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The Holy
Bible
Judges
Chapter 1
1 Now after the death
of Joshua it came to pass, that
the children of Israel asked the
LORD, saying, Who shall go up for
us against the Canaanites first,
to fight against them?
2 And the LORD said, Judah
shall go up: behold, I have
delivered the land into his
hand.
3 And Judah said unto
Simeon his brother, Come up with
me into my lot, that we may fight
against the Canaanites; and I
likewise will go with thee into
thy lot. So Simeon went with
him.
4 And Judah went up; and
the LORD delivered the Canaanites
and the Perizzites into their
hand: and they slew of them in
Bezek ten thousand men.
5 And they found
Adoni-bezek in Bezek: and they
fought against him, and they slew
the Canaanites and the
Perizzites.
6 But Adoni-bezek fled;
and they pursued after him, and
caught him, and cut off his
thumbs and his great toes.
7 And Adoni-bezek said,
Threescore and ten kings, having
their thumbs and their great toes
cut off, gathered their meat
under my table: as I have done,
so God hath requited me. And they
brought him to Jerusalem, and
there he died.
8 Now the children of
Judah had fought against
Jerusalem, and had taken it, and
smitten it with the edge of the
sword, and set the city on
fire.
9 And afterward the
children of Judah went down to
fight against the Canaanites,
that dwelt in the mountain, and
in the south, and in the
valley.
10 And Judah went against
the Canaanites that dwelt in
Hebron: (now the name of Hebron
before was Kirjath-arba:) and
they slew Sheshai, and Ahiman,
and Talmai.
11 And from thence he went
against the inhabitants of Debir:
and the name of Debir before was
Kirjath-sepher:
12 And Caleb said, He that
smiteth Kirjath-sepher, and
taketh it, to him will I give
Achsah my daughter to wife.
13 And Othniel the son of
Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother,
took it: and he gave him Achsah
his daughter to wife.
14 And it came to pass,
when she came to him, that she
moved him to ask of her father a
field: and she lighted from off
her ass; and Caleb said unto her,
What wilt thou?
15 And she said unto him,
Give me a blessing: for thou hast
given me a south land; give me
also springs of water. And Caleb
gave her the upper springs and
the nether springs.
16 And the children of the
Kenite, Moses' father in law,
went up out of the city of palm
trees with the children of Judah
into the wilderness of Judah,
which lieth in the south of Arad;
and they went and dwelt among the
people.
17 And Judah went with
Simeon his brother, and they slew
the Canaanites that inhabited
Zephath, and utterly destroyed
it. And the name of the city was
called Hormah.
18 Also Judah took Gaza
with the coast thereof, and
Askelon with the coast thereof,
and Ekron with the coast
thereof.
19 And the LORD was with
Judah; and he drave out the
inhabitants of the mountain; but
could not drive out the
inhabitants of the valley,
because they had chariots of
iron.
20 And they gave Hebron
unto Caleb, as Moses said: and he
expelled thence the three sons of
Anak.
21 And the children of
Benjamin did not drive out the
Jebusites that inhabited
Jerusalem; but the Jebusites
dwell with the children of
Benjamin in Jerusalem unto this
day.
22 And the house of
Joseph, they also went up against
Bethel: and the LORD was with
them.
23 And the house of Joseph
sent to descry Bethel. (Now the
name of the city before was
Luz.)
24 And the spies saw a man
come forth out of the city, and
they said unto him, Shew us, we
pray thee, the entrance into the
city, and we will shew thee
mercy.
25 And when he shewed them
the entrance into the city, they
smote the city with the edge of
the sword; but they let go the
man and all his family.
26 And the man went into
the land of the Hittites, and
built a city, and called the name
thereof Luz: which is the name
thereof unto this day.
27 Neither did Manasseh
drive out the inhabitants of
Beth-shean and her towns, nor
Taanach and her towns, nor the
inhabitants of Dor and her towns,
nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and
her towns, nor the inhabitants of
Megiddo and her towns: but the
Canaanites would dwell in that
land.
28 And it came to pass,
when Israel was strong, that they
put the Canaanites to tribute,
and did not utterly drive them
out.
29 Neither did Ephraim
drive out the Canaanites that
dwelt in Gezer; but the
Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among
them.
30 Neither did Zebulun
drive out the inhabitants of
Kitron, nor the inhabitants of
Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt
among them, and became
tributaries.
31 Neither did Asher drive
out the inhabitants of Accho, nor
the inhabitants of Zidon, nor of
Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of
Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of
Rehob:
32 But the Asherites dwelt
among the Canaanites, the
inhabitants of the land: for they
did not drive them out.
33 Neither did Naphtali
drive 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 tributaries
unto them.
34 And the Amorites forced
the children of Dan into the
mountain: for they would not
suffer them to come down to the
valley:
35 But the Amorites would
dwell in mount Heres in Aijalon,
and in Shaalbim: yet the hand of
the house of Joseph prevailed, so
that they became tributaries.
36 And the coast of the
Amorites was from the going up to
Akrabbim, from the rock, and
upward.
Chapter 2
1 And an angel of the
LORD came up from Gilgal to
Bochim, and said, I made you to
go up out of Egypt, and have
brought you unto the land which I
sware unto your fathers; and I
said, I will never break my
covenant with you.
2 And ye shall make no
league with the inhabitants of
this land; ye shall throw down
their altars: but ye have not
obeyed my voice: why have ye done
this?
3 Wherefore I also said, I
will not drive them out from
before you; but they shall be as
thorns in your sides, and their
gods shall be a snare unto
you.
4 And it came to pass,
when the angel of the LORD spake
these words unto all the children
of Israel, that the people lifted
up their voice, and wept.
5 And they called the name
of that place Bochim: and they
sacrificed there unto the
LORD.
6 And when Joshua had let
the people go, the children of
Israel went every man unto his
inheritance to possess the
land.
7 And the people served
the LORD all the days of Joshua,
and all the days of the elders
that outlived Joshua, who had
seen all the great works of the
LORD, that he did for Israel.
8 And Joshua the son of
Nun, the servant of the LORD,
died, being an hundred and ten
years old.
9 And they buried him in
the border of his inheritance in
Timnath-heres, in the mount of
Ephraim, on the north side of the
hill Gaash.
10 And also all that
generation were gathered unto
their fathers: and there arose
another generation after them,
which knew not the LORD, nor yet
the works which he had done for
Israel.
11 And the children of
Israel did evil in the sight of
the LORD, and served Baalim:
12 And they forsook the
LORD God of their fathers, which
brought them out of the land of
Egypt, and followed other gods,
of the gods of the people that
were round about them, and bowed
themselves unto them, and
provoked the LORD to anger.
13 And they forsook the
LORD, and served Baal and
Ashtaroth.
14 And the anger of the
LORD was hot against Israel, and
he delivered them into the hands
of spoilers that spoiled them,
and he sold them into the hands
of their enemies round about, so
that they could not any longer
stand before their enemies.
15 Whithersoever they went
out, the hand of the LORD was
against them for evil, as the
LORD had said, and as the LORD
had sworn unto them: and they
were greatly distressed.
16 Nevertheless the LORD
raised up judges, which delivered
them out of the hand of those
that spoiled them.
17 And yet they would not
hearken unto their judges, but
they went a whoring after other
gods, and bowed themselves unto
them: they turned quickly out of
the way which their fathers
walked in, obeying the
commandments of the LORD; but
they did not so.
18 And when the LORD
raised them up judges, then the
LORD was with the judge, and
delivered them out of the hand of
their enemies all the days of the
judge: for it repented the LORD
because of their groanings by
reason of them that oppressed
them and vexed them.
19 And it came to pass,
when the judge was dead, that
they returned, and corrupted
themselves more than their
fathers, in following other gods
to serve them, and to bow down
unto them; they ceased not from
their own doings, nor from their
stubborn way.
20 And the anger of the
LORD was hot against Israel; and
he said, Because that this people
hath transgressed my covenant
which I commanded their fathers,
and have not hearkened unto my
voice;
21 I also will not
henceforth drive out any from
before them of the nations which
Joshua left when he died:
22 That through them I may
prove Israel, whether they will
keep the way of the LORD to walk
therein, as their fathers did
keep it, or not.
23 Therefore the LORD left
those nations, without driving
them out hastily; neither
delivered he them into the hand
of Joshua.
Chapter 3
1 Now these are the
nations which the LORD left, to
prove Israel by them, even as
many of Israel as had not known
all the wars of Canaan;
2 Only that the
generations of the children of
Israel might know, to teach them
war, at the least such as before
knew nothing thereof;
3 Namely, 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 entering in
of Hamath.
4 And they were to prove
Israel by them, to know whether
they would hearken unto the
commandments of the LORD, which
he commanded their fathers by the
hand of Moses.
5 And the children of
Israel dwelt among the
Canaanites, Hittites, and
Amorites, and Perizzites, and
Hivites, and Jebusites:
6 And they took their
daughters to be their wives, and
gave their daughters to their
sons, and served their gods.
7 And the children of
Israel did evil in the sight of
the LORD, and forgat the LORD
their God, and served Baalim and
the groves.
8 Therefore the anger of
the LORD was hot against Israel,
and he sold them into the hand of
Chushan-rishathaim king of
Mesopotamia: and the children of
Israel served Chushan-rishathaim
eight years.
9 And when the children of
Israel cried unto the LORD, the
LORD raised up a deliverer to the
children of Israel, who delivered
them, even Othniel the son of
Kenaz, Caleb's younger
brother.
10 And the Spirit of the
LORD came upon him, and he judged
Israel, and went out to war: and
the LORD delivered
Chushan-rishathaim king of
Mesopotamia into his hand; and
his hand prevailed against
Chushan-rishathaim.
11 And the land had rest
forty years. And Othniel the son
of Kenaz died.
12 And the children of
Israel did evil again in the
sight of the LORD: and the LORD
strengthened Eglon the king of
Moab against Israel, because they
had done evil in the sight of the
LORD.
13 And he gathered unto
him the children of Ammon and
Amalek, and went and smote
Israel, and possessed the city of
palm trees.
14 So the children of
Israel served Eglon the king of
Moab eighteen years.
15 But when the children
of Israel cried unto the LORD,
the LORD raised them up a
deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera,
a Benjamite, a man lefthanded:
and by him the children of Israel
sent a present unto Eglon the
king of Moab.
