The following message is from the Audio Teaching Library of the Briarwood Pulpit, a ministry of the Briarwood Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Our speaker is Dr. Harry Reeder, Senior Pastor of Briarwood Presbyterian Church. It is our hope and prayer that this message will equip and encourage you in your walk with Christ. And as a result, you will be used by our Lord as an instrument of change to further his kingdom and bring honor and glory to the name of Christ. Here now is our pastor teacher, Harry Reeder. Judges, chapter six, some of you that are alert, to our series, realize that our last time that we were here, a couple of weeks ago, we, looking at these biblical portraits, we did one on Deborah, and that was in Judges chapters four and five, and it ended with that interesting statement of summation, after the Lord blessed, I'm sorry, not Miriam, Deborah, excuse me, after the Lord blessed Deborah as judge, Then the Lord gave the land rest for forty years. But now comes the apostasy. Remember what we talked about, how in the book of Judges, one of the clear lessons that keeps coming through time and time again is this cycle, inevitable cycle. About every 40 to 80 years, the people of God begin to move downward theologically, begin to move into a death spiral culturally of spiritual laxity, spiritual apathy. And then God has to bring discipline in their life and he gives them over. And so it is in the life of Israel. Again, after Deborah, we now come to the fifth judge, and the fifth judge is a man by the name of Gideon. A man by the name of Gideon that becomes an interesting lesson for us. An interesting lesson as to how the Lord uses His people and how the Lord calls people to serve Him. And yet, as one preacher said, the book of Judges, as you look at these Judges, you are reminded that not only do we have feet of clay, but these are treasures entrusted into vessels of clay, where the instruments God uses are not the key. The instruments magnify the key, which is the Lord himself. It's really interesting how Gideon fits this profile that maybe you've seen. Have you ever seen that there are some people that in certain situations serve the Lord so effectively, but once that situation passes, all of a sudden their vitality, their effectiveness, and even their faithfulness begins to dissipate. I mean, we see it in, we see it, how many great leaders have stepped up during times of war and done just amazing feats in the time of adversity and war. And then when they come back, they get into positions of leadership. And there's just something missing. One of my prime examples, I've read the volumes of President Ulysses S. Grant. I've studied him as a general and some of the amazing insights that he had. But yet the office of president seemed to be much too big of a task, or he wasn't matched to that task. Well, you're about to find the same thing out about Gideon. Gideon doesn't start well, then he runs well, and then he doesn't finish well. Then comes the question, the fact that he doesn't finish well, does that reveal that he was never a believer? Or does that just one of the ways that God shows us that even believers can't finish well unless they keep their eyes on the Lord? Well, why don't we take a look at the life of Gideon. It covers three chapters, so you're going to have to bear with me a little bit. It's in Judges, chapter 6. We're kind of doing something that's pretty close to a Bible study tonight. Look with me in chapter 6, and let's pick up verses 1 through 10 first. The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. So the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian seven years. And the hand of Midian overpowered Israel because of Midian, the people of Israel, made for themselves the dens that are in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds. For whenever the Israelites planted crops, the Midianites, and they were joined by another group called the Amalekites, And the Amalekites and the people of the East, they even had some other tribes that were in this coalition, they would all come together and do what? They would come up against them during their harvest times and when they would bring in their fields as they would bear fruit. They would encamp against them and devour the produce of the land as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance in Israel, and no sheep or ox or donkey. For they would come up with their livestock and their tents. They would come like locusts in number." Reminding of the plague of the locusts. Locusts in number. Both they and their camels could not be counted. That's interesting. This is the first time in the context of warfare a camel is mentioned in the Bible. And then these camels come up with them, too much to be counted, so that they laid waste the land as they came in. And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to the Lord. And when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord on account of the Midianites, the Lord sent a prophet. to the people of Israel, and he said to them, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, I led you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of slavery, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. And I said to you, I am the Lord your God. You shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell, but you have not obeyed my voice." So, Midian. Now, who are they? Well, Midian doesn't belong where you find them. Midian is a semi-nomadic tribe that actually dwells much further south. In fact, Midianites are technically cousins to Israelites. How so? Well, the book of Genesis tells you their origin. After Sarah's death, one of the wives that Abraham took was a wife by the name of Keturah. And Keturah bore Abraham's sons. One of those sons was Midian. Midian then brought forth the Midianites. You can connect the dot again, can't you? because the people of Israel are gone for 400 plus years into slavery in Egypt and God raises up a deliverer who becomes a type of Christ and the first author of the scriptures. Who is that? Moses. Moses. Be confident. Moses. That's who it was. It was Moses, and Moses got married when he was forty years old after a death warrant had been issued in Egypt for him, and he goes out into the wilderness and he arrives at a place called Midian. There is a priest of the God Most High named Reuel, also named Jethro, and he marries one of his daughters, Zipporah. And then the Midianites are also a nation that when the people are delivered of their journey from the wilderness, they're the Midianites who basically give them a little bit of a pass on the way to the Promised Land. Then they settle in the Promised Land under Joshua, and now we are at the year 252 BC. That is 1,252 years before the birth of Christ. That's where we are. And this passage that we just read covered seven years from 1252 to 1245. And what we are told is that the people had abandoned the true worship of God and obeying God even after God had done glorious things for them, and they had abandoned that and gone into spiritual adultery. The language is even more pointed in the original, and I'll do it on Sunday morning. I probably wouldn't do it Sunday morning, but the Bible says that Israel went whoring after other gods. And so God, there's that phrase, God gave them over. God gave them over and no longer is there rest in the land. Now there is oppression, and the oppression of the Midianites, supported by the Amalekites and also some other tribes, that the oppression was so distinct and so powerful that every time it came harvest time, these tribes would come in, the Midianites being the leading tribe, And they would take their livestock, they would take their cattle, they would take everything from them, and they would take whatever harvest had come in. And that's what they would do to oppress the people so much that the people began to live in secret places, in the caves of mountains, in dens, just like wild animals, trying to avoid this oppression. So they cry out to the Lord. Now, this is interesting. In the Bible up to this point, every time the people cry out to the Lord, God brings a deliverer. Not this time. The people cry out to the Lord and he doesn't send a deliverer immediately. He sends a preacher. He sends a prophet. An unnamed prophet. An anonymous prophet. We're not even given his name. And this prophet does what prophets in the Bible do when they are sent to God's people after they have abandoned the Lord. This prophet becomes a preaching lawyer. He brings a covenantal lawsuit against God's people. This is what your covenant keeping God has done for you. And he recounts the blessings of God that were given to them, that they had received undeserved from the hand of God as he had sustained them. And he brings and he brings each and every indictment to them. And then he brings the charge. But you have abandoned the Lord. You have worshipped the gods of the pagans, and that's why God has given you over to this present distress." Well, here, then after God brings the lawsuit with the prophet, then God, in His grace, bringing undeserved relief, raises up a leader to deliver them. The fifth judge up to this point in the book of Judges. His name is Gideon. Gideon means thresher, cutter, hacker. It's got a clear military term. My guess is Gideon was somewhat known for his military prowess even before God blessed him. His name indicates that. And so what are we told? Well, now we have a Christophany, a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ to Gideon. Look at verse 11. Now, not a, not an angel of the Lord, but the angel. There's a giveaway. This is a Christophany. This is a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ. Came and, you see, this is an appearance, human-like appearance. Now, it's not the same in the incarnation. Jesus doesn't appear as a human being simply. In appearance, he actually takes upon himself full humanity. But here, there is the appearance of humanity, and that Jesus comes not appearing as a man, but appearing man-like, and therefore comes and sits down under the terebinth at Ophrah. Not Oprah. Ophrah. Now, from my understanding, the television personality was originally named for Ophrah, the city Ophrah in Manasseh. That's what some things you now find out about Gideon. He is of the half-tribe Manasseh. He is of the half-tribe Manasseh. His father is Joash. His father is Joash, who is called the Abizarite, and his son Gideon We find him here in this text. The angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Oprah. By the way, what I heard