Judges

We come to a new era in the book of Judges. It is so named because of the type of leadership during this period of history. Joshua has died but another leader did not rise up in his place. The tribe of Judah was tasked with leading the way to conquer the land and they did fairly well for awhile. Unfortunately, over and over again we see the phrase “_____ did not drive out the inhabitants of _____” with the other tribes, so the sons of Israel spiral into idol worship with those inhabitants. God of course stays true to His word and allows His people the punishment of oppression. After a while, they would cry out and God would send a judge (think military hero or deliverer) to save the people. That would work for awhile and there would be peace but then the cycle would happen all over again. Here is a chart of the cycle:

There were at least 12 judges during this time. Those listed in the chart below are the judges by name in the book of Judges. We see a few more in the book of 1 Samuel but for now we will focus on the ones listed in this book.

There are a couple of key phrases you see pop up all throughout the book of Judges. They are warnings for us today.

Here are some notes from some of the judges we look at in our study:

–Othniel: First judge mentioned. Tribe of Judah. He is Caleb’s nephew who becomes his son-in-law. Peace 40 years.

-Ehud: Tribe of Benjamin, left-handed. Thrust a two-edged dagger (handle too) into the fat belly of King Eglon. Peace 80 years (longest stretch of peace)

–Deborah: Tribe of Naphtali (unclear in the Bible, but from tradition). Prophetess who counseled under a palm tree. Barak would not go to war without her. Jael, a female Kenite (descendant from Moses’ father-in-law) kills Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, by hammering a tent peg in his temple. She gets the honor that Barak should’ve had. Deborah writes a song to remember the events. Peace for 40 years.

-Gideon: More is said about him than any other judge. Tribe of Manasseh. Called “Valliant Warrior” by the Angel of the LORD. What we see is a man who just obeys even though he is scared to death through it all. He tests God twice with a fleece. God dwindles his army down from 32,000 to 300 to defeat an army that is as “numerous as locusts”. Their weapons are trumpets, broken jars and torches. Had 70 sons by many wives and at least 1 son by a concubine. Peace for 40 years.

Judges 9-12
Abimelech, Gideon’s son, kills his 70 brothers. The youngest escapes.
Abimelech sets himself up as King.
Tola: 6th Judge for 23 years.
Jair: 7th Judge for 22 years.
Jephthah: 8th Judge for 6 years. Made a tragic vow that killed his daughter.
Ibzan: 9th Judge for 7 years
Elon: 10th Judge for 10 years
Abdon: 11th Judge for 8 years

-Samson: Tribe of Dan. Name means “sunray” in Hebrew. His life was foretold to his parents by the Angel of the LORD. He would be a Nazirite to God from the womb to the day of his death. He chooses a wife from the Philistines and then offers a riddle at the wedding feast. They use the bride to get the answer out of him by the end of the seven days. Samson gets mad, kills some folks then leaves his wife with a friend. When he goes back for his wife, Samson is told she has been given to another. This time he gets 300 foxes, pairs them up with a torch between their tails and sets them loose in the standing grain of the Philistines. Years later he meets Delilah and she is his downfall. He tells of the source of his strength and is finally subdued with a haircut. His final act of justice comes when his hair has finally grown back and he literally brings the house down.

Judges ends with this statement: “In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.” Judges 21:25