29,314 verses contain “and” (in the KJV: 28,365, in the BSB: 19,838) — showing 5,901–6,000
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Then
Gideon took ten men of his servants,
and did as the LORD had said unto him:
and so it was, because he feared his father’s household,
and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.
So
Gideon took ten of his servants
and did as the LORD had told him. But because he was too afraid of his father’s household
and the men of the city, he did it by night rather than in the
daytime.
And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of
Baal was cast down,
and the
grove was cut down that was by it,
and the second
bullock was offered upon the altar that was built.
When the men of the city got up in the morning, there was
Baal’s altar
torn down, with the Asherah pole cut down beside it
and the second bull offered up on the newly built altar.
And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing?
And when they enquired
and asked, they said,
Gideon the son of
Joash hath done this thing.
“Who did this?” they said to one another.
And after they had investigated thoroughly, they were told, “
Gideon son of
Joash did it.”
Then the men of the city said unto
Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of
Baal,
and because he hath cut down the
grove that was by it.
Then the men of the city said to
Joash, “Bring out your son. He must die, because he has
torn down
Baal’s altar
and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”
And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye
plead for
Baal? will ye save him? he that will
plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him
plead for himself, because one hath cast down his altar.
But
Joash said to all who stood against him, “Are you
contending for
Baal? Are you trying to save him?
Whoever pleads his case will be put to death by morning! If
Baal is a god, let him
contend for himself with the one who has
torn down his altar.”
Then all the Midianites
and the
Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together,
and went over,
and pitched in the valley of
Jezreel.
Then all the Midianites,
Amalekites,
and other people of the east gathered together, crossed over the Jordan,
and camped 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.
So the Spirit of the LORD came upon
Gideon, who
blew the ram’s horn
and rallied the Abiezrites behind 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,
Then
Gideon said to God, “If You are going to save Israel by my hand, as You have 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.
then behold, I will place a
fleece of wool on the
threshing floor. If there is
dew only on the
fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that You are going to save Israel by my hand, as You have said.”
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.
Then
Gideon said to God, “Do not be
angry with me; let me speak one more time. Please allow me one more test with the
fleece. This time let it be dry,
and the ground covered with
dew.”
And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the
fleece only,
and there was
dew on all the ground.
And that night God did so. Only the
fleece was dry,
and dew covered 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.
Early in the morning Jerubbaal (that is,
Gideon)
and all the men with him camped beside the spring of Harod.
And the camp of
Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh.
And the LORD said unto
Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel
vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.
Then the LORD said to
Gideon, “You have too many people for Me to deliver
Midian into their hands, lest Israel
glorify themselves over Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’
Now therefore go to,
proclaim in the ears of the people, saying,
Whosoever is fearful
and afraid, let him return
and depart early from mount
Gilead.
And there returned of the people twenty
and two thousand;
and there remained ten thousand.
Now, therefore,
proclaim in the hearing of the people: ‘
Whoever is fearful
and trembling may turn back
and leave Mount
Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand of them turned back, but ten thousand remained.
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.
Then the LORD said to
Gideon, “There are still too many people. Take them down to the water,
and I will
sift them for you there. If I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go. But if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he 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.
So
Gideon brought the people down to the water,
and the LORD said to him, “Separate those who
lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who
kneel 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 water.
And the number of those who
lapped the water with their hands to their mouths was three hundred men; all the others
knelt to drink.
And the LORD said unto
Gideon, By the three hundred men that
lapped will I save you,
and deliver the Midianites into thine hand:
and let all the other people go every man unto his place.
Then the LORD said to
Gideon, “With the three hundred men who
lapped the water I will save you
and deliver the Midianites into your hand. But all the others are to go home.”
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.
So
Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred men, who took charge of the provisions
and rams’ horns of the others.
And the camp of
Midian lay below him in the valley.
And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have delivered it into thine hand.
That night the LORD said to
Gideon, “Get up
and go down against the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand.
And thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be strengthened to go down unto the host. Then went he down with Phurah his servant unto the outside of the armed men that were in the host.
and listen to what they are saying. Then your hands will be strengthened to attack the camp.” So he went with Purah his servant to the outposts where armed men were guarding the camp.
And the Midianites
and the
Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude;
and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude.
Now the Midianites,
Amalekites,
and all the other people of the east had settled in the valley like a
swarm of locusts,
and their camels were as countless as the sand on the
seashore.
