Gidiyoni unokunda Bamidiyani
1 Kukati kutji mangwanana, Jerubhaale, iye Gidiyoni kose ne bathu bose bakanokotokela ku tshime le Harodi. Ngono bukotokelo gwe Bamidiyani gwakabe guli ku bunandzwa gwabo pa duthu le More mu nkuku.
2 Yahwe bakadwa Gidiyoni bakati, “Bathu baunabo banjisa kundili kuti ndilonge Bamidiyani mu maboko abo, kusiti pamwe Baiziraela bedwa bezwikudza beti, ‘Tazwitjidza ngekwedu.’ 3 Ndizo ngweno zibisa bathu uti, ‘Iye unotja ngotetema ungashanduka kabhuda mu Dombo le Giliyadi.’ ” Ndizo kukashanduka bathu bali zwiwulu zwili makumi mabili ana zwibili (22 000), kukasala bali zwiwulu zwili gumi (10 000).
4 Koga Yahwe bakadwa Gidiyoni bakati, “Bathu batji banji kwazo, ubayise ku vula ndowobatapudza ikoko. Ha nditi, ‘Iwoyu wakafanila yenda nawe, ngaayende,’ koga ha nditi, ‘Iwoyu aazofanila yenda nawe,’ ngaasiyende.”
5 Ndizo Gidiyoni kadelusila bathu ku vula, ngono Yahwe bakadwa Gidiyoni bakati, “Uthubukanye banokaswa vula nge lilimi se mbgwa ne banothigama pasi be ng'wa vula.” 6 Balume bali mazana matatu (300) bakang'wa vula nge maboko bekaswa se mbgwa, ngono bose koga bakang'wa vula bakathigama. 7 Ngono Yahwe bakadwa Gidiyoni bakati, “Nge balume bali mazana matatu (300) bakaswa ndowokusunungula ndikalonga Bamidiyani mu maboko awo. Letja bamwe bose babgwilile, mmwe ne mmwe kanyi kukwe.” 8 Ndizo Gidiyoni katola zwija zwe bathu mu bali ne manyanga abo ngono kashandusila bose ku mishasha yabo. Kasala nge bali mazana matatu. Bukotokelo gwe Bamidiyani gwakabe guli kusi kukwe mu nkuku.
9 Mu busiku igogo Yahwe bakandwa bakati, “Milika, delukila pasi unonginilila bukotokelo, ngoti ndagulonga mu maboko awo. 10 Koga ha utja kudelukila, delukila pasi ku bukotokelo na Pura nlanda uwo, 11 ngono muteedze tjabanoleba. Shule kwa ipapo mowobe makasima kudelukila pasi munonginilila bukotokelo.” Ipapo kadelukila pasi na Pura nlanda uwe ku bukotokelo gwe balume bakadedela zwibhayano. 12 Bamidiyani ne Baamaleki ne bathu bose bekubhezhuba, bakabe baligele mu nkuku, balibanji se phashu, ne kamela dzabo dzisingabalike se nsetje we tjekelo dze gungwa. 13 Kwakati Gidiyoni ezha, kawana nlume atjaleba woloto lile ku nzwalani uwe eti, “Bona, ndakawolota tjiwunga tje bhali tjikungulukila mu bukotokelo gwe Bamidiyani. Tjakaloba nshasha nge simba gulu ngono nshasha ukawa ukakolomoka.”
14 Ngono nzwalani uwe kanshandula eti, “Ikoku akungabetjimwe kuzhe kwe thumo la Gidiyoni nkololo wa Joashi we N'iziraela. Ndzimu balonga Bamidiyani ne mbunga wose mu maboko awe.” 15 Kwakati Gidiyoni ehwa woloto kose ne tjeneso yalo, kanamata Ndzimu. Kabgwilila ku bukotokelo gwe Iziraela ngono kadana eti, “Milikani, ngoti Yahwe balonga mbunga we Bamidiyani mu maboko enyu.” 16 Ngono kathubukanya balume bali mazana matatu nge makupo matatu, kabiga manyanga ne majegwa asina tjimwe mu maboko abo bose, kuna mavone mu majegwa. 17 Ngono kabadwa kati, “Mundilinge, muthame tjandinothama. Ha ndiswika pa ndzibo we bukotokelo, muthame sekwa ndinothama. 18 Ha ndilidza lunyanga kose naibabo bandinabo, namwibo mulidzebo ku midzibo yose ye bukotokelo, ngono mumimile muti, ‘Ngwa ya Yahwe ne ngwa ya Gidiyoni.’ ”
19 Ndizo Gidiyoni ne balume bali zana (100) bakabe banaye bakaswika ku ndzibo we bukotokelo kutja bigiwa balindi be busiku, bakati batjibiga balindi, bakalidza nyanga dzabo bakapkhwanya majegwa akabe ali mu maboko abo. 20 Ngono makupo matatu akalidza nyanga dzawo bakapkhwanya majegwa, bakabhata mavone nge maboko abo e lumeshwe, nyanga bakadzibhata nge maboko abo e luji kudzilidza, ngono bakamimila beti, “Thumo la Yahwe ne la Gidiyoni.” 21 Bakama, nlume mmwe ne mmwe pa magalo awe bakakomba bukotokelo, ngono ngwa yose ikalabuka, bakalila bakatizha. 22 Kwakati belidza nyanga dzili mazana matatu, Yahwe bakathama kuti balume bamubukotokelo bamukilane batemane nge mathumo abo. Ngwa ikatizhila ku Bhetishita kulingisana ne Zerera kunoti ku ngathu we Abelimehola hwunde ye Tabhati. 23 Ngono balume be Iziraela bakadang'wa kudwa ku Nafutali ne Asheri ne Manase yose ngono bakatatamila Bamidiyani.
