March
25th Judges
1
A. Introduction to the period of the Judges
More
land is occupied
1:
Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass, that the children of
Israel asked the LORD, saying, Who shall go up for us against the
Canaanites first, to fight against them? 2:
And the LORD said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the
land into his hand. 3:
And Judah said unto Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot,
that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with
thee into thy lot. So Simeon went with him. 4:
And Judah went up; and the LORD delivered the Canaanites and the
Perizzites into their hand: and they slew of them in Bezek ten
thousand men. 5:
And they found Adoni-bezek in Bezek: and they fought against him, and
they slew the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6:
But Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and
cut off his thumbs and his great toes. 7:
And Adoni-bezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs
and their great toes cut off, gathered their meat under my table: as
I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to
Jerusalem, and there he died. 8:
Now the children of Judah had fought against Jerusalem, and had taken
it, and smitten it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on
fire. 9:
And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the
Canaanites, that dwelt in the mountain, and in the south, and in the
valley. 10:
And Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron: (now the
name of Hebron before was Kirjath-arba:) and they slew Sheshai, and
Ahiman, and Talmai. 11:
And from thence he went against the inhabitants of Debir: and the
name of Debir before was Kirjath-sepher: 12:
And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjath-sepher, and taketh it, to him
will I give Achsah my daughter to wife. 13:
And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it: and
he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. 14:
And it came to pass, when she came to him, that she moved him to ask
of her father a field: and she lighted from off her ass; and Caleb
said unto her, What wilt thou? 15:
And she said unto him, Give me a blessing: for thou hast given me a
south land; give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the
upper springs and the nether springs. 16:
And the children of the Kenite, Moses' father in law, went up out of
the city of palm trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness
of Judah, which lieth in the south of Arad; and they went and dwelt
among the people. 17:
And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they slew the Canaanites
that inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the
city was called Hormah. 18:
Also Judah took Gaza with the coast thereof, and Askelon with the
coast thereof, and Ekron with the coast thereof. 19:
And the LORD was with Judah; and he drave out the inhabitants of the
mountain; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley,
because they had chariots of iron. 20:
And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses said: and he expelled
thence the three sons of Anak. 21:
And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that
inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of
Benjamin in Jerusalem unto this day. 22:
And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Bethel: and the
LORD was with them. 23:
And the house of Joseph sent to descry Bethel. (Now the name of the
city before was Luz.) 24:
And the spies saw a man come forth out of the city, and they said
unto him, Shew us, we pray thee, the entrance into the city, and we
will shew thee mercy. 25:
And when he shewed them the entrance into the city, they smote the
city with the edge of the sword; but they let go the man and all his
family. 26:
And the man went into the land of the Hittites, and built a city, and
called the name thereof Luz: which is the name thereof unto this day.
Some
land is left unoccupied
27:
Neither did Manasseh drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean and her
towns, nor Taanach and her towns, nor the inhabitants of Dor and her
towns, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and her towns, nor the
inhabitants of Megiddo and her towns: but the Canaanites would dwell
in that land. 28:
And it came to pass, when Israel was strong, that they put the
Canaanites to tribute, and did not utterly drive them out. 29:
Neither did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer; but
the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them. 30:
Neither did Zebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the
inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and
became tributaries. 31:
Neither did Asher drive out the inhabitants of Accho, nor the
inhabitants of Zidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor
of Aphik, nor of Rehob: 32:
But the Asherites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the
land: for they did not drive them out. 33:
Neither did Naphtali drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, nor
the inhabitants of Beth-anath; but he dwelt among the Canaanites, the
inhabitants of the land: nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh
and of Beth-anath became tributaries unto them. 34:
And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the mountain: for
they would not suffer them to come down to the valley: 35:
But the Amorites would dwell in mount Heres in Aijalon, and in
Shaalbim: yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they
became tributaries. 36:
And the coast of the Amorites was from the going up to Akrabbim, from
the rock, and upward.
Judges
2 The Angel of the Lord at Bochim
1:
And an angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I
made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land
which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my
covenant with you. 2:
And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye
shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my voice: why
have ye done this? 3:
Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but
they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a
snare unto you. 4:
And it came to pass, when the angel of the LORD spake these words
unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their
voice, and wept. 5:
And they called the name of that place Bochim: and they sacrificed
there unto the LORD.
