The Bible (Old and New Testaments)

And when all the men of the towre of Shechem heard it, they entred into an holde of the house of the god Berith.

And it was tolde Abimelech, that all the men of the towre of Shechem were gathered together.

And Abimelech gate him vp to mounte Zalmon, hee and all the people that were with him: and Abimelech tooke axes with him, and cut downe boughes of trees, and tooke them, and bare them on his shoulder, and sayde vnto the folke that were with him, What ye haue seene me doe, make haste, and doe like me.

Then all the people also cut downe euery man his bough, and followed Abimelech, and put them to the holde, and set the holde on fire with them: so all the men of the towre of Shechem dyed also, about a thousand men and women.

Then went Abimelech to Tebez, and besieged Tebez, and tooke it.

But there was a strong towre within the citie, and thither fledde all the men and women, and all the chiefe of the citie, and shut it to them, and went vp to the toppe of the towre.

And Abimelech came vnto the towre and fought against it, and went hard vnto the doore of the towre to set it on fire.

But a certaine woman cast a piece of a milstone vpon Abimelechs head, and brake his braine pan.

Then Abimelech called hastily his page that bare his harneis, and sayde vnto him, Drawe thy sworde and slay me, that men say not of me, A woman slewe him. And his page thrust him thorowe, and he dyed.

And when the men of Israel sawe that Abimelech was dead, they departed euery man vnto his owne place.

Thus God rendred the wickednes of Abimelech, which he did vnto his father, in slaying his seuentie brethren.

Also all the wickednes of the men of Shechem did God bring vpon their heads. So vpon them came the curse of Iotham the sonne of Ierubbaal.

After Abimelech there arose to defend Israel, Tola, the sonne of Puah, the sone of Dodo, a man of Issachar, which dwelt in Shamir in mount Ephraim.

And he iudged Israel three and twentie yeere and dyed, and was buried in Shamir.

And after him arose Iair a Gileadite, and iudged Israel two and twenty yeere.

And he had thirtie sonnes that rode on thirtie assecolts, and they had thirtie cities, which are called Hauoth-Iair vnto this day, and are in the land of Gilead.

And Iair dyed, and was buried in Kamon.

And the children of Israel wrought wickednesse againe in the sight of the Lord, and serued Baalim and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Aram, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistims, and forsooke the Lord and serued not him.

Therefore the wrath of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he solde them into the hands of the Philistims, and into the handes of the children of Ammon:

Who from that yere vexed and oppressed the children of Israel eighteene yeres, euen all the children of Israel that were beyond Iorden, in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead.

Moreouer, the children of Ammon went ouer Iorden to fight against Iudah, and against Beniamin, and against the house of Ephraim: so that Israel was sore tormented.

Then the children of Israel cryed vnto the Lord, saying, We haue sinned against thee, euen because we haue forsaken our owne God, and haue serued Baalim.

And the Lord sayd vnto the children of Israel, Did not I deliuer you from the Egyptians and from the Amorites, from the children of Ammon and from the Philistims?

The Zidonians also, and the Amalekites, and the Maonites did oppresse you, and ye cryed to me and I saued you out of their hands.

Yet ye haue forsaken me, and serued other gods: wherefore I will deliuer you no more.

Goe, and cry vnto the gods which ye haue chosen: let them saue you in the time of your tribulation.

And the children of Israel sayde vnto the Lord, We haue sinned: doe thou vnto vs whatsoeuer please thee: onely we pray thee to deliuer vs this day.

Then they put away the strange gods from among them and serued the Lord: and his soule was grieued for the miserie of Israel.

Then the children of Ammon gathered themselues together, and pitched in Gilead: and the children of Israel assembled themselues, and pitched in Mizpeh.

And the people and princes of Gilead said one to another, Whosoeuer will beginne the battell against the children of Ammon, the same shall be head ouer all the inhabitants of Gilead.

Then Gilead begate Iphtah, and Iphtah the Gileadite was a valiant man, but the sonne of an harlot.

And Gileads wife bare him sonnes, and when the womans children were come to age, they thrust out Iphtah, and sayd vnto him, Thou shalt not inherite in our fathers house: for thou art the sonne of a strange woman.

Then Iphtah fledde from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there gathered idle fellowes to Iphtah, and went out with him.

And in processe of time the children of Ammon made warre with Israel.

And when the children of Ammon fought with Israel, the Elders of Gilead went to fet Iphtah out of the land of Tob.

And they saide vnto Iphtah, Come and be our captaine, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.

