Judges 6:23

²²When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the LORD, he said, “Oh no, Lord GOD! I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face!”²³But the LORD said to him, “Peace be with you. Do not be afraid, for you will not die.”

Sermons

What Happened?

K.P. Yohannan

Summary

In Judges 6:23, the angel of the Lord reassures Gideon of God's presence and peace by instructing him to not be afraid. This encounter demonstrates God's faithfulness and power in equipping Gideon for the task ahead. It serves as a reminder that God often calls and empowers ordinary individuals to accomplish extraordinary things for His kingdom. Gideon's response of building an altar to the Lord signifies his gratitude and commitment to follow God's guidance in the face of uncertainty and fear. Overall, this verse showcases God's comforting presence and encouragement in times of doubt and insecurity.

Commentary

John Gill

John Gill Bible Commentary

Then Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord,.... On the top of the rock where he had laid his provisions, and which had been consumed by fire issuing out of it, as a token of divine acceptance, and as an assurance of his destroying the Midianites as easily and quickly as the fire had consumed them, and therefore had great encouragement to erect an altar here for God: and called it Jehovahshalom; the Lord is peace, the author and giver of peace, temporal, spiritual, and eternal; so Jarchi,"the Lord is our peace,''a fit name for the angel that appeared to him, who was no other than the man of peace; who is our peace, the author of peace between God and man. This name he gave the altar, with respect to the words of comfort said to him in his fright: peace be to thee; and by way of prophecy, that peace would be wrought for Israel by the Lord, and prosperity given them; or by way of prayer, the Lord grant or send peace: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites; that is, the altar Gideon built remained to the times of Samuel, the writer of this book, and was then to be seen in the city of Ophrah, which belonged to the family of the Abiezrites, who were of the tribe of Manasseh.