Chapter 7 of Sefer Shoftim is one of the most remarkable battle accounts in all of Tanach: an enormous camp of Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east lies in the valley "as numerous as locusts," and facing them the army of Israel shrinks from thirty two thousand men down to a mere three hundred. The entire chapter is a lesson in understanding the relationship between miracle and human effort: on the one hand, the Holy One reduces the army so that it will be clear to all that the salvation comes from Heaven, and on the other hand, Gideon employs eight clever tactics of war. Let us proceed according to the order of the verses.
וַיַּשְׁכֵּם יְרֻבַּעַל הוּא גִדְעוֹן וְכָל־הָעָם אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ וַיַּחֲנוּ עַל־עֵין חֲרֹד וּמַחֲנֵה מִדְיָן הָיָה־לוֹ מִצָּפוֹן מִגִּבְעַת הַמּוֹרֶה בָּעֵמֶק - Yerubaal, he is Gideon, and all the people who were with him rose early and camped by Ein Charod, and the camp of Midian was to the north of them, by Givat HaMoreh, in the valley.
Seemingly, why the need to emphasize "he is Gideon"? After all, we already know that Yerubaal is Gideon. Rather, it teaches us that he remained the very same Gideon he had always been. Even though they called him "Yerubaal" - "let the Baal contend with him" - he did not fall under pressure and did not say to himself, "I have gotten myself into trouble with the Baal." He remained with the same faith and the same trust.
And from the geographical standpoint, the Malbim explains: Ein Charod was to the south of Givat HaMoreh, and the camp of Midian was to the north, in the valley.
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהֹוָה אֶל־גִּדְעוֹן רַב הָעָם אֲשֶׁר אִתָּךְ מִתִּתִּי אֶת־מִדְיָן בְּיָדָם פֶּן־יִתְפָּאֵר עָלַי יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר יָדִי הוֹשִׁיעָה לִּי - And Hashem said to Gideon: The people who are with you are too many for Me to give Midian into their hand, lest Israel take glory over Me, saying, "My own hand has saved me."
The Holy One wanted everyone to see that all that was happening here was by way of miracle. If there were many of them, they would say: "What miracle? We were thousands, tens of thousands, we put them to flight." Says the Holy One: No. He will take glory and think that he accomplished something himself.
And why here, specifically, was it so important to emphasize the miracle? Because this is precisely what Gideon had complained about in the previous chapter: what, You performed miracles for the earlier generations, so why in our generation do You not perform miracles? Therefore the Holy One wanted to show him: I will indeed perform a miracle for you, but I want it to be clear that it is a miracle, and that you not attribute it to flesh and blood.
וְעַתָּה קְרָא נָא בְּאָזְנֵי הָעָם לֵאמֹר מִי־יָרֵא וְחָרֵד יָשֹׁב וְיִצְפֹּר מֵהַר הַגִּלְעָד וַיָּשָׁב מִן־הָעָם עֶשְׂרִים וּשְׁנַיִם אֶלֶף וַעֲשֶׂרֶת אֲלָפִים נִשְׁאָרוּ - Now, therefore, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying: Whoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart from Mount Gilad. And twenty two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained.
The people numbered thirty two thousand men - a very serious division. And the Holy One asks Gideon to announce to the people: whoever is apprehensive, fearful, and afraid of the battle, "let him return and depart from Mount Gilad."
What does "yitzpor" mean? One explanation: he should rise early in the morning and go, for "boker" (morning) is rendered in Aramaic as "tzafra," meaning he should go toward morning. A second explanation: he should circle around, take a roundabout path. And where does this expression come from? From the fact that a turban is called "tzefirah" - "tzefirat tifarah" - because it is wound around.
It is explained that in both of these interpretations the aim is the same: to spare the men who are supposed to leave from any embarrassment. After all, the reason they are leaving is that they are afraid and frightened, and it is unpleasant to leave when you are pasting the label of "coward" on yourself. Therefore he told them: leave toward morning, while everyone is still asleep and suddenly no one sees you, so that you will not be humiliated. And according to the second explanation: do not go along the usual road where everyone sees you and meets you, take a roundabout path so they will not encounter you - and you will spare yourself shame and unpleasantness.
The Malbim explains the depth in these words: divine bounty rests only upon those who are prepared and worthy of it. In order to be deserving of the bounty you must prepare vessels, you must be fitting. And for this, two things are required: preparation in terms of might, and preparation in terms of holiness - that you be truly holy and worthy to receive the bounty.
This victory in the end relied on might and also on a miracle and divine power. Therefore, at first the Holy One, blessed be He, says: might is needed - and one who is afraid and frightened lacks might, and is not worthy that a bounty of might flow through him, so let him return home. Afterward we will see that He separates out those who bowed to Baal, and there the discussion is about men who are unworthy because of their spiritual level. That is, one must be worthy both in terms of physical might and in terms of a sufficient spiritual level.
The Malbim is precise: he does not tell them to return home immediately, but rather to go back and sleep on Mount Gilad, and in the morning to go to their homes. And why should he not go straight home? Because the salvation is about to come, that very night, and he needs them - for they are the ones who will pursue from Mount Gilad. He positions them on Mount Gilad, and from there they will come to finish the task and chase after those who flee. And according to the Malbim, "yitzpor" is like birds that fly off: I will need you in the morning, you are my reserve. You will not be in the battle itself, but afterward I will need you.
