Original Meaning
THE FIRST SECTION (A) gives the introduction and setting that lead up to the appearance of Gideon (6:1–10). The typical narrative frame statements are encountered as in previous cycles, but this time there is more development on the condition of the oppression.2 The familiar cycle opening component, “Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD,” stands in abrupt contrast to the praise of Yahweh that has just been sung in the previous chapter. This component stresses the fickleness of the Israelites, who lack resistance to the lures of the other gods.
The description of the oppression pictures a reversal of lifestyles. The settled Israelites revert to living in caves as nomadic groups often do in the context of the southern Levant. By contrast, the nomadic Midianites come and plop all over the land. The sequence of verb forms in 6:3–5 “captures stylistically the wave after wave of pillage and destruction.”3 The Midianites, together with the Amalekites (cf. 3:13) and some easterners (lit., “Qedemites”), are like locusts on the land. Climactically it is described in 6:6: “Midian . . . impoverished [lit., made small] the Israelites.”
Accordingly, the Israelites cry to Yahweh (with, of course, no hint at true repentance).4 This is as they have done in the past, but things are different this time; Yahweh sends a prophet (6:8a). The prophet, the only one in Judges, parallels the appearance of Deborah the prophetess (both appear at precisely the same point in the plot). But his function contrasts sharply with hers: He is not setting in motion the process of deliverance but is formally indicting the Israelites for a breach of the covenant and telling them that they have forfeited all right to deliverance (6:10b). The language is reminiscent of the covenant renewed at Shechem in Joshua 24, with Yahweh’s integrity and Israel’s guilt upheld throughout.5 This Israelite covenantal unfaithfulness will foreshadow their unfaithfulness in the Abimelech story, which ironically takes place at Shechem (8:31; 9:1–5, 25–49).
Nevertheless, Yahweh’s response is not the expected one. Is Yahweh beginning to lose patience with the Israelites? The appearance and message of the “prophet” caution against drawing any simple equation between calling on Yahweh and repentance (this is developed further in 10:10–16).6 It makes clear that the appeal is not a device by which Israel can automatically secure its future. The relationship between Yahweh and Israel is not a mechanical process in which Israel can manipulatively call on Yahweh and he instantaneously responds. Moreover, this formal indictment (Heb. rîb) of Israel through the prophet turns out to be a verbal element in the name Jerub-Baal (see comments on 6:32).
Bridging Contexts
WITH THE GIDEON/ABIMELECH cycle there is a marked moral decline within the people of Israel. Following on the heels of the Song of Deborah, the fickleness of the Israelites is stressed by the opening line. They lack the ability or willingness (or both) to resist the lures of the gods of the peoples around them. This fickleness, no matter how much Yahweh exerts himself on their behalf, is a problem that transcends time. In spite of God’s gracious blessings, it is not unusual to find believers becoming enthralled and enamored with the lures of this present age.
However, persisting in apostasy is risky business. The reversal of habitats between the Midianites and Israelites emphasizes the severity of the chastening discipline of Yahweh. In this instance it becomes retributive. Those who would embrace the materialism and philosophies of the world today may find a reversal in their fortunes.
The response of Yahweh to the Israelites’ cry is quite different from the first three cycles. By sending a prophet to confront the people and indicting them for their covenant unfaithfulness, he puts their deliverance in jeopardy. Clearly, Yahweh implies that there comes a time when his patience turns to judgment.
This passage also continues the theme of manipulation that was started in the last cycle. Yahweh will not instantaneously and robotically respond to his people’s cry. This is especially true when that cry is not sincere, when God’s people continue in their idolatry, and when that cry has manipulative intentions.
Contemporary Significance
THOSE WHO LACK the resolve to resist the lures of the world will likely face the disasters and destructions that these lures often bring. They may find that God is their opponent, not their friend. Certainly, fickleness in loyalty to the things of God occurs in the church today. When Christians run after the same gods as their non-Christian counterparts, they should not be surprised when God does not hear their prayers or react in the way they think he should.
It is interesting that God formally indicts. Such language places the relationship into the forensic, legal context, where doubt is removed and clarity added to the description of what is wrong in the relationship. That God still indicts his people is clear through various New Testament passages; note, for example, Revelation 2–3, where several churches are indicted for their failures to God’s covenant. The Holy Spirit carries on this same process within the individual believer.
In a practical sense, this passage addresses a common problem in the area of prayer. We turn to God in a moment of need, even when we have not been walking in his ways. Yet we expect God to answer our prayers because (and often for no other reason) we are in need! Over and over the Bible (including the book of Judges) addresses this issue of manipulation in prayer (cf., e.g., James 4:1–6). Relationship with God is never a mechanical process.
Judges 6:11–32
11The angel of the LORD came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. 12When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.”
13“But sir,” Gideon replied, “if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian.”
14The LORD turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”
15“But Lord,” Gideon asked, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”
16The LORD answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together.”
17Gideon replied, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me. 18Please do not go away until I come back and bring my offering and set it before you.”
And the LORD said, “I will wait until you return.”
19Gideon went in, prepared a young goat, and from an ephah of flour he made bread without yeast. Putting the meat in a basket and its broth in a pot, he brought them out and offered them to him under the oak.
20The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened bread, place them on this rock, and pour out the broth.” And Gideon did so. 21With the tip of the staff that was in his hand, the angel of the LORD touched the meat and the unleavened bread. Fire flared from the rock, consuming the meat and the bread. And the angel of the LORD disappeared. 22When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the LORD, he exclaimed, “Ah, Sovereign LORD! I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face!”
23But the LORD said to him, “Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.”
24So Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and called it The LORD is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
25That same night the LORD said to him, “Take the second bull from your father’s herd, the one seven years old. Tear down your father’s altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole beside it. 26Then build a proper kind of altar to the LORD your God on the top of this height. Using the wood of the Asherah pole that you cut down, offer the second bull as a burnt offering.”
27So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the LORD told him. But because he was afraid of his family and the men of the town, he did it at night rather than in the daytime.
28In the morning when the men of the town got up, there was Baal’s altar, demolished, with the Asherah pole beside it cut down and the second bull sacrificed on the newly built altar!
29They asked each other, “Who did this?”
When they carefully investigated, they were told, “Gideon son of Joash did it.”
30The men of the town demanded of Joash, “Bring out your son. He must die, because he has broken down Baal’s altar and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”
31But Joash replied to the hostile crowd around him, “Are you going to plead Baal’s cause? Are you trying to save him? Whoever fights for him shall be put to death by morning! If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself when someone breaks down his altar.” 32So that day they called Gideon “Jerub-Baal,” saying, “Let Baal contend with him,” because he broke down Baal’s altar.
Original Meaning
STRUCTURALLY, SECTION B (see introductory comments to 6:1–9:57) relates God’s plan of deliverance by means of the call of Gideon through stories about two altars that Gideon raises for Yahweh (6:11–32). This section will have significant correspondences to section B′, which narrates the deliverance of Israel from the Midianites through the two victorious battles of Gideon (7:19–8:21). It is interesting to note that items like a winepress and a rock play roles in both sections (cf. 6:11, 20 with 7:25; 8:2).
The section has two units (6:11–24, 25–32), in which the climax is the building of an altar to Yahweh. In order to explain his plan for the deliverance of Israel, Yahweh resorts to a theophany (a manifestation or appearance of God) to communicate his choice to Gideon. Gideon is the only judge in the book of Judges who is called by God personally through a theophany.
“The angel of the LORD” appears to Gideon and exclaims: “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior [gibbôr heḥāyil]” (6:12). There is great irony in this statement by the angel of Yahweh. (1) Gideon is hiding from the Midianites, threshing wheat in a winepress.7 (2) Gideon’s name (gidʿôn) means “hacker” (derived from the verb gdʿ, to hack, break to pieces). But Gideon is characterized by fearfulness and reluctance, although Yahweh’s words are correct (i.e., he will be a great warrior at the end; see 8:4–21).
