Judges 8:19 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he said, "They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As the Lord lives, if you had saved them alive, I would not kill you."

NIV: Gideon replied, "Those were my brothers, the sons of my own mother. As surely as the Lord lives, if you had spared their lives, I would not kill you."

NASB: And he said, 'They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As the Lord lives, if only you had let them live, I would not kill you.'

CSB: So he said, "They were my brothers, the sons of my mother! As the Lord lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you."

NLT: They were my brothers, the sons of my own mother!' Gideon exclaimed. 'As surely as the Lord lives, I wouldn’t kill you if you hadn’t killed them.'

KJV: And he said, They were my brethren, even the sons of my mother: as the Lord liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not slay you.

NKJV: Then he said, “They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As the Lord lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you.”

Midianite kings known as Zebah and Zalmunna have been captured (Judges 8:10–12). Gideon is harshly questioning them about men they killed at Mount Tabor (Judges 8:18). The pair have responded to the impossible question with flattery. Whether they truly remember what happened or not, they claim the dead mean looked like Gideon: like the sons of a king.

Although the incident is not described, this exchange reveals several things. First, the Midianites did more than just take food from the Israelites (Judges 6:1–5). They murdered people. More shockingly, it reveals that Gideon's own brothers were killed by these two men. Or, at least, by men under their control. Zebah and Zalmunna described the men they killed as being like the sons of a king—which might well have been a dishonest attempt at flattery. Gideon replies by identifying them as the sons of his mother.

With this revelation, the entire story of Gideon comes into sharper focus. Was it the murder of his brothers by the kings of Midian that made him so fearful and timid when the Lord called him to lead the fight (Judges 6:11–15)? Did the Lord choose Gideon, in part, to avenge the murder of his own family members as well as all the others killed in Israel?

And yet, this discovery opens other questions. Among these is Gideon's true motive for chasing down the Midianites even after they fled past the Jordan River. Was he intent on fulfilling God's mission or avenging himself and his family? Perhaps both played a role.

Gideon says to the pair that if they had not killed his brothers, he would not kill them now. He swears this is true "as Yahweh lives." This is a statement of faith in Yahweh, but also a declaration that Gideon's motive for killing these kings is at least partly his own personal revenge.

Judges 8:1–21 begins with a confrontation between Gideon and the men of Ephraim. Gideon defuses the situation with diplomacy. With his original 300 fighters, he chases down the remnant of the Midianite army led by two kings known as Zebah and Zalmunna. Once the Midianites are defeated and the kings are captured, Gideon punishes the men of two Israelite towns who refused to help him. He then reveals to the captured kings that they murdered his own brothers at Mount Tabor. He kills them and takes their distinctive jewelry as spoils of war.

Gideon soothes the anger of the men of Ephraim. Then, with his 300 fighting men, he chases the remnant of the Midianite army. After a difficult pursuit, he finally catches and defeats them in the wilderness. Gideon then returns to two Israelite towns who refused to help him along the way. He flogs the leaders of one town and kills the men of the other. He then executes the captured enemy kings. Gideon collects tribute from Israel but declines to become their official king. He lives to gain seventy sons, many wives, and at least one Canaanite concubine. When Gideon dies, Israel immediately returns to idol worship.

Judges 8 follows the great victory described at the end of the previous chapter. This passage begins with Gideon awkwardly soothing the anger of Ephraimites while trying to chase down an escaping enemy. After capturing the Midianite kings, Gideon punishes two towns for failing to aid their fellow Israelites. Gideon refuses to become a literal king but collects tribute from the people and lives like a king all his days, with many wives and sons. The people return to idol worship after his death. Soon after, the concubine's son, Abimelech, murders Gideon's other sons and briefly rules before meeting a gruesome death.

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).