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Gideon's Army and God's Glory - The Book of Judges · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And the Lord said unto Gideon, By
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  Speaker 1: the three hundred men that lapped, I will save you,
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  Speaker 1: and deliver the Midianites into thine hand, and let all
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  Speaker 1: the other people go, every man unto his place. Judges
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  Speaker 1: 7-7 Father, before I even begin my day, I thank
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  Speaker 1: you that, word of my bravery and your hand upon me,
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  Speaker 1: has reached the ears of all those who oppose me. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: with boldness in my heart, I will continue my journey
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  Speaker 1: in overcoming the setbacks that have been sent to derail
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  Speaker 1: my destiny. As my feet touch the ground, I thank
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  Speaker 1: you that the devil and all his little minions are
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  Speaker 1: shaking because of the power that is moving through me.
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  Speaker 1: I confess that I will not have my mind set
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  Speaker 1: on a certain way to win the battle, But instead,
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  Speaker 1: I will look to you, Lord, who, with creativity and individuality,
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  Speaker 1: produce methods that will confuse my enemy and give me
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  Speaker 1: complete victory without burnout and turmoil. Like the story of
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  Speaker 1: Gideon in Judges 7 and 8, today is the day
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  Speaker 1: that my name will be known throughout the enemy's camp.
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  Speaker 1: Today is the day that all hell will move out
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  Speaker 1: of my way. because the all-powerful God is with me,
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  Speaker 1: and His angels go before me with trumpets and swords
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  Speaker 1: sent to confuse and stun my enemies. Glory to God,
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  Speaker 1: who shows up again and again to fight for His children.
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  Speaker 1: In Jesus' name. Amen. Thanks for making prayer a priority
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  Speaker 1: in your life. To hear the Bible come to life,
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  Speaker 1: Stay tuned for the Bible in a Year. Brought to
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  Speaker 1: you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Gideon's Army and God's Glory Previously, we were introduced to
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  Speaker 2: God's new hero, Gideon. Gideon was a cowardly and weak man.
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  Speaker 2: But the strength of God fell upon him. He was
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  Speaker 2: filled with enough bravery to summon an army against the
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  Speaker 2: Midianite horde. Now the armies of Israel are gathered, ready
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  Speaker 2: to follow Gideon into battle. In this story, we'll learn
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  Speaker 2: of God's unusual tactics for building an army and how
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  Speaker 2: he uses Gideon's intelligence to lead Israel into victory. Inspired
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  Speaker 2: by the book of Judges.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
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  Speaker 3: Bible in a Year podcast. In yesterday's episode, we heard
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  Speaker 3: how God called Gideon, an unlikely and reluctant leader. And
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  Speaker 3: Gideon was called to rally the troops against the Midianites
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  Speaker 3: and the Amalekites who were pillaging Israel's crops and stealing
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  Speaker 3: their livestock. Gideon was slow to accept his calling, but
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  Speaker 3: when he did, he was joined by 32,000 men ready
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  Speaker 3: for battle. Gideon then asked God for one more sign
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  Speaker 3: that he was indeed going to save Israel. And like
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  Speaker 3: a patient father reassuring his child, God gave Gideon the
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  Speaker 3: signs he asked for, not just once, but twice. Today
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  Speaker 3: we'll see how God chooses and uses a select company
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  Speaker 3: of men out of the 32,000 troops that go to
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  Speaker 3: battle with Gideon. It will serve as a sure sign
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  Speaker 3: that the victory belongs to God and God alone, not
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  Speaker 3: by might or power or military prowess. Let's listen right
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  Speaker 3: now to today's reading.
