< Judges 7 >

1 And Jerobaal rose early, the same is Gedeon, and all the people with him, and encamped at the fountain of Arad; and the camp of Madiam was to the north of him, [reaching] from Gabaathamorai, in the valley.
Then Jerubbaal, that is, Gideon, and all the people with him, got up early and put up their tents by the side of the water-spring of Harod; the tents of Midian were on the north side of him, under the hill of Moreh in the valley.
2 And the Lord said to Gedeon, The people with you [are] many, so that I may not deliver Madiam into their hand, lest at any time Israel boast against me, saying, My hand has saved me.
And the Lord said to Gideon, So great is the number of your people, that if I give the Midianites into their hands they will be uplifted in pride over me and will say, I myself have been my saviour.
3 And now speak in the ears of the people, saying, Who [is] afraid and fearful? let him turn and depart from mount Galaad: and there returned of the people twenty-two thousand, and ten thousand were left.
So now, let it be given out to the people that anyone who is shaking with fear is to go back from Mount Galud. So twenty-two thousand of the people went back, but there were still ten thousand.
4 And the Lord said to Gedeon, The people is yet numerous; bring them down to the water, and I will purge them there for you: and it shall come to pass that of whoever I shall say to you, This one shall go with you, [even] he shall go with you; and of whoever I shall say to you, This one shall not go with you, [even] he shall not go with you.
Then the Lord said to Gideon, There are still more people than is necessary; take them down to the water so that I may put them to the test for you there; then whoever I say is to go with you will go, and whoever I say is not to go will not go.
5 And he brought the people down to the water; and the Lord said to Gedeon, Whosoever shall lap of the water with his tongue as if a dog should lap, you shall set him apart, and [also] whoever shall bow down upon his knees to drink.
So he took the people down to the water; and the Lord said to Gideon, Put on one side by themselves all those drinking up the water with their tongues like a dog; and in the same way, all those who go down on their knees to the water while drinking.
6 And the number of those that lapped with their hand to their mouth was three hundred men; and all the rest of the people bowed upon their knees to drink water.
Now the number of those who took up the water with their tongues was three hundred; all the rest of the people went down on their knees to the water.
7 And the Lord said to Gedeon, I will save you by the three hundred men that lapped, and I will give Madiam into your hand; and all the [rest of the] people shall go every one to his place.
And the Lord said to Gideon, By those three hundred who were drinking with their tongues I will give you salvation and give the Midianites into your hands; let the rest of the people go away, every man to his place.
8 And they took the provision of the people in their hand, and their horns; and he sent away every man of Israel each to his tent, and he strengthened the three hundred; and the army of Madiam were beneath him in the valley.
So they took the vessels of the people, and their horns from their hands, and he sent them away, every man to his tent, keeping only the three hundred; and the tents of Midian were lower down in the valley.
9 And it came to pass in that night that the Lord said to him, Arise, go down into the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand.
The same night the Lord said to him, Up! go down now against their army, for I have given them into your hands.
10 And if you are afraid to go down, go down you and your servant Phara into the camp.
But if you have fear of going down, take your servant Purah with you and go down to the tents;
11 And you shall hear what they shall say, and afterwards your hands shall be strong, and you shall go down into the camp: and he went down and Phara his servant to the extremity of the [companies of] fifty, which were in the camp.
And after hearing what they are saying, you will get strength to go down against the army. So he went down with his servant Purah to the outer line of the tents of the armed men.
12 And Madiam and Amalec and all the children of the east [were] scattered in the valley, as the locust for multitude; and there was no number to their camels, but they were as the sand on the seashore for multitude.
Now the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the people of the east were covering the valley like locusts; and their camels were like the sand by the seaside, without number.
13 And Gedeon came, and behold a man [was] relating to his neighbour a dream, and he said, Behold, I have dreamt a dream, and behold, a cake of barley bread rolling into the camp of Madiam, and it came as far as a tent, and struck it, and it fell, and it turned it up, and the tent fell.
When Gideon came there, a man was giving his friend an account of his dream, saying, See, I had a dream about a cake of barley bread which, falling into the tents of Midian, came on to the tent, overturning it so that it was stretched out flat on the earth.
14 And his neighbour answered and said, This is none other than the sword of Gedeon, son of Joas, a man of Israel: God has delivered Madiam and all the host into his hand.
And his friend in answer said, This is certainly the sword of Gideon, the son of Joash, the men of Israel: into their hands God has given up all the army of Midian.
15 And it came to pass when Gedeon heard the account of the dream and the interpretation of it, that he worshipped the Lord, and returned to the camp of Israel, and said, Rise, for the Lord has delivered the camp of Madiam into our hand.
Then Gideon, hearing the story of the dream and the sense in which they took it, gave worship; then he went back to the tents of Israel, and said, Up! for the Lord has given the army of Midian into your hands.
16 And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and put horns in the hands of all, and empty pitchers, and torches in the pitchers:
Then separating the three hundred men into three bands, he gave every man a horn, and a vessel in which was a flaming branch.
17 and he said to them, You shall look at me, and so shall you do; and behold, I will go into the beginning of the host, and it shall come to pass [that] as I do, so shall you do.
And he said to them, Keep your eyes on me, and do what I do; when I come to the outer line of tents, whatever I do, you are to do the same.
18 And I will sound with the horn, and all you with me shall sound with the horn round about the whole camp, and you shall say, For the Lord and Gedeon.
At the sound of my horn, and the horns of those who are with me, let your horns be sounded all round the tents, and say, For the Lord and for Gideon.
19 And Gedeon and the hundred men that were with him came to the extremity of the army in the beginning of the middle watch; and they completely roused the guards, and sounded with the horns, and they broke the pitchers that were in their hands,
So Gideon and the three hundred men who were with him came to the outer line of tents, at the start of the middle watch, when the watchmen had only then taken their stations; and the horns were sounded and the vessels broken.
20 and the three companies sounded with the horns, and broke the pitchers, and held the torches in their left hands, and in their right hands their horns to sound with; and they cried out, A sword for the Lord and for Gedeon.
So the three bands all gave a loud note on their horns, and when the vessels had been broken, they took the flaming branches in their left hands, and the horns in their right hands ready for blowing, crying out, For the Lord and for Gideon.
21 And [every] man stood in his place round about the host; and all the host ran, and sounded [an alarm], and fled.
Then they made a line round the tents, every man in his place; and all the army, awaking from sleep, came running out, and with loud cries went in flight.
22 And they sounded with the three hundred horns; and the Lord set [every] man's sword in all the host against his neighbour.
And the three hundred gave a loud note on their horns, and every man's sword was turned by the Lord against his brother all through the army; and the army went in flight as far as Beth-shittah in the direction of Zeredah, to the edge of Abel-meholah by Tabbath.
23 And the host fled as far as Bethseed Tagaragatha Abel-meula to Tabath; and the men of Israel from Nephthali, and from Aser, and from all Manasse, came to help, and followed after Madiam.
And the men of Israel came together from Naphtali and from Asher and all Manasseh, and went after Midian.
24 And Gedeon sent messengers into all mount Ephraim, saying, Come down to meet Madiam, and take to yourselves the water as far as Baethera and Jordan: and every man of Ephraim cried out, and they took the water before hand to Baethera and Jordan.
Then Gideon sent through all the hill-country of Ephraim saying, Come down against Midian, and keep the ways across Jordan before they come. So all the men of Ephraim, massing themselves together, kept the ways across Jordan.
25 And they took the princess of Madiam, even Oreb and Zeb; and they killed Oreb in Sur Oreb, and they killed Zeb in Jakephzeph; and they pursued Madiam, and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeb to Gedeon from beyond Jordan.
And they took the two chiefs of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb; and they put Oreb to death at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they put to death at the place of the grape-crushing in Zeeb, and they went after Midian; but the heads of Oreb and Zeeb they took across Jordan to Gideon.

< Judges 7 >