Глава 8

1–3. The discontent of the Ephraimites against Gideon. 4–9. Denial of bread to Gideon by the inhabitants of Succoth and Penuel. 10–12. Captivity of kings Zevakh and Tsalmuna. 13–17. Punishment of the elders of Succoth and Penuel. 18–21. Execution of kings Zevakh and Tsalmuna. 22–23. The Israelites' offer of kingship over them to Gideon and his response to them. 24–27. Gideon making the Ephod and placing it in Ophrah. 28–29. Condition of the Israelites under Gideon. 30–35. The descendants of Gideon and the attitude of the Israelites towards him. Judges 8:1. And the Ephraimites said to him: Why did you do this, that you did not call us when you went to fight with the Midianites? And they quarreled strongly with him. Judges 8:2. [Gideon] answered them: Have I done anything like you today? Wasn't Ephraim happier when he picked grapes than Abiezer when he picked them? Judges 8:3. God delivered the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zib, into your hands, and what could I do like you? Then their spirit against him calmed down when he spoke these words to them. The Ephraimites, who stood at the time of the Judges at the head of the other tribes, since in one of their cities, namely Shiloh, at that time the sanctuary of the Lord was located (Judges 18:31), arrogantly and unfairly expressed displeasure to Gideon for the apparent lack of attention to themselves (cf. Judges 12:1). But Gideon, with his kind answer, softened their irritation against him. Judges 8:4. And Gideon came to the Jordan, and he and the three hundred men who were with him crossed over. They were tired [and hungry] from pursuing their enemies. Judges 8:5. And he said to the inhabitants of Succoth: Give bread to the people who follow me; They are tired, and I am pursuing Zebah and Zalman, kings of Midian. Judges 8:6. The princes of Succoth said: Is the hand of Zebah and Zalman already in your hand, so that we can give grain to your army? Judges 8:7. And Gideon said: For this, when the Lord has delivered Zebah and Zalman into my hands, I will tear your body to pieces with desert thorns and with jagged threshing boards. Judges 8:8. From there he went to Penuel and said the same to its inhabitants, and the inhabitants of Penuel answered him the same as the inhabitants of Succoth answered. Judges 8:9. He also said to the people of Penuel: When I return in peace, I will destroy this tower. The inhabitants of Succoth and Penuel refused even bread to Gideon, who fought for the salvation of Israel, thereby incurring his just wrath. On Succoth, see Gen. 33:17; for Penuel, see Gen. 32:30–32. Judges 8:10. Zebei and Zalman were in Carcora and with them their army, up to fifteen thousand, all that remained of the entire army of the inhabitants of the east; One hundred and twenty thousand people fell, drawing the sword. Judges 8:11. Gideon went to the tent dwellers east of Nob and Jogbegi and struck down the camp while the camp stood careless. Judges 8:12. Zebei and Salman ran; he pursued them and captured both kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalman, and threw the whole camp into confusion. For Nova, see Num. 32:42; about Yogbeg - Numbers 32:35. Karkor, or Karkar, Eusebius and Jerome place north of Petra, at a distance of a day's journey (Onom 272, 62), and Burkgarat is identified with Karkageish (Syrie, p. 612). Judges 8:13. And Gideon the son of Joash returned from the war from the heights of Jerez. The heights of Jerez (according to LXX Αρες) are placed somewhere near Succoth. The Targum and Vulgate translate: “before the sun rises” (ante solis ortum), understanding the word hechares through heharim (i.e., “mountains”), which is why it translates: “from the top of the mountains,” i.e. Gilead. Judges 8:14. And he captured a young man from the inhabitants of Succoth and questioned him; and he wrote to him the princes and elders of Succoth, seventy-seven. Judges 8:15. And he came to the inhabitants of Succoth, and said: Here are Zebah and Zalman, for whom you mocked me, saying: Is the hand of Zebah and Zalman already in your hand, that we should give bread to your weary people? Judges 8:16. And he took the elders of the city and the desert thorns and the jagged threshing boards and punished the inhabitants of Succoth with them; Judges 8:17. and he destroyed the tower of Penuel and killed the inhabitants of the city. After the captivity of the Midian