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The Book of Judges
A commentary on the Book of Judges based on the Bible Study by David Tue
Contents
Introduction 2
Chapter 1 4
Chapter 2 13
Chapter 3 20
Chapter 4 27
Chapter 5 33
Chapter 6 35
Chapter 7 45
Chapter 8 51
Chapter 9 59
Chapter 10 66
Chapter 11 71
Chapter 12 79
Chapter 13 83
Chapter 14 91
Chapter 15 98
Introduction
Judges were to be appointed in every town – Deut 16:18
If a case is too difficult for the town judge, then they are to go to the high judge or high priest for a verdict – Deut 17:8-13
There could be more than one high judge – Deut 19:16-19. This seems to be a sort of Supreme Court.
These judges are not the same as the Judges who are ruling over Israel in the Book of Judges. While the judges prescribed in Deuteronomy are very much similar to judges as we know today, the term “judge” in the book of Judges is used for a person who would lead a tribe. Hence, with 12 Tribes of Israel, we will see that some of the Judges are leading at the same time but in different places.
They are not kings – God is King.
- These Judges are appointed by God
- There are no rights of the children of Judges to continue to rule
- Their leadership was only for their lifetime
So why call them Judges?
- In the same way that judges are to dispense the justice of the law, these Judges were to dispense the justice of God
God would give these Judges certain gifts and personalities that would allow them to lead their people. However, these Judges, would not necessarily lead the entire nation but would lead tribes.
Judges 1:21 tells us that at the writing of the Book, Jerusalem was still in the hands of the Jebusites and so we recognize that the Book of Judges was written during the period after King Saul became king but before David captures Jerusalem – hence between 1050BC and 1004BC. Jewish tradition holds that Samuel wrote the Book of Judges.
The timeframe for the Book of Judges is from the death of Joshua (V1:1) to the death of Samson (16:30-31). Approximate dates for these events are 1366BC and 1055BC, so around 300 years.
However, we also realize that Samuel was a Judge but was not included in the Book of Judges, so the time of the Judges actually extends until the kingship of Saul, which is in 1050BC. Samuel’s time as Judge is given to us in the Book of 1 Samuel.
Chapters 1-16 describe the history of the nation’s decline and the cycles she went through. Chapters 17-21 are a sort of addendum to the book. We do not read of any Judges in 17-21 but instead we see the apostasy that existed in Israel during this time. Hence the first part of the book will give us a history of the Judges and the sin cycle while the second part of the book will give us a look at the spiritual condition of the nation.
Many speak of the sin cycle that is present in the Book of Judges (2:11-19). It might be better to view this as a downward sin spiral than a sin cycle since a cycle implies that things went back to the way they were at the beginning. Instead, what we see is a continuous fall. Though there was repentance and revival in each cycle, the nation would never quite get back to where it started. This led to the deterioration of the nation and its eventual turning completely from God and desiring to be like every other nation resulting in her crowning her first king. What starts as a nation ruled by God becomes a nation ruled by man.
At the beginning of the book, we see the 12 Tribes as a single nation. By the end, we see it is each man for himself. When Joshua had finished, God had brought the nation out of Egypt and gave her the land (Josh 24:16-18). Though He had set her up for prosperity, she brought herself into poverty. This came about because she desired her own way rather than God’s. This could be a picture of our nation today.
In the beginning, we see the tribes working together to defeat the enemy. At the end of the book, we see the tribes working together to defeat their own tribe (Benjamin). This could be a picture of Christianity today.
In the Book of Judges, we see that God saves Israel even though they constantly turn away from Him, that when we turn from God, He will hold back His blessings and even use means to bring us to repentance. Israel self-destructs when she gets her values from the pagan world. Falling away from God leads to disarray and an unholy mess but repentance leads to blessings and redemption. It is the book that stands between the receiving of the Promised Land (Joshua) and the Kingdom of Israel (1 Samuel), and so it stands as a lesson that while disobedience leads to troubles, God is Sovereign and His will shall be done regardless.
Chapter 1
V1 - Now it came about after the death of Joshua that the sons of Israel inquired of the Lord, saying, “Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?”
- After Joshua dies, the nation turns to God for leadership
o God is the leader of the nation, not any man
- The word, “LORD”, is the Hebrew Tetragrammaton - Yahweh
o In the Greek translation (Septuagint), this word is translated as “kurios”
§ Kurios is the word that is used to bring us salvation – Romans 10:9 If you confess with your lips that “Jesus is Lord”…you will be saved
- It is good that we should always go to God before making any decisions or actions
- Here we see that at the beginning of the Book of Judges, the nation of Israel has God in her sights
- The Canaanites
o They are the inhabitants of the land before God gave it to Israel (Gen 15:18)
o They are an unruly, unholy people who are a blight on the Earth (Deut 9:5, Lev 18:24-26)
- We should not see this prayer as a prayer from a people who want to prosper and grow their property
o This is a people who are looking to honor God by removing those who are against Him
o They know that God has chosen them for this mission not because they are better but simply because God made a covenant with Abraham and He is faithful to keep it (Deut 7:7-10)
- Instead, we should see this as obedience to what God has called them to do (Deuteronomy 7:1-2, 5-6, 25-26)
V2 - The Lord said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.”
