IF YOU ARE AFRAID . . .

“If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp. —Judges 7:10, 11

From his first arguments with the angel, through the wet-and-dry fleeces, and the army that grew and then shrank dramatically, Gideon’s responses to the task to which God was calling him ranged from resistance to uncertainty—and not much beyond that.

But God persisted with him. God did not dismiss his fears or lose patience with his questions and objections. He continued to respond to Gideon’s requests for yet another sign and continued giving him assurances of His presence and power.

Now, on the eve of battle, God offered yet another opportunity for reassurance—and another reminder that this really was His battle after all.

Perhaps God’s invitation was a little tongue-in-cheek: “If you are afraid . . .” God had more evidence of Gideon’s fears than Gideon had of God’s trustworthiness. He knew Gideon still had questions and doubts, but He had Gideon listen in on the fears and uncertainties to be found among the army that had assembled against them.

He put the words into the mouth of one of these soldiers: “God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands” (Judges 7:14).

This would not only encourage Gideon and his small army but would also be the means by which the battle would be won. Gideon’s men surrounded the camp, blowing trumpets, smashing pitchers, holding their torches high, and shouting into the night. The fears of the enemy were transformed into panic among their armies, who turned on each other and ran for their lives. On this battlefield, the difference between the two armies was not the unequal numbers but the unequal fears—and it was God who had shifted that balance.