house of Millo, and went and made Abimelech king, by the oak of the
pillar that was in Shechem. And when they told it to Jotham, he went and
stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried,
and said unto them, Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may
hearken unto you. The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over
them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. But the
olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me
they honour God and man, and go to wave to and fro over the trees? And
the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us. But the
fig tree said unto them, Should I leave my sweetness, and my good fruit,
and go to wave to and fro over the trees? And the trees said unto the
vine, Come thou, and reign over us. And the vine said unto them, Should
I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to wave to and fro
over the trees? Then said all the trees unto the bramble, Come thou, and
reign over us. And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye
anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow: and
if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of
Lebanon. Now therefore, if ye have dealt truly and uprightly, in that ye
have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and
his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his
hands;--for my father fought for you, and adventured his life, and
delivered you out of the hand of Midian: and ye are risen up against my
father's house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten
persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his
maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your
brother;--if ye then have dealt truly and uprightly with Jerubbaal and
with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also
rejoice in you: but if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour
the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from
the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.
And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, for
fear of Abimelech his brother.
And Abimelech was prince over Israel three years. And God sent an evil
spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem
dealt treacherously with Abimelech: that the violence done to the
threescore and ten sons of Jerubbaal might come, and that their blood
might be laid upon Abimelech their brother, which slew them, and upon
the men of Shechem, which strengthened his hands to slay his brethren.
And the men of Shechem set liers in wait for him on the tops of the
mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them: and it
was told Abimelech.
And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brethren, and went over to
Shechem: and the men of Shechem put their trust in him. And they went
out into the field, and gathered their vineyards, and trode the grapes,
and held festival, and went into the house of their god, and did eat and
drink, and cursed Abimelech. And Gaal the son of Ebed said, Who is
Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? is not he the
son of Jerubbaal? and Zebul his officer? serve ye the men of Hamor the
father of Shechem; but why should we serve him? And would to God this
people were under my hand! then would I remove Abimelech. And he said to
Abimelech, Increase thine army, and come out. And when Zebul the ruler
of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was
kindled. And he sent messengers unto Abimelech craftily, saying, Behold,
Gaal the son of Ebed and his brethren are come to Shechem; and, behold,
they constrain the city to take part against thee. Now therefore, up by
night, thou and the people that is with thee, and lie in wait in the
field: and it shall be, that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up,
thou shalt rise early, and set upon the city: and, behold, when he and
the people that is with him come out against thee, then mayest thou do
to them as thou shalt find occasion.
And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by night,
and they laid wait against Shechem in four companies. And Gaal the son
of Ebed went out, and stood in the entering of the gate of the city: and
Abimelech rose up, and the people that were with him, from the
ambushment. And when Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, Behold,
there come people down from the tops of the mountains. And Zebul said
unto him, Thou seest the shadow of the mountains as if they were men.
And Gaal spake again and said, See, there come people down by the middle
of the land, and one company cometh by the way of the oak of Meonenim.
Then said Zebul unto him, Where is now thy mouth, that thou saidst, Who
is Abimelech, that we should serve him? is not this the people that thou
hast despised? go out now, I pray, and fight with them. And Gaal went
out before the men of Shechem, and fought with Abimelech. And Abimelech
chased him, and he fled before him, and there fell many wounded, even
unto the entering of the gate. And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah: and Zebul
drave out Gaal and his brethren, that they should not dwell in Shechem.
And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people went out into the
field; and they told Abimelech. And he took the people, and divided them
into three companies, and laid wait in the field; and he looked, and,
behold, the people came forth out of the city; and he rose up against
them, and smote them. And Abimelech, and the companies that were with
him, rushed forward, and stood in the entering of the gate of the city:
and the two companies rushed upon all that were in the field, and smote
them. And Abimelech fought against the city all that day; and he took
the city, and slew the people that was therein: and he beat down the
city, and sowed it with salt.
And when all the men of the tower of Shechem heard thereof, they entered
into the hold of the house of Elberith. And it was told Abimelech that
all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together. And
Abimelech gat him up to mount Zalmon, he and all the people that were
with him; and Abimelech took an ax in his hand, and cut down a bough
from the trees, and took it up, and laid it on his shoulder: and he said
unto the people that were with him, What ye have seen me do, make haste,
and do as I have done. And all the people likewise cut down every man
his bough, and followed Abimelech, and put them to the hold, and set the
hold on fire upon them; so that all the men of the tower of Shechem died
also, about a thousand men and women.
Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took
it. But there was a strong tower within the city, and thither fled all
the men and women, and all they of the city, and shut themselves in, and
gat them up to the roof of the tower. And Abimelech came unto the tower,
and fought against it, and went hard unto the door of the tower to burn
it with fire. And a certain woman cast an upper millstone upon
Abimelech's head, and brake his skull. Then he called hastily unto the
young man his armourbearer, and said unto him, Draw thy sword, and kill
me, that men say not of me, A woman slew him. And his young man thrust
him through, and he died. And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech
was dead, they departed every man unto his place. Thus God requited the
wickedness of Abimelech, which he did unto his father, in slaying his
seventy brethren: and all the wickedness of the men of Shechem did God
requite upon their heads: and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son
of Jerubbaal.
