Judges 8:6

‘And the princes of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hands that we should give bread to your army.'

These would be the chief men of the town, honoured among the elders. ‘Said' is in the singular. One spoke for them all. They were frightened of the sword arms of the Midianite kings which were still free. The kings would not look kindly on those who offered hospitality to those who were their enemies. This counted to them more than the covenant. The reference to hands may reflect the custom of cutting off the hands of the slain in order to assess their numbers, although for leaders the head would appear to have been the norm, as recognisable (Judges 7:25; 1Sa 17:51; 1 Samuel 31:9; 2 Samuel 4:12; 2 Samuel 20:22).

However the Shechemites were being ironic. The reference to ‘your army' may well have been derisory. They did not consider it much of an army. But they knew what their covenant responsibility was and deliberately rejected it for the sake of safety. In view of the contrast between the two armies they felt that they were quite safe. So they refused bread to their brothers.