16 But Ehud made him a
dagger which had two edges, of a
cubit length; and he did gird it
under his raiment upon his right
thigh.
17 And he brought the
present unto Eglon king of Moab:
and Eglon was a very fat man.
18 And when he had made an
end to offer the present, he sent
away the people that bare the
present.
19 But he himself turned
again from the quarries that were
by Gilgal, and said, I have a
secret errand unto thee, O king:
who said, Keep silence. And all
that stood by him went out from
him.
20 And Ehud came unto him;
and he was sitting in a summer
parlour, which he had for himself
alone. And Ehud said, I have a
message from God unto thee. And
he arose out of his seat.
21 And Ehud put forth his
left hand, and took the dagger
from his right thigh, and thrust
it into his belly:
22 And the haft also went
in after the blade; and the fat
closed upon the blade, so that he
could not draw the dagger out of
his belly; and the dirt came
out.
23 Then Ehud went forth
through the porch, and shut the
doors of the parlour upon him,
and locked them.
24 When he was gone out,
his servants came; and when they
saw that, behold, the doors of
the parlour were locked, they
said, Surely he covereth his feet
in his summer chamber.
25 And they tarried till
they were ashamed: and, behold,
he opened not the doors of the
parlour; therefore they took a
key, and opened them: and,
behold, their lord was fallen
down dead on the earth.
26 And Ehud escaped while
they tarried, and passed beyond
the quarries, and escaped unto
Seirath.
27 And it came to pass,
when he was come, that he blew a
trumpet in the mountain of
Ephraim, and the children of
Israel went down with him from
the mount, and he before
them.
28 And he said unto them,
Follow after me: for the LORD
hath delivered your enemies the
Moabites into your hand. And they
went down after him, and took the
fords of Jordan toward Moab, and
suffered not a man to pass
over.
29 And they slew of Moab
at that time about ten thousand
men, all lusty, and all men of
valour; and there escaped not a
man.
30 So Moab was subdued
that day under the hand of
Israel. And the land had rest
fourscore years.
31 And after him was
Shamgar the son of Anath, which
slew of the Philistines six
hundred men with an ox goad: and
he also delivered Israel.
Chapter 4
1 And the children of
Israel again did evil in the
sight of the LORD, when Ehud was
dead.
2 And the LORD sold them
into the hand of Jabin king of
Canaan, that reigned in Hazor;
the captain of whose host was
Sisera, which dwelt in Harosheth
of the Gentiles.
3 And the children of
Israel cried unto the LORD: for
he had nine hundred chariots of
iron; and twenty years he
mightily oppressed the children
of Israel.
4 And Deborah, a
prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth,
she judged Israel at that
time.
5 And she dwelt under the
palm tree of Deborah between
Ramah and Bethel in mount
Ephraim: and the children of
Israel came up to her for
judgment.
6 And she sent and called
Barak the son of Abinoam out of
Kedesh-naphtali, and said unto
him, Hath not the LORD God of
Israel commanded, saying, Go and
draw toward mount Tabor, and take
with thee ten thousand men of the
children of Naphtali and of the
children of Zebulun?
7 And I will draw unto
thee to the river Kishon Sisera,
the captain of Jabin's army, with
his chariots and his multitude;
and I will deliver him into thine
hand.
8 And Barak said unto her,
If thou wilt go with me, then I
will go: but if thou wilt not go
with me, then I will not go.
9 And she said, I will
surely go with thee:
notwithstanding the journey that
thou takest shall not be for
thine honour; for the LORD shall
sell Sisera into the hand of a
woman. And Deborah arose, and
went with Barak to Kedesh.
10 And Barak called
Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh;
and he went up with ten thousand
men at his feet: and Deborah went
up with him.
11 Now Heber the Kenite,
which was of the children of
Hobab the father in law of Moses,
had severed himself from the
Kenites, and pitched his tent
unto the plain of Zaanaim, which
is by Kedesh.
12 And they shewed Sisera
that Barak the son of Abinoam was
gone up to mount Tabor.
13 And Sisera gathered
together all his chariots, even
nine hundred chariots of iron,
and all the people that were with
him, from Harosheth of the
Gentiles unto the river of
Kishon.
14 And Deborah said unto
Barak, Up; for this is the day in
which the LORD hath delivered
Sisera into thine hand: is not
the LORD gone out before thee? So
Barak went down from mount Tabor,
and ten thousand men after
him.
15 And the LORD
discomfited Sisera, and all his
chariots, and all his host, with
the edge of the sword before
Barak; so that Sisera lighted
down off his chariot, and fled
away on his feet.
16 But Barak pursued after
the chariots, and after the host,
unto Harosheth of the Gentiles:
and all the host of Sisera fell
upon the edge of the sword; and
there was not a man left.
17 Howbeit Sisera fled
away on his feet to the tent of
Jael the wife of Heber the
Kenite: for there was peace
between Jabin the king of Hazor
and the house of Heber the
Kenite.
18 And Jael went out to
meet Sisera, and said unto him,
Turn in, my lord, turn in to me;
fear not. And when he had turned
in unto her into the tent, she
covered him with a mantle.
19 And he said unto her,
Give me, I pray thee, a little
water to drink; for I am thirsty.
And she opened a bottle of milk,
and gave him drink, and covered
him.
20 Again 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.
21 Then Jael Heber's wife
took a nail of the tent, and took
an hammer in her hand, and went
softly unto him, and smote the
nail into his temples, and
fastened it into the ground: for
he was fast asleep and weary. So
he died.
22 And, behold, as Barak
pursued Sisera, Jael came out to
meet him, and said unto him,
Come, and I will shew thee the
man whom thou seekest. And when
he came into her tent, behold,
Sisera lay dead, and the nail was
in his temples.
23 So God subdued on that
day Jabin the king of Canaan
before the children of
Israel.
24 And the hand of the
children of Israel prospered, and
prevailed against Jabin the king
of Canaan, until they had
destroyed Jabin king of
Canaan.
Chapter 5
1 Then sang Deborah and
Barak the son of Abinoam on that
day, saying,
2 Praise ye the LORD for
the avenging of Israel, when the
people willingly offered
themselves.
3 Hear, O ye kings; give
ear, O ye princes; I, even I,
will sing unto the LORD; I will
sing praise to the LORD God of
Israel.
4 LORD, when thou wentest
out of Seir, when thou marchedst
out of the field of Edom, the
earth trembled, and the heavens
dropped, the clouds also dropped
water.
5 The mountains melted
from before the LORD, even that
Sinai from before the LORD God of
Israel.
6 In the days of Shamgar
the son of Anath, in the days of
Jael, the highways were
unoccupied, and the travellers
walked through byways.
7 The inhabitants of the
villages ceased, they ceased in
Israel, until that I Deborah
arose, that I arose a mother in
Israel.
8 They chose new gods;
then was war in the gates: was
there a shield or spear seen
among forty thousand in
Israel?
9 My heart is toward the
governors of Israel, that offered
themselves willingly among the
people. Bless ye the LORD.
10 Speak, ye that ride on
white asses, ye that sit in
judgment, and walk by the
way.
11 They that are delivered
from the noise of archers in the
places of drawing water, there
shall they rehearse the righteous
acts of the LORD, even the
righteous acts toward the
inhabitants of his villages in
Israel: then shall the people of
the LORD go down to the
gates.
12 Awake, awake, Deborah:
awake, awake, utter a song:
arise, Barak, and lead thy
captivity captive, thou son of
Abinoam.
13 Then he made him that
remaineth have dominion over the
nobles among the people: the LORD
made me have dominion over the
mighty.
14 Out of Ephraim was
there a root of them against
Amalek; after thee, Benjamin,
among thy people; out of Machir
came down governors, and out of
Zebulun they that handle the pen
of the writer.
15 And the princes of
Issachar were with Deborah; even
Issachar, and also Barak: he was
sent on foot into the valley. For
the divisions of Reuben there
were great thoughts of heart.
16 Why abodest thou among
the sheepfolds, to hear the
bleatings of the flocks? For the
divisions of Reuben there were
great searchings of heart.
17 Gilead abode beyond
Jordan: and why did Dan remain in
ships? Asher continued on the sea
shore, and abode in his
breaches.
18 Zebulun and Naphtali
were a people that jeoparded
their lives unto the death in the
high places of the field.
19 The kings came and
fought, then fought the kings of
Canaan in Taanach by the waters
of Megiddo; they took no gain of
money.
20 They fought from
heaven; the stars in their
courses fought against
Sisera.
21 The river of Kishon
swept them away, that ancient
river, the river Kishon. O my
soul, thou hast trodden down
strength.
22 Then were the
horsehoofs broken by the means of
the pransings, the pransings of
their mighty ones.
23 Curse ye Meroz, said
the angel of the LORD, curse ye
bitterly the inhabitants thereof;
because they came not to the help
of the LORD, to the help of the
LORD against the mighty.
24 Blessed above women
shall Jael the wife of Heber the
Kenite be, blessed shall she be
above women in the tent.
25 He asked water, and she
gave him milk; she brought forth
butter in a lordly dish.
26 She put her hand to the
nail, and her right hand to the
workmen's hammer; and with the
hammer she smote Sisera, she
smote off his head, when she had
pierced and stricken through his
temples.
27 At her feet he bowed,
he fell, he lay down: at her feet
he bowed, he fell: where he
bowed, there he fell down
dead.
28 The mother of Sisera
looked out at a window, and cried
through the lattice, Why is his
chariot so long in coming? why
tarry the wheels of his
chariots?
29 Her wise ladies
answered her, yea, she returned
answer to herself,
30 Have they not sped?
have they not divided the prey;
to every man a damsel or two; to
Sisera a prey of divers colours,
a prey of divers colours of
needlework, of divers colours of
needlework on both sides, meet
for the necks of them that take
the spoil?
31 So let all thine
enemies perish, O LORD: but let
them that love him be as the sun
when he goeth forth in his might.
And the land had rest forty
years.
Chapter 6
1 And the children of
Israel did evil in the sight of
the LORD: and the LORD delivered
them into the hand of Midian
seven years.
2 And the hand of Midian
prevailed against Israel: and
because of the Midianites the
children of Israel made them the
dens which are in the mountains,
and caves, and strong holds.
