Judges 6:28 (LSB)

Passage

Then the men of the city arose early in the morning, and behold, the altar of Baal was torn down, and the Asherah which was beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar which had been built.

Nearby Context

Judges 6:26 and build an altar to Yahweh your God on the top of this stronghold in an orderly manner, and take the second bull and offer a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah which you shall cut down.”

Judges 6:27 So Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as Yahweh had spoken to him; and now it happened that because he was too afraid of his father’s household and the men of the city to do it by day, he did it by night.

Judges 6:28 Then the men of the city arose early in the morning, and behold, the altar of Baal was torn down, and the Asherah which was beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar which had been built.

Judges 6:29 And they said to one another, “Who did this thing?” And when they searched about and inquired, they said, “Gideon the son of Joash did this thing.”

Judges 6:30 Then the men of the city said to Joash, “Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has torn down the altar of Baal, and indeed, he has cut down the Asherah which was beside it.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "city", "arose", "early", "morning", "behold", "altar", "baal", and "torn". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "city" and "arose", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 27's "So Gideon took ten men of his..." into verse 29's "And they said to one another Who...", so "city" and "arose" belong inside that flow. In Judges context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "city" and "arose" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.