Judges 8 ISV NLT Parallel

◄ Judges 8 ►

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1Later on, the descendants of Ephraim spoke to Gideon. They argued vehemently, "What are you doing to us? You never called us! But you went out to fight Midian!"

1Then the people of Ephraim asked Gideon, “Why have you treated us this way? Why didn’t you send for us when you first went out to fight the Midianites?” And they argued heatedly with Gideon.

2"What have I accomplished compared to you?" he responded. "Isn't what's left from Ephraim's harvest better than the best vintage of Abiezer?

2But Gideon replied, “What have I accomplished compared to you? Aren’t even the leftover grapes of Ephraim’s harvest better than the entire crop of my little clan of Abiezer?

3God gave Oreb and Zeeb, the leaders of Midian, into your control. What was I able to do compared to you?" When he said this, their anger calmed down.

3God gave you victory over Oreb and Zeeb, the commanders of the Midianite army. What have I accomplished compared to that?” When the men of Ephraim heard Gideon’s answer, their anger subsided.

4Meanwhile, Gideon and the 300 soldiers with him came to the Jordan, exhausted but continuing their pursuit.

4Gideon then crossed the Jordan River with his 300 men, and though exhausted, they continued to chase the enemy.

5He told the men of Succoth, "Please give loaves of bread to the soldiers who are following behind me. They're tired, and I'm pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian."

5When they reached Succoth, Gideon asked the leaders of the town, “Please give my warriors some food. They are very tired. I am chasing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.”

6But the officials of Succoth replied, "Do you have Zebah and Zalmunna in custody already, so that we should give food to your army?"

6But the officials of Succoth replied, “Catch Zebah and Zalmunna first, and then we will feed your army.”

7So Gideon responded, "Okay then, but when the LORD has turned over Zebah and Zalmunna into my control, I'm going to whip you with thorns and briers from the desert!"

7So Gideon said, “After the LORD gives me victory over Zebah and Zalmunna, I will return and tear your flesh with the thorns and briers from the wilderness.”

8Then he left there to go to Penuel and asked the same thing from them, but the men of Penuel responded the same way the men of Succoth did.

8From there Gideon went up to Peniel and again asked for food, but he got the same answer.

9So he responded the same way to the men of Penuel, "When I come back safely, I'm going to tear down this tower."

9So he said to the people of Peniel, “After I return in victory, I will tear down this tower.”

10Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, along with their armies, about 15,000 men who survived from the entire army of the group from the east, since 120,000 swordsmen had already fallen.

10By this time Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with about 15,000 warriors—all that remained of the allied armies of the east, for 120,000 had already been killed.

11Gideon went up by a caravan route east of Nobah and Jogbehah and attacked their encampment when they were off guard.

11Gideon circled around by the caravan route east of Nobah and Jogbehah, taking the Midianite army by surprise.

12When Zebah and Zalmunna escaped, he pursued them, captured those two kings of Midian, and threw the entire army into a panic.

12Zebah and Zalmunna, the two Midianite kings, fled, but Gideon chased them down and captured all their warriors.

13Then Joash's son Gideon returned from the battle along the Heres Ascent.

13After this, Gideon returned from the battle by way of Heres Pass.

14He caught a young man from Succoth and interrogated him. He wrote out for Gideon a list of the 77 officials of Succoth, including its elders.

14There he captured a young man from Succoth and demanded that he write down the names of all the seventy-seven officials and elders in the town.

15Then Gideon approached the men of Succoth and announced, "Here are Zebah and Zalmunna. You criticized me about them when you said, 'Do you have Zebah and Zalmunna in custody already, so that we should give food to your weary army?'"

15Gideon then returned to Succoth and said to the leaders, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna. When we were here before, you taunted me, saying, ‘Catch Zebah and Zalmunna first, and then we will feed your exhausted army.’”

16So he took the elders of the city and disciplined the men of Succoth with thorns and briers from the desert.

16Then Gideon took the elders of the town and taught them a lesson, punishing them with thorns and briers from the wilderness.

17He also demolished the tower in Penuel and killed the men of the city.

17He also tore down the tower of Peniel and killed all the men in the town.

