Then the heads of the families of the Levites came to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the heads of the families of the tribes of the {Israelites}.

And {nothing failed from} all the good things that Yahweh promised to the house of Israel; {everything came to pass}.

And they came to the region of the Jordan that [is] in the land of Canaan, and the descendants of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh built there an altar on the Jordan, {a large and imposing altar}.

They came to the descendants of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, to the land of Gilead, and they spoke with them, saying,

[Is] not the sin of Peor {enough for us}, from which we have not cleansed ourselves today, and for which a plague came to the congregation of Yahweh,

But just as all the good things came to you that Yahweh your God promised, so will Yahweh bring to you all the bad things until he has destroyed you from this good land that Yahweh your God has given to you.

When I brought out your ancestors from Egypt, you came to the sea, and the Egyptians pursued after your ancestors with chariots and horsemen to the {Red Sea}.

and you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. And the citizens of Jericho, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, fought against you, and I gave them into your hand.

At Bezek they came upon Adoni-bezek, and they fought against him and defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites.

When she came [to him], she urged him to ask her father for a field. As she dismounted from the donkey, Caleb said to her, "{What do you want}?"

And the spirit of Yahweh came upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and Yahweh gave Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram into his hand, and {he prevailed over} Cushan-Rishathaim.

and Ehud came to him [while] he [was] sitting alone in his cool upper room. And Ehud said, "I have a {message from God} for you." So he got up from his seat.

And Shamgar son of Anath came after him, and he killed six hundred Philistines with the goad of an ox; he also delivered Israel.

And Jael came out to meet Sisera, and she said to him, "Turn aside, my lord; turn aside to me and do not be afraid." So he turned aside into her tent, and she covered him {with a blanket}.

And behold, Barak [was] pursuing Sisera, and Jael went out to meet him, and she said to him, "Come, and I will show you the man whom you [are] seeking." And he came with her and saw that Sisera was lying dead with the peg in his temple.

"The kings came, they fought; then the kings of Canaan fought; at Taanach by the waters of Megiddo, they got no plunder in silver.

They would camp against them and destroy the produce of the land {as far as} Gaza; they left no produce in Israel, or sheep, ox, or donkey.

For they, their livestock, and their tents would come up like a great number of locusts; they and their camels could not be counted; they came into the land and devoured it.

The angel of Yahweh came and sat under the oak that [was] at Ophrah that belonged to Jehoash [the] Abiezrite; and Gideon his son [was] threshing wheat in the winepress to hide [it] from the Midianites.

Then Jerub-Baal (that [is], Gideon) rose early, and all the army that [was] with him. They were camped beside the spring of Harod; the camp of Midian was north of the hill of Moreh, in the valley.

So they took their provisions and their trumpets into their hand, and he sent all the men of Israel, each one, to his tent; but three hundred of the men he kept; the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

And that night Yahweh said to him, "Get up; go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand.

But if you [are] afraid, go down to the camp with Purah your servant,

and you will hear what they say; and afterward {you will have courage}, and you will go down against the camp." Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outpost of the armed men that [were] in the camp.

When Gideon came, a man [was] recounting a dream to his friend, and he said, "Behold, {I had a dream}; a round loaf of barley bread [was] tumbling into the camp of Midian, and it came up to the tent, it struck it, and it fell and turned it upside down so that the tent fell."

His friend answered him and said, "This cannot be anything except the sword of Gideon son of Jehoash, a man of Israel; God has given Midian and the entire camp into his hand."

When Gideon heard the recounting of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and returned to the camp of Israel; and he said, "Get up, for Yahweh has given the camp of Midian into your hand."

And he said to them, "Watch me and do the same. When I come to the edge of the camp, {do just as I do}.

When I and all who [are] with me blow on the trumpet, you must also blow on the trumpets and surround the camp, and you must say, 'To Yahweh and to Gideon!'"

So Gideon and the hundred men who [were] with him came to the edge of the camp [at] the beginning of the middle night-watch, when they had just finished setting up the guards, and they blew on the trumpets and smashed the jars that [were] in their hands.

And each stood {in his place} all around the camp, and all the camp ran, and they cried out as they fled.

When they blew the three hundred trumpets, Yahweh set [the] sword of each one against his neighbor throughout the whole camp, and the camp fled as far as Beth Shittah toward Zererah, up to Abel Meholah, the border by Tabbath.

Then Gideon came to the Jordan, crossing it with the three hundred men who [were] with him, weary and pursuing.

He came to the men of Succoth, and he said, "Here [is] Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me, saying, '[Is] the palm of Zebah and Zalmunna in your hand now, that we should give food to your weary men?'"

