Text -- Judges 8:16-35 (NET)

8:16 He seized the leaders of the city, along with some desert thorns and briers; he then “threshed” the men of Succoth with them. 8:17 He also tore down the tower of Penuel and executed the city’s men. 8:18 He said to Zebah and Zalmunna, “Describe for me the men you killed at Tabor.” They said, “They were like you. Each one looked like a king’s son.” 8:19 He said, “They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. I swear, as surely as the Lord is alive, if you had let them live, I would not kill you.” 8:20 He ordered Jether his firstborn son, “Come on! Kill them!” But Jether was too afraid to draw his sword, because he was still young. 8:21 Zebah and Zalmunna said to Gideon, “Come on, you strike us, for a man is judged by his strength.” So Gideon killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and he took the crescent-shaped ornaments which were on the necks of their camels.

Gideon Rejects a Crown but Makes an Ephod

8:22 The men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us– you, your son, and your grandson. For you have delivered us from Midian’s power.” 8:23 Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you.” 8:24 Gideon continued, “I would like to make one request. Each of you give me an earring from the plunder you have taken.” (The Midianites had gold earrings because they were Ishmaelites.) 8:25 They said, “We are happy to give you earrings.” So they spread out a garment, and each one threw an earring from his plunder onto it. 8:26 The total weight of the gold earrings he requested came to seventeen hundred gold shekels. This was in addition to the crescent-shaped ornaments, jewelry, purple clothing worn by the Midianite kings, and the necklaces on the camels. 8:27 Gideon used all this to make an ephod, which he put in his hometown of Ophrah. All the Israelites prostituted themselves to it by worshiping it there. It became a snare to Gideon and his family.

Gideon’s Story Ends

8:28 The Israelites humiliated Midian; the Midianites’ fighting spirit was broken. The land had rest for forty years during Gideon’s time. 8:29 Then Jerub-Baal son of Joash went home and settled down. 8:30 Gideon fathered seventy sons through his many wives. 8:31 His concubine, who lived in Shechem, also gave him a son, whom he named Abimelech. 8:32 Gideon son of Joash died at a very old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash located in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Israel Returns to Baal-Worship

8:33 After Gideon died, the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They made Baal-Berith their god. 8:34 The Israelites did not remain true to the Lord their God, who had delivered them from all the enemies who lived around them. 8:35 They did not treat the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) fairly in return for all the good he had done for Israel.

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Wesley: Jdg 8:17

Not all of them; probably those only who had affronted him.

Wesley: Jdg 8:18

For outward shape and quality.

Wesley: Jdg 8:18

Whither he understood they fled for shelter, upon the approach of the Midianites; and where he learned that some were slain, which he suspected might be them.

Wesley: Jdg 8:18

Not for their garb, or outward splendor, but for the majesty of their looks: by which commendation they thought to ingratiate themselves with their conqueror.

Wesley: Jdg 8:19

For being not Canaanites, he was not obliged to kill them; but they having killed his brethren, and that in cool blood, he was by law the avenger of their blood.

Wesley: Jdg 8:20

That he might animate him to the use of arms for his God and country, and that he might have a share in the honour of the victory.

Wesley: Jdg 8:21

Thou excellest him, as in age and stature, so in strength; and it is more honourable to die by the hands of a valiant man.

Wesley: Jdg 8:22

Not as a judge, for that he was already made by God; but as a king.

Wesley: Jdg 8:22

Let the kingdom be hereditary to thee, and to thy family.

Wesley: Jdg 8:22

This miraculous and glorious deliverance by thy hands deserves no less from us.

Wesley: Jdg 8:23

As a king.

Wesley: Jdg 8:23

In a special manner, as he hath hitherto done, by judges, whom God particularly appointed and directed, even by Urim and Thummim, and assisted upon all occasions; whereas Kings had only a general dependance upon God.

Wesley: Jdg 8:24

A mixture of people all called by one general name, Ishmaelites or Arabians, who used to wear ear - rings; but the greatest, and the ruling part of them were Midianites.

Wesley: Jdg 8:27

Not of all of it; for then it would have been too heavy for use; but of part of it, the rest being probably employed about other things appertaining to it; which elsewhere are comprehended under the name of the ephod, as Jdg 17:5.

Wesley: Jdg 8:27

Not as a monument of the victory, for such monuments were neither proper nor usual; but for religious use, for which alone the ephod was appointed. The case seems to be this; Gideon having by God's command erected an altar in his own city, Ophrah, Jdg 6:24, for an extraordinary time and occasion, thought it might be continued for ordinary use; and therefore as he intended to procure priests, so he designed to make priestly garments, and especially an ephod, which was the chief and most costly; which besides its use in sacred ministrations, was also the instrument by which the mind of God was enquired and discovered, 1Sa 26:6, 1Sa 26:9, and it might seen necessary for the judge to have this at hand, that he might consult with God upon all occasions.

Wesley: Jdg 8:27

Committed idolatry with it; or went thither to enquire the will of God; whereby they were drawn from the true ephod, instituted by God for this end, which was to be worn by the high-priest only.

Wesley: Jdg 8:27

An occasion of sin and ruin to him and his, as the next chapter sheweth. Though Gideon was a good man, and did this with an honest mind, and a desire to set up religion in his own city and family; yet here seem to be many sins in it; Superstition and will - worship, worshipping God by a device of his own, which was expressly forbidden. Presumption, in wearing or causing other priests to wear this kind of ephod, which was peculiar to the high-priest. Transgression of a plain command, of worshipping God ordinarily but at one place, and one altar, Deu 12:5, Deu 12:11, Deu 12:14. Making a division among the people.

Wesley: Jdg 8:27

block, or an occasion of idolatry before that people, whom he knew to be too prone to it.

Wesley: Jdg 8:28

That is, recovered not their former strength or courage, so as to conquer or oppress others.

Wesley: Jdg 8:28

To the fortieth year, from the beginning of the Midianitish oppression.

Wesley: Jdg 8:28

As long as Gideon lived.

Wesley: Jdg 8:29

Not in his father's house; as he did before; nor yet in a court like a king, as the people desired; but in a middle state, as a judge for the preservation and maintenance of their religion and liberties.

Wesley: Jdg 8:31

She dwelt there, and he often came thither, either to execute judgment, or upon other occasions.

Wesley: Jdg 8:31

That is, my father the king; so he called him, probably, to gratify his concubine, who desired it either out of pride, or design.

Wesley: Jdg 8:32

His long life being crowned with the continuance of honour, tranquility, and happiness.

Wesley: Jdg 8:33

_Whereby we see the temper of this people, who did no longer cleave to God, than they were in a manner constrained to it, by the presence and authority of their judges.

Wesley: Jdg 8:33

This was the general name including all their idols, one of which here follows.

Wesley: Jdg 8:33

berith - That is, the Lord of the covenant; so called, either from the covenant wherewith the worshippers of this god bound themselves to maintain his worship, or to defend one another therein; or rather, because he was reputed the god and judge of all covenants, and promises, and contracts, to whom it belonged to maintain them, and to punish the violaters of them; and such a god both the Grecians and the Romans had.

JFB: Jdg 8:16

By refusing his soldiers refreshment, they had committed a public crime, as well as an act of inhumanity, and were subjected to a horrible punishment, which the great abundance and remarkable size of the thorn bushes, together with the thinness of clothing in the East, has probably suggested.

JFB: Jdg 8:18

This was one of the countless atrocities which the Midianite chiefs had perpetrated during their seven years' lawless occupancy. It is noticed now for the first time when their fate was about to be determined.

JFB: Jdg 8:18

An Orientalism for great beauty, majesty of appearance, uncommon strength, and grandeur of form.

JFB: Jdg 8:19

That is, uterine brothers; but, in all countries where polygamy prevails, "the son of my mother" implies a closeness of relationship and a warmth of affection never awakened by the looser term, "brother."

JFB: Jdg 8:20

The nearest of kin was the blood-avenger; but a magistrate might order any one to do the work of the executioner; and the person selected was always of a rank equal or proportioned to that of the party doomed to suffer (1Ki 2:29). Gideon intended, then, by the order to Jether, to put an honor on his son, by employing him to slay two enemies of his country; and on the youth declining, he performed the bloody deed himself.

JFB: Jdg 8:22-23

Their unbounded admiration and gratitude prompted them, in the enthusiasm of the moment, to raise their deliverer to a throne, and to establish a royal dynasty in his house. But Gideon knew too well, and revered too piously the principles of the theocracy, to entertain the proposal for a moment. Personal and family ambition was cheerfully sacrificed to a sense of duty, and every worldly motive was kept in check by a supreme regard to the divine honor. He would willingly act as judge, but the Lord alone was King of Israel.

JFB: Jdg 8:24-26

This was the contribution of an earring (singular). As the ancient Arabians (Ishmaelites and Midianites being synonymous terms, Gen 37:25, Gen 37:28) were gorgeously adorned with barbaric pearl and gold, an immense amount of such valuable booty had fallen into the hands of the Israelitish soldiers. The contribution was liberally made, and the quantity of gold given to him is estimated at £3113 sterling.

JFB: Jdg 8:26

Crescent-like plates of gold suspended from the necks, or placed on the breasts of the camels.

JFB: Jdg 8:26

Rather, "earrings," or drops of gold or pearl.

JFB: Jdg 8:26

A royal color. The ancient, as well as modern Arabs, adorned the necks, breasts, and legs, of their riding animals with sumptuous housing.

JFB: Jdg 8:27

That no idolatrous use was in view, nor any divisive course from Shiloh contemplated, is manifest from Jdg 8:33. Gideon proposed, with the gold he received, to make an ephod for his use only as a civil magistrate or ruler, as David did (1Ch 15:27), and a magnificent pectoral or breastplate also. It would seem, from the history, that he was not blamable in making this ephod, as a civil robe or ornament merely, but that it afterward became an object to which religious ideas were attached; whereby it proved a snare, and consequently an evil, by perversion, to Gideon and his house [TAYLOR, Fragments].

JFB: Jdg 8:28

This invasion of the Arab hordes into Canaan was as alarming and desolating as the irruption of the Huns into Europe. It was the severest scourge ever inflicted upon Israel; and both it and the deliverance under Gideon lived for centuries in the minds of the people (Psa 83:11).

Clarke: Jdg 8:16

He taught the men of Succoth - Instead of וידע he taught, Houbigant reads וידש he tore; and this is not only agreeable to what Gideon had threatened, Jdg 8:7, but is supported by the Vulgate, Septuagint, Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic. The Hebrew text might have been easily corrupted in this place by the change of ש shin into ע ain , letters very similar to each other.

Clarke: Jdg 8:18

What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? - We have no antecedent to this question; and are obliged to conjecture one: it seems as if Zebah and Zalmunna had massacred the family of Gideon, while he was absent on this expedition. Gideon had heard some confused account of it, and now questions them concerning the fact. They boldly acknowledge it, and describe the persons whom they slew, by which he found they were his own brethren. This determines him to avenge their death by slaying the Midianitish kings, whom he otherwise was inclined to save. He might have heard that his brethren had been taken prisoners, and might have hoped to have exchanged them for the kings now in his hand; but when he found they had been all slain, he decrees the death of their murderers. There is something in this account similar to that in the 12th Aeneis of Virgil: - When Turnus was overthrown, and supplicated for his life, and Aeneas was inclined to spare him; he saw the belt of his friend Pallas, whom Turnus had slain, and which he now wore as a trophy: this immediately determined the Trojan to sacrifice the life of Turnus to the manes of his friend. The story is well told: -

Stetit acer in armi

Aeneas, volvens oculos, dextramque repressit

Et jam jamque magis cunctantem flectere serm

Coeperat: infelix humero cum apparuit ingen

Balteus, et notis fulserunt cingula bulli

Pallantis pueri; victum quem vulnere Turnu

Straverat, atque humeris inimicum insigne gerebat

Ille oculis postquam saevi monumenta dolori

Exuviasque hausit: furiis accensus et ir

Terribilis: Tune hinc spoliis indute meoru

Eripiare mihi? - Pallas, te hoc vulnere Palla

Immolat; et poenam scelerato ex sanguine sumit

Hoc dicens furrum adverso sub pectore condit Fervidus.

Virg. Aen. lib. xii., ver. 938

"In deep suspense the Trojan seem’ d to stand

And, just prepared to strike, repress’ d his hand

He roll’ d his eyes, and every moment fel

His manly soul with more compassion melt

When, casting down a casual glance, he spie

The golden belt that glitter’ d on his side

The fatal spoils which haughty Turnus tor

From dying Pallas, and in triumph wore

Then roused anew to wrath, he loudly cries

(Flames, while he spoke, came flashing from his eyes)

Traitor! dost thou! dost thou to grace pretend

Clad, as thou art, in trophies of my friend? -

To his sad soul a grateful offering go

‘ Tis Pallas, Pallas gives this deadly blow

He rais’ d his arm aloft; and at the word

Deep in his bosom drove the shining sword.

Dryden

The same principle impels Gideon to slay Zebah and Zalmunna which induced Aeneas to kill Turnus: and perhaps the ornaments which he took from their camels’ necks, Jdg 8:21, were some of the spoils of his slaughtered brethren.

Clarke: Jdg 8:20

He said unto Jether his first-born - By the ancient laws of war, prisoners taken in war might be either slain, sold, or kept for slaves. To put a captive enemy to death no executioner was required. Gideon slays Zebah and Zalmunna with his own hand. So Samuel is said to have hewn Agag in pieces, 1Sa 15:33. Benaiah slew Joab, 1Ki 2:25. Saul orders his guards to slay the priests who had contributed to the escape of David, 1Sa 22:17; and David caused one of his attendants to slay the Amalekite who pretended to have slain Saul, 2Sa 1:15.

Clarke: Jdg 8:21

Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, Rise, thou, and fall upon us - It was disgraceful to fall by the hands of a child; and the death occasioned by the blows of such a person must be much more lingering and tormenting. Some have even employed children to despatch captives. Civilis, a Roman knight, headed a revolt of the Gauls against Rome, in the year of the city 824. Of him Tacitus says, Hist. lib. iv., c. 61: Ferebatur parvulo filio quosdam captivorum sagittis jaculisque puerilibus figendos obtulisse : "He is said to have given to his little son some prisoners, as butts to be shot at with little darts and arrows."This was for their greater torment and dishonor; and to inure his child to blood! Could any thing like this have been the design of Gideon

Clarke: Jdg 8:21

The ornaments that were on their camels’ necks. - The heads, necks, bodies, and legs of camels, horses, and elephants, are highly ornamented in the eastern countries, and indeed this was common, from the remotest antiquity, in all countries. Virgil refers to it as a thing long before his time, and thus describes the horses given by King Latinus to the ambassadors of Aeneas. - Aen. lib. vii., ver. 274

Haec effatus equos numero pater eligit omni

Stabant tercentum nitidi in praesepibus altis

Omnibus extemplo Teucris jubet ordine duc

Instratos ostro alipedes pictisque tapetis. Aure

pectoribus demissa monilia pendent: Tecti aur

fulvum mandunt sub dentibus aurum

"He said, and order’ d steeds to mount the band: I

lofty stalls three hundred coursers stand; Thei

shining sides with crimson cover’ d o’ er; Th

sprightly steeds embroider’ d trappings wore, Wit

golden chains, refulgent to behold: Gold were thei

bridles, and they champ’ d on gold.

Pitt

Instead of ornaments, the Septuagint translate τους μηνισκους, the crescents or half-moons; and this is followed by the Syriac and Arabic. The worship of the moon was very ancient; and, with that of the sun, constituted the earliest idolatry of mankind. We learn from Jdg 8:24 that the Ishmaelites, or Arabs, as they are termed by the Targum, Syriac, and Arabic, had golden ear-rings, and probably a crescent in each; for it is well known that the Ishmaelites, and the Arabs who descended from them, were addicted very early to the worship of the moon; and so attached were they to this superstition, that although Mohammed destroyed the idolatrous use of the crescent, yet it was universally borne in their ensigns, and on the tops of their mosques, as well as in various ornaments.

Clarke: Jdg 8:22

Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son’ s son - That is, Become our king, and let the crown be hereditary in thy family. What a weak, foolish, and inconstant people were these! As yet their government was a theocracy; and now, dazzled with the success of a man who was only an instrument in the hands of God to deliver them from their enemies, they wish to throw off the Divine yoke, and shackle themselves with an unlimited hereditary monarchy! An unlimited monarchy is a curse; a limited monarchy may be a blessing: the latter may be an appointment of God; the former never can. Those who cast off their allegiance to their Maker, are guilty of folly and extravagance of every kind.

Clarke: Jdg 8:23

The Lord shall rule over you - Few with such power at their command would have acted as Gideon. His speech calls them back to their first principles, and should have excited in them both shame and contrition. How different is this speech from that of Oliver Cromwell when the commons offered him the crown of England!

Clarke: Jdg 8:24

Give me every man the ear-rings of his prey - The spoils taken from their enemies in this warfare. This is a transaction very like to that of the Israelites and Aaron; when they brought him their golden ear-rings, out of which he made the molten calf, Exo 32:2, etc. Whether Gideon designed this ephod for an instrument of worship, or merely as a trophy, is not very clear. It is most likely that he had intended to establish a place of worship at Ophrah; and he took this occasion to provide the proper sacerdotal vestments.

Clarke: Jdg 8:26

The weight of the golden ear-rings - was a thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold - Taking the shekel at half an ounce weight, the sum of the gold collected in ear-rings was seventy pounds ten ounces; and worth, as gold now rates, about £3,100 sterling. This computation of the weight of the golden ear-rings, taken from the slaughtered Ishmaelites, will bring to the reader’ s mind the slaughter of the Roman knights by the Carthaginians at the battle of Cannae, from whose spoils Hannibal sent three bushels of gold rings to the city of Carthage!

Clarke: Jdg 8:27

Gideon made an ephod thereof - That is, he made an ephod out of this mass of gold; but he could not employ it all in making this one garment, for it is not likely that any man could wear a coat of nearly one hundred pounds weight. It is likely that he made a whole tabernacle service in miniature out of this gold

Clarke: Jdg 8:27

All Israel went thither a whoring after it - This form of speech often occurs, and has been often explained. The whole Jewish nation is represented as being united to God as a wife is to her husband. Any act of idolatry is considered as a breach of their covenant with God, as an act of whoredom is the breach of the marriage agreement between man and wife. God calls himself the husband of the Jewish nation, and their idolatries acts of whoredom, adultery, and fornication. All Israel paid idolatrous worship to the ephod or sacerdotal establishment made by Gideon at Ophrah, and this is called going a whoring after it; see on Jdg 8:33 (note). For a description of the ephod, see Exo 25:7 (note); and for the other garments of the priests, see Exo 28:4 (note), etc.

Clarke: Jdg 8:28

Forty years in the days of Gideon - The Midianites were so completely humbled that they could make head no more against Israel during the forty years in which the government of Gideon lasted.

Clarke: Jdg 8:31

His concubine - A lawful but secondary wife, whose children could not inherit

Clarke: Jdg 8:31

Whose name he called Abimelech - That is, my father is king, or my father hath reigned. This name was doubtless given by the mother, and so it should be understood here; she wished to raise her son to the supreme government, and therefore gave him a name which might serve to stimulate him to seek that which she hoped he should enjoy in his father’ s right. See the following chapter, Judges 9 (note).

Clarke: Jdg 8:32

Gideon - died in a good old age - Supposed to have been A.M. 2799; b.c. 1205.

Clarke: Jdg 8:33

A whoring after Baalim - This term has probably a different meaning here from what it has Jdg 8:7; for it is very likely that in most parts of the pagan worship there were many impure rites, so that going a whoring after Baalim may be taken in a literal sense

Clarke: Jdg 8:33

Baal-berith - Literally, the lord of the covenant; the same as Jupiter faederis , or Mercury, among the Romans; the deity whose business it was to preside over compacts, leagues, treaties, covenants, etc. Some of the versions understand it as if the Israelites had made a covenant or agreement to have Baal for their god; so the Vulgate: Percusseruntque cum Baal faedus, ut esset eis in deum .

Clarke: Jdg 8:34

Remembered not the Lord their God - They attributed their deliverance to some other cause, and did not give him the glory of their salvation.

Clarke: Jdg 8:35

Neither showed they kindness to the house of - Gideon - They were both unthankful and unholy. Though they had the clearest proofs of God’ s power and goodness before their eyes, yet they forgot him. And although they were under the greatest obligations to Gideon, and were once so sensible of them that they offered to settle the kingdom on him and his family, yet they forgot him also; for, becoming foes to God, they could not be friends to Man. Jerubbaal, namely, Gideon. - This is improper; it should be Jerubbaal Gideon, as we say Simon Peter, or call any man by his Christian name and surname

The ancients, particularly St. Ambrose and Augustine, have endeavored to find out a parallel between our blessed Lord and Gideon. We have already seen what Origen has made of the whole account, who is followed in the main by the above Latin fathers. As I believe no such parallel was intended by the Spirit of God, I must be excused from going into their details. It is no credit either to Christ or Christianity to be compared to such persons and their transactions

1.    Of Gideon the most we can say is that which the angel said, he was a mighty man of valor

2.    He was also a true patriot, he loved his country, and hazarded his life for it; and yet he would not stir till he had the most incontestable proofs that God would, by his supernatural assistance, make him victorious

3.    He was most evidently disinterested, and void of ambition; he refused the kingdom when it was offered to him and to his heirs after him. But, consistently with the belief he had in God, he could not accept it, as this would have been a complete alteration of the Jewish constitution, which acknowledged no ruler but God himself

4.    His motive in making the ephod is not well understood; probably it was done with no reprehensible design. But the act was totally wrong; he had no Divine authority to make such an innovation in the religious worship of his country. The ark was at Shechem; and there was the proper and only accredited priest. The act therefore can never be excused, whatever may be said of his motive

5.    His private character does not appear to have been very exemplary; he had many wives, and seventy sons by them, besides one by a concubine, which he kept at Shechem, where he was often obliged to go as judge, for the purpose of administering justice. In short, there is scarcely a trait in his character worthy to be compared with any thing in the conduct of the Redeemer of mankind

6.    Parallels to Christ, and the work of his Spirit in the salvation of men, have been diligently sought in the sacred writings, by both commentators and preachers; and we have had voluminous treaties on types and antitypes; and how little has sound doctrine or true piety derived from them! They have often served to unsettle the former, and have been rather inimical than favorable to the interests of the latter. When the Spirit of God says such things are types and such things are allegories, it is our duty to believe and examine; when men produce their types and metaphors, it may be our duty to doubt, be suspicious, and pass on.

