Lasso of Truth

Judges - a look back

Remember back when we started this book, and my mom made the comment, "Oh, no!"  When I told her where we were in the Scriptures.  Granted, this book is like no other in the Word. It is graphic and gory. Violent and confusing.  But between you and me, I have really enjoyed it.  There are a few things that I'll be taking with me from the book of Judges.

First, I was amazed at God's grace.  His chosen people turned their backs on Him over and over again.  They rebelled for decades at a time before God finally lifted His protection and let them be taken over by an enemy army.  But while the rebellion had lasted for decades, He couldn't bear to see them suffer for more than a fraction of that time.  They would cry out for Him, and He was always ready to scoop them up.  We don't even give this kind of grace as human beings.  When someone hurts us, we want to make them suffer in return.  Revenge isn't about getting even--it's about making our enemies suffer more than we have at their hands.  This is not the way our God treats us.  We would do well to remember this, and to humbly respond by showing that grace to others.

Second, since this is my first time to read through Judges in my New American Standard version, so I had never seen the term "worthless fellows" used before.  I kept noticing it throughout the entire book, and it occurred to me that this was significant. In each instance, these fellows represented a friend or acquaintance in the story that was linked to a horrible deed.  I'm gathering that we should be careful who we let into our lives, who we make our friends.  There is a difference between being judgmental and using good judgment.  And since we are fully responsible for our own actions, we must be extra careful who has an influence on those actions.

Lastly, and this is my favorite lesson from Judges, I was reminded that God isn't looking for a super hero.  Don't you ever feel like you can't be effective in ministry because you just don't have it all together yet?  I know I struggle with this continually, especially in the last few months.  We can look at the judges as some of the most ferocious heroes of the Bible, but did they really have their act together? No way.  They each had some enormous flaw, whether is was pride, fear, weakness, or even gender!  God isn't looking for someone to save the world.  He did that Himself.  He isn't looking for a superhero.  That's His role.  All He wants is obedience. Take that first step in faith, and who knows where it will lead!

Thanks for reading this book with me.  I'm looking forward to what's in store for us next!  Pray for me, that I can be faithful in this, and I'll be praying for you, too.

Anna

Judges 19-21

Judges 19

Verse 22 Certain worthless fellows.  Common theme in the book of Judges.

This story is one of those that might need to be broken down into plot points.

1. Man takes a concubine as his wife.

2. She cheats on him, and flees to her father's house.

3. Man follows her and retrieves her.

4. On the way home, she is raped and abused by locals. (Benjamites)

5. Her husband takes her back to their home. (I am assuming that she died in the night, and he has her body.)

6. He cuts her into 12 pieces and sends her throughout the Nation.

7. His kinsmen are shocked.

Chapter 20

Verse 1 In light of the horrific tragedy, "the congregation assembled as one man to the Lord..." A small mention of how our church should work today. 

Verse 5 The man's story has changed slightly.  Nothing about her being offered as a substitute.

Verse 10 The council has decided that the "fellows" are most to blame.

Verse 13 The tribe of Benjamin will not hand over the men to be punished.

Verses 21-22 In the wake of defeat, they trust God.  I've heard some criticism of Christians in the media.  How they are outright with their praise of God when He gives them victory, but are silent when He gives it to another team.  I think the unbelieving world would benefit from a demonstration of faith in all circumstances. The men in this battle were not sure what God's plan was, but they trusted Him.

And here's how the 3-day battle went:

Day one-Israel lost 22,000 men in battle

Day two-Israel lost 18,000 men (and God said, tomorrow you'll have victory)

Day three-Israel lost 30

When God speaks, believe Him.

Chapter 21

Verse 11 When your kinsmen have a family meeting, make sure you are there!  Otherwise they might plot to destroy you and take your virgins!

Verse 20-21  This reminds me of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, where they kidnap the women after the dance sequence.

Verse 25 perfect foreshadowing for what is to come.  They had no human king, that is.  They had a perfect King, but they disregarded Him and did things their own way.

Next time: A recap on Judges

Judges 17-18

Judges 17

Verse 3 Micah's mother wants to dedicate the silver to the Lord...by melting it into an image that she will worship.

Verse 5 The people of Israel seem to be falling away from what is true.  They think they are honoring God, but the truth of His standards have been lost somewhere along the way.