Joshua’s
death
6:
And when Joshua had let the people go, the children of Israel went
every man unto his inheritance to possess the land. 7:
And the people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the
days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great
works of the LORD, that he did for Israel. 8:
And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being an
hundred and ten years old. 9:
And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in
Timnath-heres, in the mount of Ephraim, on the north side of the hill
Gaash. 10:
And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and
there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD,
nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.
Israel
served Baal and Ashtaroth
11:
And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and
served Baalim: 12:
And they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them
out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the
people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them,
and provoked the LORD to anger. 13:
And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth. 14:
And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he delivered
them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them
into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not
any longer stand before their enemies. 15:
Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them
for evil, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them:
and they were greatly distressed. 16:
Nevertheless the LORD raised up judges, which delivered them out of
the hand of those that spoiled them. 17:
And yet they would not hearken unto their judges, but they went a
whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them: they turned
quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obeying the
commandments of the LORD; but they did not so. 18:
And when the LORD raised them up judges, then the LORD was with the
judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the
days of the judge: for it repented the LORD because of their
groanings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them. 19:
And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they returned, and
corrupted themselves more than their fathers, in following other gods
to serve them, and to bow down unto them; they ceased not from their
own doings, nor from their stubborn way. 20:
And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel; and he said,
Because that this people hath transgressed my covenant which I
commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto my voice; 21:
I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the
nations which Joshua left when he died: 22:
That through them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way
of the LORD to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not.
23:
Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out
hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.
Judges
3 B. The period of the Judges Nation unconquered
1:
Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to prove Israel by
them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan;
2:
Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to
teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof; 3:
Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and
the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from
mount Baal-hermon unto the entering in of Hamath. 4:
And they were to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would
hearken unto the commandments of the LORD, which he commanded their
fathers by the hand of Moses. 5:
And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, and
Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites: 6:
And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their
daughters to their sons, and served their gods.
Othniel
delivers Israel 40 yrs
7:
And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and
forgat the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves. 8:
Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold
them into the hand of Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the
children of Israel served Chushan-rishathaim eight years. 9:
And when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised
up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even
Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. 10:
And the Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel, and
went out to war: and the LORD delivered Chushan-rishathaim king of
Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against
Chushan-rishathaim. 11:
And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
Ehud
delivers Israel 80 yrs
12:
And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD:
and the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel,
because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD. 13:
And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went
and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees. 14:
So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen
years. 15:
But when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised
them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man
lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto
Eglon the king of Moab. 16:
But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length;
and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh. 17:
And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was a
very fat man. 18:
And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the
people that bare the present. 19:
But he himself turned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal,
and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, O king: who said, Keep
silence. And all that stood by him went out from him. 20:
And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which
he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God
unto thee. And he arose out of his seat. 21:
And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right
thigh, and thrust it into his belly: 22:
And the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon
the blade, so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly; and
the dirt came out. 23:
Then Ehud went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the
parlour upon him, and locked them. 24:
When he was gone out, his servants came; and when they saw that,
behold, the doors of the parlour were locked, they said, Surely he
covereth his feet in his summer chamber. 25:
And they tarried till they were ashamed: and, behold, he opened not
the doors of the parlour; therefore they took a key, and opened them:
and, behold, their lord was fallen down dead on the earth. 26:
And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quarries,
and escaped unto Seirath. 27:
And it came to pass, when he was come, that he blew a trumpet in the
mountain of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him
from the mount, and he before them. 28:
And he said unto them, Follow after me: for the LORD hath delivered
your enemies the Moabites into your hand. And they went down after
him, and took the fords of Jordan toward Moab, and suffered not a man
to pass over. 29:
And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, all lusty,
and all men of valour; and there escaped not a man. 30:
So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land
had rest fourscore years.
Shamgar
delivers Israel
31:
And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the
Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered
Israel.
In todays Bible
reading we are introduced to the period in the history of Israel
known as ‘The Judges’. The Judges are 12 Heroes of Israel who
through a cycle of Victory and defeat bring deliverance to Israel
over a period of 490 years. This is the ‘70 weeks’ of the Judges.
The
Entrance into Canaan
The
Judges
490 years 70 weeks
The
Establishment of the Kingdom under Saul
The
Monarchy
490 years 70 weeks
The
Captivity in Babylon
There
are other periods of 490 years or 70 weeks in scripture.
