Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Judges 6:7
And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD because of the Midianites,
7 10 . A prophet is sent with a reproof
8 . a prophet ] This prophetic expostulation reminds us of the words of the Angel in Jdg 2:1 b Jdg 2:5 a, of Jehovah in Jdg 10:11-16, of Samuel in 1Sa 7:3 f., Jdg 10:17-18, Jdg 12:6-15; cf. also 2Ki 17:35-40. The prophet here is anonymous. His appeal for loyalty is based upon ( a) the deliverance from Egypt, which was regarded by the earliest prophets as the starting-point of Israel’s career as the people of Jehovah, Amo 2:10; Amo 3:1; Amo 9:7, Hos 11:1; Hos 12:9; Hos 12:13; Hos 13:4, and ( b) the law in Exo 20:2 f. (= Deu 5:7) requiring the exclusive worship of Jehovah.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, because of the Midianites. Because of their oppressions and ill usage of them, and not because of their sins, which had brought those evils on them, of which, at present, they seemed not to be sensible; and yet such was the goodness and compassion of God to them, that having a mind to deliver them, he immediately, on their crying to him, sends them a messenger to bring them to a sense of their sins, and prepare them for the deliverance he designed to work for them, as follows.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD because of the Midianites, 8 That the LORD sent a prophet unto the children of Israel, which said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage; 9 And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drave them out from before you, and gave you their land; 10 And I said unto you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have not obeyed my voice.
Observe here, I. The cognizance God took of the cries of Israel, when at length they were directed towards him. Though in their prosperity they had neglected him and made court to his rivals, and though they never looked towards him until they were driven to it by extremity, yet, upon their complain and prayer, he intended relief for them. Thus would he show how ready he is to forgive, how swift he is to show mercy, and how inclinable to hear prayer, that sinners may be encouraged to return and repent, Ps. cxxx. 4.
II. The method God took of working deliverance for them.
1. Before he sent an angel to raise them up a saviour he sent a prophet to reprove them for sin, and to bring them to repentance, v. 8. This prophet is not named, but he was a man, a prophet, not an angel, as ch. ii. 1. Whether this prophet took an opportunity of delivering his message to the children of Israel when they had met together in a general assembly, at some solemn feast or other great occasion, or whether he went from city to city and from tribe to tribe, preaching to this purport, is not certain; but his errand was to convince them of sin, that, in their crying to the Lord, they might confess that with sorrow and shame, and not spend their breath in only complaining of their trouble. They cried to God for a deliverer, and God sent them a prophet to instruct them, and to make them ready for deliverance. Note, (1.) We have reason to hope God is designing mercy for us if we find he is by his grace preparing us for it. If to those that are sick he sends a messenger, an interpreter, by whom he shows unto man his uprightness, then he is gracious, and grants a recovery, Job 33:23; Job 33:24. (2.) The sending of prophets to a people, and the furnishing of a land with faithful ministers, is a token for good, and an evidence that God has mercy in store for them. He thus turns us to him, and then causes his face to shine, Ps. lxxx. 19.
2. We have here the heads of the message which this prophet delivered in to Israel, in the name of the Lord.
(1.) He sets before them the great things God had done for them (Jdg 5:8; Jdg 5:9): Thus saith the Lord God of Israel; they had worshipped the gods of the nations, as if they had had no God of their own to worship and therefore might choose whom they pleased; but they are here reminded of one whom they had forgotten, who was known by the title of the God of Israel, and to him they must return. They had turned to other gods, as if their own had been either incapable or unwilling to protect them, and therefore they are told what he did for their fathers, in whose loins they were, the benefit of which descended and still remained to this their ungrateful seed. [1.] He brought them out of Egypt, where otherwise they would have continued in perpetual poverty and slavery. [2.] He delivered them out of the hands of all that oppressed them; this is mentioned to intimate that the reason why they were not now delivered out of the hands of the oppressing Midianites was not for want of any power or good-will in God, but because by their iniquity they had sold themselves, and God would not redeem them until they by repentance revoked the bargain. [3.] He put them in quiet possession of this good land; this not only aggravated their sin, and affixed the brand of base ingratitude to it, but it justified God, and cleared him from blame upon account of the trouble they were now in. They could not say he was unkind, for he had given all possible proofs of his designing well for them; if ill befel them notwithstanding, they must thank themselves.
(2.) He shows the easiness and equity of God’s demands and expectations from them (v. 10): “I am the Lord your God, to whom you lie under the highest obligations, fear not the gods of the Amorites,” that is, “do not worship them, nor show any respect to them; do not worship them for fear of their doing you any hurt, for what hurt can they do you while I am your God? Fear God, and you need not fear them.”
(3.) He charges them with rebellion against God, who had laid this injunction upon them: But you have not obeyed my voice. The charge is short, but very comprehensive; this was the malignity of all their sin, it was disobedience to God; and therefore it was this that brought those calamities upon them under which they were now groaning, pursuant to the threatenings annexed to his commands. He intends hereby to bring them to repentance; and our repentance is then right and genuine when the sinfulness of sin, as disobedience to God, is that in it which we chiefly lament.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Rebuke of the Prophet, vs. 7-10
Here the unnamed prophet of the Lord adds detail to the message given Israel by the angel at Bochim (Jdg 2:1-5). Nearly two centuries had now passed, and the Israelites still alternately disobeyed and suffered and repented and were delivered. So now, when they cry under the awful affliction of the Midianites and their companions, the Lord comes with the same message.
The prophet repeated the facts of Israel’s deliverance out of Egyptian bondage and from the Egyptian pursuit. He continued to remind them how He had continually delivered them from all who oppressed them. This He had done through Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, and Barak. Each time it had been emphasized that the Lord was Israel’s God, and that they should have no fear of the gods of the Amorites. Though they possessed the land formerly held by the Amorites they should not have a superstitious fear of the false gods which had been worshipped there. Yet they had not believed the Lord, nor obeyed His voice.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
Yahweh Sends His Prophet ( Jdg 6:7-10 ).
Jdg 6:7-8
‘And so it happened that when the children of Israel cried to Yahweh because of Midian, that Yahweh sent a prophet to the children of Israel, and he said to them, “Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel”.’
When His people repented and responded to Him Yahweh heard them, and sent a prophet to them to remind them of His goodness to them in the past, with words which reminded them of His covenant with them. We are not told who the prophet was, but it does remind us that God had not left Himself without a witness. There were always Yahweh inspired men among them.
Jdg 6:8-9
“I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage, and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land.”
Yahweh now repeated what He had said in the opening words of the covenant (Exo 20:1-2), that of His free grace and goodness He had delivered them from Egypt and from the bondage there, had rescued them from the pursuing Egyptian army, and from all who had oppressed them since (as previously described in Numbers, Joshua and Judges), and had driven out their enemies in as far as they, His people, had been willing to be obedient, and He had given them their land. There was nothing of what He had promised that He had not done for them.
Jdg 6:10
“ And I said to you, I am Yahweh, your God. You shall not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But you have not listened to my voice.”
The first words of the covenant (Exo 20:1) were now applied to their present situation. Because of what He had done for them, and because He was ‘the One Who is there’, the ‘I am’ (Exo 3:14), He had told them that they should not ‘fear’, that is stand in awe of and worship of, the gods of the Amorites, the people of the land. They were to worship Him only. But they had disobeyed. They had ‘feared’ them and not Him. They had not listened to His warning. That was why their problems had come on them.
So the prophet of Yahweh was sent to bring home to them the words of the covenant, and in response to their repentance, to seal it again with them. He was proof that the Spirit of Yahweh was now about to act, and was indeed acting through him. For the ensuing narrative would demonstrate that He was now acting again on their behalf.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Observe the sweet methods of God’s grace. No sooner doth Israel cry but the Lord hears and answers. Indeed the promise is, Before my people call I will answer. The Lord waiteth to be gracious. Isa_65:24; Isa_30:18 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Jdg 6:7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD because of the Midianites,
Ver. 7. When the children of Israel cried. ] If men can find a praying heart, God will find a pitying heart.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
a Farmer Called to Be Deliverer
Jdg 6:7-18
God is not content with sending a prophet to condemn our sins; He commissions an angel to bring help. Surely there is truth in the old belief that the Angel-Jehovah, designated here, was our Lord, whose delights were ever with the sons of men. Compare Isa 63:9 and Act 7:30 with Exo 3:2; Exo 3:6. He still comes to us, not visibly to the eye, but sensibly to the heart. There is a peculiar burning at the heart, which those who love Him understand, when He manifests Himself to them as not to the world. See Luk 24:32 and Joh 14:21
Gideon was the youngest son of a poor family, which had suffered greatly at the hands of Midian. See Jdg 8:18. He was compelled to thresh his wheat in the wine-press, below the surface of the ground, lest the Midianites should descend on it and carry it off. He seemed the least likely to be the chosen deliverer. But remember the Apostles words, 1Co 1:26. There is a might that no human valor can impart; it is that which is communicated directly from Christ, as in Jdg 6:14. And when Jesus looks and speaks, the young soul that stands in all humility before Him knows that it can do all things through Him who strengthens, Php 4:13.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary
Reciprocal: Jdg 3:9 – cried 1Sa 12:10 – And they 2Ki 13:4 – Jehoahaz Hos 5:15 – in their
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jdg 6:7-10. A second writer (probably E) introduces a prophet who reproves Israel for disloyalty and ingratitude to Yahweh their God. The brief speech is a torso. Reflective rather than prophetic, it opens impressively, but ends abruptly, like a sermon without application; and then one of the main traditions begins.