And the hand of MidianprevailedagainstIsrael: and because of the Midianites the children of Israelmadethem the denswhich are in the mountains, and caves, and strongholds.
And theyencampedagainstthem, and destroyed the increase of the earth, tillthoucomeuntoGaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neithersheep, nor ox, nor ass.
For theycame up withtheircattle and theirtents, and theycame as grasshoppers for multitude; for boththey and theircamelswerewithoutnumber: and theyenteredinto the land to destroy it.
That the LORDsent a prophetunto the children of Israel, whichsaiduntothem, Thussaith the LORD God of Israel, I brought you up fromEgypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage;
And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all thatoppressed you, and dravethem out frombefore you, and gave you theirland;
And therecame an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, thatpertaineduntoJoash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideonthreshedwheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
And Gideonsaidunto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all thisbefallen us? and where be all his miracleswhich our fatherstold us of, saying, Did not the LORDbring us up fromEgypt? but now the LORDhathforsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.
And Gideonwent in, and madeready a kid, and unleavenedcakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it.
Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staffthat was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavenedcakes; and thererose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavenedcakes. Then the angel of the LORDdeparted out of his sight.
And it came to pass the samenight, that the LORDsaidunto him, Take thy father’syoungbullock, even the secondbullock of sevenyears old, and throwdown the altar of Baalthat thy fatherhath, and cut down the grovethat is by it:
And build an altarunto the LORD thy God upon the top of thisrock, in the orderedplace, and take the secondbullock, and offer a burntsacrificewith the wood of the grovewhichthoushalt cut down.
ThenGideontook ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had saidunto him: and so it was, because he feared his father’shousehold, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.
And when the men of the cityaroseearly in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was castdown, and the grove was cut downthat was by it, and the secondbullock was offeredupon the altarthat was built.
Then the men of the citysaiduntoJoash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hathcastdown the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grovethat was by it.
And Joashsaidunto all thatstoodagainst him, Will ye plead for Baal? will ye save him? he thatwillplead for him, let him be put to deathwhilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him plead for himself, because one hathcastdown his altar.
And he sentmessengersthroughout all Manasseh; who also was gatheredafter him: and he sentmessengersuntoAsher, and untoZebulun, and untoNaphtali; and theycame up to meetthem.
Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleeceonly, and it be dry upon all the earthbeside, thenshall I knowthatthouwiltsaveIsrael by minehand, as thouhastsaid.
And Gideonsaidunto God, Let not thineanger be hot against me, and I willspeak but thisonce: let me prove, I praythee, but thisoncewith the fleece; let it now be dry onlyupon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew.