CLARITY EDITION · OLD TESTAMENT
Judges 6
Chapter 6 of 21
Chapter Overview
What happens in Judges 6
The Midianites oppress Israel for seven years, raiding their crops and livestock. God calls a young man named Gideon to rescue Israel. Despite his doubts and fears, Gideon tears down his father's altar to Baal and asks God for miraculous signs to confirm his calling.
Scripture
Judges 6
The Midianites Oppress Israel
Study note
Israel sinned again, and God allowed the Midianites to overpower them for seven years. The Midianites were desert nomads who would swarm into Israel during harvest season with their camels and allies, destroying all the crops and livestock. They were so numerous they were compared to swarms of locusts. The Israelites were so terrified that they hid in mountain caves and strongholds. The nation was brought to poverty.
1 Once again, the people of Israel did evil in the Lord's sight. So the Lord let the Midianites rule over them for seven years. And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.
2 The Midianites were cruel to Israel. The people had to hide in the mountains. They hid in caves and in strong safe places. And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds.
3 Each time the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites would attack. The Amalekites came too. So did other raiders from the east. And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east, even they came up against them;
4 These invaders would set up camp right on the farmland and destroy every crop all the way down to Gaza. They left nothing for the Israelites to survive on: no sheep, no cattle, no donkeys. And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass.
5 They would swarm across the land with their livestock and tents like a plague of locusts. The number of people and camels was impossible to count. They came in and ruined the land. For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number: and they entered into the land to destroy it.
6 The Midianites made Israel very poor. The Israelites cried out to the Lord, begging for help. And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.
A Prophet Confronts Israel
Study note
When Israel cried out to God, he first sent a prophet to remind them why they were suffering. The prophet recounted how God had delivered them from Egypt and given them a land, but they had disobeyed his command not to worship the gods of the Amorites. God wanted them to understand the connection between their disobedience and their suffering before he sent a deliverer.
7 When the Israelites cried out to the Lord about what the Midianites were doing, And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD because of the Midianites,
8 The Lord sent a prophet to them. He said, "The Lord, Israel's God, says this. 'I saved you from Egypt. I set you free from being slaves.'" That the LORD sent a prophet unto the children of Israel, which said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage;
9 "'I saved you from the Egyptians and from everyone else who oppressed you. I cleared those nations out of your way and handed their land over to you.'" And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drave them out from before you, and gave you their land;
10 "'And I warned you: I am the Lord your God. Do not worship the gods of the Amorites whose land you now live in. But you refused to listen to me.'" And I said unto you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have not obeyed my voice.
The Angel of the Lord Calls Gideon
Study note
The angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon while he was secretly threshing wheat in a winepress to hide it from the Midianites. Normally wheat was threshed on an open hilltop where wind could blow away the chaff, so working in a winepress showed how desperate things were. God called Gideon a 'mighty warrior,' which was ironic since Gideon was hiding. Gideon questioned God, expressed doubt, and asked for a sign. God confirmed his calling by sending fire from a rock to consume Gideon's offering.
11 One day the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath an oak tree in Ophrah. This tree belonged to Joash, who was part of the Abiezer clan. Joash's son Gideon was threshing wheat down in a winepress, trying to keep it hidden from the Midianites. And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abi-ezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
12 The angel of the Lord appeared before Gideon and said to him, "The Lord is with you, mighty warrior." And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.
13 Gideon answered, "Excuse me, sir, but if the Lord is truly on our side, why are we suffering like this? What happened to all those miracles our ancestors used to tell us about? They told us, 'The Lord brought us out of Egypt!' But now it seems like the Lord has walked away and left us to the Midianites." 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 The Lord looked straight at Gideon and said, "Go with the strength you already have and save Israel from the Midianites. I am the one sending you!" 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 Gideon protested, "But Lord, how could I possibly save Israel? My clan is the weakest in all of Manasseh, and I am the least important person in my whole family." 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 The Lord assured him, "I will be there with you. You will wipe out the Midianites as easily as if they were just one man." And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.
17 Gideon said, "If you truly are pleased with me, then show me a sign to prove that you truly are the one speaking to me." And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me.
18 "Please wait here while I go prepare an offering to bring before you." The Lord replied, "I will stay right here until you get back." 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 Gideon hurried inside and cooked a young goat. He also made flatbread from a large amount of flour. He placed the meat in a basket, poured the broth into a pot, and carried it all out to present to the angel under the oak tree. 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 The angel of God told him, "Set the meat and the bread on this rock and pour the broth over them." Gideon did exactly that. 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 reached out with the tip of the staff he was holding and touched the meat and bread. Fire blazed up from the rock and completely burned up the food. In that instant, the angel of the Lord vanished from Gideon's sight. 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 When Gideon understood that he had been face to face with the angel of the Lord, he exclaimed in fear, "Oh no, Lord God! I have seen the angel of the Lord in person!" 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 But the Lord reassured him, "Calm down. Don't be afraid. You are not going to die." And the LORD said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.
24 So Gideon constructed an altar to the Lord at that spot and named it "The Lord Is Peace." That altar still stands in Ophrah, in the territory of the Abiezer clan. Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovah-shalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abi-ezrites.
Gideon Tears Down the Altar of Baal
Study note
God's first task for Gideon was to tear down his own father's altar to Baal and the Asherah pole beside it, then build an altar to God in its place. Gideon obeyed, but he did it at night because he was afraid of his family and the townspeople. When the men of the town discovered what happened and wanted to kill Gideon, his father Joash defended him, saying, 'If Baal is really a god, let him fight for himself.' This earned Gideon the nickname Jerubbaal, meaning 'Let Baal contend.'
25 That very night, the Lord gave Gideon instructions: "Take your father's bull, the second one that is seven years old. Demolish your father's altar to Baal and chop down the Asherah pole standing next to it." 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 "Then build a proper altar to the Lord your God on this hilltop. Take the wood from the Asherah pole you chopped down and use it to burn the second bull as a sacrifice." 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 Gideon chose ten of his servants and did what the Lord told him. But he was too scared of his family and the townspeople to do it during the day. So he did it all at night. 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 When the townspeople woke up the next morning, they discovered that the altar of Baal had been smashed to pieces and the Asherah pole beside it had been chopped down. They saw the second bull had been sacrificed on a new altar. 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 "Who did this?" they demanded. After investigating, they found out: "It was Gideon, Joash's son." 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 The townspeople stormed over to Joash and demanded, "Hand over your son! He must be executed for tearing down Baal's altar and cutting down the Asherah pole!" 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 But Joash stood up to the angry crowd and said, "Why are you defending Baal? Do you need to fight his battles for him? If Baal is truly a god, let him stand up for himself when someone wrecks his altar." 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 After that day, people called Gideon "Jerubbaal." That name means "let Baal defend himself." They called him this because he had torn down Baal's altar. Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar.
Gideon Gathers an Army and Tests God with Fleece
Study note
When the Midianites and their allies gathered for another invasion in the Valley of Jezreel, the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon. He blew a trumpet to rally his own clan and sent messengers to the tribes of Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali. Still uncertain, Gideon asked God for two miraculous signs involving a wool fleece and dew. First he asked for the fleece to be wet while the ground stayed dry, then the next night he asked for the opposite. God patiently granted both requests.
33 Soon after, the Midianites, Amalekites, and other eastern tribes united their armies. They crossed the Jordan River and set up camp in the Valley of Jezreel. 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 took hold of Gideon. He sounded a trumpet call, and the Abiezer clan rallied behind him. But the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abi-ezer was gathered after him.
35 He also sent messengers to all of Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali. Warriors from all those tribes came to join him. 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.
36 Gideon prayed to God, "If you truly intend to use me to save Israel, as you said," And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said,
37 "here is what I am going to do: I will put a wool fleece out on the threshing floor tonight. If the fleece is soaking wet with dew in the morning but the ground around it is dry, then I will know for sure that you will use me to save Israel, just as you said." Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said.
38 That is exactly what happened. When Gideon checked early the next morning, he picked up the fleece and squeezed enough dew out of it to fill a whole bowl with water. And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water.
39 Then Gideon said to God, "Please do not get angry with me for asking one more time. Let me try the fleece test once more. This time, please make the fleece stay completely dry while the ground all around it is wet with dew." And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew.
40 God did exactly what Gideon asked. That night, the fleece stayed perfectly dry, but the ground all around it was soaked with dew. And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.
Key Themes
Themes in Judges 6
God calling the unlikely and the insecureTearing down idols before fighting external enemiesGod's patience with our doubts and questionsThe connection between sin and suffering
Apply This Today
Living Judges 6
Gideon felt like the least qualified person in the weakest family, yet God called Him a mighty warrior. God often sees potential in us that we cannot see in ourselves. Before sending Gideon to fight the Midianites, God first asked Him to deal with the idol in his own home. Internal spiritual housecleaning must come before external battles.
Go Deeper
Study Judges in Covenant Path
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