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Judges chapter 7. Last week, 
we looked at Judges chapter 6, specifically the call and preparation 
of Gideon. Remember that the particular 
oppressor at this particular point in the book of Judges are 
the Midianites in chapter 6 in verses 1 to 10. It indicates 
that agent of oppression, again, the same cycle that we've seen 
up to this particular point, the children of Israel did evil 
in the sight of the Lord. So the Lord delivered them into 
the hand of Midian for seven years. After the children of 
Israel cry out because of their distress, then the Lord raises 
up a human deliverer, a particular judge. And in this particular 
case, it's Gideon. So the call and preparation in 
chapter 6. Tonight we'll look at the victory 
over the Midianites in chapter 7. So I'll just pick up reading 
in 7. 1. Then Jerob Baal, that is Gideon, 
and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside 
the well of Herod, so that the camp of the Midianites was on 
the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley. 
And the Lord said to Gideon, the people who are with you are 
too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel 
claim glory for itself against me, saying, my own hand has saved 
me. Now therefore proclaim in the 
hearing of the people, saying, whoever is fearful and afraid, 
let him turn and depart at once from Mount Gilead. And 22,000 
of the people returned, and 10,000 remained. But the Lord said to Gideon, 
the people are still too many. Bring them down to the water 
and I will test them for you there. Then it will be that of 
whom I say to you, this one shall go with you, the same shall go 
with you. And of whomever I say to you, 
this one shall not go with you, the same shall not go. So he 
brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon, 
everyone who lapsed from the water with his tongue as a dog 
laps, you shall set apart by himself. Likewise, everyone who 
gets down on his knees to drink. And the number of those who lapped, 
putting their hand to their mouth, was 300 men. But all the rest 
of the people got down on their knees to drink water. And the 
Lord said to Gideon, by the 300 men who lapped, I will save you 
and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other 
people go, every man to his place. 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 300 men. Now 
the camp of Midian was below him in the valley. It happened 
on the same night that the Lord said to him, arise, go down against 
the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand. But if you 
are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah, your 
servant, and you shall hear what they say. And afterward, your 
hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp. Then 
he went down with Pura, his servant, to the outpost of the armed men 
who were in the camp. Now the Midianites and Amalekites, 
all the people of the east, were lying in the valley as numerous 
as locusts, and their camels were without number, as the sand 
by the seashore in multitude. 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. 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, God has delivered 
Midian and the whole camp. 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. Then he divided the 300 men into 
three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man's hand with empty 
pitchers and torches inside the pitchers. 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. 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. 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. 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. And every man stood in his place 
all around the camp. And the whole army ran and cried 
out and fled. When the 300 blew the trumpets, 
the Lord set every man's sword against his companion throughout 
the whole camp. And the army fled to Beth Acacia 
toward Zerahrah as far as the border of Abel Mahola by Tabeth. And the men of Israel gathered 
together from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh and pursued 
the Midianites. Then Gideon sent messengers throughout 
all the mountains of Ephraim, saying, come down against the 
Midianites and seize from them the watering places as far as 
Bethbera and the Jordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered 
together and seized the watering places as far as Bethbera and 
the Jordan. And they captured two princes 
of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeb. They killed Oreb at the Rock 
of Oreb, and Zeb they killed at the winepress of Zeb. They 
pursued Midian and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeb to Gideon 
on the other side of the Jordan." Amen. Well, once again, another 
very instructive portion of scripture. This book of Judges, I hope, 
has been enjoyable to you. It's quite exciting, but the 
constant theme or refrain is the reality that God delivers 
Israel. They're under oppression. God, 
as I said, raises up an earthly deliverer. He uses, in this instance, 
Gideon to effect victory over the Midianites to free Israel 
from this bondage. Well, tonight, as we look at 
this particular section, remember the larger context, 6.1 to 9.57, 
essentially deals with Gideon. Now, of course, Gideon dies at 
the end of chapter 8, but his son Abimelech, who's not a judge, 
we see he usurps some authority and engages in some treachery, 
but that's still included in this Gideon narrative. So chapter 
6, 1 to 957 deals with Gideon. Chapter 7, as I've already mentioned, deals 
specifically with the victory over the Midianites. And the 
chapter breaks down nicely into three sections. First, the reduction 
of troops. Secondly, the encouragement of 
Gideon. And thirdly, the victory over 
the Midianites. And there's a recurring theme 
in this section of 6, specifically 6 to 8, that God works through 
weakness. His strength, as the apostle 
Paul learned, is perfected in weakness. When we meet this man 
Gideon, the first thing that he says is, I'm not fit for this 
because I'm, you know, the smallest or my clan is the weakest in 
Manasseh and I am the least in my father's house. We see that 
Gideon has a fear of his townspeople and of his own family when it 
comes to break down the altar of Baal. We see that just after 
the Spirit of the Lord comes upon Gideon, Gideon then asks 
the Lord specifically for these two signs with reference or with 
the intention to confirm the word that he had spoken. When 
we think of mighty hero Gideon, I mean, absolutely he comes into 
our mind that way now because we see him victorious. But when 
you think of mighty hero, Gideon probably isn't your first choice. 