Verse 6 They are doing what is right in their own eyes.  So many people, whose intentions are good and pure, are worshiping idols and false gods because they have no standard to follow.  They live by the mantra, "If it sounds right, believe it."  Our response should be, "If it sounds right, compare it to God's Word."  If Micah had done this, he would have realized right away that what he was doing in the name of the Lord was actually displeasing to Him.

Verse 13 He is way off the mark.

Chapter 18

Verse 5 Everyone is assuming that this "priest" has a direct line to God because of his heritage.

Verses 15-18 The warriors distracted the priest at the gate while five men went into Micah's house and stole the religious articles.

Verse 20 This priest is less interested in seeking God's heart than he is in seeking his own promotion.

Verse 31 After destroying and taking over the city of Dan, they set up a little house of worship.

I have to say, the underlying theme in these two chapters seems to be, "Get to Know Your God."  At this point in the book, the people of Israel are really in bad state.  They are doing what is right in their own eyes.  And, in general that might not be a bad thing.  Their intentions are good.  They are still trying to do what is right--don't they get points for that? The world is full of people doing what's right in their own eyes. For that matter, so is the church.  That's why it is so important to stay in the Word daily.  To constantly seek knowledge of the Lord, because His is the standard we are striving for. 

A couple weeks ago in a discussion group, we brought up the question, "What counts as being in the Word daily?"  Do you have to be holding your Bible in your hand?  Does the Bible on mp3 count? What about reading it off of your phone?  Or meditating on memorized scripture?  Or listening to the sermon of a trusted pastor?  The conclusion that we cam to was that no, it did not have to be the physical Bible every single time.  You learn differently whether you are seeing, hearing, writing, or remembering, and all of those are helpful in your daily Walk.  But it becomes less-than when you start using the sermon, or the devotional book, or even your memorized verses, as a substitute for the written Word.  We have to continually be measuring even the good things by the standard that God has given us.  Because there is an Enemy among us who loves to lead us astray by tweaking that Truth slightly more each time.  I think that's exactly what happened to the men in these chapters.

Next time: Judges 19-21

Judges 16

Hello, friends!  I can't believe that I am finally back with you.  I have literally been away from the computer for 4 months, and without internet at home for almost seven!  This has been a trial for me, since this blog has been somewhat of a lifeline for me over the past couple of years.  I even told Donnie once that I would be willing to move anywhere in the world, as long as I had access to the internet.  Well, the Lord moved us back to Texas--the place I love the most--but took away the internet for a season.  He has a way of reminding us what is important, yes? 

It was truly an unexpected trial, since I was using this tool as a way to reach others for Christ, right?  But then I remembered that old saying that a true artist doesn't blame his tools.  My challenge was to find ways to reach out--do a stay-at-home-mom ministry without the internet.  And let me tell you, it happened.  The Lord showed me that I could be just as useful to Him at the playground of McDonald's as I can writing Bible studies on this blog.  The time away has made me more aware of the day-to-day, face-to-face ministry that I had let fall to the side.  But with that lesson learned, I am back.  I am so excited to dive back into the Word with you.  Do you remember where we were?  All those months ago?  Smack in the middle of the life of Samson.  You might want to take a moment and read through the last two chapters we did, as a quick refresher.

Chapter 16

Verse 2 The Gazites lie in wait for him outside the city gates.

Verse 3 He comes out before they expect him, pulls the doors off the hinges, and carries them up to the top of the mountain.  (Wouldn't you love to have seen that!) They must have had 2nd thoughts about attacking him when they saw that.

Verse 4 This is the first time love is used by Samson.

Verse 5 Delilah was in on it from the start.  1100 pieces of silver from each lord.  In my Bible, this section is labeled, "Samson's weakness"  Certainly, if he had one weakness in his life, it was women.  Delilah is at least the third woman to distract him from the Lord's purpose.  We tend to look at Samson's life and shake our heads saying, "Such a waste of amazing potential!" But with the Holy Spirit literally indwelling us, we might have even greater potential than Samson did.  What is it that is distracting you (and me) from realizing it?

Verse 6  Here we start the famous scene.  The one we all remember from Sunday school.  I personally do not think that Samson was an idiot.  I think he knew she was up to something.  He had already been betrayed by his wife, so I think he was wise to test her.  I think in today's language her question would have sounded more subtle to us, "So, what's your secret?  Can anything stop you?"

