Old/New Testament
Yahweh Raises Up Deborah and Barak
4 Then (A)the sons of Israel again did what was evil in the eyes of Yahweh. Now Ehud had died. 2 And Yahweh sold them into the hand of (B)Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; and the commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in (C)Harosheth-hagoyim. 3 Then the sons of Israel cried to Yahweh; for he had 900 (D)iron chariots, and he oppressed the sons of Israel severely for twenty years.
4 Now Deborah, a [a]prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. 5 And she used to [b]sit under the (E)palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the sons of Israel came up to her for judgment. 6 Then she sent and summoned (F)Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh-naphtali and said to him, “Has not Yahweh, the God of Israel, commanded, ‘Go and march to Mount Tabor, and take with you 10,000 men from the sons of Naphtali and from the sons of Zebulun? 7 And I will draw out to you Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his [c]many troops to the river Kishon, and (G)I will give him into your hand.’” 8 Then Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” 9 So she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the honor shall not be yours on the journey that you are about to take, (H)for Yahweh will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh. 10 Then Barak called (I)Zebulun and Naphtali together to Kedesh, and 10,000 men went up [d](J)with him; Deborah also went up with him.
11 Now Heber (K)the Kenite had separated himself from the Kenites, from the sons of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far away as the [e]oak in (L)Zaanannim, which is near Kedesh.
12 Then they told Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor. 13 So Sisera called together all his chariots, (M)900 iron chariots, and all the people who were with him, from (N)Harosheth-hagoyim to the river Kishon. 14 And Deborah said to Barak, “Arise! For this is the day in which Yahweh has given Sisera into your hand; has not (O)Yahweh gone out before you?” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with 10,000 men following him. 15 (P)And Yahweh threw Sisera and all his chariots and all his camp into confusion with the edge of the sword before Barak; and Sisera came down from his chariot and fled away on foot. 16 But Barak pursued the chariots and all those in the camp as far as Harosheth-hagoyim, and all the camp of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword; (Q)not even one remained.
17 Now Sisera fled away on foot to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite, for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Turn aside, my master, turn aside to me! Do not be afraid.” And he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a [f]rug. 19 (R)Then he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a [g]bottle of milk and gave him a drink; then she covered him. 20 And he said to her, “Stand in the doorway of the tent, and it shall be if anyone comes and asks of you and says, ‘Is there a man here?’ that you shall say, ‘No.’” 21 Then Jael, Heber’s wife, (S)took a tent peg and placed a hammer in her hand and went secretly to him and drove the peg into his temple, and it went through into the ground; for he was sound asleep and exhausted. So he died. 22 Now behold, Barak was pursuing Sisera, and Jael came out to meet him and said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” And he entered [h]with her, and behold, Sisera was lying dead with the tent peg in his temple.
23 So (T)God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan before the sons of Israel. 24 And the hand of the sons of Israel went forth heavier and heavier against Jabin the king of Canaan, until they had cut off Jabin the king of Canaan.
The Song of Deborah and Barak
5 (U)Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying,
2 “(V)When [i]the leaders led in Israel,
When (W)the people volunteered,
Bless Yahweh!
3 Hear, O kings; give ear, O rulers!
(X)As for me, to Yahweh, I will sing;
I will sing praise to Yahweh, the God of Israel.
4 (Y)O Yahweh, when You went out from Seir,
When You marched from the field of Edom,
(Z)The earth quaked, the heavens also dripped,
Even the clouds dripped water.
5 (AA)The mountains [j]flowed at the presence of Yahweh,
(AB)This Sinai, at the presence of Yahweh, the God of Israel.
6 “In the days of (AC)Shamgar the son of Anath,
In the days of (AD)Jael, the paths had ceased,
So travelers [k]went by [l]roundabout paths.
7 The peasantry ceased; they ceased in Israel,
Until I, Deborah, arose,
Until I arose, a mother in Israel.
8 [m](AE)God chose new leaders;
Then war was in the gates.
Not a shield or a spear was seen
Among forty thousand in Israel.
9 My heart goes out to (AF)the commanders of Israel,
The volunteers among the people;
Bless Yahweh!
10 (AG)You who ride on [n]white donkeys,
You who sit on rich carpets,
And you who travel on the road—muse aloud!
11 At the sound of those who divide flocks among (AH)the watering places,
There they shall [o]commemorate (AI)the righteous deeds of Yahweh,
The righteous deeds for His [p]peasantry in Israel.
Then the people of Yahweh went down (AJ)to the gates.
12 “(AK)Awake, awake, Deborah;
Awake, awake, [q]utter a song!
Arise, Barak, and (AL)take away your captives, O son of Abinoam.
