American King James Version - AKJV - 1999
Judges 6
1
And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.
Reference
Evil
Judges 2:11
2
And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds.
Reference
Parallel theme
Hebrews 11:38
Revelation 6:15
Leviticus 26:17
1 Samuel 14:11
References Israel
1 Samuel 13:6
3
And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east, even they came up against them;
Reference
📍 East
Parallel theme
Judges 7:12
Judges 6:33
Job 1:3
Genesis 29:1
1 Kings 4:30
Judges 8:10
References Israel
Judges 3:13
4
And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till you come to Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass.
Reference
5
For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number: and they entered into the land to destroy it.
Reference
6
And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried to the LORD.
Reference
7
And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried to the LORD because of the Midianites,
8
That the LORD sent a prophet to the children of Israel, which said to them, Thus said the LORD God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage;
9
And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land;
10
And I said to you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell: but you have not obeyed my voice.
Reference
Parallel theme
Judges 2:2
References God
Jeremiah 3:13
Jeremiah 42:21
Jeremiah 3:25
References Lord
Jeremiah 10:2
Jeremiah 9:13
Jeremiah 43:7
Jeremiah 43:4
11
And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained to Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the wine press, to hide it from the Midianites.
Reference
📍 Ophrah 2
People
12
And the angel of the LORD appeared to him, and said to him, The LORD is with you, you mighty man of valor.
Reference
Parallel theme
Joshua 1:5
Exodus 3:12
Matthew 28:20
References Lord
Luke 1:28
Judges 2:18
Joshua 1:9
Judges 13:3
Luke 1:11
13
And Gideon said to him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD has forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.
Reference
Parallel theme
Psalm 44:1
Isaiah 63:15
Deuteronomy 31:17
References Lord
2 Chronicles 15:2
Isaiah 41:17
Psalm 89:49
Genesis 25:22
14
And the LORD looked on him, and said, Go in this your might, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent you?
Reference
15
And he said to him, Oh my Lord, with which shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.
Reference
Parallel theme
Ephesians 3:8
1 Corinthians 15:9
Luke 1:34
1 Samuel 18:23
References Israel
1 Samuel 9:21
Exodus 3:11
Micah 5:2
References Lord
Jeremiah 1:6
Exodus 4:10
Jeremiah 50:45
16
And the LORD said to him, Surely I will be with you, and you shall smite the Midianites as one man.
Reference
17
And he said to him, If now I have found grace in your sight, then show me a sign that you talk with me.
Reference
18
Depart not hence, I pray you, until I come to you, and bring forth my present, and set it before you. And he said, I will tarry until you come again.
Reference
19
And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out to him under the oak, and presented it.
20
And the angel of God said to him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them on this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so.
Reference
Parallel theme
Judges 13:19
21
Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the LORD departed out of his sight.
Reference
22
And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O LORD God! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face.
Reference
24
Then Gideon built an altar there to the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: to this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
Reference
📍 Ophrah 2
Parallel theme
Judges 8:32
References Lord
Genesis 22:14
Ezekiel 48:35
Jeremiah 23:6
Jeremiah 33:16
Sacrifice
Exodus 17:15
Genesis 33:20
Joshua 22:10
Judges 21:4
25
And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said to him, Take your father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the grove that is by it:
Reference
Parallel theme
Matthew 10:37
Acts 5:29
Matthew 6:24
References Lord
Judges 3:7
1 Kings 18:21
Sacrifice
Exodus 34:13
26
And build an altar to the LORD your God on the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which you shall cut down.
Reference
27
Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said to him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.
Reference
28
And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered on the altar that was built.
29
And they said one to another, Who has done this thing? And when they inquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing.
30
Then the men of the city said to Joash, Bring out your son, that he may die: because he has cast down the altar of Baal, and because he has cut down the grove that was by it.
Reference
31
And Joash said to all that stood against him, Will you plead for Baal? will you save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him plead for himself, because one has cast down his altar.
Reference
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 10:5
Ephesians 5:11
References God
Jeremiah 10:11
Sacrifice
1 Corinthians 8:4
32
Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he has thrown down his altar.
Reference
33
Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together, and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.
Reference
📍 East
34
But the Spirit of the LORD came on Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him.
Reference
Parallel theme
Judges 3:27
Galatians 3:27
References Lord
Romans 13:14
Spirit
1 Chronicles 12:18
2 Chronicles 24:20
Judges 3:10
Psalm 51:11
1 Samuel 16:14
1 Samuel 11:6
35
And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; who also was gathered after him: and he sent messengers to Asher, and to Zebulun, and to Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.
37
Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry on all the earth beside, then shall I know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said.
