Gideon tore down the old altar of Baal and Asherah and, fearing the hostility of his people, secretly built a new one. Then we see that Israel is not only unaware of what has happened, but also that they reject Gideon and even want to kill him as soon as they discover what he has done.
Judges 6
28 When the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal had been torn down, and the Asherah pole that was on it had been cut down. And the second bull had been sacrificed on the altar that had been built.
29 Then everyone asked his neighbor, “Who did this thing?” And when they inquired and asked, they said, “Gideon son of Joash did this thing.”
His name
Gideon means “he who strikes down” or “woodcutter.” His name aligns with the history in which he appears. But did he receive that name afterward, as a result of his actions, or beforehand as a prophetic sign? The latter would be comparable to Abram, who received the name Abraham (=father of many nations) while still childless.
Early in the morning
Gideon puts an end to the old religion, just as the Lord put an end to the old covenant and Judaism at His coming. When Christ rose early in the morning (John 20:1), this was a fact. But Gideon’s people are ignorant and don’t know who did this. And if they find out, they want to kill Gideon. The Jewish people have always killed God’s prophets, and even after Christ’s resurrection, his witnesses were killed (Acts 7:52).
Destruction of the city and temple
The tearing down of the altar of Baal refers to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 AD. Because the sanctuary was destroyed, Israel could no longer perform the duties of the old covenant. The people lost their city and temple and were scattered among the nations.
Word is deed
In verse 29, the expression “this thing” appears twice. The Hebrew word used here, dabar, is the usual word for “word,” as in “the word of YAHWEH” (1 Kings 12:24; Jeremiah 7:2). If we were to translate it literally, it would say: “Who did this word?” More freely, “Who did this of which we speak?” Gideon is a type of Him who is called the Word (Revelation 19:13) and who came to fulfill the word.
That dabar is translated as “thing” reveals a powerful characteristic of God’s word: when God speaks, it comes to pass. Therefore, His word is equal to His deed.