Iphtah then answered the Elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expell me out of my fathers house? how then come you vnto me now in time of your tribulation?

Then the Elders of Gilead saide vnto Iphtah, Therefore we turne againe to thee now, that thou mayest goe with vs, and fight against the children of Ammon, and bee our head ouer all the inhabitants of Gilead.

And Iphtah said vnto the Elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home againe to fight against the children of Ammon, if the Lord giue them before me, shall I be your head?

And the Elders of Gilead saide to Iphtah, The Lord be witnesse betweene vs, if we doe not according to thy wordes.

Then Iphtah went with the Elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captaine ouer them: and Iphtah rehearsed all his wordes before the Lord in Mizpeh.

Then Iphtah sent messengers vnto the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to doe with me, that thou art come against me, to fight in my lande?

And the King of the children of Ammon answered vnto the messengers of Iphtah, Because Israel tooke my lande, when they came vp from Egypt, from Arnon vnto Iabbok, and vnto Iorden: now therefore restore those lands quietly.

Yet Iphtah sent messengers againe vnto the King of the children of Ammon,

And said vnto him, Thus saith Iphtah, Israel tooke not the lande of Moab, nor the lande of the children of Ammon.

But when Israel came vp from Egypt, and walked through the wildernesse vnto the redde Sea, then they came to Kadesh.

And Israel sent messengers vnto the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, goe thorowe thy lande: but the King of Edom woulde not consent: and also they sent vnto the King of Moab, but he would not: therefore Israel abode in Kadesh.

Then they went through the wildernesse, and compassed the lande of Edom, and the lande of Moab, and came by the Eastside of the lande of Moab, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, and came not within the coast of Moab: for Arnon was the border of Moab.

Also Israel sent messengers vnto Sihon, King of the Amorites, the King of Heshbon, and Israel said vnto him, Let vs passe, we pray thee, by thy lande vnto our place.

But Sihon consented not to Israel, that he shoulde goe through his coast: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and pitched in Iahaz, and fought with Israel.

And the Lord God of Israel gaue Sihon and all his folke into the handes of Israel, and they smote them: so Israel possessed all the lande of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that countrey:

And they possessed all the coast of the Amorites, from Arnon vnto Iabbok, and from the wildernesse euen vnto Iorden.

Nowe therefore the Lord God of Israel hath cast out the Amorites before his people Israel, and shouldest thou possesse it?

Wouldest not thou possesse that which Chemosh thy god giueth thee to possesse? So whomesoeuer the Lord our God driueth out before vs, them will we possesse.

And art thou nowe farre better then Balak the sonne of Zippor King of Moab? did he not striue with Israel and fight against them,

When Israel dwelt in Heshbon and in her townes, and in Aroer and in her townes, and in all the cities that are by the coastes of Arnon, three hundreth yeeres? why did ye not then recouer them in that space?

Wherefore, I haue not offended thee: but thou doest me wrong to warre against me. The Lord the Iudge be iudge this day betweene the children of Israel, and the children of Ammon.

Howbeit the King of the children of Ammon hearkened not vnto the wordes of Iphtah, which he had sent him.

Then the Spirite of the Lord came vpon Iphtah, and he passed ouer to Gilead and to Manasseh, and came to Mizpeh in Gilead, and from Mizpeh in Gilead he went vnto the children of Ammon.

And Iphtah vowed a vowe vnto the Lord, and said, If thou shalt deliuer the children of Ammon into mine handes,

Then that thing that commeth out of the doores of mine house to meete me, when I come home in peace from the children of Ammon, shall be the Lordes, and I will offer it for a burnt offering.

And so Iphtah went vnto the children of Ammon to fight against them, and the Lord deliuered them into his handes.

And he smote them from Aroer euen till thou come to Minnith, twentie cities, and so foorth to Abel of the vineyardes, with an exceeding great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were humbled before the children of Israel.

Nowe when Iphtah came to Mizpeh vnto his house, beholde, his daughter came out to meete him with timbrels and daunces, which was his onely childe: he had none other sonne, nor daughter.

And when hee sawe her, hee rent his clothes, and saide, Alas my daughter, thou hast brought me lowe, and art of them that trouble me: for I haue opened my mouth vnto the Lord, and can not goe backe.

And she said vnto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth vnto the Lord, doe with me as thou hast promised, seeing that the Lord hath auenged thee of thine enemies the children of Ammon.

Also she saide vnto her father, Doe thus much for me: suffer me two moneths, that I may goe to the mountaines, and bewaile my virginitie, I and my fellowes.

