Category: <span>Commentary</span>

Often writers wish to save their most telling ideas for the end of their composition. The author of Judges seems to have followed suit. Judges 19-21 reveals that while Israel finally united to address the covenant decay that had characterized the nation since the death of Joshua, even their best efforts at justice were little more than each man doing whatever he wanted (Judg 21:25).

The description of the Levite and his concubine in Judges 19 displays the depth of depravity in Israel. When the Levite was able to take his concubine and depart for his home to the north in Ephraim (Judg 19:1), the Levite insisted that they “not stop at a foreign city where there are no Israelites” (Judg 19:12). Their hopes for hospitality were delayed until an old man vigorously took them in (Judg 19:13-21). But “all of a sudden, perverted men of the city surrounded the house and beat on the door” (Judg 19:22). To allow the peace of the meal to continue, the Levite casually tossed his concubine to the mongrels; it would be her last night. The Levite’s command to her limp body, “Get up…let’s go” (Judg 19:28), confirmed that despite earlier hints of genuine affection for the woman, his ethics were on par with the men of the Gibeah who had violated her all night long. When the Levite realized that such a thing should not be done among God’s people, he sought a response from the tribes of Israel (Judg 19:29-30).

In Judges 20, the author describes how the tribes responded to the Levite’s inquiry. The text is marked by Israel’s coherent response. “All the people stood united” (Judg 20:8) and they “went to Bethel, and inquired of God” (Judg 20:18). Upon the Lord’s assurance that He would hand the Benjamites over to them, Israel set up an intricate ambush against Gibeah (Judg 20:29-45); and “the LORD defeated Benjamin in the presence of Israel, and on that day the Israelites slaughtered 25,100 men of Benjamin” (Judg 20:35). Israel spared none of the inhabitants of Gibeah (Judg 20:46-48). But the excessive slaughter had produced an unexpected result: an entire tribe had been nearly destroyed and the people cried out to the Lord, “Why, LORD God of Israel, has it occurred that one tribe is missing in Israel today?” (Judg 21:3). The matter was complicated by the fact that at Mizpah the Israelites vowed to restrict the men of Benjamin from taking a wife from outside of his own tribe (Judg 21:1, 18). The united tribes of Israel made two attempts to fix the problem. First, they provided the surviving Benjamite men with the virgins of Jabesh-gilead (Judg 21:6-14). Yet, even this violent scheme proved ineffective as 200 of the 600 Benjamite fugitives (see Judg 20:47) remained bachelors. They then encouraged these 200 Benjamites to take hostage the women of Shiloh and make wives of them (Judg 21:15-23). The book of Judges fades to black as “each of the Israelites returned…to his own tribe and family…to his own inheritance. In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did whatever he wanted” (Judg 21:24-25).

Israel had the land but they failed to keep the law. In the storyline of Scripture, the book of Judges is the initial fulfillment of the prophecies of both Moses and Joshua. On the plains of Moab, Moses warned, “If your heart turns away and you do not listen and you are led astray to bow down to other gods and worship them, I tell you today that you will certainly perish and will not live long in the land you are entering to possess across the Jordan” (Deut 30:17-18). Joshua said, “If you turn away and cling to the rest of these nations remaining among you, and if you intermarry or associate with them and they with you, know for certain that the LORD your God will not continue to drive these nations out before you. They will become a snare and a trap for you” (Josh 23: 12-13). Moses prophesied that only when God circumcised the hearts of the people of Israel would they heed His word (Deut 30:1-6). After Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension this change of heart is said to be accomplished by the Holy Spirit. Paul wrote to the Romans, “A person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is of the heart—by the Spirit, not the letter (of the law)” (Rom 2:9).

The author of Judges was not content to blandly state the waywardness of God’s people. He arranged his material in such a way as to display the degree of shameful behavior that characterized Israel. During the period of the Judges, few were faithful to the law.

