Judges 7

Judges 7

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Gideon’s Three Hundred Men

Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the spring of Harod. And the camp of Midian was north of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.

The LORD said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home and hurry away from Mount Gilead.’” Then 22,000 of the people returned, and 10,000 remained.

And the LORD said to Gideon, “The people are still too many. Take them down to the water, and I will test them for you there, and anyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ shall go with you, and anyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ shall not go.” So he brought the people down to the water. And the LORD said to Gideon, “Every one who laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set by himself. Likewise, every one who kneels down to drink.” And the number of those who lapped, putting their hands to their mouths, was 300 men, but all the rest of the people knelt down to drink water. And the LORD said to Gideon, “With the 300 men who lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hand, and let all the others go every man to his home.” So the people took provisions in their hands, and their trumpets. And he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his tent, but retained the 300 men. And the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

That same night the LORD said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand. But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant. 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 outposts of the armed men who were in the camp. And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the people of the East lay along the valley like locusts in abundance, and their camels were without number, as the sand that is on the seashore in abundance. When Gideon came, behold, a man was telling a dream to his comrade. And he said, “Behold, I dreamed a dream, and behold, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian and came to the tent and struck it so that it fell and turned it upside down, so that the tent lay flat.” And his comrade answered, “This is no other than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel; God has given into his hand Midian and all the camp.”

As soon as Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped. And he returned to the camp of Israel and said, “Arise, for the LORD has given the host of Midian into your hand.” And he divided the 300 men into three companies and put trumpets into the hands of all of them and empty jars, with torches inside the jars. And he said to them, “Look at me, and do likewise. When I come to the outskirts of the camp, do as I do. When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then blow the trumpets also on every side of all the camp and shout, ‘For the LORD and for Gideon.’”

Gideon Defeats Midian

So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, when they had just set the watch. And they blew the trumpets and smashed the jars that were in their hands. Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the jars. They held in their left hands the torches, and in their right hands the trumpets to blow. And they cried out, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!” Every man stood in his place around the camp, and all the army ran. They cried out and fled. When they blew the 300 trumpets, the LORD set every man’s sword against his comrade and against all the army. And the army fled as far as Beth-shittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel-meholah, by Tabbath. And the men of Israel were called out from Naphtali and from Asher and from all Manasseh, and they pursued after Midian.

Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites and capture the waters against them, as far as Beth-barah, and also the Jordan.” So all the men of Ephraim were called out, and they captured the waters as far as Beth-barah, and also the Jordan. And they captured the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they killed at the winepress of Zeeb. Then they pursued Midian, and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon across the Jordan.

(ESV)


Judges 7 Commentary

In Judges 7, Gideon gathers his troops near the spring of Harod to face the Midianites. However, God instructs him to reduce the number of soldiers so that Israel will not boast in their own strength. First, Gideon sends home those who are fearful, leaving 10,000 men. Later, God further reduced them to just 300 based on how they drank water.

That night, God assured Gideon of victory. The Lord encouraged him by allowing him to overhear a Midianite’s dream that foretold their defeat. Strengthened by this, Gideon divided his 300 men into three groups, equipping them with trumpets, torches inside pitchers, and a battle cry: “For the LORD and for Gideon!”

The Israelites surrounded the Midianite camp at night, blew their trumpets, broke the pitchers to reveal the torches, and shouted, causing panic in the enemy camp. God turned the Midianites against each other in confusion, and they fled. Gideon then summoned reinforcements from other Israelite tribes to pursue the enemy. The men of Ephraim intercepted and captured the Midianite princes, Oreb and Zeeb, executing them and bringing their heads to Gideon which secured Israel’s victory.

Numbers

Our culture is obsessed with numbers. They are a measurement for success in the business world, the military, and our bank accounts. Unfortunately, they are often the primary metric for measuring the success of the church as well. It is assumed that bigger numbers always equal greater success, security, and effectiveness. It’s human nature to put our trust and confidence in what we can measure.

Here in Judges 7, God flips that thinking completely upside down. Israel wasn’t a dominant military force to begin with, yet, God intentionally shrunk their army. Intentionally! Can you remember the last time you heard a CEO cast a vision for less growth, lower funding, and less market share?

First, 22,000 men are reduced to 10,000. Then, through a unique test at the water, only 300 remain. Now, they’re ready. When it came to the actual battle, it didn’t matter if there were 22,000, 300, or 0. God had already won the battle. This was a matter of trust and obedience.

River-Lapper or Kneeling Drinker?

It’s a strange way to choose soldiers, isn’t it? Was there a reason behind this? First, we must understand that it didn’t matter who the soldiers were because God would use anyone who obeyed Him. God was not concerned with the strength, size, and skill of Gideon’s men.

The same is true today. God isn’t seeking the most skilled for His Kingdom. He’s looking for those who will take Him at His Word. As I wrote above, the world often measures success by numbers, physical traits, talents, and skills. These are the things we can see and quantify, and we tend to place a lot of value on them.

But God looks beyond these outward measures. He’s not concerned with how many people you have, how skilled you are, or how impressive you may seem on the surface. What He cares about is the attitude of your heart. God can accomplish far more with a humble, obedient person who lacks skill or intelligence than with someone who is extremely talented but relies solely on their own strength. It’s not about our abilities or qualifications but our willingness to submit to God’s will and trust in His power.

When we approach Him with humility and obedience, He can work through us in ways that go far beyond our natural capabilities. The victory would not be won by human strength or might but by God’s Spirit! (Zec 4:6)

300

The number 300 is intriguing, especially when you consider its symbolism in relation to the Gospel. In Judges 7, the 300 men were each given a torch, a clay pot to cover the torch, and a trumpet. Interestingly, the number 300 in the Greek alphabet is represented by the letter Tau, which is written as a “T” — essentially, a cross.

When the 300 men revealed their torches, they had to break the clay pots in order to do so. As the torches were lifted, the darkness fled, and when the trumpets sounded, victory was achieved. This imagery parallels our lives as believers. We are like ordinary clay pots, but we are filled with the light of Christ (the Holy Spirit). In order for that light to shine in the world, we must “crush” our former selves — leaving behind our old ways of living. When we do this in obedience, the light of Jesus bursts through.

But here’s the powerful part: it wasn’t an individual act! It was a corporate mission. The soldiers didn’t crush their clay pots alone; they did it together. They didn’t raise their torches individually; they did it together. They didn’t sound their trumpets one by one; they did it in unison. This unity, working together with purpose and power, mirrors the church. As believers, we are called to function together as one body, with each of us carrying the light of Christ to bring victory over darkness.

The reality in Judges 7 is the same today; when we take God at His Word, step out in faith, and do it together as the body of Christ, we will see God glorified!

  1. It doesn’t matter if you are a river-lapper or a kneeling-drinker. God uses faith-filled people.
  2. We must crush our clay pots for Christ to be seen in our life.
  3. We must raise our torches high for all to see, and proclaim the great victory of our God.
  4. We must sound the trumpet in His Name, the rally cry that drives the enemy back into the darkness.
  5. We must do it all together, as one cohesive body.

Additional Resources

Check out this visual of Gideon’s army vs the Midianite army from Visual Theology.

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