Defender: Jdg 8:27

The ephod made by Gideon was apparently something different than the priestly garment usually called an ephod which is described in Exo 28:4-14. Whatever it was, it represented an intrusion into the divinely prescribed ministry of the high priest, probably relating to the proper use of the Urim and Thummin (Exo 28:30) which were worn with the ephod. In any case, its use by Gideon and his people was contrary to God's Word, and it soon became an idol to them."

TSK: Jdg 8:16

the elders : Jdg 8:7; Pro 10:13, Pro 19:29; Ezr 2:6

thorns : Mic 7:4

taught : Heb. made to know, Instead of wyyoda , Houbigant, Lev. Clerc, and others read wyyadosh , ""and he tore or threshed;""and this is not only agreeable to what Gideon threatened (Jdg 8:7), but is supported by the LXX Vulgate, Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic. The Hebrew Text might easily have been corrupted simply by the change of שׁ , shin , into ע , ayin , letters very similar to each other.

TSK: Jdg 8:17

Jdg 8:9; 1Ki 12:25

TSK: Jdg 8:18

Tabor : Jdg 4:6; Psa 89:12

As thou art : Psa 12:2; Jud 1:16

resembled : Heb. according to the form of, etc

TSK: Jdg 8:20

Jos 10:24; 1Sa 15:33; Psa 149:9

TSK: Jdg 8:21

Rise thou : It was disgraceful to fall by the hands of a child; and death by the blows of such a person must be much more lingering and tormenting. Some have employed children to dispatch captives. Jdg 9:54; 1Sa 31:3, 1Sa 31:5; Rev 9:6

slew : Psa 83:1

ornaments : or, ornaments like the moon, Isa 3:18

TSK: Jdg 8:22

Rule thou : Jdg 9:8-15; 1Sa 8:5, 1Sa 12:12; Joh 6:15

TSK: Jdg 8:23

I will : Jdg 2:18, Jdg 10:18, Jdg 11:9-11; Luk 22:24-27; 2Co 1:24; 1Pe 5:3

the Lord : 1Sa 8:6, 1Sa 8:7, 1Sa 10:19, 1Sa 12:12; Isa 33:22, Isa 63:19

TSK: Jdg 8:24

give me : Gen 24:22, Gen 24:53; Exo 12:35, Exo 32:3; 1Pe 3:3-5

because : Gen 16:10, Gen 16:11, Gen 25:13, Gen 37:25, Gen 37:28; 1Sa 25:11; 1Ki 20:11

TSK: Jdg 8:26

a thousand : Taking the shekel at half an ounce, the sum of the gold ear-rings was 73 lbs. 4 oz. and worth about £3,300 sterling.

collars : or, sweet jewels

purple : Est 8:15; Jer 10:9; Eze 27:7; Luk 16:19; Joh 19:2, Joh 19:5; Rev 17:4; Rev 18:12, Rev 18:16

chains : Jdg 8:21

TSK: Jdg 8:27

an ephod : Jdg 17:5, Jdg 18:14, Jdg 18:17; Exo 28:6-12; 1Sa 23:9, 1Sa 23:10; Isa 8:20

Ophrah : Jdg 8:32, Jdg 6:11, Jdg 6:24; Deu 12:5

a whoring : Exo 23:33; Psa 73:27, Psa 106:39; Hos 2:2, Hos 4:12-14

a snare : Jdg 8:33; Deu 7:16

TSK: Jdg 8:28

was Midian : Psa 83:9-12; Isa 9:4, Isa 10:26

forty years : Jdg 3:11, Jdg 3:30, Jdg 5:31

TSK: Jdg 8:29

Jerubbaal : Jdg 6:32; 1Sa 12:11

in his own house : Neh 5:14, Neh 5:15

TSK: Jdg 8:30

threescore : Jdg 9:2, Jdg 9:5, Jdg 10:4, Jdg 12:9, Jdg 12:14; Gen 46:26; Exo 1:5; 2Ki 10:1

of his body begotten : Heb. going out of his thigh

many wives : Gen 2:24, Gen 7:7; Deu 17:17; 2Sa 3:2-5, 2Sa 5:13-16; 1Ki 11:3; Mal 2:15; Mat 19:5-8; Eph 5:31-33

TSK: Jdg 8:31

concubine : Jdg 9:1-5; Gen 16:15, Gen 22:24

called : Heb. set

Abimelech : Jdg 9:18; Gen 20:2

TSK: Jdg 8:32

died in : Gen 15:15, Gen 25:8; Jos 24:29, Jos 24:30; Job 5:26, Job 42:17

Ophrah : Jdg 8:27, Jdg 6:24

TSK: Jdg 8:33

as soon : Jdg 2:7-10, Jdg 2:17, Jdg 2:19; Jos 24:31; 2Ki 12:2; 2Ch 24:17, 2Ch 24:18

went : Jdg 8:27, Jdg 2:17; Exo 34:15, Exo 34:16; Jer 3:9

Baalberith : Literally, ""the lord of the covenant.""Jdg 9:4, Jdg 9:46

TSK: Jdg 8:34

remembered : Psa 78:11, Psa 78:42, Psa 106:18, Psa 106:21; Ecc 12:1; Jer 2:32

TSK: Jdg 8:35

showed : Jdg 9:5, Jdg 9:16-19; Ecc 9:14, Ecc 9:15

Jerubbaal : Rather, Jerubbaal Gideon; as we say, Simon Peter; or call a person by his Christian and surname. Gideon was a mighty man of valour, a true patriot, evidently disinterested and void of ambition. He loved his country, and hazarded his life for it; but refused the kingdom, when offered to him and his heirs. The act of making the ephod was totally wrong; yet, probably it was done with no reprehensible design.

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: Jdg 8:16

He taught - Thought to be a false reading, for "he threshed,"as in Jdg 8:7 margin.

Barnes: Jdg 8:17

The men of the city - Perhaps the rulers; who, it is likely, had possession of the tower or citadel, and so could tyrannize over the people. Gideon killed the great men, and beat down their towers, but did not injure the inhabitants.

Barnes: Jdg 8:18

What manner of men - literally, "Where are the men?"The sense, "what manner of men", is merely gathered from the tenor of the answer. Gideon doubtless knew that his brethren had been killed by Zebah and Zalmunna, and the desire of avenging their death was one motive for his impetuous pursuit and attack. His question was rather a taunt, a bitter reproach to his captives, preparing them for their fate. Zebah and Zalmunna, in their answer, did not give evidence against themselves. Their hope was by a flattering answer to soothe Gideon’ s wrath.

Barnes: Jdg 8:19

The sons of my mother - A much closer relation than that of brothers by the father only. (Compare Gen 43:29; Deu 13:6; Psa 69:8). This is the only hint preserved of the transaction. We cannot say exactly when the slaughter of Gideon’ s brethren on Mount Tabor took place, whether before the outbreak of the war Jdg 6:33, or in the retreat and flight of the Midianites Jdg 7:22.

Barnes: Jdg 8:20

It was Gideon’ s place to act the part of the "avenger of blood"Num 35:12; Deu 19:6. The fierce manners of the age break out in the slaying of the captives (compare 1Sa 15:32-33), and in Gideon’ s attempt to initiate his youthful son Jether in the stern work of slaying his country’ s enemies.

Barnes: Jdg 8:21

The ornaments - See marg. and compare Isa 3:18. The custom of adorning the necks of their camels with gold chains and ornaments prevailed among the Arabs so late as the time of Mahomet.

Barnes: Jdg 8:24

In this desire for gold Gideon falls to the level of ordinary men, and we may see in it the first decline of his glory, leading to a sad tarnishing of the luster of his bright name. The idolatrous honor paid to Gideon’ s ephod was probably a source of revenue to his house. Contrast the conduct of Abraham Gen 14:21-23, and of Elisha 2Ki 5:16, 2Ki 5:26.

The "ear-ring"here mentioned is properly a "nose-ring"(compare Gen 24:22 note). The custom of wearing nose-rings prevails in Eastern countries to the present day. The circumstance of Job’ s friends each contributing a nose-ring of gold (Job 42:11 note) is a remarkable parallel to the incident in Gideon’ s history. Rings of gold were also used as money in Egypt, as appears on several early monuments, and by the Celts.

Barnes: Jdg 8:25

They spread ... - The Septuagint reads "He spread his garment."

Barnes: Jdg 8:26

If the Ishmaelite nose-rings were half a shekel in weight, then 1,700 shekels weight of gold implied that 3,400 persons wearing, gold rings had been slain. The "collars"were rather "ear-drops."

Barnes: Jdg 8:27

The ephod was that particular part of the high priest’ s dress which was necessary to be worst when he inquired of God by Urim and Thummim. It seems that Gideon being now the civil ruler, desired to have an ephod of his own, kept in his own city, to he worn by the priest whenever Gideon might summon him to inquire of the Lord for him. His relations with the tribe of Ephraim probably made him unwilling to resort to Shiloh. Compare the act of Jeroboam 1Ki 12:28.

Barnes: Jdg 8:31

Abimelech’ s mother was not reckoned among the wives, being, probably, one of the Canaanite population in Shechem Jdg 9:28 : neither was Abimelech himself reckoned with the 70 other sons of Jerubbaal (Jdg 9:24. Compare Jdg 11:1-2).

Barnes: Jdg 8:33

Turned again - Doubtless Gideon himself had no doubt prepared the way for this apostacy by his unauthorized ephod. The Law of Moses, with its strict unity of priesthood and altar, was the divinely-appointed and only effectual preservative from idolatry.

Baal-bereth - The god of covenants or sworn treaties, corresponding to the Zeus Orkius of the Greeks. The center of this fresh apostacy was at Shechem.

Poole: Jdg 8:16

By that severe punishment (of which Jud 8:7 ) he made the men, i.e. the elders of Succoth, to know their sin and folly, though it was too late for their good, but not for the instruction and warning of others.

Poole: Jdg 8:18

What manner of men i.e. for outward shape and quality?

At Tabor whither he understood they fled for shelter, upon the approach of the Midianites; and where he learnt that some were slain, which he suspected might be they.

Each one resembled the children of a king not for their garb, or outward splendour, for the family was but mean; but for the majesty of their looks; by which commendation they thought to ingratiate themselves with their conqueror.

Poole: Jdg 8:19

For being not Canaanites he was not obliged to kill them; but they having killed his brethren, and that in cool blood, he was by law the avenger of their blood.

Poole: Jdg 8:20

Up and slay them partly, that he might animate him to the use of arms for his God and country against their enemies, and to the exercise of justice; partly, that the death of those mischievous persons might be more shameful and painful; and partly, that he might have some share in the honour of the victory.

Poole: Jdg 8:21

As the man is, so is his strength: thou excellest him, as in age and stature, so in strength; and it is more honourable, as well as easy, to dig by the hands of a valiant man.

Poole: Jdg 8:22

Rule thou over us not as a judge, for that he was already made by God; but as a king; and let the kingdom be hereditary to thee and to thy family. This miraculous and glorious deliverance by thy hands deserves no less from us.

Poole: Jdg 8:23

I will not rule over you to wit, as a king, which you desire.

The Lord shall rule over you in a special manner, as he hath hitherto done, by judges, whom God did particularly appoint and direct, even by Urim and Thummim, and assist upon all occasions; whereas kings had a greater power, and only a general dependence upon God, as other kings had. Compare 1Sa 8:6,7 .

Poole: Jdg 8:24

Object They are called Midianites before.

Answ Here seems to have been a mixture of people, Jud 6:3 , which are all called by one general name, Ishmaelites, or Arabians, who used to wear earrings, Gen 35:4 ; but the greatest, and the ruling part of them, were Midianites.

Poole: Jdg 8:27

Made an ephod thereof; not of all of it, for then it would have been too heavy for use; but of part of it, the rest being probably employed about other things agreeable and appertaining to it; which elsewhere are comprehended under the name of the ephod, as Jud 17:5 18:14,18 Ho 3:4 .

Put it in his city not as a monument of the victory, for such monuments were neither proper nor usual; but for religious use, for which alone the ephod was appointed. The case seems to be this, Gideon having by God’ s command erected an altar in his own city, Ophrah, Jud 6:26 , for an extraordinary time and occasion, thought it might be continued for ordinary use; and therefore as he intended to procure priests, so he designed to make priestly garments, and especially an ephod, which was the chief and most costly; which besides its use in sacred ministrations, was also the instrument by which the mind of God was inquired and discovered, 1Sa 23:6,9 30:7 , which might seem necessary for the judge to have at hand, that he might consult with God upon all occasions.

All Israel went thither a whoring after it committing superstition or idolatry with it; or going thither to inquire the will of God; whereby they were drawn from the true ephod, instituted by God for this end, which was to be worn by the high priest only.

A snare an occasion of sin and ruin to him and his, as the next chapter showeth. Though Gideon was a good man, and did this with an honest mind, and a desire to set up religion in his own city and family; yet here seems to be many sins in it.

1. Superstition and willworship, worshipping God by a device of his own, which was frequently and expressly forbidden.

2. Presumption, in wearing, or causing other priests to wear, this kind of ephod, which was peculiar to the high priest.

3. Transgression of a plain command, of worshipping God ordinarily but at one place, and one altar, Deu 12:5,11,14 , and withdrawing people from that place to his.

4. Making a fearful schism or division among the people.

5. Laying a stumbling-block, or an occasion of superstition or idolatry, before that people, whom he knew to be too prone to it.

Poole: Jdg 8:28

Lifted up their heads no more i.e. recovered not their former strength or courage, so as to conquer or oppress others, as they had done.

Forty years i.e. to the fortieth year, from the beginning of the Midianitish oppression: see on Jud 3:11 .

In the days of Gideon i.e. as long as Gideon lived.

Poole: Jdg 8:29

Not in his father’ s house, as he did before; nor yet in a court, like a king, as the people desired; but in a middle state, as a judge, for the preservation and maintenance of their religion and liberties.

Poole: Jdg 8:31

In Shechem she dwelt there, and he oft came thither, either to execute judgment, or upon other occasions.

Abimelech i.e. my father the king ; so he called him, probably to gratify his concubine, who desired it either out of pride or design.

Poole: Jdg 8:32

In a good old age his long life being crowned with the continuance of his honour, tranquility, and happiness.

Poole: Jdg 8:33

The children of Israel turned again whereby we see the wicked temper of this people, who did no longer cleave to God than they were in a manner constrained to it by the presence and authority of their judges.

Baalim: this was the general name, including all their idols, whereof one here follows.

Baal-berith i.e. The lord of the covenant, so called, either from the covenant wherewith the worshippers of this god bound themselves to maintain his worship, or to defend one another therein; or rather, because he was reputed the god and judge of all covenants, and promises, and contracts, to whom it belonged to maintain them, and to punish the violaters of them; and such a god both the Grecians and the Romans had.

Haydock: Jdg 8:16

Tore. Hebrew seems to be corrupted in this place. "And he shewed (instructed or chastised) with these thorns." The Septuagint and Vulgate read the same word as ver. 7. He crushed the people with such instruments as are used to beat out corn. It is probable that he only treated the magistrates of Soccoth and of Phanuel in this manner. (Calmet)

Haydock: Jdg 8:18

Thabor. Some of the relations or brothers of Gedeon had retired thither, as to a place of safety; and the latter wished to know what was become of them, that he might redeem them, if alive. (Calmet) ---

King. They answer with flattery, insinuating that Gedeon had the air of a king. (Menochius)

Haydock: Jdg 8:19

Kill you. They were not included in the number of the seven devoted nations, (Worthington) and the precept for destroying the Madianites no longer subsisted, Numbers xxxi. 17. (Menochius) ---

The laws of war permitted the Hebrews to kill their prisoners, if they thought proper. No public executioner was necessary. Samuel killed Agag, 1 Kings xv. 32. See 3 Kings ii. 25., and 2 Kings i. 15. (Calmet) ---

Gedeon had a mind to make his son partake in the victory, and punish these kings for an unjust murder of his relations. He would also inure him to fight against the enemies of God, &c. (Menochius)

Haydock: Jdg 8:21

Age. They beg that they may die in a more speedy and noble manner. Tacitus (Hist. iv.) observes, "it was reported that Civilis exposed some of the Roman captives to his little son, in order that he might fix his arrows and javelins in their bodies." ---

Ornaments. Most interpreters understand "crescents." The veneration of the Arabs for the moon, the celestial Venus, or Alilat, is well known. The Turks still make use of this sign, as Christians employ the cross on their standards, temples, &c. Men and women anciently wore on their necks or forehead ornaments of the same nature, as these camels did, Isaias iii. 18. Latinus adorned his horses in the most splendid manner. Virgil, Æneid vii: Aurea pectoribus demissa monilia pendent. Caligula decorated with extravagance his famous horse Incitatus, on which he designed to confer the consulate. (Suetonius) ---

In Egypt the camels are sometimes painted yellow, and hung with a variety of little bells. (Vaneb.)

Haydock: Jdg 8:22

Israel, who were in his army, and of whom he receives the earlets for his share of the spoil. (Calmet) ---

But as those who staid at home received a share of the booty, and no doubt would come to congratulate Gedeon on his victory, it seems equally probable that this offer of the regal dignity was made to him in a full assembly of the people, (Haydock) which is greatly to the honour of this valiant man. (Menochius) ---

Rule them. They wished to confer upon him a dignity which he did not now possess, and which he absolutely refused, being, as he thought, incompatible with the theocracy. This shews that it was not the dignity of judge, which he retained till his death, but that of king, which was so displeasing to God, when the Israelites resolved to establish it among them, 1 Kings viii. 7. (Menochius; Tirinus; Grotius; Calmet) ---

Josephus ([Antiquities?] v. 8.) thinks that Gedeon wished to resign the former dignity, but was forced to retain it forty years. The judges were chosen by God, and acted as his lieutenants, so that the people having no part in their election, the Lord alone was considered as the king of Israel. Some are of opinion that the people wished, on this occasion, to make the dignity hereditary. (Calmet) ---

Serarius thinks that they made an offer of the regal power to Gedeon, to his son, and grandson, only. But it seems rather that they meant to make the sovereign authority over entirely to his family, (Menochius) so great a sense had they of his courage, moderation, and just severity, of which he had given such striking proofs. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 8:24

Request. It was not then thought dishonourable to ask nor to receive presents. The most precious part of the booty had been already presented to the general, according to the custom of the heroic times. But, as the people wished to make Gedeon king, he consents to receive the earlets, as a memorial of their affection. ---

Earlets. Hebrew and Septuagint (Menochius) may also signify, "each an earlet," as if he would only accept one from each soldier. The original signifies also, the rings which women put under their noses; but, as men never did, it has not that meaning here, (Calmet) though there might be women in the camp of the Madianites. (Haydock) ---

Ismaelites. By this title various nations are designated. It seems almost as general as the word Arab among us. These nations were no more distinguished by these ornaments than the Hebrews themselves, Exodus xxxii. 2., and xxxv. 12. The Persians, Africans, Lybians, &c., wore ear-rings. (Calmet)

Haydock: Jdg 8:26

And jewels. Some translate, "crescents (Septuagint, "little moons,") and boxes" ( netiphoth, Menochius) of perfumes, such as Alexander found among the spoils of Darius, and reserved to put his Homer in. These ornaments were also used by women, Isaias iii. 18. (Calmet) ---

The eastern nations delight in perfumes. (Menochius) ---

The ear-rings alone would amount to 3102 l. 10 s. sterling. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 8:27

An ephod. A priestly garment; which Gedeon made with a good design: but the Israelites, after his death, abused it by making it an instrument of their idolatrous worship, (Challoner) and perhaps consulting their idols with it. No law forbad the making of such a garment. (Menochius) ---

It was not peculiar to the high priest, since we find that Samuel and David occasionally wore the ephod, (2 Kings vi. 14,) and probably Gedeon would, on public occasions, do the like with this most costly one, which would serve to remind the people of the victory which they had gained over Madian. The chief judge in Egypt wore a great golden chain and collar, adorned with curious figures, as a mark of his dignity. (Diodorus ii. 3.) This monument of the victory, and of the dignity of Gedeon, became, after his death, an occasion of superstition to the people, who foolishly imagined that they might consult the Lord, wherever an ephod was found. See chap. xvii. 5., and Exodus xxv. 7. The began to neglect the tabernacle, and to form a religion of their own choice. Many think that Gedeon was guilty of indiscretion in making it. (St. Augustine, q. xli.; Lyranus; Estius) ---

But the thing was in itself indifferent. He did not intend to arrogate to himself the privileges of the Levitical tribe. The Scripture nowhere condemns him, but speaks of his faith and of his death with honour, ver. 32., and Hebrews xi. 3. ---

With it. Hebrew, "after it or him," which may either signify that this superstition took place after the death of Gedeon, (Septuagint; Pagnin; Menochius) or in consequence of the making of the ephod. (Jonathan; Drusius; Protestants; &c. versions; Calmet) ---

And to. This explains how it affected Gedeon, who was probably dead. He suffered in the ruin of his family, (Haydock) as it is explained in the following chapter. (Menochius)

Haydock: Jdg 8:31

His concubine. She was his servant, but not his harlot; and is called his concubine, as wives of an inferior degree are commonly called in the Old Testament, though otherwise lawfully married. (Challoner) ---

They had not all the privileges of wives; (Genesis xxv. 6,) and their children could not claim the inheritance. (Calmet) ---

Abimelech means, "my (Haydock) father king;" alluding to the dignity of Gedeon; or perhaps the mother imposed this name, hoping that her son would obtain the highest honours. Josephus calls her Druma. She dwelt at Sichem, to which place the judge of Israel often resorted, though his usual residence was at Ephra. This son of theirs is included among the 70.

