Gideon: The Judge You Thought You Knew

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Gideon, the Judge You Thought You Knew

(How to Study an OT Narrative)

Introduction: The title of this lesson does not actually reflect the main purpose for the our study. Yes, we are going to talk about “Gideon, the Judge You Thought You Knew,” but our real purpose is to help us learn to do a better job of how we study the historical section of the Old Testament. We see “stories.” They are really interesting stories, and we learned them as stories from our childhood. But is that what God intended? Was it all about being in awe of righteous people like Abraham, Moses, and David? Let’s use the narrative of Gideon to see God’s true intentions.

1. The Condition of Humanity, 6:1-10
   1. Notice the beginning words of 6:1, “The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian for seven years.” Of course, we see this same picture repeated throughout Judges. But instead of just accepting that as “the story of Judges,” we must ask questions about God’s purposes for the Judges story. For example, “What is God teaching us about ourselves?” It is simply too easy to throw all the blame on Israel, as if they are so wicked and we are so righteous. God’s intention is not to bash Israel so we can feel good about ourselves. 
   2. The message is, this is our nature. Just as Eve in the Garden, no matter what God does for us, no matter the greatness of his blessings, we think there just has to be something more that God is not giving us and that some other “god” would give us that little extra. That is the root of idolatry. That is the draw of idolatry. 
   3. Further, this is the battle of the Bible. From beginning to end, God is battling Satan’s argument that becoming your own god or making something in this world your god will give you satisfaction beyond the true God. The message of Ecclesiastes, “vanity of vanities, all is vanity” should forever ring in our minds in order to keep our minds toward God.
   4. Please be aware, this is not about enjoying what God has given us in life. 1 Timothy 6:17 explains: “Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be arrogant or to set their hope on the uncertainty of wealth, but on God who richly provides us with all things to enjoy” (CSB).
      It isn’t the enjoyment of what God has given us that is the problem. God didn’t give all the trees of the Garden and then tell Adam not to enjoy them. The problem is twofold:
      1. We do not maintain an awareness that it is God [not us] that provides these gifts, and therefore be deeply thankful to him. Paul said in Romans 1:21 that the first step into idolatry was, “they did not honor him as God nor were they thankful.” 
      2. Second, it is one thing to “enjoy” God’s gifts, it is another thing to “set our hope on” the gifts themselves. These are gifts from a benevolent Father, and as 6:6 says, we are to be content with them while “putting our hope in God.”
   5. Therefore the sin of Judges was that the people did not have a heart and hope in God. Yahweh God was simply not enough! And when he is not enough, our minds and desires begin to wander. That is the message of Judges repeatedly summarized by these words of 6:1.
   6. The next question is why does God respond to their idolatry by giving them into the hand of Midian to be oppressed for seven years? Why is this always God’s reply to their idolatry? There are two reasons:
      1. First, God is letting Israel experience what their “new gods” will provide them. There is only one God who is benevolent. Since all other gods are based on what goes on in our fleshly minds and are material, they will always disappoint. When will we ever get that through our heads!
      2. Second, God is teaching Israel that when you worship another god, you lose Me as the only God who can truly bless you, provide for you, and protect you. In other words, for seven years the Lord was saying, “How are those other gods working out for you?” You see, Satan is the supporter and inventor of idolatry, and he just wants to use us. That’s idolatry. Spiritual idolatry, as in Hosea, is the picture of a woman married to a perfect husband, but deserts him for another man who only wants to use her. That is the first issue of Judges. That is the issue of human beings. And it is also God’s message to us of the end result of not putting our whole hope in him.
   7. However, there is more that God wants us to learn about him in this story of Gideon. You will notice in 6:7-10. God did not immediately raise up a Judge as before. In this case, he sent a prophet to rebuke them. However, there is no evidence they listened to the prophet. The words of the prophet fell on deaf ears. Even Gideon’s father has a large altar to Baal and an Asherah. Now, what was God’s response?
      1. He pursued them. He did the opposite of what you and I would have expected. As one who deeply loves and will not forsake that love, he pursued them just like you and I would pursue our son or daughter who went astray and would never give up hoping for their restoration. God still raised up a Judge. God still pursued.
      2. Do you see God always pursuing you? Yes, when you are at your lowest emotionally and even spiritually, God is still pursuing you. And yes, he desires repentance, but he is not giving up; he is still pursuing you. Would you expect anything less from the God who gave his only Son?
2. The Weakness of Gideon
   1. This is the part of the story where we criticize Gideon. What a wimp, hiding in a winepress beating out wheat out of fear! But this part tells us the best of Gideon. It is Gideon’s weakness that we must exalt and learn!
      1. Notice, Gideon isn’t in the winepress praying to God or seeking God. He isn’t a brave spiritual leader. He is a nobody without faith, trembling because of the Midianites, and trying to eke out some food. We all can relate to this Gideon.
