Category Archives: Judges

Wives for the Benjamites 1 The men of Israel had taken an oath at Mizpah: “Not one of us will give his daughter in marriage to a Benjamite.” 2 The people went to Bethel,where they sat before God until evening, raising their voices and weeping bitterly. 3 “Lord, God of Israel,” they cried, “why has […]

Israel Fights the Remaining Canaanites 1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked theLord, “Who of us is to go up first to fight against the Canaanites?” 2 TheLordanswered, “Judah shall go up; I have given the land into their hands.” 3 The men of Judah then said to the Simeonites their fellow Israelites, […]

The Angel of the Lord at Bokim 1 The angel of theLordwent up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land I swore to give to your ancestors. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, 2 and you shall not make […]

1 These are the nations theLordleft to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan 2 (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience): 3 the five rulers of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and […]

Deborah 1 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of theLord, now that Ehud was dead. 2 So theLordsold them into the hands of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. Sisera, the commander of his army, was based in Harosheth Haggoyim. 3 Because he had nine hundred chariots fitted with iron and […]

The Song of Deborah 1 On that day Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang this song: 2 “When the princes in Israel take the lead, when the people willingly offer themselves— praise theLord! 3 “Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers! # I, even I, will sing totheLord; I will praise theLord, the God […]

Gideon 1 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of theLord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites. 2 Because the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds. 3 Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites […]

Gideon Defeats the Midianites 1 Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. 2 TheLordsaid to Gideon, “You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, […]

Zebah and Zalmunna 1 Now the Ephraimites asked Gideon, “Why have you treated us like this? Why didn’t you call us when you went to fight Midian?” And they challenged him vigorously. 2 But he answered them, “What have I accomplished compared to you? Aren’t the gleanings of Ephraim’s grapes better than the full grape […]

Abimelek 1 Abimelek son of Jerub-Baal went to his mother’s brothers in Shechem and said to them and to all his mother’s clan, 2 “Ask all the citizens of Shechem, ‘Which is better for you: to have all seventy of Jerub-Baal’s sons rule over you, or just one man?’ Remember, I am your flesh and […]