I Samuel 29

The Philistines Reject David

1 Thenthe Philistines gathered together all their armiesat Aphek, and the Israelites encamped by a fountain whichisin Jezreel.

2 And thelords of the Philistines passed in review by hundreds and by thousands, butDavid and his men passed in review at the rear with Achish.

3 Then the princes of the Philistines said, “Whatarethese Hebrewsdoinghere?”

# And Achish said to the princes of the Philistines, “Isthis not David, the servant of Saul king of Israel, who has been with methese days, or these years? And to this day I havefound no fault in him since he defectedtome.”

4 But the princes of the Philistines were angry with him; so the princes of the Philistines said to him,“Make this fellow return, that he may go back to the place which you have appointed for him, and do not let him go down with us tobattle, lestin the battle he become our adversary. For with what could he reconcile himself to his master, if not with the heads of thesemen?

5 Isthis not David,of whom they sang to one another in dances, saying:

# ‘Saul has slain his thousands,

And David his ten thousands’?”

6 Then Achish called David and said to him, “Surely,astheLordlives, you have been upright, andyour going out and your coming in with me in the armyisgood in my sight. For to this dayI have not found evil in you since the day of your coming to me. Nevertheless the lords do not favor you.

7 Therefore return now, and go in peace, that you may not displease the lords of the Philistines.”

8 So David said to Achish, “But what have I done? And to this day what have you found in your servant as long as I have been with you, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?”

9 Then Achish answered and said to David, “I know that youareas good in my sightas an angel of God; neverthelessthe princes of the Philistines have said, ‘He shall not go up with us to the battle.’

10 Now therefore, rise early in the morning with your master’s servantswho have come with you. And as soon as you are up early in the morning and have light, depart.”

11 So David and his men rose early to depart in the morning, to return to the land of the Philistines.And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.

I Samuel 30

David’s Conflict with the Amalekites

1 Now it happened, when David and his men came toZiklag, on the third day, that theAmalekites had invaded the South and Ziklag, attacked Ziklag and burned it with fire,

2 and had taken captive thewomen and those whowerethere, from small to great; they did not kill anyone, but carriedthemaway and went their way.

3 So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive.

4 Then David and the people whowerewith him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep.

5 And David’s twowives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive.

6 Now David was greatly distressed, forthe people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters.But David strengthened himself in theLordhis God.

7 Then David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, “Please bring the ephod here to me.” AndAbiathar brought the ephod to David.

8 So David inquired of theLord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?”

And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtakethemand without fail recoverall.”

9 So David went, he and the six hundred men whowerewith him, and came to the Brook Besor, where those stayed who were left behind.

10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men;for two hundred stayedbehind,who were so weary that they could not cross the Brook Besor.

11 Then they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David; and they gave him bread and he ate, and they let him drink water.

12 And they gave him a piece ofa cake of figs and two clusters of raisins. Sowhen he had eaten, his strength came back to him; for he had eaten no bread nor drunk water for three days and three nights.

13 Then David said to him, “To whom do youbelong,and whereareyou from?”

And he said, “Iama young man from Egypt, servant of an Amalekite; and my master left me behind, because three days ago I fell sick.

14 We made an invasion of the southernareaofthe Cherethites, in theterritorywhichbelongsto Judah, and of the southernareaof Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.”

15 And David said to him, “Can you take me down to this troop?”

# So he said, “Swear to me by God that you will neither kill me nor deliver me into the hands of mymaster, and I will take you down to this troop.”

16 And when he had brought him down, there they were, spread out over all the land,eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil which they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah.

17 Then David attacked them from twilight until the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled.

18 So David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away, and David rescued his two wives.

19 And nothing of theirs was lacking, either small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything which they had taken from them;David recovered all.

20 Then David took all the flocks and herds they had driven before thoseotherlivestock, and said, “ThisisDavid’s spoil.”

21 Now David came to thetwo hundred men who had been so weary that they could not follow David, whom they also had made to stay at the Brook Besor. So they went out to meet David and to meet the people whowerewith him. And when David came near the people, he greeted them.

