Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people who were with him, rose up early and encamped beside the spring of Harod. Midian’s camp was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley. Yahweh said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel brag against 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 and depart from Mount Gilead.’ ” So twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained.
Yahweh said to Gideon, “There are still too many people. Bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. It shall be, that those whom I tell you, ‘This shall go with you,’ shall go with you; and whoever I tell you, ‘This shall not go with you,’ shall not go.” So he brought down the people to the water; and Yahweh said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps of the water with his tongue, like a dog laps, you shall set him by himself; likewise everyone who bows down on his knees to drink.” The number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people bowed down on their knees to drink water. Yahweh said to Gideon, “I will save you by the three hundred men who lapped, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, each to his own place.”
So the people took food in their hand, and their trumpets; and he sent all the rest of the men of Israel to their own tents, but retained the three hundred men; and the camp of Midian was beneath him in the valley. That same night, Yahweh said to him, “Arise, go down into the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand. But if you are afraid to go down, go with Purah your servant down to the camp. You will hear what they say; and afterward your hands will be strengthened to go down into the camp.” Then went he down with Purah his servant to the outermost part of the armed men who were in the camp.
The Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is on the seashore for multitude.
When Gideon had come, behold, there was a man telling a dream to his fellow. He said, “Behold, I dreamed a dream; and behold, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian, came to the tent, and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down, so that the tent lay flat.”
His fellow answered, “This is nothing other than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel. God has delivered Midian into his hand, with all the army.”
It was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. Then he returned into the camp of Israel and said, “Arise, for Yahweh has delivered the army of Midian into your hand!”
He divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put into the hands of all them trumpets and empty pitchers, with torches within the pitchers.
He said to them, “Watch me, and do likewise. Behold, when I come to the outermost part of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so you shall 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 Yahweh and for Gideon!’ ”
So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outermost part of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch, when they had but newly set the watch. Then they blew the trumpets and broke in pieces the pitchers that were in their hands. The three companies blew the trumpets, broke the pitchers, and held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands with which to blow; and they shouted, “The sword of Yahweh and of Gideon!” They each stood in his place around the camp, and all the army ran; and they shouted, and put them to flight. They blew the three hundred trumpets, and Yahweh set every man’s sword against his fellow 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. The men of Israel were gathered together out of Naphtali, out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued Midian. Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against Midian and take the waters before them as far as Beth Barah, even the Jordan!” So all the men of Ephraim were gathered together and took the waters as far as Beth Barah, even the Jordan. They took the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at Oreb’s rock, and Zeeb they killed at Zeeb’s wine press, as they pursued Midian. Then they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon beyond the Jordan.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 13, 15, 16, 18, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25 Hebrew, En-harod.
Hebrew, En-harod.
Hebrew, Hammoreh.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1–25 Jdg 7:1 Then Jerubbaal, who [is] Gideon, and all…
Jdg 7:1 Then Jerubbaal, who [is] Gideon, and all the people that [were] with him, rose up early, and pitched beside the well of Harod: so that the host of the Midianites were on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.
Ver. 1. Beside the well of Harod.] That is, Of terror; {see 1Sa 28:1; 1Sa 29:1} so called from the fear that there surprised Gideon’s army, who seeing the multitude of their enemies, said, as Caesar did at Rubicon, Yet we may go back; and so they did. {Jdg 7:3}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25 Too many for me, i.e. for my purpose; which…
Too many for me, i.e. for my purpose; which is, so to deliver Israel, that it may appear to be my own miraculous act, that so I may have all the glory of it, and they may be more strongly obliged to love and serve me.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv1, 9, 16, 23 Here, I. Gideon applies himself with all possible care…
Here, I. Gideon applies himself with all possible care and industry to do the part of a good general, in leading on the hosts of Israel against the Midianites (Jdg 7:1): He rose up early, as one whose heart was upon his business, and who was afraid of losing time. Now that he is sure God is with him he is impatient of delay. He pitched near a famous well, that his army might not be distressed for want of water, and gained the higher ground, which possibly might be some advantage to him, for the Midianites were beneath him in the valley. Note, Faith in God's promises must not slacken, but rather quicken, our endeavours. When we are sure God goes before us, then we must bestir ourselves, Sa2 5:24.
II. God provides that the praise of the intended victory may be reserved wholly to himself, by appointing 300 men only to be employed in this service.
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1. The army consisted of 32,000 men, a small army in comparison with what the Midianites had now brought into the field; Gideon was ready to think them too few, but God comes to him, and tells him they are too many, Jdg 7:2. Not but that those did well who offered themselves willingly to this expedition, but God saw fit not to make use of all that came. We often find God bringing great things to pass by a few hands, but this was the only time that he purposely made them fewer. Had Deborah lately blamed those who came not to the help of the Lord, and yet in the next great action must those be turned off that do come? Yes; (1.) God would hereby show that when he employed suitable instruments in his service he did not need them, but could do his work without them, so that he was not indebted to them for their service, but they to him for employing them. (2.) He would hereby put those to shame for their cowardice who had tamely submitted to the Midianites, and durst not make head against them, because of the disproportion of their numbers. They now saw that, if they had but made sure of the favour of God, one of them might have chased a thousand. (3.) He would hereby silence and exclude boasting. This is the reason here given by him who knows the pride that is in men's hearts: Lest Israel vaunt themselves against me. Justly were those denied the honour of the success. My own hand hath saved me is a word that must never come out of the mouth of such as shall be saved. He that glories must glory in the Lord, and all flesh must be silent before him.
2. Two ways God took to lessen their numbers: - (1.) He ordered all that would own themselves timorous and faint-hearted to be dismissed, Jdg 7:3. They were now encamped on a mountain close to the enemy, called Mount Gilead, from Gilead, the common ancestor of these families of Manasseh, which were seated on this side Jordan (Num 26:30), and thence they might see perhaps the vast numbers of the enemy; those therefore who were disheartened at the sight were left to their liberty, to go back if they pleased. There was a law for making such a proclamation as this, Deu 20:8. But Gideon perhaps thought that concerned only those wars which were undertaken for the enlarging of their coast, not, as this, for their necessary defence against an invader; therefore Gideon would not have proclaimed this if God, who knew how his forces would hereby be diminished, had not commanded him. Cowards would be as likely as any, after the victory, to take the honour of it from God, and therefore God would not do them the honour to employ them in it. One would have thought there would be scarcely one Israelite to be found that against such an enemy as the Midianites, and under such a leader as Gideon, would own himself fearful; yet above two parts of three took advantage of this proclamation, and filed off, when they saw the strength of the enemy and their own weakness, not considering the assurances of the divine presence which their general had received of the Lord, and, it is likely, delivered unto them. Some think the oppression they had been under so long had broken their spirits, others, more probably, that consciousness of their own guilt had deprived them of their courage. Sin stared them in the face, and therefore they durst not look death in the face. Note, Fearful faint-hearted people are not fit to be employed for God; and, among those that are enlisted under the banner of Christ, there are more such than we think there are. (2.) He directed the cashiering of all that remained except 300 men, and he did it by a sign: The people are yet too many for me to make use off, Jdg 7:4. See how much God's thoughts and ways are above ours. Gideon himself, it is likely, thought they were too few, though they were as many as Barak encountered Sisera with (Jdg 4:14); and, had he not forced his way through the discouragement by dint of faith, he himself would have started back from so hazardous an enterprise, and have made the best of his own way back. But God saith, they are too many, and, when diminished to a third part, they are yet too many, which may help us to understand those providences which sometimes seem to weaken the church and its interests: its friends are too many, too mighty, too wise, for God to work deliverance by; God is taking a course to lessen them, that he may be exalted in his own strength. Gideon is ordered to bring his soldiers to the watering, probably to the well of Harod (Jdg 7:1) and the stream that ran from it; he, or some appointed by him, must observe how they drank. We must suppose they were all thirsty, and were inclined to drink; it is likely he told them they must prepare to enter upon action immediately, and therefore must refresh themselves accordingly, not expecting, after this, to drink any thing else but the blood of their enemies. Now some, and no doubt the most, would kneel down on their knees to drink, and put their mouths to the water as horses do, and so they might get their full draught. Others, it may be, would not make such a formal business of it, but as a dog laps with his tongue, a lap and away, so they would hastily take up a little water in their hands, and cool their mouths with that, and be gone. Three hundred and no more there were of this latter sort, that drank in haste, and by those God tells Gideon he would rout the Midianites, Jdg 7:7. By the former distinction none were retained but hearty men, that were resolved to do their utmost for retrieving the liberties of Israel; but by this further distinction it was provided that none should be made use of but, [1.] Men that were hardy, that could endure long fatigue, without complaining of thirst or weariness, that had not in them any dregs either of sloth or luxury. [2.] Men that were hasty, that thought it long till they were engaged with the enemy, preferring the service of God and their country before their necessary refreshment; such as these God chooses to employ, that are not only well affected, but zealously affected in a good thing. And also because these were the smaller number, and therefore the least likely to effect what they were designed for, God would by them save Israel. It was a great trial to the faith and courage of Gideon, when God bade him let all the rest of the people but these 300 go every man to his place, that is, go where they pleased out of his call, and from under his command; yet we may suppose those that were hearty in the cause, though now set aside, did not go so far out of hearing but that they were ready to follow the blow, when the 300 had broken the ice, though this does not appear. Thus strangely was Gideon's army purged, and modelled, and reduced, instead of being recruited, as one would think in so great an action it both needed and deserved to be. Now,
3. Let us see how this little despicable regiment, on which the stress of the action must lie, was accoutred and fitted out. Had these 300 been double-manned with servants and attendants, and double-armed with swords and spears, we should have thought them the more likely to bring something to pass. But, instead of making them more serviceable by their equipment, they are made less so. For, (1.) Every soldier turns butler: They took victuals in their hands (Jdg 7:8), left their bag and baggage behind, and every man burdened himself with his own provision, which was a trial of their faith, whether they could trust God when they had no more provisions with them than they could carry, and a trial of their diligence, whether they would carry as much as they had occasion for. This was indeed living from hand to mouth. (2.) Every soldier turns trumpeter. The regiments that were cashiered left their trumpets behind them for the use of these 300 men, who were furnished with these instead of weapons of war, as if they had been going rather to a game than to a battle.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv1–25 Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon,.... That being the name…
Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon,.... That being the name his father had lately given him, Jdg 6:32.
and all the people that were with him, rose up early; encouraged by the signs and miracles wrought, by which he was assured of success; he was eager to be about his work, and therefore rose early in the morning, and got his army together, and marched to engage the enemy:
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and pitched beside the well of Harod; which he might choose for the refreshment of his army on occasion; or, however, so he was directed in Providence here, where a trial was to be made of them by water: this well, or fountain, seems to be the same with that in Sa1 29:1 it signifies fear and trembling, and might have its name either from the fear and trembling of the 22,000 Israelites, whose hearts were dismayed at the Midianites, and they were ordered to return home; or from the fear and trembling of the Midianites, who were discomfited here; the former seems to be the true reason, see Jdg 7:3 so that the Midianites were on the north side of them; which Gideon, no doubt, judged to be an advantageous post to him:
by the hill of Moreh, in the valley; the valley of Jezreel, one of the mountains of Gilboa, as is supposed; the Targum is,"by the hill which looks to the plain;''from whence he could have a view of the Midianitish army, and the disposition of it. Some think this hill had its name from the Midianitish archers; but, according to Kimchi and Ben Melech, from there being a watch here to direct the ways, or to give notice to the inhabitants of the valley when an army came against them; though some take it to be a school of some eminent teacher in those days (z).
(z) See Weemse's Christian Synagogue, l. 1. c. 6. sect. 5.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 24, 25 God's direction to Gideon for modelling his army, ver.…
God's direction to Gideon for modelling his army, ver. 1-8. The dream of the Midianite, ver. 9-15. His manner of attacking the camp of Midian, ver. 16-20. Their total overthrow, ver. 21-25.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 13, 14, 16, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 The Lord commands Gideon to make a selection of…
CHAPTER VII
The Lord commands Gideon to make a selection of a small number
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of his men to go against the Midianites. Three hundred only
are selected; and into the hands of these God promises to
deliver the whole Midianitish host, 1-8.
Gideon is directed to go down unto the host in the night, that
he may be encouraged on hearing what they say, 9-12.
He obeys, and hears a Midianite tell a remarkable dream unto his
fellow, which predicted the success of his attack, 13-15.
He takes encouragement, divides his men into three companies,
and gives each a trumpet with a lighted lamp concealed in a
pitcher, with directions how to use them, 16-18.
They come to the Midianitish camp at night, when all suddenly
blowing their trumpets and exposing their lamps, the
Midianites are thrown into confusion, fly, and are stopped by
the Ephraimites at the passage of Jordan, and slain, 19-24.
Oreb and Zeeb, two Midianitish princes, are slain, 25.
NOTES ON CHAP. VII
Verse 1. Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon] It appears that Jerubbaal was now a surname of Gideon, from the circumstance mentioned Jdg 6:32. See Jdg 8:35.
The well of Harod] If this was a town or village, it is nowhere else mentioned. Probably, as חרד charad signifies to shake or tremble through fear, the fountain in question may have had its name from the terror and panic with which the Midianitish host was seized at this place.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 25 Jdg 7:1. Gideon rose up early — As one…
Jdg 7:1. Gideon rose up early — As one whose heart was upon his business, and who was afraid of losing time. Being now sure God was with him, he is impatient of any delay. And pitched by the well of Harod — That his army might not be distressed for want of water; and he gained the higher ground, which possibly might be some advantage to him, for the Midianites were beneath him in the valley. Our faith in God’s promises must not slacken, but rather quicken our endeavours. When we are sure God goes before us in any undertaking, we must be the more active, and exert ourselves the more to accomplish it.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv1, 3, 4, 8, 11, 13, 14, 16, 19, 21, 22, 24 The well of Harod - i. e. of trembling,…
The well of Harod - i. e. of trembling, evidently so called from the people who were afraid Jdg 7:3. It is identified with great probability with Ain Jalud, a spacious pool at the foot of Gilboa; (by Conder, with Ain el Jem’ain (the spring of the two troops)).
Moreh was, probably, the little Hermon, the Jebel ed-Duhy of the Arabs, which encloses the plain two or three miles north of Gilboa, which shuts it in on the south.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24, 25 Fountain. The same also called Areth, as the copies…
Fountain. The same also called Areth, as the copies of the Septuagint and of St. Jerome vary. (Bonfrere) --- Harad, or "of trouble," either because the Madianites were filled with terror at the approach of Gedeon, or because so many of his soldiers returned home through fear. (Menochius) --- Perhaps it may be the same which is called the fountain of Jezrael, near which Saul encamped, 1 Kings xxix. 1. (Calmet) --- Adrichomius places it on the south of Gelboe, which is called the high hill. (Menochius) --- Hebrew, "on the north side of them, by the hill of More, in the vale." (Haydock) --- Jezrael was between Gelboe to the south, and Hermon to the north. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On vv1, 9, 12 Gideon in the field. His numerous army reduced, by…
Gideon in the field. His numerous army reduced, by divinely prescribed tests, to three hundred men
Jdg_7:1-8
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1Then [And] Jerubbaal (who is Gideon) and all the people that were with him, rose up early and pitched [encamped] beside the well of Harod [near En-Harod]: so that [and] the host [camp] of the Midianites were [was] on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.1 2And the Lord [Jehovah] said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. 3Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early [turn away] from Mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand. 4And the Lord [Jehovah] said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there; and it shall be that of whom I say unto thee, This [one] shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This [one] shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. 5So he brought down the people unto the water: and the Lord [Jehovah] said unto Gideon; Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink. 6And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water. 7And the Lord [Jehovah] said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand: and let all the other people go every man unto his place. 8So the people [And they] took [the] victuals [from the people] in their hand, and their trumpets;2 and he sent all the rest of Israel every man unto his tent, and retained those three hundred men. And the host [camp] of Midian was beneath him in the valley.
TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL
[1 Jdg_7:1.—Dr. Cassel, taking לוֹ in the last clause of this verse (and also in Jdg_7:8) as if it were לְפָנָיו, renders thus: “And he had the camp of Midian before him in the valley, to the north of the hill Moreh.” The E. V. is more correct. Literally rendered, the clause says that “the camp of Midian was to him (Gideon) on the north, at (מִן, cf. Ges. Lex. s. v., 3, h) the hill of Moreh, in the valley.”—Tr.]
[2 Jdg_7:8.—On the rendering of this clause, see the commentary below. Keil translates similarly (“of the people,” instead of “from the people”), and remarks: “הָעָם cannot be subject, partly on account of the sense—for the three hundred who are without doubt the subject, cf. Jdg_7:16, cannot be called הָעָם in distinction of כָּל־אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל—partly also on account of the אֶת־צֵדָה, which would then, against the rule, be without the article, cf. Ges. Gram. 117, 2. Rather read אֶת־צֵדת הָעָם, as Sept. and Targum.” So also Bertheau.—Tr.]
EXEGETICAL AND DOCTRINAL
Jdg_7:1. And they encamped near En Harod. The great probability that Ophrah is to be sought somewhere to the northwest of Jezreel (the modern Zerîn), has already been indicated above. The battle also must be located in the same region, as appears from the course of the flight, related farther on. The camp of Midian was in the valley, to the north of a hill. Now, since we are told that Gideon’s camp was on a hill (Jdg_7:4), below which, and north of another, Midian was encamped, it is evident that Gideon occupied a position north of Midian, and had that part of the plain of Jezreel in which the enemy lay, below him, towards the south. The height near which the hostile army was posted, is called the Hill Moreh. Moreh (מוֹרֶה, from יָרָה), signifies indicator, pointer, overseer and teacher. The mountain must have commanded a free view of the valley. This applies exactly to the Tell el Mutsellim, described by Robinson (Bibl. Res. iii. 117). He says: “The prospect from the Tell is a noble one, embracing the whole of the glorious plain, than which there is not a richer upon earth. It was now extensively covered with fields of grain; with many tracts of grass, like meadows; … Zerîn (Jezreel) was distinctly in view, bearing S. 74° E.” To this must be added that the Arabic Mutsellim has essentially the same meaning as Moreh, namely, overseer, district-governor, etc. The peculiar position of the Tell has probably given it the same kind and degree of importance in all ages. A little north, of Tell Mutsellim, Robinson’s map has a Tell Kîreh, which may mark the position of Gideon; for that must have been very near and not high, since Gideon could descend from it and hurry back in a brief space of the same night. It may be suggested, at least, that Kîreh has some similarity of sound with Charod (Harod).3
Jdg_7:2. The people that are with thee are too many. Victory over Midian, and deliverance from their yoke, would avail Israel nothing, if they did not gain the firm conviction that God is their Helper. The least chance of a natural explanation, so excites the pride of man, that he forgets God. Whatever Gideon had hitherto experienced, his vocation as well as the fulfillment of his petitions, was granted in view of his humility, which would not let him think anything great of himself. The number of warriors with which he conquers must be so small, that the miraculous character of the victory shall be evident to everybody. This belief in divine intervention will make Israel free; for not the winning of a battle, but only obedience toward God can keep it so.
Jdg_7:3. Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn back and depart from Mount Gilead.4 The narrative is evidently very condensed; for it connects the result of the proclamation immediately with God’s command to Gideon to make it, without mentioning its execution by him. By reason of this brevity, sundry obscurities arise, both here and farther on, which it is difficult to clear up. The words וְיִעְפֹּר מֵהַר הַגִּלְעָד, “and turn away from Mount Gilead,” have long given offense, and occasioned various unnecessary conjectures. יִצְפֹּר, it is true, occurs only in this passage; but it is manifestly cognate with צְפִירָה, circle, crown. Hence, that the verb means to turn away or about, is certain, especially as the Greek σφαῖρα, ball, sphere, must belong to the same root.5 Gideon, in bidding the timorous depart, after the milder יָשֹׁב, uses the somewhat stronger יִצְפֹּר: “let the fearful take himself off!”6
But what is meant by turning from “Mount Gilead?”7 For Gilead is beyond the Jordan (Jdg_5:17). It has therefore been proposed to read גִּלְבֹּעַ, Gilboa, instead of גִּלְעָד, Gilead, which would be a very unfortunate substitution. For, in the first place, the battle did not occur at Mount Gilboa; and in the next place, by this reading the peculiar feature of the sentence would be lost. To be sure, Gilead does not here mean the country of that name east of the Jordan. Indeed, it does not seem to indicate a country at all, but rather the character of the militant tribe. Gideon belongs to the tribe of Manasseh. From Manasseh likewise descended Gilead, a son of Machir (Num_26:29); and the sons of Machir took possession of Gilead (Num_32:40). Nevertheless, the Song of Deborah distinguishes between Machir and Gilead. The name Machir there represents the peaceable character of the tribe: Gilead stands for its military spirit. Jos_17:1 affirms expressly that Gilead was a “man of war.” From Gilead heroes like Jephthah descend. Jehu also is reckoned to it.8 The valor of Jabesh Gilead is well known. In a bad sense, Hosea (Jdg_6:8) speaks of Gilead as the home of wild and savage men. Here, therefore, Gilead stands in very significant contrast with חָרֵד: “let him,” cries the hero, “who is cowardly and fearful depart from the mountain of Gilead, who (as Jephthah said) takes his life in his hand, unterrified before the foe.”9 For the rest, however, the name Gilead was not confined to the east-Jordanic country. This appears from Jdg_12:4, where we read that the Ephraimites called the Gileadites fugitives of Ephraim, “for Gilead was between Ephraim and Manasseh.” Now, Ephraim’s territorial possessions were all west of the Jordan. From this, therefore, and from the fact that the western half tribe of Manasseh and the tribe of Ephraim were partly interlocated (cf. Jos_17:8-10), it is evident that the names of the eastern Gilead were also in vogue on this side the Jordan. He who would be with Gilead, must be no “חָרֵד” (trembler): out of 32,000 men, 22,000 perceive this, and retire.
That numbers do not decide in battle, is a fact abundantly established by the history of ancient nations; nor has modern warfare, though it deals in the life and blood of the masses, brought discredit upon it. It is a fine remark which Tacitus (Annal. xiv. 36, 3) puts into the mouth of Suetonius: Etiam in multis legionibus, paucos esse qui prœlia profligarent—“even with many legions, it is always the few who win the battle.” The instance adduced by Serarius from Livy (xxix. 1), has no proper relation to that before us. It would be more suitable to instance Leonidas, if it be true, as Herodotus (vii. 220) intimates, that at the battle of Thermopylæ he dismissed his confederates because he knew them to be deficient in bravery; in relation to which, however, Plutarch’s vehement criticism is to be considered (cf. Kaltwasser, in Plut. Moral. Abhandl., vi. 732). Noteworthy is the imitation of Gideon’s history in a North-German legend (Müllenhoff, Sagen, etc. p. 426). In that as in many other legends, magic takes the place of God.
