Judges 8:17

And he beat down the tower of Penuel,.... As he threatened he would, Jdg 8:9 whether this was before or after he had chastised the elders of Succoth, is not clear; one would think by the course he…

The men of the city - Perhaps the rulers; who, it is likely, had possession of the tower or citadel, and so could tyrannize over the people. Gideon killed the great men, and beat down their towers,…

In these verses we have,

I. Gideon, as a valiant general, pursuing the remaining Midianites, and bravely following his blow. A very great slaughter was made of the enemy at first: 120,000 men that…

Gideon's revenge strikes us as vindictive. In return for some jeering words he treated these towns, which no doubt contained many of his own countrymen, with a barbarity which is altogether absent…