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.”
Parallel Translations
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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.”
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And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host.
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And his fellow answered and said: 'This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: into his hand God hath delivered Midian, and all the host.'
Cross-references (10)
Passages linked to Judges 7:14 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Joshua 2:9 She said to the men, “I know that Yahweh has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you.
- 2 Kings 7:6-7 For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians to hear the sound of chariots, and the sound of horses, even the noise of a great army; and they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us.” Therefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their donkeys, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life.
- Exodus 15:14-15 The peoples have heard. They tremble. Pangs have taken hold of the inhabitants of Philistia. Then the chiefs of Edom were dismayed. Trembling takes hold of the mighty men of Moab. All the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.
- Numbers 22:38 Balaam said to Balak, “Behold, I have come to you. Have I now any power at all to speak anything? The word that God puts in my mouth, that shall I speak.”
- Numbers 23:5 Yahweh put a word in Balaam’s mouth, and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you shall speak.”
- Numbers 23:20 Behold, I have received a command to bless. He has blessed, and I can’t reverse it.
- Numbers 24:10-13 Balak’s anger burned against Balaam, and he struck his hands together. Balak said to Balaam, “I called you to curse my enemies, and, behold, you have altogether blessed them these three times. Therefore, flee to your place, now! I thought to promote you to great honor; but, behold, Yahweh has kept you back from honor.” Balaam said to Balak, “Didn’t I also tell your messengers whom you sent to me, saying, ‘If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I can’t go beyond Yahweh’s word, to do either good or bad from my own mind. I will say what Yahweh says’?
- Joshua 2:24 They said to Joshua, “Truly Yahweh has delivered all the land into our hands. Moreover, all the inhabitants of the land melt away before us.”
- Joshua 5:1 When all the kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, who were by the sea, heard how Yahweh had dried up the waters of the Jordan from before the children of Israel until we had crossed over, their heart melted, and there was no more spirit in them, because of the children of Israel.
- Job 1:10 Haven’t you made a hedge around him, and around his house, and around all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (11 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Jdg 7:14 And his fellow answered and said, This…
Jdg 7:14 And his fellow answered and said, This [is] nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: [for] into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host.
Ver. 14. This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon.] God spake through this fellow, as through a trunk, for Gideon’s confirmation. See Jdg 7:13.
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 As there are many examples of. significant dreams given…
As there are many examples of. significant dreams given by God to heathens, as Ge 41; Da 2; Da 4, so some of them had the gift of interpreting dreams; which they sometimes did by study and art, and sometimes by Divine direction, as in this case.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And his fellow answered and said,.... As the dream…
And his fellow answered and said,.... As the dream was no doubt from God, so the interpretation of it was; it was he that put into the mind of the soldier's comrade to whom he told it to interpret it as follows; or otherwise in all likelihood he would never have thought of it:
this is nothing else save the sword of Gideon, the son of Joash, a man of Israel; that is, this signifies nothing else, and a fit emblem it was of him and his little army. A cake is but a small thing, and, let it come tumbling as it will, can have no force or strength in it equal to overturn a tent; and a cake of barley is mean and contemptible; and a cake baked under ashes, or on coals, is what is soon and hastily done, and fitly represented the smallness and weakness of Gideon's army, their meanness and contemptibleness; the Israelites being, as Josephus (e) represents the soldier saying, the vilest of all the people of Asia; and those that were with Gideon were suddenly and hastily got together, raw and undisciplined, and very unfit to engage the veteran troops of the united forces of Midian, Amalek, and Arabia. It appears from hence that Gideon's name was well known in the camp of Midian, what was his descent, and his character as a valiant man, which is meant by
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a man of Israel; namely, a courageous mighty man, and the very name of him might strike with terror:
for into his hands hath God delivered Midian and all his host; which the man concluded from this dream, and the interpretation of it suggested to him from God, and impressed upon his mind; which he speaks of with the greatest assurance and confidence, which he was inspired to do, for the strengthening of Gideon, and the encouragement of him to come down with his army, and fall on the host of Midian.