18Afterwards, he asked Zebah and Zalmunna, "What were the men like whom you killed at Tabor?" They answered, "Like you, each one like the son of a king…"

18Then Gideon asked Zebah and Zalmunna, “The men you killed at Tabor—what were they like?” “Like you,” they replied. “They all had the look of a king’s son.”

19Gideon replied, "They were my brothers—sons from my own mother. As the LORD lives, if you had let them live, I wouldn't be killing you."

19“They were my brothers, the sons of my own mother!” Gideon exclaimed. “As surely as the LORD lives, I wouldn’t kill you if you hadn’t killed them.”

20Then he told his firstborn son Jether, "Get up and kill them!" But he was afraid, since he was still only a youngster.

20Turning to Jether, his oldest son, he said, “Kill them!” But Jether did not draw his sword, for he was only a boy and was afraid.

21Then Zebah and Zalmunna responded, "Get up and attack us yourself, since a man's valor is only as good as the man himself." So Gideon got up, killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and took away the crescent-shaped necklaces that adorned the necks of their camels.

21Then Zebah and Zalmunna said to Gideon, “Be a man! Kill us yourself!” So Gideon killed them both and took the royal ornaments from the necks of their camels. Gideon’s Sacred Ephod

22Then the men of Israel asked Gideon, "Rule over us—you, your son, and your grandsons—because you have delivered us from Midian's domination."

22Then the Israelites said to Gideon, “Be our ruler! You and your son and your grandson will be our rulers, for you have rescued us from Midian.”

23But Gideon told them, "I won't rule over you and my son won't rule over you. The LORD will rule you."

23But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The LORD will rule over you!

24But Gideon also added, "I would like to ask that each of you give me a ring from his war booty" because, as Ishmaelites, the Midianites had been wearing gold rings.

24However, I do have one request—that each of you give me an earring from the plunder you collected from your fallen enemies.” (The enemies, being Ishmaelites, all wore gold earrings.)

25They responded, "We'll be happy to give them." So they laid out a garment, and each of them contributed a ring from his war booty.

25“Gladly!” they replied. They spread out a cloak, and each one threw in a gold earring he had gathered from the plunder.

26The weight of the rings that he had asked for was 1,700 gold coins, not counting the crescent-shaped necklaces, pendants, and purple garments worn by the Midian kings, and also not counting the bands adorning the necks of their camels.

26The weight of the gold earrings was forty-three pounds, not including the royal ornaments and pendants, the purple clothing worn by the kings of Midian, or the chains around the necks of their camels.

27Gideon crafted the booty into an ephod and enshrined it in his home town of Ophrah. Then all of Israel committed spiritual adultery with it there, and it became a snare for Gideon and his household.

27Gideon made a sacred ephod from the gold and put it in Ophrah, his hometown. But soon all the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping it, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family.

28Midian remained subjugated to the Israelis, and they didn't so much as raise their heads anymore, so the land was peaceful for 40 years during the lifetime of Gideon.

28That is the story of how the people of Israel defeated Midian, which never recovered. Throughout the rest of Gideon’s lifetime—about forty years—there was peace in the land.

29Afterwards, Joash's son Jerubbaal went home and retired.

29Then Gideon son of Joash returned home.

30Gideon raised 70 sons as his direct descendants, since he had many wives.

30He had seventy sons born to him, for he had many wives.

31His mistress in Shechem bore him a son whom he named Abimelech.

31He also had a concubine in Shechem, who gave birth to a son, whom he named Abimelech.

32Later, Joash's son Gideon died at a ripe old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash at Ophrah, which belonged to the descendants of Abiezer.

32Gideon died when he was very old, and he was buried in the grave of his father, Joash, at Ophrah in the land of the clan of Abiezer.

33Later on, as soon as Gideon was dead, the Israelis again committed spiritual adultery with various Canaanite deities and appointed Baal-berith to be their god.

33As soon as Gideon died, the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping the images of Baal, making Baal-berith their god.

34The Israelis did not remember the LORD their God, who continually delivered them from the domination of their enemies who surrounded them on every side.

34They forgot the LORD their God, who had rescued them from all their enemies surrounding them.

35And they showed no gracious love to the household of Jerubbaal—also known as Gideon—despite all the good that he had done for Israel.

35Nor did they show any loyalty to the family of Jerub-baal (that is, Gideon), despite all the good he had done for Israel.

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