The Word for Today with Ray: October 2026

Thursday, October 1, 2026

Bring Out Your Son - Judges 6:30

In the book of Judges we learned how Jehovah God told Gideon, “Take your father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the grove that is by it. And build an altar unto the LORD your God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which you shall cut down. Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night. And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built. And they said one to another, Who has done this thing? And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing”, and in chapter six and verse thirty of Judges, we learn how,”the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out your son?” where we read,

Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out your son, that he may die: because he has cast down the altar of Baal, and because he has cut down the grove that was by it.

The verse reads, “Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out your son, that he may die:” The writer began with the words, “then the men of the city” which means “at that time the male human being belonging to the dwelling place, habitation and abode” “said unto Joash” or “uttered, declared and proclaimed Joash whose name means ‘given by the Lord’”, “bring out your son” which means “proceed forward and exit with your, Joash’s, male offspring and progeny”, “that he may die” or “that he, Gideon, might be killed, made lifeless and be without breath”. The writer shared how the male human beings within the “city” told Gideon’s father “Joash” to exit with him so they might kill him.

The verse continues, “because he has cast down the altar of Baal, and because he has cut down the grove that was by it.” The writer added the words, “because he has cast down the altar of Baal” which means “since and on account that he, Gideon, threw, beat dow and destroyed the sacrificial offering place belonging to “Baal” whose name means ‘lord’ and was the supreme male divinity of the Phoenicians or Canaanites”, “and because he has cut down the grove” or “and since and on account that he, Gideon, has cut out, killed and eliminated the accompanying timber, planks, stalks and sticks belonging to the ‘Ashera’ which were used for idol worship” “that was by it” which means “that existed next to and beside the altar of Baal”. The writer shared how the “men of the city” wanted “Gideon” to be brought to them out on account that he destroyed the sacrificial offering place of “Baal” and eliminated the tree orchard for idols that was beside it.

When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we learn how the “men of the city” desired that Gideon’s father “Joash” would lead him out to them so they might kill him for destroying the “sacrificial location of Baal” and the trees used for idol worship that were beside it. We see how committed these “men” were to their god and the worship places erected for him, and when God destroyed them through “Gideon”, they wanted revenge. God wants to be our One and Only True God through His Son Jesus who died on the cross for the sins of all mankind and was resurrected from the dead after three days. When we believe and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us to guide us into all truth and give us the ability to keep His commands which are better for His Kingdom and for us. (See John 3:16; 16:13; Acts 1:8; Revelation 4:11)

Next time we learn how, “Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will you plead for Baal?”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".

Who Has Done This? - Judges 6:29

In the book of Judges we learned how Jehovah God told Gideon, “Take your father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the grove that is by it. And build an altar unto the LORD your God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which you shall cut down. Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night. And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built”, and in chapter six and verse twenty-nine of Judges, we learn how, “they said one to another, Who has done this thing?” where we read,

And they said one to another, Who has done this thing?

And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing.

The verse reads, “And they said one to another, Who has done this thing?” The writer began with the words, “and they said one to another” which means “and they, the men of the city, uttered, declared, proclaimed and questioned”, “who has done this thing” or “what person has performed and produced this act and deed”? The writer shared how the “men of the city” asked what person performed all the destructive acts.

The verse goes on to say, “And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash has done this thing.” The writer continued with the words, “and when they enquired and asked” which means “and at the time and moment they, the men of the city, consulted and sought to find out and requested”, “they said” or “they, the people who answered, uttered, declared and proclaimed”, “Gideon the son of Joash” which means “Gideon whose name means ‘hewer’ and was the youngest male offspring and progeny of Joash of the Abiezrites, fifth judge of Israel who led the Israelites against the Midianites” “has done this thing” or “has performed and produced this act and deed”. The writer shared at the time and moment the “men of the city” investigated and requested what person performed these acts, they were told it was “Gideon”.

When we consider the words in this verse, we learn how the “men of the city” desired to know who performed the destructive deeds upon their altar to “Baal” and the tree orchard beside it. God was ultimately responsible for this destruction, however, these “men” wanted to find out who caused all this trouble. In a similar manner to the way God knew who destroyed the altar of Baal and the orchard, God knows and loves us. Because we have sin in our lives that leads to death (See Romans 3:23; 6:23), He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and to be resurrected from the dead after three days. When we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us to guide us into all truth and to help us know when we are to perform a work He has assigned to us while He will receives the glory regardless of who inquires as to who did this.