22 Then all the wicked andworthless men of those who went with David answered and said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give themanyof the spoil that we have recovered, except for every man’s wife and children, that they may leadthemaway and depart.”

23 But David said, “My brethren, you shall not do so with what theLordhas given us, who has preserved us and delivered into our hand the troop that came against us.

24 For who will heed you in this matter? Butas his partiswho goes down to the battle, soshallhis partbewho stays by the supplies; they shall share alike.”

25 So it was, from that day forward; he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.

26 Now when David came to Ziklag, he sentsomeof the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of theLord”—

27 tothosewhowerein Bethel,thosewhowereinRamoth of the South,thosewhowereinJattir,

28 thosewhowereinAroer,thosewhowereinSiphmoth,thosewhowereinEshtemoa,

29 thosewhowerein Rachal,thosewhowerein the cities ofthe Jerahmeelites,thosewhowerein the cities of theKenites,

30 thosewhowereinHormah,thosewhowerein Chorashan,thosewhowerein Athach,

31 thosewhowereinHebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were accustomed torove.

I Samuel 31

The Tragic End of Saul and His Sons

1 Nowthe Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell slain on MountGilboa.

2 Then the Philistines followed hard after Saul and his sons. And the Philistines killedJonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, Saul’s sons.

3 The battle became fierce against Saul. The archers hit him, and he was severely wounded by the archers.

4 Then Saul said to his armorbearer, “Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lestthese uncircumcised men come and thrust me through and abuse me.”

# But his armorbearer would not,for he was greatly afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword andfell on it.

5 And when his armorbearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword, and died with him.

6 So Saul, his three sons, his armorbearer, and all his men died together that same day.

7 And when the men of Israel whowereon the other side of the valley, andthosewhowereon the other side of the Jordan, saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.

8 So it happened the next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.

9 And they cut off his head and stripped off his armor, and sentwordthroughout the land of the Philistines, toproclaimitinthe temple of their idols and among the people.

10 Then they put his armor in the temple of theAshtoreths, andthey fastened his body to the wall ofBeth Shan.

11 Now when the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,

12 all the valiant men arose and traveled all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan; and they came to Jabesh andburned them there.

13 Then they took their bones andburiedthemunder the tamarisk tree atJabesh, and fasted seven days.

Ruth 1

Elimelech’s Family Goes to Moab

1 Now it came to pass, in the days whenthe judges ruled, that there wasa famine in the land. And a certain man ofBethlehem, Judah, went to dwell in the country ofMoab, he and his wife and his two sons.

2 The name of the manwasElimelech, the name of his wifewasNaomi, and the names of his two sonswereMahlon and Chilion—Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they wentto the country of Moab and remained there.

3 Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons.

4 Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the onewasOrpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelt there about ten years.

5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband.

Naomi Returns with Ruth

6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that theLordhadvisited His people bygiving them bread.

7 Therefore she went out from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah.

8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law,“Go, return each to her mother’s house.TheLorddeal kindly with you, as you have dealtwith the dead and with me.

9 TheLordgrant that you may findrest, each in the house of her husband.”

So she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept.

10 And they said to her, “Surely we will return with you to your people.”

11 But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me?Arethere still sons in my womb,that they may be your husbands?

12 Turn back, my daughters, go—for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope,ifI should have a husband tonight and should also bear sons,

13 would you wait for them till they were grown? Would you restrain yourselves from having husbands? No, my daughters; for it grieves me very much for your sakes thatthe hand of theLordhas gone out against me!”

14 Then they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruthclung to her.

15 And she said, “Look, your sister-in-law has gone back toher people and to her gods;return after your sister-in-law.”

16 But Ruth said:

# “Entreat me not to leave you,

Ortoturn back from following after you;

For wherever you go, I will go;

And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;

# Your peopleshallbemy people,

And your God, my God.

17 Where you die, I will die,

And there will I be buried.

# TheLorddo so to me, and more also,

Ifanythingbutdeath parts you and me.”

18 When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to her.

19 Now the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem. And it happened, when they had come to Bethlehem, thatall the city was excited because of them; and the women said,“Isthis Naomi?”

20 But she said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.

21 I went out full,and theLordhas brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since theLordhas testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?”