Numerous commentators have noted similarities between Gideon’s call and those of Moses in Exodus 3 and Joshua in Joshua 1.
| Comparison of Gideon, Moses and Joshua8 |
|---|
| Gideon (Judg. 6) | Moses (Ex. 3) | Joshua (Josh. 1) |
Circumstances | Hiding from the enemy, working for his father Joash, who is clan head and priest of a pagan shrine | Working for his father-in-law, Jethro, whose flocks Moses is tending when Yahweh’s angel appears to him | After the death of Moses, in camp at Abel-Shittim |
Authorization | Have I not sent you? | and I will send you | Now, rise up . . . you . . . you, have I not charged you? |
Objection | Protest of inadequacy: With what shall I . . . my family is weakest. I am the least in the house of my father. | Protest of inadequacy: Who [am] I . . . that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt? | (none) |
Affirmation | for I will be with you | for I will be with you | . . . I will be with you |
Sign | give me a sign | this [will be] a sign | (none) |
Theophany | Fire theophany, which induces fear in the one who is called. This proof of the divine presence is withheld until the end, so that the recognition of the messenger becomes the climax of the scene. | Fire theophany, which induces fear in the one who is called. This proof of the divine presence is given unsolicited at the outset. | (none) |
New material | —— | —— | Be strong and courageous; only be strong and very courageous; be strong and courageous; be not afraid nor discouraged. |
Gideon’s response to God’s call, however, is not quite like that of Moses. In the dialogue with the angel of the Lord, Gideon will mount a three-point opposition, which, in each case, anticipates later plot complications.9
(1) His response to the angel of the Lord’s initial call is a dull, cynical question and diatribe about God’s treatment of the nation (6:13). Gideon shows an ignorance to the problem in Israel—“[doing] evil in the eyes of the LORD,” 6:1; Israel has apostasized again, and this is why the Midianites have come.10 Moreover, Gideon’s question is cynical because it shows little awareness of all the recent mighty acts of God on behalf of the sinful nation and implies that Yahweh is not a god, that he does not defend his people, and that he does not contend for Israel (cf. ironically 6:31). Gideon evinces some knowledge of the past but a highly selective and distorted one. He manifests a dispassionate disregard for Yahweh’s primary concern about Israel’s covenantal disloyalty (anticipating 6:25–32; 8:24–27).
(2) Although Yahweh encourages Gideon (“Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?” 6:14), Gideon’s objection in 6:15 is an attempt to evade personal responsibility for the conquest because of his clan’s (ʾelep) smallness11 (anticipating 7:2–8; but cf. Deut. 7:17–24).
(3) After Yahweh’s assurance (“I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together”), Gideon’s request for a sign in 6:17 discloses his preoccupation with tangible manifestations of the divine (anticipating 6:36–37, 39; 7:10–15; and esp. 8:24–27). Gideon does not really perceive to whom he is talking (he calls the angel of the Lord “sir” [ʾ adōnî] twice, 6:13, 15). His complaint that God has not acted to save Israel will be answered by God’s call and commissioning of Gideon himself.
While the theophany is especially reminiscent of the call of Moses (Ex. 3:7–10), Gideon is no Moses.12 Like Moses, there is a problem with the will. But in the case of Gideon, there are additional problems of perception (of the presence of the Lord and the reason for Israel’s distress) and faith (Gideon will have a much harder time with trust in Yahweh than Moses, as the narrative will show). Indeed, the contrast of characterizations introduced in 6:11–24 between Yahweh’s patience and Gideon’s impetuosity form the background to Gideon’s compensatory ruthlessness portrayed toward those who, like himself, doubted his ability to capture Yahweh’s opponents (cf. 8:5–9, 13–17).13
Significantly, Gideon’s commission comes not by the prophet (contrast Barak), nor by any human agency, but by Yahweh himself through a theophany. Yahweh and Gideon will be in almost constant dialogue with one another in the sequence of events leading up to the battle (6:25, 36, 39; 7:2, 4, 7, 9). This will prove ironic in light of the final outcome of the Gideon cycle.
In 6:17, Gideon begins his requests for signs.14 The NIV’s “give me a sign” is more accurately translated “perform a sign for me.” Gideon’s request for the angel of the Lord to wait for him to prepare an offering (minḥâ, lit., a “meal or cereal offering,” though here used simply as a general term for offering) is anticipatory of Manoah’s offering in 13:15–23. Like Manoah’s offering there is a clear attempt on Gideon’s part to detain God.15 Gideon’s offering is apparently based entirely on his own evaluation of what is appropriate. That he is preparing a meal for the gods/a god is evident from the nature and size of the offering.16
Nevertheless, in spite of Gideon’s motives, the Lord accepts the sacrifices with miraculous fire17 coming from the rock to consume the meat and bread—an outcome totally unexpected by Gideon. Gideon’s highly emotional but illogical conclusion—namely, the fear of death as a result of seeing the angel of the Lord (again, mirrored in Manoah’s false conclusion)18—serves to confirm his unbelief in spite of his own words and claim that a sign will remedy this. Only God’s declaration of “peace” (šālôm) and his promise that Gideon will not die can relieve this highly emotional but illogical conclusion (much like Manoah’s wife does in the case of Manoah). At this the theophany ends (6:21).
Hence, Gideon builds an altar (the first in the narration) and names it: “Yahweh-Shalom” (“The LORD is Peace”).19 He constructs it in “Ophrah of the Abiezrites.” This serves a double function. Combined with 6:11 (“Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite”), it forms an inclusio around the account of Gideon’s call. At the same time, it effects the transition to the next scene (6:25–32) by anticipating the issue to be resolved there, namely, the rivalry between Yahweh and Baal as symbolized by the juxtaposition of their two altars.20
In the second unit of the section (6:25–32), events transpire that reach a climax in the building of a second altar to Yahweh in Ophrah. Before the story can proceed to describe Gideon’s deliverance of Israel from the Midianites, a pair of abnormalities needs to be dealt with.21 The first is an objective issue, the presence of a pagan cult installation in Gideon’s own backyard. The second is a subjective problem, Gideon’s persistent resistance to God’s call.
God’s command to Gideon (6:25) contains two demands—a negative one, followed by a positive one. (1) He must tear down his father’s altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole that is beside it (note the pair of idolatrous items).22 Yahweh’s command to Gideon is a reverberation of his commands in Deuteronomy 7:5 and 12:3. In both texts, the verb “to cut, hack” (gdʿ ) occurs in a form that echoes Gideon’s name (tegaddēʿûn).
When the narrator gives us this information about the Baal altar and the Asherah pole, he subtly acknowledges the fact that while Israel was crying out and appealing to Yahweh for help, there was an altar to Baal at Ophrah. An implied question follows: If there is one in Ophrah (a small rural site), were there not others throughout the land? No wonder Yahweh’s response in 6:8–10 was to indict Israel through the prophet’s speech.
(2) Gideon must build an altar to Yahweh and sacrifice the second bull23 as a burnt offering. By his command to Gideon to destroy the pagan altar and rebuild a proper altar to Yahweh on this pagan site, Yahweh seems to be ordering him to reclaim this apostate shrine locale by himself. Not only was the site desecrated through its destruction, but further defilement was brought on it through the sacrifice of the bull that was used to destroy it.
Fearing the repercussions of the destruction of the Baal altar and Asherah pole, Gideon takes ten of his servants and carries out Yahweh’s orders under cover of night. Block observes: “The reader cannot help but be disappointed that the real motivation for his hasty obedience was not an eagerness to obey God but fear of the consequences from the citizens of Ophrah if he should tear down the altar of Baal in broad daylight.”24 Even with such motives, Gideon does what God commands. He demolishes the Baal altar, cuts down the Asherah pole, builds a proper altar to Yahweh, and sacrifices the second bull on the new altar.
