And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord: and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years. And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds. (Judges 6:1, 2 KJV)

The people of never learn.

Eventually, the Lord feels bad for them, and has Gideon lead them to victory. Gideon, of course, doesn’t trust Him — why should he? So the Lord does some magic tricks, and proves that He has the power. Because only He can make it so that a fleece stays dry in the morning dew.

This is just ridiculous. Does the Lord also ask him to pick a card?

So after Gideon gathers ten thousand men to fight, the Lord tells him he won’t need nearly as much. But once the fighting starts, Gideon calls out the rest of Israel to fight. Wasn’t that defying the Lord?

Next: Judges 8-12.