13 Then survivors came down to the mighty ones;
The people of Yahweh came down to me as warriors.
14 From Ephraim those whose root is (AM)in Amalek came down,
Following you, Benjamin, with your peoples;
From Machir commanders came down,
And from Zebulun those who wield the staff of a scribe.
15 And [r]the princes of Issachar were with Deborah;
As was Issachar, so was Barak;
Into the valley they rushed (AN)at his [s]heels;
Among the divisions of Reuben
There was great persistence of the heart.
16 Why did you sit among (AO)the [t]sheepfolds,
To hear the whistling for the flocks?
Among the divisions of Reuben
There were great probings of the heart.
17 (AP)Gilead dwelt across the Jordan;
And why did Dan stay in ships?
Asher sat at the seashore,
And dwelt by its landings.
18 (AQ)Zebulun was a people who despised their lives even to death,
And Naphtali also, on the high places of the field.
19 “(AR)The kings came and fought;
Then fought the kings of Canaan
(AS)At Taanach near the waters of Megiddo;
(AT)They took no gain of silver.
20 (AU)The stars fought from heaven;
From their courses they fought against Sisera.
21 The river of Kishon swept them away,
The ancient river, the river Kishon.
(AV)O my soul, march on with strength.
22 (AW)Then the horses’ hoofs beat
From the dashing, the dashing of his [u]valiant steeds.
23 ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of Yahweh,
‘Utterly curse its inhabitants,
(AX)Because they did not come to the help of Yahweh,
To the help of Yahweh against the warriors.’
24 “(AY)Most blessed of women is Jael,
The wife of Heber the Kenite;
Most blessed is she of women in the tent.
25 He asked for water, and she gave him milk;
In a mighty bowl she brought him curds.
26 She sent forth her hand for the tent peg,
And her right hand for the workmen’s hammer.
Then she beat Sisera; she smashed his head,
And she crushed and pierced his temple.
27 Between her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay;
Between her feet he bowed, he fell;
Where he bowed, there he fell violently devastated.
28 “Out of the window she looked and lamented,
The mother of Sisera through the [v]lattice,
‘Why does his chariot delay in coming?
Why do the [w]hoofbeats of his chariots tarry?’
29 Her wise princesses would answer her,
Indeed she repeats her words to herself,
30 ‘(AZ)Are they not finding, are they not dividing the spoil?
A maiden, two maidens for every mighty man;
To Sisera a spoil of dyed work,
A spoil of dyed work embroidered,
Dyed work of double embroidery on the [x]neck of the spoil?’
31 (BA)Thus let all Your enemies perish, O Yahweh;
(BB)But let those who love Him be like the rising of the sun in its might.”
And the land was quiet for forty years.
Midian Prevails Against Israel
6 Then the sons of Israel (BC)did what was evil in the eyes of Yahweh; and Yahweh gave them into the hands of (BD)Midian seven years. 2 And the [y]power of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of Midian the sons of Israel made for themselves (BE)the dens which were in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds. 3 And it was when Israel had sown, that the Midianites would go up with the Amalekites and the sons of the east and go up against them. 4 So they would camp against them and (BF)ruin the produce of the earth [z]as far as Gaza and (BG)leave no sustenance in Israel as well as no sheep, ox, or donkey. 5 For they would go up with their livestock and their tents; they would come in (BH)like locusts for number, both they and their camels were innumerable; and they came into the land to make it a ruin. 6 So Israel was brought (BI)very low because of Midian, and the sons of Israel cried out to Yahweh.
7 Now it happened when the sons of Israel cried out to Yahweh on account of Midian, 8 that Yahweh sent a prophet to the sons of Israel, and (BJ)he said to them, “Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘It was I who brought you up from Egypt and brought you out from the house of slavery. 9 I delivered you from the hands of the Egyptians and from the hands of all your oppressors and drove them out before you and gave you their land, 10 and I said to you, “I am Yahweh your God; you (BK)shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live. But you have not listened to My voice.”’”
Yahweh Sends Gideon to Save Israel
11 Then (BL)the angel of Yahweh came and sat under the [aa]oak that was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the (BM)Abiezrite as his son (BN)Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press in order to [ab]preserve it from the Midianites. 12 And the angel of Yahweh appeared to him and said to him, “Yahweh is with you, O mighty man of valor.” 13 Then Gideon said to him, “O my lord, if Yahweh is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His wondrous deeds which our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not Yahweh bring us up from Egypt?’ But (BO)now Yahweh has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14 Then Yahweh turned to him and said, “(BP)Go in this strength of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?” 15 (BQ)But he said to Him, “O Lord, with what shall I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the least in (BR)Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house.” 16 (BS)But Yahweh said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall strike down Midian as one man.” 17 So [ac]Gideon said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your eyes, then do (BT)a sign for me that it is You who speak with me. 18 Please do not depart from here until I come back to You, and I bring out my offering and lay it before You.” And He said, “I will remain until you return.”