He's not sort of a John Wayne figure, he's not Rambo, he's 
not got all the bullets and the guns and he's, you know, just 
this brazen man with all of these guts running right into the midst 
of the Midianites. Every step of the way it's as 
if God has to reassure him, God encourages him, God stoops to 
deal with Gideon on his particular level. So I think the importance 
of all of this is to demonstrate and highlight for us the glory 
of God, the sovereignty of God, the mercy, the kindness, and 
the goodness of God. So hopefully we'll appreciate 
that as we move through the narrative this evening. But note first 
the reduction of troops in verses 1 to 8. The troops are assembled 
at verse 1, then Jerob Baal, that is Gideon, remember he got 
that name because of destroying the altar, his father called 
him that, let Baal plead. Then Jerob Baal, that is Gideon, 
and all the people who were with him, rose early and encamped 
beside the well of Herod. so that the camp of the Midianites 
was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley. So they are now gathered together 
to engage the enemy. According to what we read in 
this particular chapter, there's 32,000 of them. When we look 
in chapter 8 and we see the dead bodies of the Midianites, there's 
120,000 of them. So there's a great disparity 
at the very beginning. There's this great difference 
in terms of force and strength and power and might represented 
between the two armies. Already at this point Gideon's 
probably a bit fearful having to enter into the fray with such 
a powerful army. I mean, he's not a foolish man, 
he's not a stupid man, he can understand the difference between 
100,000 plus and his 32,000 men. Now notice, the troops are reduced. We need to understand that verse 
2 is the key point in all of this. We need to make sure that 
we appreciate this, because oftentimes we get to these lappers and kneelers, 
the way that God distinguishes between those whom He keeps and 
those whom He lets go, and we think there's something about 
those men, there's something good about lapping water like 
a dog. Maybe it means that we're more 
alert, we're on guard. That has nothing to do with it 
whatsoever. Verse 2 is the point of this 
particular section. The Lord said to Gideon, the 
people who are with you are too many. Now remember, Gideon knows 
math. He knows what he's looking at 
in terms of the Midianite army. He knows what he's looking at 
in terms of his own army, and here God the Lord comes to him 
and says, the people who are with you are too many for me 
to give the Midianites into their hands. Perhaps Gideon at this 
point would have said, I beg to differ, Lord. It does not 
seem like it's too many, but rather it seems like it's too 
few. Now notice why God says what 
he says. Lest Israel claim glory for itself 
against me, saying, my own hand has saved me. So as I said, verse 
2 is the main point of the entire section. We cannot miss this. The Lord works through weakness 
in order to manifest His power. That's what's on display here. As I've already mentioned, throughout 
God's dealings with Gideon, we see a man that is weak. Even 
prior to that, we see the helplessness of Israel in chapter 6, verses 
2 to 6. When the Midianites come through 
the land, what do the Israelites do? They run for cover. They 
hide themselves. They are not a strong folk at 
this particular instance. Gideon has small beginnings, 
6.15. Gideon's fear of his family in town, chapter 6, verse 27. Gideon's request for a sign in 
6.36-40. The reduction of Gideon's army 
in this particular section. Gideon's fear and his need for 
encouragement later on in this chapter in 7.10-15. All of this 
underscores the point. God is demonstrating His power 
through the weakness of Gideon and through the weakness of Israel. 
Again, I mentioned 2 Corinthians 12, verse 9. You can turn there. I think this is the point that 
we're seeing in this book of Judges. There's no difference 
in terms of who God is and how He functions or operates with 
reference to His own glory and with reference to the deliverance 
of His people. 2 Corinthians 12.7, And lest 
I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, 
a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to 
buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this 
thing, I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart 
from me. And he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, 
for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Now that's the point 
in Judges chapter 7. That's the point in telling Gideon 
that 32,000 men, 32,000 soldiers are too many because if they 
get the victory then their tendency is going to be to take glory 
for themselves in their deliverance. Note the implication that Paul 
draws from the statement of the Lord after God says my grace 
is sufficient for you for my strength is made perfect in weakness. 
Paul says therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities 
that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take 
pleasure in infirmities in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in 
distresses for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am 
strong." That's what God is doing through Gideon. Look back at 
just 2 Corinthians 4 for just a moment as well to kind of flesh 
this principle out as we see what's going on in this section. 