Reference
38
And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water.
39
And Gideon said to God, Let not your anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray you, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, and on all the ground let there be dew.
Reference
40
And God did so that night: for it was dry on the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.
Summary of Judges 6
Judges chapter 6 tells us of Gideon who started to perform his work as a deliverer of Israel. This scripture follows the same pattern as the rest of the book of Judges. Israel turned away from God, so God allowed an enemy to bring them under subjection. The people cried out to God, and He raised up a deliverer of the children of Israel. Gideon was introduced to us at a time when Israel was facing one of their darkest hours since they had crossed the Jordan river.
The children of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and God delivered them into the hands of the Midianites and caused them to be oppressed by them for seven years. The Midianites were joined by the Amalekites and other eastern tribes. The enemies invaded Israel and ruined their country. When the Israelites planted seeds, the enemies came in and devoured the fruits.
Because of the siege, that left no harvest for the people, they hid in caves, inaccessible places, and in their mountain strongholds. They came in with a multitude of men and animals like locusts, and they invaded the land of Israel. Their enemies desolated the whole country until they reached Gaza and left hardly any provision for the people of Israel. Not only did they take away the foodstuffs, but everything else, even the animals, such as sheaves of corn, oxen, and Asses.
Israel was in a sorry state due to the Midianites’ oppression, and the people cried unto the Lord for help.
Before the people could be delivered from the enemies, God sent a messenger to them. The messenger reminded them of the good things God had done for them in bringing them out of Egypt, where they had been in bondage, and had brought them into the land of Canaan, and had warned them not to serve the gods of the Amorites, but they did not do that.
The messenger told the people of Israel that God had sent him to deliver them. When he saw Gideon, he called him a man of might, saying, "As the Lord liveth, there shall nothing come of thee, unless the Lord Himself deliver Israel. Then he said unto him, I pray thee show me a token that the Lord hath sent thee.
Gideon told the messenger that he was the least in his father’s house, and that he was the least of the mighty men of Manasseh. When the messenger of God said unto Gideon, Take thy father’s bundle of offerings, and Gideon made ready a kid and unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the Lord stretched out his staff and touched the meat offering with the end of it, and there came forth fire from the rock and devoured the kid and unleavened cakes, and the messenger vanished away from his sight.
Gideon knew that he had seen the angel of the Lord, but was afraid that he should die. However, the Lord said unto Gideon, Fear not, for I will be with thee. Then Gideon built an altar there and called it Jehovah-shalom, which means the Lord is peace.
That same night God spoke unto Gideon and commanded him to go and demolish his father’s altar of Baal and cut down the grove that was there. Gideon went and did this, but he did it secretly at night because he was afraid of his father’s people. When the people of the city found out that the altar of Baal was destroyed and a new altar was built to the Lord the next morning, they asked that Gideon be delivered out of their hand that they might kill him.
His father Joash pleaded in his behalf and said that if Baal was a god, let him plead for himself. From henceforth, Gideon was called Jerubbaal, meaning let Baal plead against thee.
The enemies of Israel, even the Midianites, Amalekites, and the eastern tribes joined together and came in with a great host into the land of Israel. The Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, and called together the Abiezrites and the men of Israel, and they followed him. Gideon still had misgivings about the mission, so he asked God to show him a sign. The Lord told him to take the fleece of wool from the sheep and lay it on the ground, and the Lord would cause the dew to flag upon it, but not on the ground. Then the Lord made him a second sign that was the opposite of the first one.
Gideon was uncertain about leading the Israelites to battle against the Midianites, although God had assured him several times that He would be with him. He asked for a demonstration of the presence of his God in this mission to recover Israel from the foreign yoke. The sign was not given to him because he was already given the promises of God, but these two signs show us that Gideon was not the kind of person who immediately accepted new ideas in his mind. Even though God had sent him, Gideon asked God for more signs to assure him that the enemies of Israel would not overcome Israel at the time of their delivering.
The book of Judges chapter 6 concludes the introduction of Gideon as the deliverer of Israel from the hands of the Midianites. His story begins on a low note, where Gideon was hiding provisions from the enemies of Israel. He questioned the existence of God and asked more than one sign from God to deliver Israel. God used Gideon despite his unbelief, and encouraged him to fight against the oppressors of Israel.
The scripture also shows us that the worst enemy of Israel was not the Midianites or other foreign nations, but rather the people of Israel themselves. Their idolatry had been the main reason for all the problems Israel faced, and their unbelief kept bringing trouble upon them. Gideon was chosen to show us that even when the children of Israel did not want to accept the ways of God, He was still faithful and used the means of his choosing to restore them.
