Now, Zebah and Zalmunna, were in Karkor, and their hosts with them, about fifteen thousand, all that were left out of all the host of the sons of the east, - and, the fallen, were a hundred and twenty thousand men, who had drawn the sword.

And Gideon went up the route of those who dwell in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and he attacked the army when it was off its guard.

And Gideon son of Joash turneth back from the battle, at the going up of the sun,

He caught a young man from Succoth and interrogated him. He wrote out for Gideon a list of the 77 officials of Succoth, including its elders.

He came to the men of Succoth and said, “Look here, Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me, saying, ‘Are Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your men who are exhausted?’”

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.

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.

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 saved us out of the hand of Midian.

But Gideon said to them, I will not be a ruler over you, and my son will not be a ruler over you: it is the Lord who will be ruler over you.

Yet Gideon said to them, “I would request of you, that each of you give me an earring from his spoil.” (For they had gold earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.)

And they answered, "We will willingly give them." And they spread a garment, and every man cast in it the earrings of his spoil.

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.

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.

And Midian will be subdued before the sons of Israel, and they will not add to lift up their head: and the land will rest forty years in the days of Gideon.

Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) son of Joash went back to live at his house.

and to Gideon there have been seventy sons, coming out of his loin, for he had many wives;

And Gideon the son of Jo'ash died in a good old age, and was buried in the tomb of Jo'ash his father, at Ophrah of the Abiez'rites.

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.

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:

Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to his mother’s brothers at Shechem and spoke to them and to all his maternal grandfather’s clan, saying,

"{Speak to} the lords of Shechem, 'What [is] better for you, that seventy men all from the sons of Jerub-Baal rule over you, or that one man rules over you?' Remember that I [am] your bone and your flesh."

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.

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 citizens of Shechem came together, and all Beth-millo, and they went and made Abim'elech king, by the oak of the pillar at 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 set out
to anoint a king over themselves.
They said to the olive tree, “Reign over us.”

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.

“Now if you have acted faithfully and honestly in making Abimelech king, if you have done well by Jerubbaal and his family, and if you have rewarded him appropriately for what he did—

(For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian:

yet have, ye, risen up against the house of my father, to-day, and slain his sons - seventy men, upon one stone, - and made Abimelech, son of his maidservant, king over the owners of Shechem, because he is, your brother;

If then you have done what is true and upright to Jerubbaal and his family this day, may you have joy in Abimelech, and may he have joy in you;

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.

for the coming in of the violence to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, and of their blood to place it on Abimelech their brother, who slew them, and on the masters of Shechem, who strengthened his hands to slay his brethren.

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.

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.

And Gaal, the son of Ebed, said, Who is Abimelech and who is Shechem, that we are to be his servants? Is it not right for the son of Jerubbaal and Zebul his captain to be servants to the men of Hamor, the father of Shechem? But why are we to be his servants?

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.

Now Zebul, the ruler of the town, hearing what Gaal, the son of Ebed, had said, was moved to wrath.

And he sent messengers to Abim'elech at Aru'mah, saying, "Behold, Ga'al the son of Ebed and his kinsmen have come to Shechem, and they are stirring up the city against you.

Now therefore up by night, thou and the people that is with thee, and lie in wait in the field:

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.

And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by night, and they laid wait against Shechem in four companies.

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.

When Gaal saw the army, he observed to Zebul, "Look there! People are coming down from the top of the mountains." But Zebul replied to him, "You're looking at morning shadows cast by the mountains. They just look like men to you."

And Gaal addeth yet to speak, and saith, 'Lo, people are coming down from the high part of the land, and another detachment is coming by the way of the oak of Meonenim.'

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.

And Gaal went out before the men of Shechem, and fought with Abimelech.

Abimelech chased him, and Gaal ran from him. Many Shechemites fell wounded at the entrance of the gate.

And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah: and Zebul thrust out Gaal and his brethren, that they should not dwell in Shechem.

And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people went out into the field; and they told Abimelech.

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.

Abim'elech and the company that was with him rushed forward and stood at the entrance of the gate of the city, while the two companies rushed upon all who were in the fields and slew them.

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.