Note the difference: those who bowed to Baal, whom we will see further on, he did not even keep as a reserve. To them he says to go straight home - I will not use you at all. Among the first group the problem is fear; among those who bowed to Baal the problem is that they are not spiritually prepared, they are idol worshipers - and I do not even want you for the pursuit, go straight and return to your home.
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהֹוָה אֶל־גִּדְעוֹן עוֹד הָעָם רָב הוֹרֵד אוֹתָם אֶל־הַמַּיִם וְאֶצְרְפֶנּוּ לְךָ שָׁם וְהָיָה אֲשֶׁר אֹמַר אֵלֶיךָ זֶה יֵלֵךְ אִתָּךְ הוּא יֵלֵךְ אִתָּךְ וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר־אֹמַר אֵלֶיךָ זֶה לֹא־יֵלֵךְ עִמָּךְ הוּא לֹא יֵלֵךְ - And Hashem said to Gideon: The people are still too many. Bring them down to the water and I will refine them for you there, and it shall be that of whom I say to you, "This one shall go with you," he shall go with you, and of whomever I say to you, "This one shall not go with you," he shall not go.
"Va'etzrefenu" (and I will refine them) - like refining silver from its dross. The Holy One, blessed be He, says: I want to separate the good from the inferior.
The Malbim is precise about the difference in wording: at first it says "rav ha'am asher itach" (the people who are with you are too many), and here it says "od ha'am rav" (the people are still too many) without "asher itach" (who are with you). And why? Because the first group were not idol worshipers and resembled him, and therefore they are called "with you." But those who were idol worshipers are not "with you" - they are not close to you and do not resemble you, and therefore Scripture does not call them "with you." And here He says "va'etzrefenu lecha" (and I will refine them for you): I want to see who is worthy to go "with you," that is, according to your intentions before Hashem for the war. And whoever is not worthy - he shall not go at all.
And now the wordy phrasing becomes clear: "וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר־אֹמַר אֵלֶיךָ זֶה לֹא־יֵלֵךְ עִמָּךְ הוּא לֹא יֵלֵךְ". On the surface this seems redundant, for it is already implied by the first part. But according to the Malbim's approach the matter is wonderful: about the first group I said they would not go into battle but would serve as a reserve force, waiting on Mount Gilad until you call them to pursue the enemy, for they merely lack the strength of valor. Such a man is fit to pursue, but going out to fight is not for him. In contrast, those I am speaking of now lack the fear of Heaven; they are idol worshippers. About them the Holy One, blessed be He, says "he shall not go" - I do not want him here at all, not even as a reserve force. Send them home entirely, for such a man does not believe in Hashem at all.
וַיּוֹרֶד אֶת־הָעָם אֶל־הַמָּיִם וַיֹּאמֶר יְהֹוָה אֶל־גִּדְעוֹן כֹּל אֲשֶׁר־יָלֹק בִּלְשׁוֹנוֹ מִן־הַמַּיִם כַּאֲשֶׁר יָלֹק הַכֶּלֶב תַּצִּיג אוֹתוֹ לְבָד וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר־יִכְרַע עַל־בִּרְכָּיו לִשְׁתּוֹת - And he brought the people down to the water, and Hashem said to Gideon: Everyone who laps of the water with his tongue as a dog laps, set him apart, and everyone who kneels down on his knees to drink
Let us begin with the clearer part: "and everyone who kneels down on his knees to drink." Gideon sets up a test for them, and they all approach to drink from the river. Whoever gets down on his knees and drinks from the water, clearly this man is problematic, and he is sent home. But whoever takes water in his hands and brings it to his mouth, this is a proper man, and him you may take with you into battle.
And what does this test come to express? There are several opinions among the commentators. The Radak says: those who kneel down on their knees show that they are accustomed to kneeling, that they always kneel to the Baal, and out of habit they knelt now as well. Another point: one who kneels on his knees shows that he lacks valor, he is a "faller onto the knees," and such a man will quickly fall on his knees before the enemy as well. And further: kneeling indicates the frenzy of desire, to drink all at once, without waiting and bringing the water to the mouth. He kneels and pounces on the water, and this shows a flaw.
The Midrash offers another reason: in the days of Gideon there were people who worshipped their own reflection, and they would kneel on their knees toward the shadow, toward the image reflected back to them from the water. And since this was so, here too they get down on their knees for that very act.
And what does "worshipping their own reflection" mean? There are two interpretations of this. One interpretation: they see, as it were, their reflection in the water, and this symbolizes their spiritual image that influences them. That is, he does not worship himself but rather this reflection, which expresses a spiritual force, a mazal that influences him, and he worships it so that the mazal will continue to influence him. A second interpretation: they worship, as it were, themselves - "my reflection, that is me, my strength, I have done this."
וַיְהִי מִסְפַּר הַמְלַקְקִים בְּיָדָם אֶל־פִּיהֶם שְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת אִישׁ וְכֹל יֶתֶר הָעָם כָּרְעוּ עַל־בִּרְכֵיהֶם לִשְׁתּוֹת מָיִם - And the number of those who lapped, bringing their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men, and all the rest of the people knelt down on their knees to drink water
The Malbim says: "everyone who laps" is one who takes water in his hand and brings it to his mouth and laps with his tongue. But the one who kneels fills his mouth with water, that is, he drinks directly from the river through his mouth. And this follows the words of Chazal that those who kneel are accustomed to kneeling to their reflection, and that kneeling indicates the frenzy of desire to drink all at once, as well as the weakness of the joints of the limbs, as the Akeidah explains.