Jdg_7:4. Bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there. There is no lack of water in this region. Ponds, wells, and bodies of standing water, are described by Robinson (Bibl. Res. iii. 115, 116). Beside these, Gideon had the Kishon behind him, which in the rainy season is full of water.
Jdg_7:5-7. Every one that lappeth of the water. The meaning of this test, the second which Gideon was to apply, is obscured by the brevity of the narrative. The question is, What characteristic did it show in the 300 men, that they did not drink water kneeling, but lapped it with their tongues, like dogs. Bertheau has followed the view of Josephus (Ant. v. 6, 3), which makes those who drink after the manner of dogs to be the faint-hearted. According to this view, the victory is the more wonderful, because it was gained by the timid and fearful. But this explanation does not accord with the traditional exegesis of the Jews, as handed down by others. Moreover, it contradicts the spirit of the whole narrative. When Gideon was chosen, it was for the very reason that he was a “valiant hero” (Jdg_6:12). All those who were deficient in courage were sent home by the proclamation (Jdg_7:3). If faint-heartedness were demanded, the brave should have been dismissed. Finally, God saves by few, indeed, if they trust in Him, but not by cravens. Cowardice is a negative quality, unable even to trust. To do wonders with cowards, is a contradiction in adjecto; for if they fight, they are no longer cowards. Cowardice is a condition of soul which cannot become the medium of divine deeds; for even the valiant few, when they attack the many and conquer, are strong only because of their divine confidence. Besides, it is plainly implied that all those who now went with Gideon, were resolute for war. The Jewish interpretation, communicated by Raschi, is evidently far more profound. Gideon, it says, can ascertain the religious antecedents of his men from the way in which they prepare to drink. Idolaters were accustomed to pray kneeling before their idols. On this account, kneeling, even as a mere bodily posture, had become unpopular and ominous in Israel, and was avoided as much as possible. Hence, he who in order to drink throws himself on his knees, shows thereby, in a perfectly free and natural manner, that this posture is nothing unusual to him; whereas those who have never been accustomed to kneel, feel no need of doing it now, and as naturally refrain from it. It would have been difficult for Gideon to have ascertained, in any other way, what had been the attitude of his men towards idolatry. While quenching their eager thirst, all deliberation being forgotten, they freely and unrestrainedly indicate to what posture they were habituated. It is a principle pervading the legendary lore of all nations, that who and what a person is, can only be ascertained by observing him when under no constraint of any kind.10 The queen of a Northern legend exchanges dresses with her maid; but she who is not the queen, is recognized by her drinking (cf. Simrock, Quellen des Shaksp. iii. 171). That which is here in Scripture accepted with reference to religious life and its recognition, popular literature applies to the keen discriminating observance of social life.—This view of the mark afforded by the act of kneeling, is not opposed by the fact that in the temple the worshipper bowed himself before God. It is announced to Elijah (1Ki_19:18), that only 7,000 shall be left: “All the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.” To bow the knee is an honor due to God alone. Hence, Mordecai refuses to kneel to a man (Est_3:5). Hence, God proclaims by the prophet (Isa_45:23): “Unto me every knee shall bow.” The three hundred—this is what God makes Gideon to know—have never kneeled before Baal; they are clean men; and with clean vessels, men, and animals, God is accustomed to do wonderful things. Midian’s idolatrous people shall be smitten only by such as have always been free from their idols.
However satisfactory and in harmony with the Biblical spirit this explanation may be as it stands, let something nevertheless be added to it. Verse 5 says: יָלקֹ הַכֶּלֶב תַּצִּינ אוֹתוֹ לְבָד כֹּל אֲשֶׁר־יָלקֹ בִּלְשׁוֹנוֹ מִו־הַמַּים כַּאֲשֶׁרIn verse 6 the phraseology changes; it speaks of those who הַמְלַקְקִים בְּיָדָם אֶל־פִּיהֶם. Now, as they would naturally use the hollow hand to take up the water and carry it to the mouth, thus making it answer to the concave tongue of a dog, it is evident that we must so understand the words quoted from Jdg_7:5, as if it read: כַאֲשֶׁר יָלקֹ הַכֶּלֶב בִּלְשׁוֹנוֹ כֹּל אֲשֶׁר יָלקֹ בְּיָדוֹ מִו־הַמַּיִם, “all who sip water with their hands, as the dog with his tongue.” However that may be, the circumstance must not be overlooked that a comparison with the sipping of a dog is here instituted; for if the comparison had no special significance, it would have sufficed to distinguish between those who drank standing and those who drank kneeling. It was the perception of this, doubtless, which induced the common reference to what Ælian (Hist. Anim., vi. 53) says of the dogs of Egypt, that for fear of crocodiles they drink quickly, while running. And from this arose the view, already confuted, that the three hundred who imitated the lapping of dogs, were spiritless and cowardly. But the comparison must be viewed more profoundly. Those Egyptian dogs are the type, not of cowardice, but of caution. It is known that the crocodiles of the Nile were not the only ones of their kind eager to seize on dogs; those of Central America (the Cayman alligator) are not less so. In Cuba, likewise, dogs will not drink from rivers, lest their greedy foe might suddenly spring on them (cf. Oken. Naturgesch., vi. 666). The crocodile is the image of the adversary; against whom they are on their guard, who do not so drink, that from eagerness to quench their thirst, they fall into his hands.11 Sensual haste would forget the threatening danger. To these considerations, add the following:12 The heroic achievement of the three hundred is a surprise, in which they throw themselves, as it were, into the jaws of the sleeping foe. Now, the ancients tell of an animal, “similar to a dog,” which, hostile to the crocodile, throws itself into the jaws of the reptile when asleep, and kills it internally. This animal, called Hydrus, or אנדריון (cf. Phys. Syrus, ed. Tychsen, cap. xxxi. p. 170), has been rightly considered to be the Ichneumon, the crocodile’s worst enemy. Its name signifies, “Tracker.” Tracking, ἰχνεν́ειν, is the special gift of dogs. Among five animals before whom the strong must fear, the Talmud (Sabbat, 77, b) names the כִלְבִית,13 from כֶלֶב, dog, as being a terror of the לְוִיָתָן, crocodile. The band who drink like the Egyptian dog, perform a deed similar to that which the dog-like animal has ascribed to it. They throw themselves upon the sleeper; and, courageous though few, become the terror of the mighty foe. If it may be assumed that for the sake of such hints the similitude of the sipping dog was chosen for the three hundred companions of Gideon, the whole passage, it must be allowed, becomes beautiful and clear. He who has never inclined to idolatry, who has exercised caution against hostile blandishments and mastered his own desires,—he, like the animal before alluded to, will be fitted, notwithstanding his weakness, to surprise and overcome the enemy, how strong soever he be. The similitude, in this view, is analogous to various other significant psychological propositions, expressive of fundamental moral principles.14
Jdg_7:8. They took the victuals from the people in their hands. The words of the original are: וַיִּקְתוּ אֶת־צֵדָה הָעָם בְּיָדָם. Offense has naturally been taken at עֵדָה: instead of which צֵדַת , in the stat. constr., was to be expected. The older Jewish expositors endeavored to support the unusual form by a similar one in Psa_45:5, צֶדֶקוְעַנְוָה ; but the two are not exactly parallel, either in sense or form, to say nothing of Olshausen’s proposal to emend the latter passage also. On the other hand, it is certainly surprising that צֵדַת is not found in a single manuscript, although it was so natural to substitute it in effect, as was done by the ancient versions. Nor is it clear that צֵדַת can be read.15 It is not to be assumed that the three hundred men took all the provisions of the other thousands. It would be quite impossible to comprehend how the former were benefited by such super-abundance, or how the latter could dispense with all means of subsistence. The sense can only be that the three hundred took their provisions out of the supplies for the whole army. As the great body of the army was about to leave them, this little troop took from the common stores as much as they needed. We are not therefore to correct צֵדָה into צֵדַת, but to supply מִן before הָעָם. The matter is further explained by the addition בְּיָדָם. From the common stores of the supply-train, they look what they needed for themselves in their own hands, for the others were going away. The case was not much different with the trumpets. The three hundred needed one each; so many had therefore to be taken from the people. There is nothing to show, nor is it to be assumed, that the other thousands kept none at all, or that at the outset the whole ten thousand had only three hundred trumpets. The three hundred took from the body of the army what, according to their numbers, they needed to venture the battle.—The others Gideon dismissed, “every one to his tent.’ To be dismissed, or to go to the tents, is the standing formula by which the cessation of the mobile condition of the army is indicated. The people are free from military duty; but they do not appear to have entirely disbanded.
He retained the three hundred. With these he intended to give battle; and the conflict was near at hand, for the hostile army lay before him in the valley below.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
Starke: Christianity requires manliness; away, therefore, with those who always plead the weakness of the flesh.—The same: It matters little how insignificant we are considered, if we only conquer.—The same: We should regard, not the means which God uses for our physical and spiritual deliverance, but the God who uses them.—The same: Though men do nothing, but only stand in the order appointed, God by his omnipotence can effect more than when they work their busiest.—Gerlach: God’s genuine soldiers never seek their strength in numbers, nor ever weaken their ranks by the reception of half-hearted, slothful, and timorous persons. In times of peace, they may for love’s sake hold fellowship with many; but when battle is to be waged for the Lord, it is necessary to get rid of all those who could only weaken the host.
[Bp. Hall: Gideon’s army must be lessened Who are so fit to be cashiered as the fearful? God bids him, therefore, proclaim license for all faint hearts to leave the field. An ill instrument may shame a good work. God will not glorify himself by cowards. As the timorous shall be without the gates of heaven, so shall they be without the lists of God’s field. Although it was not their courage that should save Israel, yet without their courage God would not serve Himself of them. Christianity requires men; for if our spiritual difficulties meet not with high spirits, instead of whetting our fortitude, they quell it.—The same: But now, who can but bless himself to find of two and thirty thousand Israelites, two and twenty thousand cowards? Yet all these in Gideon’s march, made as fair a flourish of courage as the boldest. Who can trust the faces of men, that sees in the army of Israel above two for one timorous?—Scott: Many who have real faith and grace are unfit for special services, and unable to bear peculiar trials, from which therefore the Lord will exempt them; and to which He will appoint those to whom He has given superior hardiness, boldness, and firmness of spirit; and very trivial incidents will sometimes make a discovery of men’s capacities and dispositions, and show who are and who are not to be depended on in arduous undertakings.—Tr.]
Footnotes:
[1][Jdg_7:1.—Dr. Cassel, taking לוֹ in the last clause of this verse (and also in Jdg_7:8) as if it were לְפָנָיו, renders thus: “And he had the camp of Midian before him in the valley, to the north of the hill Moreh.” The E. V. is more correct. Literally rendered, the clause says that “the camp of Midian was to him (Gideon) on the north, at (מִן, cf. Ges. Lex. s. v., 3, h) the hill of Moreh, in the valley.”—Tr.]
[2][Jdg_7:8.—On the rendering of this clause, see the commentary below. Keil translates similarly (“of the people,” instead of “from the people”), and remarks: “הָעָם cannot be subject, partly on account of the sense—for the three hundred who are without doubt the subject, cf. Jdg_7:16, cannot be called הָעָם in distinction of כָּל־אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל—partly also on account of the אֶת־צֵדָה, which would then, against the rule, be without the article, cf. Ges. Gram. 117, 2. Rather read אֶת־צֵדת הָעָם, as Sept. and Targum.” So also Bertheau.—Tr.]
[3][Bertheau assumes that En Charod is the same fountain as the modern Ain Jâlûd, flowing from the base of Gilboa, see Rob. Bibl. Res. 2:323. Accordingly, Gilboa would be the mountain on which Gideon was encamped, and Little Hermon (on which see Rob. ii:326) would answer to Moreh. On this combination Keil remarks, that “although possible, it is very uncertain, and scarcely reconcilable with the statements of Jdg_7:23 ff. and Jdg_8:4, as to the road taken by the defeated Midianites.”—Tr.]
[4]Epaminondas, when advancing against the Spartans at Leuctra, observed the unreliable character of some confederates. To prevent being endangered by them, he caused it to be proclaimed, that “Whoever of the Bœotians wished to withdraw, were at liberty to do so.” Polyænus, ii.3.
[5]Under this view, the conjectures adopted by Benfey (Gr. Gr. 1:579; 2:367) fall away of themselves.
[6][The German is: “Wer feige sei, trolle sich vom Berge.” The author then adds: “The German drollen, trollen, has in fact a similar origin. It means “to turn one’s self;” drol is that which is turned, also a “coil.” Sich trollen [English: to pack one’s self], is proverbially equivalent to taking one’s departure, recedere. Cf. Grimm, Wörterbuch, ii.1429, etc.”—Tr.]
[7]Dathe proposes to read ad montem, and Michaelis to point מַהֵר, “quickly,” instead of מֵהַר, “from the mountain.” Neither proposition can be entertained (cf. Döderlein, Theol. Biblioth., iii.326).
[8][By the ancient Jewish expositors, cf. Dr. Cassel’s article on Jehu in Herzog’s Realencykl. vi.466. “In so doing they probably explained son of Nimshi (נִמְשִׁי) as son of a Manassite (מְבַשִׁי), i. e. a son out of the tribe of Manasseh.”—Tr.]
[9][Ewald (Gesch. Israel’s, ii.500, note) has the following on this proclamation: “From the unusual words and their rounding, it is easy to perceive that they contain an ancient proverb, which in its literal sense would be especially appropriate to the tribe of Manasseh. “Mount Gilead,” the place of Jacob’s severest struggles (Genesis 31. etc.), may very well, from patriarchal times, have become a proverbial equivalent for “scene of conflict,” which is manifestly all that the name here means. And Manasseh was the very tribe which had often found that for them also Gilead was a place of battle, of. p. 891.”—Tr.]
[10]The same popular belief recurs in various forms; in many of which the rudeness and naïveté of the manner conceals the profundity of the thought. Cf. Grimm, Kintermärchen, ii. 229; Müllenhoff, Sagen, p. 384.
[11]An image of heathenism and Israel, which from inconsiderate thirst for enjoyment, so often falls into the jaws of sin. The godly rejoice with trembling, and enjoy with watchfulness, that they may not become a prey to the enemy.
[12]The most remarkable confirmation of this narrative, considered in its symbolic import, is found in a German legend, communicated by Birlinger (Volksthümliches aus Schwaben, i. 116), in which the she-wolf recognizes as genuine only those among her young who drink water, while she regards those who lap like dogs as young wolf-dogs, and her worst enemies. Accordingly, dogs who lap, in the manner which Gideon wishes to see imitated by his faithful ones, are the enemies of the rapacious wolf.
[13][Nomen vermis aquatilis, qui ingreditur aures piscium majorum. Buxtorff, Lex. Talm.—Tr.]
[14]Cf. my Essay on Den armen Heinrich, in the Weim. Jahrbuch fur Deutsche Sprache, i. 410.
[15]Keil is among those who propose to adopt it.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 23, 24 the Lord said unto Gideon, The people . .…
the Lord said unto Gideon, The people . . . are too many--Although the Israelitish army mustered only thirty-two thousand (or one-sixth of the Midianitish host), the number was too great, for it was the Lord's purpose to teach Israel a memorable lesson of dependence on Him.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 GIDEON’S ARMY REDUCED TO THREE HUNDRED, Jdg_7:1-8.
GIDEON’S ARMY REDUCED TO THREE HUNDRED, Jdg_7:1-8.
1. The well of Harod — Or, fountain of trembling. See on Jdg_7:3. Probably the large fountain Ain Jalud, at the northern base of Mount Gilboa. It is a large pool forty or fifty feet in diameter, and from it flows, down the valley, eastward, a stream strong enough to turn a mill. By this same spring the Israelitish army encamped at a later day, before their disastrous battle with the Philistines. in which Saul was slain. See note on 1Sa_29:1.
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By the hill of Moreh, in the valley — This hill of Moreh is not to be confounded with the oak or oaks of Moreh, (wrongly rendered plain in English versions.) near Shechem, (Gen_12:6; Deu_11:30,) but was the Little Hermon, lying directly north of the Ain Jalud; and the valley was the broad plain situated between this mountain and Mount Gilboa on the south. This valley is really the eastern arm of the great Plain of Jezreel, and runs quite down to the Jordan. It was doubtless the great highway by which the Midianites came from the Jordan and pitched in the Valley of Jezreel. Jdg_6:33. Between Mount Gilboa and the Little Hermon the valley is about two and a half miles wide, and all along in it lay the children of the East, like grasshoppers for multitude. Jdg_7:12.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 1. This verse is the continuation of Jdg_6:34; the…
1. This verse is the continuation of Jdg_6:34; the thread of the narrative is taken up again in Jdg_7:8 b. The intervening Jdg_7:2-8 a are dependent upon Jdg_6:35.
who is Gideon] A gloss, as in Jdg_8:35. The wording suggests that the earliest form of the narrative used the name Jerub-baal, for which Gideon has been substituted in almost every instance. In ch. 9, which is comparatively free from editorial changes, the name is always Jerub-baal.
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the spring of Harod] Traditionally identified with ‘Ain Jâlûd, about 1¾ miles E.S.E. of Zer‘în (Jezreel). The spring issues from a cave at the foot of a hill which belongs to the Gilboa range, now called Jebel Fuḳû‘a; a large shallow pool spreads out in front of the cave, and the water flows away in a small stream towards the east. Thus Gideon, posted on the hill of Gilboa, was able to command the valuable water-supply at the foot; the Midianite camp lay opposite to him in the valley below (Jdg_7:8 b); the stream would afford an outer line of defence. See G. A. Smith, Hist. Geogr., 397 ff. There are two other springs in the neighbourhood, but neither of them suits the requirements so well as ‘Ain Jâlûd; the identification, however, cannot be called certain.
by the hill of Moreh] The marg. is more accurate, from the hill of Moreh onwards in the valley; the prep. from is awkward and obscures the sense. A slight correction (beth for min) clears the situation; on the hill of Moreh in the valley. Other corrections are: ‘was below him, on the north of the hill of M.’ (Budde); ‘was on the north of the hill of M.’ (Moore). The hill of Moreh was probably the hill of Shunem, the ‘Little Hermon’ of St Jerome, now called Nebî Dạḥî; it was here that the Philistines took up their position before the fatal battle of Gilboa (1Sa_28:4). The hill of the môreh means the hill of the teacher; it was the seat of a holy place where divine teaching was given. En-dor (now ‘En-dûr), the home of the woman that had a familiar spirit, lay on the northern spur of the hill; cf. Psa_83:10.
in the valley] i.e. the valley of Jezreel, Jdg_6:33.
Ch. Jdg_7:1-8. Gideon’s army is reduced
It seems to have been a fixed element in the tradition that 300 was the number of Gideon’s force (Jdg_7:6-8; Jdg_7:16; Jdg_7:19-21, Jdg_8:4); but Jdg_6:35 has just declared that four tribes responded to his call; accordingly we are here told how this army of volunteers, numbering 32,000, was cut down to 300. The story, however, rests upon an insecure foundation, for Jdg_7:23 says that the tribes were gathered together after the battle, and not before it, as stated in Jdg_6:35. Most critics consider that Jdg_7:2-8 a do not belong to either of the two main narratives, but there is no agreement as to the source from which they come. In Jdg_7:3 especially the allusion to Deu_20:8, and the incredibly large figures, betray a late origin; on the other hand, the test at the spring has the picturesque character of an ancient tradition. The whole passage has been much worked over by editorial hands.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv1–25 (1) Jerubbaal, who is Gideon.—Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, Joseph, Esther,…
(1) Jerubbaal, who is Gideon.—Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, Joseph, Esther, Daniel, St. Paul, &c, are other instances of Scriptural characters who have two names.
Beside.—Rather, above. It would have been foolish and dangerous to encamp on the plain.
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The well of Harod.—The name “Harod” means “trembling,” with an obvious allusion to the timidity of the people (chareed, Jdg_7:3), to which there may be again an allusion in 1Sa_28:5. The name is here used by anticipation. It occurs here only, though two Harodites are mentioned in 2Sa_23:25; and the same fountain is obviously alluded to in 1Sa_29:1. From the fact that Gideon’s camp was on Mount Gilboa there can be little doubt that Harod must be identified with the abundant and beautiful fountain at the foot of the hill now known as Ain Jalûd, or “the spring of Goliath,” from a mistaken legend that this was the scene of the giant’s death; or possibly from a mistaken corruption of the name Harod itself. There is another reading, “Endor” (comp. Ps. 82:10).
By the hill of Moreh.—Bertheau renders it, “stretching from the hill of Moreh into the valley.” The only hill of this name which we know from other sources is that at Shechem (Gen_12:6; Deu_11:30), but that is twenty-five miles south of Mount Gilboa. There can be no doubt that Moreh is here used for Little Hermon, now Jebel ed-Duhy. The Vulgate renders it “of a lofty hill,” perhaps to avoid a supposed difficulty. The word Moreh means “archer,” and Little Hermon may have been called “the Archer’s Hill,” from the bowmen of the Amalekites.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25 Jerubbaal. The mention of this name seems intended to…
Jerubbaal. The mention of this name seems intended to keep before our minds that it is emphatically the servant of the Lord who is going forth to victory. The well of Harod, i.e. of trembling, so called, no doubt, from the incident recorded in ver. 3, that every one who was afraid (Hebrew, hated) departed from Mount Gilead. The well of Harod is not mentioned elsewhere, though two of David"s mighty men are called Harodites; (2Sa_23:25) but it is thought to be identical with "the fountain which is in Jezreel", (1Sa_29:1) on the slope of Mount Gilboa, and now called Ain Jahlood, the spring of Goliah. On the north side, etc. Gideon and his Abi-ezrites were naturally on the south side of the plain, on the hill, apparently Mount Gilboa, which there shuts in the plain. The Midianitc host was encamped to the north of him (so it is in the Hebrew), in the valley, i.e. the plain of Jezreel. (Jud_1:6:33, note) By the hill of Moreh. Nowhere else mentioned; probably only a hillock, of which there are many in that part of the plain.
Vers. 1-8. The sifting.
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When we consider the extraordinary reduction of Gideon"s army from 32, 000 to 300 by a process of winnowing, not merely as an isolated fact, but as a portion of the instruction of God"s word, we are at once struck with its analogy, in principle, to other broad teachings of the same Scriptures. Let us first consider the case before us, and then compare with it the analogies to which we allude.
