“ The foreigners living among you will become stronger and stronger, while you become weaker and weaker.

在你中间寄居的，必渐渐上升，比你高而又高；你必渐渐下降，低而又低。

在你中间寄居的必上升高过你，高而又高；你必下降，低而又低。

在你中间寄居的必上升高过你，高而又高；你必下降，低而又低。

“你们中间的外族人要日益兴旺，你们却要日渐衰微。

住在你中间的寄居者必渐渐高升，比你高而又高；你必渐渐下降，低而又低。

在你中間寄居的，必漸漸上升，比你高而又高；你必漸漸下降，低而又低。

在你中間寄居的必上升高過你，高而又高；你必下降，低而又低。

在你中間寄居的必上升高過你，高而又高；你必下降，低而又低。

「你們中間的外族人要日益興旺，你們卻要日漸衰微。

住在你中間的寄居者必漸漸高升，比你高而又高；你必漸漸下降，低而又低。

在你中間的寄居者必漸漸上升、比你高了又高，你卻要漸漸下降，低了又低。

爾中賓旅、必愈升愈高、爾愈降愈卑、

爾中之賓旅、必舉於至高、爾降於至卑。

寄居爾中之外邦客旅、必日升為高、爾必日降為卑、

The foreigners who reside among you will rise above you higher and higher, but you will sink lower and lower.

Outsiders who live among you will become your leaders. They will rise higher and higher. But you will sink lower and lower.

The sojourner who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower.

The resident alien among you will rise higher and higher above you, while you sink lower and lower.

The stranger who is among you will rise above you higher and higher, and you will go down lower and lower.

“ The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower.

The sojourner that is in the midst of thee shall mount up above thee higher and higher; and thou shalt come down lower and lower.

The foreign resident among you will rise higher and higher above you, while you sink lower and lower.

The stranger that[ is] within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low.

The foreigners who reside among you will become higher and higher over you and you will become lower and lower.

The foreigner who is among you will mount up above you higher and higher, and you will come down lower and lower.

If you listen to these commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, and if you carefully obey them, the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you will always be on top and never at the bottom.

So now I declare that I will no longer drive out the people living in your land. They will be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a constant temptation to you.”

So 3,000 men of Judah went down to get Samson at the cave in the rock of Etam. They said to Samson,“ Don’t you realize the Philistines rule over us? What are you doing to us?” But Samson replied,“ I only did to them what they did to me.”But the men of Judah told him,“ We have come to tie you up and hand you over to the Philistines.”“ All right,” Samson said.“ But promise that you won’t kill me yourselves.”

King Nebuchadnezzar took all of Jerusalem captive, including all the commanders and the best of the soldiers, craftsmen, and artisans— 10,000 in all. Only the poorest people were left in the land.Nebuchadnezzar led King Jehoiachin away as a captive to Babylon, along with the queen mother, his wives and officials, and all Jerusalem’s elite.He also exiled 7,000 of the best troops and 1,000 craftsmen and artisans, all of whom were strong and fit for war.

“ Then take him away and judge him by your own law,” Pilate told them.“ Only the Romans are permitted to execute someone,” the Jewish leaders replied.

So the Lord burned with anger against Israel, and he turned them over to the Philistines and the Ammonites,who began to oppress them that year. For eighteen years they oppressed all the Israelites east of the Jordan River in the land of the Amorites( that is, in Gilead).The Ammonites also crossed to the west side of the Jordan and attacked Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim. The Israelites were in great distress.Finally, they cried out to the Lord for help, saying,“ We have sinned against you because we have abandoned you as our God and have served the images of Baal.”

The Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel. He punished them by handing them over to their attackers until he had banished Israel from his presence.

So the Lord turned them over to King Jabin of Hazor, a Canaanite king. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth haggoyim.Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years. Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help.

until the Lord finally swept them away from his presence, just as all his prophets had warned. So Israel was exiled from their land to Assyria, where they remain to this day.

“ Away with him,” they yelled.“ Away with him! Crucify him!”“ What? Crucify your king?” Pilate asked.“ We have no king but Caesar,” the leading priests shouted back.

The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight and served the images of Baal.They abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them. And they angered the Lord.They abandoned the Lord to serve Baal and the images of Ashtoreth.This made the Lord burn with anger against Israel, so he handed them over to raiders who stole their possessions. He turned them over to their enemies all around, and they were no longer able to resist them.Every time Israel went out to battle, the Lord fought against them, causing them to be defeated, just as he had warned. And the people were in great distress.

Soon after this, Jonathan attacked and defeated the garrison of Philistines at Geba. The news spread quickly among the Philistines. So Saul blew the ram’s horn throughout the land, saying,“ Hebrews, hear this! Rise up in revolt!”All Israel heard the news that Saul had destroyed the Philistine garrison at Geba and that the Philistines now hated the Israelites more than ever. So the entire Israelite army was summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.The Philistines mustered a mighty army of 3,000 chariots, 6,000 charioteers, and as many warriors as the grains of sand on the seashore! They camped at Micmash east of Beth aven.The men of Israel saw what a tight spot they were in; and because they were hard pressed by the enemy, they tried to hide in caves, thickets, rocks, holes, and cisterns.Some of them crossed the Jordan River and escaped into the land of Gad and Gilead. Meanwhile, Saul stayed at Gilgal, and his men were trembling with fear.

His father and mother didn’t realize the Lord was at work in this, creating an opportunity to work against the Philistines, who ruled over Israel at that time.

There were no blacksmiths in the land of Israel in those days. The Philistines wouldn’t allow them for fear they would make swords and spears for the Hebrews.So whenever the Israelites needed to sharpen their plowshares, picks, axes, or sickles, they had to take them to a Philistine blacksmith.The charges were as follows: a quarter of an ounce of silver for sharpening a plowshare or a pick, and an eighth of an ounce for sharpening an ax or making the point of an ox goad.So on the day of the battle none of the people of Israel had a sword or spear, except for Saul and Jonathan.The pass at Micmash had meanwhile been secured by a contingent of the Philistine army.