Shofetim 7

1 Then Yerubaal, who is Gid’on, and kol haAm that were with him, rose up early and encamped by Ein Charod; so that the Machaneh Midyan was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.

2 And Hashem said unto Gid’on, The people that are with thee are too rav (many) for Me to give Midyan into their hands, lest Yisroel vaunt themselves against Me, saying, Mine own yad hath saved me.

3 Now therefore go to, proclaim in the oznei haAm, saying, Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from Har HaGil‘ad. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.

4 And Hashem said unto Gid’on, HaAm are yet too many; bring them down unto the mayim, and I will sift them for thee there; and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go.

5 So he brought down haAm unto the mayim; and Hashem said unto Gid’on, Every one that laps the mayim with his leshon, as a kelev laps, him shalt thou separate by himself; likewise every one that kneels down upon his knees to drink.

6 And the number of the ones lapping, putting their yad to their mouth, were three hundred ish; but all the rest of haAm kneeled down upon their knees to drink mayim.

7 And Hashem said unto Gid’on, By the three hundred ish that lapped will I save you, and deliver Midyan into thine yad; and let all the other people go every ish unto his makom (place, home).

8 So the [retained] people took provision in their yad, and their shofarot; and he sent kol ish Yisroel every ish unto his ohel, but retained those three hundred haIsh; and the Machaneh Midyan was below him in the valley.

9 And it came to pass the same lailah, that Hashem said unto him, Arise, get thee down unto the Machaneh; for I have delivered it into thine yad.

10 But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Phurah thy eved down to the machaneh;

11 And thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be strengthened to go down unto the machaneh. Then he went down with Phurah his eved unto the outposts of the armed men that were in the machaneh.

12 And Midyan and Amalek and kol Bnei Kedem lay along in the valley like arbeh for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the chol (sand) on the seashore for multitude.

13 And when Gid’on arrived, hinei, there was an ish that told a chalom unto his re’a, and said, Hinei, I dreamed a chalom, and, hinei, a round loaf of lechem se’orim tumbled into the Machaneh Midyan, and came unto an ohel, and struck it that it fell, and overturned it, that the ohel collapsed.

14 And his re’a answered and said, This is nothing else but the cherev Gid’on ben Yoash, an ish Yisroel; for into his yad hath HaElohim delivered Midyan, and kol hamachaneh.

15 And it was so, when Gid’on heard the telling of the chalom, and the shever (breaking [of a dream, i.e., its interpretation]) thereof, that he worshiped, and returned into the machaneh Yisroel, and said, Arise; for Hashem hath delivered into your yad the Machaneh Midyan.

16 And he divided the three hundred haIsh into three companies, and he put a shofar in every man’s yad, with empty jars, and torches within the jars.

17 And he said unto them, Look on me, and do likewise; and, hinei, when I come to the edge of the machaneh, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do.

18 When I blow the shofar, I and all that are with me, then blow ye the shofarot also on every side of all the machaneh, and say, "For Hashem, and for Gid’on."

19 So Gid’on, and the hundred ish that were with him, came unto the outside of the machaneh in the beginning of the ashmoret hatikhonah (middle watch); and they had just set the shomrim; and they blew the shofar, and broke the jars that were in their hands.

20 And the three companies blew the shofar, and broke the jars, and held the torches in their left hands, and the shofarot in their right hands to blow withal; and they cried, A Cherev for Hashem and for Gid’on.

21 And they held every ish his position round about the machaneh; and kol hamachaneh ran, and cried out, and fled.

22 And the three hundred blew the shofarot, and Hashem caused every man’s cherev to be against his re’a, even throughout all the machaneh; and the machaneh fled to Beit-Sheetah in Tzererah, and to the border of Avel Mecholah, by Tabat.

23 And the Ish Yisroel gathered themselves together out of Naphtali, out of Asher, and out of all Menasheh, and pursued after Midyan.

