Judges 7
1 Then Jerub Baal (that is, Gideon) rose up early, and all the people who were with him, and they encamped beside the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was to their north in the valley near the hill of Moreh.
Jerub-baal (Gideon) and those who were with him got up early and went and camped by the Harod spring. The Midianite camp was to the north in the valley near the Moreh hill.
2 Yahweh said to Gideon, “There are too many soldiers for me to give you victory over the Midianites, so that Israel may not boast over me, saying, 'Our own power has saved us.'
The Lord told Gideon, “There are too many soldiers with you for me to hand over the Midianites to them, otherwise Israel will brag to me, saying, ‘I saved myself by my own strength.’
3 Now therefore, proclaim in the ears of the people and say, 'Whoever is afraid, whoever trembles, let him return and depart from Mount Gilead.'” So twenty-two thousand people went away, and ten thousand remained.
So tell the soldiers, ‘Anyone who is worried or afraid can leave Mount Gilead and go back home.’” Twenty-two thousand of them went back home, but ten thousand stayed.
4 Yahweh said to Gideon, “The people are still too many. Take them down to the water, and I will make their number smaller for you there. If I say to you, 'This one will go with you,' he will go with you; but if I say, 'This one will not go with you,' he will not go.”
Then the Lord told Gideon, “There are still too many soldiers. Take them down to the water and I will reduce them for you. Whoever I tell you, ‘He shall go with you,’ he shall go. But anyone that I say, ‘He shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
5 So Gideon brought the people down to the water, and Yahweh said to him, “Separate everyone who laps up the water, as a dog laps, from those who kneel down to drink.”
Gideon took the soldiers down to the water. The Lord told Gideon, “Set to one side those who lap the water with their tongues, like a dog does, and on the other side those who kneel down to drink.”
6 Three hundred men lapped. The rest of the men kneeled down to drink water.
Three hundred lapped water from their hands to their mouths. All the rest knelt down to drink the water.
7 Yahweh said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men who lapped, I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites. Let every other man go back to his own place.”
The Lord told Gideon, “With these three hundred men that lapped I will save you and hand over the Midianites to you. Let all the rest of the soldiers go home.”
8 So those who were chosen took their supplies and their trumpets. Gideon sent away all the men of Israel, every man to his tent, but he kept the three hundred men. Now the Midian camp was down below him in the valley.
The three hundred took over the supplies and trumpets of the others. Gideon sent all the rest home, but held onto the three hundred men. The Midianite camp was below him in the valley.
9 That same night Yahweh said to him, “Get up! Attack the camp, for I am going to give you victory over it.
That night the Lord spoke to Gideon, “Get up, go down and attack the camp, for I have handed it over to you.
10 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant,
But if you are afraid to go down, go with your servant Purah to the camp.
11 and listen to what they are saying, and your courage will be strengthened to attack the camp.” So Gideon went with Purah his servant, down to the guard posts of the camp.
You'll hear what they're talking about and then you'll have the courage to attack the camp.” So he took his servant Purah with him and went to the edge of the camp where armed men were on guard.
12 The Midianites, the Amalekites, and all the people of the east settled along in the valley, as thick as a cloud of locusts. Their camels were more than could be counted; they were more in number than the grains of the sand on the seashore.
The Midianites, Amalekites, and all the peoples of the East filled the valley like a swarm of locusts, and as for their camels, they were as uncountable as the sand on the seashore.
13 When Gideon arrived there, a man was telling a dream to his companion. The man said, “Look! I had a dream, and I saw a round loaf of barley bread tumbling into the camp of Midian. It came to the tent, and hit it so hard that it fell down and turned it upside down, so that it lay flat.”
Just as Gideon arrived, a man was telling his friend about a dream he'd had. He was saying, “I had this dream. I dreamed I saw a round loaf of barley bread come rolling into the Midianite camp. It hit a tent, knocking it upside-down, flat on the ground!”
14 The other man said, “This is nothing other than the sword of Gideon (the son of Joash), the Israelite. God has given him victory over Midian and all their army.”
“This can only represent the victory by the sword of Gideon, son of Joash, a man of Israel,” his friend answered. “God has handed over to him the Midianites and everyone else camped here.”
15 When Gideon heard the retelling of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down in worship. He went back to the camp of Israel and said, “Get up! Yahweh has given you victory over the Midian army.”
When Gideon heard the dream and what it meant, he bowed in thanks to God. He went back to the Israelite camp and announced, “On your feet! For the Lord has handed over the Midianite camp to you!”
16 He divided the three hundred men into three groups, and he gave them all trumpets and empty jars, with torches inside each jar.
He divided the three hundred men into three companies. He handed them all trumpets, and empty jars with torches inside them.
17 He said to them, “Look at me and do what I do. Watch! When I come to the edge of the camp, you must do what I do.
“Watch me and follow my example,” he told them. “So when I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly what I do.
18 When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then blow your trumpets also on every side of the entire camp and shout, 'For Yahweh and for Gideon!'”
Immediately I and those with me blow the trumpets, then you blow your trumpets from all around the camp, and shout, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon!’”
19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the edge of the camp, right at the beginning of the middle watch. Just as the Midianites were changing guard, they blew the trumpets and broke the jars that were in their hands.
Gideon and the hundred men who with him arrived at the edge of the camp around midnight, after the guards were changed. They blew their trumpets and smashed the jars they were holding.
20 The three companies blew the trumpets and broke the jars. They held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands to blow them. They shouted out, “The sword of Yahweh and of Gideon.”
All three companies blew their trumpets and smashed their jars. They held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands, and they shouted, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!”
21 Every man stood in his place around the camp and all the Midianite army ran. They shouted and ran away.
Each man stood in his place encircling the camp, and all the enemy soldiers ran around shouting—then they fled.
22 When they blew the three hundred trumpets, Yahweh set every Midianite man's sword against his comrades and against all their army. The army fled as far as Beth Shittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, near Tabbath.
When they blew the three hundred trumpets, the Lord made all the men in the camp attack one other with their swords. The enemy army fled to Beth-shittah near Zererah, all the way to the border of Abel Meholah near Tabbath.
23 The men of Israel from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh were called out, and they went after Midian.
The Israelite soldiers were summoned from Naphtali, Asher, and all of Manasseh, and they chased after the Midianites.
24 Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Go down against Midian and take control of the Jordan River, as far as Beth Barah, to stop them.” So all the men of Ephraim gathered together and took control of the waters, as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan River.
Gideon sent messengers through all the hill country of Ephraim saying, “Come and attack the Midianites, and take control of the Jordan fords ahead of them as far as Beth-barah.” So all the men of Ephraim were summoned, and they took control of the Jordan fords as far as Beth-barah.
25 They captured the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and they killed Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They went after the Midianites, and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was on the other side of the Jordan.
They also captured Oreb and Zeeb, two of the Midianite commanders. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They continued chasing down the Midianites and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb back to Gideon who was on the other side of the Jordan.
