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. 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. 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.' And the LORD said unto him 'Peace be unto thee; fear not thou shalt not die.' Then all the Midianites and Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together, and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel. But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abi-ezer was gathered after him. 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. And Gideon said unto GOD, 'If thou wilt save Israel 'by mine hand, as thou hast said, 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.' 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. 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.' And GOD did so that night for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground. : 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. And the LORD said unto Gideon 'The people that are with thee are too many for me to give And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand. 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.' 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.' 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 And the LORD said unto Gideon water. 'By the three hundred men that lapped will save you, ' and deliver the Midianites into thine hand: and let all 'the other people go every man unto his place.' 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. 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. 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. 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."' 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. 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.' And they stood every man in his place round about the camp and all the host ran, and cried, and fled. 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. 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. 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. 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 wine-press of Zeeb, and pursued Midian, and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side Jordan. 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. And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again after Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god. 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: neither showed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely, Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had showed unto Israel. 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, 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.' 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.' 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. 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. 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. 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. 'The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over 'them; and they said unto the olive-tree, "Reign thou 6 over us." 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?" And the 'trees said to the fig-tree, "Come thou, and reign over us. 'But the fig-tree said unto them, "Should I forsake my 'sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over 'the trees?" Then said the trees unto the vine, "Come " thou, and reign over us." And the vine said unto them, "Should I leave my wine, which cheereth GOD and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?" Then said all 'the trees unto the bramble, "Come thou, and reign |