IV
SAMSON'S WEDDING FEAST
And Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the
daughters of the Philistines. And he came up, and told his father and
his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnah of the daughters of
the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife. Then his father
and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters
of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife
of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get
her for me; for she pleaseth me well. But his father and his mother knew
not that it was of the LORD; for he sought an occasion against the
Philistines. Now at that time the Philistines had rule over Israel. Then
went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnah, and came to
the vineyards of Timnah: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.
And the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he
would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not
his father or his mother what he had done. And he went down and talked
with the woman; and she pleased Samson well. And after a while he
returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the
lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion,
and honey. And he took it into his hands, and went on, eating as he
went, and he came to his father and mother, and gave unto them, and they
did eat: but he told them not that he had taken the honey out of the
body of the lion. And his father went down unto the woman: and Samson
made there a feast: for so used the young men to do. And it came to
pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with
him. And Samson said unto them, Let me now put forth a riddle unto you:
if ye can declare it me within the seven days of the feast, and find it
out, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of
raiment: but if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty
linen garments and thirty changes of raiment. And they said unto him,
Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it. And he said unto them,
Out of the eater came forth meat,
And out of the strong came forth sweetness.
And they could not in three days declare the riddle. And it came to pass
on the seventh day, that they said unto Samson's wife, Entice thy
husband, that he may declare unto us the riddle, lest we burn thee and
thy father's house with fire: have ye called us to impoverish us? is it
not so? And Samson's wife wept before him, and said, Thou dost but hate
me, and lovest me not: thou hast put forth a riddle unto the children of
my people, and hast not told it me. And he said unto her, Behold, I have
not told it my father nor my mother, and shall I tell thee? And she wept
before him the seven days, while their feast lasted: and it came to pass
on the seventh day, that he told her, because she pressed him sore: and
she told the riddle to the children of her people. And the men of the
city said unto him on the seventh day before the sun went down:
What is sweeter than honey?
And what is stronger than a lion?
And he said unto them:
If ye had not plowed with my heifer,
Ye had not found out my riddle.
And the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he went down to
Ashkelon, and smote thirty men of them, and took their spoil, and gave
the changes of raiment unto them that declared the riddle. And his anger
was kindled, and he went up to his father's house. But Samson's wife was
given to his companion, whom he had used as his friend.
But it came to pass after a while, in the time of wheat harvest, that
Samson visited his wife with a kid; and he said, I will go in to my wife
into the chamber. But her father would not suffer him to go in. And her
father said, I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her;
therefore I gave her to thy companion: is not her younger sister fairer
than she? take her, I pray thee, instead of her. And Samson said unto
them, This time shall I be blameless in regard of the Philistines, when
I do them a mischief. And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes,
and took firebrands, and turned tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the
midst between every two tails. And when he had set the brands on fire,
he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up
both the shocks and the standing corn, and also the oliveyards. Then the
Philistines said, Who hath done this? And they said, Samson, the son in
law of the Timnite, because he hath taken his wife, and given her to his
companion. And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father
with fire. And Samson said unto them, If ye do after this manner, surely
I will be avenged of you, and after that I will cease. And he smote them
hip and thigh with a great slaughter: and he went down and dwelt in the
cleft of the rock of Etam.
V
THE EXPEDITION AGAINST ELISHA
Now the king of Syria warred against Israel: and he took counsel with
his servants, saying, In such and such a place shall be my camp. And the
man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass
not such a place; for thither the Syrians are coming down. And the king
of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him
of; and he saved himself there, not once nor twice. And the heart of the
king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his
servants, and said unto them, Will ye not shew me which of us is for
the king of Israel? And one of his servants said, Nay, my lord, O king:
but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel
the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber. And he said, Go and see
where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying,
Behold, he is in Dothan. Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots,
and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about.
And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth,
behold, an host with horses and chariots was round about the city. And
his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do? And he
answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be
with them. And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his
eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man;
and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of
fire round about Elisha. And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed
unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness.
And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. And
Elisha said unto them, This is not the way, neither is this the city:
follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. And he led them
to Samaria. And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that
Elisha said, LORD, open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And
the LORD opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the
midst of Samaria. And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw
them, My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them? And he
answered, Thou shalt not smite them: wouldest thou smite those whom thou
hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow? set bread and water
before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master. And he
prepared great provision for them: and when they had eaten and drunk, he
sent them away, and they went to their master. And the bands of Syria
came no more into the land of Israel.
VI
THE DREAM OF THE TREE CUT DOWN
'Nebuchadnezzar the king, unto all the peoples, nations, and languages,
that dwell in all the earth: peace be multiplied unto you. It hath
seemed good unto me to shew the signs and wonders that the Most High God
hath wrought toward me. How great are his signs! and how mighty are his
wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from
generation to generation.
