dan. And they turned their faces, and said unto
Micah, What aileth thee, that thou comest with such a company?
 And he said, ye have taken away my gods which I made,
and the priest, and are gone away, and what have I more? and how
then say ye unto me, What aileth thee? 
 And the children
of Dan said unto him, Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest
angry fellows fall upon you, and thou lose thy life, with the
lives of thy household. 
 And the children of Dan went
their way: and when Micah saw that they were too strong for him,
he turned and went back unto his house.
 And they took that which Micah had made, and the
priest whom he had, and came unto Laish, unto a people quiet and
secure, and smote them with the edge of the sword; and they
burnt the city with fire. 
 And there was no deliverer,
because it was far from Sidon, and they had no dealings with any
man; and it was in the valley that lieth by Beth-rehob. And they
built the city, and dwelt therein. 
 And they called the
name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who
was born unto Israel: howbeit the name of the city was Laish at
the first. 
 And the children of Dan set up for themselves
the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of
Moses, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites
until the day of the captivity of the land. 
 So they set
them up Micah's graven image which he made, all the time that
the house of God was in Shiloh.
==Chapter 19==
 And it came to pass in those days, when there was no
king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite sojourning on
the farther side of the hill-country of Ephraim, who took to him
a concubine out of Beth-lehem-judah. 
 And his concubine
played the harlot against him, and went away from him unto her
father's house to Beth-lehem-judah, and was there the space of
four months. 
 And her husband arose, and went after her,
to speak kindly unto her, to bring her again, having his servant
with him, and a couple of asses: and she brought him into her
father's house; and when the father of the damsel saw him, he
rejoiced to meet him. 
 And his father-in-law, the damsel's
father, retained him; and he abode with him three days: so they
did eat and drink, and lodged there. 
 And it came to pass
on the fourth day, that they arose early in the morning, and he
rose up to depart: and the damsel's father said unto his
son-in-law, Strengthen thy heart with a morsel of bread, and
afterward ye shall go your way. 
 So they sat down, and did
eat and drink, both of them together: and the damsel's father
said unto the man, Be pleased, I pray thee, to tarry all night,
and let thy heart be merry. 
 And the man rose up to
depart; but his father-in-law urged him, and he lodged there
again. 
 And he arose early in the morning on the fifth day
to depart; and the damsel's father said, Strengthen thy heart, I
pray thee, and tarry ye until the day declineth; and they did
eat, both of them. 
 And when the man rose up to depart,
he, and his concubine, and his servant, his father-in-law, the
damsel's father, said unto him, Behold, now the day draweth
toward evening, I pray you tarry all night: behold, the day
groweth to an end, lodge here, that thy heart may be merry; and
to-morrow get you early on your way, that thou mayest go home.
 But the man would not tarry that night, but he rose
up and departed, and came over against Jebus (the same is
Jerusalem): and there were with him a couple of asses saddled;
his concubine also was with him. 
 When they were by
Jebus, the day was far spent; and the servant said unto his
master, Come, I pray thee, and let us turn aside into this city
of the Jebusites, and lodge in it. 
 And his master said
unto him, We will not turn aside into the city of a foreigner,
that is not of the children of Israel; but we will pass over to
Gibeah. 
 And he said unto his servant, Come and let us
draw near to one of these places; and we will lodge in Gibeah,
or in Ramah. 
 So they passed on and went their way; and
the sun went down upon them near to Gibeah, which belongeth to
Benjamin. 
 And they turned aside thither, to go in to
lodge in Gibeah: and he went in, and sat him down in the street
of the city; for there was no man that took them into his house
to lodge.
 And, behold, there came an old man from his work out
of the field at even: now the man was of the hill-country of
Ephraim, and he sojourned in Gibeah; but the men of the place
were Benjamites. 
 And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the
wayfaring man in the street of the city; and the old man said,
Whither goest thou? and whence comest thou? 
 And he said
unto him, We are passing from Beth-lehem-judah unto the farther
side of the hill-country of Ephraim; from thence am I, and I
went to Beth-lehem-judah: and I am [now] going to the house of
Jehovah; and there is no man that taketh me into his house.
 Yet there is both straw and provender for our asses; and
there is bread and wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and
for the young man that is with thy servants: there is no want of
anything. 
 And the old man said, Peace be unto thee;
howsoever let all thy wants lie upon me; only lodge not in the
street. 
 So he brought him into his house, and gave the
asses fodder; and they washed their feet, and did eat and drink.
 As they were making their hearts merry, behold, the
men of the city, certain base fellows, beset the house round
about, beating at the door; and they spake to the master of the
house, the old man, saying, Bring forth the man that came into
thy house, that we may know him. 
 And the man, the master
of the house, went out unto them, and said unto them, Nay, my
brethren, I pray you, do not so wickedly; seeing that this man
is come into my house, do not this folly. 
 Behold, here
is my daughter a virgin, and his concubine; them I will bring
out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good
unto you: but unto this man do not any such folly. 
 But
the men would not hearken to him: so the man laid hold on his
concubine, and brought her forth unto them; and they knew her,
and abused her all the night until the morning: and when the day
began to spring, they let her go. 