2 Corinthians 4 Verse 3, but even if our gospel is veiled, 
it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the God 
of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light 
of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, 
should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, 
but Christ Jesus the Lord. and ourselves your bondservants 
for Jesus' sake. For it is the God who commanded 
light to shine out of darkness who has shone in our hearts to 
give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face 
of Jesus Christ." Now notice this, but we have this treasure 
in earthen vessels that the excellence of the power may be of God and 
not of us. You see the point. when Paul 
and his companions preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and sinners 
pass from death unto life, when sinners come out of darkness 
into marvelous light, when they are saved. It is by God's grace 
alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, and all glory belongs 
to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. There's not 
glory to be had for the gospel preacher. There's not praise 
and adoration given to the man. who has the beautiful feet. Certainly 
people ought to be thankful. Certainly people ought to be, 
you know, thankful to the fact that people have come and minister 
the truth. But the glory is given to God. And that's the point in Judges 
7 at verse 2. Lest Israel claim glory for itself 
against me, saying, My own hand has saved me. So the Lord knows 
our propensity He knows our tendency to claim glory for ourselves. That's what he is addressing 
here in verse 2. Davis says it this way, does 
not 7.2 speak to us? Does it not tell us there is 
a certain deviousness in God's people, a tendency to steal God's 
praise? Does it not teach us that sometimes 
he cannot trust us with his work unless we realize how inadequate 
we are to do it? This may explain why God frequently 
chooses such unlikely instruments. That's a great point. Now, if 
you follow the blogs, the Christian blogs or Christian news, you'll 
notice in the last several weeks there's been a couple pastors 
who have gotten into trouble for hiring a marketing company 
to make sure that their books got on the New York Times bestsellers 
list. In other words, churches paid 
money to an independent marketing firm who has strategies and abilities 
to so manipulate things that a book will be indicated as a 
bestseller on the New York Times bestsellers list. Now, there's 
probably a whole host of reasons why pastors would choose to do 
that. All of them are wrong, as far 
as I'm concerned. But the point that we need to 
observe here with reference to God's dealings here in the victory 
over the Midianites, he does not need best-selling books. He does not need celebrity pastors. He does not need what we think 
are those calculated to accomplish the particular job. Rather, God 
calls his people to be faithful, to speak the truth and to live 
in light of that truth, and to let him take care of the results, 
to let him take care of success or failure. Our job, our task, 
our calling is simply to be faithful with the truth, not to try and 
manipulate best-selling markets, not to try and have big tours 
where we go out and parade as celebrity preachers, but rather 
we are called to be faithful, to proclaim his truth and to 
live in light of it. Davis, again, I think this is 
very helpful. He quotes from a book called 
the Cambuslang Revival. This took place in the 1700s 
in Cambuslang, Scotland. And here's what Davis quotes 
from that particular book. He says, few would ever have 
suspected William McCulloch of kindling a revival. He was a 
parish minister in Cambuslang, Scotland about 1740, a scholarly 
pastor excelling in languages, especially Hebrew. He had, nevertheless, 
little gift for the pulpit. His own son described him as 
not a very ready speaker, not eloquent. His manner was slow 
and cautious. With a son like that, you don't 
need enemies, do you? In fact, he was called an ale 
minister. You know what an ale minister 
was? As soon as he got up to go preach, people in the church 
would duck out to the local tavern to get a beer. That's what they 
would refer to as an ale minister. He says, yet God chose to use 
William McCulloch's ministry as the means of revival in Cambuslang 
sometime before George Whitefield visited there. You've all heard 
of George Whitefield, probably. He was a great evangelist. He 
was a man that went about and was used mightily, preached, 
and people got saved. There were great big revivals. 
