שופטים, פרק ו׳, פסוק ט״ו

Called upon to rescue his nation, a reluctant leader looks at his own life and sees only limitations. His reaction to the divine call reveals deep humility mixed with a highly realistic assessment of his situation, as he struggles to comprehend how someone of his lowly standing could possibly bring about a national salvation.

When responding to the messenger, there is a question regarding how much he actually understands about the identity of the one standing before him. One approach suggests that at this stage, he does not yet realize he is speaking to an angel. Therefore, his respectful address is simply a polite, everyday greeting directed at a human superior [רד״ק, מנחת שי]. However, other commentators believe he already recognizes that he is facing a heavenly being, directing his words as a holy plea to God [תרגום יונתן, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. According to this view, he understands that the Divine Presence rests upon him, but he is filled with fear. He addresses God using a specific divine title that represents the attribute of strict justice, a standard that requires abundant personal merits which he feels he desperately lacks [אלשיך].

Assuming that the impending rescue will unfold through natural means and conventional warfare, he begins to evaluate the material resources at his disposal and finds them completely inadequate [מלבי״ם]. He points out a double weakness, existing on both a communal and a personal level. On a communal level, he notes that his family group or military unit is the poorest, weakest, and least significant in his entire tribe [רש״י, מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Alternatively, this description of his clan's weakness might specifically refer to his father's low status or lack of official rank [רד״ק].

Compounding this communal insignificance is his own personal standing. He highlights that he is the youngest and least important member of his own household. With such a lack of status, he questions how he could ever act as a leader. He wonders who would possibly listen to his voice or follow him into battle [מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ], and how he could reasonably expect his own family to serve as his army while he acts as their mighty warrior [אלשיך].