22 Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, you and your son and your grandson also, for you have ^usaved us from the hand of Midian.” 23 Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; ^vthe Lord will rule over you.” 24 And Gideon said to them, “Let me make a request of you: every one of you give me the earrings from his spoil.” (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.) 25 And they answered, “We will willingly give them.” And they spread a cloak, and every man threw in it the earrings of his spoil. 26 And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was 1,700 shekels¹ of gold, besides the crescent ornaments and the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian, and besides the collars that were around the necks of their camels. 27 And Gideon made an ^wephod of it and put it in his city, in Ophrah. And all Israel ^xwhored after it there, and it became a ^ysnare to Gideon and to his family. 28 So Midian was ^zsubdued before the people of Israel, and they raised their heads no more. And the land had ^arest for forty years in the days of Gideon.

29 ^bJerubbaal the son of Joash went and lived in his own house. 30 Now Gideon had ^cseventy ^dsons, his own offspring,² for he had many wives. 31 And his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, and he called his name Abimelech. 32 And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age and was buried in the tomb of Joash his father, at Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

33 As soon as Gideon died, the people of Israel ^eturned again and ^fwhored after the Baals and made Baal-berith their god. 34 And the people of Israel ^gdid not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hand of all their enemies on every side, 35 and they did not show steadfast love to the family of Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) in return for all the good that he had done to Israel.