Judges 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.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(15) The interpretation thereof.—Literally, its breaking. The word is a metaphor from breaking a nut—enucleation.

Benson Commentary

Jdg 7:15-16. When Gideon heard, he worshipped — He praised God for this special encouragement. He divided the men into three companies — To make a show of a vast army. Lamps within the pitchers — The lights were put into the pitchers, partly to preserve them from the wind and weather, and partly that their approach to the Midianites not being discovered, they might surprise them with sudden flashes of light. But when every man had taken his post just on the outside of the camp, then they broke the pitchers, that they might have the advantage of the lamps, and at the same time cast a great terror upon the Midianites; who, from the number of the lights in different places, doubtless concluded that they were surrounded by a numerous army; and to this terror the number of trumpets, (each man sounding one,) and the shouts from different parts, greatly contributed.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

7:9-15 The dream seemed to have little meaning in it; but the interpretation evidently proved the whole to be from the Lord, and discovered that the name of Gideon had filled the Midianites with terror. Gideon took this as a sure pledge of success; without delay he worshipped and praised God, and returned with confidence to his three hundred men. Wherever we are, we may speak to God, and worship him. God must have the praise of that which encourages our faith. And his providence must be acknowledged in events, though small and seemingly accidental.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon - The word rendered tumbled in Judges 7:13, is rather descriptive of a sword brandished (compare Genesis 3:24). Hence, the interpretation "the sword of Gideon." Hearing this dream and the interpretation would convince Gideon that he was indeed under the guidance of God, and so assure him of God's aid; and secondly, it would show him that a panic had already fallen npon the mind of the enemy.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

15. when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation … he worshipped—The incident originated in the secret overruling providence of God, and Gideon, from his expression of pious gratitude, regarded it as such. On his mind, as well as that of his followers, it produced the intended effect—that of imparting new animation and impulse to their patriotism.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Gideon understood

the telling of the dream, though spoken in the Midianitish language; either because it was near akin to the Hebrew, being only a different dialect of it; or because the Israelites had now been accustomed to the Midianites’ company and discourse for seven years.

He worshipped; he praised God for this miraculous work and special encouragement, whereby he was confirmed in his enterprise.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof,.... Or, "the breaking of it" (g); the dream itself being like something closed up and sealed, and the interpretation of it was like the breaking of a seal, and discovering what is hid under it; or like a nut, the kernel of which cannot be come at till the shell is broken:

that he worshipped; bowed his head with an awful reverence of God and a sense of his divine Majesty, and worshipped him by sending an ejaculatory prayer and praise to him; and so the Targum,"and he praised''praised God for this gracious encouragement he had given, the assurance of victory he now had; for he saw clearly the hand of God in all this, both in causing one of the soldiers to dream as he did, and giving the other the interpretation of it, and himself the hearing of both:

and returned into the host of Israel; such an one as it was, consisting only of three hundred unarmed men: and said, arise; from their sleep and beds, it being the night season; and from their tents, and descend the hill with him:

for the Lord hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian; he made now no doubt of it, it was as sure to him as if it had been actually done; hence Gideon is renowned for his faith, though he sometimes was not without his fits of diffidence; see Hebrews 11:32.

(g) "fractionem ejus", Vatablus, Drusius; "fracturam ejus", Piscator.

Geneva Study Bible

And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he {g} worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian.

(g) Or, gave God thanks, as it is in the Chaldea text.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 15. - It was so, etc. The effect upon Gideon was like magic. He not only learnt the state of panic in which the Midianites were, but he had a further certainty that God was with him. His simple piety and adoring gratitude threw him at once upon his knees to thank God, and to cast himself anew upon his strength with un-doubting trust. His hands were indeed strengthened, and he lost not a moment in returning to his 300, relating in a few words the incident of the dream, and bidding them follow him. The Lord hath delivered, etc. Cf. 1 Samuel 14:20. Judges 7:15

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

When therefore he had heard the dream related and interpreted, he worshipped, praising the Lord with joy, and returned to the camp to attack the enemy without delay. He then divided the 300 men into three companies, i.e., three attacking columns, and gave them all trumpets and empty pitchers, with torches in the pitchers in their hands. The pitchers were taken that they might hide the burning torches in them during their advance to surround the enemy's camp, and then increase the noise at the time of the attack, by dashing the pitchers to pieces (Judges 7:20), and thus through the noise, as well as the sudden lighting up of the burning torches, deceive the enemy as to the strength of the army. At the same time he commanded them, "See from me, and do likewise," - a short expression for, As ye see me do, so do ye also (כּן, without the previous כּ, or כּאשׁר as in Judges 5:15; see Ewald, 260, a.), - "I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me; ye also blow the trumpets round about the entire camp," which the 300 men divided into three companies were to surround, "and say, To the Lord and Gideon." According to Judges 7:20, this war-cry ran fully thus: "Sword to (for) the Lord and Gideon." This addition in Judges 7:20, however, does not warrant us in inserting "chereb" (sword) in the text here, as some of the early translators and MSS have done.

(Note: Similar stratagems to the one adopted by Gideon here are recorded by Polyaenus (Strateg. ii. c. 37) of Dicetas, at the taking of Heraea, and by Plutarch (Fabius Max. c. 6) of Hannibal, when he was surrounded and completely shut in by Fabius Maximus. An example from modern history is given by Niebuhr (Beschr. von Arabien, p. 304). About the middle of the eighteenth century two Arabian chiefs were fighting for the Imamate of Oman. One of them, Bel-Arab, besieged the other, Achmed ben Said, with four or five thousand men, in a small castle on the mountain. But the latter slipped out of the castle, collected together several hundred men, gave every soldier a sign upon his head, that they might be able to distinguish friends from foes, and sent small companies to all the passes. Every one had a trumpet to blow at a given signal, and thus create a noise at the same time on every side. The whole of the opposing army was thrown in this way into disorder, since they found all the passes occupied, and imagined the hostile army to be as great as the noise.)