3 And so it was, when
Israel had sown, that the
Midianites came up, and the
Amalekites, and the children of
the east, even they came up
against them;
4 And they encamped
against them, and destroyed the
increase of the earth, till thou
come unto Gaza, and left no
sustenance for Israel, neither
sheep, nor ox, nor ass.
5 For they came up with
their cattle and their tents, and
they came as grasshoppers for
multitude; for both they and
their camels were without number:
and they entered into the land to
destroy it.
6 And Israel was greatly
impoverished because of the
Midianites; and the children of
Israel cried unto the LORD.
7 And it came to pass,
when the children of Israel cried
unto the LORD because of the
Midianites,
8 That the LORD sent a
prophet unto the children of
Israel, which said unto them,
Thus saith the LORD God of
Israel, I brought you up from
Egypt, and brought you forth out
of the house of bondage;
9 And I delivered you out
of the hand of the Egyptians, and
out of the hand of all that
oppressed you, and drave them out
from before you, and gave you
their land;
10 And I said unto you, I
am the LORD your God; fear not
the gods of the Amorites, in
whose land ye dwell: but ye have
not obeyed my voice.
11 And there came an angel
of the LORD, and sat under an oak
which was in Ophrah, that
pertained unto Joash the
Abi-ezrite: and his son Gideon
threshed wheat by the winepress,
to hide it from the
Midianites.
12 And the angel of the
LORD appeared unto him, and said
unto him, The LORD is with thee,
thou mighty man of valour.
13 And Gideon said unto
him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be
with us, why then is all this
befallen us? and where be all his
miracles which our fathers told
us of, saying, Did not the LORD
bring us up from Egypt? but now
the LORD hath forsaken us, and
delivered us into the hands of
the Midianites.
14 And the LORD looked
upon him, and said, Go in this
thy might, and thou shalt save
Israel from the hand of the
Midianites: have not I sent
thee?
15 And he said unto him,
Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I
save Israel? behold, my family is
poor in Manasseh, and I am the
least in my father's house.
16 And the LORD said unto
him, Surely I will be with thee,
and thou shalt smite the
Midianites as one man.
17 And he said unto him,
If now I have found grace in thy
sight, then shew me a sign that
thou talkest with me.
18 Depart not hence, I
pray thee, until I come unto
thee, and bring forth my present,
and set it before thee. And he
said, I will tarry until thou
come again.
19 And Gideon went in, and
made ready a kid, and unleavened
cakes of an ephah of flour: the
flesh he put in a basket, and he
put the broth in a pot, and
brought it out unto him under the
oak, and presented it.
20 And the angel of God
said unto him, Take the flesh and
the unleavened cakes, and lay
them upon this rock, and pour out
the broth. And he did so.
21 Then the angel of the
LORD put forth the end of the
staff that was in his hand, and
touched the flesh and the
unleavened cakes; and there rose
up fire out of the rock, and
consumed the flesh and the
unleavened cakes. Then the angel
of the LORD departed out of his
sight.
22 And when Gideon
perceived that he was an angel of
the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O
Lord GOD! for because I have seen
an angel of the LORD face to
face.
23 And the LORD said unto
him, Peace be unto thee; fear
not: thou shalt not die.
24 Then Gideon built an
altar there unto the LORD, and
called it Jehovah-shalom: unto
this day it is yet in Ophrah of
the Abi-ezrites.
25 And it came to pass the
same night, that the LORD said
unto him, Take thy father's young
bullock, even the second bullock
of seven years old, and throw
down the altar of Baal that thy
father hath, and cut down the
grove that is by it:
26 And build an altar unto
the LORD thy God upon the top of
this rock, in the ordered place,
and take the second bullock, and
offer a burnt sacrifice with the
wood of the grove which thou
shalt cut down.
27 Then Gideon took ten
men of his servants, and did as
the LORD had said unto him: and
so it was, because he feared his
father's household, and the men
of the city, that he could not do
it by day, that he did it by
night.
28 And when the men of the
city arose early in the morning,
behold, the altar of Baal was
cast down, and the grove was cut
down that was by it, and the
second bullock was offered upon
the altar that was built.
29 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.
30 Then the men of the
city said unto Joash, Bring out
thy son, that he may die: because
he hath cast down the altar of
Baal, and because he hath cut
down the grove that was by
it.
31 And Joash said unto all
that stood against him, Will ye
plead for Baal? will ye save him?
he that will plead for him, let
him be put to death whilst it is
yet morning: if he be a god, let
him plead for himself, because
one hath cast down his altar.
32 Therefore on that day
he called him Jerubbaal, saying,
Let Baal plead against him,
because he hath thrown down his
altar.
33 Then all the Midianites
and the Amalekites and the
children of the east were
gathered together, and went over,
and pitched in the valley of
Jezreel.
34 But the Spirit of the
LORD came upon Gideon, and he
blew a trumpet; and Abi-ezer was
gathered after him.
35 And he sent messengers
throughout all Manasseh; who also
was gathered after him: and he
sent messengers unto Asher, and
unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali;
and they came up to meet
them.
36 And Gideon said unto
God, If thou wilt save Israel by
mine hand, as thou hast said,
37 Behold, I will put a
fleece of wool in the floor; and
if the dew be on the fleece only,
and it be dry upon all the earth
beside, then shall I know that
thou wilt save Israel by mine
hand, as thou hast said.
38 And it was so: for he
rose up early on the morrow, and
thrust the fleece together, and
wringed the dew out of the
fleece, a bowl full of water.
39 And Gideon said unto
God, Let not thine anger be hot
against me, and I will speak but
this once: let me prove, I pray
thee, but this once with the
fleece; let it now be dry only
upon the fleece, and upon all the
ground let there be dew.
40 And God did so that
night: for it was dry upon the
fleece only, and there was dew on
all the ground.
Chapter 7
1 Then Jerubbaal, who
is Gideon, and all the people
that were with him, rose up
early, and pitched beside the
well of Harod: so that the host
of the Midianites were on the
north side of them, by the hill
of Moreh, in the valley.
2 And the LORD said unto
Gideon, The people that are with
thee are too many for me to give
the Midianites into their hands,
lest Israel vaunt themselves
against me, saying, Mine own hand
hath saved me.
3 Now therefore go to,
proclaim in the ears of the
people, saying, Whosoever is
fearful and afraid, let him
return and depart early from
mount Gilead. And there returned
of the people twenty and two
thousand; and there remained ten
thousand.
4 And the LORD said unto
Gideon, The people are yet too
many; bring them down unto the
water, and I will try them for
thee there: and it shall be, that
of whom I say unto thee, This
shall go with thee, the same
shall go with thee; and of
whomsoever I say unto thee, This
shall not go with thee, the same
shall not go.
5 So he brought down the
people unto the water: and the
LORD said unto Gideon, Every one
that lappeth of the water with
his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him
shalt thou set by himself;
likewise every one that boweth
down upon his knees to drink.
6 And the number of them
that lapped, putting their hand
to their mouth, were three
hundred men: but all the rest of
the people bowed down upon their
knees to drink water.
7 And the LORD said unto
Gideon, By the three hundred men
that lapped will I save you, and
deliver the Midianites into thine
hand: and let all the other
people go every man unto his
place.
8 So the people took
victuals in their hand, and their
trumpets: and he sent all the
rest of Israel every man unto his
tent, and retained those three
hundred men: and the host of
Midian was beneath him in the
valley.
9 And it came to pass the
same night, that the LORD said
unto him, Arise, get thee down
unto the host; for I have
delivered it into thine hand.
10 But if thou fear to go
down, go thou with Phurah thy
servant down to the host:
11 And thou shalt hear
what they say; and afterward
shall thine hands be strengthened
to go down unto the host. Then
went he down with Phurah his
servant unto the outside of the
armed men that were in the
host.
12 And the Midianites and
the Amalekites and all the
children of the east lay along in
the valley like grasshoppers for
multitude; and their camels were
without number, as the sand by
the sea side for multitude.
13 And when Gideon was
come, behold, there was a man
that told a dream unto his
fellow, and said, Behold, I
dreamed a dream, and, lo, a cake
of barley bread tumbled into the
host of Midian, and came unto a
tent, and smote it that it fell,
and overturned it, that the tent
lay along.
14 And his fellow answered
and said, This is nothing else
save the sword of Gideon the son
of Joash, a man of Israel: for
into his hand hath God delivered
Midian, and all the host.
15 And it was so, when
Gideon heard the telling of the
dream, and the interpretation
thereof, that he worshipped, and
returned into the host of Israel,
and said, Arise; for the LORD
hath delivered into your hand the
host of Midian.
16 And he divided the
three hundred men into three
companies, and he put a trumpet
in every man's hand, with empty
pitchers, and lamps within the
pitchers.
17 And he said unto them,
Look on me, and do likewise: and,
behold, when I come to the
outside of the camp, it shall be
that, as I do, so shall ye
do.
18 When I blow with a
trumpet, I and all that are with
me, then blow ye the trumpets
also on every side of all the
camp, and say, The sword of the
LORD, and of Gideon.
19 So Gideon, and the
hundred men that were with him,
came unto the outside of the camp
in the beginning of the middle
watch; and they had but newly set
the watch: and they blew the
trumpets, and brake the pitchers
that were in their hands.
20 And the three companies
blew the trumpets, and brake the
pitchers, and held the lamps in
their left hands, and the
trumpets in their right hands to
blow withal: and they cried, The
sword of the LORD, and of
Gideon.
21 And they stood every
man in his place round about the
camp: and all the host ran, and
cried, and fled.
22 And the three hundred
blew the trumpets, and the LORD
set every man's sword against his
fellow, even throughout all the
host: and the host fled to
Beth-shittah in Zererath, and to
the border of Abel-meholah, unto
Tabbath.
23 And the men of Israel
gathered themselves together out
of Naphtali, and out of Asher,
and out of all Manasseh, and
pursued after the Midianites.
24 And Gideon sent
messengers throughout all mount
Ephraim, saying, Come down
against the Midianites, and take
before them the waters unto
Beth-barah and Jordan. Then all
the men of Ephraim gathered
themselves together, and took the
waters unto Beth-barah and
Jordan.
25 And they took two
princes of the Midianites, Oreb
and Zeeb; and they slew Oreb upon
the rock Oreb, and Zeeb they slew
at the winepress of Zeeb, and
pursued Midian, and brought the
heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon
on the other side Jordan.