Verse 8 She--Delilah--was the one who bound him.

Verse 9  She said, "The Philistines are upon you!  She wasn't just gathering intelligence.  She was an active part of this.  She was doing all of the dirty work herself, while the men were lying in wait.

Verse 10 Manipulative woman!  Women, girls, my sisters, do NOT be like this.

Verse 11-14 Why does he keep on with her? Does he know that she is actually betraying him, or does he think that this was some kind of bedroom game?  I don't think he has yet seen the Philistine soldiers.  They were still lying in wait.  Twice more Delilah plays this game with him, but with unsatisfying results.  She must be so desperate for that money at this point.

Verse 15 "How can you say you love me, when you are not willing to open up to me?  I want to be close to you, but you have all these secrets.  You have lied to me three times, and now I don't even know if I can trust you."

Verse 16 Delilah's actions provide us with so many lessons for our roles as wives.  It says here that he was "annoyed to death."  Basically, this is an example that nagging is effective.  It gets results.  But at what cost?

Verse 18  Somehow she knew that she had finally broken him.

Verse 20 He seems surprised that he can't get out of this one.  I wonder why.  He seemed to have had a blank check from the Lord as far as behavior went.  Even though he was a Nazirite, he ate honey from a dead animal's body.  He killed 30 men just to take their clothes and settle a bet.  He married a foreign woman and had several affairs, all without any recorded repercussion from the Lord.  So why did the Lord leave him now?  My guess is that Samson had begun to think of his strength as his own.  I think he knew that the length of his hair wasn't really the source of his strength.  But the fact that he was willing to cut off the visual symbol of his unique relationship with God tells me that he had forgotten the true source of his strength. 

We have to be careful not to claim our God-given talents as our own.  He has all the power to take them back if we need a reminder of who controls these things.

Verse 21 Capture and humiliation.

Verse 22 The hair began to grow.

Verse 28 Samson is being used as amusement for his captors.  His hair has begun to grow, but we notice that he doesn't assume that his hair = strength.  He calls out to God to be his strength.  To allow him one more work to take down the enemies of the Lord.

Samson's heart was changed in prison.  He was no longer lost in the pride of his abilities.  He acknowledges that the Lord is the Source of his strength, and he is willing to do anything to please Him.  At the lowest point of Samson's life--blind, bald, weak, and ridiculous, is when he finally shines as an example of godliness.

Verse 30 He bent with all his might.  This was not some lean-to.  This was an incredible structure that was large enough to entertain 3000 people.  In my imagination, it didn't happen all at once.  I bet there was rumbling and cracking.  I bet they looked at each other saying, "What's that?  Do you hear that?"  I bet they even had enough time to scramble against each other, trying to get out.  But not enough time.  And during the chaos, Samson was alone with his God.  They were working together in the way that God intended.

Verse 31 Samson judged 20 years.

Judges 14-15

Chapter 14

The story of Samson’s life is a strange one.  He misbehaves over and over, and there is no indication that God is angry about it.  It’s like they have a special connection through the Nazirite vow, and as long as that is in effect, Samson can reek havoc  however he chooses.  His character leaves much to be desired, and it makes me wonder.   Were his parents so wrapped up in the legalities of raising a Nazirite that they neglected to teach him principles of character?

Verse 3 “Get her for me, for she looks good to me.  He seems to have some kind of spoiled child syndrome—maybe because his parents were without children for so long.

Verse 4 God used his misguided actions for His own purpose.  This is a reassurance to me, since most of my own are misguided too.

Verse 6  He tore the lion as easily as if he’d been holding a weapon or tool, and the lion had been a goat.  But it wasn’t a goat.  It was a ferocious angry lion.  And he ripped it in two with his bare hands.  “The Spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily.”  My note says “rushed upon him.”  I wonder what that felt like.  Overwhelming, I’m sure.

Verse 8  Sounds like he changed his course to go back and admire his handiwork.  Since a Nazirite was to avoid dead bodies, this was way out of line.  It’s one thing to protect yourself from an attacking lion.  It’s quite another to seek out its long-dead carcass.  And eating honey from it?!  It seems like this guy can get away with anything.  I think God plans to use this character flaw to His own advantage.

Verse 9 He shared the honey (and now the guilt) with his parents.

Verse 12  These were sent as companions to him, and he wants to trick them out of their possessions.