Next time we learn how, “the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out your son”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

The Altar of Baal Cast Down - Judges 6:28

In the book of Judges we learned how Jehovah God told Gideon, “Take your father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the grove that is by it. And build an altar unto the LORD your God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which you shall cut down. Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night”, and in chapter six and verse twenty-eight of Judges, we learn, “when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down” where we read,

And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built.

The verse reads, “And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, …” The writer began with the words, “and when the men of the city” which means “and at the time and moment the male human beings belonging to the dwelling place, habitation, abode or town” “arose early in the morning” or “initially started and got up within the break of day, dawn or coming of the sunrise”, “behold, the altar of Baal” which means “lo, look and consider, the sacrificial place belonging to Baal whose name means ‘lord’ and was the supreme male divinity of the Phoenicians or Canaanites” “was cast down” or “was broke, beat down, destroyed and overthrown”. The writer shared at the initial time when the male human beings within the dwelling place awoke at the sunrise, they looked and considered and the sacrificial place for “Baal” was broken and destroyed.

The verse continues, “… and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built.” The writer added the words, “and the grove” which means “and the accompanying timber, planks, stalks and sticks belonging to the ‘Ashera’ which were used for idol worship” “was cut down that was by it” or “was cut out, killed and eliminated that existed alongside and beside the altar to Baal”, “and the second bullock was offered” which means “and the second bull, cattle or oxen was slaughtered and sacrificed”, “upon the altar that was built” or “on the sacrificial place that was constructed on the stone”. The writer shared shared how the trees used for idol worship were eliminated and used to sacrifice the second bull in the sacrificial location.

When we think through the words in this verse, we learn how the “men” of the dwelling place rose at dawn or sunrise to discover that their sacrificial place of “Baal” and the tree orchard beside it was destroyed. The “second” bull was slaughtered and burnt upon the sacrificial place that was constructed. We can imagine the surprise and anger of these men, but this was Jehovah God’s work through “Gideon” and his ten servants. God was acting against the “idols” that were in the people of Israel’s lives because He wants to be first in everyone’s life. (See Matthew 6:33) When we yield to His Son Jesus who was sent into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and was raised from the dead three days later, He will forgive our sins grant us everlasting life and remove our idols so we serve the true and living God. (See 1 Thessalonians 1:9)

Next time we learn how, “they said one to another, Who has done this thing?”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Gideon Obeyed with Ten Men - Judges 6:27

In the book of Judges we learned how, “Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take your father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the grove that is by it. And build an altar unto the LORD your God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which you shall cut down”, and in chapter six and verse twenty-seven of Judges, we learn how, “Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said” where we read,

Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him:

and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.

The verse reads, “Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him:” The writer began with the word, “then Gideon” which means “at that time Gideon whose name means ‘hewer’ and was the youngest son of Joash of the Abiezrites, fifth judge of Israel who led the Israelites against the Midianites” “took men of his servants” or “gathered and assembled male human being belonging to his, Gideon’s, men of servile condition, bondmen or slaves”, “and did as the LORD had said unto him” which means “and performed and produced similar and in likeness that Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name for the One True God uttered, declared and proclaimed”. The writer shared how “Gideon” gathered “ten” of his men of servile condition and performed and produced in keeping with what Jehovah God told him to do.

The verse goes on to say, “… and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.” The writer continued with the words, “and so it was” which means “and it came to pass, happened and fell out”, “because he feared his father’s household” or “since and on account that he, Gideon, was afraid of his, Gideon’s, male progenitor’s dwelling place, abode, habitation and family”, “and the men of the city” which means “and the male human beings belonging to the dwelling place, habitation and abode”, “that he could not do it by day” or “that he, Gideon, was unable to perform and produce it, the tasks given by God, during the daytime hours”, “that he did it by night” which means “that he, Gideon, performed and produced it, the tasks, during the nighttime”. The writer shared how the following happened on account that “Gideon” was afraid of his male progenitor’s relatives as well as the male human beings belonging to the dwelling place which caused “Gideon” not to be able to perform his task during the daytime, so he performed it during the nighttime.

When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we learn how “Gideon” used wisdom to follow the instructions of Jehovah God. Because his father’s family and the men in the place where he lived would be aware of what he was doing during the daytime, he waited until dark. God has His timing for Him and us to carry out our tasks, and because He knew we all needed a Savior from our sins, He sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised Him from the dead at the necessary time. (See Galatians 4:4) When we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and equip us with His Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth and give us the wisdom to carry out His tasks at just the right time.

Next time we learn, “when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…