This chapter of the book of Judges ends with the armies of Israel under the command of Gideon and the enemy forces of Midian facing each other in battle. The enemies were too numerous, but God had promised to be with Gideon and the few Israelites who followed him. The next chapter will tell us how God brought victory unto Israel by reducing the number of Israel’s army to a tiny group of soldiers.
The children of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and God delivered them into the hands of the Midianites and caused them to be oppressed by them for seven years. The Midianites were joined by the Amalekites and other eastern tribes. The enemies invaded Israel and ruined their country. When the Israelites planted seeds, the enemies came in and devoured the fruits.
Because of the siege, that left no harvest for the people, they hid in caves, inaccessible places, and in their mountain strongholds. They came in with a multitude of men and animals like locusts, and they invaded the land of Israel. Their enemies desolated the whole country until they reached Gaza and left hardly any provision for the people of Israel. Not only did they take away the foodstuffs, but everything else, even the animals, such as sheaves of corn, oxen, and Asses.
Israel was in a sorry state due to the Midianites’ oppression, and the people cried unto the Lord for help.
Before the people could be delivered from the enemies, God sent a messenger to them. The messenger reminded them of the good things God had done for them in bringing them out of Egypt, where they had been in bondage, and had brought them into the land of Canaan, and had warned them not to serve the gods of the Amorites, but they did not do that.
The messenger told the people of Israel that God had sent him to deliver them. When he saw Gideon, he called him a man of might, saying, "As the Lord liveth, there shall nothing come of thee, unless the Lord Himself deliver Israel. Then he said unto him, I pray thee show me a token that the Lord hath sent thee.
Gideon told the messenger that he was the least in his father’s house, and that he was the least of the mighty men of Manasseh. When the messenger of God said unto Gideon, Take thy father’s bundle of offerings, and Gideon made ready a kid and unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the Lord stretched out his staff and touched the meat offering with the end of it, and there came forth fire from the rock and devoured the kid and unleavened cakes, and the messenger vanished away from his sight.
Gideon knew that he had seen the angel of the Lord, but was afraid that he should die. However, the Lord said unto Gideon, Fear not, for I will be with thee. Then Gideon built an altar there and called it Jehovah-shalom, which means the Lord is peace.
That same night God spoke unto Gideon and commanded him to go and demolish his father’s altar of Baal and cut down the grove that was there. Gideon went and did this, but he did it secretly at night because he was afraid of his father’s people. When the people of the city found out that the altar of Baal was destroyed and a new altar was built to the Lord the next morning, they asked that Gideon be delivered out of their hand that they might kill him.
His father Joash pleaded in his behalf and said that if Baal was a god, let him plead for himself. From henceforth, Gideon was called Jerubbaal, meaning let Baal plead against thee.
The enemies of Israel, even the Midianites, Amalekites, and the eastern tribes joined together and came in with a great host into the land of Israel. The Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, and called together the Abiezrites and the men of Israel, and they followed him. Gideon still had misgivings about the mission, so he asked God to show him a sign. The Lord told him to take the fleece of wool from the sheep and lay it on the ground, and the Lord would cause the dew to flag upon it, but not on the ground. Then the Lord made him a second sign that was the opposite of the first one.
Gideon was uncertain about leading the Israelites to battle against the Midianites, although God had assured him several times that He would be with him. He asked for a demonstration of the presence of his God in this mission to recover Israel from the foreign yoke. The sign was not given to him because he was already given the promises of God, but these two signs show us that Gideon was not the kind of person who immediately accepted new ideas in his mind. Even though God had sent him, Gideon asked God for more signs to assure him that the enemies of Israel would not overcome Israel at the time of their delivering.
The book of Judges chapter 6 concludes the introduction of Gideon as the deliverer of Israel from the hands of the Midianites. His story begins on a low note, where Gideon was hiding provisions from the enemies of Israel. He questioned the existence of God and asked more than one sign from God to deliver Israel. God used Gideon despite his unbelief, and encouraged him to fight against the oppressors of Israel.
The scripture also shows us that the worst enemy of Israel was not the Midianites or other foreign nations, but rather the people of Israel themselves. Their idolatry had been the main reason for all the problems Israel faced, and their unbelief kept bringing trouble upon them. Gideon was chosen to show us that even when the children of Israel did not want to accept the ways of God, He was still faithful and used the means of his choosing to restore them.
This chapter of the book of Judges ends with the armies of Israel under the command of Gideon and the enemy forces of Midian facing each other in battle. The enemies were too numerous, but God had promised to be with Gideon and the few Israelites who followed him. The next chapter will tell us how God brought victory unto Israel by reducing the number of Israel’s army to a tiny group of soldiers.