Verse 16 Samson’s wife was threatened, and she felt like she had to betray him to save her life.  She could have told him about the threat and let him protect her, but instead she manipulates him with her tears.

Verse 17  Samson’s great weakness.  Women.

Verse 19 Samson has a debt to pay, so he goes and kills 30 men so he can take their clothes and give them to the Philistines.

Verse 20 He left her behind, and she was given to his best man.

Chapter 15 

Verse 1 Samson comes back to his wife. He wants her back, at least for a night.

Verse 2  He father offers her sister instead.  What a dad.

Verse 4  How long did it take to tie 300 foxes together? 

Verse 6  This is turning into an ugly feud.  Now his wife and her father are dead.

Verse 7  He sure has a way with words, doesn’t he?

Verses 10-11  When the Philistines and Samson are each pleading their case to the tribe of Judah, they each think their own position is right.

Verse 14 This time when the Spirit rushes upon Samson, his arms are “made like burning flax” and the ropes melt away.  This is more than just physical strength.  This is a super-natural phenomenon.   Can you imagine how the Philistines must have felt when they saw that?  Uh oh.

Verse 18 Samson goes from being a hothead, out of control, to being very needy and dependent on God for something as basic as water.

Judges 12-13

Chapter 12

Verse 1 The tribe of Ephraim got left out again.
Verse 6  Local dialect worked in their favor.  The men of Ephraim couldn't say the "sh" sound!
Verse 7 Part of the job of the judges was to calm "civil unrest". 
Verses 8-15 The successors of Jephthah.  All relatively short reigns.

Chapter 13

Verse 2 It amazes me how many barren women are used in the Bible for God's greater plan.  God uses our natural weaknesses to reveal His own incredible strength and Glory.

Verses 4-5 The Nazerite vow is a serious one--this one initiated by God before conception.

Verse 6 The angel went directly to the woman, not through her husband.

Verse 8 Dedicated parents, seeking the will and instruction of the Lord in the upbringing of their son.  We don't have to parent a Nazirite to follow their example.  Notice they seek His leading before the child is even conceived!  They believe the promise God has given them.

Verses 9-23 The encounter between the Angel of God and Samson's parents is a surreal, supernatural experience.  In verse 20, the angel ascends into the heavens in the flame of the alter.  AWESOME!

Verse 24  The promised son is born.

Next time:  Judges 14-15

Judges 10-11

I know that some of you got the word that I lost my internet connection at home.  It's true!  I was using my Sprint phone as a modem, and the company decided I was getting it for too cheap, and blocked the connection.  So for now, I'll be typing to you from the comforts of my nearest Chick-fil-A, complete with indoor playground and free wifi connection.  Cheers!

Chapter 10

Verse 1 I love the wording here.  Tola arose to save Israel.  It really speaks to the fact that his work as judge over Israel was completely orchestrated by God.  Planned to the smallest detail. 

Verse 3  The nation gets through two successive judges without falling away.
Verse 4  Thirty sons, 30 donkeys, 30 cities.  Jair was a famous and wealthy judge.

Verse 6  After 2 great runs, the nation goes downhill again.
Verse 8  For 18 years they afflicted Israel.  God will not tolerate his people's love going to false gods!

Verse 10-15 Dialog between God and His people.  In verse 14, it looks like the nation has reached the end of God's love and patience.  But they cry out again, this time accepting whatever punishment God has in store.  They are truly broken, and can't stand separation from Him any longer.  This is true repentance.  Agreeing that you have sinned, and that you deserve correction,  And God, our merciful Savior, always forgives and delivers in the face of true repentance.

Verse 16  "So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the Lord; and He could bear the misery of Israel no longer."  God's mercy is quick, and He does not hold grudges.

Chapter 11 The beginning of this chapter names many of the characteristics of Jephthah, our next judge.  He is the son of a harlot. He is hated by his family. He's an embarrassment. He has no money or inheritance.  He has worthless friends and keeps bad company.  On the other hand, he's a valiant warrior!  This guy has one thing going for him.  He's strong and brave.  God uses all kinds, doesn't He?

Verse 9  He seems skeptical.
Verse 13  The king of the sons of Ammon wants Israel to peaceably give the land "back" to them.
Verse 23 Jephthah warns them.  "God gave us this land.  Are you sure you want to try for it?"
Verse 27  One of the great names of God, the Judge.

