Gideon was one of the judges of Israel, a military leader raised up by God to deliver the people from the oppression of Midian. His account is recorded in chapters 6 through 8 of the Book of Judges. He belonged to the tribe of Manasseh, of the clan of Abiezer, and was the son of Joash; he lived in Ophrah. The Orthodox Church commemorates him as a righteous forefather, one of the figures who lived under the Law before the coming of Christ, and honors him on November 26 and September 26.
According to the biblical narrative, the Israelites had turned away from God and were harassed for seven years by the Midianites together with the Amalekites and other eastern peoples. God called Gideon to free Israel from this oppression, and through a series of signs and a deliberately reduced army, the Midianite host was routed. After the victory the people offered Gideon kingship, but he refused, declaring that God alone was their ruler. The land then had rest for forty years during his lifetime.
Timeline 5 moments
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Old Testament eraThe call of GideonWhile Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press to hide it from the Midianites, the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and greeted him, 'The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor,' commanding him to deliver Israel from the hand of Midian (Judges 6).
Old Testament eraThe destruction of the altar of BaalAt God's command Gideon tore down the town altar of Baal and the symbol of the goddess Asherah. For this he received the byname 'Jerubbaal,' meaning 'Let Baal contend with him' (Judges 6:32).
Old Testament eraThe sign of the fleeceGideon sought confirmation that God would deliver Israel through him. He laid out a fleece and asked that dew rest on the fleece alone while the ground remained dry; God granted this, and when Gideon asked again, God reversed the sign so that the fleece was dry and the ground wet (Judges 6:36-40).
Old Testament eraThe reduction of the army and the defeat of MidianGideon assembled a large force, but God reduced it so that Israel could not claim the victory as its own, until only 300 men remained, chosen by the manner in which they drank water. Armed with trumpets and torches concealed in clay jars, these 300 launched a night attack on the Midianite camp, and the enemy fled in panic (Judges 7).
Old Testament eraRefusal of kingship and forty years of restThe Israelites asked Gideon to rule over them and their descendants, but he refused, telling them that God was their true ruler. He served as a judge of Israel for forty years, during which the land had rest (Judges 8).
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Deliverer of Israel from Midian
The Book of Judges places Gideon in a period after a generation of peace, when Israel again fell into oppression, suffering seven years of harassment from the Midianites and their allies. Gideon, of the tribe of Manasseh, was called by the Angel of the Lord while threshing wheat in a wine press, an act undertaken to conceal the grain from the raiders.
Gideon's victory is presented in scripture as the work of God rather than of human strength. God deliberately reduced Gideon's army from many thousands to 300 men so that Israel would not boast that its own hand had saved it. The small band, equipped with trumpets and torches hidden in jars, broke the jars and sounded the trumpets by night, throwing the Midianite camp into confusion and flight.
Commemoration in the Orthodox Church
Gideon is venerated in the Orthodox Church as a righteous judge and forefather, counted among those who lived in faith under the Old Covenant. His feast is kept on November 26 and September 26.
He is named in the Epistle to the Hebrews among those who 'through faith conquered kingdoms' (Hebrews 11:32), and the synaxarion notes that he is remembered in the liturgical canon for the Feast of the Entry of the Theotokos into the Temple.
