Bible Men: Gideon Part 1 - Gideon is Called

1 Corinthians 1:26-27 "For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty." 

Judges 6

Gideon, the son of Joash, whose name means 'destroyer', appears in the book of Judges Chapter 6, in the time when 6:1 "the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD...." and when  "every man did that which was right in his own eyes"  (Judges 21:25) Because of this V1 the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian, who, with the Amalekites, destroyed so much that V6 "Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Mideanites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD"

When the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, V8 "the LORD sent a prophet unto the children of Israel which said "thus saith the LORD, I brought you out of Egypt...and I said to you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites....but ye have not heard my voice."

It was at this time that the angel of the LORD came and V11 "sat under an oak...and Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress to hide it from the Midianites", and said to him ""the LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour"  He was not at this time a mighty man of valour, and this greeting surprised Gideon.

Gideon was a questioner, and he asked why? (has this happened to us) and where? (are all the miracles)  But he never disbelieved the angel of the LORD, he just asked the circumstances. V13 Gideon says that "the LORD hath forsaken us"..." V15  And the LORD looked upon him and said "go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?" Gideon again is unsure of himself "oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel?....I am the least in my father's house."

But Gideon is reassured  by the LORD that V16 "Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man."  Gideon asks for a sign, V17 "if now I have found grace in thy sight, then show me a sign that thou talkest with me." and he asks that the angel will stay until he brings food to him, and the angel graciously told Gideon V18 "I will tarry until thou come again."  But when Gideon returned with a prepared goat and unleavened bread, the angel of God told him to "take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth.  And he did so.  Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes.  Then the angel of the LORD departed out of his sight."

This great display, which was surely more than Gideon ever imagined, so frightened him that he understood that the angel was the angel of the LORD and he said V22 "Alas, O LORD God! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face. V23 "And so the LORD said to him "Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die." What loving kindness and grace towards Gideon.  And Gideon responded as a true worshipper should, he built an altar, and called it Jehovah-shalom: (The LORD send peace).

Now the LORD will test Gideon's obedience to his calling.V25-26  he is told to take down his father's altar to the false god Baal, and to build an altar to the LORD thy God and offer a burnt sacrifice.  And Gideon is obedient, but because he fears his father's household, he takes ten men and does it at night. (6:27-28).  In the morning the men of the city arose V29 "and they said...who hath done this thing? And when the men inquired..they were told that "Gideon, the son of Joash hath done this thing."  V30 the men of the city went to Joash and said that Gideon should die because he had cast down the alter of Baal, but Joash defended him and said "will ye plead for Baal? will ye save him? ....if he be  god, let him plead for himself..."

So now, Gideon's obedience to the LORD's call proved, V34 "the spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet;...and he sent messengers..and they came up..."  But Gideon is still unsure of himself and asks for more signs, V36 "...if thou will save Israel by mine  hand, as thou hast said, ...I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said."  The next day Gideon V38 "thrust the fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl of water."  Yet he is still unsure, so he asks God not to be angry with him, but to prove to him one more time, V39 "And Gideon said unto God, let not thine anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew."  And God graciously did as Gideon requested..

In the next study, we will see how the LORD has Gideon choose his men, and how Gideon finally becomes that mighty man of valour.

vcg/August 2015