Introduction to Old Testament Studies: Deuteronomic History - Judges Part 22

During the time of the Judges the tribes were not unified they were an Amphictyony, a loose confederation of tribes. In which each tribe is doing its own thing.

Judges 1 begins with further conquest of the land from the Canaanites. This includes the conquering of Jerusalem, which will become the capital of the Israelite people but not at this time.

Judges 2 – 3:6 Recounts the death and burial of Joshua

Judges 2:10 LEB

10 Moreover, that entire generation was gathered to their ancestors, and another generation grew up after them who did not know Yahweh or the work he had done for Israel.

After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel. Reminiscent of Exodus 1, a Pharaoh that did not know Joseph. Now a people that don’t know YHWH. Judges will be a book that shows us many times what happens when one does not follow God. Every Church, every nation, every family, is one generation away from failure. This is the warning and the main premise of the Book of Judges. Be Diligent in teaching and rasing up disciples. Interesting that when Joshua dies there is no replacement for him. We don’t know why.

F.O.R.D Cycle

Basic pattern of Judges starts in 3:7-11

FORD cycle

Forsake God

The people turn away from God

Oppress

God’s anger leads them to be oppressed by an enemy

Repent

The Israelites cry to God

Deliver

God raises up someone to deliver the Israelites

Judges

Judges were: Charismatic, Gifted military leaders. Able to elicit support for specific causes.

Thirteen Judges

Othniel

Judges 3:7–11 CSB

7 The Israelites did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; they forgot the Lord their God and worshiped the Baals and the Asherahs. 8 The Lord’s anger burned against Israel, and he sold them to King Cushan-rishathaim of Aram-naharaim, and the Israelites served him eight years. 9 The Israelites cried out to the Lord. So the Lord raised up Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s youngest brother, as a deliverer to save the Israelites. 10 The Spirit of the Lord came on him, and he judged Israel. Othniel went out to battle, and the Lord handed over King Cushan-rishathaim of Aram to him, so that Othniel overpowered him. 11 Then the land had peace for forty years, and Othniel son of Kenaz died.

Minor Judge who delivered Israel form “king Cushan-rishathaim of Aram”. This king is not known from and historical record, so he must have been a minor king.

Ehud

Judges 3:12–30 LEB

12 And again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of Yahweh. So Yahweh strengthened Eglon king of Moab against Israel, because they did evil in the eyes of Yahweh. 13 He gathered to himself the Ammonites and Amalekites, and he went and defeated Israel, and they took possession of the city of palms. 14 And the Israelites served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years. 15 And the Israelites cried out to Yahweh, and Yahweh raised up for them a deliverer, Ehud son of Gera, a Benjaminite and a left-handed man. And the Israelites sent a tribute to Eglon king of Moab through him. 16 Ehud made for himself a short, two-edged sword (a cubit in length), and he fastened it under his clothes on his right thigh. 17 Then he presented the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. Now Eglon was a very fat man. 18 When Ehud had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people who carried the tribute. 19 But he turned back from the sculptured stones that were near Gilgal, and he said, “I have a secret message for you, O king.” And he said, “Silence!” So all those standing in his presence went out, 20 and Ehud came to him while he was sitting alone in his cool upper room. And Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” So he got up from his seat. 21 Then Ehud reached with his left hand for the sword on his right thigh, and he thrust it into his stomach. 22 And the handle also went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade because he did not draw back the sword from his stomach; and it went protruding out the back. 23 And Ehud went out the vestibule, and he closed the doors of the upper room and locked them behind him. 24 After he left, his servants returned. When they saw that the doors of the upper room were locked, they thought, “Surely he is relieving himself in the cool inner room.” 25 And they waited so long they became embarrassed because he did not open the doors of the upper room. So they took the key and opened the doors, and there their lord was lying on the ground dead. 26 And Ehud escaped while they delayed. He passed by the sculptured stones and escaped to Seirah. 27 And when he arrived he sounded the trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went down from the hill country with him leading them. 28 And he said to them, “Follow after me! Yahweh has given Moab your enemies into your hand.” So they went down after him, and they captured the fords of the Jordan toward Moab; and they did not allow anyone to cross over. 29 And they struck Moab at that time, about ten thousand men, all strong and able men; no one escaped. 30 And Moab was subdued on that day under the hand of Israel. And the land rested eighty years.