And when
Gideon was come, behold, there was a man that told a dream unto his fellow,
and said, Behold, I dreamed a dream,
and, lo, a
cake of barley bread
tumbled into the host of
Midian,
and came unto a tent,
and smote it that it fell,
and overturned it, that the tent lay along.
And as
Gideon arrived, a man was telling his friend about a dream. “Behold, I had a dream,” he said, “
and I saw a
loaf of barley bread come
tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent so hard that the tent overturned
and collapsed.”
And his fellow answered
and said, This is nothing else save the sword of
Gideon the son of
Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God delivered
Midian,
and all the host.
His friend replied: “This is nothing less than the sword of
Gideon son of
Joash, the
Israelite. God has delivered
Midian and the whole camp into his hand.”
And it was so, when
Gideon heard the telling of the dream,
and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped,
and returned into the host of Israel,
and said, Arise; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of
Midian.
When
Gideon heard the dream
and its interpretation, he bowed in worship. He returned to the camp of Israel
and said, “Get up, for the LORD has delivered the camp of
Midian into your hand.”
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 divided the three hundred men into three companies
and gave each man a ram’s horn in one hand
and a large
jar in the other, containing a
torch.
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.
“Watch me
and do as I do,”
Gideon said. “When I come to the outskirts of the camp, do exactly as I 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.
When I
and all who are with me blow our horns, then you are also to blow your horns from all around the camp
and shout, ‘For the LORD
and for
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.
Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after the changing of the guard. They
blew their horns
and broke the jars 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.
The three companies
blew their horns
and shattered their jars. Holding the torches in their left hands
and the horns in their right hands, they
shouted, “A sword for the LORD
and for
Gideon!”
And they stood every man in his place round about the camp:
and all the host ran,
and cried,
and fled.
Each
Israelite took his position around the camp,
and the entire Midianite army fled, crying out as they ran.
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 when the three hundred rams’ horns sounded, the LORD set all the men in the camp against one another with their swords. The army fled to Beth-
shittah toward Zererah as far as the border of
Abel-meholah near 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.
Then the men of Israel were called out from
Naphtali, Asher,
and all
Manasseh,
and they pursued 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.
Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim to say, “Come down against the Midianites
and seize the waters of the Jordan
ahead of them as far as Beth-barah.” So all the men of Ephraim were called out,
and they captured the waters of the Jordan as far as Beth-barah.
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 winepress of Zeeb,
and pursued
Midian,
and brought the heads of Oreb
and Zeeb to
Gideon on the other side Jordan.
They also captured Oreb
and Zeeb, the two princes of
Midian;
and they killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb
and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. So they pursued the Midianites
and brought the heads of Oreb
and Zeeb to
Gideon on the other side of the Jordan.
And the men of Ephraim said unto him, Why hast thou served us thus, that thou calledst us not, when thou wentest to fight with the Midianites?
And they did
chide with him sharply.
Then the men of Ephraim said to
Gideon, “Why have you done this to us? Why did you fail to call us when you went to fight against
Midian?”
And they
contended with him violently.
And he said unto them, What have I done now in comparison of you? Is not the
gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than the
vintage of Abi-ezer?
But
Gideon answered them, “Now what have I accomplished compared to you? Are not the gleanings of Ephraim better than the
grape harvest of Abiezer?
God hath delivered into your hands the princes of
Midian, Oreb
and Zeeb:
and what was I able to do in comparison of you? Then their anger was
abated toward him, when he had said that.
God has delivered Oreb
and Zeeb, the two princes of
Midian, into your hand. What was I able to do compared to you?” When he had said this, their anger against him
subsided.
And Gideon came to Jordan,
and passed over, he,
and the three hundred men that were with him,
faint, yet pursuing them.
Then
Gideon and his three hundred men came to the Jordan
and crossed it, exhausted yet still in pursuit.
And he said unto the men of Succoth, Give, I pray you,
loaves of bread unto the people that follow me; for they be
faint,
and I am pursuing after Zebah
and Zalmunna, kings of
Midian.
So
Gideon said to the men of Succoth, “Please give my troops some bread, for they are exhausted,
and I am still pursuing Zebah
and Zalmunna, the kings of
Midian.”
And the princes of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we should give bread unto thine army?
But the leaders of Succoth asked, “Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in your possession, that we should give bread to your army?”
And Gideon said, Therefore when the LORD hath delivered Zebah
and Zalmunna into mine hand, then I will
tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness
and with briers.
