JUDGES CHAPTER 7 (ORIGINAL 1611 KJV)

The actual, original, first printing of the 1611 King James Version (‘HE’ Bible) — Judges Chapter 7.

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Judges Chapter 7 Original 1611 KJV Bible Scan

CHAP. VII.

1 Gideons armie of two and thirtie thousand is brought to three hundred. 9 He is encouraged by the dreame and interpretation of the barley cake. 16 His stratageme of trumpets and lampes in pitchers. 24 The Ephraimites take Oreb and Zeeb.

¹ Then Ierubbaal (who is Gideon) and all the people that were with him, rose vp earely, and pitched beside the well of Harod: so that the hoste of the Midianites were on the North side of them by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.

² And the Lord said vnto Gideon, The people that are with thee, are too many for me to giue the Midianites into their handes, lest Israel vaunt themselues against mee, saying, Mine owne hand hath saued me.

³ Now therefore go to, proclaime in the eares of the people, saying, Whosoeuer is fearefull and afraid, let him returne and depart earely from mount Gilead: and there returned of the people twentie and two thousand, & there remained ten thousand.³

⁴ And the Lord said vnto Gideon, The people are yet too many: bring them downe vnto the water, and I wil trie them for thee there: and it shall bee that of whome I say vnto thee, This shall goe with thee, the same shall goe with thee: and of whomsoeuer I say vnto thee, This shal not goe with thee, the same shall not goe.

⁵ So he brought downe the people vnto the water: and the Lord sayd vnto Gideon, Euery one that lappeth of the water with his tongue as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himselfe, likewise euery one that boweth downe vpon his knees to drinke.

⁶ And the number of them that lapped putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed downe vpon their knees to drinke water.

⁷ And the Lord said vnto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped, will I saue you, and deliuer the Midianites into thine hand: and let all the other people goe euery man vnto his place.

⁸ So the people tooke victuals in their hand, and their trumpets: and he sent all the rest of Israel, euery man vnto his tent, and reteined those three hundred men: and the hoste of Midian was beneath him in the valley.

⁹ ¶ And it came to passe the same night, that the Lord sayd vnto him, Arise, get thee downe vnto the hoste, for I haue deliuered it into thine hand.

¹⁰ But if thou feare to goe downe, goe thou with Phurah thy seruant downe to the hoste.

¹¹ And thou shalt heare what they say, and afterward shall thine handes be strengthened to goe downe vnto the hoste. Then went hee downe, with Phurah his seruant, vnto the outside of the armed men, that were in the hoste.¹¹

¹² And the Midianites, and the Amalekites, and all the children of the East, lay along in the valley like grashoppers for multitude, and their camels were without number, as the sand by the Sea side for multitude.¹²

¹³ And when Gideon was come, beholde, there was a man that tolde a dreame vnto his fellow, and sayd, Behold, I dreamed a dreame, and loe, a cake of Barley bread tumbled into the hoste of Midian, and came vnto a tent, and smote it that it fell, and ouerturned it, that the tent lay along.

¹⁴ And his fellow answered, and said, This is nothing els saue the sword of Gideon the sonne of Ioash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God deliuered Midian, and all the hoste.

¹⁵ ¶ And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dreame, and the interpretation thereof, that hee worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and sayd, Arise, for the Lord hath deliuered into your hand the host of Midian.¹⁵

¹⁶ And he diuided the three hundred men into three companies, and hee put a trumpet in euery mans hand, with empty pitchers, and lampes within the pitchers,¹⁶

¹⁷ And hee said vnto them, Looke on mee, and doe likewise; and beholde, when I come to the outside of the campe, it shall be that as I doe, so shall ye doe.

¹⁸ When I blow with a trumpet, I and all that are with mee, then blow ye the trumpets also on euery side of all the campe, and say, The sword of the Lord, and of Gideon.

¹⁹ ¶ So Gideon and the hundred men that were with him, came vnto the outside of the campe, in the beginning of the middle watch, and they had but newly set the watch, and they blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers that were in their hands.

²⁰ And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lampes in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withall: and they cryed, The sword of the Lord, and of Gideon.

²¹ And they stood euery man in his place, round about the campe: and all the host ranne, and cried, and fled.

²² And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the Lord set euery mans sword against his fellow, euen throughout all the host: and the host fled to Beth-shittah, in Zererath, and to the border of Abel Meholah, vnto Tabbath.²²

²³ And the men of Israel gathered themselues together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after the Midianites.

²⁴ ¶ And Gideon sent messengers throughout all mount Ephraim, saying; Come downe against the Midianites, and take before them the waters vnto Beth-barah, and Iordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselues together, and tooke the waters vnto Beth-barah, and Iordane.

²⁵ And they tooke two Princes of the Midianites, Oreb, and Zeeb; and they slew Oreb vpon the rocke Oreb, and Zeeb they slew at the winepresse of Zeeb, and pursued Midian, and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb, to Gideon on the other side Iordan.²⁵

Judges Chapter 7 Sidenote References (from Original 1611 KJV Bible)

³ Deut.20.8 1.mac.3.56
¹¹ Or, rankes by fiue.
¹² Chap.6. 33.
¹⁵ Hebr. the breaking thereof.
¹⁶ Hebr. trumpets in the hand of all of them. , Or, firebrands: or torches.
²² Esay 9.4. , Or, towards. , Hebr. lip.
²⁵ Psal.83. 11. esa.10. 26.

* Some content on this page courtesy of Rare Book and Manuscript Library, University of Pennsylvania

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Judges

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