luminosa Posted February 10, 2003 Report Share Posted February 10, 2003 Gideon slays Zebah and Zalmunna because they killed his brothers. Gideon is being just according to the commandment in the Old Testament that says if a man kills someone he is a murderer and deserves to die. We are prohibited from exacting revenge because we are to allow God to be our God of justice. We are to let Him deal with those who have wronged us. Whatever we suffer here on earth pales in comparison to the glory we inherit in Christ Jesus in the time to come. This could be very hard for us in the flesh; our first impulse is to get back at people, but we are to mortify the flesh and be Christ like! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marjorie Knight Posted February 10, 2003 Report Share Posted February 10, 2003 Gideon slayed Zwbah and Zalmunna beacuse they had destroyed his own family. In those times it may have been appopriate, but in todays time. Justice is mine saith the Lord. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donald Henhawke Posted February 13, 2003 Report Share Posted February 13, 2003 I believe Gideon slayed Zebha & Zalmunna clearly out of his anger and bloodlust. The Mosiac law was implemented for the very reason that it was to( prevent) blood fueds, or revenge killings. The idea of " a eye for an eye" continues to be taken out of context, in old testament times when someone harmed or killed someone retribution was to be of the same nature and not more than the value of the offence. If someone bruised the eye of another, killing of the other would not be just! . The swift exacting of justice was meant as a learning tool to not create a blood fued, when someone bruised the eye of another one would likely say" "well dont come crying to me,you shouldnt have done that,i taught you better," lesson learned. Christians are prohibited from acting out in revenge because God loves us and dosent wish for us to express beyond his boundries that are there for our protection.God takes the onus of justice from us and deals with it, because only God see,s what truly in the intention of hearts of man. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donald Henhawke Posted February 13, 2003 Report Share Posted February 13, 2003 In following up on my last enrty , the bible dosent say "How Gideon felt" after he slayed Zebha & Zalmunna my gut instincts tell me if he felt remorseful it could of been seen as justice, he he revelled in it and wished for more it could be seen as an evil bloodlust which is never really "just" Sometimes i wish the bible would have described more about the motives and intentions of peoples thoughts and feelings in the Old Testament. just a thought! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Dickinson Posted February 19, 2003 Report Share Posted February 19, 2003 #4 Q5. Why does Gideon slay Zebah and Zalmunna? As Zeba and Zalmunna had admitted to killing Gideon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linda biloni Posted February 20, 2003 Report Share Posted February 20, 2003 Because they had killed his brothers, Gideon was the avenger and he was to put the murderers to death. He was fulfilling his obligation. We are to leave room for God's wrath and have faith that he will be the avenger. We are to overcome evil with good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leo Posted February 24, 2003 Report Share Posted February 24, 2003 Gideon liven in a time when a person can exact vengeance on people who killed some of his family members by taking their own lives. And this is exactly what Gideon did. But nowadays, the Lord forbids us from taking vengeance on people because the Lord will exact vengeance and justice for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debs4jc Posted February 25, 2003 Report Share Posted February 25, 2003 Why does Gideon slay Zebah and Zalmunna? Is he unjust or fulfilling his just obligation? (Numbers 35:16) Why does Romans 12:19 prohibit Christians from taking vengeance? (8:18-21) Gideon slew Zebah and Zalmunna in part as a vengeful act for killing his brothers. But also they were enemy Kings of the Midianites and so needed to be killed, just as Oreb and Zeeb were killed earlier by the Ephraimites. Gideon makes their deaths a bit more personal. Gideon is exacting vengance for what they did to his family...but since these are Midianites I don't think he was killing them as an act of justice under the OT Law. Only Israel (and those who chose to follow Israel's God) were under that law. The Midianites obviously weren't. It was a part of the war against Midian, although here we see how it was a personal act of vengeance as well for Gideon. So I think Gideon was justified, especially if Midian was one of the Canaanite nations that God told them to "utterly destroy" when they came into the promised land. (Does anyone know if they were?) At this point they were certainly an enemy of Israel and God had given Gideon a mandate to go out into battle against them. Christians taking vengeance into their own hands is a different matter. We have not been given a charge to destroy the wicked nations, people around us but rather to leave that up to the Lord (and to the government, which God has appointed to "wield the sword" of justice). The point is: God hates wickedness! Those who choose wickedness and do not repent will utimately choose destruction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher Smith Posted March 2, 2003 Report Share Posted March 2, 2003 Gideon slays Zebah and Zalmunna because this is his responsibility. God has charged him with removing the thorn of the Midianites from Israel, and this is the necessary final step in defeating the Midianites. Zebah and Zalmunna were the leaders of the Midianites, and therefore they bear the full responsibility for the sins of the Midianites. If