Judges 9

Judges 9

Judges 9:1 Abimelech, son of Jerubbaal, went to Shechem and spoke to his uncles and all his mother’s clan, and he said this:

Judges 9:2 “Please speak in the hearing of all the landowners of Shechem, ‘Is it better for you that seventy men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, govern over you or that one man govern over you? ‘ Remember that I am your flesh and blood.”

Judges 9:3 His mother’s relatives told all these words about him in the hearing of all the landowners of Shechem, and they were favorable to Abimelech because they said, “He is our brother.”

Judges 9:4 So they gave him seventy pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-berith. Abimelech used it to hire hollow and violent men, and they followed him.

Judges 9:5 He went to his father’s house in Ophrah and killed his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal, on top of a large stone. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, survived because he had hidden.

Judges 9:6 Then all the landowners of Shechem and Beth-millo gathered together and proceeded to make Abimelech king at the oak of the pillar in Shechem.

Judges 9:7 When they told Jotham, he climbed to the top of Mount Gerizim, raised his voice, and called to them: Listen to me, landowners of Shechem, and may God listen to you:

Judges 9:8 The trees decided to anoint a king over themselves. They said to the olive tree, “Be king over us.”

Judges 9:9 But the olive tree said to them, “Should I stop giving my oil that people use to honor both God and men and rule over the trees?”

Judges 9:10 Then the trees said to the fig tree, “Come and be king over us.”

Judges 9:11 But the fig tree said to them, “Should I stop giving my sweetness and my good fruit, and rule over trees?”

Judges 9:12 Later, the trees said to the grapevine, “Come and be king over us.”

Judges 9:13 But the grapevine said to them, “Should I stop giving my wine that cheers both God and man and cause disturbance over trees?”

Judges 9:14 Finally, all the trees said to the bramble, “Come and be king over us.”

Judges 9:15 The bramble said to the trees, “If you really are anointing me as king over you, come and find refuge in my shade. But if not, may fire come out from the bramble and consume the cedars of Lebanon.”

Judges 9:16 “Now if you have acted faithfully and honestly in making Abimelech king, if you have done well by Jerubbaal and his family, and if you have rewarded him appropriately for what he did –

Judges 9:17 because my father fought for you, risked his throat, and rescued you from Midian,

Judges 9:18 And now you have attacked my father’s family today, killed his seventy sons on top of a large stone, and made Abimelech, the son of his slave woman, king over the landowners of Shechem ‘because he is your brother’ –

Judges 9:19 so if you have acted faithfully and honestly with Jerubbaal and his house this day, rejoice in Abimelech and may he also rejoice in you.

Judges 9:20 But if not, may fire come from Abimelech and consume the landowners of Shechem and Beth-millo, and may fire come from the citizens of Shechem and Beth-millo and consume Abimelech.”

Judges 9:21 Then Jotham fled, escaping to Beer, and lived there because of his brother Abimelech.

Judges 9:22 When Abimelech had ruled over Israel for three years,

Judges 9:23 God sent an evil breath between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem. They treated Abimelech deceitfully,

Judges 9:24 so that the crime against the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come to justice and their blood would be avenged on their brother Abimelech, who killed them, and on the landowners of Shechem, who had helped him kill his brothers.

Judges 9:25 The landowners of Shechem rebelled against him by putting men in ambush on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed everyone who passed by them on the road. So this was reported to Abimelech.

Judges 9:26 Gaal, son of Ebed, came with his brothers and crossed into Shechem, and the landowners of Shechem trusted him.

Judges 9:27 So they went out to the countryside and harvested grapes from their vineyards. They trampled the grapes and held a celebration. Then they went to the house of their god, and as they ate and drank, they cursed Abimelech.

Judges 9:28 Gaal, son of Ebed, said, “Who is Abimelech and who is Shechem that we should serve him? Isn’t he the son of Jerubbaal, and isn’t Zebul, his officer? You are to serve the men of Hamor, the father of Shechem. Why should we serve Abimelech?

Judges 9:29 If only these people were in my power, I would remove Abimelech.” So he said to Abimelech, “Gather your army and come out.”

Judges 9:30 When Zebul, the ruler of the city, heard the words of Gaal, son of Ebed, his nose burned angrily.

Judges 9:31 So he secretly sent agents to Abimelech, saying, “Notice! Gaal son of Ebed, with his brothers, have come to Shechem and notice they are turning the city against you.

Judges 9:32 Now tonight, you and the troops with you, come and wait in ambush in the countryside.

Judges 9:33 Then get up early and at sunrise attack the city. Notice when he and the troops who are with him come out against you; do to him whatever you can.”

