1 But the men were really upset with Gideon and complained, “When you went to war with Midian, you didn't ask us to help! Why did you treat us like that?”
2 Gideon answered:
Don't be upset! Even though you came later, you were able to do much more than I did. It's just like the grape harvest: The grapes your tribe doesn't even bother to pick are better than the best grapes my family can grow. 3 Besides, God chose you to capture Raven and Wolf. I didn't do a thing compared to you.
By the time Gideon had finished talking, the men of Ephraim had calmed down and were no longer angry with him.
Gideon Finishes Destroying the Midianite Army
4 After Gideon and his 300 troops had chased the Midianites across the Jordan River, they were exhausted. 5 The town of Succoth was nearby, so he went there and asked, “Please give my troops some food. They are worn out, but we have to keep chasing Zebah and Zalmunna, the two Midianite kings.”
6 The town leaders of Succoth answered, “Why should we feed your army? We don't know if you really will defeat Zebah and Zalmunna.”
7 “Just wait!” Gideon said. “After the Lord helps me defeat them, I'm coming back here. I'll make a whip out of thorns and rip the flesh from your bones.”
8 After leaving Succoth, Gideon went to Penuel and asked the leaders there for some food. But he got the same answer as he did at Succoth. 9 “I'll come back safe and sound,” Gideon said, “but when I do, I'm going to tear down your tower!”
10 Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with an army of 15,000 troops. They were all that was left of the army of the eastern nations, because 120,000 of their warriors had been killed in the battle.
11 Gideon reached the enemy camp by going east along Nomad Road past Nobah and Jogbehah. He made a surprise attack, 12 and the enemy panicked. Zebah and Zalmunna tried to escape, but Gideon chased and captured them.
13 After the battle, Gideon set out for home. As he was going through Heres Pass, 14 he caught a young man who lived in Succoth. Gideon asked him who the town officials of Succoth were, and the young man wrote down 77 names.
15 Gideon went to the town officials and said, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna. Remember how you made fun of me? You said, ‘We don't know if you really will defeat those two Midianite kings. So why should we feed your worn-out army?’ ”
16 Gideon made a whip from thorn plants and used it to beat the town officials. 17 Afterwards he went to Penuel, where he tore down the tower and killed all the town officials.
18 Then Gideon said, “Zebah and Zalmunna, tell me about the men you killed at Tabor.”
“They were a lot like you,” the two kings answered. “They were dignified, almost like royalty.”
19 “They were my very own brothers!” Gideon said. “I swear by the living Lord that if you had let them live, I would let you live.”
20 Gideon turned to Jether, his oldest son. “Kill them!” Gideon said.
But Jether was young, and he was too afraid to even pull out his sword.
21 “What's the matter, Gideon?” Zebah and Zalmunna asked. “Do it yourself, if you're not too much of a coward!”
Gideon jumped up and killed them both. Then he took the gold ornaments from the necks of their camels.
The Israelites Ask Gideon To Be Their King
22 After the battle with the Midianites, the Israelites said, “Gideon, you rescued us! Now we want you to be our king. Then after your death, your son and then your grandson will rule.”
23 “No,” Gideon replied, “I won't be your king, and my son won't be king either. Only the Lord is your ruler. 24 But I will ask you to do one thing: Give me all the earrings you took from the enemy.”
The enemy soldiers had been Ishmaelites, and they wore gold earrings.
25 The Israelite soldiers replied, “Of course we will give you the earrings.” Then they spread out a robe on the ground and tossed the earrings on it. 26 The total weight of this gold was nearly 20 kilograms. In addition, there was the gold from the camels' ornaments and from the beautiful jewelry worn by the Midianite kings. Gideon also took their purple robes.
27-29 Gideon returned to his home in Ophrah and had the gold made into a statue, which the Israelites soon started worshiping. They were unfaithful to God, and even Gideon and his family were trapped into worshiping the statue.
The Midianites had been defeated so badly that they were no longer strong enough to attack Israel. And so Israel was at peace for the remaining 40 years of Gideon's life.
Gideon Dies
30 Gideon had many wives and 70 sons. 31 He even had a wife who lived at Shechem. They had a son, and Gideon named him Abimelech.