And he sayde, Goe: and he sent her away two moneths: so she went with her companions, and lamented her virginitie vpon the moutaines.

And after the ende of two moneths, she turned againe vnto her father, who did with her according to his vowe which he had vowed, and she had knowen no man. and it was a custome in Israel:

The daughters of Israel went yere by yere to lament the daughter of Iphtah the Gileadite, foure dayes in a yeere.

And the me of Ephraim gathered themselues together, and went Northwarde, and saide vnto Iphtah, Wherefore wentest thou to fight against the children of Ammon, and diddest not call vs to goe with thee? we will therefore burne thine house vpon thee with fire.

And Iphtah said vnto them, I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon, and when I called you, ye deliuered me not out of their handes.

So when I sawe that ye deliuered me not, I put my life in mine hands, and went vpon the children of Ammon: so the Lord deliuered them into mine handes. Wherefore then are ye come vpon me nowe to fight against me?

Then Iphtah gathered all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are runnagates of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites.

Also the Gileadites tooke the passages of Iorden before the Ephraimites, and when the Ephraimites that were escaped, saide, Let me passe, then the men of Gilead said vnto him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If he said, Nay,

Then said they vnto him, Say nowe Shibboleth: and he said, Sibboleth: for he could not so pronounce: then they tooke him, and slewe him at the passages of Iorden: and there fel at that time of the Ephraimites two and fourtie thousand.

And Iphtah iudged Israel sixe yeere: then dyed Iphtah the Gileadite, and was buryed in one of the cities of Gilead.

After him Ibzan of Beth-lehem iudged Israel,

Who had thirtie sonnes and thirtie daughters, which he sent out, and tooke in thirtie daughters from abroade for his sonnes. and he iudged Israel seuen yeere.

Then Ibzan died, and was buryed at Bethlehem.

And after him iudged Israel Elon, a Zebulonite, and he iudged Israel tenne yeere.

Then Elon the Zebulonite dyed, and was buryed in Aijalon in the countrey of Zebulun.

And after him Abdon the sonne of Hillel the Pirathonite iudged Israel.

And he had fourty sonnes and thirtie nephewes that rode on seuentie assecoltes: and he iudged Israel eight yeeres.

Then dyed Abdon the sonne of Hillel the Pirathonite, and was buryed in Pirathon, in ye lande of Ephraim, in the Mount of the Amalekites.

Bvt the children of Israel continued to commit wickednesse in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord deliuerd them into the handes of the Philistims fourtie yeere.

Then there was a man in Zorah of the familie of the Danites, named Manoah, whose wife was baren, and bare not.

And the Angel of the Lord appeared vnto the woman, and said vnto her, Beholde nowe, thou art baren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceiue, and beare a sonne.

And nowe therefore beware that thou drinke no wine, nor strong drinke, neither eate any vncleane thing.

For loe, thou shalt conceiue and beare a sonne, and no rasor shall come on his head: for the childe shall be a Nazarite vnto God from his birth: and he shall begin to saue Israel out of the handes of the Philistims.

Then the wife came, and tolde her husband, saying, A man of God came vnto me, and the facion of him was like the facion of the Angel of God exceeding feareful, but I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name,

But he saide vnto me, Beholde, thou shalt conceiue, and beare a sonne, and nowe thou shalt drinke no wine, nor strong drinke, neither eate any vncleane thing: for the childe shalbe a Nazarite to God from his birth to the day of his death.

Then Manoah prayed to the Lord and saide, I pray thee, my Lord, Let the man of God, whome thou sentest, come againe nowe vnto vs, and teach vs what we shall doe vnto the child when he is borne.

And God heard the voyce of Manoah, and the Angel of God came againe vnto the wife, as she sate in the fielde, but Manoah her husband was not with her.

And the wife made haste and ranne, and shewed her husband and sayde vnto him, Behold, the man hath appeared vnto me, that came vnto me to day.

And Manoah arose and went after his wife, and came to the man, and saide vnto him, Art thou the man that spakest vnto the woman? and he said, Yea.

Then Manoah sayde, Nowe let thy saying come to passe: but howe shall we order the childe and doe vnto him?

And the Angell of the Lord saide vnto Manoah, The woman must beware of all that I said vnto her.

She may eate of nothing that commeth of the vinetree: she shall not drinke wine nor strong drinke, nor eate any vncleane thing: let her obserue all that I haue commanded her.

Manoah then said vnto the Angell of the Lord, I pray thee, let vs reteine thee, vntill we haue made readie a kid for thee.