Minor Judge

Left-handed notable because Benjamin means “son of my right hand”. Could conceal a dagger on the side where it was not expected

Judges 3:21 LEB

21 Then Ehud reached with his left hand for the sword on his right thigh, and he thrust it into his stomach.

Delivers Israelites from the Moabites

Shamagar

Judges 3:31 LEB

31 And Shamgar son of Anath came after him, and he killed six hundred Philistines with the goad of an ox; he also delivered Israel.

Minor Judge

Kills 600 philistines with an ox goad

What is an ox Goad?

Pointy stick used for prodding animals

Deborah

First major judge

Judges 4:1-24 Prose version of the story

Judges 5:1-31 Poetry form. Probably the older version of the story.

Hazor

Jabin - King

Sisera - Jabin’s General

Israel

Debrah - Judge

Barak - Deberah’s General

Deborah described as a prophetess. She tells her general to go and fight Jabin he tells her that he will not go unless she goes. She doesn’t want to go because a woman will get the credit. He won’t go so she does get the credit.

When Jabin is defeated Sisera flies to the tent of Jael (4:17-23) (5:24-27). The wife of a Kenite named Heber. He tells her to stand guard while he rest. Instead she takes a tent peg or spike And drove the peg into his temple into the ground.

Gideon

Judges 6:1–8:35 LEB

1 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and Yahweh gave them into the hand of the Midianites for seven years. 2 The hand of the Midianites prevailed over Israel; because of the presence of the Midianites, the Israelites made for themselves hiding places that were in the mountains, caves, and strongholds. 3 And whenever Israel sowed seed, the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people of the east would come up against them. 4 They would camp against them and destroy the produce of the land as far as Gaza; they left no produce in Israel, or sheep, ox, or donkey. 5 For they, their livestock, and their tents would come up like a great number of locusts; they and their camels could not be counted; they came into the land and devoured it. 6 Israel was very poor because of the presence of the Midianites, and the Israelites cried out to Yahweh. 7 When the Israelites cried out to Yahweh on account of the Midianites, 8 Yahweh sent a prophet to the Israelites, and he said to them, “Thus says Yahweh the God of Israel: ‘I brought you up from Egypt; I brought you from the house of slavery. 9 I delivered you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of all your oppressors, and drove them out from before you; and I gave you their land. 10 And I said to you, ‘I am Yahweh your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.’ But you have not listened to my voice.” 11 The angel of Yahweh came and sat under the oak that was at Ophrah that belonged to Jehoash the Abiezrite; and Gideon his son was threshing wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. 12 The angel of Yahweh appeared to him and said to him, “Yahweh is with you, you mighty warrior.” 13 Gideon said to him, “Excuse me, my lord. If Yahweh is with us, why then has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonderful deeds that our ancestors recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not Yahweh bring us up from Egypt?’ But now Yahweh has forsaken us; he has given us into the palm of Midian.” 14 And Yahweh turned to him and said, “Go in this your strength, and you will deliver Israel from the palm of Midian. Did I not send you?” 15 He said to him, “Excuse me, my lord. How will I deliver Israel? Look, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house.” 16 And Yahweh said to him, “But I will be with you, and you will defeat Midian as if they are one man.” 17 And he said to him, “Please, if I have found favor in your eyes, show me a sign that you are speaking with me. 18 Please, do not depart from here until I come back to you and bring out my gift and set it out before you.” And he said, “I will stay until you return.” 19 And Gideon went and prepared a young goat and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour; he put meat in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and he brought them to him under the oak and presented them. 20 The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened cakes and put them on this rock; pour the broth over it.” And he did so. 21 Then the angel of Yahweh reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand, and he touched the meat and the unleavened cakes; and fire went up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes. And the angel of Yahweh went from his sight. 