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  Speaker 2: The sun rose over the Israelite army. Sun rays shone
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  Speaker 2: into the common areas between tents. Men were preparing their
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  Speaker 2: armor and sharpening their swords. Over 32,000 Israelite soldiers camped
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  Speaker 2: in the valley opposite of the Midianite horde, and the
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  Speaker 2: quiet preparation before war filled the camp. Gideon sat before
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  Speaker 2: God for guidance and direction. Gideon was no general. In fact,
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  Speaker 2: he would have never even considered himself a brave man
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  Speaker 2: or warrior. He stood before God, hanging on every word
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  Speaker 2: he spoke.' The people are too many for me to use,'
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  Speaker 2: God said. Gideon perked his ears up, and his face
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  Speaker 2: gave a confused look. God continued and said, If all
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  Speaker 2: these men march into battle and win, they will boast
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  Speaker 2: of their own strength and not mine. Gideon put his
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  Speaker 2: hands in his face and sighed. Rubbing his temples, he
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  Speaker 2: nodded to God and left his tent. Who was he
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  Speaker 2: to question God now? He gathered all the men into
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  Speaker 2: a common area. Thirty-two thousand of them gathered before Gideon.
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  Speaker 2: Gideon spoke confidently. although he was not entirely sure how
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  Speaker 2: this was going to help them. He said, Whoever here
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  Speaker 2: is fearful and trembling, get out and hurry back to
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  Speaker 2: where you came from. Gideon watched as a sea of
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  Speaker 2: 22,000 men departed from the group. Gideon stood, amazed that
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  Speaker 2: so many of them experienced the same fear as he did.
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  Speaker 2: Although Gideon might have been scared, he stayed. for God's
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  Speaker 2: Spirit was filling him up continually. Day by day he
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  Speaker 2: became more and more valiant. Ten thousand men remained, yet
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  Speaker 2: God still said there were too many. Take them down
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  Speaker 2: to the water, God commanded. Every man that laps the
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  Speaker 2: water with his tongue like a dog will remain with you,
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  Speaker 2: and whoever kneels down to sip from his hand will depart.
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  Speaker 2: So Gideon watched as the men drank. He watched closely,
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  Speaker 2: wondering what God was doing. The men who knelt down
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  Speaker 2: to drink like a dog fully paid attention to the water.
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  Speaker 2: The others who cupped the water in their hand were
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  Speaker 2: constantly looking over their shoulders. Gideon recognized what God was doing.
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  Speaker 2: The men who lapped had no fear of ambush. God
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  Speaker 2: wanted an army of fearless men, so he sent away
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  Speaker 2: all those that knelt down and was left with only
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  Speaker 2: three hundred soldiers. He gave them all trumpets and told
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  Speaker 2: them to rest, for that night they would have their victory.
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  Speaker 2: Night had fallen, and the light of day had disappeared
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  Speaker 2: from the earth. Gideon took one of his servants to
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  Speaker 2: go spy on the Midianite camp. The two men creeped
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  Speaker 2: in the darkness, remaining hidden. The Midianites lay along the
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  Speaker 2: valley like a dark sea. They were like locusts in number,
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  Speaker 2: and even their war camels could not be counted. Gideon's
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  Speaker 2: jaw dropped as he observed the vastness of their army.
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  Speaker 2: Their men seemed to outnumber the stars above them. The
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  Speaker 2: Midianites were mostly asleep, yet some of them stood watch
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  Speaker 2: around the fire. Gideon's ears perked up as he heard
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  Speaker 2: one of them speak. Gideon inched closer, trying to hear
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  Speaker 2: what they were saying. He heard one soldier say, I
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  Speaker 2: just had a dream. Some giant piece of barley bread
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  Speaker 2: tumbled down to our camp and crushed the tents. Though
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  Speaker 2: the image of bread crushing a campsite was laughable, the
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  Speaker 2: soldiers were not amused.
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  Speaker 1: One of the.
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  Speaker 2: Soldiers replied, saying, That bread is the great sword of Gideon.
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  Speaker 2: He is a mighty man of Israel, come to destroy us.
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  Speaker 2: When Gideon heard this, his heart welled up with confidence.
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  Speaker 2: They were afraid of him. Him! Gideon, the smallest man
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  Speaker 2: of the smallest tribe. Gideon departed immediately. He knew now
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  Speaker 2: without a shadow of a doubt that God would slay
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  Speaker 2: the Midianites under his blade. Gideon marched through camp, banging
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  Speaker 2: his sword against his shield.' Wake up!
