And it came to pass after the death of Joshua, that the sons of Israel asked of LORD, saying, Who shall go up for us first against the Canaanites, to fight against them?

And the sons of Judah fought against Jerusalem, and took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.

And afterward the sons of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who dwelt in the hill-country, and in the South, and in the lowland.

And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it, and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.

And the sons of the Kenite, Moses' brother-in-law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the sons of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which is in the south of Arad, and they went and dwelt with the people.

And they gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had spoken, and he drove out the three sons of Anak from there.

And the sons of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who inhabited Jerusalem, but the Jebusites dwell with the sons of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.

And the Amorites forced the sons of Dan into the hill-country, for they would not allow them to come down to the valley,

And it came to pass, when the agent of LORD spoke these words to all the sons of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.

Now when Joshua had sent the people away, the sons of Israel went every man to his inheritance to possess the land.

And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of LORD, died, being a hundred and ten years old.

And the sons of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of LORD, and served the Baalim.

only that the generations of the sons of Israel might know, to teach them war, at least to such as formerly knew nothing of that):

And the sons of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their own daughters to their sons and served their gods.

And the sons of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of LORD, and forgot LORD their God, and served the Baalim and the Asheroth.

Therefore the anger of LORD was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia, And the sons of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim eight years.

And when the sons of Israel cried to LORD, LORD raised up a savior to the sons of Israel, who saved them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother.

And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

And the sons of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of LORD. And LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel because they had done that which was evil in the sight of LORD.

And he gathered to him the sons of Ammon and Amalek, and he went and smote Israel, and they possessed the city of palm trees.

And the sons of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.

But when the sons of Israel cried to LORD, LORD raised up for them a savior, Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man. And the sons of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon the king of Moab.

And it came to pass, when he came, that he blew a trumpet in the hill-country of Ephraim. And the sons of Israel went down with him from the hill-country, and he before them.

And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who smote six hundred men of the Philistines with an ox-goad, and he also saved Israel.

And the sons of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of LORD, when Ehud was dead.

And the sons of Israel cried to LORD, for he had nine hundred chariots of iron, and he mightily oppressed the sons of Israel twenty years.

And she dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill-country of Ephraim, and the sons of Israel came up to her for judgment.

And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedesh-naphtali, and said to him, Has not LORD, the God of Israel, commanded, [saying], Go and approach to mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the sons of Naph

Now Heber the Kenite had separated himself from the Kenites, even from the sons of Hobab the brother-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far as the oak in Zaanannim, which is by Kedesh.

And they told Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was gone up to mount Tabor.

So God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan before the sons of Israel.

And the hand of the sons of Israel prevailed more and more against Jabin the king of Canaan until they had destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.

Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying,

In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the highways were unoccupied, and the travelers walked through byways.

Awake, awake, Deborah, awake, awake, utter a song. Arise, Barak, and lead away thy captives, thou son of Abinoam.

And the sons of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of LORD, and LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.

And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. And because of Midian the sons of Israel made for themselves the dens which are in the mountains, and the caves, and the strongholds.

And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the sons of the east, they came up against them.

And Israel was brought very low because of Midian, and the sons of Israel cried to LORD.

And it came to pass, when the sons of Israel cried to LORD because of Midian,

that LORD sent a prophet to the sons of Israel. And he said to them, Thus says LORD, the God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage.

And the agent of LORD came, and sat under the oak which was in Ophrah that pertained to Joash the Abiezrite. And his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.

And they said one to another, Who has done this thing? And when they inquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing.

Then the men of the city said to Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die, because he has broken down the altar of Baal, and because he has cut down the Asherah that was by it.

Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the sons of the east assembled themselves together. And they passed over, and encamped in the valley of Jezreel.

And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the sons of the east lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude, and their camels were without number, as the sand which is upon the sea-shore for multitude.

And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else except the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel. Into his hand God has delivered Midian, and all the army.

Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand men, all who were left of all the army of the sons of the east, for there fell a hundred and twenty thousand men who drew a sword.

And Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle from the ascent of Heres.

Then he said to Zebah and Zalmunna, What manner of men were they whom ye killed at Tabor? And they answered, As thou are, so were they. Each one resembled the sons of a king.

And he said, They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As LORD lives, if ye had saved them alive, I would not kill you.

Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son's son also, for thou have saved us out of the hand of Midian.