kings, Gideon punished the elders of Succoth and Penuel for their lack of sympathy for the people's cause (cf. above, vv. 7–8). Judges 8:18. And he said to Zebah and Zalman, “Who were those whom you killed at Tabor?” They said: they were like you, each had the appearance of the sons of kings. Judges 8:19. [Gideon] said: These were my brothers, the sons of my mother. The Lord lives! if you had left them alive, I would not have killed you. Judges 8:20. And he said to Jether his firstborn, Arise, kill them. But the young man did not draw his sword, because he was afraid, since he was still young. Judges 8:21. And Zebah and Zalman said, Arise thyself and smite us, for according to man is his strength. And Gideon stood up and killed Zebah and Zalman, and took the buckles that were on the necks of their camels. According to the law of revenge for the blood of a murdered relative, which was widely used among the peoples of the East (cf. Deut. 19:5–6; Exod. 21:12–14), Gideon put to death the kings of Zebah and Tsalmun for the murder of his brothers, after which he took the chains made of precious metal that were on the necks of their camels, the like of which, according to travelers, are now often found on the necks Arabian camels. Judges 8:22. And the Israelites said to Gideon, Rule over us, you and your son and your son's son, for you saved us from the hand of the Midianites. Judges 8:23. Gideon said to them, “Neither will I rule over you, nor will my son rule over you; May the Lord rule over you. Strictly referring to the theocratic principle, Gideon recognized the ruler of Israel as one Lord, to whom alone the people of Israel owe their salvation. Judges 8:24. And Gideon said to them, I ask one thing of you: give me each an earring from your spoils. [For the enemies had many golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.] Judges 8:25. They said: we'll give it. And they spread out their clothes and each threw in an earring from their spoils. Judges 8:26. The weight of the gold earrings that he asked for was one thousand seven hundred gold shekels, besides the buckles, buttons, and purple garments that the kings of Midian wore, and besides the [golden] chains that were on the necks of their camels. Judges 8:27. From this Gideon made an ephod and placed it in his city, in Ophrah, and all the Israelites began to go there fornication after it, and it became a snare to Gideon and to all his house. From the gold earrings given to Gideon by the Israelites, taken from their slain enemies, weighing up to 1,700 gold shekels (more than 70 pounds), as well as chains, necklaces and precious clothes, Gideon made an ephod similar to the high priestly ephod (cf. Ex. 28:6-12, 39:2-5), or, as some guess, a vestment for the altar “Jehovah Shalom” (Judges 6:24), which he erected in Ophrah, where, instead of Shiloh, where the Tabernacle was, the people began to go to worship. Judges 8:28. So the Midianites humbled themselves before the children of Israel and did not lift up their heads anymore, and the land rested for forty years in the days of Gideon. Judges 8:29. And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his house. Judgment 8:30 . Gideon had seventy sons that came from his own body, because he had many wives. Judges 8:31. Likewise, the concubine who lived in Shechem bore him a son, and he gave him the name Abimelech. Judges 8:32. And Gideon, the son of Joash, died at a very old age, and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash, in Ophrah of Abiezer. Judges 8:33. When Gideon died, the children of Israel again began to walk prodigally after the Baals and made Baal-verith their god; Judges 8:34. and the children of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who delivered them out of the hand of all the enemies that were around them; Judges 8:35. and the house of Jerubbaal, or Gideon, was not shown mercy for all the good deeds that he had done to Israel. After the death of Gideon, the Israelites again fell into idolatry, worshiping Baal-berith (Baal is the patron of the covenant, cf. Judges 9:4), did not remember the Lord and did not show mercy to the descendants of Gideon, which were quite numerous. Among the descendants of Gideon, by the way, was Abimelech, born from a concubine of Sichemite descent, who later turned out to be responsible for the death of almost all of Gideon’s other offspring. You might be interested in: