Throughout the Book of Proverbs, Solomon contrasts actions that are right and those that are wrong. Actions that are right are portrayed as wise: actions that are wrong are portrayed as foolish.

In ancient societies people tended to defer to the decisions of the elders. All things being equal, gray hair – that is, old age – is evidence of wisdom, goodness and virtue. There are biblical examples of people for whom that was so, but just like today, it was not always true.

Have you ever been in the place where Gideon was where everything looks bleak? The Israelites were sorely oppressed. When Gideon experiences a miraculous event, he is initially deeply cynical. There are many cynical people in our society who will not believe any promises of something good happening and most of us are far from being oppressed to the point of starvation. How would you respond if someone you did not know came and called you a “strong warrior”? Would you respond with a smart response?

The first thing that is necessary for Israel to have a restored relationship with God is for them to stop following other gods. God has been calling on the Israelites to do this but it has not made them repent. The Midianites have been oppressing the Israelites so it is natural that they think that Baal, the god of the Midianites, is stronger than God. God calls on Gideon to make things right by tearing down the area of worship to Baal and substituting an altar to God.

There is a story about a man working on a roof who slips and falls and cries out to God for help. When his pants catch on a nail, he says, “That’s okay God, I don’t need your help now.” The roofer did not recognize that God helped him in the situation but thought it was just luck. It is all too easy for us to call out to God, but when the answer comes, we don’t recognize that it is from God.

While the instructions to the soldiers must have sounded silly at the time, Gideon understood God’s bigger plan. Each of the 300 soldiers got to see God in action as the Midianites started fighting each other. That must have been quite the experience. But to have that experience, they needed to trust both God and Gideon. Good soldiers are well trained to follow their leaders without question – but these were not trained soldiers, they were simply men who drank water from the stream with their hands! God used their trust and faithfulness to defeat the enemy.

It must have been a temptation to Gideon when the people asked him to be their king. But Gideon faced that temptation and refused it. He rightly told the people that they could only follow God, not any person. It seems strange then that Gideon turns around and runs right into the arms of temptation! And one of the greatest temptations is bright, shiny objects. At the very moment when Gideon turns his back on the temptation of kingship, he asks for gold that he makes into an ephod. An ephod was an item of ceremonial clothing generally worn by priests.

“Fear makes you faithless, faith makes you fearless.” The statement, attributed to an anonymous source, appeared in my Facebook news feed, posted by a friend in a status update. But the words gave me pause, compelling me to stop my mindless scrolling. I read the words over again. Then again. I shut my laptop; this was a thought worth pondering for a while.