The
Birth of Abraham
The Patriarchs
505
yrs less 15 yrs when Ishmael delayed
505 – 15 =
490 yrs
The
Exodus
The Tabernacle
573 yrs less 93 Israel
oppressed +
10yrs of temple = 490 years
The
foundation of the Temple
The
Temple 560
yrs less the 70 year
captivity 560
– 70 = 490 years
Nehemiah’s
return in the 20th
year of Artaxerxes
The Times of
Gentiles 49yrs
+ 434yrs less –
the age of
Grace + 7yrs Tribulation = 490 yrs
The
coming of the Son of Man in Glory and Power in his Kingdom
This book of 21 chapters was probably written by Samuel. It covers the period from after the victories of Joshua to before Saul becomes King. The book shows that disobedience or partial obedience brings repeated disaster, but God loves his people and they only need to turn back to Him. The book also shows that God can and will use defective people to fulfill his purposes. These were days when there was no King and little civilization. Everyone did just what he or she wanted to do. Perhaps the greatest judge was Deborah, a woman of courage and insight. Perhaps the greatest failure was Samson, a man of the flesh, like Solomon. His greatest victory was on the day that he finally died to the flesh.
Israel
seemed to be locked into a cycle of victory and defeat.
- The Nation serving God
- The Nation do evil in the sight of the Lord
- The Nation oppressed by their enemies
- The Nation cry unto the Lord, humble themselves and turn from their sins
- A Judge is raised up by the Lord and he or she delivers the nation - Then back to 1 again.
Proverbs
14:34 Righteousness
exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.
In the first two
chapters we are introduced to the period of the Judges. More land is
being occupied by Israel but there is still some land left
unconquered. Then in Ch 2 we have the interesting case of the angel
of the Lord at Bochim and the death of Joshua. Then we see why the
fears of Joshua were so well founded – Israel descends into the
idol worship of Baal and Ashtoroth. Chapter 3 introduces us to the
first three judges, Othniel, Ehud and Shamgar. But let’s get back
to Chapter 1. After the death of Joshua the tribes of Judah and
Simeon went to battle again and the lord gave them victory killing
10,000 men. They fought against Adoni-Bezek and cut off his thumbs
and great toes to humble him and later he died. Then the children of
Israel had fought against Jerusalem and destroyed it by fire. This
was just the beginning of a series of battles. In their adventures
they killed three giants, sons of Anak, who were left over from those
that Joshua killed. The rest of the tribes failed to drive out all
the inhabitants of the land. Then we have the interesting case of the
Angel of the Lord that went from Gilgal to Bochim probably near
Bethel. Here the Lord says why have you not driven out the people?
Now he says l will not drive them out and they will be a constant
snare to you. When the Children of Israel heard this they wept. What
a sad day this was for Israel. Then we have a repeat of the end of
the book of Joshua except that this time it says that the generation
that followed after the elders of Joshua forsook the Lord and did not
remember the works of the Lord. and so we read that the Children of
Israel worshipped Baal. And so the Lord, in anger, delivered them to
their enemies who enslaved them. However the Lord raised up Judges
who delivered Israel from their oppressors. However every time they
the judge died they forsook the Lord again. So the Lord set before
Israel a moral test of loyalty to himself and this was in the form of
a temptation to idolatry. Israel lived and intermarried with the
enemies of God. The first Judge that the Lord raised up was Othniel.
He delivered them from the Metsopotamia king Chushan-rishathaim. He
oppressed Israel for 8 years. Othniel was Calebs younger brother. He
was empowered by the Holy Spirit and he went to war and over came his
enemies and because of his victories they had peace for 40 years and
then he died. Then the children of Israel were oppressed by the
Moabities for 18 years. Then when Israel turned to the Lord he raised
up a new judge Ehud. Ehud made a dagger of 16” long and went to the
king and spoke to him saying he had a gift for him. the king was a
very fat man and Ehud killed him with the dagger. Then Ehud led a
great victory over Moab and he judged Israel for 80 years. Then again
Israel turned against the Lord and the Lord raised up the Philistines
to oppresses them but when Israel called on the Lord the Lord sent
Shamgar who killed six hundred men with an ox goad. (An implement for
leading Oxen.)
- How did Joshua leave the children of Israel?
- How many periods of 70 weeks are there?
- Start a list of the judges and note things about their lives.
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