Sunday 17th August
Read Psalm 122
If you don’t have a bible at home you can find the readings on a website such as www.biblegateway.com or an app such as YouVersion
This is another one of those Psalms of Ascent designed as Psalms for the pilgrimage to Jerusalem for special feasts, It is a Psalm that rejoices in ‘being there’ – the feet are standing in the very place. It is one thing to think about travelling somewhere but another to actually be there in person. The spiritual connection with Jerusalem is of course the dwelling place of God and his people which for us is the Church of Jesus Christ, and in a twofold sense, namely belonging with our fellow believers and also with the Holy Spirit within us. The Psalm rejoices in being in Jerusalem and also prays for its peace, we should also.
As you read the Bible Stop; Read; Ponder; and Pray.
Monday Judges 4:11-24
The importance of Heber the Kenite mentioned in verse 11 will be seen later but the main section here is to do with the movements of Sisera and the command from Deborah to Barak to send his troops into battle with the words “has not the Lord gone ahead of you”. We need to remember this when we have to engage with the enemy of our souls in spiritual warfare, the Lord has gone ahead of us!. The Sisera’s army were probably routed by their chariots getting bogged down in the ground beside the Kishon river and that is also why he left his chariot to flee on foot. This is where we come to Heber the Kenite.
Heber had made an alliance with Jabin King of Hazor and as Sisera fled he came to his tents. Jael, Heber’s wife went out specifically to lure fleeing Sisera into her tent, an offer which he accepted feeling he would be safe. As the verses tell us that was far from the truth and in another gory win we see Jael being the reason for his death.
Not only was Sisera killed but the people of Israel under Barak pressed home their advantages and eventually crushed Jabin king of Hazor.
Chapter 5 contains the text of the Song of Deborah which celebrates the victory over Jabin and Sisera and is designed as a regular reminder for the people that when God’s people stand up and take leadership against evil powers God is with them and they will have deliverance. Is that not a message for God’s people in any age?
There are a number of interesting things in the song but I won’t go down them all. If you want to reflect on the details David Guzik’s Enduring Word site gives a useful commentary – https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/judges-5/
After Deborah and Barak the land had peace for 40 years but then, as before, “the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord” (v1) and then they suffered under the hands of the Midianites. They came and swamped the land ruining the crops, taking the animals and in general impoverishing the land such that the people hid in caves and strongholds.
They cried out to the Lord and the Lord did nt send them a deliverer but sent them a prophet (v7) who told them of their history under the saving and delivering power of the Lord. When we want help sometimes the Lord wants us to listen first and that’s why the nameless prophet was sent.
After that the writer tells us that the Angel of the Lord came came and sat down where Gideon was threshing wheat in a wine press, an unlikely place to do such a job but he was trying to do it in secret from the Midianite hordes. The next thing we hear is the astounding message of the Angel – “the Lord is with you, mighty warrior!” The angel’s message is that he is a mighty warrior – perhaps he doesn’t know it. Gideon repleies that if the Lord is with them why has all theis downfall happened ? On wonders if he had heard the prophet’s voice? The angel ignores his question and just tells him to “go in the strength you have” and save Israel but the key concluding message is “Am I not sending you?”. Like Moses trying to get out of the task of delivering from Egypt so Gideon pleads that his clan is the weakest and he the least in his family, nevertheless the Angel promises to be with him and that the victory will be great.
With God all things are possible. Take that with you today.
Gideon wanted to be sure that the “man”/ “angel” who appeared to him and gave this message was from the Lord was genuine and not just somebody telling him things so he seeks a sign of confirmation asking the man to stay where he was until Gideon returned with an offering. If we are not sure about something it can be right to hold off until we are sure.
When Gideon returns with the offering the man tells him to place it on a rock and pour out the broth whereupon the angel touches the rock with his staff and it and flames consume it giving Gideon that assurance that this ‘man’was no man but the angel of the Lord. His response is that of fear, but the Lord tells him not to fear. He is told to tear down his father’s altars to Baal and Asherah which he does but under cover of darkness because his wariness of reactions still holds him back from out and out obedience to the Lord.
When the morning breaks ther is an outcry in the town and an investigation into the culprit which eventually comes to Gideon as the one behind it and they call for his punishment by death. We may not face death for doing or acting in a way of obedience to God but we ought to be ready should the time comes. Gideon stand as our example.
Having done the act in obedience to the word of God Gideon finds himself on the end of a hunt for the perpetrator by the townspeople. On finding out that it was the son of Joash they demanded that he be brought out of his father’s protection and executed for the deed. (v30). Joash however, even thought the idols were his, refuses to hand Gideon over and tells the prosecutors that if the offence was against Baal then Baal should defend himself.
There is a truth in the words of Joash that Christian believers need to remember. There are many things that are done against the honour of Jesus in our country; it is right to stand up and declare what is wrong, but to remember that the offence is against Jesus not us. We are not like the position of many Muslims who see an offence against Mohammed or the Koran as something that has to be personally and corporately defended against. Nor would we be like those of some authoritarian countries whose President or Ruler has to be protected against offence such that dishonouring demands prison or worse. God will defend himself – “vengeance is mine I will repay” (Deuteronomy 32:35 and Romans 12:19). Our attitude to religious offence is different from those other religions and beliefs and affects how we behave. It also affects how we respond to offence against ourselves in Christ’s name – “bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you” said Jesus (Luke 6:28-30).
Saturday Judges 6:33-7:8
At this time we find that the oppression of the Midianites grew even greater as Amalekites and other Eastern peoples joined together and made the pressure on Israel even worse. We hear that the Spirit of the Lord came on Gideon and he summoned his neighbouring tribes to war against the invaders. Although he intended this he wanted to hear from God that he would be with him and give him victory thus the strange matter of the fleeces. He wanted to be sure of God’s help. Was he doubting? I’m not sure but sometimes it is important to want to know for sure what the will of God is and that can sometimes mean seeking the advice of others as ‘fleeces’ to check.
Next comes the thinning down of Gideon’s army, a thing which would be thought of as most unwise but God wanted to make sure that the victory he was going to give was not going to be looked back on by the people as their victory, won by their strength, but was God’s victory for them. The tests sorted out those who were prepared to fight and who were cautious in the way they drank. In God’s battles we need to be ready and prepared but also guarded by wisdom. Every day we step out of our hose we need to be ready for challenges to come but also cautious that we don’t give opportunity to our enemy the Devil to catch us unawares.