The next morning the utter outrage and hostility of the town is riveted on Gideon. This reflects the true spiritual condition of the nation. Gideon knows that his own family and the people of his own village will come to the defense of these pagan idols before they defend him, their kinsman and fellow citizen. The people demand Joash, his father, to hand over his son so that they can execute him (6:30).25 Joash’s decision is a ploy to save face and to save Gideon at the same time by referring the case to higher authority: “If Baal really is god, he can defend himself when someone breaks down his altar” (6:31). The townspeople back down, and Gideon, who has the Lord with him, surfaces as a champion, a “mighty warrior” (gibbôr heḥāyil)—as the angel of the Lord pronounced at the beginning of the section (6:11).
Gideon receives a new name: Jerub-Baal (“Let/May Baal contend/indict”). In one sense, it designates him as living proof of Baal’s impotence. Thus Gideon begins his career by driving the deity Baal from the field of battle (Baal cannot contend with him). But he now must face the challenge of driving the human foe, the Midianites, from the field of battle. At the same time, the name also reminds the reader of the indictment (rîb) brought by the prophet at the beginning of the Gideon/Abimelech cycle (6:8–10). Ironically, judge Gideon (“hacker”), the son of apostate Joash, wears this Baal-name (“Let/May Baal contend/indict”), a name that occurs with increasing frequency in chapters 7 and 8 and beyond.
Bridging Contexts
GOD’S GRACE. The story of Gideon’s call and the building of the two altars introduces us to the first of the Out-group judges and reveals a declivity not yet encountered in the stories of the cyclical/major judges. On the divine level, it is amazing that Yahweh acts at all on Israel’s behalf. Not only has Israel continued in their apostasizing, but in spite of the Lord’s confrontation through his prophet, Israel has not repented. Even the household of the deliverer whom Yahweh calls worships the deities of the land of Canaan.
Nevertheless, God’s grace is evident in his action of calling a deliverer for Israel, that is, Gideon. And that grace is manifest in the fact that no other judge (šōpēṭ) in the book of Judges is called by God personally through a theophany. While we may be inclined to think that this is an indication of Gideon’s spirituality, we quickly realize that this is not the case. As the cycle continues, it is clear that on the divine level God once again is glorified: first, in even involving himself in the deliverance, and second, in the actual story of the deliverance. Thus the very call of Gideon underscores God’s tremendous grace toward Israel (not to mention to Gideon, too).
Gideon’s response. Gideon’s initial response to the angel of the Lord’s call is theologically correct in its basic assertions, but it is wrong in its tone and in its awareness of the correct evaluation of the present situation. Instead of acknowledging Israelite responsibility for the present crisis, as the narrator does in 6:1, Gideon blames God. Thus, he demonstrates an ignorance of Yahweh’s covenant with Israel. The Israelites’ sins have brought these things upon them; they are the cause of their problems, not God. Moreover, Gideon’s incorrect evaluation is, no doubt, the result of the pagan situation in his village. Like many others in Israel at this time, this village has its own cult center where other gods are worshiped. Although Gideon is aware of some of the traditions of Yahweh (6:13), for all practical purposes he and his family are worshipers of Baal and Asherah! Gideon’s problems lie in his lack of knowledge of God’s word, in his perception of God’s involvement in the life of the nation, in his willingness to serve, and in his faith.
In this sense, Gideon is an example of those who know what God has done in the past, who have memorized the creed, but who find it belied by present reality. To Gideon, stories of past deliverance are irrelevant in light of the Midianite crisis. To him, God may have worked long ago, but he no longer cares about Israel. Biblical faith has lost its relevance to the present situation.
Therefore, it is essential that before he embarks on God’s mission of deliverance, Gideon must destroy the idolatry in his own household. Note this simple fact of polytheism: Pagan deities have no problem tolerating the simultaneous worship of more than one god! But Yahweh, the only true and living God, does (Ex. 20:1–7; Deut. 6:4)! Consequently, more serious than the oppression of the Midianites is the Israelites’ bondage to the spiritual forces of the land—and this includes Gideon’s own family.
While even his name, Gideon (“hacker”), seems to indicate a judge of strength, his activity at the time of his call and the subsequent processes demonstrate that he is hardly living up to the meaning of that name. In addition, the great similarity between Gideon’s call and that of Moses and Joshua as the narrator presents it, in the end, only emphasizes the contrasts between these three (rather than the similarities).
Gideon’s lack of faith will be especially apparent in his propensity for signs. This begins with his initial offering to Yahweh and will continue up to the first battle. Gideon’s preoccupation with tangible manifestations of the divine will eventually be his undoing. Unfortunately, Gideon’s propensity for signs and preoccupation with the tangible in religious matters is manifest today among some of those who name Christ (see more on this below).
In the initial dialogue, Yahweh twice specifically declares that he will be with Gideon (6:12, 16).26 Yet Gideon’s reply, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give a sign that it is really you talking to me,” demonstrates a spiritual dullness and lack of belief. What does God have to do? Then Gideon wants to bring an offering, an offering that appears to be based more on the notion of feeding the gods than on proper sacrifice and worship of Yahweh. Thus Gideon’s ignorance of God’s law extends to what proper sacrifice and worship is. Needless to say, this same ignorance can be found today in many church contexts.
Return to the past. Taking the larger structure of the cycles section into consideration, while Gideon obviously does not equate to an Othniel, Ehud, or even Barak, neither is he a Jephthah or a Samson. Thus, in building the first altar to Yahweh, Gideon draws witness to Yahweh’s call through the theophany. Despite fearing the people of his village, Gideon obeys Yahweh’s commands to “hack” down the Asherah pole, to destroy the Baal altar, and to build an altar to Yahweh (the second altar, 6:25–32). This endangers his life, but his father, Joash, rescues him—albeit through a ploy that questions the divinity of Baal: “If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself when someone breaks down his altar” (6:31). While this makes Gideon living proof of Baal’s impotence as a deity, he nevertheless serves with a Baal-name (Jerub-Baal), and its frequency is truly ironic. While service to the Lord begins with a break with the past (in religious and moral matters, cf. Phil. 3:1–14; Heb. 12:1), the dangers of a return to the past are great.
Contemporary Significance
DIVINE LEVEL. On the divine level, this section of the Gideon/Abimelech cycle emphasizes the grace of Yahweh. The very call of Gideon in spite of the national and familial apostasy is truly astonishing. In spite of the commitments of so many Christians to other gods—such as the gods of religious pluralism and modern, non-Christian worldviews—it is remarkable that God still calls and works out his plan. God’s compassion for his people with all of their grave transgressions and weaknesses provides once again the impetus to deliver Israel. Moreover, God surprises us by remaining faithful in the midst of persistent cynicism and doubt.
Human level. On the human level, this section emphasizes a number of important points. It certainly teaches us how important it is to remember the mighty acts of God, especially those in the recent past. The human tendency is to forget these, which is all the more reason to make every effort to remember them. Why is this important? Because it informs our perception. The story of Gideon’s call serves as a notable illustration of the dangers of not remembering God’s mighty acts. The product can be cynicism and an inability to perceive God. It can lead to an ignorance and misunderstanding of God’s Word and why things happen in the world.
For example, many Christians are ignorant of the Scriptures’ teachings concerning suffering and pain. While such teaching is complex, there are certain principles that enable the believer to understand and face the difficulties of life differently from the unbeliever—and a proper biblical perspective is fundamental. Within some circles of Christianity, there is a cynicism concerning Christ’s ability to intervene and make any difference in daily life. No matter what reasons may be given, such cynicism is ultimately the result of an ignorance of Scripture.
Again and again throughout both Testaments the sovereignty of God over human events is maintained, not to mention his willing intervention to accomplish his will. There is a desperate need in many Christian circles to develop eyes to see and ears to hear God, that is, the ability to perceive God. At the same time, we must evaluate and test our perceptions by the Word of God, to ensure that those perceptions are consistent with what Scripture teaches about God.
A need for signs. In some ways, today’s society is incredibly gullible, easily taken in by the smooth marketing agent’s pitch or the politician’s good looks and promises. But in many other regards, contemporary society demands evidence, proof, signs, documentation, and/or verification. This is certainly true in religious quarters. People want to see divine manifestations before they will believe and follow. They demand first-class miracles, as if to say: “If Christ would appear before me now, then I would believe in him and follow him.” It is doubtful, however, whether they would. For with many of these folk “even if one came back from the dead, they would not believe” (Luke 16:19–31). We need not be surprised when some do not respond to God’s call. The failure to see what God is doing applies not just to a failure to see his revelation, but also to a failure to see the evidence he leaves behind that points to his revelation.
This was not exactly Gideon’s problem; he was willing to believe (in that he already accepted God’s existence and work). He simply demanded the assurances of success before acting on what God had revealed to him as his will. Gideon’s problem was a matter of willingness because of his tremendous, obsessive fear. Gideon is no Mel Gibson, for he is faint-hearted, not braveheart! It is astounding how many times God states that he will be with Gideon and that he will defeat the Midianites, and yet how unbelieving Gideon is in spite of these statements. He must have evidence that demands a verdict!
Unfortunately, preoccupation with the tangible manifestations of the divine with the need for signs is manifest today among Christians on a level equal to that of Gideon. This does not mean that God does not give evidence of his presence and work. Certainly he does. But the preoccupation with such tangible manifestations is a serious and dangerous spiritual problem. In the case of Gideon, it prevented him from simply taking God at his word, trusting in the straightforward assertion of that message to him.
Such preoccupation with tangible manifestations can inhibit positive action for the cause of Christ, just as it did in the case of Gideon. God’s willingness to go as far as he did in giving Gideon these signs only manifested how little faith Gideon had in the Lord’s word. An unwillingness to act unless there are tangible signs can unnecessarily delay the implementation of God’s revealed will. To ask for a sign when God has already revealed his will reflects an immature faith and perhaps, in certain circumstances, a greater willingness to disobey than to obey. For example, when God has clearly stated his will that believers not marry unbelievers, to ask God for a sign whether one should marry an unbelieving potential spouse is problematic and reflects on the spirituality of the one proposing such a sign.
Obedience. But putting Gideon into the larger context of the cycles section, Gideon’s obedience to God’s command to destroy the Baal altar and Asherah pole and build a new altar to him is noteworthy. In spite of his preoccupation with the tangible signs and in spite of perhaps working out of fear, Gideon did obey God’s command. Obedience to this command was an important precursor to the deliverance of the nation through Gideon. Such obedience ought to be replicated in the lives of believers, especially those in leadership positions, regardless of their doubts and/or fears.
Moreover, before we can truly serve God, it is often necessary to deal with our own lives, our own backgrounds, in such a way as to bring proper and full glory to God when we do serve. Doubting people can be used of God, especially when they are obedient in spite of their doubts and fears!
Judges 6:33–7:18
33Now all the Midianites, Amalekites and other eastern peoples joined forces and crossed over the Jordan and camped in the Valley of Jezreel. 34Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, summoning the Abiezrites to follow him. 35He sent messengers throughout Manasseh, calling them to arms, and also into Asher, Zebulun and Naphtali, so that they too went up to meet them.
36Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised—37look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said.” 38And that is what happened. Gideon rose early the next day; he squeezed the fleece and wrung out the dew—a bowlful of water.
39Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me. Let me make just one more request. Allow me one more test with the fleece. This time make the fleece dry and the ground covered with dew.” 40That night God did so. Only the fleece was dry; all the ground was covered with dew.
7:1Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. 2The LORD said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, 3announce now to the people, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’ ” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.
4But the LORD said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”
5So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the LORD told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink.” 6Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.
7The LORD said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place.” 8So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.
Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. 9During that night the LORD said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands. 10If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah 11and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp. 12The Midianites, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore.
13Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. “I had a dream,” he was saying. “A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed.”
14His friend responded, “This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.”
15When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped God. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, “Get up! The LORD has given the Midianite camp into your hands.” 16Dividing the three hundred men into three companies, he placed trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them, with torches inside.
17“Watch me,” he told them. “Follow my lead. When I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly as I do. 18When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, then from all around the camp blow yours and shout, ‘For the LORD and for Gideon.’ ”
Original Meaning
STRUCTURALLY, SECTION C (see introductory comments to 6:1–9:57) is clearly demarcated by the framing of the two mobilizations of troops by Gideon (a, 6:33–35; a′, 7:15–18). The two sign incidents (b, 6:36–40; b′, 7:12–14) are narrated on both sides of two presentations of God’s dealing with fear among the Israelites and Gideon (c, 7:1–8; c′, 7:9–11).
God’s promise and Gideon’s problem of faith are the crucial matters in tension within 6:33–7:18. Five times the promise of Yahweh’s saving Israel through Gideon’s hands is reiterated (6:36; 7:2, 7, 9, 14–15). Moreover, the repetition of “fear” (yārēʾ ) in the two innermost episodes of the structure (7:3, 10) singles this out for attention.27
With the narration of Gideon’s call and name change complete, 6:33–35 resumes the description of the oppression of the Midianites and their alliances. Like the Moabites (and their allies) in 3:13 and the massively armed Canaanites in 4:12, this horde presents an almost insurmountable challenge to the undermanned Israelites. Reminiscent of Ehud (blowing the trumpet) and Barak (calling out the troops, especially in Zebulun and Naphtali), Gideon, upon whom the Spirit of Yahweh has come (lit., “clothed”),28 musters the Israelites from Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali (6:34–35).
The reader’s expectations for the same type of deliverance as in the earlier cycles are quickly dashed in 6:36–40. Gideon suddenly confronts God with the need for a “sign,” a proof that God will really save Israel through him. Note that God has already said that he would, and Gideon knows it (“as you have promised,” 6:36). Thus, while the phrase “the Spirit of the LORD came upon [i.e., clothed, lābǎs]29 Gideon” sounds spiritually positive, it is important to recognize the irony built into the context. Block observes:
This [the Spirit of Yahweh’s “clothing” of Gideon] should not be interpreted too differently from every other instance in which the Spirit is described as having come/rushed upon its object. This expression, reminiscent of Num 24:3 (in which case Balaam, the Mesopotamian prophet, experiences the same phenomenon) does not presuppose any particular level of spirituality on the part of the recipient [emphasis mine]. To the contrary, this divine intrusion into human experience seems to graphically describe YHWH’s arresting of men ill-disposed toward resolving Israel’s problems and his equipping of them for the saving task.30
Block’s case is reinforced by the observation that the Spirit of Yahweh “comes/clothes/is strong” upon the Out-group judges more frequently than upon the In-group judges (five times vs. one time).31 It is especially clear from the usages in the Jephthah narrative and the Samson episodes that the phrase does not necessarily carry a positive comment on the individual’s spirituality. In the case of Jephthah, after the Spirit “comes upon” him, he advances for battle against the Ammonites and immediately utters his rash, manipulative vow. In the case of Samson (where ironically the majority of uses occur), after the Spirit “is strong upon” him, Samson tears a lion in two (14:6). In the next instance (14:19), he murders thirty Philistines to get their sets of clothing to fulfill his deal with his “companions” at his wedding and returns in great anger to his father’s house. In the final case (15:14), he kills one thousand Philistines with the jawbone of an ass (an unclean implement) and then utters his first narcissistic prayer.