 Then came the woman in
the dawning of the day, and fell down at the door of the man's
house where her lord was, till it was light.
 And her lord rose up in the morning, and opened the
doors of the house, and went out to go his way; and, behold, the
woman his concubine was fallen down at the door of the house,
with her hands upon the threshold. 
 And he said unto her,
Up, and let us be going; but none answered: then he took her up
upon the ass; and the man rose up, and gat him unto his place.
 And when he was come into his house, he took a knife,
and laid hold on his concubine, and divided her, limb by limb,
into twelve pieces, and sent her throughout all the borders of
Israel. 
 And it was so, that all that saw it said, There
was no such deed done nor seen from the day that the children of
Israel came up out of the land of Egypt unto this day: consider
it, take counsel, and speak.
==Chapter 20==
 Then all the children of Israel went out, and the
congregation was assembled as one man, from Dan even to
Beer-sheba, with the land of Gilead, unto Jehovah at Mizpah.
 And the chiefs of all the people, even of all the tribes
of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of
God, four hundred thousand footmen that drew sword. 
 (Now
the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were
gone up to Mizpah.) And the children of Israel said, Tell us,
how was this wickedness brought to pass? 
 And the Levite,
the husband of the woman that was murdered, answered and said, I
came into Gibeah that belongeth to Benjamin, I and my concubine,
to lodge. 
 And the men of Gibeah rose against me, and
beset the house round about me by night; me they thought to have
slain, and my concubine they forced, and she is dead. 
 And
I took my concubine, and cut her in pieces, and sent her
throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel; for
they have committed lewdness and folly in Israel. 
 Behold,
ye children of Israel, all of you, give here your advice and
counsel.
 And all the people arose as one man, saying, We will
not any of us go to his tent, neither will we any of us turn
unto his house. 
 But now this is the thing which we will
do to Gibeah: [we will go up] against it by lot; 
 and we
will take ten men of a hundred throughout all the tribes of
Israel, and a hundred of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten
thousand, to fetch victuals for the people, that they may do,
when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin, according to all the folly
that they have wrought in Israel. 
 So all the men of
Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man.
 And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the
tribe of Benjamin, saying, What wickedness is this that is come
to pass among you? 
 Now therefore deliver up the men, the
base fellows, that are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death,
and put away evil from Israel. But Benjamin would not hearken to
the voice of their brethren the children of Israel. 
 And
the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the
cities unto Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of
Israel. 
 And the children of Benjamin were numbered on
that day out of the cities twenty and six thousand men that drew
sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who were numbered
seven hundred chosen men. 
 Among all this people there
were seven hundred chosen men lefthanded; every one could sling
stones at a hair-breadth, and not miss.
 And the men of Israel, besides Benjamin, were
numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword: all these
were men of war. 
 And the children of Israel arose, and
went up to Beth-el, and asked counsel of God; and they said, Who
shall go up for us first to battle against the children of
Benjamin? And Jehovah said, Judah [shall go up] first.
 And the children of Israel rose up in the morning,
and encamped against Gibeah. 
 And the men of Israel went
out to battle against Benjamin; and the men of Israel set the
battle in array against them at Gibeah. 
 And the children
of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah, and destroyed down to the
ground of the Israelites on that day twenty and two thousand
men. 
 And the people, the men of Israel, encouraged
themselves, and set the battle again in array in the place where
they set themselves in array the first day. 
 And the
children of Israel went up and wept before Jehovah until even;
and they asked of Jehovah, saying, Shall I again draw nigh to
battle against the children of Benjamin my brother? And Jehovah
said, Go up against him.
 And the children of Israel came near against the
children of Benjamin the second day. 
 And Benjamin went
forth against them out of Gibeah the second day, and destroyed
down to the ground of the children of Israel again eighteen
thousand men; all these drew the sword. 
 Then all the
children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto
Beth-el, and wept, and sat there before Jehovah, and fasted that
day until even; and they offered burnt-offerings and
peace-offerings before Jehovah. 
 And the children of
Israel asked of Jehovah (for the ark of the covenant of God was
there in those days, 
 and Phinehas, the son of Eleazar,
the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days), saying, Shall
I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my
brother, or shall I cease? And Jehovah said, Go up; for
to-morrow I will deliver him into thy hand.
 And Israel set liers-in-wait against Gibeah round
about. 
 And the children of Israel went up against the
children of Benjamin on the third day, and set themselves in
array against Gibeah, as at other times. 
 And the
children of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn
away from the city; and they began to smite and kill of the
people, as at other times, in the highways, of which one goeth
up to Beth-el, and the other to Gibeah, in the field, about
thirty men of Israel. 
 And the children of Benjamin said,
They are smitten down before us, as at the first. But the
children of Israel said, Let us flee, and draw them away from
the city unto the highways. 
 And all the men of Israel
rose up out of their place, and set themselves in array at
Baal-tamar: and the liers-in-wait of Israel brake forth out of
their place, even out of Maareh-geba. 
 And there came
over against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel,
and the battle was sore; but they knew not that evil was close
upon them. 
