King or Priest?

In the aftermath of Israel’s deliverance from the Midianites, the men of Israel approach Gideon with a request: “ ‘Rule over us, both you and your son, and your grandson also.’ ” Gideon, from the weakest clan in Manasseh and “ ‘the least in my father’s house,’ ” is being offered the chance to establish a dynastic kingship over Israel. But while Gideon has come very far, he has not forgotten how he got there. He knows that the true Deliverer of Israel must rule Israel. “It was honorable in him to refuse [the kingship],” Matthew Henry writes. “What he did was with a design to serve them, not to rule them—to make them safe, easy, and happy, not to make himself great or honorable.” He refuses to seek glory and privilege for himself or his family, for he knows that God is Israel’s rightful King.

But despite refusing to don a crown, Gideon now begins to behave rather regally. In lieu of the kingship, he requests a large share of the plunder, specifically the golden earrings the Israelites had stripped from the Midianites (here called by the alternative name “Ishmaelites,” Gen. 37:25, 28). He fashions this plunder, along with that which he himself had taken, into an ephod. This is a most unwise thing to do. God had commanded Israel to make an ephod as part of His instructions for the building and furnishing of the tabernacle. This garment, composed of gold, fine fabrics, and precious stones, was to be worn only by the high priest, along with a jewel-encrusted breastplate and the “Urim and Thummim,” little-understood objects for seeking divine guidance (Ex. 28:5–30). It was to be the only one of its kind. Why Gideon fashions this replica ephod is not clear. He may intend it only as a memorial of some sort. But some believe he makes it out of the prideful belief that he can perpetuate God’s communication to him, thus enhancing his stature and that of his city and tribe. Unfortunately, the ephod soon attracts many Israelites eager to receive divine guidance. But they are consulting Gideon’s ephod, not God’s—He will not communicate to His people through it. Gideon’s ill-advised ephod thus causes the Israelites—even his family and himself—to seek guidance in a way God never intended.

Thus, Gideon’s legacy is a mixed one: His judgeship gives Israel 40 years of peace, but his people play the harlot with the ephod he makes.