Gideon, Who Fell from the Place of Glory

21Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Rise and fall on us; for as the man is, so is his strength.” Gideon arose, and killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and took the crescents that were on their camels’ necks. 22Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, both you, and your son, and your son’s son also; for you have saved us out of the hand of Midian.” 23Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you. Yahweh shall rule over you.” 24Gideon said to them, “I do have a request, that you would each give me the earrings of his plunder.” (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.) 25They answered, “We will willingly give them.” They spread a garment, and every man threw the earrings of his plunder into it. 26The weight of the golden earrings that he requested was one thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold, besides the crescents, and the pendants, and the purple clothing that was on the kings of Midian, and besides the chains that were about their camels’ necks. 27Gideon made an ephod out of it, and put it in Ophrah, his city. Then all Israel played the prostitute with it there; and it became a snare to Gideon, and to his house. 28So Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, and they lifted up their heads no more. The land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon.

With his three hundred men, Gideon won a resounding victory. He sent messengers throughout Ephraim and all the hill country, ordering them to seize the waters as far as Beth Barah and the Jordan and to wipe out the fleeing Midianites. As Gideon had ordered, the men of Ephraim seized the waters, and they succeeded in capturing Oreb and Zeeb, the princes of Midian.

After carrying out Gideon’s order, the Ephraimites came to him and complained, asking why he had not called them when he went to fight Midian. But this war had been fought by all Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali together, so the Ephraimites all knew that war had broken out. Even if Gideon had not summoned them, a war against Midian was one they ought to have joined of their own accord.

Had Gideon lost this war, Ephraim not only would have stayed out of it; they would not even have cared about the others’ suffering. Ephraim had complained once before, when Joshua divided the land, that the territory they had received as their inheritance was small compared with that of the other tribes. If their allotted land was small, they should have declared war on the Canaanites and enlarged their borders; instead they made no effort and only complained. Ephraim never took the lead in working for Israel. They were the kind who, after other tribes had risked their lives and won the battle, would show up and complain that they had been kept from taking the lead. When Jephthah fought the Ammonites, too, they behaved much as they had toward Gideon.

Gideon dealt very wisely with these complaining Ephraimites. He praised them, saying that although his own men had been in the war from the beginning, the tribe of Ephraim, who joined at the end, had achieved far more and done the harder work. If Gideon had asked them from the start to come because the Midianite army was large, they would have refused, asking why they should take the risk. They behaved like this every time and still wanted recognition, so they seem to have thought themselves strong and wise.

But for God and for Israel we must be faithful to the point of foolishness, and give ourselves with a faith honest to the point of folly. Only then does God accept that devotion and bless it. In the church, too, when a task arises that everyone must share, there are those who think it is naturally someone else’s job. That person holds an office; that person has always done it; those people are the ones responsible, and so on. They think they need not take part in the work of the church.

But in God’s sight, being saved by hearing the word and being born again is the same for everyone, and so is the hope of heaven. If the way of salvation is the same, then any difference in responsibility is one we have set for ourselves, and the God who sees it will certainly regard it differently. Whatever the task, if someone gives themselves to it from the start, beyond their strength, God will trust the one who quietly keeps working and give them greater things to do. If Ephraim did not take part from the start, they had no right to complain.

As he listened to Ephraim’s complaints, Gideon would have looked back on himself. He must have seen himself complaining to God over and over, and remembered the moments when he doubted and tested God to the end even after God had given him assurance. So he was patient, just as God had been patient with him, and he treated the men of Ephraim as gently as God had treated him. From this we can see why those who are further along in faith must have a gentle spirit and endure to the end.

When Gideon praised them, the men of Ephraim at last let go of their anger and went home. If he had flared up instead, demanding what they had done when it was his men who had risked their lives in battle, and asking whether they now wanted the credit, he would have quarreled bitterly with them. Gideon did not lose his credit by yielding to Ephraim. Even if he gave Ephraim the credit in this spirit of yielding, in the end it was Gideon who would be recognized, because God was already with him.

It is the fool who speaks perverse words that wound another’s heart, and who makes enemies of others to avoid sharing grace with them. It is the same in the church and in the home. Anyone who will not yield an inch and acts on their feelings will in the end not receive God’s blessing.

When Gideon crossed the Jordan with his 300 men, exhaustion overtook him. He asked the men of Succoth whether they would give his men bread, since they were pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian. But the princes of Succoth mocked Gideon and his men. Knowing that Gideon and his people had been suffering under Midian’s oppression, they did not believe they were pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna; instead they ridiculed them and gave them no bread.

If the men of Succoth had first heard that Gideon had won a sweeping victory with God’s help, they would have baked bread and been waiting for him. The people of the world are like this: they believe only what they can see and what they have heard. That is why they despised Gideon. Angered, Gideon said that when he had caught Zebah and Zalmunna, he would tear down their tower on his way back. Gideon killed 120,000 swordsmen from all the army of the children of the east, pursued the survivors along with Zebah and Zalmunna, and captured them. Victorious, as he had said he would be, Gideon came to Succoth on his way back, seized all the elders and princes who had mocked him and punished them, and tore down the tower of Penuel. Gideon, who walked with God like this, knew no defeat.