The Akeidah adds a beautiful point: kneeling shows that their limbs are weak, that they are unable to bend down. For bending down requires the effort of many muscles: you stand and bend over, the back muscles stretch, the leg and arm muscles stretch. In contrast, getting down on the knees is an easy, simple movement, less demanding. And since this is so, there was in this a test of bodily strength and power: who falls on his knees, and who is able to bend down and draw water with his hand.
According to the Malbim, "who laps with his tongue" are those mentioned in the following verse: "and the number of those who lapped, bringing their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men." These are the righteous, who lifted water in their hands and lapped it to their mouth. It emerges from this that the verse "everyone who laps of the water with his tongue as a dog laps" speaks of the proper men, those three hundred who bring water to their mouth and lap it, and who do not draw directly from the spring while getting down on all fours.
However, the Malbim himself notes that Rashi has a different approach here: according to Rashi the entire verse speaks about the same group. "Everyone who laps with his tongue... set him apart by himself" - and who are they? "And everyone who kneels down on his knees to drink." That is, the lapping is the kneeling: he kneels down on his knees and laps the water exactly as a dog laps when it drinks. And this is implied more clearly by the wording of the Targum: "Everyone who licks with his tongue from the water as a dog licks... set him apart by himself, and everyone who kneels on his knees to drink" - he licks with his tongue from the water exactly like a dog, meaning directly from the river, and one cannot do so unless he goes down on all fours. Thus the entire verse speaks about those who kneel. But according to the Malbim, "everyone who laps with his tongue" speaks about those who lap, who are the worthy men.
The Malbim here explains a principle that he repeats in many places in Tanach: what is the difference between "yeter" (surplus) and "nishar" (remainder)? Seemingly in both cases we are speaking about a remnant. But "nishar" is intentional, while "notar" or "yeter" is something that became superfluous on its own. There were ten people; I took two and told them: you will remain here - I am interested in their remaining, that is "nishar." But if I needed eight and took eight, the two that were left over are called "yeterim" (surplus).
Therefore it is written here "and all the surplus (yeter) of the people knelt on their knees," and not "those who remained": did I intentionally leave them behind? These are those who became superfluous anyway, who are extra. I need only the three hundred, and all the rest became surplus.
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהֹוָה אֶל־גִּדְעוֹן בִּשְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת הָאִישׁ הַמְלַקְקִים אוֹשִׁיעַ אֶתְכֶם וְנָתַתִּי אֶת־מִדְיָן בְּיָדֶךָ וְכָל־הָעָם יֵלְכוּ אִישׁ לִמְקֹמוֹ - And Hashem said to Gideon: With the three hundred men who lapped I will save you, and I will give Midian into your hand, and let all the people go every man to his place.
Again we see the emphasis that the Malbim explained above: those who knelt to the Baal - I do not want them here at all. "Let them go every man to his place," and not to Mount Gilad like the previous ones. These I do not want even as a reserve force; rather they should all go every man to his place.
וַיִּקְחוּ אֶת־צֵדָה הָעָם בְּיָדָם וְאֵת שׁוֹפְרֹתֵיהֶם וְאֵת כָּל־אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל שִׁלַּח אִישׁ לְאֹהָלָיו וּבִשְׁלֹשׁ־מֵאוֹת הָאִישׁ הֶחֱזִיק וּמַחֲנֵה מִדְיָן הָיָה לוֹ מִתַּחַת בָּעֵמֶק - And they took the provisions of the people in their hand, and their shofars, and he sent away all the men of Israel every man to his tent, and he retained the three hundred men, and the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.
They take the provisions of the people. After all, thirty two thousand men brought provisions, and in the end those who go out to fight are three hundred men, so there was certainly no shortage of provisions. And shofars too were not lacking, and therefore they took from them so that each of the three hundred would have a shofar. For if thirty two thousand men came, they do not bring thirty two thousand shofars; not everyone needs a shofar, since the shofar is not a weapon but an aid to muster the people or to gather them or to give strength and force to those fighting. And since this was so, they took the shofars of those going home, and then there were enough shofars so that each one would have a shofar in his hand.
And here we see Gideon's confidence, that he does not worry at all. Hashem told him: send these ten thousand home - and he sends them away and does not say "perhaps these too should remain after all, perhaps they too will help me." No and no. If Hashem says to send them away, it is a sign that I do not need them.
וַיְהִי בַּלַּיְלָה הַהוּא וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו יְהֹוָה קוּם רֵד בַּמַּחֲנֶה כִּי נְתַתִּיו בְּיָדֶךָ. וְאִם־יָרֵא אַתָּה לָרֶדֶת רֵד אַתָּה וּפֻרָה נַעַרְךָ אֶל־הַמַּחֲנֶה - And it was on that night that Hashem said to him: Arise, go down into the camp, for I have given it into your hand. And if you are afraid to go down, go down, you and Purah your lad, to the camp.
The Malbim notes a precise distinction here: at first "go down against the camp," and afterward "go down, you and Purah your servant, to the camp." What is the difference? "Go down against the camp" means to conquer them, to wage war against them. "To the camp" means to the vicinity of the camp, for the Holy One, blessed be He, wants to give him a sign that will calm his fear, and for that purpose he cannot enter within; he must stand at a distance, and this is not "against the camp" but "to the camp."
