Worship X Day 15 The Eternal One: Digging Deeper

1) Who is Gideon and what has happened to him? (verse 7)
In His patience and mercy, the Lord provided a leader to deliver the stubborn and rebellious Israelites yet again. He sent a nameless prophet to tell Gideon, son of Joash, that he would be the one to lead the rescue of God’s people. In Judges 6, we learn that Gideon had destroyed the pagan idols of the people in an act of fearful but faithful obedience. At this point, the relationship between God and His people included a history of cyclical rebellion and regret. Deuteronomy informs us how God’s people were warned against idolatry, forsaking God’s laws, forgetting the covenant with God, neglecting the poor, befriending the enemies of God and becoming self-sufficient. The Lord repeatedly reminded them to carefully follow Him. (Deuteronomy 8) Sadly, after the death of their leader Joshua, the Israelites began serving the false gods Baal and the Ashtoreths (Judges 2:7-13), generating a necessary response from God to correct them using judges as His spokespersons. The Israelites repeatedly ignored God (Judges 2:16-19), and though there were periods of peace (Judges 5:31) they would again and again return to their evil ways (Judges 6:1). When God calls Gideon, the Israelites are suffering at the hands of their long-time adversaries, the Midianites. (Numbers 25:16-18) For seven years the people of Midian overwhelmed them. “Israel became poverty-stricken because of Midian, and the Israelites [again] cried out to the Lord.” (Judges 6:6) Revealing that he’s a man who wrestles with doubt, Gideon desires verification from God that the enemy’s defeat is certain. (Judges 6:36) God assures Gideon He will be faithful to His promise, and He grants Gideon’s request. (Judges 6:39-40) Gideon rallies an army (Judges 6:34-35) and, after whittling down his troops at God’s instruction, verse 7 tells us God confirms He will keep His promise to Gideon.

2) What did the Lord tell Gideon to do? (verses 8-15)
Gideon started with an army over 30,000 strong, but the Lord steadily insisted on making it smaller. (Judges 7:2) Finally, He declared the army a suitable size to accomplish His work in His way. Gideon responded with obedience as he waited for God’s next instruction. At first, it appears he may have gained some confidence in God’s plan to deliver them. He sends the masses of soldiers back to their tents, keeping only 300 men. (verse 8) That night, God gives the signal to Gideon. “Get up and attack the camp, for I have handed it over to you!” (verse 9) Thankfully, God knew Gideon’s need for assurance and provided an opportunity to hear for himself how it will come to pass. God demonstrated patience and grace in verses 10-11 as He provided Gideon with a plan to boost his confidence regarding the next phase. As Gideon and his assistant sneak near enough to the Midianite camp to overhear their chatter, it becomes clear that God’s instruction was timely. “When Gideon arrived …” at just the right moment, some men were talking about him! (verse 13) Coincidence? Most certainly not! This strange but significant dream was interpreted on the spot by the dreamer’s friend. And Gideon knew the dream was from the Lord. (verse 15) Commentators tell us that barley bread was a staple food of the poverty-stricken Israelites under Midian’s oppression. (studylight.org) Both Gideon and the Midianite soldiers would have been quite familiar with the significance of this illustration. As they are speaking, it becomes obvious the soldiers had heard of Gideon and his God. Gideon could return to camp with courage that victory was as good as done! With confidence he repeated what the Lord had said to him, “Get up, for the Lord has handed the Midianite camp over to you!” (verse 15)

3) How did the Lord demonstrate His faithfulness to the Israelites? (verses 16-21)
Gideon had moved from fear to faith, and was a ready warrior with God on his side. He would lead Israel into victory by example, of heart and action. Fearful Gideon had turned courageous because of His God, “Watch me and what I do!” (verse 17), he told his army in preparation to fight. Gideon again divides up the army, not to reduce the size, but to strategically divide and prepare to conquer. The 300 men would become three groups spread out around the Midianite camp. With torches in their hands and rams’ horns tied around their necks; they were ready to follow Gideon’s battle instruction. (verse 18) I wonder if Gideon recalled the story of Joshua we read about in Joshua 6; I’d like to think he did! We can only imagine the scene in the middle of the night, when it was dark and still, a loud and unexpected sound interrupted the peace of the camp. (Judges 7:19) As chaos ensued, the Midianites turned on each other and ran away screaming. (verse 21) They were terrified, believing they were being attacked by a massive army. We read in verse 22 that it was the Lord who caused the presence of the three widely separated groups of soldiers to give the Midianites the impression that a very large Israelite army was out there in the dark. Gideon led the army, but the Lord won the battle.