Judges 8 in plain modern English. New Ground English Translation.

Then the men of Ephraim said to him, "What is this you’ve done to us? Why didn’t you call us when you went to fight Midian?" They confronted him aggressively.

But he said to them, "What have I accomplished compared to you? Isn’t Ephraim’s leftover grape harvest better than Abiezer’s entire vintage?"

"God handed Oreb and Zeeb, the Midianite commanders, over to you. What was I able to do compared to that?" When he said this, their anger toward him died down.

Gideon came to the Jordan and crossed over — he and his three hundred men, exhausted but still pursuing.

He said to the people of Succoth, "Please give some loaves of bread to the men following me. They’re exhausted, and I’m chasing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian."

But the leaders of Succoth said, "Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna already in your grip? Why should we give bread to your army?"

Gideon said, "Fine. When Yahweh hands Zebah and Zalmunna over to me, I’ll tear your flesh with desert thorns and briers."

From there he went up to Penuel and made the same request. The people of Penuel answered him just like the people of Succoth had.

So he told the people of Penuel, "When I return victorious, I’ll tear down this tower."

Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with their army — about fifteen thousand men, all that was left of the entire eastern alliance. A hundred and twenty thousand swordsmen had already fallen.

Gideon went up by the caravan route east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and attacked the army while they felt completely safe.

Zebah and Zalmunna fled, but he chased them down and captured both kings of Midian. The entire army scattered in panic.

Then Gideon son of Joash returned from the battle by the Heres Pass.

He captured a young man from Succoth and questioned him. The young man wrote down for him the names of the officials and elders of Succoth — seventy-seven men.

He came to the men of Succoth and said, "Here are Zebah and Zalmunna—the ones you mocked me about, saying, ‘Are Zebah and Zalmunna already in your grip? Why should we give bread to your exhausted men?’"

Then he took the elders of the town and taught the men of Succoth a lesson using desert thorns and briers.

He also tore down the tower of Penuel and killed the men of the town.

Then he said to Zebah and Zalmunna, "The men you killed at Tabor — what were they like?" They answered, "They were like you. Each one looked like a king’s son."

He said, "Those were my brothers — my own mother’s sons. As Yahweh lives, if you had let them live, I wouldn’t be killing you now."

He said to Jether, his firstborn son, "Get up and kill them." But the boy didn’t draw his sword — he was afraid, because he was still just a youth.

Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, "Get up and do it yourself — a man’s job takes a man’s strength." So Gideon got up and killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and took the crescent ornaments from their camels’ necks.

Then the Israelites said to Gideon, "Rule over us — you, your son, and your grandson — because you rescued us from Midian’s grip."

But Gideon told them, "I won’t rule over you, and my son won’t rule over you. Yahweh will rule over you."

Then Gideon said to them, "Let me make one request: each of you give me an earring from your plunder." (The enemy wore gold earrings because they were Ishmaelites.)

They said, "We’ll gladly give them." They spread out a cloak, and each man threw in an earring from his plunder.

The weight of the gold earrings he requested came to seventeen hundred shekels of gold — not counting the crescent ornaments, the pendants, the purple robes worn by the Midianite kings, or the chains on their camels’ necks.

Gideon made it into a priestly vest and set it up in his hometown of Ophrah. All Israel went there to worship it like an unfaithful lover, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family.

So Midian was subdued before the Israelites and never raised its head again. The land had peace for forty years during Gideon’s lifetime.

Jerubbaal son of Joash went home and settled down.

Gideon had seventy sons of his own, because he had many wives.

His concubine in Shechem also bore him a son, and he named him Abimelech.

Gideon son of Joash died at a ripe old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

As soon as Gideon died, the Israelites turned back to worshipping the Baals like an unfaithful lover, and made Baal-Berith their god.

The Israelites did not remember Yahweh their God, who had rescued them from the grip of all their enemies on every side.

And they showed no loyalty to the family of Jerubbaal — that is, Gideon — despite all the good he had done for Israel.