24 Ngono Gidiyoni katumila batumwa mu shango ye matuthu yose ye Ifureimi eti, “Delukilani pasi ngeno mudzibilidze Bamidiyani mubakilile vula kunoti tjose ku Bhetibhara ne Jorodani.” Ndizo balume bose be Ifureimi bakadang'wa ngono bakabakilila vula kunoti tjose ku Bhetibhara ne ku Jorodani. 25 Bakatapa batungamili babili be Bamidiyani, kuli Orebu na Zibi. Bakabulayila Orebu ku shongwe ya Orebu, ngono Zibi bakambulayila ku tjiswinilo tje nkumbi tja Zibi. Bakatatamila Bamidiyani ngono bakabuya ne nsholo wa Orebu ne wa Zibi kuna Gidiyoni seli ye Jorodani.
Gideon Defeats the Midianites
1 One day Gideon and all his men got up early and camped beside Harod Spring. The Midianite camp was in the valley to the north of them by Moreh Hill.
2 The Lord said to Gideon, “The men you have are too many for me to give them victory over the Midianites. They might think that they had won by themselves, and so give me no credit. 3 Announce to the people, ‘Anyone who is afraid should go back home, and we will stay here at Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand went back, but ten thousand stayed.
4 Then the Lord said to Gideon, “You still have too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will separate them for you there. If I tell you a man should go with you, he will go. If I tell you a man should not go with you, he will not go.” 5 Gideon took the men down to the water, and the Lord told him, “Separate everyone who laps up the water with his tongue like a dog, from everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.” 6 There were three hundred men who scooped up water in their hands and lapped it; all the others got down on their knees to drink. 7 The Lord said to Gideon, “I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites with the three hundred men who lapped the water. Tell everyone else to go home.” 8 So Gideon sent all the Israelites home, except the three hundred, who kept all the supplies and trumpets. The Midianite camp was below them in the valley.
9 That night the Lord commanded Gideon, “Get up and attack the camp; I am giving you victory over it. 10 But if you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah. 11 You will hear what they are saying, and then you will have the courage to attack.” So Gideon and his servant Purah went down to the edge of the enemy camp. 12 The Midianites, the Amalekites, and the desert tribesmen were spread out in the valley like a swarm of locusts, and they had as many camels as there are grains of sand on the seashore.
13 When Gideon arrived, he heard a man telling a friend about a dream. He was saying, “I dreamed that a loaf of barley bread rolled into our camp and hit a tent. The tent collapsed and lay flat on the ground.”
14 His friend replied, “It's the sword of the Israelite, Gideon son of Joash! It can't mean anything else! God has given him victory over Midian and our whole army!”
15 When Gideon heard about the man's dream and what it meant, he fell to his knees and worshiped the Lord. Then he went back to the Israelite camp and said, “Get up! The Lord is giving you victory over the Midianite army!” 16 He divided his three hundred men into three groups and gave each man a trumpet and a jar with a torch inside it. 17 He told them, “When I get to the edge of the camp, watch me, and do what I do. 18 When my group and I blow our trumpets, then you blow yours all around the camp and shout, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon!’”
19 Gideon and his one hundred men came to the edge of the camp a while before midnight, just after the guard had been changed. Then they blew the trumpets and broke the jars they were holding, 20 and the other two groups did the same. They all held the torches in their left hands, the trumpets in their right, and shouted, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” 21 Every man stood in his place around the camp, and the whole enemy army ran away yelling. 22 While Gideon's men were blowing their trumpets, the Lord made the enemy troops attack each other with their swords. They ran toward Zarethan as far as Beth Shittah, as far as the town of Abel Meholah near Tabbath.
23 Then men from the tribes of Naphtali, Asher, and both parts of Manasseh were called out, and they pursued the Midianites. 24 Gideon sent messengers through all the hill country of Ephraim to say, “Come down and fight the Midianites. Hold the Jordan River and the streams as far as Bethbarah, to keep the Midianites from crossing them.” The men of Ephraim were called together, and they held the Jordan River and the streams as far as Bethbarah. 25 They captured the two Midianite chiefs, Oreb and Zeeb; they killed Oreb at Oreb Rock, and Zeeb at the Winepress of Zeeb. They continued to pursue the Midianites and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was now east of the Jordan.