Judges 8

1 And the men of Ephraim said to Gedeon, What this thou hast done to us, in that thou didst not call us when thou wentest to fight with Madiam? and they chode with him sharply.

2 And he said to them, What have I now done in comparison of you? not the gleaning of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer?

3 The Lord has delivered into your hand the princes of Madiam, Oreb and Zeb; and what could I do in comparison of you? Then was their spirit calmed toward him, when he spoke this word.

4 And Gedeon came to Jordan, and went over, himself and the three hundred with him, hungry, yet pursuing.

5 And he said to the men of Socchoth, Give, I pray you, bread to feed this people that follow me; because they are faint, and behold, I am following after Zebee and Salmana, kings of Madiam.

6 And the princes of Socchoth said, the hands of Zebee and Salmana now in thy hand, that we should give bread to thy host?

7 And Gedeon said, Therefore when the Lord gives Zebee and Salmana into my hand, then will I tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness, and the Barkenim.

8 And he went up thence to Phanuel, and spoke to them likewise: and the men of Phanuel answered him as the men of Socchoth answered him.

9 And Gedeon said to the men of Phanuel, When I return in peace, I will break down this tower.

10 And Zebee and Salmana in Carcar, and their host with them, about fifteen thousand, all that were left of all the host of the aliens; and they that fell a hundred and twenty thousand men that drew the sword.

11 And Gedeon went up by the way of them that dwelt in tents, eastward of Nabai and Jegebal; and he smote the host, and the host was secure.

12 And Zebee and Salmana fled; and he pursued after them, and took the two kings of Madiam, Zebee and Salmana, and discomfited all the army.

13 And Gedeon the son of Joas returned from the battle, down from the battle of Ares.

14 And he took prisoner a young lad of the men of Socchoth, and questioned him; and he wrote to him the names of the princes of Socchoth and of their elders, seventy-seven men.

15 And Gedeon came to the princes of Socchoth, and said, Behold Zebee and Salmana, about whom ye reproached me, saying, the hands of Zebee and Salmana now in thy hand, that we should give bread to thy men that are faint?

16 And he took the elders of the city with the thorns of the wilderness and the Barkenim, and with them he tore the men of the city.

17 And he overthrew the tower of Phanuel, and slew the men of the city.

18 And he said to Zebee and Salmana, Where the men whom ye slew in Thabor? and they said, As thou, so they, according to the likeness of the son of a king.

19 And Gedeon said, They were my brethren and the sons of my mother: the Lord lives, if ye had preserved them alive, I would not have slain you.

20 And he said to Jether his first-born, Rise and slay them; but the lad drew not his sword, for he was afraid, for he was yet very young.

21 And Zebee and Salmana said, Rise thou and fall upon us, for thy power as that of a man; and Gedeon arose, and slew Zebee and Salmana: and he took the round ornaments that were on the necks of their camels.

22 And the men of Israel said to Gedeon, Rule, lord, over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son's son; for thou hast saved us out of the hand of Madiam.

23 And Gedeon said to them, I will not rule, and my son shall not rule among you; the Lord shall rule over you.

24 And Gedeon said to them, I will make a request of you, and do ye give me every man an earring out of his spoils: for they had golden earrings, for they were Ismaelites.

25 And they said, We will certainly give them: and he opened his garment, and each man cast therein an earring of his spoils.

26 And the weight of the golden earrings which he asked, was a thousand and seven hundred pieces of gold, besides the crescents, and the chains, and the garments, and the purple cloths that were on the kings of Madiam, and besides the chains that were on the necks of their camels.

27 And Gedeon made an ephod of it, an set it in his city in Ephratha; and all Israel went thither a whoring after it, and it became a stumbling-block to Gedeon and his house.

28 And Madiam, was straitened before the children of Israel, and they did not lift up their head any more; and the land had rest forty years in the days of Gedeon.

29 And Jerobaal the son of Joas went and sat in his house.

30 And Gedeon had seventy sons begotten of his body, for he had many wives.

31 And his concubine was in Sychem, and she also bore him a son, and gave him the name Abimelech.

32 And Gedeon son of Joas died in his city, and he was buried in the sepulchre of Joas his father in Ephratha of Abi-Esdri.

33 And it came to pass when Gedeon was dead, that the children of Israel turned, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made for themselves a covenant with Baal that he should be their god.

34 And the children of Israel remembered not the Lord their God who had delivered them out of the hand of all that afflicted them round about.

