Judges 7- 8
In Gideon Part 1, (go here to read) we learned how Gideon was called, and how he needed reassurance
that God was indeed going to use him to save Israel. .
Now Gideon has a
large number of men with him, Judges 7:3 gives the number of men to be 32,000
men. But the LORD said to Gideon Chp 7:2 "The people that are with thee are
too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt
themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me." The LORD
knows the heart of man and He wants Israel to know that it is He is giving the
victory, and not themselves that have won the future victory. It is important to remember that Israel at
this time had done evil in the sight of the Lord, (Judges 1:1) and that is why
they are in the hands of the Midianites.
They had called on the LORD God (1:7) because of their misery, not
because of their faith.
And so the LORD told
Gideon how the numbers should be cut down. V3 "...proclaim in the ears of
the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart
early from mount Gilead. And there returned
of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten
thousand" It is obvious that even
though the LORD had promised that Gideon would have the victory, the majority
of the people were very fearful. But there were still too many people, and the
LORD gave Gideon further instructions. V4-6 "The people are yet too many;
bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it
shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall
go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee,
the same shall not go. So he brought
down the people unto the water: and the LORD said unto Gideon, Everyone that
lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by
himself; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink. And the number of them that lapped, putting
their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the
people bowed down upon their knees to drink water." And why were those who lapped set putting
hand to mount set aside? Because if they
lapped the water like a dog, with their head to the water, they would not be
able to see what was going on around them, but if they brought the water to
their mouths, they could see what was going on around them, they were much more
alert. Of those 10,000, there remained
only 300 men. Those would be used by the
LORD to deliver Israel.
In V7 the LORD
reassures Gideon "by the three hundred men that lapped will I save you,
and deliver the Midianites into thine hand: and let all the other people go
every man unto his place." After this the LORD still leading tells Gideon,
V9 "Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have delivered it into thine
hand." But the LORD also tells Gideon V10-11 "if thou fear to go
down, go thou with Phurah thy servant down to the host: and thou shalt hear
what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be strengthened to go down unto
the host." The LORD is gracious to provide reassurance for Gideon again. He truly knows his heart, even as he knows
our hearts.