I In a great emergency, at the call of Gideon, 32, 000 men with much apparent devotion flocked to his standard. Leaving their homes and their families and their substance, they came forward willingly to meet danger and to endure hardship. To all outward appearance they were all animated by the same spirit, and might alike be credited with a resolution to die for their country and for their faith. But by and by a test was proposed: "Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart;" and forthwith more than two-thirds of that band shrank from the undertaking. Their hearts failed them; they thought of their homes left unprotected, they thought of the dreadful Midianites and Amalekites and children of the East, so numerous, so fierce, and so irresistible; their faith in God was a dead letter; the shame of deserting their comrades was not sufficient to restrain them; they left the camp and returned, 22, 000 in number, to their own homes. But 10, 000 remained true to the cause. These faced the danger and stood firm. Another test was then proposed, which should go much deeper, and sift the very choicest spirits from those of more ordinary mould. Of the 10, 000 that remained, only 300 were found whose rigid self-denial, and stern self-discipline, and self-possessed presence of mind, showed them to be of that stamp which was necessary for a hazardous undertaking requiring boldness, endurance, watchfulness, and perseverance to insure success. And these 300 elect were accordingly retained to do the work alone; and they did it.
II Now this is in accordance with THE ANALOGIES both of nature and of Holy Scripture. Take the creation of mankind viewed as intended to glorify God by the proper exercise of the splendid gifts bestowed upon them. Sift them first through a coarse sieve which will only separate the grossly wicked and ungodly, and yet what a large number will thus be found to come short of the purpose for which they were created. If all the irreligious, all the evil livers, all the impure and violent and unjust among mankind, stand separate, what a comparatively small number will remain who seem true to the end of their being, even in outward appearance and in the rough! But if we go on further to sift with a finer sieve, so as to separate the careless, and the selfish, and the worldly, and the hypocrites, and the lukewarm, and so on, and so as to isolate the true saints of God, the little flock, the faithful followers of the Lamb, those who shall shine as the sun in the kingdom of their Father, and he to him for a name and a praise, alas, how will the number be reduced! Apply the same method to Israel. The seed of Abraham were separated from the rest of man, kind to be God"s peculiar people, to fulfil a special purpose in the world as witnesses for God"s unity and truth. But, as St. Paul teaches us, "they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called." There be many called but few chosen. There were the multitude, a disobedient and gainsaying people; and there was the remnant according to the election of grace, who believed the gospel, and who trusted in the promised Messiah and obeyed his voice. Or take the parable of the sower. One lot of seed falls by the wayside, and the fowls of the air devour it; another lot falls on the rock, and is soon burnt up by the scorching sun; a third is choked by the thorns, and brings no fruit to perfection; it is only one quarter of the seed sown that falls on good ground, and brings forth fruit with patience. Any one looking at the whole sample would have thought it all destined to be fruitful; but lo! only one fourth part comes to anything.
Now it is important to note this:
1. With a view to ourselves, that we may sift ourselves before any winnowing of God comes unawares upon us. There are states of the world, or states of society, or conditions of outward circumstances, when the grain.and the chaff, the wheat and the tares, the good fish and the bad, all pass muster, and there is no marked difference between them. Gideon"s 32, 000 all pass for good men and true. There come changes of circumstances, there comes a winnowing of God, events and situations which try men, which test their character, which put their faith, their integrity, their sincerity, their conscientiousness, their principles, to the proof, and presently of the 32, 000 only 300 stand firm. Now it is a matter of infinite moment that we should examine our own selves and prove our own selves before such a sifting takes place. Just as workmen try the strength of the iron which is to support a certain weight, and do not leave it to chance whether it shall be found strong enough or not, so ought we carefully to try our own religious principles, whether they are of a kind that will stand the day of temptation, or of the kind that will break down. It is not enough to come to the front like Gideon"s thousands for a moment; are we prepared to stick to our post like Gideon"s 300 in the day of conflict and danger? It is not enough to be on the Christian side with the world s multitude for a time; we want that strength and perseverance which will secure our standing with the few when the multitudes fall away. It is important
2. To notice this lesson of sifting with a view to forming a correct estimateof the probable issues of events. Look at any number of men engaged in any work, secular or religious, that requires steadfastness, tenacity of purpose, fixedness of principle, fortitude to brave danger and meet difficulties, and the probability is that only a small proportion of them will go through with what they have begun. Faint-heartedness, weariness, fickleness, inconstancy, and clashing considerations, will stop the many midway, and the work, if accomplished at all, will be the work of the few. Especially in work done for our Lord Jesus Christ, for the advancement of his kingdom and for the good of his Church, we must look to the few. The men of prayer, the men of earnest faith, the cross-bearing men, the men whose conversation is in heaven, and who are waiting for Christ, are the handful; but they are the men who will fight the real battle, and who, by grace, will win the real victory.
HOMILIES BY A.F. MUIR. Vers. 1-8. Divinely-ordained tests.
What a contrast the present position of Gideon as Israel"s leader, within a few hundred yards of the dreaded foe, from that in which we first find him, threshing wheat in the wine-press secretly! Thus far has the Lord brought him, but much has to be done ere the soldiery he has shall be rendered efficient. Both leader and men have to pass through an ordeal such as must try them to the utmost. Not yet is the onset to be made that shall definitively retrieve the fortunes of Israel. Truly God"s thoughts are not as men"s thoughts. Everything is in apparent readiness, but delay is observed, and two mysterious tests are enjoined.
I THE DESIGN OF THESE TESTS. Although they must have seemed arbitrary, if not capricious, to many concerned, there is evidently "method in the madness." A partial explanation is given in the words, "The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me." The tests are meant, therefore
1. To check the unbelief and self-conceit of men. The vast multitude is reduced to a few that men may give the praise to God, and his power be manifest. It is easy to suppose that such a tendency would show itself amongst the miscellaneous crowd. God could do the work by "many or by few," and it was well for them all to know it.
2. To secure efficiency. This would consist first, in the tried courage and discipline of those who remained; and secondly, in their faith and inspiration
II THEIR ADAPTATION TO THIS DESIGN. By the adoption of the first expedient we are not to suppose that so many as left were lacking in ordinary courage. But they were not all heroes, and it was the heroic spirit that was needed. The anxious, irresolute, and timid were got rid of, and those who remained were men in earnest. The second test revealed the presence or absence of rarer qualities. This seems to be its rationale: the Israelites were close to the camp of the Midianites, who must have been watching the singular manoeuvres of their foes. The water where they drank must have been within easy reach for a demonstration, but they remained inactive. This created carelessness, a spirit of bravado in most.
When they came to the water, therefore, they thought only of their thirst, and either forgot or despised the enemy. Flinging themselves down, they abandoned themselves to the luxury of quenching their thirst, and by their attitude exposed themselves to surprise and panic. But the three hundred stood up whilst drinking, and so had to lap. In this way they kept themselves alert, and showed that duty, not self-indulgence, was uppermost in their minds. It is the combination of prudence and self-denial with courage which is the most valuable thing in a soldier. The soldiers so tried are kept for the special effort, and the others who had not gone away are held in reserve to follow up the first blow struck, But over and above the special aim of each test, there was a discipline in the compulsory waiting and observing all that they involved the loss of time, the trial of temper by apparent folly and arbitrariness, and the insignificant handful surviving the tests. So were Israel and its leader prepared. Is not all this like the discipline of life? God is so dealing with his children. The revelation and guardianship of great truths are committed only to the tried few; the signal movements and heroic duties of his kingdom are the care of elect sou]s, who when tested have been found true. The qualities requisite for a critical movement in a campaign are just those most valuable in life faith in the leader, dauntless courage, superiority to self-indulgence, and constant prudence. We are to endure hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ. We know not what faults have to be corrected, what high service lies before us. M.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv1, 9, 15 Gideon . . . pitched beside the wall of…
Jdg_7:1-8
Gideon . . . pitched beside the wall of Harod.
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Gideons army
I. The Lord called him to fight. The world must see, now and then, the gigantic crimes of a mere man turned back by rival arms upon both idol and idolater, and that by the voice of the Almighty. Well said Victor Hugo, Napoleon had been impeached before the Infinite. The groaning of the bond, man in our own land entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. Arrogance, lust, and greed combined to challenge the eternal laws, and thousands went down together into silence, till we could learn the unwelcome fact that God is no respecter of persons. But out of the awful strife came praying souls, and a regeneration in the sources of influence and power. God is known to speak in the crisis, in the hero--yes, even in the rebel.
II. The Lord called Gideon to success. We may notice the conditions.
1. Careful preparation. There must be selection when daring deeds are to be performed. This is a principle in the Divine government as in the human. God husbands and adapts His resources, though seeming to scatter His treasures lavishly. Have you sifted out the real from the visionary and found the abiding truths which will not fail you in that hour of trial which must come to all living? They may be ominously reduced from all that promised well, as was Gideons army, but, like it, be enough.
2. Obedience. The open heart learns soon and plainly the Divine will. As, amid all the roar of Niagara, the practised ear catches the sweet notes of birds singing in the grove above, so, in the confusion of tongues, the willing soul may hear the clear voice of its Maker, instructing, guiding, cheering.
3. Humility. Nothing develops a nations pride like military success. Parade of troops, battalion after battalion in all the splendour of equipment and might of bearing, satisfies the popular ideals of greatness and strength. War is still an honourable trade, and, while it is, meekness will be despised. But, none the less, the King of kings pours contempt upon princes, and weakeneth the strength of the mighty.
4. Faith. Belief in the need, the call, the power, the method, the victory of Jehovah, was all-important with Gideon. (Sermons by the Monday Club.)
Gideons army
I. The Lord fighting for and with His people. God is the author of war, and He causes men to fight, in the same way that law is the author of sin and causes men to become transgressors. Were there no law there would be no transgression, and were there no God there would be no conflict of righteousness with unrighteousness. War is Gods whip for sinful nations; it is His rod of iron with which He will dash them in pieces as a potters vessel. There is a Divine retribution following nations, and sure to overtake them if they are workers of iniquity. And there is a Divine deliverance waiting for nations and for individuals, sure to come when they repent of their evil ways and cry unto God for His salvation.
II. The army made ready. When God has some great work to be done, or some hard battle to be fought, He chooses the men who are best able to fight or work.
1. The fearful were suffered to go back. Moral courage is a Christian virtue. Men are commanded to have it. Only be strong and of a good courage. Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee. When God is with a man he has nothing to fear. Even Grecian and Roman heroes, when they showed great courage and wrought brilliant exploits, believed themselves to be acting under the influence of a Divine inspiration. It was the power of some god in their arms, they thought, that enabled them to smite great blows; and it was the courage of some god in their hearts that enabled them to face undaunted the most terrible foes.
2. The next process was to rid the army of the rash and unreliable. Audacity, no less than want of courage, unfits men for the highest service. Among all the qualities needed in a soldier of Jesus Christ, among all traits of character essential to true manliness, none perhaps is more important than a certain command of ones self, a certain keeping of the body under and holding back of adventurous impulse. Those whom God will lead to victory must be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.
III. The three hundred called to great exploits (Jdg_7:7). Here is the key to human history. Common, ease-loving men are, by their own wish, excused from glory, from heroic deeds, lasting renown, and high fellowship with God in fighting the great battles of humanity and righteousness. They are permitted to return to their own places. They sink down into obscurity and oblivion. Three hundred heroes are chosen to be their deliverers and to smite for them the host of Midianites. Side by side with Leonidas and his three hundred Spartans, the immortal heroes of Thermopylae, will we place Gideon and his three hundred Hebrews, the immortal heroes of Mount Gilboa, asking for them no greater glory than belongs to the Grecian company, and believing that they are worthy to stand together as the immortal six hundred. (Edward B. Mason.)
The best work of the world done by the few
When did God ever complain of having too few people to work with? I have heard Him say, Where two or three are gathered together in My name there am I. I have heard Him say, One shall chase a thousand, and two shall put ten thousand to flight, But I never heard Him say, You must get more men, or I cannot do this work; you must increase the human forces, or the Divine energy will not be equal to the occasion. I hear Him say in the case before us, Gideon, the people are too many by some thousands. If I were to fight the Midianites with so great a host, the people would say, after the victory had been won, My own hand hath saved me. The work of the world has always been done by the few; inspiration was held by the few; wealth is held by the few; poetry is put into the custody of but a few; Wisdom is guarded in her great temple but by a few; the few saved the world; ten men would have saved the cities of the plain; Potiphars house is blessed because of Joseph; and that ship tossed and torn upon the billows of the Adriatic shall be saved because there is an apostle of God on board. Little child, you may be saving all your house--your father, your mother, your brothers, and your sisters. (J. Parker, D. D.)
The sifting
And was this the upshot of all the talk, and preparations, and professions they had made? Who more eager apparently to rush to battle, who more loud in their bravados, than the very cravens who now slunk, with so cowardly a heart, from the shock of actual collision with the foe? We may readily suppose that Gideon, while making his proclamation in accordance with the Divine command, would not fail at the same time to remind them of the positive promise which he had received of the Lord, that He would be with them, and of the remarkable signs whereby that promise had been sealed. Nor in all probability would he neglect to point out to them the deplorable consequences which would certainly ensue to themselves and their families in the event of a defeat. And, if so, it might have been expected that all of them with one accord, would, in the chivalric spirit of high-toned patriotism, have scorned the base idea of deserting their colours, especially at such a crisis. What a mortification must this defection have been to Gideon! Yet, mindful of our own weakness and love of carnal ease, let us not too rashly or censoriously judge these men. It were only fair to take into consideration how surely bondage and subjection to a foreign yoke tend to crush the spirit of a people, to degrade and lower their mortal tone down to utter effeminacy. Nor ought it to be forgotten that a large proportion of these men had for some time past cast off their allegiance to the one living and true God, and that it is not improbable that conscience, which makes cowards of the bravest, might have had something to do with the retrograde movement which they so rapidly adopted. At the same time, however it may be palliated or accounted for, there can be no doubt that the conduct of which they were guilty was extremely reprehensible, and that it affords fitting occasion for just animadversion on the conduct of too many professed followers of Christ, who are ready enough to cast in their lot with Him so long as there is no immediate appearance of suffering or of sacrifice for His names sake, but who, the moment that real danger stares them in the face, take the earliest opportunity of slinking away and renouncing the principles to which they formerly in words adhered. Such disciples are totally unworthy of the name. They are not good soldiers of the Cross. They are devoid of the sterling principle which is essential to constancy and success in the Christian warfare--mere carpet knights, who make a fair show in the flesh, flourishing their trumpets and brandishing their weapons when there is no foe with whom to contend, but bating their breath and altering their whole tone and demeanour whenever circumstances occur which put their sincerity to the proof. (W. W. Duncan, M. A)
The people . . . are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands.
Pride excluded
Pride hurled Satan from heaven, and turned angels into devils. Pride drove Adam out of paradise, and barred its gates against his posterity. Pride of intellect, pride of family, pride of wealth, pride of power, are adamantine chains, which bind men in fetters of sin. Boasting and vainglory are inherent to fallen nature. Angels, archangels, and cherubim, who stand in the unveiled presence of Jehovah, are the most humble of Gods creatures the most conscious of their own unworthiness. But fallen man ever boasts of his sufficiency, his goodness, his wisdom, his power. He will not believe that he can do nothing, and that God must do everything for his deliverance. Now, pride is a blind sin. It is an illogical sin. It has lost all sound logic in theology. Let man help grace to save him, and what would be the result? Why, just in proportion that man helped God he would vaunt himself against God. He would claim a share of Gods glory. Now, God will not give His glory to another. He is jealous of His own honour, majesty, glory.
I. We have a remarkable instance of the Lords jealousy of His own honour and glory. Salvation is essentially for the happiness of Gods people, But it is supremely for the glory of God. The Lord gives the victory to Israel as a free gift. Now, the salvation of the sinner is just as much a free gift as was Gideons victory. There is no more fitness in the creature to win heaven than there was power in these three hundred to win the victory. We are as powerless to help ourselves, as were they. Our calling, repentance, adoption, sanctification, are a free gift.
II. Now mark Mans tendency to vaunt himself against the Lord. We may truly say of every man what Joash said to Amaziah, Thine heart lifteth thee up to boast. Vainglory is natural to the human heart. In the fable of the ancients the fly that sat on the axletree of the chariot-wheel gave out that she made the glorious dust of the chariot. Sin is proud. It exalts itself at the expense of Gods glory. When, therefore, the Lord visits the sinner with grace, grace is at once opposed by pride. I will save thee, saith the Lord. Be it so, saith the sinner. But I will save thee freely, saith the Lord. Freely? saith the sinner. But what am I to do? Am I to do nothing? Are my good works to go for nothing? God! I thank thee that I am not so bad as some other men are! Thus pride speaks, and would vaunt itself against the Lord, and say, Mine own hand hath saved me, or at least helped to save me. Do any doubt this? Think you that we are drawing colours too deep? Look for a moment--
1. At mans notion respecting some good thing still remaining in his heart, notwithstanding his fall. How few really believe in the total depravity of the natural heart!
2. Look at mans notion respecting the only ground of the sinners acceptance before God. The vaunting of the first-named evil is against God the Holy Ghost; boasting that He need not do everything in the soul. This vaunting is against God the Son, boasting that He need not do everything for the soul.
III. the means by which the Lord humbled man and exalted Himself.
1. The reduction of external means may be Gods way of giving success. Mans extremity is Gods opportunity. Be not discouraged, then, if God cut down numerical strength. What if 32,000 be reduced to 300? If God be for us, who can be against us? What are all the hosts of Midian to the Lord?
2. The Lord thus manifests His tender care for His own people. The ungodly, like the Midianites, count the people of God as sheep for the slaughter. They think they can swallow them up as in a moment. But they forget that the Lord regards the cause of His people as His own. They forget that He hath said, He that toucheth you toucheth the apple of Mine eye. Oh! how sensitive is God to all injuries done wrongfully to the least of His saints! (G. A. Rogers, M. A.)
Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return.--
The trial of Gideons army by the proclamation
Gideon has now obtained the necessary assurance of Gods favour; he takes courage to blow the trumpet, and to collect the forces of the various tribes, if haply, after all the strength he can procure, Israel may be able to stand before those fearful enemies, the Midianites. We may conceive Gideon in such a season of anxiety, hoping that more hearts will be stirred up for the arduous contest, when lo, the Lord says unto Gideon, The people are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands. What a majesty there is in these words! In consequence of this intimation, Gideons faith is to be tried by the lessening of his army upon the very eve of battle; and the courage of the army is to be tried, that it may be seen that with God it is a little thing to save by many or by few. As this trial respected Gideon, it was no slight one. To see, on the one hand, the Midianites as grasshoppers for multitude, and, on the other hand, twenty-two thousand turning their backs on their enemies at the very first sound of the trumpet, must have been a fearful sight indeed. It must have driven him for consolation to Gods own promise. We may see in it a picture of the outward and visible Church of Christ militant here on earth. Nay, to make the picture more striking still, it may be called a representation of the various congregations of which that outward and visible Church is composed. What is a congregation of professing Christians but an army enlisted under the banner of the Cross; soldiers engaged to contend with one common army, which would hold them in a bondage worse than Midians? And what is every faithful minister of the gospel but the leader of this host, the Gideon of the army? And what is the preaching of the gospel but the proclamation which calls our people to the battle against the Lords enemies and theirs? We can tell them of a better sacrifice than Gideons having been accepted on their behalf; we can point to the Angel of the covenant Himself, and say, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. We can testify that the enemy against whom we are called to fight has been already vanquished; that the Captain of our salvation has led captivity captive, that He has overcome death, and him that had the power of death, that is, the devil. Did Gideon represent the dew upon the fleece and on the earth, as an encouragement to his followers? We can testify that the very dew of the heavenly favour and blessing is even now poured out abundantly on the means of grace, moistening many a dry fleece and fructifying many a barren spot; and that the word of prophecy and promise is as sure as ever, that Godwill be as the dew to His Israel. And if we have greater encourage-ments than Gideon to offer, we have also more fearful warnings to hold out. We call to remembrance the baptismal vow by which each is bound to fight the good fight of faith. We tell our hearers of the awful consequences of being taken captive by the enemy. It may be asked, Is it possible that, with such tremendous consequences hanging on the battle, men should not answer to the call? Alas! so it is. The spirit that is in them is one of cowardly inactivity, and it cleaveth unto the dust. They need a new heart and a new spirit to be put into them before they will enter upon the warfare against sin and Satan, a heart actuated by the principle (the only constraining principle) of love. In verse 34. of the former chapter we read, But the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, and then he blew the trumpet. So the same Spirit must come upon him that leads, and upon them that follow, before the gospel trumpet will be blown effectually. This trumpet we would blow to-day. We blow it in the ears of those who, like Gideons army, appear to be all equally on the Lords side; but the Lord knoweth them that are His. Gideons proclamation, too, shall be ours: Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return, and depart from Mount Gilead. It is right to sound this proclamation, that men may count the cost. If we speak of religion as a life of enjoyment, we testify of it also that it is a life of self-denial. But if the Spirit of the Lord come upon those who hear this proclamation, then these apparent contradictions will be reconciled, the seeming mysteries will be all made plain; and it will be understood that Christ has a yoke to be borne by His people, but it is easy; that He has a burden to be carried by them, but it is light; that He has a service for them to engage in, but it is perfect freedom. Depending upon the Spirit of God to make known these things of God, we are to set before you good and evil, bitter and sweet, life and death, and then to say, Choose you this day. Now, if the whisperings of mens consciences could be heard in the pulpit, as they are heard in heaven, what reply, I ask you, would yours be found to make to this appeal? If the motion of the body correspond with that of the mind, would there be none discovered among us departing from Mount Gilead? Would there be no man found to steal away from the spiritual battle through fear? Let conscience judge. Or if the reasons which urged the fearful to depart were to be given in as each left the field, what would they present? One is afraid that the service of Christ is too austere; it requires too many privations. He is unwilling to renounce a sin he loves. Another is afraid of being ridiculed or despised for entering decidedly on a religious course of life. He is ashamed of Jesus. A third is afraid of being righteous overmuch. Tell me, is the soldier afraid of being thought too zealous when fighting in his countrys cause? Is the patriot afraid of being thought to love his native land too much when called upon to act in defence of its laws or its liberty? Time would fail to enumerate all the fears of the faint-hearted. Some are afraid of sacrificing their worldly subsistence. What is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Others depart from Mount Gilead for fear of persecution. When we exhort them as soldiers of the Cross, they listen perhaps to our exhortation; when we tell them of a warfare to be accomplished, they hearken possibly to the discourse; when we point out the enemy, all appear outwardly to be ready to engage; but when we say, Come now, and testify by your lives that you are in earnest in your profession, that you mean what you say when you declare without reserve, Here we offer and present unto Thee, O Lord, ourselves, our souls, and bodies! how many depart! how few remain! We close with a word of encouragement to those who still keep their post in the field of battle. To such we say, Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, etc. (F. Elwin.)
