Judges Judges
Judges
Introduction
At a Glance
Author: Samuel the prophet
Audience: Originally Israel, but this theological history speaks to everyone
Date: 1200–970 BC
Type of Literature: Theological history, prophetic literature
Major Themes: Idolatry and apostasy; disobedience and deliverance; godly leadership; seeing Jesus in the book
Outline:
I. Disobedience: Israel Turns from God — 1:1–2:5
a. Victory and Defeat — 1:1–36
b. Divine Mercy — 2:1–5
II. Discipline: The Lord Chastens Israel — 2:6–16:31
a. Israel’s Disobedience and Defeat — 2:6–3:6
b. Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar — 3:7–31
c. Deborah and Barak — 4:1–5:31
d. Gideon — 6:1–8:32
e. Abimelech — 8:33–9:57
f. Tola and Jair — 10:1–5
g. Jephthah — 10:6–12:7
h. Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon — 12:8–15:20
i. Samson — 13:1–16:31
III. Disgrace: Israel Sinks into Anarchy — 17:1–21:25
a. Idolatry — 17:1–18:31
b. Immorality — 19:1–30
c. Civil War — 20:1–21:25
About the Book of Judges
The seventh book of the Bible in the Hebrew Scriptures is Shophetim, # Shophetim could also be translated, “avengers,” “punishers,” “defenders,” “deliverers,” “saviors,” or possibly “governors.” In a sense, there is a dynamic at play in the Old Testament that mirrors the New Testament: Joshua parallels the book of Ephesians; Judges parallels the book of Galatians, for the message of Galatians leads the people of God out of error and bondage. The twelve judges have a parallel with the twelve apostles of Jesus. The book of Judges can be viewed as an apostolic manual for “last days” ministries. The judges were forerunners of the kingdom. God has promised that he will restore the era of deliverers (judges) in the last days to bring the church into complete victory. See Isa. 1:26; Obad. 21. or “Judges.” It describes the various men and women who distinguished themselves in Israel during the time period between the book of Joshua and the establishment of a kingdom in 1 Samuel. For four hundred years, Israel had no king or prophet to guide them. Instead, twelve consecutive judges led them. But the Hebrew word for “judge” has little comparison to the western concept of a judge, one who sits on the bench judging court cases argued by trained lawyers.
No, the judges were not law-court justices. Instead, they were Israel’s champion-deliverers. God chose them to deliver Israel from enemy oppression, lead the people of God into a revival, and restore their national identity. The role of these deliverers cannot be understated, for without their impact and deliverance, Israel’s enemies may have entirely consumed them. Some of the deliverers are well-known biblical champions, and others are somewhat obscure.
Who were the judges? They were unique men and women who carried God’s presence—his Spirit—and were commissioned to deliver the people of Israel from the oppression of their enemies. They were saviors and rescuers, whom God raised up at the right time to rally the nation and bring victory to Israel. They were twelve divinely appointed champions who brought the people out of the wilderness mentality and into divine order and breakthrough when no one else could. Here are the six major judges and six minor judges:
| Major Judges | Minor Judges |
|---|---|
| Gideon | Shamgar |
| Jephthah | Elon |
| Deborah | Jair |
| Ehud | Tola |
| Samson | Abdon |
| Othniel | Ibzan |
The world of the judges had many similarities to the modern times we are living in now, making this book even more relevant for readers today. Throughout Judges, “Israel had no king” (17:6); when Jesus is not our King, the opinions of man rule. Then, “people did whatever they wanted to do” (17:6); today, wrong is celebrated, and that which is right is ridiculed. God’s people were divided and fighting among themselves; today, divisions are rampant in our culture and in the church. God’s people were conquered by many evil enemies; today, spiritual strongholds of hatred, sexual confusion, pride, and prejudice need to be overcome.
But even in the midst of all this darkness, God’s merciful and loving character and his heart to deliver his people despite their failures remains the same. In the former days of Israel, “Yahweh raised up deliverers from among them who rescued them from the marauding bands. . . . His presence and power were with that leader, and he would rescue the people from their enemies as long as that deliverer lived” (2:16, 18). Yahweh still raises up such people, filled with faith and courage. He’s doing it today. These are God’s deliverers.
Purpose
The book of Judges explores one of the most crucial periods in the history of Israel, one of transition from slaves of Egypt to citizens of a kingdom. It showcases how Israel failed to live up to the covenant that Yahweh lovingly entered into with them and the resulting disastrous downfall and near destruction. It serves to warn the mind of the ease with which our human frailty and wandering ways can turn us from Yahweh. Yet it also serves to warm the heart by shining a bright revelation-light on our Savior’s unspeakable compassion and long-suffering in the face of apostasy and disobedience.
One of the reasons Judges is in our Bible is to show us that God uses imperfect people. He looks for those who are available, teachable, and obedient. Each of the judges had some form of weakness or handicap that would disqualify him or her in the eyes of some. But God looks on the heart and specifically chose each one to demonstrate his power flowing through human weakness. # See Zech. 4:6; 1 Cor. 1:18–31; 2 Cor. 12:9. Yet while there was little to inspire us about their moral character, we do find a font of faith flowing from their lives.