The initial description of Micah’s household magnifies what the author of Judges emphasized in the story of Jephthah in Judges 11. Self-serving religious activity is often characterized by attempts to coerce God. In Judges 17, Micah and his mother attempted to manipulate God not through a rash vow but by means of religious objects and institutions. When Micah’s mother received 1,100 pieces of silver, she did what was right in her own eyes saying, “I personally consecrate the silver to the LORD for my son’s benefit to make a carved image overlaid with silver” (Judg 17:3). She made an idol to the Lord—utter disregard for the law. But Micah’s unfaithfulness went further. He “had a shrine, and he made an ephod and household idols, and installed one of his sons to be his priest” (Judg 17:5). With this pseudo-religious rubric in place, when a wandering Levite inquired of Micah if he could stay with him, Micah hired the Levite as his own private household priest (Judg 17:7-12). Micah said, “Now I know that the LORD will be good to me, because a Levite has become my priest” (Judg 17:13).

But Micah would soon discover that idols and a priest were no substitute for true devotion to God. Since Micah had hired his priest, his priest was for hire. Judges 18 records that when the Danites sent spies to explore the land to the north and came to the hill country of Ephraim, they stayed at Micah’s house. They recognized the southern accent of the Levite from Judah who was serving as Micah’s personal priest (Judg 18:2-4). When the Danites arose to overtake Laish, they plundered Micah of his idols and his priest (Judg 18:11-17). The Levite was persuaded, even pleased, by the Danites’ appeal when he heard them say, “Come with us and be a father and a priest to us. Is it better for you to be a priest for the house of one person or for you to be a priest for a tribe and family in Israel?” (Judg 18:19). Everyone in Israel was practicing their religion in a way that seemed right in their own eyes.

The story of Micah and his priest in Judges 17-18 reveals that many in Israel thought God’s blessing could be secured by (partial) conformity to various elements of their cultic system, like having a Levite as a household priest. Some in the days of the New Testament held to these practices, especially circumcision and Sabbath keeping, in hopes of earning God’s favor and securing temporary blessings based upon superstition. The New Testament writers argued that these religious practices were not an end in themselves but part of the broader storyline of Scripture that unfolds God’s redemptive work in Christ.

(1) Paul exhorted the Colossians, “Be careful that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit based on human tradition, based on the elemental forces of the world, and not based on Christ” (Col 2:8).

(2) The author of Hebrews wrote, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Don’t be led astray by various kinds of strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be established by grace and not by foods, since those involved in them have not benefited” (Heb 13:8-9).

After the Lord submitted Israel to the will of the Philistines for forty years, He raised up Samson to deliver His people. Samson’s leadership points to the fact that God’s purposes to establish His corporate people go beyond, and often conspicuously encompasses, the moral failure of those whom He has called to lead. While the Lord used Samson mightily, Samson’s irreverence before Delilah earned him the just condemnation of one who had so carelessly regarded the special call of a Nazirite.

Judges 13 begins with the angelic announcement that Manoah and his wife would have a son, Samson. The proclamation that Samson would “begin to deliver Israel from the power of the Philistines” (Judg 13:5) was inextricably linked to the command that his parents raise him to be a Nazirite from birth. Samson’s parents were faithful and from his early days, “the Sprit of the LORD began to direct him in the Camp of Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol” (Judg 13:25).

The narrative of Judges 14-15 reveals that Samson’s ways fell short of one wholly devoted to the Lord. Samson’s initial moral blemish involved lust for women (Judg 14:1-2). Then Samson ate honey from a dead animal (Judg 14:8-10), a clear violation of Samson’s Nazirite commitment (see Numbers 6). Samson was arrogant in his defiance of the Nazarite vow, enticing the Philistines with a riddle and wager as to what he had done (Judg 14:12-18). Yet, as is the case throughout the narrative of the Old Testament, God’s activity was compatible with even Samson’s moral lapse. Judges 14:4 records that Samson’s lust for a Philistine wife was actually “from the LORD” (Judg 14:4; see also Gen 50:20).