Haydock: Jdg 8:32

Good. He left an excellent reputation, and died in God's friendship. (Menochius)

Haydock: Jdg 8:33

After. This is the most solid proof of Gedeon's piety, since he kept the people in awe, and faithful to the Lord during his life. ---

God. Hebrew, "and appointed Baal Berith their god," or goddess; for Berith, "of the covenant," is feminine. In the temple of this idol, the citizens of Sichem kept money, chap ix. 4. The pagans had many gods who presided over treaties; and the parties were, it seems, at liberty to choose whom they thought proper. They commonly pitched upon Jupiter, who is, therefore, styled Zeus orkios, or Dius fidius, or Fistius Jupiter. (Laertius. in Pythag.; Halicar. iv.) A statue "of Jupiter for oaths," was seen at Olympus, holding the thunderbolts in his hands, ready to hurl against those who proved faithless. (Pausan. Eliac.) Philo of Byblos speaks of the Phœnician god Eliun, "the High," and (Calmet) of the goddess "Beruth," which last has a visible connection with Berith. The former title is sometimes given to the true God in Scripture. The city of Berytus was so called, probably in honour of the latter. Nonnus seems to have styled her Beroe. (Bochart; Chanaan ii. 17.) ---

Pliny ([Natural History?] xxxi. 1.) mentions the god Briaze, at the foot of whose temple runs the river Olachas, the waters of which are said to burn those who are guilty of perjury. The Chaldean reads, "they chose Beel-kiam for their error." Amos (v. 26.) speaks of the images of Chiun. May he not be the same as Berith or Kiam? Spencer says, that Chiun was Saturn: but Vossius thinks it was the moon. (Idol. ii. 23.) (Calmet)

Haydock: Jdg 8:35

Mercy is here put for many virtues: gratitude, justice, kindness, &c. (Menochius) ---

The Israelites did not take care to provide for (Calmet) the family of one who had rendered them such essential services. (Haydock)

Gill: Jdg 8:16

And he took the elders of the city,.... All of them, especially those of them who had been most guilty, and had them to a proper place, where they might be made public examples of:

and thorns of the wilderness, and briers; which were near at hand, and soon cut up, for which he gave orders to proper persons:

and with them he taught the men of Succoth; either the inhabitants of the place, as distinct from the elders, whose punishment he taught them to be cautious not to follow such examples, or to behave ill to their superiors; or the princes and elders of the city are meant by the men of it, whom Gideon taught or chastised with thorns and briers; and so it is usual with us for a parent or master to say to his child or servant that has offended, I will "teach" you to do so or so, or to do otherwise, when he threatens to chastise: or "with them he made them to know" ^z; that is, their sin and the heinousness of it, by the punishment he inflicted on them. Abarbinel thinks the word "know" has the signification of mercy in it, as in Exo 2:25 in that he did not punish in general the men of that city, only the elders of it. The Targum is,"he broke upon them, or by them, the men of Succoth;''so Jarchi and others; that is, he broke the briers and thorns upon them, scourging them with them; or rather broke and tore their flesh by them: whether they died or no is not certain.

Gill: Jdg 8:17

And he beat down the tower of Penuel,.... As he threatened he would, Jdg 8:9 whether this was before or after he had chastised the elders of Succoth, is not clear; one would think by the course he steered going from Succoth to Penuel, as he went, he should come to Penuel first at his return; however, he demolished their tower in which they trusted:

and slew the men of the city; perhaps they might, as Kimchi conjectures, resist when he went about to beat down their tower; on which a fray might ensue, in which they were slain; or they might upon his approach, sensible of the offence they had given him, fly to their tower for safety, and were killed in it when that was beaten down about them. In what manner this was done is not said; no doubt they had instruments in those days for demolishing such edifices.

Gill: Jdg 8:18

Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna,.... Not at Penuel or Succoth, but when he had brought them into the land of Canaan, and perhaps to his own city Ophrah:

what manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? Mount Tabor, to which these men had betaken and hid themselves, in some caves and dens there: see Jdg 6:2 and these kings some little time before the battle had taken them, and slew them, of which it seems Gideon had notice; and some of his brethren being not to be found, he suspected they were the persons, and therefore asked this question:

and they answered, as thou art, so were they; very much like him in countenance and stature, stout, able bodied men, of a graceful and majestic appearance. Abarbinel takes it to be a curse on Gideon, be thou, or thou shalt be, as they are; as they died by the hand of the Midianites, so shalt thou; but the former sense seems best, and agrees with what follows:

each one resembled the children of a king; being brought up in a delicate manner, as these persons seemed to have been: according to Jarchi and Kimchi, the sense is, they were like him, and had all one and the same form and lovely aspect, resembling kings' children; but according to Ben Gersom they were in general very much like Gideon, and one of them was like his children, who were then present, particularly his eldest son, as appears from Jdg 8:20. It is said in the Misnah ^a all the Israelites are the children of kings.

Gill: Jdg 8:19

And he said, they were my brethren, even the sons of my mother,.... His brethren by his mother's side, but not by his father's side; or the phrase

the sons of my mother is added, to show that he did not mean brethren in a large sense, as all the Israelites were, but in a strict sense, being so nearly related as his mother's children:

as the Lord liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not slay you; for not being Canaanites, he was not obliged by the law of God to put them to death, and by the law of nations, as they had surrendered themselves, and were made prisoners of war, they ought to have been saved; but as they appeared to be murderers, and had slain the Israelites in cold blood, they deserved to die; and the persons they had slain being Gideon's brethren, he was the avenger of blood, and it became him to put them to death.

Gill: Jdg 8:20

And he said unto Jether, his firstborn, up, and slay them,.... Being the near kinsman of his father's brethren, whom these kings had slain, was a proper person to avenge their blood on them; and the rather Gideon might order him to do it, for the greater mortification of the kings, to die by the hand of a youth; and for the honour of his son, to be the slayer of two kings, and to inure him to draw his sword against the enemies of Israel, and embolden him to do such exploits:

but the youth drew not his sword, for he feared, because he was yet a youth; his not drawing is sword was not out of disobedience to his father, but through fear of the kings; not of their doing him any harm, being bound; but there was perhaps a ferocity, as well as majesty in their countenances, which made the young man timorous and fearful.

Gill: Jdg 8:21

Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, rise thou and fall upon us,.... Since they must die, they chose rather to die by the hand of so great a man and valiant a commander as Gideon, which was more honourable than to die by the hand of a youth:

for as the man is, so is his strength; signifying, that as he was a stout able man, he had strength sufficient to dispatch them at once, which his son had not, and therefore they must have died a lingering and painful death: wherefore as they consulted their honour, so their ease, in desiring to die by the hand of Gideon:

and Gideon arose, and slew Zebah and Zalmunna; nor was it unusual in those early times for great personages, as judges and generals, to be executioners of others, as were Samuel and Benaiah, 1Sa 15:33.

and took away the ornaments that were on their camels' necks; the Targum calls them chains, as in Jdg 8:26 no doubt of gold; so the horses of King Latinus ^b had golden poitrels or collars hanging down their breasts. They were, according to Jarchi, Kimchi, and Ben Gersom, in the form of the moon; see Isa 3:18 some have thought that these were worn in honour of Astarte, or the moon, the goddess of the Phoenicians, from whom these people had borrowed that idolatry.

Gill: Jdg 8:22

Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon,.... Some time after his return, the chief men of Israel having met in a body, and consulted matters among themselves, sent a deputation to Gideon with an offer of the government of them:

rule thou over us, both thou and thy son, and thy son's son also; by which they meant, that he would take the kingly government of them, and which they proposed to settle in his posterity for ages to come; for, as a judge in Israel, he had a sort of rule and government of them under God already, but amounted not to regal power and authority; and this was what the people of Israel were fond of, that they might be like their neighbours; and this they tempted Gideon with, who had done such very wonderful and extraordinary things for them, which they allege as a reason:

for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian; from the bondage they were in to them, and therefore fit to be a king over them.

Gill: Jdg 8:23

And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you,.... Not that he declined the government of them as a judge, to which he was raised of God, but as a king, for which he had no authority and call from God; the choice of a king belonging to him, and not to the people:

neither shall my son rule over you; which Abarbinel thinks he spake as a prophet, and under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; for after his death neither Jether his eldest son, nor any of the rest of his legitimate sons, ruled over them; for they were all slain by Abimelech, the son of his concubine, who was made king:

the Lord shall rule over you; as he did; their government was a theocracy, which they would have changed, but Gideon would not agree to it.

Gill: Jdg 8:24

And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you,.... Which he thought they would scarcely deny, and it was now a fair opportunity to make it, since they had offered him a crown, or to be king over them: and the favour he asked was:

that you would give me every man the earrings of his prey; or, "an earring of his prey"; for it is in the singular number; every man one earring, as Abarbinel interprets it; for though they might have more, yet only one ear ring of every man is desired:

for they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites; so the Midianites and Ishmaelites are spoken of as the same, they being mixed and dwelling together, or very near each other, Gen 37:25 and Kimchi accounts for it thus, why the Midianites are called Ishmaelites; because they were the sons of Keturah, and Keturah was Hagar the mother of Ishmael. The Targum calls them Arabians, and who it seems used to wear earrings, as men in the eastern countries did; see Gen 35:4. So Pliny says ^c in the east it was reckoned ornamental for men to wear gold in their ears.

Gill: Jdg 8:25

And they answered, we will willingly give them,.... Or, "in giving we will give" ^d; give them with all their hearts, most freely and cheerfully:

and they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of his prey; every man one, which would amount to no more than three hundred; though perhaps those who joined in the pursuit might take many more, or otherwise the weight of them would not amount to what in the next verse they are said to weigh.

Gill: Jdg 8:26

And the weight of the golden earrings he requested was one thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold,.... Which, as Schcuchzer ^e computes, was eight hundred and ten ounces, five drachms, one scruple, and ten grains, of the weight of physicians; but as reckoned by Moatanus ^f amounted to eight hundred and fifty ounces, and were of the value of 6800 crowns of gold; and, according to Waserus ^g, it amounted to 3400 Hungarian pieces of gold, and of their money at Zurich upwards of 15,413 pounds, and of our money 2,380 pounds:

besides ornaments; such as were upon the necks of the camels, Jdg 8:21 for the same word is used here as there:

and collars; the Targum renders it a crown, and Ben Melech says in the Arabic language the word signifies clear crystal; but Kimchi and Ben Gersom take them to be golden vessels, in which they put "stacte", or some odoriferous liquor, and so were properly smelling bottles:

and purple raiment that was on the kings of Midian; which it seems was the colour that kings wore, as they now do; so Strabo ^h says of the kings of Arabia, that they are clothed in purple:

and besides the chains that were about their camels' necks; which seem to be different from the other ornaments about them, since another word is here used; now all these seem to have been what fell to his share, as the general of the army, and not what were given him by the people.

Gill: Jdg 8:27

And Gideon made an ephod thereof,.... That is, of some of this gold; for such a quantity could never have been expanded on an ephod only, even taking it not for a linen ephod, but such an one as the high priest wore, made of gold, of blue, purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, with curious work, together with a curious girdle of the same work; unless we suppose such a breastplate with it, of twelve precious stones, as Aaron had; and with little images of teraphim or cherubim in it, as Dr. Spencer thinks ⁱ. The Jewish commentators generally understand this ephod to be made as a memorial of the great salvation God had wrought by his hands for Israel, and of the wonderful things done by him; so Jarchi, Kimchi, and Ben Gersom; but such a garment, whether worn by him, or hung up in some certain place, seems not so proper and pertinent to perpetuate the memory of his victories, as a monument or pillar would have been; it looks therefore more likely to be done with a religious view, which afterwards was perverted to superstitious uses; and whereas Gideon had built an altar already by the command of God, and had sacrificed upon it, he might think himself authorized as a priest, and therefore provided this ephod for himself; or however for a priest he might think of taking into his family, and so use it as an oracle to consult upon special occasions, without going to Shiloh, the Ephraimites having displeased him in their rough expostulations with him; and so R. Isaiah interprets it of a kind of divination or oracle which gave answers:

and put it in his city, even in Ophrah; hung it up in some proper place as a monument of his victories, as is generally thought; or in a structure built on purpose for it, to which he might resort as to an oracle:

and all Israel went thither a whoring after it: made an idol of it and worshipped it, and so committed spiritual fornication, which is idolatry. Some render it, "after him" ^k; not after the ephod, but after Gideon; that is, after his death, so Jarchi; no ill use was made of it in Gideon's time, though he cannot be altogether excused from sin and weakness in making it; but after his death it was soon made an ill use of:

which thing proved a snare to Gideon and to his house; it was a snare to him if he consulted it as an oracle, which could not be without sin, since the only Urim and Thummim to be consulted were in the breastplate of the high priest at the tabernacle; and it was what led his family into idolatry, and was the ruin of it, as well as it reflected great discredit and disgrace upon so good and brave a man: some read the words ^l: "to Gideon, that is, to his house"; or family; he being so good a man himself, it is not thought that he could be ensnared into idolatry itself; though it is apparent that men as wise and as good have fallen into it, as particularly Solomon.

Gill: Jdg 8:28

Thus was Midian subdued before the children of Israel,.... By the hand of Gideon humbled and brought under, their power over Israel was broken, and they delivered out of their hands:

so that they lifted up their heads no more; in a proud and haughty manner to insult them, and in an hostile way to invade and oppress them; such a blow was given them that they could not recover themselves, nor do we read of any effort of theirs ever after, or of their giving or attempting to give any disturbance to Israel, or any other nation:

and the country was in quietness forty years in the days of Gideon; that is, the land of Canaan; it was free from wars with Midian, or any other people, and enjoyed undisturbed peace and tranquillity. According to Bishop Usher ^m, this was the fortieth year from the rest restored by Deborah and Barak; and, according to Abarbinel and others, these forty years are to be reckoned from the beginning of the servitude; that is, the seven years' oppression under the Midianites are included in them; but I cannot see that in this instance, and in others before met with, years of bondage can be counted with years of peace and prosperity, and go under that general name. The true sense seems to be, that after the Israelites had been in subjection to the Midianites for seven years, and Gideon had delivered them, that from thenceforward they had rest and quietness forty years, which in all probability was the time Gideon lived after his victories.

Gill: Jdg 8:29

And Jerubbaal the son of Joash,.... That is, Gideon, Jerubbaal being another name of his; see Jdg 6:32 went and dwelt in his own house; which was at Ophrah, as appears from Jdg 9:5 the war being ended, he disbanded his army, and retired to his own house; not that he lived altogether a private life there, but as a judge in Israel.

Gill: Jdg 8:30

And Gideon had seventy sons of his body begotten,.... Not after his victories, for it is plain he had children before; mention is made of Jether, his firstborn, as a youth able to draw a sword, and slay with it, Jdg 8:20 but this was the number of all his sons, both before and after, and a large number it was; and the phrase "of his body begotten", or "that went out of his thigh" is used to show that they were his own sons, begotten in wedlock, and not sons that he had taken into his family by adoption, or that he was father-in-law to, having married a woman or women that had sons by a former husband; but these were all his own:

for he had many wives; which, though not agreeable to the original law of marriage, was customary in those times, and even with good men, and was connived at; and this is a reason accounting for his having so many sons.

Gill: Jdg 8:31

And his concubine that was in Shechem,.... Which was not an harlot, but a secondary or half wife; such were generally taken from handmaids, and of the meaner sort, and were not in such esteem as proper wives, had not the management of household affairs, only a share in the bed, and their children did not inherit. This concubine of Gideon's seems not to have been taken into his house at all, but lived at Shechem, perhaps in her father's house, and here Gideon met with her when he went to Shechem as a judge to try causes; her name, according to Josephus ^l, was Druma:

she also bare him a son; as his other wives did; perhaps all the children he had were sons, and this was one over and above the seventy, and not to be reckoned into that number:

whose name he called Abimelech: which signifies, "my father a king"; which he gave him either in memory of the offer made him to be king of Israel, or through foresight of what this son of his would be; or he might be moved to it by the mother from pride and vanity, and which name might afterwards inspire the young man to be made a king, as he was; and the account given of his name is because of the narrative of him in the following chapter.

Gill: Jdg 8:32

And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age,.... Having lived it seems forty years after his war with Midian, blessed with a large family, much wealth and riches, great credit and esteem among his people, and in favour with God and men:

and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites; a city which belonged to the family of the Abiezrites, who were of the tribe of Manasseh, in which Gideon lived, and his father before him; and where there was a family vault, in which he was interred. In the days of this judge it is supposed ^m was the famous expedition of the Argonauts to Colchis, to fetch from thence the golden fleece.

Gill: Jdg 8:33

And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again,.... from God, and the pure worship of him, to idolatry:

and went a whoring after Baalim; the gods of the Phoenicians and Canaanites, the several Baals of other nations, the lords many which they served; these they committed spiritual whoredom with; that is, idolatry: particularly

and made Baalberith their god; which was the idol of the Shechemites, as appears from a temple being built at Shechem for it, Jdg 9:4 and had its name either from Berytus, a city of Phoenicia, of which Mela ⁿ and Pliny ^o make mention, and where this Baal might be first worshipped; it was fifty miles from Sidon, and was in later times a seat of learning ^p; of this city was Sanchoniatho, a Phoenician historian, who is said to receive many things he writes about the Jews from Jerombalus, supposed to be Jerubbaal, or Gideon; See Gill on Jdg 6:32 and who tells ^q us, that Cronus or Ham gave this city to Neptune and the Cabiri, and who also relates ^r that Beruth is the name of a Phoenician deity. Though it may be rather this idol had its name from its supposed concern in covenants, the word "Berith" signifying a covenant; and so the Targum and Syriac version call him the lord of covenant; and the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin versions are,"and they made a covenant with Baal, that he should be their god;''as if he had his name from hence; though rather from his presiding over covenants, as Janus is said ^s to do, and from his avenging the breach of them, and rewarding those that kept them; the same with Jupiter Fidius Ultor, and Sponsor ^t with the Romans, and Horcius ^u with the Greeks.

Gill: Jdg 8:34

And the children of Israel remembered not the Lord their God,.... Or, as the Targum, the worship of the Lord their God; they forgot him, and forsook him, which showed base ingratitude:

who had delivered them out of the hands of their enemies on every side; not only out of the hands of Midian, but all other nations round about them, as Edom, Moab, Ammon, &c. not one attempting to oppress them.

Gill: Jdg 8:35

Neither showed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely Gideon,.... But, on the contrary, great unkindness and cruelty, slaying his seventy sons, as related in the following chapter:

according to all the goodness which he had showed unto Israel; in exposing his life to danger for their sake, in delivering them out of the hands of their oppressors, in administering justice to them, in protecting them in their civil and religious liberties, and leaving them in the quiet and peaceable possession of them.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Jdg 8:16

¹ tn Heb “elders.”

² tc The translation follows the reading of several ancient versions (LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate) in assuming the form וַיָּדָשׁ (vayyadash) from the verb דּוֹשׁ (dosh, “thresh”) as in v. 7. The MT reads instead the form וַיֹּדַע (vayyoda’, “make known”), a Hiphil form of יָדַע (yadah). In this case one could translate, “he used them [i.e., the thorns and briers] to teach the men of Succoth a lesson.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:18

¹ tn Heb “Where are?”

² tn Heb “each one like the appearance of sons of the king.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:19

¹ tn The words “I swear” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

NET Notes: Jdg 8:20

¹ tn Or “Arise!”

² tn Heb “did not draw his sword for he was afraid.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:21

¹ tn The words “to Gideon” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

² tn Or “Arise.”

³ tn Heb “for as the man is his strength.”

⁴ tn Heb “arose and killed.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:22

¹ tn Heb “hand.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:24

¹ tn Heb “said to them.”

² tn Heb “Give to me, each one, an earring from his plunder.”

³ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Midianites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

NET Notes: Jdg 8:25

¹ tn Heb “We will indeed give.”

² tc In the LXX the subject of this verb is singular, referring to Gideon rather than to the Israelites.

NET Notes: Jdg 8:26

¹ sn Seventeen hundred gold shekels would be about 42.7 pounds (19.4 kilograms) of gold.

² tn Or “pendants.”

³ tn Heb “the ornaments which were on the necks of their camels.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:27

¹ tn Heb “made it into.”

² sn In Exod 28:4-6 and several other texts an ephod is described as a priestly or cultic garment. In some cases an ephod is used to obtain a divine oracle (1 Sam 23:9; 30:7). Here the ephod is made of gold and is described as being quite heavy (70-75 lbs?). Some identify it as an idol, but it was more likely a cultic object fashioned in the form of a garment which was used for oracular purposes. For discussion of the ephod in the OT, see C. F. Burney, Judges, 236-43, and R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 349-52.

