Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

Gideon and all the people who he had gathered (32,000 fighting men) and went to set up camp at Harod Spring. To the north of their position, there was a camp of Midianites. There were about 350,000 of them. Gideon and his men didn’t even have swords. They needed strategy. They needed equipment. They needed mighty deeds by mighty men. God told Gideon he had too many men.

When you get through imagining what Gideon thought of that, give some thought to what his men thought about Gideon as he followed God’s instructions. If GIDEON, who had heard from God, was having doubts about this stuff, just imagine his men who had NOT heard ANYTHING from God. Gideon has a reputation for being a little cowardly, but I think a deeper look reveals his issue as doubt, not cowardice. He was clearly having trouble believing and needed multiple signs from God, but God met him where he was. Once Gideon had confirmation? He went and did the things, leading with action from the front and not words from the back. He had real courage. It was just hiding behind uncertainty and poor self-image.

Why did God say there were too many? Because He knew the Israelites would say it was THEIR prowess, THEIR courage, and THEIR deeds that won the victory (Deuteronomy 8:17). God wanted to deliver them. But God needed to deliver them in a way where only HE got the glory (2 Corinthians 4:7. That isn’t ego, but mercy. He wasn’t willing to let anything about this situation be a stumbling block to the nation (Isaiah 10:13). First up, cowardice. Everyone who was afraid or ANXIOUS was allowed to turn back and go home. Anxiety is a child of fear, and fear blocks trust in God. It has NO PLACE in ANY believer’s life (Jew OR Gentile – Matthew 6:25-34; Philippians 4:5-7). Twenty-two thousand (22,000) men left. God said that’s a good start, but still too many men.

Next up, drinking water and free will. God told Gideon to lead the men down to water and let them drink. There has been a lot of commentary taken from how the men drank. A lot of it makes sense and may in fact be true. Realistically, it doesn’t matter. God was ALWAYS going to pick the smaller group. The men had total free will to choose how they were going to drink. Gideon wasn’t given any hints. None of it mattered but the reduction of numbers. ALL these men were ready to serve, unafraid, and obviously willing to trust God and Gideon. There simply needed to be fewer of them. 21,700 men drank one way. 300 drank another. God picked the three hundred. He told Gideon with this number, God would deliver the Midianites into his hands.

That night, God told Gideon to go down into the camp of the Midianites below them because it was already in Gideon’s hands. And if he wasn’t sure he wanted to do it alone, he could take his servant, Purah. So they went. At one of the tents they overheard two men talking. One had a dream, the other the interpretation. God worked on both these foreigners to confirm to Gideon that God had indeed given him the victory. This was a done deal. The dream was a giant loaf of barley bread rolling down a hill and overturning a tent. Barley was one of the first fruits (Deuteronomy 26:2). Elijah multiplied barley loaves (2 Kings 4:42-44). So did Jesus (John 6:9-13). Here, it represented the sword of Gideon – surely confirmation from God because how could these men otherwise have known Gideon’s name?

Gideon gathered his 300 men and followed God’s plan. Everyone got a trumpet (probably shofars – ram’s horns – since it was unlikely they had three hundred metal trumpets readily available), an empty clay pot, and a torch or lamp. They spread out around the Midianites and waited. Gideon took a hundred men right down to the edge of camp. At around 11pm, just after the middle watch change, Gideon blew on his horn and then smashed his jar, releasing the light up into the night. His men followed suit. Then they all called ‘A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!’ The rest of the men followed suit.

The Midianites panicked. Attacked each other. And they took off. Gideon and his men chased them – taking the weapons of the fallen men, presumably. The rest of the Israelites who HAD been in the army also joined in. Gideon sent messengers throughout the land inviting them to join in. The men of Ephraim seized control of waterways from Beth Barah to the Jordan, and also killed the two Midianite commanders. That’s when they got hissy. Why hadn’t they been part from the beginning? Who did Gideon think he was anyway? Gideon pacified them by pointing out THEY had defeated the Midianite commanders Oreb and Zeeb, THEY had seized the waterways back, and THEY had done more for the war than Gideon and his small band. Their pride was appeased and they cooled down.

“And Midian was subdued before the Israelites, and they did not again lift up their head, and the land rested for forty years in the days of Gideon.” (Judges 8:28)

Gideon crossed over the Jordan, thanks to Ephraim, and pursued the Midianite kings Zebah and Zalmunna. He and his men were exhausted. He asked the men of Sukkoth for bread, but the officials (or elders) of the town said no. It wasn’t like he had the heads of the kings yet – they were fearful of reprisal if Gideon lost. Gideon promised to whip them with desert thorns and briars. He and the men struggled on. They came to Peniel (where Jacob had wrestled an angel) and repeated his request for refreshments. The men of the town stayed in their tower and refused. Gideon promised to tear down the tower. He and the men struggled on.

The two kings were with their surviving fifteen thousand men – meaning they had killed one hundred and twenty thousand arms-bearing men – and camped. Gideon went around the back way, surprising them – they obviously had felt they had fled far enough. He captured the two kings and their armies were terrified. Back to Peniel. He destroyed the tower and executed the men who had resisted him – all of them. Back to Sukkoth. He found out the names of the seventy-seven men who ruled from a young man they captured, and Gideon presented the two captured kings. Then he whipped them all. Then Gideon executed the kings and took the gold crescents that were on their camels.

The people of Israel decided that Gideon should be their king and that his line should rule after him, but he refused. However, he did ask for all the golden earrings that had been taken from the Midianites (which they habitually wore). Very reminiscent of Aaron’s request of the Israelites in Exodus 32:3-4. He got seventeen hundred gold shekels worth. Plus the crescents of the camels. Plus the kings’ purple clothing. All told, Gideon got about a quarter of a million in spoils. Midian was defeated and they had peace for forty years.

Gideon used the gold to make an ephod – an image of the priestly garments the high priest wore. He put it in his city, Ophrah, and over time, Israel came to it to ask of it oracles and pronouncements – the kind of thing the high priest did with the urim and thummim (Exodus 28:30). It became an idol to the people and a snare to Gideon and his family.

Speaking of Gideon’s family, he was a ladies man. He may have rejected kingship, but he lived like one. Many wives who bore him seventy sons and at least one concubine who lived in Shechem and bore him Abimelek – remember that name for tomorrow. Gideon died in his old age and was buried in the tomb of his father. Once he was dead, however, the people turned back to idolatry. Back to the baals. They did NOT remember the Lord who had delivered them so miraculously from their enemies. They did not keep faith with Gideon’s family for all they had done for the people either.

Summary

Key Players: God, Gideon, Purah

Key Themes: Trust, Deliverance, Remembrance, Idolatry

Key Verse(s): Judges 7:2-4, 7, 17-18; 8:1-3, 18-21, 28, 33-35