Gideon's Fall - Judges 8:1-28

It is not easy to handle success, power, or victory. You have likely read stories of people who win a huge lottery and all that money turns their life into shambles. Their friends and family all want handouts. They face lawsuits from people who see a chance to gain easy money, and the material riches tend to cause someone to be surrounded with stuff but lonely inside.

We've seen it too many times in the news: rich celebrities who commit suicide. We wonder why a person who had so much would take their own lives. For some, the expectations of power are too great. For others, I suspect they reach the pinnacle (they think) of life, and find that there is nothing actually there.

Even in business and the church, we hear of executives and Pastors who reach a level of success or security and unconsciously start to believe they are above the Law of God. They become involved in moral failure, demand indulgent perks, or they drift theologically. Success can be intoxicating and lead to foolish decisions.

Of all people, you wouldn't think this would happen to Gideon. God had shown He was solely responsible for the victory over the Midianites. Gideon was grateful for God's amazing power and resourcefulness. Gideon said all the right things, but what he does is heart-breaking. This morning we look at three encounters Gideon faced as he pursued the remnant of the Midianite forces and the two remaining Kings who were at large. As we do, the darker side of this prominent Judge will come into focus.

The Wisdom of Gideon (1-3)

Then the people of Ephraim asked Gideon, “Why have you treated us this way? Why didn’t you send for us when you first went out to fight the Midianites?” And they argued heatedly with Gideon.

The people of Ephraim were part of the Jewish tribe south of where this battle had been taking place. Gideon called on the Ephraimites to help with the pursuit of the Midianite soldier who were on the run. They captured and killed two of the princes/kings. Apparently, that was not enough for the Ephraimites. They felt slighted, ignored, and excluded because they weren't part of the main battle (only 300 were part of it!) This is a petty and self-serving complaint. One thing for certain, if you choose to lead, there will be people who take shots at you.

I am amused when I sit back and observe fans at a ballgame. They see every pitch perfectly (even from down the baseline). They know what the "right" decisions are (which they express only after the fact) and they would never make an error! Whenever you do anything there will be people who criticize and feel excluded. It is best to be prepared. Gideon teaches us a few things.

Gideon could have argued, but, that argument would have only intensified the conflict. (This is a good lesson: arguing with someone who just wants to fight is a waste of time and only deepens and prolongs the conflict.) Gideon didn't waste time arguing. He showed great wisdom in the way he resolved the conflict.

2But Gideon replied, “What have I accomplished compared to you? Aren’t even the leftover grapes of Ephraim’s harvest better than the entire crop of my little clan of Abiezer? 3God gave you victory over Oreb and Zeeb, the commanders of the Midianite army. What have I accomplished compared to that?” When the men of Ephraim heard Gideon’s answer, their anger subsided.(2-3)

What a fantastic response to aggressively hostile people! Gideon's example is valuable to us.

He minimized his own contribution. In other words, Gideon took the lower place. He did not assert his own position. (He could have said, "Look, God picked me so why don't you get a running start and . . . . "

He built them up. Gideon spotlighted and affirmed the importance of their contribution. He said they had the better prize because they captured and executed the two kings (Oreb and Zeeb).

He spoke with admiration of the work of the Ephramites. In other words, he showed honor to those who sought to dishonor him.

Do you see how different this is from the way most conflict is handled? We tend to: Justify ourselves, maximize our rights, and attack, attack, attack. This is how a conflict turns into something out of control. Here are some simple rules for minimizing conflict with another,

Be soft

Be humble

Be gracious

Don’t enflame

Don’t answer in kind

The Vengeance of Gideon (4-21)

Unfortunately, the demeanor of Gideon did not hold. As Gideon continued his pursuit of Zebah and Zalmunna the men became tired and hungry. He asked the people of both Succouth and Peneul for food. Both towns asked for proof that they already had captured Zebah and Zalmunna. The towns were concerned about retribution from the Kings if they helped Gideon if they had not been captured..

Gideon was angry at their refusal to help and made threats to destroy the leaders and the tower of the cities when they returned. If anyone should have understood patience and caution, you would have thought it would have been Gideon because he acted the same way and God was gracious to him!

