AGE: 10 - 11 YEARS
STANDARD/GRADE: V & VI
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A SWORD FOR THE LORD AND FOR GIDEON
In the previous lesson we learnt how the
Israelites had entered the land of Canaan and had to capture many Canaanite
cities before they could inherit and make their home in the promised land. Many
years passed, the leader of the Israelites, Joshua, who led them into the
promised land also became old and died. In those days the leader of the
Israelites was called as a “Judge”.
The Judge was chosen and revealed by God. Judges
were similar to Kings who ruled the other countries, but they also had other
important functions to perform. The Judges led the Israelites in battle
rescuing them from their enemies and they also served as judges, sorting out
issues and delivering justice for any problem that arose between the people.
They were also prophets who listened to the voice of God and delivered the word
of God to the Israelites.
After Joshua died, the Israelites started to sin against God. Soon the nearby nations started to attack Israel and trouble them and caused a lot of destruction. Whenever it happened, the Israelites would renounce their sins and cry out to God for help and God would raise a Judge to deliver the Israelites. Once it happened that a neighbouring tribe called the “Midianites” cruelly oppressed the Israelites for 7 years. A large army of the Midianites would suddenly invade the Israelite cities and take away all the harvested grains. If their food grains were all stolen, they would starve to death. So, the Israelites were fearful of the Midianites and hid in walled cities, fortresses and even caves.
After seven years the Israelites confessed their
sin and asked God for help. God was merciful and gave them a new Judge who
would deliver them from the Midianites. God chose Gideon, the son of Joash as a
Judge to deliver Israelites from the Midianites. During the wheat harvest
season, Gideon went to thresh the wheat, but he did it in his father’s
winepress, because he feared the Midianites.
To thresh the wheat, a threshing stick called
flail was used to hit the wheat so that the grain came loose from the straw;
the wheat grains would be used to make bread. While he was working, the angel
of the Lord came and sat down under an oak tree right beside Gideon. The Lord
spoke to Gideon and told him to go and fight against the Midianites and deliver
the Israelites.
Gideon could not believe what he was hearing and
he tried to give excuses by saying that his family was the weakest and he was
the least in his family. But God assured him by saying that He will be with
Gideon and he would easily defeat the Midianites. Gideon asked for a sign to
confirm that the Lord had indeed chosen him. The sign that Gideon requested was
that the Lord would accept his sacrifice. He quickly
prepared a young goat and some unleavened bread and placed it on a rock.
The angel of the Lord touched the sacrifice using the tip of his staff, and the
sacrifice was consumed.
When Gideon realized that it was the angel of
the Lord, he was scared that something might happen to him, since he had
seen the Lord face to face. But the Lord proclaimed Peace to him and
told him not to be afraid. So, Gideon built an altar to
the Lord there and called it “Jehovah Shalom” meaning “The Lord Is
Peace”. That same night, the Lord told Gideon to tear down the altar his father
had built for Baal and to cut down an Asherah pole (Asherah pole was a sacred
tree or pole that was planted to honour a Goddess called Asherah). Gideon took
ten of his servants at night (because he was afraid of getting caught from the
people in the town) and tore down the altars and cut the Asherah pole.
The people of his town were furious when they came
to know that the altar they had built for Baal had been destroyed. They wanted
to kill Gideon. They went and complained to Gideon’s father Joash about what
had happened and told him to bring Gideon to be punished. Joash replied and
told the people to let Baal take revenge against Gideon. Hearing this, the
people left Gideon without harming him and Gideon was called as
"Jerubbaal," meaning "Let Baal take
action." Of course, there was no revenge against Gideon by Baal,
a god who was created by the people themselves.
Gideon still wanted to make sure that he was doing
the right thing, so he prayed to God to give him another sign. Gideon put a
piece of fleece (or lamb’s wool) outside on the ground. Usually, if fleece was
left outside on the ground, then dew would fall on it and make it wet. Both the
ground and the fleece would be wet. This time Gideon asked the Lord to do
something different. He asked the Lord to make the fleece wet during the night
but to keep the ground dry. When Gideon looked at the fleece the next morning,
the fleece was wet and the ground was dry! Next Gideon asked the Lord to do it
one more time. This time he asked God to make the ground wet and the fleece
dry. The next morning, the ground was wet and the fleece was dry.
Gideon’s life teaches us that God can use anyone
to accomplish great things, if they accept their weaknesses, put their trust in
the Lord and follow His guidance.
Bible Reference: Judges 7
Memory Verse: II
Chronicles 14:11
ASSESSMENT
ACTIVITIES
Fill
in the blanks:
1. Midianites cruelly
oppressed the Israelites for …………… years
2. Gideon
threshed the wheat in his father’s …………………, because he feared the Midianites.
3. Gideon
quickly prepared a …………………… and some ………………… and placed it on a rock
4. God reduced Gideon’s army from 32,000 to ………………… men.
Give short answers:
1. Who were the ‘Judges’ in ancient Israel?
2. How did the Midianites oppress the Israelites?
3. What was Gideon doing when the Angel of the Lord visited him?
4. What was the sign requested by Gideon using the fleece?
Answer in
brief:
1. How did Gideon defeat the Midianites?
