Editing Gideon (section)

===Calling===
God chose Gideon, a young man from the [[tribe of Manasseh]], to free the people of Israel and to condemn their [[idolatry]]. The [[Angel of the Lord#Hebrew Bible|Angel of the Lord]], or "the Lord's angelic messenger"<ref>{{Bibleverse|Judges|6:11|HE}}</ref> came "in the character ... of a traveller who sat down in the shade [of the terebinth tree] to enjoy a little refreshment and repose"<ref>[http://biblehub.com/commentaries/jfb/judges/6.htm Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary] on Judges 6, accessed 21 October 2016</ref> and entered into conversation with Gideon. The narrative has echoes of the meeting between [[Abraham]] and the visitors who came to him in the [[terebinth]]s of [[Mamre]] and promised Abraham and [[Sarah]], in their old age, that they would have a son ({{Bibleverse|Genesis|18:1–15|HE}}).{{citation needed|date=February 2023}} The angel greeted Gideon: "The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!"<ref>{{Bibleverse|Judges|6:12|HE}}</ref>

Gideon requested proof of God's will by three miracles: firstly a sign from the angel, in which the angel appeared to Gideon and caused fire to shoot up out of a rock,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Judges|6:11–22|HE}}</ref> and then two signs involving a [[Wool|fleece]], performed on consecutive nights and the exact opposite of each other. First Gideon woke up to his fleece covered in dew, but the surrounding ground dry; then the next morning, his fleece was dry but the surrounding ground covered in dew.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Judges|6:36–40|HE}}</ref>

On God's instruction, Gideon destroyed the town's altar to [[Baal]] and the symbol of the Goddess [[Asherah]] beside it, receiving the byname of ''Jerubbaal'' from his father:
{{blockquote|Therefore on that day he (Joash) called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Judges|6:32|HE}}</ref>}}