Judges 7

1. And Jerubbaal (he is Gideon) and all the people that were with him, rose up early and pitched beside the well of Harod, so that the army of the Midianites was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.

2. And the LORD said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel boast themselves against Me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’

3. Now, therefore, speak in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and go away early from Mount Gilead.’ ” And twenty-two thousand of the people returned. And there remained ten thousand.

4. And 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. It shall be that of whom I say to you, ‘This shall go with you,’ the same shall go with you. And of whomever I say to you, ‘This shall not go with you,’ the same shall not go.”

5. And he brought down the people to the water. And the LORD said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set him apart; also everyone who bows down upon his knees to drink.”

6. And the number of them who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men. But all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water.

7. And the LORD said to Gideon, “I will save you by the three hundred men who lapped, and will deliver the Midianites into your hand. And let all the other people go, each man to his place.”

8. And the people took provisions in their hand, and their ram’s horns. And he sent away all the rest of Israel, each man to his tent, and kept only those three hundred men. And the army of Midian was below him in the valley.

9. And it came to pass on that night, the LORD said to him, “Arise, go down to the army, for I have delivered it into your hand.

10. But if you fear to go down alone, go down with Purah your servant to the army.

11. And you shall hear what they shall say. And afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the army.” Then he went down with Purah his servant to the edge of the ranks in the army.

12. And the Midianites and the Amalekites, and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude, and their camels without number, like the sand by the seaside for multitude.

13. And when Gideon had come, behold, a Midianite man told a dream to his fellow, and said, “Behold, I dreamed a dream, and lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host of Midian, and came to a tent, and struck it so that it fell, and overturned it, so that the tent lay flat.”

14. And his fellow answered and said, “This is nothing else except the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel, for into his hand God has delivered Midian and all the army.”

15. And it came to pass, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and the meaning of it, he worshiped. And he returned to the army of Israel and said, “Arise, for the LORD has delivered the host of Midian into your hand!”

16. And he divided the three hundred men into three companies. And he put a ram’s horn in every man’s hand with empty pitchers and torches inside the pitchers.

17. And he said to them, “Look at me, and do likewise. And, behold, when I come to the edge of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so you shall do.

18. When I blow with a ram’s horn, I and all who are with me, then you blow the ram’s horns also all around the camp, and shout, ‘For the LORD and for Gideon!’ ”

19. So Gideon and the hundred men with him came to the edge of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch. And they had but newly set the watch. And they blew the ram’s horns and broke the pitchers that were in their hands.

20. And the three companies blew the ram’s horns and broke the pitchers and held the torches in their left hands and the ram’s horns in their right hands to blow. And they cried, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!”

21. And they stood, each man in his place, all around the camp. And all the army ran, and cried out, and fled.

22. And the three hundred blew the ram’s horns. And the LORD set every man’s sword against his fellow, even throughout all the army. And the army fled to Beth Shittah in Zererath, to the border of Abel Meholah, to Tabbath.

23. And the men of Israel were called out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and ran after the Midianites.

24. And Gideon sent messengers throughout all Mount Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites, and take from them the watering places of Beth Barah and Jordan.” Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselves. And they captured the watering places of Beth Barah and Jordan.

25. Then they took two princes of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb. And they killed Oreb upon the rock Oreb, and they killed Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. And they pursued Midian and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side of Jordan.