Judges 6:35 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, and they too were called out to follow him. And he sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they went up to meet them.

NIV: He sent messengers throughout Manasseh, calling them to arms, and also into Asher, Zebulun and Naphtali, so that they too went up to meet them.

NASB: And he sent messengers throughout Manasseh, and they also were called together to follow him; and he sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they came up to meet them.

CSB: He sent messengers throughout all of Manasseh, who rallied behind him. He also sent messengers throughout Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, who also came to meet him.

NLT: He also sent messengers throughout Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, summoning their warriors, and all of them responded.

KJV: And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; who also was gathered after him: and he sent messengers unto Asher, and unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

NKJV: And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, who also gathered behind him. He also sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.

Gideon resisted the Lord's call because he carried so little influence among the people of Israel (Judges 6:15). The Lord promised to be with Gideon (Judges 6:16). Now that the Spirit of the Lord has covered Gideon, the people seem eager to follow him. He sounded the ram's horn trumpet, the shofar, first for his own clansmen, the Abiezrites. They responded (Judges 6:34).

Now Gideon expands the call to battle against the Midianites. He sends messengers throughout the territory of his tribe Manasseh, then throughout the neighboring tribes of Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali. The call is answered throughout those lands. The people are ready to gather and follow Gideon into the fight. This is another amazing confirmation of God's power and the truth of His predictions to Gideon.

Despite these signs, and even with the empowering of the Holy Spirit, Gideon still struggles with crippling doubt and insecurity. Even now, as the battle is imminent, he will seek increasingly unreasonable signs from God (Judges 6:36–40).

Judges 6:28–35 describes what happens when Gideon's neighbors discover he has toppled the Baal altar and Asherah pole and replaced them with an altar to Yahweh. They demand Gideon's father Joash let them kill Gideon. Joash defends his son, challenging Baal to fight his own battles, if he cares to. This earns Gideon the nickname Jerubbaal, implying his conflict with Baal. When the Midianites return on another raid to take Israel's food (Judges 6:1–5), God empowers Gideon and people from several tribes to battle against Midian and her allies from east of the Jordan.

Israel follows the sad pattern of the book of Judges, and once again turns to evil and idols. God turns them over to the Midianites. These foreign raiders spend the next seven years invading and consuming Israel's crops and livestock. Israel cries for help to the Lord. His first step is to send a prophet to remind them of God's goodness and their disobedience. The Lord then appears to Gideon, commanding him to save Israel because God will be with him. Gideon obeys God's command to tear down a Baal altar and build one to Yahweh in its place. He calls his countrymen to follow him and asks for signs from God.

The book of Judges contains a series of stories with a common theme: Israel falls into sin, suffers, and is rescued by God, only to fall once again (Judges 1—2). The next phase in Israel's downward spiral comes after 40 years of peace, won by Deborah and Barak (Judges 4—5). Israel is punished for sin through the Midianites. After seven years, the Israelites cry out for help. The Lord appears to Gideon, challenging the timid man to lead the battle against Israel's oppressors. Empowered by the Spirit, Gideon calls for his people to follow him, but still asks the Lord for signs. Gideon's successful campaigns are depicted in chapters 7 and 8.

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).