Early next day, Jerubbaal—that is, Gideon—and all the troops with him encamped above En-harod,aEn-harod Or “the Spring of Harod.” while the camp of Midian was in the plain to the north of him, at Gibeath-moreh.bGibeath-moreh Or “the Hill of Moreh.”
GOD said to Gideon, “You have too many troops with you for Me to deliver Midian into their hands; Israel might claim for themselves the glory due to Me, thinking, ‘Our own hand has brought us victory.’
Therefore, announce to the men, ‘Let anybody who is timid and fearful turn back, as a bird flies from Mount Gilead.’”cas a bird flies from Mount Gilead Meaning of Heb. uncertain. Thereupon, 22,000 of the troops turned back and 10,000 remained.
“There are still too many troops,” GOD said to Gideon. “Take them down to the water and I will siftdsift Lit. “smelt.” them for you there. Anyone of whom I tell you, ‘This one is to go with you,’ that one shall go with you; and anyone of whom I tell you, ‘This one is not to go with you,’ that one shall not go.”
So he took the troops down to the water. Then GOD said to Gideon, “Set apart all those who lap up the water with their tongues like dogselap up the water with their tongues like dogs Actually, using their hands as a dog uses its tongue; see v. 6. from all those who get down on their knees to drink.”
Then GOD said to Gideon, “I will deliver you and I will put Midian into your hands through the three hundred ‘lappers’; let the rest of the troops go home.”
So [the lappers] took the provisions and horns that the other men had with them,fSo [the lappers] took … with them Meaning of Heb. uncertain. and he sent everyone else on Israel’s side back to their homes, retaining only the three hundred men.The Midianite camp was below him, in the plain.
Word-by-Word Analysis
ויקחו
130
אתצדה
500
העם
115
בידם
56
ואת
407
שופרתיהם
1041
ואת
407
כלאיש
361
ישראל
541
שלח
338
איש
311
לאהליו
82
ובשלשמאות
1085
האיש
316
החזיק
130
ומחנה
109
מדין
104
היה
20
לו
36
מתחת
848
בעמקפ
292
Judges 7:9
Gematria: 1842
ויהיבלילהההואויאמראליויהוהקוםרדבמחנהכינתתיובידך
That night GOD said to him, “Come, attackgattack Lit. “descend upon”; so in vv. 10 and 11. the camp, for I have delivered it into your hands.
Word-by-Word Analysis
ויהי
31
בלילה
77
ההוא
17
ויאמר
257
אליו
47
יהוה
26
קום
146
רד
204
במחנה
105
כי
30
נתתיו
866
בידך
36
Judges 7:10
Gematria: 2678
ואםיראאתהלרדתרדאתהופרהנערךאלהמחנה
And if you are afraid to attack, first go down to the camp with your attendant Purah
and listen to what they say; after that you will have the courage to attack the camp.” So he went down with his attendant Purah to the outposts of the warriors who were in the camp.—
Now Midian, Amalek, and all the Kedemites were spread over the plain, as thick as locusts; and their camels were countless, as numerous as the sands on the seashore.—
Gideon came there just as one man was narrating a dream to another. “Listen,” he was saying, “I had this dream: There was a commotionhcommotion Meaning of Heb. uncertain.—a loaf of barley bread was whirling through the Midianite camp. It came to a tent and struck it, and it fell; it turned it upside down, and the tent collapsed.”
To this the other responded, “That can only mean the sword of the Israelite Gideon son of Joash.ithe Israelite Gideon son of Joash Or “Gideon son of Joash, Israel’s man in charge”; cf. Kimhi. God is delivering Midian and the entire camp into his hands.”jThe loaf of bread symbolizes the agricultural Israelites; the tent, the nomadic Midianites.
When Gideon heard the dream told and interpreted, he bowed low. Returning to the camp of Israel, he shouted, “Come on! GOD has delivered the Midianite camp into your hands!”
Gideon and the hundred men with him arrived at the outposts of the camp, at the beginning of the middle watch, just after the sentries were posted. They sounded the horns and smashed the jars that they had with them,kThey sounded … with them Emendation yields “He sounded the horn and smashed the jar that he had with him.”
and the three columns blew their horns and broke their jars. Holding the torches in their left hands and the horns for blowing in their right hands, they shouted, “A sword for GOD and for Gideon!”
For when the three hundred horns were sounded, GOD turned every man’s sword against his fellow, throughout the camp, and the entire host fled as far as Beth-shittah and on to Zererah—as far as the outskirts of Abel-meholah near Tabbath.
Word-by-Word Analysis
ויתקעו
592
שלשמאות
1077
השופרות
997
וישם
356
יהוה
26
את
401
חרב
210
איש
311
ברעהו
283
ובכלהמחנה
166
וינס
126
המחנה
108
עדבית
486
השטה
319
צררתה
895
עד
74
שפתאבל
813
מחולה
89
עלטבת
511
Judges 7:23
Gematria: 3505
ויצעקאישישראלמנפתליומןאשרומןכלמנשהוירדפואחרימדין
And now Israel’s side from Naphtali and Asher and from all of Manasseh rallied for the pursuit of the Midianites.
Gideon also sent messengers all through the hill country of Ephraim with this order: lMeaning of rest of verse uncertain. “Go down ahead of the Midianites and seize their access to the water all along the Jordan down to Beth-barah.” So Ephraim’s entire contingent rallied and seized the waterside down to Beth-barah by the Jordan.
They pursued the Midianites and captured Midian’s two generals, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the Rock of Oreb and they killed Zeeb at the Winepress of Zeeb; and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb from the other side of the Jordan to Gideon.