22 And Gideon realized that he was the angel of Yahweh; and Gideon said, “Oh, my lord Yahweh! For now I have seen the angel of Yahweh face to face.” 23 And Yahweh said to him, “Peace be with you. Do not fear; you will not die.” 24 And Gideon built there an altar to Yahweh, and he called it “Yahweh is peace.” To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. 25 Now on that same night Yahweh said to him, “Take the bull of the cattle that belongs to your father, and a second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that belongs to your father, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it; 26 and build an altar to Yahweh your God on the top of this stronghold in the proper arrangement, and take a second bull and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah that you will cut down. 27 Gideon took ten men from his servants, and he did just as Yahweh told him; and because he was too afraid of his father’s family and the men of the city to do it during the day, he did it during night. 28 When the men of the city got up early in the morning, look, the altar of Baal and the Asherah that was beside it were cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar that had been built. 29 And they said to one another, “Who did this thing?” So they searched and inquired, and they said, “Gideon son of Jehoash did this thing.” 30 And the men of the city said to Jehoash, “Bring out your son so that he may die, for he has pulled down the altar of Baal and cut down the Asherah that was beside it.” 31 But Jehoash said to all who stood against him, “Will you contend for Baal? Will you rescue him? Whoever contends for him will be put to death by the morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself because his altar has been pulled down.” 32 Thus, on that day he was called Jerub-Baal, which means, “Let Baal contend against him,” because he had pulled down his altar. 33 Then all the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people of the east gathered together and crossed the Jordan; and they camped in the valley of Jezreel. 34 So the Spirit of Yahweh took possession of Gideon, and he blew on the trumpet, and the Abiezrites were called to follow him. 35 He sent messengers throughout all Manasseh, and they were also called to follow him; and he sent messengers throughout Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and they went up to meet them. 36 Then Gideon said to God, “In order to see that you will deliver Israel by my hand, just as you have said, 37 I will place a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and all of the ground is dry, I will know that you will deliver Israel by my hand, just as you have said.” 38 And it was so. He arose early the next day and squeezed the fleece, and he wrung out dew from the fleece, a full drinking bowl of water. 39 And Gideon said to God, “Do not let your anger burn against me; let me speak once more. Please let me test once more with the fleece; let the fleece be dry, and let there be dew on the ground.” 40 And God did so that night; only the fleece was dry, and dew was on all the ground. 1 Then Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) rose early, and all the army that was with him. They were camped beside the spring of Harod; the camp of Midian was north of the hill of Moreh, in the valley. 2 And Yahweh said to Gideon, “The troops that are with you are too many for me to give Midian into their hands; Israel will boast, saying, ‘My hand has delivered me.’ 3 So then, please proclaim in the hearing of the troops, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return and depart from the Mount of Gilead.’ ” About twenty-two thousand troops returned, and ten thousand remained. 4 And Yahweh said to Gideon, “There are still too many troops; bring them down to the water, and I will sift through them for you there. For whomever I say to you, ‘This one will go with you,’ he will go with you; and for all whom I say to you, ‘This one will not go with you,’ he will not go.” 5 So he brought down the troops to the water, and Yahweh said to Gideon, “You must separate everyone who laps up the water to drink with his tongue like a dog from those who kneel.” 