And why does the Holy One, blessed be He, want this? Because "if you are afraid to go down," I cannot bring the deliverance through you. For we explained that in order for deliverance to come, spiritual abundance is needed and courage is needed. If you have no courage, I cannot give the deliverance through you; therefore I must perform an act through which your hands will be strengthened, and by virtue of this you will be able to go out and fight.
וְשָׁמַעְתָּ מַה־יְדַבֵּרוּ וְאַחַר תֶּחֱזַקְנָה יָדֶיךָ וְיָרַדְתָּ בַּמַּחֲנֶה וַיֵּרֶד הוּא וּפֻרָה נַעֲרוֹ אֶל־קְצֵה הַחֲמֻשִׁים אֲשֶׁר בַּמַּחֲנֶה - And you shall hear what they say, and afterward your hands shall be strengthened, and you shall go down against the camp. So he went down, he and Purah his servant, to the edge of the armed men who were in the camp.
The Holy One, blessed be He, tells him: after you hear what they are saying, this will give you strength and might, "and afterward your hands shall be strengthened," and then "you shall go down against the camp." Again let us note the precision: "against the camp" refers to the camp itself, to conquer it; it does not say "and then you shall go down to the camp," for "to the camp" is only in order to reach its edge and hear what is happening there, and not in order to conquer. Therefore when he goes down, it says "to the edge of the armed men who were in the camp": they do not come into the camp but to its edge. "The edge of the armed men" are the men outfitted with weapons, for it was mainly those at the edges who were armed to guard and to defend if an attack should come from outside.
וּמִדְיָן וַעֲמָלֵק וְכָל־בְּנֵי־קֶדֶם נֹפְלִים בָּעֵמֶק כָּאַרְבֶּה לָרֹב וְלִגְמַלֵּיהֶם אֵין מִסְפָּר כַּחוֹל שֶׁעַל־שְׂפַת הַיָּם לָרֹב - And Midian and Amalek and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like locusts in multitude, and their camels were without number, as the sand which is upon the seashore in multitude.
It seems, in my humble opinion, that it is not without reason that the verse chose specifically the example of the locust. For we saw above that Midian would come and destroy, come and ruin everything, and this is the trait of the locust, that when it arrives it leaves nothing behind, taking and covering everything. And such was the trait of the children of Midian. "Lay along in the valley" means they dwelt in the valley, as Rashi explains.
וַיָּבֹא גִדְעוֹן וְהִנֵּה־אִישׁ מְסַפֵּר לְרֵעֵהוּ חֲלוֹם וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה חֲלוֹם חָלַמְתִּי וְהִנֵּה צְלִיל לֶחֶם שְׂעֹרִים מִתְהַפֵּךְ בְּמַחֲנֵה מִדְיָן וַיָּבֹא עַד־הָאֹהֶל וַיַּכֵּהוּ וַיִּפֹּל וַיַּהַפְכֵהוּ לְמַעְלָה וְנָפַל הָאֹהֶל - And Gideon came, and behold, a man was telling a dream to his fellow, and he said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and lo, a cake of barley bread was tumbling in the camp of Midian, and it came to the tent and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down, and the tent fell flat.
The Malbim explains: the time was then the sixteenth of Nissan. For Gideon claimed: "Last night my father read me the Hallel" and told me of the miracles of the exodus from Egypt: why, Master of the Universe, do You not perform such miracles for us? This shows that it was the sixteenth of Nissan. And the sixteenth of Nissan is the time of the offering of the Omer, and the merit of the Omer was in their hands and protected them. Moreover, they had now come to plunder the harvest of the field, which is barley bread.
And in his dream he sees a "tzelil," which according to the Malbim is a term of noise, as we use the word "tzelil" (sound). A noise of barley bread rolling and tumbling in the camp of Midian, until the bread reaches the tent, strikes it and overturns it, and the tent falls completely.
And what does the dream come to express? The Malbim explains: he sees the sound of the noise of the barley bread that we came to plunder from Israel, and suddenly the situation is overturned. At first Israel were hiding from us, and suddenly those from whom we came to plunder the barley bread, that very bread turns and attacks us. The bread is what strikes us; those from whom we came to take respond against us. And not only that, but "it came to the tent": it manages to reach our very tents and strikes the tent. "So that it fell" teaches that slain will fall from our tents. "And turned it upside down" is the situation seen later on, that they flee from the valley to the surrounding mountains; now they are in the valley, and they run and flee upward. And there above, "the tent fell flat": there their complete downfall will occur, and with this the matter will end.
Rashi comments on "tzelil lechem se'orim": it is written "tzalul," indicating that the generation was clear (depleted) of righteous people, and yet you see that the Holy One, blessed be He, performed miracles for them. And what is "tzelil lechem se'orim"? According to the Malbim, as mentioned, it is from the language of the rumbling sound of a rolling barley loaf. Yonatan, on the other hand, translates and Rashi explains: "charar of barley bread" - a cake of barley bread, a type of loaf that was baked on the coals, like that cake which the dog took and used to ignite the grain stack.