they had not led the Midianites to attack the Israelites, there would not have been a war. Unfortunately, in modern warfare, those with the most blood on their hands are those who suffer the least punishment (Marcos, Noriega, Amin, Mobutu, Hussein). In our era, the example of Ceaucescu is a sobering contrast. In this case, the believers of Rumania, through prayer and demonstrations, toppled the Communist regime of their cruel dictator. But on Christmas Day, some of that nation hanged the filthy man and his wife (who was even more bloodthirsty). While it made everyone feel so much better, it removed from the earth two people who incarnated evil because their minds were blinded to the truth. While it would have offended our sense of justice, their conversion and redemption by Christ would have brought dramatic glory to God. In fact, from God's perspective, our sense of justice stems from our pride. It is true that we are called to love righteousness and hate iniquity, but when we decide that some should be firmly punished while we are forgiven, we're showing our pride. [embarrassed] Romans prohibits Christians from taking vengeance because we live under the New Covenant. Christ has paid for our sins with His own blood, showing that we are as guilty of offense against God as our flesh-and-blood enemies are. Under this new revelation of truth, we understand that all people are enslaved in their thoughts by the deceptions of the enemy of mankind. Our "enemies" will not commit offense against us once they are freed of the enemy's deceptions, so we leave revenge to God. He is the better Judge, like a teacher in a nursery school. We are mere toddlers bearing the offenses of other toddlers; He can see the truth and knows when to punish a toddler (and on a given day, it may be we who need the punishment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joanie Posted April 6, 2003 Report Share Posted April 6, 2003 Gideon Lesson 4 Question 5 Why does Gideon slay Zebah and Zalmunna? Is he unjust or fulfilling his just obligation? (Numbers 35:16) Why does Romans 12:19 prohibit Christians from taking vengeance? (8:18-21) According to the standard of the time, Gideon has a family obligation to exact vengeance for his brothers' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joanie Posted April 6, 2003 Report Share Posted April 6, 2003 Gideon Lesson 4 Question 5 Why does Gideon slay Zebah and Zalmunna? Is he unjust or fulfilling his just obligation? (Numbers 35:16) Why does Romans 12:19 prohibit Christians from taking vengeance? (8:18-21) According to the standard of the time, Gideon has a family obligation to exact vengeance for his brothers' unjust deaths. Numbers 35:19 'The avenger of blood himself shall put the murderer to death; when he meets him, he shll put him to death.' We cannot fault him for this, though we can tremble at the anger that motivates this primitive justice. Just as we need to tremble at our own fate without the Sacrificial death on the Cross for our sins. We are saved from death only because when Our Heavenly Father looks upon us He sees The Holiness of His Son. Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins. Wonders of Wonders. Romans 12:19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves. Leave that to God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' says the Lord. Therefore, if your enemy hungers, feed him; If he thirsts, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.' In other words, he will feel ashamed of himself for what he has done to you. So not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis Hatlestad Posted April 11, 2003 Report Share Posted April 11, 2003 Gideon was avenging the deaths of his brothers. He was justified in doing so. Vengence is the Lord's and we are not to get even. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luray mcclung Posted April 18, 2003 Report Share Posted April 18, 2003 Gideon slays Zebah and Zalmunna because they murdered his brothers,"each one of the bearing of a pricne" like Gideon himself. By the word of God, Gideon fulfilled his just obligation. Today, Christians must refrain from acts of vengenance as vengenance is the Lord's, not ours. lmc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liza Posted May 10, 2003 Report Share Posted May 10, 2003 Gideon was avenging his brothers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walt Woodbridge Posted May 18, 2003 Report Share Posted May 18, 2003 Why does Gideon slay Zebah and Zalmunna? Is he unjust or fulfilling his just obligation? (Numbers 35:16) Why does Romans 12:19 prohibit Christians from taking vengeance? To fulfil an obligation to exact retribution for the death of his two brothers, by the hands of the two kings of Midian, according to the custom of the day. According to the law, he was justified in so doing. "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth." Under the new covenant of grace, we are not to respond in like kind, but be confident that God, and God alone will bring about recompence to those who offend us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjcollin Posted June 10, 2003 Report Share Posted June 10, 2003 Q5. Why does Gideon slay Zebah and Zalmunna? Is he unjust or fulfilling his just obligation? (Numbers 35:16) Why does Romans 12:19 prohibit Christians from taking vengeance? (8:18-21) See exposition Gideon slays Zebah and Zalmunna because they killed his brothers. In one sense Gideon is just in that God had given the whole Midianite camp in to his hand and here were the two Midianite kings finally in Gideon's hand. Also, these two kings had also killed his brothers which was a crime deserving of death. Gideon first orders his oldest son Jether to slay Zebah and Zalmunna, but he can't do it. The two Midianite kings then say 'As is the man, so is his strength.' Which means