Judges 7:8 - Forerunner Commentary

Judges 7:8

6 And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people got down on their knees to drink water.

7 Then the Lord said to Gideon, ^a“By the three hundred men who lapped I will save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, every man to his¹ place.”

8 So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, every man to his tent, and retained those three hundred men. Now the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

9 It happened on the same ^anight that the Lord said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand.

10 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant,

11 and you shall ^ahear what they say; and afterward¹ your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp.” Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outpost of the armed men who were in the camp.

12 Now the Midianites and Amalekites, ^aall the people of the East, were lying in the valley ^bas numerous as locusts; and their camels were¹ without number, as the sand by the seashore in multitude.

13 And when Gideon had come, there was a man telling a dream to his companion. He said, “I have had a dream: To my surprise, a loaf of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian; it came to a tent and struck it so that it fell and overturned, and the tent collapsed.”

14 Then his companion answered and said, “This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel! Into his hand ^aGod has delivered Midian and the whole camp.”

15 And so it was, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise, for the Lord has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand.”

16 Then he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and torches inside the pitchers.

17 And he said to them, “Look at me and do likewise; watch, and when I come to the edge of the camp you shall do as I do:

18 When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then you also blow the trumpets on every side of the whole camp, and say, ‘The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!’ ”

19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just as they had posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands.

20 Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers—they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing—and they cried, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!”

21 And ^aevery man stood in his place all around the camp; ^band the whole army ran and cried out and fled.

22 When the three hundred ^ablew the trumpets, ^bthe Lord set ^cevery man’s sword against his companion throughout the whole camp; and the army fled to¹ Beth Acacia, toward Zererah, as far as the border of ^dAbel Meholah, by Tabbath.

23 And the men of Israel gathered together from ^aNaphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh, and pursued the Midianites.

24 Then Gideon sent messengers throughout all the ^amountains of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites, and seize from them the watering places as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan.” Then all the men of Ephraim gathered together and ^bseized the watering places as far as ^cBeth Barah and the Jordan.

Verse Comparison: Judges 7:8

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American Standard Version
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.

Amplified® Bible
So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands, and he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his home and retained those 300 men. And the host of Midian was below him in the valley.

Contemporary English Version
Then Gideon gave these orders, "You three hundred men stay here. The rest of you may go home, but leave your food and trumpets with us." Gideon's army camp was on top of a hill overlooking the Midianite camp in the valley.

Darby English Version
So he took the jars of the people from their hands, and their trumpets; and he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his tent, but retained the three hundred men; and the camp of Mid'ian was below him in the valley.

Good News Bible
So Gideon sent all the Israelites home, except the three hundred, who kept all the supplies and trumpets. The Midianite camp was below them in the valley.

King James Version
So the people took victuals in their hand, and their trumpets: and he sent all the rest of Israel every man unto his tent, and retained those three hundred men: and the host of Midian was beneath him in the valley.

New American Standard Bible
So the 300 men took the people's provisions and their trumpets into their hands. And Gideon sent all the {other} men of Israel, each to his tent, but retained the 300 men; and the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

New International Version
So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.
Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley.

New King James Version
So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, every man to his tent, and retained those three hundred men. Now the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

N.A.S.B. in E-Prime
So the 300 men took the people's provisions and their trumpets into their hands. And Gideon sent all the other men of Israel, each to his tent, but retained the 300 men; and the camp of Midian appeared below him in the valley.

Revised Standard Version
So he took the jars of the people from their hands, and their trumpets; and he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his tent, but retained the three hundred men; and the camp of Mid'ian was below him in the valley.

Young's Literal Translation
And the people take the provision in their hand, and their trumpets, and every man of Israel he hath sent away, each to his tents; and on the three hundred men he hath kept hold, and the camp of Midian hath been by him at the lower part of the valley.

New English Translation
The men¹ who were chosen² took supplies³ and their trumpets. Gideon⁴ sent all the men of Israel back to their homes;⁵ he kept only three hundred men. Now the Midianites⁶ were camped down below⁷ in the valley.

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