¹⁰ They cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned because we abandoned the Lord and served the Baals and Astartes. Now deliver us from the power of our enemies, and we will serve you.’^(A)

²⁰ “Do not fear,” Samuel answered them. “You have indeed committed all this evil! Yet do not turn from the Lord, but serve him with your whole heart.

²⁴ But you must fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart, for you have seen the great things the Lord has done among you.

²³ “Now, therefore, put away the foreign gods that are among you and turn your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.”

^6 (A)Israel was reduced to utter poverty by Midian, and so the Israelites cried out to the Lord.

⁷ When Israel cried out to the Lord because of Midian, ^8 (B)the Lord sent a prophet to the Israelites who said to them: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I am the one who brought you up from Egypt; I brought you out of the house of slavery. ⁹ I rescued you from the power of Egypt and all your oppressors. I drove them out before you and gave you their land. ¹⁰ And I said to you: I, the Lord, am your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are dwelling. But you did not listen to me.

^10 (A)Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord, “We have sinned against you, for we have abandoned our God and served the Baals.” ^11 (B)The Lord answered the Israelites: Did not the Egyptians, the Amorites,^(C) the Ammonites, the Philistines, ¹² the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and the Midianites^(D) oppress you? Yet when you cried out to me, and I saved you from their power, ¹³ you still abandoned me and served other gods. Therefore I will save you no more.^{(E) 14} Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen; let them save you in your time of distress. ¹⁵ But the Israelites said to the Lord, “We have sinned. Do to us whatever is good in your sight. Only deliver us this day!” ¹⁶ And they cast out the foreign gods from their midst and served the Lord, so that he grieved over the misery of Israel.