וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֵלָיו אִישׁ אֶפְרַיִם מָה הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה עָשִׂיתָ לָּנוּ לְבִלְתִּי קְרֹאות לָנוּ כִּי הָלַכְתָּ לְהִלָּחֵם בְּמִדְיָן! וַיְרִיבוּן אִתּוֹ בְּחָזְקָה

The battle ended in victory, albeit not a decisive one. Before Gideon resumed fighting, the tribe of Ephraim confronted him. The men of Ephraim said to him: What is this matter that you did to us, not summoning us when you went to make war with Midyan? How dare you go to war without calling us? Although Gideon did in fact call them, he did so only after the main Midyanite defeat. The men of Ephraim were insulted by Gideon’s decision to call them to participate only in the chase, rather than positioning them at the head of the military force in the thick of battle. They quarreled with him forcefully.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם מֶה עָשִׂיתִי עַתָּה כָּכֶם הֲלוֹא טוֹב עֹלְלוֹת אֶפְרַיִם מבְצִיר אֲבִיעֶזֶר

Gideon was not interested in a quarrel with Ephraim, and he therefore appeased them with words of flattery. He said to them: What have I accomplished now? What value do my deeds have, compared to you? Admittedly, I did not call you at first, but aren’t the gleanings, the small, late grapes of the cluster of Ephraim, better than the grape harvest of Aviezer?

בְּיֶדְכֶם נָתַן אֱלֹהִים אֶת שָׂרֵי מִדְיָן אֶת עֹרֵב וְאֶת זְאֵב וּמַה יָּכֹלְתִּי עֲשׂוֹת כָּכֶם אָז רָפְתָה רוּחָם מֵעָלָיו בְּדַבְּרוֹ הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה

Although you did not participate at the beginning of the battle, you were far more successful, as into your hand God delivered the princes of Midyan, Orev and Ze’ev; what could I accomplish compared to you? Could I have managed achievements of that magnitude? Then their spirit against him abated, in his speaking these words.

וַיָּבֹא גִדְעוֹן הַיַּרְדֵּנָה עֹבֵר הוּא וּשְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ עֲיֵפִים וְרֹדְפִים

Gideon came to the Jordan; he was crossing, he and the three hundred men who were with him, while they were weary, yet pursuing. They had pursued the Midyanites from the Yizre’el Valley until the Jordan River, killing many along the way.

וַיֹּאמֶר לְאַנְשֵׁי סֻכּוֹת תְּנוּ נָא כִּכְּרוֹת לֶחֶם לָעָם אֲשֶׁר בְּרַגְלָי כִּי עֲיֵפִים הֵם וְאָנֹכִי רֹדֵף אַחֲרֵי זֶבַח וְצַלְמֻנָּע מַלְכֵי מִדְיָן

When Gideon reached Sukot east of the Jordan, he said to the men of Sukot: Please, give loaves of bread to the people who follow me, as they are weary, and I am pursuing Zevah and Tzalmuna, the kings of Midyan. Midyan did not have a single king; the leaders of their larger tribes were all called kings or princes. At least two of these kings had come to Israel with the camp and had fled, presumably on their camels.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׂרֵי סֻכּוֹת הֲכַף זֶבַח וְצַלְמֻנָּע עַתָּה בְּיָדֶךָ כִּי נִתֵּן לִצְבָאֲךָ לָחֶם!

The princes of Sukot said mockingly: Is the palm of Zevah and Tzalmuna now in your hand that we should give bread to your army? You claim that you are chasing the powerful kings of Midyan and will defeat them, but why should we believe that you will succeed? Why should we take sides in a war whose outcome is unclear?

וַיֹּאמֶר גִּדְעוֹן לָכֵן בְּתֵת ה' אֶת זֶבַח וְאֶת צַלְמֻנָּע בְּיָדִי וְדַשְׁתִּי אֶת בְּשַׂרְכֶם אֶת קוֹצֵי הַמִּדְבָּר וְאֶת הַבַּרְקֳנִים

This time, Gideon did not reply with restraint, as he did earlier in response to the men of Ephraim. Gideon said: Therefore, when the Lord delivers Zevah and Tzalmuna into my hand, when I triumph and take them captive, I will punish you, as I will thresh your flesh with desert thorns and briars.

