The Lord's Preparation of Gideon's Army

Judges 7  •  12 min. read  •  grade level: 7
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In the sixth chapter, the Lord was preparing the deliverer; in the seventh chapter, the Lord prepares his army. Chapter 7 outlines what should characterize the Lord’s servants in a day when there is much weakness and failure among God’s people. There are some valuable lessons here for us. The Lord passed the recruits for Gideon’s army through certain tests before they were ready to be used. These tests manifested what kind of men they were. There are five things in particular in this 7th chapter that I want to point out.
1) Courage and Conviction
The first thing we see the Lord looking for in Gideon’s men is courage and conviction (Judges 7:1-31Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and pitched beside the well of Harod: so that the host of the Midianites were on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley. 2And the Lord said unto Gideon, 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. 3Now therefore go to, 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. (Judges 7:1‑3)). To find such among those who volunteered for Gideon’s army, the Lord gave them a simple test. He told Gideon to tell the people, “Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from mount Gilead.” If they didn’t have the faith and conviction for this work of fighting the enemy, they were given the opportunity to return. This immediately distinguished those who truly had the courage and conviction for the job.
In service, it’s important that we don’t push people beyond what they have faith for. Courage to exercise our gift takes faith, and a person should exercise his gift according to the measure of his faith. The Word of God says, “According as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith ... . Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith” (Rom. 12:3, 63For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. (Romans 12:3)
6Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; (Romans 12:6)).
Timothy was naturally timid, and the Apostle Paul sought to encourage him to use his gift, saying, “Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:6-76Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. 7For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:6‑7)). If, however, a person does not have the faith for some work that we think they should do, we must not push them into that which they will later have difficulty carrying out. This was the mistake of Barnabas and Paul (Acts 13:1-51Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. 3And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. 4So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus. 5And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister. (Acts 13:1‑5)). In their first missionary journey they took with them a young man named John Mark, who was not ready for the work. God had said, by the Spirit, “Separate Me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.” He didn’t say anything about bringing Mark along. We know what happened; Mark turned back from the work, and it spoiled his testimony (Acts 13:13; 15:3813Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem. (Acts 13:13)
38But Paul thought not good to take him with them, who departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work. (Acts 15:38)).
2) Unwavering Devotion to the Master’s Service
The servant of the Lord must be willing and courageous, but he must also be devoted to his Master’s will. He must undertake his service for the Lord with such tenacity and conviction that he allows nothing to come between it and the Lord. Since every servant will profess his devotion to his Master, each must be tested as to the reality of it (Judges 7:4-84And the Lord said unto Gideon, 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. 5So he brought down the people unto the water: and the Lord said unto Gideon, Every one 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. 6And 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. 7And the Lord said unto 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. 8So 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. (Judges 7:4‑8)).
To identify those in Gideon’s army who truly were “meet for the Master’s use” (2 Tim. 2:2121If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. (2 Timothy 2:21)), Gideon was told to bring the men “down unto the water.” The Lord would put them through the “water test.” He said, “Bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there.” Those who took the water up to their mouths in their hands were the ones the Lord wanted to use in His service. The others who got down and “lapped” it like “a dog” were not going to be used. Sure enough, some of the men took the water up to their mouths, and others got down and lapped the water.
The water would sustain the servant in the battle and ensuing pursuit of the enemy. It was a needed and welcomed mercy of the Lord. In this passage, it speaks of creature mercies in temporal things, which the Lord provides for His people in the way. Those who got down and drank the water had momentarily taken their eyes off the task at hand. It speaks of those who indulge in natural mercies and make such their object. Such can not be used in the Lord’s service in any significant way. On the other hand, those who took the water to their mouths were able to stay vigilant as to the service at hand. These were taken and used by the Lord in the battle.