It is easy for Christians who are more familiar with the New Testament concepts of “indwelling” and “filling” to read these back into the Old Testament. These do not really equate. To be filled with the Spirit in the New Testament speaks to spirituality, that is, the one who is filled is controlled by the Spirit with the consequent actions being spiritual activities (Eph. 5:18b–20). In the Old Testament the notion is that of empowerment for a particular task, though it is apparent that the recipient might misuse this empowerment (e.g., 14:19). The New Testament equivalent is perhaps closer to the idea of giftedness, where the recipient can use his or her gifts to positive results or misuse or abuse those gifts.
Therefore, in the case of Gideon, the Spirit’s work reflects God’s sovereign will to set things in motion for the deliverance he has planned, not Gideon’s condition of faith or spirituality. Although Gideon has much popular support and has a considerable fighting force at his disposal, he hesitates. His almost immediate “fleecing” of God speaks to his unbelief, his lack of spirituality. In fact, the fleece incidents are Gideon’s second request for a sign from God (cf. the earlier request in 6:17). And this second sign request needs to be doubly confirmed! It is not enough that God makes the fleece wet and the ground dry; Gideon needs it the other way around. And sadly, unlike Yahweh, Gideon will not be true to his word after the first fleece incident (“then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said” v. 37). Therefore, in spite of the polite entreaty, we should not be blind to the manner in which Gideon is trying to manipulate God.32
Contrary to popular interpretation, these fleecings have nothing to do with discovering or determining God’s will. The divine will is perfectly and absolutely clear in Gideon’s own mind (note the wording in v. 36). These “signs” reveal his lack of faith. As Exum rightly notes: “No character in the book receives more divine assurance than Gideon and none displays more doubt. Gideon is, significantly, the only judge to whom God speaks directly, though this privilege does not allay his faintheartedness.”33
Hence, despite being clear about God’s will, being “clothed/empowered” by the Spirit of God, and being confirmed as a divinely chosen leader by the overwhelming response of his countrymen to his own summons to battle, Gideon uses every means available to try to get out of the mission to which he has been called.34
It is not insignificant that throughout the pericope concerning the fleecings the divine personal, covenantal name of Yahweh is missing. Instead, the rather generic designation Elohim (“God”) is used. Apparently Gideon has difficulty distinguishing between Yahweh, the God of the Israelites, and God in a general sense.35 This fleecing process is nothing short of a pagan divinatory test of the deity. In the ancient Near East, there were many different divination processes invoked to inquire of the deities. Gideon’s fleece incidents are examples of “impetrated divination”—divination by various techniques of asking a question and directly evoking a response.36
Particularly important here is the way Gideon utilizes the occurrence of normal versus abnormal activity as an indicator of the deity’s answer. Gideon’s procedure demonstrates that the first night he was content to use the oracle simply to give God the opportunity to communicate if he has changed his mind (which, of course, he has not). Thus the “normal” (absorbent fleece, wet; impervious threshing floor, dry) is set up as a “yes” answer (i.e., God will deliver by his hand). The lack of faith is clearly demonstrated when the normal occurrence is insufficient and he has to reverse the indicators (with effusive apology) and pose the oracle again with the “abnormal” (fleece, dry; threshing floor, wet) as the “yes” answer.37
Perhaps one may inquire of Baal this way, but this is not the way to treat the God of Israel. Remarkably, Yahweh responds to Gideon’s tests. As Block rightly observes, Yahweh “is more anxious to deliver Israel than to quibble with this man’s semipagan notions of deity.”38 On this basis, one may argue that the narrator includes this pericope to construct a sharper picture of Gideon’s unbelief and questionable religious practices (thus his religious deviance in 8:27 is not as surprising). Finally, on the basis of the structure of this section (b, 6:36–40 :: b′, 7:12–14), it should be observed that just as Yahweh uses the pair of fleecings with their pagan divinatory overtones to encourage Gideon to deliver Israel, he will also use two Midianites—one relating his dream, the other interpreting it (also with pagan divinatory overtones)—to encourage and motivate Gideon to action. What great lengths God is going in order to save Israel from the hand of Midian!
The two central episodes (c and c′) deal with the issue of “fear.” The double reduction (7:1–8) of Gideon’s fighting force begins with the removal of all the “fearful” Israelites (7:1–3). According to Deuteronomy 20:8, this was a Yahweh-commanded reduction for morale reasons.39 The result is a 22,000-man reduction. Interestingly, this reduction of the “fearful” (yārēʾ ) or “trembling” (ḥārad) Israelites takes place at the spring of Harod (the name derives from a verb ḥārad, to tremble; hence “the spring of trembling”).
Then God directs Gideon to go down to the water for the further reduction of his remaining 10,000 man force (7:4–8).40 Commentators are divided in their understanding of the process of reduction. Some argue that the criteria for elimination are based on positive components; others, that elimination is based on negative criteria. For example, Boling argues that this is a test of alertness and that it is difficult to watch out for the enemy if one kneels down and laps water directly from the spring.41
It seems best, however, to understand the process as based on purely arbitrary criteria. Whether the process of selection is based on positive or negative evaluative criteria is not as important as the reduction in number to an extremely small force—three hundred men. But along with this drastic reduction in his forces comes a further word of reassurance: “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands” (7:7). The reason for the reductions is stated explicitly in 7:2: “in order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her.” This motive will, unfortunately, be undercut, as we will see.
In addition, the reductions certainly are a way in which Yahweh is able to undermine any self-confidence that Gideon may have as the result of the fleece incidents. Gideon attempts to gain some security from his self-conceived divinatory signs with the fleece. While God acquiesced to that request, he immediately counters by putting Gideon in an even more vulnerable position through the troop reductions so that Yahweh himself will receive all the glory for the coming victory.
In the second central episode (7:9–11), Yahweh, knowing that Gideon himself is still fearful, directs him to go down to the enemy camp to overhear the enemy. This provides Gideon with the second instance of confirmation that God will give the Midianites into his hands. The statement in 7:10, “If you are afraid to attack . . . ,” demonstrates that, in fact, Gideon is still afraid. God graciously supplies Gideon with Purah as a companion, and the pair goes down to the Midianite camp at night (cf. Gideon’s action with his servants in 6:25–27).
At this point (7:12–14), the narrator’s repetition of the description of the hordes of the Midianites and other allied peoples as a swarm of “locusts” (cf. 6:3–5) and as numerous as the sand of the seashore (cf. Josh. 11:4) heightens the danger and the motif of fear. Gideon and his servant arrive at the Midianite camp at the precise moment (emphasized in the Hebrew syntax)42 that a Midianite is relating his dream to his comrade. God has clearly devised his own sign for Gideon. Now, through a Midianite’s dream retold and interpreted by another Midianite43—a dream and its interpretation44 that Gideon will be in the exact place to overhear (imagine the complexity and probability here, especially with the size of the Midianite camp)—Gideon hears the exact same words that Yahweh had already spoken to him: “God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands” (7:14; cf. 6:16, 36).
The irony is rich. Hearing the promise directly from Yahweh did not convince Gideon (his fleece signs really didn’t either), but hearing it from the lips of a Midianite soldier does convince him.45 The dream report and its interpretation also demonstrate that the feared Midianites are in fact in a state of near panic through the ominous dream that Yahweh has given them. There will be no real fight since they are already “given” into Gideon’s hands before the battle begins.
In 7:15–18, it is evident that this reported dream has its intended effect on Gideon: He worships God (7:15). Gideon now musters his small band of men with the confidence that Yahweh will truly give them the victory. At this moment, he believes God. Dividing the three hundred into three companies, he places trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them with torches inside, and he instructs them to follow his lead. They are to shout “for the LORD and for Gideon” (emphasis added).46
After this final “sign” of encouragement through the dream and its interpretation as related by the two Midianites, all dialogue between Yahweh and Gideon ceases. After worshiping God as the result of this final sign, Gideon will not worship God again. Rather than having a wonderful song of Yahweh’s glorification after the battle (cf. ch. 5), there will only be Gideon’s increasing usurpation of God’s glory for the victory in the battle and its outcomes.