Chapter 8
1 And the men of
Ephraim said unto him, Why hast
thou served us thus, that thou
calledst us not, when thou
wentest to fight with the
Midianites? And they did chide
with him sharply.
2 And he said unto them,
What have I done now in
comparison of you? Is not the
gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim
better than the vintage of
Abi-ezer?
3 God hath delivered into
your hands the princes of Midian,
Oreb and Zeeb: and what was I
able to do in comparison of you?
Then their anger was abated
toward him, when he had said
that.
4 And Gideon came to
Jordan, and passed over, he, and
the three hundred men that were
with him, faint, yet pursuing
them.
5 And he said unto the men
of Succoth, Give, I pray you,
loaves of bread unto the people
that follow me; for they be
faint, and I am pursuing after
Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of
Midian.
6 And the princes of
Succoth said, Are the hands of
Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine
hand, that we should give bread
unto thine army?
7 And Gideon said,
Therefore when the LORD hath
delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into
mine hand, then I will tear your
flesh with the thorns of the
wilderness and with briers.
8 And he went up thence to
Penuel, and spake unto them
likewise: and the men of Penuel
answered him as the men of
Succoth had answered him.
9 And he spake also unto
the men of Penuel, saying, When I
come again in peace, I will break
down this tower.
10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna
were in Karkor, and their hosts
with them, about fifteen thousand
men, all that were left of all
the hosts of the children of the
east: for there fell an hundred
and twenty thousand men that drew
sword.
11 And Gideon went up by
the way of them that dwelt in
tents on the east of Nobah and
Jogbehah, and smote the host: for
the host was secure.
12 And when Zebah and
Zalmunna fled, he pursued after
them, and took the two kings of
Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and
discomfited all the host.
13 And Gideon the son of
Joash returned from battle before
the sun was up,
14 And caught a young man
of the men of Succoth, and
inquired of him: and he described
unto him the princes of Succoth,
and the elders thereof, even
threescore and seventeen men.
15 And he came unto the
men of Succoth, and said, Behold
Zebah and Zalmunna, with whom ye
did upbraid me, saying, Are the
hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now
in thine hand, that we should
give bread unto thy men that are
weary?
16 And he took the elders
of the city, and thorns of the
wilderness and briers, and with
them he taught the men of
Succoth.
17 And he beat down the
tower of Penuel, and slew the men
of the city.
18 Then said he unto Zebah
and Zalmunna, What manner of men
were they whom ye slew at Tabor?
And they answered, As thou art,
so were they; each one resembled
the children of a king.
19 And he said, They were
my brethren, even the sons of my
mother: as the LORD liveth, if ye
had saved them alive, I would not
slay you.
20 And he said unto Jether
his firstborn, Up, and slay them.
But the youth drew not his sword:
for he feared, because he was yet
a youth.
21 Then Zebah and Zalmunna
said, Rise thou, and fall upon
us: for as the man is, so is his
strength. And Gideon arose, and
slew Zebah and Zalmunna, and took
away the ornaments that were on
their camels' necks.
22 Then the men of Israel
said unto Gideon, Rule thou over
us, both thou, and thy son, and
thy son's son also: for thou hast
delivered us from the hand of
Midian.
23 And Gideon said unto
them, I will not rule over you,
neither shall my son rule over
you: the LORD shall rule over
you.
24 And Gideon said unto
them, I would desire a request of
you, that ye would give me every
man the earrings of his prey.
(For they had golden earrings,
because they were
Ishmaelites.)
25 And they answered, We
will willingly give them. And
they spread a garment, and did
cast therein every man the
earrings of his prey.
26 And the weight of the
golden earrings that he requested
was a thousand and seven hundred
shekels of gold; beside
ornaments, and collars, and
purple raiment that was on the
kings of Midian, and beside the
chains that were about their
camels' necks.
27 And Gideon made an
ephod thereof, and put it in his
city, even in Ophrah: and all
Israel went thither a whoring
after it: which thing became a
snare unto Gideon, and to his
house.
28 Thus was Midian subdued
before the children of Israel, so
that they lifted up their heads
no more. And the country was in
quietness forty years in the days
of Gideon.
29 And Jerubbaal the son
of Joash went and dwelt in his
own house.
30 And Gideon had
threescore and ten sons of his
body begotten: for he had many
wives.
31 And his concubine that
was in Shechem, she also bare him
a son, whose name he called
Abimelech.
32 And Gideon the son of
Joash died in a good old age, and
was buried in the sepulchre of
Joash his father, in Ophrah of
the Abi-ezrites.
33 And it came to pass, as
soon as Gideon was dead, that the
children of Israel turned again,
and went a whoring after Baalim,
and made Baal-berith their
god.
34 And the children of
Israel remembered not the LORD
their God, who had delivered them
out of the hands of all their
enemies on every side:
35 Neither shewed they
kindness to the house of
Jerubbaal, namely, Gideon,
according to all the goodness
which he had shewed unto
Israel.
Chapter 9
1 And Abimelech the son
of Jerubbaal went to Shechem unto
his mother's brethren, and
communed with them, and with all
the family of the house of his
mother's father, saying,
2 Speak, I pray you, in
the ears of all the men of
Shechem, Whether is better for
you, either that all the sons of
Jerubbaal, which are threescore
and ten persons, reign over you,
or that one reign over you?
remember also that I am your bone
and your flesh.
3 And his mother's
brethren spake of him in the ears
of all the men of Shechem all
these words: and their hearts
inclined to follow Abimelech; for
they said, He is our brother.
4 And they gave him
threescore and ten pieces of
silver out of the house of
Baal-berith, wherewith Abimelech
hired vain and light persons,
which followed him.
5 And he went unto his
father's house at Ophrah, and
slew his brethren the sons of
Jerubbaal, being threescore and
ten persons, upon one stone:
notwithstanding yet Jotham the
youngest son of Jerubbaal was
left; for he hid himself.
6 And all the men of
Shechem gathered together, and
all the house of Millo, and went,
and made Abimelech king, by the
plain of the pillar that was in
Shechem.
7 And when they told it to
Jotham, he went and stood in the
top of mount Gerizim, and lifted
up his voice, and cried, and said
unto them, Hearken unto me, ye
men of Shechem, that God may
hearken unto you.
8 The trees went forth on
a time to anoint a king over
them; and they said unto the
olive tree, Reign thou over
us.
9 But the olive tree said
unto them, Should I leave my
fatness, wherewith by me they
honour God and man, and go to be
promoted over the trees?
10 And the trees said to
the fig tree, Come thou, and
reign over us.
11 But the fig tree said
unto them, Should I forsake my
sweetness, and my good fruit, and
go to be promoted over the
trees?
12 Then said the trees
unto the vine, Come thou, and
reign over us.
13 And the vine said unto
them, Should I leave my wine,
which cheereth God and man, and
go to be promoted over the
trees?
14 Then said all the trees
unto the bramble, Come thou, and
reign over us.
15 And the bramble said
unto the trees, If in truth ye
anoint me king over you, then
come and put your trust in my
shadow: and if not, let fire come
out of the bramble, and devour
the cedars of Lebanon.
16 Now therefore, if ye
have done truly and sincerely, in
that ye have made Abimelech king,
and if ye have dealt well with
Jerubbaal and his house, and have
done unto him according to the
deserving of his hands;
17 (For my father fought
for you, and adventured his life
far, and delivered you out of the
hand of Midian:
18 And ye are risen up
against my father's house this
day, and have slain his sons,
threescore and ten persons, upon
one stone, and have made
Abimelech, the son of his
maidservant, king over the men of
Shechem, because he is your
brother;)
19 If ye then have dealt
truly and sincerely with
Jerubbaal and with his house this
day, then rejoice ye in
Abimelech, and let him also
rejoice in you:
20 But if not, let fire
come out from Abimelech, and
devour the men of Shechem, and
the house of Millo; and let fire
come out from the men of Shechem,
and from the house of Millo, and
devour Abimelech.
21 And Jotham ran away,
and fled, and went to Beer, and
dwelt there, for fear of
Abimelech his brother.
22 When Abimelech had
reigned three years over
Israel,
23 Then God sent an evil
spirit between Abimelech and the
men of Shechem; and the men of
Shechem dealt treacherously with
Abimelech:
24 That the cruelty done
to the threescore and ten sons of
Jerubbaal might come, and their
blood be laid upon Abimelech
their brother, which slew them;
and upon the men of Shechem,
which aided him in the killing of
his brethren.
25 And the men of Shechem
set liers in wait for him in the
top of the mountains, and they
robbed all that came along that
way by them: and it was told
Abimelech.
26 And Gaal the son of
Ebed came with his brethren, and
went over to Shechem: and the men
of Shechem put their confidence
in him.
27 And they went out into
the fields, and gathered their
vineyards, and trode the grapes,
and made merry, and went into the
house of their god, and did eat
and drink, and cursed
Abimelech.
28 And Gaal the son of
Ebed said, Who is Abimelech, and
who is Shechem, that we should
serve him? is not he the son of
Jerubbaal? and Zebul his officer?
serve the men of Hamor the father
of Shechem: for why should we
serve him?
29 And would to God this
people were under my hand! then
would I remove Abimelech. And he
said to Abimelech, Increase thine
army, and come out.
30 And when Zebul the
ruler of the city heard the words
of Gaal the son of Ebed, his
anger was kindled.
31 And he sent messengers
unto Abimelech privily, saying,
Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and
his brethren be come to Shechem;
and, behold, they fortify the
city against thee.
32 Now therefore up by
night, thou and the people that
is with thee, and lie in wait in
the field:
33 And it shall be, that
in the morning, as soon as the
sun is up, thou shalt rise early,
and set upon the city: and,
behold, when he and the people
that is with him come out against
thee, then mayest thou do to them
as thou shalt find occasion.
34 And Abimelech rose up,
and all the people that were with
him, by night, and they laid wait
against Shechem in four
companies.
35 And Gaal the son of
Ebed went out, and stood in the
entering of the gate of the city:
and Abimelech rose up, and the
people that were with him, from
lying in wait.
36 And when Gaal saw the
people, he said to Zebul, Behold,
there come people down from the
top of the mountains. And Zebul
said unto him, Thou seest the
shadow of the mountains as if
they were men.
37 And Gaal spake again
and said, See there come people
down by the middle of the land,
and another company come along by
the plain of Meonenim.