“Very well,”
Gideon replied, “when the LORD has delivered Zebah
and Zalmunna into my hand, I will
tear your flesh with the thorns
and briers of the wilderness!”
And he went up thence to Penuel, and spake unto them likewise: and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered him.
From there he went up to Penuel
and asked the same from them, but the men of Penuel gave the same
response as the men of Succoth.
And he spake also unto the men of Penuel, saying, When I come again in peace, I will break down this tower.
So
Gideon told the men of Penuel, “When I return in triumph, I will
tear down this tower!”
Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their hosts with them, about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of all the hosts of the children of the east: for there fell an hundred and twenty thousand men that drew sword.
Now Zebah
and Zalmunna were in Karkor with their army of about fifteen thousand men—all that were left of the armies of the people of the east. A hundred
and twenty thousand
swordsmen had already fallen.
And Gideon went up by the way of them that dwelt in tents on the east of Nobah
and Jogbehah,
and smote the host: for the host was secure.
And Gideon went up by way of the
caravan route east of Nobah
and Jogbehah,
and he attacked their army, taking them by surprise.
And when Zebah
and Zalmunna fled, he pursued after them,
and took the two kings of
Midian, Zebah
and Zalmunna,
and discomfited all the host.
When Zebah
and Zalmunna fled,
Gideon pursued
and captured these two kings of
Midian, routing their entire army.
And Gideon the son of
Joash returned from battle before the sun was up,
And caught a young man of the men of Succoth,
and enquired of him:
and he described unto him the princes of Succoth,
and the elders thereof, even
threescore and seventeen men.
There he captured a young man of Succoth
and interrogated him. The young man wrote down for him the names of the seventy-seven leaders
and elders of Succoth.
And he came unto the men of Succoth,
and said, Behold Zebah
and Zalmunna, with whom ye did
upbraid me, saying, Are the hands of Zebah
and Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we should give bread unto thy men that are
weary?
And Gideon went to the men of Succoth
and said, “Here are Zebah
and Zalmunna, about whom you
taunted me, saying, ‘Are the hands of Zebah
and Zalmunna already in your possession, that we should give bread to your
weary men?’”
And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth.
Then he took the elders of the city, and using the thorns and briers of the wilderness, he disciplined the men of Succoth.
And he beat down the tower of Penuel,
and slew the men of the city.
He also pulled down the tower of Penuel and killed the men of the city.
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.
Next,
Gideon asked Zebah
and Zalmunna, “What kind of men did you kill at
Tabor?” “Men like you,” they answered, “each one resembling the son of a king.”
And he said, They were my brethren, even the sons of my mother: as the LORD liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not
slay you.
“They were my brothers,”
Gideon replied, “the sons of my mother! As surely as the LORD lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you.”
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.
So he said to Jether, his
firstborn, “Get up
and kill them.” But the young man did not draw his sword; he was fearful because he was still a youth.
Then Zebah
and Zalmunna said, Rise thou,
and fall upon us: for as the man is, so is his strength.
And Gideon arose,
and slew Zebah
and Zalmunna,
and took away the ornaments that were on their camels’ necks.
Then Zebah
and Zalmunna said, “Get up
and kill us
yourself, for as the man is, so is his strength.” So
Gideon got up
and killed Zebah
and Zalmunna,
and he took the
crescent ornaments from the necks of their camels.
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 delivered us from the hand of
Midian.
Then the Israelites said to
Gideon, “Rule over us—you
and your son
and grandson—for you have saved us from the hand of
Midian.”
And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the LORD shall rule over you.
But
Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The LORD shall rule over you.”
And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings of his prey. (For they had golden earrings, because they were
Ishmaelites.)
Then he added, “Let me make a request of you, that each of you give me an
earring from his
plunder.” (For the enemies had gold earrings because they were
Ishmaelites.)
And they answered, We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of his prey.
“We will give them
gladly,” they replied. So they spread out a garment,
and each man threw an
earring from his
plunder onto it.
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.
The weight of the gold earrings he had requested was 1,700 shekels, in addition to the
crescent ornaments, the pendants, the purple garments of the kings of
Midian,
and the chains from the necks of their camels.
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.
From all this
Gideon made an
ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his hometown. But soon all Israel
prostituted themselves by worshiping it there,
and it became a
snare to
Gideon and his household.
Thus was
Midian subdued before the children of Israel, so that they lifted up their heads no more.
And the country was in quietness forty years in the days of
Gideon.