Well, the Candia slang was interesting because there was revival under 
McCulloch before Whitefield ever got there. This is what God is 
saying in Judges 7-2. Here's what Davis goes on to 
say. Now I cannot divine the divine ways, but I wonder if 
God was pleased to use William McCulloch in order to make it 
clear that the Cambuslang work could not be explained by eloquence 
or human dynamism, but only by the Spirit of God. The necessity 
of weakness, that is often God's method. That's the point here 
in chapter 7 verse 2. It's not upon the rich, the mighty, 
the powerful, the celebrity, but rather it's upon this man 
who still lives in his father's house, who's among the smallest 
clan among his tribe, who has this fearfulness, who has this 
trepidation, who needs constant signs and affirmations so that 
he'll go about his task. It's he that the Lord chooses 
to use to deliver his people from Midianite oppression. So we get to the first reduction 
of troops. Notice in verse 3. Now therefore 
proclaim in the hearing of the people saying whoever is fearful 
and afraid let him turn and depart at once from Mount Gilead. Now 
this is in the law of God in Deuteronomy chapter 20 at verse 
8. We see this very thing. Deuteronomy 
20 verse 8, laws concerning warfare, the officers shall speak further 
to the people and say, what man is there who is fearful and faint 
hearted? Let him go and return to his house, lest the heart 
of his brethren faint like his heart. You see the wisdom in 
such an arrangement. If you're sharing a foxhole with 
a guy whose knees are knocking and his teeth are chattering 
and he's so afraid that he can't pick up his weapon and he won't 
engage the enemy, that can have a negative and a detrimental 
effect upon the troop in the foxhole. So God is very gracious 
in telling these people. This isn't just a little bit 
of fear. I'm sure we'd all have fear if we're going into some 
sort of a skirmish. or battle or war, but these are the guys 
that are paralyzed with fear that simply cannot do what they're 
being called to do. And so there is a condition in 
the law to afford for them a stay from battle. And so that's what's 
here in this first reduction. proclaiming the hearing of the 
people, saying, whoever is fearful and afraid, let him turn and 
depart at once from Mount Gilead." Now notice, in 22,000 of the 
people returned and 10,000 remained. Now, I'm just thinking that Gideon's 
face is probably starting to look a little bit weary. Wait 
a minute, we have 32,000 against their 120,000. That seems a small 
bit to me. So God says, tell them if they're 
fearful, then they can leave. So he says, if you're fearful, 
you can leave, probably thinking the majority won't be fearful. probably thinking the majority 
are ready to take up arms and to do battle against these pesky 
Midianites. But 22,000 of the people returned. Had it been me, I might have 
said, do you want to reconsider? Do you guys want to think about 
this again? Do you want to stop for just... 
But that's not what happened. So God is whittling down the 
armies of Israel. Why? So that Israel will not 
claim glory for itself against Him. Now notice the second reduction. It's the sovereignty of God's 
choice in verse 4. The Lord said to Gideon, the 
people are still too many. Bring them down to the water 
and I will test them for you there. Then it will be that of 
whom I say to you, this one shall go with you, the same shall go 
with you. And of whomever I say to you, 
this one shall not go with you, the same shall not go." Now verses 
5 and 6 are a little bit confusing. Here's the way I understand it. 
You've got lappers and you've got kneelers. You've got those 
who lap like dogs and you've got those who kneel. I think 
that the language is a little bit confusing, but the idea is 
absolutely crystal clear. It is a means by which God whittles 
down the army of Israel. Again, listen to what Davis says. 
He says, it is amazing how virtuous the lappers become in the view 
of expositors. They are heralded as the vigilant, 
watchful ones who lean down, scoop a little water, always 
with their eyes on the enemy, which may yet have been several 
miles to the north, while the kneelers are the careless who 
think only of their thirst. The text doesn't say that at 
all. When you read commentaries, you'll see guys saying, yeah, 
these lappers, you know, this, that, and the other, and the 
kneelers, this, that, and the other. The text doesn't make any indication 
of that. It's verse 2 that is the controlling 
idea. It is simply a means to whittle 
down the army. God's not commending the lappers 
as being more vigilant. We have to assume that since 
the statement of verse 3 has already been given, the 10,000 
that remain are courageous men. They had the chance to leave, 
didn't they? Under the stipulation of God's 
law. Those 22,000 aren't faulted for 
being cowards or wimps or babies or anything like that. If that 
was the case, Deuteronomy 28 wouldn't say such a thing. So 
the 10,000 that are left are bold men, they're courageous 
men, they're warrior men. So when it comes to lappers or 
kneelers, it's not as if God says, I have a special place 
in my heart for these lappers because they make me happy and 
they're more vigilant. No, these 300 are not a sign 
of Israel's strength. It's a sign of Israel's weakness 
so that God can manifest and display his strength through 
this 300. Gil, I think, makes it a lot 
clearer. He says, though it seems that 
all the 10,000 men were men of courage, they've already been 
whittled out, and this method was taken not to distinguish 
those that were the most courageous from those that were the least 
so, but only reduce the number that should be engaged in this 
battle. That's the only thing going on 
between the lappers and the kneelers. God does not care how you put 
water in your mouth. He does not think there's something 
commendatory about the way that you drink water and that makes 
you fit for service for him in battle over the Midianites. It 
was simply a means where God could sovereignly distinguish 
between the 90, what is it, 9,700 people versus the 300 people. 