Although Judges exposes the many failures of God’s people, it also reveals the faith of champions who chose to challenge the status quo, trusting in God’s sovereign goodness and revealing his mighty power. The secret of their success was the anointing of the Holy Spirit (Judg. 6:34) combined with an active faith in Yahweh. In fact, four of the deliverers are mentioned in the “Hall of Faith” found in Hebrews 11:32. As the book reveals: “Through faith’s power they conquered kingdoms and established true justice. . . . It was faith that shut the mouth of lions, put out the power of raging fire, and caused many to escape certain death by the sword. Although weak, their faith imparted power to make them strong!” (Heb. 11:33–34).
Judges is classified by our Jewish friends among the books of the Bible known as the “Former Prophets” (which also includes Joshua, Samuel, and Kings). This means that the content of Judges can be considered prophecy; this book prophesies to the church today (1 Cor. 10:11), instructing us of the ways of God through the voices of champion-deliverers who believed the Word of Yahweh, confronted enemies inside and outside his people, and fought for their deliverance.
Author and Audience
Jewish tradition states that the prophet Samuel wrote the book of Judges. # Samuel is traditionally viewed as the author of 1 and 2 Samuel and Ruth in addition to Judges. (See Bava Batra 14.b.) Many modern scholars believe there were also editorial revisions either during the reign of King Josiah or during the Babylonian exile. Either way, the book was an important reminder for God’s chosen people, the Israelites, of a dark period in their history when they “did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh” (Judg. 2:11), when they “deserted” and “completely abandoned Yahweh” (2:12, 13), and when “Israel had no king, and everyone did whatever they wanted to do” (21:25). But it wasn’t just the people in general who behaved badly; neither the deliverers God sent nor the tribal leaders exhibited godly character and obedience. Yahweh ultimately used flawed individuals to rescue his disobedient people. He still does.
Although the book was originally written to Israel, this theological history speaks to everyone. Every subsequent generation of God’s people, the church of Jesus Christ, is tempted to imitate Israel’s actions: do what is evil, desert and abandon their first love, and do whatever they want to do. Part of this is related to the fact that, like Israel, we are “resident aliens and foreigners in this world” (1 Pet. 2:11), living in a culture that presses in against us and pulls us toward wickedness. It also illustrates the maxim “everything rises and falls on leadership,” # John C. Maxwell, 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader (Thomas Nelson, 2007). for flawed, wicked leaders quite often lead flawed, wicked people.
The book of Judges stands as a reminder, from the Israelites to the church, of the perennial challenge to live for God, obey his Word, and guard against the spiritual influence of the world we find ourselves in.
Major Themes
Idolatry and Apostasy. The book of Judges could be classified as a tragedy, for it recounts Israel’s history after the death of Joshua and their downward spiral into idolatry and apostasy. Two verses bookend this account, explaining the entirety of this sordid history: “Eventually, after that entire generation died and was buried, the next generation forgot Yahweh and all that he had done for Israel. The Israelites did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh and worshiped the images of Baal” (Judg. 2:10, 11); “In those days, Israel had no king, and everyone did whatever they wanted to do” (21:25).
Every generation subsequent to the death of Joshua stood accused of two things: worshiping false gods and living however they pleased. They forgot the wonders in the wilderness, the manna, the split-open rock which gave them water. Then later, the miracle-parting of the Jordan, the walls of Jericho falling down, the sun standing still, the empowerment of God to conquer their foes, and the many miracles of Yahweh under Joshua’s leadership. How easy it is for the second generation of any movement to forget the power of the first generation, the truths they held on to, and the way they lived. How often we enshrine the memories of the past but fail to believe and apply the power present today to advance in the ways of God. In the case of Israel, we know why: they bowed before the false gods of the nations Yahweh warned against, wrecking their faith and leading to their near destruction.
Not only did Israel settle among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, taking their daughters in marriage and marrying their own daughters to the foreigners’ sons—they also served their false gods. In the absence of leadership directing Israel’s hearts toward God in worship, there was a void. They filled it with false gods and a rejection of Yahweh’s truth, leading to a life far from the heart of God. The cycle led to a four-hundred-year pattern of disobedience and deliverance from which the “last days” church would do well to learn.
Disobedience and Deliverance. During these crucial centuries in the life of Israel recorded in the book of Judges, there is a curious cycle in which Israel’s disobedience and wickedness leads to punishment, which then cycles into prayers for rescue and Yahweh answering them to bring about a mighty deliverance.
This pattern within the book of Judges is repeated seven times in this way: Israel does what is “evil in the sight of Yahweh” (Judg. 2:11), then the people are given over into the hands of their enemies; Israel cries out to Yahweh, then he answers their prayer; Yahweh raises up a leader, then the Spirit of Yahweh comes upon the leader; Yahweh gives Israel a mighty deliverance through God’s grace imparted to his deliverers; the people return to the Lord, and peace is regained for a season.