God set Gideon in the highest place of glory a person can stand, and lifted him up so that everyone recognized him. He came to understand deeply that God is alive, and that whoever simply does as God says will be blessed. He came to such faith because of the grace of God, who led him by his word to the end even though he doubted and complained.

Now that all the fighting was over, all Gideon had to do was enjoy the blessings God had given and fulfill his calling as a judge.

Judges 8:21

21Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Rise and fall on us; for as the man is, so is his strength.” Gideon arose, and killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and took the crescents that were on their camels’ necks.

Gideon ordered his firstborn, Jether, to kill Zebah and Zalmunna, but the boy was too young and could not draw his sword. Then Zebah and Zalmunna said that a boy has a boy’s strength and a boy’s courage, too little to wield a sword, and asked Gideon to kill them himself instead. By killing Zebah and Zalmunna, Gideon won a complete victory.

As time went on he seemed to obey God, and he had shown maturity as a judge, so all he needed was to hold on to the faith he now had. Yet the first thing Gideon did after killing Zebah and Zalmunna was to take the crescents hanging on the necks of the camels they rode. These crescents were made of gold or silver, and the Midianites always carried them about, following their custom of worshiping the moon god. Gideon took them as a memorial of his victory, and the people, too, brought back a great deal of plunder.

Of course, God had permitted the people to take plunder when they won a battle, so their taking it was no great problem. The problem is that the first thing Gideon did after his victory was to take the crescents from the camels’ necks, because that act reveals what he cared about. Since he had been made a judge though he had neither strength nor wisdom, he should first have given thanks to God, as David did, and helped the people worship God. A judge’s task, after all, is to give glory and thanks, together with all the people, to the God who had led them this far.

But Gideon, to satisfy himself first, took before anything else the crescents that served a foreign god. This is why it matters so much for us to set our priorities: which of the two will we choose, the unseen or the seen?

Gideon had said with confidence that Yahweh would deliver Zebah and Zalmunna into his hand, and he had confessed that God was at work in this war; yet human nature and character do not change so easily. He ought to have thought of the God who had caused someone as lacking as himself to stand so high. Instead, the moment Gideon stood in the highest place of glory, he fell.

Why did Gideon fall, after following God’s word so well up to now? God had forgiven all of Gideon’s foolish questions and actions and led him this far, so why did he not rebuke Gideon when he took the crescents off the camels?

When people are suffering, they try to follow God’s word. But once they are free of their trouble, they will not lay down their thoughts; they are gripped by the conviction that their own judgment is right, and so in the end they collapse. To realize it only after the collapse and the loss is to realize it too late.

God does not embrace those who carry their heads high in pride. That is why those who fail to give thanks for grace and fall from the place of honor find it so hard to recover. God always blesses us far beyond what we want. So we ought to do all the more for him, give thanks for what he has given, and give ourselves to the Kingdom of God.

Foolish Gideon began with the crescents on the camels’ necks and went on to ask the people for the plunder they had taken. When the judge who had saved Israel asked for the plunder, the Israelites gladly gathered the gold they had and gave it to him. The gold Gideon received from them weighed 1,700 shekels, and besides that there were the crescents, the pendants, the purple clothing the kings of Midian had worn, and many other gifts. Gideon melted all this gold down and made an ephod, and he put it in his city, Ophrah. This is no different at all from Aaron and the people of Israel making the golden calf.

Even so, as a judge he should have proclaimed the word so that the people could repent before God, and led them to offer sacrifices; instead he sinned by making an ephod. Why did Gideon make the ephod and put it in Ophrah? He remembered that when he had torn down Baal’s altar and cut down the Asherah, the men of Ophrah had crowded to his father demanding his death, and he wanted to show them what a great man he was. When he tore down Baal’s altar and the Asherah at God’s word, they had come to kill him as though some great disaster had befallen them; now he wanted them to see that he was a judge with this much power.

This is Gideon as he really was. It was God who raised him up as a judge, and God who helped him win the war; yet he used God and made the ephod intending to take revenge on the men of Ophrah who had despised him. Here Gideon’s folly showed itself again: he abandoned the God who had helped him at every moment and became bound to human revenge and boasting. Gideon poured out all the grace he had received and went back to where he had started.

Is there no way for such a Gideon to stand before God again? He must cast off his greed and pride and recognize how lacking he is; only then will he recover a thankful heart.

Psalms 107:17-22

17Fools are afflicted because of their disobedience, and because of their iniquities. 18Their soul abhors all kinds of food. They draw near to the gates of death. 19Then they cry to Yahweh in their trouble, he saves them out of their distresses. 20He sends his word, and heals them, and delivers them from their graves. 21Let them praise Yahweh for his loving kindness, for his wonderful deeds to the children of men! 22Let them offer the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his deeds with singing.

Psalm 107 records the joy of the people of Israel, who had been carried off as captives to Babylon, at being set free and returning to Jerusalem.

Babylon was like gates of bronze and bars of iron, but God shattered and broke them all. Israel had been guilty of the foolish sin of leaving God. They suffered for that sin, and their affliction was so great that they could not eat. When Israel cried out to God in their trouble, God saved them, just as he had rescued the nation out of Egypt.

