And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.
The promise belongs to the repeated cycle of backsliding followed by chastisement, then confession and deliverance, in which God did not utterly forsake Israel but raised up faithful and valiant men to put down idolatry and free them from their enemies. In this instance the helper raised up after the people confessed their sins was Gideon, appointed to deliver Israel from Midianite oppression.
God chose him for that deliverance while he was occupied with humble work threshing wheat on the threshing floor, taking him from lowly duties to become His instrument for Israel's rescue. That taking from the threshing floor shows that lowly duties can prepare people for important service.
The one who spoke the promise was the Son of God, who personally encouraged and directed Gideon. The word assured him that God would be with him and enable him to strike down the Midianites decisively as if they were a single man, so that victory over the oppressors would come through God's presence. It answered his doubt about his fitness amid Israel's discouragement and confirmed his calling to deliver Israel. The same promise of divine presence underlay his use as God's instrument to deliver Israel from Midian.
The promise belongs to the repeated cycle of backsliding followed by chastisement, then confession and deliverance, in which God did not utterly forsake Israel but raised up faithful and valiant men to put down idolatry and free them from their enemies. In this instance the helper raised up after the people confessed their sins was Gideon, appointed to deliver Israel from Midianite oppression.
God chose him for that deliverance while he was occupied with humble work threshing wheat on the threshing floor, taking him from lowly duties to become His instrument for Israel's rescue. That taking from the threshing floor shows that lowly duties can prepare people for important service.
The one who spoke the promise was the Son of God, who personally encouraged and directed Gideon. The word assured him that God would be with him and enable him to strike down the Midianites decisively as if they were a single man, so that victory over the oppressors would come through God's presence. It answered his doubt about his fitness amid Israel's discouragement and confirmed his calling to deliver Israel. The same promise of divine presence underlay his use as God's instrument to deliver Israel from Midian.