Message 5
Chapters 2—16
(3)
Scripture Reading: Judg. 6:1-40; 7:1-25; 8:1-32
After considering 6:1—8:32 before the Lord, I believe that the way to present the intrinsic significance of this portion of Judges is to present, first, the secret of Gideon’s success and then the secret of his failure.
Gideon, a marvelous judge who was called by Jehovah in a very particular way, was successful because of four things. First, he listened carefully to the word of God, something that was rare among the children of Israel at that time. Second, Gideon obeyed God’s word and acted on it. Third, he tore down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah (6:25-28). This touched God’s heart. In the degradation of Israel, God hated the idols to the uttermost. God as the genuine Husband regarded all the idols as men with whom His wife Israel had committed harlotry. Fourth, by tearing down the altar of Baal and cutting down the Asherah that belonged to his father, Gideon sacrificed his relationship with his father and his enjoyment of society. Because of what he had done, the men of the city of Ophrah contended with him and even wanted to kill him (vv. 28-30). For Gideon to do such a thing for God required that he sacrifice his own interests, and his sacrifice was a strong factor of his success.
The selection of the three hundred in 7:2-7 also stresses the sacrifice of our personal interests and enjoyment for God’s purpose. When Gideon blew the trumpet to call the people to fight against the Midianites, thirty-two thousand responded. God said that those who were with Gideon were too many for God to deliver Midian into their hand, for Israel might have vaunted himself against God, saying, “My own hand has saved me” (v. 2). By telling Gideon that he had too many people, God was indicating that He would fight for them. First, twenty-two thousand went home because they were afraid (v. 3). Then Jehovah tested the remaining ten thousand by bringing them to the water to drink. Those who bowed down on their knees and lapped as a dog laps were sent home (v. 5). Only the three hundred who lapped the water into their mouths with their hands were chosen by God for the battle against Midian (v. 6). Jehovah told Gideon that through the three hundred men who lapped in that way, He would save them from Midian. Like Gideon, these three hundred were willing to sacrifice in order to be used by God.
As a result of these four factors, Gideon received a reward: the economical Spirit came upon him (6:34). Hence, he became powerful and with only three hundred men defeated two princes and two kings (7:25; 8:10-12). With Gideon we have a picture of a man in union with God, a God-man, to fulfill God’s word and to carry out God’s economy.
After his great success — the greatest success in all the cycles of Israel’s history recorded in Judges — Gideon had a terrible failure. The secret of his failure comprises three factors. First, Gideon was not kind. He killed those countrymen who did not support him (vv. 16-17), breaking the sixth commandment of God (Exo. 20:13). Second, he indulged in the lust of the flesh, not exercising any restriction over his fleshly lust. This is indicated by Judges 8:30, which tells us that Gideon had seventy sons, “for he had many wives.” In addition, his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son (v. 31). By this Gideon broke the seventh commandment (Exo. 20:14). Third, although he did a good thing in refusing to rule over the people (Judg. 8:22-23), he coveted the spoil of his people, and they surrendered it to him (v. 24).
Gideon’s indulgence in sex and his greediness for gold led to idolatry. Greediness is idolatry (Col. 3:5), and both fornication and greediness are linked to idol worship (Eph. 5:5). Even King Solomon, who began as a God-fearing and God-loving person, eventually became an idol worshipper through his many foreign wives (1 Kings 11:4). Gideon made an ephod with the gold he had taken from the people, and this ephod became an idol to the children of Israel (Judg. 8:27). As a result, Gideon’s family and the entire society of Israel were corrupted. Gideon began by tearing down the altar of Baal and its idol, but after his success he built something idolatrous. This failure canceled all his success.
Judges is a book concerning the enjoyment of the good land, which is a type of Christ. Gideon’s success indicates the gaining of an excellent opportunity to enjoy Christ, but his failure indicates the losing of the opportunity to enjoy Christ. His failure shows us that we need to exercise strict control in dealing with the matters of sex and wealth. Otherwise, we will suffer the loss of the enjoyment of Christ. Any indulgence in these things will cause our enjoyment of Christ to be annulled.
Let us now go on to consider the many details of the fourth cycle of Israel’s miserable history recorded in 6:1—8:32.
Once again the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah (6:1a).
Jehovah delivered Israel into the hand of Midian for seven years (vv. 1b-6a). The children of Israel made for themselves dens, caves, and strongholds in the mountains (v. 2). Whenever Israel sowed, Midian rose up with Amalek and the children of the east against Israel and came with their cattle and their tents like swarming locusts to destroy the produce of the land (vv. 3-5). Thus, “Israel was greatly impoverished because of Midian” (v. 6a).
The children of Israel cried out to Jehovah because of Midian (vv. 6-7).
Jehovah sent a man who was a prophet to reprove the children of Israel (v. 8a).
Through this prophet Jehovah reminded the children of Israel of His delivering them from the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed them. He also reminded them that He had driven out the Canaanites before them and had given to them the land of Canaan (vv. 8b-9).
Jehovah charged the children of Israel not to fear the gods of the Amorites, but they did not listen to His voice (v. 10).
In verses 11 through 24 we have an account of the Angel of Jehovah (Christ) calling Gideon.
In verses 11 through 13 we are told that the Angel of Jehovah appeared to Gideon. The Angel of Jehovah came and sat under the terebinth that was in Ophrah while Gideon was beating out the wheat in the winepress in order to hide it from the Midianites. In this way the Angel of Jehovah appeared to Gideon and said to him, “Jehovah is with you, valiant warrior” (v. 12).
