How the Road to Hell Is Paved

I’m disappointed.

It’s not like I didn’t see it coming.

I’ve read the accounts before. And I peeked ahead more than once this time around to make sure that as as I was piecing this out unexpected events didn’t blindside me.

But the ending ambushed me anyway.

And now I’m disappointed.

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God drew a scrawny coward out from his safe hiding place and let him live out the mighty man of valor that He had birthed in him. Gideon and the Lord tested one another, and each found the other to be faithful.

The mighty man of valor led a practically nonexistent army to victory. After he and his 300-piece brass band scared the Midianites into attacking one another, he called for assistance from Hebrew allies and a bloody, vengeful chase ensued. Without mercy, he punished and killed those who refused to aid in the simplest of ways, those who declined even to provide scraps of bread for battle weary fighters.

When the victor returned to his people, enemy subdued, they begged him to be their king.

Rule over us. Not only you, but your son too. We are so in love with you we even want your grandson to rule over us.

Gideon refused. The mighty man of valor was also a wise politician.

No way. I’m not ruling over you. Neither is my son.

The Lord will rule over you.

What a perfect ending. Ninety pound weakling, transformed into national hero, humbly refused the accolades of his people. He reminded them of God’s authority and His sufficiency.

If only we could freeze it there.

The Israelites said to Gideon, “Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us out of the hand of Midian.”

But Gideon told them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The LORD will rule over you.” And he said, “I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder.” (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites to wear gold earrings.)

They answered, “We’ll be glad to give them.” So they spread out a garment, and each man threw a ring from his plunder onto it.  The weight of the gold rings he asked for came to seventeen hundred shekels, not counting the ornaments, the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains that were on their camels’ necks. Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family. (Judges 8:22-27)

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Good intentions.

They say the road to hell is paved with them.

Gideon meant well. But a funny thing had happened on his way to the transformation.

Go back and look at what’s happened so far. Everything Gideon has done he’s done in the certainty that God told him to do it. He and God talked nonstop.

He began everything with Are You sure this is what you want me to do?

Really sure?

Show me again how sure?

But somewhere between the smoke and mirrors and thrashing the elders of Succoth with thorns and briers, Gideon stopped asking. He started thinking in the vacuum of his own thoughts. Making decisions on his own.

Pushing God out of the equation.

I can count on one hand the number of times that Gideon Judges 8* references Lord or God. Practically every verse has that reference in the two previous chapters.

::

So it really shouldn’t come as a surprise to me that Gideon’s good intentions wouldn’t carry him through.

But it does.

Because he does an effective head fake right before he ditches God altogether.

The Lord will rule over you.

He’s sucked me in now, persuaded me that he is not only a mighty man of valor but a wise and humble one as well.

But as soon as he said that, in the next breath after the Lord will rule over you, he went all Aaron on me. He asked all the people to contribute an earring from the plunder they took after the battle. One earring wasn’t a lot given the loot they brought home. So they were happy to oblige.

He collected a big pile of gold and crafted a golden ephod. (The ephod was part of the high priest’s garment. Why one would need a golden one escapes me, and I gather, a whole lot of scholars.)

Before he knew it, the people worshipped at his ephod.

They threw themselves before a beautiful handcrafted work of art and poured out their affections.

Israel, having just turned from Baal worship, prostituted herself all over again with the golden ephod.

::

The best laid plans.

Makes me wonder if the plan didn’t work. God whittled away the army so all would know He was God, He was mighty to save, He defeated the Midianites.

Yet, at first light, those He saved scurried back to idol worship.

What? What God? We have lots of gods. Hey, look at this cool new toy. Bright, shiny . . .

::

Gideon so quickly convinced himself his transformation was his own doing. While he no longer appears to wrestle his doubt, it seems his trust is now in himself.

Gideon. Aptly named Hacker in the Hebrew.

Trembling all the way, he hacked down idols that stood in offense to his true God.

And then turned and built another.

Intended to honor God. But it became one more stumbling block, a snare to Gideon and his family.

::

Good intentions.

I don’t know what to think.

I’m disappointed in Gideon. I wanted the story to end on the high note of his ragtag army’s victory. And while I sit with that, trying to understand why I’m so disappointed him, I again see reflections of me. My good intentions.

Good intentions gone completely awry.

I have to sit with this a little bit longer.

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*I’ve been hanging with Gideon for so long now apparently I renamed the book of Judges after him. My apologies and thanks for not publically calling me out on it. I do love a little private correction though.