Loisb Posted June 4, 2009 Report Share Posted June 4, 2009 Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? What kinds of pressures would Gideon be feeling not to obey God in shrinking his army? How was Gideon able to obey God fully in this? 1. God didn't want people to say that the only reason they won the battle was because they had so many men. 2. Fighting with a few men showed that God was the one that gave them the power to win the battle. 3. If he lost the battle and got the men killed, it would seem that it was his fault and he also didn't want God to think that he didn't have faith 4. Gideon was able to fully obey God when he was obedient and let God lead him in reducing the number of men. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela Harms Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? What kinds of pressures would Gideon be feeling not to obey God in shrinking his army? How was Gideon able to obey God fully in this? 1.If all of them fought the Midianites, they wouldboast that they saved themselves instead of God fighting for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela Harms Posted July 1, 2009 Report Share Posted July 1, 2009 Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? What kinds of pressures would Gideon be feeling not to obey God in shrinking his army? How was Gideon able to obey God fully in this? 1. If all of them fought the Midianites, they would boast that they saved themselves instead of God fighting for them. If we try to fight the enemy in our own strength and make our own plans then we do not need to rely on the Lord to help us. Our faith with actions do not need to be tapped into. We need to be in a position that we completely rely and depend on the Lord to bring us through a situation. 2. So that Israel could once again put their trust in God to deliver them, and not in Gideon. It had to look totally impossible for victory when looking at the number of men in Gideon's army to the number if Midianites they had to fight. 3. Gideon could have looked in the natural at the numbers and doubted. He could have been fearful of the Midianites. 4. Because Gideon heard the Midianites speaking of God's triumph, God assured Gideon of help and obeyed God fully after that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanMary Posted December 2, 2009 Report Share Posted December 2, 2009 Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? The Lord said Israel may boast and believe that their own strength in their vast numbers had saved them. Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? Israel needed to see that it was God and God alone who had saved them from the enemy, rather than taking credit for the victory and falling back into idol worship and self reliance, or in believing it was Gideon's leadership skill which delivered them. What kinds of pressures would Gideon be feeling not to obey God in shrinking his army? The old pressure of "what will people think? What will people say? "What kind of leader would send 2/3 of his army home because they are afraid!...maybe they won't follow me into battle if I look weak and foolish." How was Gideon able to obey God fully in this? Gideon was humble and therefore fully obeyed God. The wet fleece, then the dry one assured him that God was indeed the ONE speaking to him, and he was not alone or making this up....he was then able to trust and obey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeking His Face Posted March 24, 2010 Report Share Posted March 24, 2010 Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? What kinds of pressures would Gideon be feeling not to obey God in shrinking his army? How was Gideon able to obey God fully in this? Because he wanted to be sure Israel knew God was there deliver. Because they needed to know there was no way they could defeat the enemyonly by or mighty God could the enemy be defeated. Gideon would feel guilty, like a failure. Victory would be unlikely if he went out on his own. Because he believed God to do what he said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hanks Posted October 26, 2010 Report Share Posted October 26, 2010 Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? If they won the war against the Midianites they would take credit for the victory. Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? Israel with their attitude of self confidence and pride would take all the credit and refuse to give God the glory. Now with the smaller army, Israel could not take credit for any victory. Their victory would be entirely God Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terence Bryan Posted November 7, 2010 Report Share Posted November 7, 2010 I think that if God had allowed Gideon to attack the Midianites with such a big army (22,000 men), the people of Israel would believe that they defeated the Midianites by their own strength and not by God's help. Shrinking the army's size to a tiny band was essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance, because will show them that God could defeat any army in the world, no mattere how big this army could be, God wanted for the people of Israell to trust, obey and have faith in Him. God had delivered Israel in the past and He was about to prove them that He could deliver them again. By human standars what Gideon was doing in shrinking his army, wasa mistake a tactical error, but those who thought that way didn't take in consideration that God already told Gideon that the Midianites were on his hands, and also that Gideon was choosed by God to deliver Israel from the Midianites. God showed Gideon once again that he would be able to defeat the Midianites, God ordered Gideon to sneak into the Midianites' camp and listen with his own ears what was about to happen to the Midianites. I believe that Gideon learned to have faith in the Lord without any doubts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terence Bryan Posted November 7, 2010 Report Share Posted November 7, 2010 Being my first contribution I trust that my reply will be acceptable. It happens that I have a love for the Jewish people as indeed being Christians were grafted into their Nation. They are Gods chosen people and what has happened to and for them over their history is truly remarkable. Whilst reading the replies about Gideon it brought to mind relatively recent events such as the 1967 six day war. The attempt by Egypt and other Arab nations to annihilate Israel failed and they were truly beaten within six days. Surrounded on all sides and outnumbered in the thousands with men,guns,tanks and planes Israel was victorious, if God is for us who can be against us. Terence Bryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Jerry Posted January 11, 2012 Report Share Posted January 11, 2012 God felt that Gideon’s army was too large because if they had won then they would have thought it had been by their own strength and not the strength of God. The shrinking of the army’s size to a tiny band was essential in restoring Israel’s faith and allegiance because with such a small band of army personnel they would have known that it wasn’t by their own strength that they had won. The kind of pressures that Gideon would have felt by not obeying God to shrink this army would have been one of defeat. He knew that it was God who called him to this task and he know he had no idea of how to accomplish it so he needed to do what God had told him to do. Gideon was able to obey God in this task because he knew the commands were coming from God. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wifee Posted January 20, 2012 Report Share Posted January 20, 2012 3a)God knew the army would have trusted in God less,&more in them themselves if they had been large. B)God didn’t want the Israelites to have a reason to boast in the size of the army, wanted them to trust totally in his strength not theirs. C)He would have had pressure from tribe leaders, not to go ahead until big army. d)By obeying God even when he didn’t understand the reason for the request &had doubts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertprice Posted January 19, 2013 Report Share Posted January 19, 2013 God deemed the army too big so that if a victory over the foe be won, the Israelites would take the credit for it and forget all about God's promise of deliverance. Yes the smaller army would have been essential to prove to the lesser in faith that God had indeed been the Author of the victory, as He had promised. If Gideon had NOT obeyed on this point, he too would have been liable to put trust in the strength of the army alone. And also, he would have questioned previous situations of the fleece and tried to rationalise them, as we all do, as coincidence or some such cop-out. He was able to do this sifting of the troops. because by now ha had an assurance in what God was determining for him and for all of Israel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertprice Posted January 22, 2013 Report Share Posted January 22, 2013 God wanted to show the Israelites that a victory over the larger enemy had to be attributable to Himself alone as a means of restoring the faith to the nation, who had of course compromised their beliefs in recent times and no longer had that real faith in God their Deliverer and their sovereign Lord. Hence, in reducing of Gideon's army to a tiny band, the routing of the enemy, far greater in number, had to be God's doing which would be very apparent to the Israelites. Gideon may have felt that God's requirement in this matter was inadvisable and unsound. Remember, he had only just found the living God and although great signs and wonders were performed, he would no doubt have had that stomach-churning feeling, as we all have had, when asked to deplete his army that may have meant certain ruin, humanly speaking. I like to think that Gideon considered the possibility of defeat but was then strengthened by the Spirit by encouragement from his previous meetings with the Lord and then firmly settled upon God's plan trusting Him to bring about what appeared to be humanly iompossible. "With God, all things are possible" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DebLam3teach Posted September 5, 2014 Report Share Posted September 5, 2014 God's opinion was that Gideon's army was too large because they would take credit for the upcoming military victory against the Midianites. With a small army, God's deliverance would be obvious and God would get the glory. Gideon would be pressure by others to follow military common knowledge: a larger army brings a greater chance of victory. He also would feel pressure by not including certain tribes and clans. It would seem he was showing prejudice or favoritism. He obeyed God by following Deuteronomy 20:8 by allowing the faint-hearted to return home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haar Posted March 12, 2019 Report Share Posted March 12, 2019 Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Q. Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? A. So that the Israelites will not attribute their victory to their number Q. Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? A. To know that victory was God’s enablement and thus the need to trust and obey such a God. Q. What kinds of pressures would Gideon be feeling not to obey God in shrinking his army? A. The thought of what the people would think, having been mobilized just to be ditched before the battle could tempt him not to obey God. Q. How was Gideon able to obey God fully in this? A. He obeyed God’s instruction exactly as directed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesus Follower Posted August 10, 2020 Report Share Posted August 10, 2020 On 1/24/2003 at 11:17 AM, Pastor Ralph said: Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? What kinds of pressures would Gideon be feeling not to obey God in shrinking his army? How was Gideon able to obey God fully in this? Because God knew Israel and Gideon might take credit for the victory if they won the victory with a larger army. They have history of forsaking God. Have spent 7 years under oppression because they stopped properly worshipping God. Pressure of feeling that he might lose respect and allegiance of his army. Also, everyone will know he didn't lead army to victory. Only God could accomplish what was going to happen. Faith. He believed what God told him and obeyed it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan Edwards Posted May 16, 2021 Report Share Posted May 16, 2021 God saw the subtle pride of the 32,000 men. God desired that they would be schooled in the school of humility. God knew that they wouldn't give Him all the glory; He knew that subtle pride in their hearts. Pride had to go. We go through unexplainable trials; God is quietly working in our hearts during the dark nite of the soul. Yes, Israel had to learn to have a holy awe of God. They were in the land of spiritual Egyptian bandage. The Prophet Ezekiel's preaching brings this out a great deal. God is Holy. He has revealed Himself and now wholehearted allegiance is called for. If Gideon didn't obey God, he would be absorbed in himself. Just like many today are like that. Prophet Ezekiel learned during his sojourn in Babylon---God alone is the source of his strength. His wife died and no Temple and exile in a land of idols. Babylon was unclean for the Jewish people. If only Ezra and Zerubabel were alive today! They could tell us volumes about trust in God. Things looked mighty bleak when they came to ruined Jerusalem. God bestowed graces on Gideon during the visit at the Midianite camp. God knew that Gideon still had some misgivings; Gideon was still fearful even after three signs of success. So God gave him another sign to bolster his faith. I am reminded of the Maccabees. Tremendous testimony how a small band of Jewish men defeated the Syrian armies. The Maccabeans could have compromised with idolatry; they stood their ground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irmela Posted April 3, 2023 Report Share Posted April 3, 2023 Q3. (Judges 7:1-3) Why did God feel Gideon's army was too large? "You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her...." (7.2) Why was shrinking the army's size to a tiny band essential in restoring Israel's faith and allegiance? If it was a small band then one can know for definite that it was not by man's strength. There would be no doubting the fact that it was God Who intervened and won the victory. What kinds of pressures would Gideon be feeling not to obey God in shrinking his army? He would put his army and country in jeopardy if they failed in conquering the enemy. They would be overrun. If they did win, then they could become proud and feel it was their doing. They would leave God out. How was Gideon able to obey God fully in this? His humility before God, helps him to be obedient, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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