Judges 8:24

“And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, etc.] Which he thought they would scarcely deny, and it was now a fair opportunity to make it, since they had offered him a crown, or to be king over them: and the favour he asked was, that you would give me every man the earrings of his prey; or, “an earring of his prey”; for it is in the singular number; every man one earring, as Abarbinel interprets it; for though they might have more, yet only one ear ring of every man is desired: for they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites; so the Midianites and Ishmaelites are spoken of as the same, they being mixed and dwelling together, or very near each other,…”

“Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you--This was the contribution of an earring (singular). As the ancient Arabians (Ishmaelites and Midianites being synonymous terms, Gen 37:25, Gen 37:28) were gorgeously adorned with barbaric pearl and gold, an immense amount of such valuable booty had fallen into the hands of the Israelitish soldiers. The contribution was liberally made, and the quantity of gold given to him is estimated at £3113 sterling.”

“In this desire for gold Gideon falls to the level of ordinary men, and we may see in it the first decline of his glory, leading to a sad tarnishing of the luster of his bright name. The idolatrous honor paid to Gideon’s ephod was probably a source of revenue to his house. Contrast the conduct of Abraham Genesis 14:21-23, and of Elisha 2Ki 5:16, 2 Kings 5:26. The “ear-ring” here mentioned is properly a “nose-ring” (compare Genesis 24:22 note). The custom of wearing nose-rings prevails in Eastern countries to the present day. The circumstance of Job’s friends each contributing a nose-ring of gold (Job 42:11 note) is a remarkable parallel to the incident in Gideon’s history. Rings of gold were…”

“Ishmaelites - A mixture of people all called by one general name, Ishmaelites or Arabians, who used to wear ear - rings; but the greatest, and the ruling part of them were Midianites. Judges 8:27”

“give me: Gen 24:22, Gen 24:53; Exo 12:35, Exo 32:3; Pe1 3:3-5 because: Gen 16:10, Gen 16:11, Gen 25:13, Gen 37:25, Gen 37:28; Sa1 25:11; Kg1 20:11 Judges 8:26”

“Gideon resisted the temptation to put an earthly crown upon his head, from true fidelity to Jehovah; but he yielded to another temptation, which this appeal on the part of the people really involved, namely, the temptation to secure to himself for the future the position to which the Lord had called and exalted him. The Lord had called him to be the deliverer of Israel by visibly appearing in His angel, and had not only accepted the gift which he offered Him, as a well-pleasing sacrifice, but had also commanded him to build an altar, and by offering an atoning burnt-sacrifice to re-establish the worship of Jehovah in his family and tribe, and to restore the favour of God to His people once…”