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  Speaker 1: he yelled.
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  Speaker 2: Arise, for God will give us the Midianites tonight!' Gideon
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  Speaker 2: divided the three hundred men into three companies. He gave
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  Speaker 2: them trumpets and empty jars to put their torches in.
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  Speaker 2: He caught their attention and said, Look at me. Do
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  Speaker 2: as I do. When I blow my trumpet, you will
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  Speaker 2: do the same thing on every side of the Midianite camp.
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  Speaker 2: So he dispersed his soldiers. They spread out around the
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  Speaker 2: hills surrounding the Midianite camp. The jars above their torches
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  Speaker 2: made the light disperse. giving the illusion of thousands instead
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  Speaker 2: of hundreds. Gideon looked down at the Midianite horde. Then
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  Speaker 2: he looked all across the hills and saw his three
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  Speaker 2: hundred men surrounding the camp. The camp was quiet for
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  Speaker 2: a moment. Then Gideon raised his trumpet to his mouth.
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  Speaker 2: It echoed across the canyons and three hundred trumpets joined in.
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  Speaker 2: For the Lord and for Gideon, the men shouted. The
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  Speaker 2: music of war shook the ground, and the Midianite army
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  Speaker 2: awoke in a confused frenzy. The trumpets continued to bellow
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  Speaker 2: across the valley below. The Israelites broke the jars in
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  Speaker 2: their hands, and the piercing sounds of broken glass frightened
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  Speaker 2: the camels. The trumpets continued to wail. It was dark,
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  Speaker 2: but the torchlights from the hills loomed over the camp
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  Speaker 2: like fiery arrows. A sword for the Lord! and for Gideon,
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  Speaker 2: every man shouted. The Midianites began to flee in every direction.
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  Speaker 2: One by one, they began to turn their swords on
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  Speaker 2: one another out of confusion. Gideon listened as the cries
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  Speaker 2: of dying soldiers filled the canyon. The Midianite horde dispersed
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  Speaker 2: in a bloody, frightened frenzy and the army of Israel
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  Speaker 2: pursued them picking them off in small groups Gideon sent
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  Speaker 2: messengers out to the rest of Israel saying the Midianites
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  Speaker 2: are fleeing in every direction raise up your swords and
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  Speaker 2: slaughter them so the rest of Israel joined in finding
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  Speaker 2: scared Midianites and slaying them shouts of victory flew through
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  Speaker 2: the hills and valleys of Israel Word of Gideon's bravery
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  Speaker 2: and the Lord's favor spread, and the people of Israel
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  Speaker 2: hoped once again. Though the danger was not yet over,
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  Speaker 2: the new leadership of Gideon put a fire in their bellies,
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  Speaker 2: and they were confident the Lord would provide.
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  Speaker 3: This is an absolute great story. This story begins with
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  Speaker 3: Gideon and his army of 32,000 men, which was a
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  Speaker 3: formidable force. But then God tells Gideon that there are
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  Speaker 3: too many, and if they go to war with that
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  Speaker 3: many men, Israel will boast in their own strength. Can't
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  Speaker 3: you imagine Gideon, who's already prone to doubt and fear
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  Speaker 3: and questioning as he's being confounded by such a statement
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  Speaker 3: that there are too many soldiers? Too many, isn't that
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  Speaker 3: a good thing? He must have been thinking. Still, he
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  Speaker 3: was all in for God now, and so On God's orders,
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  Speaker 3: he told his men that if anyone who was fearful
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  Speaker 3: of fighting, they could go home. So when that was
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  Speaker 3: said and done, his army of 32,000 was suddenly cut
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  Speaker 3: down to 10,000. But God said that was still too many.
