Gideon

Gideon demanded proof of God's promise that he would be the saviour of Israel, which was given (Judges 6, 36-40):

36: And Gideon said unto God, If thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said,

37: Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said.

38: And it was so: for he rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the fleece together, and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water.

39: And Gideon said unto God, Let not thine anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once: let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew.

40: And God did so that night: for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.

The Gideons International is an evangelical Christian organisation dedicated to distributing copies of the Bible to those who might not otherwise encounter it. The organisation describes its link to the story of Gideon thus:

"Gideon was a man who was willing to do exactly what God wanted him to do, regardless of his own judgment as to the plans or results. Humility, faith, and obedience were his great elements of character. This is the standard that the Gideon association is trying to establish in all its members, each man to be ready to do God's will at any time, at any place, and in any way that the Holy Spirit leads."

External Links

• The Book of Judges from the King James version of the Bible (at the University of Virginia) (http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/KjvJudg)

• The Gideons International (http://www.gideons.org/)