38 Then said Zebul unto
him, Where is now thy mouth,
wherewith thou saidst, Who is
Abimelech, that we should serve
him? is not this the people that
thou hast despised? go out, I
pray now, and fight with
them.
39 And Gaal went out
before the men of Shechem, and
fought with Abimelech.
40 And Abimelech chased
him, and he fled before him, and
many were overthrown and wounded,
even unto the entering of the
gate.
41 And Abimelech dwelt at
Arumah: and Zebul thrust out Gaal
and his brethren, that they
should not dwell in Shechem.
42 And it came to pass on
the morrow, that the people went
out into the field; and they told
Abimelech.
43 And he took the people,
and divided them into three
companies, and laid wait in the
field, and looked, and, behold,
the people were come forth out of
the city; and he rose up against
them, and smote them.
44 And Abimelech, and the
company that was with him, rushed
forward, and stood in the
entering of the gate of the city:
and the two other companies ran
upon all the people that were in
the fields, and slew them.
45 And Abimelech fought
against the city all that day;
and he took the city, and slew
the people that was therein, and
beat down the city, and sowed it
with salt.
46 And when all the men of
the tower of Shechem heard that,
they entered into an hold of the
house of the god Berith.
47 And it was told
Abimelech, that all the men of
the tower of Shechem were
gathered together.
48 And Abimelech gat him
up to mount Zalmon, he and all
the people that were with him;
and Abimelech took an axe in his
hand, and cut down a bough from
the trees, and took it, and laid
it on his shoulder, and said unto
the people that were with him,
What ye have seen me do, make
haste, and do as I have done.
49 And all the people
likewise cut down every man his
bough, and followed Abimelech,
and put them to the hold, and set
the hold on fire upon them; so
that all the men of the tower of
Shechem died also, about a
thousand men and women.
50 Then went Abimelech to
Thebez, and encamped against
Thebez, and took it.
51 But there was a strong
tower within the city, and
thither fled all the men and
women, and all they of the city,
and shut it to them, and gat them
up to the top of the tower.
52 And Abimelech came unto
the tower, and fought against it,
and went hard unto the door of
the tower to burn it with
fire.
53 And a certain woman
cast a piece of a millstone upon
Abimelech's head, and all to
brake his skull.
54 Then he called hastily
unto the young man his
armourbearer, and said unto him,
Draw thy sword, and slay me, that
men say not of me, A woman slew
him. And his young man thrust him
through, and he died.
55 And when the men of
Israel saw that Abimelech was
dead, they departed every man
unto his place.
56 Thus God rendered the
wickedness of Abimelech, which he
did unto his father, in slaying
his seventy brethren:
57 And all the evil of the
men of Shechem did God render
upon their heads: and upon them
came the curse of Jotham the son
of Jerubbaal.
Chapter 10
1 And after Abimelech
there arose to defend Israel Tola
the son of Puah, the son of Dodo,
a man of Issachar; and he dwelt
in Shamir in mount Ephraim.
2 And he judged Israel
twenty and three years, and died,
and was buried in Shamir.
3 And after him arose
Jair, a Gileadite, and judged
Israel twenty and two years.
4 And he had thirty sons
that rode on thirty ass colts,
and they had thirty cities, which
are called Havoth-jair unto this
day, which are in the land of
Gilead.
5 And Jair died, and was
buried in Camon.
6 And the children of
Israel did evil again in the
sight of the LORD, and served
Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the
gods of Syria, and the gods of
Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and
the gods of the children of
Ammon, and the gods of the
Philistines, and forsook the
LORD, and served not him.
7 And the anger of the
LORD was hot against Israel, and
he sold them into the hands of
the Philistines, and into the
hands of the children of
Ammon.
8 And that year they vexed
and oppressed the children of
Israel: eighteen years, all the
children of Israel that were on
the other side Jordan in the land
of the Amorites, which is in
Gilead.
9 Moreover the children of
Ammon passed over Jordan to fight
also against Judah, and against
Benjamin, and against the house
of Ephraim; so that Israel was
sore distressed.
10 And the children of
Israel cried unto the LORD,
saying, We have sinned against
thee, both because we have
forsaken our God, and also served
Baalim.
11 And the LORD said unto
the children of Israel, Did not I
deliver you from the Egyptians,
and from the Amorites, from the
children of Ammon, and from the
Philistines?
12 The Zidonians also, and
the Amalekites, and the Maonites,
did oppress you; and ye cried to
me, and I delivered you out of
their hand.
13 Yet ye have forsaken
me, and served other gods:
wherefore I will deliver you no
more.
14 Go and cry unto the
gods which ye have chosen; let
them deliver you in the time of
your tribulation.
15 And the children of
Israel said unto the LORD, We
have sinned: do thou unto us
whatsoever seemeth good unto
thee; deliver us only, we pray
thee, this day.
16 And they put away the
strange gods from among them, and
served the LORD: and his soul was
grieved for the misery of
Israel.
17 Then the children of
Ammon were gathered together, and
encamped in Gilead. And the
children of Israel assembled
themselves together, and encamped
in Mizpeh.
18 And the people and
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
1 Now Jephthah the
Gileadite was a mighty man of
valour, and he was the son of an
harlot: and Gilead begat
Jephthah.
2 And Gilead's wife bare
him sons; and his wife's sons
grew up, and they thrust out
Jephthah, and said unto him, Thou
shalt not inherit in our father's
house; for thou art the son of a
strange woman.
3 Then Jephthah fled from
his brethren, and dwelt in the
land of Tob: and there were
gathered vain men to Jephthah,
and went out with him.
4 And it came to pass in
process of time, that the
children of Ammon made war
against Israel.
5 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:
6 And they said unto
Jephthah, Come, and be our
captain, that we may fight with
the children of Ammon.
7 And Jephthah said unto
the elders of Gilead, Did not ye
hate me, and expel me out of my
father's house? and why are ye
come unto me now when ye are in
distress?
8 And the elders of Gilead
said unto Jephthah, Therefore we
turn again to thee now, that thou
mayest go with us, and fight
against the children of Ammon,
and be our head over all the
inhabitants of Gilead.
9 And Jephthah said unto
the elders of Gilead, If ye bring
me home again to fight against
the children of Ammon, and the
LORD deliver them before me,
shall I be your head?
10 And the elders of
Gilead said unto Jephthah, The
LORD be witness between us, if we
do not so according to thy
words.
11 Then Jephthah went with
the elders of Gilead, and the
people made him head and captain
over them: and Jephthah uttered
all his words before the LORD in
Mizpeh.
12 And Jephthah sent
messengers unto the king of the
children of Ammon, saying, What
hast thou to do with me, that
thou art come against me to fight
in my land?
13 And the king of the
children of Ammon answered unto
the messengers of Jephthah,
Because Israel took away my land,
when they came up out of Egypt,
from Arnon even unto Jabbok, and
unto Jordan: now therefore
restore those lands again
peaceably.
14 And Jephthah sent
messengers again unto the king of
the children of Ammon:
15 And said unto him, Thus
saith Jephthah, Israel took not
away the land of Moab, nor the
land of the children of
Ammon:
16 But when Israel came up
from Egypt, and walked through
the wilderness unto the Red sea,
and came to Kadesh;
17 Then Israel sent
messengers unto the king of Edom,
saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass
through thy land: but the king of
Edom would not hearken thereto.
And in like manner they sent unto
the king of Moab: but he would
not consent: and Israel abode in
Kadesh.
18 Then they went along
through the wilderness, and
compassed the land of Edom, and
the land of Moab, and came by the
east side of the land of Moab,
and pitched on the other side of
Arnon, but came not within the
border of Moab: for Arnon was the
border of Moab.
19 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 into my place.
20 But Sihon trusted not
Israel to pass through his coast:
but Sihon gathered all his people
together, and pitched in Jahaz,
and fought against Israel.
21 And the LORD 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.
22 And they possessed all
the coasts of the Amorites, from
Arnon even unto Jabbok, and from
the wilderness even unto
Jordan.
23 So now the LORD God of
Israel hath dispossessed the
Amorites from before his people
Israel, and shouldest thou
possess it?
24 Wilt not thou possess
that which Chemosh thy god giveth
thee to possess? So whomsoever
the LORD our God shall drive out
from before us, them will we
possess.
25 And now art thou any
thing better than Balak the son
of Zippor, king of Moab? did he
ever strive against Israel, or
did he ever fight against
them,
26 While Israel dwelt in
Heshbon and her towns, and in
Aroer and her towns, and in all
the cities that be along by the
coasts of Arnon, three hundred
years? why therefore did ye not
recover them within that
time?
27 Wherefore I have not
sinned against thee, but thou
doest me wrong to war against me:
the LORD the Judge be judge this
day between the children of
Israel and the children of
Ammon.
28 Howbeit the king of the
children of Ammon hearkened not
unto the words of Jephthah which
he sent him.
29 Then the Spirit of the
LORD 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.
30 And Jephthah vowed a
vow unto the LORD, and said, If
thou shalt without fail deliver
the children of Ammon into mine
hands,
31 Then it shall be, that
whatsoever cometh forth of the
doors of my house to meet me,
when I return in peace from the
children of Ammon, shall surely
be the LORD's, and I will offer
it up for a burnt offering.
32 So Jephthah passed over
unto the children of Ammon to
fight against them; and the LORD
delivered them into his
hands.
33 And he smote them from
Aroer, even till thou come to
Minnith, even twenty cities, and
unto the plain of the vineyards,
with a very great slaughter. Thus
the children of Ammon were
subdued before the children of
Israel.
34 And Jephthah came to
Mizpeh unto his house, and,
behold, his daughter came out to
meet him with timbrels and with
dances: and she was his only
child; beside her he had neither
son nor daughter.
35 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 the LORD,
and I cannot go back.
36 And she said unto him,
My father, if thou hast opened
thy mouth unto the LORD, do to me
according to that which hath
proceeded out of thy mouth;
forasmuch as the LORD hath taken
vengeance for thee of thine
enemies, even of the children of
Ammon.
37 And she said unto her
father, Let this thing be done
for me: let me alone two months,
that I may go up and down upon
the mountains, and bewail my
virginity, I and my fellows.
38 And he said, Go. And he
sent her away for two months: and
she went with her companions, and
bewailed her virginity upon the
mountains.
39 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
no man. And it was a custom in
Israel,
40 That the daughters of
Israel went yearly to lament the
daughter of Jephthah the
Gileadite four days in a
year.