6 The number of those lapping up the water with their hand to their mouth was three hundred men; all the rest of the troops kneeled to drink the water. 7 And Yahweh said to Gideon, “I will deliver you with the three hundred men lapping up the water; I will give Midian into your hand, so let the other troops go, each to his own place. 8 So they took their provisions and their trumpets into their hand, and he sent all the men of Israel, each one, to his tent; but three hundred of the men he kept; the camp of Midian was below him in the valley. 9 And that night Yahweh said to him, “Get up; go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand. 10 But if you are afraid, go down to the camp with Purah your servant, 11 and you will hear what they say; and afterward you will have courage, and you will go down against the camp.” Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outpost of the armed men that were in the camp. 12 Now the Midianites, Amalekites, and all the people of the east were lying in the valley, like a great multitude of locusts; their camels were without number, as numerous as the sand that is on the shore of the sea. 13 When Gideon came, a man was recounting a dream to his friend, and he said, “Behold, I had a dream; a round loaf of barley bread was tumbling into the camp of Midian, and it came up to the tent, it struck it, and it fell and turned it upside down so that the tent fell.” 14 His friend answered him and said, “This cannot be anything except the sword of Gideon son of Jehoash, a man of Israel; God has given Midian and the entire camp into his hand.” 15 When Gideon heard the recounting of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and returned to the camp of Israel; and he said, “Get up, for Yahweh has given the camp of Midian into your hand.” 16 He divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put trumpets and empty jars in everyone’s hand, with torches inside the jars. 17 And he said to them, “Watch me and do the same. When I come to the edge of the camp, do just as I do. 18 When I and all who are with me blow on the trumpet, you must also blow on the trumpets and surround the camp, and you must say, ‘To Yahweh and to Gideon!’ ” 19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle night-watch, when they had just finished setting up the guards, and they blew on the trumpets and smashed the jars that were in their hands. 20 When three companies blew on the trumpets and broke the jars, they held in their left hand the torches and in their right hand the trumpets for blowing, and they cried, “A sword for Yahweh and for Gideon!” 21 And each stood in his place all around the camp, and all the camp ran, and they cried out as they fled. 22 When they blew the three hundred trumpets, Yahweh set the sword of each one against his neighbor throughout the whole camp, and the camp fled as far as Beth Shittah toward Zererah, up to Abel Meholah, the border by Tabbath. 23 And the men of Israel were called from Naphtali, from Asher, and from all of Manasseh, and they pursued after Midian. 24 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down to oppose Midian, and capture from them the waters up to Beth Barah and the Jordan.” He called out all the men of Ephraim, and they captured the waters up to Beth Barah and the Jordan. 25 And they captured the two commanders of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb, and they killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and they killed Zeeb at the wine press of Zeeb, while they chased Midian; and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon from beyond the Jordan. 1 The men of Ephraim said to him, “What is this thing you have done to us, not calling us when you went to fight against the Midianites?” And they quarreled with him severely. 2 And he said to them, “What I have done now in comparison with you? Are not the gleanings of Ephraim better than the grape harvest of Abiezer? 3 God has given into your hand the commanders of Midian, Oreb, and Zeeb. What have I been able to do in comparison with you?” And their anger against him subsided when he said that. 4 Then Gideon came to the Jordan, crossing it with the three hundred men who were with him, weary and pursuing. 5 He said to the men of Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who are following me, for they are weary, and I am pursuing Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.” 