Judges Chapter 7 verse 20 Holy Bible
And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the torches in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands wherewith to blow; and they cried, The sword of Jehovah and of Gideon.
read chapter 7 in ASV
So the three bands all gave a loud note on their horns, and when the vessels had been broken, they took the flaming branches in their left hands, and the horns in their right hands ready for blowing, crying out, For the Lord and for Gideon.
read chapter 7 in BBE
And the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the jars, holding in their left hands the torches, and in their right hands the trumpets to blow; and they cried, "A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!"
read chapter 7 in DARBY
And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they cried, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon.
read chapter 7 in KJV
And the three companies blew the trumpets, and broke the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow with: and they cried, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon.
read chapter 7 in WBT
The three companies blew the trumpets, and broke the pitchers, and held the torches in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands with which to blow; and they cried, The sword of Yahweh and of Gideon.
read chapter 7 in WEB
and the three detachments blow with trumpets, and break the pitchers, and keep hold with their left hand on the lamps, and with their right hand on the trumpets to blow, and they cry, `The sword of Jehovah and of Gideon.'
read chapter 7 in YLT
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(20) The trumpets in their right hands . . .--Thus they were comparatively defenceless, though, if they had any armour at all, doubtless they could still hold the shield on the left arm, while the sword was girded on the thigh. The effect of the sudden crash and glare and shout upon the vast unwieldy host of the Bedouins may be imagined. Startled from sleep in a camp which, like Oriental camps, must have been most imperfectly protected and disciplined, they would see on every side blazing torches, and hear on every side the rams' horns and the terrible shout of the Israelites. (Comp. Tac. Ann. i. 68.) The instant result was a wild panic, such as that which seized the camp of the Persians at Plataee. The first thought which would rise in their minds would be that there was some treachery at work among the motley elements of the camp itself. Even a well-disciplined camp is liable to these outbursts of panic. One such occurred among the Greeks in the camp of the Ten Thousand during their retreat. To shame these groundless alarms, Klearchus next morning caused a reward to be proclaimed for any one who would give information "who had let the ass loose;" and this seems to have been a standing joke to shame Greek soldiers from such panics (Xen. Anab. ii. 2, 20). Several stratagems similar to that of Gideon are recorded in history. Polyaenus, in his book on the "Art of War," tells us that Di?tas, when attacking Heraea, "ordered the trumpeters to stand apart, and sound a charge opposite to many quarters of the city; and that the Heraeans, hearing the blasts of many trumpets from many directions, thinking that the whole region was crowded with enemies, abandoned the city." Frontinus also tells us that the Tarquinians and Faliscans tried to frighten the Romans with torches, and Minucius Rufus terrified the Scordisci by trumpets blown among the rocks (Strateg. ii. 3). Hannibal on one occasion escaped from Fabius Maximus by tying torches to the heads of cattle, and having them driven about the hills. The Druids waved torches to repel the attack of Suetonius Paulinus on the island of Mona (Tac. Ann. xiv. 30). An Arab chief (Bel-Arab) in the eighteenth century used trumpets in exactly the same manner as Gideon did on this occasion, and with the same success (Niebuhr, Beschr. von Arabien, p. 304). Ewald alludes to similar stratagems in Neapolitan and Hungarian wars, the latter so recently as 1849 (Gesch. ii. 503).Parallel Commentaries ...HebrewThe threeשְׁלֹ֨שֶׁת (šə·lō·šeṯ)Number - masculine singular constructStrong's 7969: Three, third, thricecompaniesהָרָאשִׁ֥ים (hā·rā·šîm)Article | Noun - masculine pluralStrong's 7218: The headblewוַֽ֠יִּתְקְעוּ (way·yiṯ·qə·‘ū)Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine pluralStrong's 8628: To clatter, slap, clang, to drive, to become bondsmantheir trumpetsבַּשּֽׁוֹפָרוֹת֮ (baš·šō·w·p̄ā·rō·wṯ)Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine pluralStrong's 7782: A cornet, curved hornand shatteredוַיִּשְׁבְּר֣וּ (way·yiš·bə·rū)Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine pluralStrong's 7665: To break, break in piecestheir jars.הַכַּדִּים֒ (hak·kad·dîm)Article | Noun - feminine pluralStrong's 3537: A pail, earthenware, a jarHoldingוַיַּחֲזִ֤יקוּ (way·ya·ḥă·zî·qū)Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine pluralStrong's 2388: To fasten upon, to seize, be strong, obstinate, to bind, restrain, conquerthe torchesבַּלַּפִּדִ֔ים (bal·lap·pi·ḏîm)Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine pluralStrong's 3940: A flambeau, lamp, flamein their leftשְׂמאוֹלָם֙ (śə·m·’ō·w·lām)Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine pluralStrong's 8040: Dark, the north, the left handhandsבְיַד־ (ḇə·yaḏ-)Preposition-b | Noun - feminine singular constructStrong's 3027: A handand the trumpetsהַשּׁוֹפָר֖וֹת (haš·šō·w·p̄ā·rō·wṯ)Article | Noun - masculine pluralStrong's 7782: A cornet, curved hornin their rightיְמִינָ֔ם (yə·mî·nām)Noun - feminine singular construct | third person masculine pluralStrong's 3225: The right hand, side, the southhands,וּבְיַ֨ד־ (ū·ḇə·yaḏ-)Conjunctive waw, Preposition-b | Noun - feminine singular constructStrong's 3027: A handthey shouted,וַֽיִּקְרְא֔וּ (way·yiq·rə·’ū)Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine pluralStrong's 7121: To call, proclaim, read“A swordחֶ֥רֶב (ḥe·reḇ)Noun - feminine singularStrong's 2719: Drought, a cutting instrument, as a, knife, swordfor the LORDלַֽיהוָ֖ה (Yah·weh)Preposition-l | Noun - proper - masculine singularStrong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israeland for Gideon!”וּלְגִדְעֽוֹן׃ (ū·lə·ḡiḏ·‘ō·wn)Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l | Noun - proper - masculine singularStrong's 1439: Gideon -- a judge of IsraelJump to PreviousBands Blew Blow Blowing Brake Break Broke Broken Companies Cried Cry Detachments Hand Hands Held Hold Holding Horns Jars Lamps Note Pitchers Ready Right Shouted Smashed Sword Three Torches Trumpets Vessels Wherewith Withal
