Same Presence

In Judges 6-9, these chapters as one unit are about Gibeon. “The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, ‘The Lord is with you. O mighty man of valor.’” (6:12) Gideon questioned the calling of God based on what he saw in Israel (6:13). The Lord challenged him to save Israel (6:14). Gideon responded with what he saw in himself: “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house” (6:15). Then the presence of the Lord assured him once again: “The Lord said to him, ‘But I will be with you…’” (6:16)

What draws my attention is Gideon’s self doubt and the presence of God as his assurance.  God said to Moses that “I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt” (Exod. 3:10). Moses replied, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (3:11). Then the Lord said, “But I will be with you…” (3:12) After the death of Moses, standing at the edge of the Jordan River, Joshua was nervous, anxious, and even frightened. The Lord said to him, “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you” (Josh. 1:5; cf. 1:9). In different epochs, there are different servants; there is only one God: same presence; different circumstances.

The calling of Gideon seems to say that when we only look at the surrounding and one’s ability, we are fearful, powerless, and emotionally paralyzed. Just as when Moses was occupied by Pharaoh and Joshua fixed his eyes on the Jordan River and the Canaanites, they questioned themselves. In other words, they questioned God’s guidance, authority, and sovereignty. From time to time, we must tune our inner lens and re-focus on the Lord and his own promises. After dividing the Land among all the tribes, including Levi, it said: “Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass” (Josh. 21:45).

The geography of the Book of Judges occurred in the Promised Land. In the Land of Promise, people continued to question the God of Promise. The Promised Land failed to serve as a reminder to this faithful God. Rather, it was the Land in which the Israelites lived in and yet stopped living as a people of God.

Judges 5:16-17:

Why did you sit still among the sheepfolds, to hear the whistling for the flocks? Among the clans of Reuben there were great searchings of heart. Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan; and Dan, why did he stay with the ships? Asher sat still at the coast of the sea, staying by his landings (ESV).

All these tribes were indifferent to the wider society and just stayed there motionlessly.