And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours
and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?”
Judges 6:14
In his frustration Gideon has made some fairly serious allegations against God. We should be thankful that the Lord is longsuffering and puts up with our childish outbursts when we forget who He is. The Angel of the Lord does not directly respond to Gideon’s allegations. The truth is the truth whether it is believed or not. But the Angel of the Lord knows that Gideon cares about Israel. He asks why but he is not apathetic or fatalistic. “He continues in his work despite the frustration he feels with the situation. There is still faith in his heart albeit the size of a mustard seed. For God that is more than enough.
And the Lord turned to him and said The word turned may mean that the Angel of the Lord was leaving after His first statement and now stops after hearing Gideon’s response. It probably indicates the angel of the Lord heard Gideon’s foolish tirade against God and looks him in the eye as the Lord did Peter after his third denial of Him. Rest assured that when a believer makes childish and false claims against their God, He will face us and confront us to challenge us as whether we truly believe what we said or not.
Go in this might of yours Gideon complained that he saw no evidence that God was going to deliver Israel from Midianite oppression. The angel of the Lord addresses that complaint by giving Gideon a command. Go! (Lead, march, pursue). The Angel of the Lord tells Gideon to go in his own strength and he will deliver Israel. In others words the Angel of the Lord tells Gideon that his complaint that God has not delivered His people is being answered that day. Gideon is God’s answer. Note He says go in your strength. The Angel of the Lord wants Gideon to recognize how much he needs God in this task.
You We do not see this clearly in the English language but the Angel of the Lord makes a significant point that just now begins to sink in to
Gideon’s thoughts. Beginning with the Lord’s first statement to Gideon in verse 12 He uses the personal pronoun “you, yours or thee ” six times. Each time the pronoun is used it is singular. The Lord is speaking of Gideon specifically not the Israelites collectively. Gideon is God’s answer to the dilemma he sees. It is not uncommon that when God allows one of His children to clearly see a need or an issue that He calls that child to address the issue.
Save Israel We have to place ourselves in Gideon’s sandals to realize the shock this phrase caused him. Gideon is fearful. He still works but he does it alone and hidden in a winepress so he does not draw attention to himself. Now God tells him he is the one who God has chosen to deliver Israel. As Gideon looks at the situation he realizes he does not meet one single qualification to be able to do what God has stated.(Moses made the same argument to God when God called him to deliver Israel.)
Do not I send you? Believing in God is not a spectator sport. Throughout scripture we read the word of God to His servants. ”Arise and go!” “Follow me!” Here Gideon hears words that remind us of the Lord’s last words to His disciples before His ascension into heaven. “Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.” This is not an invitation, an offer, a
suggestion – it is a command. Gideon has been commissioned to perform a task for God. Obedience is not optional.
What can we learn? We can feel the anxiety in Gideon’s heart as he hears these words for we have experienced the same anxiety when God has laid a task on our hearts. It is easy to complain and find fault with what is happening. It is yet another matter when God tells us we are His answer to that issue – “go and do something about it.” We think to the words of the Lord, “Go in this might of yours” and we scream like Moses and Gideon “we are not capable”.
Yet the Lord would tell us, like Gideon, “ I am not looking for talent, just willingness. I picked you, Obey and go!”