Gideon: The Two Tests He Had To Pass Series

(Note: this message is based on and edited from a sermon preached at First Baptist Church of Chamois, MO on 10-16-2022 but is not an exact transcription.)

Introduction: Gideon had just realized he saw the Angel of the LORD and was probably trying to take it all in. He was one of only a few people to ever have that privilege, by the way, even though he may not have absorbed it.

He had begun by threshing wheat in a local wine press, probably scared half to death of the enemies he knew were close by. As mentioned, he had also seen the Angel of the LORD, and the Angel had told Gideon he was going to deliver Israel from the Midianites and others. The Angel had never said just how, though, as that was going to come later. Before Gideon was going to deliver Israel, there were two tests he had to pass. Let’s look at the first one:

1 The first test: Tear down the altar of Baal

Text: Judges 6:25-27, KJV: 25 And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it: 26 And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down. 27 Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.

This test for Gideon was difficult, at best. For one thing, his own father, Joash, had either built or permitted an altar to Baal, one of the idols worshiped by the Canaanites. Gideon would be risking the wrath of his own family if he actually did tear down “dear old Dad’s” altar to Baal. As a sad aside, Joash in Hebrew means “Jehovah is strong” even though Joash wasn’t strong enough to remain true to the God of Israel.

Now, I have to confess that I’ve wondered why God would tell Gideon to use one or two bulls (the opinions of several commentators vary) to pull down the pagan altar. Some altars were made of stone (as some pictures of these reveal) and others were made of earth. At any rate, the altar to Baal was probably large enough to lay a bull-sized sacrifice on it. To give an idea, the altar for the Tabernacle was to be “five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits (Exodus 27:1, KJV).” Allowing 18 inches or one-half yard to a cubit, the altar would be 7-1/2 feet in length and width, and 4-1/2 feet in height.

So then, if Joash’s altar to Baal was in any similar size, Gideon would have had too much to do in one session. Whether the bull was to shove down the dirt, move the stones, or any other use, God had provided Gideon with some much-needed help.

There’s another thing that isn’t mentioned directly but those who know the Old Testament probably saw this, too. When Moses was on the mountain receiving the Ten Commandments, what did the people “guilt” Aaron into doing? Aaron supervised the creation of a golden calf or young bull—which Israel promptly worshiped! Israel had abandoned God while they were at the very foot of the mountain where God had made Himself known to Israel (Compare Exodus 19 and 32)!

But let’s get back to Gideon for a moment. God had told him to tear down (“throw down”) the altar of Baal, and that would take some courage at best. And that’s not all: God also told Gideon to cut down the “grove” that was by that pagan altar. I’m not sure just what a “grove” really was, whether a group of trees or some other kind of idol. Commentators have different opinions, too, but whatever it was, God wanted it GONE. To make it permanent, God told Gideon to use the very wood of the “grove” he had cut down as fuel for the burnt sacrifice!

Think about this: Joash had either built, or permitted to build, an altar to Baal on his own property. Baal was supposed to be the god of harvest, fertility, and who knows what else. Joash had also either planted or allowed to be planted a “Grove”—whatever that was—near that altar. He and the others who worshiped Baal must have thought this would stand for a long time, but the True and the Living God had other ideas! This God had told Gideon to use his father’s own bull to pull down his father’s own altar, and then use the wood of his father’s own “Grove” as fuel for the burnt offering of a very special bull! An old quote goes something like this” Man proposes, but God disposes” and God certainly had the last word here.