(1) “Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and encamped beside the spring of Harod: and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley. (2) “And Jehovah said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel vaunt themselves against Me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. (3) Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and trembling, let him return and depart from mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand. (4) “And 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 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. (5) So he brought down the people unto the water: and 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. (6) And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water. (7) And Jehovah said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thy hand; and let all the people go every man unto his place. (8) So the people took victuals in their hand, and their trumpets; and he sent all the men of Israel every man unto his tent, but retained the three hundred men: and the camp of Midian was beneath him in the valley.”
Golden Text.—“It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in man.” Ps. 118:8.
Special Helps.—“Patriarchs and Prophets,” Ch. 53, pp. 546–559.
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.
(1) With whom were the Israelites having trouble? Whom did the Lord raise up to deliver His people from their enemies? Where did they encamp? Where were the Midianites encamped? Verse 1. Note 1. (2) What did the Lord say to Gideon about the size of his army? Why was it too large? Verse 2. Note 2. (3) What direction did the Lord give in the matter? What was the result? Verse 3. Note 3. (4) Then what did the Lord say about the number? What further order was given? Verse 4. (5) How did the Lord propose to choose an attacking party? Verse 5. Note 4. (6) How many lapped as a dog lappeth? How did the others act? Verse 6. (7) Then what did the Lord decide? Verse 7. Note 5. (8) And what disposition did Gideon make of the people? Verse 8. Note 6.
NOTES.
1. After the deliverance of Israel from the Canaanites, by the hands of Deborah and Barak, there was peace forty years. But “the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.” Judges 6:1. Every year the Bedouin hordes would pour into the land with their camels and other stock and literally devour the harvests. They came in such multitudes that the Israelites were forced to retire to dens and caves and strongholds in the mountains. At last the Lord called Gideon to the rescue. An angel came to him as he was threshing wheat in a secluded place, and gave him his commission. He gathered an army from his own tribe of Manasseh and from the northern tribes of Zebulun and Asher and Naphtali, the Midianites being camped in the great valley of Esdraelon.
2. “Lest Israel Vaunt Themselves.”—The Lord knows that man's worst enemy is pride, and He knew that Israel's greatest danger was self-confidence. For their own good and future safety, the victory must be such as to leave no room for self-aggrandizement. They must know beyond doubt that the hand of the Lord had saved them.
3. This test was one to bring humiliation to the people; two-thirds of the army confessed that they were cowards. Of course they could not well claim any glory in connection with the victory.
4. Even with ten thousand there might be some who would think the prowess of the army had won the day. Then the Lord would have an army composed entirely of His own choosing. It was more than setting aside those who were unwilling, as in the first test; it was a choice from among those who were willing to fight. So we see that a mere willingness to engage in the conflict is not always a qualification for service in an important emergency, or in a position requiring special tact and steadiness of purpose.
5. The Three Hundred.—Marcus Dods remarks: “The three hundred did not break rank, or stop in their march, but dipped their hollowed palms into the stream, and tossed a little in their mouths as they marched, as a dog, running along the bank of a shallow stream, without stopping, snatches mouthfuls or tonguefuls of water, too intent on his pursuit to take a leisurely drink, never even while slaking his thirst turning aside or pausing from the chase.”
6. Trumpets were carried only by leaders of bands. So the trumpets were taken from the leaders among the host that were left behind and given to each of the three hundred. The same was done with the lamps, or torches. Judges 8:19, 20. Each man was to appear to the enemy as the leader of a band, and thus greatly augment in their minds the numbers of their assailants. There is another reason why the Lord Himself chose the personnel of the “little flock.” Each was to be a leader, and it required a courage that could only be actuated by strong faith to stand before so great a host as a leader without a visible command. It always requires more than mortal wisdom to choose efficient leaders in God’s cause; so in great crises He always selects the directors, and they are usually just the ones whom men would pass by.
