Gideonni ge Midianǁîga ra dan
1 ǀGuitsē gu ge Jerubali (ǁnāb ge Gideonna) tsî ǁîb aogu tsîna ǃnauǁgoaga khâimâ tsî Harodǀaus ǀgūse hâǃkhaiba ge dībasen. Midianǁîgu di hâǃkhaib ge Gideon hâga xu ǀapasǀkhāb ai ǁgoe ǃgoaǃnāb ǃnâ Mores ǃnâus ǀgūse ge hâ i.
2 ǃKhūb ge Gideonna ǃoa ge mî: “Sats ǀkha hâ aogu ge Midianǁîgu ǃoagu ta nî dansa mā gosa ǃoa kaise a ǂgui. ǁÎgu ge aitsama gu go dan ti nî ǂâi tsî gu ge tita ǃoagu nî koasen. 3 ǁÎga mîba: ‘ǃAo rab hoaba ab oa, sige ge Gileadǃhommi tawa nî hâ.’ ” O gu ge ǀgamdisiǀgamǀaǀoadisi aoga ge oa, xawe disiǀoadisigu ge ge hâ.
4 Ob ge ǃKhūba Gideonna ǃoa ge mî: “Noxopats ge kaise ǂgui aoga ūhâ. ǁÎga ǁgam-e ǃoa ǁgôa-ū, o ta ge ǁîga ǁnāpa nî ǀgoraba tsi. Tita ga nēb ge sats ǀkha nî ǃgû ti a mîba tsib, ǁîb ge nî ǃgû. Tsî tita ga nēb ge sats ǀkha ǃgû tide ti a mîba tsib, ǁîb ge ǃgû tide.” 5 Gideonni ge aoga ǁgam-i ǁga a ǁgôa-ū, ob ge ǃKhūba ǁîb ǃoa ge mî: “Nammi âb ǀkha ga ari-i khami ǁgam-e āb hoaba, ǁgoara âb ai ga āb nîse ǃhonna xu ǀgora.” 6 O gu ge ǃnonakaidisi aoga ǁgam-e ǃomgu âgu ǀkha xuri tsî ge tsākhâi; naugu hoagu ge ā gu nîga ge ǃhon. 7 Ob ge ǃKhūba Gideonna ǃoa ge mî: “Tita ge ǁnā ǃnonakaidisi aogu ǁgam-e goro tsākhâi gu ǀkha huiǂui tsî dansa Midianǁîgu ǂama nî māgo. Naugu hoaga mîba î gu oa.” 8 Gideonni ge Israelǁîgu hoaga ge oa kai. ǁÎb ge ǃnonakaidisi aogu ǀguiga ge hâ-oa kai tsî gu ge ǁîga ǂûn tsî xâiǁnâdi tsîna ǁnāxūbahe. Midianǁîgu di hâǃkhaib ge ǁîga xu ǃnaka ǃgoaǃnāb ǃnâ ge hâ i.
9 ǁNā tsuxub ǃnâb ge ǃKhūba Gideonna ge mîmā: “Khâi, îts Midianǁîgu di hâǃkhaiba sī ǁnāǂam. Tita ge dansa ǁîgu ǂama ra mā tsi. 10 Xawe ǁîga ǁnāǂamsats nî ǃaos kao, ǁnâi sa ǃgāb Purab ǀkha hâǃkhaib ǃoa ǁgôa. 11 Sats ge tare-e gu ra mîsa ǁnâu tsî ǁîga ǁnāǂamsa ǃoa ǁkhoaǂgaoxasiba nî hō.” ǁNāti kha ge Gideonni tsî ǁîb di ǃgāb Purab tsîkha khākhoegu di hâǃkhaib amǃgâb kōse ge ǁgôa. 12 Midianǁîn, Amalekǁîn tsî aiǂoas ǃhaodi din tsîn ge hoaraga ǃgoaǃnāba ǂhomn khami ǂguise ge ǀoa hâ i. ǁÎn di ǃnain ge hurib amǃgâb di ǃhūb khami, ǃgôahe ǁoasase ge ǂgui i.
13 ǁNāpab ge sī, ob ge Gideonna khoeb ra horesab âba ǁhapo-e mîba ǃkhaisa ge ǁnâu. ǁÎb ge ge mî: “Tita ge go ǁhapo ǃgupu ǃhoroperes sage hâǃkhaib ǃnâ gabasen ǂgâxa tsî tentsa ra ǂgâu ǃkhaisa. Tents ge ǂhabase ǃhūb ai go ǁnāǁgoe.”
14 Ob ge horesab âba ge ǃeream: “Israelǁîb Gideonni, Joasi ôab di gôab ge ǁnāba. ǀNî xū tama i ge ǁnā-e. Elob ge ǁîba Midianni tsî sada toroǂnubis hoaragas ǂama dansa go mā.”
15 Gideonni ge nē khoeb di ǁhapos tsî tare-es ra ǂâibasensab ge ǁnâuo, ǃhonǁgoa tsî ǃKhūba ge ǀgoreǀî. Tsîb ge Israelǁîn di hâǃkhaib ǃoa oa tsî ge mî: “Khâima, ǃKhūb ge Midianǁîn di toroǂnubis ǂama dansa ra mā go.” 16 Gideonni ge ǁîb di ǃnonakaidisi khoega ǃnona ǃnandi ǃnâ ǀgoraǂgā tsî mâb hoaba xâiǁnâs tsî ǂgoaxapab, ǃamǀaes hâǃnâb tsîna ge mā. 17 Tsîb ge ǁîga ge mîba: “Hâǃkhaib amǃgâb kōse ta ga sī, o tita kō, î tita ra dī khami dī. 18 Tita tsî tita ǀkha hâ khoegu tsîge ga xâiǁnâde a xâi, o go ge sago hoago hâǃkhaib ǂnamipe ǁnāti dī tsî ‘ǃKhūb ǃaroma tsî Gideonni ǃaroma’ ti nî ǂgaiǂui.”
19 Gideonni tsî ǁîb di ǀguikaidisi khoegu tsîgu ge tsuxuǃgâb ai, ǃûi-aogu ǀase ǃkhunigutoa hâ hîa hâǃkhaib amǃgâb ai ge sī. Tsî gu ge xâiǁnâde xâi tsî ǂgoaxapagu, ū gu ge hâ iga ge khôa, 20 o gu ge nau ǀgam ǃnanra digu tsîna ǁkhās ǁkhāsa ge dī. ǁÎgu hoagu ge ǃamǀaede ǁareǀkhāb ǃommi ǃnâ ū, xâiǁnâde amǀkhāb ǃommi ǃnâ ū tsî “Gôaba ǃKhūb ǃaroma tsî Gideonni ǃaroma” ti ge ǂgaiǂui. 21 Mâ khoeb hoab ge hâǃkhaib ǂnamipe ǁîb di ǃkhais ai ge mâ i, tsîs ge hoaraga toroǂnubis khākhoen disa ǃau rase ge ǃkhoeni. 22 Gideonni di khoegu xâiǁnâde ra xâi hîab ge ǃKhūba ge dī khākhoen toroǃkhamaogu ge ǁîǃnābe gôagu ǀkha ǃgamgu ǃkhaisa. ǁÎgu ge Saretans ǁga Bet-Sitas kōse ge ǁhâ tsî Abel-Meholas, Tabats ǀgūse ǁgoes kōse.
23 Naftalib, Aseri tsî Manaseb di ǀkharikha hoakha di Israelǁîgu ge ge ǂgaiǀhaohe tsî gu ge ǁîga Midianǁîga ge ǃgôaǃgon. 24 Gideonni ge sîsabega Efraimmi di ǃnâuxa ǃhūb hoaragab ǃnâ ge sîǂui, î gu sī mî: “Hā, î Midianǁîn ǃoagu hā ǃkham, î Jordanǃāb tsî ǃārogu tsîna Bet-Baras kōse ū, tsî Midianǁîn ǁîga nî ǃgâusa ǁkhae.” Efraimmi di khoegu ge ǂgaiǀhaohe tsî Jordanǃāba Bet-Baras kōse ge ǁkhae. 25 ǁÎgu ge Midianǁîn di ǂgaeǂgui-aokha, Oreb tsî Seeb tsîkha ge ǃkhō; tsî gu ge Oreba Oreb ǃhaob ai ge ǃgam tsî Seeba Seeb di ǀāǃnâǃkhaib tawa ge ǃgam. Midianǁîna gu ge ǃgôaǃgons khaoǃgâ gu ge Oreb tsî Seeb tsîkha di danara, Gideonni hîa Jordanni nauǃanib ai hâb tawa ge sī-ū.
1 Early the next morning, Gideon and his army got up and moved their camp to Fear Spring. The Midianite camp was to the north, in the valley at the foot of Moreh Hill.
2 The Lord said, “Gideon, your army is too big. I can't let you win with this many soldiers. The Israelites would think that they had won the battle all by themselves and that I didn't have anything to do with it. 3 So call your troops together and tell them that anyone who is really afraid can leave Mount Gilead and go home.”
Twenty-two thousand men returned home, leaving Gideon with only 10,000 soldiers.
4 “Gideon,” the Lord said, “you still have too many soldiers. Take them down to the spring and I'll test them. I'll tell you which ones can go along with you and which ones must go back home.”
5 When Gideon led his army down to the spring, the Lord told him, “Watch how each man gets a drink of water. Then divide them into two groups—those who lap the water like a dog and those who kneel down to drink.”
6 Three hundred men scooped up water in their hands and lapped it, and the rest knelt to get a drink. 7 The Lord said, “Gideon, your army will be made up of everyone who lapped the water from their hands. Send the others home. I'm going to rescue Israel by helping you and your army of 300 defeat the Midianites.”
8 Then Gideon gave these orders, “You 300 men stay here. The rest of you may go home, but leave your food and trumpets with us.”
Gideon's army camp was on top of a hill overlooking the Midianite camp in the valley.
9 That night, the Lord said to Gideon. “Get up! Attack the Midianite camp. I am going to let you defeat them, 10 but if you're still afraid, you and your servant Purah should sneak down to their camp. 11 When you hear what the Midianites are saying, you'll be brave enough to attack.”
Gideon and Purah worked their way to the edge of the enemy camp, where soldiers were on guard duty. 12 The camp was huge. The Midianites, Amalekites, and other eastern nations covered the valley like a swarm of locusts. And it would be easier to count the grains of sand on a beach than to count their camels. 13 Gideon overheard one enemy guard telling another, “I had a dream about a flat loaf of barley bread that came tumbling into our camp. It hit the headquarters tent, and the tent flipped over and fell to the ground.”
14 The other soldier answered, “Your dream must have been about Gideon, the Israelite commander. It means God will let him and his army defeat the Midianite army and everyone else in our camp.”
15 As soon as Gideon heard about the dream and what it meant, he bowed down to praise God. Then he went back to the Israelite camp and shouted, “Let's go! The Lord is going to let us defeat the Midianite army.”
16 Gideon divided his little army into three groups of 100 men, and he gave each soldier a trumpet and a large clay jar with a burning torch inside. 17-18 Gideon said, “When we get to the enemy camp, spread out and surround it. Then wait for me to blow a signal on my trumpet. As soon as you hear it, blow your trumpets and shout, ‘Fight for the Lord! Fight for Gideon!’ ”
19 Gideon and his group reached the edge of the enemy camp a few hours after dark, just after the new guards had come on duty. Gideon and his soldiers blew their trumpets and smashed the clay jars that were hiding the torches. 20 The rest of Gideon's soldiers blew the trumpets they were holding in their right hands. Then they smashed the jars and held the burning torches in their left hands. Everyone shouted, “Fight with your swords for the Lord and for Gideon!”
21 The enemy soldiers started yelling and tried to run away. Gideon's troops stayed in their positions surrounding the camp 22 and blew their trumpets again. As they did, the Lord made the enemy soldiers pull out their swords and start fighting each other.
The enemy army tried to escape from the camp. They ran to Acacia Tree Town, toward Zeredah, and as far as the edge of the land that belonged to the town of Abel-Meholah near Tabbath.
23 Gideon sent word for more Israelite soldiers to come from the tribes of Naphtali, Asher, and both halves of Manasseh to help fight the Midianites. 24 He also sent messengers to tell all the men who lived in the hill country of Ephraim, “Come and help us fight the Midianites! Put guards at every spring, stream, and well, as far as Beth-Barah before the Midianites can get to them. And guard the Jordan River.”
Troops from Ephraim did exactly what Gideon had asked, 25 and they even helped chase the Midianites on the east side of the Jordan River. These troops captured Raven and Wolf, the two Midianite leaders. They killed Raven at a large rock that has come to be known as Raven Rock, and they killed Wolf near a wine-pit that has come to be called Wolf Wine-Pit.
The men of Ephraim brought the heads of the two Midianite leaders to Gideon.
