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365 Devotionals: The Promised Land
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. James 1:22 AMP
The Seeds of Promise Devotional Series
Gideon’s Army
“In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself”. John 1:1 AMP
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| March | Book | Read From | Read To | Devotional |
| 24th | Judges | Chapter 7 | Gideon’s Army |
Devotional Reading: Judges 7:1-3 AMP
1 Then Jerubbaal, that is, Gideon, and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the spring of Harod; and the camp of Midian was north of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley. 2 The Lord said to Gideon, The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel boast about themselves against Me, saying, My own hand has delivered me. 3 So now proclaim in the ears of the men, saying, Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him turn back and depart from Mount Gilead. And 22,000 of the men returned, but 10,000 remained.
Gideon assembled his army of the men of his people. However, God determined that the people would contend for His glory (which He says that He will not share with another), thinking that they had secured victory by their number and might. In one moment, God reduced Gideon’s army of over thirty-thousand men, to just 10,000.
Devotional Reading: Judges 7:4-8 AMP
4 And the Lord said to Gideon, The men are still too many; bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. And he of whom I say to you, This man shall go with you, shall go with you; and he of whom I say to you, This man shall not go with you, shall not go. 5 So he brought the men down to the water, and the Lord said to Gideon, Everyone who laps up the water with his tongue as a dog laps it, you shall set by himself, likewise everyone who bows down on his knees to drink. 6 And the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was 300 men, but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water. 7 And the Lord said to Gideon, With the 300 men who lapped I will deliver you, and give the Midianites into your hand. Let all the others return every man to his home. 8 So the people took provisions and their trumpets in their hands, and he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his home and retained those 300 men. And the host of Midian was below him in the valley.
In this second test, God reduced Gideon’s army from 10,000 to 300, about ten percent – or a tithe of the original army. It is so that to God, a tenth represents the whole – this is a principle of the title. God can do more with His 10% of resources than any person can do with thirty thousand parts of the whole. With only 300 men to go to war, the victory would have to be attributed to God – not by power or might of me, but by the Spirit of God.
Devotional Reading: Judges 7:9-15 AMP
9 That same night the Lord said to Gideon, Arise, go down against their camp, for I have given it into your hand. 10 But if you fear to go down, go with Purah your servant down to the camp 11 And you shall hear what they say, and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp. Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outposts of the camp of the armed men. 12 And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the sons of the east lay along the valley like locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand on the seashore for multitude. 13 When Gideon arrived, behold, a man was telling a dream to his comrade. And he said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and behold, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian and came to the tent and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down so that the tent lay flat. 14 And his comrade replied, This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon son of Joash, a man of Israel. Into his hand God has given Midian and all the host. 15 When Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped and returned to the camp of Israel and said, Arise, for the Lord has given into your hand the host of Midian.
God allowed Gideon to hear that He was already working against the Midianites, creating fear in them and preparing their minds to be defeated. This was the beginning of a psychological warfare, which would be augmented by the trumpets and great noise – the sound of breaking pitchers and of shouting of Gideon’s army.
Devotional Reading: Judges 7:16-25 AMP
16 And he divided the 300 men into three companies, and he put into the hands of all of them trumpets and empty pitchers, with torches inside the pitchers. 17 And he said to them, Look at me, then do likewise. When I come to the edge of their camp, do as I do. 18 When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then you blow the trumpets also on every side of all the camp and shout, For the Lord and for Gideon! 19 So Gideon and the 100 men who were with him came to the outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, when the guards had just been changed, and they blew the trumpets and smashed the pitchers that were in their hands. 20 And the three companies blew the trumpets and shattered the pitchers, holding the torches in their left hands, and in their right hands the trumpets to blow [leaving no chance to use swords], and they cried, The sword for the Lord and Gideon! 21 They stood every man in his place round about the camp, and all the [Midianite] army ran—they cried out and fled. 22 When [Gideon’s men] blew the 300 trumpets, the Lord set every [Midianite’s] sword against his comrade and against all the army, and the army fled as far as Beth-shittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel-meholah by Tabbath. 23 And the men of Israel were called together out of Naphtali and Asher and all Manasseh, and they pursued Midian.
24 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, Come down against the Midianites and take all the intervening fords as far as Beth-barah and also the Jordan. So all the men of Ephraim were gathered together and took all the fords as far as Beth-barah and also the Jordan. 25 And [the men of Ephraim] took the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb, and they slew Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they slew at the winepress of Zeeb, and pursued Midian; and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon beyond the Jordan.
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