Judges, Ruth: Revised Edition (The NIV Application Commentary)

by K. Lawson Younger

HOWEVER, QUITE UNEXPECTEDLY, the story is resumed in 8:4. If the narrative ended roughly with 8:3, Gideon would be considered one of the heroic judges of ancient Israel,80 notwithstanding his problem with fear and lack of faith. However, the narration continues, and the portrayal of Gideon becomes bleaker and bleaker. The moment that he and his men cross the Jordan, a whole new Gideon emerges. In contrast to the “first” Gideon, who was a timid “hacker” and who succeeded by the grace of God, this “second” Gideon is a forceful, resourceful, avenging “hacker,” whose very success breeds even worse failure. Like an animal on the prowl, his pronounced purpose is to capture “Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian” (8:5),81 “and he presses towards this goal with frenzied determination despite the hunger”82 and exhaustion of his three hundred men (in this, he foreshadows Saul, cf. 1 Sam 14). While the refusal of the (military?) leaders (sarim) of Succoth and Penuel/Peniel83 to give him support may be faulty,84 Gideon’s threats of revenge are totally uncalled for.85 While he declares that this pair of kings will be given into his hand by Yahweh just as Oreb and Zeeb were (Judg 8:7), there are no indications of Yahweh’s involvement in this second battle. In fact, the statements of God’s involvement, so prominent in the buildup to and description of the first battle, are entirely lacking here (cf. 8:11–12 with 7:21–22). As Boling observes: Here the chief protagonist is not Jerubbaal ...