Nonetheless, Samson’s persistent lust would eventually lead to his demise (Judges 16). Samson’s love for Delilah was so strong that it did not wane even after several episodes where she employed trickery to discover the source of his strength (Judg 16:6-15). Finally, in an act of irreverence, Samson revealed to Delilah, “My hair has never been cut, because I am a Nazirite to God from birth. If I am shaved, my strength will leave me” (Judg 16:17). Samson would soon discover that—for the first time—“the LORD had left him” (Judg 16:20). Samson lost not only his strength but also his sight and his dignity (Judg 16:20-27). In the end, the Lord again worked on behalf of His people despite the failures of Samson, and thousands of Philistines were killed (Judg 16:28-30).

Samson’s behavior was typical of Israel in the time of the Judges. He did whatever he wanted (Judg 21:25). Despite Samson’s moral weakness, the Spirit of the Lord came upon him to deliver Israel from the Philistines (Judg 14:6, 19; 15:14). Samson, like Othniel (Judg 3:10), Gideon (Judg 6:34), and Jephthah (Judg 11:29), received aid from the Spirit for the work God had planned for him. Likewise, the Spirit of God empowered both Saul (1 Sam 10:6, 10; 16:14) and David (1 Sam 16:13; 2 Sam 23:2) for leadership. During Israel’s occupation of Canaan, the ministry of the Spirit was enjoyed primarily by those called to positions of leadership. After the coming of Christ, the ministry of the Spirit is more pervasive in the community of believers invigorating each member for ministry. The same Spirit who empowered Israel’s leaders for their work also enables believers for service in their local churches and in the world. To the Corinthians, Paul wrote, “A manifestation of the Spirit is given to each person to produce what is beneficial…one and the same Spirit is active in all these distributing to each one as He wills” (1 Cor 12:7, 11), and later wrote, “Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. We all, with unveiled faces, are reflecting the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit” (2 Cor 3:17-18). And in Rom 7:6, Paul wrote that believers have been released from the law “so that we may serve in the new way of the Spirit.”

Judges 9-12 records some of the most disturbing scenes in the Old Testament. The leadership of Abimelech and Jephthah, which was founded on love of power and bargaining with God, represents Israel’s downward spiral in the days of the judges.

Abimelech’s leadership was founded on a desire for power (Judges 9). Gideon’s many wives bore him 70 sons and his concubine in Shechem bore him Abimelech. Abimelech´s rise to power in Israel came at a time when there was a leadership vacuum following the death of his father, Gideon. In this state of affairs Abimelech approached his kin in Shechem, a historic and noteworthy city (see Gen 12:6-7; Joshua 24), with the proposition that they either “remember that I am your own flesh and blood” (Judg 9:2) and invite him to rule over them or allow Gideon’s other 70 sons—non-relatives—to fill the leadership void in Israel. The men of Shechem were easily persuaded (Judg 9:3) and with their payment Abimelech “hired worthless and reckless men…and they followed him” (Judg 9:4). Together they slaughtered all of Gideon’s sons, save Jotham, who confronted the leaders of Shechem because they had not “done well by Jerubbaal (Gideon)” (Judg 9:16), nor properly rewarded Gideon’s family for all that he had done.

Jephthah’s judgeship was characterized by bargaining with God (Judg 10:6-12:7). When the Israelites again worshiped the gods of the Canaanites inhabiting the land, the Lord handed Israel over to those pagan nations. Only the Lord’s pity saved Israel, as “He became weary of Israel’s misery” (Judg 10:16). After an unsuccessful attempt to engage the Ammonite king in diplomacy (Judg 11:12-28), Jephthah “made his vow to the LORD: ‘If You will hand over the Ammonites to me, whatever comes out of the doors of my house to greet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites will belong to the LORD, and I will offer it as a burnt offering” (Judg 11:31). The author of Judges wrote only two verses to record the great slaughter that ensued as the Lord handed the Ammonites over to Jephthah and the Israelite warriors, but seven verses (Judg11:34-40) to detail Jephthah’s remorse for bargaining with God when he vowed to offer one from his own household as a burnt sacrifice if the Lord gave him victory over the Ammonites.