A sifting among the defenders of the faith
The men who had hastily snatched their fathers swords and pikes of which they were half-afraid represent to us certain modern defenders of Christianity--those who carry edged weapons of inherited doctrine with which they dare not strike home. The great battle-axes of reprobation, of eternal judgment, of Divine severity against sin once wielded by strong hands, how they tremble and swerve in the grasp of many a modern dialectician! The sword of the old creed, that once, like Excalibar, cleft helmets and breastplates through, how often it maims the hands that try to use it, but want alike the strength and the cunning. Too often we see a wavering blow struck that draws not a drop of blood nor even dents a shield, and the next thing is that the knight has run to cover behind some old bulwark, long riddled and dilapidated. In the hands of these unskilled fighters, too well armed for their strength, the battle is worse than lost. They become a laughing-stock to the enemy, an irritation to their own side. It is time there was a sifting among the defenders of the faith, and twenty and two thousand went back from Gilead. Is the truth of God become mere tin or lead that no new sword can be fashioned from it, no blade of Damascus prim and keen? Are there no gospel armourers fit for the task? Where the doctrinal contest is maintained by men who are not to the depth of their souls, sure of the creeds they found on, by men who have no vision of the severity of God and the meaning of redemption, it ends only in confusion to themselves and those who are with them. (R. A. Watson, M. A.)
Backing out of Gods service
We have here a striking evidence of the different estimate men make of danger and hard work at a distance and at hand. The large numbers of the Christian army are singularly made up--are made up by those who are bold in intention, brave at home, but cowards in the field; they answer, or seem to answer, Gods summons at first, but take the earliest opportunity of backing out of their engagements. Many persons, when you speak to them of this and that useful undertaking, seem quite to enjoy the prospect of engaging in it, promise their services, and actually appear at the rendezvous; but the actual sight of the destitution, the disease, the ignorance, the incivility, the lying and fraudulent selfishness with which they must cope, quite frightens them, and they avail themselves of the first plausible opening to escape. And it is better they should do so, for by remaining, their faint-heartedness would be contagious, and unnerve their comrades. Every one knows how easy it is to work alongside of a cheery, bright, hopeful spirit; how difficult to bear up against the continual complaint and fear and wretchedness of the cowardly. Such, therefore, God rejects from His army (Marcus Dods, D. D.)
Why were the fearful dismissed
Because fear is contagious; and, in undisciplined armies like Gideons, panic, once started, spreads swiftly, and becomes frenzied confusion. The same thing is true in the work of the Church to-day. Who that has had much to do with guiding its operations has not groaned over the dead weight of the timid and sluggish souls, who always see difficulties and never the way to get over them? And who that has had to lead a company of Christian men has not often been ready to wish that he could sound out Gideons proclamation, and bid the fearful and afraid take away the chilling encumbrance of their presence, and leave him with thinned ranks of trusty men? Cowardice, dressed up as cautious prudence, weakens the efficiency of every regiment in Christs army. Another reason for getting rid of the fearful is that fear is the opposite of faith, and that therefore, where it is uppermost the door by which Gods power can enter to strengthen is closed. Not that faith must be free of all admixture of fear, but that it must subdue fear, if a man is to be Gods warrior, fighting in His strength. Many a tremor would rock the hearts of the ten thousand who remained, but they so controlled their terror that it did not over come their faith. We do not need, for our efficiency in Christs service, complete exemption from fear, but we do need to make the psalmists resolve ours: I will trust, and not be afraid. Terror shuts the door against the entrance of the grace which makes us conquerors, and so fulfils its own forebodings; faith opens the door, and so fulfils its own confidences. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water.--
The trial of Gideons army by the water
As Gideon took his men to the water and tried them there, so we would bring your heart and conscience to the spiritual test which the subject may be understood to signify. Are you a self-indulgent Christian? The two terms have no connection with each other. If God discard the fearful, will He retain the carnal? If He dismiss those who are so cowardly that they dare not enter upon a profession of His religion, will He bear with those who have the audacity to live in the disgrace of it? To affect to serve God one day and really to serve divers lusts and passions another; to pretend to be one of Christs Church militant here upon earth, and yet actually to make no resistance to the enemy; this is only showing that instead of being, as you profess, a soldier of Christ, you are in reality a servant of Mammon. Tell us not, ye that are thus carnally-minded, of any warfare that you are waging with the great adversary of souls. The fact is, that you are already taken prisoners by the enemy, you are already led captive by him at his will. But the active soldiers of Christ need refreshment, as Gideons chosen band did; and they have it. What are the ordinances of Divine grace when blessed to the soul, but times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord? And now God says to Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save Israel; and let all the other people go every man to his place. We hear no complaint from Gideon. When he is commanded to send the men away, he sends them one after another by the hundred and by the thousand; not knowing when God would stay His hand or say, It is enough. This is faith, vital and practical faith. It is exactly that faith which the Christian is required to carry into the common transactions of life, and to act upon in the occurrences of every day: The just shall live by faith. In the evil day he is to live upon it when God takes away the desire of his eyes, or the means of his present subsistence, or the outward helps which he has been accustomed to, and on which, perhaps, he has been leaning too confidently. When these are struck from under him, then the proof of his faith is that he can trust in the Lord, and stay himself on his God. We are apt to tremble for the cause of the gospel around us when we see many depart and walk no more with Christ. But let those who remain think of the concern which their own souls have in the matter. Have some drawn back? The Captain of salvation says, What is that to thee? follow thou Me. Is the number of the fearful or disaffected great, and is it increasing? No matter if it be twenty-two thousand. What is that to thee? follow thou Me. Certainly it is our duty to use all the means which God puts in our power to strengthen our missionary ranks; but, nevertheless, when He is pleased from time to time thus to draft off, if I may so speak, the great men, and the strong men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men from our missionary host, it becomes us to look on with Gideons patient faith and meek submission; to regard the mysterious dispensation as intended to make known that the excellency of the power is of God, and not of us. Thus every death of a missionary will have a voice in it of encouragement as well as of warning from our God; and if we listen to it with the ear of Gideons faith, it will tell us The people are yet too many. And our answer should be, Be Thou exalted, Lord, in Thine own strength: so will we sing, and praise Thy power. (F. Elwin.)
Testing-points in life
Many are the commonplace incidents, the seemingly small points in life, that test the quality of men. Every day we are led to the stream-side to show what we are, whether eager in the Divine enterprise of faith or slack and self-considering. Take any company of men and women who claim to be on the side of Christ, engaged and bound in all seriousness to His service. But how many have it clearly before them that they must not entangle themselves more than is absolutely needful with bodily and sensuous cravings, that they must not lie down to drink from the stream of pleasure and amusement? We show our spiritual state by the way in which we spend our leisure, our Saturday afternoons, our Sabbaths. We show whether we are fit for Gods business by our use of the flowing stream of literature, which to some is an opiate, to others a pure and strengthening draught. The question simply is whether we are so engaged with Gods plan for our life, in comprehending it, fulfilling it, that we have no time to dawdle and no disposition for the merely casual and trifling. Are we in the responsible use of our powers occupied as that Athenian was in the service of his country of whom it is recorded: There was in the whole city but one street in which Pericles was ever seen, the street which led to the market-place and the council-house. During the whole period of his administration he never dined at the table of a friend? Let no one say there is not time in a world like this for social intercourse, for literary and scientific pursuits or the practice of the arts. The plan of God for men means life in all possible fulness and entrance into every field in which power can be gained. His will for us is that we should give to the world as Christ gave in free and uplifting ministry, and as a man can only give what he has first made his own, the Christian is called to self-culture as full as the other duties of life will permit. He cannot explore too much, he cannot be too well versed in the thoughts and doings of men and the revelations of nature, for all he learns is to find high use. But the aim of personal enlargement and efficiency must never be forgotten, that aim which alone makes the self of value and gives it real life--the service and glory of God. Only in view of this aim is culture worth anything. And when in the Providence of God there comes a call which requires us to pass with resolute step beyond every stream at which the mind and taste are stimulated that we may throw ourselves into the hard fight against evil there is to be no hesitation. Everything must yield now. The comparatively small handful who press on with concentrated purpose, making Gods call and His work first and all else, even their own needs a secondary affair--to these will be the honour and the joy of victory. (R. A. Watson, M. A.)
The revelation of character
A man is known only when he is tried. And yet it would be a mistake to suppose that this test is administered to us in some great matter, or on some grand occasion. The two most suggestive words to us in the parable of the good Samaritan are these, By chance there came down a certain priest. The Saviour does not mean by using this expression to give countenance to the idea that anything really occurs by chance, but rather to fix our minds on the ordinary and incidental nature of the occurrence. It happened that there came a priest. He was going on his journey. He had, most likely, a definite object before him. He was not thinking, probably, of his own character. Least of all was he dreaming that he was at the moment being tested. He only made it evident that he could not be troubled to do anything for the half-dead traveller, and so he unconsciously revealed his true character. But so it is always. We let out our truest selves when we do not know that we are doing it. When Gideon led his army to the brook and bade them drink, the men thought only of slaking their thirst. Some, more luxurious in their nature, went down upon their hands and feet and put their lips to the stream to take in a full supply. Others, more dashing and impetuous in their disposition, could not take so much trouble, but lifted the water by their hands, lapping it up thus with them, as a dog lappeth it with his tongue. Not one of them, perhaps, was conscious of doing anything special. Yet, through that tiny drink, each one revealed the sort of man he was; and Gideon, by Divine direction, selected the latter to be the deliverers of Israel. Now it is by the casual engagements of every day that God is testing us yet. By the little opportunities that are furnished to us, so to say, by chance, He is causing us to unveil our inmost selves. For the test is all the more searching because we are unconscious of its application. We prepare for great occasions, thus putting such an unnatural strain upon ourselves that we are not really ourselves. It is only in the abandon of unconsciousness that we make manifest genuinely what we are. We all know how true that is in the art of portrait-taking. The best likeness of a man is taken when he is unaware of it; but if you set him down before a camera and tell him to look pleasant, the result will be a prim, precise expression, meant to be the best, but, just because of that, exceedingly unnatural. But it is quite similar with character. To know what a man is you must take him when he is not aware that you are judging him. God gauges us in little things. He watches us not so much when a great occasion is making its demand upon us, and we are trying to do our best, as when some ordinary opportunity is at our hand. Thus regarded, life even in its minutest and apparently most trivial aspects becomes a very solemn thing. We are being weighed in Gods balance every day. Men think with dread of the Day of Judgment, and we do not desire to take a single element from its importance. There will be such a day, and it will be more awful than we think of. But in the light of the principles which we have now tried to enforce, every day is, in its measure, also a Day of Judgment. God is testing us every hour, and according as we stand His scrutiny He sends us forward with His Gideons to emancipate the enslaved, or dismisses us ignominiously from His service. (Christian Age.)
By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you.--
Gideons three hundred
I. Then, little things make great differences in life. It was a little thing that made the difference between the three hundred and the rest of the army--lapped. But little things represent great equivalents. Little things test and reveal character.
II. Then, quality in human instrumentality is of more importance than quantity. We are taught here that success in Gods cause does not depend upon numbers. The victory is already potentially ours when we use the right means in the right spirit. The great want of the Church is not more members but more of the right stamp. The only soldiers that amount to anything in Gods service are volunteers; men who enlist, put on the armour, obey orders, and delight in the service.
III. Then, the few may stand firm, and do noble service in spite of the bad example of the many.
IV. Then, God is worthy of our trust and hearty co-operation in selecting His agents and carrying on His work. Divine wisdom was afterwards seen in the selection of these men. So it must be in Gods spiritual army, in our conflict with self and sin. Evil habits, unholy practices, false principles, must all be pursued, tracked to their hiding places, and remorselessly slain with the edge of the sword. It is harder to live Christianity than to be converted to it.
V. Then, is it Gods fixed plan to work through the few, rather than the many? No; it is Gods plan, all things being equal, to work, not through a part, but through all His people whether few or many. Why, then, did He reduce Gideons army from thirty-two thousand to three hundred men? Happily we are not in the dark as to the cause; God Himself tells us why He did it. He had to do so in order that His power might be recognised in the victory. (T. Kelly.)
Gideon and the three hundred
1. It is the small matters which reveal us, the slight occasions. Think not that the Lord is cheated by the worlds bravos. He leaves the world, religious or profane, to judge you when you are got up for its inspection. He follows you home in your most familiar moods, your most simple and necessary actions, your frank and free communications, and He sees there the man, as all beings, angels, men, devils, will see him one day, when the veils are lifted and the inner realities of life and character appear.
2. There is One watching us when we are most unconscious, drawing silently auguries of character, and forecasting destiny. The Lord proves faculty in His test-house the daily occasions of life, and hangs it up if found true in His armoury for higher use. Hence the leisure hour is so precious; it tells so mightily on the life and destiny of the man. The soul ungirds itself then, and lets its bent appear. Teach it to love in the quiet hours the things that make for its health, its growth, its life, and leave the work hours to their care. As the man is in silent, secluded moments, God finds him in all the great crises of his history.
3. Keep your knee for God alone. The men bent the knee to sensual good. That was their fatal weakness in Gods sight. Kneel to God, and it will cure you of all other kneeling. See His face each day before you look on the worlds, and its frowns will not scare you nor its smiles allure. (J. B. Brown, B. A.)
The reduced army
What an extraordinary difference between Gideons army as it was at first and Gideons army as it was at last--between the thirty-two thousand who set out with him in the morning and the three hundred who stayed with him at night! But I can tell you of a difference which is far more wonderful than that--the difference I mean between the visible Church of Christ and His real Church. Just think of the number of our outwardly baptized persons. But how many out of all this vast company are really chosen by the Lord to be His soldiers? But how shall this remnant be distinguished from the rest? Is there not something which, like the waters in the case of Gideons army, may make the difference apparent between the true and the false? The world, for example, forms a very good test by which you may discern a true Christian from a false one. Look at the conduct of the generality. See how they bow down to drink at the waters of the world! See how they give themselves up wholly to its pleasures and pursuits! Unmindful altogether of eternal things they set their affections upon things beneath, and make them the one great end for which they live. Earth--earth--earth is all in all with them. But mark the conduct of a little remnant who are here and there to be discerned amidst them. These men come unto the waters with the rest. They have their business in the world as others have. But oh! in how different a spirit from the rest! They may be compared to those three hundred men that lapped. A little of earths comforts is enough for them. They covet not great things in this life; but if the Lord shall give them only food and raiment, they are well content. Their moderation is known unto all men. Even whilst they are enjoying earthly comforts there is still no bowing down towards them. Their eyes are rather towards Him who gave these mercies, and their desire is to make so good an improvement of them as to glorify the Giver. But is this the only test by which you may discern the true Christian from the false one--the use which they severally make of the world in which they live? Let me point you out another water, as it were, where the distinction may be seen. Only here they that sip are the professors, and they are the believers who bow down to drink. The water that I mean is the water of the gospel--that water of the well of life to which every thirsty soul is so graciously invited in those well-known words, Ho! every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters! I have said that of these waters professors only sip. Even that, perhaps, is a stronger term than should be used. Oh, what thousands are there of men who call themselves believers who just come, as it were, to these waters of salvation and look at them, and go away again without a taste. They just come, I mean, to the preaching of the Word, listen to it with a dull and idle ear, and then go off again with no more knowledge of it than they brought to church with them. Others will go a little further. They hear--they listen--they admire. There are professors, I know, who will go further than this. Yet it is with the best of them but a sipping at the stream. A little measure of the mere semblance of religion is sure to satisfy the man who is but half a Christian. But not the man to whom that name in truth belongs. The real Christian will be satisfied with nothing short of a full and an abundant draught. Moderate as he is in his desires of earthly things, he has a spiritual appetite which it takes no little to content. Nor is he satisfied with attending any ordinance unless he leaves it with a blessing--refreshed and strengthened for his Masters work. It was only the true-hearted part of Gideons army which remained with him. These only shared his victory and reaped the fruits of it. And think you that Jesus will not make the like distinction? (A. Roberts, M. A.)
Gideons three hundred
A striking story. Especially might it be a useful story for all preachers to-day who find themselves in some little tide of popularity. It is a sore story this on Church statistics, especially when the numbers swell, and we are apt to indulge in a great chorus of praise because of numerical success. How the Lord Almighty had to reduce thirty-two thousand stalwart men to three hundred in order to bring the band up to its effective strength! The Captain of our salvation has strange ways with Him, has He not? Sometimes past finding out. Now, these men utterly deceived Gideon, and we have to learn that lesson--that we may utterly deceive each other. Are our hearts right? When we count you upon our totals, does the Lord also count one, or are you to Him a mere fraction--a nothing? The Lord said, virtually, Gideon, give these people a chance to go home, and see what you shall see. Say to those that are timid and of a fearful heart, Go back. And twenty-two thousand showed the breadth of their backs, executing strategical movements upon home! Are we going to be blown away like chaff, or can we stand it? Are we wheat after all? And even when there were not so many by twenty-two thousand with Gideon as at first, still they were not dense and compact enough for Gods purposes. For God wants His army to be not like a great, big, overgrown cabbage that has run to blades and has no heart in it, but He wants His army to be dense--not extensive, but intensive--sound at the heart, solid as a cannon-ball. Notice, then, when we come to this second action of Gods testing of these people how difficult it is to detect hypocrisy. Mark you, these other thousands ought to have gone off with the first batch; they ought to have gone at the first telling. But such an ingrained thing is formalism and hypocrisy that these people stood firm when they ought to have gone. There ought to have been no second sifting process needed. One was enough to lay bare the hearts of men to themselves if they had been simple and honest and sincere. You have the same thing to-day, precisely--people who come with you up to the point of real work, and then Presto! Pass! they are gone. In Gods great name let me ask what are you doing but coming to church once a week? Now, I wish to say that your seat could be better occupied if that is all that is to come out of you. What was the test which God applied to them in this sore business? Well, I think it was just this. I am not going to say that these three hundred men were braver, bolder, grander men than those who had gone away. I am not going to say that these men were men of blood and iron--that they had no fear, no doubts, and no misgivings. No, I do not think that. I think that they were men who felt their hearts beat beneath their jerkins like any others. They had very likely the same doubts and the same misgivings as to the success of this revolt against Midian as the thousands had who had gone home; only they did not yield to them. They encouraged themselves in God; they encouraged themselves in Gideon. In all their weakness and helplessness they leaned all the harder upon Him who had called them to this fight, in which were involved death or victory. And that is all that God wants yet. God never asked any mortal man to do more than trust in Him. These three hundred men were only flesh and blood, and this was a desperate business. Twenty-two thousand of their countrymen had gone away from fear; but when these three hundred came to the ford it seemed that what was in their heart was not retreat, but fighting. Because when they came to that ford, a key position, an important place, they cannot lie down and give themselves up to the business of taking drink like the others. It was not drinking, but fighting that was in their heads and in their hearts; and they lapped as a dog lapped, so that they were free to see the oncoming of the host, and to spring to their places in an instant. Thus they drank, and God said, These are the men. This thing called faith in God is a thing that tells. It tinges, it tinctures, it colours every word you speak, and everything you do. (J. McNeill.)
The three hundred men that lapped
Here is one of those battles of God which are being waged in century after century, crisis after crisis, by the armies of Truth against the hordes of unrighteousness. Gideon, trusting manfully in his Divine commission, sets himself to deliver Israel from the Midianites. Cheered himself by Gods manifest goodness, he succeeds, as men count success, in gathering together a strong army. Thirty-two thousand men was a serviceable army to put into the field to risk the chances of battle with a successful, arrogant, and overwhelming enemy. The people that are with thee are too many. What? Is not Providence on the side of big battalions? Is it not the defiant cry which is ever rising up in hoarse murmurs from the army of the world? Every one thinks as we do. You are alone. Every one does as we do. You are the victim of a foolish prejudice. You must yield in the end. The house of Baal is full from one end thereof to the other, while you, you prophet of the Lord, shivering in your isolation, try to perpetuate a failure. Midian comes on with its overwhelming cry, Every one thinks so, every one says it, every one does it; numbers are on our side, therefore we are right. Ah! my brethren, do I touch on a subtle danger which is incident to societies--to count heads, and to boast of numbers on the books? Remember, the very charter of existence in a guild is quality, not quantity. It is the concentration of the earnest few against the careless and undisciplined many. So Gideon has to submit--there in the presence of the enemy, with a tradition of disgrace behind him, he, a leader of reputed cowards, has to submit to the departure of twenty-two thousand men, leaving his splendid band reduced to a pitiable ten thousand. The fearful and the half-hearted go away, and more than half his host has vanished. Ah, is it some annual meeting we are thinking of there in our guild room, where the leader says, I do not care for a guild of non-communicants, who do not keep to the rules. Let every one resign who does not intend to live up to his profession, and with a heavy heart he sees the diminution of his flourishing band. Poor Gideon, with his wretched ten thousand! But what is this? The people are yet too many is the inexorable decree of God. They must yet be submitted to the test. They are brought down to the water of the well Harod near where they were encamped, to be tried with the test of thirst, which has so often proved the value of disciplined troops. By the three hundred men that lapped, I will save you. There are many wells of water to try the guild members in this city. He will never fight a battle of the Lord who, with his badge round his neck, goes down on his knees to drink his fill of pleasure, unrestrained, unmindful, self-indulgent. The servant of the Lord who is to win in the battle of Midian, just tastes lightly of the pleasures of life, which are free from sin, as they that use this world as not abusing it, for the fashion of this world passeth away. The three hundred men that lapped.
1. These are the sort of members that we want for Church guild, for they represent in the first place a band of men who have learnt the great lesson of self-control. They were men not to be moved by a draught of water on a hot day. The cause of God had stilled the cry of appetite. Ah, it is not a bit of use joining in a splendid service, waving banners, singing hymns, talking about the Catholic Faith, wearing a badge, and attending sometimes a guild meeting, if we have not learnt the splendid lesson of self-control. The three hundred men that lapped.
