When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the LORD, he said, "Oh no, Lord GOD! I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face!" When Gideon realizedThe moment of realization for Gideon is pivotal. The Hebrew root for "realized" is "yada," which means to know or perceive. This is not just intellectual acknowledgment but a deep, spiritual awakening. Gideon's realization signifies a turning point, where he moves from doubt to recognition of divine presence. This moment is akin to the spiritual epiphanies experienced by many biblical figures, where God’s reality becomes undeniable. that it was the Angel of the LORD
The "Angel of the LORD" is a significant figure in the Old Testament, often understood as a theophany, or a manifestation of God Himself. The Hebrew term "mal'ak YHWH" suggests a messenger with divine authority. This encounter is not merely with a celestial being but with God’s presence, indicating the gravity and holiness of the moment. Historically, such appearances are rare and signify God’s direct intervention in human affairs. he said, 'Oh no, Lord GOD!
Gideon's exclamation, "Oh no, Lord GOD," reflects a common biblical reaction to divine encounters—fear and awe. The Hebrew "Adonai YHWH" combines a title of respect with the sacred name of God, indicating both reverence and personal relationship. This phrase captures the tension between human frailty and the overwhelming holiness of God, a theme prevalent throughout Scripture. I have seen the Angel of the LORD face to face!
Seeing "face to face" in Hebrew culture implies an intimate and direct encounter. The phrase "panim el panim" suggests a level of closeness that is both terrifying and transformative. In biblical history, such encounters are rare and often life-changing, as seen with Jacob and Moses. Gideon’s fear stems from the belief that seeing God could result in death, highlighting the profound reverence and fear of the divine in ancient Israelite culture. Persons / Places / Events 1. GideonA judge of Israel, chosen by God to deliver the Israelites from the oppression of the Midianites. He is initially hesitant and fearful, seeking confirmation of God's will. 2. Angel of the LORDA divine messenger who appears to Gideon, often understood in conservative Christian theology as a theophany, or a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ. 3. OphrahThe location where Gideon encounters the Angel of the LORD, which is significant as the place of Gideon's calling and commissioning. 4. MidianitesThe oppressors of Israel during this period, whose dominance over Israel sets the stage for Gideon's rise as a judge. 5. Altar of PeaceAfter realizing he has seen the Angel of the LORD, Gideon builds an altar to the LORD and names it "The LORD is Peace," signifying his newfound understanding and assurance of God's presence. Teaching Points Recognizing Divine EncountersGideon's realization teaches us to be attentive to God's presence in our lives, even when it comes in unexpected forms. Fear and ReverenceGideon's fear upon realizing he has seen the Angel of the LORD reminds us of the appropriate reverence and awe we should have for God's holiness. God's AssuranceDespite Gideon's fear, God reassures him, teaching us that God provides peace and assurance when He calls us to His purposes. Building Altars of RemembranceLike Gideon, we should establish spiritual markers in our lives to remember God's faithfulness and presence. Courage in CallingGideon's account encourages us to step out in faith, trusting that God equips those He calls, even when we feel inadequate. Bible Study Questions 1. How does Gideon's initial reaction to the Angel of the LORD reflect our own responses to God's calling in our lives? 2. In what ways can we cultivate a sense of reverence and awe for God's presence in our daily routines? 3. How can we identify and respond to divine encounters in our lives, similar to Gideon's experience? 4. What are some practical ways we can build "altars of remembrance" to commemorate God's faithfulness in our personal journeys? 5. How does Gideon's account encourage us to overcome fear and embrace the tasks God has set before us, and what other biblical figures faced similar challenges? Connections to Other Scriptures Exodus 3The encounter of Moses with God at the burning bush parallels Gideon's encounter, highlighting the theme of divine commissioning. Isaiah 6Isaiah's vision of the Lord and his subsequent commissioning echoes Gideon's fear and realization of God's holiness. Luke 1The angelic announcement to Mary about the birth of Jesus reflects the theme of divine intervention and reassurance. | Divine Mercy: its Adaptation and Sufficiency | A.F. Muir | Judges 6:7, 8, 11, 34 | | A Look, a Word, and a Question | Spurgeon, Charles Haddon | Judges 6:11-24 | | Brotherhood Illustrated by Gideon's Reply | R. A. Watson, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Death Impossible | C. D. Bradlee. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Altar | A. Maclaren, D. D. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Angelic Visitor | R. Young, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Attitude Partly Right and Partly Wrong | Marcus Dods, D. D. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Call to Service | C. Leach, D. D. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Commission | J. Irons. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Interview with the Angel | F. Elwin. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Lament | W. Miller, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Might | J. T. Hamly. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Obedience to God's Call | W. Miller, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Sacrifice | The Weekly Pulpit | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Sacrifice Accepted | F. Elwin. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Gideon's Triumph | Homilist | Judges 6:11-24 | | God's Call, and the Response to It | R. A. Watson, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | How to Treat Doubters | Prof. G. A Smith. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Invisible Might | G. A. Rogers, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Jehovah-Shalom | G. A. Rogers, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Jehovah-Shalom | J. J. S. Bird. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Jehovah-Shalom: the Lord Our Peace | R. Newton, D. D. | Judges 6:11-24 | | One War Over and Another Begun | Spurgeon, Charles Haddon | Judges 6:11-24 | | Providence not to be Judged from a Narrow Point of View | J. Parker, D. D. | Judges 6:11-24 | | The Assurance of Peace Vouchsafed to Gideon | W. W. Duncan, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | The Christian's Peculiar State | E. Temple. | Judges 6:11-24 | | The Divine Afflatus | W. W. Duncan, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | The Look of God | Homilist | Judges 6:11-24 | | The Man of Valour | W. Burrows, B. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | The Sign | G. A. Rogers, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | The Witness of Divine Fire and the Altar of Divine Peace | Henry T. Edwards, M. A. | Judges 6:11-24 | | War | Prof. G. A. Smith. | Judges 6:11-24 | | Jehovah Shalom, or Spiritual Forebodings Stilled | A.F. Muir | Judges 6:22-24 |
People Abiezer, Abiezrites, Amalek, Amalekites, Amorites, Asher, Egyptians, Ephah, Gideon, Israelites, Jerubbaal, Jezreel, Joash, Manasseh, Midianites, Naphtali, Ophrah, ZebulunPlaces Egypt, Gaza, Jezreel Valley, Jordan River, Midian, OphrahTopics Ah, Alas, Angel, Exclaimed, Face, Fear, Forasmuch, Gideon, Messenger, O, Perceived, Realized, SovereignDictionary of Bible Themes Judges 6:22 1235 God, the LORD
5854 experience, of God Judges 6:11-24 8474 seeing God Judges 6:11-27 8131 guidance, results Judges 6:17-22 1449 signs, purposes Judges 6:21-22 4195 spirits Judges 6:22-23 1045 God, glory of Judges 6:22-24 6703 peace, divine OT Judges 6:22-25 7442 shrine Library Gideon's Altar
'Then Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord, and called it Jehovah- shalom [God is peace].'--JUDGES vi. 24. I need not tell over again, less vividly, the picturesque story in this chapter, of the simple husbandman up in the hills, engaged furtively in threshing out a little wheat in some hollow in the rock where he might hide it from the keen eyes of the oppressors; and of how the angel of the Lord, unrecognised at first, appeared to him; and gradually there dawned upon his mind the suspicion …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureGideon's Fleece
'Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know that Thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as Thou hast said.'-- JUDGES vi. 37. The decisive moment had come when Gideon, with his hastily gathered raw levies, was about to plunge down to the plain to face immensely superior forces trained to warfare. No wonder that the equally untrained leader's heart heat faster. Many a soldier, who will be steadfastly …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture Jehovam-Shalem, the Lord Send Peace. Judg 6:24
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John Newton—Olney Hymns Whether it is a Sin to Tempt God?
Objection 1: It would seem that it is not a sin to tempt God. For God has not commanded sin. Yet He has commanded men to try, which is the same as to tempt, Him: for it is written (Malach. 3:10): "Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in My house; and try Me in this, saith the Lord, if I open not unto you the flood-gates of heaven." Therefore it seems not to be a sin to tempt God. Objection 2: Further, a man is tempted not only in order to test his knowledge and his power, …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica Man Now Deprived of Freedom of Will, and Miserably Enslaved.
1. Connection of the previous with the four following chapters. In order to lay a proper foundation for the discussion of free will, two obstacles in the way to be removed--viz. sloth and pride. The basis and sum of the whole discussion. The solid structure of this basis, and a clear demonstration of it by the argument a majori ad minus. Also from the inconveniences and absurdities arising from the obstacle of pride. 2. The second part of the chapter containing the opinions of others. 1. The opinions …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion The Unity of the Divine Essence in Three Persons Taught, in Scripture, from the Foundation of the World.