³ tn Heb “Israel” (a collective singular).

⁴ tn The words “by worshiping it” are supplied in the translation for clarity.

NET Notes: Jdg 8:28

¹ tn Heb “Midian was humbled before the Israelites, and they no longer lifted their heads.”

² tn Heb “in the days of Gideon.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:29

¹ tn Heb “went and lived in his house.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:30

¹ tn Heb “Gideon had seventy sons who went out from his thigh, for he had many wives.” The Hebrew word יָרֵךְ (yarekh, “thigh”) is a euphemism here for the penis.

NET Notes: Jdg 8:31

¹ sn A concubine was a slave woman in ancient Near Eastern societies who was the legal property of her master, but who could have legitimate sexual relations with her master. A concubine’s status was more elevated than a mere servant, but she was not free and did not have the legal rights of a free wife. The children of a concubine could, in some instances, become equal heirs with the children of the free wife. After the period of the Judges concubines may have become more of a royal prerogative (2 Sam 21:10-14; 1 Kgs 11:3).

² sn The name Abimelech means “my father is king.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:32

¹ tn Heb “good.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:33

¹ sn Baal-Berith was a local manifestation of the Canaanite storm god. The name means, ironically, “Baal of the covenant.” Israel’s covenant allegiance had indeed shifted.

NET Notes: Jdg 8:34

¹ tn Heb “remember.”

NET Notes: Jdg 8:35

¹ tn Heb “did not do loyalty with,” or “did not act faithfully toward.”

Geneva Bible: Jdg 8:19

And he said, They [were] my brethren, [even] the ^{( k )} sons of my mother: [as] the LORD liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not slay you.

^{( k )} We all came from the same womb: therefore I will be revenged.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 8:21

Then Zebah and Zalmunna said, Rise thou, and fall upon us: for ^{( l )} as the man [is, so is] his strength. And Gideon arose, and slew Zebah and Zalmunna, and took away the ornaments that [were] on their camels' necks.

^{( l )} Meaning, that they would be freed from their pain at once, or else have a valiant man put them to death.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 8:22

Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy ^{( m )} son's son also: for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian.

^{( m )} That is, thy posterity.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 8:24

And Gideon said unto them, ^{( n )} I would desire a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings of his prey. (For they had golden earrings, because they [were] Ishmaelites.)

^{( n )} His intent was to show himself thankful for this victory by restoring religion, which because it was not according to God's command, turned to their destruction.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 8:27

And Gideon made an ^{( o )} ephod thereof, and put it in his city, [even] in Ophrah: and all Israel went thither a whoring after it: which thing became a snare unto Gideon, and to his house.

^{( o )} That is, such things as pertained to the use of the tabernacle. See ephod, (Exo 28:4, Exo 28:6; Jdg 17:5; 1Sa 2:18; 2Sa 6:14).

Geneva Bible: Jdg 8:32

And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in ^{( p )} Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

^{( p )} A city belonging to the family of the Ezrites.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 8:33

And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made ^{( q )} Baalberith their god.

^{( q )} That is, Baal, to whom they had bound themselves by covenant.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 8:35

Neither ^{( r )} shewed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, [namely], Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had shewed unto Israel.

^{( r )} They were unmindful of God and unkind to him, by whom they had received so great a benefit.

Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: Jdg 8:1-35

1 Gideon pacifies the Ephraimites.

4 Succoth and Penuel refuse to deliver Gideon's army.

10 Zebah and Zalmunna are taken.

13 Succoth and Penuel are destroyed.

17 Gideon revenges his brethren's death on Zebah and Zalmunna.

22 He refuses government.

24 His ephod the cause of idolatry.

28 Midian subdued.

29 Gideon's children, and death.

33 The Israelites' idolatry and ingratitude.

MHCC: Jdg 8:13-17

The active servants of the Lord meet with more dangerous opposition from false professors than from open enemies; but they must not care for the behaviour of those who are Israelites in name, but Midianites in heart. They must pursue the enemies of their souls, and of the cause of God, though they are ready to faint through inward conflicts and outward hardships. And they shall be enabled to persevere. The less men help, and the more they seek to hinder, the more will the Lord assist. Gideon's warning being slighted, the punishment was just. Many are taught with the briers and thorns of affliction, who would not learn otherwise.

MHCC: Jdg 8:18-21

The kings of Midian must be reckoned with. As they confessed themselves guilty of murder, Gideon acted as the avenger of blood, being the next of kin to the persons slain. Little did they think to have heard of this so long after; but murder seldom goes unpunished in this life. Sins long forgotten by man, must be accounted for to God. What poor consolation in death from the hope of suffering less pain, and of dying with less disgrace than some others! yet many are more anxious on these accounts, than concerning the future judgment, and what will follow.

MHCC: Jdg 8:22-28

Gideon refused the government the people offered him. No good man can be pleased with any honour done to himself, which belongs only to God. Gideon thought to keep up the remembrance of this victory by an ephod, made of the choicest of the spoils. But probably this ephod had, as usual, a teraphim annexed to it, and Gideon intended this for an oracle to be consulted. Many are led into false ways by one false step of a good man. It became a snare to Gideon himself, and it proved the ruin of the family. How soon will ornaments which feed the lust of the eye, and form the pride of life, as well as tend to the indulgences of the flesh, bring shame on those who are fond of them!

MHCC: Jdg 8:29-35

As soon as Gideon was dead, who kept the people to the worship of the God of Israel, they found themselves under no restraint; then they went after Baalim, and showed no kindness to the family of Gideon. No wonder if those who forget their God, forget their friends. Yet conscious of our own ingratitude to the Lord, and observing that of mankind in general, we should learn to be patient under any unkind returns we meet with for our poor services, and resolve, after the Divine example, not to be overcome of evil, but to overcome evil with good.

Matthew Henry: Jdg 8:4-17

In these verses we have,

I. Gideon, as a valiant general, pursuing the remaining Midianites, and bravely following his blow. A very great slaughter was made of the enemy at first: 120,000 men that drew the sword, Jdg 8:10. Such a terrible execution did they make among themselves, and so easy a prey were they to Israel. But, it seems, the two kings of Midian, being better provided than the rest for an escape, with 15,000 men got over Jordan before the passes could be secured by the Ephraimites, and made towards their own country. Gideon thinks he does not fully execute his commission to save Israel if he let them escape. He is not content to chase them out of the country, but he will chase them out of the world, Job 18:18. This resolution is here pushed on with great firmness, and crowned with great success.

1. His firmness was very exemplary. He effected his purpose under the greatest disadvantages and discouragements that could be. (1.) He took none with him but his 300 men, who now laid aside their trumpets and torches, and betook themselves to their swords and spears. God had said, By these 300 men will I save you (Jdg 7:7); and, confiding in that promise, Gideon kept to them only, Jdg 8:4. He expected more from 300 men, supported by a particular promise, than from so many thousands supported only by their own valour. (2.) They were faint, and yet pursuing, much fatigued with what they had done, and yet eager to do more against the enemies of their country. Our spiritual warfare must thus be prosecuted with what strength we have, though we have but little; it is many a time the true Christina's case, fainting and yet pursuing. (3.) Though he met with discouragement from those of his own people, was jeered for what he was doing, as going about what he could never accomplish, yet he went on with it. If those that should be our helpers in the way of our duty prove hindrances to us, let not this drive us off from it. Those know not how to value God's acceptance that know not how to despise the reproaches and contempts of men. (4.) He made a very long march by the way of those that dwelt in tents (Jdg 8:11), either because he hoped to find them kinder to him than the men of Succoth and Penuel, that dwelt in walled towns (sometimes there is more generosity and charity found in country tents than in city palaces), or because that was a road in which he would be least expected, and therefore that way it would be the greater surprise to them. It is evident he spared no pains to complete his victory. Now he found it an advantage to have his 300 men such as could bear hunger, and thirst, and toil. It should seem, he set upon the enemy by night, as he had done before, for the host was secure. The security of sinners often proves their ruin, and dangers are most fatal when least feared.

2. His success was very encouraging to resolution and industry in a good cause. He routed the army (Jdg 8:11), and took the two kings prisoners, Jdg 8:12. Note, The fear of the wicked shall come upon him. Those that think to run from the sword of the Lord and of Gideon do but run upon it. If he flee from the iron weapon, yet the bow of steel shall strike him through; for evil pursueth sinners.

II. Here is Gideon, as a righteous judge, chastising the insolence of the disaffected Israelites, the men of Succoth and the men of Penuel, both in the tribe of Gad, on the other side Jordan.

1. Their crime was great. Gideon, with a handful of feeble folk was pursuing the common enemy, to complete the deliverance of Israel. His way led him through the city of Succoth first and afterwards of Penuel. He expected not that the magistrates should meet him in their formalities, congratulate him upon his victory, present him with the keys of their city, and give him a treat, much less that they should send forces in to his assistance, though he was entitled to all this; but he only begs some necessary food for his soldiers that were ready to faint for want, and he does it very humbly and importunately: Give, I pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me, Jdg 8:5. The request would have been reasonable if they had been but poor travellers in distress; but considering that they were soldiers, called, and chose, and faithful (Rev 17:14), men whom God had greatly honoured and to whom Israel was highly obliged, who had done great service to their country and were now doing more, - that they were conquerors, and had power to put them under contribution, - and that they were fighting God's battles and Israel's, - nothing could be more just than that their brethren should furnish them with the best provisions their city afforded. But the princes of Succoth neither feared God nor regarded man. For, (1.) In contempt of God, they refused to answer the just demands of him whom God had raised up to save them, affronted him, bantered him, despised the success he had already been honoured with, despaired of the success of his present undertaking, did what they could to discourage him in prosecuting the war, and were very willing to believe that the remaining forces of Midian, which they had now seen march through their country, would be too hard for him: Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thy hand? "No, nor ever will be,"so they conclude, judging by the disproportion of numbers. (2.) The bowels of their compassion were shut up against their brethren; they were as destitute of love as they were of faith, would not give morsels of bread (so some read it) to those that were ready to perish. Were these princes? were these Israelites? unworthy either title, base and degenerate men! Surely they were worshippers of Baal, or in the interests of Midian. The men of Penuel gave the same answer to the same request, defying the sword of the Lord and of Gideon, Jdg 8:8.

2. The warning he gave them of the punishment of their crime was very fair. (1.) He did not punish it immediately, because he would not lose so much time from the pursuit of the enemy that were flying from him, because he would not seem to do it in a neat of passion, and because he would do it more to their shame and confusion when he had completed his undertaking, which they thought impracticable. But, (2.) He told them how he would punish it (Jdg 8:7, Jdg 8:9), to show the confidence he had of success in the strength of God, and that, if they had the least grain of grace and consideration left, they might upon second thoughts repent of their folly, humble themselves, and contrive how to atone for it, by sending after him succours and supplies, which if they had done, no doubt, Gideon would have pardoned them. God gives notice of danger, and space to repent, that sinners may flee from the wrath to come.

3. The warning being slighted, the punishment, though very severe, was really very just.

(1.) The princes of Succoth were first made examples. Gideon got intelligence of their number, seventy-seven men, their names, and places of abode, which were described in writing to him, Jdg 8:14. And, to their great surprise, when they thought he had scarcely overtaken the Midianites, he returned a conqueror. His 300 men were now the ministers of his justice; they secured all these princes, and brought them before Gideon, who showed them his royal captives in chains. "These are the men you thought me an unequal match for, and would give me no assistance in the pursuit of,"Jdg 8:15. And he punished them with thorns and briers, but, it should seem, not unto death. With these, [1.] He tormented their bodies, either by scourging or by rolling them in the thorns and briers; some way or other he tore their flesh, Jdg 8:7. Those shall have judgment without mercy that have shown no mercy. Perhaps he observed them to be soft and delicate men, who despised him and his company for their roughness and hardiness, and therefore Gideon thus mortified them for their effeminacy. [2.] He instructed their minds: With these he taught the men of Succoth, Jdg 8:16. The correction he gave them was intended, not for destruction, but wholesome discipline, to make them wiser and better for the future. He made them know (so the word is), made them know themselves and their folly, God and their duty, made them know who Gideon was, since they would not know by the success wherewith God had crowned him. Note, Many are taught with the briers and thorns of affliction that would not learn otherwise. God gives wisdom by the rod and reproof, chastens and teaches, and by correction opens the ear to discipline. Our blessed Saviour, though he was a Son, yet learnt obedience by the things which he suffered, Heb 5:8. Let every pricking brier, and grieving thorn, especially when it becomes a thorn in the flesh, be thus interpreted, thus improved. "By this God designs to teach me; what good lesson shall I learn?"

(2.) The doom of the men of Penuel comes next, and it should seem he used them more severely than the other, for good reason, no doubt, Jdg 8:17. [1.] He beat down their tower, of which they gloried, in which they trusted, perhaps scornfully advising Gideon and his men rather to secure themselves in that than to pursue the Midianites. What men make their pride is justly by its ruin made their shame. [2.] He slew the men of the city, not all, perhaps not the elders or princes, but those that had affronted him, and those only. He slew some of the men of the city that were most insolent and abusive, for terror to the rest, and so he taught the men of Penuel.

Matthew Henry: Jdg 8:18-21

Judgment began at the house of God, in the just correction of the men of Succoth and Penuel, who were Israelites, but it did not end there. The kings of Midian, when they had served to demonstrate Gideon's victories, and grace his triumphs, must now be reckoned with. 1. They are indicted for the murder of Gideon's brethren some time ago at Mount Tabor. When the children of Israel, for fear of the Midianites, made themselves dens in the mountains (Jdg 6:2), those young men, it is likely, took shelter in that mountain, where they were found by these two kings, and most basely and barbarously slain in cold blood. When he asks them what manner of men they were (Jdg 8:18), it is not because he was uncertain of the thing, or wanted proof of it; he was not so little concerned for his brethren's blood as not to enquire it out before now, nor were these proud tyrants solicitous to conceal it. But he puts that question to them that by their acknowledgment of the more than ordinary comeliness of the persons they slew their crime might appear the more heinous, and consequently their punishment the more righteous. They could not but own that, though they were found in a mean and abject condition, yet they had an unusual greatness and majesty in their countenances, not unlike Gideon himself at this time: they resembled the children of a king, born for something great. 2. Being found guilty of this murder by their own confession, Gideon, though he might have put them to death as Israel's judge for the injuries done to that people in general, as Oreb and Zeeb (Jdg 7:25), yet chooses rather to put on the character of an avenger of blood, as next of kin to the persons slain: They were my brethren, Jdg 8:19. Their other crimes might have been forgiven, at least Gideon would not have slain them himself, let them have answered it to the people; but the voice of his brethren's blood cries, cries to him, now it is in the power of his hand to avenge it, and therefore there is no remedy - by him must their blood be shed, though they were kings. Little did they think to hear of this so long after; but murder seldom goes unpunished even in this life. 3. The execution is done by Gideon himself with his own hand, because he was the avenger of blood; he bade his son slay them, for he was a near relation to the persons murdered, and fittest to be his father's substitute and representative, and he would thus train him up to the acts of justice and boldness, Jdg 8:20. But, (1.) The young man himself desired to be excused; he feared, though they were bound and could make no resistance, because he was yet a youth, and not used to such work: courage does not always run in the blood. (2.) The prisoners themselves desired that Gideon would excuse it (Jdg 8:21), begged that, if they must die, they might die by his own hand, which would be somewhat more honourable to them, and more easy; for by his great strength they would sooner be dispatched and rid out of their pain. As is the man, so is his strength. Either they mean it of themselves (they were men of such strength as called for a better hand than that young man's to overpower quickly) or of Gideon, "Thou art at thy full strength; he has not yet come to it; therefore be thou the executioner."From those that are grown up to maturity, it is expected that what they do in any service be done with so much the more strength. Gideon dispatched them quickly, and seized the ornaments that were on their camels' necks, ornaments like the moon, so it is in the margin, either badges of their royalty or perhaps of their idolatry, for Ashteroth was represented by the moon, as Baal by the sun. With there he took all their other ornaments, as appears Jdg 8:26, where we find that he did not put them to so good a use as one would have wished. The destruction of these two kings, and that of the two princes (Jdg 7:25) is long afterwards pleaded as a precedent in prayer for the ruin of others of the church's enemies, Psa 83:11, Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb, and all their princes as Zebah and Zalmunna, let them all be but off in like manner.

Matthew Henry: Jdg 8:22-28

Here is, I. Gideon's laudable modesty, after his great victory, in refusing the government which the people offered him. 1. It was honest in them to offer it: Rule thou over us, for thou hast delivered us, Jdg 8:22. They thought it very reasonable that he who had gone through the toils and perils of their deliverance should enjoy the honour and power of commanding them ever afterwards, and very desirable that he who in this great and critical juncture had had such manifest tokens of God's presence with him should ever afterwards preside in their affairs. Let us apply it to the Lord Jesus: he hath delivered us out of the hands of our enemies, our spiritual enemies, the worst and most dangerous, and therefore it is fit he should rule over us; for how can we be better ruled than by one that appears to have so great an interest in heaven and so great a kindness for this earth? We are delivered that we may serve him without fear, Luk 1:74, Luk 1:75. 2. It was honourable in him to refuse it: I will not rule over you, Jdg 8:23. What he did was with a design to serve them, not to rule them - to make them safe, easy, and happy, not to make himself great or honourable. And, as he was not ambitious of grandeur himself, so he did not covet to entail it upon his family: " My son shall not rule over you, either while I live or when I am gone, but the Lord shall still rule over you, and constitute your judges by the special designation of his own Spirit, as he has done."This intimates, (1.) His modesty, and the mean opinion he had of himself and his own merits. He thought the honour of doing good was recompence enough for all his services, which needed not to be rewarded with the honour of bearing sway. He that is greatest, let him be your minister. (2.) His piety, and the great opinion he had of God's government. Perhaps he discerned in the people a dislike of the theocracy, or divine government, a desire of a king like the nations, and thought they availed themselves of his merits as a colourable pretence to move for this change of government. But Gideon would by no means admit it. No good man can be pleased with any honour done to himself which ought to be peculiar to God. Were you baptized in the name of Paul? 1Co 1:13.

II. Gideon's irregular zeal to perpetuate the remembrance of this victory by an ephod made of the choicest of the spoils. 1. He asked the men of Israel to give him the ear-rings of their prey; for such ornaments they stripped the slain of in abundance. These he demanded, either because they were the finest gold, and therefore fittest for a religious use, or because they had had as ear-rings some superstitious signification, which he thought too well of. Aaron called for the ear-rings to make the golden calf of, Exo 32:2. These Gideon begged Jdg 8:24. And he had reason enough to think that those who offered him a crown, when he declined it, would not deny him their ear-rings, when he begged them, nor did they, Jdg 8:25. 2. He himself added the spoil he took from the kings of Midian, which, it should seem, had fallen to his share, Jdg 8:26. The generals had that part of the prey which was most splendid, the prey of divers colours, Jdg 5:30. 3. Of this he made an ephod, Jdg 8:27. It was plausible enough, and might be well intended to preserve a memorial of so divine a victory in the judge's own city. But it was a very unadvised thing to make that memorial to be an ephod, a sacred garment. I would gladly put the best construction that can be upon the actions of good men, and such a one we are sure Gideon was. But we have reason to suspect that this ephod had, as usual, a teraphim annexed to it (Hos 3:4), and that, having an altar already built by divine appointment (Jdg 6:26), which he erroneously imagined he might still use for sacrifice, he intended this for an oracle, to be consulted in doubtful cases. So the learned Dr. Spencer supposes. Each tribe having now very much its government within itself, they were too apt to covet their religion among themselves. We read very little of Shiloh, and the ark there, in all the story of the Judges. Sometimes by divine dispensation, and much oftener by the transgression of men, that law which obliged them to worship only at that one altar seems not to have been so religiously observed as one would have expected, any more than afterwards, when in the reigns even of very good kings the high places were not taken away, from which we may infer that that law had a further reach as a type of Christ, by whose mediation alone all our services are accepted. Gideon therefore, through ignorance or inconsideration, sinned in making this ephod, though he had a good intention in it. Shiloh, it is true, was not far off, but it was in Ephraim, and that tribe had lately disobliged him (v. 1), which made him perhaps not care to go so often among them as his occasions would lead him to consult the oracle, and therefore he would have one nearer home. However this might be honestly intended, and at first did little hurt, yet in process of time, (1.) Israel went a whoring after it, that is, they deserted God's altar and priesthood, being fond of change, and prone to idolatry, and having some excuse for paying respect to this ephod, because so good a man as Gideon had set it up, and by degrees their respect to it grew more and more superstitious. Note, Many are led into false ways by one false step of a good man. The beginning of sin, particularly of idolatry and will-worship, is as the letting forth of water, so it has been found in the fatal corruptions of the church of Rome; therefore leave it off before it be meddled with. (2.) It became a snare to Gideon himself, abating his zeal for the house of God in his old age, and much more to his house, who were drawn by it into sin, and it proved the ruin of the family.

III. Gideon's happy agency for the repose of Israel, Jdg 8:28. The Midianites that had been so vexatious gave them no more disturbance. Gideon, though he would not assume the honour and power of a king, governed as a judge, and did all the good offices he could for his people; so that the country was in quietness forty years. Hitherto the times of Israel had been reckoned by forties. Othniel judged forty years, Ehud eighty - just two forties, Barak forty, and now Gideon forty, providence so ordering it to bring in mind the forty years of their wandering in the wilderness. Forty years long was I grieved with this generation. And see Eze 4:6. After these, Eli ruled forty years (1Sa 4:18), Samuel and Saul forty (Act 13:21), David forty, and Solomon forty. Forty years is about an age.

