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Judges 7

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1 καὶ ὤρθρισεν ιαρβαλ αὐτός ἐστιν γεδεων καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς μετ' αὐτοῦ καὶ παρενέβαλον ἐπὶ πηγὴν αραδ καὶ παρεμβολὴ μαδιαμ ἦν αὐτῷ ἀπὸ βορρᾶ ἀπὸ γαβααθ αμωρα ἐν κοιλάδι

2 καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς γεδεων πολὺς ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετὰ σοῦ ὥστε μὴ παραδοῦναί με τὴν μαδιαμ ἐν χειρὶ αὐτῶν μήποτε καυχήσηται ισραηλ ἐπ' ἐμὲ λέγων ἡ χείρ μου ἔσωσέν με

3 καὶ νῦν λάλησον δὴ ἐν ὠσὶν τοῦ λαοῦ λέγων τίς ὁ φοβούμενος καὶ δειλός ἐπιστρεφέτω καὶ ἐκχωρείτω ἀπὸ ὄρους γαλααδ καὶ ἐπέστρεψεν ἀπὸ τοῦ λαοῦ εἴκοσι καὶ δύο χιλιάδες καὶ δέκα χιλιάδες ὑπελείφθησαν

4 καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς γεδεων ἔτι ὁ λαὸς πολύς κατένεγκον αὐτοὺς πρὸς τὸ ὕδωρ καὶ ἐκκαθαρῶ σοι αὐτὸν ἐκεῖ καὶ ἔσται ὃν ἐὰν εἴπω πρὸς σέ οὗτος πορεύσεται σὺν σοί αὐτὸς πορεύσεται σὺν σοί καὶ πᾶν ὃν ἐὰν εἴπω πρὸς σέ οὗτος οὐ πορεύσεται μετὰ σοῦ αὐτὸς οὐ πορεύσεται μετὰ σοῦ

5 καὶ κατήνεγκεν τὸν λαὸν πρὸς τὸ ὕδωρ καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς γεδεων πᾶς ὃς ἂν λάψῃ τῇ γλώσσῃ αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τοῦ ὕδατος ὡς ἐὰν λάψῃ ὁ κύων στήσεις αὐτὸν κατὰ μόνας καὶ πᾶς ὃς ἐὰν κλίνῃ ἐπὶ τὰ γόνατα αὐτοῦ πιεῖν

6 καὶ ἐγένετο ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν λαψάντων ἐν χειρὶ αὐτῶν πρὸς τὸ στόμα αὐτῶν τριακόσιοι ἄνδρες καὶ πᾶν τὸ κατάλοιπον τοῦ λαοῦ ἔκλιναν ἐπὶ τὰ γόνατα αὐτῶν πιεῖν ὕδωρ

7 καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς γεδεων ἐν τοῖς τριακοσίοις ἀνδράσιν τοῖς λάψασιν σώσω ὑμᾶς καὶ δώσω τὴν μαδιαμ ἐν χειρί σου καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς πορεύσονται ἀνὴρ εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτοῦ

8 καὶ ἔλαβον τὸν ἐπισιτισμὸν τοῦ λαοῦ ἐν χειρὶ αὐτῶν καὶ τὰς κερατίνας αὐτῶν καὶ τὸν πάντα ἄνδρα ισραηλ ἐξαπέστειλεν ἄνδρα εἰς σκηνὴν αὐτοῦ καὶ τοὺς τριακοσίους ἄνδρας κατίσχυσεν καὶ ἡ παρεμβολὴ μαδιαμ ἦσαν αὐτοῦ ὑποκάτω ἐν τῇ κοιλάδι

9 καὶ ἐγενήθη ἐν τῇ νυκτὶ ἐκείνῃ καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτὸν κύριος ἀναστὰς κατάβηθι ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ ὅτι παρέδωκα αὐτὴν ἐν τῇ χειρί σου

10 καὶ εἰ φοβῇ σὺ καταβῆναι κατάβηθι σὺ καὶ φαρα τὸ παιδάριόν σου εἰς τὴν παρεμβολὴν

11 καὶ ἀκούσῃ τί λαλήσουσιν καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο ἰσχύσουσιν αἱ χεῖρές σου καὶ καταβήσῃ ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ καὶ κατέβη αὐτὸς καὶ φαρα τὸ παιδάριον αὐτοῦ πρὸς ἀρχὴν τῶν πεντήκοντα οἳ ἦσαν ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ

12 καὶ μαδιαμ καὶ αμαληκ καὶ πάντες υἱοὶ ἀνατολῶν βεβλημένοι ἐν τῇ κοιλάδι ὡσεὶ ἀκρὶς εἰς πλῆθος καὶ ταῖς καμήλοις αὐτῶν οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμός ἀλλὰ ἦσαν ὡς ἡ ἄμμος ἡ ἐπὶ χείλους τῆς θαλάσσης εἰς πλῆθος

13 καὶ ἦλθεν γεδεων καὶ ἰδοὺ ἀνὴρ ἐξηγούμενος τῷ πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἐνύπνιον καὶ εἶπεν ἐνύπνιον ἰδοὺ ἐνυπνιασάμην καὶ ἰδοὺ μαγὶς ἄρτου κριθίνου στρεφομένη ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ μαδιαμ καὶ ἦλθεν ἕως τῆς σκηνῆς καὶ ἐπάταξεν αὐτήν καὶ ἔπεσεν καὶ ἀνέστρεψεν αὐτὴν ἄνω καὶ ἔπεσεν ἡ σκηνή

14 καὶ ἀπεκρίθη ὁ πλησίον αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶπεν οὐκ ἔστιν αὕτη εἰ μὴ ῥομφαία γεδεων υἱοῦ ιωας ἀνδρὸς ισραηλ παρέδωκεν ὁ θεὸς ἐν χειρὶ αὐτοῦ τὴν μαδιαμ καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν παρεμβολήν

15 καὶ ἐγένετο ὡς ἤκουσεν γεδεων τὴν ἐξήγησιν τοῦ ἐνυπνίου καὶ τὴν σύγκρισιν αὐτοῦ καὶ προσεκύνησεν κυρίῳ καὶ ὑπέστρεψεν εἰς τὴν παρεμβολὴν ισραηλ καὶ εἶπεν ἀνάστητε ὅτι παρέδωκεν κύριος ἐν χειρὶ ἡμῶν τὴν παρεμβολὴν μαδιαμ

16 καὶ διεῖλεν τοὺς τριακοσίους ἄνδρας εἰς τρεῖς ἀρχὰς καὶ ἔδωκεν κερατίνας ἐν χειρὶ πάντων καὶ ὑδρίας κενὰς καὶ λαμπάδας ἐν ταῖς ὑδρίαις

17 καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς ἀπ' ἐμοῦ ὄψεσθε καὶ οὕτως ποιήσετε καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ εἰσπορεύομαι ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς παρεμβολῆς καὶ ἔσται καθὼς ἂν ποιήσω οὕτως ποιήσετε

18 καὶ σαλπιῶ ἐν τῇ κερατίνῃ ἐγώ καὶ πάντες μετ' ἐμοῦ σαλπιεῖτε ἐν ταῖς κερατίναις κύκλῳ ὅλης τῆς παρεμβολῆς καὶ ἐρεῖτε τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ τῷ γεδεων

19 καὶ εἰσῆλθεν γεδεων καὶ οἱ ἑκατὸν ἄνδρες οἱ μετ' αὐτοῦ ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς παρεμβολῆς ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς φυλακῆς μέσης καὶ ἐγείροντες ἤγειραν τοὺς φυλάσσοντας καὶ ἐσάλπισαν ἐν ταῖς κερατίναις καὶ ἐξετίναξαν τὰς ὑδρίας τὰς ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῶν

20 καὶ ἐσάλπισαν αἱ τρεῖς ἀρχαὶ ἐν ταῖς κερατίναις καὶ συνέτριψαν τὰς ὑδρίας καὶ ἐκράτησαν ἐν χερσὶν ἀριστεραῖς αὐτῶν τὰς λαμπάδας καὶ ἐν χερσὶν δεξιαῖς αὐτῶν τὰς κερατίνας τοῦ σαλπίζειν καὶ ἀνέκραξαν ῥομφαία τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ τῷ γεδεων

21 καὶ ἔστησαν ἀνὴρ ἐφ' ἑαυτῷ κύκλῳ τῆς παρεμβολῆς καὶ ἔδραμεν πᾶσα ἡ παρεμβολὴ καὶ ἐσήμαναν καὶ ἔφυγαν

22 καὶ ἐσάλπισαν ἐν ταῖς τριακοσίαις κερατίναις καὶ ἔθηκεν κύριος τὴν ῥομφαίαν ἀνδρὸς ἐν τῷ πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ παρεμβολῇ καὶ ἔφυγεν ἡ παρεμβολὴ ἕως βηθσεεδτα γαραγαθα ἕως χείλους αβωμεουλα ἐπὶ ταβαθ

