Judges Chapter 6

Judges Chapter 6
1 Afterward the children of Israel
committed wickedness in the sight of the
Lord, and the Lord gave them into the
hands of Midian seven years. 2 And the
hand of Midian prevailed against Israel,
and because of the Midianites the
children of Israel made them dens in the
mountains , and caves, and strong holds.
3 When Israel had sown, then came up
the Midianites, the Amalekites, and they
of the east, and came upon them,
4 And camped by them, and destroyed
the fruit of the earth, even till thou come
unto Gaza, and left no food for Israel,
neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. 5 For they
went up, and their cattle, and came with
their tents as grasshoppers in multitude:
so that they and their camels were
without number: and they came into the
land to destroy it.
6 So was Israel exceedingly
impoverished by the Midianites:
therefore the children of Israel cried
unto the Lord.
7 And when the children of Israel cried
unto the Lord because of the Midianites,
8 The Lord sent unto the children of
Israel a prophet, who said unto them,
Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I have
brought you up from Egypt, and have
brought you out of the house of bondage,
9 And I have delivered you out of the
hand of the Egyptians, and out of the
hand of all that oppressed you, and have
cast them out before you, and given 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 you dwell: but
you have not obeyed my voice. 11 And
the angel of the Lord came, and sat under
the oak which was in Ophrah, that
pertained unto Joash the father of the
Ezrites, and his son Gideon threshed
wheat by the wine press, to hide it from
the Midianites. 12 Then the angel of the
Lord appeared unto him, and said unto
him, The Lord is with thee, thou valiant
man.
13 To whom Gideon answered, Ah my
Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is
all this come upon us? And where be all
his miracles which our fathers told us of,
and said, Did not the Lord bring us out
of Egypt? But now the Lord hath
forsaken us, and delivered us into the
hand of the Midianites.
14 And the Lord looked upon him, and
said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt
save Israel out of the hands of the
Midianites: have not I sent thee?
15 And he answered him, Ah my Lord,
whereby shall I save Israel? Behold, my
father is poor in Manasseh, and I am the
least in my father's house. 16 Then the
Lord said unto him, I will therefore be
with thee, and thou shalt smite the
Midianites, as one man.
17 And he answered him, I pray thee, if I
have found favor in thy sight, then show
me a sign, that thou talkest with me.
18 Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I
come unto thee, and bring mine offering,
and lay it before thee. And he said, I
will tarry until thou come again. 19 Then
Gideon went in, and made ready a kid,
and unleavened bread of an ephah of
flour, and put the flesh in a basket, and
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 bread,
and lay them upon this stone, and pour
out the broth: and he did so. 21 Then the
angel of the Lord put forth the end of the
staff that he had in his hand, and touched
the flesh and the unleavened bread: and
there arose up fire out of the stone, and
consumed the flesh and the unleavened
bread: so the angel of the Lord departed
out of his sight.
22 And when Gideon perceived that it
was an angel of the Lord, Gideon then
said, Alas, my Lord God: for because I
have seen an angel of the Lord face to
face, I shall die.
23 And the Lord said unto him, Peace be
unto thee: fear not, thou shalt not die.
24 Then Gideon made an altar there unto
the Lord, and called it, Jehovahshalom:
unto this day it is in Ophrah, of the father
of the Ezrites. 25 And the same night the
Lord said unto him, Take thy father's
young bullock, and another bullock of
seven years old, and destroy 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 a plain
place: and take the second bullock, and
offer a burnt offering 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 bade him:
but because he feared to do it by day for
his father's household, and the men of the
city, he did it by night.
28 And when the men of the city arose
early in the morning, behold, the altar of
Baal was broken, and the grove cut
down that was by it, and the second
bullock offered upon the altar that was
made.
29 Therefore 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:
for he hath destroyed the altar of Baal,
and hath also cut down the grove that
was by it.
31 And Joash said unto all that stood by
him, Will ye plead Baal's cause? Or will
ye save him? He that will contend for
him, let him die ere the morning. If he be
God, let him plead for himself against
him that hath cast down his altar. 32 And
in that day was Gideon called Jerubbaal,
that is, Let Baal plead for himself
because he hath broken down his altar.
33 Then all the Midianites and the
Amalekites and they of the east, were
gathered together, and went and pitched
in the valley of Jezreel. 34 But the Spirit
of the Lord came upon Gideon, and he
blew a trumpet, and Abiezer was joined
with him.
35 And he sent messengers throughout
all Manasseh, which also was joined
with him, and he sent messengers unto
Asher, and to Zebulun and to Naphtali,
and they came up to meet them.
36 Then 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 threshing place: if the dew come on
the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the
earth, then shall I be sure, that thou wilt
save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast
said.
38 And so it was: for he rose up early on
the morrow, and thrust the fleece
together, and wringed the dew out of the
fleece, and filled a bowl of water. 39
Again, Gideon said unto God, Be not
angry with me, that I may speak once
more: let me prove once again, I pray
thee, with the fleece: let it now be dry
only upon the fleece, and let dew be
upon all the ground.
40 And God did so that same night: for it
was dry upon the fleece only, and there
was dew on all the ground.