Matthew Henry: Jdg 8:29-35

We have here the conclusion of the story of Gideon. 1. He lived privately, Jdg 8:29. He was not puffed up with his great honours, did not covet a palace or castle to dwell in, but retired to the house he had lived in before his elevation. Thus that brave Roman Who was called from the plough upon a sudden occasion to command the army when the action was over returned to his plough again. 2. His family was multiplied. He had many wives (therein he transgressed the law); by them he had seventy sons (Jdg 8:30), but by a concubine he had one whom he named Abimelech (which signifies, my father a king ), that proved the ruin of his family, Jdg 8:31. 3. He died in honour, in a good old age, when he had lived as long as he was capable of serving God and his country; and who would desire to live any longer? And he was buried in the sepulchre of his fathers. 4. After his death the people corrupted themselves, and went all to naught. As soon as ever Gideon was dead, who had kept them close to the worship of the God of Israel, they found themselves under no restraint, and then they went a whoring after Baalim, Jdg 8:33. They went a whoring first after another ephod (Jdg 8:27), for which irregularity Gideon had himself given them too much occasion, and now they went a whoring after another god. False worships made way for false deities. They now chose a new god (Jdg 5:8), a god of a new name, Baal-berith (a goddess, say some); Berith, some think, was Berytus, the place where the Phoenicians worshipped this idol. The name signifies the Lord of a covenant. Perhaps he was so called because his worshippers joined themselves by covenant to him, in imitation of Israel's covenanting with God; for the devil is God's ape. In this revolt of Israel to idolatry they showed, (1.) Great ingratitude to God (Jdg 8:34): They remembered not the Lord, not only who had delivered them into the hands of their enemies, to punish them for their idolatry, but who had also delivered them out of the hands of their enemies, to invite them back again into his service; both the judgments and the mercies were forgotten, and the impressions of them lost. (2.) Great ingratitude to Gideon, Jdg 8:35. A great deal of goodness he had shown unto Israel, as a father to his country, for which they ought to have been kind to his family when he was gone, for that is one way by which we ought to show ourselves grateful to our friends and benefactors, and may be returning their kindnesses when they are in their graves. But Israel showed not this kindness to Gideon's family, as we shall find in the next chapter. No wonder if those who forget their God forget their friends.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 8:13-21

Punishment of the Towns of Succoth and Pnuel, and Execution of the Captures Kings of Midian.

Jdg 8:13-14

Gideon returned victorious from the war, החרס מלמעלה , " from by the ascent ( or mountain road ) of Hecheres ," a place in front of the town of Succoth, with which we are not acquainted. This is the rendering adopted by the lxx, the Peshito, and the Arabic; but the rest of the early translators have merely guessed at the meaning. The Chaldee , which has been followed by the Rabbins and Luther , has rendered it "before sunset,"in utter opposition to the rules of the language; for although cheres is a word used poetically to denote the sun, מעלה cannot mean the setting of the sun. Aquila and Symmachus , on the other hand, confound חרס with הרים . - Gideon laid hold of a young man of the people of Succoth, and got him to write down for him the princes and elders (magistrates and rulers) of the city, - in all seventy-seven men. ויּכתּב ויּשׁאלהוּ is a short expression for "he asked him the names of the princes and elders of the city, and the boy wrote them down." אליו , lit . to him, i.e., for him.

Jdg 8:15-16

Gideon then reproached the elders with the insult they had offered him (Jdg 8:6), and had them punished with desert thorns and thistles. " Men of Succoth "( Jdg 8:15 and Jdg 8:16 ) is a general expression for "elders of Succoth"( Jdg 8:16 ); and elders a general term applied to all the representatives of the city, including the princes. אתי חרפתּם אשׁר , with regard to whom ye have despised me. אשׁר is the accusative of the more distant or second object, not the subject, as Stud . supposes. " And he taught the men of Succoth (i.e., caused them to know, made them feel, punished them) with them (the thorns)."There is no good ground for doubting the correctness of the reading ויּדע . The free renderings of the lxx, Vulg ., etc., are destitute of critical worth; and Bertheau's assertion, that if it were the Hiphil it would be written יודע , is proved to be unfounded by the defective writing in Num 16:5; Job 32:7.

Jdg 8:17

Gideon also inflicted upon Pnuel the punishment threatened in Jdg 8:9. The punishment inflicted by Gideon upon both the cities was well deserved in all respects, and was righteously executed. The inhabitants of these cities had not only acted treacherously to Israel as far as they could, from the most selfish interests, in a holy conflict for the glory of the Lord and the freedom of His people, but in their contemptuous treatment of Gideon and his host they had poured contempt upon the Lord, who had shown them to be His own soldiers before the eyes of the whole nation by the victory which He had given them over the innumerable army of the foe. Having been called by the Lord to be the deliverer and judge of Israel, it was Gideon's duty to punish the faithless cities.

Jdg 8:18-21

After punishing these cities, Gideon repaid the two kings of Midian, who had been taken prisoners, according to their doings. From the judicial proceedings instituted with regard to them (Jdg 8:18, Jdg 8:19), we learn that these kings had put the brothers of Gideon to death, and apparently not in open fight; but they had murdered them in an unrighteous and cruel manner. And Gideon made them atone for this with their own lives, according to the strict jus talionis . איפה , in Jdg 8:18, does not mean where ? but " in what condition, of what form, were the men whom he slew at Tabor? "i.e., either in the city of Tabor or at Mount Tabor (see Jdg 4:6, and Jos 19:22). The kings replied: " As thou so they "(those men), i.e., they were all as stately as thou art, " every one like the form of kings' sons. " אחד , one, for every one, like אחד אישׁ in 2Ki 15:20, or more frequently אישׁ alone. As the men who had been slain were Gideon's own brothers, he swore to those who had done the deed, i.e., to the two kings, " As truly as Jehovah liveth, if ye had let them live I should not have put you to death; "and then commanded his first-born son Jether to slay them, for the purpose of adding the disgrace of falling by the hand of a boy. "But the boy drew not his sword from fear, because he was yet a boy." And the kings then said to Gideon, " Rise thou and stab us, for as the man so is his strength, "i.e., such strength does not belong to a boy, but to a man. Thereupon Gideon slew them, and took the little moons upon the necks of their camels as booty. " The little moons "were crescent-shaped ornaments of silver or gold, such as men and women wore upon their necks (see Jdg 8:26, and Isa 3:18), and which they also hung upon the necks of camels-a custom still prevalent in Arabia ( see Schröder, de vestitu mul. hebr . pp. 39, 40, and Wellsted, Reisen in Arab . i. p. 209).

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 8:22-23

Gideon's Remaining Acts, and Death. - Jdg 8:22, Jdg 8:23. As Gideon had so gloriously delivered Israel from the severe and long oppression on the part of the Midianites, the Israelites offered him an hereditary crown. " The men of Israel "were hardly all the twelve tribes, but probably only the northern tribes of the western part of the land already mentioned in Jdg 6:35, who had suffered the most severely from the Midianitish oppression, and had been the first to gather round Gideon to make an attack upon the foe. The temptation to accept the government of Israel was resisted by this warrior of God. " Neither I nor my son shall rule over you; Jehovah shall rule over you, "was his reply to this offer, containing an evident allusion to the destination and constitution of the tribes of Israel as a nation which Jehovah had chosen to be His own possession, and to which He had just made himself known in so conspicuous a manner as their omnipotent Ruler and King. This refusal of the regal dignity on the part of Gideon is not at variance with the fact, that Moses had already foreseen the possibility that at some future time the desire for a king would arise in the nation, and had given them a law for the king expressly designed for such circumstances as these (Deu 17:14.). For Gideon did not decline the honour because Jehovah was King in Israel, i.e., because he regarded an earthly monarchy in Israel as irreconcilable with the heavenly monarchy of Jehovah, but simply because he thought the government of Jehovah in Israel amply sufficient, and did not consider either himself or his sons called to found an earthly monarchy.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 8:24

Gideon resisted the temptation to put an earthly crown upon his head, from true fidelity to Jehovah; but he yielded to another temptation, which this appeal on the part of the people really involved, namely, the temptation to secure to himself for the future the position to which the Lord had called and exalted him. The Lord had called him to be the deliverer of Israel by visibly appearing in His angel, and had not only accepted the gift which he offered Him, as a well-pleasing sacrifice, but had also commanded him to build an altar, and by offering an atoning burnt-sacrifice to re-establish the worship of Jehovah in his family and tribe, and to restore the favour of God to His people once more. Lastly, the Lord had made His will known to him again and again; whilst by the glorious victory which He had given to him and to his small band over the powerful army of the foe, He had confirmed him as His chosen servant to be the deliverer and judge of Israel. The relation which Gideon thus sustained to the Lord he imagined that he ought to preserve; and therefore, after declining the royal dignity, he said to the people, " I will request of you one request, that ye give me every one the ring that he has received as booty. "This request the historian explains by adding the remark: " for they (the enemy) had golden rings, for they were Ishmaelites, "from whom therefore the Israelites were able to get an abundance of rings as booty. Ishmaelites is the general name for the nomad tribes of Arabia, to whom the Midianites also belonged (as in Gen 37:25).

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 8:25-26

This request of Gideon's was cheerfully fulfilled: " They spread out the cloth (brought for collecting the rings), and threw into it every one the ring that he had received as booty. " Simlah , the upper garment, was for the most part only a large square piece of cloth. The weight of these golden rings amounted to 1700 shekels, i.e., about 50 lbs., ( מן לבד ) separate from, i.e., beside, the remaining booty, for which Gideon had not asked, and which the Israelites kept for themselves, viz., the little moons, the ear-pendants ( netiphoth , lit . little drops, probably pearl-shaped ear-drops: see Isa 3:19), and the purple clothes which were worn by the kings of Midian (i.e., which they had on), and also apart from the neck-bands upon the necks of their camels. Instead of the anakoth or necklaces (Jdg 8:26), the saharonim , or little moons upon the necks of the camels, are mentioned in Jdg 8:21 as the more valuable portion of these necklaces. Even at the present day the Arabs are accustomed to ornament the necks of these animals "with a band of cloth or leather, upon which small shells called cowries are strung or sewed in the form of a crescent. The sheiks add silver ornaments to these, which make a rich booty in time of war"( Wellsted , Reise, i. p. 209). The Midianitish kings had their camels ornamented with golden crescents. This abundance of golden ornaments will not surprise us, when we consider that the Arabs still carry their luxurious tastes for such things to a very great excess. Wellsted (i. p. 224) states that "the women in Omân spend considerable amounts in the purchase of silver ornaments, and their children are literally laden with them. I have sometimes counted fifteen ear-rings upon each side; and the head, breast, arms, and ankles are adorned with the same profusion."As the Midianitish army consisted of 130,000 men, of whom 15,000 only remained at the commencement of the last engagement, the Israelites may easily have collected 5000 golden rings, or even more, which might weigh 1700 shekels.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 8:27

"And Gideon made it into an ephod," i.e., used the gold of the rings obtained from the booty for making an ephod. There is no necessity, however, to understand this as signifying that 1700 shekels or 50 lbs. of gold had been used for the ephod itself, but simply that the making of the ephod was accomplished with this gold. The word ephod does not signify an image of Jehovah, or an idol, as Gesenius and others maintain, but the shoulder-dress of the high priest, no doubt including the choshen belonging to it, with the Urim and Thummim, as in 1Sa 14:3; 1Sa 21:10; 1Sa 23:6, 1Sa 23:9, etc. The material for this was worked throughout with gold threads; and in addition to that there were precious stones set in gold braid upon the shoulder-pieces of the ephod and upon the choshen, and chains made of gold twist for fastening the choshen upon the ephod (see Ex 28:6-30). Now, if 50 lbs. of gold could not be used for these things, there were also fourteen precious stones to be procured, and the work itself to be paid for, so that 50 lbs. of gold might easily be devoted to the preparation of this state dress. The large quantity of gold, therefore, does not warrant us in introducing arbitrarily into the text the establishment of a formal sanctuary, and the preparation of a golden image of Jehovah in the form of a bull, as Bertheau has done, since there is no reference to פּסל or מסכה , as in Judg 17-18; and even the other words of the text do not point to the founding of a sanctuary and the setting up of an image of Jehovah.

(Note: Oehler has correctly observed in Herzog's Cyclopaedia, that Bertheau acts very arbitrarily when he represents Gideon as setting up the image of a bull, as Jeroboam did afterwards, since there is nothing to sustain it in the account itself. Why cannot Gideon have worshipped without any image of Jehovah, with the help of the altar mentioned in Jdg 6:24, which was a symbol of Jehovah's presence, and remained standing till the historian's own time?)

The expression which follows, אתו ויּצּג , does not affirm that "he set it up , "but may also mean, "he kept it in his city of Ophrah." הצּג is never used to denote the setting up of an image or statue, and signifies not only to put up, but also to lay down (e.g., Jdg 6:37), and to let a thing stand, or leave behind (Gen 33:15). The further remark of the historian, " and all Israel went thither a whoring after it, and it became a snare to Gideon and his house, "does not presuppose the founding of a sanctuary or temple in Ophrah, and the setting up of a golden calf there. In what the whoring of Israel after the ephod, i.e., the idolatry of the Israelites with Gideon's ephod which was kept in Ophrah, consisted, cannot be gathered or determined from the use of the ephod in the worship of Jehovah under the Mosaic law. "The breastplate upon the coat, and the holy lot, were no doubt used in connection with idolatry"( Oehler ), and Gideon had an ephod made in his town of Ophrah, that he might thereby obtain revelations from the Lord. We certainly are not for a moment to think of an exposure of the holy coat for the people to worship. It is far more probable that Gideon put on the ephod and wore it as a priest, when he wished to inquire and learn the will of the Lord. It is possible that he also sacrificed to the Lord upon the altar that was built at Ophrah (Jdg 6:24). The motive by which he was led to do this was certainly not merely ambition, as Bertheau supposes, impelling the man who, along with his followers, and maintained an independent attitude towards the tribe of Ephraim in the war itself (Jdg 8:1.), to act independently of the common sanctuary of the congregation which was within the territory of Ephraim, and also of the office of the high priest in the time of peace as well. For there is not the slightest trace to be found of such ambition as this in anything that he did during the conflict with the Midianites. The germs of Gideon's error, which became a snare to him and to his house, lie unquestionably deeper than this, namely, in the fact that the high-priesthood had probably lost its worth in the eyes of the people on account of the worthlessness of its representatives, so that they no longer regarded the high priest as the sole or principal medium of divine revelation; and therefore Gideon, to whom the Lord had manifested himself directly, as He had not to any judge or leader of the people since the time of Joshua, might suppose that he was not acting in violation of the law, when he had an ephod made, and thus provided himself with a substratum or vehicle for inquiring the will of the Lord. His sin therefore consisted chiefly in his invading the prerogative of the Aaronic priesthood, drawing away the people from the one legitimate sanctuary, and thereby not only undermining the theocratic unity of Israel, but also giving an impetus to the relapse of the nation into the worship of Baal after his death. This sin became a snare to him and to his house.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 8:28-32

The history of Gideon is concluded in Jdg 8:28-32. - Jdg 8:28. The Midianites had been so humiliated that they lifted up their head no more, and the land of Israel had rest forty years " in the days of Gideon, "i.e., as long as Gideon lived.

Jdg 8:29-31

Before the account of his death, a few other notices respecting his family are introduced for the purpose of preparing the way for the following history of the doings of his sons, in which the sin of Gideon came to a head, and the judgment burst upon his house. " And Jerubbaal, the son of Joash, went and dwelt in his house. "Both the word ויּלך , which simply serves to bring out the fact more vividly (see the remarks on Exo 2:1), and also the choice of the name Jerubbaal , merely serve to give greater prominence to the change, from the heat of the war against the Midianites to the quiet retirement of domestic life. Instead of accepting the crown that was offered him and remaining at the head of the nation, the celebrated Baal-fighter retired into private life again. In addition to the seventy sons of his many wives, there was a son born to him by a concubine, who lived at Shechem and is called his maid-servant in Jdg 9:18, and to this son he gave the name of Abimelech , i.e., king's father. את־שׁמו ויּשׂם is not the same as את־שׁמו קרא , to give a person a name, but signifies to add a name, or give a surname (see Neh 9:7, and Dan 5:12 in the Chaldee). It follows from this, that Abimelech received this name from Gideon as a cognomen answering to his character, and therefore not at the time of his birth, but when he grew up and manifested such qualities as led to the expectation that he would be a king's father.

Jdg 8:32

Gideon died at a good old age (see Gen 15:15; Gen 25:8), and therefore also died a peaceful death (not so his sons; see Judg 9), and was buried in his father's grave at Ophrah (Jdg 6:11).

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 8:33-35

Jdg 8:33-35 form the introduction to the history of Gideon's sons.

Jdg 8:33

After Gideon's death the Israelites fell once more into the Baal-worship which Gideon had rooted out of his father's city (Jdg 6:25.), and worshipped Baal-berith as their God. Baal-berith , the covenant Baal (equivalent to El-berith , the covenant god, Jdg 9:46), is not Baal as the god of covenants, but, according to Gen 14:13, Baal as a god in covenant, i.e., Baal with whom they had made a covenant, just as the Israelites had their faithful covenant God in Jehovah (see Movers , Phöniz. i. p. 171). The worship of Baal-berith, as performed at Shechem according to Jdg 9:46, was an imitation of the worship of Jehovah, an adulteration of that worship, in which Baal was put in the place of Jehovah (see Hengstenberg , Dissertations on the Pentateuch, vol. ii. p. 81).

Jdg 8:34-35

In this relapse into the worship of Baal they not only forgot Jehovah, their Deliverer from all their foes, but also the benefits which they owed to Gideon, and showed no kindness to his house in return for all the good which he had shown to Israel. The expression Jerubbaal-Gideon is chosen by the historian here, not for the purely outward purpose of laying express emphasis upon the identity of Gideon and Jerubbaal ( Bertheau ), but to point to what Gideon, the Baal-fighter, had justly deserved from the people of Israel.

Constable: Jdg 3:7--17:1

II. THE RECORD OF ISRAEL'S APOSTASY 3:7--16:31

Israel's Judges
Judge	Scripture	Israel's Oppressors		Length in Years
		Nation(s)	King(s)	Oppression	Judgeship	Peace
Othniel	3:7-11	Mesopotamia	Cushan-rishathaim	8(ca. 1358-1350 B.C.)		40(ca. 1350-1310 B.C.)
Ehud	3:12-30	Moab (with Ammon & Amalek)	Eglon	18		80
Shamgar	3:31	Philistia
Deborah	Chs. 4-5	Canaan	Jabin	20(ca. 1250-1230 B.C.)		40(ca. 1230-1190 B.C.)
Gideon	Chs. 6-8	Midian (with Amalek & Arabia)	Zebah & Zalmunna	7		40(ca. 1180-1140 B.C.)
Tola	10:1-2				23(ca. 1117-1094 B.C.)
Jair	10:3-5				22(ca. 1115-1093 B.C.)
Jephthah	10:8-12:7	Ammon		18(ca. 1123-1105 B.C.)	6
Ibzan	12:8-10				7
Elon	12:11-12				10
Abdon	12:13-15				8
Samson	Chs. 13-16	Philistia		40(ca. 1124-1084 B.C.)	20(ca. 1105-1085 B.C.)

"The judges are twelve in number, reckoning either Deborah or Barek as a judge and omitting Abimelech, whose status in fact depended wholly on his descent from Gideon, and who was in effect not a deliverer', and a judge' only in the sense of a local ruler on his own account."⁶⁰

Notice that the writer recorded seven examples of oppression and deliverance (by Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson). This sevenfold scheme gives the impression of totality to Israel's degeneration. It also suggests that the writer viewed these disasters as fulfillments of the curses in Leviticus 26 where the number seven occurs four times (Lev. 26:18, 21, 24, and 28; cf. Deut. 28:25).⁶¹

The total number of judges cited is 12. By selecting 12 judges the writer may also have been suggesting that all 12 tribes of Israel had apostatized. One writer argued that these 12 judges each did their work in a different month, thus adding another impression of completeness to the record.⁶²

Certain formulaic expressions appear in 2:11-23 and then recur in the record of Israel's apostasy (3:7-16:31). However, as noted in the table below, they appear with less frequency as the narrative proceeds. Having established the pattern, the writer did not feel compelled to repeat these expressions as frequently since the reader learns to anticipate them as the narrative unfolds. The breakdown of these expressions is a rhetorical device that parallels and reflects the general moral and spiritual disintegration in Israel as a whole.⁶³

Expression	Othniel	Ehud	Deborah	Gideon	Jephthah	Samson
The Israelites did evil (2:11-13).	3:7	3:12	4:1	6:1	10:6	13:1
Yahweh gave them over (2:14).	3:8	3:12	4:2	6:1	10:7	13:1
The Israelites cried out (2:15, 18).	3:9	3:15	4:3	6:7	10:10
Yahweh raised up a deliverer (2:16, 18).	3:9	3:15
Yahweh gave the oppressor to the deliverer (2:18).	3:10	3:28
The land had rest.	3:11	3:30		5:31	8:28

Constable: Jdg 6:1--10:6

D. The fourth apostasy 6:1-10:5

The writer of Judges structured this book so the story of Gideon would be its focal center.

"Within the main body of the book, seven major narrative blocks can be noted. Moreover, there are certain parallel features between these narratives so that the entire book reflects a carefully worked symmetrical pattern.¹³² Furthermore this pattern has as its focal point the Gideon narrative in 6:1-8:32.

