Judges 6:24 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then Gideon built an altar there to the LORD and called it, The LORD Is Peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah, which belongs to the Abiezrites.

NIV: So Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and called it The LORD Is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

NASB: Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and named it The Lord is Peace. To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

CSB: So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it The Lord Is Peace. It is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites today.

NLT: And Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and named it Yahweh-Shalom (which means 'the Lord is peace'). The altar remains in Ophrah in the land of the clan of Abiezer to this day.

KJV: Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

NKJV: So Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it The-Lord- Is-Peace. To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

Gideon had made a meal as a test. He had generously provided an angelic stranger with food to see if the Man would give him a sign to prove He was the Lord. The Angel caused the meal, set on a rock, to be consumed by fire, and then He vanished from view (Judges 6:17–21). On the positive side, this convinced Gideon that the divine command to rescue Israel was legitimate (Judges 6:11–16). On the other hand, it inspired fear, as Gideon worried he'd be struck dead for seeing God's face (Judges 6:22–23). The Lord dispelled that fear, and now Gideon must move forward.

First, the newly-called judge (Judges 2:16–19) does as many Old Testament figures did after an encounter with God: he builds an altar and names it (Genesis 8:20; 22:14 26:25; 35:7; Exodus 17:15). He called this altar under a terebinth tree "The Lord is Peace." Perhaps the name comes from God's reassuring words to Gideon in the previous verse.

At the time the writer of Judges put together this manuscript, that altar was still standing. Scholars differ on their views of who this author is, but many point to Samuel: the last judge and first prophet of Israel's monarchy (1 Samuel 3:20; 7:3–6). The location of Ophrah is no longer known, but it was likely found within the territory of Manasseh (Joshua 17:7–10; Judges 6:15).

Judges 6:11–27 begins in a town called Ophrah. There, the Angel of the Lord appears to a man named Gideon. The Lord calls Gideon mighty, despite his apparent lack of influence or power, and commands him to save Israel from Midian. After a display of power, God commands Gideon to tear down the town's altars to false idols, replacing them with an altar to Yahweh complete with a sacrifice of his father's bull. Gideon does so under the cover of darkness out of fear of his family and the townspeople.

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).