In this way
Midian was subdued before the Israelites
and did not raise its head again. So the land had rest for forty years in the days of
Gideon,
And Jerubbaal the son of
Joash went
and dwelt in his own house.
and he—Jerubbaal son of
Joash—returned home
and settled down.
Gideon had seventy sons of his own, since he had many wives.
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.
Later,
Gideon son of
Joash died at a ripe old age
and was buried in the tomb of his father
Joash in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
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
Baal-berith their god.
And as soon as
Gideon was dead, the Israelites turned
and prostituted themselves with the Baals,
and they set up
Baal-berith as 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:
The Israelites failed to remember the LORD their God who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side.
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,
Now
Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to his mother’s brothers at
Shechem and said to them
and to all the clan of his mother,
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.
“Please ask all the leaders of
Shechem, ‘Is it better for you that seventy men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, rule over you, or just one man?’ Remember that I am your own flesh
and blood.”
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 when his mother’s brothers spoke all these words about him in the presence of all the leaders of
Shechem, their hearts were inclined to follow
Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.”
So they gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of
Baal-berith, with which
Abimelech hired some worthless
and reckless men to follow 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.
He went to his father’s house in Ophrah,
and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, survived, because he
hid himself.
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 over us.
One day the trees set out to
anoint a king for themselves. They said to the olive tree, ‘Reign 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?
But the olive tree replied, ‘Should I stop giving my oil that honors both God
and man, to hold
sway over the trees?’
And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us.
Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘Come 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?
But the fig tree replied, ‘Should I stop giving my sweetness
and my good fruit, to hold
sway over the trees?’
Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and reign over us.
Then the trees said to the
grapevine, ‘Come
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?
But the
grapevine replied, ‘Should I stop giving my wine that cheers both God
and man, to hold
sway over the trees?’
Then said all the trees unto the
bramble, Come thou,
and reign over us.
Finally all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and 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.
But the thornbush replied, ‘If you really are
anointing me as king over you, come
and find refuge in my shade. But if not, may fire come out of the thornbush
and consume the cedars of
Lebanon.’
Now therefore, if ye have done truly
and sincerely, in that ye have made
Abimelech king,
and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal
and his house,
and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands;
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 done to him as he deserves—
(For my father fought for you,
and adventured his life far,
and delivered you out of the hand of
Midian:
for my father fought for you
and risked his life to deliver you from the hand of
Midian,
And ye are risen up against my father’s house this day,
and have slain his sons,
threescore and ten persons, upon one stone,
and have made
Abimelech, the son of his
maidservant, king over the men of
Shechem, because he is your brother;)
but you have risen up against my father’s house this day
and killed his seventy sons on a single stone,
and you have made
Abimelech, the son of his
maidservant, king over the leaders of
Shechem because he is your brother—
if you have acted faithfully
and honestly toward Jerubbaal
and his house this day, then may you
rejoice in
Abimelech,
and he in you.
And Jotham ran away,
and fled,
and went to Beer,
and dwelt there, for fear of
Abimelech his brother.
Then Jotham ran away, escaping to Beer,
and he lived there for fear of his brother
Abimelech.
That the cruelty done to the
threescore and ten sons of Jerubbaal might come,
and their blood be laid upon
Abimelech their brother, which
slew them;
and upon the men of
Shechem, which aided him in the killing of his brethren.
in order that the crime against the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come to justice
and their blood be
avenged on their brother
Abimelech and on the leaders of
Shechem, who had helped him murder his brothers.
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 Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brethren,
and went over to
Shechem:
and the men of
Shechem put their confidence in him.
Meanwhile, Gaal son of Ebed came with his brothers
and crossed into
Shechem,
and the leaders of
Shechem put their confidence in him.
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 after they had gone out into the fields, gathered grapes from their vineyards,
and trodden them, they held a festival
and went into the house of their god;
and as they
ate and drank, they
cursed Abimelech.
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 the men of Hamor the father of
Shechem: for why should we serve him?
Then Gaal son of Ebed said, “Who is
Abimelech,
and who is
Shechem, that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerubbaal,
and is not Zebul his officer? You are to serve the men of Hamor, the father of
Shechem. Why should we serve
Abimelech?
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.
If only this people were under my authority, I would remove
Abimelech; I would say to him, ‘Muster your army
and come out!’”
And when Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was
kindled.
When Zebul the governor of the city heard the words of Gaal son of Ebed, he burned with anger.