32 Gideon lived to be an old man. And when he died, he was buried in the family tomb in his hometown of Ophrah, which belonged to the Abiezer clan.
33 Soon after Gideon's death, the Israelites turned their backs on God again. They set up idols of Baal and worshiped Baal Berith as their god. 34 The Israelites forgot that the Lord was their God, and that he had rescued them from the enemies who lived around them. 35 Besides all that, the Israelites were unkind to Gideon's family, even though Gideon had done so much for Israel.
Gideon ta shikula Ovamidian
1 Opo nee ovakwaita vaEfraim ve mu lombwela: “We tu ningila shike ngaha, ove eshi ino tu shiva, ove eshi wa ka lwifa Ovamidian?” Ndele ve mu twifa eemhata unene. 2 Ndelenee ye ta ti kuvo: “Nda ninga ngeno shike shi fike pwaashi nye mwa ninga? Epupudululo laEfraim ndishi li dule ekolo leeviinyu daAbieser? 3 Kalunga a yandja eehamba daMidian, Oreb naSeeb momake eni, ndelenee ame nda ninga shike ngeno shi yelekwe naashi mwe shi ninga?” Ye eshi a popya eendjovo ei, vo ova handukuluka.
4 Ndele Gideon e uya kuJordan, novalumenhu omafele atatu ava va li puye, va tauluka va loloka molwokutaataa. 5 Ndele ye okwa lombwela ovalumenhu vomuSukkot: “Ovakwaita ava hava shikula nge, va peni omingome, osheshi vo ova loloka, naame ondi noupyakadi mokushikula Seba naSalmunna, eehamba dOvamidian.” 6 Ndelenee ovakulunhu vomuSukkot tava pula: “Eke laSeba nolaSalmunna oli li nokuli meke loye, fye tu pe omatanga oye omingome?” 7 Opo nee Gideon ta ti: “Onghee hano, Omwene ngeenge ta yandje meke lange Seba naSalmunna, ame ohandi ka xwa nokunyanyaula ombelela yeni nomano omofuka neeshosholo.” 8 Ndele oko okwa dja ko ta i kuPenuel, ndele okwa popya navo ngaha. Ndelenee ovalumenhu vomuPenuel ve mu nyamukula ngaashi ovalumenhu vomuSukkot ve mu nyamukula. 9 Opo nee ta lombwele ovanhu ava vomuPenuel ndele ta ti: “Ame ngeenge handi aluka nombili, ohandi ka ngumauna po ohoteshungo ei.”
10 Ndelenee Seba naSalmunna va li muKarkor, nomatanga avo, e fike pomayovi omulongo nomayovi atano a li puvo, vo aveshe ava va xupa po komatanga aeshe ovanhu vokoushilo. Ndelenee ava va dipawa po, va li ve fike pomayovi efele nomayovi omilongo mbali, ava va li ve nomaongamukonda. 11 Ndele Gideon okwa enda nondjila yovakali meefaila, langhele lwokoushilo waNobah naJogbeha, ndele okwa taataa omatanga ovakwaita fimbo omatanga a tulumukwa ehe noshisho. 12 Ndele Seba naSalmunna va ya onhapo, ndelenee vo ve va shikula, ndele va kwata eehamba edi mbali dOvamidian, Seba naSalmunna, eshi va halakanifa onhanda aishe.