Bridging Contexts
DIVINE LEVEL. On the divine level, the section stresses Yahweh’s sovereignty and omnipotence, demonstrated both in the fleecings and in the dream and its interpretation. Gideon’s manipulative, divinatory attempts to secure Yahweh’s involvement (rather foolish when one considers that Yahweh has innumerable times stated to Gideon that he will be with him and give him victory) will be undercut by the sovereign Lord, who reduces the army twice in such a way that victory on purely human grounds will be impossible. The constant emphasis on the vastness of the Midianite army underscores this. Any number of things could go wrong with Gideon’s strategy—as ingenious as it is. Unless Yahweh is in control of the events and especially the disposition of the Midianites in the camp, things could easily turn out another way.47 The description of the battle in the next section will reinforce this fact.
Human level. On a human level, what is stressed repeatedly in this section is Gideon’s fear and sense of inadequacy for the task—his lack of willingness to trust Yahweh’s word. Consequently, he is in constant need of reassurance and moral support. Gideon is apparently a man of great potential and perhaps natural ability but lacks significantly in faith.
The fleece incidents are far from being a model for the discernment of God’s will. As we have already discussed, these are expressions of doubt and lack of faith. By his own admission, Gideon already knew God’s will and promise, for this had been carefully articulated to him by the angel of the Lord (6:14–16). His problem is his lack of willingness to trust the Lord, to take him at his word. Thus, the fleece incidents are about Gideon’s unbelief and stubbornness in response to God’s call. In such cases, God is not obligated to respond, and if he does, it is only by grace. Those who use this passage as a means of discerning God’s will are simply misapplying Scripture.
Reduction of the army. The reduction of Gideon’s army is a familiar story often told from the perspective of emphasizing God’s ability to deliver whether by many or by few. While it is certainly true that God can do this, such an explanation falls short of doing justice to the text. The context is dealing with a struggle of fear and doubt within Gideon himself, which has important application to the modern context.
The reductions of Gideon’s army contextually fall precisely between his unfounded request for a fleece and God’s exposure of his fear. Those reductions have a threefold intention. (1) They enhance the glorification of God (7:2).
(2) They put Gideon in a position where his fear is exposed. God is interested in helping Gideon to overcome his fear, to deal with this emotion through faith. But God is interested in more than just Gideon—he wants to deliver Israel. Therefore, he manifests great patience in dealing with Gideon, not only to aid him in overcoming his fear, but perhaps more importantly to save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. While Gideon has sought to gain security by his self-conceived sign with the fleece, and though God acquiesced to that request, Yahweh immediately counters by putting Gideon in an even more vulnerable position. After all, if Gideon struggled to trust God with 32,000 Israelites against a Midianite force of 135,000 (see 8:10), how will he react when he has only a force of 300?48 The problem at its heart is manipulation. Gideon wants to have the emotional and psychological assurance that God will really give the victory. Indeed, the fleecings were utterly unnecessary since God had already given his word.
(3) Given the spiritual independence and waywardness of the nation, if the forces massed under Gideon were to defeat the Midianites without the reductions, the Israelites might credit themselves rather than Yahweh with defeating the enemy. Yahweh recognizes this and removes this possibility (although Gideon will eventually usurp it anyway).
Gideon tests God with signs (the fleece incidents), and God answers him to dispel his fear. Yet God quickly dissolves the assurances Gideon may have had from the fleece incidents in order to demonstrate to him his real problem and its answer. It is only with God’s own sign, with all of its complexity and irony, that Gideon finally follows the Lord. Hearing the promise directly from Yahweh was not convincing enough for Gideon, nor were Gideon’s fleece signs. But hearing it from the lips of a Midianite soldier is convincing! It is ironic that it is at this point that Gideon “worships” the Lord. What does it take for us to believe?
Contemporary Significance
GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY. The narrator leaves readers with a penetrating message: God must bring his servants to a moment when all human confidence is stripped away, when they sit silently in humble adoration of his God as the One who is totally sufficient against all odds to accomplish his divine will. Then and only then are they ready to move forward to taste God’s victory.
Sometimes God has to take us through such experiences to expose our fear and lack of trust in him. In spite of Gideon’s fear and lack of trust, God uses Gideon to save Israel. God must break down the walls we have constructed to hide our fears and lack of trust in him. He must remove the pillars of our allusions that hold us from belief. If we continue to depend on other things for our security and confidence, he must remove these to bring us to the point of true dependence on him alone. He brings Gideon to the point where he either must trust God or reject him altogether.
But God’s awesome sovereignty (cf. comments on wehinnēh [just then] as Gideon arrives at the camp to hear the dream and its interpretation) startles Gideon into a new way of seeing the situation. God’s sovereignty is not simply a doctrine of theology for theologians to debate, but most important it is the very means God uses to reveal himself to us again and again. We are forced to consider that the timing and the event cannot be by chance; it can only be the hand of the Lord, who is sovereignly arranging matters. When he does this and we have eyes to see, we cannot help but have the same reaction as Gideon—worship. He is God.
Engendering faith. It is impossible to engender faith without the Word of God. General revelation demonstrates that there is a God (Rom. 1:18–23), but only the Word of God reveals his attributes, his character, and his person. It is difficult, if not impossible, to have faith in someone that you don’t know or barely know. It is extremely hard to trust someone that you misunderstand or are misinformed about. Gideon’s ignorance about the Word of God was a strong factor in his inability to trust Yahweh, for he had misconceptions about Yahweh and misunderstood the very nature and character of God. If we do not inculcate the Word of God in our lives (Rom. 10:17), we will manifest the same unbelief—even stubbornness to believe—that Gideon did.
Gideon was apparently a man of great potential and natural ability but lacking in faith. He was timid in the midst of potential. It took God’s call, signs, and arranging of events to change his heart. Are we the same? Perhaps God wants to use us in some way: teach a Sunday school class, sing in the choir, minister to the sick, or be a counselor to youth or the down-and-out. But we are timid. Can God really use us? We want assurance. In fact, we demand it. Are we delaying God’s plan? Are we really trusting him if he must give evidence after evidence that he desires our participation? Fortunately, he does not leave us wallowing in our potential. And when he brings us to trust in him and serve him, there is worship of him.
Judges 7:19–8:21
19Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guard. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars that were in their hands. 20The three companies blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!” 21While each man held his position around the camp, all the Midianites ran, crying out as they fled.
22When the three hundred trumpets sounded, the LORD caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords. The army fled to Beth Shittah toward Zererah as far as the border of Abel Meholah near Tabbath. 23Israelites from Naphtali, Asher and all Manasseh were called out, and they pursued the Midianites. 24Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites and seize the waters of the Jordan ahead of them as far as Beth Barah.”
So all the men of Ephraim were called out and they took the waters of the Jordan as far as Beth Barah. 25They also captured two of the Midianite leaders, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued the Midianites and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was by the Jordan.
8:1Now the Ephraimites asked Gideon, “Why have you treated us like this? Why didn’t you call us when you went to fight Midian?” And they criticized him sharply.
2But he answered them, “What have I accomplished compared to you? Aren’t the gleanings of Ephraim’s grapes better than the full grape harvest of Abiezer? 3God gave Oreb and Zeeb, the Midianite leaders, into your hands. What was I able to do compared to you?” At this, their resentment against him subsided.
4Gideon and his three hundred men, exhausted yet keeping up the pursuit, came to the Jordan and crossed it. 5He said to the men of Succoth, “Give my troops some bread; they are worn out, and I am still pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.”
