So he brought the people down to the water: See the comments on verse 7.4. So is a good rendering of the Hebrew waw conjunction here, since Gideon did exactly as he was told. The pronoun he refers to Gideon, which Good News Translation makes explicit.
And the LORD said to Gideon may be rendered “and the LORD told him” (Good News Translation).
Everyone that laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps: While the text seems to imply that God will tell Gideon directly who will go to battle, he actually reveals it to him in another way. Everyone (literally “All”) may be rendered “Anyone,” “Any man,” or “Any person.” There is an important play on words here, since the Hebrew word for Everyone (kol) has the same consonants as the words rendered “to you” and “go” in verse 7.4. Laps the water with his tongue means slurping up water in the mouth without using hands. Like the English verb laps, the Hebrew verb here (yaloq) is onomatopoeic, imitating the lapping sound itself. With his tongue is made explicit in Hebrew, but in some languages the verb laps will include this idea and not need to be expressed. This phrase may have been included here because the Hebrew word for tongue (lashon) also seems to imitate the sounds of the action.
As a dog laps provides a comparison. Hebrew says “as the dog laps.” Languages will differ concerning what noun form is appropriate here: singular or plural, definite or indefinite. For example, some will need to say “as dogs lap.” In some languages the verb laps may differ according to whether a person is lapping or a dog. However, if possible, the same verb should be used. A possible model for this whole clause is “Anyone who laps the water with his tongue like a dog.”
You shall set by himself: Each one who lapped the water is to be set apart. Here the storyteller makes a deliberate connection back to the “fleece” episode at the end of the previous chapter, since the Hebrew verb rendered set is the same one translated “am laying” in verse 6.37. This is a rare verb and peculiar to the Gideon story. This clause may be rendered “you will put in one group.” In some languages it will be better to put it before the previous clause by saying “Set apart everyone who laps water like a dog.”
Likewise everyone that kneels down to drink: There is an ellipsis here since the clause you shall set by himself is implied. Likewise, which renders the Hebrew waw conjunction, helps readers to see that they must fill in the missing clause. Translators can add it or use a word such as likewise. This sentence is literally “and everyone who kneels on his knees to drink.” Just as the verb laps occurs twice in the previous sentence, here the Hebrew root for “knee” occurs twice. Translators may use an idiomatic expression for kneels down.
This verse and the next one pose a number of problems for translators and exegetes since the details are not clear. Most people imagine that those who lap water like a dog get down on their knees. Others propose that those on their knees bring the water to their mouths by hand. However, that is also true for those who lap the water like a dog, according to the next verse. Translators will have to ensure that two distinct actions for drinking water are described in this verse, leading to the formation of two groups.
A translation model for this verse is:
• So Gideon brought his soldiers down to the spring, and the LORD said to him, “Put aside everyone who laps water like a dog, and put in another group everyone who gets down on his knees to drink.”
Quoted with permission from Zogbo, Lynell and Ogden, Graham S. A Handbook on Judges. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .