Judges 6:11-35

The Call of Giedon Judges 6:11-35

11 And there came an angel of the Lord, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
12 And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valor.
13 And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? but now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.
14 And the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?
15 And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.
16 And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.
17 And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then show me a sign that thou talkest with me.
18 Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee, And he said, I will tarry until thou come again.
19 And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it.
20 And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so.
21 Then the angel of the Lord put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the Lord departed out of his sight.
22 And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the Lord, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord God! for because I have seen an angel of the Lord face to face.
23 And the Lord said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.
24 Then Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord, and called it Jehovah-shalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
25 And it came to pass the same night, that the Lord said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it:
26 And build an altar unto the Lord thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down.
27 Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the Lord had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.
28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built.
29 And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they inquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing.
30 Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it.
31 And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal? will ye save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him plead for himself, because one hath cast down his altar.
32 Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar.
33 Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together, and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.
34 But the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him.
35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; who also was gathered after him: and he sent messengers unto Asher, and unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

6.

Why did God send an angel? Judges 6:11

God spake in times past in divers portions and in sundry manners as it is said in the opening verses of the first chapter of the book of Hebrews. The Word was spoken by men and by angels, On different occasions a different kind of messenger was demanded. In the Greek language, it is hard to determine whether it was a messenger of God or an angel, for the root word is the same; but in this case, it is clear from the Hebrew text that both a prophet and an angel were sent to bring God's call to Gideon.

7.

Where was Ophrah? Judges 6:11

There are two places by this name. One in Benjamin (Joshua 18:23) lies five miles east of Bethel, and is now called et-Taiyibeh. This is a small village standing on a conical hill and contains many ancient ruins. It is presently a Christian village. Jesus retired to this obscure place after the miracle of raising Lazarus (John 11:54). The place which was connected with Gideon, however, was in the tribe of Manasseh, and is mentioned here and in Judges 8:27. This was the place where Gideon was buried, It is believed that the reference to Aphrah in the prophecy of Micah (Micah 1:10) is a reference to the same spot.

8.

Why was Gideon in the winepress? Judges 6:11

He was hiding grain from the enemy by putting it in the winepress, a cistern-like opening in the ground. The American Standard Version says that Gideon was in the winepress. Whether he was in it or by it, he was certainly hiding the grain from the oppressing Midianites. This verb, expressing the idea of hiding, is one which also might be translated to give the idea of causing something to flee. Since the winepress was carved out of stone, it was usually underground. Normally, two cistern-like areas were carved out, one slightly below the other. In the upper one, a man would tread out the grapes and as the liquid rose to a certain height, it would enter a drain which flowed to the lower vat where the wine could be stored. Many of these were large enough for a man to hide in, and Gideon was probably down in the winepress with some kind of brush or other material covering the entrance to hide him completely from the enemies.

9.

Who was Gideon? Judges 6:11 b

Gideon was the youngest son of Joash of the clan of Abiezer of the tribe of Manasseh (Numbers 26:30, Joshua 17:1-2, 1 Chronicles 7:14-19). His home was at Ophrah, but his family was an obscure one. He became a chief leader of Manasseh and is the fifth recorded judge of Israel. His father was an idolater. Sacrifices to Baal were made among the entire clan, but Gideon held this worship in contempt. The oppressors in his days were the Midianites under Zebah and Zalmunna, their two greatest chiefs; and they were accompanied by other wild tribes of the eastern desert. These men came first as marauders and pillagers at harvest time, but later took forcible possession of the lands and inflicted permanent injury and loss, especially upon Manasseh and Ephraim. Gideon was especially called of God for the need of the hour. It is possible that he had distinguished himself already by some resistance (Judges 6:12), but he received a divine commission to be leader over all Israel. One cannot explain his rise to the place of leadership because he brooded over the death of some of his people (Judges 8:18), nor could patriotic impulses dwelling within him account for his rise. It is also apparent that he was not leader by popular demand (cf. Judges 6:15; Judges 6:17; Judges 6:19 ff.). His career can only be explained as one views him being moved by the Spirit of God.

10.

Why did Gideon ask for a sign? Judges 6:17

Gideon's asking for a sign shows he was not aspiring to a place of leadership among his people. He had been driven to a very low estate as he beat out his wheat in a winepress and hid it from the Midianites. His human frailty cried out for some kind of assurance of God's divine call. It is easy to understand how he would be reluctant to take the leadership against such overwhelming numbers of marauding peoples, and the assurance given him by God must have increased his courage immensely. Although Jesus refused to give signs to the unbelieving Jewish leaders of His day (Matthew 16:1 ff.), He did honor the request of His disciples for an understanding of the signs which would herald His second coming (Matthew 24:3).

11.

Who was the angel of the Lord? Judges 6:20-22

The angel of the Lord had appeared many times in the history of Israel prior to the time of Gideon. Jacob had wrestled with this angel (Genesis 32:24 ff.). It was the angel of the Lord who appeared to Moses in the burning bush (Exodus 3:2). This same angel had confronted Joshua before the people of Israel crossed Jordan to attack Jericho (Joshua 5:13 ff.). At Bochim it was the angel of the Lord who rebuked the people of Israel on account of their failure to drive out the Canaanites (Judges 2:1 ff.). When Gideon saw him, he cried, Alas, O Lord Jehovah, for as much as I have seen the angel of Jehovah face to face. He had seen one aspect of God's being; and he felt undone, as did Isaiah when he saw his vision of the Lord high and lifted up (Isaiah 6).

12.

What was the design of the altar? Judges 6:24

It was a memorial. Although Gideon made his offering before the Lord, he was not usurping the place of a priest; and he had no intention of establishing another center of worship in Ophrah. His father had an altar dedicated to Baal, but Gideon's altar was more like the altar erected by the Transjordan tribes who wanted a witness to the fact that they were a part of the nation of Israel, They erected an altar for a memorial in the edge of the Jordan when Joshua dismissed them and allowed them to go to their homes (Joshua 22).

13.

What was the meaning of the name given to Gideon's altar? Judges 6:24 b

Gideon called his altar by the name Jehovah-shalom. This means the Lord is peace. Although Gideon was called to go to war against the Midianites, he still looked to the Lord as the one who could give peace. It is evident from this verse that the memorial altar which Gideon erected in Ophrah was still standing in the days when the book was written. If we are accurate in dating the book from the time of Saul, it had stood through the periods of the remaining judges and still proclaimed that the Lord is peace to all who heard its testimony.

14.

What was Gideon's first assigned task? Judges 6:25

The first thing God asked Gideon to do was to throw down the altar of Baal which his father had erected. At the same time, he was told to cut down the grove, or the Asherah, which was by it. Sometimes it is necessary for the ground to be cleared before a profitable crop can be planted. A man must take out of his heart the evil things which hinder his work before he can begin to do the good work of God. Such was the case with Gideon. It was necessary for his father's house to be put in order before he was ready to accomplish God's will for his life.

15.

How were the altars distinguished? Judges 6:26

The altar for worshiping God was orderly. Such a suggestion leaves the impression that there was a great deal of disorder about the altar to Baal. Pagan worship often was indecent and disorderly. The Apostle Paul was afraid that this kind of condition would prevail in the worship among the Christians and for that reason gave the final injunction when he wrote to them saying, but let all things be done decently and in order (1 Corinthians 14:40), At the very least, this reference in Judges suggests that Gideon was to take the materials which were used in the altar to Baal in order to have what he needed to erect the altar to God.

16.

Why did they accuse Gideon? Judges 6:29

He had a reputation for fighting for truth. Gideon had been forced to tear down the altar under the cover of night. He knew the men of the city would oppose him if they found him destroying their place of worship. We do not know that the men of the city knew of Gideon's commission of the Lord; but when they saw their altar had been destroyed, they immediately pointed a finger of accusation towards Gideon. Such action indicates their recognition of him as a righteous man. He must have been one who did not worship at the altar.

17.

Why did Joash defend Gideon? Judges 6:31

His son's action stimulated the father to take a stand. Since Baal had not struck Gideon dead when Gideon destroyed his altar, Joash knew that Baal was no god at all. His eyes were opened by this bold action on the part of his son, and he immediately arose to defend his son. Probably Joash knew of Israel's earlier glorious history, and his conscience must have hurt him on occasions as he fell into this pagan worship. When this crisis came into his family's life, he chose to stand with the truth.

18.

Why call Gideon Jerub-baal? Judges 6:32

The word, Jerub-baal, means let Baal contend. Joash had said that if Baal was a god he would fight for himself. He chided the men of Ophrah by asking them if they were going to fight for Baal. They evidently caught the meaning of Joash's words and thought it a fitting name to give to Gideon. Gideon was a man who reminded them how it was unnecessary for them to defend the false god. If he were really a god he would defend himself.

19.

Where was the valley of Jezreel? Judges 6:33

It was in Issachar, near Mt. Tabor and Mt. Carmel. The Greek word for Jezreel is Esdraelon. It is also known as the great plain of Josephus, and sometimes is called the valley of Megiddo. The plain is very rich in soil and lies on the top of a volcanic basalt, but there is little evidence of inhabited villages being built within it boundaries. Generally speaking, it is triangular, 18 x 15 x 12 miles. A great number of important battles were fought on its soil. As has been said, warriors from every nation have pitched their tent in the plains of Jezreel. Names such as those of Deborah, Barak, Gideon, Josiah, Holofernes, Vespasian, the Crusaders, Saracens, Turks, French, and General Allenby give a hint of the events which made the valley memorable. In general, we can describe it as being bounded by three mountainsMount Gilboa, Mount Tabor, and Mount Carmel.

20.

Who was Abiezer? Judges 6:34

The Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet. It is said then that Abiezer was gathered together after him. Abiezer was the eldest son of Gilead (Joshau Judges 17:2). This family settled first of all on the east of Jordan, but must have changed their residence to Ophrah in Manasseh on the west side of Jordan. Gideon was of this family; and when it is said that Abiezer was gathered together after him, the meaning is that his own family followed him in his work for the Lord.

21.

Why wasn-'t the tribe of Issachar included? Judges 6:35

The battle was fought in their territory, so they were already invaded. Issachar had inherited the fertile land of Jezreel, and they surely would have wanted to defend it. Since there is no rebuke of their failing to follow Gideon, we suppose that they joined Asher, Zebulun, Naphtali, and Manasseh in the battles. All these tribes were in the northern part of Israel and were most directly affected by the terrible onslaught of the Midianites.