Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on July 15, 2015 under AM Bible Study | 
AM Bible Study Group; July 15, 2015 from Judges 10:17-11:11
Theme: Jephthah’s return to his people is a picture of God’s grace to the people who rejected Him.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
The story of Jephthah—the judge of Israel during its time of oppression under the combined enemies Philistia and Ammon—is a strange one. Many of the stories of the judges are strange; and Jephthah’s story is no exception. But one of the things that is remarkable about his story is that the beginning of his story bears a great similarity to the story of God’s strained relationship with Israel.
In the passage that immediately precedes the introduction to Jephthah—in 10:6-16—we’re given a detailed description of the repeating cycle that so dominates the book of Judges. God’s people proved unfaithful, and they rejected Him. He allowed them to fall into the hands of their enemies. They cry out to Him for mercy. He has compassion on them and gives them a deliverer. But in the story of the most latest episode of this cycle, we find that God speaks very personally to the people (vv. 11-14). He tells them that they didn’t want Him; so why should He hear them now? Why don’t they go to the gods that they wanted instead of Him? But they cried out to Him for mercy; and we’re told that God “could no longer endure the misery of Israel” (v. 16). That sounds very much like the story of the rejection that Jephthah felt from his own people—and of their turning back to him for his help.
This story illustrates to us—in perhaps a faint way—what Jesus spoke of in John 15:20; “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.” Notice . . .
I. THE DESPERATE NEED OF THE PEOPLE (10:17-18).
A. The hostility of the enemies of God’s people seem to have come to a head. After the cry of Israel to God—and after God’s gracious inclination of heart toward them—we’re told, “Then the people of Ammon gathered together and encamped in Gilead. And the children of Israel assembled together and encamped in Mizpah” (v. 17). The nation of Ammon was on the eastern side of the Jordan River—just north of the Arnon River. They had been violently hostile toward the people of Israel from the time of the Exodus (see Numbers 21:21-32). Gilead was a land directly east of the Jordan that belonged to the people of Israel—named after the son of the patriarch of the tribe of Manasseh (see Numbers 26:28-34). It would appear that they had driven the people of Israel out of their land; and they were assembled together in Mizpah—just northeast of Jerusalem. If this was the case, then the people of the region of Gilead were refugees; and their land was occupied.
B. They had already cried out to God; and the heart of God was mercifully inclined to them. But they needed a leader. “And the people, the leaders of Gilead, said to one another, ‘Who is the man who will begin the fight against the people of Ammon? He shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead’” (v. 18). It was into just such a time that God brought forth His chosen leader. But what a remarkable choice it was! It was a choice that illustrated to the people how He had been treated by them.
II. THE TRAGIC BACKSTORY OF JEPHTHAH (11:1-3).
A. The writer of the book of Judges now takes us back in time to give us the story of this arising leader. “Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, but he was the son of a harlot; and Gilead begot Jephthah” (v. 1). We should take “Gilead” here to be a man named after the patriarch of his people. Apparently, this “Gilead” had an affair with a prostitute; and Jephthah—a remarkable man of courage and strength; but the product of illicit relationship—was the result.
B. It’s not a surprise, then, that the other “legitimate” sons of Gilead rejected Jephthah. “Gilead’s wife bore sons; and when his wife’s sons grew up, they drove Jephthah out, and said to him, “You shall have no inheritance in our father’s house, for you are the son of another woman” (v. 2). It was a tragic and cruel rejection. But note something of God’s providence in it. We’re told, “Then Jephthah fled from his brothers and dwelt in the land of Tob; and worthless men banded together with Jephthah and went out raiding with him” (v. 3; the NIV translates “a group of adventurers”). He—like David would later do—became the captain of a band of social rejects (1 Samuel 22:1-2) who went out on raiding expeditions; perhaps often against the enemies of God’s people as an Old Testament combination of Robin Hood and Rebel without A Cause. But it was through such rough and rowdy times that Jephthah learned the skills that God would put to use for the good of His people. Our sovereign God can use anyone; and He wastes nothing of the experiences they go through prior to His call.
III. THE REPENTANT APPEAL OF THE ELDERS (11:4-8).
A. That brings us back to the story: “It came to pass after a time that the people of Ammon made war against Israel” (v. 4). And there was no other leader for the people of Gilead like Jephthah—the very man that the sons of Gilead had scorned and sent away as unworthy. And now, just as they had done to God, they must now come to make their appeal to the man they had rejected. We’re told, “And so it was, when the people of Ammon made war against Israel, that the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob. Then they said to Jephthah, ‘Come and be our commander, that we may fight against the people of Ammon’” (vv. 5-6). They knew they had rejected him; but now they needed him.
B. And just like God had done, Jephthah reminds them of their rejection of him; and considers how just he would be in turning his back on them. “So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, ‘Did you not hate me, and expel me from my father’s house? Why have you come to me now when you are in distress?’ And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, ‘That is why we have turned again to you now, that you may go with us and fight against the people of Ammon, and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead’” (vv. 7-8). Their words to Jephthah do not sound like repentance. It seems like nothing more than an admission that they were in a time of distress; and that that’s why they called him. The only reason Jephthah would have been inclined to help them is because he could no longer endure their suffering—just like God Himself! How like Jesus’ words: “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:44-45).