      2. When the angel appears, he calls him “a mighty man of valor.” Funny, at this point, we don’t believe that and neither does Gideon. He is far from a mighty man of valor. But the angel says he is! How so? We missed the beginning of his words: the Lord is with you. Now do those words mean anything to you? Yes, I know what you are thinking, “Sure, Gideon should know the Lord is with him!” That’s not the question – do you know the Lord is with you? How many times in your life have you forgotten those words? 
   2. There is another part of Gideon’s weakness we should appreciate. Gideon wants a sign. We might say, “Oh Gideon, come on! Just believe.” No, that’s wrong. God is totally into giving us signs! God told faithless Ahaz to ask for a sign. The Gospel John is about giving us signs by which we might believe. Proof is not a problem with God! 
   3. Then there is another supposed weakness of Gideon. When the sign is given, Gideon realizes the man is an angel and therefore he is going to die! “Oh, silly Gideon!” No! You step into the presence of the angel of the Lord with all your sins, and should you conclude anything different! In the presence of God, we all deserve to die!
   4. Assured he will not die, Gideon responds in worship by building an altar to the Lord. That is the appropriate response. Grace acknowledged and appreciated should lead to humility and worship.
3. Weakness Is Turned to Strength
   1. The Lord now gives his first command to Gideon: tear down your father’s Baal and Asherah, build an altar to the Lord and us the wood of the Asherah to offer a burnt offering of the second bull.”
   2. Gideon obeys, but notice 6:27. Gideon was too afraid to do it in the daytime, so he did it at night. Here we go again! Silly Gideon! Really? I could ask a question about how often you are afraid, but the better question would be, how often are we not afraid? The key here is, Gideon did it even though he was afraid. Oh we need to remember that! You’re afraid? Sure! Trust God and do it anyway.
   3. Look at the result of “little faith.” His fearful obedience changes his father: “Let Baal defend himself if he is a god!” Indeed, can you imagine God needing a man to defend him? A whole town is turned from idolatry because of “little” faith and a whole nation calls Gideon, “Let Baal plead his own case” (vs. 32, HCSB). Are we getting the message? 
   4. Now God is ready to deliver Israel by the hand of Gideon. But Gideon is still fearful and asks for two signs – sure, wet fleece and then dry fleece. God was glad to give it, and Gideon needed it because only 32,000 men showed up to fight and God only allowed 300 to stay.
   5. Gideon didn’t ask for another sign, but no matter, God sent him to listen to the men in the Midianite camp tell a dream of a barley biscuit rolling into the camp and smashing a tent. And with that, God gave him courage. Out of his weakness, he was now a mighty man of valor and conquered 135,000 Midianites with 300 men.
   6. Now, how many miraculous signs have you seen? You might say, “I know God has done a lot of great things in my life, but I don’t think I’ve seen a miraculous sign!” Now, think again. How many signs did John show you in his gospel? How many signs did Mark show you or Matthew? How many signs did you see in Acts, and how many have you seen with Abraham, Moses, Joshua, and David? They are too numerous to count. Paul said, “These things were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come” (1 Cor. 10:11). Haven’t we seen enough signs to create courage? 
   7. Note what the Lord said in 7:2, “Lest Israel boast over me, saying ‘My own hand has saved me.’” This is both a warning and a comfort. We are not responsible for any success, but on the other hand, when we are doing what the Lord asks us to do, we do not have to feel responsible for the results simply because they may not meet up to our expectations. Throughout scripture God used the weak, the nobodies by man’s standards, to conquer the world. That’s why God can and will use us. We are clay jars!
4. The Gideon We Ignored, 8:22-35
   1. This isn’t the part of the story we typically think about when we study Gideon. The men of Israel ask him to rule over them. Gideon gives the right answer (23), but his actions betray his words.
      1. No, I won’t rule over you, but give me all the golden earrings of your spoil. From it, Gideon makes a monument of his greatness and puts it in his own city. There you go Gideon. You lost it. You lost your weakness; you lost your nobody status, and now you are truly nobody. All Israel went whoring after the golden ephod, and Gideon didn’t stop it or destroy the ephod.
      2. Then Gideon married a bunch of wives and had 70 sons. Not a king, huh? Looks like a king, and certainly is acting like a king. He is violating the very command God gave in Deut. 17:17 about the behavior of kings.
      3. And if that wasn’t enough, he names the son of one of his concubines, Abimelech, meaning, “My father is king.” Not only did he exalt himself, but he put pride in his son, leading to him making himself king and killing all his brothers. What happens when we nobodies become successful?
   2. Now look at Gideon. The man who once was trembling in a winepress and said he was the least, is now acting like a king as if he did anything! This story was not about Gideon, no more than the whole book of Judges is about any Judge. This is about God. To God be the glory.
   3. After all that God has done for us, how dare us think highly of ourselves because we have found the truth and have the knowledge of God. But by the grace of God, we are nobodies. We, as the sinful woman in Simon’s house, must love much because we are forgiven much. We are sinners who cannot repay our debt, and we are no more deserving of our salvation today than we were the day we came to Christ. 
   4. But when God is with us, even though we are nobodies, we are mighty men and women of valor. Let us live to the glory of God. 

Berry Kercheville