| NET Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1The Israelites did evil in the LORD's sight, so the LORD turned them over to Midian for seven years. | 1Later on, the Israelis practiced what the LORD considered to be evil, so the LORD handed them over to the domination of Midian for seven years. |
| 2The Midianites overwhelmed Israel. Because of Midian the Israelites made shelters for themselves in the hills, as well as caves and strongholds. | 2Midian's control predominated throughout Israel, and because of Midian the Israelis went out to find temporary hiding places for themselves in the mountains, caves, and fortified places. |
| 3Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the east would attack them. | 3Whenever the Israelis sowed their crops, the Midianites, the Amalekites, and certain groups from the east would come up and invade them. |
| 4They invaded the land and devoured its crops all the way to Gaza. They left nothing for the Israelites to eat, and they took away the sheep, oxen, and donkeys. | 4They set up their military encampments to fight them, destroyed the harvest of the land as far as Gaza, and left nothing in Israel, whether harvested grain, sheep, oxen, or donkeys. |
| 5When they invaded with their cattle and tents, they were as thick as locusts. Neither they nor their camels could be counted. They came to devour the land. | 5They would invade with their livestock and tents, swooping in as numerous as locusts. It was impossible to count them or their camels—and they came into the land to destroy it. |
| 6Israel was so severely weakened by Midian that the Israelites cried out to the LORD for help. | 6Because Israel was deeply impoverished due to the Midianites, they cried out to the LORD. |
| 7When the Israelites cried out to the LORD for help because of Midian, | 7When the Israelis cried out to him about Midian, |
| 8he sent a prophet to the Israelites. He said to them, "This is what the LORD God of Israel says: 'I brought you up from Egypt and took you out of that place of slavery. | 8the LORD sent a man who was a prophet to the Israelis and told them, "This is what the LORD God of Israel says: 'I was the one who brought you up from the land of Egypt, delivering you from the house of servitude. |
| 9I rescued you from Egypt's power and from the power of all who oppressed you. I drove them out before you and gave their land to you. | 9I delivered you from the domination of Egypt and from the domination of all of your oppressors, expelling them right in front of you and giving their land to you. |
| 10I said to you, "I am the LORD your God! Do not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are now living!" But you have disobeyed me.'" | 10I told you, "I am the LORD your God. You are not to fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you'll be living."' But you haven't obeyed what I said." |
| 11The LORD's angelic messenger came and sat down under the oak tree in Ophrah owned by Joash the Abiezrite. He arrived while Joash's son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress so he could hide it from the Midianites. | 11After this, the angel of the LORD arrived and sat down in the shade of the oak tree in Ophrah that belonged to Joash, a descendant of Abiezer, while his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a wine press in order to safeguard it from the Midianites. |
| 12The LORD's messenger appeared and said to him, "The LORD is with you, courageous warrior!" | 12The angel of the LORD appeared to him and told him, "The LORD is with you, you valiant warrior!" |
| 13Gideon said to him, "Pardon me, but if the LORD is with us, why has such disaster overtaken us? Where are all his miraculous deeds our ancestors told us about? They said, 'Did the LORD not bring us up from Egypt?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian." | 13But Gideon replied, "Right… Sir, if the LORD is with us, then why has all of this happened to us? And where are all of his miraculous works that our ancestors recounted to us when they said, 'The LORD brought us up from Egypt, didn't he?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us over to Midian!" |
| 14Then the LORD himself turned to him and said, "You have the strength. Deliver Israel from the power of the Midianites! Have I not sent you?" | 14The LORD looked straight at him and replied, "Go with this determination of yours and deliver Israel from Midian's domination. I've directed you, haven't I?" |
| 15Gideon said to him, "But Lord, how can I deliver Israel? Just look! My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my family." | 15"Right…," Gideon responded. "Sir, how will I deliver Israel? Look—my family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I'm the youngest in my father's household." |
| 16The LORD said to him, "Ah, but I will be with you! You will strike down the whole Midianite army." | 16The LORD told him, "Because I'll be with you, and you'll defeat Midian—every single one of them!" |
| 17Gideon said to him, "If you really are pleased with me, then give me a sign as proof that it is really you speaking with me. | 17So Gideon asked him, "Please, if I have received favor from you, then do a miracle for me that shows that you're making this promise to me. |
| 18Do not leave this place until I come back with a gift and present it to you." The LORD said, "I will stay here until you come back." | 18And please don't leave here until I've come back to you, brought my offering, and set it down in front of you." The LORD replied, "I'll stay until you return." |
| 19Gideon went and prepared a young goat, along with unleavened bread made from an ephah of flour. He put the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot. He brought the food to him under the oak tree and presented it to him. | 19Then Gideon went and prepared a young goat and unleavened bread from an ephah of flour. He put the meat in a basket and poured the broth into a pot, and brought them to the angel right under the oak tree. Then he made his offering. |
| 20God's messenger said to him, "Put the meat and unleavened bread on this rock, and pour out the broth." Gideon did as instructed. | 20The angel, who was God, replied, "Take the meat and the unleavened bread and lay them on this boulder. Then pour out the broth." So he did that. |
| 21The LORD's messenger touched the meat and the unleavened bread with the tip of his staff. Fire flared up from the rock and consumed the meat and unleavened bread. The LORD's messenger then disappeared. | 21The angel of the LORD extended the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and unleavened bread. Fire broke out from inside the boulder, consuming the meat and unleavened bread. Then the angel of the LORD vanished in front of him. |