וַיַּעַן רֵעֵהוּ וַיֹּאמֶר אֵין זֹאת בִּלְתִּי אִם־חֶרֶב גִּדְעוֹן בֶּן־יוֹאָשׁ אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל נָתַן הָאֱלֹהִים בְּיָדוֹ אֶת־מִדְיָן וְאֶת־כָּל־הַמַּחֲנֶה - And his fellow answered and said: This is nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Yoash, the man of Israel; God has delivered Midian and the whole camp into his hand.
"This is nothing other than the sword of Gideon" - there is no other interpretation but the sword of Gideon son of Yoash, the man of Israel. And behold you see that there is nothing lighter than a barley loaf tumbling, yet it overturns the tent, which is far stronger than it. This came to hint that the weak Gideon would overturn the entire camp of Midian. For we saw that the camp of Midian fell in the valley like locusts in abundance, and their camels were without number, like the sand on the seashore; and how many did Gideon bring? Three hundred men. This is a small piece of bread that topples an entire tent.
וַיְהִי כִשְׁמֹעַ גִּדְעוֹן אֶת־מִסְפַּר הַחֲלוֹם וְאֶת־שִׁבְרוֹ וַיִּשְׁתָּחוּ וַיָּשָׁב אֶל־מַחֲנֵה יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיֹּאמֶר קוּמוּ כִּי־נָתַן יְהֹוָה בְּיֶדְכֶם אֶת־מַחֲנֵה מִדְיָן - And it was, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he bowed down, and he returned to the camp of Israel and said: Arise, for Hashem has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand.
"The telling of the dream" - from the language of relating and recounting, as the Radak explains. "And its interpretation (shivro)" - its solution. And why is the interpretation called "shever" (a breaking)? The Radak says: because the dream is like something sealed and closed, like a nut that must be cracked open in order to reveal the inside within it; so too the interpretation breaks open the dream and reveals it.
In my book "Mishnat HaChalomot" I brought the words of Sefer Chasidim in siman 444, which makes an interesting observation specifically regarding our story. He writes: Know that the early ones believed greatly in the words of dreams. For after the Holy One, blessed be He, made a sign for Gideon at the tip of the staff, when fire came down upon the offering he brought during the revelation of the angel - here you have a divine sign, Hashem is speaking with you. And afterward he had two more signs with the fleece: once dryness upon the fleece and once dew upon the fleece. Two additional signs - what more do you need? And yet he was still afraid, until the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him "And if you are afraid to go down, go down you and Purah your lad... and afterward your hands will be strengthened" - and he heard the dream, and following it he was convinced. Is a dream more convincing than a miracle of fire descending from heaven, than a miracle of dew upon the fleece or dryness upon the fleece? Here you have that they believed in dreams more than in signs.
And it is brought in "Shem HaGedolim" of Rav Chida, that from here it is explicit that the early and later rabbis were careful and wary of dreams. And not only that, but even a dream of an idolater. For who dreamed the dream here? A righteous person? Two gentiles - one dreams and the other interprets, and Gideon draws conclusions from it, and the Holy One, blessed be He, delivers a message through that gentile who dreamed. And so too wrote Rabbeinu Chaim Vital in "Megillat Setarim" in manuscript, and as explained in the Midrashim.
With all this one must know, and as I elaborate in "Mishnat HaChalomot": indeed the ancients were careful in the words of dreams, since in their time dreams carried a message; but in the later generations "dreams speak falsehood," and therefore only in very extreme cases should one be moved by a dream. In an ordinary situation the dream stems from the thoughts of one's heart, and one should not relate to it too much.
וַיַּחַץ אֶת־שְׁלֹשׁ־מֵאוֹת הָאִישׁ שְׁלֹשָׁה רָאשִׁים וַיִּתֵּן שׁוֹפָרוֹת בְּיַד־כֻּלָּם וְכַדִּים רֵיקִים וְלַפִּדִים בְּתוֹךְ הַכַּדִּים - And he divided the three hundred men into three heads, and he placed shofarot in the hands of all of them, and empty pitchers, and torches inside the pitchers.
He divides the three hundred men into three heads - one hundred, one hundred, and one hundred. And this is a fixed and systematic method of warfare in Tanach: when they wanted to attack, they would attack in a pincer formation, dividing into several heads and flanking from several directions. This was a set method of war that almost always succeeded - but certainly only subject to divine assistance, as we know from other wars.
Rashi first mentions a reason connected to merit: the shofars and torches were meant to recall the merit of the giving of the Torah, for at the giving of the Torah there was a shofar, and the mountain was entirely in smoke with the fire of Hashem blazing. And according to the plain meaning Rashi says: it was night, and they needed to light up the road for themselves; and so that it should not be noticed by those watching from afar that people were approaching here with torches, they covered the torch inside a clay pitcher, and through this the torch was not visible, yet it still lit up the ground and one could see how to advance.
But the Malbim reveals here an even greater ingenuity: Gideon devised eight stratagems for how to win the battle. And from here we learn something fundamental: even though the Holy One, blessed be He, sends you to fight, and even though you go to a battle whose outcome was seemingly determined in advance by the Master of the world, nevertheless you must do things in the natural way, and minimize the miracle.
And see: when the Holy One, blessed be He, split the Sea of Reeds, He drove a strong east wind all night. Does a strong east wind dry up a sea? No. And yet things must be done as close as possible to nature. And so too here: the Holy One, blessed be He, announces that there will be a victory, "I have given it into your hand," and if you are afraid, I will also give you a dream; and yet you must make the effort according to the way of nature so that the thing should succeed.
