Then he said,"Ohmaythe Lordnot be angry,and I shall speakonlythisonce;supposetenare foundthere?"And He said,"I will not destroy[it] on accountof the ten."
Then he said,"Ohmaythe Lordnot be angry,and I shall speak;supposethirtyare foundthere?"And He said,"I will not do[it] ifI findthirtythere."
And he said,"Nowbehold,I have venturedto speakto the Lord;supposetwentyare foundthere?"And He said,"I will not destroy[it] on accountof the twenty."
Then Judahapproachedhim, and said,"Ohmy lord,may your servantpleasespeaka wordin my lord'sears,and do not be angrywith your servant;for you are equal to Pharaoh.
"Ifthereis an angel[as] mediatorfor him, Oneout of a thousand,To reminda manwhatis rightfor him,
For You, Lord,are good,and readyto forgive,And abundantin lovingkindnessto allwho callupon You.
So the LORDchangedHis mindaboutthe harmwhichHe saidHe would doto His people.
The sacrificeof the wickedis an abominationto the LORD,But the prayerof the uprightis His delight.
Thussaysthe LORD,"As the newwineis foundin the cluster,And one says,'Do not destroyit, for there is benefitin it,' SoI will acton behalfof My servantsIn order not to destroyallof them.
"Roamto and frothrough the streetsof Jerusalem,And looknowand takenote.And seekin her opensquares,Ifyou can finda man,Ifthereis one who doesjustice,who seekstruth,Then I will pardonher.
Whois a GodlikeYou, who pardonsiniquityAnd passesoverthe rebelliousactof the remnantof His possession?He does not retainHis angerforever,BecauseHe delightsin unchanginglove.
"Ask,and it will be givento you; seek,and you will find;knock,and it will be openedto you.
Nowto Him who is ableto dofar more abundantlybeyondallthat we askorthink,accordingto the powerthat workswithinus,
Then Gideonsaidto God,"Do not let Your angerburnagainst me that I may speakoncemore;pleaselet me makea testoncemorewith the fleece,let it nowbe dryonlyon the fleece,and let there be dewon allthe ground."
