Judges 8:31-35

Judges 8:30

And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his body begotten: for he had many wives.

Gideon had sired seventy sons and this was because he had many wives.  The multiplying of wives was forbidden under the law of God.  Deuteronomy 17:17 (KJV) Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.  He must have had many wives because the word “many” carries with it the meaning of “abundant.”

Judges 8:31

And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, whose name he called Abimelech.

Gideon had a concubine in Shechem which was like a half-wife and she had a son named “Abimelech” by Gideon.  The name “Abimelech” means “father of the king or my father a king.”  This concubine belonged to a leading Canaanite family.

Judges 8:32

And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abi-ezrites.

Gideon had now died in a good old age which meant he lived out the forty years in peace and was able to enjoy his sizeable family and probably amassed much wealth in the meantime.  As with many ancient families, they had a family tomb and Gideon was buried in the family tomb.  The family tomb was located in Ophrah which is also identified as Affuleh which was about 20 miles southwest (32 km) of the Sea of Galilee. The Abi-ezrites were of the tribe of Manasseh which is where Gideon lived.

Judges 8:33

And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god.

It did not take Israel long to once again sink into idolatry.  Once Gideon had died the Israelites had once again gone after Baalim, forsaking the true God who delivered them forty years before.  This must be the case of another generation arising without any real training against idolatry from their parents.  Gideon was also partly to blame because his example with the golden ephod and how it became a snare to him and his family set the stage early for the jump into idolatry again.  Baal-berith means “idol of the covenant.”  There is no specific description of this god although a temple was built to him at Shechem.  Judges 9:4 (KJV)   And they gave him threescore and ten pieces of silver out of the house of Baal-berith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light persons, which followed him.  Judges 9:46 (KJV)   And when all the men of the tower of Shechem heard that, they entered into an hold of the house of the god Berith.  The worship was supposed to have been an imitation of the worship of Jehovah which would make it an adulterated worship.

Judges 8:34

And the children of Israel remembered not the LORD their God, who had delivered them out of the hands of all their enemies on every side:

Once again the children of Israel had forgotten the Lord who had delivered them from all their enemies.  They literally blotted Him out of their minds as they chose to go their own way in pursuing the worship of Baal.  It was sad that they continually forgot God who delivered them yet they ran after the very thing that continually got them into trouble and eventually captured or attacked by their enemies.  You would think that after suffering so much because of idol worship, they would learn that it was idol worship that continually got them into trouble. 

Judges 8:35

Neither shewed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely, Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had shewed unto Israel.