"Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The campe of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh." (Judges 7:1) You'll recall from Chapter 6 that Gideon's townspeople gave him the nickname "Jerub-Baal" after he demolished his father's pagan altar to Baal and built an altar to the Lord in its place. This name means, "Let Baal contend with him." The townspeople wanted to kill Gideon for destroying the altar but Gideon's father said to them, "If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself when someone breaks down his altar." And the people went away, saying, "Let Baal contend with him." Baal did not contend with Gideon; he couldn't, since Baal doesn't exist. No doubt this helped to turn many of the townspeople's hearts fully back to the Lord and encouraged them, along with thousands of others in Israel, to join the fight against the Midianites. In fact, more men answer the call to arms than will be necessary for the battle.
"The Lord said to Gideon, 'You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, or Israel would boast against Me, 'My own strength has saved me.' Now announce to the army, 'Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.' So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained." (Judges 7:2-3) Gideon originally had thirty-two thousand soldiers under his command. Why did so many men join up to fight and then leave the army before the battle ever began? In Chapter 8 we'll learn that the enemy forces numbered at least 135,000. When Gideon's men viewed the enemy army and all their camels and equipment, the hearts of twenty-two thousand of them were filled with fear. We'll be told later in our current chapter that the Midianite camp lay in the valley below the Israelite camp and this means Gideon's men could see that, "The Midianites, Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore." (Judges 7:12) With this intimidating sight in view, some of the men's knees began to shake. Some of them lost their resolve. They could not imagine charging down into that valley and emerging victorious. They could only imagine defeat and loss of life.
Could thirty-two thousand Israelite soldiers have defeated 135,000 enemy soldiers? Realistically, probably not, not without the help of the Lord. But the Lord does not want anyone to be able to convince themselves, in times to come, that they won the battle because so many valiant men of Israel joined the fight. He doesn't want them to forget how badly they were outnumbered and start thinking thirty-two thousand soldiers were enough to beat the enemy or that they devised such a cunning battle strategy (on their own) that they caught the enemy off guard. Instead He intends for them to say, "We defeated our enemy with the help of the Lord. Without His help we would have had no hope of victory." The Lord wants to build their faith and that means they must have total dependence on Him. They must be able to clearly see that they owe all their success to Him. This will help them stop dabbling in useless idolatry and rededicate their lives to Him.
Gideon is down to ten thousand soldiers now. The Lord says he still needs to reduce the number of troops. "But the Lord said to Gideon, 'There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will thin them out for you there. If I say, 'This one shall go with you,' he shall go; but if I say, 'This one shall not go with you,' he shall not go.'" (Judges 7:4) The Lord will devise a test by which Gideon will know which men are to go with him and which men are to be sent home. The Lord is going to make it quite easy for Gideon to determine which is which. Gideon doesn't have time to stop and interview and pray over every man in order to determine who should go or stay. That would not be efficient or practical. The Lord will do this work for him.
"So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the Lord told him, 'Separate those who lap the water with their tongues as a dog laps from those who kneel down to drink.' Three hundred of them drank from cupped hands, lapping like dogs. All the rest got down on their knees to drink. The Lord said to Gideon, 'With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the others go home.' So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites home but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others." (Judges 7:5-8) All the men believe they are fortifying themselves for battle when they are taken down to the water. Some rush to the water and fall to their knees to drink from the spring directly with their mouths. Others take time to gather water in their cupped hands to drink. A number of scholars propose that these differing attitudes toward slaking their thirst demonstrated which men would easily let down their guard. A man down on his knees with his face to the water, guzzling greedily, is not keeping an eye out for the enemy. Also I think perhaps it demonstrates a lesser amount of self-control and a lesser ability to think before acting. The men who bend down to cup water in their hands and bring the water to their mouths to drink are able to remain alert to an approaching enemy. Because they are still on their feet they can react more quickly and draw their swords.
As Gideon was observing the scene by the water he probably thought the Lord was going to tell him to send the three hundred home and take the 9,700 with him into battle. But the Lord's ways are not man's ways and His thoughts are not man's thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8) The method that appears most logical to man is not necessarily the method the Lord will use. He knows what needs to be done and He knows exactly how it needs to be done. Israel is about to meet 135,000 troops on the battlefield with only 300 men. That's all that will be needed. The battle will be won because the Lord is with the army of Israel, not because of how many soldiers Israel has. This will help them to place their trust in the Lord and not in their own human ability.
I've found myself in circumstances that seemed impossible to resolve. They were impossible to resolve by human ingenuity and by human strength. The Lord got all the credit for turning things around because it was abundantly clear that no one but Him was responsible for turning things around. That's what's going to happen when He turns Israel's circumstances around here in the book of Judges. The people won't be able to take any credit for themselves. They'll be compelled to give all the credit to the Lord because it will be abundantly clear that victory could not have been won without Him. This will strengthen their faith. This will help them resist the lure of idolatry, at least for a while. It is for their own good that they are outnumbered in battle.
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