was that she was actually named that, but as a kid could not say Oprah. She kept saying Oprah, and so that became her name, Oprah. Well, that's a freebie. I'll just give that one to you there. But this city of Ophrah is there with Joash, and Joash is in control, and his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. What do you do at a winepress? This isn't hard. You make wine. You crush grapes. What is he doing at the wine press? He's threshing wheat. Why? Well, a wheat threshing floor would be on an eminence and easily visible. And if it's visible, what's going to happen? The Midianites are going to come and take it. So in an attempt to secure at least some of his harvest, He's doing this in camouflage at a wine press that's not as easily seen, trying to get some of the threshing done. It's interesting, his name means thresher, and we find him threshing wheat at a wine press. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor. And Gideon said to him, Please, my Lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our father recounted to us, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian. And the Lord turned to him, so now you know this isn't any angel. The Lord turned to him. The angel of the Lord is the second person of the Trinity in this Christophany appearance. He turned to him and said, Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian. Do not I send you? And he said to him, Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house. And the Lord said to him, But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man. But I will be with you. You shall strike the Midianites as one man. And he said to him, If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak to me. Please do not depart from here until I come to you and bring out my present and set it before you. And he said, I will stay till you return. He said, I need a sign. I need a miracle that everything you're telling me is true. And so I need you to do a miracle to affirm this for me. So you stay and I'm going to bring back, I'm going to bring back an offering to you. So Gideon went into the house, he prepared a young goat and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket and the broth he put in a pot and brought them to him under the terebinth and presented them. And the angel of God said to him, take the meat and unleavened cakes and put them on this rock and pour the broth over them. And he did so. Then the angel of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes. And the fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes, and the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. Then Gideon perceived that he was the angel of the Lord, and Gideon said, Alas, O Lord God, for now I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face. But the Lord said to him, Peace be to you. Do not fear. You shall not die. See, immediately when he realizes that this is the divine appearance, he figures, I'm dead. I'm a done man. You cannot look upon the Lord and yet live. But yet this veiled appearance of the Lord is used to communicate to him. And then he says, don't fear, you shall not die. Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it the Lord is Peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah, which belongs to the Abizurites. That night the Lord said to him, take your father's bull and the second bull, seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that your father has and cut down the Asherah that is beside it and build an altar to the Lord your God on the top of the stronghold there with stones laid in due order. In other words, build it appropriately. Then take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah that you shall cut down." So Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as the Lord had told him, but because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night. So we see that even though he's obeying the Lord, he's trying to find the easiest way to do it without exposing himself to any danger. But he does do what the Lord called him to do. and he did this by tearing down this false god that was there in the property of his father. So here we see the apostasy of Israel in Manasseh in the house of Gideon. Joash, his father, is one who has established this altar to Baal and then has built this altar to Baal And he is instructed to tear it down, to take its wood, to light the fire, to bring a sacrifice to God. And so he does it. He does it at night. I don't know what he thought. Well, if I do it at night, maybe they won't notice it when they wake up the next morning. But they do. And what happens? Gideon destroys the altar of Baal. And when the men of the town rose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was broken down and the Asherah beside it was cut down. And the second bull was offered on the altar that had been built. And they said to one another, what is this? Who has done this thing? And after they had searched and inquired, they said, Gideon, the son of Joash, has done this thing. And the men of the town said to Joash, bring out your son, that he may die. for he has broken down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah beside it. But Joash said to all who stood against him, Will you contend for Baal, or will you save him that is Baal? Whoever