2. They represented to Gideon also a band of enthusiasts. Their heart was elsewhere, when they stood by the water. They barely had time to remember the keenness of their thirst, as they strained at the leash, and pulled at the bridle, the restraint of delay, between them and victory. Only second in importance to the moral basis is the enthusiasm of right in the member of a guild. There are few things more depressing, and few things more wrong than the listless apathy, which men either affect or feel in this glad world of Gods creating. As you step into rank you feel what a splendid thing it is to exist, to live at all. You feel what wondrous powers God has given you in body, soul, and spirit. With your senses you reach out to all around you. With your mind you live in the past, enjoy the present, or imagine the future in all the freedom of intellect, with your spirit you are in touch with God. You feel at least you never can cumber the ground as one of those painted grubs who crawl about the earth, or flit about as creature of the day in bright clothes and meaningless flight, now expanding in the sunshine, now dying at the first frost of adversity. The guild member is serious, he is active, he is useful, because he has the enthusiasm of life, and even more, he has the enthusiasm of Christianity. He knows what the Church has been to him. He is enthusiastic--how can he help it?--none of these things move me, he says, as he passes the well, as he gazes at the hosts of Midian, and his own attenuated ranks. He longs to help others, himself to be a centre of good and a rallying point for the forces of the Lord. We want a band of enthusiasts, alive with the enthusiasm of God. We are suffering at the present moment from silliness, men who play at religion, men who are not in earnest, men who talk and do not act. The three hundred men that lapped.
3. Gideon might count on these as determined men. They were men who had counted the cost; when others refused to come forward they had presented themselves; when others went back they had stood firm; when others had failed in a simple trial, they had shown what manner of men they were. A battle of three hundred against a host would mean determined men, and the battle of the Lord needs determined men now. The conflict for each of us needs strength and determination of character. Do not believe for one moment that it will ever be easy to be good. Our fathers found it hard to resist evil, so shall we; our fathers found it hard to pray, so shall we. You will want all the firmness of your will in the combat of life which lies before you. Moab lies in ambush with all his countless hosts, the battle will be hard and long. If you be but an insignificant fraction out of the number of professing Christians, keep on; if you be but a small and attenuated remainder, out of those who have fallen away since you first became enrolled, still keep on. The freshness, it may be, has worn off; the monotony of life is beginning to tell upon you; it may be, the hard falls and rough blows of life have disheartened you--keep on. Bodies of pledged men like you are, after all, the strength of the Church. (Canon Newbolt.)
Gideons band
1. Nearly everything great in this world has been effected by a few men, or, perhaps, a single man, who believed in it when everybody else saw only difficulties and objections. The struggle between the right and the expedient, or the practical and the ideal, is always going on. The exploit of Gideons band was as nothing compared with the daring of the few Galilean fishermen who went forth to preach to a hostile world the story of Christ and Him crucified. All things are possible to him that believeth.
2. In the next place we may observe that God chose for this great work the man who was to be His instrument, and Gideon obeyed the call. It then became his duty to set to work and collect an army. The result was just what might have been expected. A large number of Gideons compeers thought it highly desirable that the yoke of the invader should be cast off their necks, but they were afraid to try and do it. They saw the difficulties more plainly than they saw the good to be attained. Even some of those who volunteered at first went back after they had counted the cost. Just so. Every man who honestly assumes a responsibility and attempts a good work may be perfectly sure that ten people will say, Well done! Go on! for every one who will say, I will help you, though I stand to lose by it! In such cases the man who sees what ought to be done must just obey his call and go forward. It is not upon men, but upon God that he must depend.
3. Further, let us bear in mind that the issues of all things are in the hands of God. We need not be afraid of compromising the doctrine of moral freedom by any such assertion as this. Man has power of choice when he has not power of action. Power of action may be indefinitely extended. God may complete our purposes when they are beyond our ken, and may supplement our deficiencies if we honour Him by obedience and faith. The shortest road to the attainment of an ideal or the fulfilment of a duty is to fearlessly perform what one knows to be right, and trust in God for the issue. We need but lamps and pitchers and trumpets. We must take trouble and be wise, while remembering that the race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong. (R. J. Campbell, B. A.)
Fit men for the fight
God required but few men, but He required that these should be fit. The first test had sifted out the brave and willing. The liquor was none the less, though so much froth had been blown off. As Thomas Fuller says, there were fewer persons, but not fewer men, after the poltroons had disappeared. The second test, a purgatory of water, as the same wise and witty author calls it, was still more stringent. The dwindled ranks were led down from their camp on the slopes to the fountain and brook which lay in the valley near the Midianites camp. Gideon alone seems to have known that a test was to be applied there; but he did not know what it was to be till they reached the spring, and the soldiers did not know that they were determining their fate when they drank. The two ways of drinking clearly indicated a difference in the men. Those who glued their lips to the stream and swilled till they were full were plainly more self-indulgent, less engrossed with their work, less patient of fatigue and thirst than those who caught up enough in their curved palms to moisten their lips with out stopping in their stride or breaking rank. The former test was self-applied, and consciously so. This is no less self-applied, though unconsciously. God shuts out no man from His army, but men shut themselves out; sometimes knowingly, by avowed disinclination for the warfare, sometimes unknowingly by self-indulgent habits which proclaim their unfitness. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On v8 Jdg_7:8-25 - Jdg_8:1-21
"MIDIANS EVIL DAY"
Jdg_7:8-25 - Jdg_8:1-21
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THERE is now with Gideon a select band of three hundred, ready for a night attack on the Midianites. The leader has been guided to a singular and striking plan of action. It is, however, as he well knows, a daring thing to begin assault upon the immense camp of Midian with so small a band, even though reserves of nearly ten thousand wait to join in the struggle; and we can easily see that the temper and spirit of the enemy were important considerations on the eve of so hazardous a battle. If the Midianites, Amalekites, and Children of the East formed a united army, if they were prepared to resist, if they had posted sentinels on every side and were bold in prospect of the fight, it was necessary for Gideon to be well aware of the facts. On the other hand if there were symptoms of division in the tents of the enemy, if there were no adequate preparations, and especially if the spirit of doubt or fear had begun to show itself, these would be indications that Jehovah was preparing victory for the Hebrews.
Gideon is led to inquire for himself into the condition of the Midianitish host. To learn that already his name kindles terror in the ranks of the enemy will dispel his lingering anxiety. "Jehovah said unto him Go thou with Purah thy servant down to the camp; and thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be strengthened." The principle is that for those who are on Gods side it is always best to know fully the nature of the opposition. The temper of the enemies of religion, those irregular troops of infidelity and unrighteousness with whom we have to contend, is an element of great importance in shaping the course of our Christian warfare. We hear of organised vice, of combinations great and resolute against which we have to do battle. Language is used which implies that the condition of the churches of Christ contrasts pitiably with the activity and agreement of those who follow the black banners of evil. A vague terror possesses many that in the conflict with vice they must face immense resources and a powerful confederacy. The far-stretching encampment of the Midianites is to all appearance organised for defence at every point, and while the servants of God are resolved to attack they are oppressed by the vastness of the enterprise. Impiety, sensuality, injustice may seem to be in close alliance with each other, on the best understanding, fortified by superhuman craft and malice, with their gods in their midst to help them.
But let us go down to the host and listen, the state of things may be other than we have thought.
Under cover of the night which made Midian seem more awful the Hebrew chief and his servant left the outpost on the slope of Gilboa and crept from shadow to shadow across the space which separated them from the enemy, vaguely seeking what quickly came. Lying in breathless silence behind some bush or wall the Hebrews heard one relating a dream to his fellow. "I dreamed," he said, "and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian and came unto a tent and smote it that it fell, and overturned it that it lay along." The thoughts of the day are reproduced in the visions of the night. Evidently this man has had his mind directed to the likelihood of attack, the possibility of defeat. It is well known that the Hebrews are gathering to try the issue of battle. They are indeed like a barley cake such as poor Arabs bake among ashes-a defeated famished people whose life has been almost drained away. But tidings have come of their return to Jehovah and traditions of His marvellous power are current among the desert tribes. A confused sense of all this has shaped the dream in which the tent of the chief appears prostrate and despoiled. Gideon and Purah listen intently, and what they hear further is even more unexpected and reassuring. The dream is interpreted: "This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel; for into his hand God hath delivered Midian and all the host." He who reads the dream knows more than the other. He has the name of the Hebrew captain. He has heard of the Divine messenger who called Gideon to his task and assured him of victory. As for the apparent strength of the host of Midian, he has no confidence in it, for he has felt the tremor that passes through the great camp. So, lying concealed, Gideon hears from his enemies themselves as from God the promise of victory, and full of worshipping joy hastens back to prepare for an immediate attack.
Now in every combination of godless men there is a like feeling of insecurity, a like presage of disaster. Those who are in revolt against justice, truth, and the religion of God have nothing on which to rest, no enduring bond of union. What do they conceive as the issue of their attempts and schemes? Have they anything in view that can give heart and courage; an end worth toil and hazard? It is impossible, for their efforts are all in the region of the false, where the seeming realities are but shadows that perpetually change. Let it be allowed that to a certain extent common interests draw together men of no principle so that they can cooperate for a time. Yet each individual is secretly bent on his own pleasure or profit and there is nothing that can unite them constantly. One selfish and unjust person may be depended upon to conceive a lively antipathy to every other selfish and unjust person. Midian and Amalek have their differences with one another, and each has its own rival chiefs, rival families, full of the bitterest jealousy, which at any moment may burst into flame. The whole combination is weak from the beginning, a mere horde of clashing desires incapable of harmony, incapable of a sustaining hope.
In the course of our Lords brief ministry the insecurity of those who opposed Him was often shown. The chief priests and scribes and lawyers whispered to each other the fears and anxieties He aroused. In the Sanhedrin the discussion about Him comes to the point, "What do we? For this man doeth many signs. If we let Him thus alone, all men will believe on Him: and the Romans will come and take away both our peace and our nation." The Pharisees say among themselves, "Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? Behold the world is gone after Him." And what was the reason, what was the cause of this weakness? Intense devotion to the law and the institutions of religion animated those Israelites, yet sufficed not to bind them together. Rival schools and claims honeycombed the whole social and ecclesiastical fabric. The pride of religious ancestry and a keenly cherished ambition could not maintain peace or hope; they were of no use against the calm authority of the Nazarene. Judaism was full of the bitterness of falsehood. The seeds of despair were in the minds of those who accused Christ, and the terrible harvest was reaped within a generation. Passing from this supreme evidence that the wrong can never be the strong, look at those ignorant and unhappy persons who combine against the laws of society. Their suspicions of each other are proverbial, and ever with them is the feeling that sooner or later they will be overtaken by the law. They dream of that and tell each other their dreams. The game of crime is played against well known odds. Those who carry it on are aware that their haunts will be discovered, their gang broken up. A bribe will tempt one of their number, and the rest will have to go their way to the cell or the gallows. Yet with the presage of defeat wrought into the very constitution of the mind and with innumerable proofs that it is no delusion, there are always those amongst us who attempt what even in this world is so hazardous and in the larger sweep of moral economy is impossible. In selfishness, in oppression and injustice, in every kind of sensuality men adventure as if they could ensure their safety and defy the day of reckoning. Gideon is now well persuaded that the fear of disaster is not for Israel. He returns to the camp and forthwith prepares to strike. It seems to him now the easiest thing possible to throw into confusion that great encampment of Midian.
One bold device rapidly executed will set in operation the suspicions and fears of the different desert tribes and they will melt away in defeat. The stratagem has already shaped itself. The three hundred are provided with the earthenware jars or pitchers in which their simple food has been carried. They soon procure firebrands and from among the ten thousand in the camp enough rams horns are collected to supply one to each of the attacking party. Then three bands are formed of equal strength and ordered to advance from different sides upon the enemy, holding themselves ready at a given signal to break the pitchers, flash the torches in the air and make as much noise as they can with their rude mountain horns. The scheme is simple, quaint, ingenious. It reveals skill in making use of the most ordinary materials which is of the very essence of generalship. The harsh cornets especially filling the valley with barbaric tumult are well adapted to create terror and confusion. We hear nothing of ordinary weapons, but it must not be supposed that the three hundred were unarmed.
It was not long after midnight, the middle watch had been newly set, when the three companies reached their stations. The orders had been well seized and all went precisely as Gideon had conceived. With crash and tumult and flare of torches there came the battle shout-"Sword of Jehovah and of Gideon." The Israelites had no need to press forward; they stood every man in his place, while fear and suspicion did the work. The host ran and cried and fled. To and fro among the tents, seeing, now on this side now on that, the menacing flames, turning from the battlecry here to be met in an opposite quarter by the wild dissonance of the horns, the surprised army was thrown into utter confusion. Every one thought of treachery and turned his sword against his fellow. Escape was the common impulse, and the flight of the disorganised host took a southeasterly direction by the road that led to the Jordan valley and across it to the Hauran and the desert. It was a complete rout and the Hebrews had only to follow up their advantage. Those who had not shared the attack joined in the pursuit. Every village that the flying Midianites passed sent out its men, brave enough now that the arm of the tyrant was broken. Down to the ghor of Jordan the terror-stricken Arabs fled and along the bank for many a mile, harassed in the difficult ground by the Hebrews who know every yard of it. At the fords there is dreadful work. Those who cross at the highest point near Succoth are not the main body, but the two chiefs Zebah and Zalmunna are among them and Gideon takes them in hand. Away to the south Ephraim has its opportunity and gains a victory where the road. along the valley of Jordan diverges to Beth-barah. For days and nights the retreat goes oft till the strange swift triumph of Israel is assured.
1. There is in this narrative a lesson as to equipment for the battle of life and the service: of God somewhat like that which we found in the story of Shamgar, yet with points of difference. We are reminded here of what may be done without wealth, without the material apparatus that is often counted necessary. The modern habit is to make much of tools and outfit. The study and applications of science have brought in a fashion of demanding everything possible in the way of furniture, means, implements. Everywhere this fashion prevails, in the struggle of commerce and manufacture, in literature and art, in teaching and household economy, worst of all in church life and work. Michaelangelo wrought the frescoes of the Sistine chapel with the ochres he dug with his own hands from the garden of the Vatican. Mr. Darwins great experiments were conducted with the rudest and cheapest furniture, anything a country house could supply. But in the common view it is on perfect tools and material almost everything depends; and we seem in the way of being absolutely mastered by them. What, for example, is the ecclesiasticism which covers an increasing area of religious life? And what is the parish or congregation fully organised in the modern sense? Must we not call them elaborate machinery expected to produce spiritual life? There must be an extensive building with every convenience for making worship agreeable; there must be guilds and guild rooms, societies and committees, each with an array of officials; there must be due assignment of observances to fit days and seasons; there must be architecture, music, and much else. The ardent soul desiring to serve God and man has to find a place in conjunction with all this and order his work so that it may appear well in a report. To some these things may appear ludicrous, but they are too significant of the drift from that simplicity and personal energy in which the Church of Christ began. We seem to have forgotten that the great strokes have been made by men who like Gideon delayed not for elaborate preparation nor went back on rule and precedent, but took the firebrands, pitchers, and horns that could be got together on a hillside. The great thing both in the secular and in the spiritual region is that men should go straight at the work which has to be done and do it with sagacity, intelligence, and fervour of their own.
We look back to those few plain men with whom lay the new life of the world, going forth with the strong certain word of a belief for which they could die, a truth by which the dead could be revived. Their equipment was of the soul. Of outward means and material advantages they were, one may say, destitute. Our methods are very different. No doubt in these days there is a work of defence which requires the finest weapons and most careful preparation. Yet even here no weight of polished armour is so good for Davids use as the familiar sling and stone. And in the general task of the church, teaching, guiding, setting forth the gospel of Christ, whatever keeps soul from honest and hearty touch with soul is bad. We want above all things men who have sanctified common sense, mother wit, courage and frank simplicity, men who can find their own means and gain their own victories. The churches that do not breed such are doomed.
2. We have been reading a story of panic and defeat, and we may be advised to find in it a hint of the fate that is to overtake Christianity when modern criticism has finally ordered its companies and provided them with terrifying horns and torches. Or certain Christians may feel that the illustration fits the state of alarm in which they are obliged to live. Is not the church like that encampment in the valley, exposed to the most terrible and startling attacks on all sides, and in peril constantly of being routed by unforeseen audacities, here of Ingersoll, Bakunin, Bebel, there of Huxley or Renan? Not seldom still, though after many a false alarm, the cry is raised, "The church, the faith-in danger!"
Once for all-the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ is never in danger, though enemies buzz on every side like furious hornets. A confederation of men, a human organisation may be in deadly peril and may know that the harsh tumult around it means annihilation. But no institution is identical with the Catholic Church, much less with the kingdom of God. Christians need not dread the honest criticism which has a right to speak, nor even the malice, envy, which have no right yet dare to utter themselves. Whether it be sheer atheism or scientific dogma or political change or criticism of the Bible that makes the religious world tremble and cry out for fear, in every case panic is unchristian and unworthy. For one thing, do we not frame numerous thoughts and opinions of our own and devise many forms of service which in the course of time we come to regard as having a sacredness equal to the doctrine and ordinances of Christ? And do we not frequently fall into the error of thinking that the symbols, traditions, outward forms of a Christian society are essential and as much to be contended for as the substance of the gospel? Criticism of these is dreaded as criticism of Christ, decay of them is regarded, often quite wrongly, as decay of the work of God on earth. We forget that forms, as such, are on perpetual trial, and we forget also that no revolution or seeming disaster can touch the facts on which Christianity rests. The Divine gospel is eternal. Indeed, assailants of the right sort are needed, and even those of the bad sort have their use. The encampment of the unseeing and unthinking, of the self-loving and arrogant needs to be startled; and he is no emissary of Satan who honestly leads an attack where men lie in false peace, though he may be for his own part but a rude fighter. The panic indeed sometimes takes a singular and pathetic form. The unexpected enemy breaks in on the camp with blare of ignorant rebuke and noisy demonstration of strength and authority. Him the church hails as a new apostle, at his feet she takes her place with a strange unprofitable humility; and this is the worst kind of disaster. Better far a serious battle than such submission.
3. Without pursuing this suggestion we pass to another raised by the conduct of the men of Ephraim. They obeyed the call of Gideon when he hastily summoned them to take the lower fords of Jordan within their own territory and prevent the escape of the Midianites. To them it fell to gain a great victory, and especially to slay two subordinate chiefs, Oreb and Zeeb, the Crow and the Wolf. But afterwards they complained that they had not been called at first when the commander was gathering his army. We are informed that they chode with him sharply on this score, and it was only by his soft answer which implied a little flattery that they were appeased. "What have I now in comparison with you? Is not the gleaming of the grapes of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer?"
The men of Ephraim were not called at first along with Manasseh, Zebulun, Asher, and Naphtali. True. But why? Was not Gideon aware of their selfish indifference? Did he not read their character? Did he not perceive that they would have sullenly refused to be led by a man of Manasseh, the youngest son of Joash of Abiezer? Only too well did the young chief know with whom he had to deal. There had been fighting already between Israel and the Midianites. Did Ephraim help then? Nay: but secure in her mountains that tribe sullenly and selfishly held aloof. And now the complaint is made when Gideon, once unknown, is a victorious hero, the deliverer of the Hebrew nation.
Do we not often see something like this? There are people who will not hazard position or profit in identifying themselves with an enterprise while the issue is doubtful, but desire to have the credit of connection with it if it should succeed. They have not the humanity to associate themselves with those who are fighting in a good cause because it is good. In fact they do not know what is good, their only test of value being success. They lie by, looking with half-concealed scorn on the attempts of the earnest, sneering at their heat either in secret or openly, and when one day it becomes clear that the world is applauding they conceive a sudden respect for those at whom they scoffed. Now they will do what they can to help, -with pleasure, with liberality. Why were they not sooner invited? They will almost make a quarrel of that, and they have to be soothed with fair speeches. And people who are worldly at heart push forward in this fashion when Christian affairs have success or eclat attached to them, especially where religion wears least of its proper air and has somewhat of the earthly in tone and look. Christ pursued by the Sanhedrin, despised by the Roman, is no person for them to know. Let Him have the patronage of Constantine or a de Medici and they are then assured that He has claims which they will admit-in theory. More than that needs not be expected from men and women "of the world." "Messieurs, surtout, pas de zele." Above all, no zeal: that is the motto of every Ephraim since time began. Wait till zeal is cooling before you join the righteous cause.
4. But while there are the carnal who like to share the success of religion after it has cooled down to their temperature, another class must not be forgotten, those who in their selfishness show the worst kind of hostility to the cause they should aid. Look at the men of Succoth and Penuel. Gideon and his band leading the pursuit of the Midianites have had no food all night and are faint with hunger. At Succoth they ask bread in vain. Instead of help they get the taunt-"Are Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine hand that we should give bread unto thine army?" Onward they press another stage up the hills to Penuel, and there also their request is refused. Gideon, savage with the need of his men, threatens dire punishment to those who are so callous and cruel; and when he returns victorious his threat is made good. With thorns and briars of the wilderness he scourges the elders of Succoth. The pride of Penuel is its watchtower, and that he demolishes, at the same time decimating the men of the city.
Penuel and Succoth lay in the way between the wilderness in which the Midianites dwelt and the valleys of western Palestine. The men of these cities feared that if they aided Gideon they would bring on themselves the vengeance of the desert tribes. Yet where do we see the lowest point of unfaith and meanness, in Ephraim or Succoth? It is perhaps hard to say which are the least manly: those contrive to join the conquering host and snatch the credit of victory; these are not so clever, and while they are as eager to make things smooth for themselves the thorns and briars are more visibly their portion. To share the honour of a cause for which you have done very little is an easy thing in this world, though an honest man cannot wear that kind of laurel; but as for Succoth and Penuel, the poor creatures, who will not pity them? It is so inconvenient often to have to decide. They would temporise if it were possible-supply the famished army with mouldy corn and raisins at a high price, and do as much next time for the Midianites. Yet the opportunity for this kind of salvation does not always come. There are times when people have to choose definitely whom they will serve, and discover to their horror that judgment follows swiftly upon base and cowardly choice. And God is faithful in making the recusants feel the urgency of moral choice and the grip He has of them. They would fain let the battle of truth sweep by and not meddle with it. But something is forced upon them. They cannot let the whole affair of salvation alone, but are driven to refuse heaven in the very act of trying to escape hell. And although judgment lingers, ever and anon demonstration is made among the ranks of the would be prudent that One on high judges for His warriors. It is not the Gideon leading the little band of faint but eager champions of faith who punishes the callous heathenism and low scorn of a Succoth and Penuel. The Lord of Hosts Himself will vindicate and chasten. "Whoso shall cause one of these little ones that believe in Me to stumble, it is profitable for him that a great millstone should be hanged about his neck, and that he should be sunk in the depth of the sea."