Once Zebah and Zalmunna are captured, Gideon returned to the towns,

Gideon then returned to Succoth and said to the leaders, “Here are Zebah and Zalmunna. When we were here before, you taunted me, saying, ‘Catch Zebah and Zalmunna first, and then we will feed your exhausted army.’” 16Then Gideon took the elders of the town and taught them a lesson, punishing them with thorns and briers from the wilderness. 17He also tore down the tower of Peniel and killed all the men in the town. (8:15-17)

This was an extreme over reaction and it is against his own countrymen! Gideon is now acting ruthlessly and completely independent of God's direction. His success had gone to his head! There is no indication he is acting on God's instructions. He is taking matters into his own hands and acting out of anger rather than obedience. God had showed him patience but he was unwilling to show patience to his countrymen,.

Gideon then turned his anger toward the Kings.

Gideon asked Zebah and Zalmunna, “The men you killed at Tabor—what were they like?”

“Like you,” they replied. “They all had the look of a king’s son.”

“They were my brothers, the sons of my own mother!” Gideon exclaimed. “As surely as the Lord lives, I wouldn’t kill you if you hadn’t killed them.” (18-19)

What we learn is Gideon is motivated by a spirit of vengeance. It is personal. Gideon certainly has a right to be furious. These men were responsible for the death of Gideon's brothers. However, by taking the conviction and execution of these men into his own hands, he was playing God. He swelled with new found power and it was corrupting Gideon.

It is always dangerous to have a great victory. It can easily cause you to think you are stronger and more capable than you actually are. You start to think your judgment is better than it is. You play judge and jury. You feel you no longer need God's direction. Gideon didn't just kill the Kings, he tried to involve his son in his vendetta. He was but a child.

Revenge is an ever-present companion to anger. It may be verbally cussing out a driver who is "in your way." Perhaps it is devious ways of seeking to undermine the person before others. You might overcharge them for a service, give them a bad review or warn others to be wary of them. You might hold on to the bitterness for years, just waiting for your chance to even the score.

We can't justify these actions any more than Gideon could justify his. God did not call Gideon (or us) to exercise revenge. He called him to deliver the people. The Lord warns us that vengeance belongs to Him, not to us. We almost always overreact. He never does. When we are motivated by a spirit of revenge a cycle of violence is set in motion that is difficult to overcome.

The Arrogance of Gideon (22-35)

Sadly, there is one more instance of the downfall of Gideon. It took place after the victory was completed and the rival kings are gone.

Then the Israelites said to Gideon, “Be our ruler! You and your son and your grandson will be our rulers, for you have rescued us from Midian.”

23But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The Lord will rule over you! 24However, I do have one request—that each of you give me an earring from the plunder you collected from your fallen enemies.” (22-24)

27Gideon made a sacred ephod from the gold and put it in Ophrah, his hometown. But soon all the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping it, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family. (27)

The people look to Gideon as their hero. It was obvious that this victory belonged to the Lord, but the people would not give God honor. Instead they offered to make Gideon King.

Gideon said the right things, but what he does next indicates he was seduced by the chance to have power. At this point Israel did not have a King because God was considered to be Israel's King. This is called a theocracy . . . a government led by the deity.

The first thing king entitled thing Gideon does is ask for some of the spoils of war. He asks for one earring each (which were likely taken off dead Midianites.) The result was what the NLT said was 43 POUNDS of gold.

We are told Gideon took multiple wives and produced 70 sons. This was something royalty would do to build their legacy. He also became involved with a woman from Shechem (it is expressly forbidden to become involved with foreign women). He had a son by this woman and named him "Abimelech", which may have meant, "child of the King."

Lastly (and maybe worst of all), he took the massive amounts of gold he received from the earrings and made an ephod. And ephod is the ornate upper garment (or vest) worn by the high priest for special occasions. It contained the Urim an Tummin which were stones that were somehow used to discern God's will. It appears, Gideon was setting himself up as the new leader where people could turn to discern the will of God. He displayed this ephod and we are told the people worshipped (the word is "Whored") after the ephod.

