Gideon Is Visited

11 Then athe angel of the Lord came and sat under the 1oak that was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the bAbiezrite as his son cGideon was beating out wheat in the wine press in order to save it from the Midianites.

12 The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O valiant warrior.”

13 Then Gideon said to him, “O my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But anow the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

14 The Lord 1looked at him and said, “aGo in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?”

15 aHe said to Him, “O Lord, 1how shall I deliver Israel? Behold, my family is the least in bManasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house.”

16 aBut the Lord said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall 1defeat Midian as one man.”

17 So 1Gideon said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me aa sign that it is You who speak with me.

18 “Please do not depart from here, until I come back to You, and bring out my offering and lay it before You.” And He said, “I will remain until you return.”

19 Then Gideon went in and aprepared a young goat and unleavened bread from an 1ephah of flour; he put the meat in a basket 2and the broth in a pot, and brought them out to him under the 3oak and presented them.

20 The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread and lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” And he did so.

21 Then the angel of the Lord put out the end of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened bread; and afire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. Then the angel of the Lord 1vanished from his sight.

22 aWhen Gideon saw that he was the angel of the Lord, 1he said, “Alas, O Lord 2God! For now I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face.”

23 The Lord said to him, “Peace to you, do not fear; you shall not die.”