Commentary - Judges 6:28-32

Bird's-eye view

In Judges 6:28-32, we see the immediate aftermath of Gideon's obedience to God's command. Having been called to deliver Israel from the Midianites, his very first assignment was not on a foreign battlefield, but right in his own backyard. He was to tear down the altar of Baal that belonged to his own father, Joash. This passage shows us that reformation, true reformation, begins with the worship of God. Before Gideon could confront the external enemies of Israel, he had to confront the internal idolatry that had invited those enemies in the first place. The reaction of the townspeople, their demand for Gideon's death, reveals just how deeply the cancer of Baal worship had metastasized in Israel. But the surprising defense of Gideon by his father Joash shows the power of decisive, godly action to turn the tide. This event is pivotal; it's where Gideon receives his new name, Jerubbaal, "Let Baal contend," which becomes his public identity as God's chosen deliverer.

This is a story about the collision of two religions. It's not about a secular state and a religious faction. It's about the worship of Yahweh versus the worship of Baal. The men of the city are not religiously neutral; they are zealous for their god. Their demand for Gideon's execution is a religious demand. And Joash's clever response is a theological argument. He challenges the very basis of their idolatry: if Baal is a god, he should be able to fight his own battles. This passage sets the stage for the rest of the Gideon narrative by establishing the central conflict: Israel's deliverance depends entirely on their return to the one true God, and that return requires a radical, uncompromising rejection of all false gods.

Outline

Context In Judges

The book of Judges describes a cyclical pattern in Israel's history: apostasy, oppression, crying out to God, and deliverance through a judge. Gideon's story fits squarely within this pattern. Israel has done evil in the sight of the Lord, specifically by embracing the worship of Baal, and as a result, God has given them into the hand of Midian for seven years. The oppression is severe. When Gideon is called, he is hiding from the Midianites, threshing wheat in a winepress. The command to tear down the altar of Baal is therefore the first step in breaking this cycle. It is a direct assault on the root cause of their misery. You cannot fight the Midianites while you are still allied with the gods that brought the Midianites upon you. This act of destroying the local shrine is not a private act of piety; it is a public declaration of war against the spiritual forces that hold Israel captive. It is the necessary prerequisite for any military victory that will follow.

Verse-by-Verse Commentary

v. 28 Then the men of the city arose early in the morning, and behold, the altar of Baal was torn down, and the Asherah which was beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar which had been built.

The reformation happened overnight, while the town slept. Gideon, in obedience to God's command (v. 25-27), acted under the cover of darkness because he feared his father's household and the men of the town. This was not cowardice, but prudence. God had given him a task, and he used wisdom to accomplish it. When the men of the city get up, probably to go about their morning devotions to Baal, they are met with a scene of utter devastation. Their sacred space has been violated. The altar is not just damaged; it is torn down. The Asherah pole, a wooden symbol of the female consort of Baal, is cut down. This was a comprehensive desecration. And to add insult to injury, a new altar has been built, and a sacrifice has been offered on it to an unseen, unnamed (to them) God, using the wood from their sacred pole as fuel. This is a statement. It is a declaration that Yahweh consumes the gods of the Canaanites. He uses their religious paraphernalia for kindling.

v. 29 And they said to one another, “Who did this thing?” And when they searched about and inquired, they said, “Gideon the son of Joash did this thing.”

The immediate reaction is not repentance, but rage. Their first question is forensic: "Who did this?" They launch an investigation. This shows how central this idolatrous worship was to the life of the town. This was not some forgotten relic in the woods; this was the center of their civic and religious identity. It didn't take them long to find the culprit. In a small town, secrets are hard to keep, and Gideon had used ten of his servants (v. 27). Word gets around. The finger points directly at "Gideon the son of Joash." Notice the specificity. He is identified by his paternity, which will become crucial in the next verse, as the townspeople go to his father to demand justice.

v. 30 Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has torn down the altar of Baal, and indeed, he has cut down the Asherah which was beside it.”

