Clarke's Bible Commentary - Judges 7:22
Verse 22. Fled to Beth-shittah] This is no where else mentioned in Scripture. Zererath] This and Tabbath are nowhere else to be found.
Hebel-meholah] This was the birth-place of the prophet Elisha, 1 Kings xix. 16. It was beyond Jordan, in the tribe of Manasseh, 1 Kings iv. 12. The Zartanah, mentioned in this last quoted verse, was probably the same as Zererath. Its situation corresponds well with Hebel-meholah.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 22. And the three hundred men blew the trumpets , etc.] Kept blowing them to continue and increase the terror of the enemy, and still held the lamps in their hands, and stood as torch bearers to light the Midianites and their associates to destroy one another, as follows: and the Lord set every man’s sword against his fellow throughout the host ; and so slew one another; either suspecting treachery, as Grotius, and so in revenge, wrath, and indignation, drew their swords on each other; or through the terror and amazement they were in at the sounds they heard, and the blazing torches dazzling their eyes, they knew not what they did, or who they fell upon, taking their friends for foes, supposing the Israelites were got into their camp; and the rather they might be led into this mistake, since there were people of different languages among them, as Josephus f162 observes; but the thing was of God, it was he that took away their reason and judgment from them, and infatuated them, and filled their imaginations with such strange apprehensions of things; and threw into their minds such terror and amazement, and directed them to point their swords at one another: and the host fled to Bethshittah in Zererath ; that is, which was left of it, which had not destroyed each other; the first of these places should be read Bethhashittah; and perhaps had its name from the “shittah” or “shittim” trees which might grow near it in plenty, or the houses in it might be built of shittim wood; or it may be here stood a temple formerly dedicated to some deity of this name, and near it a grove of the above trees. Zererath, Kimchi observes, is written with two “reshes”, or R’s, to distinguish it from another place called Tzeredah; but where either of these places mentioned were cannot be particularly said; though it is highly probable they were in the tribe of Manasseh, and in the way to Jordan, whither in all probability the Midianites would steer their course to escape to their own land: and to the border of Abelmeholah unto Tabbath ; the former of these was the birth place of Elisha the prophet, ( 1 Kings 19:16) and it appears very plainly that it was in the tribe of Manasseh, being mentioned with other places in that tribe, ( 1 Kings 4:12). Jerome under this word says, there was in his time a village in Aulon, or the plain, ten miles from Scythopolis to the south, which was called Bethahula; and the Targum is, “to the border of the plain of Abelmeholah;” but of Tabbath we nowhere else read.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 16-22 - This method of defeating the Midianites may be alluded to, a exemplifying the destruction of the devil's kingdom in the world, by the preaching of the everlasting gospel, the sounding that trumpet, an the holding forth that light out of earthen vessels, for such are the ministers of the gospel, 2Co 4:6, 7. God chose the foolish things of the world to confound the wise, a barley-cake to overthrow the tents of Midian, that the excellency of the power might be of God only. The gospel is a sword, not in the hand, but in the mouth: the sword of the Lord and of Gideon; of God and Jesus Christ, of Him that sits on the throne and the Lamb. The wicked are often led to avenge the cause of God upon each other, under the power of their delusions, and the fur of their passions. See also how God often makes the enemies of the church instruments to destroy one another; it is a pity that the church's friends should ever act like them.
Original Hebrew
ויתקעו 8628 שׁלשׁ 7969 מאות 3967 השׁופרות 7782 וישׂם 7760 יהוה 3068 את 853 חרב 2719 אישׁ 376 ברעהו 7453 ובכל 3605 המחנה 4264 וינס 5127 המחנה 4264 עד 5704 בית השׁטה 1029 צררתה 6888 עד 5704 שׂפת 8193 אבל מחולה 65 על 5921 טבת׃ 2888
