‘And they cried out “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!” (Judges 7:20b).

In 1740 there was a minister in Scotland called William McCulloch. He was a very scholarly man, but, he wasn’t a very exciting preacher. He was jokingly called a ‘ale minister’ as people would disappear from the Church when the sermon began as, rather than having a ‘thirst’ for the Word’, they’d visit the nearest inn to satisfy their physical thirst! Yet, despite this, the Lord used him at that time in a mighty work of revival! It might surprise us to know that a few years before this the great preacher George Whitfield had visited and preached in the same area to little effect. Yet, it was the Lord’s will to use this rather ‘hesitant’ and unexciting speaker. Why? Because it’s his work and not ours. Indeed, his fellow ministers testified it had to be a work of God as no one in their right mind would call listening to William McCulloch a stimulating experience!

In the same way, Gideon’s journey of faith tells us more about the Lord than it does him. We might think that after the bold action  of destroying his father’s altar to Baal (even if it was done at night) everything would fall into place and Gideon would stage total war against the Midianites and their allies as we read: ‘the Spirit of the LORD clothed Gideon’ (v34). But before we know it he’s back to his old hesitant ways and asking for a sign (v36) despite the Lord’s promises to Gideon and what was written in his Word about the Lord leading his people in battle (Deuteronomy 20:4).

If Gideon’s faith up to this point is hesitant, by the start Chapter 7, it’s a growing faith. He now trusts the Lord without question when the Lord initiates a series of ways to select men to fight, so that Israel will not boast that it’s by their own strength they have been delivered (vs1-8). The first was actually a stipulation within the Law that if anyone was frightened about going into battle they could go home (Deuteronomy 20:8). So, minus 22,000 men and with 10,000 remaining, the Lord issues the next method of selection which is to see how the men drink. Some commentators make much of this, suggesting that one method shows greater alertness than the other. The text isn’t specific, so it may have just been a way to whittle down the numbers further. The result is Gideon is left with only 300 men. So the Lord says to Gideon: “With the 300 men who have lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hand and let all the others go every man to his home” (v7).

What happens next demonstrates Gideon may still have some reservations, but it also demonstrates the grace and kindness the Lord can show to us when we lack faith. The Lord tells Gideon to go down to the Midianite camp, but he stresses that if he is afraid: “You shall hear what they say, and afterwards your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp” (v11). So Gideon goes with his servant and what he hears is a great encouragement. The content of the dream one of the Midianites recounts to his colleague in verses 13-14  tells us a few things. Firstly, the Midianites had heard about Gideon. But it’s the way the dream is interpreted that would have been of encouragement to Gideon. It’s reckoned the: ‘cake of barley bread’ (v13), that flattens the tent in the dream, symbolises the meagre day to day rations that Israel were surviving on. So, this is an example of something considered weak (the Israelites in this case) becoming a major threat! The thing to note here is this is a prime case of what God had promised. He literally was going ahead of Gideon, and the army and striking fear into their enemies (Deuteronomy 20:4). So, rather than  running back to the army and ordering the attack immediately: ‘he worshiped’ the Lord realising the battle was as good as won (v15).

Gideon’s faith is contagious. His army of 300 men, armed with trumpets, jars and torches (I don’t doubt they had swords but they weren’t going to use them yet) surrounds the Midianite camp, blow the trumpets, break the jars and exposed the torches and give the shout: “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!” (v20). The result is that the Lord literally fights for them as there is mass panic in the camp with the Midianites turning on each other. Calling out some of the other tribes, Gideon is able to cut off the Midianite retreat and win a major victory (vs19-25)!

The text doesn’t tell us how much of this strategy was Gideon’s and how much was the Lord’s? But perhaps that’s the point. Gideon is now Insync with the Lord as he is following his will. So that can imply inspiration that is brought under the authority of the Lord as well as plain and simple obedience. Gideon is trusting the Lord and seeking to see him glorified through the apparent weakness of the Israelite army. Paul when writing to the Corinthian Church makes this observation: ‘consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;  God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are,  so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.’ (1 Corinthians 1:26-29).  He concludes by saying: ‘therefore, as it is written “let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:31). Our aim should not be to bring glory to ourselves, but rather to him as he works through our weakness!