Zebah
“Sacrifice or victim”
Summary
One of two Midianite kings captured and executed by Gideon after the great Midianite invasion of Israel.
☩The Midianite Invasion
Zebah and his fellow king Zalmunna led the vast Midianite horde that invaded Israel, devastating the land annually at harvest time. They commanded the main army while two princes, Oreb and Zeeb, led subsidiary forces. The Midianite host was so numerous that they could not be counted.
☩Pursuit and Capture
After Gideon's miraculous night attack scattered the Midianite camp, Zebah and Zalmunna escaped eastward across the Jordan with 15,000 surviving troops. Gideon pursued them relentlessly, despite his exhausted men and the refusal of Succoth and Penuel to provide provisions. He overtook them at Karkor, high in the Hauran region, and captured both kings.
☩Execution
Upon returning to Ophrah, Gideon revealed his personal motive for the pursuit—Zebah and Zalmunna had killed his brothers at Tabor during the invasion. When asked to describe the slain men, the kings admitted they resembled royalty. Gideon's young son Jether was offered the honor of executing them, but hesitated, so Gideon himself put them to death and took the ornaments from their camels' necks.
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Zebah," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. X (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Zebah and Zalmunna," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. V (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).