וַיַּעַל מִשָּׁם פְּנוּאֵל וַיְדַבֵּר אֲלֵיהֶם כָּזֹאת וַיַּעֲנוּ אוֹתוֹ אַנְשֵׁי פְנוּאֵל כַּאֲשֶׁר עָנוּ אַנְשֵׁי סֻכּוֹת

He went up from there to Penuel, a city not far from Sukot, and he spoke to them similarly. He asked them for assistance as well. The men of Penuel answered him as the men of Sukot had answered. Since he had not yet achieved a decisive victory, they too did not wish to get involved.

וַיֹּאמֶר גַּם לְאַנְשֵׁי פְנוּאֵל לֵאמֹר בְּשׁוּבִי בְשָׁלוֹם אֶתֹּץ אֶת הַמִּגְדָּל הַזֶּה

He stated to the men of Penuel as well, saying: When I return from the battle in peace, I will smash this tower.

וְזֶבַח וְצַלְמֻנָּע בַּקַּרְקֹר וּמַחֲנֵיהֶם עִמָּם כַּחֲמֵשֶׁת עָשָׂר אֶלֶף כֹּל הַנּוֹתָרִים מִכֹּל מַחֲנֵה בְנֵי קֶדֶם וְהַנֹּפְלִים מֵאָה וְעֶשְׂרִים אֶלֶף אִישׁ שֹׁלֵף חָרֶב

Zevah and Tzalmuna were in Karkor, and their camps were with them, some fifteen thousand men, who were all who remained from the camp of the children of the east; and the fallen, up to that point, were one hundred and twenty thousand men, wielders of swords. The majority of the large Midyanite camp had been killed by Israel before they could cross the Jordan River, but a significant force still remained with the kings.

וַיַּעַל גִּדְעוֹן דֶּרֶךְ הַשְּׁכוּנֵי בָאֳהָלִים מִקֶּדֶם לְנֹבַח וְיָגְבֳּהָה וַיַּךְ אֶת הַמַּחֲנֶה וְהַמַּחֲנֶה הָיָה בֶטַח

Gideon went up by way of the tent dwellers, a region of nomads, east of Novah and Yogbeha, cities that are also mentioned in the Torah, and he smote the camp, and the camp had been secure. The Midyanites sought to recover, secure in their camp. They anticipated that Gideon would attack from the west, but he bypassed their camp and attacked from the east. Consequently, the Midyanites were unprepared for the attack.

וַיָּנוּסוּ זֶבַח וְצַלְמֻנָּע וַיִּרְדֹּף אַחֲרֵיהֶם וַיִּלְכֹּד אֶת שְׁנֵי מַלְכֵי מִדְיָן אֶת זֶבַח וְאֶת צַלְמֻנָּע וְכָל הַמַּחֲנֶה הֶחֱרִיד

Zevah and Tzalmuna fled, and he, Gideon, pursued them; he captured the two kings of Midyan, Zevah and Tzalmuna. Presumably, the kings traveled in a more respectable fashion than the other men, with an entourage and with their wealth; therefore they could not flee as fast as ordinary soldiers who traveled light. And he routed the entire camp. Soldiers who attempted to escape were killed on their way by the Israelites who outflanked them.

וַיָּשָׁב גִּדְעוֹן בֶּן יוֹאָשׁ מִן הַמִּלְחָמָה מִלְמַעֲלֵה הֶחָרֶס

Gideon son of Yo’ash returned from the war from the Ascent of Heres, or a place called Maaleh Haḥeres, which means the Sun Road, or the Eastern Road. Alternatively, this phrase can be interpreted as: From the time of the ascent of the sun. In other words, Gideon returned at sunrise, or when the sun was at its highest point in the sky.