19 So Gideon went in and (BU)prepared a young goat and unleavened bread from an [ad]ephah of flour; he put the meat in a basket [ae]and the broth in a pot and brought them out to him under the [af]oak and presented them. 20 And the angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread and lay them on this rock and pour out the broth.” And he did so. 21 Then the angel of Yahweh put out the end of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened bread; and (BV)fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. Then the angel of Yahweh went away from before his eyes. 22 (BW)And Gideon saw that he was the angel of Yahweh, so [ag]he said, “Alas, O Lord Yahweh! For now I have seen the angel of Yahweh face to face.” 23 And Yahweh said to him, “Peace to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.” 24 So Gideon built an altar there to Yahweh and named it [ah]Yahweh is Peace. To this day it is still (BX)in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
25 Now it happened on the same night that Yahweh said to him, “Take your father’s bull [ai]and a second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal which belongs to your father, and cut down the [aj](BY)Asherah that is beside it, 26 and build an altar to Yahweh your God on the top of this stronghold in an orderly manner, and take the second bull and offer a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah which you shall cut down.” 27 So Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as Yahweh had spoken to him; and now it happened that because he was too afraid of his father’s household and the men of the city to do it by day, he did it by night.
Gideon Tears Down the Altar of Baal
28 Then the men of the city arose early in the morning, and behold, the altar of Baal was torn down, and the Asherah which was beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar which had been built. 29 And they said to one another, “Who did this thing?” And when they searched about and inquired, they said, “Gideon the son of Joash did this thing.” 30 Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has torn down the altar of Baal, and indeed, he has cut down the Asherah which was beside it.” 31 But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Will you contend for Baal, or will you save him? Whoever will contend for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself, because someone has torn down his altar.” 32 Therefore on that day he named him (BZ)Jerubbaal, that is to say, “Let Baal contend against him,” because he had torn down his altar.
33 Now all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the sons of the east assembled themselves; and they crossed over and camped in (CA)the valley of Jezreel. 34 But (CB)the Spirit of Yahweh clothed Gideon; and he (CC)blew a trumpet, and the Abiezrites were called together to follow him. 35 And he sent messengers throughout Manasseh, and they also were called together to follow him; and he sent messengers to Asher, (CD)Zebulun, and Naphtali, and (CE)they came up to meet them.
The Test of the Fleece
36 Then Gideon said to God, “(CF)If You will save Israel by my hand, as You have spoken, 37 behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I will know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have spoken.” 38 And it was so. Indeed he arose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece. And he drained the dew from the fleece, a bowl full of water. 39 Then Gideon said to God, “(CG)Do not let Your anger burn against me that I may speak once more; please let me make a test once more with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, and let there be dew on all the ground.” 40 And God did so that night. So it was dry only on the fleece, but dew was on all the ground.
Jesus Casts Out an Unclean Demon
31 And (A)He came down to (B)Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and He was teaching them on the Sabbath; 32 and (C)they were amazed at His teaching, for (D)His [a]message was with authority. 33 And in the synagogue there was a man [b]possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, 34 “[c]Let us alone! [d](E)What do we have to do with You, Jesus the (F)Nazarene? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—(G)the Holy One of God!” 35 But Jesus (H)rebuked it, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, it came out of him without doing him any harm. 36 And amazement came upon them all, and they were talking with one another saying, “What is [e]this message? For (I)with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits and they come out.” 37 And (J)the report about Him was spreading into every place in the surrounding district.
Peter’s Mother-in-Law and Many Others Healed
38 (K)Then He stood up and left the synagogue, and entered Simon’s home. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was (L)suffering from a high fever, and they asked Him [f]to help her. 39 And standing over her, He (M)rebuked the fever, and it left her. Immediately she stood up and [g]began waiting on them.
40 (N)And while (O)the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to Him, and (P)laying His hands on each one of them, He was (Q)healing them. 41 And demons also were coming out of many, shouting and saying, “You are (R)the Son of God!” But (S)rebuking them, He was (T)not allowing them to speak, because they knew Him to be the [h]Christ.
42 (U)When day came, Jesus left and went to a secluded place; and the crowds were eagerly seeking for Him, and came to Him and tried to keep Him from going away from them. 43 But He said to them, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also, (V)for I was sent for this purpose.”
44 So He kept on preaching in the synagogues (W)of [i]Judea.
Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.