5. Yet another word of instruction is found in the appeal of Gideon: "Give, I pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me, for they be faint and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna." Well has the expression "Faint yet pursuing" found its place as a proverb of the religious life. We are called to run with patience a race that needs long ardour and strenuous exertion. The goal is far away, the ground is difficult. As day after day and year after year demands are made upon our faith, our resolution, our thought, our devotion to One who remains unseen and on our confidence in the future life, it is no wonder that many feel faint and weary. Often have we to pass through a region inhabited by those who are indifferent or hostile, careless or derisive. At many a door we knock and find no sympathy. We ask for bread and receive a stone; and still the fight slackens not, still have we to reach forth to the things that are before. But the faintness is not death. In the most terrible hours there is new life for our spiritual nature. Refreshment comes from an unseen hand when earth refuses help. We turn to Christ; we consider Him who endured great contradiction of sinners against Himself; we realise afresh that we are ensured of the fulness of His redemption. The body grows faint, but the soul presses on; the body dies and has to be left behind as a worn-out garment, but the spirit ascends into immortal youth.
"On, chariot! on, soul!
Ye are all the more fleet.
Be alone at the goal
Of the strange and the sweet!"
6. Finally let us glance at the fate of Zebah and Zalmunna, not without a feeling of admiration and of pity for the rude ending of these stately lives.
The sword of Jehovah and of Gideon has slain its thousands. The vast desert army has been scattered like chaff, in the flight, at the fords, by the rock Oreb and the wine press Zeeb, all along the way by Nobah and Jogbehah, and finally at Karkor, where having encamped in fancied security the residue is smitten. Now the two defeated chiefs are in the hand of Gideon, their military renown completely wrecked, their career destroyed. To them the expedition into Canaan was part of the common business of leadership. As emirs of nomadic tribes they had to find pasture and prey for their people. No special antagonism to Jehovah, no ill-will against Israel more than other nations, led them to cross the Jordan and scour the plains of Palestine. It was quite in the natural course of things that Midianites and Amalekites should migrate and move towards the west. And now the defeat is crushing. What remains therefore but to die?
We hear Gideon command his son Jether to fall upon the captive chiefs, who, brilliant and stately once, lie disarmed, bound and helpless. The indignity is not to our mind. We would have thought more of Gideon had he offered freedom to these captives "fallen on evil days," men to be admired, not hated. But probably they do not desire a life which has in it no more of honour. Only let the Hebrew leader not insult them by the stroke of a young mans sword. The great chiefs would die by a warriors blow. And Jether cannot slay them; his hand falters as he draws the sword. These men who have ruled their tens of thousands have still the lion look that quails. "Rise thou and fall upon us," they say to Gideon: "for as the man is, so is his strength." And so they die, types of the greatest earthly powers that resist the march of Divine Providence, overthrown by a sword which even in faulty, weak human hands has indefeasible sureness and edge.
"As the man is, so is his strength." It is another of the pregnant sayings which meet us here and there even in the least meditative parts of Scripture. Yes: as a man is in character, in faith, in harmony with the will of God, so is his strength; as he is in falseness, injustice, egotism, and ignorance, so is his weakness. And there is but one real perennial kind of strength. The demonstration made by selfish and godless persons, though it shake continents and devastate nations, is not Force. It has no nerve, no continuance, but is mere fury which decays and perishes. Strength is the property of truth and truth only; it belongs to those who are in union with eternal reality and to no others in the universe. Would you be invincible? You must move with the eternal powers of righteousness and love. To be showy in appearance or terrible in sound on the wrong side with the futilities of the world is but incipient death.
On all sides the application may be seen. In the home and its varied incidents of education, sickness, discipline; in society high and low; in politics, in literature. As the man or woman is in simple allegiance to God and clear resolution there is strength to endure, to govern, to think, and every way to live. Otherwise there can only be instability, foolishness, blundering selfishness, a sad passage to inanition and decay.
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On vv1, 15 I. The Diminution of its Numbers
THE ARMY OF THE LORD’S DELIVERANCE
I. The Diminution of its Numbers
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Jdg_7:1-8
CRITICAL NOTES.— Jdg_7:1. Then Jerubbaal.] The name is given as the challenger of Baal, the man who, for the honour of God, was not afraid to enter the lists with Baal. This name was putting a mark of honour on Gideon, the same as if a star were put on his breast.
Rose up early and pitched beside the well of Harod.] The first flush of enthusiasm was still upon them, and they did not hesitate at once to approach the enemy. Gideon himself was decided by many proofs given that God was with him; or if any doubts were left, these had become dissipated by the sign of the dew and the fleece of wool. And the people were decided by the victory gained over Baal, and the several evidences that God had raised up Gideon to deliver Israel. Whether there was any depth in this decision was soon to be tried. “The well” means the spring. הַרַד̇ trembling—so called, probably, because it was the spot where the volunteer warriors first began to tremble and lose heart in the great cause they had taken in band. A good spring of water was an important spot in such a country, and especially on the eve of battle.
The host—the camp—was on the north side of them, etc.] Some would render it—“he had the camp of Midian before him in the valley, to the north of the hill Moreh” (Cassel). This would make Gideon to be to the north of Midian, for he had that camp between him and Moreh. But Manasseh, from which Gideon came, was, both in its hills and plains, to the south of the valley of Jezreel, so that when Gideon approached that valley it must have been from the south. We therefore read it—“the camp was to him in the north, at the hill of Moreh, in the valley.” מוֹרֵה—pointer, so called because it commanded a good view of the valley.
Jdg_7:2. The Lord said unto Gideon.] This was to be Jehovah’s own battle, and He therefore makes a disposition of the forces. The people with thee are too many.] This would sound strange in the hearing of all the people. Not a man of them but thought their numbers were all too few for the hazardous task before them, and to be abruptly told they were too many, was the very thing which was fitted to dishearten them for the fight altogether. They were but 32,000 all told, while the enemy was 135,000 at the very least (Ch. Jdg_8:10), and perhaps more. Now, too, being on the rising ground (at the foot of which was the spring of Harod), and which overlooked the valley, they could see the long, interminable spreading of tents which overshadowed the whole valley. Many a one, who at first was courageous enough, would begin to feel as Peter did “when he saw the wind boisterous, he began to sink.” According to ordinary calculation, the odds were all against Israel had the numbers not been reduced (Luk_14:30). But when the army of deliverance was cut down from 32,000 to 10,000, and finally to 300 men, the last vestige of hope to save the nation by human prowess was taken away.
This, however, was the battle of the church of God, and it must be made clear to all, that His hand was at work in bringing about the result. It was the age in which Divine Providence was made visible in protecting the church, and it was no unwarrantable thing to expect then what we cannot expect now—a visible shield thrown around those whom God loved. It might be a great trial of faith, yet faith had much to support it in the fact that God’s own honour had to be vindicated in the sight of the heathen, and the covenant engagements to His own people had to be fulfilled. All the church’s battles, properly speaking, were gained by her God (Psa_44:3; Zec_3:6; Deu_8:10-18).
Jdg_7:3. Whosoever is fearful and afraid.] Deu_20:1-8. The presence of the faint-hearted in an army was a source of weakness, not of strength. Mount Gilead. The well-known Mount Gilead was on the east side of Jordan, whereas Gideon was now on the west side. There may have been a place of that name on the west side also, though unimportant. Or it may have been a phrase customary among the Manassites, meaning Gilead, the rallying point where the people were summoned to assemble for battle. Early. Depart at once. There was a tone of decision in this call. There was indeed no time to be lost.
There returned twenty and two thousand.] More than two-thirds proved craven-hearted when real danger was faced, How many at first stand forward on the Lord’s side who are soon discovered not to have counted the cost! The trial was upon their fears, and they cowardly confessed it (Hos_7:1). But what a stern test of the courage of those who remained true to their colours! צָפַר originally signifies to twist hair or ropes; hence it means here to return in windings, i.e., to slink away in by-paths. [Keil.] This melancholy spectacle might well have filled the hearts of the already too small army of Gideon with dismay. But the chief purpose was not to blow away the chaff, though that was done. Rather the design was to make it manifest that the sole arm that gains victories in the Lord’s battles, is that of the Lord Himself. No arm of flesh must divide the glory with Him. The proneness of the human heart to boast of its own resources must be effectually checked. Hence, even the 10,000 are too many, though scarcely a proportion of one man to thirteen of the enemy. God meant to teach the lesson where the real strength of His church lay.
Jdg_7:4. Bring them down to the water and I will try them there.] The dross was already removed for all the 10,000 seemed prepared to enter the battlefield. But even of those who stood the first test, some were more, and others were less, eligible—the difference between iron and steel. “The water” refers to the purling brook that was formed of such waters as flowed down from the Harod spring. צָרַף Separate, or elect some from the others—not the idea of purging away refuse. God himself selects every man.
Jdg_7:5. Brought down the people to the water.] As if to quench their thirst well before commencing the battle. The great mass of them knelt down and drank of the stream, regardless of the danger of being in the immediate proximity of the enemy. A few were more wakeful, and only bending (without lying) down, they lapped the water with their hand, as a dog when using his tongue, but ready at a moment’s notice to start to their feet, and face the foe. Sometimes little things, the very fringes of manner, indicate the sterling qualities of a man’s character—his self-discipline, his wariness, his manliness and heroism. So it may have been now; and thus this simple incident furnished a test sufficient to determine the selection. Comp the self-restraint of David in 2Sa_23:16. The Jewish interpretation is worthy of consideration. Idolaters were accustomed to pray kneeling before their idols. Kneeling bad thus become unpopular in Israel, and was studiously avoided on all occasions by the worshippers of the true God. On this occasion all the men were thrown off their guard, and each man would instinctively act according to what was customary for him to do. The kneelers would presumptively have been idolaters in the past the lappers would have been those, who through long opposition to idolatry, never bowed the knee (comp. 1Ki_19:18). To bow the knee was the sign of religious worship, and was an honour due to God alone. Mordecai refused to kneel to a man (Est_3:5; Isa_45:23). [Cassel.]
Jdg_7:7. By the three hundred men … will I save you.] The marshalling of the little army under Gideon was entirely God’s own work, for he was the real commander. Gideon was in fact but a sub-lieutenant. God now designates the 300 as a fit instrumentality for Him to use, and requires the others to return to their homes. A distinct promise is made to give victory to this small handful—one man to four hundred and fifty (1Sa_14:6; 2Ch_14:11; also Act_18:9-10; Act_22:18-21). The board was now clear. By means of Israel’s little finger a signal victory was to be gained over the proud hosts of the vaunting foe. To count on this was a great act of faith. There was nothing of sense to support it. All stood the other way. Hence Gideon’s name stands high on the roll of fame, because of his great faith (Heb_11:32.)
Jdg_7:8. The people took victuals in their hand, etc.] The 300 did. The 9700, though willing to fight, submitted to the arrangement made as being from God, and went (perhaps reluctantly) to their homes. But they willingly supplied the small detachment who were to give battle to the foe with such provisions out of the common store, and such instruments as were needed. Thus each man of the 300 had a trumpet, a pitcher, and a lamp. The word “retained” seems to be significant. As a man would cling to a small boat amid a world of great waters. They were a sacred gift put into his hand by his God—the forlorn hope of Israel—a solitary star in a sky black with clouds—“a little flock of kids while the Midianites filled the country!” He would address them in words few, but from the heart. “We few—we chosen few—we band of brothers!”
II. Confidence given in the midst of weakness
Jdg_7:9-14
Jdg_7:9. Arise, get thee down unto the host, etc.] God orders everything—the time of action, as well as the means. The call now given meant—“the hour is come—go, and do as I have commanded you.” The phrase, “unto the camp” means against.
Jdg_7:10. But if thou fear to go down.] The fluttering state of Gideon’s heart was seen by his God, and with the tender consideration of a father for a child in peril, he opens his eyes for a moment to what is going on behind the scenes. God’s band is already at work. one of the sleepers in the enemy’s camp is made to dream; his fellow interprets the dream—Gideon learns from this that his name is already a terror to the invaders, and that God has begun to smite them with a spirit of trembling. Phurah, thy servant.] A young man. Even a mere stripling is some consolation to a hero like Gideon, under so great a pressure of responsibility. Here is a touch of the weakness of our humanity! The Saviour Himself felt it as a man, for “He was in all points tried like as we are.” “Could ye not watch with me for one hour?” Small consolation could such comforters give. Like straws in withstanding a torrent. But they were the only objects at hand.
Jdg_7:11. Then he went down with Phurah.] In like manner, Diomed, according to Homer, entered into the camp of the Trojans; and Alfred of England, according to Hume, ventured into the camp of the Danes as a harper—the outside of the armed men. This implies that besides the families, the servants, the camp-followers, and others, there was a special guard for the whole camp, consisting of well-trained and well-equipped fighting men. The word chamushim means those who acted both as van and rear guards, especially the former (Jos_1:14; Exo_13:18). Some make it the foremost of the outposts. [Keil)]. Others, to the outermost of the ranks by five. [Bush]. Others, to those who were girded for the fight. [P. Com.]. Others, as far as the line of the van-guard. [Cassel]. Yet others, those who stood in battle array. [Lias]. It meant the outer rim of the encampment, and that portion of the hostile army, where their strength lay. The invaders were not absolutely a rabble, but were so far organized as that, while one section did the plundering, and another attended to the tents, the families, the baggage, and the flocks, there was another whose special work it was to fight in defence of the whole.
Jdg_7:12. Lay along in the valley like grasshoppers.] (See on Jdg_6:5). The relative numbers of the two armies are again mentioned to show how completely the salvation now to be wrought was of God. But great numbers sometimes lead to a false security. There was no rampart, or protecting wall round about the encampment; so that Gideon and his attendant found no obstruction, as they crept stealthily into one of the tents. The whole multitude had gone to sleep, and lay along, prostrate, as if taking their night’s rest. They felt secure, for there were clouds on clouds of warriors, and dromedaries, countless as the sand by the sea-shore.
Jdg_7:13. I dreamed a dream, etc.] This was something sent by the God of Providence, equally as in the case of Pharaoh, or Nebuchadnezzar. It was no sword to wound the flesh. God has a variety of instruments to use. It was something to touch the spirit and arouse the fears. A cake of barley-bread]. Circular. “A round barley-loaf rolled itself.” Barley-bread was reckoned a vile food, suited only for horses and dromedaries, or the lowest menials among men. It stands in opposition to wheat or fine flour. The point of the dream was that something came rolling down from the high ground in among their tents—not a stone but a mere cake of bread, and yet when it struck one of the tents it turned it completely over. It was the humblest of all cakes, yet it sufficed to crush the tent, the tent of the chief captain of the whole host too (as many read it), and it lay in ruins.
Jdg_7:14. This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon.] How could such a dream have been dreamed, and such an interpretation have been given, had not God specially ordered it! Nothing could have been more opportune to show Gideon that God was beginning to fill the minds of the enemy with fears for the issue of the impending conflict. And if these fears were but to increase far enough, it was easy to see how victory could be obtained. But that by which his faith was specially confirmed was the fact, that the existence of these fears proved that God was already at work on the minds of the enemy for their destruction, and if so, would assuredly complete His work. This corresponded well too, with the assurance which his God had given him when the call came to arise and go down to attack the enemy’s camp. “For,” says Jehovah, “I have delivered it into thine hand.” It is already doomed, and my hand is already at work. The incident of the dream was a striking proof of this. God was touching the hearts of the enemy, and making them to quake for fear. This instilling of a spirit of terror into their minds was parallel to the terror with which the Canaanites were inspired, when they heard of the coming of Joshua and the Divinely-shielded people whom he led (Exo_23:27; Deu_2:25; Deu_11:25; Jos_2:9-11).
“The tent was an expressive emblem of the Midianites as nomads. It was their all in all. Their wives and children, their cattle and goods, their vesture and treasure were all collected in it and about it.”—(Wordsworth). It contained their “altar and their home.” Here the question is—what led the dreamer’s comrade to interpret the dream as he did! Was it an evil conscience! And was it felt that the time had come for Israel’s God to arise and avenge Himself, as He had so often done before, on those who had dared to tread down His people as the mire! We cannot tell the exact measure of the knowledge of Israel’s God which prevailed among these heathen invaders. But there seemed to be a rumour afloat that the God of Israel was about to arise for the redemption of His people, and that a special messenger had been sent to commission Gideon to act under Him as the captain of His host. Doubtless it was of God’s overruling providence that such an interpretation, as we here find, was given of the dream.
MAIN HOMILETICS—Jdg_7:1-14
In the battle now to be fought, God Himself was the chief actor. In all that is said and done He takes the initiative. “The people are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hand.” It was indeed the Battle of the Lord’s deliverance, and all the arrangements must be regarded in this light; while means are used, they must be disposed in such a way as to reveal the fact, that He is the great actor.
I. The objects of the Battle.
These were—
1. To reveal the Lord’s presence on the earth. This was the characteristic of the heathen world everywhere. “They did not like to retain God in their knowledge,” and so they soon lost sight of Him altogether. Hence they are spoken of as those that know Him not (Exo_5:2, with Jdg_7:5; Jdg_8:20; Jdg_14:4; Jdg_14:18; 1Sa_17:4; 1Sa_17:6; 2Ki_5:15; 2Ki_19:19; 2Ki_17:26; Psa_79:6; Psa_83:18). These passages speak of God’s revealing Himself in the way of judgment, among those that know him not. Israel too practically showed the same tendency of heart to “depart from the living God,” when they forsook the Lord, and served other gods (Jdg_2:10; Jdg_2:12; 1Ki_18:37; 1Ki_18:39; Jer_2:32, also Jeremiah 11; Jer_4:22; Jer_5:4; Jer_8:7; Hos_2:8; Hos_2:20; Joe_2:27; Eze_36:11; Eze_36:23; Eze_36:36; Eze_36:38). In the book of Ezekiel, the expression—“that ye may know that I am the Lord”—occurs more than fifty times. It is always by what He does that this becomes known. Men strangely forget God’s presence in His own world, and therefore sometimes He rises up and proves emphatically who is at the helm (Psa_9:17; Psa_44:7; Psa_10:11; Isa_5:12; 2Ki_1:3).
2. To vindicate His superiority to all who would usurp His place. (Dan_4:35). He has but to show Himself, and His enemies are scattered (Psa_68:1, etc., Jdg_9:20; Exo_12:12; 1 Samuel 5; Psa_115:3-4; Isa_2:18). God’s jealousy for the glory of His name, as being alone Jehovah, is seen in His making this the first commandment of the Decalogue. Yet to go after other gods was the besetting sin of all the nations, and Israel but too readily followed the example set.
The heathen would hardly allow that such an one as the God of Israel existed at all; therefore He takes means to show that He not only exists, but is the great “I am,” and that “there is none besides Him” (Isa_45:5-6; Isa_42:8; Isa_44:6; Isa_44:8). His superiority to the nations and their gods is emphatically asserted in the current language of Scripture. “He beheld and drove asunder the nations.” “The nations before Him are as a drop of a bucket, etc., less than nothing and vanity” (Hab_3:6; Isa_40:15; Isa_40:17). He is the “King of nations” (Jer_10:7). He is “terrible to the kings of the earth.” “They cannot stand before Him.” (Jer_10:10; Jeremiah 11-16; Deu_32:39-43). He deals with them as responsible to Him (Jer_25:31, etc.). He disposes of their lot, putting down one and setting up another (Jer_27:7, etc.). He employs them as His instruments (Isa_10:5, etc.; Isa_45:1, etc.; Isa_44:28; Jer_51:20). He is angry with the heathen for their evil treatment of His people (Zec_1:14-15).
3. To show the sacred estimate He puts on the people who are called by His name. That they should wear His name with His permission, alone makes them sacred; not to speak of the many sacred purposes for which as a people they existed. His peculiar love for them, and the right of possession He had in them. He had also bound Himself by a solemn covenant to be their God, and to do everything for them which a God might be expected to do for His people. All this sacred relationship still existed notwithstanding of their sins, for they had not yet been cast off. “Israel was not forsaken, nor Judah of his God, though their land was full of sin against the Holy One of Israel.” It was still the church of the living God on earth—the one people who were called by His name (Jer_51:5; Isa_43:10-12; Isa_43:21, also 4, 7; Jer_12:17; Jer_46:28; Jer_50:17-20; Jer_50:33-34).
By these marauders of the desert the people of Israel were utterly despised, and exposed to the most cruel treatment. They were regarded as fit only to be trampled in the mire. They were not allowed the dignity of being counted as one of the nations. They came up without bidding as ruthless robbers, with no pity or remorse, to serve themselves, in the most wanton manner, of the fat pastures of God’s heritage, little dreaming of the awful danger they were incurring by tampering lightly with the interests of so sacred a people. These Israelites were God’s redeemed ones, sprinkled with the sacred blood, and, amid all the vicissitudes of their history, were owned and jealously guarded by Him. As one wounded in the apple of his eye, Jehovah now appears in opposition to these enemies of His people, and in a little time they were to become as the “whirling dust” in the wind of His indignation (Psa_83:13 R. V).
The great truth, which as yet lay unrevealed, that these children of the covenant were the people of the Messiah, and, were intimately related to Him, threw a wonderful colouring of interest around their history, and accounted for all that was so tender and jealous, so patient and forgiving, so altogether peculiar in God’s ways of dealing with them. A Messianic current of truth runs underneath the whole of this book, and gives to it actually a far more sacred character than appears on the surface.
II. God’s choice of an army.
Gideon is but a sub-lieutenant. It is God Himself who inspects the forces and determines the strength of the army. The plan of the battle is His, and He issues all the directions. Israel had little more to do than to stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Notice two things:—
I. The principle on which the choice is made. The army must be reduced in number, not increased. It was already small compared with the numbers of the enemy. Yet in God’s estimation it is too large to gain the ends which He has in view. Had the Israelites been as numerous, man for man, as the Midianites, there would have been no need of any special Divine intervention on their behalf, and all the story of thrilling interest to after ages which this chapter contains would have been unwritten.
When men war with each other it is the dictate of wisdom to oppose a force on the one side equal to that which stands on the other. The resources of even the ablest commander are so limited that, when contending with a disciplined and brave enemy, he must rely on the numbers as well as the valour of his troops (Luk_14:31). Some cases there are in history where a general has proved victorious when fighting with only one-tenth or even a smaller proportion to the numbers of his opponent, as in the case of Miltiades at Marathon, Themistocles at Salamis, Clive in India, and some English generals, in both North and South Africa, at the present day. But the circumstances in these cases were exceptional, and do not invalidate the maxim, that a successful issue is not to be looked for by employing a very small force against one that is very large. Leonidas with his 300 Spartans were all cut to pieces at Thermopylœ, notwithstanding their deeds of incredible bravery.