6But the officials of Succoth said, “Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread to your troops?”
7Then Gideon replied, “Just for that, when the LORD has given Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, I will tear your flesh with desert thorns and briers.”
8From there he went up to Peniel and made the same request of them, but they answered as the men of Succoth had. 9So he said to the men of Peniel, “When I return in triumph, I will tear down this tower.”
10Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with a force of about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of the armies of the eastern peoples; a hundred and twenty thousand swordsmen had fallen. 11Gideon went up by the route of the nomads east of Nobah and Jogbehah and fell upon the unsuspecting army. 12Zebah and Zalmunna, the two kings of Midian, fled, but he pursued them and captured them, routing their entire army.
13Gideon son of Joash then returned from the battle by the Pass of Heres. 14He caught a young man of Succoth and questioned him, and the young man wrote down for him the names of the seventy-seven officials of Succoth, the elders of the town. 15Then Gideon came and said to the men of Succoth, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me by saying, ‘Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread to your exhausted men?’ ” 16He took the elders of the town and taught the men of Succoth a lesson by punishing them with desert thorns and briers. 17He also pulled down the tower of Peniel and killed the men of the town.
18Then he asked Zebah and Zalmunna, “What kind of men did you kill at Tabor?”
“Men like you,” they answered, “each one with the bearing of a prince.”
19Gideon replied, “Those were my brothers, the sons of my own mother. As surely as the LORD lives, if you had spared their lives, I would not kill you.” 20Turning to Jether, his oldest son, he said, “Kill them!” But Jether did not draw his sword, because he was only a boy and was afraid.
21Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Come, do it yourself. ‘As is the man, so is his strength.’ ” So Gideon stepped forward and killed them, and took the ornaments off their camels’ necks.
Original Meaning
STRUCTURALLY, SECTION B′ (see introductory comments to 6:1–9:57) has two units. Each section features a victory in battle against the Midianites (7:19–8:3; 8:4–21), and in each of these, a pair of Midianite rulers is executed. One battle occurs on the west side of the Jordan, the other on the east side.
The First Battle: Cisjordan (7:19–8:3)
ON THE WEST side of the Jordan, Gideon and his men reach the Midianite camp at just the right time: the changing of the guard. Once again the narrator shows that Yahweh’s sovereign hand is at work in the victory. The blowing of the trumpets, the breaking of the jars, the flashing of the torches, and the shouting of the men (“a sword for the LORD and for Gideon,” 7:20) all proliferate utter chaos and horror in the Midianite camp. Yahweh’s role is emphasized again in 7:22a: “The LORD caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords” (lit., “Yahweh set a sword each man on his comrade,” cf. 1 Sam. 14:20).
The pursuit of the defeated Midianites is narrated in two stages. In the initial stage (7:22b–23), the troops from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh are called out to pursue the Midianites along a route described in verse 22b. In the second stage (7:24–25), Gideon calls out49 the troops of Ephraim, who “seize the waters of the Jordan” (reminiscent of Ehud in 3:27–28).
At this point, the climax of the first battle is reached with the Ephraimites’ capture and execution of the pair of Midianite leaders (śārîm): Oreb (“Raven”) and Zeeb (“Wolf”). The setting for the execution is interesting: Oreb on a rock, Zeeb at a winepress (7:25). Ironically, a winepress and rock in Ophrah were the setting for Gideon’s call to deliver the Israelites from the Midianites (6:11–20).
The brief epilogue that follows (8:1–3) this battle demonstrates Gideon’s diplomatic skills (contrast Jephthah’s lack of diplomacy, 12:1–6). Gideon successfully averts the threat of civil war by quelling intertribal jealousies of the Ephraimites that have been provoked in the course of the campaign. Gideon’s reply to the Ephraimites implies that they have accomplished much more than he and the other Israelites in the initial attack (8:2).50 While this satisfies the Ephraimite contention, it is a psychological rather than a theological argument.51 Accordingly, now with the external threat removed and internal peace restored, the reader naturally anticipates the narrative frame component: “and the land had peace for X years.”
The Second Battle: Transjordan (8:4–21)
HOWEVER, QUITE UNEXPECTEDLY, the story is resumed in 8:4. If the narrative ended roughly with 8:3, Gideon would be considered one of the heroic judges of ancient Israel,52 notwithstanding his problem with fear and lack of faith. However, the narration continues, and the portrayal of Gideon becomes bleaker and bleaker. The moment that he and his men cross the Jordan, a whole new Gideon emerges.
In contrast to the “first” Gideon, who was a timid “hacker” and who succeeded by the grace of God, this “second” Gideon is a forceful, resourceful, avenging “hacker,” whose very success breeds even worse failure. Like an animal on the prowl, his pronounced purpose is to capture “Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian” (8:5),53 and he presses towards this goal with frenzied determination despite the hunger and exhaustion of his three hundred men (in this, he foreshadows Saul, cf. 1 Sam. 14). While the refusal of the (military?) leaders (śārîm) of Succoth and Penuel/Peniel to give him support may be faulty,54 Gideon’s threats of revenge are totally uncalled for.55 While he declares that this pair of kings will be given into his hand by Yahweh just as Oreb and Zeeb were (8:7), there are no indications of Yahweh’s involvement in this second battle. In fact, the statements of God’s involvement, so prominent in the build-up to and description of the first battle, are entirely lacking here (cf. 8:11–12 with 7:21–22). As Boling observes:
Here the chief protagonist is not Jerubbaal (“Let-Baal-sue,” i.e., God’s man!) but Gideon (Hacker). There is no participation by Yahweh, nor reference to him, except in Gideon’s own usage (8:7, 19).56
Gideon’s timidity has completely evaporated. There will be no more diplomacy, only demands of support from the two towns on his route. Gideon’s personal resourcefulness, which in the first battle had been subordinated to Yahweh’s will, has full domination now. Clearly what he now achieves is by his own strength of character and tactical skill. Using a route that the Midianite remnant does not anticipate, Gideon brings down on them a furious attack. Yahweh’s silence and noninvolvement in this second battle and subsequent events is a foreshadowing of the Jephthah narrative, in which Yahweh’s silence and noninvolvement is paramount.
On return from this battle, Gideon “seizes” a young man (or perhaps the term naʿar should be understood as “an official”) and coerces him to write down the names of the seventy-seven officials (śārîm) of Succoth, the elders (zeqēnîm) of the town. He then tortures his own countrymen—by flogging them with desert thorns and briers—and he pulls down the tower of Penuel, killing the men of the city. Gideon is simply taking the law into his own hands as soon as events have permitted him a reasonable pretense and situation to do so. His actions against Succoth and Penuel57 anticipate the similar but more brutal actions of his son Abimelech against Shechem and Thebez (cf. in particular Gideon’s action against the tower of Penuel [8:17], with Abimelech’s action against the tower of Shechem [9:46–49]). They also foreshadow those of Jephthah against Ephraim (12:1–6).
At length Gideon’s motivation is revealed in the dialogue in 8:18–19: revenge. Zebah and Zalmunna had been responsible for the death of his brothers.58 This is a personal vendetta that Gideon has been prosecuting with such ruthless determination in Transjordan.59 Zebah and Zalmunna are executed, not because they are the enemies of Yahweh (as in the case of Oreb and Zeeb earlier), but because of Gideon’s personal vengeance.60
Jether, Gideon’s firstborn, who is unexpectedly introduced at this point (8:20), serves as an antithesis to his father and points up the contrast between Gideon as he was and Gideon as he now is. The father’s earlier insecurity is now mirrored in the son, who hesitates when he is told to kill the prisoners, “because he . . . was afraid [yrʾ ]” (8:20). Gideon, by way of contrast, is now a man of “strength” (gebûrâ, 8:21, cf. 6:12) and has the appearance of a king’s son (8:18). Jether also serves as a foil for Abimelech in Judges 9. Jether, the firstborn, is hesitant to slay the two “real” foreign kings; Abimelech, the last-mentioned son, is not hesitant to execute all of his brothers, some of whom may not have been adults.
