Tola Leads Israel

¹ After Abimelech, Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, arose to save Israel. He lived in Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. ² He judged Israel 23 years and died and was buried in Shamir.

Jair Leads Israel

³ After him Jair, the Gileadite, arose. He judged Israel 22 years. ⁴ He had 30 sons who rode on 30 donkey colts. They had 30 cities, which are called Havvoth Jair to this day, which are in the land of Gilead. ⁵ Jair died and was buried in Kamon.

Philistine and Ammonite Oppression

⁶ The Israelites again did that which was evil in the Lord’s sight and served the Baals, the Ashtaroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines. They abandoned the Lord and did not serve him. ⁷ The Lord’s anger burned against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the Philistines and into the hand of the Ammonites. ⁸ They troubled and oppressed the Israelites that year. For eighteen years they oppressed all the Israelites that were beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead. ⁹ The Ammonites passed over the Jordan to fight also against Judah and against Benjamin and against the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was very distressed.

¹⁰ The Israelites cried to the Lord, saying, “We have sinned against you because we have forsaken our God and have served the Baals.”

¹¹ The Lord said to the Israelites, “Did I not save you from the Egyptians and from the Amorites, from the Ammonites, and from the Philistines? ¹² The Sidonians also and the Amalekites, and the Maonites oppressed you, and you cried to me, and I saved you out of their hand. ¹³ Yet you have forsaken me and served other gods. Therefore I will save you no more. ¹⁴ Go and cry to the gods which you have chosen. Let them save you in the time of your distress!”

¹⁵ The Israelites said to the Lord, “We have sinned! Do to us whatever seems good to you, only deliver us, please, today.” ¹⁶ They put away the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord, and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.

¹⁷ Then the Ammonites gathered together and encamped in Gilead. The Israelites assembled together and encamped in Mizpah. ¹⁸ The people, the princes of Gilead, said to one another, “Who is the man who will begin to fight against the Ammonites? He shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.”

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