The 300 men that followed Gideon were not more brave than these Spartans, and, but for an unseen power at work, they must have shared a similar fate. The mighty God of Jacob had now placed Himself on the side of His people, and, in order to give room for the display of His inexhaustible resources, as one who has all hearts in His hands, and all events at His disposal, human prowess must disappear. To glorify the infinite wisdom, and absolute control of all circumstances possessed by Israel’s God, weakness must be employed to conquer strength. Israel’s little finger must be made use of to break the right arm of the powerful invader; and, through the weakest instrumentality, an army, numerous as the sand on the sea-shore, who vaunted themselves against the God of Israel, must be scattered before Him as the chaff of the summer threshing-floor. Thus the character of Jehovah is vindicated in the sight of the heathen as “above all gods, strong and mighty in battle,” able to “give power to the faint, and to them that have no might to increase strength.” Also from Israel all grounds of boasting are taken away, so that no one can lift up his voice and say, “Mine own hand hath saved me!”
This principle of employing weakness against strength was not meant merely to clear the way for some exercise of supernatural power. Such power was indeed often exercised for the salvation of Israel; for, being the people of the Messiah, they were of such supreme importance in God’s sight, that He would make every law of His natural world to give way, when necessary, for the preservation of His “peculiar people.” But that He should accomplish this great end, without any disturbance of natural laws, and merely through His absolute command of all natural agencies and circumstances, so as to make them work out the purposes of His will, is a still more wonderful exhibition of His character as the Supreme Governor of the world than could have been given by the putting forth of miraculous power. To use such a disparity of force, as the placing of one Israelite against 450 of the enemy, made it clear that salvation could not in this case come from “an arm of flesh,” but from the infinite control which Jehovah exercised over all persons and events in the course of His providential rule. He could bring out 1000 issues where men could not accomplish one. He has but to touch man’s heart and it is filled with fears, or suspicions, or disquieting thoughts, and a whole army is made to flee before the creations of their own affrighted imaginations (2 Kings 7; 2Sa_5:24-25). He can paralyse a man’s faculties so far as to “make the diviners mad, and turn the wise men backward.” The counsel of the most astute He can turn to foolishness, as in the case of Ahithophel, and the heart of the most courageous He can cause to melt as water. He can introduce confusion into the counsels of those who bear rule, and produce the phenomenon of a “house divided against itself” at the very moment of assurance of victory. Or He can awaken any element in nature to serve His purpose, from “the stars in their courses,” down to the dewdrop and the rain. A man’s own mind too He can distract by filling him with fearful apprehensions by day and scaring him with dreams by night.
It was to glorify the inexhaustible resources of the God of Israel, that He employed a mere handful of men to put to the rout, and utterly consume an army of the enemy, numerous as the sand on the sea shore.
2. The character of the army chosen. Though forcibly taught by this history, that success does not depend on the extent or measure of the instrumentality employed, yet regard is had, as a rule, to the fitness of the instrumentality. The use of natural means to accomplish Divine ends is an arrangement which God Himself has established; and the greater fitness there is in the means employed, we are warranted to expect a larger success in the result. God has respect to His own arrangement. Even in the preaching of the Gospel, while “it is ever God that gives the increase,” He blesses most those means that are in themselves best adapted to produce the result (Act_11:24; Act_14:1). We may expect therefore, that God’s army would be chosen according to the personal fitness of the men to occupy the post of peril.
(1.) They were picked men. They were chosen out from others as being superior to those with whom they were associated. They were men of sterling character, of rock-like intrepidity in the presence of danger, every man a hero, and all “of the stuff of which patriots are made.” They all justified the choice that was made of them at this eventful crisis, by following their captain into the breach, at the call of duty, resolved to do or die for their country and their God. In physical features they were men of Spartan courage, of the lion-heart, and of stalwart frame. No weak hands or feeble knees appeared among them, but all seemed trustworthy to meet the great emergency that had arisen.
This class of men are specially needed at any crisis of the church’s history. It is not numbers that form the real strength of the Church of God, but men of the right stamp. Men are needed who are “rooted in the faith,” “grounded” in love, and “established” in the hope of the gospel—who have profound convictions and strong decision of character. A large number of professing Christians scarcely rise above the line of reproach for being insincere. They wear the good name. Charity supposes them to be on the right side of the line, but is not free from doubts. Tried by a low standard they pass for Christians, but they have little of the shining lustre which indicates the genuine seal of heaven.
The men that really do good, however, are those whose piety does not flicker in the socket, but burns with a bright and steady flame—those who have fixed principles as the basis of their characters, whose eye rests not below the horizon of time, but is fixed on the grand realities of eternity, and whose hearts “rejoice daily in the hope of the glory of God.” Such men do honour to the cause they espouse by their character and conduct; and they are the men who, like lightning rods, are fitted to draw down the blessing from above.
(2.) They had faith in their cause. The test applied to their character was so severe, that nothing but true belief in Israel’s God and conscientious attachment to His cause, could have so entirely stood it, as these men did. They were the faithful “remnant” of Gideon’s days; men who, in other circumstances, would have suffered as martyrs at the stake, or, for the sake of their principles, would have “wandered about in sheep-skins, and goat-skins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented.” They believed in Jehovah as sustaining to Israel the relation of a covenant God, who had made many gracious promises; and they counted “Him faithful who had promised.” They had hope therefore in Israel’s future, and believed, from the signs before them, that God was to arise even now, and vindicate His own honour in the eyes of the heathen nations that knew Him not. No other explanation will account for their staunchness. (Comp. pp. 279, 280).
Such men make a church strong, because on them the Divine smile can rest, and like true Israelites they have influence at the throne of grace. Men of great faith, when they set themselves to pray importunately for the blessing, as these men doubtless would do, “moved the hand that moved the universe.” This has much to do with the success of the church of God in overcoming all opposition to her cause in the world. When she reflects most brightly the Divine image, and is filled in greatest abundance with the Divine Spirit, then is she most likely to be made an efficient instrument in blessing the world around her. (Psa_67:1-2).
(3.) They were careful in the use of means. It was not by direct miraculous agency that the result was gained, but through the instrumentality of Gideon’s band. God’s blessing rested on the means they used, and rendered them effectual, so that the enemy was routed. They made the fullest use of the means at their disposal, and left the issue with God. There were no idle men in that army, just as there were no cowards. There were no supernumeraries, none that could be spared from their post. Every man was required to form a line long enough, in each of the three crescents, in order to produce the impression intended. Had but a few of the trumpets remained unblown, a smaller number of lights been kindled, and only a half of the pitchers been broken, less consternation and dismay had been spread in the camp of the enemy. There was no reserve, and there was no fighting by proxy. Every man was so sternly required at his post that he had to stand firm, as if on him depended the entire success of the hour.
Thus it is in the Christian army. None can plead exemption from want of capacity, obscurity of station, or insignificance of personal resources. None dare to fold his arms and refuse to fight because he cannot bring down a Goliath, or turn the tide of battle by his single prowess. None dare to leave the battle ground, because he is only a private soldier, and not a general. None dare to sleep at his post, because he sees not any great good that can be accomplished by all that he can do. All must act, and act simultaneously, each in his place, if complete success is to be attained in any field of the Christian warfare.
(4.) They were loyal to their Leader. They knew that Gideon did not occupy this position of himself, but that God had specially called him to it, and as they would be found faithful to God Himself, they now cleave fast to him whom God had chosen to become the Liberator of their country. There was no jealousy or envy. Whoever might be the Lord’s anointed, him they would follow for the Lord’s sake. The story of the angel’s visit to Gideon, they had heard of, and the promise made, “I will be with thee” (Jdg_6:16); they had witnessed Gideon as the successful challenger of Baal; the sign of the fleece and the dew they had heard of; and now at last came the story of the singular dream about the “cake overturning the tent.” By all these evidences they were confirmed in the thought, that Gideon was a man called of God, and to him as the one that God had sent, they became ardently attached as their leader. Neither the numbers of the enemy, nor the falling away of so many cowards, wrought with them for a moment to make them swerve. We hear of no murmurs, no sinkings of heart, no thoughts of flight, nor laying down of arms in pure despondency at the hopeless character of the issue. But, fully confident of the result, they were all eye and ear on Gideon to announce the line of duty they should take. Hence there was nothing but prompt and silent obedience throughout the whole camp; and when it is thus in the Christian camp, success will be rapid and complete. (Comp. pp. 272–286).
III. The strong man’s time of weakness, and the comforts of his God.
It appears from Jdg_7:10 that Gideon had still some lingering apprehensions in this great extremity, and his God, in tender mercy, supplies him with another additional comfort (see pp. 353–4). All, even the strongest, have such periods of weakness in the hour of great trial. As it is human to err, so it is human to be spiritually weak.
1. Spiritual strength is not inherent in pious men. It is not native, but given, and given as an act of grace. Though never entirely taken away, it is given in a greater or less degree according to the manner in which it has been improved, or according to the measure of their trust in their God, their conscientiousness in prayer, or their leading a consistent, God-fearing life.
The Christian’s strength differs from natural courage. It consists in the upholding grace of his Master. He is “strong in the Lord” (Eph_6:10). So while personally weak, he may yet be strong (2Co_12:10). As sustaining grace is given or withheld he is strong or weak (2Co_12:9). Each day anew this grace is needed.
2. Faith is ever apt to fail. Faith has a slender root. It is not a native growth on the soil of the human heart. Hence those who are comparatively strong in faith sometimes give way under the pressure of continued trial, and become weak as other men (e.g. Moses, Num_11:11-15; Abraham, Gen_15:2; Elijah, 1 Kings 19; the Martyr Church, (Rev_6:10; Luther, and the Reformers on many occasions. See more fully above at pp. 353, 354). It is “by faith that we stand.” On this pillar the whole of our spiritual character depends. But when through long continuance of trial, our frail nature yearns for repose from the strain to which it is exposed, faith gives way, and the strong man becomes weak.
3. Divine comforts are opportunely given. “Fear not! I am with thee—I will not fail thee—Be not dismayed, I am thy God, I will strengthen thee, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Though thou art a ‘worm,’ I will make thee thrash the mountains, and beat them small.” “As thy days so shall thy strength be” (Jos_1:5; Isa_41:10; Isa_41:14-15; Deu_33:25 : also Isa_40:29-31). When these promises are realised, a great accession of strength is the result.
4. These comforts are given with kind consideration. As in the beautiful expression, “thy gentleness hath made me great” (Psa_18:35). The Divine loving kindness is manifested in God’s general dealings with the good man in the hour of peril (See Psa_103:13; “the cords of a man,” etc. Hos_11:4; “the Lord being merciful to him” Gen_19:16). Here he shows His finger by what seems a trifling incident. But Gideon is quick to discern it as the finger of God (Psa_32:8).
COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS
I. The apparent hopelessness of success for the cause of the Church. The Church of God is the same now that it was in Gideon’s days. The great purpose of its existence then was the promotion of God’s glory in the world in connection with a Messiah to come. It is the same end that is kept in view now in connection with the Messiah as come. He and we live but at different periods of the same great contest. The weapons used in the conflict are very different; the cause is the same and the principles are all the same.
The most striking feature of the conflict is the apparent hopelessness of the cause that is God’s. To re-introduce the love of God into a fallen world, and to make it take deep root everywhere, when every passion and inclination, every thought, disposition, and craving of the human heart, are all dead against it, seems an utterly unattainable object.
Take any of the “dark places” of the earth as an illustration. Select Western Central Africa. In 1845 a mere handful of missionaries had begun to assemble on the shores of that extensive empire of Satan, with the ultimate view of bringing the vast population of 70 millions of human beings, that stretched far and wide over that large part of the continent, to the knowledge and the love of God. To the eye of an observer, how futile the attempt! How preposterous the expectation of success! To hope to Christianise our own land with such an insignificant instrumentality would indeed appear an extravagant dream. And are the difficulties fewer in Western Africa? To say nothing of the difficulties which exist there and do not exist here—to say nothing of its vertical sun, its noxious swamps, its barbarous rites, and strange language—is the master difficulty, the depravity of the human heart more easily conquered in Africa than it is in England? Can any of these Ethiopians easily change their skin, or men accustomed to do evil readily learn to do good! And if in any one individual case this is so difficult, how impossible to expect such a change of character among the myriads on myriads of that teeming population! “If the Lord should open the windows of heaven, might such a thing be?” Were God not to open the windows of heaven, such a thing would not be. On that moral wilderness “nothing but briers and thorns would come up, until the Spirit be poured from on high.”
II. The success of the church is not to be estimated according to ordinary rules. The cause of the church is of higher origin than the schemes of men. It is in a peculiar sense God’s own cause, and by it He is evolving in a far more illustrious manner than by any other method the moral glory of His all-perfect character. Its success, and the manner of its success, are more slowly and solemnly revealed than those of any other cause. Everything regarding the evolution of its results is more under His own immediate superintendence, and when success is effected it usually comes in such a way as to call forth the exclamation, “Is not the hand of the Lord in all this?” The most magnificent results are accomplished by the feeblest instrumentality. That “Satan should be seen falling as lightning from heaven” before the proclamation of the simple tale of the cross by plain unlettered fishermen—that the Prince of Darkness should be defeated in those fastnesses where he had reckoned himself most secure by a mere detachment of the army of the Prince of Light—affords a far higher display of moral grandeur, than could the employment of means equal to the greatness of the result, or commensurate with the difficulty of its accomplishment, have done.
III. The strength of the Church is not to be estimated by numbers. Had it been so, what would have become of her interests all along? From the beginning until now, the number of her adherents has been small compared with the number of her foes. Under both Dispensations they have been like what the Israelites were to their enemies, in the days of Ahab—“like two little flocks of kids, while the Syrians filled the country.” Yet, the standing promise of her Head is—“Fear not, little flock; it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” And though faithful soldiers of the cross do fall, though standard-bearers do faint, though the ranks of the stedfast few are thinned, the strength of the Church is not gone, for her strength does not depend on her numbers.
The Church was small in number at a time when her enemies were gathered together as the sand by the sea-shore, a very great multitude, and when but six hundred men followed the guilty monarch of Israel trembling. But one man was found with sufficient confidence in his God to go forth alone, followed by his armour-bearer, against the armies of the uncircumcised. Trembling seized the mighty host, and victory was declared for Israel. The Church was small in the days of Elijah; yet, at the prayers of that one man, the waters of heaven were stayed, so that it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. Again he prayed and the earth brought forth her fruit. In those days, though small in number, was the Church weak? Let the event answer. He stood forth alone the prophet of the Lord, while the priests of Baal were 450 men. But at his prayer, the fire of heaven fell, the bystanders were struck with awe, and the wicked priests, who had led the people to apostatise from the true God, were put to death as the real cause of the desolation that overspread the land. The Church was small in the days of Hezekiah; but was she weak? At the voice of his prayer the angel of the Lord went forth into the camp of her enemies and slew in one night 185,000 men.
If we come to New Testament times, the church was small in number, when those assembled in the upper room at Jerusalem waiting the day of Pentecost, were but 120 persons. But was she weak? Let the events of that day answer. Through their prayers, at the preaching of a single sermon about Jesus Christ and Him crucified, by an illiterate fisherman, no fewer than 3000 souls were “added to the church of such as should be saved.” During the first century of the Christian era, the church was a monument to after ages of the power of that religion which had come fresh from heaven—its power to overthrow and to cast down every thing that might exalt or oppose itself against God, to pluck up and root out every obstacle that might impede its progress.
IV. The true strength of the church lies in the presence of her Great Head.
The great promise is, “I am with you always;” and the first sentence of the church’s history reads, “they went forth and preached, the Lord working with them.” He gave them “power to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemies.” For the good of His church He holds the reins of universal government. For “He is Head over all things to His Church (Eph_1:22; Joh_17:2). From His high seat, His watchful eye commands the entire arena of the contest. His wisdom and resources are equal to the great emergency of this world’s history, now that it has become the battle field of the armies of light and darkness; His counsel shall stand, He will do all His pleasure. “Before Him every knee shall yet bow,” and “His enemies shall lick the dust.” “No weapon formed against His church shall prosper.”
It is not a mere imagination, but a matter of history, on His own word of truth, that all power in heaven and earth is given into His hands; and we are sure He will use that power in defending a cause for which He shed His blood. The Lord Jesus is on the throne, therefore let the Church be glad. For His own name’s sake He must work, until His Church go forth “fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners.”
CHAPTER 7
DIVINE PROVIDENCE OVERRULING THE RESULT. Jdg_7:15-25
CRITICAL NOTES.—
Jdg_7:15. The interpretation thereof.] Heb. The breaking thereof. A metaphor from the breaking of a nut to come at the kernel; or from a fowl’s beating the shell with her beak to get out the fish. [Trapp.] Gideon learns that the enemy’s confidence is already broken by the belief that Israel’s Lord is again in the field. [Cassel.] His mind is ready to believe like that of Nathanael (Joh_1:49). His first act instinctively is to worship his God with thanksgiving, and his next is to bound back to his little camp (not “host”) with a resolute purpose to attack the foe. The sky was now clear of all doubts. The victory was as good as gained. Like an electric spark Gideon communicated his own spirit to his followers.
Jdg_7:16. He divided the three hundred men, etc.] Not a moment is now to be lost. A plan of singular shrewdness, which he had revolved in his mind, suggested probably by his God, who was closely guiding his every movement, he begins at once to put into execution. Instructions are given to all his men as to how they should act. They are arranged in three distinct columns, to have the appearance of three armies in the darkness of night. Their weapons are trumpets, pitchers, and torches or firebrands. These last were concealed within the pitchers till the moment came for their blazing forth. This division of the men was meant to show the enemy that their camp was assailed from three different quarters (comp. 1Sa_11:11; 2Sa_18:2). All were to be bold, prompt, and simultaneous in their action. On one supreme moment the whole issue depended. Gideon himself was to give the signal.
Jdg_7:19. The middle watch.] The Romans divided the night into four watches, from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., three hours on each watch, and the Jews when conquered by the Romans followed the same reckoning (Mat_14:25; Mar_13:35). But originally the Israelites divided the night into three watches, from sunset to 10 p.m. (Lam_2:19); from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. (as here); and from 2 a.m. to sun-rise (Exo_14:24; 1Sa_11:11). It is clear that in this case it is the old reckoning that is referred to, from the expression, “the middle watch” (Psa_63:6; Psa_90:4; Psa_119:148; Psa_130:6).
Came unto the outermost part of the camp.] To the border of the camp. Several instances of this kind of stratagem are found in history. The famous Hannibal once extricated himself in this way when surrounded by Fabius Maximus. Also an Arab chief, during last century, made his escape from a fortress in which he was besieged by a vastly superior force through the same means. [Viebuhr.] By a like stratagem Pompey overcame Mithridates in Asia. [Trapp.]
Newly set the watch.] The first sentries had been relieved, and the second posted. Some little time must have been occupied in Gideon’s making a disposition of his men, and giving them instructions; so that now it must have been probably about eleven o’clock, when the whole camp had given itself up to the deep sleep of the night season, and were calculating on enjoying several hours of an unbroken slumber (1Th_5:3). Some little time, too, would be occupied by the other two companies going round, to take up their positions at different places near the camp.
Jdg_7:19-20. They blew the trumpets, etc.] It being pitch dark, every man being in his place and knowing what to do, stillness reigning throughout the valley, and the enemy being fast asleep in the vast multitude of his tents, Gideon, committing himself once more to God in prayer, puts the trumpet to his mouth, and with one loud piercing blast gives the appointed signal. Instantly it is followed by the terrific noise of shrill, strong blasts from three hundred other trumpets piercing the night air, and the next moment to that is added the crashing of three hundred pitchers among the rocks close by the camp of the sleepers, as if the whole heights around about had become vocal with fury against the spoilers of Jehovah’s heritage. And while terror thus fell on the ear, the moment the eye looked, there were three hundred torches blazing ominously full in view, as if they were avenging deities come to execute the sentence of doom. All this was followed by the terrible cry—The sword of Jehovah and of Gideon!—the two names which, of all others, were most dreaded by the conscience-stricken Midianites.
Jdg_7:21. All the host ran, etc.] As with the shock of an earthquake the whole camp of the enemy was startled, and awakened from sleep. Alarm filled every breast; consternation took possession of the myriads on myriads that spread themselves for miles along the valley; and an affrighted imagination added tenfold creations of its own to the actual realities of evil around them. Three hundred trumpets were blowing, and 300 torches were blazing, but to the terrified onlookers in the valley they seemed to be thousands. And these thousands of torch bearers seemed to be but lighting the way to a large army behind them. There was running hither and thither as among those who are distracted. The panic was universal. None thought of making a stand against the danger. Terrors swept the whole valley like a whirlwind.
They cried—in terror. Everything was lost. Their cattle, their spoil, their tents and baggage, their wives and children, and dear life itself were in jeopardy. Being in darkness they supposed an avenging army was already among them, and they mistook friends for foes. Suspicion also arose among them, that one part of the camp was treacherous to the other parts—that being of mixed nationalities, the one race began to plot against the others. And so from different causes “the Lord set every man’s sword against his fellow.” (1Sa_14:20; 2Ch_20:23). Hence arose a dreadful slaughter throughout the whole camp. In blind and helpless confusion they ran on smiting down all that came in their way.
Beth-shittah. J House of acacias. The course of the flight was at first eastward, along the main road to Bethshan, and the Jordan, then southward down the Arabah, towards Jericho, where they might more easily cross the river. But it was a headlong route without thought, or order, or object. The one idea was to save life.
Abel-meholah—the birth-place of Elisha, about 10 miles below Bethshan. The rising sun beheld them turned into a rabble of fugitives, rushing in the wildest terror towards the fords of Jordan.
Jdg_7:23-24. Men of Israel were gathered, etc.] The cowards who had turned back, but especially the 9700 who, though not cowardly, had not been accepted by God to form part of His select army. Also all who had any spark of patriotism left in their bosoms among the Northern tribes. Swift messengers too were sent by Gideon to the hill country of Ephraim, that they should come down and intercept the enemy at those parts of the Jordan that were over against their territory. The Midianites doubtless fled in more detachments than one, so that Gideon could not follow them in all the routes they took without help. It was besides highly politic to give the Ephraimites some share of the honours of so memorable a day.
Jdg_7:25. They slew Oreb on the rock Oreb, etc.] The two princes had taken shelter, one in the cavern of a rock, the other in the vat of a wine-press. Both these places, from this circumstance, were afterwards called by their names respectively. Oreb, signifies a raven, and Zeeb, a wolf, both significant names of the rapacity which characterised these marauding chiefs. “These princes had forced Israel to hide in the rocks, and had robbed them of their provisions, and now the God of Israel makes them see their sin in their punishment” (Jdg_1:7). [Trapp.]
