Judges 7:15-23 [Gideon, the Three Hundred Men, and the Numerous Enemies]

[Things to Meditate On]

1. Gideon was the fifth person to become a judge, following Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, and Deborah. Because the children of Israel once again did evil in the sight of God, God delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years (Judges 6:1). When the children of Israel were greatly impoverished because of the Midianites, they cried out again unto God (Judges 6:6), and God raised up Gideon and delivered the children of Israel once again.

Among those events, the passage above records the scene in which Gideon fought against the army of Midian together with the selected three hundred men. Before the great battle, Gideon had the three hundred men carry trumpets and empty pitchers, and hide lamps inside the pitchers (verse 16). But in a situation where they were about to face a great war, this command may be difficult for us to understand. This is because at that time Gideon and the three hundred men had to fight against the countless armies of Midian, Amalek, and the children of the east, who were as numerous as grasshoppers (Judges 7:12). Since God had already reduced the number of men so that there were only three hundred, if they had so few people, they would at least seem to need excellent weapons or brilliant strategies and tactics. Yet Gideon instead told the three hundred men to carry trumpets and empty pitchers, and to hide lamps inside the pitchers. Then why did God have Gideon tell them to carry trumpets and empty pitchers, and to hide lamps inside the pitchers?

2. The meaning of the trumpet.

Long before this, God had told Moses to make two silver trumpets, and He said that when the priests sounded the trumpets, God would “remember” them and save them from their enemies (Numbers 10:1-10). As an actual example, when Joshua and the children of Israel were about to bring down the impregnable city of Jericho, on the seventh day of going around Jericho according to the word of God, the priests blew the trumpets and the people shouted with a great shout, and the wall of Jericho fell down (Joshua 6). Thus, according to the word God had spoken, the sound of the trumpet was connected with God remembering His people and saving them. The trumpet sound of the gospel is the same. Because God remembers His people according to the gospel of Jesus Christ, even impossible things can become possible.

Matthew 24:31 “And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”

1 Corinthians 15:51-53 “51Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.”

From these passages, we can see that the “trumpet” signifies the “gospel.” Therefore, these passages tell us that the gospel of Jesus Christ will be preached unto the ends of the earth, and that those who hear the gospel will be changed, becoming incorruptible and immortal.

3. The meaning of the empty pitcher and the lamp.

In the Bible, a person is compared to a “pitcher” or a “vessel” (Isaiah 22:24, 2 Timothy 2:20-21). And the word of God is compared to “fire” (Jeremiah 5:14, Jeremiah 23:29). When we put these words together, we can understand the command to “hide the lamp inside the empty pitcher,” in a spiritual sense, as meaning, “Let us become empty pitchers that contain the word of God.” In other words, we must place the word of God within us. In order to do this, we ourselves must first be emptied. This is because unless we first become empty pitchers, the lamp cannot be placed inside. Jesus also first showed us the example of this word by emptying Himself.

Philippians 2:5-8 “5Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

Thus, although Jesus was in the form of God, He emptied Himself, took the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. In other words, He gave Himself in order to fulfill the word of God. Therefore, we also must first be able to empty ourselves of all things within us that have exalted themselves above the word of God, so that the words of Jesus may be fulfilled in our bodies (2 Corinthians 10:5, Philippians 3:7-8). And just as the pitchers had to be broken and the lamps lifted up to shine at the needed time (verse 20), we also must shine forth the word of life of Jesus in this dark world (Philippians 2:15-16).

2 Corinthians 10:5 “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”

Philippians 2:15-16 “15That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; 16Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.”

[Decision and Application]

Before enemies that could never be defeated by human strength, God had Gideon and the three hundred men carry not stronger weapons than their enemies, but rather trumpets and lamps, which could not be called weapons at all. This was to make it clearly known that “the battle is the LORD’s,” just as would later be seen in the battle between David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17:47). The result of this battle was that when the three hundred men held up the lamps and blew the trumpets, amazingly, all the enemies struck one another with their swords and fled (verses 22-23)!

Thus, God is almighty (Job 42:1-2). No matter how impossible something may appear to us, with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). Therefore, we must believe in Him.

Matthew 19:26 “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”

For this reason, we must believe that God is almighty, and we must now strive even more to act according to His word. This is because God is almighty, and therefore He will surely fulfill everything exactly as it is written in the Scriptures (Numbers 23:19). Therefore, just as Gideon said to the three hundred men, “Look on me, and do likewise” (verse 17), we must look only unto Jesus (Hebrews 12:2) and act according to His word. Only then can we also “overcome” the world by faith, just as they gained the victory (Revelation 3:21).

1 John 5:4 “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”

Romans 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

As these words say, by believing the words of Jesus, we can overcome the world. Gideon and the three hundred men gained victory because they believed that this battle belonged to God and humbly followed the word of God. Therefore, when we also humbly believe and follow the words of Jesus “for Jesus” in this world, even the things we thought were impossible can become possible for us. This is possible because just as God heard the sound of the trumpets in the past and remembered the children of Israel, God now remembers us because of Jesus. It is very important for us to understand this fact. This is because when we acknowledge that Jesus alone is the way, the truth, and the life, we can do everything, whether in word or deed, “all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Colossians 3:17). Then God will enable us to overcome the world because of the name of Jesus.

John 14:6 “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

John 14:13 “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”

1 John 5:12-13 “12He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. 13These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.”

Revelation 14:1 “And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.”

Amen.