IV. THE PROMISE MADE BEFORE THE LORD (11:9-11).
A. Perhaps Jephthah wanted to make sure this wouldn’t lead to another rejection once the battle was over. “So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, ‘If you take me back home to fight against the people of Ammon, and the Lord delivers them to me, shall I be your head?’” (v. 9). Note how, in this, Jephthah acknowledges that the help is of the Lord. Could it be that he himself was coming to a place of repentance too?
B. The leaders of the people knew the situation they were in—and perhaps also the cruel and unjust way they had treated their brother. “And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, ‘The Lord will be a witness between us, if we do not do according to your words’” (v. 10). That settled it! The only thing left was to make it a true commitment together before God. “Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and commander over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the Lord in Mizpah” (v. 11). They were now committed to him; and he was now committed to them; and they were all now recommitted to the Lord that they had rejected.
* * * * * * * * * * *
From the standpoint of the people of Israel, this reminds us of what the apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church:
For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence (1 Corinthians 1:21-26).
Truly, God is able to use the most unexpected and unlikely of people to do His work. But from the standpoint of Jephthah, we might consider that not only was he an illustration of God’s mercy; but that also God was an illustration to Jephthah. As Jesus said, we are to be “bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do” (Colossians 3:13).
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on July 8, 2015 under AM Bible Study |
AM Bible Study Group; July 8, 2015 from Judges 10:6-16
Theme: The mercy of God is shown in that He could not endure the misery of His unfaithful people.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
In this morning’s lesson, we begin a study of the story of another of Israel’s great judges—Jephthah. His story runs from Chapters 10 to 12. There are lots of great lessons to learn from the story of Jephthah. But the story of this great man of faith begins with a lesson about God Himself.
It begins in a way that has grown sadly familiar to us. After the period of the two judges Tola and Jair, we’re told that—once again—the people became unfaithful to God. And it would be hard to find a passage that reveals more of the hurt and anger that God feels toward His people when they ignore Him and turn from Him. But it would also be hard to find a passage that shows more to us of what it is that inclines God’s heart toward His disobedient people and moves Him to have mercy on them.
This passage shows us something remarkable. It shows us what it is that God cannot endure. Note first . . .
I. THE UNFAITHFULNESS OF THE PEOPLE (v. 6).
Same song—a different verse. After Tola and Jair had died, we’re told, “Then the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the people of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; and they forsook the Lord and did not serve Him” (v. 6). The situation is like many that we’ve already read in previous stories in Judges—except with one important difference. In other cases, the people are said to have turned to one particular idol of one particular paganistic people group. This time, it seems that they turned to a whole variety of different gods of a whole variety of different people groups. Count them. There are seven different categories of idolatry mentioned. The range of their apostasy is staggering. And the key to it all is that “they forsook the Lord and did not serve Him”. Such “diversity” is no virtue. When we will not stand with the Lord, we truly will fall for anything.
II. THE JUST PUNISHMENT FROM GOD (vv. 7-9).
God’s heart must have been greatly broken and deeply offended. We’re told—and with justification—“So the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel; and He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and into the hands of the people of Ammon” (v. 7). If they wanted the gods of other people groups, then the one true God would sell them into the hands of other people groups. “From that year they harassed and oppressed the children of Israel for eighteen years—all the children of Israel who were on the other side of the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, in Gilead” (v. 8). Gilead is important to mention; because that was the home of the previous judge Jair. But it would also be the home of the next judge Jephthah. That land became the target of the enemy of God’s people. But it wasn’t isolated to just Gilead, because we’re told, “Moreover the people of Ammon crossed over the Jordan to fight against Judah also, against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was severely distressed” (v. 9). The land was crisscrossed with oppression because of the people’s unfaithfulness.
III. THE CONFESSION OF THE PEOPLE’S SIN (v. 10).
Note what was told us in verse 9—that the people were severely distressed. Their trouble is like what was said back in 4:3—how, in the times of Deborah, the people were “harshly oppressed”. The remarkable nature of the suffering of God’s people under the hands of various pagan enemies brought them to a truly desperate state of misery. And in their misery, they cried out to God. “And the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, saying, ‘We have sinned against You, because we have both forsaken our God and served the Baals!’” (v. 10). Can we dare to say that anything—even such suffering for sin—that causes us to cry out to the God that we have forsaken is, in reality, a great blessing?
IV. THE RESPONSE OF THE LORD TOWARD THEM (vv. 11-14).
God’s initial response, however, didn’t look like one of mercy. Instead, it looked like a display of great hardness—as if it were an act of shunning from a betrayed lover. God reviews their past—reminding Him of all the various pagan oppressors from which He had already delivered them. “So the Lord said to the children of Israel, ‘Did I not deliver you from the Egyptians and from the Amorites and from the people of Ammon and from the Philistines? Also the Sidonians and Amalekites and Maonites oppressed you; and you cried out to Me, and I delivered you from their hand’” (v. 11-12). Count the number. Seven! Shouldn’t that ‘perfect number’ have been enough times to have learned? “’Yet you have forsaken Me and served other gods. Therefore I will deliver you no more’” (v. 13). What horrible words! But they were just, weren’t they? And then, God tells them—in almost a mocking way—“’Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in your time of distress’” (v. 14). They, of course, couldn’t. This sounds like something that Moses said to the people of Israel long before—when he gave a stern warning of the judgment that would come if they departed from God:
“He will say: ‘Where are their gods,
The rock in which they sought refuge?
Who ate the fat of their sacrifices,
And drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let them rise and help you,
And be your refuge’” (Deuteronomy 32:37-38).
But as we will see shortly, God is never really deaf to the cries of the people on whom He placed His eternal love. We might think of this as a test—much like that time when God appeared to have “repented” at the appeals of Moses after He threatened to destroy the people (Exodus 32:7-14). Will these doomed apostates respond with true repentance in the face of such words from God?
V. THE REPENTANCE FROM APOSTACY (vv. 15-16a).
They did. We’re told that they uttered a confession with their words; “And the children of Israel said to the Lord, ‘We have sinned! Do to us whatever seems best to You; only deliver us this day, we pray’” (v. 15). But they also put action to their words through genuine repentance; “So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord” (v. 16a). Let’s learn from this that, so long as we are in the day of grace—so long as we have breath and body—it’s never too late to repent!
VI. THE THING THAT MOVED THE LORD’S HEART (v. 16b).
Note God’s gracious response—and marvel at it. “And His soul could no longer endure the misery of Israel.” What a merciful God we serve! But note carefully—it was not the repentance of the people that we’re told finally broke God’s heart. Rather, we’re told that He could no longer endure the misery of His people. It was not their repentance that ‘earned’ God’s mercy. He is always a faithful lover of His people; and His mercy was always there—waiting for the right moment to be shown.
* * * * * * * * * *
As we will be see next week, that mercy was shown in the provision of a deliverer. Let’s learn the lesson of this passage. What moves God to show compassion to us in our sin is not our repentance. It’s not something in us, but rather something in Him. He cannot endure the misery of the people He loves!
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on July 1, 2015 under AM Bible Study |
AM Bible Study Group; July 1, 2015 from Judges 10:1-5
Theme: The two ‘minor’ judges—Tola and Jair—show how God raises unique leaders for the times.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
We now come to the story of a couple of men in the Book of Judges that are—sadly—rather unworthily named. They are a part of that group that are called the ‘minor judges’. That name, however, has to do with the size of the portion of Judges that tells their story; and has nothing at all to do with their actual usefulness in the hand of God. We know some of the major judges rather well—Ehud, Debora (and Barak), Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson. But there are six of the judges for which we are given only the smallest amount of attention—Shamgar, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon; and as in the passage before us today, Tola and Jair. They may have been categorized in the ‘minors’—but in terms of God’s use of them, they definitely played in the majors!
The times being described to us come immediately after a great deal of turmoil in the land. That turmoil was caused by the rebellious son of Gideon called Abimelech (who, by the way, is not counted among the judges). These times parallel the times of the Book of Ruth; and you’ll remember that Ruth’s story begins with a great famine in the land (Ruth 1:1). Naomi and her daughters-in-law thought to return to their homeland because they had heard that God had visited the land again with blessing (v. 6); and this might be because the difficult days of Abimelech had come to and end, and new ‘judges’ were being given to minister to the people.
And the two successive judges that we find at the beginning of Chapter 10—Tola and Jair—when considered in the light of the small amount of details given about them—actually show how God provides two very different, quite unique leaders for particular times.
I. THE LEADERSHIP OF TOLA—A DELIVERER FOR THE TIMES (vv. 1-2).
After Abimelech there arose to save Israel Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar; and he dwelt in Shamir in the mountains of Ephraim. He judged Israel twenty-three years; and he died and was buried in Shamir (Judges 10:1-2).
A. First, let’s note where this man Tola was from. He was born of the tribe of Issachar; whose territory was southwest of the Sea of Galilee. There is a strong and honored tradition of leaders from Isaachar that perhaps this man and his father were named after. One of the sons of Isacchar, for example, was a man named Tola (Genesis 46:13; Numbers 26:23), and another was Puah (Numbers 26:23; 1 Chronicles 7:1). It would have been an honor to have been given the names of the great founding fathers of one’s tribe. And yet, we see this judge Tola didn’t live in the land of his birth. Rather, he lived “in Shamir in the mountains of Ephraim”—further south. After he died, he was buried in this place—obscure to us today—called Shamir. Ephriam was a tribe and a place of honor. It was were Deborah lived and ministered (Judges 4:5); and it was where the tabernacle had been kept. But it was not Tola’s original home.