 And Jehovah smote Benjamin before Israel; and
the children of Israel destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty and
five thousand and a hundred men: all these drew the sword.
 So the children of Benjamin saw that they were
smitten; for the men of Israel gave place to Benjamin, because
they trusted unto the liers-in-wait whom they had set against
Gibeah. 
 And the liers-in-wait hasted, and rushed upon
Gibeah; and the liers-in-wait drew themselves along, and smote
all the city with the edge of the sword. 
 Now the
appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers-in-wait
was, that they should make a great cloud of smoke rise up out of
the city. 
 And the men of Israel turned in the battle,
and Benjamin began to smite and kill of the men of Israel about
thirty persons; for they said, Surely they are smitten down
before us, as in the first battle. 
 But when the cloud
began to arise up out of the city in a pillar of smoke, the
Benjamites looked behind them; and, behold, the whole of the
city went up [in smoke] to heaven. 
 And the men of Israel
turned, and the men of Benjamin were dismayed; for they saw that
evil was come upon them. 
 Therefore, they turned their
backs before the men of Israel unto the way of the wilderness;
but the battle followed hard after them; and they that came out
of the cities destroyed them in the midst thereof. 
 They
inclosed the Benjamites round about, [and] chased them, [and]
trod them down at [their] resting-place, as far as over against
Gibeah toward the sunrising. 
 And there fell of Benjamin
eighteen thousand men; all these [were] men of valor. 
 And they turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of
Rimmon: and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand
men, and followed hard after them unto Gidom, and smote of them
two thousand men. 
 So that all who fell that day of
Benjamin were twenty and five thousand men that drew the sword;
all these [were] men of valor. 
 But six hundred men
turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of Rimmon,
and abode in the rock of Rimmon four months. 
 And the men
of Israel turned again upon the children of Benjamin, and smote
them with the edge of the sword, both the entire city, and the
cattle, and all that they found: moreover all the cities which
they found they set on fire.
==Chapter 21==
 Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpah, saying,
There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to
wife. 
 And the people came to Beth-el, and sat there till
even before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept sore.
 And they said, O Jehovah, the God of Israel, why is this
come to pass in Israel, that there should be to-day one tribe
lacking in Israel? 
 And it came to pass on the morrow,
that the people rose early, and built there an altar, and
offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings. 
 And the
children of Israel said, Who is there among all the tribes of
Israel that came not up in the assembly unto Jehovah? For they
had made a great oath concerning him that came not up unto
Jehovah to Mizpah, saying, He shall surely be put to death.
 And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin
their brother, and said, There is one tribe cut off from Israel
this day. 
 How shall we do for wives for them that remain,
seeing we have sworn by Jehovah that we will not give them of
our daughters to wives?
 And they said, What one is there of the tribes of
Israel that came not up unto Jehovah to Mizpah? And, behold,
there came none to the camp from Jabesh-gilead to the assembly.
 For when the people were numbered, behold, there were
none of the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead there. 
 And the
congregation sent thither twelve thousand men of the valiantest,
and commanded them, saying, Go and smite the inhabitants of
Jabesh-gilead with the edge of the sword, with the women and the
little ones. 
 And this is the thing that ye shall do: ye
shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman that hath lain
by man. 
 And they found among the inhabitants of
Jabesh-gilead four hundred young virgins, that had not known man
by lying with him; and they brought them unto the camp to
Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.
 And the whole congregation sent and spake to the
children of Benjamin that were in the rock of Rimmon, and
proclaimed peace unto them. 
 And Benjamin returned at
that time; and they gave them the women whom they had saved
alive of the women of Jabesh-gilead: and yet so they sufficed
them not. 
 And the people repented them for Benjamin,
because that Jehovah had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.
 Then the elders of the congregation said, How shall
we do for wives for them that remain, seeing the women are
destroyed out of Benjamin? 
 And they said, There must be
an inheritance for them that are escaped of Benjamin, that a
tribe be not blotted out from Israel. 
 Howbeit we may not
give them wives of our daughters, for the children of Israel had
sworn, saying, Cursed be he that giveth a wife to Benjamin.
 And they said, Behold, there is a feast of Jehovah from
year to year in Shiloh, which is on the north of Beth-el, on the
east side of the highway that goeth up from Beth-el to Shechem,
and on the south of Lebonah. 
 And they commanded the
children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the
vineyards, 
 and see, and, behold, if the daughters of
Shiloh come out to dance in the dances, then come ye out of the
vineyards, and catch you every man his wife of the daughters of
Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. 
 And it shall be,
when their fathers or their brethren come to complain unto us,
that we will say unto them, Grant them graciously unto us,
because we took not for each man [of them] his wife in battle,
neither did ye give them unto them, else would ye now be guilty.
 And the children of Benjamin did so, and took them
wives, according to their number, of them that danced, whom they
carried off: and they went and returned unto their inheritance,
and built the cities, and dwelt in them. 
 And the
children of Israel departed thence at that time, every man to
his tribe and to his family, and they went out from thence every
man to his inheritance.
 In those days there was no king in Israel: every man
did that which was right in his own eyes.