(e) Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 5. c. 6. sect. 4.)
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 His fellow answered, &c. - As there are many…
His fellow answered, &c. - As there are many examples of significant dreams, given by God to Heathens, so some of them had the gift of interpreting dreams; which they sometimes did by divine direction as in this case.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 14. Into his hand hath God delivered Midian]…
Verse 14. Into his hand hath God delivered Midian] This is a full proof that God had inspired both the dream and its interpretation.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon…
This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon - The word rendered tumbled in Jdg 7:13, is rather descriptive of a sword brandished (compare Gen 3:24). Hence, the interpretation “the sword of Gideon.” Hearing this dream and the interpretation would convince Gideon that he was indeed under the guidance of God, and so assure him of God’s aid; and secondly, it would show him that a panic had already fallen npon the mind of the enemy.
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 Sword and loaf are both derived from the same…
Sword and loaf are both derived from the same Hebrew word, which signifies "to make war." See Numbers xiv. 9. But if there had been no connection or reason in the discourse of the soldier, (which was not the case, as Providence put it into his mouth,) the end would be equally obtained, which was to encourage Gedeon, and to inform him that the enemy was not without some apprehensions. (Calmet) --- Gedeon was not of the richest family, but came with great expedition, as the rolling of the barley-loaf might designate. (Menochius) --- He was also encamped upon an eminence, and presently threw the affairs of Madian into confusion. (Haydock) --- He understands the language of the Madianites, as it was not very different from the Hebrew.
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).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 14. This is nothing else, save the sword of…
14. This is nothing else, save the sword of Gideon — This ready interpretation of the dream shows that Gideon’s mustering of the thousands of Israel had already filled many of the Midianites with alarm and terror. So often, when the masses of a nation recognize no danger, the dark presentiment of approaching calamity throws its grim shadow over some anxious and restless spirits, which, though comparatively unknown, still yearn for the public weal.
Into his hand hath God delivered Midian — “If Gideon had heard the dream only, and he and his servant had been left to interpret it themselves, it might have done him little service; but having the interpretation from the mouth of an enemy, it not only appeared to come from God, who has all men’s hearts and tongues in his hand, but it was likewise an evidence that the enemy was quite dispirited, and that the name of Gideon was become so formidable to them that it disturbed their sleep.” — Henry.
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 14. of Gideon the son of Joash] The phrase…
14. of Gideon the son of Joash] The phrase which follows means the men of Israel, as in Jdg_7:8; Jdg_7:23, Jdg_8:22, Jdg_9:55, Jdg_20:20, the sing, being used in a collective sense; and this rendering agrees with the symbol of the barley cake, which suggests the peasantry in general, not any particular individual. If, in accordance with usage, we translate the men of Israel, then it seems likely that the names of Gideon and his father were inserted to make the application more distinct. Some scholars would include the sword among the inserted words (cf. Jdg_7:20), but this is hardly necessary.
into their hand God hath delivered] A foreigner uses the name Elohim: Jehovah is for Israelites; cf. Jdg_3:20.
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 (14) This is nothing else save the sword of…
(14) This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon.—The sort of dread which revealed itself by this instant interpretation of the dream shows that Israel Was formidable even in its depression, doubtless because the nations around were well aware of the Divine aid by which they had so often struck terror into their enemies. The fact that this Bath Kol echoed the promise which Gideon had already received (Jdg_7:9) would give it additional force.
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 This is nothing else, etc. The dream and the…
This is nothing else, etc. The dream and the interpretation are striking evidences of the terror which Gideon"s name had already inspired among the Midianites. Because, although both the dream and the interpretation were of God, for the encouragement of Gideon in his great undertaking, yet they followed the course of nature and the laws of psychology. The presentiment that God had delivered Midian into Gideon"s hand is exactly like the terror in the minds of the Canaanites which preceded the arrival of Joshua. (Exo_23:27 Deu_2:25 Jos_2:9-11)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.