Judges 7:23
And the men of Israel gathered themselves together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after the Midianites. And the men of Israel gathered themselves together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after the Midianites.
The pursuit from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh after the Midianites closed seven years of Midianite domination that had come because Israel did evil and was given into Midian's hand. The oppressors were Midianites from the eastern border and the deserts beyond together with Amalekites from the south, long-standing and unrelenting enemies who had nearly been destroyed in Moses' time but had since grown numerous and powerful and thirsted for revenge, and who seized their opportunity when God's protecting hand was withdrawn. Whereas the oppression had previously weighed lightly on the tribes east of the Jordan, it now struck them first and then spread to the whole land. The wild, fierce inhabitants of the desert swarmed in like locusts for multitude with their flocks and herds, spreading like a devouring plague from the Jordan to the Philistine plain at harvest time, coming as soon as the harvests began to ripen and remaining until the last fruits were gathered, stripping the fields and robbing and maltreating the people until the harvest was gone and then withdrawing to the deserts, so that country dwellers abandoned their homes for walled towns, fortresses, caves, and rocky mountain strongholds.
After seven years the distressed people gave heed to divine reproof and confessed their sins, so God raised up a faithful, valiant, and courageous helper and rescuer whose work led to the muster from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh to chase the Midianites. The gathering for pursuit shows that God had not utterly forsaken His people but preserved a remnant loyal and true to Himself through backsliding and chastisement followed by confession and deliverance. Even after this rescue, the people would return to idol worship when the rescuer died, and the same story of backsliding and chastisement, of confession and deliverance, would be repeated again.
Those who joined the pursuit included thousands who had earlier been sent home and dismissed, who came back once word of the victory spread to chase the fleeing enemy. The success of that pursuit came not from superior numbers but from living faith that followed God's special directions, showing that faith and obedience bring success while unbelief and narrow views and narrow plans accomplish very little.