13 Ndele Gideon yaJoas eshi a aluka a dja kolwoodi ta piti monghondo yaHeres, 14 okwa kwata omumati umwe womovanhu vomuSukkot nokwe mu pula noku mu pululula, ndele ye okwe mu shangela mo omadina omalenga novakulunhu vomuSukkot, ovalumenhu omilongo heyali navaheyali. 15 Ndele ye eshi e uya kovanhu vomuSukkot, ye ta ti: “Seba naSalmunna ovava, omolwavo mwa sheka nge nokutya: Eke laSeba nolaSalmunna oli li tuu nokuli meke loye, opo tu pe omatanga oye ovakwaita va loloka omingome?” 16 Opo nee ye okwa kwata ovakulunhu voshilando. Nokwa kufa omano omofuka neeshosholo. Ndele okwa longa ovalumenhu vomuSukkot nayo oshileshwa. 17 Nohoteshungo yomuPenuel okwe i ngumauna po nokwa dipaa ovalumenhu vomoshilando. 18 Ndele okwa pula kuSeba nokuSalmunna: “Ovalumenhu venya mwe va dipaa puTabor ovakwashike?” Ndele vo va nyamukula: “Ngaashi ove, osho va li: olupe lakeshe la fa olupe lovana vohamba.” 19 Opo nee ye ta ti: “Vo va li ovamwameme, ovana vameme! Oshili ngaashi Omwene e nomwenyo, ngeno mwe va efele va kale nomwenyo, ngeno itandi mu dipaa!” 20 Ndele ye ta ti kuJeter, oshiveli shaye: “Fikama, va dipaa!” Ndelenee omumati ina pweya mo eongamukonda, shaashi ye okwa tila. Osheshi ye okwa li natango okaana. 21 Opo nee Seba naSalmunna tava ti: “Fikama ove mwene u tu twe, osheshi ngaashi omulumenhu e li nosho yo eenghono daye di li.” Opo nee Gideon okwa fikama nokwa dipaa Seba naSalmunna. Ndele okwa kufa po omaulenga omeefingo deengamelo davo.
Gideon ta tungifa oshikutu shokomapepe
22 Opo nee ovalumenhu Ovaisraeli va lombwela Gideon ndele tava ti: “Tu pangela ove mwene, nomona woye omumati nomutekulu woye, osheshi ove we tu xupifa momake Ovamidian.” 23 Ndelenee Gideon e va nyamukula ta ti: “Ame inandi hala oku mu pangela, nomona wange yo ite ke mu pangela. Omwene ote ke mu pangela.” 24 Ndele Gideon okwe va lombwela ta ti: “Onda hala oku mu indila sha. Pei nge, keshe umwe, oulinga mwe va pewa oixuulwa!” Osheshi venya va li ve na oulinga voshingoldo, shaashi vo va li Ovaismaeli. 25 Opo vo va tya: “Ohatu va yandje nehafo.” Ndele vo ova yala oshikutu shokombada poshi, ndele keshe umwe a ekela po okalinga komoixuulwa yaye. 26 Ndele ondjele youlinga voshingoldo ovo e va indila ya li i fike peekilograma omilongo mbali ponho yomaulenga nomaliwapeko omomatwi noikutu yapurpuri, ei ya li ya djalwa keehamba dOvamidian, noponho yomalyenge a li meefingo deengamelo dado. 27 Ndele Gideon okwa ninga nayo oshikutu shokomapepe, ndele e shi dika moshilando shaye Ofra. NOvaisraeli aveshe ove shi shikula mokuhaela. Ndele eshi sha ninga omwiyo kuGideon neumbo laye. 28 Osho ngaha hano Ovamidian va li ve nokulininipika moipafi yovana vaIsrael, ndele venya inava tanganeneka omitwe davo vali. Noshilongo sha kala sha tulumukwa mefimbo laGideon omido omilongo nhee.
Oludalo laGideon nefyo laye
29 Ndele Jerubbaal yaJoas okwa ya keumbo nokwa kala ko. 30 Ndele Gideon okwa li e novana ovalumenhu omilongo heyali ava ye e va dala, osheshi ye okwa li e novalikadi vahapu. 31 Ndele oshikumbu shaye, ou a kala muSekem, e mu dalela yo okaana okamati, ndele e ka luka Abimelek. 32 Ndele Gideon yaJoas okwa fya a kulupa ndele a pakwa mombila yaxe Joas muOfra shOvaabieser. 33 Ndelenee Gideon eshi a fya, ovana vaIsrael va shikula vali ooBaal mokuhaela. Ndele ve liningila Baal-Berit kalunga kavo. 34 Novana vaIsrael inava dimbulukwa Omwene Kalunga kavo, ou e va xupifa mo momake ovatondadi vavo keembinga adishe. 35 Ndele vo inava alulila eumbo laJerubbaal (Gideon), omolwouwa aushe ou okwa li a ningila Israel.
