In chapter eight, we are presented with some difficulties and tests that the Lord’s servant may encounter. I would like to point out three of them and see how Gideon handled them as lessons for us.
1) Jealousy of Brethren
Let’s read verses 1-3; “And the men of Ephraim said unto him, Why hast thou served us thus, that thou calledst us not, when thou wentest to fight with the Midianites? And they did chide with him sharply. And he said unto them, What have I done now in comparison of you? Is not the gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer? God hath delivered unto your hands the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb: and what was I able to do in comparison of you? Then their anger was abated toward him, when he had said that.”
When you seek to serve the Lord, you cannot expect that everybody is going to appreciate your service. If you are somewhat successful, you might spark jealousy in some. That was the case with Ephraim. They were, I believe, the largest tribe numerically, and they thought a lot of themselves (Josh. 17:1414And the children of Joseph spake unto Joshua, saying, Why hast thou given me but one lot and one portion to inherit, seeing I am a great people, forasmuch as the Lord hath blessed me hitherto? (Joshua 17:14)); after all, it was they who had the tabernacle, where all the tribes would go to worship the Lord (Josh. 18:11And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them. (Joshua 18:1)). This ministered to their pride. And when some insignificant servant like Gideon stepped out under the Lord’s leading, they thought that at least they should have been notified. At the bottom of it, they were jealous that the Lord used Gideon. Dear brother or sister, if you’re doing something for the Lord, sooner or later, you’ll encounter jealous brethren like this. They might want to get involved in whatever little service you might be doing for the Lord. We can learn a lesson here from Gideon as to how we are to handle such people.
Gideon diffused their jealousy by speaking of something great that they had done. He as much as said, “The work that you have done in this is far greater than what I have done. In comparison, just the gleaning of the grapes (done after the harvest) in Ephraim, is greater than the whole harvest of grapes in Abiezer!” Oh, I can tell you that the Ephraimites liked to hear that. It gave them a sense of importance. It diffused their present jealousy but didn’t correct the problem. You’ll see later in chapter 12 that it rises up in them again. Only there they meet with a man (Jephthah) who is of a different character than Gideon. He stood up to them and it resulted in a great conflict among brethren, and many were slain. Brethren, how do we speak to one another? Is it with hard words? We need to use gracious words toward one another. The Bible says, “A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger” (Prov. 15:11A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. (Proverbs 15:1)). We’re not going to accomplish anything by getting angry. Have we not learned that “the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God?” (James 1:2020For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. (James 1:20))
One of the reasons why the Ephraimites were so fleshy was that some of them had inter-married with the Amalekites! We read in Judges 5:1414Out of Ephraim was there a root of them against Amalek; after thee, Benjamin, among thy people; out of Machir came down governors, and out of Zebulun they that handle the pen of the writer. (Judges 5:14), “Out of Ephraim came those whose root was in Amalek” (J. N. Darby Trans.). Also, in Judges 12:1515And Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite died, and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the mount of the Amalekites. (Judges 12:15) it says, “ ... in the land of Ephraim, in the mount of the Amalekites.” What had happened was that they were not faithful to dispossess the Amalekites from their inheritance when they took the land under Joshua. Instead, they settled among the people there—in this case, it was the Amalekites. After a few generations, some had intermarried with them so that that tribe had a “root” “in Amalek.” And that’s a bad mixture! Amalek speaks of Satan’s operations on the flesh. They had not judged that enemy, and we find that what that enemy typifies was strong in them; and they became a source of trouble among their brethren (Prov. 6:1919A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren. (Proverbs 6:19)). How important it is that we judge ourselves, keeping the flesh in the place of death. If we let it “reign” in us, it will spoil our whole character (Rom. 6:1212Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. (Romans 6:12)).
2) Lack of Support From Brethren
Let’s read verses 4-6, “And Gideon came to Jordan, and passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing them. And he said unto the men of Succoth, Give, I pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me; for they be faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian. And the princes of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we should give bread unto thine army?”
As mentioned earlier, Gideon’s men were “faint, yet pursuing.” It was because they needed food, and they didn’t have it with them. When Gideon approached “the men of Succoth” and sought their support in his effort to deliver Israel from the Midianites, they refused. This was a test for Gideon. He had come across brethren who didn’t think he was doing anything worthy of their fellowship. Their reason was that he hadn’t done anything significant to warrant their support. These people were not jealous, as were the Ephraimites; they were just indifferent. They didn’t have faith to see that Gideon was actually doing a work to which the Lord had sent him.
This teaches us that we can’t expect everyone to jump on board and support us when we step out to do a work for the Lord. It takes time for certain ones to warm up to the idea. There may be ones that will look at your little work for the Lord, and say, “He’s not a card-carrying bonafide labourer, so we can’t have fellowship with him!” Some are confused as to these things and we need to have patience with them. It may mean that sometimes you’ll have to serve without encouragement from your brethren. David knew about that, so he “encouraged himself in the LORD his God” (1 Sam. 30:66And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God. (1 Samuel 30:6)).
Now the way Gideon handles his brethren’s rejection of him and his service was wholly wrong. But we can learn from Gideon’s mistakes, as well as from the right things that he did. “And Gideon said, Therefore when the LORD hath delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into mine hand, then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers” (Judges 8:77And Gideon said, Therefore when the Lord hath delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into mine hand, then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers. (Judges 8:7)). Gideon snapped back with a threat to discipline them for their lack of interest in his work for the Lord! This was wholly a wrong spirit to take toward his brethren. It may have been righteous, but it would never win them. He kept his word, and later, upon returning, he whipped them with the briers of the wilderness as a punitive discipline (Judges 8:1616And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth. (Judges 8:16)).
Then Gideon goes up from Succoth to Penuel and seeks support from them; and they refused like the men of Succoth did. This time Gideon becomes even more militant, and threatens to break down their tower, which he did later (Judg. 8:8-9, 178And he went up thence to Penuel, and spake unto them likewise: and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered him. 9And he spake also unto the men of Penuel, saying, When I come again in peace, I will break down this tower. (Judges 8:8‑9)
17And he beat down the tower of Penuel, and slew the men of the city. (Judges 8:17)). Gideon shows an uncharacteristic spirit in these events, and it spoiled his beautiful testimony. Let us have a spirit of grace toward those that are slow to acknowledge us in our service. Who are we that we should demand the attention and support of the Lord’s people? At the end of the day we should say, “We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do” (Luke 17:1010So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do. (Luke 17:10)). To do otherwise is to think too much of ourselves. We are warned that in service, a man is “not to think of himself more highly than he ought” (Rom. 12:33For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. (Romans 12:3)).
3) Flattery From the World & From Brethren
From verse 18 to the end of the chapter, we find another test for Gideon. It is a test that every servant will face sometime. It is just the opposite of the previous encounter with the men of Succoth. When he caught the kings of Midian, they sought to flatter him, saying, “As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the children of a king” (Judg. 8:1818Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna, What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? And they answered, As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the children of a king. (Judges 8:18)). Notice, they called him a king! It was calculated to touch the pride of Gideon. In flattering him, they hoped to gain favour with him so that he would go easy on them, and not kill them. The world flatters for selfish reasons; you can be sure of it. But their flattery didn’t work; Gideon rose up and slew them anyway.
Then Gideon’s brethren came to him saying, “Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son also: for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian” (Judg. 8:2222Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son's son also: for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian. (Judges 8:22)). Here, Gideon is tested again with flattery; but this time it was from his brethren. They wanted him to be their king. His brethren didn’t intend their comments to minister to his pride; they meant it sincerely. But they were going too far, for God had not told them to have a king.
The Bible says, “A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet” (Prov. 29:55A man that flattereth his neighbor spreadeth a net for his feet. (Proverbs 29:5)). By overdoing our praise of a person, we could put his feet in a net and cause him to stumble. My uncle used to say, “When someone showers you with praise, don’t believe it.” I suppose that’s a good safeguard. Gideon answers rightly, saying, “I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the LORD shall rule over you” (Judg. 8:2323And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the Lord shall rule over you. (Judges 8:23)). He refused all suggestions to having a place over his brethren. Let’s do the same.
Gideon suggested that they make an “ephod” of gold as some sort of remembrance of the victory. This was uncalled for and was something that turned out to be a snare to him and his household (Judg. 8:24-2724And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings of his prey. (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.) 25And they answered, We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of his prey. 26And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was a thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold; beside ornaments, and collars, and purple raiment that was on the kings of Midian, and beside the chains that were about their camels' necks. 27And Gideon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city, even in Ophrah: and all Israel went thither a whoring after it: which thing became a snare unto Gideon, and to his house. (Judges 8:24‑27)). Behind it we see that Gideon wanted a little recognition, even though he had said that he didn’t want a place among his brethren! Such is the subtlety of the flesh. He wanted to be remembered for what he had done. You know, if we do something for the Lord, we should just leave it with Him: if all forget it, He won’t, and He will reward us in His time.
Deeds of greatness as we thought them,
He will find were but sin,
Acts of kindness, long forgotten,
He will show were for Him.
It’s sad, but Zebah and Zalmunna had put a seed in Gideon’s mind about having the place of a king. While it didn’t come out in Gideon’s words, it did come out in his actions. In the end of the chapter, we see that Gideon had an illegitimate child, and called his name, “Abimelech” (Jud. 8:29-31). Do you know what his name means?—“My father is king!” And this went further than just naming his son that; he must have sown seeds to that end in Abimelech, because he aspired to reign over his brethren, as we see in the next chapter (9).
In summary, Gideon started well, but didn’t end that well. In this 8th chapter, we see Gideon getting carried away with his own importance in service. Let us be warned by this. We are not as important as we may think. We are certainly not indispensable. The Lord does not need us in His service, but He is pleased to use us, if we remain humble and obedient. Notice, there is no record that the Lord ever used Gideon again after this. It seems that being carried away with his own importance resulted in him losing his usefulness to the Lord, and that’s sad. Elijah was another servant who lost his usefulness to the Lord on account of getting carried away with his personal faithfulness (1 Kings 19). Let’s learn these lessons as we seek to serve the Lord acceptably in our little corner of His vineyard.