'I Nebuchadnezzar was at rest in mine house, and flourishing in my
palace. I saw a dream which made me afraid; and the thoughts upon my bed
and the visions of my head troubled me. Therefore made I a decree to
bring in all the wise men of Babylon before me, that they might make
known unto me the interpretation of the dream. Then came in the
magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers: and I
told the dream before them; but they did not make known unto me the
interpretation thereof. But at the last Daniel came in before me, whose
name was Belteshazzar, according to the name of my god, and in whom is
the spirit of the holy gods: and I told the dream before him, saying, O
Belteshazzar, master of the magicians, because I know that the spirit of
the holy gods is in thee, and no secret troubleth thee, tell me the
visions of my dream that I have seen, and the interpretation thereof.
'Thus were the visions of my head upon my bed: I saw, and behold a tree
in the midst of the earth, and the height thereof was great. The tree
grew, and was strong, and the height thereof reached unto heaven and the
sight thereof to the end of all the earth. The leaves thereof were fair,
and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all: the beasts of
the field had shadow under it, and the fowls of the heaven dwelt in the
branches thereof, and all flesh was fed of it. I saw in the visions of
my head upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher and an holy one came down
from heaven. He cried aloud, and said thus: "Hew down the tree, and cut
off his branches, shake off his leaves, and scatter his fruit: let the
beasts get away from under it, and the fowls from his branches.
Nevertheless leave the stump of his roots in the earth, even with a
band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let it be
wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts in
the grass of the earth: let his heart be changed from man's, and let a
beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him. The
sentence is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of
the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the Most High
ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and
setteth up over it the lowest of men." This dream I king Nebuchadnezzar
have seen: and thou, O Belteshazzar, declare the interpretation,
forasmuch as all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known
unto me the interpretation; but thou art able, for the spirit of the
holy gods is in thee.
'Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonied for a while, and
his thoughts troubled him. The king answered and said, Belteshazzar, let
not the dream, or the interpretation, trouble thee. Belteshazzar
answered and said, My lord, the dream be to them that hate thee, and the
interpretation thereof to thine adversaries. The tree that thou sawest,
which grew, and was strong, whose height reached unto the heaven, and
the sight thereof to all the earth; whose leaves were fair, and the
fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beasts
of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the fowls of the heaven had
their habitation; it is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong:
for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion
to the end of the earth. And whereas the king saw a watcher and an holy
one coming down from heaven, and saying, Hew down the tree, and destroy
it; nevertheless leave the stump of the roots thereof in the earth, even
with a band of iron and brass, in the tender grass of the field; and let
it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts
of the field, till seven times pass over him; this is the
interpretation, O king, and it is the decree of the Most High, which is
come upon my lord the king: that thou shalt be driven from men, and thy
dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and thou shalt be made
to eat grass as oxen, and shalt be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven
times shall pass over thee; till thou know that the Most High ruleth in
the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. And whereas
they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots; thy kingdom shall
be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do
rule. Wherefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable unto thee, and
break off thy sins by righteousness, and thine iniquities by shewing
mercy to the poor; if there may be a lengthening of thy tranquillity.
'All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months
he was walking in the royal palace of Babylon. The king spake and said,
Is not this great Babylon, which I have built for the royal dwelling
place, by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty? While
the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven,
saying: "O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken: the kingdom is
departed from thee. And thou shalt be driven from men, and thy dwelling
shall be with the beasts of the field; thou shalt be made to eat grass
as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee; until thou know that the
Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he
will." The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he
was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet
with the dew of heaven, till his hair was grown like eagles' feathers,
and his nails like birds' claws. And at the end of the days I
Nebuchadnezzar lifted up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine understanding
returned unto me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised and
honoured him that liveth for ever; for his dominion is an everlasting
dominion, and his kingdom from generation to generation: and all the
inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according
to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the
earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou? At
the same time mine understanding returned unto me; and for the glory of
my kingdom, my majesty and brightness returned unto me; and my
counsellors and my lords sought unto me; and I was established in my
kingdom, and excellent greatness was added unto me.
'Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven;
for all his works are truth, and his ways judgement: and those that walk
in pride he is able to abase.'
VII
BELSHAZZAR'S FEAST
Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and
drank wine before the thousand. Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine,
commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which Nebuchadnezzar
his father had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the
king and his lords, his wives and his concubines, might drink therein.
Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple
of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king and his lords,
his wives and his concubines, drank in them. They drank wine, and
praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and
of stone. In the same hour came forth the fingers of a man's hand, and
wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the
king's palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then
the king's countenance was changed in him, and his thoughts troubled
him; and the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one
against another. The king cried aloud to bring in the enchanters, the
Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spake and said to the wise men
of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me the
interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with purple, and have a chain
of gold about his neck, and shall rule as one of three in the kingdom.
Then came in all the king's wise men: but they could not read the
writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation. Then was king
Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and
his lords were perplexed.
Now the queen by reason of the words of the king and his lords came into
the banquet house: the queen spake and said: O king, live for ever; let
not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed: there
is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and in
the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the
wisdom of the gods, was found in him: and the king Nebuchadnezzar thy
father, the king, I say, thy father, made him master of the magicians,
enchanters, Chaldeans, and soothsayers; forasmuch as an excellent
spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and
shewing of dark sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were found in the
same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Now let Daniel be called,
and he will shew the interpretation.