As an example, what we find with Shmuel: "And Shaul will hear and kill me." Did the Holy One, blessed be He, say to him, "It will be fine, do not worry, if I tell you, what are you afraid of"? No. He said to him: Take a heifer and say that you came to offer a sacrifice, a cover story. "You are sending me, Master of the world, and You give me cover stories?" Yes, because when you act here on the earthly plane you must act in the natural way. There is a further explanation here that we will see when we reach that place, but the principle holds in all these examples.
And let us count them: the first stratagem, he divided them into three heads, I do not put all the eggs in one basket but split into three directions, and we will soon see how important this was. The second, he placed shofars in the hands of them all, for through the shofars an element of immediate fear and panic is created. The third, the torches, for when they suddenly see everything around them burning with fire, all torches, this too adds to the element of intimidation. The fourth, empty pitchers, which they would smash, and these "booms" would cause them added panic and fear that who knows what trouble is befalling them.
וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם מִמֶּנִּי תִרְאוּ וְכֵן תַּעֲשׂוּ וְהִנֵּה אָנֹכִי בָא בִּקְצֵה הַמַּחֲנֶה וְהָיָה כַאֲשֶׁר־אֶעֱשֶׂה כֵּן תַּעֲשׂוּן - And he said to them: From me you shall see and so shall you do, and behold, I am coming to the edge of the camp, and it shall be that as I do, so shall you do.
Seemingly it would be simpler to say "do as I do." The Malbim says: he meant to tell them, do not act until I act. And the reason for this: since the entire element here is momentary panic, fear in a single second, if there are disruptions here, one earlier and one later, we will lose the momentum. Everything must be done in a single moment, and therefore all of you must look at me, and at that very moment that you see me acting, everyone acts. And then this will create the appropriate intimidation. "And it shall be that as I do, so shall you do," everything I do you shall do like me, and now he explains exactly what.
וְתָקַעְתִּי בַּשּׁוֹפָר אָנֹכִי וְכָל־אֲשֶׁר אִתִּי וּתְקַעְתֶּם בַּשּׁוֹפָרוֹת גַּם־אַתֶּם סְבִיבוֹת כָּל־הַמַּחֲנֶה וַאֲמַרְתֶּם לַיהֹוָה וּלְגִדְעוֹן - And I will blow the shofar, I and all who are with me, and you too shall blow the shofars all around the entire camp, and you shall say: For Hashem and for Gideon.
"I and all who are with me," me and my group, for they had divided into a hundred, a hundred and a hundred. "For Hashem and for Gideon" means: our sword is for Hashem, who fights for us, and afterward for Gideon, for through him the Holy One, blessed be He, sends the salvation.
And here, the Malbim says, is the seventh stratagem: the blasts all around the camp. When you blow the shofar you create a tremendous echo, and we all know that at night noise is heard more loudly than by day. It is written that the sun grinds through the expanse of the firmament, and this is known also according to science and is written in the holy books: by day the sun grinds through the air of the firmament and the sound does not travel far. A person who stands outside at night and shouts will see that it is heard from afar; and if he makes that same sound by day, even if there is no noise and no vehicles, it will not be heard that way. These are facts. And so, when we all make a mighty sound in a single moment, all of us blowing at once, they will think they are surrounded on every side, and that vast armies are coming upon them from all directions.
And a further thing: you shall also shout. For here there is light all at once, a blast all at once, and a shout where everyone shouts all at once, and through this the panic will cause each man's sword to be against his fellow.
And what does he demand that they proclaim? "A sword for Hashem and for Gideon." That is: in order to be worthy of the miracle, you must believe in the miracle and know that the sword belongs to Hashem, not "my strength and the might of my hand." For why did we leave behind us nine thousand seven hundred men? So that those through whom the salvation would come would not think "my own hand saved me." So what is all our strength in this battle? Attributing the might to Hashem, knowing that everything comes from Him, blessed be He. Therefore you must cry out and proclaim "A sword for Hashem and for Gideon": that they should know there is here a sword for Hashem, only that it operates in a natural way through Gideon, as we see that Gideon makes a natural effort.
וַיָּבֹא גִדְעוֹן וּמֵאָה־אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר־אִתּוֹ בִּקְצֵה הַמַּחֲנֶה רֹאשׁ הָאַשְׁמֹרֶת הַתִּיכוֹנָה אַךְ הָקֵם הֵקִימוּ אֶת־הַשֹּׁמְרִים וַיִּתְקְעוּ בַּשּׁוֹפָרוֹת וְנָפוֹץ הַכַּדִּים אֲשֶׁר בְּיָדָם - And Gideon came, and the hundred men who were with him, to the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just as they had set up the guards; and they blew the shofarot and smashed the jars that were in their hands.
They arrive at the beginning of the middle watch, at the start of the middle shift of the night (there are three watches or four, and this is a dispute), at the time when the guards are being roused to keep watch. And why is this the time? Because this is the most convenient time from our standpoint: those being relieved are already exhausted, at the end of their shift and extremely tired; and those coming on now still have sleep between their eyelids. This is a situation in which alertness is at its lowest. In the middle of a watch the guard is alert to see what is happening around him, but at the end of a watch, when he goes to wake those coming after him, it is a convenient time in which it is easier to create panic.
