The preceding verses of Judges 6 relate the call of Gideon to free the Israelites from the oppression of their neighbors. We discover in verse 11 that the angel of the LORD found Gideon at an oak tree. The tree was part of the narrative because it was the location where the worship of Canaanite idols took place.
After the angel of the LORD convinced Gideon to join Yahweh in a battle against the Midianites, he had to straighten out the nation’s relationship with foreign gods. We can only imagine the fear that arose when Gideon heard these words.
That night the LORD said to him, “Take your father’s bull, the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal which your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it;
And build an altar to the LORD your God on the top of the stronghold here, with stones laid in due order; then take the second bull, and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah which you shall cut down” (Judges 6:25-26).
According to Canaanite mythology, Baal was the storm god who provided rain and fertility. Asherah was the female consort to Baal. There is a considerable amount of imagery in the Old Testament that alludes to these gods, demonstrating that they are not gods at all. The one and only God is Yahweh, the God who called Israel to represent him to the world.
It is impossible to serve the one true God and false gods at the same time. Jesus made this very clear.
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money” (Matthew 6:24).
Imagine the scene. Gideon was commanded to destroy an altar, cut down a sacred pole, build a fire with the wood from the Asherah pole, and sacrifice the prize bull to the Lord. There is possibly nothing he could have done more socially unacceptable than following the angel of the LORD’s command.
So Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had told him; but because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night (Judges 6:27).
Trouble in Ophrah
When the good citizens of Ophrah discovered what had happened to their sacred place of Canaanite worship, they were enraged. The issue was so serious that they demanded the death of Gideon.
When the men of the town rose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the Asherah beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered upon the altar which had been built.
And they said to one another, “Who has done this thing?” And after they had made search and inquired, they said, “Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing.”
Then the men of the town said to Joash, “Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has pulled down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah beside it” (Judges 6:28-30).
When we tear down the sacred idols of people, we can always count on trouble.
Pope Leo’s first proclamation is that Scripture and tradition clearly show that “God has a special place in his heart” for the poor and oppressed, and he asks his church “to make a decisive and radical choice in favor of the weakest.”
Like Gideon tearing down the sacred spaces in Ophrah, the Pope addresses the sacred idol of our culture, money.
Many Christians “need to go back and re-read the Gospel” because they have forgotten that faith and love for the poor go hand in hand, Pope Leo XIV said in his first major papal document.
“Love for the poor — whatever the form their poverty may take — is the evangelical hallmark of a Church faithful to the heart of God,” the Pope wrote in “Dilexi Te” (“I Have Loved You”), an apostolic exhortation “to all Christians on love for the poor.”
Gideon’s Father to the Rescue
The mob was ready to kill Gideon, but his father’s logic stopped the mob in their tracks.
But Joash said to all who were arrayed against him, “Will you contend for Baal? Or will you defend his cause? Whoever contends for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself, because his altar has been pulled down.”
Therefore on that day he was called Jerubbaal, that is to say, “Let Baal contend against him,” because he pulled down his altar (Judges 6:31-32).
Gideon was given the name “Jerubbaal,” which refers to the fact that he contended with Baal.
Reflections
If you are a frequent reader of my blog, you know that I am interested in connecting ancient idolatry with the present-day practice of it.
Idolatry is so strong because we don’t believe that we can exist without the idols we serve. Here are a few examples of the American idolatry of money.
- Nearly every news story focuses on the stock market or ultra-wealthy individuals.
- For generations, political campaigns have promised better incomes and smaller costs.
- All avenues of media highlight wealth.
- CNBC states that 77% of Americans are currently feeling anxious about their financial situation.
In his first address, the Pope seeks to tear down the idol of money and institute a “preferential concern for the poor.”
One of my friends ate lunch with homeless people and often sought them out for his ministry. One man was living in his truck. He invited the man to use our church’s parking lot as a home base.
This caring man saved the life of the homeless man, but God had more in store. The formerly homeless man is now married, in a home, singing with our church’s worship team, and living the best life possible.
Can we tear down the idol of money in our lives and, at the same time, build up someone whom God puts in our path?
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discuss this story and more in today’s YouTube video.
Real Voices 