h. Gideon’s later years (8:29–35)
h. Gideon’s later years (8:29–35)
8:29–31. The family of Gideon. Gideon’s retirement from public life following his rejection of the invitation to become king, and the establishment of a large family, serve as a necessary introduction to the events of chapter 9. The many wives of Gideon show that he lived in considerable prosperity, a far cry from the day when he described his family as ‘poor in Manasseh’ (6:15). A large harem was the usual appendage of the monarchy in the Fertile Crescent (cf. 2 Sam. 5:13ff.; 1 Kgs 11:1–4), but the effects of such a situation in the history of Israel’s kings appears uniformly disastrous. There is a marked contrast between the seventy sons and Abimelech. The former ‘came out of his loins’ (so the meaning of the Hebrew), the seat of procreative power, the meaning being that they were reckoned by male descent to his own tribe. Abimelech, on the other hand, was the son of a concubine who probably remained with her own family group in Shechem, being visited by her husband from time to time. A similar situation may be observed in the case of Samson (15:1; 16:4ff.). It is important to observe that any offspring of such a union belonged to the wife’s family. Thus the seventy legitimate sons traced their descent through Gideon and Abiezer, but Abimelech’s lineage was reckoned through his Shechemite mother. As there is evidence to show that Shechem was a Canaanite city incorporated by alliance into Israel (see introductory note to chapter 9), she may have been a Canaanite woman. The name given to Abimelech (‘my father a king’, or ‘the king is father’) may show that Gideon still hankered after the honour he had refused, although names compounded with melech were common in Israel.
8:32–35. The death of Gideon. The death of a judge once more led to the removal of restraint and a movement towards the Baal-worship of their neighbours. The particular variant of Baal-worship which was followed was that of Baal-berith (‘Baal or lord of the covenant’) or ‘El-berith’ (9:46, ‘god of the covenant’), which appeared to have centred in Shechem. The covenant may have been that between Israel and the incorporated Canaanite cities, or between the cities themselves and their own native deity. There is further evidence here of the Canaanization of Israel’s worship, in which the nature of Yahweh was obscured and his mighty acts were forgotten. Yahweh might well be the God for a time of crisis, but the fertility gods appeared to offer more for the everyday life. For, as well as the sensual appeal of their worship, there was the preoccupation of these gods with the ‘bread and butter’ of existence. Less surprising was the failure of the Israelites to hold the remembrance of Gideon in honour. Many years had passed since his magnificent exploit (all his sons had grown to manhood in that time) and the opulence of his family life may have aroused jealousy in the new generation, and the feeling that he had been rewarded sufficiently.