B. What might cause a man who had been named after one of his forefathers—and who’s father was also named after a forefather—to live in another place than his home, and to even be buried later in that place? Perhaps the answer is in what we’re also told about the nature of God’s calling on his life; that he was raised “to save Israel”. He was a deliverer of his people—and perhaps the task that God had raised him to necessitated that he live elsewhere. We’re not told of any particular battle he fought; but consider carefully the kind of times his people had just gone through. Abimelech’s conspiracy had caused a great deal of turmoil throughout the land; and though the crisis was over, there was still—no doubt—a great deal of unrest and ill-will. Consider too that the powerful tribe that Tola had taken up residence in had, in the days of Gideon, become very resentful for having been slighted during a key battle (Judges 8:1-3). They, as it turns out, harbored a bitterness that would flair up again later in a very disastrous way (see 12:1-7). Could it be that Tola was a “savior”in the sense that he helped keep the peace between the people of his land, and quieted the potential for unrest, and even guided them through a difficult ‘reconstruction’ period—even to the point of living in and being buried in a place where turmoil might have arisen? We’re told that he judged the people for twenty-three years—with the implication that they were times of peace. If that’s the case, then he truly was a deliverer for the times!
C. It may be that there are times that God raises someone up, not so much to accomplish something, but rather to keep something from happening. Peacemakers aren’t always noticed for what they do; but they make it possible for a lot of other good things happen. As it says in Psalm 133:1; “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” May God help us to be “deliverers” at critical times—deliverers who help make peace.
II. THE LEADERSHIP OF JAIR—AN ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE TIMES (vv. 3-5).
After him arose Jair, a Gileadite; and he judged Israel twenty-two years. Now he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys; they also had thirty towns, which are called “Havoth Jair” to this day, which are in the land of Gilead. And Jair died and was buried in Camon (Judges 10:3-5).
A. Note that Jair arose “after” Tola; and he judged Israel for another twenty-two years. This makes for a total of 55 years of peaceful rule. And it may be that the “deliverance” that Tola was used to bring about helped make for the administrative reforms that Jair was able to bring about. It may be that God raised one to build on the foundation of the other.
B. Jair was a Gileadite—that is, from the region of Gilead that was on the other side of the Jordan from Tola’s birthplace; southeast of the Sea of Galilee. And just like Tola, Jair’s name had historic significance to the place of his birth. Another Jair—from the times of Moses—was used by God to take possession of some of the towns of Gilead for the tribe of Manasseh. Back then, the former Jair named this cluster of towns Havoth Jair (Numbers 32:40-41); which means “Tent Villages of Jair”. And that’s what this judge called Jair named the towns that his many sons supervised. In fact, those towns were still being called Havoth Jair—after this Jair—all the way up to the times of Samuel when the Book of Judges was written.
C. Whereas Tola was a peacemaker, Jair seems to have been an administrator. We’re told that he had thirty sons who wrote on thirty donkeys; and that they together had thirty towns under their care. Perhaps they rode throughout Havoth Jair a little like local sheriffs—keeping the peace. But let’s stop and take a warning from this. It may be that this time of administrative peace resulted in a loss for God’s people. For this man to have thirty sons, he would have had to have many wives—which, as we recall, was part of a downfall for Gideon in his times of luxury (Judges 8:30). And the fact that his sons road on thirty donkeys suggested something close to nobility and royalty; because in Scripture (though it obviously doesn’t mean this today), riding around on a donkey was a symbol of prestige and privilege. (This same status symbol comes up again later under the judgeship of Abdon; see 12:13-14).
* * * * * * * * * *
Tola’s judgeship brought relational peace, and Jair’s judgship brought administrative peace. But we might speculate that the prestige that came with peace led to a gradual decline in the spiritual state of God’s people; because when the story of Jair is over, we’re told, “Then the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the people of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; and they forsook the Lord and did not serve Him” (vv. 6-7).
Nevertheless, these were leaders for their times. We should pray—and trust—that God will raise up leaders over His people for our own times as well.
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on June 17, 2015 under AM Bible Study |
AM Bible Study Group; June 17, 2015 from Judges 8:22-32
Theme: The closing story of Gideon shows how even God’s most faithful servants need to take care to end well.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
One of the most pivotal moments in the history of our nation’s presidency occurred before General George Washington became president. Congress was broke, and the continental army that had given so much to defend the new nation remained uncompensated—and would, most likely, remain unpensioned. Some said that a disaster would fall upon post-war America unless Washington seized control of the government and declared himself king. His army would certainly have been supportive. But as tempting as it might have been for any other man, Washington refused to become America’s King George I, and urged his soldiers to be patient and sacrificial and look ahead to what would be good for future generations. Thus he refused the kingship that was being offered to him, and preserved the prospect of a true constitutional republic. If he had done the natural thing, and had surrendered to the temptation of a monarchy, our history would have been a very different one.
The same offer was made to Gideon. After the great victory God brought about through him, the nation offered him the kingship. He refused the offer—and yet, sadly, the story had a sad finish. The end of this great man’s story teaches us that even God’s most faithful servants need to take care to end well.
Note that . . .