And then he begins to blow the shofar. They roused the guards, and they blow the shofarot and shatter the jars, and suddenly the torches are revealed. And what happens? A tremendous noise: first they cried out "A sword for Hashem and for Gideon," then they blew the shofar, and after that a terrifying noise is heard, and yet another noise of the jars breaking; and they look and suddenly see everything lit up around them. This makes them understand that this is hundreds of thousands, millions, who have surrounded us and are already among us.
וַיִּתְקְעוּ שְׁלֹשֶׁת הָרָאשִׁים בַּשּׁוֹפָרוֹת וַיִּשְׁבְּרוּ הַכַּדִּים וַיַּחֲזִיקוּ בְיַד־שְׂמֹאולָם בַּלַּפִּדִים וּבְיַד־יְמִינָם הַשּׁוֹפָרוֹת לִתְקוֹעַ וַיִּקְרְאוּ חֶרֶב לַיהֹוָה וּלְגִדְעוֹן - And the three companies blew the shofarot and broke the jars, and they held the torches in their left hand and in their right hand the shofarot to blow, and they cried out: A sword for Hashem and for Gideon.
"And the three companies blew the shofarot" - just as he had told them, "From me you shall see and so you shall do." In their left hand they held the torches and in their right hand the shofar. And the Malbim says: the cry "A sword for Hashem and for Gideon" was said before the blowing, even though in the verse it appears at the end. For at the moment of blowing the shofar one cannot break off in the middle; they give a long blast, half a minute, a minute, in order to create the element of surprise. So when do they cry out "A sword for Hashem and for Gideon"? At the start, and immediately afterward they blow the shofar.
וַיַּעַמְדוּ אִישׁ תַּחְתָּיו סָבִיב לַמַּחֲנֶה וַיָּרָץ כָּל־הַמַּחֲנֶה וַיָּרִיעוּ וַיָּנוּסוּ - And they stood, each man in his place, around the camp; and the whole camp ran, and shouted, and fled.
"And the whole camp ran" - they began to flee. "And they shouted" - according to the Radak this refers to a shout of breaking and fear, not the blowing of a shofar but the cry of a man trembling and afraid. And the Malbim explains differently: a commotion arose within the camp, panic began, each one running in the opposite direction, no one knowing where the enemy is, from whom to flee and where to flee, for these are men who have only just awoken from their sleep. "And they shouted and fled" - some of them shouted a battle cry, wanting to rouse the men, and so the shout here is not a cry of breaking and fear but a battle cry; and some of them began to flee. And then confusion arose within the camp.
וַיִּתְקְעוּ שְׁלֹשׁ־מֵאוֹת הַשּׁוֹפָרוֹת וַיָּשֶׂם יְהֹוָה אֵת חֶרֶב אִישׁ בְּרֵעֵהוּ וּבְכָל־הַמַּחֲנֶה וַיָּנָס הַמַּחֲנֶה עַד־בֵּית הַשִּׁטָּה צְרֵרָתָה עַד שְׂפַת־אָבֵל מְחוֹלָה עַל־טַבָּת - And the three hundred blew the shofarot, and Hashem set every man's sword against his fellow throughout the whole camp; and the camp fled as far as Beit HaShitah toward Tzererah, up to the edge of Avel Meholah, by Tabbat.
And after all three hundred shofarot actually begin to blow, "every man's sword against his fellow." The Holy One, blessed be He, brings about such a situation: some of them blow from within the camp itself and some flee, and those who are shouting think that those fleeing are their enemies, for it is night; a man suddenly sees someone running toward him and is certain it is the enemy, and stabs him with the sword. And through this they killed one another, and Israel need do nothing at all: they blow the shofar, and the miracles happen of themselves.
וַיִּצָּעֵק אִישׁ־יִשְׂרָאֵל מִנַּפְתָּלִי וּמִן־אָשֵׁר וּמִן־כָּל־מְנַשֶּׁה וַיִּרְדְּפוּ אַחֲרֵי מִדְיָן - And the men of Israel were called together from Naftali, from Asher, and from all of Menashe, and they pursued Midyan.
Here we see what we explained earlier come to light. At the beginning there were thirty two thousand; Gideon said "Whoever is afraid may leave" - twenty two thousand left and ten thousand remained. Those ten thousand he tested at the water, and he sent away nine hundred... nine thousand seven hundred, and three hundred remained. The nine thousand seven hundred he sent home entirely, as we explained. In contrast, the first ten thousand, meaning those who were sent away first, he told to lodge on Mount Gilad and did not send them home, because in the second stage of the battle we would need them. And behold, they came and were called together and pursued.
וּמַלְאָכִים שָׁלַח גִּדְעוֹן בְּכָל־הַר אֶפְרַיִם לֵאמֹר רְדוּ לִקְרַאת מִדְיָן וְלִכְדוּ לָהֶם אֶת־הַמַּיִם עַד בֵּית בָּרָה וְאֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּן וַיִּצָּעֵק כָּל־אִישׁ אֶפְרַיִם וַיִּלְכְּדוּ אֶת־הַמַּיִם עַד בֵּית בָּרָה וְאֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּן - And Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Efrayim, saying: Come down against Midyan, and seize the waters ahead of them as far as Beit Barah, and the Jordan. So all the men of Efrayim were called together, and they seized the waters as far as Beit Barah, and the Jordan.