And Gideon said to them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you. LORD shall rule over you.

So Midian was subdued before the sons of Israel, and they lifted up their heads no more. And the land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon.

And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house.

And Gideon had seventy sons begotten from his body, for he had many wives.

And his concubine who was in Shechem, she also bore him a son, and he called his name Abimelech.

And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulcher of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the sons of Israel turned again, and played the harlot after the Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god.

And the sons of Israel did not remember LORD their God, who had delivered them out of the hand of all their enemies on every side,

And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mother's brothers, and spoke 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, Which is better for you, that all the sons of Jerubbaal, who are seventy men, rule over you, or that one rule over you? remember also that I am your bone and your flesh.

And he went to his father's house at Ophrah, and killed his brothers the sons of Jerubbaal, being seventy men, upon one stone, but Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left, for he hid himself.

and ye have risen up against my father's house this day, and have slain his sons, seventy men, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maid-servant, king over the men of Shechem because he is your brother),

that the violence done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come, and that their blood might be laid upon Abimelech their brother who killed them, and upon the men of Shechem who strengthened his hands to kill his brothers.

And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brothers, and went over to Shechem, and the men of Shechem put their trust in him.

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 ye the men of Hamor the father of Shechem, but why should we serve him?

And when Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was kindled.

And he sent messengers to Abimelech privately, saying, Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his brothers have come to Shechem, and, behold, they are fortifying the city against thee.

And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city. And Abimelech rose up, and the people who were with him, from the ambushment.

And God requited all the wickedness of the men of Shechem upon their heads. And the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal came upon them.

And after Abimelech there arose Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, to save Israel, and he dwelt in Shamir in the hill-country of Ephraim.

And he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkey colts, and they had thirty cities, which are called Havvoth-jair to this day, which are in the land of Gilead.

And the sons of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of LORD, and served the Baalim, and the Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Sidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the sons of Ammon, and the god

And the anger of LORD was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the sons of Ammon.

And they vexed and oppressed the sons of Israel that year. Eighteen years [they oppressed] all the sons of Israel who were beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead.

And the sons of Ammon passed over the Jordan to also fight against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was exceedingly distressed.

And the sons of Israel cried to LORD, saying, We have sinned against thee, even because we have forsaken our God, and have served the Baalim.

And LORD said to the sons of Israel, [Did] not [I save you] from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, from the sons of Ammon, and from the Philistines?

And the sons of Israel said to LORD, We have sinned. Do thou to us whatever seems good to thee, only deliver us, we pray thee, this day.

Then the sons of Ammon were gathered together, and encamped in Gilead. And the sons of Israel assembled themselves together, and encamped in Mizpah.

And the people, the rulers of Gilead, said one to another, What man is he who will begin to fight against the sons of Ammon? He shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a harlot, and Gilead begot Jephthah.

And Gilead's wife bore sons to him. And when his wife's sons grew up, they drove out Jephthah, and said to him, Thou shall not inherit in our father's house, for thou are the son of another woman.

And it came to pass after a while, that the sons of Ammon made war against Israel.

And it was so, that, when the sons of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob.

And they said to Jephthah, Come and be our chief, that we may fight with the sons of Ammon.

And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, For that reason we turned again to thee now, that thou may go with us, and fight with the sons of Ammon. And thou shall be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.

And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight with the sons of Ammon, and LORD delivers them before me, shall I be your head?

And Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, saying, What have thou to do with me, that thou have come to me to fight against my land?

And the king of the sons of Ammon answered to the messengers of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land when he came up out of Egypt, from the Arnon even to the Jabbok, and to the Jordan. Now therefore restore those [lands] agai

And Jephthah sent messengers again to the king of the sons of Ammon.

And he said to him, Thus says Jephthah: Israel did not take away the land of Moab, nor the land of the sons of Ammon,

And now are thou anything better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them?

I therefore have not sinned against thee, but thou do me wrong to war against me. LORD, the Judge, be judge this day between the sons of Israel and the sons of Ammon.

However the king of the sons of Ammon did not hearken to the words of Jephthah which he sent him.

Then the Spirit of LORD came upon Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over to the sons of Ammon.

And Jephthah vowed a vow to LORD, and said, If thou will indeed deliver the sons of Ammon into my hand,

then it shall be, that whatever comes forth from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, it shall be LORD's, and I will offer it up for a burnt-offering.