22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess her daughter-in-law with her, who returned from the country of Moab. Now they came to Bethlehemat the beginning of barley harvest.

Ruth 2

Ruth Meets Boaz

1 There was arelative of Naomi’s husband, a man of great wealth, of the family ofElimelech. His namewasBoaz.

2 So Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to thefield, and glean heads of grain afterhimin whose sight I may find favor.”

And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.”

3 Then she left, and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the fieldbelongingto Boaz, whowasof the family of Elimelech.

4 Now behold, Boaz came fromBethlehem, and said to the reapers,“TheLordbewith you!”

And they answered him, “TheLordbless you!”

5 Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young womanisthis?”

6 So the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered and said, “Itisthe young Moabite womanwho came back with Naomi from the country of Moab.

7 And she said, ‘Please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ So she came and has continued from morning until now, though she rested a little in the house.”

8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, “You will listen, my daughter, will you not? Do not go to glean in another field, nor go from here, but stay close by my young women.

9 Letyour eyesbeon the field which they reap, and go after them. Have I not commanded the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink from what the young men have drawn.”

10 So shefell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I foundfavor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since Iama foreigner?”

11 And Boaz answered and said to her, “It has been fully reported to me,all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, andhowyou have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know before.

12 TheLordrepay your work, and a full reward be given you by theLordGod of Israel,under whose wings you have come for refuge.”

13 Then she said,“Let me find favor in your sight, my lord; for you have comforted me, and have spoken kindly to your maidservant,though I am not like one of your maidservants.”

14 Now Boaz said to her at mealtime, “Come here, and eat of the bread, and dip your piece of bread in the vinegar.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed parchedgrainto her; and she ate andwas satisfied, and kept some back.

15 And when she rose up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her.

16 Also letgrainfrom the bundles fall purposely for her; leaveitthat she may glean, and do not rebuke her.”

17 So she gleaned in the field until evening, and beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah ofbarley.

18 Then she tookitup and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned.

# So she brought out and gave to herwhat she had kept back after she had been satisfied.

19 And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where have you gleaned today? And where did you work? Blessed be the one whotook notice of you.”

So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, “The man’s name with whom I worked todayisBoaz.”

20 Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law,“Blessedbehe of theLord, whohas not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!” And Naomi said to her, “This manisa relation of ours,one of our close relatives.”

21 Ruth the Moabitess said, “He also said to me, ‘You shall stay close by my young men until they have finished all my harvest.’ ”

22 And Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, “Itisgood, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, and that people do not meet you in any other field.”

23 So she stayed close by the young women of Boaz, to glean until the end of barley harvest and wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law.

Ruth 3

Ruth’s Redemption Assured

1 Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter,shall I not seeksecurity for you, that it may be well with you?

2 Now Boaz,whose young women you were with,ishenot our relative? In fact, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.

3 Therefore wash yourself andanoint yourself, put on yourbestgarment and go down to the threshing floor;butdo not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking.

4 Then it shall be, when he lies down, that you shall notice the place where he lies; and you shall go in, uncover his feet, and lie down; and he will tell you what you should do.”

5 And she said to her, “All that you say to me I will do.”

6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law instructed her.

7 And after Boaz had eaten and drunk, andhis heart was cheerful, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain; and she came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down.

8 Now it happened at midnight that the man was startled, and turned himself; and there, a woman was lying at his feet.

9 And he said, “Whoareyou?”

# So she answered, “IamRuth, your maidservant.Take your maidservant under your wing, for you area close relative.”

10 Then he said,“Blessedareyou of theLord, my daughter! For you have shown more kindness at the end thanat the beginning, in that you did not go after young men, whether poor or rich.

11 And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you request, for all the people of my town know that youarea virtuous woman.

12 Now it is true that Iamaclose relative; however,there is a relative closer than I.

13 Stay this night, and in the morning it shall bethatif he willperform the duty of a close relative for you—good; let him do it. But if he does not want to perform the duty for you, then I will perform the duty for you,astheLordlives! Lie down until morning.”