Verses 30-31  Jephthah makes a bargain with God.  Why would he do that?  He had the Spirit of God fighting through him.  There were set offerings in place to offer God after a victory battle, and yet here is Jephthah, in a word, bribing the Lord for a victory. 

Verse 34  The "thing" that came out was Jephthah's daughter.  His only child.

Verse 35 He projects the blame onto his daughter.  "You have brought me very low."

Verse 36  She bears the burden of her father's deal with God.  She is noble and responsible. Such a contrast.  She doesn't hate him for it, and there is no bitterness in her reply.

Verse 37 She and her friends are mourning fact that she will never marry, and that her family will never have an heir.   Not did Jephthah lose his beloved daughter, but his bloodline will be stopped cold.

I struggled with a life lesson to take from this chapter.  At first glance, it's a horrible gory narrative, with no "...and the moral is..." at the end.  But here's one thing I will be taking with me.  I sincerely hope that I am never desperate enough to make a bargain with the Lord.  Everything I have, He gave to me. On loan.  He already owns it--I'm just a tenant on the Lord's property.  If He gives me victory over my enemies, it'll be because it was His plan, not because I offered Him something in return.  When we bargain with God we take the perceived power away from Him, and put it onto ourselves.  I guess this was how He proved that He is the only one with true Power.  I pray that He never has to prove that to me.

Next time:  Judges 12-13

Judges 9

Chapter 9

I don't know why, but I keep having to take Judges in smaller and smaller bits in order to be able to understand it, and what I need to take from it. Chapter 9 is one of those chapters that contains so much information, that it just needs to stand on its own.

Before we jump in, we might need to get a handle on who Abimelech is, and how he is able to cause so much destruction in his story.  First, he is just one of the 70 sons of Gideon, the last judge.  Gideon was his father, and his mother was the maidservant of one of Gideon's wives.  So, in the hierarchy of this family, Abimelech would have been pretty low in rank.  The kinsmen he goes to in verse 1 are his mother's brothers. Since their sister was a servant, we can assume that they are a low-class bunch, probably living on land owned by Gideon's sons.  That's why he had any kind of power over them.

Verse 2 The first lesson we can learn from this story is "beware of the smooth-talker."  Abimelech was one of these.  He twisted reality, telling them how terrible it was to be ruled by 70 men (the current government), and wouldn't they rather be ruled by just one man (the proposed, big change government)?  He smooth-talked his way into their good graces, and then added, as a clincher, "remember that I am one of you!" 

Verse 3  The men of Shechem didn't really think through Abimelech's proposal.  They took what he said at face-value.  He said to them, "I know you and how you live.  I know what you need.  How could I not?  We are relatives!"  And instead of really thinking over his "campaign" statements..."How does this man plan to get rid of the other leaders?" or "Is this man's character the kind we want to give unchecked power?"...instead of thinking it over, they accept his flashy promises of change, and fork over the money he needs to carry out his plans.  My guess is, if they had known the kind of destruction he had in mind, they would not have been so eager to give him that power. 

The next lesson I'm taking from this chapter is this: We need to be very careful how we pick our leaders, and who we chose to support with the money God has entrusted to us.  It is our responsibility as people with God-given intelligence, not to fall for the sweet words of would-be leaders like Abimelech.  Look at character.  That is much more important than a relationship invented to persuade you into following.

Verse 4  These guys, these men of Shecham, didn't use discretion. And they handed the money over to Abimelech. His character was revealed right away.  He went out and hired worthless and reckless fellows.  Where did he find these men?  My guess is that he knew them all along.  You can tell a lot about the character of a man by who is friends are.

Verse 5  He pays these disgusting men to assassinate his brothers.  They are methodically slaughtered one by one on the same stone.  Sacrifices on the alter of Abimelech's vanity.

Verse 6  They make him king.  I don't know if they approved of Abimelech's recent actions, but at this point they had no choice.  I tend to think that they were scared, because they went straight to Jotham, the only brother who escaped the executions.

Verse 8 Jotham gives an interesting speech.  Remember when the people went to Gideon and asked him to be their king?  And when he wouldn't, they said they wanted his son.  I think Gideon and his son represent the trees in Jotham's speech.  And who would be the bramble?  Abimelech.  Gideon and his son, Jether, refused to take the position of king, because the throne was already taken by the Lord.  But the men were determined to have a flesh-and-blood leader, so when Abimelech agreed to lead them, they didn't even consider it carefully.  They might have even thought that he was the answer to their prayers, a gift from the Lord!