That's it. Now notice. This is what we've got. Verse 
6, the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, 
was 300 men. But all the rest of the people 
got down on their knees to drink water. Then the Lord said to 
Gideon, by the 300 men who lapped, I will save you and deliver the 
Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, 
every man to his place. So Gideon, beginning in verse 
1, has 32,000 versus 120,000. Gideon then gives the stipulation 
from Deuteronomy 20, and he loses 22,000 men. And now God has them 
all get down to drink some water, and God says, I want 9,700 of 
these men to go back to their tents. What do you think's going 
on with Gideon at this particular point? If we're right, then this 
sketch that we've traced of him indicates a young man out of 
his father's house from a small clan amidst a tribe in Israel, 
a man who needed constant affirmation, constant confirmation, a man 
who after the spirit of the Lord comes upon him says, Lord, I 
want you to make this fleece wet. after the Spirit of the 
Lord. I just saw something on Twitter 
the other day. It was a quote from Francis Schaeffer. And Schaeffer 
said something to this effect. Schaeffer was a famous Christian 
apologist. He says, the church will never 
do anything until it seeks to do it in the strength of the 
Spirit, which I heartily agree with. But we need to understand 
that even in the strength of the Spirit, there are times when 
we say to God, Please affirm or confirm your word. It's very 
intriguing that it's not the Spirit came upon Gideon. It's 
literally the Spirit put on Gideon. The Spirit put on Gideon and 
then the very next scene is Gideon saying to the Lord God Almighty, 
can you please give me a sign? You see, even when the Spirit 
is upon us, the best of men are men at best. And we struggle, 
and we have issues, and we have challenges, and we have difficulties, 
and we have all manner of trials that the Lord God Most High stoops 
down to bless us in the midst of these particular things to 
indicate something of His character and something of His sufficiency. So the point here is now that 
we have 300 men. And notice in verse eight, so 
the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands. 
This is the 300. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, 
every man to his tent. And he retained those 300 men. Now the camp of Midian was below 
him in the valley. So the Lord will save Israel 
by the 300, the 9,700 are dismissed, and the 300 take up the provisions 
for the battle. And that brings us to the encouragement 
of Gideon in verses 9 to 15. Notice in verse 9, It happened 
on the same night that the Lord said to him, Arise, go down against 
the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand. I mean, that's 
the promise of God right there. I have delivered it into your 
hand. This is a done deal. I realize I've whittled your 
army down from 32,000 to 300. I realize that you are looking 
at what appears to be an impossible situation, but the voice of the 
Lord has spoken. He has promised here in verse 
9, go down against the camp for I have delivered it into your 
hand. And then notice the encouragement 
offered in verse 10, but if you are afraid to go down. Doesn't 
God know his people? Isn't God gracious and kind to 
his people? See what we run the risk of when 
we run through passages like this, we don't stop to smell 
the flowers? Do you see what God says to Gideon? If you are afraid to go down, 
I want to stop and I want to encourage you. Because when it 
comes time to battle Midianites, I don't want there to be any 
fear, I don't want there to be any trepidation, I don't want 
there to be any hesitancy in you whatsoever. So God devises 
this particular sign so that he can reach down to encourage 
Gideon. Now you might think that after 
all the things that God has done for Gideon, and all the promises 
that He has made for Gideon, that this would have been enough. 
Perhaps we'd read from verse 9, Go down against the camp, 
for I have delivered it into your hand. You could just skip 
the next section and go right to verse 15, where He says, Arise, 
for the Lord has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand. 
That's not the way God operates. Psalm 103 is a reality. Psalm 
103 verses 14 and 15 underscore a very important point about 
our God to us. It says, I'm sorry, 103, 13 and 
14. As a father pities his children, 
so the Lord pities those who fear him. For he knows our frame, 
he remembers that we are dust. He knows what Gideon's made of. He knows that in chapter 6 at 
verse 15, Gideon says, wait a minute, I'm from a small clan. I can't 
do this. He knows that Gideon didn't want 
to tear down the altar to Baal in the blazing sunlight of day. He didn't want to be caught. 
He does it at night. He knows that Gideon, even filled 
by the Spirit, or the Spirit having come upon him, says, Lord, 
would you please wet this fleece? And then that wasn't even enough. 
In fact, Gideon understands his own predicament. He says, don't 
be angry with me, Lord, but can you provide another sign? This 
time leave the fleece dry and make the ground all around it 
wet. I mean, Gideon is a man that needs these signs, these 
confirmations, this affirmation. And what does the Lord do? He 
gives it to him. He gives it to him. You see, 
there are certain people that you can kind of neglect, and 
they'll just do fine all on their own. There's other people that 
need affirmation. There are certain wives out there 
that don't need to be told daily by their husbands, I love you, 
honey. You're my friend, or whatever. 
But for the most part, ladies like to hear such things. There 
are men out there who if never anyone ever tells them, you're 
doing a good work, I'm happy with your performance, they're 
going to soldier on. There's other men that like to 
be encouraged. There's other men that need somebody 
to come alongside of them and say, hey, I want you to know 
that I appreciate what you do. What does God do with a Gideon? 
