Let God Rule -Judges 7:2-4,13-15,8:22-25

God called Gideon to deliever his people from the Midianites.Gideon gathered a large army of men,but God said "this army is to big.The solders might take credit and not give any regard to Me and My ability and power.When Gideon's men attempted to give him the praise for his military genius and desired him to rule over the people,Gideon instead wanted them to look to God as ruler.

********We today must be careful not to let the things which God blesses us with to become rulers of and in our lives.To God be the glory in every triumph of our lives,for without him we can do nothing,but through him all things are possible.Let God Rule****************

Too Many Soilders

²And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.

   ³Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.

   ⁴And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go.

***In response to the cries of the Isrealites,the Lord called Gideon to lead his people in defeating the oppressive Midianites who were plundering and destroying their crops and livestock.God told Gideon he had too many soilders,see God wanted the Isrealites to know it was Him who delievered them and nothing they did on their own.

The Midianite's Dream

 ¹³And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man that told a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell, and overturned it, that the tent lay along.

   ¹⁴And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host.

   ¹⁵And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian.

***That night, in order to give Gideon confidence,the Lord told Gideon to sneak into the Midianite camp and listen to the conversation of the enemy soilders.Gideon arrived as one soilder was relaying his dream to a friend.Barley, the cheapest grain in Isreal,symbolized Isreal in its impoverished state.The word "tumbling" implies an attack against a tent in the Midian camp,perhaps the main tent of the commanding general.The dreamer interpreted this as the sword of Gideon destroying the Midianite army.

The Lord Will Rule Over You

²²And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the LORD set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host: and the host fled to Bethshittah in Zererath, and to the border of Abelmeholah, unto Tabbath.

   ²³And the men of Israel gathered themselves together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after the Midianites.

   ²⁴And Gideon sent messengers throughout all mount Ephraim, saying, come down against the Midianites, and take before them the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and took the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan.

   ²⁵And they took two princes of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb; and they slew Oreb upon the rock Oreb, and Zeeb they slew at the winepress of Zeeb, and pursued Midian, and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon on the other side Jordan.

***Gideon's army routed the Midianites, and Gideon captured and killed two Midianite kings(Judges8:10-12). With the long and severe Midianite affliction now ended,the Israelites desired to reward Gideon and his family.They offered to make him king and establish a monarchy through which his descendants would also rule.Wisely, Gideon refused the offer to be king.Instead,he voiced his support for the continuing the pattern of God's rule through various judges.He simply told them,"The Lord will rule over you".

******Gideon learned to trust God,and his army routed the Midianites.Later, however,Gideon failed to lead Isreal in following God when he did not correct their response to the epod.We also can let the world's attractions,resources,or philosophies rule our lives rather than God Himself.We should pray with the psalmist,"keep your servant also from willful sins;may they not rule over me"(ps.19:13)


Hope you enjoyed this Sunday school lesson