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Judges

Describes a time when Israel was ruled by judges and the cycle of turning away from God, facing trouble, and then returning to Him.

Chapter 7

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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.

*Then Gideon, along with his group, woke up early and set up camp near the Harod well. Meanwhile, the Midianite army was on the northern side, near a hill called Moreh, in a 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.

*And God told Gideon, "The people with you are too many. I can't let them defeat the Midianites because if Israel boast about it, they might say, 'We did this by ourselves and don't need your help.'"

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.

*So now, tell the people that anyone who's scared should leave Mount Gilead early. 22,000 people left, while 10,000 stayed.

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.

*And God told Gideon, "There are still too many people. Take them to the water, and I will test them for you there. Whoever I tell you to keep, you should include in your group; and whoever I tell you to exclude, don't let them join."

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.

*So he led the people to the water, and the LORD told Gideon, "Select anyone who drinks water using their tongue like a dog, and also those who bend down on their 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.

*Three hundred men drank by scooping water with their hands, while everyone else knelt down to drink.

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.

*And God told Gideon, "I will rescue you with 300 men who drink using their hands. I will give the Midianites into your control, and let everyone else go back to their own places."

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.

*So the people got food and trumpets, then sent the rest of Israel back to their tents while keeping 300 men. They positioned themselves above the Midian army in a 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.

*That night, the Lord told him, "Get up and go to the camp because I have let you take control of it."

10 But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Phurah thy servant down to the host:

*But if you're afraid to go down, go with Phura, your servant, down to the army.

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.

*You will listen to what they say, and then your hands will become strong enough to go help the group. So, he went with his servant Phurah to the edge of the armed people in the group.

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.

*The Midianites, Amalekites, and many people from the east spread out in a valley like grasshoppers because there were so many of them. They had countless camels, just like the sand near the ocean.

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.

*When Gideon arrived, he found a man sharing a dream with his friend. The dream was about seeing a barley bread cake fall into the Midian camp and hit a tent, causing it to collapse and flip over.

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.

*Gideon's companion replied, "This is none other than Gideon's sword, from the son of Joash, an Israeli man. God has given Midian and their entire army into his control."

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.

*When Gideon heard about the dream and its meaning, he worshiped God and went back to the Israelites. He told them to get up because God had given them control over the Midian army.

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.

*He split the 300 men into 3 groups, gave each man a trumpet, and put an empty pitcher with a lamp inside it for them.

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.

*He told them, "Watch how I do it, and do the same. When I go outside the camp, you will follow my example."

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.

*When I sound the trumpet, me and my group, you all should also blow your trumpets everywhere in the camp and shout, "The sword of the LORD and 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.

*Gideon and his 100 followers approached the camp's edge during the early night shift. The guards had just started their duty. They blew trumpets and broke the jars they held.

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.

*The three groups sounded the horns, broke the jars, held the lamps in their left hand and the horns in their right hand to blow them, and shouted, "The LORD's sword and Gideon's!"

21 And they stood every man in his place round about the camp; and all the host ran, and cried, and fled.

*Every man stayed where he was around the camp, and the whole army ran, shouted, and ran away.

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.

*The three hundred sounded their trumpets, and God made them turn on each other with their swords. The whole army ran away towards Bethshittah in Zererath and to the edge of Abelmeholah, all the way to 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.

*The men from Israel came together from Naphtali, Asher, and Manasseh areas, and chased 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 Bethbarah and Jordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and took the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan.

*Gideon sent messengers to mount Ephraim telling them to fight against the Midianites. He asked them to take control of the waters up to Bethbarah and Jordan. The men from Ephraim listened and gathered together, taking control of the waters as Gideon requested.

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.

*They captured two important leaders from the Midianites named Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at a rock called Oreb and Zeeb at a winepress called Zeeb's. Then, they chased the Midian people and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side of the Jordan River.

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