The Victory Upon the Plain (Part 2)

Wars of the Bible

Although Gideon wins a great victory against the Midianite Army, he failed to crush the entire force. Exhausted yet determined, Gideon and his men cross the Jordan to pursue what remains of the Midianite army, along with the two kings, Zebah and Zalmunna, who survived the initial battle. 

In his pursuit, he reaches two cities: Succoth and Penuel. He asks for food to replenish his weary men, but both cities deny him. Gideon doesn’t forget and warns them that after he destroys what’s left of the Midianite force, he will return and punish them accordingly. We’ll cover that in the next blog. 

After passing those two cities, Gideon finally catches up with retreating Midianites. 

Gideon Defeats Zebah and Zalmunna 

¹⁰ Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with their army, about 15,000 men, all who were left of all the army of the people of the East, for there had fallen 120,000 men who drew the sword. ¹¹ And Gideon went up by the way of the tent dwellers east of Nobah and Jogbehah and attacked the army, for the army felt secure. ¹² And Zebah and Zalmunna fled, and he pursued them, captured the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and threw the whole army into a panic.

Judges 8:1-12

What do we know about these events historically? 

Not much has been found regarding the Battle of Karkor. The name seems more relevant to ancient audiences, but today scholars debate where Karkor might’ve been. Several potential candidates have been debated. 

In Judges 8:11, we get a clue as to where Gideon and his men were when they came upon the remnants of the Midianite army: ¹And Gideon went up by the way of the tent dwellers east of Nobah and Jogbehah and attacked the army, for the army felt secure.  This territory has long been associated with Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh. 

Battle map depicting all the engagements that Gideon and his men fought.

Another potential candidate is the Wadi Sirhan, which is a major desert depression. It also served as a historical caravan and nomadic route leading deep into the Arabian Peninsula, which makes sense since the Midianites were from that area. 

The other two locations include the Roman-era fortress of Carcaria near Petra, but many view this as too far south. Another claim links Karkor to Qarkar, a site mentioned in the annals of the Assyrian King Shalmanesar II, but this also fits poorly with the biblical narrative. 

Others contend that Karkor might not have been a place at all. Etymologically, the Hebrew root qarqōr or kir-ki suggests a flat and large walled enclosure (such as a massive communal sheep or cattle fold built by the tribes of Gad). With that in mind, Karkor might not have been an actual city or place, but rather a temporary desert enclosure where the surviving 15,000 Midianites camped. 

My spiritual takeaways 

While no one has identified the exact location and no battlefield artifacts have been found, broader archaeological evidence points to Iron Age and Late Bronze Age encampments. Destruction layers align with the historical timeline, but nothing is definitive. Nevertheless, the battle offers some key lessons. 

No one can escape God’s judgment 

The Midianites probably felt pretty safe given the remoteness of their encampment, placing them (as they thought)  beyond the reach of Gideon and his men. But God, through Gideon, had judged them; they could not escape their fate. 

After capturing the two Midianite kings and breaking their army, Gideon turns back to the cities that rebuked his men for judging. In Part 3, we’ll conclude Gideon’s campaign as he returns to Succoth and Penuel with Zebah and Zalmunna.

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Sources

1. Armstrong Institute of Biblical Archaeology. (n.d.). Gideon v. Midian: Evidence for the biblical account. https://armstronginstitute.org/382-gideon-v-midian-evidence-for-the-biblical-account

2. Bauzou, T. (1996). La Praetensio de Bostra à Dumata (El-Jowf). Syria, 73(1–4), 23–35. https://doi.org/10.3406/syria.1996.7497

3. Bible Gateway. (n.d.). Judges 8:10–12 (English Standard Version). https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Judges%208%3A10-12&version=ESV

4. Bible Hub. (n.d.). Judges 8:11 commentaries. https://biblehub.com/commentaries/judges/8-11.htm

5. Bible Hub. (n.d.). Judges 8:10 commentaries. https://biblehub.com/commentaries/judges/8-10.htm

6. Bible Hub. (n.d.). Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Judges 8. https://biblehub.com/commentaries/kad/judges/8.htm

7. Ellicott, C. J. (Ed.). (n.d.). Ellicott’s commentary for English readers: Judges 8. Bible Hub. https://biblehub.com/commentaries/ellicott/judges/8.htm

8. Encyclopaedia of Islam. (n.d.). Sirḥān. Brill Reference Works. https://referenceworks.brill.com/display/entries/EIEO/SIM-7066.xml

9. Jewish Virtual Library. (n.d.). Karkar. https://jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0011_0_10762.html

10. Translation Insights & Perspectives. (n.d.). Translation commentary on Judges 8:11. https://tips.translation.bible/story/translation-commentary-on-judges-811/

Images

1. BibleStudy.org. (n.d.). Gideon's battles map. https://www.biblestudy.org/maps/battles-of-gideon.html

2. Wikimedia Commons. (n.d.). Gideon and His Three Hundred (Bible Card).jpg. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gideon_and_His_Three_Hundred_(Bible_Card).jpg