The great question for us is, “How do we handle these temporal mercies?” The Lord would have us to partake of them to refresh and sustain us in the way, but do we indulge in such to the point where we get our eyes off the work at hand? These things can be a distraction. We cannot expect to be used of the Lord when we are engrossed in natural things? Uriah the Hittite is a striking example of the devotion we need to have. He wouldn’t put natural things before the work of the Lord—even to go home to his wife—until the battle against the Ammonites was won (2 Sam. 11:6-136And David sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent Uriah to David. 7And when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded of him how Joab did, and how the people did, and how the war prospered. 8And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king's house, and there followed him a mess of meat from the king. 9But Uriah slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his house. 10And when they had told David, saying, Uriah went not down unto his house, David said unto Uriah, Camest thou not from thy journey? why then didst thou not go down unto thine house? 11And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing. 12And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to day also, and to morrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow. 13And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he made him drunk: and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house. (2 Samuel 11:6‑13)).
Furthermore, those who took water in their hands to drink must necessarily have had clean hands! This speaks of practical holiness in our personal lives. As servants of the Lord, we must be careful to handle His things with clean hands. “Be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the LORD” (Isa. 52:1111Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord. (Isaiah 52:11)). Clean hands are needed in:
3) Felt Weakness
He went down to the camp of the enemy and heard a man tell a dream to his friend. The man spoke of “a cake of barley” tumbling along in the wind and bumping into one of their tents, knocking it over. The other man interpreted it that “the sword of Gideon” was going to smite them! A barley cake is a little thing. Being moved along so easily by the wind, speaks of weakness, yet it accomplished a great thing. Gideon learned from the mouth of his enemies that God uses weak little things to accomplish His ends in service! The Bible says, “God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty” (1 Cor. 1:2727But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; (1 Corinthians 1:27)).
We are to learn from this that if we go forth in ministry in felt weakness and dependence, God will come in and use us for the blessing of His people. People want to feel strong, but what we should want to feel is our weakness, because then we’ll experience the Lord’s power to help us Paul knew about this secret of power in ministry. He said, “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me ... . for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-109And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9‑10); Isa. 40:2929He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. (Isaiah 40:29)). Have we learned this?
4) Willingness to Serve Unnoticed
When the time came for the rout of the Midianites, the victory was entirely the Lord’s. Gideon and his men were told to stand forth in the night with “a trumpet in every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers” (Judges 7:15-2215And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the Lord hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian. 16And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet in every man's hand, with empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers. 17And he said unto them, Look on me, and do likewise: and, behold, when I come to the outside of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do. 18When I blow with a trumpet, I and all that are with me, then blow ye the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and say, The sword of the Lord, and of Gideon. 19So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, came unto the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch; and they had but newly set the watch: and they blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers that were in their hands. 20And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they cried, The sword of the Lord, and of Gideon. 21And they stood every man in his place round about the camp: and all the host ran, and cried, and fled. 22And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the Lord set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host: and the host fled to Beth-shittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abel-meholah, unto Tabbath. (Judges 7:15‑22)). At a signal from Gideon, they were to break the pitchers that concealed the light of the lamps and blow their trumpets. And the Lord would do the rest! In fact, what happened is that the Lord caused pandemonium to break out among the Midianites in the darkness, and they turned on one another with their swords and killed each other! This was an unusual method of beating the enemy, but it was God’s way of victory. The men of Gideon had a lamp in one hand and a trumpet in the other. It speaks of the dual testimony of the Christian. There is the testimony we live—as lamps shining “as lights in the world” (Phil. 2:1515That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; (Philippians 2:15)); and there is the testimony we speak—as a trumpet, “holding forth the Word of life” (Phil. 2:1616Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain. (Philippians 2:16)). Having one in each hand speaks of the need for proper balance between the two in our lives.
