Judges 7

Gideon Reduces the Ranks

1 Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and his ment got up the next morning and camped near the spring of Harod.s The Midianitest were camped north of them near the hill of Moreh in the valley.2 The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to hand Midian over to you.t Israel might brag,t ‘Our own strength has delivered us.’t3 Now, announce to the men,t ‘Whoever is shaking with feart may turn around and leave Mount Gilead.’”s Twenty-two thousand ment went home;t ten thousand remained.4 The Lord spoke to Gideon again, “There are still too many men.t Bring them down to the water and I will thin the ranks some more.t When I say, ‘This one should go with you,’ pick him to go;t when I say,t ‘This one should not go with you,’ do not take him.”t5 So he brought the ment down to the water. Then the Lord said to Gideon, “Separate those who lap the water as a dog laps from those who kneel to drink.”t6 Three hundred men lapped;s the rest of the ment kneeled to drink water.7 The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men who lapped I will deliver the whole armyt and I will hand Midian over to you.t The rest of the men should go home.”t

8 The ment who were chosent took suppliest and their trumpets. Gideont sent all the men of Israel back to their homes;t he kept only three hundred men. Now the Midianitest were camped down belowt in the valley.

Gideon Reassured of Victory

9 That night the Lord said to Gideon,t “Get up! Attackt the camp, for I am handing it over to you.t10 But if you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with Purah your servant11 and listen to what they are saying. Then you will be bravet and attack the camp.” So he went down with Purah his servant to where the sentries were guarding the camp.t12 Now the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the east covered the valley like a swarm of locusts.t Their camels could not be counted; they were as innumerable as the sand on the seashore.13 When Gideon arrived, he heard a man telling another man about a dream he had.t The mant said, “Look! I had a dream. I sawt a stale cake of barley bread rolling into the Midianite camp. It hit a tent so hard it knocked it over and turned it upside down. The tent just collapsed.”t

14 The other man said,t “Without a doubt this symbolizest the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God is handing Midian and all the army over to him.”

Gideon Routs the Enemy

15 When Gideon heard the report of the dream and its interpretation, he praised God.t Then he went back to the Israelite camp and said, “Get up, for the Lord is handing the Midianite army over to you!”16 He divided the three hundred men into three units.t He gave them all trumpets and empty jars with torches inside them.ts17 He said to them, “Watch me and do as I do. Watch closely!t I am going to the edge of the camp. Do as I do!

18 When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, you also blow your trumpets all around the camp. Then say, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon!’”
19 Gideon took a hundred men to the edge of the campt at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guards. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars they were carrying.t20 All three units blew their trumpets and broke their jars. They held the torches in their left hand and the trumpets in their right.t Then they yelled, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!”21 They stood in ordert all around the camp. The whole army ran away; they shouted as they scrambled away.t22 When the three hundred men blew their trumpets, the Lord caused the Midianites to attack one another with their swordst throughouts the camp. The army fled to Beth Shittah on the way to Zererah. They wentt to the border of Abel Meholah near Tabbath.

23 Israelites from Naphtali, Asher, and Manasseh answered the call and chased the Midianites.t

Gideon Appeases the Ephraimites

24 Now Gideon sent messengers throughout the Ephraimite hill country who announced, “Go down and head off the Midianites.t Take control of the fords of the streamst all the way to Beth Barah and the Jordan River.”t When all the Ephraimites had assembled,t they took control of the fordst all the way to Beth Barah and the Jordan River.

25 They captured the two Midianite generals, Oreb and Zeeb.s They executed Oreb on the rock of Oreb and Zeebt in the winepress of Zeeb. They chased the Midianitest and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was now on the other side of the Jordan River.t

Judges 7

Gideon Defeats the Midianites

1 Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh.2 The LORD said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her,

3 announce now to the people, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’ ” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.

4 But the LORD said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
5 So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the LORD told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink.”

6 Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.
7 The LORD said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place.”

8 So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.
Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley.9 During that night the LORD said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands.10 If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah11 and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp.

12 The Midianites, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore.

13 Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. “I had a dream,” he was saying. “A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed.”

14 His friend responded, “This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.”
15 When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped God. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, “Get up! The LORD has given the Midianite camp into your hands.”

16 Dividing the three hundred men into three companies, he placed trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them, with torches inside.
17 “Watch me,” he told them. “Follow my lead. When I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly as I do.

18 When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, then from all around the camp blow yours and shout, ‘For the LORD and for Gideon.’ ”
19 Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guard. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars that were in their hands.20 The three companies blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!”

21 While each man held his position around the camp, all the Midianites ran, crying out as they fled.
22 When the three hundred trumpets sounded, the LORD caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords. The army fled to Beth Shittah toward Zererah as far as the border of Abel Meholah near Tabbath.23 Israelites from Naphtali, Asher and all Manasseh were called out, and they pursued the Midianites.

24 Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites and seize the waters of the Jordan ahead of them as far as Beth Barah.”
So all the men of Ephraim were called out and they took the waters of the Jordan as far as Beth Barah.

25 They also captured two of the Midianite leaders, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued the Midianites and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was by the Jordan.