I. HE REFUSED THE MONARCHY, BUT PERHAPS EXPECTED IT ONE DAY (vv. 22-23).
A. After the remarkable victory over the overwhelming forces of the Midianites—in which God miraculously gave Gideon’s army of 300 the victory over 135,000 solders—we’re told, “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’” (v. 22). When we read of “the men of Israel”, it’s probably best to assume that what is meant is mainly the northern tribes—and not all of the tribes. But still, what an offer! This wasn’t merely the offer of a kingship. This was the promise of a monarchy—so that Gideon’s son and grandson would rule after him!
B. It may have been a very great temptation. After all, God promised—way back in the law of Moses—that there would come a time when the nation would not be ruled any longer by judges, but by kings. God even established rules in His law for the conduct of kings (See Deuteronomy 17:14-20). Since God had done so much through him already, it would have been natural for Gideon to think that this was his moment. “But Gideon said to them, ‘I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you’” (v. 23). What a noble refusal. He even affirmed to them that God was to be their Ruler. But do you notice that they spoke of his grandson, and that Gideon refused the monarchy only up to his son? It may be that he offered only a “qualified” refusal. After all, as we read on, we find that he named (or possibly re-named) his son through a Shecemite concubine ‘Abimelech’ (v. 31)—which means “My Father is King”. What’s more, we find later that this son from a concubine sought to overthrow the apparently recognized authority of his seventy half-brethren (9:1-5).
C. It seems that Gideon—all too human as he was—couldn’t entirely resist the allure of power. He may have ‘refused’ it in such a way as to at least allow for it to be a possibility later. That reminds us of a danger that even the strongest Christian might face. We reject a sinful desire now because it would be very unbecoming to give in to it in the present—but we might leave a space in our life for us to be able to come back to it later. We should remember the warning of Romans 13:14, “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”
II. HE REQUESTED THE BOOTY, AND MADE IT INTO A SUMBLING BLOCK (vv. 24-27).
A. He refused the monarchy, but he did ask for something else. We’re told, “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 golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites” (v. 24). The Ishamelites were an Arab people who were famous for wearing much jewelry; and so, when he asked for just the earrings, he was actually asking a considerable amount. “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” (vv. 24-26a)—which would have totaled anywhere between 40 to 60 lbs. in weight! This was a tremendous treasure! And they even gave him more then he asked; “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” (v. 26b).
B. Now; there was nothing wrong in this in and of itself. Consider that he had been offered the monarchy, but settled for the earrings. And consider that they were willing to give what he asked and much more beside! Gideon had been a poor man; but in very short order, he became the wealthiest man in Israel. But look what we’re told he did with it: “Then Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city, Ophrah” (v. 27a). He certainly was no longer “weakest in Manasseh” and “least” in his father’s house (6:15). But what he did was fashion it into an ephod—a vest like garment that was typical of the priest of the temple (see Exodus 28:1-35; 39:1-26). This must have been a marvelously decked garment! And while receiving the booty was not wrong, what he did with it was.
C. We’re told, “And all Israel played the harlot with it there. It became a snare to Gideon and to his house” (v. 27b). Why was this so? It may have been because it was put up in a museum somewhere in his hometown, and people began to worship it. But some scholars believe that it was most likely because he meant for it to be an item not to so much be worshiped, but by which to worship. The tribe of Ephraim was not particularly strong or respected at this point (see 8:1-3); and it was in Ephraim that the tabernacle was located and that the priesthood served. If the priesthood was no longer considered strong—and if Gideon had come to think of himself as a unique instrument by which God spoke—then it may be that the ephod was an indication that he tacitly rejected the kingship but subtly claimed the priesthood in violation of God’s law that the priesthood could only be through the sons of Aaron. He may have been ensnared by the pride that ensnared a later and otherwise godly king—King Uzziah. Uzziah dared to bring incense into the temple where only the priest should go (see 2 Chronicles 26:16-21). And if the people went along with Gideon in this error, then it was a cause for spiritual ‘harlotry’ for them as well as a stumbling block for Gideon. What a dangerous thing a little pride is in the servants of God!
III. HE RETIRED IN PEACE, BUT PLANTED SEEDS OF LATER TROUBLE (vv. 28-32).
A. Finally, we’re told, “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” (v. 28). In spite of his faults at the end, God still used him and brought about a time of peace for His people. And Gideon himself was able to return home and enjoy the blessings of his new wealth. The Bible uses his old nickname of “Baal-Fighter” when it says, “Then Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house (v. 29).
B. But then comes the seeds of future trouble. We’re told, “Gideon had seventy sons who were his own offspring, for he had many wives” (v. 30). The Bible honestly admits polygamy in its heroes; but it never condones it. And here, we see the growing prosperous living of Gideon in that seventy sons come from many wives. These sons, as we pointed out earlier, might have served in a kind of ‘monarchy’—more along the lines of a nepotistic ruling council than anything else. And yet, Gideon also had a girlfriend—a concubine—on the side. She was very possibly a Canaanite woman. “And his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, whose name he called Abimelech” (v. 31). We’re told, “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” (v. 32). But Abimalech would rise afterward, kill all those seventy sons, and seek to make himself dictator over his people. The next generation paid dearly for Gideon’s end-of-life indulgences. “Look to yourselves, that we do not lose those things we worked for, but that we may receive a full reward” (3 John 8).