Chapter 12
1 And the men of
Ephraim gathered themselves
together, and went northward, and
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 thine house
upon thee with fire.
2 And Jephthah said unto
them, I and my people were at
great strife with the children of
Ammon; and when I called you, ye
delivered me not out of their
hands.
3 And when I saw that ye
delivered me not, I put my life
in my hands, and passed over
against the children of Ammon,
and the LORD delivered them into
my hand: wherefore then are ye
come up unto me this day, to
fight against me?
4 Then Jephthah gathered
together all the men of Gilead,
and fought with Ephraim: and the
men of Gilead smote Ephraim,
because they said, Ye Gileadites
are fugitives of Ephraim among
the Ephraimites, and among the
Manassites.
5 And the Gileadites took
the passages of Jordan before the
Ephraimites: and it was so, that
when those Ephraimites which were
escaped said, Let me go over;
that the men of Gilead said unto
him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If
he said, Nay;
6 Then said they unto him,
Say now Shibboleth: and he said
Sibboleth: for he could not frame
to pronounce it right. Then they
took him, and slew him at the
passages of Jordan: and there
fell at that time of the
Ephraimites forty and two
thousand.
7 And Jephthah judged
Israel six years. Then died
Jephthah the Gileadite, and was
buried in one of the cities of
Gilead.
8 And after him Ibzan of
Bethlehem judged Israel.
9 And he had thirty sons,
and thirty daughters, whom he
sent abroad, and took in thirty
daughters from abroad for his
sons. And he judged Israel seven
years.
10 Then died Ibzan, and
was buried at Bethlehem.
11 And after him Elon, a
Zebulonite, judged Israel; and he
judged Israel ten years.
12 And Elon the Zebulonite
died, and was buried in Aijalon
in the country of Zebulun.
13 And after him Abdon the
son of Hillel, a Pirathonite,
judged Israel.
14 And he had forty sons
and thirty nephews, that rode on
threescore and ten ass colts: and
he judged Israel eight years.
15 And Abdon the son of
Hillel the Pirathonite died, and
was buried in Pirathon in the
land of Ephraim, in the mount of
the Amalekites.
Chapter 13
1 And the children of
Israel did evil again in the
sight of the LORD; and the LORD
delivered them into the hand of
the Philistines forty years.
2 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.
3 And the angel of the
LORD appeared unto the woman, and
said unto her, Behold now, thou
art barren, and bearest not: but
thou shalt conceive, and bear a
son.
4 Now therefore beware, I
pray thee, and drink not wine nor
strong drink, and eat not any
unclean thing:
5 For, lo, thou shalt
conceive, and bear a son; and no
rasor shall come on his head: for
the child shall be a Nazarite
unto God from the womb: and he
shall begin to deliver Israel out
of the hand of the
Philistines.
6 Then the woman came and
told her husband, saying, A man
of God came unto me, and his
countenance was like the
countenance of an angel of God,
very terrible: but I asked him
not whence he was, neither told
he me his name:
7 But he said unto me,
Behold, thou shalt conceive, and
bear a son; and now drink no wine
nor strong drink, neither eat any
unclean thing: for the child
shall be a Nazarite to God from
the womb to the day of his
death.
8 Then Manoah intreated
the LORD, and said, O my Lord,
let the man of God which thou
didst send come again unto us,
and teach us what we shall do
unto the child that shall be
born.
9 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.
10 And the woman made
haste, and ran, and shewed her
husband, and said unto him,
Behold, the man hath appeared
unto me, that came unto me the
other day.
11 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.
12 And Manoah said, Now
let thy words come to pass. How
shall we order the child, and how
shall we do unto him?
13 And the angel of the
LORD said unto Manoah, Of all
that I said unto the woman let
her beware.
14 She may not eat of any
thing 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.
15 And Manoah said unto
the angel of the LORD, I pray
thee, let us detain thee, until
we shall have made ready a kid
for thee.
16 And the angel of the
LORD said unto Manoah, Though
thou detain me, I will not eat of
thy bread: and if thou wilt offer
a burnt offering, thou must offer
it unto the LORD. For Manoah knew
not that he was an angel of the
LORD.
17 And Manoah said unto
the angel of the LORD, What is
thy name, that when thy sayings
come to pass we may do thee
honour?
18 And the angel of the
LORD said unto him, Why askest
thou thus after my name, seeing
it is secret?
19 So Manoah took a kid
with a meat offering, and offered
it upon a rock unto the LORD: and
the angel did wondrously; and
Manoah and his wife looked
on.
20 For it came to pass,
when the flame went up toward
heaven from off the altar, that
the angel of the LORD ascended in
the flame of the altar. And
Manoah and his wife looked on it,
and fell on their faces to the
ground.
21 But the angel of the
LORD did no more appear to Manoah
and to his wife. Then Manoah knew
that he was an angel of the
LORD.
22 And Manoah said unto
his wife, We shall surely die,
because we have seen God.
23 But his wife said unto
him, If the LORD were pleased to
kill us, he would not have
received a burnt offering and a
meat offering at our hands,
neither would he have shewed us
all these things, nor would as at
this time have told us such
things as these.
24 And the woman bare a
son, and called his name Samson:
and the child grew, and the LORD
blessed him.
25 And the Spirit of the
LORD began to move him at times
in the camp of Dan between Zorah
and Eshtaol.
Chapter 14
1 And Samson went down
to Timnath, and saw a woman in
Timnath of the daughters of the
Philistines.
2 And he came up, and told
his father and his mother, and
said, I have seen a woman in
Timnath of the daughters of the
Philistines: now therefore get
her for me to wife.
3 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.
4 But his father and his
mother knew not that it was of
the LORD, that he sought an
occasion against the Philistines:
for at that time the Philistines
had dominion over Israel.
5 Then went Samson down,
and his father and his mother, to
Timnath, and came to the
vineyards of Timnath: and,
behold, a young lion roared
against him.
6 And the Spirit of the
LORD 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.
7 And he went down, and
talked with the woman; and she
pleased Samson well.
8 And after a time he
returned to take her, and he
turned aside to see the carcase
of the lion: and, behold, there
was a swarm of bees and honey in
the carcase of the lion.
9 And he took thereof in
his hands, and went on eating,
and came to his father and
mother, and he gave them, and
they did eat: but he told not
them that he had taken the honey
out of the carcase of the
lion.
10 So his father went down
unto the woman: and Samson made
there a feast; for so used the
young men to do.
11 And it came to pass,
when they saw him, that they
brought thirty companions to be
with him.
12 And Samson said unto
them, I will now put forth a
riddle unto you: if ye can
certainly declare it me within
the seven days of the feast, and
find it out, then I will give you
thirty sheets and thirty change
of garments:
13 But if ye cannot
declare it me, then shall ye give
me thirty sheets and thirty
change of garments. And they said
unto him, Put forth thy riddle,
that we may hear it.
14 And he said unto them,
Out of the eater came forth meat,
and out of the strong came forth
sweetness. And they could not in
three days expound the
riddle.
15 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 take that we
have? is it not so?
16 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 it thee?
17 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 lay sore upon
him: and she told the riddle to
the children of her people.
18 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.
19 And the Spirit of the
LORD came upon him, and he went
down to Ashkelon, and slew thirty
men of them, and took their
spoil, and gave change of
garments unto them which
expounded the riddle. And his
anger was kindled, and he went up
to his father's house.
20 But Samson's wife was
given to his companion, whom he
had used as his friend.
Chapter 15
1 But it came to pass
within a while after, 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.
2 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.
3 And Samson said
concerning them, Now shall I be
more blameless than the
Philistines, though I do them a
displeasure.
4 And Samson went and
caught three hundred foxes, and
took firebrands, and turned tail
to tail, and put a firebrand in
the midst between two tails.
5 And when he had set the
brands on fire, he let them go
into the standing corn of the
Philistines, and burnt up both
the shocks, and also the standing
corn, with the vineyards and
olives.
6 Then the Philistines
said, Who hath done this? And
they answered, Samson, the son in
law of the Timnite, because he
had taken his wife, and given her
to his companion. And the
Philistines came up, and burnt
her and her father with fire.
7 And Samson said unto
them, Though ye have done this,
yet will I be avenged of you, and
after that I will cease.
8 And he smote them hip
and thigh with a great slaughter:
and he went down and dwelt in the
top of the rock Etam.
9 Then the Philistines
went up, and pitched in Judah,
and spread themselves in
Lehi.
10 And the men of Judah
said, Why are ye come up against
us? And they answered, To bind
Samson are we come up, to do to
him as he hath done to us.
11 Then three thousand men
of Judah went to the top of the
rock Etam, and said to Samson,
Knowest thou not that the
Philistines are rulers over us?
what is this that thou hast done
unto us? And he said unto them,
As they did unto me, so have I
done unto them.
12 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.
13 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 cords, and brought
him up from the rock.
14 And when he came unto
Lehi, the Philistines shouted
against him: and the Spirit of
the LORD came mightily upon him,
and the cords that were upon his
arms became as flax that was
burnt with fire, and his bands
loosed from off his hands.
15 And he found a new
jawbone of an ass, and put forth
his hand, and took it, and slew a
thousand men therewith.
16 And Samson said, With
the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon
heaps, with the jaw of an ass
have I slain a thousand men.
17 And it came to pass,
when he had made an end of
speaking, that he cast away the
jawbone out of his hand, and
called that place
Ramath-lehi.
18 And he was sore
athirst, and called on the LORD,
and said, Thou hast given this
great deliverance into the hand
of thy servant: and now shall I
die for thirst, and fall into the
hand of the uncircumcised?
19 But God clave an hollow
place that was in the jaw, and
there came water thereout; and
when he had drunk, his spirit
came again, and he revived:
wherefore he called the name
thereof En-hakkore, which is in
Lehi unto this day.
20 And he judged Israel in
the days of the Philistines
twenty years.
Chapter 16
1 Then went Samson to
Gaza, and saw there an harlot,
and went in unto her.
2 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, In the morning, when it
is day, we shall kill him.
3 And Samson lay till
midnight, and arose at midnight,
and took the doors of the gate of
the city, and the two posts, and
went away with them, bar and all,
and put them upon his shoulders,
and carried them up to the top of
an hill that is before
Hebron.
4 And it came to pass
afterward, that he loved a woman
in the valley of Sorek, whose
name was Delilah.
