Charles Ellicott Commentary Judges 8:4

"And Gideon came to the Jordan, [and] passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing." — Judges 8:4 (ASV)

And Gideon came to Jordan.—This verse resumes the narrative of Judges 7:23. The intermediate verses are an episode, and they are only introduced here by anticipation, to conclude the account of the tribe of Ephraim.

And passed over.—Literally, passing over; but the English Version is correct as to the meaning, and it may be regarded as certain that Succoth was to the east of the Jordan.

Faint, yet pursuing.—It may be doubted whether the usual application of these words is accurate. The Septuagint renders them, “fainting and hungry,” and the Vulgate, “and for weariness they could not overtake the fugitives.” Literally it is, faint and pursuing, where the and is explanatory. “Exhausted and pursuing,” i.e., exhausted from pursuing (Keil). “In 1815 Mehemet All pursued the Arabs with such haste that he found himself without provisions, and had to be content with a few dates; but the result was a great success” (Ritter xii. 932).