Zebah and Zalmunna

Biblical Account

Zebah and Zalmunna were two kings of Midian. They are always mentioned together, and their story appears in Judges 8:4–21.

Gideon crossed the Jordan River with his three hundred men and pursued them. When his soldiers grew weary, he asked the men of Succoth for bread, but the princes of Succoth refused, saying, "Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we should give bread unto thine army?" (Judges 8:5–7). The term "princes" here refers to the leading men of the city. The men of Penuel, to whom Gideon went next, gave the same answer (Judges 8:8–9).

At that time the two kings were at Karkor, with a remaining force of about fifteen thousand men (Judges 8:10). When Gideon attacked them by surprise, the two kings fled but were captured (Judges 8:12). Gideon brought the two kings before the men of Succoth and punished the elders of the city. At Penuel he tore down the tower and slew the men of the city (Judges 8:15–17).

When Gideon asked what manner of men they had slain at Tabor, the two kings answered, "As thou art, so were they; each one resembled the children of a king." Gideon then declared that the slain were his brothers, the sons of his mother (Judges 8:18–19). Gideon told his firstborn son, Jether, to kill the two kings, but Jether was young and afraid. The two kings then said, "Rise thou, and fall upon us: for as the man is, so is his strength," urging Gideon to strike them himself. Gideon killed the two kings and took the crescent-shaped ornaments that were on their camels' necks (Judges 8:20–21). These ornaments and the purple raiment of the kings of Midian are mentioned again in the account of Gideon's making of an ephod (Judges 8:26).

Significance Within Scripture

Psalm 83 prays concerning the nations that sought to attack Israel: "Make their nobles like Oreb, and like Zeeb: yea, all their princes as Zebah, and as Zalmunna" (Psalm 83:11). Oreb and Zeeb, who are mentioned alongside them, were the princes of Midian slain by the men of Ephraim (Judges 7:25). The psalm uses these names as examples of the downfall of God's enemies.

Isaiah recalls Gideon's victory with the phrase "the day of Midian" (Isaiah 9:4) but does not mention the two kings by name. In the New Testament, Hebrews 11:32 mentions Gideon as a man of faith, but Zebah and Zalmunna themselves do not appear in the New Testament.

Interpretations and Issues

• The change in Gideon: Some commentators read the pursuit of the two kings as the point at which Gideon begins to turn from the Lord's war toward personal vengeance and the pursuit of authority. As evidence they cite his harsh treatment of his fellow Israelites at Succoth and Penuel, the scene in which he avenges his brothers, and his making of an ephod from the spoils. On the other hand, many sermons portray Gideon positively as one who faithfully completed the task given to him as a judge.
• The incident at Tabor: The killing of Gideon's brothers by the two kings is mentioned only briefly, in Judges 8:18–19. The text does not say when or how it took place.
• Composition of the text: Some historical-critical scholars regard the end of chapter 7 (the deaths of Oreb and Zeeb) and chapter 8 (the pursuit of Zebah and Zalmunna) as a combination of separate traditions. Traditional interpretation reads them as a single, continuous account of the war.
• Names and ornaments: The name "Zebah" is sometimes explained as having the same form as the Hebrew word for "sacrifice." The meaning of Zalmunna is uncertain. Some interpret the crescent ornaments as amulets associated with moon worship, but the text does not explain their significance.

In the Korean Church

Zebah and Zalmunna are rarely the subject of sermons in their own right; they are usually treated as part of the later portion of the Gideon narrative. The phrase in Judges 8:4, "faint, yet pursuing" (rendered in the New Korean Revised Version as "weary, yet pursuing"), is frequently used as a sermon text emphasizing a faith that fulfills its calling to the end, and in such sermons the two kings are introduced as the objects of the pursuit.