- Judah is one of the 12 Tribes of Israel
o It is the tribe that was prophesied by Jacob to be leader (Gen 49:8-10)
o It is the tribe that Jesus will descend from
- God will always prepares us before He sends us
o Judah was the largest of the Tribes and was most capable of victory
- Before they have even started, God has promised that they will be victorious
o God is the Sovereign who has all things in His control
- Note that although God will accomplish His will, He calls on Judah to be His tool to do His work
o Although God could complete His will without the help of Judah, He determines to use Judah for His glory
o God will typically use us as His tools to perform His will in dealing with man rather than complete it Himself
o The other side of the coin is that man cannot be successful doing God’s work without Him
V3 - Then Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me into the territory allotted me, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I in turn will go with you into the territory allotted you.” So Simeon went with him.
- Judah requests that the Tribe of Simeon join them in the battle
o Simeon was enclosed by the Tribe of Judah
o It was fitting that the Tribes of Judah and Simeon joined together to fight against their enemy
o Perhaps the greatest surprise here is the lack of brotherly support the other Tribes had in not joining Judah in the work
- The promise is that once they have defeated the Canaanites in the land of Judah, they would together go up against those in the land of Simeon
o God expects us to honor our promises and commitments
V4 - Judah went up, and the Lord gave the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hands, and they defeated ten thousand men at Bezek.
- Judah goes and the Lord gave victory
o God waits for us to move in faith first, then He gives us the promise
- Judah gets the victory though Simeon is there with him
o We should not be jealous of our brothers victories for the Glory of God
o God gives glory to whom He chooses
o Not every one can be a hand, some must be elbows and shoulders
o Yet all are important and necessary for the body to work properly
- Though Judah is given the victory, it is the Lord that gives it
o Even in our victories, it is not we who have won it but God
o We glorify God when we do not crave the glory of our victories but instead deflect all the glory to Him, which is right and proper
- The Canaanites and Perizzites were two of the peoples that God commanded the Israelites to utterly destroy (Deut 20:17, Deut 7:1-11)
o Yet we see towards the end of the Old Testament history (circa 520BC), that they are still around (Ezra 9:1)
o They were to be destroyed because their abominations were grievous to God and should have been to His people
§ God’s people should have His heart, whether it is to love when we want to hate or to be angry when we want to be generous. We are to know His heart and have it as our own.
o Archeology has shown us some of the abominations – idol worship (ex: Baal and Molech), temple prostitution, homosexuality, orgies, child sacrifices, ruthless and cruel lovers of war
§ Sadly, even the people of God suffer faithlessness in trusting God that these people deserved annihilation
· It is only after we hear their abominations that we agree with Him
· We should know that it is right simply because God has said it is and not need proof of our God’s righteousness
- Were the people of Bezek Canaanites or Perizzites?
o These two are together throughout the OT, along with the Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites and Hivites
o This is exactly the point God was making: if His people allowed the other peoples to live with them, they too would become part of this mesh of cultures and belief systems which was so ugly to God.
§ In the end, it would be impossible to tell the difference between a Canaanite and an Israelite, just like in Bezek it was impossible to divide the Canaanites and Perizzies.
V5 - They found Adoni-bezek in Bezek and fought against him, and they defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites
- Adoni = Lord
o Adoni-Bezek – the Lord of Bezek – hence the ruler of Bezek
§ Probably took on the name after gaining leadership of Bezek
V6 - But Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and big toes.
- You can run, but you cannot escape the plan God has for you
o Adoni-Bezek was an idol worshipper who despised the One True God and His people and therefore would have to bear the wrath of God
o It is a fearful thing to be in the hands of an angry God (Heb 10:31)
- By cutting off the thumbs and toes, you prevent one from picking up a sword or running away
- It seems a cruel and heartless thing to do until we read the next verse
V7 - Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and their big toes cut off used to gather up scraps under my table; as I have done, so God has repaid me.” So they brought him to Jerusalem and he died there.
- We learn that the fate Adoni-bezek received was simply the fate he had doled out 70 times before
o God had given the law “an eye for an eye” to ensure that any punishment was not greater than the crime had been (Ex 21:23-25)
o God does not punish randomly but gives to us exactly what we deserve
o This is why the Grace of God is so overwhelming (Eph 2:4-5)
§ Though we have sinned against an infinite God and thus deserve infinite punishment, He has not given us what we deserve though faith in His Son Jesus
- Adoni-bezek recognizes he deserves what he received
o He does not believe he was wrongly treated, but fairly
o However, there is no evidence of repentance
§ Without repentance, we cannot find life
§ We must turn from our wicked ways, know that His way is right and determine to do His will
- The fact that he had done this to 70 kings before implies both the greatness of his power and the wickedness of his ways
o Judah and Simeon have defeated a man of great power, but we remember that the victory is God’s
o God is able to make the least great and the greatest least
- He is brought to Jerusalem
o It could be that the death of Adoni-bezek is not part of his punishment but is simply reported by the Bible as the natural ending of any man
o More likely is that once in Jerusalem, he is killed as part of God’s will that the Canaanites and Perizzites be totally destroyed
V8 - Then the sons of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it and struck it with the edge of the sword and set the city on fire.
- Not that Jerusalem is in the hands of the Israelites, but is still being fought for
o Joshua had once killed the king of Jerusalem, but did not take the city (Joshua 10:22-23,26)
o Soon we will see that the Benjamites could not take the city (v21)