וַיִּלְכָּד נַעַר מֵאַנְשֵׁי סֻכּוֹת וַיִּשְׁאָלֵהוּ וַיִּכְתֹּב אֵלָיו אֶת שָׂרֵי סֻכּוֹת וְאֶת זְקֵנֶיהָ שִׁבְעִים וְשִׁבְעָה אִישׁ

Gideon could now fulfill his promise to punish the people of Sukot. He captured a lad from among the men of Sukot, and he questioned him. He wrote for him a list of the princes of Sukot and its elders, seventy-seven men, the leaders of the city.

וַיָּבֹא אֶל אַנְשֵׁי סֻכּוֹת וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה זֶבַח וְצַלְמֻנָּע אֲשֶׁר חֵרַפְתֶּם אוֹתִי לֵאמֹר הֲכַף זֶבַח וְצַלְמֻנָּע עַתָּה בְּיָדֶךָ כִּי נִתֵּן לַאֲנָשֶׁיךָ הַיְּעֵפִים לָחֶם

He, Gideon, came to the men of Sukot, and he said: Behold, here are Zevah and Tzalmuna, the kings of Midyan, concerning whom you taunted me during the chase, saying: Is the palm of Zevah and Tzalmuna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your men who are weary?

וַיִּקַּח אֶת זִקְנֵי הָעִיר וְאֶת קוֹצֵי הַמִּדְבָּר וְאֶת הַבַּרְקֳנִים וַיֹּדַע בָּהֶם אֵת אַנְשֵׁי סֻכּוֹת

He took the elders of the city, and desert thorns and briars, and with them, the thorns, or by means of the elders, he chastised, or tormented, the men of Sukot. Some claim that he punished the men of Sukot by tormenting their elders, while others maintain that he forced the elders to torment the men of Sukot. This punishment involved both pain and humiliation.

וְאֶת מִגְדַּל פְּנוּאֵל נָתָץ וַיַּהֲרֹג אֶת אַנְשֵׁי הָעִיר

He smashed the tower of Penuel, and he killed the men of the city. Apparently, he was especially angry with the people of Penuel, because although it was a smaller city than Sukot, its men had responded in the same insolent manner.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל זֶבַח וְאֶל צַלְמֻנָּע אֵיפֹה הָאֲנָשִׁים אֲשֶׁר הֲרַגְתֶּם בְּתָבוֹר וַיֹּאמְרוּ כָּמוֹךָ כְמוֹהֶם אֶחָד כְּתֹאַר בְּנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ

He said to Zevah and Tzalmuna: Where are the men whom you killed at Tavor in one of your raids? They said: We remember them, as they were fine-looking people. As you are, so were they; they looked just like you, identical, like the form of the king’s sons, like the children of a king. This was either the truth or mere flattery.

וַיֹּאמַר אַחַי בְּנֵי אִמִּי הֵם חַי ה'! לוּ הַחֲיִתֶם אוֹתָם לֹא הָרַגְתִּי אֶתְכֶם

He said: Those men, they were my brothers, sons of my mother. As the Lord lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you. Since you killed them, as you just confessed, I have a personal score to settle with you.

וַיֹּאמֶר לְיֶתֶר בְּכוֹרוֹ קוּם הֲרֹג אוֹתָם וְלֹא שָׁלַף הַנַּעַר חַרְבּוֹ כִּי יָרֵא כִּי עוֹדֶנּוּ נָעַר

Presumably, the two kings were bound as captives. He said to Yeter, his firstborn: Rise and kill them. But the lad did not draw his sword, as he was afraid because he was still a lad. He did not have sufficient courage or hatred to kill in so cold-blooded a manner.