Chapter 6 offers a clear illustration of this principle: “Once again the Israelites did evil in the sight of Yahweh, so Yahweh handed them over to the Midianites for seven years” (v. 1). In response to the Midianites’ crushing power, “the Israelites, with shattered hearts, cried out to Yahweh” (v. 6). So Yahweh sent them Gideon, promising: “My presence and my power will be with you. Believe me, Gideon, you will crush the Midianites as easily as if they were only one man!” (v. 16). Through God’s empowering of this champion-deliverer, “Israel defeated Midian, who never troubled them again. The land had peace for forty years until Gideon died” (8:28).
The commentator Matthew Henry offers an important observation about this cycle: “The nation made themselves as mean and miserable by forsaking God, as they would have been great and happy if they had continued faithful to him.” # Matthew Henry and Thomas Scott, Commentary on the Holy Bible, Genesis–Esther (Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1979), 66. The book of Judges has served as a clarion call for generations of Yahweh’s children, instructing them in his ways and truth and calling them to faithful obedience. It offers a warning for the kind of swift discipline that awaits disobedience. It also assures us of Yahweh’s blessed deliverance for the repentant. Though Israel was faithless and disobedient, Yahweh was faithful with deliverance. He was then—and he is now—offering the same deliverance yesterday, today, and forever.
Godly Leadership. Everything rises and falls on leadership, they say. The book of Judges ends with a rather ominous warning illustrating this maxim—not only summarizing this period of the deliverers but also foreshadowing what was to come: “In those days, Israel had no king, and everyone did whatever they wanted to do” (Judg. 21:25).
The book begins with a look back at Joshua, the leader who “released the people to go take possession of their territorial inheritance” (2:6). Under Joshua, the people did what was right under such Spirit-empowered leadership. However, once he died and the entire generation under his leadership was buried, “the next generation forgot Yahweh and all that he had done for Israel” (2:10), leading to cycles of disobedience and punishment.
Yet the Lord didn’t abandon his people; he raised up deliverers to rescue them. These champions were not left to their own devices either, as if Yahweh called them without empowering them. No, “whenever Yahweh raised up a hero for them, his presence and power were with that leader, and he would rescue the people from their enemies as long as that deliverer lived” (2:18). What a comfort to know that when the Lord calls us, he empowers us; he will be with us wherever we go.
However, this doesn’t mean there is no room for our own participation in God’s empowerment. For the book of Judges also illustrates the other side of Spirit-empowered leadership: failure. Perhaps the model of such failed leadership is Samson, the last of the major deliverers. Samson was a mighty deliverer but riddled with compromise. He could tear a lion apart but could not control his lust. He was one man in the Bible who had some of the greatest potential, but he proved to be one of the greatest disappointments. Samson was a leader, a “man’s man,” with God’s Spirit to strengthen him, yet he left a legacy of compromise and moral weakness. In spite of all this, Samson is listed in Hebrews 11:32 as a man of great faith. He ultimately returned to the heart of God and asked to be used by him, delivering God’s judgment upon the Philistines and leading Israel to deliverance.
We can expect the Lord to speak to his leaders and to his people today, but they must consult Yahweh in prayer and seek him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. May the lives of the champion-deliverers throughout the book of Judges compel us to offer Christ’s church good and godly Spirit-empowered leadership during these last days.
Seeing Jesus in the Book. Throughout the book of Judges we meet twelve champion-deliverers—six major, six minor—who brought Israel into divine breakthrough when no one else could. They reveal the heart of God through not only their character and devotion but also their availability and faithfulness to the mission of God. We also find another revelation-truth embedded within each of these twelve individuals: each of the champion-deliverers reveals Jesus Christ in some way.
We see Jesus Christ revealed in the book of Judges as:
Our true Savior and Judge who delivers his people (Luke 4:18–19)
Our heavenly Othniel who obtained his bride (Judg. 1:12–15; 3:7–11)
The angel of the Lord (Judg. 2:1–5)
The tent peg/nail in the head of Sisera (Judg. 4:21; 5:26; Isa. 22:23)
The torch within the clay jars (Judg. 7:16–20; 2 Cor. 4:7)
Honey in the carcass of the lion (Judg. 14:8–18)
The jawbone (power of his prophetic word) of the donkey (Judg. 15:15–20)
The King in Israel (Judg. 17:6; 21:25)
These glimpses of our ultimate Champion-Deliverer in the book of Judges mirror the Bible’s overarching theme throughout the Hebrew Scriptures of God’s self-initiative in redeeming sinful humanity—which finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus. We find embedded here at least a hint of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, his resurrection, his ascension into heaven, and glimpses of all that the believer enjoys in following him. As the apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, “Remember what you were taught from your childhood from the Holy Scrolls [the Hebrew Scriptures], which can impart to you wisdom to experience everlasting life through the faith of Jesus, the Anointed One!” (2 Tim. 3:15). In the book of Judges, this everlasting-life wisdom streams forth.
Judges
Champion-Deliverers
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