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  Speaker 3: He had Gideon test the men by having them drink water,
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  Speaker 3: and those who lapped up the water like a dog
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  Speaker 3: were to be separated from those who drank with their hands,
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  Speaker 3: with their swords ready. Only 300 men drank properly. This
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  Speaker 3: was a magnificent minority because now only 300 would stay
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  Speaker 3: and fight. God told Gideon still that he would defeat Midian.
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  Speaker 3: That night, Gideon snuck into the Midianite camp because God
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  Speaker 3: had told him that if he needed some encouragement before
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  Speaker 3: the battle, just to go to the enemy's camp and
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  Speaker 3: listen and watch. And so he did. And he heard
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  Speaker 3: two soldiers talking. One was recounting an odd dream to
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  Speaker 3: the other. A piece of barley bread had tumbled into
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  Speaker 3: camp and toppled a tent. This was a strange dream,
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  Speaker 3: a nightmare really. And the meaning of this dream struck
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  Speaker 3: fear in the hearts of that soldier and all of
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  Speaker 3: the camp of the Midianites. This was a sign that
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  Speaker 3: God had given Midian over to Gideon, that Gideon's army
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  Speaker 3: would defeat the Midianites. Hearing this filled Gideon with encouragement.
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  Speaker 3: So listen to what he did in Judges 7, 15.
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  Speaker 3: As soon as Gideon heard the telling of the dream
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  Speaker 3: and its interpretation, he worshipped. And he returned to the
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  Speaker 3: camp of Israel and said, Arise, for the Lord has
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  Speaker 3: given the host of Midian into your hand. Gideon is confident,
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  Speaker 3: but his confidence is in God. And so he worships God.
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  Speaker 3: And he told the others all that God had done.
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  Speaker 3: Notice he doesn't say God will give the host of Midian. No,
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  Speaker 3: to him this was a done deal. He is worshiping
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  Speaker 3: God because he knows God has given him the victory,
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  Speaker 3: the promise of victory, which is sure. Gideon's response is
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  Speaker 3: a great example for us to follow, that we are
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  Speaker 3: to trust God and then tell others of the greatness
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  Speaker 3: of God. And so with an army of 300 men,
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  Speaker 3: Gideon surrounded the camp of Midian. With lit torches and
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  Speaker 3: loud trumpets, they woke the enemy from their sleep, breaking
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  Speaker 3: jars to create a deafening and Terrifying sound, they were confused.
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  Speaker 3: The entire camp was thrown into confusion and soldiers began
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  Speaker 3: killing each other, destroying, decimating the army. The remaining men
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  Speaker 3: were easily defeated by the 300 Israelites. Imagine this, a
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  Speaker 3: small army with the power of God defeating the enemy.
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  Speaker 3: Once again, God had used an unlikely person and unconventional
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  Speaker 3: means to grant Israel victory over a great foe. And
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  Speaker 3: now Israel can once again live in peace. But would
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  Speaker 3: it last? And will the next generation follow Gideon's example?
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  Speaker 3: We'll find that out tomorrow. So let's pray. Dear God,
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  Speaker 3: we thank you that you delight and desire to take
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  Speaker 3: the little things and even small people and use them
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  Speaker 3: in a great way. Because when we surrender to you
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  Speaker 3: and give our lives to you, we know there comes
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  Speaker 3: great blessing and victory that honors you. We thank you
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  Speaker 3: for Gideon and his army, for faith and leadership and
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  Speaker 3: the commitment to do whatever it takes. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
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  Speaker 3: I'm Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download the Pray.com
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  Speaker 3: app and make prayer a priority in your life. If
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  Speaker 3: someone you love, because by sharing this podcast, you can
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  Speaker 3: make a big difference in someone's life in Jesus' name.
• 15:31
  Speaker 3: If you want to know more about the Lord, how
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  Speaker 3: to know Him, how to serve Him, and be His disciple,
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  Speaker 3: then let me encourage you to visit my website, which
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  Speaker 3: is jackgraham.org. We would love to assist you in any
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  Speaker 3: way possible as you grow in your journey of faith. Again,
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  Speaker 3: that's jackgraham.org. God bless you.