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on June 10, 2015 under AM Bible Study |
AM Bible Study Group; June 10, 2015 from Judges 8:4-21
Theme: The ‘second phase’ of Gideon’s battle teaches us the necessity of thoroughness in God’s call.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
In our study of the life of Gideon, we have found that he was faced with several challenges with respect to God’s call on his life. He was called by God to deliver his people from seven long years of oppression from the Midianites (6:1-24). And in rising to God’s call, we found that he had to overcome the challenge of Baal (Chapter 6), the Midianite forces (Chapter 7), and even the disunity of his own people (Chapter 8). But by God’s enabling, he overcame these obstacles; and with a remarkably small army of 300 soldiers, God used him to bring about a victory against odds that amounted to 400 to 1.
But that was what we might call the ‘first-phase’ of this battle. A second phase remained—what we might call the ‘clean-up’ phase. Out of the vast force of 135,000 Midianite solders, only 15,000 remained. That reduced the odds to 50 to 1—odds that still required that God must win the battle. And as this second phase of the battle shows us, God was sufficient, but His servant must be thorough. He could not leave the work at phase-one only half-way completed; but must bring the work to a full end.
Gideon was called to a literal military battle. We are called to fight a spiritual battle. But the need for us to be thorough in our completion of God’s call on our lives is just as vital as it was in the case of Gideon. Challenges will arise; but we must overcome them and finish the work. We can’t start off with faith in Jesus, and then quit only half the way with Him. We can’t say yes to His call for ministry, then leave the work before He says we’re done. We can’t make promises to others in the name of Jesus, and then not fulfill them. We cannot be baptized in Christ’s name, and then wander away and forget our baptism after the thrill has worn off. What would it have been like if Jesus had only brought about a half-way salvation for us? That’s not how He works; and neither should it be how we work for Him.
Note how this final stage of Gideon’s battle exemplifies for us . . .
I. THOROUGHNESS WHEN FACED WITH A LACK OF SUPPORT (vv. 4-9).
A. It would be very tempting for us to slack in God’s appointed work for us when we feel as if we are the only ones doing it—as if we were the only ones who cared. Gideon must have felt profoundly unsupported in the task that God had given him. To finish the work, and to bring an end to the remaining Midianite threat, he had to pursue the two kings of the Midianites, Zebah and Salmunna—and the 15,000 troops that ran back home to them—over a great distance across hot and dry wilderness. His 300 men were battle-weary and hungry. So naturally, he expected that the cities of Succoth and Penuel—Israelite cities along the way on the eastern side of the Jordan River—would want to support his troops with much needed food. But they refused—leaving Gideon and his troops hungry and unsupported.
B. There may have been a practical reason for this in the minds of the people of these two cities. They were on the eastern side of the Jordan—closest to the Midianites; and they were without the benefit of the more populous regions and the larger valley of the west to protect them. If they had been found to support Gideon in his campaign—and the campaigned failed—then they would be subject to the retribution of the Midianites later. Things were bad enough; and they didn’t want to make things worse. But it may also be possible that they weren’t motivated by fear; but rather, by something more sinister. It may be that they actually sought the favor of the Midianites, in spite of the things they suffered from them and in spite of God’s call for Gideon to defeat them. In any case, when Gideon asked for help, they gave the answer, “ Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in your hand, that we should give bread to your army?” (v. 6).
C. In the case of Succoth, Gideon promised, “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!” (v. 7). And to Penuel he said, “When I come back in peace, I will tear down this tower!” (v. 9). These may seem like harsh words; but the circumstances were harsh too. Their lack of support was as much as if to wish that Gideon and his troops to be dead! Nevertheless, the lack of support didn’t stop Gideon. Most likely, God provided food for Gideon and his troops through other cities along the way. A lack of support from one source shouldn’t discourage us from believing that God will support us through another. When we feel we’re alone, we need to press on faithfully and remember that—through God—we are never alone!
II. THOROUGHNESS WHEN TEMPTED TO SETTLE FOR, ‘GOOD ENOUGH’ (vv. 10-12).
A. The fact that Gideon would go on—against such great odds, and over such a long distance, and with such a small army, and even after the forces of Midian had run away severely crippled—is truly amazing. Most of us by that point might have been tempted to think that the work that God called us to was sufficiently accomplished. The rest of the work is hard, and things are ‘good enough’. But the fact is that it wasn’t. The two kings remained alive; and they still had a force of 15,000 men. The hard work was far from over—and the danger of a Midianite uprising later was still very strong.
B. Scholars tell us that Gideon and his 300 men traveled a distance of 150 miles—across desolate nomadic paths—to reach the troops of Midian when “the camp felt secure” (v. 11). Perhaps even the Midianites thought that Gideon would be satisfied with ‘good enough’ and leave them alone. What a shock it must have been to them all when Gideon and his men appeared to finish the job! And it must be that God Himself gave the small band of 300 the victory; because we’re told “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” (vv. 11-12). ‘Good enough’ is not good enough in God’s work when the work remains undone. The call must be completed; and the full work must be finished.
