About this song
About this song
This song belongs to the Judges collection. One recording is available to play here, with the complete lyrics below.
- Collection
- Judges
[Verse 1]
Thirty-two thousand stood at Harod, but God said the host was strong,
Lest Israel claim the victory and make its own hand the song.
The fearful left, the water tested, three hundred stayed in line,
Against a valley thick with camels, beyond the count of sand.
[Pre-Chorus]
A barley loaf rolled through a dream,
And Gideon worshiped in the dark.
[Chorus]
Three hundred lamps beneath the jars,
Three hundred trumpets in the night.
Break the clay and raise the flame,
Stand your ground and hold the light.
The battle turned without their boast,
The LORD threw fear through Midian's host.
[Verse 2]
Purah walked beside him when he entered near the camp,
A soldier told the dream that made a Midianite tent collapse.
Gideon divided every company and taught them what to do,
Watch my hand, repeat the signal, let the hidden fire break through.
[Bridge]
At the middle watch the vessels shattered, horns split open sleep,
Every man remained in place while enemy swords turned inward.
Naphtali and Asher gathered, Manasseh joined the chase,
Ephraim held the Jordan crossings; Oreb and Zeeb could not escape.
[Final Chorus]
Three hundred lamps beneath the jars,
Three hundred trumpets in the night.
Break the clay and raise the flame,
Stand your ground and hold the light.
The battle turned without their boast,
The LORD threw fear through Midian's host.
[Outro]
The weakest army kept its station,
And heaven carried victory.
Named in this songGideonJordan
About the passage
Judges 7: A reduced army receives an unexpected victory
Judges 7 deliberately makes Gideon’s army too small for the victory to be credited to Israel’s strength. Thousands leave because they are afraid, then a water test reduces the force again until only three hundred remain. Gideon still fears, and the LORD accommodates that fear by sending him with Purah to hear a Midianite dream. A barley cake topples a tent in the dream, and the enemy’s own interpretation says Midian has been delivered into Gideon’s hand. Gideon worships and returns ready to act. The three hundred surround the camp with trumpets, pitchers, and lamps, while the LORD turns Midianite swords against one another. Israel’s pursuit then expands beyond the original force. The chapter keeps human preparation visible but makes self-congratulation impossible as the final explanation.
Study Judges 7 in depth →