35 And they did not deal mercifully with the house of Jerobaal, (the same is Gedeon) according to all the good which he did to Israel.

Judges 8 Commentary

Chapter 8

Gideon pacifies the Ephraimites. (1-3) Succoth and Penuel refuse to relieve Gideon. (4-12) Succoth and Penuel punished. (13-17) Gideon avenges his brethren. (18-21) Gideon declines the government, but given occasion for idolatry. (22-28) Gideon's death, Israel's ingratitude. (29-35)

Verses 1-3 Those who will not attempt or venture any thing in the cause of God, will be the most ready to censure and quarrel with such as are of a more zealous and enterprising spirit. And those who are the most backward to difficult services, will be the most angry not to have the credit of them. Gideon stands here as a great example of self-denial; and shows us that envy is best removed by humility. The Ephraimites had given vent to their passion in very wrong freedom of speech, a certain sign of a weak cause: reason runs low when chiding flies high.

Verses 4-12 Gideon's men were faint, yet pursuing; fatigued with what they had done, yet eager to do more against their enemies. It is many a time the true Christian's case, fainting, and yet pursuing. The world knows but little of the persevering and successful struggle the real believer maintains with his sinful heart. But he betakes himself to that Divine strength, in the faith of which he began his conflict, and by the supply of which alone he can finish it in triumph.

Verses 13-17 The active servants of the Lord meet with more dangerous opposition from false professors than from open enemies; but they must not care for the behaviour of those who are Israelites in name, but Midianites in heart. They must pursue the enemies of their souls, and of the cause of God, though they are ready to faint through inward conflicts and outward hardships. And they shall be enabled to persevere. The less men help, and the more they seek to hinder, the more will the Lord assist. Gideon's warning being slighted, the punishment was just. Many are taught with the briers and thorns of affliction, who would not learn otherwise.

Verses 18-21 The kings of Midian must be reckoned with. As they confessed themselves guilty of murder, Gideon acted as the avenger of blood, being the next of kin to the persons slain. Little did they think to have heard of this so long after; but murder seldom goes unpunished in this life. Sins long forgotten by man, must be accounted for to God. What poor consolation in death from the hope of suffering less pain, and of dying with less disgrace than some others! yet many are more anxious on these accounts, than concerning the future judgment, and what will follow.

Verses 22-28 Gideon refused the government the people offered him. No good man can be pleased with any honour done to himself, which belongs only to God. Gideon thought to keep up the remembrance of this victory by an ephod, made of the choicest of the spoils. But probably this ephod had, as usual, a teraphim annexed to it, and Gideon intended this for an oracle to be consulted. Many are led into false ways by one false step of a good man. It became a snare to Gideon himself, and it proved the ruin of the family. How soon will ornaments which feed the lust of the eye, and form the pride of life, as well as tend to the indulgences of the flesh, bring shame on those who are fond of them!

Verses 29-35 As soon as Gideon was dead, who kept the people to the worship of the God of Israel, they found themselves under no restraint; then they went after Baalim, and showed no kindness to the family of Gideon. No wonder if those who forget their God, forget their friends. Yet conscious of our own ingratitude to the Lord, and observing that of mankind in general, we should learn to be patient under any unkind returns we meet with for our poor services, and resolve, after the Divine example, not to be overcome of evil, but to overcome evil with good.

Footnotes

• [a]. the hand.
• [b]. dig down.
• [c]. thresh.
• [d]. array.
• [e]. round like the moon; perhaps circular, or in the form of a crescent.
• [f]. giving we will give.
• [g]. with.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 8

In this chapter we are told how Gideon pacified the Ephraimites, who complained because they were not sent unto to fight the Midianites, Jud 8:1-3 how he pursued the Midianites, until he took their two kings, and on his return chastised the men of Succoth and Penuel, because they refused to relieve his men with food as they were pursuing, Jud 8:4-17 how he slew the two kings of Midian, Jud 8:18-21 and after this conquest refused to take the government of Israel when offered him, Jud 8:22,23 how he requested of the Israelites the earrings they had taken from the Midianites, with which he in weakness made an ephod, which proved a snare to his house, Jud 8:24-27 how that the people were in peace forty years during his life, and that he had a numerous issue, and died in a good old age, Jud 8:28-32 but that after his death the Israelites fell into idolatry, and were ungrateful to his family, Jud 8:33-35.