Judges 9:34 So Abimelech and all the troops with him got up at night and waited in ambush for Shechem in four groups.

Judges 9:35 Gaal, son of Ebed, went out and stood at the entrance of the city gate. Then Abimelech and the troops who were with him got up from their ambush.

Judges 9:36 When Gaal saw the troops, he said to Zebul, “Notice, troops are coming down from the mountaintops!” But Zebul said to him, “The shadows of the mountains look like men to you.”

Judges 9:37 Then Gaal spoke again, “Notice, troops are coming down from the central part of the land, and one unit is coming from the direction of the Diviners’ Oak.”

Judges 9:38 Zebul replied, “What do you have to say now? You said, ‘Who is Abimelech that we should serve him? ‘ Aren’t these the troops you despised? Now go and fight them!”

Judges 9:39 So Gaal went out leading the landowners of Shechem and fought against Abimelech,

Judges 9:40, but Abimelech chased him, and Gaal fled before him. Numerous bodies were strewn as far as the entrance of the city gate.

Judges 9:41 Abimelech stayed in Arumah, and Zebul drove Gaal and his brothers from Shechem.

Judges 9:42 The next day, when the people of Shechem went into the countryside, this was reported to Abimelech.

Judges 9:43 He took the troops, divided them into three companies, and waited in ambush in the countryside. When he looked, he saw the people coming out of the city, so he rose against them and struck them down.

Judges 9:44 Then Abimelech and the units that were with him rushed forward and took their stand at the entrance of the city gate. The other two units rushed against all who were in the countryside and struck them down.

Judges 9:45 So Abimelech fought against the city that entire day, captured it, and killed the people who were in it. Then he tore down the city and sowed it with salt.

Judges 9:46 When all the landowners of the Tower of Shechem heard, they entered the inner chamber of the temple of El-berith.

Judges 9:47 Then it was reported to Abimelech that all the landowners of the Tower of Shechem had gathered.

Judges 9:48 So Abimelech and all the troops who were with him went up to Mount Zalmon. Abimelech took his ax in his hand and cut down a branch from the trees. He picked up the branch, put it on his shoulder, and said to the troops who were with him, “Hurry and do what you have seen me do.”

Judges 9:49 Each of the troops also cut down his branch and followed Abimelech. They put the branches against the inner chamber and set it on fire; about a thousand men and women died, including all the men of the Tower of Shechem.

Judges 9:50 Abimelech went to Thebez, camped against it, and captured it.

Judges 9:51 There was a strong tower inside the city, and all the men, women, and landowners of the city fled there. They locked themselves in and went up to the roof of the tower.

Judges 9:52 When Abimelech came to attack the tower, he approached its entrance to set it on fire.

Judges 9:53 But a woman threw the upper portion of a millstone on Abimelech’s head and fractured his skull.

Judges 9:54 He quickly called his armor-bearer and said to him, “Draw your sword and kill me, or they’ll say about me, ‘A woman killed him.'” So his armor-bearer ran him through, and he died.

Judges 9:55 When the Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead, they all went home.

Judges 9:56 In this way, God brought back Abimelech’s evil– the evil that Abimelech had done to his father when he killed his seventy brothers.

Judges 9:57 God also brought back to the men of Shechem all their evil. So the curse of Jotham, son of Jerubbaal, came upon them.

Judges 9 quotes:

“The career of Gideon’s son Abimelech is an important lesson in political ethics and provides insight into the ways in which Israelites wrestled with critical issues of leadership and polity. It has often been suggested that the book of Judges projects an image of a period of national failure and political chaos, making necessary the establishment of the monarchy. In this commentary I make the case that Judges provides a more complex, ambivalent, and self-critical portrait of the monarchy and of preceding experiments in statehood. The judges belong to the “old days,” before there were kings in Israel, but these early leaders are portrayed as clever, brave, inspired, charismatic, and flawed. They are heroic, engaging figures, and none of them is a king. Gideon, in fact, rejects kingship outright, declaring that Yhwh is the only king (8:23); and the story of Abimelech’s illegal, murderous coup, undertaken to establish himself as a king, is surely a negative portrayal of Judges’ one experiment in Israelite kingship. Jotham’s parable about the trees, delivered in a traditional literary form, the masal, criticizes monarchy in general while condemning this manifestation of kingship in particular. The curse of Jotham predicts and assures the downfall of the would-be king, whose lack of fealty to the house of Gideon is mirrored in his subjects’ capricious lack of loyalty to him. He subdues the rebels only to be killed by a woman—the ignoble and shameful end to a would-be man of powér, in the bardic, epic-like traditions of Judges.”