Gideon said the right things but his actions are troubling. The man who was supposed to turn people from idols actually created a new idol for them to worship. Gideon took credit when it was God alone who deserved the credit. He presumed on God's grace. A great victory had a very sad ending.

Conclusions

Once again we are left with the question: What are we supposed to learn from this story of violence and power? I think there are three warnings we can take away for sure.

Don't let blessings go to your head. Do you remember back when God told Gideon he had too many men? Do you remember why Gideon was supposed to send some people home?

The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength. (7:2)

We are all prone to this same thing: we take credit for every blessing, we look to things to meet our deepest needs, we blame others for our failures, and we too often leave God out of the picture.

When things are going well we must remember that these are blessings of grace. We do not deserve His favor. We ALWAYS need Him. His Word is always superior to our opinions. We must remain on guard lest we find ourselves justifying wrong behavior.

Paul Tripp in his book on Awe, writes,

I am afraid that a whole lot of functional atheism exists in the church of Jesus Christ. I am afraid that we often live as if there is no God and it’s all on us. We tend to worry too much. We tend to control too much. We tend to demand too much. We tend to regret too much. We tend to run after too many God replacements. We do all these things because we so quickly forget God’s presence and glory. (Awe 135)

When you do not honor God you are dishonoring Him. The first question of a popular teaching tool for children asks: "What is man's chief purpose?" The answer: "To glorify God and to enjoy Him forever." We were made to love and honor God. When we do so, life makes sense, the problems of life are much more manageable, and God can use us in ways we would never have dreamed of being used. However, when we fail to honor Him, we are robbing Him of glory and in essence, dishonoring Him.

Let me illustrate this. Suppose your child works really hard on a science project. It is an amazing work. The research is flawless and the experiment is interesting and insightful. The children all bring their projects to school the night before the science fair. On the day of the fair, your child is sick and is unable to attend. You hear that the winner of the fair was the project your child worked on. Not only did it earn the blue ribbon it also earned a cash award from a company interested in the results of the experiment. There was only one problem: one of the children put their name on the project!

As a parent, what are you going to do? Will you shrug and say, "O well, boys will be boys?" I bet not. You would likely raise a ruckus until the issue was resolved and your child got the credit he/she deserved.

God is great! He is superior to everyone and everything. We will NEVER make a mistake by honoring and serving Him. It is the wise person who follows His counsel closely. By the same token we ALWAYS make a mistake when we chose to exalt ourselves and take credit for what He has done. God does not stand for being dishonored.

There is a warning against revenge. Whenever we find ourselves wanting to "even the score" or "make things right" we are in the danger zone. We are about to play God. When that happens, we cross a line. God has told us vengeance belongs to Him. A desire for payback leads us to justify wrong behavior. It usurps God's authority. It leads us to obsess about the wrong committed and poisons everything we do. It leads to consequences that are destructive to our relationships with others and our relationship with God. It erodes our character and our witness.

Lewis Smedes in his book, Forgive and Forget writes,

Vengeance is a passion to get even. It is a hot desire to give back as much pain as someone gave you. . . .

The problem with revenge is that it never gets what it wants; it never evens the score. Fairness never comes. The chain reaction set off by every act of vengeance always takes its unhindered course. It ties both the injured and the injurer to an escalator of pain. Both are stuck on the escalator as long as parity is demanded, and the escalator never stops, never lets anyone off. (130-131)

Gideon let bitterness and resentment control him. The price tag was high and the effects of his actions extended well beyond him. Sadly, the same is true for us. Revenge enslaves and continually stirs up hurt so it is impossible to heal.

The only solution to revenge is to stop focusing on the hurt we received and instead focus on the grace that was given by Christ. He forgave our rebellion. We are commanded to do likewise with others. It is not what our nature tells us to do but it is the only way to escape the freedom from the prison resentment locks us into. Forgiveness is putting the hurt in God's hands, trusting Him to do what is right.

From the downfall of Gideon we are challenged once again to a sincere devotion to the Lord. We are to stop trying to BE God and instead choose to honor and serve God . We are invited to live in the freeing beauty of God's grace.

It is easy to criticize to Gideon; it is much more valuable to learn from him.