Abimelech’s and Jephthah’s pursuit of power and attempts to bargain with God provide points of contrast with the new covenant ministry of Paul. Paul was ministering in a different epoch than the judges of Israel. Because of Christ, Paul operated with a greater understanding of God’s faithfulness. Paul’s confidence in God buoyed him to be forthright and honest in his relationship with the Corinthians. They had questioned Paul’s apostleship because between the time of writing 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians, he had changed his travel plans. While Paul had written saying, “I will come to you after I pass through Macedonia—for I will be traveling through Macedonia—and perhaps I will remain with you, or even spend the winter, that you may send me on my way wherever I go. I don’t want to see you now just in passing, for I hope to spend some time with you” (1 Cor 16:5-6a), he changed course and actually avoided them for a time. Paul delayed his visit, he went on to tell them in 2 Cor 1:23-2:2, because their behavior was worthy of discipline and Paul did not want to inflict pain on them or himself. Paul opened 2 Corinthians by defending himself in the matter—and he did so in light of God’s faithfulness in Christ. For Paul, the vows and maneuvering that characterized Abimelech and Jephthah were unnecessary. Paul placed his ministry and travels at the mercy of God in Christ noting that all of God’s promises are confirmed in Him. (2 Cor 1:15-20).

God allowed Israel’s enemies to dominate them. When they cried out to God for deliverance, He sent judges to deliver them from oppression. The record of Gideon’s leadership in Judges 6-8 demonstrates that God was reigning over the events in Israel. Since God was the ultimate Deliverer of His people, He was unwilling to share His glory with any of the judges, Gideon included.

Gideon was called to deliver Israel from Midian, a nation related to Israel through Abraham (see Gen 25:1-3). They had ruled God’s people for seven years (Judg 6:1). Israel’s situation was so bad that they had been reduced to cave-dwellers and “became poverty-stricken” (Judg 6:2-6). God reminded the people that their situation was not His intent but rather the result of their disobedience (Judg 6:7-10). In this situation the Angel of the Lord called Gideon (Judg 6:11-14), and Gideon responded by asking, “How can I deliver Israel? Look, my family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house” (Judg 6:15). Gideon was so weak in faith that he asked for signs to affirm that God was speaking with him (Judg 6:17-24) and that God would indeed deliver Israel through him (Judg 6:33-40). Gideon’s tepid spirit caused him to destroy his father’s altar to Baal only under the cover of the night (Judg 6:25-32).

To deliver His people from Midian, God employed a feeble Judge, an undersized army, and awkward battle strategy. While Gideon and company were camped just south of Midian, “the LORD said to Gideon, ‘You have too many people for Me to hand the Midianites over to you, or else Israel might brag: ‘I did it myself’” (Judg 7:2). After thinning the troops of Israel at the spring of Harod (Judg 7:4-8), the Lord fortified Gideon’s feeble heart as he and Purah heard the Midianites’ fearful confession that God had given Midian into the hands of His people (Judg 7:9-14). Indeed, Gideon’s saber was left spotless as “the LORD set the swords of each man in the (Midianite) army against each other” (Judg 7:22) when the pitchers were shattered and the Israelites blew their 300 trumpets (Judg 7:15-23).

The remainder of the story of Gideon shows what happens to a man who, although nothing in-and-of himself, takes credit for God’s work through him. Gideon’s descent began when Gideon compared his success with that of others, falsely praising their efforts beyond his own (Judg 7:24-8:3). Gideon even used his allies for his own glory (Judg 8:4-21). Gideon gave lip service to God while building a golden altar to himself and placing it in his hometown of Ophrah where Israel would come to prostitute themselves before it (Judg 8:22-27). “It became a snare to Gideon and his household,” the author wrote (Judg 8:27).