Niditch Susan. Judges : A Commentary. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 121.

Judges 9 links:

ending it all
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Thursday, July 6, 2023
The curse of Jotham
the other shoe
throat adventure
violent aftermath
where did all the spirits go?

The JUDGES shelf in Jeff’s library

REVERSE REPENTANCE

REVERSE REPENTANCE

Jeremiah 34:14-18 NET.

¹⁴ “Every seven years each of you must free any fellow Hebrews who have sold themselves to you. After they have served you for six years, you shall set them free.” But your ancestors did not obey me or pay any attention to me. ¹⁵ Recently, however, you yourselves showed a change of heart and did what is pleasing to me. You granted your fellow countrymen their freedom and you made a covenant to that effect in my presence in the house that I have claimed for my own. ¹⁶ But then you turned right around and showed that you did not honor me. Each of you took back your male and female slaves whom you had freed as they desired, and you forced them to be your slaves again. ¹⁷ So I, the LORD, say: “You have not really obeyed me and granted freedom to your neighbor and fellow countryman. Therefore, I will grant you freedom, the freedom to die in war, or by starvation or disease. I, the LORD, affirm it! I will make all the kingdoms of the earth horrified at what happens to you. ¹⁸I will punish those people who have violated their covenant with me. I will make them like the calf they cut in two and passed between its pieces. I will do so because they did not keep the terms of the covenant they made in my presence.

Whenever we read the Old Testament, we need to keep in mind that God had a message to his people then, in the context of their place in salvation history. We also need to keep in mind that everything that happened to God’s people then has a special relevance to God’s people now. Some themes recur throughout the Old Testament and apply to us now. One of those themes is the kingdom of God.

Initially, the kingdom was defined by a divine theocratic government, and the arrangement Yahveh made with Israel through the law given to Moses at Mount Sinai, meant to be visible in the Promised Land. However, the Hebrews rebelled against this kingdom. Their rebellion led them to desire a monarchy like other nations, rather than God’s direct rule. They asked for a king to lead them, as neighboring countries did. The elders of Israel approached Samuel, requesting a king because his sons did not follow his ways. Saul was eventually appointed as king in God’s anger, but he was later rejected in wrath.

God raised David, whose reign pleased Yahveh and led to success in defeating Israel’s enemies, symbolizing the ultimate victory over all enemies of Christ. Due to David’s faithfulness, Yahveh promised him an everlasting throne after he expressed a wish to build a house for Yahveh. Prophet Nathan delivered Yahveh’s message: Yahveh chose David from humble beginnings, was with him, and helped him defeat his enemies, making his name great. Yahveh also vowed to establish a lasting dwelling for Israel where they would live securely, free from enemies or wickedness.

This divine promise to David guarantees Israel’s permanent presence in Canaan and a future peaceful reign, unlike their current suffering and persecution. It also speaks of making David a house, meaning a dynasty of kings, not just the temple, with an everlasting throne.[1] The ‘house’ symbolizes a kingdom, as mentioned to Hezekiah.[2]

Another theme that began in the Old Testament and was reflected in the New is that of the temple. All temple details—materials, sizes, patterns—were given to David by the Spirit, as Moses received the tabernacle’s pattern. The design was written by Yahveh, granting wisdom for its creation. During construction, stones were prepared beforehand, and no iron tools were heard, symbolizing the spiritual house of “living stones.[3] The temple of Solomon thus represented a spiritual temple, with the sanctuary as Yahveh’s dwelling.

These scriptural facts demonstrate that the foundation of David’s throne was not physical, but symbolic of discipline and unmet expectations. Concerning Solomon, God stated, “I will be his father, and he shall be my son,” promising mercy and an eternal throne, as Nathan told David (2 Samuel 7:14-17). This shows the kingdom’s growth started with David, not Saul, because David followed God’s directives to defeat Israel’s enemies, unlike Saul.

The kings of Israel were governed by the conditional law covenant from Mount Sinai, leading to fluctuations in their history. All blessings depended on obedience, while disobedience brought curses, making Israel’s royal stability hinge on this covenant. If they had obeyed, they would have stayed in Canaan, and Jerusalem would have remained glorious like in Solomon’s reign, with the kingly line intact. David recognized this, as shown in his prayer in 2 Samuel 7:18-19, where he acknowledged God’s promises and the vital role of obeying His law.

The king ruling Judah in the time reflected in Jeremiah 34 is Zedekiah. The chapter begins with Jeremiah approaching King Zedekiah and promising him that he will not die in battle or be executed. Jeremiah promises this while the city of Jerusalem is surrounded by Babylonian armies and under siege.

God had made known his will through his covenant.

Zedekiah knew this. As king, he knew the covenant God had made with the Hebrews who had escaped Egypt under Moses. Zedekiah knew that the kingdom he had inherited and ruled had broken that covenant drastically and comprehensively. They were not living according to the rules that God had given them. The king knew that God would be fair to them if he allowed the Babylonians to conquer them and destroy them all. He had probably lost a few nights’ sleep wondering when the walls would come down, and the soldiers would go in and kill him and all his family.

But the prophet Jeremiah comes and tells him, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that he was not going to die in battle or be executed. I imagine King Zedekiah responded to that prophecy by thinking he could turn the event to his advantage, making it seem as if he were a true spiritual leader. He was not, but he might have thought that he could fake it. What Zedekiah decided to do was lead his nation in what he called repentance.

The people repented of breaking that covenant.

Well, at least it would look like repentance. It is possible to do the right thing for the wrong reason, and that is what Zedekiah cooked up for the city of Jerusalem to do. Remember, they are under siege. Enemy armies are surrounding the city, making it impossible for anyone or anything to come into the city or out of it. When a city was under siege, it faced the real danger of dying of starvation or disease, or of being weakened to the point where the invading armies could break through the defenses and annihilate it.

But Zedekiah thinks that won’t happen. Because of Jeremiah’s promise that he would not die in battle or be executed, he believes God is going to intervene. Now, Zedekiah begins to think deviously. He imagines that if he puts on his spiritual leader hat and gets the city to do something obedient to the covenant, then when God delivers them from the siege, the people will think it was because of Zedekiah. So he goes into his archives and searches for the stipulations of the covenant. He is looking for something the citizens are supposed to be doing under the Mosaic Law, but are not. There were many things, but he is not concerned with changing everything. All he wants is one thing that he can get the people to do. That’s when he finds this verse in Deuteronomy:

“If your fellow Hebrew — whether male or female — is sold to you and serves you for six years, then in the seventh year you must let that servant go free.”[4]

Now, remember, the inhabitants of Jerusalem are under siege. The wealthy landowners had accumulated lots of slaves over the generations because they had not been keeping this command to free their slaves every seventh year. But now they are stuck in the city. They have a bunch of slaves who cannot go out into the countryside and work their farms because of the blockade. That means that the slaves are now a liability, not an asset. Extra slaves mean extra mouths to feed. So, the “repentance” that Zedekiah leads the city to do is something they are ready and willing to do.

Zedekiah initiated a formal covenant with the people. He made them promise to set their slaves free. The slaughter of a calf sealed the promise. They split the animal in half, and all the landowners had to walk between the two halves. It symbolized a curse upon themselves if they broke the covenant. If they didn’t free their slaves, they were asking to be cut into like the calf.

But then they withdrew their repentance.

The passage does not tell us why the people changed their minds. History explains why they repented and then reversed their repentance. All the slaves that had been held onto and not granted their freedom suddenly found themselves without a home and without a means of support. But at least they now had their freedom. So, why did the slave owners take their slaves back?

The armies that had surrounded Jerusalem and had laid siege to it were eventually recalled. They heard that Egypt was going to come and fight them, so they headed South to battle against the Pharaoh. All of a sudden, Jerusalem was no longer under threat. Then the landowners remembered why they had held on to their slaves instead of obeying God’s Law. The Bible does not tell us how, but they somehow managed to round up all those former slave families and reinslave them.

God withdrew their protection under the covenant.

Now all the important people were happy. The king was delighted because he came off as being spiritual when he was not. The landowners were glad because they had retrieved their workforce. But God was not happy, and neither was the prophet Jeremiah. God said through Jeremiah, “You turned around and showed you did not honor me. Each of you took back your slaves, whom you had freed as they wished, forcing them to become slaves again. The LORD says: “You have not truly obeyed me or given freedom to your neighbor and fellow citizen. As a result, I will give you freedom—freedom to die in war, from starvation, or disease. I, the LORD, declare it! I will make all the kingdoms of the earth horrified by what happens to you. I will punish those who broke their covenant with me, making them like the calf cut in two and passed between its pieces. I will do this because they did not uphold the covenant they made in my presence.

Because the people withdrew their token repentance, God withdrew his hand of protection from them and their land. The Babylonian armies came back, and this time they completed the siege. Jerusalem was destroyed, and multitudes died. But King Zedekiah did not die in the siege, and he was not executed. God was true to his promise. They did capture him, and they killed his sons in front of him, making him watch. Then they gouged his eyes out so that the last thing he saw was the slaughter of his own sons. He was taken prisoner as a blind, useless king with no throne and no people.

Jesus also covenanted with us.

This terrible story in the Old Testament is a reminder to all of us that a covenant with God is not something to be taken lightly. It is serious business. We are not under the Mosaic covenant, but we are under a covenant. Jesus is our King, and he has made a covenant with everyone who puts their faith in him. His blood is the blood of the new covenant.[5]

The New Covenant is not based on the letter but on the Spirit.[6] We agree to let God’s Holy Spirit rule our lives and change our behaviour so that we live Christlike lives. When we repented of our sins, we decided to live according to this promise.

Have we reversed our repentance?

Seeing how horribly God’s wrath was visited on the Israelites who withdrew their promise, we should be careful make good our promise. Jesus did not set us free from our sins for us to turn around and reenslave ourselves. When our Savior returns, it will be to set up a new eternal universe. Nothing impure will be allowed into that new universe. Paul wrote that “no person who is immoral, impure, or greedy (such a person is an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God”.[7] When we came to Christ, we made a promise to live in his kingdom today. Let us all learn to be faithful to that promise.

[1] 2 Samuel 7:8-14

[2] 2 Kings 20:1

[3]1 Peter 2:5; Ephesians 2:21

[4] Deuteronomy 15:12.

[5] Matthew 26:28; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20; 1 Corinthians 11:25

[6] 2 Corinthians 3:6.

[7] Ephesians 5:5.

Judges 8

Judges 8

Judges 8:1 The men of Ephraim asked him, “Why have you done this to us, not calling us when you went to fight against the Midianites?” And they argued violently with him.

Judges 8:2 So he said to them, “What have I done now compared to you? Is not the gleaning of Ephraim better than the grape harvest of Abiezer?

Judges 8:3 God handed over to you Oreb and Zeeb, the two princes of Midian. What was I able to do compared to you?” When he said this, their breath against him relaxed.

Judges 8:4 Gideon and the three hundred men came to the Jordan and crossed it. They were exhausted but still chasing them.

Judges 8:5 He said to the men of Succoth, “Please give some loaves of bread to the troops under my command. They are exhausted because I am chasing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.”

Judges 8:6 But the princes of Succoth asked, “Are Zebah and Zalmunna now in your grasp that we should give bread to your army?”

Judges 8:7 Gideon replied, “Very well, when Yahveh has handed Zebah and Zalmunna over to me, I will tear your flesh with thorns and briers from the wilderness!”

Judges 8:8 He went from there to Penuel and asked the same thing from them. The men of Penuel answered just as the men of Succoth had answered.

Judges 8:9 He also told the men of Penuel, “When I return safely, I will tear down this tower!”

Judges 8:10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and with them was their army of about fifteen thousand men, who were all those left of the entire army of the Qedemites. Those who had been killed were one hundred twenty thousand armed men.

Judges 8:11 Gideon traveled on the caravan route east of Nobah and Jogbehah and attacked their army while the army felt confident.

Judges 8:12 Zebah and Zalmunna fled, and he chased them. He captured these two kings of Midian and routed the entire army.

Judges 8:13 Gideon, son of Joash, returned from the battle by the Ascent of Heres.

Judges 8:14 He captured a youth from the men of Succoth and interrogated him. The youth wrote down for him the names of the seventy-seven leaders and elders of Succoth.

Judges 8:15 Then he went to the men of Succoth and said, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna. You taunted me about them, saying, ‘Are Zebah and Zalmunna now in your power that we should give bread to your exhausted men? ‘”

Judges 8:16 So he took the elders of the city, and he took some thorns and briers from the wilderness, and he disciplined the men of Succoth with them.

Judges 8:17 He also tore down the tower of Penuel and killed the men of the city.

Judges 8:18 He asked Zebah and Zalmunna, “What kind of men did you kill at Tabor?” “They were like you,” they said. “Each resembled the son of a king.”

Judges 8:19 So he said, “They were my brothers, the sons of my mother! As Yahveh lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you.”

Judges 8:20 Then he said to Jether, his firstborn, “Get up and kill them.” The youth did not draw his sword because he was afraid, for he was still a youth.

Judges 8:21 Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Get up and strike us down yourself because a man is judged by his strength.” So Gideon got up, killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and took the crescent ornaments that were on the necks of their camels.

Judges 8:22 Then the Israelites said to Gideon, “Govern over us, you as well as your sons and your grandsons, for you rescued us from the power of Midian.”

Judges 8:23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not govern over you, and my son will not govern over you; Yahveh will govern over you.”

Judges 8:24 Then he said to them, “Let me request of you: Everyone give me an earring from his plunder.” Now, the enemy had gold earrings because they were Ishmaelites.

Judges 8:25 They said, “We agree to give them.” So they spread out a cloak, and everyone threw an earring from his plunder on it.

Judges 8:26 The weight of the gold earrings he requested was 1700 units of gold, in addition to the crescent ornaments and ear pendants, the purple garments on the kings of Midian, and the chains on the necks of their camels.

Judges 8:27 Gideon made an ephod from all this and put it in Ophrah, his hometown. Then, all of Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his household.

Judges 8:28 So Midian was subdued before the Israelites, and they were no longer a threat. The land had peace for forty years during Gideon’s reign.

Judges 8:29 Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon), son of Joash, went back to live at his house.

Judges 8:30 Gideon had seventy sons, his offspring, since he had many wives.

Judges 8:31 His concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, and he named him Abimelech.

Judges 8:32 Then Gideon, son of Joash, died at a good old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Judges 8:33 When Gideon died, the Israelites turned and prostituted themselves by worshiping the Baals and made Baal-berith their god.

Judges 8:34 The Israelites did not remember Yahveh their God who had rescued them from the hand of the enemies around them.

Judges 8:35 They did not show covenant loyalty to the house of Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) for all the good he had done for Israel.

Judges 8 quotes:

“he opening of ch. 8 portrays the sort of tensions that arise concerning the distribution of war spoils within decentralized political and military structures. Such disputes are frequent motifs in the bardic-style literary traditions about war. One might draw comparisons, for example, with tales of Achilles and Menelaus. Participants in battle fight with hopes of obtaining a piece of the victory spoils, and the Ephraimites complain that they were not called up sufficiently early in order to partake fully in the conquered goods and the glory. Gideon, able leader that he is, diffuses their anger by use of a proverbial saying.”

Niditch Susan. Judges: A Commentary. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 103.

Judges 8 links:

organized rebellion
the leader whose slip was showing
where did all the spirits go?

The JUDGES shelf in Jeff’s library

Judges 7

Judges 7

Judges 7:1 Jerubbaal (AKA, Gideon) and all the troops who were with him got up early and camped beside the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them, below the hill of Moreh, in the valley.

Judges 7:2 Yahveh said to Gideon, “You have too many troops for me to hand the Midianites over to them, or else Israel might elevate themselves over me and say, ‘My strength rescued me.’

Judges 7:3 Now announce to the troops: ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling is allowed to turn back and leave Mount Gilead.'” So twenty-two thousand of the soldiers turned back, but ten thousand stayed.

Judges 7:4 Then Yahveh said to Gideon, “There are still too many troops. Take them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. If I say to you, ‘This one can go with you,’ he can go. But if I say about anyone, ‘This one cannot go with you,’ he cannot go.”

Judges 7:5 So he brought the troops down to the water, and Yahveh said to Gideon, “Separate everyone who laps the water with his tongue like a dog. Do the same with everyone who kneels to drink.”

Judges 7:6 The number of those who lapped with their hands to their mouths was three hundred men, and all the rest of the troops knelt to drink water.

Judges 7:7 Yahveh said to Gideon, “I will rescue you with the three hundred men who lapped and hand the Midianites over to you. But everyone else is to go home.”

Judges 7:8 So Gideon sent all the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred troops, who took the provisions and their trumpets. The camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

Judges 7:9 That night, Yahveh said to him, “Get up and attack the camp because I have handed it over to you.

Judges 7:10 But if you are afraid to attack the camp, go down with Purah, your servant.

Judges 7:11 Listen to what they say, and then you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he went down with Purah, his servant, to the outpost of the troops who were in the camp.

Judges 7:12 Now the Midianites, Amalekites, and all the Qedemites had settled down in the valley like a swarm of locusts, and their camels were as innumerable as the sand on the seashore.

Judges 7:13 When Gideon arrived, he noticed a man telling his associate about a dream. He said, “Notice, I had a dream: a loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp, hit a tent, and it fell. The loaf turned the tent upside down so that it collapsed.”

Judges 7:14 His associate answered: “This is nothing less than the sword of Gideon, son of Joash, the Israelite. God has handed the entire Midianite camp over to him.”

Judges 7:15 When Gideon heard the account of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship. He returned to Israel’s camp and said, “Get up because Yahveh has handed the Midianite camp over to you.”

Judges 7:16 Then he divided the three hundred men into three companies and gave each one a trumpet in one hand and a hollow[1] pitcher with a torch inside it in the other hand.

Judges 7:17 “Watch me,” he said to them, “and do what I do. Notice when I come to the outpost of the camp, do as I do.

Judges 7:18 When I and everyone with me blow our trumpets, you are also to blow your trumpets all around the camp. Then you will say, ‘For Yahveh and Gideon! ‘”

Judges 7:19 Gideon and the hundred men who were with him went to the outpost of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch after the sentries had been stationed. They blew their trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands.

Judges 7:20 The three companies blew their trumpets and shattered their pitchers. They held their torches in their left hands, their trumpets in their right hands, and shouted, “A sword for Yahveh and Gideon!”

Judges 7:21 Each Israelite took his position around the camp, and the entire Midianite army began to run, and they cried out as they fled.

Judges 7:22 When Gideon’s men blew their three hundred trumpets, Yahveh caused the men in the whole army to turn on each associate with their swords. They fled to Acacia House in the direction of Zererah as far as the border of Abel-meholah near Tabbath.

Judges 7:23 Then the men of Israel were summoned from Naphtali, Asher, and Manasseh, and they chased the Midianites.

Judges 7:24 Gideon sent agents throughout the hill country of Ephraim with this message: “Come down to intercept the Midianites and take control of the watercourses ahead of them as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan.” So all the men of Ephraim were summoned, and they took control of the watercourses as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan.

Judges 7:25 They captured Oreb and Zeeb, the two princes of Midian. While chasing the Midianites, they killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon across the Jordan.

[1] רֵיק = hollow. Judges 7:16; 9:4; 11:3.

Judges 7 quotes:

“The outcome of the battle depends not upon Israelite expertise, but upon the prowess and goodwill of the divine warrior, protector of Israel. The fewer the number of human soldiers, the greater the victory of God. Like the exodus, the battle with the Midianites has to do with a manifestation of God’s glory. Thus Yhwh demands that Gideon reduce the size of his fighting force, the episode of the “lappers” being an idiosyncratic means to achieve that end. The battle and Gideon’s own career are framed by an encouraging divinatory experience, while the battle suggests a ritualized view of holy war. In this case, tribes called to participate are Naphtali, Asher, Manasseh, and Ephraim. The battle is narrated in traditional economical style. Lines break up easily into full clauses, which predominate.”

Niditch Susan. Judges : A Commentary. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 97.

Judges 7 links:

primary allegiance
Prince of What?
The LORD’s turn to test
too many troops

The JUDGES shelf in Jeff’s library

Judges 6

Judges 6

Judges 6:1 The Israelites did what was evil in the eyes of Yahveh. So Yahveh gave them to Midian’s hands seven years,

Judges 6:2 and they overpowered Israel. Because of Midian, the Israelites made hiding places for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds.

Judges 6:3 Whenever the Israelites planted crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and the Qedemites came and attacked them.

Judges 6:4 They encamped against them and devastated the produce of the land, even as far as Gaza. They left nothing for Israel to eat, not a sheep, ox, or donkey.

Judges 6:5 You see, the Midianites came up with their cattle and their tents like a great swarm of locusts. They and their camels were without number, and they entered the land to devastate it.

Judges 6:6 So Israel became poverty-stricken because of Midian, and the Israelites cried out to Yahveh.

Judges 6:7 When the Israelites cried out to Yahveh because of Midian,

Judges 6:8 Yahveh sent a prophet to them. He said to them, “This is what Yahveh God of Israel says: ‘I brought you out of Egypt and out of the place of slavery.

Judges 6:9 I rescued you from the hand of Egypt and the hand of all who oppressed you. I drove them out before you and gave you their land.

Judges 6:10 I said to you: I am Yahveh your God. Do not fear the gods of the Amorites whose land you live in. But you did not obey me.'”

Judges 6:11 The agent of Yahveh came, and he sat under the oak that was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash, the Abiezrite. His son Gideon was threshing wheat in the winepress in order to hide it from the Midianites.

Judges 6:12 Then Yahveh’s agent appeared to him and said, “Yahveh is with you, capable warrior.”

Judges 6:13 Gideon said to him, “Excuse me, my lord, if Yahveh is with us, why has all this happened? And where are all his miracles that our fathers told us about? They said, ‘Hasn’t Yahveh brought us out of Egypt? ‘ But now Yahveh has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian.”

Judges 6:14 Yahveh turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and rescue Israel from the grasp of Midian. I am sending you!”

Judges 6:15 He said to him, “Excuse me, Lord, how can I rescue Israel? Notice, my family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s family.”

Judges 6:16 “But I will be with you,” Yahveh said to him. “You will strike Midian down as if it were one man.”

Judges 6:17 Then he said to him, “If I have found favor with you, give me a sign that it is you who are speaking with me.

Judges 6:18 Please only leave this place once I return to you. Let me bring my gift and place it before you.” And he said, “I will stay until you return.”

Judges 6:19 So Gideon went and prepared a young goat and unleavened bread from a half bushel of flour. He placed the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot. He brought them out and offered them to him under the oak.

Judges 6:20 The agent of God said to him, “Take the meat with the unleavened bread, place it on this stone, and pour the broth on it.” So he did that.

Judges 6:21 The agent of Yahveh extended the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened bread. Fire came up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. Then the agent of Yahveh vanished from his eyes.

Judges 6:22 When Gideon realized that he was the agent of Yahveh, he said, “Oh no, Lord Yahveh! I have seen the agent of Yahveh face to face!”

Judges 6:23 But Yahveh said to him, “Peace to you. Don’t be afraid because you will not die.”

Judges 6:24 So Gideon built an altar to Yahveh there and called it Yahveh Is Peace. It is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites today.

Judges 6:25 On that very night Yahveh said to him, “Take your father’s young bull and a second bull seven years old. Then, tear down the altar of Baal that belongs to your father and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.

Judges 6:26 Build a well-constructed altar to Yahveh your God on the top of this mound. Take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood from the Asherah pole you cut down.”

Judges 6:27 So Gideon took ten of his male servants and did as Yahveh had told him. But because he was too afraid of his father’s family and the men of the city to do it in the daytime, he did it at night.

Judges 6:28 When the men of the city got up in the morning, they noticed Baal’s altar torn down, the Asherah pole beside it cut down, and the second bull offered up on the altar that had been built.

Judges 6:29 They said to each associate, “Who did this?” After they made a thorough investigation, they said, “Gideon, son of Joash, did it.”

Judges 6:30 Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son. He must die because he tore down Baal’s altar and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”

Judges 6:31 But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Would you argue Baal’s case for him? Would you rescue him? Whoever argues his case will be put to death by morning! If he is a god, let him plead his case because someone tore down his altar.”

Judges 6:32 That day, he was called Jerubbaal because Joash said, “Let Baal argue with him,” because he tore down his altar.

Judges 6:33 All the Midianites, Amalekites, and Qedemites gathered together, crossed over the Jordan, and camped in the Jezreel Valley.

Judges 6:34 The Breath of Yahveh enveloped Gideon, and he blew the ram’s horn, and the Abiezrites rallied behind him.

Judges 6:35 He sent agents throughout all of Manasseh, who rallied behind him. He also sent agents throughout Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, who also came to meet him.

Judges 6:36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you will rescue Israel by my hand, as you said,

Judges 6:37 Notice, I will put a wool fleece here on the threshing floor. If dew is only on the fleece, and all the land is dry, I will know that you will deliver Israel by my strength, as you said.”

Judges 6:38 And that is what happened. When he got up early in the morning, he squeezed the fleece and wrung dew out of it, filling a bowl with water.

Judges 6:39 Gideon then said to God, “Don’t let your nose burn angrily with me; let me speak one more time. Please allow me to make one more test with the fleece. Let it remain dry, and the dew be all over the land.”

Judges 6:40 That night, God did as Gideon requested: only the fleece was dry, and dew was all over the land.

Judges 6 quotes:

“Introduced with the recurring frame that describes Israel’s rise and fall in covenantal terms (vv. 1-7), the cycle of stories about Gideon, like tales of Ehud, Deborah, and the other judges, describes Israel’s oppression, in this case by Midianite enemies, Israel’s resistance, and the underdogs’ victory with the help of a protective God. Chapter 6 describes the initiation of the hero in a theophany that shares much with the encounter between Samson’s parents and a divine messenger. The initiation is followed by Gideon’s bold act of subversion. This act leads to his gaining a new heroic name and is followed by “the sign of the fleece,” the divinely sent sign—another traditional motif in the biography of biblical heroes.”

Niditch Susan. Judges : A Commentary. 1st ed. Westminster John Knox Press 2008. p. 89.

Judges 6 links:

Maranatha Daily Devotional – Wednesday, July 3, 2019
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Wednesday, July 5, 2023
putting out the fleece
where did all the spirits go?

The JUDGES shelf in Jeff’s library