And Gaal son of Ebel and his relatives came, and they crossed over into Shechem, and the lords of Shechem {gave him confidence}.

Abimelech came up to the tower and fought against it, and he came near the entrance of the tower to burn it with fire.

And the king of the {Ammonites} said to Jephthah's messengers, "Because Israel took my land from [the] Arnon up to the Jabbok and the Jordan when they came up from Egypt; so then, restore it peacefully."

because when they came up from Egypt, Israel went through the wilderness to the {Red Sea} and went to Kadesh.

Then they traveled through the wilderness, went around the land of Edom and Moab, and came to {the east} side of the land of Moab, and they encamped beyond [the] Arnon; and they did not go into the territory of Moab because [the] Arnon [was] the border of Moab.

And the Spirit of Yahweh came upon Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh. He passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he passed through [to] the {Ammonites}.

Jephthah came to Mizpah, to his house, and behold his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and dancing. She [was] his only child; he did not have a son or daughter except her.

And the woman came and told her husband, saying, "A man of God came to me, and his appearance [was] like the appearance of an angel of God, very awesome. I did not ask him from where he [came], and he did not tell me his name.

And God listened to the voice of Manoah, and an angel of God came again to the woman; she [was] sitting in the field, but Manoah her husband was not with her.

The woman quickly ran and told her husband, and she said to him, "Look! The man who came to me the [other] day appeared to me."

So Manoah got up and went after his wife, and he came to the man and said to him, "[Are] you the man that spoke to the woman?" And he said, "I [am]."

And the Spirit of Yahweh began to stir him in the camp of Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.

And Samson and his father and mother went down to Timnah, and they came to the vineyards of Timnah, and suddenly a young lion [came] roaring to meet him.

He said to them, "From the eater came out food, From [the] strong came out sweet." But they were unable to explain the riddle for three days.

Then [the] Philistines came up and encamped in Judah, and they overran Lehi.

As he came up to Lehi, [the] Philistines came shouting to meet him; and the Spirit of Yahweh rushed on him, and the ropes that [were] on his arms became like flax that has burned with fire, and his bindings melted from his hands.

So God split the hollow place that [is] at Lehi, and water came out from it; and he drank, and his spirit returned, and he was revived. Thus he called its name {The Spring of Ha-Qore}, which [is] at Lehi to this day.

And the rulers of [the] Philistines came up to her and said, "Entice him and find out what makes his strength so great, and how we can overpower him, so that we may bind him up in order to subdue him; each of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.

Delilah realized that {he had confided in her}, so she sent and called the rulers of [the] Philistines, saying, "Come up one more time, for {he has confided in me}." And the rulers of [the] Philistines came up, and they brought the money {with them}.

His brothers and {his whole family} came down and picked him up; and they brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father; he judged Israel twenty years.

And the man went from the town of Bethlehem in Judah to live as a foreigner wherever he could find [a place]. And he came [to] the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, to continue his journey.

And the five men went and came to Laish, and they observed the people who [were] living according to the customs of [the] Sidonians, quiet and unsuspecting, and lacking nothing in the land, and possessing restraint. And they [were] far from [the] Sidonians and had no word with anyone.

They came to their relatives [at] Zorah and Eshtaol, and their relatives said to them, "What [do] you [report]?"

They went up and encamped at Kiriath Jearim in Judah. Therefore they called this place Camp of Dan to this day; it is west of Kiriath Jearim.

From there they crossed [over to] the hill country of Ephraim, and they came to the house of Micah.

So they turned to that direction, and they came to the house of the young Levite, the house of Micah, and {they greeted him}.

And they took what Micah had made, and his priest, and they came to Laish, to a quiet and unsuspecting people, and {they put them to the sword} and burned the city with fire.

While {they were enjoying themselves}, behold, the men of the city, {the perverse lot}, surrounded the house, pounding on the door. And they said to the old man, the owner of the house, "Bring out the man who came to your house so that {we may have sex with him}."

And the woman came as the morning appeared, and she fell [at] the entrance of the man's house where her master was, until daylight.

The Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, answered and said, "I came to Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin, I and my concubine, to spend the night.

And all the {Israelites} and all the troops went up and came to Bethel and wept; and they sat there before Yahweh and fasted on that day until evening; and they offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before Yahweh.

Then ten thousand well-trained men from all Israel came out against Gibeah, and the battle became fierce; they did not know that disaster [was about to] {close in} on them.

And the ambush came quickly and advanced against Gibeah, and it {put the whole city to the sword}.

