Atlas Biblica

    person · also Jerubbaal · Jerubbesheth

    Gideon

    גִּדְעוֹןΓεδεών

    Gideon, also called Jerubbaal or Jerubbesheth, was a judge of Israel who, with God's help, defeated the Midianites and delivered Israel from oppression.

    verses
    50
    first named
    Judges 6:11
    last named
    Hebrews 11:32
    period
    before Israel's Monarchy
    role
    Judge

    Description

    Who was Gideon?

    In the words of STEPBible TIPNR:

    Gideon, also known as Jerubbaal or Jerubbesheth, was a judge of Israel during the period of the judges, as recorded in the book of Judges, chapters 6-8. He is also mentioned in Heb.11.32 as an example of faith. Gideon was the son of Joash, from the clan of Abiezer in the tribe of Manasseh (Jdg.6.11, 15). During a time when Israel was oppressed by the Midianites, God called Gideon to deliver His people (Jdg.6.14). Gideon initially doubted his ability to save Israel, but God reassured him through various signs, including a fleece wet with dew (Jdg.6.36-40). Gideon destroyed the altar of Baal and the Asherah pole, earning him the name Jerubbaal, which means "let Baal contend against him" (Jdg.6.25-32).

    With a reduced army of 300 men, chosen by God, Gideon defeated the Midianites through a surprise attack, using trumpets, empty jars, and torches (Jdg.7.1-25). He pursued the Midianite kings, Zebah and Zalmunna, and captured them (Jdg.8.4-21). After the victory, the Israelites asked Gideon to rule over them, but he refused, stating that only God should rule over Israel (Jdg.8.22-23). However, Gideon made an ephod from the gold taken from the Midianites, which became a snare to him and his family (Jdg.8.24-27).

    Gideon had seventy sons and many wives, including a concubine from Shechem who bore him a son named Abimelech (Jdg.8.29-31). After Gideon's death, Abimelech killed his seventy brothers and became king of Shechem, but his rule was short-lived and ended in his death (Judges 9). Gideon is remembered as a deliverer of Israel, and his story is referenced in 1Sa.12.11 and 2Sa.11.21. The name Jerubbesheth (2Sa.11.21) is a variation of Jerubbaal, with "besheth" (meaning "shame") replacing "baal" to avoid using the name of the pagan god.

    Relations

    Direct connections

    Every entity the graph places in a stated relation with this one, grouped by the kind of link. Each relation is authored once and its inverse derived, so both ends always agree. Rows marked “registry” come from the identity spine rather than from a verse, and a row marked “which bearer is the source’s decision” is one where the name could have meant more than one person. The last group is not a relation at all — it counts the events two entities stand in together.

    How the graph connects Gideon10 of 25 entities the graph connects to Gideon, in 2 groups: kinship 1, events 9. Kinship, company and ground are stated relations; events counts the acts two entities stand in together and is not a relation. Each mark is sized by how many verses name that entity and labelled with the link and the count, so the grouping and the size are both readable without colour. Distance from the centre carries nothing.AbimelechFather of · 2 events · 37 versesKinshipIsrael7 events · 2,578 versesLORD7 events · 1,004 versesEphraim2 events · 159 versesSamuel2 events · 121 versesMidian6 events · 59 versesJephthah2 events · 26 versesLeaders Shechem4 events · 17 versesBarak2 events · 14 versesCamp Of Midian4 events · 11 versesEventsGideon

    The 10 best-attested of 25 are drawn. All 25 are listed below.

    Associated with

    Child of

    Father of

    Sibling of

    Took part in

    Stands in the same events as

    and 27 more, ordered by how many events they share.

    Places

    Where this happens

    The places the claims about this person reach, drawn where the gazetteer locates them. A point is where a row puts them and never where tradition does; no line joins two points, because the rows state where and not in what order.

    Where the story of Gideon happensAll 5 places the claims about Gideon reach, on a map of the world the text moves through, framed to them: Ophrah, Harod, Heres, Jordan, Peniel. Each dot is a coordinate from the gazetteer, sized by how many rows put Gideon there. The coastline is a modern one, simplified; no border, road or settlement of any period is drawn, and no line joins two points, because the rows state where and not in what order.OphrahHarodHeresJordan
    before Israel's MonarchyAll 5 places the claims about Gideon reach

    Read it

    Where to read it

    Every verse of the text carried here that names this entity — 50, across 4 books. The name is written 55 times in them.

    1. Judges47 verses

      6:116:136:196:226:246:276:296:326:346:366:397:17:27:47:57:77:137:147:157:187:197:207:247:258:48:78:118:138:218:228:238:248:278:288:298:308:328:338:359:19:29:59:169:199:249:289:57

    2. 1 Samuel1 verse

      12:11

    3. 2 Samuel1 verse

      11:21

    4. Hebrews1 verse

      11:32

    Onward

    Where this page goes

    Not the direct relations above — these are one hop further out, ranked so that a rare shared connection outweighs a common one. Descriptions by STEPBible TIPNR.

    via Gideon’s saving of Israel and Enemies and Israel’s earring, and 1 moreIsraelPatriarch, son of Isaac, father of twelve tribesvia Delivering of Midian and Camp Of Midian and Gideon’s going downCamp Of MidianCamp Of Midian is a place attested across 11 verses, connecting 2 pageable entities.via Gideon’s killing of Zebah and Zalmunna and Gideon and Gideons Three Hundred Men’s pursuit of Zebah and ZalmunnaZalmunnaMidianite king defeated by Gideonvia Gideon’s killing of Zebah and Zalmunna and Gideon and Gideons Three Hundred Men’s pursuit of Zebah and ZalmunnaZebahMidianite king defeated by Gideonvia Abimelech and Leaders Shechem’s murder of Sons Jerubbaal, One Stone, and Gideon and AbimelechLeaders ShechemLeaders Shechem is a group attested across 17 verses, connecting 2 pageable entities.via Men Killed At TaborMenMen is a concept gathering 154 labelled instances in the text.via Enemies and Israel’s earringEarringEarring is a concept gathering 5 labelled instances in the text.via Rule Over IsraelRuleRule is a concept gathering 22 labelled instances in the text.via Gideon’s saving of IsraelSavingSaving is a concept gathering 53 labelled instances in the text.

    Where they appear

    Chapter by chapter

    Atlas's reading of each chapter this person appears in, in canonical order. One line per chapter, and each leads to the whole of it.

    Sources

    What this rests on