Another Midrash

LORD, Deborah is glorious, and her battles are fierce. Zebulon writes and aides her in the battle with his pen, and turns the enemy at the gate. But Lo! False seers have maddened Gideon! Don't you see! He was destined to deliver your people, but the false apostles came, and with their fleshly dreams, gave a vision to Gideon, but he won his war. Yet, the spirit of Gideon was wrong from that very moment onward, and he had made an idol out of the golden rings. And he turned all Israel a whoring after gold and filthy riches--for he was mighty. And even greater than that, he declined to be king, thus was half righteous. What shall be done, when I see this spirit changing the lands? And Adam is no longer satisfied by his wife's bosom? Shall we whore after money and gold? Or shall we idolize gold and money? Shall we seek after our portion here? Yes, return oh Israel, and you may have a portion here, as well. Return with your whole heart, and Joel's vision may come to pass, that a meat sacrifice is left in the valley. Do not, oh do not follow after the dreamers, for all dreams are vain. All men shall dream dreams, and the prophets shall see visions--trust in those--but not in false visions which give the spirit of Gideon's false counsel, for the counsel should come from sobriety and not a yoke of delusion. For though the vision comes to pass, it has come from erring mouths, and many such like soothsayers have entered into the congregation, speaking cursing, speaking blessing, dreaming dreams, and causing madness to wreak havoc on the land by their own enchantments. And they have maddened true prophets by their cursing, through many griefs and sorrows! Repent, oh Israel, and let blessing come from your mouth, and not idle curses or idle lies. Repent! Do not any longer teach your prophets to prophesy, unless they receive divine vision. How does one know divine vision? There is peace, and not confusion. There are words of encouragement, and not error. There is not vain and deluded babbling, or curses which curse a good man, and make the man sad whom the LORD had not made sad. Repent! In ashes! Lest bloodguilt be upon you all!

I saw the King scheming, to win his battle, and he had made a massive blunder. He thought no one saw him... and he schemed. For his enemies were truly more powerful than he was, and he was there, scheming. Do not scheme, but let the time come in its moment. Do what is timely in the moment, oh Kings, and not through your scheming. For, scheming backfires and leads the whole land into sorrows, and it leads to wars not paradise. Do not scheme, oh kings, and Prophets do not curse, save it is to enact repentance in the soul. Israel was ashamed of his counsel, and sore vexed by his shameful deeds. The king was maddened by Israel's prophecies, and the whole world too, yet it was the fat Heifers of Samaria who maddened Israel first, and had taught him how to curse. Rebuke them, and not him... for they came to him while in bonds, and taught him error and corrupted his mind in its weakness. Let the LORD purify him, and he shall be made new. Israel shall know God's peace, said the LORD.