The Sword of Jehovah

You probably know the story as well as I. Gideon was a judge of Israel and God called on him to deliver His people from the hand of the Midianites (Judges 6, 7). At first Gideon was somewhat doubtful of the whole thing. He even wanted proof that God was Who He said He was. Can you imagine? When Gideon was finally convinced that he could do this, with God’s help, he raised an army of 32,000 men to fight the enemy. That’s what any patriot leader would do. Some of our own forefathers in this country did as much.

When Gideon’s army was assembled, however, an interesting thing happened. God told him he had too many soldiers. I don’t know about you, but that sounds a little like “too much money.” It’s hard to imagine, but God had a reason for saying that. You see, if Israel had defeated the army of Midian with so many soldiers, even with God’s help, they would think they had done it all on their own. It’s likely that, after asking God’s help, they would have said, “Never mind, Lord! We didn’t need you, after all!!” Let me ask you this: have you ever been guilty of that attitude?

Well, you know what Gideon had to do. First, he pared the army down to 10,000. God said that was still too many. Eventually, Gideon was left with 300 men; 300 men to defeat the whole Midianite army! Actually, the Midianites were allied with the Amalekites and “all the sons of the east.” I don’t know how many enemy soldiers that makes, but I think it’s a safe bet to say that 300 Jews would be outnumbered! Have you ever felt that outnumbered? Have the cares of this life ever threatened to overwhelm you with such a flood?

Well, this is what Gideon did. He …divided the 300 men into three companies, and he put trumpets and empty pitchers into the hands of all of them, with torches inside the pitchers. And he said to them, “Look at me, and do likewise. And behold, when I come to the outskirts of the camp, do as I do. When I and all who are with me blow the trumpet, then you also blow the trumpets all around the camp, and say, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon’” (Judges 7:16-18). That was all the army of Gideon had to do, blow the trumpets and break the pitchers and shout, “For the Lord and for Gideon.” Verse 20 says they actually cried, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon.”

Don’t you wish all you had to do to overcome the afflictions that assail you every day of your life was blow a horn, break a pitcher and shout, “Hallelujah” or some other way of saying, “Praise the Lord”? Well, in a sense, that is all you have to do. I don’t recommend that you destroy the calm in your house tonight in the middle of the night by blowing a horn, breaking a pitcher and yelling anything at the top of your lungs. That may be an application somewhat more literal than we need to make. However, you can respond that way figuratively by recognizing the battle is not yours, but Jehovah’s (2 Chronicles 20:15). And then, instead of sitting back and waiting for God to make all your problems go away, make the positive and proactive decision to fight your enemy for all you’re worth. Don’t let the evil one win. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:21). You may very well look your predicament over very carefully and decide, “There’s no way I can defeat that problem with my puny 300.” Just remember, your puny 300 becomes an almighty and irresistible 301 when you add God to the equation. And He’s standing by, just waiting for you to start tackling your problems with His help and doing it His way.

I wonder what it was like in that Midianite camp when the attack began. Can you even imagine hearing that noise and what must have gone through their minds? Well, that’s what happens when we resist the devil and he flees (James 4:7). Aren’t you glad you’re on the side of Jehovah? You should be. Know that He loves you and so do I.