23 καὶ ἐβόησαν ἀνὴρ ισραηλ ἀπὸ νεφθαλι καὶ ἀπὸ ασηρ καὶ ἀπὸ παντὸς μανασση καὶ ἐδίωξαν ὀπίσω μαδιαμ

24 καὶ ἀγγέλους ἀπέστειλεν γεδεων ἐν παντὶ ὄρει εφραιμ λέγων κατάβητε εἰς συνάντησιν μαδιαμ καὶ καταλάβετε ἑαυτοῖς τὸ ὕδωρ ἕως βαιθηρα καὶ τὸν ιορδάνην καὶ ἐβόησεν πᾶς ἀνὴρ εφραιμ καὶ προκατελάβοντο τὸ ὕδωρ ἕως βαιθηρα καὶ τὸν ιορδάνην

25 καὶ συνέλαβον τοὺς ἄρχοντας μαδιαμ καὶ τὸν ωρηβ καὶ τὸν ζηβ καὶ ἀπέκτειναν τὸν ωρηβ ἐν σουρ καὶ τὸν ζηβ ἀπέκτειναν ἐν ιακεφζηφ καὶ κατεδίωξαν μαδιαμ καὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν ωρηβ καὶ ζηβ ἤνεγκαν πρὸς γεδεων ἀπὸ πέραν τοῦ ιορδάνου

   

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Exploring the Meaning of Judges 7

Napsal(a) New Christian Bible Study Staff, Julian Duckworth

Judges 7: Gideon’s valiant three hundred men.

Gideon and all his men camped by the well of Harod, which can mean “eager”, and also “trembling.” The Lord told Gideon that his army was too large, which could lead Israel to boast that they won by their own efforts (rather than the Lord’s power). Gideon was instructed to send away anyone who was afraid; 22,000 went home, leaving 10,000.

Even still, the Lord said the army was too large, so Gideon tested the men by taking them down to the water to drink. The Lord directed Gideon to call out those who lapped water from out of their hands rather than kneeling down to drink with their mouths. Three hundred men were chosen by this method of selection.

The Lord then commanded Gideon to go down to the Midianite camp, and if he was afraid, to take his servant, Phurah. There, Gideon overheard one of the soldiers telling his companion that he’d had a dream, in which a loaf of bread came tumbling into the camp and struck one of the tents so that it collapsed. The other soldier said that this meant the Lord would give victory to Gideon.

Gideon gave each of his men a trumpet, and a pitcher containing a lit torch. They surrounded the Midianite camp, and at the command of Gideon, they blew their trumpets, broke their pitchers to show the torches, and shouted, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!” This caused panic in the camp, and every Midianite drew his sword against another, and many fled. Then Gideon ordered the capture and killing of the two Midianite princes, whose heads were brought to him.

*****

We must give glory to the Lord for successes that we seem to earn, as He alone does what is good. The Lord told Gideon to reduce the size of his army, to avoid the dangers of growing too proud. Since we live our lives as if we do everything ourselves, this is a constant threat. The fact that about two-thirds of Gideon’s army were afraid and went home shows the reality of our nature (see Swedenborg’s work, True Christian Religion 442).

Lapping water from the hand reflects our need to see and examine what we take into our minds. Water stands for truth, but it can also stand for false ideas. If we drink directly from the water, we accept indiscriminately and examine nothing. Cupping and holding the water in our hands means that we can see how to apply this truth through our attitudes and actions (see Swedenborg’s work, Arcana Caelestia 6047[2]).

Gideon’s army of only three hundred men was all it took to defeat the Midianites. The number ‘three’ stands for something which is complete or full in itself. Some spiritual examples include mind, body and soul, as well as celestial, spiritual and natural (see Swedenborg’s Apocalypse Explained 435[3] and 532[2]).

The dream Gideon overheard stands for the power of good (the bread) to break down the apparent power of what is evil and false (the tent) (Arcana Caelestia 4247[3]). The name of Gideon’s servant, Phurah, means “fruitfulness”, or “a winepress”, which is where Gideon was first called by the angel of the Lord.

The trumpet and the torch both stand for the power of truth to overcome evil and false ideas, the trumpet by its penetrating sound, and the torch by its illuminating light. There is no mention of swords for the army of Israel.

Finally, the oppression by the Midianites represents knowing what is true, but living a life governed by our own desires. This leads us increasingly further away from obeying the Lord. Of course, this must be addressed. The Midianites destroyed each other in their panic, meaning what is disorderly and against the Lord holds no validity, and eventually destroys itself (Arcana Caelestia 9320).

Bible

 

Judges 7:7

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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.