THEOSISVissarion (Nechaev)
After the passing of Joshua and his leaders, the Israelites faced oppression first from the king of Mesopotamia, Husarsaphem, followed by Eglon, the king of Moab, then the Philistines, and later from Jabin, the Canaanite king. The prophetess and judge Deborah, alongside Barak, liberated the Israelites from his control. Following this, Israel enjoyed peace and liberty for a span of forty years. However, during this time of tranquility, the Israelites turned again to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord, abandoning Him to serve the Canaanite deities, Baal and Astarte, which led the Lord to hand them over to foreign oppressors once more. This time, the Midianites, descendants of Midian, one of Abraham's sons with Keturah (Genesis 25:2), became His instruments of judgment.
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At that time, they resided east of the Dead Sea, near the Moabites. Even in Moses' era, towards the end of the Israelites' wandering, the Midianites proved to be formidable foes. Unable to thwart the Israelites’ advance into Canaan through force, they resorted to deceit. They lured God’s people into greed and idolatry, incurring His wrath, but by divine command, the Hebrews eradicated them, sparing only those who managed to flee. After a period of 200 years, the Midianites regained strength, and in the referenced time, they allied with the Amalekites, also longstanding enemies of Israel, along with other nomadic tribes from the east, and inflicted severe oppression on the Israelites for seven years. The sacred writer recounts the tribulations they faced at the hands of the Midianites: "The hand of Midian was heavy over Israel, and the children of Israel made for themselves the dens, caves, and strongholds in the mountains. Whenever Israel planted crops, the Midianites, the Amalekites, and the eastern invaders would come up against them. They would encamp against them and destroy the crops as far as Gaza, leaving no sustenance for Israel—neither sheep, nor oxen, nor donkeys. For they came up with their livestock and their tents like locusts in number; they and their camels were without number, and they went into the land to devastate it. Thus, Israel was brought very low" (Judges 6:3-6).