Yes, there's men that just run right into battle. And then there's 
men that, on their way running into battle, need some affirmation 
along the way. And that's what God does with 
them. God is gracious and kind. God is merciful. I mentioned 
with the old dolls recently at the Cascade that I was going 
through the book of Judges, and one of them raised her eyelids 
like, oh no. Anytime I mention the book of 
Revelation, she kind of freaks out a little bit. You know, these 
passages that deal with God and His wrath and His anger and His 
vengeance and His justice. If that's all that we call from 
the book of Judges, we're not reading it properly. We've missed 
God in His goodness, in His kindness, in His mercy, in His grace, in 
His love, in His gentleness and affection. I mean, here He said, 
I have delivered it, I have given it over to you. And then He comes 
to Gideon. Gideon doesn't initiate it on 
this one. Verse 10, But if you are afraid 
to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant. Gideon, 
if you're scared, then I've got this sign for you. You see, that's 
our God. If you've got some struggles, 
then here's something I have to give you a bit of a boost 
in the arm. And then he says in verse 11, and you shall hear 
what they say, and afterward your hands shall be strengthened 
to go down against the camp. This is God's endgame with Gideon. I want your hands strong. I want 
you to go into battle, and I want you to do so riding on the promises 
of God. You see, we need to understand 
theology proper or the doctrine of God. It's not just what we 
conceive or see in the New Testament scriptures. If we do not study 
books like Judges, we're not going to see this kind of a thing. 
We're not going to see God say to Gideon, and if you're afraid, 
then here's what you ought to do so that you can receive some 
encouragement. Don't you need to hear that from 
your God? Don't you need to understand 
that He cares for you? That He's actually there in the 
midst of the trials and that He actually gives you what you 
are after? This is precisely the thrust 
in this passage. And then it says, then He went 
down with Purah, His servant, to the outpost of the armed men 
who were in the camp. Now just in case we have forgotten, 
lest we forget what they are facing. Verse 12 underscores 
for us again the stark reality that 300 men are walking into 
battle against a formidable foe. Now, the Midianites and Amalekites, 
all the people of the East, were lying in the valley as numerous 
as locusts. Now, locusts are numerous when 
they do business, right? I mean, if you find one locust 
or one grasshopper in your backyard, it's not that big of a deal. 
But a locust plague can darken the day. When that horde or that 
swarm comes overhead, it actually blocks out the sun. They can 
do millions and millions and millions of dollars worth of 
damage to fields and to crops. This is the language that's being 
used of the foe here, the Midianites, the Amalekites. All the people 
of the east were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts, 
and their camels were without number. as the sand by the seashore 
in multitude. As I've said, as we've worked 
through this book, this is great storytelling. The author wants 
you to be right there in more. He wants you to be observing 
this whole situation so that when they come through victorious, 
all you can do is praise God. All you can do is glorify the 
Lord. So he's showing us the tension 
that's involved, and all the while, this is the time where 
he's going to encourage Gideon. So Gideon sees this. Gideon's 
probably thinking, this isn't helping me. This isn't encouraging 
me. I've got 300 men, and I'm seeing 
men more numerous as locusts. I'm seeing more camels than there 
is sand against the seashore. But then Gideon and Pura hear 
these two men talking. Verse 13, it ought not to surprise 
us that God speaks through a Midianite soldier to comfort his beloved 
Gideon. Remember it was the high priest 
in John's Gospel in John 11 says that one should die for the nation. It was Pontius Pilate who three 
times confessed the guiltlessness and holiness of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. God uses those means at his disposal 
to communicate to his people. Verse 13, 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 in the camp of Midian. It came to a tent and 
struck it so that it fell and overturned and the tent collapsed. 
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 God has delivered Midian and the whole camp." Now, it 
did not occur to Gideon to ask these questions. How does this 
interpreter of the dream know me? How does this interpreter 
of the dream know that God is going to give us victory? Do 
you notice that? The guy who has the drain sees 
this barley loaf come into the camp and it knocks down a tent. 
