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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.
2:2 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?
2:3 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.
2:4 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.
2:5 And they called the name of that place Bochim:  and they sacrificed
 there unto the LORD.
2:6 And when Joshua had let the people go, the children of Israel went every
 man unto his inheritance to possess the land.
2:7 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.
2:8 And Joshua, the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being an
 hundred and ten years old.
2:9 And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnathheres, in
 the mount of Ephraim, on the north side of the hill Gaash.
2:10 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.
2:11 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and
 served Baalim:
2:12 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.
2:13 And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.
2:14 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.
2:15 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.
2:16 Nevertheless the LORD raised up judges, which delivered them out of the
 hand of those that spoiled them.
2:17 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.
2:18 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.
2:19 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.
2:20 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;
2:21 I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the
 nations which Joshua left when he died:
2:22 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.
2:23 Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out
 hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.

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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;
3:2 Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach
 them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof;
3:3 Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the
 Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount
 Baalhermon unto the entering in of Hamath.
3:4 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.
3:5 And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, and
 Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites:
3:6 And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their
 daughters to their sons, and served their gods.
3:7 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.
3:8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them
 into the hand of Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia:  and the children
 of Israel served Chushanrishathaim eight years.
3:9 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.
3:10 And the spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel, and
 went out to war:  and the LORD delivered Chushanrishathaim king of
 Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against
 Chushanrishathaim.
3:11 And the land had rest forty years.  And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
3:12 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.
3:13 And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and
 smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees.
3:14 So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.
3:15 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.
3:16 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.
3:17 And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab:  and Eglon was a
 very fat man.
3:18 And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the
 people that bare the present.
3:19 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.
3:20 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.
3:21 And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right
 thigh, and thrust it into his belly:
3:22 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.
3:23 Then Ehud went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the
 parlour upon him, and locked them.
3:24 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.
3:25 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.
3:26 And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quarries,
 and escaped unto Seirath.
3:27 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.
3:28 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.
3:29 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.
3:30 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel.  And the land
 had rest fourscore years.
3:31 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.

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4:1 And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, when
 Ehud was dead.
4:2 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.
4:3 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.
4:4 And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at
 that time.
4:5 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.
4:6 And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali,
 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?
4:7 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.
4:8 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.
4:9 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.
4:10 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.
4:11 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.
4:12 And they showed Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was gone up to
 mount Tabor.
4:13 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.
4:14 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.
4:15 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.
4:16 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.
4:17 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.
4:18 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.
4:19 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.
4:20 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.
4:21 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.
4:22 And, behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and
 said unto him, Come, and I will show thee the man whom thou seekest.  And
 when he came into her tent, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the nail was
 in his temples.
4:23 So God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan before the children
 of Israel.
4:24 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.

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5:1 Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on that day, saying,
5:2 Praise ye the LORD for the avenging of Israel, when the people willingly
 offered themselves.
5:3 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.
5:4 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.
5:5 The mountains melted from before the LORD, even that Sinai from before
 the LORD God of Israel.
5:6 In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the
 highways were unoccupied, and the travellers walked through byways.
5:7 The inhabitants of the villages ceased, they ceased in Israel, until
 that I Deborah arose, that I arose a mother in Israel.
5:8 They chose new gods; then was war in the gates:  was there a shield or
 spear seen among forty thousand in Israel?
5:9 My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves
 willingly among the people.  Bless ye the LORD.
5:10 Speak, ye that ride on white asses, ye that sit in judgment, and walk
 by the way.
5:11 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.
5:12 Awake, awake, Deborah:  awake, awake, utter a song:  arise, Barak, and
 lead thy captivity captive, thou son of Abinoam.
5:13 Then he made him that remaineth have dominion over the nobles among the
 people:  the LORD made me have dominion over the mighty.
5:14 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.
5:15 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.
5:16 Why abodest thou among the sheepfolds, to hear the bleatings of the
 flocks?  For the divisions of Reuben there were great searchings of
 heart.
5:17 Gilead abode beyond Jordan:  and why did Dan remain in ships?  Asher
 continued on the sea shore, and abode in his breaches.
5:18 Zebulun and Naphtali were a people that jeoparded their lives unto
 the death in the high places of the field.
5:19 The kings came and fought, then fought the kings of Canaan in Taanach
 by the waters of Megiddo; they took no gain of money.
5:20 They fought from heaven; the stars in their courses fought against
 Sisera.
5:21 The river of Kishon swept them away, that ancient river, the river
 Kishon.  O my soul, thou hast trodden down strength.
5:22 Then were the horsehoofs broken by the means of the prancings, the
 prancings of their mighty ones.
5:23 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.
5:24 Blessed above women shall Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite be, blessed
 shall she be above women in the tent.
5:25 He asked water, and she gave him milk; she brought forth butter in
 a lordly dish.
5:26 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.
5:27 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.
5:28 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?
5:29 Her wise ladies answered her, yea, she returned answer to herself,
5:30 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?
5:31 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.

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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.
6:2 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.
6:3 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;
6:4 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.
6:5 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.
6:6 And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the
 children of Israel cried unto the LORD.
6:7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD
 because of the Midianites,
6:8 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;
6:9 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;
6:10 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.
6:11 And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was
 in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite:  and his son Gideon
 threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
6:12 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The
 LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.
6:13 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.
6:14 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?
6:15 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.
6:16 And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt
 smite the Midianites as one man.
6:17 And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then show
 me a sign that thou talkest with me.
6:18 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.
6:19 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.
6:20 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.
6:21 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.
6:22 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.
6:23 And the LORD said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not:  thou shalt
 not die.
6:24 Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it
 Jehovahshalom:  unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
6:25 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:
6:26 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.
6:27 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.
6:28 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.
6:29 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.
6:30 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.
6:31 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.
6:32 Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead
 against him, because he hath thrown down his altar.
6:33 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.
6:34 But the spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and
 Abiezer was gathered after him.
6:35 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.
6:36 And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as
 thou hast said,
6:37 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.
6:38 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.
6:39 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.
6:40 And God did so that night:  for it was dry upon the fleece only, and
 there was dew on all the ground.