The verdict is in, and the sentence is death. There is no trial, no due process. In their eyes, Gideon's crime is self-evident and worthy of capital punishment. This is the cry of a lynch mob. And what is his crime? Sacrilege. He has committed a capital offense against Baal. This is a remarkable picture of covenantal inversion. The law of God required that idolaters be put to death (Deut. 13:6-11). But here, in Israel, the people are so far gone that they demand the death of the man who has obeyed God's law, in the name of a false god. They are demanding that Joash surrender his own son to be executed for upholding the first and second commandments. This is what happens when a nation abandons the true God; they don't become religiously neutral, they become zealous for false gods and hostile to the true one.

v. 31 But Joash said to all who stood against him, “Will you contend for Baal, or will you save him? Whoever will contend for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself, because someone has torn down his altar.”

Here the story takes a surprising turn. Joash, whose altar it was, does not capitulate. He stands with his son against the mob. His response is brilliant, a masterful piece of rhetoric that turns the tables on the accusers. He asks them, "Will you contend for Baal?" The verb contend is a legal term. He is asking, "Are you going to be Baal's legal advocates? Are you going to plead his case?" Then he raises the stakes: anyone who pleads for Baal will be put to death by morning. He establishes a new law on the spot, and it is the true law of God. He is reasserting the covenantal standard. Then comes the theological punchline: "If he is a god, let him contend for himself." This is the ultimate test of deity. A true God doesn't need a lynch mob to defend his honor. A true God can take care of himself. Joash exposes the impotence of their idol. Baal can't even protect his own altar, so how can he protect them? This argument is unanswerable. It silences the mob and saves Gideon's life.

v. 32 Therefore on that day he named him Jerubbaal, that is to say, “Let Baal contend against him,” because he had torn down his altar.

Joash's words are memorialized in a new name for his son. Gideon is now Jerubbaal. A name in the ancient world was not just a label; it was an identity, a destiny. This name is a standing challenge, a perpetual taunt to the false god. Every time someone says Gideon's new name, they are repeating the challenge: "Let Baal contend." It is a public declaration that the God of Israel is at war with the idols of the land, and Gideon is His champion. The name itself is a sermon. It proclaims the weakness of idols and the folly of their worshipers. Gideon's first act of obedience has resulted in a new identity, one that defines his mission as the man who fights against Baal.

Application

First, we must see that true revival and reformation always begin with worship. Before we can address the political, social, or cultural problems around us, we must first tear down the idols in our own lives, our own homes, and our own churches. We are often tempted to start with the Midianites, the external threats, but God starts with the altar of Baal. What are the modern altars of Baal? They are anything we look to for security, identity, or deliverance apart from the living God. They can be wealth, power, pleasure, political ideologies, or even our own traditions. Like Gideon, we are called to take a sledgehammer to them, to show them no reverence. This is not a call for vandalism, but for a radical and uncompromising allegiance to the first commandment: "You shall have no other gods before me."

Second, expect opposition. When you stand for the truth and challenge the idols of the age, the idolaters will not thank you for it. They will call for your head. The men of Ophrah were not atheists; they were deeply religious, and their religion demanded Gideon's death. We should not be surprised when our secular, pagan culture reacts with hostility to the claims of Christ. When we say that Jesus is Lord, we are implicitly saying that Caesar, or the state, or the self, is not. This is a declaration of war, and we should be prepared for a fight. But we should also be prepared for God to raise up unexpected allies, like Joash, who find their courage in the moment of crisis.

Finally, we must learn to mock the idols. Joash's defense of Gideon was essentially theological mockery. "If Baal is a god, let him fight his own battles." This is the same spirit we see in Elijah on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:27) and in Isaiah's magnificent satire of idol-making (Isaiah 44:9-20). The false gods of our age, materialism, secular humanism, sexual autonomy, are just as powerless and ridiculous as Baal was. They cannot save. They cannot answer. They cannot contend. Our confidence is not in our own strength, but in the fact that our God is the living God. He is the one who contended for us at the cross, defeating sin and death. Therefore, we can stand with the courage of Gideon and the wisdom of Joash, knowing that the battle belongs to the Lord. Let Baal contend; he has already lost.