that as men we are only as strong as what we will do ourselves. Gideon then carries out the killing of Zebah and Zalmunna. In Romans 12:19, Christians are prohibited from taking vengeance because vengeance belongs solely to the Lord and it is not a loving attitude as Christ would have us portrait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Posted June 23, 2003 Report Share Posted June 23, 2003 Q5. Why does Gideon slay Zebah and Zalmunna? Is he unjust or fulfilling his just obligation? (Numbers 35:16) Why does Romans 12:19 prohibit Christians from taking vengeance? (8:18-21) Gideon slew Zebah and Zalmunna according to his own statement because they had killed his brethren. There are many instances where God commands Israel to wipe out complete cities, men, women and children alike. There is no evidence of a specific command to Gideon on this matter, but within Israel allowing for the Cities of Refuge, family members were entitled to take vengeance on those who killed members of their families.. Numbers 35:16 surely is a command referring to those within Israel and not relevant to enemies from outside Israel. Romans 12:19 prohibits Christians from taking vengeance because we are not under the the Old Testament law but under the regime of Christ and of grace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitty Posted January 23, 2004 Report Share Posted January 23, 2004 Gideon slays Zebah and Zalmunna because they had killed brothers of Gideon. Gideon had a vengenance on these two kings. Gideon is very just when he takes the lives of these two men. Gideon is fulfilling the oblication to the brothers who had died. As christians we aren't suppose to take revenge. But to leave the situation up to God and He will take care of the situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heatherdills Posted January 30, 2004 Report Share Posted January 30, 2004 Gideon slays Zebah and Zalmunna because they killed his brothers. He is just in fulfilling his obligation. Romans 12:19 prohibits Chirstians from taking vengeance because we are to leave room for God to enact His wrath. He will give them just punishment in ways we never could and it keeps us away from our own sin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelOnLine Posted May 21, 2004 Report Share Posted May 21, 2004 Q5. Why does Gideon slay Zebah and Zalmunna? Because they had killed his brothers. Is he unjust or fulfilling his just obligation? (Numbers 35:16) In Gideon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mairead Posted June 18, 2004 Report Share Posted June 18, 2004 Gideon kills Zebah and Zalmunna because they killed his brothers prior to this. He is fulfilling his obligation of the times when murderers were put to death. However this no longer applies as God says we do not take revenge. It is Gods to take revenge on our behalf and dispense judgement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helen Posted June 25, 2004 Report Share Posted June 25, 2004 Gideon had the obligation to kill Zebah and Zalmunna on the grounds of their activities as kings of Midian and the stealing of Israeli crops. Also they had killed Israeli men. Because the Israelis they killed included his brothers, Gideon was obliged to kill them personally (although he could give the task to his family member and son). If they had not killed his brothers he would not have killed them himself. However the Israeli army would have done it in that case I think. They may have been saved some face by not being killed by Gideon himself. Christians are freed from the horror of having to kill someone in revenge because God has noted the misdeed and will see to it. If the enemy has done something against the law of the land, which is put in place by God, that may be one of His instruments for dealing with him. However, the Bible says lots about "He who digs a pit for someone else will fall into it themselves" and "He who lives by the sword dies by the sword". This spiritual law is as effective as is the law of gravity. Father has taken that load off our shoulders - praise His Name. We are free to pray for our enemies and do good to those who curse us! Hallelujiah! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maria gonzalez Posted July 16, 2004 Report Share Posted July 16, 2004 It was not unjust to kill the two men that Gideon killed because he had an obligation. Today we need to let God take care of vengeance himself. I try to remember Christ's dead on the cross, he died forgiving unjust people, he even forgave the people who put him to death, he sees all of our weakness and yet gives opportunities for repentance. There is a time for judgment, and when that time arrives, it is Gode's time for vengeance and not ours. I believe that unjust people bring to themselves many consequences and think they will never face those consequences. My concern is to know I need to walk in love and forgiveness and that God will take care of my enemies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randi Posted February 3, 2005 Report Share Posted February 3, 2005 Gideon killed Zebah and Zalmunna because they had killed his brothers. Gideon was fulfilling his obligation according to standards than. Because in Romans 12:19 God prohibits Christians from taking vengeance. God says He will repay those who deserve it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandieh Posted May 14, 2005 Report Share Posted May 14, 2005 Gideon killed these two kings, because they had killed his brothers, and also to finish off his enemies. At that point in time vengance was to be repaid. Since the coming of Christ, things have changed and everyone is deserving of mercy, should they ask God for it. And vengence belongs to Him and Him alone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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