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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.
7:2 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.
7:3 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.
7:4 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.
7:5 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.
7:6 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.
7:7 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.
7:8 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.
7:9 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.
7:10 But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Phurah thy servant down to
 the host:
7:11 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.
7:12 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.
7:13 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.
7:14 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.
7:15 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.
7:16 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.
7:17 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.
7:18 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.
7:19 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.
7:20 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.
7:21 And they stood every man in his place round about the camp:  and all
 the host ran, and cried, and fled.
7:22 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 Bethshittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto
 Tabbath.
7:23 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.
7:24 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all mount Ephraim, saying, Come
 down against the Midianites, and take before them the waters unto Bethbarah
 and Jordan.  Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and
 took the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan.
7:25 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.

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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.
8:2 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
 Abiezer?
8:3 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.
8:4 And Gideon came to Jordan, and passed over, he, and the three hundred
 men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing them.
8:5 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.
8:6 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?
8:7 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.
8:8 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.
8:9 And he spake also unto the men of Penuel, saying, When I come again in
 peace, I will break down this tower.
8:10 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.
8:11 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.
8:12 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.
8:13 And Gideon the son of Joash returned from battle before the sun was
 up,
8:14 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.
8:15 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?
8:16 And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and
 briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth.
8:17 And he beat down the tower of Penuel, and slew the men of the city.
8:18 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.
8:19 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.
8:20 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.
8:21 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.
8:22 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.
8:23 And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my
 son rule over you:  the LORD shall rule over you.
8:24 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. )
8:25 And they answered, We will willingly give them.  And they spread a
 garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of his prey.
8:26 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.
8:27 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.
8:28 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.
8:29 And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house.
8:30 And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his body begotten:  for he
 had many wives.
8:31 And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, whose
 name he called Abimelech.
8:32 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 Abiezrites.
8:33 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 Baalberith
 their god.
8:34 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:
8:35 Neither showed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely,
 Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had showed unto Israel.

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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,
9:2 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.
9:3 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.
9:4 And they gave him threescore and ten pieces of silver out of the house
 of Baalberith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light persons, which
 followed him.
9:5 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.
9:6 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.
9:7 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.
9:8 The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they
 said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us.
9:9 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?
9:10 And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us.
9:11 But the fig tree said unto them, Should I forsake my sweetness, and my
 good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees?
9:12 Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and reign over us.
9:13 And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God
 and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
9:14 Then said all the trees unto the bramble, Come thou, and reign over
 us.
9:15 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.
9:16 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;
9:17 (For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far, and
 delivered you out of the hand of Midian:
9:18 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;)
9:19 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:
9:20 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.
9:21 And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, for
 fear of Abimelech his brother.
9:22 When Abimelech had reigned three years over Israel,
9:23 Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem;
 and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech:
9:24 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.
9:25 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.
9:26 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.
9:27 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.
9:28 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?
9:29 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.
9:30 And when Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of
 Ebed, his anger was kindled.
9:31 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.
9:32 Now therefore up by night, thou and the people that is with thee, and
 lie in wait in the field:
9:33 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.
9:34 And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by
 night, and they laid wait against Shechem in four companies.
9:35 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.
9:36 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.
9:37 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.
9:38 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.
9:39 And Gaal went out before the men of Shechem, and fought with Abimelech.
9:40 And Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him, and many were
 overthrown and wounded, even unto the entering of the gate.
9:41 And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah:  and Zebul thrust out Gaal and his
 brethren, that they should not dwell in Shechem.
9:42 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people went out into the
 field; and they told Abimelech.
9:43 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.
9:44 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.
9:45 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.
9:46 And when all the men of the tower of Shechem heard that, they entered
 into an hold of the house of the god Berith.
9:47 And it was told Abimelech, that all the men of the tower of Shechem
 were gathered together.
9:48 And Abimelech gat him up to mount Zalmon, he and all the people that
 were with him; and Abimelech took an ax 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.
9:49 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.
9:50 Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took
 it.
9:51 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.
9:52 And Abimelech came unto the tower, and fought against it, and went hard
 unto the door of the tower to burn it with fire.
9:53 And a certain woman cast a piece of a millstone upon Abimelech's head,
 and all to brake his skull.
9:54 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.
9:55 And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed
 every man unto his place.
9:56 Thus God rendered the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did unto his
 father, in slaying his seventy brethren:
9:57 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.

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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.
10:2 And he judged Israel twenty and three years, and died, and was buried
 in Shamir.
10:3 And after him arose Jair, a Gileadite, and judged Israel twenty and two
 years.
10:4 And he had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass colts, and they had
 thirty cities, which are called Havothjair unto this day, which are in
 the land of Gilead.
10:5 And Jair died, and was buried in Camon.
10:6 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.
10:7 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.
10:8 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.
10:9 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.
10:10 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.
10:11 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?
10:12 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.
10:13 Yet ye have forsaken me, and served other gods:  wherefore I will
 deliver you no more.
10:14 Go and cry unto the gods which ye have chosen; let them deliver you in
 the time of your tribulation.
10:15 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.
10:16 And they put away the strange gods from among them, and served the
 LORD:  and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.
10:17 Then the children of Ammon were gathered together, and encamped in
 Gilead.  And the children of Israel assembled themselves together, and
 encamped in Mizpeh.
10:18 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.