14 So she lay at his feet until morning, and she arose before one could recognize another. Then he said,“Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”

15 Also he said, “Bring the shawl thatison you and hold it.” And when she held it, he measured sixephahsof barley, and laiditon her. Then she went into the city.

16 When she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “Isthat you, my daughter?”

Then she told her all that the man had done for her.

17 And she said, “These sixephahsof barley he gave me; for he said to me, ‘Do not go empty-handed to your mother-in-law.’ ”

18 Then she said,“Sit still, my daughter, until you know how the matter will turn out; for the man will not rest until he has concluded the matter this day.”

Ruth 4

Boaz Redeems Ruth

1 Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there; and behold,the close relative of whom Boaz had spoken came by. So Boaz said, “Come aside, friend, sit down here.” So he came aside and sat down.

2 And he took ten men ofthe elders of the city, and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down.

3 Then he said to the close relative, “Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, sold the piece of landwhichbelongedto our brother Elimelech.

4 And I thought to inform you, saying,‘Buyitbackin the presence of the inhabitants and the elders of my people. If you will redeemit,redeemit;but if you will not redeemit, thentell me, that I may know;forthereisno one but you to redeemit,and Iamnext after you.’ ”

And he said, “I will redeemit.”

5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must also buyitfrom Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead,to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance.”

6 And the close relative said, “I cannot redeemitfor myself, lest I ruin my own inheritance. You redeem my right of redemption for yourself, for I cannot redeemit.”

7 Now thiswasthecustomin former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging, to confirm anything: one man took off his sandal and gaveitto the other, and thiswasa confirmation in Israel.

8 Therefore the close relative said to Boaz, “Buyitfor yourself.” So he took off his sandal.

9 And Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “Youarewitnesses this day that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all thatwasChilion’s and Mahlon’s, from the hand of Naomi.

10 Moreover, Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, I have acquired as my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance,that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brethren and from his position at the gate. Youarewitnesses this day.”

11 And all the people whowereat the gate, and the elders, said, “Wearewitnesses.TheLordmake the woman who is coming to your house like Rachel and Leah, the two whobuilt the house of Israel; and may you prosper inEphrathah and be famous inBethlehem.

12 May your house be like the house ofPerez,whom Tamar bore to Judah, because ofthe offspring which theLordwill give you from this young woman.”

Descendants of Boaz and Ruth

13 So Boaztook Ruth and she became his wife; and when he went in to her,theLordgave her conception, and she bore a son.

14 Thenthe women said to Naomi, “BlessedbetheLord, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel!

15 And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who isbetter to you than seven sons, has borne him.”

16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to him.

17 Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “There is a son born to Naomi.” And they called his name Obed. Heisthe father of Jesse, the father of David.

18 Now thisisthe genealogy of Perez:Perez begot Hezron;

19 Hezron begot Ram, and Ram begot Amminadab;

20 Amminadab begotNahshon, and Nahshon begotSalmon;

21 Salmon begot Boaz, and Boaz begot Obed;

22 Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begotDavid.

Judges 1

The Continuing Conquest of Canaan

1 Now after thedeath of Joshua it came to pass that the children of Israelasked theLord, saying, “Who shall be first to go up for us against theCanaanites to fight against them?”

2 And theLordsaid,“Judah shall go up. Indeed I have delivered the land into his hand.”

3 So Judah said toSimeon his brother, “Come up with me to my allotted territory, that we may fight against the Canaanites; andI will likewise go with you to your allotted territory.” And Simeon went with him.

4 Then Judah went up, and theLorddelivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand; and they killed ten thousand men atBezek.

5 And they found Adoni-Bezek in Bezek, and fought against him; and they defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites.

6 Then Adoni-Bezek fled, and they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and big toes.

7 And Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off used to gatherscrapsunder my table;as I have done, so God has repaid me.” Then they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.

8 Nowthe children of Judah fought against Jerusalem and took it; they struck it with the edge of the sword and set the city on fire.

9 And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who dwelt in the mountains, in the South, and in the lowland.

10 Then Judah went against the Canaanites who dwelt inHebron. (Now the name of HebronwasformerlyKirjath Arba.) And they killed Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.