Why isn't the interpretation that barley loaf represents the 
armies of Midian and we're going to destroy Israel like a tent 
collapsing? The point is, is that God is 
employing these two Midianite privates to communicate an encouraging 
and confirming word to his servant Gideon. Gideon knows the score. Gideon's not asking a bunch of 
questions. Gideon rather responds this way. Verse 15, and so it was when 
Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation 
that he worshiped. This is the only time in the 
book of Judges where an Israelite is said to worship Yahweh. Any 
other time the word worship is used, it is with reference to 
Israel worshiping gods, false gods, Baals and Ashtoreth. This is an instance of God the 
Lord showing to his servant Gideon what is going on. And so it was 
when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation 
that he worshipped. It's a great response, isn't 
it? Remember back in chapter 6 when Gideon, verse 22, perceived 
that he was the angel of the Lord. Gideon said, alas, oh Lord 
God, for I have seen the angel. of the Lord face to face. He 
feared that He would die. He came into contact with the 
Holy One of Israel and what's His response? He's afraid that 
He's going to die. He comes into contact with the 
Holy One of Israel through these Midianite soldiers and what's 
His response? It is to worship. This is a good 
way, this is a good result of having come into contact with 
the God of heaven and earth, when we fear, when we worship. And notice that Gideon is encouraged, 
he returned to the camp of Israel, and said, Arise, for the Lord 
has delivered the camp of Midian into your hands." So he worships, 
he's encouraged, and he rallies the troops for the Lord. Now 
notice thirdly and finally the victory over the Midianites. The strategies explained in verses 
16 to 18. The strategy is explained in 
verses 16 to 18. Then he divided the 300 men into 
three companies and he put a trumpet into every man's hand with empty 
pitchers and torches inside the pitchers. 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. 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." So basically the issue was they were going 
to create such confusion and chaos among the Midianite armies 
that there would be bedlam. There would be panic and that 
is precisely what happens. So they break these pitchers, 
you've got noise. They bring out their torches, 
you've got light. They cry the sword of the Lord 
and of Gideon. Now what happens when you're 
awakened in the dead of night? Are you conscious and aware of 
everything? This happened the other day when 
Micah was over. I went to wake him up in the 
morning because he had to catch a plane. And he was very confused. I walked into the room. I said, 
you need to get up. It's time to go. And he was just 
looking through me like I could have been Charles Manson with 
a butcher knife. He would have never recognized 
me. And then I started to try and whack him into consciousness. I didn't actually hit him. I 
said, where's my shirt? I know you used my shirt last 
night. Just thought that would jar his mind. He was still just 
puzzled. Last night, there was what sounded 
like a gunshot. I don't know if you guys heard 
that. We live kind of close together. I didn't hear it. My wife did. And it caused her a bit of panic. 
Nice to know that I don't wake up when there's gunshots. That's 
not a very safe situation. But generally speaking, when 
you first wake up, are you really alert? Are you ready to battle? Do you grab your weapon and throw 
it down? Now, if you're highly trained and you're used to this 
sort of a life, possibly. The idea here was to create pandemonium. The idea here was to create chaos. The idea here was to freak out 
the enemies of the Lord. And this is the way they would 
accomplish this particular task. Notice in verse 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. This is 
probably midnight, so the people are fast asleep except for the 
watchers, those on guard, just as they had posted the watch. 
and they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were 
in their hands. 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." Which 
is ironic because they don't have swords. They're not engaged 
in that type of warfare. What actually is the sword of 
the Lord but the Midianite soldiers going at each other? Notice in 
verse 21, and every man stood in his place all around the camp. That indicates devotion. These 
300 men, though small, feeble, and weak, were nevertheless devoted. At this point, they were standing 
firmly behind Captain Gideon or General Gideon. They were 
going to do precisely what he said. There is no evidence whatsoever 
of any wavering from the plan. They are obeying God. They are 
complying with the commander-in-chief. They are carrying out their orders 
absolutely effectively. Verse 21, And the whole army 
ran and cried out and fled. Now, someone would come along 
and say, wait a minute, you've got 300 troops, you've got 120,000, 
you've got a pitcher, you've got a torch, and you've got trumpets 
and the voice of the Israelites crying out, the sword of the 
Lord and of Gideon. That would never work. Come to 
a theology lesson in verse 22. When the 300 blew the trumpets, 
the Lord set every man's sword against his companion throughout 
the whole camp. So you see what happened. Midianites 
woke up, Midianites panicked, and Midianites started killing 
each other. That's what the text says. They 
freaked out, and they started killing one another. This was 
God's plan. Gil says it this way. and so 
slew one another, either suspecting treachery, and so in revenge, 
wrath, and indignation drew their swords on each other. Or through 
the terror and amazement they were in at the sounds they heard 
and the blazing torches dazzling their eyes, they knew not what 
they did or who they fell upon, taking their friends for foes, 
supposing the Israelites were got into their camp. So you see, 
God orchestrated this victory that 300 men, not armed to the 
teeth, but armed with the knowledge of God and faith and confidence 
in God, God then sets every man's sword against his companion. 
Bloch describes it this way. The bedlam in the enemy camp 
is described in three verbs. And they, all the camp, ran. 
And they cried out wildly, and they fled. This is the natural 
response of those who have been awakened from the deepest of 
sleep to the sounds of horns blowing, jars smashing, people 
shouting, and the sight of 300 blazing torches around the camp. 
