GAD

CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY
    I. His revelation to David.
A. Before David became king.
He advised him to leave the cave of Adullam where David had been staying and return to the land of Judah (1 Sam 22:5).
B. After David became king.
1. He told David that God would allow him to choose one of three kinds of punishment after the king’s sin of numbering the people (2 Sam 24:11–14).
2. After the fulfillment of God’s punishment, Gad informed David that the Lord wanted the king to build an altar on the threshing floor owned by Araunah (also called Oman) the Jebusite (2 Sam 24:16–19; 1 Chr 21:18–19).
II. His record about David.
Along with the prophets Samuel and Nathan, Gad later recorded the life and times of King David (1 Chr 29:29–30).
STATISTICS
  First mention: 1 Samuel 22:5
Final mention: 2 Chronicles 29:25
Meaning of his name: “Seer, fortune”
Referred to: 13 times
Biblical books mentioning him: Four books (1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles)
Occupation: Prophet (1 Sam 22:5)
Important fact about his life: He ministered to David during the plague of the death angel (1 Chr 21).

GEDALIAH

CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY
    I. His appointment by Nebuchadnezzar.
A. Gedaliah and Jeremiah.
1. Gedaliah was the grandson of Shaphan, who was King Josiah’s secretary (2 Kgs 25:22).
2. He was appointed by Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar to be governor over Judah after the fall of Jerusalem (2 Kgs 25:23).
3. He made his headquarters at the city of Mizpah (2 Kgs 25:23; Jer 40:10).
4. Nebuchadnezzar released Jeremiah the prophet, who had been imprisoned for his fearless preaching on sin during Judah’s final days, and entrusted him to Gedaliah for safekeeping (Jer 39:11–14; 40:5–6).
B. Gedaliah and Johanan.
1. Gedaliah was warned by Johanan, an Israelite army officer, that another soldier named Ishmael had been hired by the Ammonite king to assassinate him (Jer 40:13–14).
2. Gedaliah, however, refused to believe this report (Jer 40:14–16).
II. His assassination by Ishmael.
A. Gedaliah was killed by Ishmael at a banquet in Mizpah (Jer 41:1–2).
B. His lifeless body was then thrown into a cistern once made by Judean King Asa (Jer 41:9).
STATISTICS
  Father: Ahikam (2 Kgs 25:22)
First mention: 2 Kings 25:22
Final mention: Jeremiah 43:6
Meaning of his name: “God is great”
Referred to: 27 times
Biblical books mentioning him: Two books (2 Kings, Jeremiah)
Occupation: Governor of Judah (2 Kgs 25:22)
Place of death: At a banquet in Mizpah (Jer 41:1–2)
Circumstances of death: He was killed by Ishmael and 10 other men (Jer 41:1–2).
Important fact about his life: He was appointed governor by Nebuchadnezzar after the destruction of Jerusalem (2 Kgs 25:22).

GEHAZI

CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY
    I. Gehazi, the faithful servant.
A. Gehazi suggested that Elisha his master ask God to bless the barren womb of a woman living in Shunem who had shown great kindness to them. Elisha prayed, and the woman had a son (2 Kgs 4:8–17).
B. Upon the death of the boy much later, Elisha instructed Gehazi to take the prophet’s staff and lay it on the corpse of the child (2 Kgs 4:29–31).
C. Soon Elisha arrived upon the scene, raised the boy to life and told Gehazi to bring the mother to a glad reunion (2 Kgs 4:32–36).
D. Gehazi later related this miracle of Elisha to the king of Israel. At that same time he was able to put in a good word to the king concerning the Shunammite woman. As a result of this, the land she had lost after moving to Philistia for seven years was then restored by the king (2 Kgs 8:1–6).
II. Gehazi, the frightened servant.
A. The desperation.
Gehazi’s city of Dothan was surrounded by enemy troops sent by the king of Syria to arrest both him and Elisha (2 Kgs 6:13–14).
B. The declaration.
1. Gehazi.
“Alas, my master! how shall we do?” (2 Kgs 6:15)
2. Elisha.
“Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them” (2 Kgs 6:16).
C. The demonstration.
1. The request (2 Kgs 6:17).
2. The revelation (2 Kgs 6:17).
III. Gehazi, the faithless servant.
A. He became greedy and obtained money under false pretext from Naaman, a soldier Elisha had previously healed of leprosy (2 Kgs 5:19–25).
B. For this he was punished by suffering the same kind of leprosy Naaman once had (2 Kgs 5:26–27).
STATISTICS
  First mention: 2 Kings 4:12
Final mention: 2 Kings 8:5
Meaning of his name: “Denier, diminisher”
Referred to: 12 times
Biblical books mentioning him: One book (2 Kings)
Occupation: Chief servant to the prophet Elisha (2 Kgs 4:12)
Circumstances of death: He died a leper (2 Kgs 5:25–27).
Important fact about his life: He was Elisha’s servant, who attempted to deceive Elisha by secretly accepting a gift from Naaman (2 Kgs 5:21–25).