6 The officials of Succoth said, “Is the hand of Zebah and Zalmunna in your hand now, that we should give bread to your army?” 7 Gideon said, “Well then, when Yahweh gives Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, I will trample your flesh with the thorns and briers of the wilderness.” 8 He went from there to Penuel, and he spoke similarly to them; and the men of Penuel answered him just as the men of Succoth answered. 9 And he said also to the men of Penuel, saying, “When I return safely, I will tear down this tower.” 10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand men remained from the entire army of the people of the east; those that fell in battle were one hundred and twenty thousand swordsmen. 11 And Gideon went up the route of those who dwell in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and he attacked the army when it was off its guard. 12 And Zebah and Zalmunna fled, and he pursued them and captured the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and he routed the entire army. 13 Then Gideon son of Jehoash returned from the battle by way of the ascent of Heres. 14 He captured a young man from Succoth and questioned him. The young man listed for him the commanders of Succoth and its elders, seventy-seven men. 15 He came to the men of Succoth, and he said, “Here is Zebah and Zalmunna, about whom you taunted me, saying, ‘Is the palm of Zebah and Zalmunna in your hand now, that we should give food to your weary men?’ ” 16 He took the elders of the city and the thorn bushes and briers of the wilderness, and he trampled the men of Succoth with them. 17 He broke down the tower of Penuel, and he killed the men of the city. 18 And he said to Zebah and Zalmunna, “What type were the men whom you killed at Tabor?” And they said, “They were like you; each one of them had the appearance of the sons of the king.” 19 He said, “They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As Yahweh lives, if you had kept them alive I would not kill you.” 20 And he said to Jether, his firstborn, “Get up, kill them.” But the boy did not draw his sword, for he was afraid because he was still a boy. 21 Zebah and Zalmunna said, “Get up yourself, and strike us, for as is the man, so is his power.” So Gideon got up and killed Zebah and Zalmunna, and he took the crescent ornaments that were on the necks of their camels. 22 The men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, both you and your sons, and your sons’ son, for you have delivered us from the hand of Midian. 23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; Yahweh will rule over you.” 24 And Gideon said to them, “Let me make a request of you, that each of you give to me an ornamental ring from his plunder.” (They had ornamental rings of gold, because they were Ishmaelites.) 25 They said, “We will gladly give them,” and they spread out a garment, and everyone threw there an ornamental ring of his plunder. 26 The weight of the ornamental rings of gold that he requested was one thousand seven hundred shekels of gold, apart from the crescents, pendants, and purple garments that were on the kings of Midian, and apart from the pendants that were on the necks of their camels. 27 Gideon made an ephod out of it, and he put it in his town in Ophrah, and all Israel prostituted themselves to it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family. 28 And Midian was subdued before the Israelites, and they did not again lift up their head, and the land rested for forty years in the days of Gideon. 29 Jerub-Baal son of Joash lived in his own house. 30 Now Gideon had seventy sons, his own offspring, for he had many wives. 31 His concubine who was in Shechem also bore for him a son, and he named him Abimelech. 32 And Gideon son of Joash died at a good old age, and he was buried in the tomb of Jehoash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. 33 And it happened, as soon as Gideon died, the Israelites returned and prostituted themselves after the Baals, and they made for themselves Baal-Berith as god. 34 The Israelites did not remember Yahweh their God, who had delivered them from the hand of their enemies from all around, 35 nor did they show favor to the house of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) in accordance with all the good that he did for Israel.