When all the people of the Tower of Shechem heard of it, they entered the stronghold of the house of El-be'rith.

And it was told Abimelech, that all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together.

And Abimelech gat him up to mount Zalmon, he and all the people that were with him; and Abimelech took an axe 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.

So every one of the people cut down his bundle and following Abim'elech put it against the stronghold, and they set the stronghold on fire over them, so that all the people of the Tower of Shechem also died, about a thousand men and women.

Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it.

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.

And Abimelech came unto the tower, and fought against it, and went hard unto the door of the tower to burn it with fire.

Then quickly crying out to his body-servant, he said to him, Take out your sword and put an end to me straight away, so that men may not say of me, His death was the work of a woman. So the young man put his sword through him, causing his death.

After Abim'elech there arose to deliver Israel Tola the son of Pu'ah, son of Dodo, a man of Is'sachar; and he lived at Shamir in the hill country of E'phraim.

And he judged Israel twenty-three years. Then he died, and was buried at Shamir.

And at the death of Jair his body was put to rest in the earth in Kamon.

And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Ba'als and the Ash'taroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines; and they forsook the LORD, and did not serve him.

And the sons of Ammon will pan over Jordan to war also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim: and it will press upon Israel greatly.

Then the {Israelites} cried out to Yahweh, saying, "We have sinned against you; we have abandoned our God and served the Baals."

Then said Yahweh unto the sons of Israel, - Was it not, from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, and from the sons of Ammon, and from the Philistines, that I saved you ?

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.

Yet ye have forsaken me, and served other gods: wherefore I will deliver you no more.

Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your trouble."

But the children of Israel said unto the LORD, "We have sinned: do thou unto us whatsoever please thee, and deliver us only at this time."

And they turn aside the gods of the stranger out of their midst, and serve Jehovah, and His soul is grieved with the misery of Israel.

Then the Ammonites were called to arms, and they encamped in Gilead; and the people of Israel came together, and they encamped at Mizpah.

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.

Now, Jephthah the Gileadite, was a mighty man of valour, but, he, was the son of an unchaste woman, - yet Gilead was the father of Jephthah.

And Gilead's wife bare him sons; and his wife's sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said unto him, Thou shalt not inherit in our father's house; for thou art the son of a strange woman.

Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain men to Jephthah, and went out with him.

And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel.

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

And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expel me out of my father's house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress?

So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and leader over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the LORD at Mizpah.

And Jephthah sent messengers unto the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that thou art come against me to fight in my land?

And the king of the children of Ammon answered unto the messengers of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land, when they came up out of Egypt, from Arnon even unto Jabbok, and unto Jordan: now therefore restore those lands again peaceably.

And Jephthah addeth yet and sendeth messengers unto the king of the Bene-Ammon,

to tell him, “This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take away the land of Moab or the land of the Ammonites.

for in their coming up out of Egypt, Israel goeth in the wilderness unto the Red Sea, and cometh in to Kadesh,

Israel then sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, 'Let us pass, we pray, through your land'; but the king of Edom would not listen. And they sent also to the king of Moab, but he would not consent. So Israel remained at Kadesh.

and he goeth through the wilderness, and compasseth the land of Edom and the land of Moab, and cometh in at the rising of the sun of the land of Moab, and they encamp beyond Arnon, and have not come into the border of Moab, for Arnon is the border of Moab.

But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory; so Sihon gathered all his people together, and encamped at Jahaz, and fought with Israel.

So now the LORD God of Israel hath dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and shouldest thou possess it?

Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever the LORD our God shall drive out from before us, them will we possess.

And now, art thou at all better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? did he at all strive with Israel? did he at all fight against them?

When Israel lived in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and its villages, and in all the towns that [are] {along the Arnon}, for three hundred years, why did you not recover [them] at that time?

And Jephthah voweth a vow to Jehovah, and saith, 'If Thou dost at all give the Bene-Ammon into my hand --

Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD'S, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.

and he smiteth them from Aroer, and unto thy going in to Minnith, twenty cities, and unto the meadow of the vineyards -- a very great smiting; and the Bene-Ammon are humbled at the presence of the sons of Israel.

And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.

And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back.

And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto the LORD, do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the LORD hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon.