1
And Yerubbaal, that is Gid’on, rose early, and all the people who were with him, and they encamped beside Ein-Charod. And the camp of Midyan was north of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.
2
And Yahuah said to Gid’on, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to give Midyan into their hand, lest Yisra’el boast against Me, saying, ‘My own hand saved me.’
3
And now, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever fears and trembles, let him return and depart from Mount Gilad.’” And twenty-two thousand from the people returned, and ten thousand remained.
4
And Yahuah said to Gid’on, “The people are still too many. Bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. And it shall be that whoever I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go with you; and whoever I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
5
And he brought the people down to the water. And Yahuah said to Gid’on, “Everyone who laps from the water with his tongue as a dog laps, you shall set by himself; and likewise everyone who bows down upon his knees to drink.”
6
And the number of those who lapped, bringing their hand to their mouth, was three hundred ish. But all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water.
7
And Yahuah said to Gid’on, “By the three hundred ish who lapped I will save you and give Midyan into your hand. And let all the people go, each ish to his place.”
8
And the people took provisions in their hand, and their shofarot. And he sent every ish of Yisra’el away, each to his tent, but held the three hundred ish. And the camp of Midyan was beneath him in the valley.
9
And it came to pass that night that Yahuah said to him, “Rise, go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand.
10
But if you fear to go down, go down, you and Purah your servant, to the camp,
11
and you shall hear what they speak. And afterward your hands shall be strengthened, and you shall go down against the camp.” And he went down, he and Purah his servant, to the edge of the armed men who were in the camp.
12
And Midyan, and Amaleq, and all the sons of the east were lying in the valley like locusts for multitude, and their camels were without number, like the sand that is upon the shore of the sea for multitude.
13
And Gid’on came, and see, an ish was recounting a dream to his neighbor. And he said, “See, I dreamed a dream, and see, a loaf of barley bread was tumbling into the camp of Midyan. And it came to the tent and struck it, and it fell, and overturned it, and the tent lay flat.”
14
And his neighbor answered and said, “This is nothing other than the sword of Gid’on son of Yoash, an ish of Yisra’el. Elohim has given Midyan and all the camp into his hand.”
15
And it came to pass, when Gid’on heard the recounting of the dream and its interpretation, that he bowed himself. And he returned to the camp of Yisra’el and said, “Rise, for Yahuah has given the camp of Midyan into your hand.”
16
And he divided the three hundred ish into three companies, and placed shofarot in the hand of them all, with empty jars and torches within the jars.
17
And he said to them, “Look at me and do likewise. And see, when I come to the edge of the camp, it shall be that as I do, so you shall do.
18
When I blow the shofar, I and all who are with me, then you also shall blow the shofarot around all the camp and say, ‘For Yahuah and for Gid’on!’”
19
And Gid’on and the hundred ish who were with him came to the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, when they had only just set the guards. And they blew the shofarot and shattered the jars that were in their hands.
20
And the three companies blew the shofarot and broke the jars, and held the torches in their left hands and the shofarot in their right hands to blow, and they cried, “A sword for Yahuah and for Gid’on!”
21
And each ish stood in his place around the camp, and all the camp ran, and cried out, and fled.
22
And the three hundred blew the shofarot, and Yahuah set the sword of each ish against his neighbor throughout all the camp. And the camp fled as far as Beit-HaShittah toward Tzererah, as far as the border of Avel-Mecholah by Tabbat.
23
And the ish of Yisra’el were called together from Naftali, and from Asher, and from all Menasheh, and they pursued after Midyan.
24
And Gid’on sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Efrayim, saying, “Come down to meet Midyan, and seize before them the waters as far as Beit-Barah and the Yarden.” And every ish of Efrayim was called together, and they seized the waters as far as Beit-Barah and the Yarden.
25
And they seized the two rulers of Midyan, Orev and Ze’ev. And they killed Orev at the rock of Orev, and Ze’ev they killed at the winepress of Ze’ev. And they pursued Midyan, and brought the heads of Orev and Ze’ev to Gid’on beyond the Yarden.