contends for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is God, let him contend for himself. because his altar has been broken down. Therefore on that day Gideon was called Jerubbael, that is to say, let Baal contend against him, because he broke down his altar. Now all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the East came together and they crossed the Jordan and then camped in the valley of Jezreel. But the spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon and he sounded the trumpet and the Abizarites were called out to follow him. And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, and they too were called out to follow him. And he sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they went up to meet him. So let's stop right there before we end the chapter. What has happened? Well, God has called him to tear down the altars, the altars of Baal, and you start with your own fathers. And so he goes in and he takes that which is left over from tearing it down to light the fire to bring and build an altar unto the Lord according to the proper prescriptions, and then as he builds it, he then takes the wood from the torn down altar to light the fire to offer the bull as an offering to the Lord. When they wake up the next day and they see what he has done, the people are ready to kill him because of what he has done, to put him to death. Interestingly, Joash, who was the one who owned the altar, comes to his son's defense. Basically, it was one of those Clint Eastwood moments, you know, make my day. If you come against him, you'll die. I'll see to it that you die. But by the way, why do you have to stand up to put my son to death because of what he did to the altar of Baal? Can't Baal contend for himself? Let Baal contend for himself. Let's just find out about this God. Now, I'm not sure Joash is getting converted. This may just be a son rising up to defend his father. But it is positive what he does, and it's positive what he says, not only to defend his son, but also to bring some theological accuracy. If this is a God, let him defend himself. Let him bring judgment against my son. And then from that day forward, Gideon's name around the town of Ophrah became Jerubbael, meaning the one who let Baal contend against him. And they did gave him that name because he had had the audacity to break down the altar and survived. And so now the word goes out of what's happening, of this stirring among the Israelites. So the Amalekites and the Midianites and all of this coalition start coming together. and they encamp in the Valley of Jezreel. Now, folks, let me give you just a little bit of geography here. The Valley of Jezreel is between Mount Gilboa and Mount Moreh. It is right between it at the southern end of what you would probably know as Megiddo. There, under the shadow of the mountain of Megiddo, in fact, you're in the same valley where Deborah had won her battle. that we studied two weeks ago. You're just at the southern end of it, well, the southeastern end of it. And as you're in the southeastern end of it, they are this large army of these Amalekites and Midianites have gathered together. And so Gideon, now having been commissioned of the Lord to do battle for the Lord, begins to send out messengers to collect an army not only from Manasseh, but also from the tribes of Asher and Zebulun and Naphtali. And so they were all called together and they go out to meet them. And then this chapter comes to this conclusion. Then Gideon said to God, if you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece alone and it is dry all around the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said. And it was so. When he rose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece, he wrung enough dew from the fleece to fill a bowl with water. Then Gideon said to God, Let not your anger burn against me. Let me speak just once more. Please let me test just once more with the fleece. Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and all the ground let there be dew. And God did so that night, and it was dry on the fleece only. and on all the ground there was dew. So this is what is known as Gideon's Fleece. Now, I'm not going to ask this because I don't want to know. How many of you have ever given and exercised Gideon's Fleece? Please do not raise your hand. We do a fleece. We even give it a tent. Well, I just put out a fleece. And that's kind of like a spiritual badge. Well, I just put out a fleece. Well, the reality is the fleece is not a sign of faith. The fleece is a sign of unbelief. God's already told him what to do. And he says, well, God, I know you have said this in your word. And I know we have this history of you being faithful to your word, we're fully aware of it. But God, if you're really going to continue to be faithful to your word, could you do a miracle for me? Now, God has already been gracious to do one because of his unbelief. Right. When he burned up the cakes on the on the stone. But now he's going to he's asking for another one. This is the second time. So he asked him if this is the case, then the next day, let everything be dry, but let my fleece be wet. Then I'll know that this is from you, this word you will fulfill, you will deliver. these Midianites into my hand." Well, God