Verse 20 tells how he saved them: God sent his word. When the Spirit of God came, they saw their sin, repented, turned back to God, and were healed. Only when they were born again by God’s word could they be rescued from their affliction. God did not send soldiers to defeat Babylon, nor did angels come to rescue the people; he sent his word and helped them to be born again as his people. God helps his own by making them hear his word, causing them to look to him, and leading them to live according to his will. Only then are they forgiven and set free from sin.

Verse 21 says that God’s giving his word to the people is his loving kindness, his wonderful deed for the children of men. We think of a miracle as God solving the world’s problems or saving someone on the brink of death, but hearing God’s word and turning back is the miracle. If so, then since we hear the word God has sent, repent, and strive to live as his people, we are experiencing miracles every day. If you apply this miraculous word to your life and strive to be changed by it, God will give you even greater miracles as a gift.

Verse 22 calls us to praise God, exalt him, and offer sacrifices of thanksgiving. The first thing those who have experienced a miracle must do is offer praise. Worshiping with the confession that we are sinners, and declaring what God has done: this is the work of his people. The sacrifice of thanksgiving is an offering in which only the fat is burned on the altar of burnt offering, and the meat, apart from the priest’s portion, is shared and eaten together by everyone who has come to worship. The people exalt God by giving thanks that his grace has restored them from sin, and by offering him praise and worship. Seen in this light, it is clear that after his victory Gideon offered God no thanks, no praise, and no proclamation of the word. Taking the crescents mattered more to him than the God who had caused him to sit on high. He was in more of a hurry to strip the people of their jewelry, make an ephod, and take revenge on the men of Ophrah.

Do you see how little Gideon changed?

The miracle God showed when Israel cried out was to send his word, make them realize that he is alive, and fill them with the faith to live as his people. If he caused captive Israel to be born again through his word, then God should have rebuked Gideon by his word when the judge he had raised up was going astray.

But after Gideon won the war, God says nothing. The God who had led Gideon by his word, however foolish his questions, however he tested God and complained, is now silent. More fearful still, God left him to rule Israel in peace as judge for forty years. From this it is plain that forty years of untroubled ease is not, in itself, a blessing. Only by hearing the word can we discern the spirits, and Gideon had already drifted away from God, so his faith was not whole.

Only if you pay attention to the fact that God was silent toward Gideon and Israel will you avoid making the wrong choices Gideon made. When Gideon relied on God, even as he repeated his mistakes, God kept telling him his plans for what was to come and carried them out. But when Gideon decided and acted as he pleased, God gave him no wisdom and did not speak to him. God knew that even if he spoke now, Gideon in his pride would not listen; that is why he says nothing at all.

We must understand what a fearful calamity it is when the word of God falls silent. God judged Gideon the judge through the death of the seventy sons he left behind, all killed in one place. If he had seventy sons, he must have had many wives and daughters too, and his corruption would have reached its height. You need to know that being pierced to the heart by the word is the greatest blessing anyone can receive in life, a miracle not given to everyone. Gideon, who gave no thanks, died in his sin. In people’s eyes he was a judge who had received God’s grace, a judge of renown who won the war, a judge who ruled Israel well; but by keeping silent toward Gideon, God cut off fellowship with him.

Friends, if you hear the word and do not change, God too will stop speaking. Whatever your temperament, whatever knowledge and wisdom you have, you are saved only by knowing what God wants of you and living by it. When Gideon put the ephod in Ophrah, Israel played the prostitute with it. By the very act of making the ephod, Gideon failed to escape the snare of Satan. God’s plan to save Israel by raising up Gideon as judge was perfectly fulfilled, but Gideon did not carry that grace through into his life.

In the same way, God sent Jesus to bear the penalty for our sins, and Jesus willingly offered himself on the cross as the atoning sacrifice. And so God’s plan was perfectly fulfilled. Jesus broke down the wall that stood between God and sinners, so that all of us, with the help of the Holy Spirit, can come freely to God. May you never fall from the heights. I hope you will not forget the hard days of the past, when you had to thresh in hiding, and that you will give thanks to the God who has entrusted you with your calling.

Gideon did not become a judge because he deserved it, nor did he live a peaceful life because he had earned the right to enjoy one. God drew Gideon on and worked in him with a strong hand, but once God’s plan was accomplished, God no longer intervened in Gideon’s life and choices. Through the coming of the Holy Spirit, Gideon had been able to live according to God’s plan. But when he did not want to hear God’s word, God did not meddle in Gideon’s affairs. That means Gideon had shut his ears and would not listen even when God spoke. So those who have lost the bright light live in the darkness as they please and still think they are right.

Since Gideon’s seventy sons were killed in one place, his children, too, probably did not believe in God and probably had sins deserving death. If Gideon had proclaimed the word, the people would have been born again as a people who serve God, and his children would not have died in their sins.

If you share with others the miracle of hearing the word, God will set you in a place of honor. If you treasure the word you have received and exalt God, you will experience miracles every day.

Let us always give thanks, stay faithful to the calling we have received, and walk humbly as God’s people.