The Logic of the Lappers
Introduction: God's War on Pragmatism
We live in an age where the church has become enamored with the wisdom of the world. We have our five year plans, our demographic studies, our branding consultants, and our growth strategies. We measure success by the three B's: buildings, budgets, and bodies. We have, in short, become pragmatists. We want to know what works, and we are more than willing to bring the world's marketing techniques into the sanctuary if it means we can get a few more people in the pews. We want to build a formidable army for the Lord, and so we look for the best fundraising campaigns and the most effective outreach programs. We want to be big, impressive, and successful in the eyes of the world.
And into the middle of our corporate board meetings, God walks in, looks at our impressive numbers and our detailed strategies, and says, "You have too many men." This story in Judges 7 is God's definitive declaration of war against human pragmatism. It is a divine rebuke to every church growth seminar that has ever been held. God is not interested in a victory that can be explained away by superior tactics, larger numbers, or charismatic leadership. He is jealous for His own glory. He orchestrates events in such a way that when the victory is won, no man can stand up and say, "My own hand has saved me." He rigs the game, not so that we might win, but so that He might win through us. He is determined to get all the glory for Himself, because all the glory belongs to Him.
The story of Gideon is not primarily about Gideon. It is about the God who delights in using the weak, the foolish, and the insignificant to shame the strong. It is a master class in the divine logic that turns all human wisdom on its head. God will subtract and subtract and subtract from our resources until all we have left is Him. And it is only then that we are in a position to win the battle.
The Text
Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and camped beside the spring of Harod; and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley. And Yahweh said to Gideon, "The people who are with you are too many for Me to give Midian into their hands, lest Israel honor themselves, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ So now, come, call out in the hearing of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is afraid and trembling, let him return and depart from Mount Gilead.’ " So 22,000 people returned, but 10,000 remained. Then Yahweh said to Gideon, "The people are still too many; bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. And it will be that he of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go with you; but everyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go." So he brought the people down to the water. And Yahweh said to Gideon, "Everyone who laps the water with his tongue as a dog laps, you shall set him aside by himself, and so also everyone who kneels to drink." Now the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was 300 men; but all the rest of the people kneeled to drink water. And Yahweh said to Gideon, "I will save you with the 300 men who lapped and will give the Midianites into your hands; so let all the other people go, each man to his place." So the 300 men took the people’s provisions and their trumpets into their hands. And Gideon sent all the other men of Israel, each to his tent, but retained the 300 men; and the camp of Midian was below him in the valley. Now it happened the same night that Yahweh said to him, "Arise, go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hands. But if you are afraid to go down, then both you and Purah your young man, go down to the camp, and you will hear what they say; and afterward your hands will be strengthened, that you may go down against the camp." So he went with Purah his young man down to the outskirts of the armed men that were in the camp. Now the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the sons of the east were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number, as numerous as the sand on the seashore. Then Gideon came, and behold, a man was recounting a dream to his friend. And he said, "Behold, I had a dream; a loaf of barley bread was tumbling into the camp of Midian, and it came to the tent and struck it so that it fell and turned it upside down so that the tent lay flat." And his friend answered and said, "This is nothing less than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel; God has given Midian and all the camp into his hand." Now it happened that when Gideon heard the account of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship. Then he returned to the camp of Israel and said, "Arise, for Yahweh has given the camp of Midian into your hands." And he divided the 300 men into three companies, and he put trumpets and empty pitchers into the hands of all of them, with torches inside the pitchers. Then he said to them, "Look at me and do likewise. And behold, I will come to the outskirts of the camp, and it will be that just as I do so you do likewise. And I and all who are with me will blow the trumpet. Then you also shall blow the trumpets all around the camp and say, ‘For Yahweh and for Gideon.’ "
(Judges 7:1-18 LSB)
The First Cut: A Purge of the Fearful (vv. 1-3)
The scene is set. Gideon, whose new name Jerubbaal means "Let Baal contend," has assembled an army. Thirty-two thousand men have answered the call. By any human standard, this is a good start, but they are still vastly outnumbered by the Midianites, who are like locusts in the valley. And it is at this point that God speaks, and His first words are a bucket of cold water on all human strategy.
"And Yahweh said to Gideon, 'The people who are with you are too many for Me to give Midian into their hands, lest Israel honor themselves, saying, 'My own hand has saved me.'" (Judges 7:2)
This is the central thesis of the entire operation. God's primary concern is not Israel's victory, but His own glory. He sees the pride lurking in the hearts of His people. He knows that if they win with 32,000 men, they will write books about their military genius, they will build monuments to their own courage, and they will forget the Lord who gave them the victory. So God decides to perform some radical surgery. He is going to cut the army down to a size that makes a human victory impossible.
The first test is a test of courage. God tells Gideon to send home anyone who is "afraid and trembling." This is in accordance with the law in Deuteronomy 20:8. But the result is staggering. Twenty-two thousand men pack their bags and leave. More than two-thirds of the army was riddled with fear. Fear is practical atheism. It is looking at the circumstances, at the size of the Midianite army, and concluding that the enemy is greater than God. God cannot use men who are governed by fear, because such men will never trust His absurd battle plans. And so, He purges them. He would rather have a small, courageous remnant than a large, cowardly mob.