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 Jdg 7:5-7
Jdg 7:5-7
Among the ten thousand soldiers in Gideon’s army there were three hundred brave and wary men who, even under the pangs of thirst, could not forget that they were in the presence of an enemy, and that it behoved them therefore to be on the alert. Instead of flinging themselves recklessly on the ground, they simply scooped up a little water in the hollow of their hands, and lapped it or sipped it, even as a dog laps while he runs—on the watch for any ambush, prepared for any surprise. These were the veterans of the little army, men who had seen war before and knew its perils, and felt how much even a moment’s carelessness might cost them. And these were the men, marked out by their own wariness and self-control, by whom God meant to save Israel from its foes. God’s way was a wise way, (1) from a military, (2) from a moral point of view. God is a jealous God who wants all the glory of His acts, of His achievements for Himself, and will not share that glory with another. It was because He wanted to do good to the children of Israel, that He made it plain to them that it was He who had saved them, and not they themselves.
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I. This, then, is the moral of Gideon’s story: that God wants to rule over us only that He may save us; or, to put it in another way, God wants us to know that it is He who has saved us, and that He will go on serving and saving us to the end. The lesson taught by the three hundred is the necessity of self-control. Self-control is required at every moment, along the whole range of our habits, and through the whole course of our life.
II. Our counsel to you is, hold yourselves well in hand. Be masters of yourselves, of all your appetites, and of all your desires. Sip the water or the wine of life, like the three hundred. Do not fling yourselves on your knees to it, and drink as if your only business in life was to get your fill of pleasure or of gain.
III. Learn from the three hundred to keep a high and noble aim steadfastly before you, an aim which must be pursued, if need be, at the cost of appetite and desire; and let that aim be the highest of all, viz., the love and service of God.
S. Cox, The Bird’s Nest, p. 148.
Reference: Jdg 7:5-7.—Outline Sermons to Children, p. 25.
Jdg 7:7
I. Consider the man to whom the angel came. His thoughts had been busy with God before God came to him. He was a man who meditated much on the promises and the histories of God’s grace and love. The Lord ever comes to those whose hearts are watching for Him.
II. To understand Jdg 7:2-7 we must remember that the victory was to be a victory of faith. The battle was to be won against overwhelming numbers. The Lord needed men in whom spirit should be dominant, who could hold the flesh in habitual and iron control. Faint with their long march, the great body of men flung themselves on the ground, forgetful alike of toil and pain and glorious enterprise, in the cool draught which for the moment was exquisite delight. Three hundred men stood up above the prostrate throng. They stooped for a moment and lapped the few needful drops from the hollow of their hands, and then stood prompt to pursue their way. The eye of God marked them. "Set these men apart; these three hundred are strong enough for the stress of the battle, and great enough to wear the honours of the victory."
III. The lessons of the narrative are these: (1) It is the small matters which reveal us, the slight occasions. It is easy to catch the excitement of battle. Watch the combatant home, and you see the man. (2) There is One watching us when we are most unconscious, drawing silently auguries of character, and forecasting destiny. (3) Keep your knee for God alone.
These men bent the knee to sensual good. Kneel to God, and it will cure you of all other kneeling.
J. Baldwin Brown, The Sunday Afternoon, p. 202.
References: Jdg 7:7.—J. Kelly, Pulpit Trees, p. 222. Jdg 7:9-25.—Ho7niletic Quarterly, vol. iv., p. 380. Jdg 7:13.—S. Baring-Gould, One Hundred Sermon Sketches, p. 77; J. M. Neale, Sermons in Sackville College, vol. iii., p. 372. Jdg 7:13, Jdg 7:14.—Homiletic Magazine, vol. xiii., p. 265; Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxxi., No. 1873.
Jdg 7:16
Gideon went down into the battle with only three hundred men, with only trumpets, pitchers and lights for weapons, and the mighty hosts of Amalek and Midian fled before him, and were driven from the land. More than a thousand years afterwards St. Paul remembered this story, and said: "We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us." St. Paul was writing of the sufferings which he and his fellow-workers had to endure. He and they seemed no better than earthen pitchers, but they were vessels carrying a Divine light, a life kindled by God, and a power which could not be destroyed.
I. This story brings the happy assurance to every heart who hears it, that even a child may be a vessel to carry the power of God. God can fill the weakest and most fragile with power for His work. He asks only that the heart shall receive His life.
II. More wonderful still, this is a picture of our dear Lord. He also, as a man, was but an earthen vessel. His enemies broke the vessel which contained His life, but by their cruelty they brought defeat and shame to themselves, and glory to Him.
A. Macleod, The Gentle Heart, p. 257.
The text illustrates the twofold elements of which man is composed, the material and the spiritual.
I. The mortal and material part of man is considered under the emblem of a pitcher containing within it a lamp or firebrand. (1) The first point of resemblance is that the pitcher is made of potter’s clay, even as man was formed of the dust of the ground. (2) The pitcher’s manufacture is brittle and easily shattered, and in this particular especially the comparison holds good between the earthen vessel and the body. (3) Notice, as a final point of comparison, the untransparent character of the earthen vessel. It is not adapted to the exhibition of a lamp.
II. Consider the light within the pitcher, the soul or immaterial part of man enclosed for the present within a material framework, the "breath of lives" breathed into the vessel of clay, (1) Animal life; a great distinction is to be drawn between the body, which is material, and the life of the body, which is immaterial. (2) Rational life; the life of the intellect. (3) There was a yet higher life breathed into man at the creation—spiritual life. Each of these lives is in some sense a lamp.
E. M. Goulburn, Contemporary Pulpit, vol. i., p. 181.
References: Jdg 7:16.—Sermons for Boys and Girls, p. 273. Jdg 7:18.—Bishop Woodford, Sermons on Subjects from the Old Testament, p. 54. Jdg 7:20.—Spurgeon, Morning by Morning, p. 264; G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 413. 7-8:1-21—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. iv., p. 145. Jdg 8:1.—Ibid., p. 382. Jdg 8:2.—Ibid., vol. ii., p. 265.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain On vv1, 13 Jdg 7:1 - Jdg 7:8.
Judges
‘FIT, THOUGH FEW’
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Jdg 7:1 - Jdg 7:8.
Gideon is the noblest of the judges. Courage, constancy, and caution are strongly marked in his character. The youngest son of an obscure family in a small tribe, he humbly shrinks from the task imposed on him,-not from cowardice or indolence, but from conscious weakness. Men who are worthy to do such work as his are never forward to begin it, nor backward in it when they are sure that it is God’s will. He began his war against Midian by warring against Baal, whose worship had brought the oppressor. If any thorough deliverance from the misery which departure from God has wrought is to be effected, we must destroy the idols before we attack the spoilers. Cast out sin, and you cast out sorrow. So he first earns his new name of Jerubbaal {‘Let Baal plead’}, and is known as Baal’s antagonist, before he blows the trumpet of revolt. The name is an omen of victory. The hand that had smitten the idol, and had not been withered, would smite Midian. Therefore that new name is used in this chapter, which tells of the preparations for the fight and its triumphant issue. From his home among the hills, he had sent the fiery cross to the three northern tribes, who had been the mainstay of Deborah’s victory, and who now rallied around Gideon to the number of thirty-two thousand. The narrative shows us the two armies confronting each other on the opposite slopes of the valley of Jezreel, where it begins to dip steeply towards the Jordan. Gideon and his men are on the south side of the valley, above the fountain of Harod, or ‘Trembling,’ apparently so called from the confessed terror which thinned his army. The word ‘is afraid,’ in Jdg 7:3, comes from the same root. On the other side of the glen, not far from the site of the Philistine camp on the day of Saul’s last defeat, lay the far-stretching camp of the invaders, outnumbering Israel by four to one. For seven years these Midianite marauders had paralysed Israel, and year by year had swarmed up this valley from the eastern desert, and thence by the great plain had penetrated into every corner of the land, as far south as Gaza, devouring like locusts. It is the same easy route by which, to this day, the Bedouin find their way into Palestine, whenever the weak Turkish Government is a little weaker or more corrupt than usual. Apparently, the Midianites were on their homeward march, laden with spoil, and very contemptuous of the small force across the valley, who, on their part, had not shaken off their terror of the fierce nomads who had used them as they pleased for seven years.
I. Note, as the first lesson taught here, the divinely appointed disproportion between means and end, and its purpose. Many an Israelite would look across to the long lines of black tents, and think, ‘We are too few for our task’; but to God’s eye they were too many, and the first necessity was to weed them out. The numbers must be so reduced that the victory shall be unmistakably God’s, not theirs. The same sort of procedure, and for the same reason, runs through all God’s dealings. It is illustrated in a hundred Scripture instances, and is stated most plainly by Paul in his triumphant eloquence. He revels in telling how foolish, weak, base things, that are no things in the world’s estimate, have been chosen to cover with shame wise, strong, honoured things, which seem to be somewhat; and he gives the same reason as our lesson does, ‘that no flesh should glory in His presence.’ Eleven poor men on one side, and all the world on the other, made fearful odds. The more unevenly matched are the respective forces, the more plainly does the victory of the weaker demand for its explanation the intervention of God. The old sneer, that ‘Providence is always on the side of the strongest battalions,’ is an audacious misreading of history, and is the very opposite of the truth. It is the weak battalions which win in the long run, for the history of every good cause is the same. First, it kindles a fire in the hearts of two or three nobodies, who are burned in earlier times, and laughed at as fools, fanatics, impracticable dreamers, in later ages, but whose convictions grow till, one day, the world wakes up to find that everybody believes them, and then it ‘builds the tombs of the prophets.’
Why should God desire that there shall be no mistake as to who wins the battle? The answer may very easily be so given as to make what is really a token of His love become an unlovely and repellent trait in His character. It is not eagerness for praise that moves Him, but longing that men may have the blessedness of recognising His hand fighting for them. It is for Israel’s sake that He is so solicitous to deliver them from the delusion of their having won the victory. It is because He loves us and would fain have us made restful, confident, and strong, in the assurance of His fighting for us, that He takes pains so to order the history of His Church in the world, that it is one long attestation of the omnipotence of weakness when His power flows through it. To say ‘Mine own hand hath saved me,’ is to lose unspeakable peace and blessing; to say ‘Not I, but the grace of God in me,’ is to be serene and of good cheer in the face of outnumbering foes, and sure of victory in all conflicts. Therefore God is careful to save us from self-gratulation and self-confidence.
One lesson we may learn from this thinning of the ranks; namely, that we need not be anxious to count heads, when we are sure that we are doing His work, nor even be afraid of being in a minority. Minorities are generally right when they are the apostles of new thoughts, though the minorities which cleave to some old fossil are ordinarily wrong. The prophet and his man were alone and ringed around with enemies, when he said, ‘They that be with us are more than they that be with them’; and yet he was right, for the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire. Let us be sure that we are on God’s side, and then let us not mind how few are in the ranks with us, nor be afraid, though the far-extended front of the enemy threatens to curl around our flanks and enclose us. The three hundred heroes had God with them, and that was enough.
II. Note the self-applied test of courage which swept away so much chaff. According to Deu 20:8, the standing enactment was that such a proclamation as that in Jdg 7:3 should precede every battle. Much difficulty has been raised about the mention of Mount Gilead here, as the only Mount Gilead otherwise mentioned in Scripture lay to the east of Jordan. But perhaps the simplest solution is the true one,-that there was another hilly region so named on the western side. The map of the Palestine Exploration Fund attaches the name to the northern slopes of the western end of Gilboa, where Gideon was now encamped, and that is probably right. Be that as it may, the effect of the proclamation was startling. Two-thirds of the army melted away. No doubt, many who had flocked to Gideon’s standard felt their valour oozing out at their finger ends, when they came close to the enemy, and saw their long array across the valley. It must have required some courage to confess being afraid, but the cowards were numerous enough to keep each other in countenance. Two out of three were panic-struck. I wonder if the proportion would be less in Christ’s army to-day, if professing Christians were as frank as Gideon’s men?
Why were the ‘fearful’ dismissed? Because fear is contagious; and, in undisciplined armies like Gideon’s, panic, once started, spreads swiftly, and becomes frenzied confusion. The same thing is true in the work of the Church to-day. Who that has had much to do with guiding its operations has not groaned over the dead weight of the timid and sluggish souls, who always see difficulties and never the way to get over them? And who that has had to lead a company of Christian men has not often been ready to wish that he could sound out Gideon’s proclamation, and bid the ‘fearful and afraid’ take away the chilling encumbrance of their presence, and leave him with thinned ranks of trusty men? Cowardice, dressed up as cautious prudence, weakens the efficiency of every regiment in Christ’s army.
Another reason for getting rid of the fearful is that fear is the opposite of faith, and that therefore, where it is uppermost, the door by which God’s power can enter to strengthen is closed. Not that faith must be free of all admixture of fear, but that it must subdue fear, if a man is to be God’s warrior, fighting in His strength. Many a tremor would rock the hearts of the ten thousand who remained, but they so controlled their terror that it did not overcome their faith. We do not need, for our efficiency in Christ’s service, complete exemption from fear, but we do need to make the psalmist’s resolve ours: ‘I will trust, and not be afraid.’ Terror shuts the door against the entrance of the grace which makes us conquerors, and so fulfils its own forebodings; faith opens the door, and so fulfils its own confidences.
III. Note the final test. God required but few men, but He required that these should be fit. The first test had sifted out the brave and willing. The liquor was none the less, though so much froth had been blown off. As Thomas Fuller says, there were ‘fewer persons, but not fewer men,’ after the poltroons had disappeared. The second test, ‘a purgatory of water,’ as the same wise and witty author calls it, was still more stringent. The dwindled ranks were led down from their camp on the slopes to the fountain and brook which lay in the valley near the Midianites’ camp. Gideon alone seems to have known that a test was to be applied there; but he did not know what it was to be till they reached the spring, and the soldiers did not know that they were determining their fate when they drank. The two ways of drinking clearly indicated a difference in the men. Those who glued their lips to the stream and swilled till they were full, were plainly more self-indulgent, less engrossed with their work, less patient of fatigue and thirst, than those who caught up enough in their curved palms to moisten their lips without stopping in their stride or breaking rank. The former test was self-applied, and consciously so. This is no less self-applied, though unconsciously. God shuts out no man from His army, but men shut themselves out; sometimes knowingly, by avowed disinclination for the warfare, sometimes unknowingly, by self-indulgent habits, which proclaim their unfitness.
The great lesson taught here is that self-restraint in the use of the world’s goods is essential to all true Christian warfare. There are two ways of looking at and partaking of these. We may either ‘drink for strength’ or ‘for drunkenness’ .Life is to some men first a place for strenuous endeavour, and only secondly a place of refreshment. Such think of duty first and of water afterwards. To them, all the innocent joys and pleasures of the natural life are as brooks by the way, of which Christ’s soldier should drink, mainly that he may be re-invigorated for conflict. There are others whose conception of life is a scene of enjoyment, for which work is unfortunately a necessary but disagreeable preliminary. One does not often see such a character in its pure perfection of sensualism; but plenty of approximations to it are visible, and ugly sights they are. The roots of it are in us all; and it cannot be too strongly insisted on that, unless it be subdued, we cannot enlist in Christ’s army, and shall never be counted worthy to be His instruments. Such self-restraint is especially needful to be earnestly inculcated on young men and women, to whom life is opening as if it were a garden of delight, whose passions are strong, whose sense is keen, whose experience is slender, and to whom all earth’s joys appeal more strongly than they do to those who have drunk of the cup, and know how bitter is its sediment. It is especially needful to be pealed into the ears of a generation like ours, in which senseless luxury, the result of wealth which has increased faster than the power of rightly using it, has attained such enormous proportions, and is threatening, in commercial communities especially, to drown all noble aspirations, and Spartan simplicity, and Christian self-devotion, in its muddy flood. Surely never was Gideon’s test more wanted for the army of the Lord of hosts than it is to-day.
Such self-restraint gives double sweetness to enjoyments, which, when partaken of more freely, pall on the jaded palate. ‘The full soul loatheth a honeycomb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.’ The senses are kept fine-edged, and the rare holidays are sweeter because they are rare. The most refined prudence of the mere sensualist would prescribe the same regimen as the Christian moralist does. But from how different a motive! Christ calls for self-restraint that we may be fit organs for His power, and bids us endure hardness that we may be good soldiers of His. If we know anything of the true sweetness of His fellowship and service, it will not be hard to drink sparingly of earthly fountains, when we have the river of His pleasures to drink from; nor will it be painful sacrifice to cast away imitation jewels, in order to clasp in our hands the true riches of His love and imparted life.
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 The Rout of Midian
The Rout of Midian
1-7. Gideon's choice of his Followers.
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1. The sites here mentioned are doubtful. Moreh] said to be near Shechem (Gen_12:6; Deu_11:30). After the battle Gideon crosses the Jordan by the fords one would take if travelling from Shechem eastwards.
3. Gilead] is E. of the Jordan: some other locality must be meant. For the return of the timid, cp. Deu_20:8.
5. Probably an arbitrary test. It is as easy to find abstract reasons for choosing those who stooped down as for rejecting them. The test in Jdg_12:6 is very different.
8-25. The Rout of Midian.
11. The author frankly admits that, in spite of Jdg_6:34, Gideon is afraid to take the bolder course.
13. A cake of barley bread] apparently a disk-like cake baked in the ashes: representing the Israelite peasants, as the tent represents the Midianite nomads.
15. Worshipped] bowed down before God.
16. Lamps] RV 'torches.'
18. The sword] These words do not occur in the Heb. in this v. but are supplied from Jdg_7:20. Jehovah is the true leader of the Israelite host.
19. The middle watch] i.e. when the night was about a third through: well before midnight.
22. These places cannot be identified, but were probably in the Jordan valley, towards a point E. of Shechem.
23. See Jdg_6:35. Probably those who had left Gideon before the surprise now hurry in pursuit of the flying foe. They did not, however, as it would seem, actually join Gideon (Jdg_8:4).
24. Ephraim] the leading tribe has not yet been mentioned. Beth-barah] not certainly identified; probably a tributary of the Jordan, the Wady Farah, which the Ephraimites would be able to reach before the fugitives. The latter—thus prevented from moving further southwards—would be enclosed between the two rivers, and helpless. Cp. Isa_9:4.
25. Two princes] RV 'the two princes.' Oreb] 'Raven.' Zeeb] 'Wolf.' Other side Jordan] This is an anticipation of the next chapter (Jdg_7:4).
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On v1 CHAPTER 7 The Victory of Gideon
CHAPTER 7 The Victory of Gideon
1. The sifting of Gideon’s army (Jdg 7:1-8)
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2. The dream of the Midianite (Jdg 7:9-15)
3. Victory through weakness (Jdg 7:16-25)
Gideon “the cutter down,” now also called Jerubbaal “the contender with Baal,” after his faith had been strengthened, pitched his camp at the well of Harod (trembling). The Lord did not need the large army he had gathered, lest Israel would say: “Mine own hand hath saved me.” First 22,000 were let go. They were afraid. What an evidence of the sad conditions among the people. Jehovah had commanded through Moses this test. “And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, What man is there that is fearful and faint hearted? Let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren’s heart faint as well as his heart” (Deu 20:8). Faint heartedness and fear are but unbelief. Faith is courage and does not reckon with iron-chariots, with the powers of Midian, but with an omnipotent Lord. After the 22,000 had left, 10,000 remained and the Lord said again, “The people are too many.” Only 300 were selected who took up water out of the brook in their hands as they drank. Kneeling down, drinking in leisure, is the natural way for man to do. They showed thereby that they were inclined to take matters easy and to satisfy their need to the full. Taking the water into the hand and lapping it like a dog is not the natural way for man to drink. They were less absorbed with satisfying their natural wants. They showed thereby their eagerness to press on. Thus the army was narrowed down to the 300 whom the Lord would use in His service. How many of the Lord’s people today like Gideon’s army are unfit for service? Unbelief and too much occupation with earthly things, the creature wants, stand in the way.
To encourage Gideon still more the Lord permitted him to overhear how a soldier related his dream. That dream was like Nebuchadnezzar’s great dream given by the Lord. The loaf of barley bread which smote the tent is another figure of the Word of God. Midian and Amalek, the world and the lusts of the flesh, can only be dealt with and overthrown by the Bread of Life, the living and abiding Word of God.
Read in connection with Gideon’s victory 2Co 4:4-12. Here we find a blessed application. The light hath shined into our hearts, so that it might shine out. The pitchers, the earthen vessels, represent our old self. If the light is to shine out, the victory to be won, the old self must be broken to pieces.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On vv1, 9 The Army Reduced.
The Army Reduced.
v. l. Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and pitched beside the well of Harod, in the southwestern foothills above the plain, so that the host of the Midianites were on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley, where their outposts commanded a free view of the valley.
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v. 2. And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands (there were about 32,000 soldiers of Israel against 135,000 of the enemy), lest Israel vaunt themselves against Me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. This danger the Lord wanted to remove by a radical measure.
v. 3. Now, therefore, go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from Mount Gilead, Deu 20:8. The name Gilead was not confined to the country east of Jordan, but was also applied to a region between Ephraim and Manasseh. The tremblers were dismissed from this place, for they would only have been a hindrance in battle. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.
v. 4. And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many, and there was still danger of their vaunting themselves in case of a victory; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them, put them to a test, 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. The entire region is well watered, there being no lack of brooks.
v. 5. So he brought down the people unto the water; and the Lord said unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, not taking the time to kneel down, but quickly scooping up some water with the hollow hand and drinking from its cuplike curve, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself, in one division; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink. They were here under no constraint of any kind, and would show their natural characteristics very plainly.
v. 6. And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men, such as showed their natural readiness, their alertness, disregarded their comfort; but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water, preferring to be comfortable rather than keenly watchful.
v. 7. And the Lord said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped, sipping the water from their cupped hands, will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand, the ratio being one to four hundred and fifty; and let all the other people go every man unto his place, return home.
v. 8. So the people took victuals in their hand, rather, they, the three hundred, took the people’s food, which had been prepared for the campaign, and their trumpets; and he sent all the rest of Israel every man unto his tent, back to his own dwelling, and retained those three hundred men. And the host of Midian was beneath him in the valley. Gideon had only one advantage, that of location; every other consideration was against him. God has His own ways of ruling the world and of waging His wars, and the believers must simply learn to trust in Him.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 12, 13, 15, 17, 19, 20, 22, 24 Jerub Baal
Jerub Baal
This is another name for Gideon. See how you translated his name in Judges 6:32.
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they encamped
"they set up their camp"
spring of Harod ... hill of Moreh
These are the names of places. (See: How to Translate Names)
The camp of Midian was to their north
Here "Midian" represents the Midianite army. AT: "The Midianite army set up their camp to the north of the Israelite army" (See: Metonymy)
translationWords
Gideon
Midian
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.