5 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.
6 And Delilah said to
Samson, Tell me, I pray thee,
wherein thy great strength lieth,
and wherewith thou mightest be
bound to afflict thee.
7 And Samson said unto
her, If they bind me with seven
green withs that were never
dried, then shall I be weak, and
be as another man.
8 Then the lords of the
Philistines brought up to her
seven green withs which had not
been dried, and she bound him
with them.
9 Now there were men lying
in wait, abiding with her in the
chamber. And she said unto him,
The Philistines be upon thee,
Samson. And he brake the withs,
as a thread of tow is broken when
it toucheth the fire. So his
strength was not known.
10 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.
11 And he said unto her,
If they bind me fast with new
ropes that never were occupied,
then shall I be weak, and be as
another man.
12 Delilah therefore took
new ropes, and bound him
therewith, and said unto him, The
Philistines be upon thee, Samson.
And there were liers in wait
abiding in the chamber. And he
brake them from off his arms like
a thread.
13 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.
14 And she fastened it
with the pin, and said unto him,
The Philistines be upon thee,
Samson. And he awaked out of his
sleep, and went away with the pin
of the beam, and with the
web.
15 And she said unto him,
How canst thou say, I love thee,
when thine heart is not with me?
thou hast mocked me these three
times, and hast not told me
wherein thy great strength
lieth.
16 And it came to pass,
when she pressed him daily with
her words, and urged him, so that
his soul was vexed unto
death;
17 That he told her all
his heart, and said unto her.
There hath not come a rasor upon
mine head; for I have been a
Nazarite 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.
18 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 shewed me all his heart.
Then the lords of the Philistines
came up unto her, and brought
money in their hand.
19 And she made him sleep
upon her knees; and she called
for a man, and she caused him to
shave off the seven locks of his
head; and she began to afflict
him, and his strength went from
him.
20 And she said, The
Philistines be upon thee, Samson.
And he awoke out of his sleep,
and said, I will go out as at
other times before, and shake
myself. And he wist not that the
LORD was departed from him.
21 But the Philistines
took him, and put out his eyes,
and brought him down to Gaza, and
bound him with fetters of brass;
and he did grind in the prison
house.
22 Howbeit the hair of his
head began to grow again after he
was shaven.
23 Then the lords of the
Philistines gathered them
together for 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.
24 And when the people saw
him, they praised their god: for
they said, Our god hath delivered
into our hands our enemy, and the
destroyer of our country, which
slew many of us.
25 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 them
sport: and they set him between
the pillars.
26 And Samson said unto
the lad that held him by the
hand, Suffer me that I may feel
the pillars whereupon the house
standeth, that I may lean upon
them.
27 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.
28 And Samson called unto
the LORD, and said, O Lord GOD,
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.
29 And Samson took hold of
the two middle pillars upon which
the house stood, and on which it
was borne up, of the one with his
right hand, and of the other with
his left.
30 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
which he slew at his death were
more than they which he slew in
his life.
31 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
1 And there was a man
of mount Ephraim, whose name was
Micah.
2 And he said unto his
mother, The eleven hundred
shekels of silver that were taken
from thee, about which thou
cursedst, and spakest of also in
mine ears, behold, the silver is
with me; I took it. And his
mother said, Blessed be thou of
the LORD, my son.
3 And when he had restored
the eleven hundred shekels of
silver to his mother, his mother
said, I had wholly dedicated the
silver unto the LORD from my hand
for my son, to make a graven
image and a molten image: now
therefore I will restore it unto
thee.
4 Yet he restored the
money unto his mother; and his
mother took two hundred shekels
of silver, and gave them to the
founder, who made thereof a
graven image and a molten image:
and they were in the house of
Micah.
5 And the man Micah had an
house of gods, and made an ephod,
and teraphim, and consecrated one
of his sons, who became his
priest.
6 In those days there was
no king in Israel, but every man
did that which was right in his
own eyes.
7 And there was a young
man out of Bethlehemjudah of the
family of Judah, who was a
Levite, and he sojourned
there.
8 And the man departed out
of the city from Bethlehemjudah
to sojourn where he could find a
place: and he came to mount
Ephraim to the house of Micah, as
he journeyed.
9 And Micah said unto him,
Whence comest thou? And he said
unto him, I am a Levite of
Bethlehemjudah, and I go to
sojourn where I may find a
place.
10 And Micah said unto
him, Dwell with me, and be unto
me a father and a priest, and I
will give thee ten shekels of
silver by the year, and a suit of
apparel, and thy victuals. So the
Levite went in.
11 And the Levite was
content to dwell with the man;
and the young man was unto him as
one of his sons.
12 And Micah consecrated
the Levite; and the young man
became his priest, and was in the
house of Micah.
13 Then said Micah, Now
know I that the LORD will do me
good, seeing I have a Levite to
my priest.
Chapter 18
1 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 all their inheritance
had not fallen unto them among
the tribes of Israel.
2 And the children of Dan
sent of their family five men
from their coasts, men of valour,
from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to
spy out the land, and to search
it; and they said unto them, Go,
search the land: who when they
came to mount Ephraim, to the
house of Micah, they lodged
there.
3 When they were by the
house of Micah, they knew the
voice of the young man the
Levite: and they turned in
thither, and said unto him, Who
brought thee hither? and what
makest thou in this place? and
what hast thou here?
4 And he said unto them,
Thus and thus dealeth Micah with
me, and hath hired me, and I am
his priest.
5 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.
6 And the priest said unto
them, Go in peace: before the
LORD is your way wherein ye
go.
7 Then the five men
departed, and came to Laish, and
saw the people that were therein,
how they dwelt careless, after
the manner of the Zidonians,
quiet and secure; and there was
no magistrate in the land, that
might put them to shame in any
thing; and they were far from the
Zidonians, and had no business
with any man.
8 And they came unto their
brethren to Zorah and Eshtaol:
and their brethren said unto
them, What say ye?
9 And they said, Arise,
that we may 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 to possess the
land.
10 When ye go, ye shall
come unto a people secure, and to
a large land: for God hath given
it into your hands; a place where
there is no want of any thing
that is in the earth.
11 And there went from
thence of the family of the
Danites, out of Zorah and out of
Eshtaol, six hundred men
appointed with weapons of
war.
12 And they went up, and
pitched in Kirjath-jearim, in
Judah: wherefore they called that
place Mahaneh-dan unto this day:
behold, it is behind
Kirjath-jearim.
13 And they passed thence
unto mount Ephraim, and came unto
the house of Micah.
14 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.
15 And they turned
thitherward, and came to the
house of the young man the
Levite, even unto the house of
Micah, and saluted him.
16 And the six hundred men
appointed with their weapons of
war, which were of the children
of Dan, stood by the entering of
the gate.
17 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 in
the entering of the gate with the
six hundred men that were
appointed with weapons of
war.
18 And these went into
Micah's house, and fetched the
carved image, the ephod, and the
teraphim, and the molten image.
Then said the priest unto them,
What do ye?
19 And they said unto him,
Hold thy peace, lay thine hand
upon thy mouth, and go with us,
and be to us a father and a
priest: is it better for thee to
be a priest unto the house of one
man, or that thou be a priest
unto a tribe and a family in
Israel?
20 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.
21 So they turned and
departed, and put the little ones
and the cattle and the carriage
before them.
22 And 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.
23 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?
24 And he said, Ye have
taken away my gods which I made,
and the priest, and ye are gone
away: and what have I more? and
what is this that ye say unto me,
What aileth thee?
25 And the children of Dan
said unto him, Let not thy voice
be heard among us, lest angry
fellows run upon thee, and thou
lose thy life, with the lives of
thy household.
26 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.
27 And they took the
things which Micah had made, and
the priest which he had, and came
unto Laish, unto a people that
were at quiet and secure: and
they smote them with the edge of
the sword, and burnt the city
with fire.
28 And there was no
deliverer, because it was far
from Zidon, and they had no
business with any man; and it was
in the valley that lieth by
Beth-rehob. And they built a
city, and dwelt therein.
29 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.
30 And the children of Dan
set up the graven image: and
Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the
son of Manasseh, he and his sons
were priests to the tribe of Dan
until the day of the captivity of
the land.
31 And they set them up
Micah's graven image, which he
made, all the time that the house
of God was in Shiloh.
Chapter 19
1 And it came to pass
in those days, when there was no
king in Israel, that there was a
certain Levite sojourning on the
side of mount Ephraim, who took
to him a concubine out of
Bethlehemjudah.
2 And his concubine played
the whore against him, and went
away from him unto her father's
house to Bethlehemjudah, and was
there four whole months.
3 And her husband arose,
and went after her, to speak
friendly unto her, and 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.
4 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.
5 And it came to pass on
the fourth day, when they arose
early in the morning, that he
rose up to depart: and the
damsel's father said unto his son
in law, Comfort thine heart with
a morsel of bread, and afterward
go your way.
6 And they sat down, and
did eat and drink both of them
together: for the damsel's father
had said unto the man, Be
content, I pray thee, and tarry
all night, and let thine heart be
merry.
7 And when the man rose up
to depart, his father in law
urged him: therefore he lodged
there again.
8 And he arose early in
the morning on the fifth day to
depart: and the damsel's father
said, Comfort thine heart, I pray
thee. And they tarried until
afternoon, and they did eat both
of them.
9 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 thine heart may be
merry; and to morrow get you
early on your way, that thou
mayest go home.
10 But the man would not
tarry that night, but he rose up
and departed, and came over
against Jebus, which is
Jerusalem; and there were with
him two asses saddled, his
concubine also was with him.
11 And 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 in into this city of the
Jebusites, and lodge in it.
12 And his master said
unto him, We will not turn aside
hither into the city of a
stranger, that is not of the
children of Israel; we will pass
over to Gibeah.
13 And he said unto his
servant, Come, and let us draw
near to one of these places to
lodge all night, in Gibeah, or in
Ramah.
14 And they passed on and
went their way; and the sun went
down upon them when they were by
Gibeah, which belongeth to
Benjamin.
15 And they turned aside
thither, to go in and to lodge in
Gibeah: and when he went in, he
sat him down in a street of the
city: for there was no man that
took them into his house to
lodging.
16 And, behold, there came
an old man from his work out of
the field at even, which was also
of mount Ephraim; and he
sojourned in Gibeah: but the men
of the place were Benjamites.