"A Introduction, Part I (1:1-2:5)

B Introduction, Part II (2:6-3:6)

C Othniel Narrative (3:7-11)

D Ehud Narrative (3:12-31)

E Deborah-Barak Narrative (4:1-5:31)

F Gideon Narrative (6:1-8:32)

E' Abimelech Narrative (8:33-10:5)

D' Jephthah Narrative (10:6-12:15)

C' Samson Narrative (13:1-16:31)

B' Epilogue, Part I (17:1-18:31)

A' Epilogue, Part II (19:1-21:25)

"This arrangement suggests that the Gideon narrative has a unique contribution to make to the theological development of the book. As the nation went from one cycle of discipline to the next, there was a continual deterioration. Also there was a shift in the quality' of the judges themselves as the book advances. The Gideon narrative seems to mark a notable turning point."¹³³

Constable: Jdg 6:1--8:33

1. The story of Gideon 6:1-8:32

Tanner also pointed out that the Gideon narrative consists of five primary structural sections.

"The first section (6:1-10) provides the introduction and setting before Gideon's debut, the second section (6:11-32) gives the commissioning of Gideon as deliverer of Israel, the third section (6:33-7:18) presents the preparation for the battle, the fourth section (7:19-8:21) recounts the defeat of the Midianite army, and the fifth section (8:22-32) records the conclusion to Gideon's life after the victory over Midian. Yet thematic parallels exist between the first and fifth sections and between the second and fourth sections, thus giving the whole narrative a symmetrical pattern:

A 6:1-10

B 6:11-32

C 6:33-7:18

B' 7:19-8:21

A' 8:22-32"¹³⁴

"The history of Gideon and his family is related very fully, because the working of the grace and righteousness of the faithful covenant God was so obviously displayed therein, that it contained a rich treasure of instruction and warning for the church of the Lord in all ages."¹³⁵

Other scholars divide the Gideon narrative into three parts: God's punishment and deliverance of Israel (6:1-8:3), Gideon's punishment and subjugation of Israel (8:4-28), and Gideon's legacy (8:29-9:57).¹³⁶

Constable: Jdg 8:1--16:31

B. Present Failures vv. 8-16

Jude next expounded the errors of the false teachers in his day to warn his readers even more strongly. A feature of Jude's style is that he referred to certain Old Testament types (vv. 5-7 and 11) or prophecies (vv. 14-15 and 17-18) and then proceeded to interpret them as fulfilled by the false teachers (vv. 8-10, 12-13, 16, and 19).³⁸

"Following his illustrations of the past fate of apostates (vv. 5-7), Jude turns to a direct attack upon the apostates who are invading the churches being addressed."³⁹

Constable: Jdg 8:1--9:57

1. The nature of the error vv. 8-9

v. 8 Jude now pinpointed the three errors he had just illustrated and accused the false teachers of all three: lust (v. 7), rebellion (v. 5), and irreverence (v. 6). "By dreaming" probably refers to all three errors. We should probably understand Jude to mean that the false teachers justified their actions by citing visions and dreams they claimed to have had (cf. Col. 2:18).

"Their perverted views and unrestrained conduct made them like dreamers living in the arbitrary fancies of their own imagination; they substituted the unreal world of their fancies for the real world of divine truth and righteousness."⁴⁰

v. 9 The presumption of the false teachers stands out boldly in comparison with Michael's submission and reverence in dealing with another powerful angel, Satan.

"Michael seems to be the most powerful of the holy angels."⁴¹

Michael would not treat the devil flippantly or reply to him rudely. How much more then should the false teachers submit to and respect God?

"They use language of good angels which Michael would not use of a bad one."⁴²

"The point of contrast between the false teachers and Michael is not that Michael treated the devil with respect, and the moral is not that we should be polite even to the devil. The point of contrast is that Michael could not reject the devil's accusation on his own authority. Even though the devil was motivated by malice and Michael recognized that his accusation was slanderous, he could not himself dismiss the devil's case, because he was not the judge. All he could do was ask the Lord, who alone is judge, to condemn Satan for his slander. The moral is therefore that no one is a law to himself, an autonomous moral authority."⁴³

It is also dangerous for us to confront Satan directly and to argue with him since he is much stronger than we are.

Jude cited this incident as historical. The book from which he evidently got it was an apocryphal one, The Assumption of Moses.

"No matter whence or how an inspired writer obtained his information, the Holy Spirit enabled him to sift out and adequately to present only what is genuine, true."⁴⁴

Constable: Jdg 8:13-17

The punishment of Succoth and Penuel 8:13-17

The ascent of Heres (v. 13) appears to have been an inclined roadway or pass leading to that town presumably in the Jabbok Valley near Penuel and Succoth. Gideon's severe punishment of the men of these towns was just. They had selfishly refused to assist God's appointed judge in His holy war for Yahweh's glory and His people's good. They had also shown contempt for the soldiers God had signally honored with supernatural victory. It was Gideon's duty as a judge in Israel to punish these compromising and selfish cities. The severity of his punishment doubtless impressed the other Israelites with the seriousness of their offense. However, one cannot miss the contrast between Gideon's impatience and ruthlessness with the Israelites and Yahweh's patience and grace with His people.

"Gideon's behavior could be justified if Penuel were a Canaanite city, but these were fellow Israelites! His character has been transformed again--he acted like a general out of control, no longer bound by rules of civility, let alone national loyalty."¹⁷⁹

Constable: Jdg 8:18-21

The execution of the Midianite kings 8:18-21

Gideon took his prisoners back to Ophrah where the following events evidently took place. The Midianite kings had apparently executed Gideon's brothers sometime before the recent battle, perhaps during one of the Midianites' previous raids. It seems that Gideon was unable to avenge his brothers' deaths then due, most likely, to the Midianites' superiority. Now Gideon had the upper hand.

Gideon appears to have been an imposing person physically. The Midianite kings said his brothers resembled him and looked like the sons of a king, perhaps poised and aristocratic in bearing. Another explanation is that the enemy kings hoped to gain Gideon's favor by flattery. This seems unlikely since Gideon recognized his brothers by their description (v. 19). Gideon probably would not have applied the lex talionis as he did here if his brothers had died in battle. The Midianite kings had evidently murdered them.

It was a great disgrace to die at the hand of a woman or a youth in the ancient Near East. This implied that the person killed could not overcome his slayer. Gideon's intent was to punish the kings with humiliation as well as death for their treatment of his brothers (v. 20). However, Gideon's young son was not ready for this adult work so Gideon killed them himself (v. 21). The crescent-shaped ornaments that Gideon took from the kings' camels (v. 21) were presumably gold and silver. The Arabians commonly wore these around their necks and used them to decorate their camels. These particular ornaments would have been very valuable since they belonged to kings.

"Such crescents are mentioned in the Bible only in this chapter and Isaiah 3:18, but crescent-moon-shaped ornaments have been found at many excavated sites in Palestine. They are widely used by Arab peoples up to the present day."¹⁸⁰

With the execution of Zebah and Zalmunna and the destruction of their army, Midian's domination of Israel ended. Though the seven years of this oppression were not as long as some of Israel's other periods of discipline, this appears to have been an unusually oppressive subjugation.

Constable: Jdg 8:22-32

Later events in Gideon's life 8:22-32

Even though the next events recorded (vv. 22-28) followed immediately the ones just reported (vv. 18-21), they had greater significance in later years than at that moment in history.

Constable: Jdg 8:22-28

Gideon's compromise 8:22-28

The supernatural victory God had given His people elevated Gideon into national recognition. Some of the men of Israel invited Gideon to be their king and to begin a dynasty of rulers (v. 22). Perhaps they were from the northern and western tribes, had participated in the battle, and were present at the execution of Zebah and Zalmunna.

Gideon wisely refused their flattering offer, but he failed to give credit to Yahweh for the victory (cf. ch. 5). God had made provision for an Israelite king in the Mosaic Law (Deut. 17:14-20). Evidently Gideon believed Israel was better off under the current arrangement of judgeships whereby Yahweh, Israel's true king, would raise up deliverers like himself when He saw fit (v. 23). This was a wise decision, and it was in harmony with God's will.

However, Gideon perceived in his popular appreciation by the Israelites an opportunity to do something that he undoubtedly believed would be a help to his people. Unfortunately it became a spiritual snare to them. He decided to make an ephod (cf. 17:5; 18:14-20; Exod. 28:6-35).

". . . there are three possible alternatives [concerning what this ephod was]: that it was a garment after the pattern of the high-priestly ephod but with an unusual degree of gold ornamentation; that it was a replica of the high-priestly garment made of pure gold; or that it was a free-standing image [cf. 1 Sam. 2:28; 14:3]."¹⁸¹

"The narrator does not reveal the nature of the image, but it seems most likely that he [Gideon] has reconstructed the shrine to Baal he earlier had torn down at Yahweh's command (6:25-32). . . . Instead of himself, an image of God, clothed with the Spirit of Yahweh (6:34), Gideon created his own image and clothed it with pagan materials."¹⁸²

Gideon made this ephod from some of the jewelry the Israelites had taken from the Midianites. The writer called them "Ishmaelites" (v. 24), a term that described loosely any trading nomadic group (cf. Gen. 37:25, 27, 28; 39:1).¹⁸³

The grateful Israelites willingly donated a large quantity of gold jewelry, ". . . between 40 and 75 pounds' weight, depending on whether the light or heavy shekel was employed."¹⁸⁴ Gideon took this gold and had it fashioned into an ephod, which he displayed publicly in his hometown of Ophrah. Even though Gideon had professed to reject kingship, he was behaving more and more like a king (cf. Deut. 17:17).

Whatever this ephod was, it became an object of worship and a spiritual stumbling block to the Israelites (v. 27). Thus Gideon became the first official sponsor of idolatry in Israel. He was doing what was right in his own eyes (cf. 17:6; 21:25).

". . . the expression and all Israel played the harlot after it there (RSV) suggests that the form of worship inspired by his ephod was Canaanite in origin."¹⁸⁵

"It is . . . probable that Gideon put on the ephod and wore it as a priest, when he wished to inquire and learn the will of the Lord. . . . The germs of Gideon's error, which became a snare to him and to his house, lie unquestionably . . . in the fact that the high-priesthood had probably lost its worth in the eyes of the people on account of the worthlessness of its representatives [cf. 1 Sam. 1:3; 2:22], so that they no longer regarded the high priest as the sole or principal medium of divine revelation; and therefore Gideon, to whom the Lord had manifested himself directly, as He had not to any judge or leader of the people since the time of Joshua, might suppose that he was not acting in violation of the law, when he had an ephod made, and thus provided himself with a substratum or vehicle for inquiring the will of the Lord. His sin therefore consisted chiefly in his invading the prerogative of the Aaronic priesthood, drawing away the people from the one legitimate sanctuary, and thereby not only undermining the theocratic unity of Israel, but also giving an impetus to the relapse of the nation into the worship of Baal after his death. This sin became a snare to him and to his house."¹⁸⁶

"Perhaps it is easier to honour God in some courageous action in the limelight of a time of national emergency than it is to honour Him consistently in the ordinary, everyday life, which requires a different kind of courage. Gideon, who came through the test of adversity with flying colours, was not the first nor the last to be less successful in the test of prosperity."¹⁸⁷

"I would even suggest we go ephod-making in the way we ignore God's provision of the Lord's covenant meal as the means of Christian renewal. We plan, organize, and concoct revivals,' seminars, retreats, or encounters, or we pressure congregations to come forward and rededicate their lives to Christ. All the while we neglect what God has provided: the Lord's Supper."¹⁸⁸

The final verse in this pericope (v. 28) draws the account of Gideon's defeat of the Midianites to a close. The land rested from oppression and war 40 years following his victory (ca. 1180-1140 B.C.). This is the last period of peace that the writer of Judges mentioned.

Constable: Jdg 8:29-32

Gideon's family 8:29-32

These verses wrap up the story of Gideon and introduce the story of Abimelech that follows (ch. 9).

Gideon enjoyed the fruits of his heroism for the rest of his life. He was wealthy enough to afford many wives who bore him 70 sons. In this respect Gideon lived like many ancient Near Eastern kings who normally married many wives and fathered many offspring. He followed pagan cultural customs and violated God's will (Gen. 2:24). He not only accumulated much gold as a king (v. 26), but he also collected many wives as a king.

He also kept a concubine in Shechem. The Canaanites controlled this city at this time (cf. 9:2, 28). The concubine appears from references in chapter 9 to have been a Canaanite. The Israelites were to eradicate the Canaanites, but their leader decided to marry one (cf. Exod. 34:15-16; Deut. 7:3-4). The son this woman bore Gideon was evidently a young man of outstanding promise since Gideon named him Abimelech (lit. My father is king). This name was probably a cognomen (nickname) rather than a proper name given to him at birth (cf. Gen. 20:2; 26:1; et al.). In giving it Gideon may have hoped that this son might one day become the father of Israel's first king. Alternatively it is possible that even though Gideon had formally refused the office of king the people may have referred to him popularly as their king.

"The name of his son Abimelech (my father is king') probably does not mean that Gideon regarded himself as monarch. In personal names my father' normally refers to God; so Gideon could have been reemphasizing the assertion of v. 23 ["the LORD shall rule over you"]."¹⁸⁹

However, the fact that Abimelech regarded himself as the successor to Gideon suggests that he understood the king in view to be Gideon (cf. 9:2). Probably "Abimelech" reflects Gideon's perception of his own status in Israel.

The sons of concubines usually did not partake of their father's inheritances in the ancient Near East, however. People considered them the heirs of and members of the family of their mother but not their father. Abimelech, therefore, was different from Gideon's other 70 sons.

Gideon eventually died, and his survivors buried him in his ancestral tomb (v. 32).

"In relation to the book as a whole, Gideon receives attention as the focal point because he represents a significant shift in the quality' of the judges that served Israel. A progressive deterioration begins with Othniel and continues through Samson. Othniel was almost an idealized judge, and Samson was a debauched self-centered individual. God used each judge, whether strong or weak, to accomplish His sovereign will and effect deliverance for the theocratic nation. Gideon, on the other hand, stands somewhere between these two extremes and represents the primary turning point from the better' judges to the weaker' ones."¹⁹⁰

Constable: Jdg 8:33-35

2. Israel's departure from Yahweh 8:33-35

After Gideon's death the Israelites again wandered from the Lord (cf. 3:7, 12; 4:1; 6:1; 10:6; 13:1). They even made a covenant with Baal in disobedience to God's law. "Baal-berith" (v. 33) means "Baal of the covenant." Ironically Shechem, the town where the Israelites had renewed their covenant with Yahweh when they entered the land (Josh. 8; 24), became a site and center of this Baal worship (9:46).

"In line with common practice, the covenant-making function of Yahweh was simply transferred to Baal so that he, not Yahweh, was viewed as the god who made Shechem a holy place."¹⁹¹

Perhaps the site had been sacred to the Canaanites before the Israelites took it over and "converted" it. Now it was back in Canaanite hands.¹⁹²

The Israelites in time forgot Yahweh and His many deliverances of them as well as the family of Gideon, their hero who had proved that Baal could not contend for himself (v. 35; cf. 6:31-32).

"Gideon personifies the typical Israelite in the period of the judges. He is more than half Canaanite in his outlook. He does not know how to relate to God. He does not want to get involved in the Lord's work. He is not beyond using his position for personal gain and influence.

". . . recognizing the deficiencies in the man thrusts into sharper relief the contrasting patience and mercy of God . . .

"Gideon is a man God used in spite of himself. He is a rough vessel if ever there was one. But God is determined to get His work done. In the absence of genuinely qualified leadership, He will use surprising vessels."¹⁹³

Most of the major judges in the Book of Judges lacked character that we would call "above reproach" (1 Tim. 3:2). God uses vessels unto dishonor as well as vessels unto honor to accomplish His work (2 Tim. 2:20-21). This in no way justifies ungodliness. It simply magnifies the sovereignty and grace of God in using rough material if He chooses to do so for His own purposes.

Guzik: Jdg 8:1-35

Judges 8 - Pursuing After Midian

A. Gideon battles Midianite kings and contentious Israelites.

1. (1-3) Ephraim's complaint and Gideon's answer.

Now the men of Ephraim said to him, "Why have you done this to us by not calling us when you went to fight with the Midianites?" And they reprimanded him sharply. So he said to them, "What have I done now in comparison with you? Is not the gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer? God has delivered into your hands the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. And what was I able to do in comparison with you?" Then their anger toward him subsided when he said that.

a. And they reprimanded him sharply: It seems that the men of Ephraim loved to be in the pre-eminent position. They were insulted that they would not get the credit for the victory over the Midianites. Jealousy always hinders the work of God.

b. What have I done now in comparison with you? Gideon did not challenge their pride; he merely challenged them to get involved in the work of God that was at hand. His reply was a wise way to deal with contention when there is work for the LORD to be done.

2. (4-9) The sins of Succoth and Penuel.

When Gideon came to the Jordan, he and the three hundred men who were with him crossed over, exhausted but still in pursuit. Then he said to the men of Succoth, "Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me, for they are exhausted, and I am pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian." And the leaders of Succoth said, "Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your army?" So Gideon said, "For this cause, when the LORD has delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers!" Then he went up from there to Penuel and spoke to them in the same way. And the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. So he also spoke to the men of Penuel, saying, "When I come back in peace, I will tear down this tower!"

a. Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me: Through Gideon, the call came to the people of the city of Succoth to support those who fought in the battle. They were not asked to engage in the actual battle, but simply to support those on the front lines.

b. Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your army? Instead of help, the people of Succoth and Penuel had an excuse. They didn't want to support Israel in the fight against Midian until the battle was won.

i. We can imagine that this was discouraging for Gideon and those fighting the battle. They didn't ask the people of Succoth and Penuel to fight on the front lines, only to support those who did. Yet they were unwilling and made excuses. When we set out to do the LORD's work, often the resistance we face is from our friends. We can't let this hinder or discourage our work.

c. When I come back in peace, I will tear down this tower! Gideon knew he would win the battle, with or without the help of the people of Succoth and Penuel (when I come back in peace). Yet he vowed to take revenge on these cities that refused to help the army of Israel at this strategic time.

3. (10-12) Two Midianite kings and their armies are routed.

Now Zebah and Zalmunna were at Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand, all who were left of all the army of the people of the East; for one hundred and twenty thousand men who drew the sword had fallen. Then Gideon went up by the road of those who dwell in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah; and he attacked the army while the camp felt secure. When Zebah and Zalmunna fled, he pursued them; and he took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and routed the whole army.

a. He attacked the army while the camp felt secure: Gideon, continuing in the boldness of the LORD, led a courageous surprise attack. This wasn't 300 attacking the vast army described in Judges 7:12, but it was still a small army against a much larger army.

i. We can suppose that Gideon was bold enough to do this because he saw God do great things in similar circumstances before. The previous work of God encouraged him to trust God for great things in the present.

b. He pursued them . . . and routed the whole army: This shows the persistence of Gideon. He fought until the battle was won, and he went after the leaders of the opposition.

4. (13-17) Gideon repays Succoth and Penuel.

Then Gideon the son of Joash returned from battle, from the Ascent of Heres. And he caught a young man of the men of Succoth and interrogated him; and he wrote down for him the leaders of Succoth and its elders, seventy-seven men. Then he came to the men of Succoth and said, "Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you ridiculed me, saying, 'Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your weary men?'" And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth. Then he tore down the tower of Penuel and killed the men of the city.

a. He came to the men of Succoth and said: The men of this city didn't want to help Gideon or his army before victory was assured. They refused to help Gideon by faith, and so Gideon will punish them as he promised.

b. He took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth: Apparently Gideon publicly whipped the leaders of the city of Succoth with thorns and briers as a method of public rebuke.

c. He tore down the tower of Penuel and killed the men of the city: The text does not make it clear, but we suppose there was a justification for this severe penalty. Perhaps the people of Penuel were significant supporters of the Midianites and traitors against Israel.

5. (18-21) Gideon repays the two Midianite kings.

And he said to Zebah and Zalmunna, "What kind of men were they whom you killed at Tabor?" So they answered, "As you are, so were they; each one resembled the son of a king." Then he said, "They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As the LORD lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you." And he said to Jether his firstborn, "Rise, kill them!" But the youth would not draw his sword; for he was afraid, because he was still a youth. So Zebah and Zalmunna said, "Rise yourself, and kill us; for as a man is, so is his strength." So Gideon arose and killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and took the crescent ornaments that were on their camels' necks.

a. They were my brothers, the sons of my mother: Apparently these two Midianite kings were responsible for the death of Gideon's brothers. Gideon wanted this known and confessed before he executed these kings.

b. Rise yourself, and kill us: Zebah and Zalmunna knew they deserved death and even encouraged their executioner.

B. Israel under Gideon as a judge.

1. (22-23) Gideon refuses to be made king.

Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, "Rule over us, both you and your son, and your grandson also; for you have delivered us from the hand of Midian." But Gideon said to them, "I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the LORD shall rule over you."

a. Ruler over us: The desire for a human king over Israel started early in the nation's history. Hundreds of years later - in the days of Samuel the prophet and judge - God will give Israel the king they ask for.

b. I will not rule over you: This was a good response from Gideon. He understood that it was not his place to take the throne over Israel, and that the LORD God was king over Israel.

i. Though Gideon said he didn't want to be a king, in the rest of the chapter he acted like one. His words were humble but his actions were not. It is easier to talk about humility and service to God than it is to actually live it.

2. (24-26) Gideon assumes a fortune.

