Judges 7:1-25 - Lord’s Army is Small but Mighty

Judges 7:1-25

Gideon’s Valiant Three Hundred

1 Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the well of Harod, so that the camp of the Midianites was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley.

2 And the LORD said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ 3 Now therefore, proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn and depart at once from Mount Gilead.’” And twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained.

4 But the LORD said to Gideon, “The people are still too many; bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. Then it will be, that of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ the same shall go with you; and of whomever I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ the same shall not go.” 5 So he brought the people down to the water. And the LORD said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps from the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set apart by himself; likewise everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.” 6 And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people got down on their knees to drink water. 7 Then the LORD said to Gideon, “By the three hundred men who lapped I will save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, every man to his place.” 8 So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, every man to his tent, and retained those three hundred men. Now the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

9 It happened on the same night that the LORD said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand. 10 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant, 11 and you shall hear what they say; and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp.” Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outpost of the armed men who were in the camp. 12 Now the Midianites and Amalekites, all the people of the East, were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the seashore in multitude.

13 And when Gideon had come, there was a man telling a dream to his companion. He said, “I have had a dream: To my surprise, a loaf of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian; it came to a tent and struck it so that it fell and overturned, and the tent collapsed.”

14 Then his companion answered and said, “This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel! Into his hand God has delivered Midian and the whole camp.”

15 And so it was, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise, for the LORD has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand.” 16 Then he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and torches inside the pitchers. 17 And he said to them, “Look at me and do likewise; watch, and when I come to the edge of the camp you shall do as I do: 18 When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then you also blow the trumpets on every side of the whole camp, and say, ‘The sword of the LORD and of Gideon!’”

19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just as they had posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands. 20 Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers—they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing—and they cried, “The sword of the LORD and of Gideon!” 21 And every man stood in his place all around the camp; and the whole army ran and cried out and fled. 22 When the three hundred blew the trumpets, the LORD set every man’s sword against his companion throughout the whole camp; and the army fled to Beth Acacia, toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath.

23 And the men of Israel gathered together from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh, and pursued the Midianites.

24 Then Gideon sent messengers throughout all the mountains of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites, and seize from them the watering places as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan.” Then all the men of Ephraim gathered together and seized the watering places as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan. 25 And they captured two princes of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they killed at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued Midian and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side of the Jordan.

Gideon was also known as Jerubbaal, “let Baal contend” as he was named by his father when he stood up for his his son as he destroyed the image and altar of Baal and told the upset villagers to let the nonexistent god defend himself against Gideon.  This Jerubbaal who asked for a sign by the fleece now raised an army against the Midianites and Amalekites encamped in the Valley of Jezreel waiting to attack to defend God’s people as the LORD had commanded him.  But the divine approach to recruitment was not what Gideon or anyone else expected.  He was first to whittle down the numbers, contrary to common sense to have the biggest army possible to assure victory, by asking anyone afraid to leave.  That cut the number by more than two thirds.  Then the LORD brought the people down to the water and told Gideon to lead the men to water and only keep the ones humble enough to get down and lap up the water like a dog.  This assured them that they would not try to claim the victory for themselves but to ascribe it all to the LORD God who alone delivers.  He told Gideon that is was, “lest Israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’”  The battle is His always, both then against the ungodly in the promised land and against the ultimate adversary who is set against the Lord’s Anointed and those who testify of His gospel (Revelation 12:17) now.  We put on the armor of faith (Ephesians 6:10-11) in His strength to fight the good fight of the gospel to deliver the souls of men and women under the sway of the wicked one, attributing all victory (1 Corinthians 15:57) to Him as we participate by faithful testimony to His work and power and authority (Matthew 28:18) to set them free (Matthew 28:19-20, John 8:32, 36, Romans 8:2, 37) and bring them into the promised heavenly land (Job 19:26-27, Hebrews 11:16) at last!  The LORD had used Gideon and his small band of three hundred to startle the enemy in their own camp and turn them upon themselves and then chase them away from their land for the victory.  We have the Lord Jesus Christ who is our commander and judge and He will gain the glory and victory on His own horse with the sword of His word (Revelation 19:11, 13-14, 15, 16) to drive the enemy into perdition in the final conquest of eternal judgment.  May we then who follow him into victory be valiant for the truth of the gospel against all (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) opposition to the truth that sets God’s people free.  It is not our great numbers or power that gains victory, but the power of the One whose gospel (Romans 1:16) we testify to!  The Lord’s army is small but mighty in Him.