GESHEM

CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY
    I. The hostility of Geshem.
A. He was an Arabian.
B. He was the third member of a troublesome trio in the days of Nehemiah. The other two were Sanballat and Tobiah (Neh 2:19).
II. The harassment of Geshem.
He attempted (unsuccessfully) through various methods of harassment to prevent Nehemiah from rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem.
A. Ridicule (Neh 2:19).
B. Murder (Neh 6:1–2).
C. Slander (Neh 6:6).
STATISTICS
  First mention: Nehemiah 2:19
Final mention: Nehemiah 6:6
Meaning of his name: “Rain”
Referred to: Three times
Biblical books mentioning him: One book (Nehemiah)
Important fact about his life: He was one of three troublemakers who opposed Nehemiah (Neh 2:19).

GIDEON

(See also Judges)

CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY
    I. The angel of the Lord.
A. Gideon was from the tribe of Manasseh.
B. An angel of God appeared to him under an oak tree in the city of Ophrah as he threshed wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites (Judg 6:11–12).
C. The angel commissioned him to raise up an army and defeat the Midianites (Judg 6:13–16).
II. The altars.
A. Building an altar to God.
1. Gideon offered up an animal sacrifice before the angel, who caused supernatural fire to consume it (Judg 6:17–23).
2. He then built an altar and called it Jehovah-shalom, meaning “the Lord is peace” (Judg 6:24).
B. Tearing down an altar to Baal.
1. That night God instructed him to tear down his father’s pagan altar to Baal and replace it with an altar to God, which he did (Judg 6:25–27).
2. Because of this, Gideon received the nickname “Jerubbaal”, meaning, “let Baal contend” (Judg 6:32).
III. The anointing.
The Spirit of God came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet, summoning an army from the tribes of Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali (Judg 6:33–35).
IV. The assurance.
Still needing God’s reassurance, Gideon asked for and received two specific signs, both having to do with a wool fleece he planned to place on the threshing floor.
A. Wet fleece, dry ground.
He asked that the fleece be wet the next morning while the ground around it remain dry (Judg 6:36–38).
B. Dry fleece, wet ground.
He then asked that on the following day the fleece be dry and the ground around it be wet (Judg 6:39–40).
V. The army.
A. Desiring that Gideon depend upon God rather than human strength for victory, God ordered him to reduce his army (Judg 7:1–2).
B. Almost immediately he saw his army size drop (Judg 7:3–6):
1. From 32,000 to 10,000.
2. From 10,000 to 300.
C. He was assured of victory with these 300 men, despite the fact that his enemy possessed 135,000 troops (Judg 7:7; 8:10).
VI. The attack.
A. Prebattle events.
Once again Gideon was reassured on the eve of battle, this time by secretly visiting the enemy camp and overhearing a conversation between two Midianite soldiers concerning a divine dream, during which his very name was mentioned (Judg 7:8–15).
B. Battle events.
1. Gideon attacked the enemy with his 300 men. At a given signal, each man blew his trumpet, smashed the jar he was carrying, which revealed a burning torch, and shouted out, “The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon” (Judg 7:16–20).
2. The Midianites fled in panic (Judg 7:22).
3. And 120,000 of the enemy were slain by the sword (Judg 8:10).
4. Four Midianite leaders were captured and killed during the course of the battle (Judg 7:25; 8:12, 21).
5. Gideon’s victory resulted in a 40–year period of peace for the land (Judg 8:28).
6. His great victory was referred to in Hebrews 11:32.
C. Post-battle events.
There were three sad aspects to this glorious victory.
1. The hostility of the tribe of Ephraim was aroused against Gideon, as they accused him of not involving them in the battle (Judg 8:1–3).
2. The punishment was imposed by Gideon upon the Israelite city of Succoth because of its refusal to feed his famished troops (Judg 8:4–8, 13–17).
3. Gideon’s brothers were killed by the Midianites (Judg 8:18–20).
VII. The apostasy.
A. Following the battle, Gideon refused the invitation of the men of Israel to reign over them, but did request that he be given gold for an ephod (Judg 8:22–27).
B. This request was quickly granted, but with tragic results (Judg 8:27).
STATISTICS
  Father: Joash (Judg 6:11)
Sons: 71, two of whom are named: Abimelech and Jotham (Judg 9:1, 5)
First mention: Judges 6:11
Final mention: Hebrews 11:32
Meaning of his name: “Great warrior, hewer, feller”
Referred to: 40 times
Biblical books mentioning him: Two books (Judges, Hebrews)
Occupation: Soldier, judge (Judg 6:14; 8:28)
Place of birth: Ophrah (Judg 6:11–12; 8:27)
Important fact about his life: He defeated a vastly superior army with 300 men (Judg 7:22; 8:10–12).

