The Meaning of Judges 7:12 Explained

Judges 7:12

KJV: And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude.

YLT: and Midian and Amalek, and all the sons of the east are lying in the valley, as the locust for multitude, and of their camels there is no number, as sand which is on the sea-shore for multitude.

Darby: And the Mid'ianites and the Amal'ekites and all the people of the East lay along the valley like locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is upon the seashore for multitude.

ASV: And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is upon the sea-shore for multitude.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And the Midianites  and the Amalekites  and all the children  of the east  lay  along in the valley  like grasshoppers  for multitude;  and their camels  [were] without number,  as the sand  by the sea  side  for multitude. 

What does Judges 7:12 Mean?

Context Summary

Judges 7:9-23 - The Sword Of Jehovah And Of Gideon
Gideon asked for the sign of the fleece, but God, without his asking, gave him that of the barley-cake. It was only barley-bread, the cheapest and commonest kind of food, but it overthrew a tent. Gideon was quick to recognize the symbol of his weakness and helplessness, but he recognized also the presage of victory. Lying there in the moonless night, with his head toward that tent, he worshiped and hastened back to his camp. We remember what Jesus made of barley-loaves. See John 6:9; John 6:13.
The blare of the trumpets, the breaking of the pitchers, the flashing of the lights, and the shouting from three sides of the camp startled the sleeping host into panic. Surely this scene was in Paul's thought when he said that God's light had shone forth on the midnight darkness of that age; and then confessed that the light was contained in the earthen vessel of mortality, "that the excellency of the power might be of God." Let us not be too greatly disturbed when the sorrows and persecutions of earth break up our peace and strength-this is the breaking of the earthen vessel. Our business must be to see that the torch burns within, 2 Corinthians 4:6, etc. [source]

Chapter Summary: Judges 7

1  Gideon's army of thirty-two thousand is brought to three hundred
9  He is encouraged by the dream and interpretation of the burley cake
16  His plan of trumpets and lamps in pitchers
24  The Ephraimites take Oreb and Zeeb

What do the individual words in Judges 7:12 mean?

Now the Midianites and Amalekites and all the sons of the East were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts as numerous and their camels [were] without number as the sand by side the seashore in multitude
וּמִדְיָ֨ן וַעֲמָלֵ֤ק וְכָל־ בְּנֵי־ קֶ֙דֶם֙ נֹפְלִ֣ים בָּעֵ֔מֶק כָּאַרְבֶּ֖ה לָרֹ֑ב וְלִגְמַלֵּיהֶם֙ אֵ֣ין מִסְפָּ֔ר כַּח֛וֹל שֶׁעַל־ שְׂפַ֥ת הַיָּ֖ם לָרֹֽב

וּמִדְיָ֨ן  Now  the  Midianites 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִדְיָן  
Sense: son of Abraham by Keturah and progenitor of the tribe of Midianites or Arabians.
וַעֲמָלֵ֤ק  and  Amalekites 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֲמָלֵק  
Sense: son of Eliphaz by his concubine Timnah, grandson of Esau, and progenitor of a race of people in southern Canaan.
וְכָל־  and  all 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
בְּנֵי־  the  sons 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
קֶ֙דֶם֙  of  the  East 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: קֶדֶם 
Sense: east, antiquity, front, that which is before, aforetime.
נֹפְלִ֣ים  were  lying 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: נָפַל  
Sense: to fall, lie, be cast down, fail.
בָּעֵ֔מֶק  in  the  valley 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֵמֶק  
Sense: valley, vale, lowland, open country.
כָּאַרְבֶּ֖ה  as  numerous  as  locusts 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: אַרְבֶּה  
Sense: a kind of locust, locust swarm (coll).
לָרֹ֑ב  as  numerous 
Parse: Preposition-l, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: רֹב  
Sense: multitude, abundance, greatness.
וְלִגְמַלֵּיהֶם֙  and  their  camels  [were] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l, Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: גָּמָל  
Sense: camel.
אֵ֣ין  without 
Parse: Adverb
Root: אַיִן 
Sense: nothing, not, nought n.
מִסְפָּ֔ר  number 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִסְפָּר  
Sense: number, tale.
כַּח֛וֹל  as  the  sand 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֹול 
Sense: sand.
שְׂפַ֥ת  side 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: שָׂפָה  
Sense: lip, language, speech, shore, bank, brink, brim, side, edge, border, binding.
הַיָּ֖ם  the  seashore 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: יָם  
Sense: sea.
לָרֹֽב  in  multitude 
Parse: Preposition-l, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: רֹב  
Sense: multitude, abundance, greatness.