24 And Gid’on sent malachim throughout all Har Ephrayim, saying, Come down against Midyan, and seize ahead of them the mayim as far as Beit Barah and Yarden. Then kol ish Ephrayim gathered themselves together, and took the mayim unto Beit Barah and Yarden.

25 And they took two sarim (princes) of Midyan, Orer and Ze’ev; and they killed Orev upon the Tzur Orev, and Ze’ev they killed at the Yekev (winepress) of Ze’ev, and pursued Midyan, and brought the heads of Orev and Ze’ev to Gid’on beyond the Yarden.

Shofetim 7 Commentary

Chapter 7

Gideon's army reduced. (1-8) Gideon is encouraged. (9-15) The defeat of the Midianites. (16-22) The Ephraimites take Oreb and Zeeb. (23-25)

1-8. God provides that the praise of victory may be wholly to himself, by appointing only three hundred men to be employed. Activity and prudence go with dependence upon God for help in our lawful undertakings. When the Lord sees that men would overlook him, and through unbelief, would shrink from perilous services, or that through pride they would vaunt themselves against him, he will set them aside, and do his work by other instruments. Pretences will be found by many, for deserting the cause and escaping the cross. But though a religious society may thus be made fewer in numbers, yet it will gain as to purity, and may expect an increased blessing from the Lord. God chooses to employ such as are not only well affected, but zealously affected in a good thing. They grudged not at the liberty of the others who were dismissed. In doing the duties required by God, we must not regard the forwardness or backwardness of others, nor what they do, but what God looks for at our hands. He is a rare person who can endure that others should excel him in gifts or blessings, or in liberty; so that we may say, it is by the special grace of God that we regard what God says to us, and not look to men what they do.

Verses 9-15 The dream seemed to have little meaning in it; but the interpretation evidently proved the whole to be from the Lord, and discovered that the name of Gideon had filled the Midianites with terror. Gideon took this as a sure pledge of success; without delay he worshipped and praised God, and returned with confidence to his three hundred men. Wherever we are, we may speak to God, and worship him. God must have the praise of that which encourages our faith. And his providence must be acknowledged in events, though small and seemingly accidental.

Verses 16-22 This method of defeating the Midianites may be alluded to, as exemplifying the destruction of the devil's kingdom in the world, by the preaching of the everlasting gospel, the sounding that trumpet, and the holding forth that light out of earthen vessels, for such are the ministers of the gospel, 2Co. 4:6, 2Co. 4:7 . God chose the foolish things of the world to confound the wise, a barley-cake to overthrow the tents of Midian, that the excellency of the power might be of God only. The gospel is a sword, not in the hand, but in the mouth: the sword of the Lord and of Gideon; of God and Jesus Christ, of Him that sits on the throne and the Lamb. The wicked are often led to avenge the cause of God upon each other, under the power of their delusions, and the fury of their passions. See also how God often makes the enemies of the church instruments to destroy one another; it is a pity that the church's friends should ever act like them.

Verses 23-25 Two chief commanders of the host of Midian were taken and slain by the men of Ephraim. It were to be wished that we all did as these did, and that where help is needed, that it were willingly and readily performed by another. And that if there were any excellent and profitable matter begun, we were willing to have fellow-labourers to the finishing and perfecting the same, and not, as often, hinder one another.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 7

In this chapter we have an account of the army under Gideon gathered out of several tribes, which from 32,000 were reduced to three hundred, and we are told by what means this was done, Jud 7:1-8 and how he was directed to go into the host of the Midianites, where he heard one of them telling his dream to his fellow, which greatly encouraged him to believe he should succeed, Jud 7:9-15 also we are told the form and manner in which he disposed of his little army to attack the Midianites, and the orders he gave them to observe, which had the desired effect, and issued in the total rout of that large body of people, Jud 7:16-22 and those that were not destroyed were pursued by persons gathered out of several tribes, and the passages of Jordan were taken by the Ephraimites, so that those that attempted their escape into their own country, there fell into their hands, Jud 7:23-25.