שופטים, פרק ו׳, פסוק כ״ח

As dawn breaks, the townspeople awaken to a shocking scene: their central site of worship has been completely overthrown. The idol's altar appears to have been violently broken and crushed [מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Yet, there is a subtle distinction in the nature of this destruction. While it looked like total devastation to the onlookers, Gideon had actually carefully dismantled the structure, taking the stones intact to construct a new altar dedicated to God. The townspeople, unaware of this repurposing, simply assumed their altar had been utterly shattered [מלבי״ם].

In the aftermath, a specific offering was made on the newly constructed altar [מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The second bull was chosen for this sacrifice because it had originally been set aside and designated for idol worship [אלשיך, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. This detail explains why Gideon was commanded to take the first bull as well, even though he did not sacrifice it. Taking the first bull was a preemptive measure to remove it from the townspeople's possession, ensuring they could no longer use it for their own idolatrous rituals [רד״ק].

The wood used to fuel the fire for the offering came directly from the idolatrous worship site. The Asherah tree that Gideon had cut down was brought up and burned together with the second bull upon the new altar [מלבי״ם].