III. THOROUGHNESS WHEN CONFRONTED WITH APATHY AND UNBELIEF (vv. 13-17).
A. The work is not really finished until even the attitudes that would lead to half-heartedness in God’s work are completely removed from our lives. If such attitudes are allowed to remain in us, they will creep up and hinder us in God’s work later. This is illustrated to us by the way that Gideon went back to the two unsupportive cities and kept his promise to them. He captured a young man from Succoth and got the names of the city leaders from him; and then he went back and showed them that he captured the two kings. Then we’re told that “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” (vv. 16-17).
B. This may seem harsh and vindictive to us; but let’s remember that their refusal to help—whether out of apathy, or fear, or pride—was, in essence, a denial and disbelief in the promises of God to Gideon and to His people. Their act of unbelief could have resulted in the death of Gideon’s army, and a failure to finish the job, and the eventual return of Midianite oppression. Their unbelieving lack of support amounted to support to the Midianites. Jesus warned us that if even our right hand, or our right foot, or our right eye causes us to sin, we must severe it from ourselves (Mark 9:42-48). Thoroughness in God’s work sometimes requires us to make some very drastic separations!
IV. THOROUGHNESS WHEN TEMPTED TO LET OTHERS FINISH THE TASK (vv. 18-21).
A. Because the story now involves Gideon’s young son, we can suspect that he was home again with his 300 troops. But he brought the two kings with him. And perhaps it was then that he discovered how thorough he truly had to be. He found that the two kings had killed several of his people at Mount Tabor. And when he asked the two kings about it, he discovered that they were Gideon’s relatives. He told them, “As the LORD lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you” (v. 19). It became evident how dangerous these two kings were—what the potential losses could be to his own people if he allowed them to live.
B. But when it came time to finish this dreadful task, Gideon asked his young son to do the job. It may be that he wanted to humiliate the kings by letting a boy kill them. But the boy couldn’t do it. And the kings urged Gideon to do it. They may have been taunting Gideon when they said, “Rise yourself, and kill us; for as a man is, so is his strength” (v. 20); but it also may have been a last plea for honor. But in the end, Gideon himself finished the job and took the crescent ornaments that were on their camels’ necks. This illustrates for us that, when it comes to being completely thorough in God’s work, we mustn’t leave it to others to finish the task for us. We must do all of the work that God has given us to do, and do it all the way.
* * * * * * * * * *
Let’s learn from Gideon’s example not to live half-hearted Christian lives with a half-baked commitment to our Lord. When we stand before Him and give an accounting, He will not say, “50% well-done, thou half-good and partially faithful servant!” Instead, He tells us;
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’? Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26-33).
May God make us a people who are—like Gideon—thorough in fulfilling His call on our lives!
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on June 3, 2015 under AM Bible Study |
AM Bible Study Group; June 3, 2015 from Judges 7:8b-15
Theme: This passage shows how nothing hindered God from giving the victory to His called-out people.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
As we have studied the important battle Gideon fought against the Midianites—a battle that one Old Testament commentator called the best-known battle in the Bible—we have found that the odds had been made humanly impossible. Gideon himself was a humble man who needed assurance—and was not someone that would ordinarily thought to be a great military leader. His army was ridiculously small—an army that was reduced by God from 32,000 men to only three-hundred; making the odds against them about 400 to one! And the provisions for each solder were the strangest ever issued to an army—that is, to each man a clay pitcher, a trumpet, and a torch.
And yet, the battle was won! And this story in the life of Gideon teaches us an important lesson about the God we serve: Nothing hinders God from winning the victory when the battle is His. We always need to remember that it was God who told Gideon, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man” (6:16). God called him, sent him, and promised him the victory; and therefore it was the Midianites who were hopelessly outnumbered!
Consider that when the battle is the Lord’s . . .
I. A LACK OF RESOURCES ARE NOT A PROBLEM (7:16-18).
A. After having overheard the two Midianite soldiers on the outskirts of the camp discussing a dream, and after hearing one say to the other, “This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon, the son of Joash, a man of Israel! Into his hand God has delivered Midian and the whole camp” (7:14); we’re told that Gideon then got into action. But what kind of action is this? After departing from the overwhelmingly great army of the enemy, we’re told, “Then he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put a trumpet into every man’s hand, with empty pitchers, and torches inside the pitchers” (v. 16). Would the 300 soldiers have looked at one another and said, “What are we supposed to do with these? Provide entertainment?” But it may be that these strange provisions were the only things at Gideon’s disposal at that point. After all, for seven years the Midianites had greatly impoverished the people of Israel. It may be that Gideon gave them all the ‘weapons’ that they really had.
