JUDGES 6-8
Lessons from Gideon
Contained within chapter 6 of Judges are some important lessons regarding Gideon's doubts and God's assurances. We will not cover that here since we have another page dedicated to that topic alone.
To see that study, please click HERE.
But there are other things we can see and learn from the account regarding Gideon.
As we read the first ten verses of chapter 6, we read about the Midianites. They are the descendants of Abraham and Keturah. Israel is being vigorously harassed by the Midianites, and so Israel cries out to God. There is a pattern seen in Israel's history which is worth noting - that they tend to disobey and ignore God, UNTIL, they are in great distress and have nowhere else to turn. That's just how it is with many people today.
In verse 8 thru 10, we find that God sends a prophet to remind the people - to remind them what God has done for them, to remind them of what God said to them, to remind them of their disobedience to God, and to help them understand that their present predicament was directly related to their forsaking their God. It seems that it was not until the people reached the end of themselves and called out to God that God sent the prophet to them - they were not ready (willing?) to listen until they reached that point. With no intent to minimize the role of a true prophet of God, I might suggest that any true believer who has a working knowledge of the Scriptures could be used by God to remind other believers in much the same way that the prophet does so here in Judges 6:8-10.
In 6:13 Gideon demonstrates the same thing that we see do often in our lives - the wrong conclusion derived from the present circumstances. Gideon concluded that God had forsaken Israel, based on the recent experiences and current condition of Israel. That was (and usually is) the wrong conclusion. The facts, which can be seen as you read the account in its entirety, reveal quite the opposite - that God had been at work, through chastisement, to bring His people back to the place where they should be.
In 6:14-16 we have a classic lesson. It is commendable that Gideon realizes his own inadequacy for the task to which God has assigned him. The lesson for Gideon (and thus for us) is that he was not supposed to go in his own strength, but rather in the strength of Almighty God, Who promised to go with him.
Gideon's excuses in 6:15 remind us of Moses, and we have a separate study on his excuses HERE.
In Judges 7:1-7 we find yet another important lesson. God's ways are not our ways. God's power is far above our power. In our thinking, we need to outnumber the enemy if we are to even have a chance at victory. God says, I will send but a few, against many, so that you will see clearly that the victory is God's, not theirs. Perhaps this reminds you of verses like 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 "But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence." A large Israelite army defeating the Midianites would have fueled Israel's sinful self-reliance, but God was not going to allow that. So, starting with 22,000 (7:3) possible soldiers, God narrows it down to a select 300 (7:7).
We do not want to overlook an important response by Gideon in 7:15. When Gideon comes to realize what was going on, and how that God was truly in it, he worshiped! In an attitude of self-reliance, worship usually does not follow. Here, Gideon expresses what we need to express - that God deserves the glory and He is to be worshiped.
There are some bright spots in Gideon's life, and some not-so-bright spots! Very much like the experience of most of us. Some of the bright spots have been mentioned above. Another is found in chapter 8:22-23, where, after the victory, people want Gideon to rule over them. But Gideon's response is admirable: "But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you.”
Sadly, the story of Gideon ends on a not-so-bright note. We read it in 8:29-35. "Then Jerubbaal [Gideon] the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house. Gideon had seventy sons who were his own offspring, for he had many wives. And his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, whose name he called Abimelech. Now Gideon the son of Joash died at a good old age, and was buried in the tomb of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. So it was, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again played the harlot with the Baals, and made Baal-Berith their god. Thus the children of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side; nor did they show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (Gideon) in accordance with the good he had done for Israel."
We see in this passage that Israel once again turns away from God - "they did not remember". They failed to remember what God had done FOR them, they failed to remember what Gideon had done FOR them, they failed to remember what Midian had done TO them. A sad side-note is that Gideon had seventy sons, and yet we do not read of ANY following in their father's footsteps in obeying, serving, or worshiping God. How sad!
To see that study, please click HERE.
But there are other things we can see and learn from the account regarding Gideon.
As we read the first ten verses of chapter 6, we read about the Midianites. They are the descendants of Abraham and Keturah. Israel is being vigorously harassed by the Midianites, and so Israel cries out to God. There is a pattern seen in Israel's history which is worth noting - that they tend to disobey and ignore God, UNTIL, they are in great distress and have nowhere else to turn. That's just how it is with many people today.
In verse 8 thru 10, we find that God sends a prophet to remind the people - to remind them what God has done for them, to remind them of what God said to them, to remind them of their disobedience to God, and to help them understand that their present predicament was directly related to their forsaking their God. It seems that it was not until the people reached the end of themselves and called out to God that God sent the prophet to them - they were not ready (willing?) to listen until they reached that point. With no intent to minimize the role of a true prophet of God, I might suggest that any true believer who has a working knowledge of the Scriptures could be used by God to remind other believers in much the same way that the prophet does so here in Judges 6:8-10.
In 6:13 Gideon demonstrates the same thing that we see do often in our lives - the wrong conclusion derived from the present circumstances. Gideon concluded that God had forsaken Israel, based on the recent experiences and current condition of Israel. That was (and usually is) the wrong conclusion. The facts, which can be seen as you read the account in its entirety, reveal quite the opposite - that God had been at work, through chastisement, to bring His people back to the place where they should be.
In 6:14-16 we have a classic lesson. It is commendable that Gideon realizes his own inadequacy for the task to which God has assigned him. The lesson for Gideon (and thus for us) is that he was not supposed to go in his own strength, but rather in the strength of Almighty God, Who promised to go with him.
Gideon's excuses in 6:15 remind us of Moses, and we have a separate study on his excuses HERE.
In Judges 7:1-7 we find yet another important lesson. God's ways are not our ways. God's power is far above our power. In our thinking, we need to outnumber the enemy if we are to even have a chance at victory. God says, I will send but a few, against many, so that you will see clearly that the victory is God's, not theirs. Perhaps this reminds you of verses like 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 "But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence." A large Israelite army defeating the Midianites would have fueled Israel's sinful self-reliance, but God was not going to allow that. So, starting with 22,000 (7:3) possible soldiers, God narrows it down to a select 300 (7:7).
We do not want to overlook an important response by Gideon in 7:15. When Gideon comes to realize what was going on, and how that God was truly in it, he worshiped! In an attitude of self-reliance, worship usually does not follow. Here, Gideon expresses what we need to express - that God deserves the glory and He is to be worshiped.
There are some bright spots in Gideon's life, and some not-so-bright spots! Very much like the experience of most of us. Some of the bright spots have been mentioned above. Another is found in chapter 8:22-23, where, after the victory, people want Gideon to rule over them. But Gideon's response is admirable: "But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you.”
Sadly, the story of Gideon ends on a not-so-bright note. We read it in 8:29-35. "Then Jerubbaal [Gideon] the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house. Gideon had seventy sons who were his own offspring, for he had many wives. And his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, whose name he called Abimelech. Now Gideon the son of Joash died at a good old age, and was buried in the tomb of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. So it was, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again played the harlot with the Baals, and made Baal-Berith their god. Thus the children of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side; nor did they show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (Gideon) in accordance with the good he had done for Israel."
We see in this passage that Israel once again turns away from God - "they did not remember". They failed to remember what God had done FOR them, they failed to remember what Gideon had done FOR them, they failed to remember what Midian had done TO them. A sad side-note is that Gideon had seventy sons, and yet we do not read of ANY following in their father's footsteps in obeying, serving, or worshiping God. How sad!