This leads to another lesson that we MUST take from this story.  When you ask the Lord for something great, and He says no, wait for Him to bring along something even better than what you asked for.  (The Israelites already had the "something better" in their Lord and King--if they had just opened their eyes to it!)  God loves us and wants HIS best for us.  He will not withhold the "olive tree" and send you a "bramble!" So when that bramble shows up, disguised as an answer to prayer, turn the other way.  This goes for jobs, politicians, potential mates--everything.  God wants HIS best for us, not our second-best!

Verse 20 Jotham warns them that there is trouble in store.

Verse 22 Three years!  Not worth the lives of 70 men!

Verse 25 They are regretting the power they so readily handed over to him.

Verse 31  Wicked men employ wicked men. There is no way to trust each other.

Verse 48-52  The man has become a barbarian, burning his own relatives alive.  Men, women, and children.

Verses 53-57 Abimelech finally meets his demise.  It is interesting the way that God governs us.  His punishment doesn't always come right away.  Abimelech and the people who made him king were destroyed by their own greed and poor judgment.

Next time:  Judges 10-11

Judges 7-8

Judges 7
Verse 2  God's concern is the glory of His Name.  He would deliver His people, but not by human strength or incredible odds. 

Verse 3 The men had reason to be afraid.  They were facing a terrible enemy. This is another indication to me that fear is not a sin.  But if you can get past it and truly trust in the Lord with everything, then you really LIVE.

Verse 5  It is interesting to me that God is communicating with Gideon in the form of "signs," the same way that Gideon sought the Lord's will with the fleece.  God could have easily said take these 300 men, but he communicated with Gideon on Gideon's level.  God know us and speaks to us in the ways we understand.

Verse 6  As Gideon watched his enemy dwindle from 32000 to only 300 men, I wonder what he was thinking.  Do you think he was disappointed in them for being afraid?  God told him to separate the "lapping" men from the "kneeling" men before He told him why.  On one side was a group of 9700 men, and on the other was a group of 300.  And God gave him the smaller group.  I bet he was shocked!

Verse 10 Again, we see God making a provision for Gideon's fear.  He said if you are afraid to go down, take Purah with you and listen to what they are saying about you.

Verse 11 He was afraid!  He took his servant with him.

Verse 15 God demonstrated His divine control over a situation that made Gideon's hands shake.  (Verse 11 says that after he heard what they were saying, his hands would be strengthened.)  The enemy, as it says in verse 12, was as numerous as locusts, or the sand on the shore!  But when God opened Gideon's eyes to His divine plan, Gideon bowed in worship.  It was as if he suddenly saw the fiery chariots of God's army.  That he looked down and saw the glowing armor of the Lord's protection around him, and he was a changed man.  I pray that God would open our eyes to the Truth of the battles we are facing.  He has fortified us to carry out His will by His strength, not ours.  When Gideon finally realized this in his situation, not only was he ready to fight, he was ready to lead!

Verse 16.  The men were given trumpets for one hand, and lamps for the other.  There were no weapons. Their hands were full!  I wonder if they were worried about this lack of weaponry, but my guess is they saw Gideon the way God did. They would follow him anywhere.

Verse 20-22  This story is amazing.  I mean, truly I am awestruck.  God won this battle for His people, and He used their own weaponry and power against them.  Our security cannot be in the things of this world, because there will always be someone bigger, faster, or smarter to come along.  We trust in the Power that holds planets in orbit, who is a Light brighter than the sun.  A word from Him can send a mountain crashing to the ground or the sea to rise up and cover the earth.

Chapter 8  This si the wrap-up of Gideon's dealings with Midian. 

Verses 1-3.  Gideon was wise in his dealings with the men of Ephraim.  They didn't understand what God was doing, for His own glory, and they felt left out of the story.  If Gideon had been boastful, they could have become contemptuous. 

Verse 6 The leaders of Succoth were skeptical that Gideon would succeed, as were the men of Penuel (verse 8).

Verse 10  There were "only" 15,000 Midianites left, because 120,000 of them had already been killed.  Gideon's odds were much improved, although he still had just 300.

Verse 15  Gideon takes the captured men to show the taunting leaders of Succoth.  Uh Oh. 