And they retreated from before the men of Israel to the way of the wilderness, but the battle caught up to them, and [those] who [came] from the cities destroyed them in the midst of them.

And the people of Bethel came and sat there until evening before God, and they lifted their voices and {wept bitterly}.

They asked, "Which one is there from the tribes of Israel who did not come up to Yahweh at Mizpah?" And behold, no one came from Jabesh-gilead to the camp, to the assembly.

And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead four hundred young virgins who had not {had sex with a man}, and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which [is] in the land of Canaan.

[So] the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem. {And when they came} to Bethlehem, all of the town was stirred because of them. And they said, "[Is] this Naomi?"

So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabite her daughter-in-law with her, returning from the countryside of Moab. And they came [to] Bethlehem at [the] beginning of [the] harvest of barley.

So she went and came and gleaned in the field behind the reapers. And she happened [by] chance [upon] the tract of field {belonging to} Boaz, who [was] from the clan of Elimelech.

And look, Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the reapers, "[May] Yahweh [be] with you." And they said to him, "[May] Yahweh bless you."

And she said, 'Please let me glean and let me gather among the sheaves behind the reapers.' So she came and remained from the morning up to now. {She is sitting for a little while in the house}."

May Yahweh reward your work and may a full reward be [given to] you from Yahweh, the God of Israel, under whose wings you came to take refuge."

And Boaz ate and drank [until] his heart was {merry} [and then] he came to lie at the end of the grain heap. And she came in quietly and {uncovered} his feet and lay down.

So she lay at his feet until morning and got up before {anyone could recognize each other}. And he said, "It must not be known that {you} came [to] the threshing floor."

And she came to her mother-in-law, and she said, "{How did it go for you,} my daughter?" And she told her all that the man did for her.

And Boaz had gone up [to] the [city] gate and sat there. And look, the redeemer of whom Boaz had spoken [was] passing by. And he said, "Come over here to sit, {friend}." And he came over and sat.

and would thrust it into the pan or into the kettle or into the cauldron or into the cooking pot. All that the meat fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This [is] what they used to do to all of the Israelites who came there at Shiloh.

His mother used to make for him a small robe and take it to him {year by year} whenever she came up with her husband to offer the {annual sacrifice}.

Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him: "Thus says Yahweh: 'Did I not clearly reveal myself to the house of your ancestor when they were in Egypt under the house of Pharaoh?

Then Yahweh came and stood [there] and called out {as before}, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel said, "Speak, because your servant [is] listening."

And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out to meet [the] Philistines for battle, and they encamped at Ebenezer, and [the] Philistines encamped at Aphek.

When the army came [back] to the camp, the elders of Israel asked, "Why has Yahweh defeated us today before [the] Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of Yahweh to us from Shiloh so that it may come into our midst and deliver us from the hand of our enemies."

Now when the ark of the covenant of Yahweh arrived at the camp, all Israel {let out a loud shout} so that the earth shook.

When [the] Philistines heard the noise of the shouting, they said, "What [is] the noise of this loud shouting in the camp of the Hebrews?" Then they learned that the ark of Yahweh had come into the camp.

So [the] Philistines were afraid, for they said, "God has come to the camp." And they said, "Woe to us, {for this has never happened before!}

A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came [to] Shiloh that same day, and his clothes [were] torn and earth [was] on his head.

When he came, {there was} Eli sitting on his chair {by the side of the road} watching, because his heart was anxious about the ark of God. Now the man had come {to give his report} in the city, and all the city cried out.

When Eli heard the noise of the outcry, he said, "What [is] the noise of this commotion?" Then the man {came quickly} and told Eli.

Now his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, [was] pregnant and [about] to give birth. When she heard the news concerning the capture of the ark of God and that her father-in-law and her husband had died, she {went into labor} and gave birth, because her labor pains came upon her.

So they sent the ark of God [to] Ekron. But when the ark of God came [to] Ekron, the Ekronites cried out, saying, "They have brought around the ark of the God of Israel to kill us and our people!"

The utility cart came to the field of Joshua [of] Beth Shemesh and stopped there where there [was] a large stone. They split the wood of the utility cart and sacrificed the cows [as] a burnt offering to Yahweh.

The men of Kiriath Jearim came and brought up the ark of Yahweh, and they brought it to the house of Abinadab in Gibeah. They consecrated Eleazer his son to guard the ark of Yahweh.

So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah.

When they came down from the high place to the town, he spoke with Saul on the roof.

When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, {they reported these things to} the people. Then all the people lifted up their voices and wept.