Then Gideon said to them, "I would like to make a request of you, that each of you would give me the earrings from his plunder." For they had gold earrings, because they were Ishmaelites. So they answered, "We will gladly give them." And they spread out a garment, and each man threw into it the earrings from his plunder. Now the weight of the gold earrings that he requested was one thousand seven hundred shekels of gold, besides the crescent ornaments, pendants, and purple robes which were on the kings of Midian, and besides the chains that were around their camels' necks.

a. That each of you would give me the earrings from his plunder: This didn't seem like much to ask for, yet when it was added up, it came to more than 50 pounds of gold. This was quite a fortune.

b. We will gladly give them: The people were happy to give this, and it is hard to say that Gideon did not deserve this huge fortune. At the same time it was inappropriate, because it lifted him far above the level of the people he would lead, and it was at their expense.

i. A general rule of thumb is that Christian leaders who make their living from the gifts of God's people should live at the level of their own people - not below or above.

3. (27) Gideon, using the riches he received, assumes an inappropriate role of religious leadership and leads Israel into idolatry.

Then Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city, Ophrah. And all Israel played the harlot with it there. It became a snare to Gideon and to his house.

a. Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city: This was obviously wrong and it is not immediately apparent why Gideon did this. It is possible he did this to work against the prestige and influence of the tribe of Ephraim. At this time the tabernacle - the center of worship for Israel - was at Shiloh, in the territory of Ephraim. Gideon perhaps set up this rival place of worship to compete against the tribe that troubled him in the battle against Midian.

b. And all Israel played the harlot with it there: The people of Israel enjoyed this idolatrous worship. The beautiful and expensive ephod became a snare to Gideon, his family, and all Israel.

i. Artistic beauty has a way of impressing us and giving a sense of awe but it is not necessarily a godly impression or awe. Many times it can distract our focus from the LORD. In contrast to this ephod, God commanded that His altars be made of unfinished stone (Exodus 20:25), so that no one's attention was focused on the beauty of the stone carver's work.

ii. This snare came from a sincere man who commanded the attention of the nation. But sincerity is not an accurate measure of the truth. In November of 1994, a North Carolina woman displayed her seemingly sincere grief to the entire country over her children who had supposedly been kidnapped in a carjacking - until it was discovered that she had murdered her two young boys herself by driving them into a lake. Almost the entire nation was transfixed by her story, but it was all a lie.

4. (28-30) Gideon assumes a kingly harem.

Thus Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, so that they lifted their heads no more. And the country was quiet for forty years in the days of Gideon. Then Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house. Gideon had seventy sons who were his own offspring, for he had many wives.

a. Thus Midian was subdued: Regarding the security of the nation, Gideon's rule as a judge over Israel was a success. Yet in many ways he was a spiritual failure.

b. For he had many wives: A harem was not only a reflection of a man's inability to control his sexual lust, it was also a way for him to proudly express his wealth, by saying "look at all the wives and children I can support."

i. The Old Testament never directly condemns polygamy (though the New Testament does in Matthew 19:4-6 and 1 Timothy 3:2). Yet the Old Testament shows the bitter fruit of polygamy. The story of polygamous families in the Old Testament (such as with Jacob or David) is the story of conflict and crisis.

5. (31-32) Gideon assumes a hereditary rulership.

And his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, whose name he called Abimelech. Now Gideon the son of Joash died at a good old age, and was buried in the tomb of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

a. Whose name he called Abimelech: The name Abimelech means "My father, a king." Gideon intended that his son would become the leader of Israel after Gideon himself was gone.

b. Gideon the son of Joash died at a good old age: Through his career, we see Gideon as a man who slipped from great heights of faith to a place of outright apostasy and rebellion against God. We could say that Gideon handled adversity better than success. Success, riches, and prominence brought him down.

i. It isn't enough for us to begin well with God. We must continue on throughout our whole Christian life. Gideon, in his later years, had to look back to see anything done for God. All those works were in the past.

ii. "Perhaps it is easier to honour God in some courageous action in the limelight of a time of national emergency than it is to honour Him consistently in the ordinary, everyday life, which requires a different kind of courage." (Cundall)

6. (33-35) After Gideon, Israel rebels and makes a covenant with Baal.

So it was, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again played the harlot with the Baals, and made Baal-Berith their god. Thus the children of Israel did not remember the LORD their God, who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side; nor did they show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (Gideon) in accordance with the good he had done for Israel.

a. As soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again played the harlot with the Baals: In a sense, Israel served the memory of Gideon well, especially the Gideon of his later years. By serving Baal, Israel said, "what really matters is money and success," and in this they followed the example of Gideon in his later years.

b. And made Baal-Berith their god: The name Ball-Berith means "Baal of the Covenant." The Israelites sadly regarded Baal as their "covenant god."

© 2003 David Guzik - No distribution beyond personal use without permission

Introduction / Outline

JFB: Judges (Book Introduction)

JUDGES is the title given to the next book, from its containing the history of those non-regal rulers who governed the Hebrews from the time of Joshua to that of Eli, and whose functions in time of peace consisted chiefly in the administration of justice, although they occasionally led the people in their wars against their public enemies. The date and authorship of this book are not precisely known. It is certain, however, that it preceded the Second Book of Samuel (compare Jdg 9:35 with 2Sa 11:21), as well as the conquest of Jerusalem by David (compare Jdg 1:21 with 2Sa 5:6). Its author was in all probability Samuel, the last of the judges (see Jdg 19:1; Jdg 21:25), and the date of the first part of it is fixed in the reign of Saul, while the five chapters at the close might not have been written till after David's establishment as king in Israel (see Jdg 18:31). It is a fragmentary history, being a collection of important facts and signal deliverances at different times and in various parts of the land, during the intermediate period of three hundred years between Joshua and the establishment of the monarchy. The inspired character of this book is confirmed by allusions to it in many passages of Scripture (compare Jdg 4:2; Jdg 6:14 with 1Sa 12:9-12; Jdg 9:53 with 2Sa 11:21; Jdg 7:25 with Psa 83:11; compare Jdg 5:4-5 with Psa 7:5; Jdg 13:5; Jdg 16:17 with Mat 2:13-23; Act 13:20; Heb 11:32).

JFB: Judges (Outline)

• THE ACTS OF JUDAH AND SIMEON. (Jdg 1:1-3)
• ADONI-BEZEK JUSTLY REQUITED. (Jdg. 1:4-21)
• SOME CANAANITES LEFT. (Jdg 1:22-26)
• AN ANGEL SENT TO REBUKE THE PEOPLE AT BOCHIM. (Jdg 2:1-10)
• WICKEDNESS OF THE NEW GENERATION AFTER JOSHUA. (Jdg 2:11-19)
• NATIONS LEFT TO PROVE ISRAEL. (Jdg 3:1-4)
• BY COMMUNION WITH THESE THE ISRAELITES COMMIT IDOLATRY. (Jdg 3:5-7)
• OTHNIEL DELIVERS ISRAEL. (Jdg 3:8-11)
• EHUD SLAYS EGLON. (Jdg. 3:12-30)
• DEBORAH AND BARAK DELIVER ISRAEL FROM JABIN AND SISERA. (Jdg. 4:1-17)
• DEBORAH AND BARAK'S SONG OF THANKSGIVING. (Jdg. 5:1-31)
• THE ISRAELITES, FOR THEIR SINS, OPPRESSED BY MIDIAN. (Jdg 6:1-6)
• A PROPHET REBUKES THEM. (Jdg 6:7-10)
• AN ANGEL SENDS GIDEON TO DELIVER THEM. (Jdg 6:11-16)
• GIDEON'S PRESENT CONSUMED BY FIRE. (Jdg. 6:17-32)
• THE SIGNS. (Jdg 6:33-39)
• GIDEON'S ARMY. (Jdg 7:1-8)
• HE IS ENCOURAGED BY THE DREAM AND THE INTERPRETATION OF THE BARLEY CAKE. (Jdg 7:9-15)
• HIS STRATAGEM AGAINST MIDIAN. (Jdg 7:16-24)
• THE EPHRAIMITES OFFENDED, BUT PACIFIED. (Jdg 8:1-9)
• ZEBAH AND ZALMUNNA TAKEN. (Jdg. 8:10-27)
• MIDIAN SUBDUED. (Jdg 8:28)
• ABIMELECH IS MADE KING BY THE SHECHEMITES. (Jdg 9:1-6)
• JOTHAM BY A PARABLE REPROACHES THEM. (Jdg 9:7-21)
• GAAL'S CONSPIRACY. (Jdg. 9:22-49)
• ABIMELECH SLAIN. (Jdg 9:50-57)
• TOLA JUDGES ISRAEL IN SHAMIR. (Jdg 10:1-5)
• ISRAEL OPPRESSED BY THE PHILISTINES AND AMMONITES. (Jdg 10:6-9)
• THEY CRY TO GOD. (Jdg 10:10-15)
• THEY REPENT; GOD PITIES THEM. (Jdg 10:16-18)
• JEPHTHAH. (Jdg 11:1-3)
• THE GILEADITES COVENANT WITH JEPHTHAH. (Jdg 11:4-11)
• HIS VOW. (Jdg 11:29-31)
• HE OVERCOMES THE AMMONITES. (Jdg 11:32-33)
• THE EPHRAIMITES QUARRELLING WITH JEPHTHAH. (Jdg 12:1-3)
• DISCERNED BY THE WORD SIBBOLETH, ARE SLAIN BY THE GILEADITES. (Jdg 12:4-15)
• ISRAEL SERVES THE PHILISTINES FORTY YEARS. (Jdg 13:1)
• AN ANGEL APPEARS TO MANOAH'S WIFE. (Jdg 13:2-10)
• THE ANGEL APPEARS TO MANOAH. (Jdg 13:11-14)
• MANOAH'S SACRIFICE. (Jdg 13:15-23)
• SAMSON BORN. (Jdg 13:24-25)
• SAMSON DESIRES A WIFE OF THE PHILISTINES. (Jdg 14:1-5)
• HE KILLS A LION. (Jdg 14:5-9)
• HIS MARRIAGE FEAST. (Jdg 14:10-11)
• HIS RIDDLE. (Jdg 14:12-18)
• HE SLAYS THIRTY PHILISTINES. (Jdg 14:19-20)
• SAMSON IS DENIED HIS WIFE. (Jdg 15:1-2)
• HE BURNS THE PHILISTINES' CORN. (Jdg 15:3-8)
• HE IS BOUND BY THE MEN OF JUDAH, AND DELIVERED TO THE PHILISTINES. (Jdg 15:9-13)
• SAMSON CARRIES AWAY THE GATES OF GAZA. (Jdg 16:1-3)
• DELILAH CORRUPTED BY THE PHILISTINES. (Jdg 16:4-14)
• HE IS OVERCOME. (Jdg 16:15-20)
• THE PHILISTINES TOOK HIM AND PUT OUT HIS EYES. (Jdg 16:21-22)
• THEIR FEAST TO DAGON. (Jdg 16:23-25)
• HIS DEATH. (Jdg 16:26-31)
• MICAH RESTORING THE STOLEN MONEY TO HIS MOTHER, SHE MAKES IMAGES. (Jdg 17:1-4)
• THE DANITES SEEK OUT AN INHERITANCE. (Jdg. 18:1-26)
• THEY WIN LAISH. (Jdg 18:27-29)
• THEY SET UP IDOLATRY. (Jdg 18:30-31)
• A LEVITE GOING TO BETHLEHEM TO FETCH HIS WIFE. (Jdg 19:1-15)
• AN OLD MAN ENTERTAINS HIM AT GIBEAH. (Jdg 19:16-21)
• THE GIBEAHITES ABUSE HIS CONCUBINE TO DEATH. (Jdg 19:22-28)
• THE LEVITE, IN A GENERAL ASSEMBLY, DECLARES HIS WRONG. (Jdg 20:1-7)
• THEIR DECREE. (Jdg 20:8-17)
• THE PEOPLE BEWAIL THE DESOLATION OF ISRAEL. (Jdg 21:1-15)
• THE ELDERS CONSULT HOW TO FIND WIVES FOR THOSE THAT WERE LEFT. (Jdg 21:16-21)

TSK: Judges (Book Introduction)

The book of Judges forms an important link in the history of the Israelites. It furnishes us with a lively description of a fluctuating and unsettled nation; a striking picture of the disorders and dangers which prevailed in a republic without magistracy; when " the high-ways were unoccupied, and the travellers walked through by-ways" (Jdg 5:6), when few prophets were appointed to control the people, and " every one did that which was right in his own eyes" (Jdg 17:6). It exhibits the contest of true religion with superstition; and displays the beneficial effects that flow from the former, and the miseries and evil consequences of impiety. It is a most remarkable history of the long-suffering of God towards the Israelites, in which we see the most signal instances of his justice and mercy alternately displayed. the people sinned, and were punished; they repented, and found mercy. These things are written for our warning. none should presume, for God is just; none need despair, for God is merciful. Independently of the internal evidence of the authenticity of this sacred book, the transactions it records are not only cited or alluded to by other inspired writers, but are further confirmed by the traditions current among heathen nations.

TSK: Judges 8 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

Jdg 8:1, Gideon pacifies the Ephraimites; Jdg 8:4, Succoth and Penuel refuse to deliver Gideon’s army; Jdg 8:10, Zebah and Zalmunna are taken; Jdg 8:13, Succoth and Penuel are destroyed; Jdg 8:17, Gideon revenges his brethren’s death on Zebah and Zalmunna; Jdg 8:22, He refuses government; Jdg 8:24, His ephod the cause of idolatry; Jdg 8:28, Midian subdued; Jdg 8:29, Gideon’s children, and death; Jdg 8:33, The Israelites’ idolatry and ingratitude.

Poole: Judges (Book Introduction)

BOOK OF JUDGES

THE ARGUMENT

THE author of this book is not certainly known, whether it was Samuel, or Ezra, or some other prophet; nor is it material to know.

1. It matters not who was the king’ s secretary, or with what pen it was written, if it be once known that it was. the king who made the order or decree: it is sufficient that unto the Jews were committed to the oracles of God , Rom 3:2 , i.e. the Holy Scriptures of the Old Testament, one part of which this was, by confession of all; and that the Jews did not falsify their trust therein, but kept those holy books themselves, and delivered them to the world, entire, without addition or diminution; for neither Christ nor his apostles, who severely rebuke them for their mistakes and misunderstandings of some passages of Scripture, ever charge them with any perfidiousness about the canon or books of the Scripture. This book is called the Book of Judges , because it treats of the judges, or of the state of the commonwealth of Israel under all the judges, except Eli and Samuel, who being the last of the judges, and the occasions or instruments of the change of this government, are omitted in this book. The judges were a sort of magistrates inferior to kings, and could neither make new laws, nor impose any tributes, but were the supreme executors of God’ s laws and commands, and the generals of their armies.

Poole: Judges 8 (Chapter Introduction)

CHAPTER 8

The Ephraimites are displeased with Gideon; he satisfies them, Jud 8:1-3 . He pursueth two kings of the Midianites he punisheth those of Succoth and Penuel, Jud 8:4-17 . He revengeth his brethren’ s death on the two kings, Jud 8:18-21 . He refuseth government, Jud 8:22,23 ; demandeth a present of the spoil, and thereof makes an ephod; places it in Ophrah; it is a cause of idolatry, Jud 8:24-27 . Gideon’ s children, wives, death, and burial, Jud 8:30-32 . Israel revolts to idolatry; is ungrateful to Gideon’ s family, Jud 8:33-35 .

Why hast thou neglected and despised us, in not calling us in to thy help, as thou didst other tribes? These were a proud people, Isa 11:13 , puffed up with a conceit of their number and strength, and the preference which Jacob by Divine direction gave them above Manasseh, Gen 48:19,20 , of which tribe Gideon was, who by this act had seemed to advance his own tribe, and to depress theirs.

MHCC: Judges (Book Introduction)

The book of Judges is the history of Israel during the government of the Judges, who were occasional deliverers, raised up by God to rescue Israel from their oppressors, to reform the state of religion, and to administer justice to the people. The state of God's people does not appear in this book so prosperous, nor their character so religious, as might have been expected; but there were many believers among them, and the tabernacle service was attended to. The history exemplifies the frequent warnings and predictions of Moses, and should have close attention. The whole is full of important instruction.

MHCC: Judges 8 (Chapter Introduction)

(Jdg 8:1-3) Gideon pacifies the Ephraimites.

(Jdg 8:4-12) Succoth and Penuel refuse to relieve Gideon.

(Jdg 8:13-17) Succoth and Penuel punished.

(Jdg 8:18-21) Gideon avenges his brethren.

(Jdg 8:22-28) Gideon declines the government, but given occasion for idolatry.

(Jdg 8:29-35) Gideon's death, Israel's ingratitude.

Matthew Henry: Judges (Book Introduction)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Book of Judges

This is called the Hebrew Shepher Shophtim , the Book of Judges, which the Syriac and Arabic versions enlarge upon, and call it, The Book of the Judges of the Children of Israel; the judgments of that nation being peculiar, so were their judges, whose office differed vastly from that of the judges of other nations. The Septuagint entitles it only Kritai , Judges. It is the history of the commonwealth of Israel, during the government of the judges from Othniel to Eli, so much of it as God saw fit to transmit to us. It contains the history (according to Dr. Lightfoot's computation) of 299 years, reckoning to Othniel of Judah forty years, to Ehud of Benjamin eighty years, to Barak of Naphtali forty years, to Gideon of Manasseh forty years, to Abimelech his son three years, to Tola of Issachar twenty-three, to Jair of Manasseh twenty-two, to Jephtha of Manasseh six, to Ibzan of Judah seven, to Elon of Zebulun ten, to Abdon of Ephriam eight, to Samson of Dan twenty, in all 299. As for the years of their servitude, as were Eglon is said to oppress them eighteen years and Jabin twenty years, and so some others, those must be reckoned to fall in with some or other of the years of the judges. The judges here appear to have been of eight several tribes; that honour was thus diffused, until at last it centred in Judah. Eli and Samuel, the two judges that fall not within this book, were of Levi. It seems, there was no judge of Reuben or Simeon, Gad or Asher. The history of these judges in their order we have in this book to the end of ch. 16. And then in the last five chapters we have an account of some particular memorable events which happened, as the story of Ruth did (Rth 1:1) in the days when the judges ruled, but it is not certain in which judge's days; but they are put together at the end of the book, that the thread of the general history might not be interrupted. Now as to the state of the commonwealth of Israel during this period, I. They do not appear here either so great or so good as one might have expected the character of such a peculiar people would be, that were governed by such laws and enriched by such promises. We find them wretchedly corrupted, and wretchedly oppressed by their neighbours about them, and nowhere in all the book, either in war or council, do they make any figure proportionable to their glorious entry into Canaan. What shall we say to it? God would hereby show us the lamentable imperfection of all persons and things under the sun, that we may look for complete holiness and happiness in the other world, and not in this. Yet, II. We may hope that though the historian in this book enlarges most upon their provocations and grievances, yet there was a face of religion upon the land; and, however there were those among them that were drawn aside to idolatry, yet the tabernacle-service, according to the law of Moses, was kept up, and there were many that attended it. Historians record not the common course of justice and commerce in a nation, taking that for granted, but only the wars and disturbances that happen; but the reader must consider the other, to balance the blackness of them. III. It should seem that in these times each tribe had very much its government in ordinary within itself, and acted separately, without one common head, or council, which occasioned many differences among themselves, and kept them from being or doing any thing considerable. IV. The government of the judges was not constant, but occasional; when it is said that after Ehud's victory the land rested eighty years, and after Barak's forty , it is not certain that they lived, much less that they governed, so long; but they and the rest were raised up and animated by the Spirit of God to do particular service to the public when there was occasion, to avenge Israel of their enemies, and to purge Israel of their idolatries, which are the two things principally meant by their judging Israel. Yet Deborah, as a prophetess, was attended for judgment by all Israel, before there was occasion for her agency in war, Jdg 4:4. V. During the government of the judges, God was in a more especial manner Israel's king; so Samuel tells them when they were resolved to throw off this form of government, 1Sa 12:12. God would try what his own law and the constitutions of that would do to keep them in order, and it proved that when there was no king in Israel every man did that which was right in his own eyes; he therefore, towards the latter end of this time, made the government of the judges more constant and universal that it was at first, and at length gave them David, a king after his own heart; then, and not till then, Israel began to flourish, which should make us very thankful for magistrates both supreme and subordinate, for they are ministers of God unto us for good. Four of the judges of Israel are canonized (Heb 11:32), Gideon, Barak, Samson, and Jephtha. The Learned bishop Patrick thinks the prophet Samuel was the penman of this Book.

Matthew Henry: Judges 8 (Chapter Introduction)

This chapter gives us a further account of Gideon's victory over the Midianites, with the residue of the story of his life and government. I. Gideon prudently pacifies the offended Ephraimites (Jdg 8:1-3). II. He bravely pursues the flying Midianites (Jdg 8:4, Jdg 8:10-12). III. He justly chastises the insolence of the men of Succoth and Penuel, who basely abused him (Jdg 8:5-9), and were reckoned with for it (Jdg 8:13-17). IV. He honourably slays the two kings of Midian (Jdg 8:18-21). V. After all this he modestly declines the government of Israel (Jdg 8:22, Jdg 8:23). VI. He foolishly gratified the superstitious humour of his people by setting up an ephod in his own city, which proved a great snare (Jdg 8:24-27). VII. He kept the country quiet for forty years (Jdg 8:28). VIII. He died in honour, and left a numerous family behind him (Jdg 8:29-32). IX. Both he and his God were soon forgotten by ungrateful Israel (Jdg 8:33-35).

Constable: Judges (Book Introduction)

Introduction

Title

The English title, Judges, comes to us from the Latin translation (Vulgate) that the Greek translation (Septuagint) influenced. In all three languages the title means "judges." This title is somewhat misleading, however, because most English-speaking people associate the modern concept of a judge with Israel's judges. As we shall see, judges then were very different from judges now. The Hebrew title is also Judges (Shophetim). The book received its name from its principle characters, as the Book of Joshua did.

