기드온의 밤 사사기 6장

사사기 6장 기드온 이야기 서막으로 이스라엘이 미디안에게 억압받던 시절의 상황과 하나님의 구원의 손길이 시작되는 장입니다. 절망-부름-확인-순종이라는 흐름에 따라 움직이는 구도입니다.

모세의 장인 미디안의 지배

1. The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian for seven years. 2 And the hand of Midian overpowered Israel, and because of Midian the people of Israel made for themselves the dens that are in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds. 3 For whenever the Israelites planted crops, the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. 4 They would encamp against them and devour the produce of the land, as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance in Israel and no sheep or ox or donkey. 5 For they would come up with their livestock and their tents; they would come like locusts in number- both they and their camels could not be counted- so that they laid waste the land as they came in. 6 And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to the Lord.

 

 

이스라엘 백성들이 나쁜 짓을 해대서 하나님이 미디안에게 7년 동안 권력을 쥐게 했다는 것 같은데, 그건 말이 그렇다는 것이고 그냥 미디안이 이스라엘을 지배한 거겠죠. 그런데 미디안은 모세의 장인 집안, 이드로의 족속이 아니었던 가요? 상당히 아이러니하고 복합적인 상황이네요. 

 

먼저 미디안은 아브라함과 그의 첩 그두라 사이에서 태어난 아들 중 하나입니다. 창세기 25장에 등장하는 내용입니다. 그러니 이스라엘과는 먼 사촌쯤 되는 관계에 속합니다. 그리고 모세가 살인을 저지르고 광야로 도망쳤을 때 미디안 제사장 이드로의 딸 십보라와 결혼을 합니다. 그래서 이드로는 모세를 돕고 출애굽 여정에서 하나님을 인정하고 제사까지 드렸습니다.  이렇게 가까운 집안임에도 민족이 타락하면 가까운 자가 더 아프게 찌르는 것 같습니다. 

 

 

사사기 5장 읽기

고대 히브리 문학의 정수로 평가받는 사사기 5장

 

7. When the people of Israel cried out to the Lord on account of the Midianites, 8 the Lord sent a prophet to the people of Israel. ANd he said to them, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I Led you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage. 9 And I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. 10 And I said to you, 'I am the Lord your God; you shall ot fear the gods of the Amorits in whose land you dwell.' But you have not obeyed my voice."

 

 기드온의 밤

11절, 기드온의 첫 등장은 비주류성으로 묘사됩니다. 들판이 아닌 포도주 틀에서 밀 타작을 하던 사내입니다. 그는 사회 질서와 경제 구조가 무너진 곳에서 작고 보잘것없는 존재였습니다. 스스로를 믿음 없는 세대로 자처하였고요. 그는 구원자라기보다는 질문하는 자로 시작합니다. 

 

 

11. Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Opharah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, "The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valour." 13 And Gideon said to him, "Please, sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us. saying, 'Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?' But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian." 14 And the Lord turned to him and said, "Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?" 15 And he said to him, "PLease, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house." 16 And the Lord said to him, "But I will be with you,  and you shall strike the Midianites as one man." 17 And he said to him, "If now I have found favour in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me. 18 Please do not depart from here until I come to you and bring out my present and set it before you." And he said, "I will stay till you return."

 

 

19 So Gideon went into his house and prepared a young goat and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and brought them to him under the terebinth and presented them. 20 And the angel of God said to him, "Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and put them on this rock, and pour the broth over them." And he did so. 21 Then the angel of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes. And fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes. AND the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. 22 Then Gideon perceived that he was the angel of the Lord. And Gideon said, "Alas, O Lord God! For now I Have seen the angel of the Lord face to face." 23 But the Lord said to him, "Peace be to you, Do not fear; you shall not die." 24 Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it, The Lord Is Peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah, which belongs to the Abiezrites.

 

17절에서 24절은 하나님의 사자가 기드온을 설득하기 위함인지 바위에서 불이 나는 것을 보여줍니다. 처음에는 저승사자인 줄 알고 식겁했는데 기적을 경험하고 믿기로 했나 보죠.

 

 

25 That night the Lord said to him, "Take your father's bull, and the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it 26 and build an altar to the LOrd your God on the top of the stronghold here, with stones laid in due order. Then take the second bull and offer it as a burt offering with the wood of the Asherah that you shall cut down." 27 So Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as the Lord had told him. But because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night.

 

기드온이 넘어오자 신의 사자는 기드온에게 외부 전쟁 전에 내부 질서를 깨뜨리라고 명령합니다. 그들이 섬기던 바알과 아세라 목상을 허물고 그 목재로 하나님께 제단을 새로 쌓고 번제를 드리라고 합니다. 이것은 전쟁보다 두려운 가족의 눈, 동네 사람들의 비난, 자기 파괴의 시작이었습니다.  기드온은 겁이 났기에 차마 낮에 하지 못하고 밤에 강행합니다. 새 질서의 불씨가 피어오르는 새벽의 입구였습니다. 

 

 

누가 이런 짓을

28 When the men of the town rose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the Asherah beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar that had been built. 29 ANd they said to one another, 'Who has done this thing?" And after they had searched and enquired, they said, "Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing." 30 Then the men of the town said to Joash, "Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has broken down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah beside it." 31 But Joash said to all who stood against him, 'Will you contend for Baal? Or will you save him? Whoever contends for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god. let him contend for himself, because his altar has been broken down. " 32 Therefore on that day Gideon was called Jerubbaal, that is to say, "Let Baal contend against him." because he broke down his altar.

 

아침에 사람들은 난리가 났습니다. 온 성읍이 떠들썩했고 사람들은 기드온이 한 짓을 알고 그를 죽이려고 했습니다. 아버지도는 그를 보호하며, 만일 바알이 진짜 신이라면 그를 보호하겠지, 라며 아들을 보호합니다. 그러면서 이때 기드온은 여룹바알, 즉 바알과 싸운 자라는 별칭을 얻게 됩니다. 갑자기 딴 사람이 된 거죠.

 

전쟁은 시작되었지만, 여전히 두렵다

 

33 Now all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the East came together, and they crossed the Jordan and encamped in the Valley of Jezreel. 34 But the Sprit of the Lord colthed Gideon, and he sounded the trumpet, and the Abiezrites were called out to follow him. 35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, and they too were called out to follow him. And he sent messengers to Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they went up to meet them. 

 

 

36 Then Gideon said to God, "If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, 37 behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said." 38 And it was so. WHEN HE Rose early next morning and sqeeezed the fleece, he wrung enough dew from the fleece to fill a bowl with water. 39 Then Gideon said to God, "Let not your anger burn against me; let me speak just once more. Please let me test just once more with the fleece. Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground let there be dew." 40 And God did so that night; and it was dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground there was dew.

 

하나님이 확실하게 그를 선택했음에도 기드온은 불안하고 의심하여 하나님 저를 이스라엘을 구하는 자로 택하셨다면 양털 한 뭉치를 타작마당에 두겠다고 합니다. 그러자 다음 날 아침 양털만 젖고 땅은 말랐다고 하는데요. 다음에는 반대로 요구를 합니다. 그러자 이번에는 양털은 마르고 땅에는 이슬이 있게 했다고 합니다.  재차 확인을 요구받아 확신을 얻으려고 했는지, 다음 편이 기대되네요.