Gideon
Gideon or Gedeon (Hebrew "hewer"), also called JEROBAAL (Judges,
vi, 32; vii, 1; etc.), and JERUBESHETH (II Kings, xi, 21, in the
Hebrew text), was one of the Greater Judges of Israel. He belonged
to the tribe of Manasses, and to the family of Abiezer (Judges,
vi, 34). Gideon's father was Joas, and lived in Ephra (Judges,
vi,11). The following is in substance the account of Gideon's
judgeship as related in Judges, vi-viii: Israel, having forsaken
Yahweh's worship, had been for seven years exceedingly humbled by
the incursions of the Madianites and of other Eastern tribes. At
length, they turned to God who sent them a deliverer in the person
of Gideon. In a first theophany, granted him by day while he was
threshing wheat, Gideon received the difficult mission of freeing
his people; whereupon he built an altar to the Lord (Judges, vi,
24). In a second theophany during the following night, he was
directed to destroy the village-altar to Baal, and to erect one to
Yahweh. This he did with the result that the people clamoured for
his death to avenge his insult to their false god. Joas, however,
saved his son's life by the witty taunt, which secured for the
latter the name of Jerobaal: "Let Baal revenge himself!" (vi, 25-
32). Thus divinely commissioned, Gideon naturally took the lead
against Madian, and Amalec, and other Eastern tribes who had
crossed the Jordan, and encamped in the valley of Jezrael.
Comforted by the famous signs of the fleece (vi, 36-40), and
accompanied by warriors from Manasses, Aser, Zabulon, and
Nephthali, he took up his position not far from the enemy. But it
was God's intervention to show that it was His power which
delivered Israel, and hence He reduced Gideon's army from 32,000
to 300 (vii, 1-8). According to a divine direction, the Hebrew
commander paid a night visit to the enemy's camp and overheard the
telling of a dream which prompted him to act at once, certain of
victory (vii, 9-15). He then supplied his men with trumpets and
with torches enclosed in jars, which, after his example, they
broke, crying out: "The sword of Yahweh and Gideon." Panic-
stricken at the sudden attack, Israel's enemies turned their arms
against one another, and broke up in flight towards the fords of
the Jordan (vii, 16-23). But, summoned by Gideon, the Ephraimites
cut off the Madianites at the fords, and captured and slew two of
their princes, Oreb and Zeb, whose heads they sent to the Hebrew
leader, rebuking him at the same time for not having called
earlier upon their assistance. Gideon appeased them by an Eastern
proverb, and pursued the enemy beyond the Jordan river (vii, 24;
viii, 3). Passing by Soccoth and Phanuel, he met with their
refusal of provisions for his fainting soldiers, and threatened
both places with vengeance on his return (viii, 4-9). At length,
he overtook and defeated the enemies of Israel, captured their
kings, Zebee and Salmana, returned in triumph, punishing the men
of Soccoth and Phanuel on his way, and finally put to death Zebee
and Salmana (viii, 10-21). Grateful for this glorious deliverance,
Gideon's countrymen offered him the dignity of an hereditary king,
which he declined with these noble words: "I will not rule over
you, neither shall my son rule over you, but Yahweh shall rule
over you" (viii, 22-23). He nevertheless asked and obtained from
his soldiers the golden rings and other ornaments which they had
taken from the enemy; and out of this spoil he made what seems to
have soon become an object of idolatrous worship in Israel.
Gideon's peaceful judgeship lasted forty years. He had seventy
sons, and "died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre
of his father in Ephra" (viii, 24-32). His victory is alluded to
in Isaias, x, 26, and in Ps. lxxxii, 12 (Heb., lxxxiii, 11), where
the four kings mentioned in Judges, vii, viii, are distinctly
named- a fact which shows that, at the time when this psalm was
composed, the narrative of Gideon's exploits was commonly known in
its present form. The various literary features exhibited by the
text of Judges, vi-viii, have been minutely examined and
differently appreciated by recent scholars. Several commentators
look upon these features- such for instance as the two names,
Gideon and Jerobaal; the two theophanies bearing on Gideon's call;
the apparently twofold narrative of Gideon's pursuit of the routed
enemies, etc.- as proving conclusively the composite origin of the
sacred record of Gideon's judgeship. Others, on the contrary, see
their way to reconcile all such features of the text with the
literary unity of Judges, vi-viii. However this may be, one thing
remains perfectly sure, to wit, that whatever may be the documents
which have been utilized in framing the narrative of Gideon's
exploits, they agree substantially in their description of the
words and deeds of this Greater Judge of Israel.
Catholic commentaries on the book of Judges by CLAIR (Paris,
1880); VON HUMMELAUER (Paris, 1888); LAGRANGE (Paris, 1903); Non-
Catholic by MOORE (New York, 1895); BUDDE (Freiburg im Breisgau,
1897); NOWACK (G�ttingen, 1900).
FRANCIS E. GIGOT
Transcribed by Sean Hyland
From the Catholic Encyclopedia, copyright � 1913 by the
Encyclopedia Press, Inc. Electronic version copyright � 1996 by
New Advent, Inc.
Taken from the New Advent Web Page (www.knight.org/advent).
This article is part of the Catholic Encyclopedia Project, an
effort aimed at placing the entire Catholic Encyclopedia 1913
edition on the World Wide Web. The coordinator is Kevin Knight,
editor of the New Advent Catholic Website. If you would like to
contribute to this worthwhile project, you can contact him by e-
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