The judge in Israel was not a new office during the period of history that this book records. Moses ordered the people to appoint judges in every Israelite town to settle civil disputes (Deut. 16:18). In addition, there was to be a chief justice at the tabernacle who would, with the high priest, help settle cases too difficult for the local judges (Deut. 17:9). Evidently there were several judges at the tabernacle who served as a supreme court (Deut. 19:17).

When Joshua died God did not appoint a man to succeed him as the military leader of the entire nation of Israel. Instead each tribe was to proceed to conquer and occupy its allotted territory. As the need arose God raised up several different individuals who were judges in various parts of Israel at various times to lead segments of the Israelites against local enemies. These judges were similar to modern mayors of towns. God endowed them with certain qualities and identified them in various ways as being those He had chosen to lead His people. This leadership sometimes involved military command. As God had raised up Moses and Joshua, and as he would raise up David (1 Sam. 16:13), so He also raised up the judges. The writer also described Yahweh as a judge in Judges (11:27). This points out the fact that the judges were God's agents in Israel who judged under Him at this period in the nation's history.

"Though the judge enjoyed great prestige, he was in no sense a king. His authority was neither absolute, nor permanent, nor in any case hereditary; it rested solely in those personal qualities (the charisma) that gave evidence that he was the man of Yahweh's spirit. It was a type of authority perfectly expressive of the faith and constitution of early Israel: the God-King's direct leadership of his people through his spirit-designated representative. . . .

"The judges were by no means men of identical character. Some (e.g., Gideon) rose to their task at the behest of a profound experience of divine vocation; one (Jephthah) was no better than a bandit who knew how to strike a canny bargain; one (Samson) was an engaging rogue whose fabulous strength and bawdy pranks became legendary. None, so far as we know, ever led a united Israel into battle. All, however, seem to have had this in common: they were men who, stepping to the fore in times of danger, by virtue only of those personal qualities (charisma) which gave evidence to their fellows that Yahweh's spirit was upon them, rallied the clans against the foe."¹

Judges is the second book of the Former Prophets section of the Hebrew Old Testament. As I pointed out in the notes on Joshua, the fact that the Hebrews placed the book in this section of their canon is significant. It demonstrates that they recognized it as God's selective history of the period designed to teach spiritual lessons more than simply to record historical facts. God revealed Himself through the events of life and history as well as through the sermons of the prophets.

Date and Writer

Internal references help us locate the approximate date of composition of this book. The clause, "In those days there was no king in Israel," (17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25) suggests that someone wrote Judges during the monarchical period that followed the period of rule by judges (amphictyony). Someone probably wrote it after 1051 B.C. when Saul became king. However at the time of writing Jerusalem was still in the hands of the Jebusites (1:21). David captured Jerusalem about 1004 B.C. Therefore the writing of Judges seems to date between 1051 and 1004 B.C.

Jewish tradition suggests that Samuel wrote Judges.² This was the opinion of the writers of the Talmud, the collection of Jewish writings that grew up around revealed Scripture beginning very early in Israel's history. Samuel is a likely writer because of his role in Israel when someone wrote Judges. Samuel's ministry began about 1090 B.C. and apparently ended a few years before Saul's death (ca. 1021 B.C.). If Samuel wrote Judges, he probably did so between 1051 and about 1021 B.C.

Scope

In contrast to Joshua, which spans only about 35 years, Judges covers a much longer period of Israel's history.

The book opens shortly after the death of Joshua (1:1). God did not give us sufficient information to enable us to fix the date of Joshua's death. Leon Wood figured that he died about 1390 B.C.³ Eugene Merrill calculated his death at about 1366 B.C.⁴ The latest event the writer of Judges recorded is probably the death of Samson (16:30-31). Wood believed Samson died about 1055 B.C.⁵ Merrill wrote that he died near 1084 B.C.⁶ Consequently the Book of Judges records about 300 years of Israel's history (cf. 11:26).⁷ The period of rule by the judges, however, extended beyond the events the Book of Judges records to Saul's coronation in 1050 or 1051 B.C.⁸ According to Wood's chronology this was five years beyond the end of Judges and according to Merrill's it was 33 years beyond.

The judgeships of some of the individual judges apparently overlapped. Some ruled in one area of Israel while one or more others ruled elsewhere in some cases.⁹

The Book of Judges does not record the ministries of all Israel's judges. Eli and Samuel were also judges whose work the writer of 1 Samuel recorded. Only the judges whom the divine Author selected for inclusion appear in this book.

Purpose

Arthur Cundall suggested that one of the purposes of Judges may have been to provide apologetic justification for Israel's monarchy.¹⁰ William Dumbrell believed its purpose was primarily to show the sovereign grace of God in preserving Israel in spite of Israel.¹¹ Leon Wood wrote that its primary purpose was to show why Israel did not experience God's promised blessings.¹² Herbert Wolf believed the primary purpose was to show that Israel's spiritual condition determined its political and material situation.¹³ Daniel Block argued that it was to reveal the Canaanization of Israel in the premonarchic period of Israel's history.¹⁴ All these explanations seem to me to be in harmony with what the book records.

Message¹⁵

Joshua reveals that victory, success, and progress result when God's people trust and obey Him consistently. Judges shows that defeat, failure, and retrogression follow when they fail to trust and obey consistently. In this respect Joshua and Judges are like two sides of one coin. The former is a positive lesson and the latter a negative one.

Judges portrays the deterioration of the nation of Israel: what caused it, the course it followed, and the chaos that resulted.

Israel failed because her heart turned from Yahweh, and then her head forsook His covenant. Keil and Delitzsch wrote, "The writer writes throughout from a prophet's point of view. He applies the standard of the law to the spirit of the age by which the nation was influenced as a whole, and pronounces a stern and severe sentence upon all deviations from the path of rectitude set before it in the law."¹⁶

We could visualize the structure of the book as a descending spiral. Israel departed from God, fell under His discipline, repented, experienced deliverance from her oppressors, dedicated herself anew to Yahweh, experienced His blessing, and then apostatized again. In each cycle Israel seems to have sunk lower than she had been previously even though each cycle included a spiritual revival.

Judges reveals the course and process by which Israel deteriorated as a nation. The same process takes place on the personal level as well as on the national level, but it is easier to observe on the national level in Judges.

The root cause of Israel's deterioration was religious apostasy. The Israelites turned from God. They did not drive out the Canaanites as God had commanded (1:21, 27-33). Instead they made covenants with them (2:1-2). Rather than destroying the pagan altars, the Israelites served idols and forsook the Lord (2:11-12, 17, 19).

Their apostasy began with toleration of things that God had condemned and prohibited. In time the Israelites began to admire these things. Finally they conformed to them.

The story of Micah and the Danites (chs. 17-18) is a short illustration of the religious apostasy in Israel at this time. Chapters 17-21 are an appendix to the book.

Religious apostasy led to political disorganization in Israel. Shortly after Israel departed from God it began to come apart as a nation. The people stopped working together toward their God-given goal of possessing the entire land and began fighting with one another instead. At the beginning of the amphictyony the tribes were fairly united, but by the end of this period of Israel's history anarchy prevailed (21:25).

The government in Israel deteriorated from theocracy (rule by God) to anarchy (no rule or government). Israel became fragmented, weak, and unable to withstand her enemies. This is ironic because after Joshua died Israel was in position to begin to enjoy the benefits of the theocracy in the land for the first time. Until Judges opens, God was preparing Israel to enjoy the theocracy in the land.

There are several examples of tribal jealousies in Judges (e.g., 8:1-3; 12:1-6), but the worst example of political disorganization is the vignette that concludes the book. This is the civil war in which 11 of the tribes almost annihilated the twelfth, Benjamin (chs. 20-21). Instead of destroying the Canaanites, God's people allowed them to live among them while the Israelites proceeded to destroy one another.

Another evidence of Israel's deterioration as a nation was social chaos.

Three characteristics marked the social chaos in Israel during the period of the judges. Lawlessness characterized national life. People were afraid to go out in public and traveled the byways rather than the highways of the land (5:6). People committed violent crimes without fear of punishment (ch. 19). Blindness also characterized the people. They were blind to what was happening in their midst, namely, God using discipline after apostasy to bring them to repentance and deliverance. They were also blind to God's dealings with their ancestors in their history. Third, immorality marked Israel's social life. Even Samson, one of the judges, was a victim of this cancer.

The story of the Levite and his concubine who visited the town of Gibeah (ch. 19) is a slice of life out of the period of the judges that shows the immorality that characterized Israel's social life. The behavior demonstrated in this story was the fruit of departure from God. The sin that had previously characterized the Canaanites of Sodom (Gen. 19) now marked God's people. Chapter 19 is a third part of the appendix to the book.

God revealed this process of deterioration to warn all people. Spiritual apostasy leads to political disorganization and social chaos. Social and governmental evils rise out of spiritual conditions. When the Israelites repented and rededicated themselves to God, God brought political deliverance and restored social order.

Judges not only reveals what causes deterioration, but it also clarifies the steps to restoration. Israel's history during this period resembles a downward spiral. The general trend was downward. Nevertheless there were six revivals of the peoples' faith in God and commitment to him too. These revivals cycled in Israel's history at this time.

Israel began from a privileged position of divine blessing.

In time the people apostatized by turning away from God and His covenant to the gods and practices of the Canaanites.

To bring them back to Himself God disciplined His people by allowing them to fall under the control and domination of their enemies. Israel chose to bow down to idols, so God allowed the idolaters to bend her over in bondage. The Israelites tolerated the Canaanites, but God made the Canaanites intolerant of them. The people with the birthright to the land had to hide in caves and among the rocks fearing to show themselves (6:2). God disciplined them severely for their apostasy. In Joshua God dealt with sin primarily among the Canaanites, but in Judges He dealt with it primarily among the Israelites. However, God's discipline was always remedial. God designed it to bring the Israelites back to a consciousness of sin and their need for God.

When the Israelites cried out to Yahweh in repentance, God heard their cry and delivered them mercifully. I mean "repentance" in the general sense of turning to God, not in the specific sense of cleaning up the life. God did not give deliverance as a reward the people had earned, but as grace in response to their helpless cry, as the text makes clear.

When they truly repented, He delivered them by raising up a judge. In each case, deliverance came at the right moment. It always came by the right instrument. God raised up the right person in each case. In almost every case God used one person, either a man or a woman. Judges reveals how God remarkably works through all types of different individuals to accomplish His purposes. He raised up the judge whom He had prepared for the needs of his time and place. Each judge was just right for his mission. In almost every case God used one single individual to change the whole course of history in Israel. E. M. Bounds wrote, "The Holy Spirit does not flow through methods, but through man. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but people--people of prayer."

As a result of this deliverance the people rededicated themselves anew to Yahweh. Spiritual revival was the result of God's physical deliverance.

The people then began to enjoy God's blessing again. God gave them rest from the oppression of their enemies. Arthur Cundall labeled these stages "sin, servitude, supplication, and salvation."¹⁷

God's methods are the same today as they were in the days of the judges.

The fact that the writer repeated this cycle of events six times in Judges points to its timeless quality and its universality. Charles Feinberg wrote, "If ever there were history with a purpose it is here."¹⁸

I would state the message of the Book of Judges therefore as follows. Apostasy leads to disorganization and chaos, but repentance results in deliverance and blessing. This is true nationally and personally.

Constable: Judges (Outline)

Outline

I. The reason for Israel's apostasy 1:1-3:6

A. Hostilities between the Israelites and the Canaanites after Joshua's death 1:1-2:5

1. Initial successes and failures ch. 1

2. The announcement of God's discipline 2:1-5

B. Israel's conduct toward Yahweh and Yahweh's treatment of Israel in the period of the judges 2:6-3:6

1. Review of Joshua's era 2:6-10

2. The pattern of history during the judges' era 2:11-23

3. God's purposes with Israel 3:1-6

II. The record of Israel's apostasy 3:7-16:31

A. The first apostasy 3:7-11

B. The second apostasy 3:12-31

1. Oppression under the Moabites and deliverance through Ehud 3:12-30

2. Oppression under the Philistines and deliverance through Shamgar 3:31

C. The third apostasy chs. 4-5

1. The victory over Jabin and Sisera ch. 4

2. Deborah's song of victory ch. 5

D. The fourth apostasy 6:1-10:5

1. The story of Gideon 6:1-8:32

2. Israel's departure from Yahweh 8:33-35

3. The story of Abimelech ch. 9

4. The judgeships of Tola and Jair 10:1-5

E. The fifth apostasy 10:6-12:15

1. Renewed oppression 10:6-7

2. Oppression under the Ammonites 10:8-18

3. Deliverance through Jephthah 10:1-12:7

4. The judgeships of Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon 12:8-15

F. The sixth apostasy chs. 13-16

1. Samson's birth ch. 13

2. Samson's intended marriage to the Timnite ch. 14

3. Samson's vengeance on the Philistines ch. 15

4. Samson's final fatal victory ch. 16

III. The results of Israel's apostasy ch. 17-21

A. The idolatry of Micah and the Danites ch. 17-18

1. The idolatry of Micah ch. 17

2. The apostasy of the Danites ch. 18

B. The immorality of Gibeah and the Benjamites chs. 19-21

1. The atrocity in Gibeah ch. 19

2. The civil war in Israel ch. 20

3. The preservation of Benjamin ch. 21

Constable: Judges

Judges

Bibliography

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: Judges (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION.

THE BOOK OF JUDGES.

This Book is called Judges, because it contains the history of what passed under the government of the judges, who ruled Israel before they had kings. The writer of it, according to the more general opinion, was the prophet Samuel. (Challoner) --- Some are of opinion, that the judges might have each left records of their respective administration, (Menochius) which might be put in order by Samuel. The author of this book seems to have lived under the reign of Saul, before David had expelled the Jebusites, chap. xviii. 31. (Du Hamel) --- The captivity, which is mentioned [in] ver. 30, must be understood of that when the ark of God, as well as the idol Micha, and may of the people were taken by the Philistines. (Huet) --- Many passages of the Psalms, &c., are taken from this book, which shew its antiquity, Psalm lxvii. 8., and 2 Kings xi. 21. The divine Providence is here displayed in a very striking manner. (Du Hamel) --- The theocracy still subsisted and God generally chose these judges to be his ministers, and to deliver the people, on their repentance, from some dreadful calamity. (Haydock) --- They exercised a supreme power, yet without bearing the insignia of regal authority, or imposing taxes, or making any alteration in the established laws. The Suffetes, who were Carthaginian magistrates, seem to have taken their name from these Ssuptim. (Du Hamel) --- When God did not raise up judges, in an extraordinary manner, a kind of ananchy prevailed. (Haydock) --- Each of the tribes regarded only their own affairs, and the republic was dissolved. (Grotius) --- Prosperous and unfortunate days succeeded each other, in proportion as the people gave themselves up to repentance or to dissolution. Sicut se habebant peccata populi & misericordia Dei, alternaverunt prospera & adversa bellorum. (St. Augustine, City of God xviii. 23.) St. Jerome (ep. ad Eust. & ad Paulin.) exhorts us to penetrate the spiritual sense of the historical books, and he regards "the judges as so many figures" of the apostles, who established the church of Christ. Though some of them had been noted for their misconduct, they were reclaimed by the grace of God. Then all the judges, every one by name, whose heart was not corrupted, who turned not away from the Lord, that their memory might be blessed, &c., Ecclesiasticus xlvi. 13, 14. (Worthington) --- St. Paul mentions four of them, though the conduct of Jephte and of Samson might have been regarded as more exceptionable than that of Othoniel, who is said to have been filled with the spirit of the Lord, chap. iii. 10. Serarius doubts not but they are all in heaven. Salien (in the year of the world 2640,) supposes that the transactions recorded in the five last chapters, took place before this 40th year from the death of Josue, which was the last of Othoniel. With respect to the chronology of these times, there are many opinions. Houbigant endeavours to shew that the system of Usher is inadmissible, as well as that of Petau. Marsham maintains that many of the captivities, and of the Judges, related only to some tribes, so that the different years which are specified, must be referred to the same period of time. Thus while Jephte ruled over those on the east side of the Jordan, and fought against the Ammonites, other judges endeavoured to repel the armies of the Philistines on the west. See 3 Kings vi. 1., and Judges xi. 16. By this expedient, he finds no difficulty in shewing that 480 years elapsed from the departure out of Egypt till the building of the temple, and that the Israelites had occupied the country of the Ammonites during the space of 300 years. (Haydock) --- Houbigant seems to adopt this system in some respects, and he thinks that errors have crept into some of the numbers, so that Aod procured a peace of only 20 instead of 80 years, &c. He observes that the name of judge here designates, 1. A warrior, like Samson; 2. a person who passes sentence according to the law, which was the office of Heli; 3. one divinely commissioned to exercise the sovereign authority, as Samuel did, even after Saul had been elected king. (Proleg. Chronol.) Others have compared the power of these judges with that of the Roman Dictators, or the Archontes of Athens. (Serarius) --- They were properly God's lieutenants. Their revenue seems to have been very precarious, and their exterior deportment modest and unassuming. They were guided by the declarations of the high priests, when arrayed with the Urim and Thummim; and their business was to promote the observance of the true religion, and to defend the people of God. This book concludes with the history of Samson, describing the transactions of 317 years, (Calmet) according to the calculation of Usher, which has met with the approbation of many of the learned, and is therefore chiefly inserted in this edition, as it was in that which was published in 1791, at Dublin, by the care of the Rev. B. Mac Mahon, who seems to have made some alterations. It is not indeed free from many serious difficulties. But we have not leisure to examine them at present. See chap. iii. 11, 30. We shall only subjoin the chronological table of Houbigant, which is not very common, that the reader may perceive where they are chiefly at variance. Moses governed 40 years, Josue 20, the Ancients 20, king of Mesopotamia 8, Othoniel 40, Moabites 18, Aod 20, Samgar 0, the Chanaanites 20, Debora and Barac 40, Madianites 7, Gedeon 40, Abimelech 3, Thola 23, Ammonites 0, Jair 22, Jephte 6, Abesan 7, Ahialon 10, Abdon 8, Philistines 0, Samson 20, and with Heli 20, Heli and Samuel 25, Samuel and Saul 20, David 40, Solomon 3. In the 4th year of his reign the temple was begun, 480 years after the liberation from Egypt. Those to whom no years are assigned, lived at the same time with others whose years enter into the calculation. Thus Samgar gained a victory over the Philistines, while the Chanaanites held the Israelites in subjection, chap. iii. 31. For other particulars we must refer to the author. (Chron. sacra.) (Haydock)

Gill: Judges (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES

The title of this book in the Hebrew copies is Sepher Shophetim, the Book of Judges; but the Syriac and Arabic interpreters call it,

"the Book of the Judges of the Children of Israel;''

and the Septuagint only Judges; so called, not because it was written by them, though some think it was compiled out of annals and diaries kept by them; but it seems to be the work of one person only: the true reason of its name is, because it treats of the judges of Israel, gives an account of their lives and actions, and especially such as concerned their office; which office was different from that of kings, and seems only to have been occasional, and chiefly lay in delivering the people out of the hands of their enemies, when oppressed, distressed, or carried captive by them; in protecting them in the enjoyment of their country, rights, and liberties; in leading out their armies against their enemies when needful; and in settling differences, judging law suits, and administering justice. The government of the nation, during their time, was a theocracy. It is not certain who was the penman of this book; some ascribe it to King Hezekiah, others to Ezra; but the Jewish writers ^a are generally of opinion that it was written by Samuel, which is most likely, who was the last of the judges; and it seems plainly to be written before the times of David, us appears from a speech of Joab, 2Sa 11:21; and from some passages in Psa 68:8, which seem to refer or allude to Jdg 5:4; and from Jerusalem being called Jebus, which shows it to be inhabited by the Jebusites in the time of the writer of this book, whereas it was taken out of their hands by David; besides, Samuel himself refers to the annals of this book; 1Sa 12:9; and from whose testimonies, as well as from others in the New Testament, there is no doubt to be made of its being genuine and authentic, and written by divine inspiration; as is evident from the use the Apostle Paul, and the author of the epistle to the Hebrews, have made of it, Act 13:20; it is useful as an history, and without which the history of the people of Israel would not be complete; it containing an account of all their judges, excepting the two last, Eli and Samuel, of whom an account is given in the following books, and of some facts incidental to those times, related in an appendix at the end of it, concerning the idol of Micah, and the war of Benjamin; and furnishes out many useful moral observations concerning God's displeasure at sin in his own people Israel, and his corrections for it; and about his providential care of them in raising up for them deliverers in their time of need, as well as points at various virtues and excellencies in great and good men, worthy of imitation. It contains, according to Piscator, Dr. Lightfoot, and others, an history of two hundred ninety and nine years.

Gill: Judges 8 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 8

In this chapter we are told how Gideon pacified the Ephraimites, who complained because they were not sent unto to fight the Midianites, Jdg 8:1 how he pursued the Midianites, until he took their two kings, and on his return chastised the men of Succoth and Penuel, because they refused to relieve his men with food as they were pursuing, Jdg 8:4 how he slew the two kings of Midian, Jdg 8:18 and after this conquest refused to take the government of Israel when offered him, Jdg 8:22 how he requested of the Israelites the earrings they had taken from the Midianites, with which he in weakness made an ephod, which proved a snare to his house, Jdg 8:24 how that the people were in peace forty years during his life, and that he had a numerous issue, and died in a good old age, Jdg 8:28 but that after his death the Israelites fell into idolatry, and were ungrateful to his family, Jdg 8:33.