very patiently does that. And then he comes back and says, you know, God, I'm still not sure I can trust you. That's what he's saying. I'm still not sure I can trust your word. So I tell you what, tomorrow, let the fleece be dry and everything else be wet. And God, again, in patience, in patience, did the request. to encourage Gideon. Are you beginning to see some cracks in the foundation of Gideon? Here is a faith that rests not upon God's Word, but a faith that rests upon whatever experiences that he asked for. A need for personal miracles to be assured of God's Word. Well now, here's his name, chapter 7, Then Jerubael, that is Gideon, and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the spring of Herod. And the camp of Midian was north of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley. So there they are at the valley of Jezreel between Mount Gilboa and Mount Moreh at Herod's spring. One of the great privileges I have when I take people to Israel is to go right to that very, very place. My wife even has pictures of me lapping up the water from Herod's Spring. It's still there today. There it is. It's also called Gideon's Spring. And it is there that he encamps with his men, while all around them in the valley of Jezreel are these hordes of a significant army that has been raised up. Just how significant is it? Well, here in verse 2, the Lord said to Gideon, the people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand. lest Israel boast over me, saying, My own hand has saved me. Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home, and hurry away from Mount Gilead. Then twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained." So now we know, by the way, we've got other texts that let us know the number of the Midianite army was in excess of 200,000. About one-tenth of its size was the army that Gideon had, about 32,000. And then he says, and the Lord says, this army's too big. This army is too big. I'll tell you, what we need to do is you need to, we need to reduce this army. If we win with this army, they're going to give you the credit. They're going to take the credit. Israel will boast, and they will boast over me. Instead of giving glory to God, they'll say, Our own hand has saved us. So here's what you go tell the people. Any of you that are a little timid, you can go home. And 22,000 of the 32 go home. That left 10,000. The Lord's not through. Verse 4. And the Lord said to Gideon, the people are still too many. Take them down to the water and I will test them. So they go down to Herod's spring. I will test them for you there. And any one of whom I say to you, this one shall go with you, shall go with you. And anyone whom I say to you, this one shall not go with you, shall not go. So he brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon, everyone who laps the water with his tongue as a dog laps, you shall set by himself. Likewise, everyone who kneels down to drink. And the number of those who lapped, putting their hands to their mouths, was three hundred men, but all the rest of the people knelt down to drink water." That probably means they used utensils. But these just drank it up, lapping it up. And the Lord said to Gideon, Now with the three hundred men that have leapt, I will save you and give the Midianites into your hand. Let all the others go, every man to his home. So the people took provisions in their hands and their trumpets, took provisions in their hands and their trumpets. And he sent all the rest of Israel, every man to his tent, but retained the three hundred men. and the camp of Midian was below him in the city. That same night the Lord said to him, Arise, go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand. But if you are afraid to go, hear what they say, and afterwards your hand shall be strengthened to go down against the camp. Then he went down with Purah his servant." In other words, if you're afraid, I'm going to let you go hear something. Go do some reconnaissance. So he goes down with his servant to hear some reconnaissance. another encouragement from the Lord. The Lord's already told him, I'm going to give them into your hands, but he's still fearful. The miracles weren't enough. And so listen, I'll give you some more information. So he goes down with Purah, his servant, to the outpost of the armed men who were in the camp. And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the people of the East lay among the valley like locusts in abundance. and their camels were without number, as the sand that is on the seashore in abundance. And when Gideon came, behold, a man was telling a dream to his comrade, and he said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and behold, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian, and came to the tent, and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down, so that the tent lay flat." In other words, a piece of bread fell and destroyed the tent. And so the tent lay flat, and his comrade answered, This is no other than the sword of Gideon, the son of Joash, a man of Israel. God has given into his hand Midian and all the camp." As soon as Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, he worshipped the Lord. And he returned to the camp of Israel and said, Arise, for the Lord has given the host of