GOLIATH

CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY
    I. The background of Goliath.
A. He was a fierce Philistine warrior from the city of Gath (1 Sam 17:4).
B. He stood approximately 10 feet high (1 Sam 17:4).
C. He wore a bronze helmet on his head (1 Sam 17:5).
D. His coat of bronze scale armor weighed 125 pounds (1 Sam 17:5).
E. His spear shaft was like a weaver’s rod and its iron point weighed 15 pounds (1 Sam 17:7).
II. The boasting of Goliath.
A. He blasphemed God, challenging and terrifying the armies of Israel under Saul for 40 days (1 Sam 17:11, 16, 24).
B. He demanded Israel send out their champion to meet him in battle (1 Sam 17:8–10).
C. He was incensed when the lad David stepped out to meet him (1 Sam 17:42).
D. He cursed David by his gods and promised to give his flesh to the birds and beasts (1 Sam 17:43–44).
III. The beheading of Goliath.
A. He was slain by David, who hurled a stone that struck the giant on the forehead (1 Sam 17:49).
B. David then used Goliath’s own sword to cut his head off (1 Sam 17:50–51).
STATISTICS
  Brother: Lahmi (1 Chr 20:5)
First mention: 1 Samuel 17:4
Final mention: 1 Chronicles 20:5
Meaning of his name: “Exile, soothsayer”
Referred to: Six times
Biblical books mentioning him: Three books (1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles)
Occupation: Soldier (1 Sam 17:4–10)
Place of death: On a battlefield (1 Sam 17:1–4, 51)
Circumstances of death: He was killed by a rock from David’s sling (1 Sam 17:49–51).
Important fact about his life: He was Scripture’s tallest recorded person (1 Sam 17:4).

GOMER

CHRONOLOGICAL SUMMARY
    I. Gomer and the sin of prostitution.
A. She was the wife of Hosea the prophet (Hos 1:2–3).
B. Before her marriage, Gomer was a common prostitute (Hos 1:2).
II. Gomer and the sin of adultery.
A. Gomer’s lust.
1. After marriage, she soon returned to her previous immoral ways (Hos 2:2; 3:3).
2. She abandoned Hosea for worldly lovers (Hos 2:5).
3. She wound up in a slave market.
B. Hosea’s love.
1. In spite of her unfaithfulness, Gomer was still loved by Hosea, as Israel was loved by God (Hos 3:1).
2. He attempted to reason with her. Hosea even asked their children to plead with their mother (Hos 2:1–2).
3. He attempted to restrict her (Hos 2:6).
4. He redeemed her out of the slave market (Hos 3:2).
STATISTICS
  Father: Diblaim (Hos 1:3)
Spouse: Hosea (Hos 1:2)
Sons: Jezreel and Lo-ammi (Hos 1:4–9)
Daughter: Lo-ruhamah (Hos 1:4–9)
First mention: Hosea 1:3
Final mention: Hosea 3:2
Meaning of her name: “Completion, heat”
Referred to: Three times
Biblical books mentioning her: One book (Hosea)
Occupation: Prostitute (Hos 1:2–3)
Important fact about her life: She was the unfaithful wife of the prophet Hosea (Hos 1:2–3; 3:1–2).

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