A Snare To The Soul

Judges 8.22-35

Gideon was not perfect, none of us are.

Like all of us he had times of victory and times where his faith lapsed.

He obeyed the LORD.
He won a great mighty victory by following the LORD's instructions.
He refused to become king. This was a great temptation.
He made a sort of monument/memorial to himself. True it could have been out of a desire to honor God but there were enough lessons from the history of his people to warn him about this.

Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city: This was obviously wrong and it is not immediately apparent why Gideon did this. It is possible he did this to work against the prestige and influence of the tribe of Ephraim. At this time the tabernacle - the center of worship for Israel - was at Shiloh, in the territory of Ephraim. Gideon perhaps set up this rival place of worship to compete against the tribe that troubled him in the battle against Midian. But he seemed to be at peace with them.

*It could be he just wanted the people to remember the victory God gave them. Memorials are tricky things. They can have jagged edges.
*It could be he wanted the people to remember him and how he was used by the LORD. This is a bit more dangerous. He may have been feeling good about turning down becoming king and felt he had this coming. Beware of the thought that we are owed something by people or God. We are servants of the LORD doing our duty. Luke 17:10 So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’”

And all Israel played the harlot with it there: The people of Israel enjoyed this idolatrous worship. The beautiful and expensive ephod became a snare to Gideon, his family, and all Israel.

*Artistic beauty has a way of impressing us and giving a sense of awe but it is not necessarily a godly impression or awe. Many times it can distract our focus from the Lord. In contrast to this ephod, God commanded that His altars be made of unfinished stone (Exodus 20:25), so that no one's attention was focused on the beauty of the stone carver's work. Interesting how churches are adorned. Building should point people to Christ not pull them away from Him. Simplicity is the best. Elaborate buildings or even worship can cause the worshiper to worship incorrectly.

Aaron called for the ear-rings to make the golden calf of, Ex. 32:2. These Gideon asked for v. 24. And he had reason enough to think that those who offered him a crown, when he declined it, would not deny him their ear-rings, when he made the request for them, and they did not v. 25.
He himself added the spoil he took from the kings of Midian, which, it should seem, had fallen to his share, v. 26.
The generals had that part of the prey which was most splendid, the prey of different colors, ch. 5:30. 3. Of this he made an ephod, v. 27. It was plausible enough, and might be well intended to preserve a memorial of so divine a victory in the judge’s own city.
But it was a very unadvised thing to make that memorial to be an ephod, a sacred garment. Gideon was a good man. But he erred. (Hos. 3:4)

Can we learn from his sin.
Think of the admonition in Galatians 6.
Galatians 6:1 Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.
Watch yourselves!

Let's give Gideon the benefit of a doubt. We know he was a good man.
Let's say his intention was pure. At best it was unwise. He did not consider the consequences. This is a an who shortly before tore down the altar of Baal and the ashteroths.

Note, Many are led into false ways by one false step of a good man. The beginning of sin, particularly of idolatry and will-worship, is as the letting forth of water, so it has been found in the fatal corruptions of the church of Rome; therefore leave it off before it be meddled with. It became a snare to Gideon himself, abating his zeal for the house of God in his old age, and much more to his house, who were drawn by it into sin, and it proved the ruin of the family.

24-26. Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you--This was the contribution of an earring (singular). As the ancient Arabians (Ishmaelites and Midianites being synonymous terms, Gen 37:25, 28) were gorgeously adorned with barbaric pearl and gold, an immense amount of such valuable booty had fallen into the hands of the Israelite soldiers. The contribution was liberally made, and the quantity of gold given to him is estimated at
26. ornaments--crescent-like plates of gold suspended from the necks, or placed on the breasts of the camels.
collars--rather, "earrings," or drops of gold or pearl.
purple--a royal color. The ancient, as well as modern Arabs, adorned the necks, breasts, and legs, of their riding animals with sumptuous housing.
27. Gideon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city, . . . Ophrah--That no idolatrous use was in view, nor any divisive course from Shiloh contemplated, is seen from Jdg 8:33. Gideon proposed, with the gold he received, to make an ephod for his use only as a civil magistrate or ruler, as David did ( 1Ch 15:27), and a magnificent breastplate also. It would seem, from the history, that he was not blamable in making this ephod, as a civil robe or ornament merely, but that it afterward became an object to which religious ideas were attached; whereby it proved a snare, and consequently an evil, by perversion, to Gideon and his house. Knowing the ephod was part of the priestly garments should have stopped him from making it in this form but it did not.

What does this scripture tell us about avoiding a snare to the soul in our lives and of those we love?

There are the obvious snares:
*Nursing a grudge.
Mark 6:19 So Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she was not able to,
Genesis 27:41 Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
*Jealousy and Envy ruin relationships. Competing.
*Greed
Proverbs 15:27 The greedy bring ruin to their households,but the one who hates bribes will live.
Proverbs 28:25 The greedy stir up conflict,but those who trust in the Lord will prosper.
There are other things too, but look at the specifics in this account about Gideon.



1. Doing Things "For God" Without Any Clear Direction From Him.
David and the temple
They can seem good.

He possibly made this gold ephod due to the spiritual failure of the people. This was something the priest wore.

They can be a snare to the soul. What Milo Arnold said to us in Bible College.
"If you are here for any other reason than the LORD called you it would you should go home. Parents want you to be a minister, think it would make a good career choice..."

Clear calls produce ongoing fruit.

Plans made without prayer and the LORD in the middle. Are doomed to come crashing down.
Be careful not to go against the Word of God. Gideon was acting a little like Aaron here. He should have recognized that.


2. Idolatry Is A Sin Today.
Possessions can become idols.
Luke 12:15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”

Proverbs 23:4-5 Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.

Positions can be too.
Luke 20:46 “Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets."

People become idols... American Idol... Those who proclaim the Word of God should never be idolized. They are servants, instruments.

Idols are such a snare to the soul.
They are subtle.
They may start out with pure motives.
They may be among us.
They are not always easily detected.

3. Keep Your Eyes On God's Glory.
Particularly after a great victory!
Noah got drunk after the flood, after coming off the ark.
Genesis 9:20-21 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. This caused problems in his famiy.

Elijah fell into depression after defeating the prophets of Baal.
1 Kings 19:3-4 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.”

Peter tried to talk Jesus out of going to the cross after he had made the great confession.
Matthew 16:13-18 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

Matthew 16:21-23 From that time began Jesus to show unto his disciples, that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall never be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art a stumbling-block unto me: for thou mindest not the things of God, but the things of men.

We can be serving the LORD, following Jesus, and fall into our humanity and suggest things and do things that will not turn out for His glory.

1 John 4:1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

This ephod was constructed after the defeat of the Midians by Gideon.
It was a time for celebration.
It was a time when emotions were running high. Take warning.
It was a time of appreciation and aggravation. Keep those emotions in check.

1 Chronicles 12:32 from Issachar, men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do—200 chiefs, with all their relatives under their command;

We have to be careful even when doing the work of the LORD of these snares to the soul. They can effect generations to come. This was true with Gideon. His sin ended up wiping out 70 of his sons. Just one escaped.

A safeguard against these snares is to keep the Glory of God for Him alone. Particularly after the pressure is off and a victory has been given, are we especially vulnerable. Don't let that happen to you!

Guard your heart. Keep your eyes fixed upon Jesus.