11 From there they went against the inhabitants of Debir. (The name of Debirwasformerly Kirjath Sepher.)

12 Then Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give my daughter Achsah as wife.”

13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz,Caleb’s younger brother, took it; so he gave him his daughter Achsah as wife.

14 Now it happened, when she cametohim,that she urged him to ask her father for a field. And she dismounted fromherdonkey, and Caleb said to her, “What do you wish?”

15 So she said to him,“Give me a blessing; since you have given me land in the South, give me also springs of water.”

And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.

16 Now the children of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went upfrom the City of Palms with the children of Judah into the Wilderness of Judah, whichliesin the SouthnearArad;and they went and dwelt among the people.

17 And Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they attacked the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. So the name of the city was calledHormah.

18 Also Judah tookGaza with its territory, Ashkelon with its territory, and Ekron with its territory.

19 So theLordwas with Judah. And they drove out the mountaineers, but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the lowland, because they hadchariots of iron.

20 And they gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had said. Then he expelled from there thethree sons of Anak.

21 But the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who inhabited Jerusalem; so the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.

22 And the house of Joseph also went up against Bethel,and theLordwaswith them.

23 So the house of Josephsent men to spy out Bethel. (The name of the citywasformerlyLuz.)

24 And when the spies saw a man coming out of the city, they said to him, “Please show us the entrance to the city, andwe will show you mercy.”

25 So he showed them the entrance to the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man and all his family go.

26 And the man went to the land of the Hittites, built a city, and called its name Luz, whichisits name to this day.

Incomplete Conquest of the Land

27 However, Manasseh did not drive outtheinhabitantsofBeth Shean and its villages, orTaanach and its villages, or the inhabitants ofDor and its villages, or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its villages, or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages; for the Canaanites were determined to dwell in that land.

28 And it came to pass, when Israel was strong, that they put the Canaanites under tribute, but did not completely drive them out.

29 Nor did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites who dwelt in Gezer; so the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.

30 Nor didZebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron or the inhabitants of Nahalol; so the Canaanites dwelt among them, and were put under tribute.

31 Nor did Asher drive out the inhabitants of Acco or the inhabitants of Sidon, or of Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, or Rehob.

32 So the Asheritesdwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for they did not drive them out.

33 Nor did Naphtali drive out the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh or the inhabitants of Beth Anath; but they dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land. Nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh and Beth Anath were put under tribute to them.

34 And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountains, for they would not allow them to come down to the valley;

35 and the Amorites were determined to dwell in Mount Heres,in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim; yet when the strength of the house of Joseph became greater, they were put under tribute.

36 Now the boundary of the Amoriteswasfrom the Ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela, and upward.

Judges 2

Israel’s Disobedience

1 Then the Angel of theLordcame up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said:“I led you up from Egypt andbrought you to the land of which I swore to your fathers; andI said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you.

2 Andyou shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land;you shall tear down their altars.’But you have not obeyed My voice. Why have you done this?

3 Therefore I also said, ‘I will not drive them out before you; but they shall bethornsin your side, andtheir gods shall be asnare to you.’ ”

4 So it was, when the Angel of theLordspoke these words to all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voices and wept.

5 Then they called the name of that place Bochim; and they sacrificed there to theLord.

6 And whenJoshua had dismissed the people, the children of Israel went each to his own inheritance to possess the land.

Death of Joshua

7 So the people served theLordall the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of theLordwhich He had done for Israel.

8 NowJoshua the son of Nun, the servant of theLord, diedwhenhewasone hundred and ten years old.

9 And they buried him within the border of his inheritance atTimnath Heres, in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaash.

10 When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them whodid not know theLordnor the work which He had done for Israel.

Israel’s Unfaithfulness

11 Then the children of Israel didevil in the sight of theLord, and served the Baals;

12 and theyforsook theLordGod of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followedother gods fromamongthe gods of the people whowereall around them, and theybowed down to them; and they provoked theLordto anger.

13 They forsook theLordand served Baal and the Ashtoreths.

14 And the anger of theLordwas hot against Israel. So Hedelivered them into the hands of plunderers who despoiled them; andHe sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, so that theycould no longer stand before their enemies.

