1. Once again the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. So for seven years he handed them over to the people of Midian.
2. The Midianites treated the people of Israel very badly. That's why they made hiding places for themselves. They hid in holes in the mountains. They also hid in caves and in other safe places.
3. Each year the people planted their crops. When they did, the Midianites came into the country and attacked it. So did the Amalekites and other tribes from the east.
4. They camped on the land. They destroyed the crops all the way to Gaza. They didn't spare any living thing for Israel. They didn't spare sheep or cattle or donkeys.
5. The Midianites came up with their livestock and tents. They came like huge numbers of locusts. It was impossible to count all of those men and their camels. They came into the land to destroy it.
6. Midian made the people of Israel very poor. So they cried out to the Lord for help.
7. They cried out to the Lord because of what Midian had done.
8. So he sent a prophet to them. The prophet said, "The Lord is the God of Israel. He says, 'I brought you up out of Egypt. That is the land where you were slaves.
9. I saved you from the power of Egypt. I saved you from all those who were beating you down. I drove the people of Canaan out to make room for you. I gave you their land.
10. " 'I said to you, "I am the Lord your God. You are now living in the land of the Amorites. Do not worship their gods." But you have not listened to me.' "
11. The angel of the Lord came. He sat down under an oak tree in Ophrah. The tree belonged to Joash. He was from the family line of Abiezer. Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress at Ophrah. He was the son of Joash. Gideon was threshing in a winepress to hide the wheat from the Midianites.
12. The angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon. He said, "Mighty warrior, the Lord is with you."
13. "But sir," Gideon replied, "you say the Lord is with us. Then why has all of this happened to us? Where are all of the wonderful things he has done? Our parents told us about them. They said, 'Didn't the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?' But now the Lord has deserted us. He has handed us over to Midian."
14. The Lord turned to Gideon. He said to him, "You are strong. Go and save Israel from the power of Midian. I am sending you."
15. "But Lord," Gideon asked, "how can I possibly save Israel? My family group is the weakest in the tribe of Manasseh. And I'm the least important member of my family."