Lessons From the Cycle of Judges

The Cycle of Judges

Rebellion: Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord

Oppression: God allows Israel to be conquered and appressed by another nation

Repentance: Israel cries out to God for deliverance

Restoration: God sends a judge to deliver Israel

This cycle repeats after the judge dies (Judges 2:19)

Rebellion

The threat of the Canaanites (Josh 1:1)

Judah is chosen to lead the charge against Canaan

Judah asks his brother Simeon to go with him to fight against the Canaanites

There was much victory, but there were some setbacks along the way.

There were pockets of Canaanites who were not driven out of the land, like they were supposed to, but instead were subject to forced labor

Judges 2:1–2 ESV

Now the angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, “I brought you up from Egypt and brought you into the land that I swore to give to your fathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done?

By allowing some of the Canaanites to remain in the land, Israel became guilty of making a covenant with them. This was sin.

Judges 2:11–12 ESV

And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals. And they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt. They went after other gods, from among the gods of the peoples who were around them, and bowed down to them. And they provoked the Lord to anger.

And the people did what was evil in the sight of the Lord appears at least 7 times in Judges. We see it just before Gideon is called to be judge over Israel. The judge before Gideon was Deborah. Judges 4 & 5 outline what happened in Israel under Deborah’s rule, and God, like He had done many times before, granted Israel restoration and victory....

But, the cycle started over with rebellion after Deborah and before Gideon.

When it comes to waging war against our inclination to rebellion:

teaching and living the word of God is crucial

remembering the grace of God is crucial

believing and obeying the promises found in Scripture is crucial

understanding the connection between rebellion and sinful fear is crucial

This brings us to the next part of the cycle

Oppression

Because Israel rebelled against God, they became vulnerable to their enemies and as a result of this vulnerability, they lived in fear.

They lived in hiding (6:2)

They feared the Midianites’ strength rather than God (6:5)

The Connection between disobedience and sinful fear

Fearing God means we are both captivated by His presence and overwhelmed by His grace

When we are not captivated by God’s presence nor overwhelmed by His grace, it’s because something or someone else has our attention

When we are distracted from God, we are vulnerable to rebellion.

When the fear of God is not our dominant fear, our own rebellion becomes the source of our oppression

Repentance

The consequences of our sin are often the catalyst of our repentance (6:7)

The word of God is our roadmap back to fellowship with God (6:8)

Returning to the good instruction and promises of God is what demonstrates repentance (6:8-10)

Repentance silences sinful fear

Restoration

God’s presence is our assurance (6:16)

God’s patience is our comfort (6:17-21, 36-40)

God’s instructions must be our concern (6:27-35)