| 22When Gideon realized that it was the LORD's messenger, he said, "Oh no! Master, LORD! I have seen the LORD's messenger face to face!" | 22When Gideon realized that he had seen the angel of the LORD himself, he cried out, "Oh no! Lord GOD! I've been looking right at the angel of the LORD—and face-to-face at that!" |
| 23The LORD said to him, "You are safe! Do not be afraid! You are not going to die!" | 23"Calm down! Don't be afraid." the LORD replied. "You're not going to die!" |
| 24Gideon built an altar for the LORD there, and named it "The LORD is on friendly terms with me." To this day it is still there in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. | 24So Gideon built an altar right there to the LORD and called it "The LORD is peace." (To this very day it still stands in Ophrah, which belongs to the descendants of Abiezer.) |
| 25That night the LORD said to him, "Take the bull from your father's herd, as well as a second bull, one that is seven years old. Pull down your father's Baal altar and cut down the nearby Asherah pole. | 25Later that very night, the LORD told Gideon, "Take the bull that belongs to your father, along with a second bull that's seven years old. Then tear down the altar to Baal that your father owns, cut down the Asherah that's beside it, |
| 26Then build an altar for the LORD your God on the top of this stronghold according to the proper pattern. Take the second bull and offer it as a burnt sacrifice on the wood from the Asherah pole that you cut down." | 26and build an altar to the LORD your God on top of this stronghold in an orderly manner. Then take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering using the wood from the Asherah that you'll be cutting down." |
| 27So Gideon took ten of his servants and did just as the LORD had told him. He was too afraid of his father's family and the men of the city to do it in broad daylight, so he waited until nighttime. | 27So Gideon went with ten men who were his servants and did just what the LORD had told him to do, though he did it at night because he was too afraid of his father's family and the leading men of the city to do it during the day. |
| 28When the men of the city got up the next morning, they saw the Baal altar pulled down, the nearby Asherah pole cut down, and the second bull sacrificed on the newly built altar. | 28When the leading men of the city got up early the next morning, the altar to Baal had been torn down, along with the Asherah that had stood beside it, and the second bull had been offered on the altar that had been erected. |
| 29They said to one another, "Who did this?" They investigated the matter thoroughly and concluded that Gideon son of Joash had done it. | 29They asked each other, "Who did this thing?" When they looked into it and asked around, they concluded, "Joash's son Gideon did it." |
| 30The men of the city said to Joash, "Bring out your son, so we can execute him! He pulled down the Baal altar and cut down the nearby Asherah pole." | 30So the leading men of the city ordered Joash, "Bring us that son of yours. He's going to die, because he tore down the altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah that stood beside it!" |
| 31But Joash said to all those who confronted him, "Must you fight Baal's battles? Must you rescue him? Whoever takes up his cause will die by morning! If he really is a god, let him fight his own battles! After all, it was his altar that was pulled down." | 31But Joash responded to everyone who was opposing him, "Do you really intend to fight on Baal's behalf? Do you really intend to rescue him by ordering that whoever fights him will be executed by morning? If Baal is a god, let him fight for himself. After all, it was his altar that was torn down." |
| 32That very day Gideon's father named him Jerub-Baal, because he had said, "Let Baal fight with him, for it was his altar that was pulled down." | 32So that very day he named Gideon Jerubbaal, that is, "Let Baal fight," since he had torn down his altar. |
| 33All the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the east assembled. They crossed the Jordan River and camped in the Jezreel Valley. | 33Then all the Midianites, Amalekites, and certain groups from the east gathered together, crossed the Jordan River, and set up camp in the Jezreel Valley. |
| 34The LORD's spirit took control of Gideon. He blew a trumpet, summoning the Abiezrites to follow him. | 34So the Spirit of the LORD took control of Gideon, who blew a trumpet, mustering the descendants of Abiezer to follow him into battle. |
| 35He sent messengers throughout Manasseh and summoned them to follow him as well. He also sent messengers throughout Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they came up to meet him. | 35He sent messengers to the entire tribe of Manasseh, calling them to follow him, and he also sent word to the tribes of Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, calling them to meet him. |
| 36Gideon said to God, "If you really intend to use me to deliver Israel, as you promised, then give me a sign as proof. | 36Then Gideon told God, "If you intend to deliver Israel by my efforts as you've said, |
| 37Look, I am putting a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece, and the ground around it is dry, then I will be sure that you will use me to deliver Israel, as you promised." | 37then take a look at this wool fleece that I'm placing on the threshing floor. If dew appears only on the fleece—and it's dry on the ground all around it—then I'll know that you'll deliver Israel by my efforts like you've said." |
| 38The LORD did as he asked. When he got up the next morning, he squeezed the fleece, and enough dew dripped from it to fill a bowl. | 38And that is what happened: When he got up early the next morning, he wrung out the fleece to drain the dew from it and extracted a bowl full of water. |
| 39Gideon said to God, "Please do not get angry at me, when I ask for just one more sign. Please allow me one more test with the fleece. This time make only the fleece dry, while the ground around it is covered with dew." | 39Then Gideon told God, "Don't let yourself be angry with me! I want to ask you once again: please let me make a test with the fleece just once more. Cause it to be dry only on the fleece, but let there be dew all around on the ground." |
| 40That night God did as he asked. Only the fleece was dry and the ground around it was covered with dew. | 40And God did it just like that later that night. It was dry only on the fleece, but dew was all around on the ground. |
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