Midian into your hands. And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put trumpets into the hands of all of them, and empty jars with torches inside the jars. And he said to them, Look at me and do likewise. When I come to the outskirts of the camp, do as I do. When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then blow the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and shout. for the Lord and for Gideon. So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outskirts of the camp, at the beginning of the middle watch, when they had just set the watch, and they blew the trumpets, smashed the jars that were in their hands. Then the three companies blew the trumpets, broke the jars. They held in their left hands the torches, and in their right hands the trumpets to blow. And they cried out, a sword for the Lord and for Gideon. And every man stood in his place around the camp, and all the army ran. They cried out, and they fled. When they blew the three hundred trumpets, the Lord set every man's sword against his comrade and against all the army. And the army fled as far as Beth Shittah, toward Zerah, as far as the borders of Abel-Meholah by Tabath. And the men of Israel were called out from Naphtali, from Asheron, from all Manasseh, and they pursued after Midian. Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, Come down against the Midianites, and capture the waters against them, as far as Beth-be-Ra, and also to the Jordan." So all the men of Ephraim were called out, and they captured the waters as far as Beth-be-Ra, and also the Jordan, and they captured the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeb. They killed Oreb at the Rock of Oreb, and Zeab they killed at the Winepress of Zeab. Then they pursued Midian, and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeab to Gideon across the Jordan." So that's what the other tribes did in the follow-up on this victory. Something just happened here, though. He goes down, and he listens to the reconnaissance. And he listens in reconnaissance, and he hears two people, one with a dream. And he shares with the dream, there's a tent, there's a piece of bread, a barley cake that fell, and it completely destroyed the tent. There was the military tent utterly destroyed by a barley cake. And the other man says, I know what that dream means. That mean dreams, the sword of Gideon, whom the Lord has called, is going to destroy us. And then it says, Gideon worshiped. But we also find out something else. Hearing his name, something is planted in his heart. And while he worshiped the Lord for what he heard, something else was working, and we know it, because he then gives what other pagan nations taught their armies to say. They would say the name of their God and then their general. And now Gideon has his name on the marquee with God. Go, break the jars, and then shout for the sword of the Lord and Gideon. What has been the whole point of reducing the size of this army? that God alone would receive the glory. And time and time again, even with his patience, he has made this clear to Gideon. But while Gideon, we admire his obedience, we also see the cracks in the foundation. God's word is not enough. I need a miracle. And God's glory is not enough. I need my name on the marquee with God. For the sword of the Lord and for So then we're told in chapter 8 that the men of Ephraim said to him, what is this that you have done to us not to call us when we went to fight against Midian? And they accused him fiercely and 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 grape harvest of Abiezar? God has given into your hands the princes of Midian, Oreb, and Zeab. What have I been able to do in comparison with you?" Then their anger against him subsided when he said this. Oh my goodness. Now Gideon is being humble. Why? Well, not because he is necessarily humble. He is managing those that are upset with him. And he says, oh, y'all are much more famous than me. Look, you even killed their kings. You presented their heads. You guys, you've got all of the booty from the war. You've caught them. You've captured and destroyed their kings. Who is Gideon in comparison to you? We know who Gideon thinks he is in comparison. He's one that receives billing with the Lord. But in order to stave off this insurrection, He tells them, oh, you are much greater than me. And he does this political move that quiets them down, and it works. By the way, folks, don't miss this. Here in this text, at this moment, is a foreshadowing. Here is the first time the tribes have indicated division that will later be worked out. with the separation after the death of Solomon. The divided kingdom. Here is the first time division is seen among them. And then look at the next verse. And Gideon came to the Jordan and crossed over. He and the three hundred men who were with him, exhausted yet pursuing. My goodness, underline that. Don't miss that. You know why I love that? That's the picture of the Christian life. Exhausted yet pursuing. It's kind of like, remember the burning bush? It's burning. There's the fire in the bush, but the bush never burns up. The fire is not dependent upon the bush. Our strength is not dependent upon ourselves. It comes from the Lord. So even in ourselves, while we're exhausted, now