This is psychological warfare at its best. Be careful how you 
wake up your spouse. Don't shout and scream and yell 
and shine a flashlight in their eyes, because they might just 
reach for the vase and clock you on right in the head. That's 
what happened in Midianite, and that's how they gained victory 
through the power of God Almighty. So the army fled, indicates that 
in verse 22. The army continues to flee. Verse 
23, the men of Israel gathered together from Naphtali, Asher, 
and all Manasseh and pursued the Midianites. Then Gideon sent 
messengers throughout all the mountains of Ephraim. Remember 
that, because in chapter 8 at verse 1, the Ephraimites say, 
why didn't you employ us to go to battle against Midian? You 
see, the Ephraimites were not called to go to battle against 
Midian. They were not participants. It's 
at this point, when the Midianites are fleeing through Ephraim, 
that then Gideon says to the Ephraimites, I want you to give 
pursuit of these particular people." So that's going to cause a little 
bit of friction in chapter 8. So Gideon says, come down against 
the Midianites and seize from them the watering places as far 
as Bethpera and the Jordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered 
together and seized the watering places as far as Bethpera and 
the Jordan. They captured two princes of 
the Midianites, Oreb and Zeb. They killed Oreb at the Rock 
of Oreb and Zeb they killed at the winepress of Zeb. They pursued 
Midian and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeb to Gideon on 
the other side of the Jordan." Again, we read that and we say, 
that sounds a bit brutal, that sounds a bit harsh, that sounds 
a bit difficult for us to get our delicate minds wrapped around. Well, remember, the Midianites 
oppressed the children of Israel for seven years. And they really 
got them where they lived. Remember the Midianite plan was 
that every time that Israel sowed seed, the Midianites would come 
and destroy it. So for seven long years, they 
weren't eating properly, they were constantly on the run, they 
were having to hide in their own land that was gifted to them 
by their God, So when it comes time to bring judgment to bear 
upon the Midianites, it is not outlandish, it is not brutal, 
but rather it is justice for them to bring the heads of Oreb 
and Zeb to Gideon on the other side of the Jordan. Well in this 
passage, I hope we've seen the sovereignty of God. The emphasis 
in the entire section is on His power in delivering Israel from 
Midian. Verse 2, that key text, that 
key idea there is that He gets glory in doing such things. Verse 
7, I will save you and deliver the Midianites into your hand. 
Verse 9, for I have delivered it, verse 14, where it says that 
this Midianite soldier says, into his hand God has delivered 
Midian and the whole camp. And then again, verse 22, the 
Lord set every man's sword against his companion. The means employed 
by God is choice of Gideon. A man that perhaps you and I 
wouldn't have chosen, but God nevertheless does. The reduction 
of the army in verses 2 to 8, lest Israel exercise that tendency 
to claw back glory for themselves instead of giving glory to God 
most high. A pagan to bring the prophetic 
word and a military strategy designed to evidence his handiwork 
and not their ability on the battlefield. And then hopefully 
we appreciate in all of this the kindness of God, not only 
in the way that he dealt with Gideon, graciously saying to 
him in verse 10, but if you are afraid to go down, go down to 
the camp with Purah your servant. but also because God delivered 
Israel from Midianite oppression. At the very end in Chapter 8, 
prior to the death of Gideon, it says that the country was 
quiet for 40 years in the days of Gideon. I think that's the 
last time that's going to be mentioned in the Book of Judges, 
but up to this point, This was a great victory that the Lord 
wrought through Gideon for his people. And as we've had cause 
to notice several times, all of these earthly judges function 
typologically. They point forward to the judge 
or deliverer or the savior who had come to save his people from 
their sins. These various men saved or delivered 
Israel from bondage and oppression in particular difficult situations, 
but they could never rip out of the people this desire to 
do evil in the sight of the Lord. That recurring cycle, that recurring 
theme after Gideon dies, the children of Israel go back to 
the same sort of practice. It takes the Son of God, the 
Deliverer of God, to not only redeem, save, and deliver us 
from our sins, but to captivate our hearts so that we will continue 
with Him. It may be imperfectly, but by 
His Spirit, by His grace, and by His Word, we will persevere 
to the very end. So all of these men point us 
forward to the Lord Jesus Christ, who would, in fact, save us from 
our sins. Let us pray. Our Father, we thank 
You for Your Word and we thank You for Your grace and mercy 
revealed here. We just pray now that You would 
go with us and help us to reflect upon these truths, help us to 
find encouragement in our own struggles and in our own trials 
and in our own temptations, and to see, God, that You are good, 
and that You are for us, and that Your Word is sufficient, 
and Your promises are sure. I thank You for this opportunity 
to meet together. I pray that You'd go with us 
now, bring us together on Friday night. Bless Pastor Hothmeyer 
with a safe trip to the Northwest. Bless his time with the brethren 
in Sea-Tac and in Glen Cullen. and God bring him safely to us 
and may his words be an encouragement to our hearts. And we pray these 
things through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.