1. Scripture, in teaching that the essence of God is immense and spiritual, refutes not only idolaters and the foolish wisdom of the world, but also the Manichees and Anthropomorphites. These latter briefly refuted. 2. In this one essence are three persons, yet so that neither is there a triple God, nor is the simple essence of God divided. Meaning of the word Person in this discussion. Three hypostases in God, or the essence of God. 3. Objection of those who, in this discussion, reject the use of …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion Subterraneous Places. Mines. Caves.
Thus having taken some notice of the superficies of the land, let us a little search into its bowels. You may divide the subterraneous country into three parts: the metal mines, the caves, and the places of burial. This land was eminently noted for metal mines, so that "its stones," in very many places, "were iron, and out of its hills was digged brass," Deuteronomy 8:9. From these gain accrued to the Jews: but to the Christians, not seldom slavery and misery; being frequently condemned hither by …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica Jesus Calls Four Fishermen to Follow Him.
(Sea of Galilee, Near Capernaum.) ^A Matt. IV. 18-22; ^B Mark I. 16-20; ^C Luke V. 1-11. ^a 18 And walking ^b 16 And passing along by the sea of Galilee [This lake is a pear-shaped body of water, about twelve and a half miles long and about seven miles across at its widest place. It is 682 feet below sea level; its waters are fresh, clear and abounding in fish, and it is surrounded by hills and mountains, which rise from 600 to 1,000 feet above it. Its greatest depth is about 165 feet], he [Jesus] …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Of the Sacraments.
1. Of the sacraments in general. A sacrament defined. 2. Meaning of the word sacrament. 3. Definition explained. Why God seals his promises to us by sacraments. 4. The word which ought to accompany the element, that the sacrament may be complete. 5. Error of those who attempt to separate the word, or promise of God, from the element. 6. Why sacraments are called Signs of the Covenant. 7. They are such signs, though the wicked should receive them, but are signs of grace only to believers. 8. Objections …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion The Doctrine of God
I. THE EXISTENCE OF GOD: (Vs. Atheism). 1. ASSUMED BY THE SCRIPTURES. 2. PROOFS OF THE EXISTENCE OF GOD. a) Universal belief in the Existence of God. b) Cosmological:--Argument from Cause. c) Teleological:--Argument from Design. d) Ontological:--Argument from Being. e) Anthropological:--Moral Argument. f) Argument from Congruity. g) Argument from Scripture. II. THE NATURE OF GOD: (Vs. Agnosticism) 1. THE SPIRITUALITY OF GOD: (Vs. Materialism). 2. THE PERSONALITY OF GOD: (Vs. Pantheism). 3. THE UNITY …
Rev. William Evans—The Great Doctrines of the Bible And thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, too little to be among the thousands of Judah
"And thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, too little to be among the thousands of Judah, out of thee shall come forth unto Me (one) [Pg 480] to be Ruler in Israel; and His goings forth are the times of old, the days of eternity." The close connection of this verse with what immediately precedes (Caspari is wrong in considering iv. 9-14 as an episode) is evident, not only from the [Hebrew: v] copulative, and from the analogy of the near relation of the announcement of salvation to the prophecy of disaster …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Seasonable Counsel: Or, Advice to Sufferers.
BY JOHN BUNYAN. London: Printed for Benjamin Alsop, at the Angel and Bible in the Poultry, 1684. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. THIS valuable treatise was first published in a pocket volume in 1684, and has only been reprinted in Whitfield's edition of Bunyan's works, 2 vols. folio, 1767. No man could have been better qualified to give advice to sufferers for righteousness' sake, than John Bunyan: and this work is exclusively devoted to that object. Shut up in a noisome jail, under the iron hand of …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Judges
For the understanding of the early history and religion of Israel, the book of Judges, which covers the period from the death of Joshua to the beginning of the struggle with the Philistines, is of inestimable importance; and it is very fortunate that the elements contributed by the later editors are so easily separated from the ancient stories whose moral they seek to point. That moral is most elaborately stated in ii. 6-iii. 6, which is a sort of programme or preface to iii. 7-xvi. 31, which constitutes …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Judges 6:22 NIVJudges 6:22 NLTJudges 6:22 ESVJudges 6:22 NASBJudges 6:22 KJV
Judges 6:22 Commentaries
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