Verse 18  After he deals with Succoth and Penuel, he must deal with the last kings of Midian.  They die by Gideon's hand, just as God had foretold it.

Verse 22  The people want a human king, but Gideon gives the true glory to the Lord, at least for now.

Verse 26  Did this part catch you off-guard?  Why did Gideon need this gold earrings on top of everything else that was rightfully his?  It surprised me that he would make such a foolish decision, right after he was so wise about not being crowned king!  Greed is dangerous, and too much of anything is rarely a blessing.  The gold became a thing to worship.  They honored the spirit of war, rather than the One who led them to victory. It really saddens me that Gideon would leave this last indiscretion as his legacy to his family.  We have to remember that what we do in this life is studied and emulated by those around us--especially our children.

Verses 28-35  Gideon dies, and Israel is forgetful again.

Next time:  Judges 9-10

Judges 6: 25-40

Chapter 6, verse 25-27
"Now on the same night."  Sometimes the Lord gives you a vision of your place in the kingdom, and then makes you wait a while to start working.  This time, there was no time to waste.

I want to make sure you get the gravity of Gideon's first assignment from the Lord.  First of all, the alter he was supposed to pull down belonged to his own father.  He was also using his father's livestock to do it, so this was no small structure.  It was big, and had taken money and labor to construct it.

After that, he was to cut down another structure of the gods, the Asherah pole, and use the wood to burn an offering to the True God on top of the old spot.  This was going to have consequences.  People were going to be angry.

So Gideon did what God asked him to do.  And he did it at night.  Did I mention last time that Gideon was maybe not such a brave man?  Yet when the angel of the Lord came to him, He called him a vailiant warrior.  God doesn't wait until you are at your best before He uses you.  It's the task that makes you who you'll become.

And what does this whole tearing down the alter thing tell us about the god we serve?  He used the wood from the Asherah in an alter to Himself!  He is a jealous God.  And it's a jealousy that will tolerate no other gods.  His gesture here was to demean these other gods.  Ficticious gods who were invented by the Enemy to distract the people who belonged to Him.  His bride.  Some are turned off by the idea of a jealous god, but I am not one of them.  If I were tempted away from my marriage to another man, would I want a husband who would stand idly by, twiddling his thumbs and hoping that maybe I'd change my mind?  No!  I'd want him to fight for me.  Remind me of my place with him, and that all others are hollow, filthy imposters.  And that's what our Lord was saying here.  He loves His people fiercely.

Well, the next morning, after the destroyed alter is discovered, the men of the city are ticked off.  They saw the insult to their gods for what it was, and they wanted revenge.  I thought Gideon's dad would feel the same way, but he really comes through in verse 31.  He say's "If Baal is a god, let him contend for himself, because someone has torn down his alter."  I love that!  And as we know, not only did Gideon survive, but he suddenly had a serious reputation and bad-boy nickname because of his defiance of the false god.  Not bad, Lord.

In verse 34, "the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon" and he began to gather men against the Midianites.  He was now someone they respected enough to follow.

Verses 36-40  Have you ever heard someone say, "We put a fleece before the Lord?"  This is where that comes from.  It it asking God for reassurance that He is the one behind a decision in your life.  Now, I have never asked for a sign as bold as the one Gideon asked for.  (Do you get the idea that maybe he was trying to get out of it?)  But I have definitely done this in my own way.  When we traveled from Texas to Indiana for the first time to check out the church there, we asked God to make it obvious what His will was in the situation.  I personally prayed that the people of the church would either like us or not like us.  He came through in a major way.  When we met the people of Franklin Road, as I've mentioned before, we recognized them as old friends.  It was a prayer answered in an obvious way.  A couple years later Donnie was offered a position at a church in Michigan, and again we laid the same "fleece" before Him.  And this time it was just as obvious to both of us that it was not the right move.  We didn't know it, but He'd already begun preparing a place back here in Texas for us.

Here is one thing to keep in mind. When you are seeking the Lord's will, remember what Jesus said to the devil during the tempation.  Be careful not to test the Lord with miraculous signs.  When I was little I used to pray that God would prove He was real by writing my name on the inside of my Bible.  Every time I opened it the page was still blank. Did that mean God wasn't real?  Of course not!  But He would prove Himself to me in His own way.

Next time: Judges 7-8