Notice too that in order for the light to shine out, they had to break the clay vessels that covered the lamps. The Apostle Paul picks up on this figure and uses it in application to the Christian minister. He said, “For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness hath shined in our hearts to give the light [for the shining forth] of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassingness of the power may be of God, and not from us” (2 Cor. 4:6-76For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 7But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. (2 Corinthians 4:6‑7) – J. N. Darby Trans.). He tells us that we have a great light shining in us—“the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” He also alludes to the fact that our frail human frames are “earthen vessels” that can hinder the outflow of that glorious light. But God breaks down the vessel through the many afflictions and trials through which we pass, so that the light shines out unhindered. He said, “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body” (2 Cor. 4:8-108We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; 10Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. (2 Corinthians 4:8‑10)). Such afflictions and trials have a way of bringing us to the point where we deny ourselves in self-judgment so that more of Christ would flow out of our human vessels.
There was an absence of display with these servants that is strikingly beautiful. They were standing in the dark night and could not be seen as they carried out their service for the Lord. It speaks of willingness to serve unnoticed by the public eye. This teaches us that God uses servants that are not occupied with putting themselves forward in His service. Paul mentioned this too; he said, “We preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Cor. 4:55For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. (2 Corinthians 4:5)). If there is any thought in our hearts of getting a name for ourselves in the Lord’s work, there is something seriously wrong. It is a worldly principle that must be judged, or it will spoil our ministry. We’ve seen young men putting themselves forward in larger meetings to get what looks like recognition or notoriety, and it’s unseemly. Unfortunately, that ungainly motive is hard to detect in our hearts. We should pray, “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psa. 139:23-2423Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 24And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139:23‑24)). Our brethren often recognize it in us before we do, and if faithful, will point it out to us.
You know, we are more likely to get volunteers for the service of the Lord if the service is something that brings a person into the public eye. It’s just human nature. But Gideon’s men were willing to serve without being seen, and that’s commendable. Albert Hayhoe told the story of a time when he was young and went to a conference. By accident he had left his Bible on the chair after the gospel meeting. When he went back into the hall to get his Bible, he saw an old brother there alone picking up the gospel hymn books on the chairs. He said to Albert, “I always get plenty of help passing out the hymn books at the beginning of the meeting, but when it’s over I end up picking them up by myself.” Handing them out was a work that brought a person into the eye of all the people. We naturally like to do that kind of service because we get noticed. Albert said that that really spoke to him because he was one of the young men that had volunteered to hand them out at the beginning of the meeting!
5) Energy
In the latter part of the chapter we see the men from Naphtali, Asher, and Manasseh pursuing after the remaining Midianites. This brings before us another needed trait in the servants of the Lord—energy. We need energy in the service of the Lord. If we feel that the Lord has given us something to do for Him, let’s do it with zeal. Paul said, “It is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing” (Gal. 4:1818But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you. (Galatians 4:18)).
A little later, when Gideon’s men were pursuing after the fleeing Midianites, they got faint, but they continued to pursue anyway. They were “faint, yet pursuing” (Judges 8:44And Gideon came to Jordan, and passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing them. (Judges 8:4)). This shows a real strength of character. They didn’t give up when the going got tough. Endurance is an important thing to have in the service of the Lord. Jeremiah said, “Cursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord negligently” (Jer. 48:1010Cursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood. (Jeremiah 48:10) – J. N. Darby Trans.).
It reminds me of the lesson that the old prophet Elisha gave to young king Joash (2 Kings 13:14-1914Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. 15And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows. And he took unto him bow and arrows. 16And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha put his hands upon the king's hands. 17And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot. And he said, The arrow of the Lord's deliverance, and the arrow of deliverance from Syria: for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them. 18And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed. 19And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice. (2 Kings 13:14‑19)). After showing the young king how to shoot the arrow of the Lord’s deliverance, he told him to take arrows in his hand and smite the ground. It would symbolically represent the smiting of the Syrians. Joash smote the ground with the arrows three times, and stopped. And the prophet was angry with him! He told him that he should have smitten the ground “five or six times;” then the enemy would have been consumed. The point here is that when the Lord gives us something to do, we are to carry it out tenaciously, and finish the job. That’s what we see in Gideon’s men; they pursued the Midianites until they caught them and finished the work. This is an amiable quality in the servant of the Lord. The Lord Jesus said, “My meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me, and to finish His work” (John 4:3434Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. (John 4:34)).