John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 5. For they came up with their cattle, and their tents , etc.] Brought their flocks and their herds with them, to eat up the increase of the earth, and their tents, which they pitched and removed from place to place, for the convenience of feeding their cattle, and while they cut down the fruit of the earth everywhere, which serves to confirm the sense of the Targum and Vulgate Latin version of ( Judges 6:5) and they came as grasshoppers for multitude ; or “as locusts” f123 , they were like them for their number, and for devouring all they came to: and their camels were without number ; which they brought with them, to load and carry off their plunder they could not eat. Midian was a place famous for camels and dromedaries, ( Isaiah 60:6) and so Arabia, the people of which joined the Midianites in this expedition; of whom Leo Africanus says f124 , that they reckon of their riches and possessions by their camels; wherefore if anyone speaks of the riches of such a prince or nobleman, he says that he is possessed of so many camels, and not of so many thousands of pieces of gold, (see Job 1:3) and they entered into the city to destroy it ; this was their sole view. In suchlike manner as this did Alyattes king of the Lydians make war with the Milesinns, as Herodotus relates; which passage Grotius has quoted at large.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-6 - Israel's sin was renewed, and Israel's troubles were repeated. Let all that sin expect to suffer. The Israelites hid themselves in dens an caves; such was the effect of a guilty conscience. Sin dispirits men The invaders left no food for Israel, except what was taken into the caves. They prepared that for Baal with which God should have bee served, now God justly sends an enemy to take it away in the seaso thereof.
Original Hebrew כי3588 הם1992 ומקניהם4735 יעלו5927 ואהליהם168 יבאו935 כדי1767 ארבה697 לרב7230 ולהם ולגמליהם1581 אין369 מספר4557 ויבאו935 בארץ776 לשׁחתה׃7843
