“Ephraim. The valour and insolence of these men are placed together. Afterwards we have an account of the transactions of Gedeon in the pursuit, ver. 4. (Haydock) — The tribe of Ephraim seems to have had some grounds for being displeased at not being summoned at first, as well as the tribes of Aser, &c., which were farther off; particularly as they sprang from Joseph, no less than Manasses, and had their portion in common. The general answers them with great respect, as otherwise their displeasure might have had very pernicious consequences. (Calmet)”

“Can any action of mine compare with yours? How significant were my actions at the beginning in comparison with yours at the end? Do not Ephraim's underripened gleanings surpass. The gleanings which you acquired at the end surpass the early harvest which my family and I gathered, for Adonoy delivered the kings into your hands.”

“What could I, &c. A meek and humble answer appeased them; who otherwise might have come to extremities. So great is the power of humility both with God and man. (Challoner) (Proverbs xv. 1.) — Could. Hebrew and Septuagint, “What have I yet done like you? (Menochius) — Is not the gleaning?” &c. I only commenced the war; you have brought it to a happy termination, by killing the princes of the enemy. (Debrio adag. 157.) At the first siege of Troy, Telamon having entered the city before Hercules, the latter was on the point of killing him, when Telamon, collecting a heap of stones, which he said he intended for an altar in honour of “the victorious Hercules,” the hero’s fury was appeased. (Apol. Bibl. ii. 6.)”

“he said unto them, What have I done now in comparison of you?--His mild and truly modest answer breathes the spirit of a great as well as good man, who was calm, collected, and self-possessed in the midst of most exciting scenes. It succeeded in throwing oil on the troubled waters (Pro 16:1), and no wonder, for in the height of generous self-denial, it ascribes to his querulous brethren a greater share of merit and glory than belonged to himself (Co1 13:4; Phi 2:3).”

“Jordan. Notwithstanding the precautions of Gedeon, some had got over the river, whom he resolves to follow at Bethsan. This city was about 15 miles from Mount Thabor. His men had been in motion a great part of the night, and had not taken provisions (Calmet) for so long a journey; so that he was obliged to apply for some when he had crossed the Jordan. (Haydock)”

“Pursuit and Complete Overthrow of the Midianites. - That the Midianites whom God had delivered into his hand might be utterly destroyed, Gideon pursued those who had escaped across the Jordan, till he overtook them on the eastern boundary of Gilead and smote them there. Jdg 8:4-5 When he came to the Jordan with his three hundred men, who were exhausted with the pursuit, he asked the inhabitants of Succoth for loaves of bread for the people in his train. So far as the construction is concerned, the words from עבר to ורדפים form a circumstantial clause inserted as a parenthesis into the principal sentence, and subordinate to it: "When Gideon came to the Jordan, passing over he and the three hundred men ... then he said to the men of Succoth." "Exhausted and pursuing," i.e., exhausted with pursuing. The vav is explanatory, lit. "and indeed pursuing," for "because he pursued." The rendering πεινῶντες adopted by the lxx in the Cod. Alex. is merely an arbitrary rendering of the word רדפים, and without any critical worth. Gideon had crossed the Jordan, therefore, somewhere in the neighbourhood of Succoth. Succoth was upon the eastern side of the valley of the Jordan (Jos 13:27), not opposite to Bethshean, but, according to Gen 33:17, on the south side of the Jabbok (Zerka). Jdg 8:6 The princes of Succoth, however, showed so little sympathy and nationality of feeling, that instead of taking part of the attack upon the enemies of Israel, they even refused to supply bread to refresh their brethren of the western tribes who were exhausted with the pursuit of the foe. They said (the sing. ויּאמר may be explained on the ground that one spoke in the name of all: see Ewald, 319, a.), "Is the fist of Zebah and Zalmunna already in thy hand (power), that we should give thine army bread?" In these words there is not only an expression of cowardice, or fear of the vengeance which the Midianites might take when they returned upon those who had supported Gideon and his host, but contempt of the small force which Gideon had, as if it were impossible for him to accomplish anything at all against the foe; and in this contempt they manifested their utter want of confidence in God. Jdg 8:7 Gideon threatened them, therefore, with severe chastisement in the event of a victorious return. "If Jehovah give Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, I will thresh your flesh (your body) with desert thorns and thistles." The verb דּוּשׁ, constructed with a double accusative (see Ewald, 283, _.), is used in a figurative sense: "to thresh," in other words, to punish severely. "Thorns of the desert" as strong thorns, as the desert is the natural soil for thorn-bushes. The ἁπ. λεγ. בּרקנים also signifies prickly plants, according to the early versions and the Rabbins, probably "such as grow upon stony ground" (Bertheau). The explanation "threshing machines with stones or flints underneath them," which was suggested by J. D. Michaelis and Celsius, and adopted by Gesenius, cannot be sustained. Jdg 8:8-9 The inhabitants of Pnuel on the north bank of the Jabbok (see at Gen 32:24.) behaved in the same churlish manner to Gideon, and for this he also threatened them: "If I return in peace," i.e., unhurt, "I will destroy this tower" (probably the castle of Pnuel). Jdg 8:10-12 The Midianitish kings were at Karkor with all the remnant of their army, about fifteen thousand men, a hundred and twenty thousand having already fallen. Gideon followed them thither by the road of the dwellers in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbeha; and falling upon them unawares, smote the whole camp, which thought itself quite secure, and took the two kings prisoners, after discomfiting all the camp. The situation of Karkor, which is only mentioned here, cannot be determined with certainty. The statement of Eusebius and Jerome (Onom. s. v. Καρκὰ, Carcar), that it was the castle of Carcaria, a day's journey from Petra, is decidedly wrong, since this castle is much too far to the south, as Gesenius (Thes. p. 1210) has shown. Karkor cannot have been very far from Nobah and Jogbeha. These two places are probably preserved in the ruins of Nowakis and Jebeiha, on the north-west of Ammn (Rabbath-ammon; see at Num 21:31). Now, as Burckhardt (Syr. p. 612) also mentions a ruin in the neighbourhood, called Karkagheisch, on the left of the road from Szalt to Ammn, and at the most an hour and a half to the north-west of Ammn, Knobel (on Num 32:42) is inclined to regard this ruin as Karkor. If this supposition could be proved to be correct, Gideon would have fallen upon the camp of the enemy from the north-east. For "the way of the dwellers in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbeha" cannot well be any other than the way which ran to the east of Nobah and Jogbeha, past the most easterly frontier city of the Gadites, to the nomads who dwelt in the desert. באללים השּׁכוּני has the article attached to the governing noun, which may easily be explained in this instance from the intervening preposition. The passive participle שׁכוּן has an intransitive force (see Ewald, 149, a.). The verb החריד in the circumstantial clause acquires the force of the pluperfect from the context. When he had startled the camp out of its security, having alarmed it by his unexpected attack, he succeeded in taking the two kings prisoners.”

“Soccoth. “The tents,” where Jacob had encamped, Genesis xxxiii. It belonged to the tribe of Dan. (Menochius) — The people of this town, as well as the ancients of Phanuel, return an insolent reply to the just request of Gedeon. In cases of such extremity, all are bound to assist the defenders of their country; and the refusal is punished as a sort of rebellion, 2 Kings xxv. 10. (Calmet)”

“he said unto the men of Succoth--that is, a place of tents or booths. The name seems to have been applied to the whole part of the Jordan valley on the west, as well as on the east side of the river, all belonging to the tribe of Gad (compare Gen 33:17; Kg1 7:46; with Jos 13:27). Being engaged in the common cause of all Israel, he had a right to expect support and encouragement from his countrymen everywhere.”

“the princes of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine hand--an insolent as well as a time-serving reply. It was insolent because it implied a bitter taunt that Gideon was counting with confidence on a victory which they believed he would not gain; and it was time-serving, because living in the near neighborhood of the Midianite sheiks, they dreaded the future vengeance of those roving chiefs. This contumelious manner of acting was heartless and disgraceful in people who were of Israelitish blood.”

“he spake . . ., When I come again in peace, I will break down this tower--Intent on the pursuit, and afraid of losing time, he postponed the merited vengeance till his return. His confident anticipation of a triumphant return evinces the strength of his faith; and his specific threat was probably provoked by some proud and presumptuous boast, that in their lofty watchtower the Penuelites would set him at defiance.”

“By way of the tent dwellers. By way of the lands of Kedar and Arabia, whose inhabitants were wilderness tent dwellers. Since they were occupied exclusively as shepherds, they could not dwell in houses. East of Novach and Yagbeha. These were Yisroelite cities. He chose not to pass through them, but rather travelled roundabout, so that they would remain undetected, and could overwhelm them by surprise.”

“Gideon went up by the way of them that dwelt in tents on the east--He tracked the fugitives across the mountain range of Gilead to the northeast of the Jabbok, and there came upon them unexpectedly while they were resting secure among their own nomadic tribes. Jogbehah is supposed to be Ramoth-gilead; and, therefore, the Midianites must have found refuge at or near Abela, "Abel-cheramim," "the plain of the vineyards."”

“Sun-rising. It would seem as if all these exploits had been performed between midnight and sun-rising, in the month of May, which is quite incredible; and hence many translate, “the sun being up.” Septuagint and Theodotion, “from the height or ascent of Hares,” (the situation of which we know not,) or “of the mountains,” (Aquila) or “woods,” (Symmachus) or perhaps “from the eastward.” (Calmet) — The Scripture does not, however, specify that all this took place in the space of six or seven hours, or of one night, but only that Gedeon came to Soccoth so early, as to take the magistrates unawares, being informed by a young man where they lived. This might probably happen on the second morning, after he had surprised the camp of the Madianites, at Jezrael. Protestants and Chaldean agree with the Vulgate, “before the sun was up.” The other translations explain chares, as if it denoted the place or situation from which Gedeon was returning. (Haydock) — Described. The text may signify either that the boy marked them out, or that Gedeon took down a memorandum of their names. (Calmet) — He would not punish the innocent with the guilty. (Menochius)”