"Vayitza'ek" - that they would rally the people with shouts; that is what the expression means. He commands them to come down against Midyan and to seize for themselves the waters as far as Beit Barah and the Jordan. For the Midianites had come inside, and now that they see there is a war here they are fleeing - and to where? To cross the Jordan and return to their land. What you must do is to capture the fords of the waters, and then the battle will press upon them from front and back. Therefore he commands: Go and prepare yourselves there, they are about to come toward you and flee, and behold they are like the sand upon the face of the earth, exceedingly many - you must wait for them there in order to attack them.
וַיִּלְכְּדוּ שְׁנֵי־שָׂרֵי מִדְיָן אֶת־עֹרֵב וְאֶת־זְאֵב וַיַּהַרְגוּ אֶת־עוֹרֵב בְּצוּר־עוֹרֵב וְאֶת־זְאֵב הָרְגוּ בְיֶקֶב־זְאֵב וַיִּרְדְּפוּ אֶל־מִדְיָן וְרֹאשׁ־עֹרֵב וּזְאֵב הֵבִיאוּ אֶל־גִּדְעוֹן מֵעֵבֶר לַיַּרְדֵּן - And they captured the two princes of Midyan, Orev and Ze'ev, and they killed Orev at the rock of Orev, and Ze'ev they killed at the winepress of Ze'ev, and they pursued Midyan, and the heads of Orev and Ze'ev they brought to Gideon across the Jordan.
The Ralbag explains: Orev they killed on a certain mountain, on a certain rock, and therefore they called the place "the rock of Orev." And Ze'ev they killed on a certain plain that was shaped like a winepress - a yekev is a lower, sunken place to which the waters would descend, like "nekev" - and therefore they called that place "the winepress of Ze'ev." This is what the Ralbag comes to explain: why for the one they said "rock" and for the other "winepress" - because this one they killed upon the rock and this one in a place shaped like a winepress.
And behold, they pursue Midyan and capture the fords of the waters, and there they managed to kill Orev and Ze'ev. Let us note that these are "the two princes of Midyan"; further on we will see that we seek to capture the kings of Midyan, and those we have not yet captured, but the princes of Midyan we have already managed to kill.
Before we conclude the chapter, let us bring the words of the Rama miPano in his work "Gilgulei Neshamot," in section yod. Yanus and Yambrus, these two men were the sons of Bilam, and they are Orev and Ze'ev - the sons of Bilam were reincarnated as Orev and Ze'ev. The one would perform sorcery with the head of a wolf, and the other with a raven.
And as is known, their method of sorcery was generally through various stuffed forms, figures, and skulls, which they would use to draw down the soul into the skull or into the bone. Therefore they were called "chartumim": they would take a bone, place it under the armpit, let it warm up, and through this they would know hidden things and the soul would reveal itself to them. "Chari" means heating, "timei" means bones - they would heat the bone and through this they knew hidden things. They also had various terafim: a person whom they would kill and stuff, and whose skin they would dry over the skull, and through this they would draw down forces of impurity into that object and know hidden matters. So the one knew this knowledge through the head of a wolf, and the other through a raven. And it is known that Balak practiced sorcery through a bird, and therefore he was called "Balak son of Tzipor" (bird), as the holy Zohar states. Therefore now they were reincarnated and returned, the one called Orev and the one called Ze'ev, each according to his manner of sorcery.
Afterward, through sorcery they transformed into Romulus and Remus, who were themselves two sorcerers. And the raven and the wolf eventually reached their rectification through "Parva." And who was this Parva? The Rema of Fano explains: Parva was the name of a sorcerer who built the place of the Parva, for there was a place in the Beit HaMikdash called "Beit HaParva." And Rashi says: "Parva the magus" - a certain sorcerer built it, and his name was Parva. So we see that those very Yannes and Yambres, who were reincarnated in the raven and the wolf, were reincarnated in that same sorcerer who ultimately built that place in the Beit HaMikdash.
This has always puzzled me, and I have not found an answer to it: how could it be that the Beit HaMikdash was built in part by a sorcerer? What sense does this make? After all, "a sorceress shall not live," and "sorceress" includes a sorcerer as well, the verse merely speaking of what was common. How did matters come to such a state? It may be that since the Holy One, blessed be He, wished to bring him to rectification, He therefore arranged things in this way. But in any case, to understand the matter fully still seems to require further study.
Chapter 7 teaches us the delicate art of balancing miracle and human effort. The Holy One, blessed be He, reduces the army from thirty two thousand to three hundred - first removing those who lack courage and leaving them at Mount Gilad as a reserve force, and afterward removing entirely those who bowed to Baal, who are wholly unworthy of the divine influence. All of this is "lest Israel boast against Me, saying: My own hand has saved me," for precisely Gideon, who had complained about the absence of miracles, needed to witness a miracle in which there was no room whatsoever to attribute it to flesh and blood. And on the other hand, Gideon employs eight clever stratagems: dividing into three companies, the shofars, the torches, the pitchers, the coordinated blast at a single moment, the echo surrounding the camp, the shout, and the choice of the beginning of the middle watch when alertness is at its lowest. All of it in a natural manner - and when the camp arose in panic, God set every man's sword against his fellow. And the proclamation "a sword for Hashem and for Gideon" is the very essence of the chapter: the salvation is from Him, blessed be He, yet it comes through the effort of man.