folks, I know there's time for vacations and rest. That's not what I'm saying. But here's the promise, is that when God's called us to something, even when our flesh is failing, the Lord will give us the strength to keep pursuing, pursuing that which he has called us to. And so they are, they are exhausted yet pursuing. So he said to the men of Sukkoth, please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me for they are exhausted and I'm pursuing after Ziba and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian. And the officials of Sukkoth said, are the hands of Ziba and Zalmunna already in your, are the hands of Ziba and Zalmunna already in your hand that we should give bread to your army? In other words, we're not going to support you until you've already whipped them, because if you don't whip them, then they'll come back and whip us for supporting you. So we're not going to support you and your army until you take care of their army. So Gideon said, well then, when the Lord has given Ziba and Salmuna into my hand, I will flail your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briars. And from there he went up to Penuel, and he spoke to them in the same way. And the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. And he said to the men of Penuel, when I come again in peace, I will break down this tower." In other words, you're going to pay for not supporting us. Now, Ziba and Zalmuna were in Karkor with their army, about 15,000 men. all who were left of all the army of the people of the east, for there had already fallen 120,000 men who drew the sword. And Gideon went up the way of the tent dwellers east of Noba and Jogbeha and attacked the army, for the army felt secure. And Zeba and Zalmunna fled, and he pursued them and captured the two kings of Midian, Zeba and Zalmunna, and he threw all the army into a panic. This is the second battle of Gideon. One difference. Anybody see the difference? God commanded the first one. Gideon's doing this one on his own. God commanded the first battle and sent them. This one Gideon is doing on his own. and he returned from the battle, and Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle by the ascent of Heres, and he captured a young man of Succoth and questioned him, and he wrote down for the officials and the elders of Succoth seventy-seven men, and he came to the men of Succoth and said, Behold, Ziba and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me, saying, Are the hands of Ziba and Zalmunna already in your hand? that we should give bread to your men who are exhausted. And he took the elders of the city, and he took thorns of the wilderness, and briars with them, and taught the men of Succoth a lesson. And he brought down the tower of Penuel, and he killed the men of the city. And then he said to Ziba and Zalmuna, Where are the men whom you killed at Tabor? They answered, As you are, so are they. Every one of them resembled the son of a king." See the call. son of a king. He's king-like. That's beginning to set in his mind and his heart. And he said, these were my brothers, the sons of my mother, as the Lord lives. In other words, the word is out. There's something in Gideon that's looking more and more as if he doesn't want to be simply the judge to deliver, but a king. And if you saved them, would I not kill you? So he said to Jehor his firstborn, Rise and kill them. But the young man did not draw his sword, for he was afraid, because he was still a young man. Then Ziba and Zalmuna said, Rise yourself and fall upon us, for as the man is, so is his strength. And Gideon rose and killed Ziba and Zalmuna, and he took the crescent ornaments that were on the necks of their camels." Now what does he do with all of this booty? And by the way, just one other point I want you to see here. Here are the men of Penuel and the men of Succoth. And when he comes through, he says, give us assistance. I'm going to fight the Midianites. And they look at him and said, have you already defeated them? What if you fail and we supported you? They'll come back and destroy us. And so Gideon says, well, when I do destroy them, I'll come back and destroy you. Why? Because you didn't believe what I said. Who else didn't believe what someone had said? Gideon, three times, did not believe the word of the Lord. How did the Lord treat him? With patience, with mercy. How is this now increasingly self-absorbed Gideon treating those who didn't believe him? He did not treat them the way God had treated him. And he comes back in judgment upon them instead of graciousness as he had experienced from the Lord. Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, verse 22, rule over us and your son and your grandson also, for you have saved us from the hand of Midian. Gideon said to them, I will not rule over you. Boy, this is sounding pretty good. I will not rule over you and my son will not rule over you. The Lord will rule over you. So that's the right answer. God's king of Israel, not Gideon. And Gideon said to them, let me make a request of you. Every one of you give me the earrings from Esphoah, for they had golden earrings because they were Ishmaelites. And they answered, we are willing, we will willingly give them. And they spread a cloak and every man through it. threw in it the earrings of his spoil, and the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was 1,700 shekels of gold. Besides the crescent ornaments and the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian, and beside the collars that were around the necks of their camels, and Gideon made an ephod of it." That would be a large dress, a large covering cloak of gold that he makes from it. Gideon made an ephod of it, he put it in his city, in Ophrah, and all Israel whored after it there. They began to worship Gideon's ephod. Gideon, who had destroyed an altar in Ophrah, now makes one of a pagan worship. And it became a snare, not only to them, but to Gideon. How does it become a snare to Gideon? Folks, who wore the ephod? The ephod was worn by the priest and by the king. Don't be a king. I won't be a king. Give me the earrings. Make the kingly garment. And I'll wear it. Put it in my city. And call people to worship it. And so Midian was subdued before the people of Israel, and they raised their heads no more, and the land had rest for forty years in the days of Gideon." Let's go to his death. "'Jerubael, the son of Joash, went and lived in his own house. Now Gideon had seventy sons, his own offspring, for he had many wives, and his concubine, who was in Shechem, also bore him a son.'" In other words, this would be an illegitimate son, not from his wife, but from a concubine. and he called his name Abimelech. And Gideon, the son of Joash, died in a good old age, and was buried in the tomb of Joash's father as Ophrah of the Abizarites. As soon as Gideon died, the people of Israel turned again and whored after the Baals, and made Baal bareth their god. And the people of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hand of all of his enemies on every side. And they did not show steadfast love to the family of Jerubael, that is, Gideon, in return for all the good that he had done to Israel." Well, what I'd love to do is to keep reading, but we're done. I'm out of time. Gideon doesn't finish well. In fact, Gideon has a son, illegitimate. that he names Abimelech. Does anyone know what that name means? The son of a king. And Abimelech is going to take this seriously. If you'll read on to the next chapter, he will attempt to press his father's opportunity to be king and bring more destruction in the lives of Israel. Just take these away. Number one is this. God gets his purposes done, even with sometimes unfit instruments. God gets his purposes done, even that's not an excuse for me not to be the best servant and leader I can for the Lord. But God's hand is not shortened by the by the imperfections, the sins and the weaknesses of his people. The sovereign God can accomplish his purposes. Secondly, the sovereign God is very patient with his imperfect and sin prone people when they have their entangling sins in life. Look at his patience with Gideon. But thirdly, when the press of time continues, over time we find out what is actually reigning in the heart. Pastor, was Gideon a believer? I honestly don't know. I don't know whether he had an entangling sin that just brought him to finish so that he did not finish strong. And this sin that was entangling was reproduced and then brought to another level in his son Abimelech. I do not know. I do know this, though. There were those elements of his life that led to the fact he didn't finish well. In the midst of the battle, he did well. But then in his pride, he went and fought a battle that God didn't even command. He gave us Christ that pagan kings would give, not for the sword of the Lord, but for the sword of the Lord and Gideon. There was inside of him this need of glory. Let's get rid of it in our lives. Whatever ministry you and I have, let's ask God to give us a heart that we don't need the credit. We want all the glory to go to the Lord. And God, give us a life that stands in your word. I thank you for your providence and miracles, but we stand in the word which is true. We don't need the miracles to believe it's true. We've got the word and his word is truth. Lessons you can learn from Gideon in his courage in the battle by the grace of God. Lessons we can learn from Gideon that we need God's grace, that God would get all the glory, that we would believe his word and we wouldn't lay actions and words that lead to the destruction of others. Let's pray. Father, thank you for the privilege to be in this your word. Thank you for the opportunity to walk our way through the scriptures. And Lord, this is just an amazing individual, this guy Gideon, and there's so much about him that begs for our study. that begs for our studies so that we can give glory to you for all that you are and all that you do and all that you do in our lives. So, Father, what you did in Gideon's life, do in ours. Where Gideon fell short, grant us repentance. Oh, Lord, what we long to see is all the glory to be given to you. And I pray this, Father, in Jesus' name, Jesus' strong name, I pray. Amen. You have been listening to a message by Harry Reeder, Senior Pastor of Briarwood Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama. For more information on the resources available through Briarwood Presbyterian Church, or for more information on the teaching ministry of Pastor Reeder, visit us at briarwood.org or call 205-776-5200. you