The Second Cut: The Test at the Spring (vv. 4-8)
Gideon is now left with 10,000 men. The odds are worse, but perhaps manageable. But God is not finished with His divine subtraction.
"Then Yahweh said to Gideon, 'The people are still too many...'" (Judges 7:4)
God's "too many" is man's "not nearly enough." He brings the remaining men down to the water for another test. This test seems bizarre, almost arbitrary. He divides the men based on how they drink water. The vast majority, 9,700 men, kneel down, put their faces to the water, and drink their fill. They are careless, comfortable, and oblivious to their surroundings. But 300 men do something different. They lap the water from their hands to their mouths, "as a dog laps." They remain upright, watchful, and alert. They get the water they need, but their heads are up, their eyes are scanning the horizon. They are ready.
Now, we can speculate about the tactical advantage of lapping. It shows a soldier's readiness, his discipline, his refusal to be careless even in a moment of refreshment. But to focus on that is to miss the main point. The main point is not the method of drinking, but the sovereign choice of God. God could have separated them by any means He wished. He could have separated them by height, or by hair color, or by who could skip a stone the farthest. The point of the test was to demonstrate that God is the one who chooses His instruments according to His own wisdom, not ours. He selected the 300 not because they were inherently better, but because He sovereignly designated them for the task. He whittled the army down to a laughable, pathetic remnant to ensure that the coming victory could have only one explanation: God did it.
The Final Word: A Loaf of Barley Bread (vv. 9-14)
The army is now set. Three hundred men against a horde that is as numerous as the sand on the seashore. Gideon is obedient, but God knows he is a man. God knows that Gideon's own heart is likely quaking. And so, in a moment of incredible pastoral tenderness, God condescends to encourage His servant.
"But if you are afraid to go down, then both you and Purah your young man, go down to the camp, and you will hear what they say; and afterward your hands will be strengthened..." (Judges 7:10-11)
God does not rebuke Gideon for his potential fear; He provides a remedy for it. He sends him on a reconnaissance mission, not to gather intelligence, but to receive a word of confirmation. And notice where the confirmation comes from. It comes from the mouth of the enemy. Gideon overhears a Midianite soldier telling his friend about a dream. The dream is almost comical. A loaf of barley bread, the food of the poor, comes tumbling into the Midianite camp and flattens a tent.
The symbolism is potent. Israel, and Gideon's army in particular, is that insignificant, humble loaf of barley bread. They are not a mighty lion or a soaring eagle. They are a lump of dough. But this lump of dough, empowered by God, topples the might of Midian. And the interpretation is not left to Gideon's imagination. The other soldier gives the divine meaning: "This is nothing less than the sword of Gideon... God has given Midian and all the camp into his hand." God uses a pagan soldier to preach a sermon of encouragement to His wavering prophet. This is our God. He is so sovereign that He can put His own promises into the mouths of our enemies to strengthen our faith.
The Foolish Battle Plan (vv. 15-18)
Gideon's response to this confirmation is exactly right. He does not rush back to strategize. He worships.
"Now it happened that when Gideon heard the account of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship." (Judges 7:15)
Worship must always precede warfare. Acknowledging God's sovereignty is the necessary prerequisite for acting in His name. Only after he worships does he return to the camp and issue the battle plan. And what a plan it is. It is a plan born of divine foolishness. The weapons are not swords and spears, but trumpets, empty pitchers, and torches.
This is strategic madness. You are asking 300 men to surround an army of over 100,000, and their only weapons are noise and light. But this is theological genius. The Apostle Paul tells us that we have our treasure, the light of the gospel, in earthen vessels, in clay pots (2 Corinthians 4:7). For the light to shine, the pot must be broken. The pitchers represent the weakness and brokenness of Gideon's men. The torches within are the light of God's power and presence. The trumpets are for proclamation, for announcing the kingship of Yahweh. This is not a military assault; it is a liturgical act. It is a loud, bright, and sudden declaration that Yahweh is on the field.
And the battle cry seals it. "For Yahweh and for Gideon." God is gracious to include Gideon's name, but the order is non-negotiable. God's glory comes first. Gideon is merely the barley loaf that God has chosen to roll into the enemy camp.
Conclusion: Victory in Weakness
This entire narrative is a parable for the Christian life and the mission of the church. We are constantly tempted to trust in our own strength, our numbers, our resources, and our clever plans. We are afraid of being small, of being weak, of looking foolish. But God's method has not changed. He is still in the business of divine subtraction.
He sifts His church. He sends the fearful home. He sets aside those who are more concerned with their own comfort than with the battle. He is looking for His 300 lappers, those who are alert, ready, and willing to obey His commands, no matter how foolish they seem.
Our weapon is the foolishness of the cross. Our battle plan is the proclamation of the gospel. We are to take our trumpets, the Word of God, and our broken, earthen-vessel lives, and let the light of Christ shine in the darkness. The world will call it madness. But "the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men" (1 Corinthians 1:25).
The ultimate barley loaf was the Lord Jesus Christ. He came in humility and weakness. He was despised and rejected. And on the cross, that earthen vessel was broken, and the light of the glory of God shone forth, defeating sin, death, and the devil. The victory is already won. Our job is not to win it again, but to announce it. To surround the enemy camp, smash our pitchers, blow our trumpets, and shout, "For Yahweh and for Christ!" Arise, for the Lord has given the camp of the enemy into our hands.