וַיֹּאמֶר זֶבַח וְצַלְמֻנָּע קוּם אַתָּה וּפְגַע בָּנוּ כִּי כָאִישׁ גְּבוּרָתוֹ וַיָּקָם גִּדְעוֹן וַיַּהֲרֹג אֶת זֶבַח וְאֶת צַלְמֻנָּע וַיִּקַּח אֶת הַשַּׂהֲרֹנִים אֲשֶׁר בְּצַוְּארֵי גְמַלֵּיהֶם

Zevah and Tzalmuna said: Since we are going to die anyway, get up yourself and smite us, for like the man is, so is his strength. Since you are big and strong, you can kill us quickly, as we would suffer more from the repeated blows of a child. Indeed, Gideon got up and killed Zevah and Tzalmuna, and he took the ornamental crescents that were on the necks of their camels, a symbol of their status as Midyanite kings.

וַיֹּאמְרוּ אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל גִּדְעוֹן מְשָׁל בָּנוּ גַּם אַתָּה גַּם בִּנְךָ גַּם בֶּן בְּנֶךָ כִּי הוֹשַׁעְתָּנוּ מִיַּד מִדְיָן

The men of Israel said to Gideon: Rule over us, you, your son, and your son’s son too, as you saved us from the hand of Midyan. They effectively asked him to assume the throne as their king.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵהֶם גִּדְעוֹן לֹא אֶמְשֹׁל אֲנִי בָּכֶם וְלֹא יִמְשֹׁל בְּנִי בָּכֶם; ה' יִמְשֹׁל בָּכֶם

Gideon said to them: I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; the Lord will rule over you. In his rejection of their proposal, Gideon expressed a fundamental opposition to hereditary monarchy in Israel. The children of Israel should remain independent, with God as their sole ruler.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵהֶם גִּדְעוֹן אֶשְׁאֲלָה מִכֶּם שְׁאֵלָה וּתְנוּ לִי אִישׁ נֶזֶם שְׁלָלוֹ כִּי נִזְמֵי זָהָב לָהֶם כִּי יִשְׁמְעֵאלִים הֵם

Gideon said to them: I will make a request of you. Let each of you give me the nose ring from his spoils from the war. The verse adds in explanation: For they, the Midyanites, had golden nose rings because they were Ishmaelites. Although the Midyanites and the Ishmaelites were discrete peoples, they shared a common desert culture, which would later be known as the Arabic culture. Unlike other nations, men of these desert tribes would typically wear nose rings. Therefore, Gideon’s men had nose rings that they had removed from the dead and their captives. Other commentaries maintain that the kings of Midyan were indeed originally Ishmaelites. Alternatively, the reference here is not to the Midyanites but to the children of the east who fought together with Midyan (see 6:33, 7:12).

וַיֹּאמְרוּ נָתוֹן נִתֵּן וַיִּפְרְשׂוּ אֶת הַשִּׂמְלָה וַיַּשְׁלִיכוּ שָׁמָּה אִישׁ נֶזֶם שְׁלָלוֹ

They said: We will give them. They spread a broad garment, and each cast there the nose rings of his spoils.

וַיְהִי מִשְׁקַל נִזְמֵי הַזָּהָב אֲשֶׁר שָׁאָל אֶלֶף וּשְׁבַע מֵאוֹת זָהָב לְבַד מִן הַשַּׂהֲרֹנִים וְהַנְּטִפוֹת וּבִגְדֵי הָאַרְגָּמָן שֶׁעַל מַלְכֵי מִדְיָן וּלְבַד מִן הָעֲנָקוֹת אֲשֶׁר בְּצַוְּארֵי גְמַלֵּיהֶם

The weight of the golden nose rings that he requested was one thousand seven hundred in gold, almost 185 kg in gold, besides the other jewelry, including the crescents, the pendants [netifot], possibly necklaces or other ornaments incorporating gems, or gold and silver in the shape of drops [tippot], and the expensive purple garments that were on the kings of Midyan, and besides the chains, necklets, that were on the necks of their camels.

