HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 594
J U D G ES 7
‘Whoever is timid or afraid may leave this
mountain* and go home.’” So 22,000 of them
went home, leaving only 10,000 who were willing to fight.
4 But the Lord told Gideon, “There are still
too many! Bring them down to the spring, and
I will test them to determine who will go with
you and who will not.” 5 When Gideon took his
warriors down to the water, the Lord told him,
“Divide the men into two groups. In one group
put all those who cup water in their hands and
lap it up with their tongues like dogs. In the
other group put all those who kneel down and
drink with their mouths in the stream.” 6 Only
300 of the men drank from their hands. All the
others got down on their knees and drank with
their mouths in the stream.
7 The Lord told Gideon, “With these 300 men
I will rescue you and give you victory over the
Midianites. Send all the others home.” 8 So Gideon collected the provisions and rams’ horns of
the other warriors and sent them home. But he
kept the 300 men with him.
The Midianite camp was in the valley just
below Gideon. 9 That night the Lord said, “Get
up! Go down into the Midianite camp, for I have
given you victory over them! 10 But if you are
afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your
servant Purah. 11 Listen to what the Midianites
• Obedience
JU D G E S 7 :2 -7
How ridiculous Gideon must have looked
to many people who watched him reduce
his army to a mere 300 soldiers. To those
who lacked faith in God, Gideon must
have seemed insane. And he wasn’t the
only follower of God whose obedience
probably seemed like insanity to others.
How strange Noah must have looked
when he obeyed God and built a boat
on dry land (Genesis 6:14). How odd
the shepherd Moses must have looked
ordering the king of Egypt to free the
Israelite slaves (Exodus 7:1-5). Obedience
to God ultimately tests our true loyalty.
It is not a test we can afford to fail, for it
determines our eternal future. When we
learn to be more concerned about what
God thinks of us than what others think
of us, we have passed the test of where
our true loyalty lies. We are demonstrating
that our love for God comes first. Obeying
God is not something we do; it is following
Someone we love. Having this perspective
transforms our obedience from duty to
desire.
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are saying, and you will be greatly encouraged.
Then you will be eager to attack.”
So Gideon took Purah and went down to the
edge of the enemy camp. 12 The armies of Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east had
settled in the valley like a swarm of locusts.
Their camels were like grains of sand on the
seashore—too many to count! 13 Gideon crept up
just as a man was telling his companion about a
dream. The man said, “I had this dream, and in
my dream a loaf of barley bread came tumbling
down into the Midianite camp. It hit a tent,
turned it over, and knocked it flat!”
14 His companion answered, “Your dream can
mean only one thing—God has given Gideon
son of Joash, the Israelite, victory over Midian
and all its allies!”
15 When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship before the
Lord.* Then he returned to the Israelite camp
and shouted, “Get up! For the Lord has given
you victory over the Midianite hordes!” 16 He divided the 300 men into three groups and gave
each man a ram’s horn and a clay jar with a
torch in it.
17 Then he said to them, “Keep your eyes on
me. When I come to the edge of the camp, do
just as I do. 18 As soon as I and those with me
blow the rams’ horns, blow your horns, too,
all around the entire camp, and shout, ‘For the
Lord and for Gideon!’”
19 It was just after midnight,* after the changing of the guard, when Gideon and the 100 men
with him reached the edge of the Midianite
camp. Suddenly, they blew the rams’ horns and
broke their clay jars. 20 Then all three groups
blew their horns and broke their jars. They held
the blazing torches in their left hands and the
horns in their right hands, and they all shouted,
“A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!”
21 Each man stood at his position around the
camp and watched as all the Midianites rushed
around in a panic, shouting as they ran to escape. 22 When the 300 Israelites blew their rams’
horns, the Lord caused the warriors in the camp
to fight against each other with their swords.
Those who were not killed fled to places as far
away as Beth-shittah near Zererah and to the
border of Abel-meholah near Tabbath.
23 Then Gid e on sent for the warriors of
Naphtali, Asher, and Manasseh, who joined
in chasing the army of Midian. 24 Gideon also
sent messengers throughout the hill country
of Ephraim, saying, “Come down to attack the
Midianites. Cut them off at the shallow crossings of the Jordan River at Beth-barah.”
So all the men of Ephraim did as they were
7:3 Hebrew may leave Mount Gilead. The identity of Mount
Gilead is uncertain in this context. It is perhaps used here as
another name for Mount Gilboa. 7:15 As in Greek version;
Hebrew reads he bowed. 7:19 Hebrew at the beginning of the
second watch.