"Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor with a force of about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of the armies of the eastern peoples; a hundred and twenty thousand swordsmen had fallen." (Judges 8:10) The Midianite soldiers, and the soldiers of the nations allied with them, had once numbered 135,000. In the fighting that has taken place since they fled their camp, they have lost 120,000 men. But they still have 15,000 compared to Gideon's 300. It doesn't matter that the army of Israel is outnumbered though; the Lord is on Israel's side. Gideon is following the Lord's battle plan and it will be successful. "Gideon went up by the route of the nomads east of Nobah and Jogbehah and attacked the unsuspecting army. Zebah and Zalmunna, the two kings of Midian, fled, but he pursued them and captured them, routing their entire army." (Judges 8:11-12)
These kings and their army must have thought Gideon wouldn't cross the Jordan River to come after them. But he did, afterwards using a nomadic trail east of the town of Nobah (located in East Manasseh) and the town of Jogbehah (located in the territory of Gad). The Midianites failed to take into account that East Manasseh and Gad were still part of Israel, though these regions lay on the opposite side of the Jordan from the territories of the pursuing Israelite soldiers. Naturally the people of East Manasseh and Gad permitted passage to Gideon and his men.
Yesterday we learned there were two towns east of the Jordan River who refused to refresh them on their journey. The officials of those towns gave no support to Gideon because they did not have enough faith to feel certain the Lord would give him victory over the Midianites. They had more fear of the Midianite kings than they had reverence for the Lord. As a result, they withheld the bread Gideon's army needed, causing them to have to continue their pursuit and engage in the battle ahead with growling, empty tummies. Gideon vowed to avenge himself and his men on the officials of the town of Sukkoth and the town of Peniel. Today he makes good on this ominous promise.
"Gideon son of Joash then returned from the battle by the Pass of Heres. He caught a young man of Sukkoth and questioned him, and the young man wrote down for him the names of the seventy-seven officials of Sukkoth, the elders of the town. Then Gideon came and said to the men of Sukkoth, 'Here are Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me by saying, 'Do you already have the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna in your possession? Why should we give bread to your exhausted men?' He took the elders of the town and taught the men of Sukkoth a lesson by punishing them with thorns and briers. He also pulled down the tower of Peniel and killed the men of the town." (Judges 8:13-17) It is unclear whether he put the men of Sukkoth to death. Some scholars believe he did but others believe he administered a severe whipping. If he did not put them to death, the men of Peniel's offence must have been much greater than that of the men of Sukkoth since he did put the officials of Peniel to death. It's my opinion that capital punishment was carried out against the officials of both these towns.
The officials of Sukkoth and Peniel had shown no mercy to the army of Israel, not caring if the men fainted of low blood sugar along the way, not caring whether their lack of sustenance meant they lost the battle (which was also the Lord's battle!), not caring if they were all slain by the enemy army, not caring if the enemy continued to oppress the Israelites who resided east of the Jordan River. They had shown no mercy to the army of Israel and no faith in Israel's God, preferring instead to be able to affirm (should Zebah and Zalmunna attack their towns) that they had provided no aid whatsoever to Gideon and his men. We must keep in mind that Gideon was not only the general of the army but that he was also the judge of Israel at this time. Being judge of Israel means he has the political authority to judge cases and hand down penalties, including the death penalty. He doesn't put these officials to death just because he is offended and righteously indignant about how his fellow Israelites denied mercy to the soldiers under his command. He puts them to death because he is the head of law and order in the nation. He puts them to death because, in his judgment, they have committed an offense worthy of death. Had the Lord not sustained the army, the actions of these officials would have meant certain death for Gideon's soldiers. They had already fought hard battles and run great distances; they were at the end of their endurance when he begged bread of the officials of the two towns. They were almost completely out of strength. They were running on empty. If the Lord had not provided them with the energy to endure, they would not have made it to the enemy camp, much less have been able to fight and win the battle.
Having taken care of the heartless officials of Sukkoth and Peniel, Gideon turns his attention to the Midianite kings. "Then he asked Zebah and Zalmunna, 'What kind of men did you kill at Tabor?' 'Men like you,' they answered, 'each one with the bearing of a prince.' Gideon replied, 'Those were my brothers, the sons of my own mother.'" (Judges 8:18-19a) We were not previously told of a battle or skirmish that occurred in Tabor. Now we learn that Gideon has been pursuing these kings not only because they represent a threat to Israel but because he has a personal grudge against them. He believes they are the men responsible for slaughtering his brothers and their confession proves he was correct.
Many scholars believe Gideon brought these kings back to his hometown where they could be executed publicly in the sight of his remaining family members. That would explain why Gideon's eldest son, in a moment, is offered the opportunity to avenge the blood of his uncles. We will learn that he is under the age of adulthood which means he was almost certainly not in Gideon's army. Earlier in the Bible we were told a man had to be twenty years old to be eligible for the army. This lends credence to the supposition that Gideon led the kings back to his hometown as prisoners where they stood trail before him (Israel's judge) and where their trial and execution could be witnessed by those to whom these proceedings mattered the most. "Turning to Jether, his oldest son, he said, 'Kill them!' But Jether did not draw his sword, because he was only a boy and was afraid." (Judges 8:20)
In the original Hebrew text we find Jether referred to as "a youth". My guess would be that he's not under the age of twelve; he is likely somewhere between twelve and eighteen since he's wearing a sword. A boy smaller in stature than that of a twelve-year-old would probably be too short and too thin to maneuver easily while wearing a battle sword, plus there would be an element of danger involved. So I feel it's fairly safe to assume he is a teen or pre-teen, not quite a man and not old enough to serve in the army but of sufficient age and stature to wear a sword and scabbard and to wield that sword if necessary.
But he's never been in battle. He's never stabbed a man or cut off a man's head. He is frightened and intimidated by this prospect and does not step forward. The two kings, prideful and unrepentant to the end, taunt Gideon. Zebah and Zalmunna said, 'Come, do it yourself. As is the man, so is his strength.' So Gideon stepped forward and killed them, and took the ornaments off their camels' necks." (Judges 8:21) These kings say something like, "You're the man here. Kill us yourself if you want us killed." It could be that they preferred being killed by a warrior such as Gideon rather than by an untrained youth. There is no glory in having their heads lopped off by a teenage boy who's never been in battle. This may be the reason why Gideon gave his son the opportunity to avenge their kinsmen, so no descendants of Zebah and Zalmunna can brag that they were struck down by a worthy opponent.
The author of Judges takes special care to tell us that Gideon removes the ornaments (in the original language, "crescent moons") from the camels of the kings. These ornaments are idolatrous objects and are a clue about something to come in our next segment.
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