וַיַּעַשׂ אוֹתוֹ גִדְעוֹן לְאֵפוֹד וַיַּצֵּג אוֹתוֹ בְעִירוֹ בְּעָפְרָה וַיִּזְנוּ כָל יִשְׂרָאֵל אַחֲרָיו שָׁם וַיְהִי לְגִדְעוֹן וּלְבֵיתוֹ לְמוֹקֵשׁ

Gideon melted all this gold, and made it into an ephod, a garment similar to an apron or a short coat. And he displayed it in his city, in Ofra, to commemorate the great triumph; and all Israel strayed after it there. Over time, people started worshipping the ephod, and it became a snare for Gideon and for his household. He had inadvertently created a new object of idolatry. Due to the association of the ephod with Gideon’s name, family, city, and deeds, the sin was indirectly attributed to them.

וַיִּכָּנַע מִדְיָן לִפְנֵי בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְלֹא יָסְפוּ לָשֵׂאת רֹאשָׁם וַתִּשְׁקֹט הָאָרֶץ אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה בִּימֵי גִדְעוֹן

Midyan submitted before the children of Israel after their defeat, and they did not arrogantly continue to raise their heads further. They certainly did not invade the inheritances of the tribes of Israel again. The land was tranquil forty years during the days of Gideon.

וַיֵּלֶךְ יְרֻבַּעַל בֶּן יוֹאָשׁ וַיֵּשֶׁב בְּבֵיתוֹ

Yerubaal son of Yo’ash went and dwelled peacefully in his house. Although he did not become king, he remained a famous judge and leader of Israel, honored by all.

וּלְגִדְעוֹן הָיוּ שִׁבְעִים בָּנִים יֹצְאֵי יְרֵכוֹ כִּי נָשִׁים רַבּוֹת הָיוּ לוֹ

Gideon had seventy sons, products of his loins, for he had many wives. The Torah limits the number of wives that a king may marry; however, Gideon was not a king and therefore that prohibition did not apply to him.

וּפִילַגְשׁוֹ אֲשֶׁר בִּשְׁכֶם יָלְדָה לּוֹ גַם הִיא בֵּן וַיָּשֶׂם אֶת שְׁמוֹ אֲבִימֶלֶךְ

Shekhem was a Canaanite city that was not entirely conquered by Israel, but its residents were assimilated into the nation. In addition to Gideon’s wives, who were certainly Jewish, he had his concubine, who was in Shekhem, and she also bore him a son, and he set his name as Avimelekh, a pretentious name which literally means: My father is king, or: Father of kings.

וַיָּמָת גִּדְעוֹן בֶּן יוֹאָשׁ בְּשֵׂיבָה טוֹבָה וַיִּקָּבֵר בְּקֶבֶר יוֹאָשׁ אָבִיו בְּעָפְרָה אֲבִי הָעֶזְרִי

Gideon son of Yo’ash died at a good old age, and he was buried in the grave of Yo’ash, his father, in Ofra, which belonged to the tribe of Manasseh, in the portion of the family of the Aviezrites.

וַיְהִי כַּאֲשֶׁר מֵת גִּדְעוֹן וַיָּשׁוּבוּ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיִּזְנוּ אַחֲרֵי הַבְּעָלִים וַיָּשִׂימוּ לָהֶם בַּעַל בְּרִית לֵאלֹהִים

It was when Gideon died, and the children of Israel again strayed after the Be’alim, and they established Baal Berit, one of the appellations of the Baal, as a god for themselves. Baal worship was restored.

וְלֹא זָכְרוּ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת ה' אֱלֹהֵיהֶם הַמַּצִּיל אוֹתָם מִיַּד כָּל אֹיְבֵיהֶם מִסָּבִיב

The children of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who delivered them from the hand of all their surrounding enemies.

ולֹא עָשׂוּ חֶסֶד עִם בֵּית יְרֻבַּעַל גִּדְעוֹן כְּכָל הַטּוֹבָה אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה עִם יִשְׂרָאֵל

They did not act graciously with the house of Yerubaal, Gideon, corresponding to all the good that he had performed with Israel. This lack of gratitude toward Gideon’s family will be described in detail below.