“Punishment of the Towns of Succoth and Pnuel, and Execution of the Captures Kings of Midian. Jdg 8:13-14 Gideon returned victorious from the war, החרס מלמעלה, "from by the ascent (or mountain road) of Hecheres," a place in front of the town of Succoth, with which we are not acquainted. This is the rendering adopted by the lxx, the Peshito, and the Arabic; but the rest of the early translators have merely guessed at the meaning. The Chaldee, which has been followed by the Rabbins and Luther, has rendered it "before sunset," in utter opposition to the rules of the language; for although cheres is a word used poetically to denote the sun, מעלה cannot mean the setting of the sun. Aquila and Symmachus, on the other hand, confound חרס with הרים. - Gideon laid hold of a young man of the people of Succoth, and got him to write down for him the princes and elders (magistrates and rulers) of the city, - in all seventy-seven men. ויּכתּב ויּשׁאלהוּ is a short expression for "he asked him the names of the princes and elders of the city, and the boy wrote them down." אליו, lit. to him, i.e., for him. Jdg 8:15-16 Gideon then reproached the elders with the insult they had offered him (Jdg 8:6), and had them punished with desert thorns and thistles. "Men of Succoth" (Jdg 8:15 and Jdg 8:16) is a general expression for "elders of Succoth" (Jdg 8:16); and elders a general term applied to all the representatives of the city, including the princes. אתי חרפתּם אשׁר, with regard to whom ye have despised me. אשׁר is the accusative of the more distant or second object, not the subject, as Stud. supposes. "And he taught the men of Succoth (i.e., caused them to know, made them feel, punished them) with them (the thorns)." There is no good ground for doubting the correctness of the reading ויּדע. The free renderings of the lxx, Vulg., etc., are destitute of critical worth; and Bertheau's assertion, that if it were the Hiphil it would be written יודע, is proved to be unfounded by the defective writing in Num 16:5; Job 32:7. Jdg 8:17 Gideon also inflicted upon Pnuel the punishment threatened in Jdg 8:9. The punishment inflicted by Gideon upon both the cities was well deserved in all respects, and was righteously executed. The inhabitants of these cities had not only acted treacherously to Israel as far as they could, from the most selfish interests, in a holy conflict for the glory of the Lord and the freedom of His people, but in their contemptuous treatment of Gideon and his host they had poured contempt upon the Lord, who had shown them to be His own soldiers before the eyes of the whole nation by the victory which He had given them over the innumerable army of the foe. Having been called by the Lord to be the deliverer and judge of Israel, it was Gideon's duty to punish the faithless cities. Jdg 8:18-21 After punishing these cities, Gideon repaid the two kings of Midian, who had been taken prisoners, according to their doings. From the judicial proceedings instituted with regard to them (Jdg 8:18, Jdg 8:19), we learn that these kings had put the brothers of Gideon to death, and apparently not in open fight; but they had murdered them in an unrighteous and cruel manner. And Gideon made them atone for this with their own lives, according to the strict jus talionis. איפה, in Jdg 8:18, does not mean where? but "in what condition, of what form, were the men whom he slew at Tabor?" i.e., either in the city of Tabor or at Mount Tabor (see Jdg 4:6, and Jos 19:22). The kings replied: "As thou so they" (those men), i.e., they were all as stately as thou art, "every one like the form of kings' sons." אחד, one, for every one, like אחד אישׁ in Kg2 15:20, or more frequently אישׁ alone. As the men who had been slain were Gideon's own brothers, he swore to those who had done the deed, i.e., to the two kings, "As truly as Jehovah liveth, if ye had let them live I should not have put you to death;" and then commanded his first-born son Jether to slay them, for the purpose of adding the disgrace of falling by the hand of a boy. "But the boy drew not his sword from fear, because he was yet a boy." And the kings then said to Gideon, "Rise thou and stab us, for as the man so is his strength," i.e., such strength does not belong to a boy, but to a man. Thereupon Gideon slew them, and took the little moons upon the necks of their camels as booty. "The little moons" were crescent-shaped ornaments of silver or gold, such as men and women wore upon their necks (see Jdg 8:26, and Isa 3:18), and which they also hung upon the necks of camels-a custom still prevalent in Arabia (see Schrder, de vestitu mul. hebr. pp. 39, 40, and Wellsted, Reisen in Arab. i. p. 209).”

“Tore. Hebrew seems to be corrupted in this place. “And he shewed (instructed or chastised) with these thorns.” The Septuagint and Vulgate read the same word as ver. 7. He crushed the people with such instruments as are used to beat out corn. It is probable that he only treated the magistrates of Soccoth and of Phanuel in this manner. (Calmet)”

“he took . . . the thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth--By refusing his soldiers refreshment, they had committed a public crime, as well as an act of inhumanity, and were subjected to a horrible punishment, which the great abundance and remarkable size of the thorn bushes, together with the thinness of clothing in the East, has probably suggested.”

“Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna, What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor?--This was one of the countless atrocities which the Midianite chiefs had perpetrated during their seven years' lawless occupancy. It is noticed now for the first time when their fate was about to be determined. each one resembled the children of a king--An Orientalism for great beauty, majesty of appearance, uncommon strength, and grandeur of form.”

“Kill you. They were not included in the number of the seven devoted nations, (Worthington) and the precept for destroying the Madianites no longer subsisted, Numbers xxxi. 17. (Menochius) — The laws of war permitted the Hebrews to kill their prisoners, if they thought proper. No public executioner was necessary. Samuel killed Agag, 1 Kings xv. 32. See 3 Kings ii. 25., and 2 Kings i. 15. (Calmet) — Gedeon had a mind to make his son partake in the victory, and punish these kings for an unjust murder of his relations. He would also inure him to fight against the enemies of God, &c. (Menochius)”

“he said unto Jether his first-born, Up, and slay them--The nearest of kin was the blood-avenger; but a magistrate might order any one to do the work of the executioner; and the person selected was always of a rank equal or proportioned to that of the party doomed to suffer (Kg1 2:29). Gideon intended, then, by the order to Jether, to put an honor on his son, by employing him to slay two enemies of his country; and on the youth declining, he performed the bloody deed himself.”

