Judges 7

¹Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon ) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the spring of Harod . And the camp of Midian was north of them, by the hill of Moreh , in the valley .

²The Lord said to Gideon , The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand , lest Israel boast over me, saying , My own hand has saved me.

³Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people , saying , Whoever is fearful and trembling , let him return home and hurry away from Mount Gilead . Then 22,000 of the people returned , and 10,000 remained .

⁴And the Lord said to Gideon , The people are still too many . Take them down to the water , and I will test them for you there , and anyone of whom I say to you, This one shall go with you, shall go with you, and anyone of whom I say to you, This one shall not go with you, shall not go .

⁵So he brought the people down to the water . And the Lord said to Gideon , Every one who laps the water with his tongue , as a dog laps , you shall set by himself . Likewise, every one who kneels down to drink .

⁶And the number of those who lapped , putting their hands to their mouths , was 300 men , but all the rest of the people knelt down to drink water .

⁷And the Lord said to Gideon , With the 300 men who lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hand , and let all the others go every man to his home .

⁸So the people took provisions in their hands , and their trumpets . And he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his tent , but retained the 300 men . And the camp of Midian was below him in the valley .

⁹That same night the Lord said to him, Arise , go down against the camp , for I have given it into your hand .

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

¹¹And you shall hear what they say , and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp . Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outposts of the armed men who were in the camp .

¹²And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the people of the East lay along the valley like locusts in abundance , and their camels were without number , as the sand that is on the seashore in abundance .

¹³When Gideon came , behold , a man was telling a dream to his comrade . And he said , Behold , I dreamed a dream , and behold, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian and came to the tent and struck it so that it fell and turned it upside down , so that the tent lay flat .

¹⁴And his comrade answered , This is no other than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash , a man of Israel ; God has given into his hand Midian and all the camp .

¹⁵As soon as Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation , he worshiped . And he returned to the camp of Israel and said , Arise , for the Lord has given the host of Midian into your hand .

¹⁶And he divided the 300 men into three companies and put trumpets into the hands of all of them and empty jars , with torches inside the jars .

¹⁷And he said to them, Look at me, and do likewise . When I come to the outskirts of the camp , do as I do .

¹⁸When I blow the trumpet , I and all who are with me, then blow the trumpets also on every side of all the camp and shout , For the Lord and for Gideon .

¹⁹So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch , when they had just set the watch . And they blew the trumpets and smashed the jars that were in their hands .

²⁰Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the jars . They held in their left hands the torches , and in their right hands the trumpets to blow . And they cried out , A sword for the Lord and for Gideon !

²¹Every man stood in his place around the camp , and all the army ran . They cried out and fled .

²²When they blew the 300 trumpets , the Lord set every man’s sword against his comrade and against all the army . And the army fled as far as Beth-shittah toward Zererah , as far as the border of Abel-meholah , by Tabbath .

²³And the men of Israel were called out from Naphtali and from Asher and from all Manasseh , and they pursued after Midian .

²⁴Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim , saying , Come down against the Midianites and capture the waters against them, as far as Beth-barah , and also the Jordan . So all the men of Ephraim were called out , and they captured the waters as far as Beth-barah , and also the Jordan .

²⁵And they captured the two princes of Midian , Oreb and Zeeb . They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb , and Zeeb they killed at the winepress of Zeeb . Then they pursued Midian , and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon across the Jordan .