B. But like the old song says, “Little is much, when God is in it.” We should remember how the disciples were baffled at the prospect of feeding a multitude with only a few loaves of bread and a few small fish. That meager provision became great after the Lord said, “Bring them here to Me” (v. 18). Gideon knew that the battle belonged to the Lord; so the little he had was much in God’s hand. He gave his meager supply to the 300 soldiers; and we’re told, “And he said to them, ‘Look at me and do likewise; watch, and when I come to the edge of the camp you shall do as I do: When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then you also blow the trumpets on every side of the whole camp, and say, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!”’” (vv. 17-18). Notice what those things became? They were ‘the sword of the Lord and of Gideon’—just what the Midianite soldiers said in the interpretation of their dream—except that the Lord was now clearly in it! We should never despair having meager resources for God’s work when those resources are brought to the Lord!
II. A LACK OF NUMBERS IS NO BARRIER (7:19-23).
A. Some have thought that the thing that Gideon did next was an example of military genius. And when we hear someone say that, we should respond by saying, “Then YOU try it sometime!” The vast army of Midianite soldiers was “as numerous as locusts”, and they had camels “without number, as the sand by the seashore in multitude” (7:12). And the fact that a mere 300 men with pitchers and torches and trumpets could defeat them by breaking the pitchers, and making a lot of noise, was not a result of brilliant military strategy! It was a miracle of God’s own doing! We’re told that Gideon took 100 men to the outpost of the camp “at the beginning of the middle watch”—that is, around 10 pm, when many soldiers were beginning to fall asleep, and when those on watch were relaxed and unsuspecting. The other two divisions quietly surrounded the camp from other sides. And at the right moment, “they blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers that were in their hands. Then the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers—they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing—and they cried, ‘The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!’” (vv. 19-20). We can safely say that this humanly ‘far-fetched’ plan would have to have been something given to Gideon by God.
B. And we are clearly told that what happened next was the Lord’s doing. “And every man stood in his place all around the camp; and the whole army ran and cried out and fled. When the three hundred blew the trumpets, the Lord set every man’s sword against his companion throughout the whole camp; and the army fled to Beth Acacia, toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath” (vv. 21-22). It may have been that the sudden sound of crashing and trumpets, the sudden appearance of torches, and the sudden surrounding army of 300, set the Midianites in a panic and caused them to head for their homeland. It may have been that the camels were put into a panic and began to run amok. But how can we account for the fact that the Midianites then set their swords against each other and reduce their own numbers? The answer we’re given is that the Lord did that! We might say that the lack of human resources proved not to be a problem, because the Lord was able to provide the manpower through the Midianites themselves! What’s more, once they were on the run, those that Gideon had previously sent home (7:3, 6-7) now—in the providence of God—became handy for capturing the escapees along the way. “And the men of Israel gathered together from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh, and pursued the Midianites” (v. 23). As Joshua once said, “One man of you shall chase a thousand, for the Lord your God is He who fights for you, as He promised you” (Joshua 23:10).
III. EVEN THE FRAILTIES OF PEOPLE CANNOT HINDER GOD’S PURPOSE (7:24-8:3).
A. It’s here in the story that Gideon ran into a problem. At first, the news seemed good. We’re told that Gideon called upon the Israelites in the mountains of the tribe of Ephraim to come and seize the watering places in the south—the ones that fed into the Jordan—to prevent the Midianites from going any further. What’s more, the Ephraimites captured two leaders of the Midianites—Oreb (whose name means “Raven”) and Zeeb (whose name means “Wolf”)—slew them, and brought their heads back to Gideon on the other side of the Jordan (7:24-25). But the victory quickly turned sour. The Ephriamites, after all, were a very proud tribe. Joshua had come from them. The tabernacle had been located in their own city of Shiloh. And their founding father Ephriam had been honored over the founder of Gideon’s tribe Menassah in the blessing of Jacob (Genesis 48:8-20). They confronted Gideon and said, “Why have you done this to us by not calling us when you went to fight with the Midianites?” We’re told that “they reprimanded him sharply” (8:1). This, as it turns out, is a repeated problem with proud Ephriam—expecting to be honored much for doing little (see Judges 12:1ff). We might think of some examples of this in church today!
B. Such arrogant pride is a terrible fault; and it can hinder the work of God through division. But it doesn’t have to. God gave His appointed servant Gideon the grace to respond wisely. He could have silenced them by pointing to his own clear call from God; but instead, “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?’” (v. 2). Gideon was an Abiezerite; and he was saying that Ephriam’s act of capturing and slaying the two princes is far greater than the work of Gideon’s humble army. He added, “’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” (v. 3). It may not have been a fair comparison; but it was a wise one to make. God gave that answer to him. When we remember that “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Proverbs 15:1), then not even the frailties of pride and jealousy have to stand in the way of God’s work getting done!
* * * * * * * * * *
As followers of Jesus, we are called upon often to enter into battle—not, of course, against flesh and blood; but against overwhelming forces in spiritual realms. But as Paul wrote, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ . . .” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).
Let’s always remember that the God that gave the victory to Gideon is also our God; and when the battle is His, nothing—not lack of resources, not lack of personal, not even our own failings and faults—can hinder Him from giving the victory.
