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GIDEON:  A JUDGE &  A MIGHTY MAN OF VALOR

 

The Prophet of the Lord

Judges 6:7-10

Lesson #3

Victor M. Eskew

 

INTRODUCTION

 

A.     In our previous lesson, we noted that Israel did evil “in the sight of the Lord.”  In other words, the Lord was well aware of the sins and trespasses of His people.

 

B.      But, God was also aware when His people turned back to Him.

1.       Judges 6:6 ends with these words:  “…and the children of Israel cried unto the Lord.”

2.       God heard the cry of His people, and He responded to them.

 

C.     The first response God had on this occasion was to send a prophet unto the nation.  Let’s look at this section in this lesson.  We have simply entitled it:  “The Prophet of the Lord” (Judg. 6:7-10).

 

I.                    THE REACTION OF THE LORD (Judg. 6:7-8a)

 

A.     The Sorrow (Judg. 6:7)

 

And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord because of the Midianites.

 

1.       We noted in our last lesson that the oppression of the Midianites led the Jews to cry out unto God. 

2.       This affliction finally caused them to sorrow for their sins and turn to God in repentance. 

a.       Sorrow alone is not enough.

b.      There must be a change of mind that leads to a change of action that results in a reformation of life before God will respond positively to the penitent.

c.       John told the Pharisees and Sadducees who came to his baptism to “bring forth fruits meet for repentance” (Matt. 3:8).

3.       God is going to respond to Israel.  He must have seen evidence of a contrite and broken heart by His people.

 

B.      The Spokesman (Judg. 6:8a)

 

That the Lord sent a prophet unto the children of Israel…

 

1.       A prophet is simply “a spokesman for God.”

a.       He speaks whatever message God has for the people to whom he is sent.

b.      He has the ability to proclaim the past, the present, and the future.

2.       This prophet is not named.

a.       There are several unnamed prophets mentioned in God’s Word.

1.       “And there came a man of God unto Eli…” (1 Sam. 2:27).

2.       “And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the Lord unto Bethel…” (1 Kings 13:1).

3.       “And, behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab king of Israel, saying, Thus saith the Lord…” (1 Kings 20:13).

b.      The prophets were fearless.  They spoke the truth of God’s word to whom they were sent.  Many faced severe repercussions (See 1 Kings 18:4), but remained true.

II.                 THE REMINDER FROM GOD (Judg. 6:8b-10a)

 

A.     Their Salvation (Judg. 6:8b-9a)

 

…which said unto them, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage; and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians…

 

1.       Gideon was the judge of Israel about 1191 B.C.  Moses delivered Israel from bondage about 1445 B.C.  Thus, 250 years had passed since the Exodus.

2.       Yet, the prophet referred Israel back to the time of their deliverance. 

3.       Twice God uses the pronoun “I.” 

a.       “I brought you up.”

b.      “I delivered you.”

c.       NOTE:  The children of Israel did not free themselves.  They were free because of the divine hand of God.

d.      An interesting conversation transpired between Moses and his father-in-law after they were reunited in the wilderness (Exo. 18:8-11).

 

And Moses told his father in law all that the Lord had done unto Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, and all the travail that had come upon them by the way, and how the Lord delivered them.  And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which the Lord had done to Israel, whom he had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians.  And Jethro said, Blessed be the Lord, who hath delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of Pharaoh, who hath delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.  Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods:  for in the thing wherein they dealt proudly he was above them.

 

1)      In the conversation, it is emphasized what God had done.

2)      Four (4) times the word “delivered” is found in these verses.

3)      This deliverance is referred to as “the goodness of the Lord.”

4)      This deliverance proved to Jetho that “the Lord is greater than all gods.”

4.       Three things are emphasized by God.

a.       The foreign land:  Egypt, the Jews had come from Canaan during the days of Jacob

b.      Their enslavement:  the house of bondage, in Egypt Israel was enslaved and had to endure extremely cruel treatment

c.       Their enemies:  the Egyptians, after Joseph died the Egyptians became the adversaries of the Israel

5.       Thoughts:

a.       The people to whom the prophet spoke were not the ones who were literally delivered from Egypt.

b.      However, they were the beneficiaries of that event.

6.       LESSONS: 

a.       The past is not something to be forgotten, nor it is something that needs to be changed.  We learn from the past, even from a past that is partly horrible in nature.

b.      Deliverance by the hand of God is not something to be taken lightly whether it is physical deliverance or spiritual deliverance.  It should prompt man to faithful service instead open rebellion.

 

B.      Their Settlement (Judg. 6:9b)

 

…and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land.

 

1.       The second thing God reminds them of is how he overcame the seven tribes of Canaan and brought them into the Promised Land.

2.       In Exodus 3:8, we read of God’s promise to Moses to bring the child of Israel into “a good land.”

 

And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of the land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey…”

 

3.       Because of the rebellion on the part of Israel, it took much longer than it was anticipated for Israel to receive the Promised Land. 

4.       However, it became theirs in the days of Joshua

a.       The Lord promised He would fight for them and proved it as well.

1)      God spoke to Joshua directly (Josh. 1)

2)      Joshua saw the “captain of the Lord of the hosts” who was sent to go before them into battle (Josh. 5:13-15).

3)      The city of Jericho fell without one shot being fired and not one life was lost (Josh. 6).

b.      Joshua 21:43-45

 

And the Lord gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein.  And the Lord gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers:  and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the Lord delivered all their enemies into their hand.  There failed not aught of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.

 

C.     Their Service (Judg. 6:10a)

 

And I said unto you, I am the Lord your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell…

 

1.       After delivering Israel and bringing them into the land of Canaan, God reminded them of where their loyalty should be.

2.       “I am the Lord your God.”  It was He, and He only who was to be served (Exo. 20:1-6).

 

And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.  Thou shalt have no other gods before me.  Thou shalt not make unto thee any grave image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:  thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them:  for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

 

3.       The Lord also instructed them not to fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell.

a.       Sadly, the children of Israel did not drive out all the inhabitants of the land (Josh. 15:63; 17:12-13; 23:13).

b.      Their presence would become a temptation to Israel.  They would be tempted to serve the gods of the Amorites and participate in the sins of those heathen nations.

c.       God, therefore, specifically forbade Israel from fearing, that is, reverencing the gods of the Amorites.

 

 

III.              THE REJECTION BY ISRAEL (Judg. 6:10b)

 

…but ye have not obeyed my voice.

 

A.     The book of Joshua closes with an interesting statement recorded in Joshua 24:31.

 

And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known the works of the Lord, that he had done for Israel.

 

B.      This statement is repeated verbatim in Judges 2:7.  Then, in Judges 2:10-13, we read about Israel’s departure.

 

And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers:  and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.  And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim:  and they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and provoked the Lord to anger.  And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.

 

C.     This is what had occurred in the days of Gideon.  The prophet reminded them of their evil.  It is recorded in six words:  “…ye have not obeyed my voice.”

 

D.    LESSONS:

1.       God’s people are always just one generation away from apostasy.  This is why it is extremely important to ground our youth in the fundamentals and the basics.  We cannot let them forget the past.

2.       We often wonder why Israel disobeyed the God that brought the up out of Egypt and gave them the Promised Land.  The answer to that question lies within us.  Why do we disobey our God who has delivered us from the bondage of Satan and has given us promise of a spiritual Canaan?

 

CONCLUSION

 

A.     Before raising up a judge on this occasion, God sent a prophet with a divine message.

 

B.      He wanted the nation to be reminded of two major things:

1.       What God had done for them in the past.

2.       The fact that they had sinned, and their sin brought the oppression of the Midianites upon them.