15 Wherever they went out, the hand of theLordwas against them for calamity, as theLordhad said, and as theLordhadsworn to them. And they were greatly distressed.

16 Nevertheless,theLordraised up judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them.

17 Yet they would not listen to their judges, but theyplayed the harlot with other gods, and bowed down to them. They turned quickly from the way in which their fathers walked, in obeying the commandments of theLord; they did not do so.

18 And when theLordraised up judges for them,theLordwas with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge;for theLordwas moved to pity by their groaning because of those who oppressed them and harassed them.

19 And it came to pass,when the judge was dead, that they reverted and behaved more corruptly than their fathers, by following other gods, to serve them and bow down to them. They did not cease from their own doings nor from their stubborn way.

20 Then the anger of theLordwas hot against Israel; and He said, “Because this nation hastransgressed My covenant which I commanded their fathers, and has not heeded My voice,

21 I also will no longer drive out before them any of the nations which Joshualeft when he died,

22 sothat through them I maytest Israel, whether they will keep the ways of theLord, to walk in them as their fathers keptthem,or not.”

23 Therefore theLordleft those nations, without driving them out immediately; nor did He deliver them into the hand of Joshua.

Judges 3

The Nations Remaining in the Land

1 Now thesearethe nations which theLordleft, that He might test Israel by them,thatis,all who had not known any of the wars in Canaan

2 (thiswasonly so that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least those who had not formerly known it),

3 namely,five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who dwelt in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal Hermon to the entrance of Hamath.

4 And they wereleft, that He mighttest Israel by them, to know whether they would obey the commandments of theLord, which He had commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.

5 Thus the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

6 Andthey took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons; and they served their gods.

Othniel

7 So the children of Israel didevil in the sight of theLord. Theyforgot theLordtheir God, and served the Baals and Asherahs.

8 Therefore the anger of theLordwas hot against Israel, and Hesold them into the hand ofCushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years.

9 When the children of Israelcried out to theLord, theLordraised up a deliverer for the children of Israel, who delivered them:Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.

10 The Spirit of theLordcame upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and theLorddelivered Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-Rishathaim.

11 So the land had rest for forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

Ehud

12 And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of theLord. So theLordstrengthenedEglon king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of theLord.

13 Then he gathered to himself the people of Ammon andAmalek, went and defeated Israel, and took possession ofthe City of Palms.

14 So the children of Israelserved Eglon king of Moab eighteen years.

15 But when the children of Israelcried out to theLord, theLordraised up a deliverer for them: Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, aleft-handed man. By him the children of Israel sent tribute to Eglon king of Moab.

16 Now Ehud made himself a dagger (it was double-edged and a cubit in length) and fastened it under his clothes on his right thigh.

17 So he brought the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. (Now Eglonwasa very fat man.)

18 And when he had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people who had carried the tribute.

19 But he himself turned backfrom the stone images thatwereat Gilgal, and said, “I have a secret message for you, O king.”

He said, “Keep silence!” And all who attended him went out from him.

20 So Ehud came to him (now he was sitting upstairs in his cool private chamber). Then Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” So he arose fromhisseat.

21 Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly.

22 Even the hilt went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the dagger out of his belly; and his entrails came out.

23 Then Ehud went out through the porch and shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them.

24 When he had gone out,Eglon’sservants came to look, andtotheirsurprise, the doors of the upper room were locked. So they said, “He is probablyattending to his needs in the cool chamber.”

25 So they waited till they wereembarrassed, and still he had not opened the doors of the upper room. Therefore they took the key and openedthem.And there was their master, fallen dead on the floor.

26 But Ehud had escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the stone images and escaped to Seirah.

27 And it happened, when he arrived, thathe blew the trumpet in themountains of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mountains; and he led them.

28 Then he said to them, “Followme,fortheLordhas delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand.” So they went down after him, seized thefords of the Jordan leading to Moab, and did not allow anyone to cross over.

29 And at that time they killed about ten thousand men of Moab, all stout men of valor; not a man escaped.

30 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. Andthe land had rest for eighty years.

Shamgar

31 After him wasShamgar the son of Anath, who killed six hundred men of the Philistineswith an ox goad;and he also deliveredIsrael.