3. Announce to the people, ‘Anyone who is afraid should go back home, and we will stay here at Mount Gilead.’ ” So 22,000 went back, but 10,000 stayed.
4. Then the Lord said to Gideon, “You still have too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will separate them for you there. If I tell you a man should go with you, he will go. If I tell you a man should not go with you, he will not go.”
5. Gideon took the men down to the water, and the Lord said to him, “Separate everyone who laps up the water with his tongue like a dog, from everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.”
6. There were 300 men who scooped up water in their hands and lapped it; all the others got down on their knees to drink.
7. The Lord said to Gideon, “I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites with the 300 men who lapped the water. Tell everyone else to go home.”
8. So Gideon sent all the Israelites home, except the 300, who kept all the supplies and trumpets. The Midianite camp was below them in the valley.
9. That night the Lord commanded Gideon, “Get up and attack the camp; I am giving you victory over it.
10. But if you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah.
11. You will hear what they are saying, and then you will have the courage to attack.” So Gideon and his servant Purah went down to the edge of the enemy camp.
12. The Midianites, the Amalekites, and the desert tribesmen were spread out in the valley like a swarm of locusts, and they had as many camels as there were grains of sand on the seashore.
13. When Gideon arrived, he heard a man telling a friend about a dream. He was saying, “I dreamt that a loaf of barley bread rolled into our camp and hit a tent. The tent collapsed and lay flat on the ground.”
14. His friend replied, “It's the sword of the Israelite, Gideon son of Joash! It can't mean anything else! God has given him victory over Midian and our whole army!”
15. When Gideon heard about the man's dream and what it meant, he fell to his knees and worshipped the Lord. Then he went back to the Israelite camp and said, “Get up! The Lord is giving you victory over the Midianite army!”
16. He divided his 300 men into three groups and gave each man a trumpet and a jar with a torch inside it.
17. He told them, “When I get to the edge of the camp, watch me, and do what I do.