The Angel of Jehovah charged Gideon to save Israel from the hand of the Midianites (vv. 14-16). He turned to Gideon and said, “Go in this strength of yours, and save Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?” (v. 14). When Gideon asked by what way he could save Israel, the Angel of Jehovah said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you will strike the Midianites as one man” (v. 16).
Gideon asked the Angel of Jehovah to perform a sign for him that it was He who was speaking with him (vv. 17-24). The Angel of Jehovah performed a sign by receiving Gideon’s offering. “The Angel of Jehovah put forth the end of the staff that was in His hand and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes. And fire came up from the rock and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. And the Angel of Jehovah went from his sight” (v. 21). This sign resulted in Gideon’s building up of an altar to Jehovah, calling it Jehovah-shalom, which means “Jehovah is peace” or “Jehovah of peace” (v. 24).
Jehovah charged Gideon to tear down the altar of Baal that belonged to his father and to cut down the Asherah that was beside it and then to build an altar to Jehovah his God upon the top of that stronghold in the ordered manner (vv. 25-32).
Gideon did this by ten men at night and not by day because he was too afraid of his father’s house and the men of the city (v. 27).
The men of the city contended for Baal (vv. 28-31). When they saw that the altar of Baal had been torn down and that the Asherah beside it had been cut down, they asked who had done this thing. After inquiring and seeking about, they concluded that Gideon had done it, and they desired to kill him.
Because of this Gideon was called Jerubbaal, which means “Let Baal contend” (v. 32).
All the Midianites, Amalekites, and the children of the east gathered together, and they crossed over and encamped in the valley of Jezreel (v. 33). The Spirit of Jehovah clothed Gideon, and he blew his trumpet to call the Abiezrites. Then he sent messengers to call the people of Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali to come up to meet them (vv. 34-35).
According to verses 36 through 40, Gideon asked God for signs to water a fleece of wool and to dry it. First, Gideon said that if there was dew on the fleece alone and it was dry on the ground, then he would know that Jehovah would save Israel through his hand. The next morning there was dew only on the fleece. Then Gideon asked that it be dry on the fleece only and that there be dew on all the ground. God did so that night, and it was dry on the fleece only.
In 7:2-8a we see that three hundred were chosen by God to follow Gideon to defeat Midian for Israel. Jehovah told Gideon that the people who were with him were too many for Jehovah to deliver Midian into their hand. God charged Gideon to proclaim that whoever was afraid and trembling should return and depart. Twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained (vv. 2-3). Out of the ten thousand, only three hundred who lapped the water into their mouth with their hand were chosen by Jehovah (vv. 4-8a).
Judges 7:8b-25 describes the defeat of Midian.
According to verses 9 through 15, Gideon heard the account of a dream in the camp of Midian. One of the Midianites recounted a dream to his companion, saying, “I have just had a dream. There was this round loaf of barley bread tumbling through the camp of Midian. And it came to the tent and struck it, so that it fell and turned upside down. And the tent collapsed” (v. 13). His companion responded by saying that this was nothing else than the sword of Gideon and that God had delivered Midian and all the camp into Gideon’s hand. When Gideon heard the account of the dream and its interpretation, he worshipped, returned to the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise, for Jehovah has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand” (v. 15).
Gideon divided the three hundred men into three companies and put trumpets into their hands, as well as empty pitchers, with torches inside the pitchers (v. 16). They blew the trumpets and shattered the pitchers. Then, holding the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands, they cried out, “A sword for Jehovah and for Gideon!” (vv. 19-20). Then the whole camp of the Midianites ran off, and they shouted and fled.
Jehovah set each man’s sword against his companion and against the whole camp (v. 22).
The men of Israel from Naphtali, Asher, Manasseh, and Ephraim pursued after the Midianites (vv. 23-24).
The children of Israel captured two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb, and slew them (v. 25).
The men of Ephraim contended sharply with Gideon, complaining that he did not call them when he went to battle against Midian (8:1). Gideon pacified them by asking what he had done to compare with them and saying that it was into their hand that God gave the princes of Midian. Then their hostile spirit toward him subsided (vv. 2-3).
In verses 4 through 9 and 13 through 17 we see the despising and insulting of the men of Succoth and Penuel toward Gideon and the punishment of the men of Succoth and Penuel by Gideon.
After slaying one hundred twenty thousand men, Gideon further pursued the Midian camps of fifteen thousand men and captured and slew the two kings of Midian (vv. 10-12, 18-21).
Verses 22 through 28 speak concerning Gideon’s dealing with the men of Israel.
The men of Israel asked Gideon to rule over them, but he refused, saying, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. Jehovah will rule over you” (vv. 22-23).
Gideon asked that each of them give him an earring of gold from his spoil, and they willingly did so, giving him one thousand seven hundred shekels of gold, in addition to crescents, pendants, and purple garments (vv. 24-26).
Gideon made an ephod with the gold and placed it in his city, in Ophrah. All Israel went as harlots to the ephod there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his house (v. 27).
Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, and the land of Israel had rest forty years in the days of Gideon (v. 28).
Chapter eight concludes with a word regarding Gideon’s family and his decease (vv. 29-32).
Gideon had seventy sons by many wives. He also had another son, by the name of Abimelech, by his concubine in Shechem (vv. 30-31).
Gideon died at a good age, and he was buried in the tomb of his father in Ophrah (v. 32).