“Age. They beg that they may die in a more speedy and noble manner. Tacitus (Hist. iv.) observes, “it was reported that Civilis exposed some of the Roman captives to his little son, in order that he might fix his arrows and javelins in their bodies.” — Ornaments. Most interpreters understand “crescents.” The veneration of the Arabs for the moon, the celestial Venus, or Alilat, is well known. The Turks still make use of this sign, as Christians employ the cross on their standards, temples, &c. Men and women anciently wore on their necks or forehead ornaments of the same nature, as these camels did, Isaias iii. 18. Latinus adorned his horses in the most splendid manner. Virgil, Æneid vii: Aurea pectoribus demissa monilia pendent. Caligula decorated with extravagance his famous horse Incitatus, on which he designed to confer the consulate. (Suetonius) — In Egypt the camels are sometimes painted yellow, and hung with a variety of little bells. (Vaneb.)”

“Israel, who were in his army, and of whom he receives the earlets for his share of the spoil. (Calmet) — But as those who staid at home received a share of the booty, and no doubt would come to congratulate Gedeon on his victory, it seems equally probable that this offer of the regal dignity was made to him in a full assembly of the people, (Haydock) which is greatly to the honour of this valiant man. (Menochius) — Rule thou. They wish to confer upon him a dignity which he did not now possess, and which he absolutely refused, being, as he thought, incompatible with the theocracy. This shews that it was not the dignity of judge, which he retained till his death, but that of king, which was so displeasing to God, when the Israelites resolved to establish it among them, 1 Kings viii. 7. (Menochius; Tirinus; Grotius; Calmet) — Josephus ([Antiquities?] v. 8.) thinks that Gedeon wished to resign the former dignity, but was forced to retain it forty years. The judges were chosen by God, and acted as his lieutenants, so that the people having no part in their election, the Lord alone was considered as the king of Israel. Some are of opinion that the people wished, on this occasion, to make the dignity hereditary. (Calmet) — Serarius thinks that they made an offer of the regal power to Gedeon, to his son, and grandson, only. But it seems rather that they meant to make the sovereign authority over entirely to his family, (Menochius) so great a sense had they of his courage, moderation, and just severity, of which he had given such striking proofs. (Haydock)”

“the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us . . . Gideon said unto them, the Lord shall rule over you--Their unbounded admiration and gratitude prompted them, in the enthusiasm of the moment, to raise their deliverer to a throne, and to establish a royal dynasty in his house. But Gideon knew too well, and revered too piously the principles of the theocracy, to entertain the proposal for a moment. Personal and family ambition was cheerfully sacrificed to a sense of duty, and every worldly motive was kept in check by a supreme regard to the divine honor. He would willingly act as judge, but the Lord alone was King of Israel.”

“Gideon's Remaining Acts, and Death. - Jdg 8:22, Jdg 8:23. As Gideon had so gloriously delivered Israel from the severe and long oppression on the part of the Midianites, the Israelites offered him an hereditary crown. "The men of Israel" were hardly all the twelve tribes, but probably only the northern tribes of the western part of the land already mentioned in Jdg 6:35, who had suffered the most severely from the Midianitish oppression, and had been the first to gather round Gideon to make an attack upon the foe. The temptation to accept the government of Israel was resisted by this warrior of God. "Neither I nor my son shall rule over you; Jehovah shall rule over you," was his reply to this offer, containing an evident allusion to the destination and constitution of the tribes of Israel as a nation which Jehovah had chosen to be His own possession, and to which He had just made himself known in so conspicuous a manner as their omnipotent Ruler and King. This refusal of the regal dignity on the part of Gideon is not at variance with the fact, that Moses had already foreseen the possibility that at some future time the desire for a king would arise in the nation, and had given them a law for the king expressly designed for such circumstances as these (Deu 17:14.). For Gideon did not decline the honour because Jehovah was King in Israel, i.e., because he regarded an earthly monarchy in Israel as irreconcilable with the heavenly monarchy of Jehovah, but simply because he thought the government of Jehovah in Israel amply sufficient, and did not consider either himself or his sons called to found an earthly monarchy.”

“Request. It was not then thought dishonourable to ask nor to receive presents. The most precious part of the booty had been already presented to the general, according to the custom of the heroic times. But, as the people wished to make Gedeon king, he consents to receive the earlets, as a memorial of their affection. — Earlets. Hebrew and Septuagint (Menochius) may also signify, “each an earlet,” as if he would only accept one from each soldier. The original signifies also, the rings which women put under their noses; but, as men never did, it has not that meaning here, (Calmet) though there might be women in the camp of the Madianites. (Haydock) — Ismaelites. By this title various nations are designated. It seems almost as general as the word Arab among us. These nations were no more distinguished by these ornaments than the Hebrews themselves, Exodus xxxii. 2., and xxxv. 12. The Persians, Africans, Lybians, &c., wore ear-rings. (Calmet)”

“Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you--This was the contribution of an earring (singular). As the ancient Arabians (Ishmaelites and Midianites being synonymous terms, Gen 37:25, Gen 37:28) were gorgeously adorned with barbaric pearl and gold, an immense amount of such valuable booty had fallen into the hands of the Israelitish soldiers. The contribution was liberally made, and the quantity of gold given to him is estimated at £3113 sterling.”

“Gideon resisted the temptation to put an earthly crown upon his head, from true fidelity to Jehovah; but he yielded to another temptation, which this appeal on the part of the people really involved, namely, the temptation to secure to himself for the future the position to which the Lord had called and exalted him. The Lord had called him to be the deliverer of Israel by visibly appearing in His angel, and had not only accepted the gift which he offered Him, as a well-pleasing sacrifice, but had also commanded him to build an altar, and by offering an atoning burnt-sacrifice to re-establish the worship of Jehovah in his family and tribe, and to restore the favour of God to His people once more. Lastly, the Lord had made His will known to him again and again; whilst by the glorious victory which He had given to him and to his small band over the powerful army of the foe, He had confirmed him as His chosen servant to be the deliverer and judge of Israel. The relation which Gideon thus sustained to the Lord he imagined that he ought to preserve; and therefore, after declining the royal dignity, he said to the people, "I will request of you one request, that ye give me every one the ring that he has received as booty." This request the historian explains by adding the remark: "for they (the enemy) had golden rings, for they were Ishmaelites," from whom therefore the Israelites were able to get an abundance of rings as booty. Ishmaelites is the general name for the nomad tribes of Arabia, to whom the Midianites also belonged (as in Gen 37:25).”

“This request of Gideon's was cheerfully fulfilled: "They spread out the cloth (brought for collecting the rings), and threw into it every one the ring that he had received as booty." Simlah, the upper garment, was for the most part only a large square piece of cloth. The weight of these golden rings amounted to 1700 shekels, i.e., about 50 lbs., (מן לבד) separate from, i.e., beside, the remaining booty, for which Gideon had not asked, and which the Israelites kept for themselves, viz., the little moons, the ear-pendants (netiphoth, lit. little drops, probably pearl-shaped ear-drops: see Isa 3:19), and the purple clothes which were worn by the kings of Midian (i.e., which they had on), and also apart from the neck-bands upon the necks of their camels. Instead of the anakoth or necklaces (Jdg 8:26), the saharonim, or little moons upon the necks of the camels, are mentioned in Jdg 8:21 as the more valuable portion of these necklaces. Even at the present day the Arabs are accustomed to ornament the necks of these animals "with a band of cloth or leather, upon which small shells called cowries are strung or sewed in the form of a crescent. The sheiks add silver ornaments to these, which make a rich booty in time of war" (Wellsted, Reise, i. p. 209). The Midianitish kings had their camels ornamented with golden crescents. This abundance of golden ornaments will not surprise us, when we consider that the Arabs still carry their luxurious tastes for such things to a very great excess. Wellsted (i. p. 224) states that "the women in Omn spend considerable amounts in the purchase of silver ornaments, and their children are literally laden with them. I have sometimes counted fifteen ear-rings upon each side; and the head, breast, arms, and ankles are adorned with the same profusion." As the Midianitish army consisted of 130,000 men, of whom 15,000 only remained at the commencement of the last engagement, the Israelites may easily have collected 5000 golden rings, or even more, which might weigh 1700 shekels.”

“And jewels. Some translate, “crescents (Septuagint, “little moons,”) and boxes” ( netiphoth, Menochius) of perfumes, such as Alexander found among the spoils of Darius, and reserved to put his Homer in. These ornaments were also used by women, Isaias iii. 18. (Calmet) — The eastern nations delight in perfumes. (Menochius) — The ear-rings alone would amount to 3102 l. 10 s. sterling. (Haydock)”

“ornaments--crescent-like plates of gold suspended from the necks, or placed on the breasts of the camels. collars--rather, "earrings," or drops of gold or pearl. purple--a royal color. The ancient, as well as modern Arabs, adorned the necks, breasts, and legs, of their riding animals with sumptuous housing.”

“An ephod. A priestly garment; which Gedeon made with a good design: but the Israelites, after his death, abused it by making it an instrument of their idolatrous worship, (Challoner) and perhaps consulting their idols with it. No law forbad the making of such a garment. (Menochius) — It was not peculiar to the high priest, since we find that Samuel and David occasionally wore the ephod, (2 Kings vi. 14,) and probably Gedeon would, on public occasions, do the like with this most costly one, which would serve to remind the people of the victory which they had gained over Madian. The chief judge in Egypt wore a great golden chain and collar, adorned with curious figures, as a mark of his dignity. (Diod. ii. 3.) This monument of the victory, and of the dignity of Gedeon, became, after his death, an occasion of superstition to the people, who foolishly imagined that they might consult the Lord, wherever an ephod was found. See chap. xvii. 5., and Exodus xxv. 7. The began to neglect the tabernacle, and to form a religion of their own choice. Many think that Gedeon was guilty of indiscretion in making it. (St. Augustine, q. xli.; Lyranus; Estius) — But the thing was in itself indifferent. He did not intend to arrogate to himself the privileges of the Levitical tribe. The Scripture nowhere condemns him, but speaks of his faith and of his death with honour, ver. 32., and Hebrews xi. 3. — With it. Hebrew, “after it or him,” which may either signify that this superstition took place after the death of Gedeon, (Septuagint; Pagnin; Menochius) or in consequence of the making of the ephod. (Jonathan; Drusius; Protestants; &c. versions; Calmet) — And to. This explains how it affected Gedeon, who was probably dead. He suffered in the ruin of his family, (Haydock) as it is explained in the following chapter. (Menochius)”

“Gideon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city, . . . Ophrah--That no idolatrous use was in view, nor any divisive course from Shiloh contemplated, is manifest from Jdg 8:33. Gideon proposed, with the gold he received, to make an ephod for his use only as a civil magistrate or ruler, as David did (Ch1 15:27), and a magnificent pectoral or breastplate also. It would seem, from the history, that he was not blamable in making this ephod, as a civil robe or ornament merely, but that it afterward became an object to which religious ideas were attached; whereby it proved a snare, and consequently an evil, by perversion, to Gideon and his house [TAYLOR, Fragments].”

“"And Gideon made it into an ephod," i.e., used the gold of the rings obtained from the booty for making an ephod. There is no necessity, however, to understand this as signifying that 1700 shekels or 50 lbs. of gold had been used for the ephod itself, but simply that the making of the ephod was accomplished with this gold. The word ephod does not signify an image of Jehovah, or an idol, as Gesenius and others maintain, but the shoulder-dress of the high priest, no doubt including the choshen belonging to it, with the Urim and Thummim, as in Sa1 14:3; Sa1 21:10; Sa1 23:6, Sa1 23:9, etc. The material for this was worked throughout with gold threads; and in addition to that there were precious stones set in gold braid upon the shoulder-pieces of the ephod and upon the choshen, and chains made of gold twist for fastening the choshen upon the ephod (see Ex 28:6-30). Now, if 50 lbs. of gold could not be used for these things, there were also fourteen precious stones to be procured, and the work itself to be paid for, so that 50 lbs. of gold might easily be devoted to the preparation of this state dress. The large quantity of gold, therefore, does not warrant us in introducing arbitrarily into the text the establishment of a formal sanctuary, and the preparation of a golden image of Jehovah in the form of a bull, as Bertheau has done, since there is no reference to פּסל or מסכה, as in Judg 17-18; and even the other words of the text do not point to the founding of a sanctuary and the setting up of an image of Jehovah. (Note: Oehler has correctly observed in Herzog's Cyclopaedia, that Bertheau acts very arbitrarily when he represents Gideon as setting up the image of a bull, as Jeroboam did afterwards, since there is nothing to sustain it in the account itself. Why cannot Gideon have worshipped without any image of Jehovah, with the help of the altar mentioned in Jdg 6:24, which was a symbol of Jehovah's presence, and remained standing till the historian's own time?) The expression which follows, אתו ויּצּג, does not affirm that "he set it up," but may also mean, "he kept it in his city of Ophrah." הצּג is never used to denote the setting up of an image or statue, and signifies not only to put up, but also to lay down (e.g., Jdg 6:37), and to let a thing stand, or leave behind (Gen 33:15). The further remark of the historian, "and all Israel went thither a whoring after it, and it became a snare to Gideon and his house," does not presuppose the founding of a sanctuary or temple in Ophrah, and the setting up of a golden calf there. In what the whoring of Israel after the ephod, i.e., the idolatry of the Israelites with Gideon's ephod which was kept in Ophrah, consisted, cannot be gathered or determined from the use of the ephod in the worship of Jehovah under the Mosaic law. "The breastplate upon the coat, and the holy lot, were no doubt used in connection with idolatry" (Oehler), and Gideon had an ephod made in his town of Ophrah, that he might thereby obtain revelations from the Lord. We certainly are not for a moment to think of an exposure of the holy coat for the people to worship. It is far more probable that Gideon put on the ephod and wore it as a priest, when he wished to inquire and learn the will of the Lord. It is possible that he also sacrificed to the Lord upon the altar that was built at Ophrah (Jdg 6:24). The motive by which he was led to do this was certainly not merely ambition, as Bertheau supposes, impelling the man who, along with his followers, and maintained an independent attitude towards the tribe of Ephraim in the war itself (Jdg 8:1.), to act independently of the common sanctuary of the congregation which was within the territory of Ephraim, and also of the office of the high priest in the time of peace as well. For there is not the slightest trace to be found of such ambition as this in anything that he did during the conflict with the Midianites. The germs of Gideon's error, which became a snare to him and to his house, lie unquestionably deeper than this, namely, in the fact that the high-priesthood had probably lost its worth in the eyes of the people on account of the worthlessness of its representatives, so that they no longer regarded the high priest as the sole or principal medium of divine revelation; and therefore Gideon, to whom the Lord had manifested himself directly, as He had not to any judge or leader of the people since the time of Joshua, might suppose that he was not acting in violation of the law, when he had an ephod made, and thus provided himself with a substratum or vehicle for inquiring the will of the Lord. His sin therefore consisted chiefly in his invading the prerogative of the Aaronic priesthood, drawing away the people from the one legitimate sanctuary, and thereby not only undermining the theocratic unity of Israel, but also giving an impetus to the relapse of the nation into the worship of Baal after his death. This sin became a snare to him and to his house.”

“MIDIAN SUBDUED. (Jdg 8:28) Thus was Midian subdued before the children of Israel--This invasion of the Arab hordes into Canaan was as alarming and desolating as the irruption of the Huns into Europe. It was the severest scourge ever inflicted upon Israel; and both it and the deliverance under Gideon lived for centuries in the minds of the people (Psa 83:11). Next: Judges Chapter 9”

“The history of Gideon is concluded in Jdg 8:28-32. - Jdg 8:28. The Midianites had been so humiliated that they lifted up their head no more, and the land of Israel had rest forty years "in the days of Gideon," i.e., as long as Gideon lived. Jdg 8:29-31 Before the account of his death, a few other notices respecting his family are introduced for the purpose of preparing the way for the following history of the doings of his sons, in which the sin of Gideon came to a head, and the judgment burst upon his house. "And Jerubbaal, the son of Joash, went and dwelt in his house." Both the word ויּלך, which simply serves to bring out the fact more vividly (see the remarks on Exo 2:1), and also the choice of the name Jerubbaal, merely serve to give greater prominence to the change, from the heat of the war against the Midianites to the quiet retirement of domestic life. Instead of accepting the crown that was offered him and remaining at the head of the nation, the celebrated Baal-fighter retired into private life again. In addition to the seventy sons of his many wives, there was a son born to him by a concubine, who lived at Shechem and is called his maid-servant in Jdg 9:18, and to this son he gave the name of Abimelech, i.e., king's father. את־שׁמו ויּשׂם is not the same as את־שׁמו קרא, to give a person a name, but signifies to add a name, or give a surname (see Neh 9:7, and Dan 5:12 in the Chaldee). It follows from this, that Abimelech received this name from Gideon as a cognomen answering to his character, and therefore not at the time of his birth, but when he grew up and manifested such qualities as led to the expectation that he would be a king's father. Jdg 8:32 Gideon died at a good old age (see Gen 15:15; Gen 25:8), and therefore also died a peaceful death (not so his sons; see Judg 9), and was buried in his father's grave at Ophrah (Jdg 6:11).”

“His concubine. She was his servant, but not his harlot; and is called his concubine, as wives of an inferior degree are commonly called in the Old Testament, though otherwise lawfully married. (Challoner) — They had not all the privileges of wives; (Genesis xxv. 6,) and their children could not claim the inheritance. (Calmet) — Abimelech means, “my (Haydock) father king;” alluding to the dignity of Gedeon; or perhaps the mother imposed this name, hoping that her son would obtain the highest honours. Josephus calls her Druma. She dwelt at Sichem, to which place the judge of Israel often resorted, though his usual residence was at Ephra. This son of theirs is included among the 70.”

“After. This is the most solid proof of Gedeon’s piety, since he kept the people in awe, and faithful to the Lord during his life. — God. Hebrew, “and appointed Baal Berith their god,” or goddess; for Berith, “of the covenant,” is feminine. In the temple of this idol, the citizens of Sichem kept money, chap ix. 4. The pagans had many gods who presided over treaties; and the parties were, it seems, at liberty to choose whom they thought proper. They commonly pitched upon Jupiter, who is, therefore, styled Zeus orkios, or Dius fidius, or Fistius Jupiter. (Laert. in Pythag.; Halicar. iv.) A statue “of Jupiter for oaths,” was seen at Olympus, holding the thunderbolts in his hands, ready to hurl against those who proved faithless. (Pausan. Eliac.) Philo of Byblos speaks of the Phœnician god Eliun, “the High,” and (Calmet) of the goddess “Beruth,” which last has a visible connection with Berith. The former title is sometimes given to the true God in Scripture. The city of Berytus was so called, probably in honour of the latter. Nonnus seems to have styled her Beroe. (Bochart; Chanaan ii. 17.) — Pliny ([Natural History?] xxxi. 1.) mentions the god Briaze, at the foot of whose temple runs the river Olachas, the waters of which are said to burn those who are guilty of perjury. The Chaldean reads, “they chose Beel-kiam for their error.” Amos (v. 26.) speaks of the images of Chiun. May he not be the same as Berith or Kiam? Spencer says, that Chiun was Saturn: but Vossius thinks it was the moon. (Idol. ii. 23.) (Calmet)”

“Jdg 8:33-35 form the introduction to the history of Gideon's sons. Jdg 8:33 After Gideon's death the Israelites fell once more into the Baal-worship which Gideon had rooted out of his father's city (Jdg 6:25.), and worshipped Baal-berith as their God. Baal-berith, the covenant Baal (equivalent to El-berith, the covenant god, Jdg 9:46), is not Baal as the god of covenants, but, according to Gen 14:13, Baal as a god in covenant, i.e., Baal with whom they had made a covenant, just as the Israelites had their faithful covenant God in Jehovah (see Movers, Phniz. i. p. 171). The worship of Baal-berith, as performed at Shechem according to Jdg 9:46, was an imitation of the worship of Jehovah, an adulteration of that worship, in which Baal was put in the place of Jehovah (see Hengstenberg, Dissertations on the Pentateuch, vol. ii. p. 81). Jdg 8:34-35 In this relapse into the worship of Baal they not only forgot Jehovah, their Deliverer from all their foes, but also the benefits which they owed to Gideon, and showed no kindness to his house in return for all the good which he had shown to Israel. The expression Jerubbaal-Gideon is chosen by the historian here, not for the purely outward purpose of laying express emphasis upon the identity of Gideon and Jerubbaal (Bertheau), but to point to what Gideon, the Baal-fighter, had justly deserved from the people of Israel.”

“Mercy is here put for many virtues: gratitude, justice, kindness, &c. (Menochius) — The Israelites did not take care to provide for (Calmet) the family of one who had rendered them such essential services. (Haydock) Bible Text & Cross-references: Gedeon appeaseth the Ephraimites. Taketh Zebee and Salmana. Destroyeth Soccoth and Phanuel. Refuseth to be king. Maketh an ephod of the gold of the prey, and dieth in a good old age. The people return to idolatry. 1 And* the men of Ephraim said to him: What is this that thou meanest to do, that thou wouldst not call us, when thou wentest to fight against Madian? And they chid him sharply, and almost offered violence. 2 And he answered them: What could I have done like to that which you have done? Is not one bunch of grapes of Ephraim better than the vintages of Abiezer? 3 The Lord hath delivered into your hands the princes of Madian, Oreb and Zeb: what could I have done like to what you have done? And when he had said this, their spirit was appeased, with which they swelled against him. 4 And when Gedeon was come to the Jordan, he passed over it with the three hundred men that were with him: who were so weary that they could not pursue after them that fled. 5 And he said to the men of Soccoth: Give, I beseech you, bread to the people that is with me, for they are faint: that we may pursue Zebee, and Salmana, the kings of Madian. 6 The princes of Soccoth answered: Peradventure the palms of the hands of Zebee and Salmana are in thy hand, and therefore thou demandest that we should give bread to thy army. 7 And he said to them: When the Lord therefore shall have delivered Zebee and Salmana into my hands, I will thresh your flesh with the thorns and briers of the desert. 8 And going up from thence, he came to Phanuel: and he spoke the like things to the men of that place. And they also answered him, as the men of Soccoth had answered. 9 He said, therefore, to them also: When I shall return a conqueror in peace, I will destroy this tower. 10 But Zebee and Salmana were resting with all their army. For fifteen thousand men were left of all the troops of the eastern people, and one hundred and twenty thousand warriors that drew the sword were slain. 11 *And Gedeon went up by the way of them that dwelt in tents, on the east of Nobe, and Jegbaa, and smote the camp of the enemies, who were secure, and suspected no hurt. 12 And Zebee and Salmana fled, and Gedeon pursued and took them, all their host being put in confusion. 13 And returning from the battle before the sun-rising, 14 He took a boy of the men of Soccoth: and he asked him the names of the princes and ancients of Soccoth, and he described unto him seventy-seven men. 15 And he came to Soccoth, and said to them: Behold Zebee, and Salmana, concerning whom you upbraided me, saying: Peradventure the hands of Zebee and Salmana are in thy hands, and therefore thou demandest that we should give bread to the men that are weary and faint. 16 So he took the ancients of the city, and thorns and briers of the desert, and tore them with the same, and cut in pieces the men of Soccoth. 17 And he demolished the tower of Phanuel, and slew the men of the city. 18 And he said to Zebee and Salmana: What manner of men were they, whom you slew in Thabor? They answered: They were like thee, and one of them as the son of a king. 19 He answered them: They were my brethren, the sons of my mother. As the Lord liveth, if you had saved them, I would not kill you. 20 And he said to Jether, his eldest son: Arise, and slay them. But he drew not his sword: for he was afraid, being but yet a boy. 21 And Zebee and Salmana said: Do thou rise, and run upon us: because the strength of a man is according to his age: *Gedeon rose up and slew Zebee and Salmana: and he took the ornaments and bosses, with which the necks of the camels of kings are wont to be adorned. 22 And all the men of Israel said to Gedeon: Rule thou over us, and thy son, and thy son’s son: because thou hast delivered us from the hand of Madian. 23 And he said to them: I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you, but the Lord shall rule over you. 24 And he said to them: I desire one request of you: Give me the earlets of your spoils. For the Ismaelites were accustomed to wear golden earlets. 25 They answered: We will give them most willingly. And spreading a mantle on the ground, they cast upon it the earlets of the spoils. 26 And the weight of the earlets that he requested, was a thousand seven hundred sicles of gold, besides the ornaments, and jewels, and purple raiment, which the kings of Madian were wont to use, and besides the golden chains that were about the camels’ necks. 27 And Gedeon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city Ephra. And all Israel committed fornication with it, and it became a ruin to Gedeon, and to all his house. 28 But Madian was humbled before the children of Israel, neither could they any more lift up their heads: but the land rested for forty years, while Gedeon presided. 29 So Jerobaal, the son of Joas, went and dwelt in his own house: 30 And he had seventy sons, who came out of his thigh, for he had many wives. 31 And his concubine, that he had in Sichem, bore him a son, whose name was Abimelech. 32 And Gedeon, the son of Joas, died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father, in Ephra, of the family of Ezri. 33 But after Gedeon was dead, the children of Israel turned again, and committed fornication with Baalim. And they made a covenant with Baal, that he should be their god: 34 And they remembered not the Lord their God, who delivered them out of the hands of all their enemies round about: 35 Neither did they shew mercy to the house of Jerobaal Gedeon, according to all the good things he had done to Israel.”