17 And when he had lifted
up his eyes, he saw a wayfaring
man in the street of the city:
and the old man said, Whither
goest thou? and whence comest
thou?
18 And he said unto him,
We are passing from
Bethlehemjudah toward the side of
mount Ephraim; from thence am I:
and I went to Bethlehemjudah, but
I am now going to the house of
the LORD; and there is no man
that receiveth me to house.
19 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 which is with thy
servants: there is no want of any
thing.
20 And the old man said,
Peace be with thee; howsoever let
all thy wants lie upon me; only
lodge not in the street.
21 So he brought him into
his house, and gave provender
unto the asses: and they washed
their feet, and did eat and
drink.
22 Now as they were making
their hearts merry, behold, the
men of the city, certain sons of
Belial, beset the house round
about, and beat at the door, and
spake to the master of the house,
the old man, saying, Bring forth
the man that came into thine
house, that we may know him.
23 And the man, the master
of the house, went out unto them,
Nay, my brethren, nay, I pray
you, do not so wickedly; seeing
that this man is come into mine
house, do not this folly.
24 Behold, here is my
daughter a maiden, 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 so
vile a thing.
25 But the men would not
hearken to him: so the man took
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.
26 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.
27 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, and her
hands were upon the
threshold.
28 And he said unto her,
Up, and let us be going. But none
answered. Then the man took her
up upon an ass, and the man rose
up, and gat him unto his
place.
29 And when he was come
into his house, he took a knife,
and laid hold on his concubine,
and divided her, together with
her bones, into twelve pieces,
and sent her into all the coasts
of Israel.
30 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 of it,
take advice, and speak your
minds.
Chapter 20
1 Then all the children
of Israel went out, and the
congregation was gathered
together as one man, from Dan
even to Beer-sheba, with the land
of Gilead, unto the LORD in
Mizpeh.
2 And the chief 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.
3 (Now the children of
Benjamin heard that the children
of Israel were gone up to
Mizpeh.) Then said the children
of Israel, Tell us, how was this
wickedness?
4 And the Levite, the
husband of the woman that was
slain, answered and said, I came
into Gibeah that belongeth to
Benjamin, I and my concubine, to
lodge.
5 And the men of Gibeah
rose against me, and beset the
house round about upon me by
night, and thought to have slain
me: and my concubine have they
forced, that she is dead.
6 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.
7 Behold, ye are all
children of Israel; give here
your advice and counsel.
8 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 into his
house.
9 But now this shall be
the thing which we will do to
Gibeah; we will go up by lot
against it;
10 And we will take ten
men of an hundred throughout all
the tribes of Israel, and an
hundred of a thousand, and a
thousand out of ten thousand, to
fetch victual 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.
11 So all the men of
Israel were gathered against the
city, knit together as one
man.
12 And the tribes of
Israel sent men through all the
tribe of Benjamin, saying, What
wickedness is this that is done
among you?
13 Now therefore deliver
us the men, the children of
Belial, which are in Gibeah, that
we may put them to death, and put
away evil from Israel. But the
children of Benjamin would not
hearken to the voice of their
brethren the children of
Israel:
14 But the children of
Benjamin gathered themselves
together out of the cities unto
Gibeah, to go out to battle
against the children of
Israel.
15 And the children of
Benjamin were numbered at that
time out of the cities twenty and
six thousand men that drew sword,
beside the inhabitants of Gibeah,
which were numbered seven hundred
chosen men.
16 Among all this people
there were seven hundred chosen
men lefthanded; every one could
sling stones at an hair breadth,
and not miss.
17 And the men of Israel,
beside Benjamin, were numbered
four hundred thousand men that
drew sword: all these were men of
war.
18 And the children of
Israel arose, and went up to the
house of God, and asked counsel
of God, and said, Which of us
shall go up first to the battle
against the children of Benjamin?
And the LORD said, Judah shall go
up first.
19 And the children of
Israel rose up in the morning,
and encamped against Gibeah.
20 And the men of Israel
went out to battle against
Benjamin; and the men of Israel
put themselves in array to fight
against them at Gibeah.
21 And the children of
Benjamin came forth out of
Gibeah, and destroyed down to the
ground of the Israelites that day
twenty and two thousand men.
22 And the people the men
of Israel encouraged themselves,
and set their battle again in
array in the place where they put
themselves in array the first
day.
23 (And the children of
Israel went up and wept before
the LORD until even, and asked
counsel of the LORD, saying,
Shall I go up again to battle
against the children of Benjamin
my brother? And the LORD said, Go
up against him.)
24 And the children of
Israel came near against the
children of Benjamin the second
day.
25 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.
26 Then all the children
of Israel, and all the people,
went up, and came unto the house
of God, and wept, and sat there
before the LORD, and fasted that
day until even, and offered burnt
offerings and peace offerings
before the LORD.
27 And the children of
Israel inquired of the LORD, (for
the ark of the covenant of God
was there in those days,
28 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 the LORD said, Go up;
for to morrow I will deliver them
into thine hand.
29 And Israel set liers in
wait round about Gibeah.
30 And the children of
Israel went up against the
children of Benjamin on the third
day, and put themselves in array
against Gibeah, as at other
times.
31 And the children of
Benjamin went out against the
people, and were drawn away from
the city; and they began to smite
of the people, and kill, as at
other times, in the highways, of
which one goeth up to the house
of God, and the other to Gibeah
in the field, about thirty men of
Israel.
32 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 from
the city unto the highways.
33 And all the men of
Israel rose up out of their
place, and put themselves in
array at Baal-tamar: and the
liers in wait of Israel came
forth out of their places, even
out of the meadows of Gibeah.
34 And there came against
Gibeah ten thousand chosen men
out of all Israel, and the battle
was sore: but they knew not that
evil was near them.
35 And the LORD smote
Benjamin before Israel: and the
children of Israel destroyed of
the Benjamites that day twenty
and five thousand and an hundred
men: all these drew the
sword.
36 So the children of
Benjamin saw that they were
smitten: for the men of Israel
gave place to the Benjamites,
because they trusted unto the
liers in wait which they had set
beside Gibeah.
37 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.
38 Now there was an
appointed sign between the men of
Israel and the liers in wait,
that they should make a great
flame with smoke rise up out of
the city.
39 And when the men of
Israel retired in the battle,
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.
40 But when the flame
began to arise up out of the city
with a pillar of smoke, the
Benjamites looked behind them,
and, behold, the flame of the
city ascended up to heaven.
41 And when the men of
Israel turned again, the men of
Benjamin were amazed: for they
saw that evil was come upon
them.
42 Therefore they turned
their backs before the men of
Israel unto the way of the
wilderness; but the battle
overtook them; and them which
came out of the cities they
destroyed in the midst of
them.
43 Thus they inclosed the
Benjamites round about, and
chased them, and trode them down
with ease over against Gibeah
toward the sunrising.
44 And there fell of
Benjamin eighteen thousand men;
all these were men of valour.
45 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 pursued
hard after them unto Gidom, and
slew two thousand men of
them.
46 So that all which fell
that day of Benjamin were twenty
and five thousand men that drew
the sword; all these were men of
valour.
47 But six hundred men
turned and fled to the wilderness
unto the rock Rimmon, and abode
in the rock Rimmon four
months.
48 And the men of Israel
turned again upon the children of
Benjamin, and smote them with the
edge of the sword, as well the
men of every city, as the beast,
and all that came to hand: also
they set on fire all the cities
that they came to.
Chapter 21
1 Now the men of Israel
had sworn in Mizpeh, saying,
There shall not any of us give
his daughter unto Benjamin to
wife.
2 And the people came to
the house of God, and abode there
till even before God, and lifted
up their voices, and wept
sore;
3 And said, O LORD God of
Israel, why is this come to pass
in Israel, that there should be
to day one tribe lacking in
Israel?
4 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.
5 And the children of
Israel said, Who is there among
all the tribes of Israel that
came not up with the congregation
unto the LORD? For they had made
a great oath concerning him that
came not up to the LORD to
Mizpeh, saying, He shall surely
be put to death.
6 And the children of
Israel repented them for Benjamin
their brother, and said, There is
one tribe cut off from Israel
this day.
7 How shall we do for
wives for them that remain,
seeing we have sworn by the LORD
that we will not give them of our
daughters to wives?
8 And they said, What one
is there of the tribes of Israel
that came not up to Mizpeh to the
LORD? And, behold, there came
none to the camp from
Jabesh-gilead to the
assembly.
9 For the people were
numbered, and, behold, there were
none of the inhabitants of
Jabesh-gilead there.
10 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 children.
11 And this is the thing
that ye shall do, Ye shall
utterly destroy every male, and
every woman that hath lain by
man.
12 And they found among
the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead
four hundred young virgins, that
had known no man by lying with
any male: and they brought them
unto the camp to Shiloh, which is
in the land of Canaan.
13 And the whole
congregation sent some to speak
to the children of Benjamin that
were in the rock Rimmon, and to
call peaceably unto them.
14 And Benjamin came again
at that time; and they gave them
wives which they had saved alive
of the women of Jabesh-gilead:
and yet so they sufficed them
not.
15 And the people repented
them for Benjamin, because that
the LORD had made a breach in the
tribes of Israel.
16 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?
17 And they said, There
must be an inheritance for them
that be escaped of Benjamin, that
a tribe be not destroyed out of
Israel.
18 Howbeit we may not give
them wives of our daughters: for
the children of Israel have
sworn, saying, Cursed be he that
giveth a wife to Benjamin.
19 Then they said, Behold,
there is a feast of the LORD in
Shiloh yearly in a place which is
on the north side of Bethel, on
the east side of the highway that
goeth up from Bethel to Shechem,
and on the south of Lebonah.
20 Therefore they
commanded the children of
Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in
wait in the vineyards;
21 And see, and, behold,
if the daughters of Shiloh come
out to dance in 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.
22 And it shall be, when
their fathers or their brethren
come unto us to complain, that we
will say unto them, Be favourable
unto them for our sakes: because
we reserved not to each man his
wife in the war: for ye did not
give unto them at this time, that
ye should be guilty.
23 And the children of
Benjamin did so, and took them
wives, according to their number,
of them that danced, whom they
caught: and they went and
returned unto their inheritance,
and repaired the cities, and
dwelt in them.
24 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.
25 In those days there was
no king in Israel: every man did
that which was right in his own
eyes.
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