| Berean Study Bible | New International Version |
| 1Then 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. | 1Now 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. |
| 2But Gideon answered them, “Now what have I accomplished compared to you? Are not the gleanings of Ephraim better than the grape harvest of Abiezer? | 2But he answered them, "What have I accomplished compared to you? Aren't the gleanings of Ephraim's grapes better than the full grape harvest of Abiezer? |
| 3God 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. | 3God gave Oreb and Zeeb, the Midianite leaders, into your hands. What was I able to do compared to you?" At this, their resentment against him subsided. |
| 4Then Gideon and his three hundred men came to the Jordan and crossed it, exhausted yet still in pursuit. | 4Gideon and his three hundred men, exhausted yet keeping up the pursuit, came to the Jordan and crossed it. |
| 5So 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.” | 5He said to the men of Sukkoth, "Give my troops some bread; they are worn out, and I am still pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian." |
| 6But the leaders of Succoth asked, “Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in your possession, that we should give bread to your army?” | 6But the officials of Sukkoth said, "Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread to your troops?" |
| 7“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!” | 7Then Gideon replied, "Just for that, when the LORD has given Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, I will tear your flesh with desert thorns and briers." |
| 8From 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. | 8From there he went up to Peniel and made the same request of them, but they answered as the men of Sukkoth had. |
| 9So Gideon told the men of Penuel, “When I return in triumph, I will tear down this tower!” | 9So he said to the men of Peniel, "When I return in triumph, I will tear down this tower." |
| 10Now 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. | 10Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with a force of about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of the armies of the eastern peoples; a hundred and twenty thousand swordsmen had fallen. |
| 11And Gideon went up by way of the caravan route east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and he attacked their army, taking them by surprise. | 11Gideon went up by the route of the nomads east of Nobah and Jogbehah and attacked the unsuspecting army. |
| 12When Zebah and Zalmunna fled, Gideon pursued and captured these two kings of Midian, routing their entire army. | 12Zebah and Zalmunna, the two kings of Midian, fled, but he pursued them and captured them, routing their entire army. |
| 13After this, Gideon son of Joash returned from the battle along the Ascent of Heres. | 13Gideon son of Joash then returned from the battle by the Pass of Heres. |
| 14There 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. | 14He caught a young man of Sukkoth and questioned him, and the young man wrote down for him the names of the seventy-seven officials of Sukkoth, the elders of the town. |
| 15And 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?’ ” | 15Then Gideon came and said to the men of Sukkoth, "Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me by saying, 'Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread to your exhausted men?'" |
| 16Then he took the elders of the city, and using the thorns and briers of the wilderness, he disciplined the men of Succoth. | 16He took the elders of the town and taught the men of Sukkoth a lesson by punishing them with desert thorns and briers. |
| 17He also pulled down the tower of Penuel and killed the men of the city. | 17He also pulled down the tower of Peniel and killed the men of the town. |
| 18Next, 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.” | 18Then he asked Zebah and Zalmunna, "What kind of men did you kill at Tabor?" "Men like you," they answered, "each one with the bearing of a prince." |
| 19“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.” | 19Gideon replied, "Those were my brothers, the sons of my own mother. As surely as the LORD lives, if you had spared their lives, I would not kill you." |
| 20So 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. | 20Turning to Jether, his oldest son, he said, "Kill them!" But Jether did not draw his sword, because he was only a boy and was afraid. |
| 21Then 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. | 21Zebah and Zalmunna said, "Come, do it yourself. 'As is the man, so is his strength.'" So Gideon stepped forward and killed them, and took the ornaments off their camels' necks. |
| 22Then the Israelites said to Gideon, “Rule over us—you and your son and grandson—for you have saved us from the hand of Midian.” | 22The Israelites said to Gideon, "Rule over us--you, your son and your grandson--because you have saved us from the hand of Midian." |
| 23But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The LORD shall rule over you.” | 23But Gideon told them, "I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The LORD will rule over you." |
| 24Then 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.) | 24And he said, "I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder." (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites to wear gold earrings.) |
| 25“We will give them gladly,” they replied. So they spread out a garment, and each man threw an earring from his plunder onto it. | 25They answered, "We'll be glad to give them." So they spread out a garment, and each of them threw a ring from his plunder onto it. |
| 26The 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. | 26The weight of the gold rings he asked for came to seventeen hundred shekels, not counting the ornaments, the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains that were on their camels' necks. |
| 27From 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. | 27Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family. |
| 28In 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, | 28Thus Midian was subdued before the Israelites and did not raise its head again. During Gideon's lifetime, the land had peace forty years. |
| 29and he—Jerubbaal son of Joash—returned home and settled down. | 29Jerub-Baal son of Joash went back home to live. |
| 30Gideon had seventy sons of his own, since he had many wives. | 30He had seventy sons of his own, for he had many wives. |
| 31His concubine, who dwelt in Shechem, also bore him a son, and he named him Abimelech. | 31His concubine, who lived in Shechem, also bore him a son, whom he named Abimelek. |
| 32Later, 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. | 32Gideon son of Joash died at a good old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. |
| 33And as soon as Gideon was dead, the Israelites turned and prostituted themselves with the Baals, and they set up Baal-berith as their god. | 33No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal-Berith as their god |
| 34The Israelites failed to remember the LORD their God who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. | 34and did not remember the LORD their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. |
| 35They did not show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) for all the good things he had done for Israel. | 35They also failed to show any loyalty to the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) in spite of all the good things he had done for them. |
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