In the end, Israel resembled Gideon. Just as Gideon had used people for his own ends, likewise, “They did not show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) for all the good he had done for Israel” (Judg 8:35). Despite the unfaithfulness of Gideon’s later days, the author of Hebrews set forth Gideon as an example of faith for his audience. Gideon was the first of four Judges listed as heroes of faith in Hebrews 11. But the author of Hebrews had more in mind in Heb 11:32 than recalling his audience to the sublime story of Gideon’s leadership, or the stories of Barak (Judges 4-5), Samson (Judges 13-16), and Jephthah (Judges 11-12). The author of Hebrews wished to make clear that Gideon’s ministry took place before the days of perfection, before the promises were fulfilled, before God provided better things in Christ. In Hebrews 11, like so many places in the New Testament, the argument is from the lesser to the greater. If God used Gideon—of the weakest family in his tribe and least in his father’s house (Judg 6:15)—to accomplish so much, what might God have for those who live in the days of fulfillment? Hebrews 11 concludes, “All these (Gideon and the Old Testament saints) were approved through their faith, but they did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, so that they would not be perfect without us” (Heb 11:39-40).

Under Joshua’s leadership, Israel had conquered the boundaries of Canaan but many pagan peoples still lived within the areas allotted to these tribes. The book of Judges is the record of how Israel failed to diligently keep the command to exterminate those pagan nations (see Deuteronomy 7; Joshua 23) and how God repeatedly delivered His people into their hands.

In the first two chapters of Judges, the author describes the situation first from a military/survey perspective and then from a spiritual/causal perspective. In Judges 1, the author uses military imagery to briefly describe the campaigns of the southern tribes (Judg 1:1-21) and the success and setbacks of the northern tribes (Judg 1:22-36). In Judges 2, the author notes the spiritual failure that led to Israel’s military failure. Israel covenanted with the Canaanites and exchanged the worship of the Lord, who brought them out of Egypt, for the worship of idols (Judg 2:1-5, 11-13). Further, Joshua’s generation failed to teach their children all the Lord had done for them and the requirements of obeying Him in the land (Judg 2:6-10).

The result? A cycle was set in motion in which the Lord would repeatedly give His people into the hands of their enemies: “He sold them to the enemies around them, so that they could no longer resist their enemies. Whenever the Israelites went out, the LORD was against them and brought disaster on them, just as He had promised and sworn to them. So they suffered greatly” (Judg 2:14-15). Although the Lord was regularly moved to compassion and responded to Israel’s cries for deliverance (Judg 2:16-18), the Lord ultimately let the nations remain as “thorns in their sides” due to their continued unfaithfulness (Judg 2:3; 20-23).

Israel’s true character was revealed as the Lord tested His people (Judges 3). The text records at least two of the Lord’s motives. The Lord did this “to teach the future generations of the Israelites how to fight in battle, especially those who had not fought before” (Judg 3:2) and to determine if Israel would keep the commands He had given their fathers through Moses (Judg 3:4). Israel failed the test. The author wrote, “The Israelites took their daughters as wives for themselves, gave their own daughters to their sons, and worshiped their gods” (Judg 3:6). Judges 3-5 thus begins the cycle of discipline and deliverance through the Judges, and Israel’s return to idolatry when each judge died. The initial judges included: Othniel, Caleb’s younger brother, (Judg 3:7-12), Ehud (Judg 3:12-30), Shamgar (Judg 3:31) and Deborah, with the assistance of Barak (Judges 4-5).

The final phrase of the book of Judges, “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did whatever he wanted” (Judg 21:25), places the narrative within the storyline of Scripture. Israel’s heart was more cowardly than courageous, more accommodating to pagan idols than fearing of the Lord. The implicit warning here is repeated in the New Testament.

(1) Paul warned the Corinthians that the consequences of Israel’s failures “happened to them as examples, and they were written as a warning to us, on whom the ends of the ages have come. Therefore, whoever thinks he stands must be careful not to fall!” (1 Cor 10:11-12). Paul’s concern was not just that his audience abstain from idolatry, but that they do so because of their privileged place in redemptive history. Paul warned them, “My dear friends, flee from idolatry. I am speaking as to wise people. Judge for yourselves what I say. The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ?” (1 Cor 10:14-16a).

(2) The author of Hebrews warned his audience that if God judged Israel for their hardness of heart, “How much worse punishment, do you think one will deserve who has trampled on the Son of God, regarded as profane the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and insulted the Spirit of grace?” (Heb 10:29). He went on to remind them that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb 13:8).

(3) John concluded his first letter with the general warning, “Little children, guard yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:21).