1However, the children of Israel kept doing evil things in the eyes of Jehovah, so He put them under the hand of the Midianites for seven years. 2And they proved to be so strong against Israel that the Israelites took up living in mountain caves, in [animal] dens, and in holes in the rocks. 3And whenever the children of Israel would plant anything, the Midianites, Amalechites, and the sons of the east would get together 4and [fight] against them and destroy their crops. And in Gaza they stole all the [cattle], leaving nothing to support life in the land of Israel. 5They just moved in with their livestock, camels, and tents like locusts, as the land of Israel was being destroyed. 6So, Israel was mostly impoverished because of Midian, 7and the children of Israel started calling to Jehovah over Midian. 8Then Jehovah sent a Prophet to the children of Israel, who told them, ‘This is what Jehovah the God of Israel says: I’m the One who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and it was I who brought you out of the house of slavery. 9I saved you from the hands of the Egyptians and from those who are now persecuting you, and I threw them out and gave you their land. 10I also told you that I am Jehovah your God, so you are not to be afraid of the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live; but you just wouldn’t listen to Me!’ 11Then a messenger of Jehovah came and sat down under the fir tree at EphRatha (BethLehem) in the land of JoAs (the father of EsDri), as [EsDri’s] son Gideon was threshing wheat in a wine press (so the Midianites wouldn’t notice [what he was doing]). 12It was there that Jehovah’s messenger appeared to him and said, ‘Jehovah is with you, you mighty [man].’ 13And Gideon said to him, ‘Be patient with me, my lord; If Jehovah is with us, then why are all these bad things happening to us… and where are all His miracles that our ancestors have told us about, such as when He brought them out of Egypt? For, now he has rejected us and given us into the hands of the Midianites.’ 14Then the messenger of Jehovah turned to him and said, ‘Go and use your strength to save Israel from the hands of Midian. For look, I am sending you!’ 15But Gideon replied, ‘Be patient with me my lord; How can I save Israel? For look, there are thousands in [the tribe of] ManasSeh, yet they are weak… and I’m the least prominent one in my father’s house.’ 16And the messenger of Jehovah said to him, ‘Jehovah will be with you and you must cut down everyone in Midian.’ 17And Gideon said, ‘If I’ve found mercy in your eyes and you’re going to do all these things that you told me today, 18don’t leave here until I return with an offering and lay it before you.’ And he replied, ‘I’ll stay here until you return.’ 19So, Gideon went back and prepared a kid goat and a quart of fine fermentation-free flour. He put the [cooked] meat in a basket, poured its gravy into a jar, and carried it to [the messenger, who was still sitting] under the fir tree. 20And the messenger of God said to him, ‘Now take the meat and the fermentation-free cakes and put them on that rock, then pour the gravy over it.’ And that’s what he did. 21Then the messenger of Jehovah stuck out the walking stick that was in his hand and touched the meat and fermentation-free bread, and fire came out of the rock and consumed it all. Then the messenger of Jehovah vanished from his sight. 22It was then that Gideon realized it was a messenger of Jehovah, and he said, ‘Ah… ah… Jehovah my God! I’ve seen the messenger of Jehovah face to face!’ 23And Jehovah replied, ‘May you have peace. Now, don’t be afraid, for you’re not going to die.’ 24And so Gideon built an altar to Jehovah there and called it ‘The Peace of Jehovah.’ And it’s still there today in EphRatha, [at the home of his] father, EsDri. 25Then that night, Jehovah said to him, ‘Now take the young calf that your father has, the second one that is seven-years old, and then destroy your father’s altar to Baal and his sacred poles. 26For, you must build an altar to Jehovah your God on the top of this hill and get things ready; then take the calf and sacrifice it as a whole burnt offering, using the wood from the sacred poles that you cut down.’ 27So, Gideon took ten of his servants and did as Jehovah said. But, because he was afraid of the house of his father and the men of the city, he did it at night. 28Then, when the men of the city woke up early the next morning and saw that the altar of Baal and the nearby sacred poles had been demolished, and the calf that Gideon had offered on the altar (which he had built), 29they each started asking their neighbors, ‘Who did this?’ Then they asked around and found out that Gideon (the son of JoAs) had done it. 30And the men of the city went and told [the family of] JoAs to bring out this son, and let them kill him for destroying the altar of Baal and the nearby sacred poles. 31But Gideon said to the men who had come for him, ‘Are you now pleading for Baal, and are you going to save him? May all those who plead for him be killed this morning! Why, if he’s a god, let him plead for himself because someone has torn down his altar!’ 32And that day [they started calling him] JeroBaal. For he said, ‘Let Baal plead, because his altar has been torn down.’ 33Well, all the Midianites, Amalechites, and sons of the east had gathered and camped in the JezreEl Valley. 34So, the Breath of Jehovah came upon Gideon and he blew his [battle] horn, and AbiEzer came to his aid. 35Then Gideon sent messengers throughout ManasSeh, Asher, ZebuLon, and NaphTali, and he went out to meet with them. 36Then Gideon said to God, ‘If You’re going to use me to save Israel, as You said; 37look, I’ve put some wool fleece on the threshing floor. And if only the fleece is covered with dew and the ground all around it is dry [in the morning], I will know that You’re going to use me to save Israel, as You said.’ 38Well, when he got up early the next morning, he wrung out the fleece, and a full bowl of water poured from it. 39But Gideon said to God, ‘Please don’t be angry, but please allow me to ask for just one more thing. To make sure, now let the fleece be dry, while dew is all over the ground.’ 40And that’s what God did that night. There was dew all over the ground, but the fleece was dry.
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 1 THE ISRAELITES, FOR THEIR SINS, OPPRESSED BY MIDIAN. (
Judg 6:1-
Judg 6:6)
and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian--Untaught by their former experiences, the Israelites again apostatized, and new sins were followed by fresh judgments. Midian had sustained a severe blow in the time of Moses (Num. 31:1-18); and the memory of that disaster, no doubt, inflamed their resentment against the Israelites. They were wandering herdsmen, called "children of the East," from their occupying the territory east of the Red Sea, contiguous to Moab. The destructive ravages they are described as at this time committing in the land of Israel are similar to those of the Bedouin Arabs, who harass the peaceful cultivators of the soil. Unless composition is made with them, they return annually at a certain season, when they carry off the grain, seize the cattle and other property; and even life itself is in jeopardy from the attacks of those prowling marauders. The vast horde of Midianites that overran Canaan made them the greatest scourge which had ever afflicted the Israelites.
2 made . . . dens . . . in the mountains and caves--not, of course, excavating them, for they were already, but making them fit for habitation.
8 A PROPHET REBUKES THEM. (
Judg 6:7-
Judg 6:10)
the Lord sent a prophet unto the children of Israel--The curse of the national calamity is authoritatively traced to their infidelity as the cause.
11 AN ANGEL SENDS GIDEON TO DELIVER THEM. (
Judg 6:11-
Judg 6:16)
there came an angel of the Lord--He appeared in the character and equipments of a traveller (
Judg 6:21), who sat down in the shade to enjoy a little refreshment and repose. Entering into conversation on the engrossing topic of the times, the grievous oppression of the Midianites, he began urging Gideon to exert his well-known prowess on behalf of his country. Gideon, in replying, addresses him at first in a style equivalent (in Hebrew) to "sir," but afterwards gives to him the name usually applied to God.
an oak--Hebrew, "the oak"--as famous in after-times.
Ophrah--a city in the tribe of Manasseh, about sixteen miles north of Jericho, in the district belonging to the family of Abiezer (
Josh 17:2).
his son Gideon threshed wheat by the wine-press--This incident tells emphatically the tale of public distress. The small quantity of grain he was threshing, indicated by his using a flail instead of the customary treading of cattle--the unusual place, near a wine-press, under a tree, and on the bare ground, not a wooden floor, for the prevention of noise--all these circumstances reveal the extreme dread in which the people were living.
13 if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us?--Gideon's language betrays want of reflection, for the very chastisements God had brought on His people showed His presence with, and His interest in, them.
14 the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might . . . have not I sent thee?--The command and the promise made Gideon aware of the real character of his visitor; and yet like Moses, from a sense of humility, or a shrinking at the magnitude of the undertaking, he excused himself from entering on the enterprise. And even though assured that, with the divine aid, he would overcome the Midianites as easily as if they were but one man, he still hesitates and wishes to be better assured that the mission was really from God. He resembles Moses also in the desire for a sign; and in both cases it was the rarity of revelations in such periods of general corruption that made them so desirous of having the fullest conviction of being addressed by a heavenly messenger. The request was reasonable, and it was graciously granted [
Judg 6:18].
18 GIDEON'S PRESENT CONSUMED BY FIRE. (Jdg. 6:17-32)
Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I . . . bring forth my present--Hebrew, my mincha, or "meat offering"; and his idea probably was to prove, by his visitor's partaking of the entertainment, whether or not he was more than man.
19 Gideon went in, and made ready a kid; . . . the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot--(See on
Gen 18:7). The flesh seems to have been roasted, which is done by cutting it into kobab, that is, into small pieces, fixed on a skewer, and put before the fire. The broth was for immediate use; the other, brought in a hand-basket was intended to be a future supply to the traveller. The miraculous fire that consumed it and the vanishing of the stranger, not by walking, but as a spirit in the fire, filled Gideon with awe. A consciousness of demerit fills the heart of every fallen man at the thought of God, with fear of His wrath; and this feeling was increased by a belief prevalent in ancient times, that whoever saw an angel would forthwith die. The acceptance of Gideon's sacrifice betokened the acceptance of his person; but it required an express assurance of the divine blessing, given in some unknown manner, to restore his comfort and peace of mind.
24 it came to pass the same night, that the Lord said unto him--The transaction in which Gideon is here described as engaged was not entered on till the night after the vision.
25 Take thy father's . . . second bullock--The Midianites had probably reduced the family herd; or, as Gideon's father was addicted to idolatry, the best may have been fattened for the service of Baal; so that the second was the only remaining one fit for sacrifice to God.
throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath--standing upon his ground, though kept for the common use of the townsmen.
cut down the grove that is by it--dedicated to Ashtaroth. With the aid of ten confidential servants he demolished the one altar and raised on the appointed spot the altar of the Lord; but, for fear of opposition, the work had to be done under cover of night. A violent commotion was excited next day, and vengeance vowed against Gideon as the perpetrator. "Joash, his father, quieted the mob in a manner similar to that of the town clerk of Ephesus. It was not for them to take the matter into their own hands. The one, however, made an appeal to the magistrate; the other to the idolatrous god himself" [CHALMERS].
33 THE SIGNS. (
Judg 6:33-
Judg 6:39)
all the Midianites . . . pitched in Jezreel--The confederated troops of Midian, Amalek, and their neighbors, crossing the Jordan to make a fresh inroad on Canaan, encamped in the plains of Esdraelon (anciently Jezreel). The southern part of the Ghor lies in a very low level, so that there is a steep and difficult descent into Canaan by the southern wadies. Keeping this in view, we see the reason why the Midianite army, from the east of Jordan, entered Canaan by the northern wadies of the Ghor, opposite Jezreel.
34 the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon--Called in this sudden emergency into the public service of his country, he was supernaturally endowed with wisdom and energy commensurate with the magnitude of the danger and the difficulties of his position. His summons to war was enthusiastically obeyed by all the neighboring tribes. On the eve of a perilous enterprise, he sought to fortify his mind with a fresh assurance of a divine call to the responsible office. The miracle of the fleece was a very remarkable one--especially, considering the copious dews that fall in his country. The divine patience and condescension were wonderfully manifested in reversing the form of the miracle. Gideon himself seems to have been conscious of incurring the displeasure of God by his hesitancy and doubts; but He bears with the infirmities of His people.