Gideon's army and signs.

BEFORE CHRIST cir. 1249.

3 That is, Let Baal plead. 1 Sam. 12.

11.

cause 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 enquired 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.

28am.11.21, 33 Then all 'the Midianites and Jerubbethe Amalekites and the children of sheth; that is, Let the shameful the east were gathered together, and thing plead. went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.

See Jer. 11. 13.

Hos. 9. 10.

1 ver. 3.

m Josh. 17. 16.

cir. 1249.

n ch. 3. 10. 1 Chr. 12. 18. 2 Chr. 24. 20. 8 Heb. clothed.

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 4 Heb. as Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

• Num. 10.3. ch. 3. 27.

called after

him.

p See Ex. 4. 3, 4, 6, 7.

q Gen. 18.82.

36 ¶ And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said,

37 P 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

His army is reduced.

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 VII.

1 Gideon's army of two and thirty thousand is brought to three hundred. 9 He is encouraged by the dream and interpretation of the barley cake. 16 His stratagem of trumpets and lamps in pitchers. 24 The Ephraimites take Oreb and Zeeb.

HEN

THE

BEFORE CHRIST cir. 1249.

Jerubbaal, who is Gi- ch. 6. 32. deon, 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 b vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.

Deut.8.17.
Cor. 1. 29.

Is. 10. 13.

2 Cor. 4. 7.

3 Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Who-Deut. 20.8. soever 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.

The Midianites are

BEFORE CHRIST cir. 1249.

of Midian was beneath him in the valley.

9 And it came to pass the same Gen.46.2,3. night, that the LORD said unto him, Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have delivered it into thine hand.

f ver. 18, 14, 15.

See Gen. 24. Sam. 14.9,

14.

10.

8 Or, ranks by five. EX. 13. 18.

8 ch. 6. 5,33.

& 8. 10.

8 Heb. the breaking thereof.

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 2 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 Heb.trum- he put a trumpet in every man's

put to flight.

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 Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.

m

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.

ch. 3. 28.

24 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all "mount Ephraim, say- ch. 3. 27. ing, 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 P 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. ch. 8.4.

CHAPTER VIII.

P John 1.28. ch. 8. 8.

Ps. 83. 11.

Is. 10. 26.

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

4

Zebah and Zalmunna taken

BEFORE CHRIST cir. 1249.

Ps. 60. 6.

and passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing them.

d

5 And he said unto the men of 4 Gen.33.17. 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.

and put to death.

2

and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth.

8

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.

BEFORE CHRIST cir. 1249.

2 Heb.made

to know.

r ver. 9.

1 Kings

12. 25.

tch. 4. 6.

Ps. 89. 12.

& Heb. ac

cording to the form,&c.

P. 83. 11.

4 Or, orna

ments like

the moon.

Abimelech's conspiracy.

BEFORE CHRIST

cir. 1249.

⚫ ch. 9. 2, 5. ? Heb.

his thigh.

fch. 9. 1.

8 Heb. set.

Job 5. 26. cir. 1209. b ver. 27. ch. 6. 24. 1 ch. 2. 19.

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 Gen. 25.8. died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, hin Ophrah of the Abi-ezrites. 33 And it came to pass, i as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a 1 ch. 9. 4,46. whoring after Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god.

k ch. 2. 17.

m Ps. 78. 11, 42. & 106. 13, 21.

a ch. 9. 16, 17, 18. Eccles. 9. 14, 15.

ch. 8, 31.

b ch. 8.30.

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 IX.

1 Abimelech by conspiracy with the Shechemites, and murder of his brethren, is made king. 7 Jotham by a parable rebuketh them, and foretelleth their ruin. 22 Gaal conspireth with the Shechemites against him. 30 Zebul revealeth it. 34 Abimelech overcometh them, and soweth the city with salt. 46 He burneth the hold of the god Berith. 50 At Thebez he is slain by a piece of a millstone. 56 Jotham's curse is fulfilled.

AND Abimelech the son of this ND Abimelech the son of Jerubmother's brethren, and communed with them, and with all the family of the house of his mother's father, saying,

BEFORE CHRIST

cir. 1209.

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 Or, by the that was in Shechem.

7 ¶ And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of 1 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.

8k 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, m 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 "Ps. 104. 15. cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?

14 Then said all the trees unto the bra the bramble, Come thou, and reign Or, thistle.

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, Plet fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.

2 Speak, I pray you, in the ears Heb. What of all the men of Shechem, 'Whether is good? whether,&c. 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? rememGen. 29.14. ber 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 6Heb.after. hearts inclined to follow Abimelech; Gen.29.15. for they said, He is our a brother.

4 And they gave him threescore and ten pieces of silver out of the ch. 8. 33. house of Baal-berith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light perwhich followed him.

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;

r

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 1.8.6. Abimelech, and let him also rejoice

t

Phil. 3. 8.