Gideon's greatest triumph was followed by his greatest mistake. As a result, the final story of his life carries a mixed message-one of glorious moments, missed opportunities, and massive failure. The irony is that Gideon's decline began immediately after his affirmation of God's absolute kingship (Judges 8:23). Unfortunately, his actions were not consistent with his words. It is never enough to declare the truth; we need to live it.

We aren't told what motivates Gideon to turn the war booty into an ephod, a garment symbolising the office of the high priest (vv. 24-27). It may have been a desire to have a means to divine God's will, or some distorted idea that there is a spiritual vacuum he needs to fill. But he ends up creating an idolatrous cult that defies the Word of God. It may have been done in the name of Yahweh, but his act is spiritually disastrous: Israel prostitutes itself by worshipping it. The term ″prostituted″ always refers to spiritual unfaithfulness, the adultery of spiritual apostasy, to God.

God had commanded worship through the Levitical priesthood at the tabernacle, which was at Shiloh. Gideon's act-worshipping at Ophrah-was in direct violation of God's Word: he had no right to try to solve a genuine problem in his own way.

The essence of all compromise, and ultimately of all heresy, is that we believe that we have the right to alter or improve the revealed will of God. But anything less than complete obedience leads to spiritual disaster: we cannot improve on God's precepts. Good intentions are not more important than complete obedience; our need is not clever innovations, but consistent obedience to the Word of God.

This is a constant problem for believers in today's secular, amoral society. People around us live as an authority unto themselves, and we are at risk of adopting the same standard, doing what is right in our own eyes rather than ordering our lives around God's Word. But as society attacks the integrity of the Bible and tries to undermine its sufficiency, we must remember that God's Word is complete and absolutely authoritative. Nothing and no one must be allowed to take its place among God's people.

Unfortunately, the ephod episode was not an isolated one in Gideon's life. Even more evident is the effect on the next generation. By denying the complete authority of God's Word in his life, Gideon led his family down a path headed directly to apostasy. When we reject the authority of God's Word in any way, decline is inevitable.