Gideon’s Men, Situational Awareness and Fear

Three fear responses:

too much

…

too little

…

just right.

- Anna Hampton, Facing Fear Chs 3 and 10

The following is excerpted from my book, Facing Fear: The Journey to Mature Courage in Risk and Persecution, KL 1675 - 1695.

Too Much Fear (Paralyzed)

In Judges 7:2-7, we learn about Gideon and the Israelites preparation to go to war with the Midianites. The Midianites, the most fearsome superpower at that time, had been harassing the Israelites, destroying their livelihood and attacking when possible. The Israelites cried out to God for deliverance. The Lord called Gideon to lead the Israelite army against the Midianites in response. When all the fighting men had gathered, the Lord said, “You have too many troops…or else Israel might elevate themselves” (take credit for winning the battle). “Whoever is fearful, and trembling may turn back and leave Mount Gilead. So, twenty-two thousand of the troops turned back.” In this verse, “fearful” and “trembling” are adjectives, which means they were characterized by fear. They had too much fear. In this situation, for this one event, this disqualified them for service in battle. The troops were asked to go home, but nowhere does the text condemn them or imply sin (although many preachers do!).

To our surprise, God says again there are too many troops, even though only 10,000 Israelites remained to fight 135,000 Midianites (Judges 8:10), a 1:13 ratio! Now God does a second fear test that reveals the actions of fear and the actions of courage. He tells Gideon to invite the remaining 10,000 men to come to the edge of the nearby water and drink. Gideon’s task is to separate those who lap the water (like an animal) from those who kneel and drink.

Too Little Fear (Indifference)

Think about these two drinking positions.[1] In the first drinking position, it required the men to put their weapons down, both hands on the ground or even in the water, then put their faces in the water. In this position, their eyes are down; they cannot see what is happening around them. They seem to be situationally unaware. They are the type of people who say, “Fear? Why should I be afraid? I’m not afraid; the situation is fine. There’s nothing to worry about.” They did not have enough fear. Their posture is un-alert; thus, they are not useable by God. They did not see reality correctly. They are sent home. But again, God does not condemn nor pronounce them in sin. How many times have I heard preachers condemn these 32,000 men! I believe it highly likely they fought in future battles, but in this one, they were disqualified.

Just the Right Amount (Alert)

In the third drinking position, only 300 men are upright. In this position, only one hand is required to be used to drink by bringing their hand to their mouth. The other hand can still be holding a weapon. Their head and eyes are up, and their position remains alert. Their posture indicates situational awareness and an appropriate amount of concern in the situation, but they also choose to act in a position of courage. They are useful tools in the battle for which God was preparing them to fight.

These 300 soldiers were situationally aware. The three phases of situational awareness are “1. Understand the threat; 2. Build your situational awareness; and 3. Develop personal defenses.”[1]

The lessons are clear. There is a difference between the experience of feeling fear and the action of acting fear. Similarly, courage is often an action we choose, despite our fear. The Bible accepts and even presumes we will feel fear. So, we, too, are wise to accept that we may feel fear in dangerous situations. The experience of feeling fear is a normal human response. However, once we become aware we are feeling fear, we can choose to act the fear, or we can choose to act courage despite our fear.

Acting in courage despite our fear is righteousness.

[1] Quesenberry, Spotting Danger Before It Spots You, xxvii; cited in Facing Fear KL 4280