Leviticus 26:8

8 Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand and do away with them.

Leviticus 26:8 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 26:8

And five of you shall chase an hundred
One man chase twenty; and an hundred of you put ten thousand to flight;
which, had it been in proportion to the other number, should have been two thousand, as in ( Deuteronomy 32:30 ) ; where there is a proportion observed; and Abendana observes, there are some that give the sense of it thus, an hundred of you, an hundred times five, that is, five hundred, and so it comes up to a right computation; but here it seems to be a certain number for an uncertain, and only a proverbial expression, signifying that a very few, under the blessing of divine Providence, should get the advantage over a large number, and oblige them to retire, and pursue them closely: instances we have of large bodies of the enemy being defeated by a small number of Israelites, ( Judges 7:21 Judges 7:22 ) ; and even many by a single person or two, ( 1 Samuel 14:13 1 Samuel 14:14 ) ( 2 Samuel 23:8-16 ) ; and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword;
(See Gill on Leviticus 26:7).

Leviticus 26:8 In-Context

6 "I'll make the country a place of peace - you'll be able to go to sleep at night without fear; I'll get rid of the wild beasts; I'll eliminate war.
7 You'll chase out your enemies and defeat them:
8 Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand and do away with them.
9 I'll give you my full attention: I'll make sure you prosper, make sure you grow in numbers, and keep my covenant with you in good working order.
10 You'll still be eating from last year's harvest when you have to clean out the barns to make room for the new crops.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.