Judges 7:16
And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet in every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers. And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet in every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers.
The verse belongs to the account in Judges 6-8 in which God raised up a faithful and valiant man to put down idolatry and deliver Israel from its enemies, as part of the repeated pattern of backsliding and chastisement followed by confession and deliverance, and when the deliverer died the people were released from his authority and gradually returned to their idols. It records God's special instruction for the battle against Midian, in which Gideon divided the three hundred men into three companies and put in every man's hand a trumpet with empty pitchers and lamps within the pitchers, the torches hidden inside earthen pitchers. The men took positions around the Midianite camp, and at Gideon's signal they sounded the trumpets, broke the pitchers, and displayed the torches, and by these simple means the sleeping enemy was thrown into panic so that the mighty Midianite army fled and killed one another.
Gideon's arrangement of dividing his small force into three companies was later followed by Saul, who divided his army and attacked the Ammonites by surprise in the early morning. Gideon's army prevailed not because of numbers but because in living faith they followed God's direction, which means success in God's work comes through faithful obedience to His directions rather than through large numbers. The victory over Midian through these simple means shows that success came from God and not from human numbers, wisdom, or military skill, and that God worked through human effort so that the victory glorified Him and strengthened Israel's faith. The deliverance was arranged so Israel could not credit human wisdom or strength, but its power was clearly from heaven and God alone deserved glory, showing God as Israel's true King whose guidance and work were often unseen.
The victory teaches dependence on God: humble means He approves can succeed, while even the most complete human plans fail without His power and wisdom. The account shows God can use humble instruments and simple means to accomplish His work, so the victory is no reason for people to glorify themselves but the Lord God of Israel is to be exalted. The unusual equipment and method could look inconsistent and unreasonable to people who trusted only formal, human plans. Workers must not be faithless and narrow in views and must not make narrow plans, for narrow plans accomplish very little.
The men carrying lamps concealed in pitchers, ready for the pitchers to be broken and the light revealed at the appointed signal, illustrates keeping a message prepared until God directs that it be brought forward to meet a particular need; when the time comes the message is presented with clear evidence and its light becomes visible. The pitchers broken at the appointed moment so their lamps could shine represents releasing prepared messages when opposition becomes open, bringing clear light to people who had been bewildered and helping them take their stand.