The end of Gideon’s heroic life is one of the sadder stories in the Bible.

You see, Gideon had led Israel in battle against their oppressors and had restored order and prosperity to the nation. They wanted to elect him as ruler over their country, but Gideon, knowing where his victories came from, declined:

He told Israel that God would be their leader, not him.

I love Gideon’s heart here. But then something shifted: Gideon asked them men to offer up their golden earrings as payment for Gideon’s conquest. So Gideon comes off with this large haul of gold, melts it down, and makes an ephod with it.

Who cares, you might ask?

An ephod was a priestly garment worn by the spiritual leader of the community. It was intended to set a person apart as holy and able to therefore approach God in the tabernacle.

But like we’re all prone to do, we can take good things and make idols out of them. And so we read, in Judges 8:27-28 “And Gideon made an ephod of [the gold] and put it in his city, in Ophrah. And all Israel whored after it and it became a snare to Gideon and his family.”

It became a snare.

What effect does success have on you? We may be well-intentioned, but it can be so easy to allow our good intentions to slip into something that becomes a snare for us.

As we conclude our look at the life of Gideon, may we all step courageously into the calling God has for us. But by God’s grace, may we never take credit for the work God has done through us.

May we never set up idols—even spiritual ones—that detract us and others from the one true God who deserves all the glory and honor and praise.

May our successes never become a snare…