As in the initial battle, a series of incidents builds the suspense; again it is Gideon and his three hundred who take the encamped enemy by surprise; again the enemy is thrown into a panic, routed, and pursued; and again the capture and execution of a pair of Midianite leaders functions as the climax.
However, in this second battle narrative there are major differences between it and the first. The pair of leaders this time are kings (melākîm, 8:5, 12) instead of leaders/commanders (śārîm, 7:25). Yahweh is not involved in this battle. Nor does Yahweh have to motivate Gideon before the battle; rather, he is so highly desirous of revenge that he stalks the enemy a great distance in order to attack them. In the first battle, Gideon was a fearful young man; in the second, a ruthless hunter. Finally, these “kings” are captured and executed by Gideon himself rather than by Ephraimites.61
Gideon is clearly a man who is not without resources or resourcefulness. The strategies employed in the two defeats of the Midianites on both sides of the Jordan are apparently his own. His calling up of reserves in 7:23 and his deployment of the Ephraimite militia along the Jordan to cut off the enemy’s escape in 7:24–25 also show a considerable military competence. Thus his self-deprecating words in 6:15 should not be taken at face value. In fact, the angel of the Lord addresses him as a “mighty warrior” (gibbôr heḥāyil, 6:12). While not necessarily a professional soldier, Gideon is not a man devoid of resources or the natural potential for leadership.
Bridging Contexts
A CONTRAST IN GIDEON. This section could not have two more different outcomes. In the first battle we see a trusting Gideon; as a result, Yahweh gives him the victory over the Midianite horde. In the second battle we see a revenge-driven Gideon, who wins a battle through his own cunning without Yahweh’s involvement.
That Yahweh gives him the victory in the first battle is made explicit by the statement in 7:22 that “the LORD caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords.” This is why the writer of the book of Hebrews can ascribe faith to Gideon because Gideon thoroughly trusted Yahweh for victory in this battle (Heb. 11:32). This is the victory over the Midianites that Yahweh has wanted to give to Gideon from the beginning; in the next battle, however, Yahweh is absent.
Like all the stories of the cyclical judges, this narrative acknowledges that if anything positive happens in the lives of God’s people, it is by his grace and not because they deserve it. Evidence of any positive disposition toward Yahweh on the part of the Israelites as a whole or even Gideon in particular is meager. But on account of his great compassion, being moved by the cry of his people over their distress caused by the enemy, Yahweh intervenes to rescue Israel. That this is completely Yahweh’s doing is more than clear from the double reduction in preparation for the battle and his work in confusing the enemy to accomplish the victory.
Decreasing spirituality. One of the greatest obstacles to God’s work among his people and in the world is their faithlessness. Gideon is one of these faithless persons. He refuses at first to follow the call of God. Only after he has presumptuously subjected Yahweh to a series of tests and after he has witnessed Yahweh’s gracious answers—ironically, ultimately in the mouth of a Midianite—does he finally accept the call to deliver his people.
At the end of the first battle, Gideon demonstrates wisdom in his dealing with the Ephraimites. A gentle answer turns away wrath (Prov. 15:1), and Gideon applies this principle in his answer to the Ephraimites. Even though they are wrong in their attitude in sharply criticizing him, he wisely pays them a compliment rather than incite them to battle with a true but stinging reply to put them in their place. This is in direct contrast to how Jephthah will handle a similar situation in his day—fight it out!
However, Gideon “crosses the line” when he crosses over (ʿābar)62 the Jordan. If the narrative about Gideon had ended in 8:3, Gideon, despite his character flaws as exposed in 6:11–8:3, would appear as a heroic judge, on the par with some of the previous major judges. But the narrative continues, and the degeneration of Gideon is documented. Motivated by revenge, Gideon’s excesses are spelled out in the extreme reprisals on his own countrymen. While the cities did not give support, the punishment is unduly severe and sets a precedence for the later excesses of Jephthah. Also, the foil of Jether harks back to the more timid earlier Gideon, but now he is a mighty warrior who does not need God to help him.
Contemporary Significance
GLORY TO GOD. We can be thankful that we have the example of Gideon’s obedience and victory over the Midianites. The story of God’s working through his call of Gideon to accomplish the victory in the Cisjordanian battle is an encouragement to Christians that God can use us to accomplish beneficial results for the kingdom of Christ. Positive examples of faith can enhance the application of faith in our lives. Marvelous is the victory when it is solely of God. Gideon and his puny three hundred were not the reason for the victory in this battle; rather, they were simply used by God to achieve his victory. When we trust God and see his great victory, so often in spite of us, we need to give him the glory.
The spirit of revenge. Unfortunately, the motive of revenge is too common in the annals of human history and in present-day conflicts. There are parts of the world where generations wait for the day when revenge can be meted out on those who (in some cases) generations ago may have oppressed or taken advantage of their ancestors. Human nature looks for the opportunity to “make things right.” The problem is that human nature is extremely sinful (cf. Jer. 17:9), and we rarely make anything “right.”
Even in the little things of life—such as driving to work—we can find ourselves meting out revenge (mostly in the form of verbal expressions of a special kind for those who cut us off in traffic). But on a higher level where significant wrongs may have been incurred, we (yes, even Christians) sometimes look for ways “to get even.” In the business world, this can take form in covert and overt repressions of our nemesis. Unfortunately, sometimes these forms become extreme and violent.
Such ways of revenge cannot be justified any more than Gideon’s extreme measures of reprisal can be justified. God did not call Gideon to exercise revenge; he called him to deliver his people. He did do the latter, it is true, but he also did the former. Trusting God is not just trusting him for deliverance, but also for dealing in a positive way with those who may have wronged us. Only when we do this will the cycle of reprisal and counterreprisal stop.
Gideon’s torturous reprisals against Succoth and Penuel were an excessive response to people who doubted Gideon’s ability to achieve the victory and feared the possible reprisals of Zebah and Zalmunna. In not supporting Gideon, the people of Succoth and Penuel end up receiving a similar fate to what they would have received if they had supported Gideon and Zebah and Zalmunna had brought reprisals on them. Yet note that Gideon’s actions are the opposite of how God earlier acted toward him when he was full of doubt and fear. God showed incredible compassion and patience in dealing with his inordinate and obsessive fear and doubt. Yet Gideon showed no compassion or patience to the people of either city who were no different from him in terms of their doubt and fear.63
This is reminiscent of the parable of the unmerciful servant, who, after having been forgiven of the enormous debt to his master, showed no mercy on a fellow servant who owed him a small sum (Matt. 18:21–35). As we grow in Christ, we need to remember how the Lord has treated us (and how he still treats us!) and show this to others in like manner. Moreover, on the personal level, we are called on to forgive. This is difficult—our very nature rebels against such a thought. But more than God’s way, it is saving. It frees us to live in a different manner.
Judges 8:22–32
22The Israelites said to Gideon, “Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us out of the hand of Midian.”
23But Gideon told them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The LORD will rule over you.” 24And he said, “I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder.” (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites to wear gold earrings.)
25They answered, “We’ll be glad to give them.” So they spread out a garment, and each man threw a ring from his plunder onto it. 26The weight of the gold rings he asked for came to seventeen hundred shekels, not counting the ornaments, the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains that were on their camels’ necks. 27Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family.
28Thus Midian was subdued before the Israelites and did not raise its head again. During Gideon’s lifetime, the land enjoyed peace forty years.
29Jerub-Baal son of Joash went back home to live. 30He had seventy sons of his own, for he had many wives. 31His concubine, who lived in Shechem, also bore him a son, whom he named Abimelech. 32Gideon son of Joash died at a good old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.