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Judges 7
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| 7:1
Then 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. |
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| 7:2
And 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. |
 120,000 Midianites Killed
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| 7:3
Now 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.
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| 7:4
And 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. |
(7:4-7) God picks the men to fight in Gideon's army by the way they drink water. Only those that lap water with their tongues,
"as a dog lappeth," shall fight.
The Heroes of Faith
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| 7:5
So 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. |
 Gideon chooses the 300
James Tissot, 1896-1900
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| 7:6
And 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. |
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| 7:7
And 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. |
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| 7:8
So 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.
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 Gideon Slaughters His Own People
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| 7:9
And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Arise,
get thee down unto the host; for I have delivered it into thine hand.
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| 7:10
But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Phurah thy servant down to the
host: |
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| 7:11
And thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be
strengthened to go down unto the host. Then went he down with Phurah his
servant unto the outside of the armed men that were in the host. |
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| 7:12
And the Midianites and
the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for
multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea
side for multitude. |
The Midianites and Amalekites had an infinite number of camels -- well, maybe not quite, but at least as many "as the sand by the sea shore."
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| 7:13
And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man that told a dream unto
his fellow, and said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and, lo, a cake of barley
bread tumbled into the host of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it
that it fell, and overturned it, that the tent lay along. |
BOM: 1 Nephi 3:2
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| 7:14
And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of
Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God
delivered Midian, and all the host. |
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| 7:15
And 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. |
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| 7:16
And 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. |
(7:16-20)
"The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon."
Gideon's men break three hundren picthers while holding lamps, blowing trumpets, and yelling "The sword of the Lord and of
Gideon."
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| 7:17
And 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.
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| 7:18 When 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. |
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| 7:19
So 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. |
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| 7:20 And 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. |
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| 7:21
And they stood every man in his place round about the camp; and all the
host ran, and cried, and fled. |
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| 7:22
And 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 Bethshittah in Zererath,
and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath. |
When Gideon and his water-lapping companions blow their trumpets, God forces all the enemy soldiers
to kill each other.
How many has God killed?
(Complete list and estimated total)
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| 7:23
And the men of Israel gathered themselves together out of Naphtali, and
out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after the Midianites. |
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| 7:24
And Gideon sent messengers throughout all mount Ephraim, saying, come down
against the Midianites, and take before them the waters unto Bethbarah and
Jordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and took
the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan. |
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| 7:25
And they took two
princes of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb; and they slew Oreb upon
the rock Oreb, and
Zeeb they slew at the winepress of Zeeb, and pursued Midian, and brought the heads of
Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side Jordan. |
Two princes are killed and their heads are brought to Gideon.
What the Bible says about decapitation
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Gideon chooses the 300