Only judge more stories are told about is Sampson.

Gideon is oppressed by the Midianites. He is from the tribe of Manasseh, the Smallest tribe. He is the smallest family in the tribe.

Gideon received a visit from an angel who told him that he was chosen to lead the fight against the Midianites. First thing he does is destroy his father’s altar to Baal, the chief deity of the Canaanite cult. In its place he built an alter to the Lord and sacrificed to it.

Gideon’s name is changed to Jerubbaal - Contends with God or baal. Let Baal deal with him.

Sign of the Fleece

Test the Lord

If you will deliver Israel for me like you said let the wool be damp with dew only not the ground

If you will deliver let the Ground be damp but not the wool

Call to Arms

32000 come to his call to arms. God tells him that that is too many.

22000 Leave.

10000 remain - God says that is to many still.

Test the men. Bring them to river to drink. Those who get on their stomach to lap it up as dogs get sent home. Those who bring the water up with their hand shall go. These are the ones that are alert and ready. 300 men left.

Gideon divides his army into three parts, giving each soldier a torch, a pitcher to cover it with, and a ram’s horn trumpet. He strategically places his men and waited till the Midianites fell asleep. Upon a signal they ran down into camp waving torches and yelling “A Sword for the Lord and for Gideon”. The men awoke and probably thought every Israelite was attacking. They ran confusion

Abimelech

Judges 9:1–25 LEB

1 And Abimelech son of Jerub-Baal went to Shechem, to the relatives of his mother, and he said to them and to the house of his mother’s father, 2 “Speak to the lords of Shechem, ‘What is better for you, that seventy men all from the sons of Jerub-Baal rule over you, or that one man rules over you?’ Remember that I am your bone and your flesh.” 3 And his mother’s relatives spoke all these words concerning him to all the lords of Shechem; and they supported Abimelech, for they said, “He is our relative.” 4 And they gave to him seventy pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, and Abimelech hired with them worthless and reckless men, and they followed him. 5 And he went to his father’s house at Ophrah, and he killed his brothers, the sons of Jerub-Baal, seventy men, on one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerub-Baal survived, because he hid himself. 6 All the lords of Shechem and Beth-Millo gathered, and they went and made Abimelech as king, near the oak of the pillar that is at Shechem. 7 And they told Jotham, and he went up and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim, and he cried out loud and said to them, “Listen to me, lords of Shechem, so that God may listen to you. 8 “The trees went certainly, to anoint a king over themselves. And they said to the olive tree, ‘Rule over us.’ 9 And the olive tree replied, ‘Should I stop producing my oil, which by me gods and men are honored, to go sway over the trees?’ 10 Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You, come rule over us.’ 11 But the fig tree said to them, ‘Should I stop producing my sweetness, and my good crop, to go sway over the trees?’ 12 And the trees said to the vine, ‘You, come rule over us.’ 13 But the vine said to them, ‘Should I stop producing my wine that makes the gods and men happy, to go sway over the trees?’ 14 So all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘You, come rule over us.’ 15 And the thornbush said to the trees, ‘If in good faith you are anointing me as king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; if not, may fire go out from the thornbush and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’ 16 “So then, if you have acted in good faith and sincerity in making Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerub-Baal and his house, and have dealt with him according to his accomplishments— 17 for my father fought and risked his life for you and delivered you from the hand of Midian; 18 but today you have risen against the house of my father and killed his sons, seventy men on one stone, and you have made Abimelech, the son of his slave woman, a king over the lords of Shechem, because he is your relative— 19 if you have acted in good faith and sincerity with Jerub-Baal and his house this day, then rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you. 20 But if not, let a fire come out from Abimelech and let it devour the lords of Shechem and Beth-Millo; and let a fire come out from the lords of Shechem, and from Beth-Millo, and let it devour Abimelech.” 21 And Jotham escaped and fled, and went to Beer; he remained there because of Abimelech his brother. 22 Abimelech ruled over Israel three years. 23 And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the lords of Shechem, and the lords of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech, 24 so that the violence done to the seventy brothers of Abimelech would be avenged and their blood be placed on Abimelech their brother, who killed them, and on the lords of Shechem, who helped to kill his brothers. 25 And the lords of Shechem set for him ambushes on the top of the mountains, and they robbed all who passed by them along the road; and it was reported to Abimelech.

Third major judge. Son of Gideon by a concubine. Had 71 other brothers. Interesting enough he is seen as an evil Judge.

Abimelech means “my father is king”.

God called Gideon. Abimelech called himself. Killed all his brothers and proclaimed himself king. Jotham one of his brothers escaped. Jotham is the youngest of Gideon’s sons. He climbs to the top of Mount Ebal and Shouts down to the Shechemites and tells them “the Fable of the Trees”. Moral being when good men fail to act, evil men will act with evil results. Their response to Gideon’s leadership had been to choose the worst of his sons to rule over them, simply because he was related to them.

He fights an offensive war attacks Shechem and Thebes. In his attempt to take a tower at Thebes. A woman dropped a millstone on his head. To avoid the disgrace of being killed by a woman, he asked his armor bearer to kill him.

Tola

Judges 10:1–2 LEB

1 After Abimelech, Tola son of Puah son of Dod, a man of Issachar, rose up to deliver Israel; and he was living at Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. 2 And he judged Israel twenty-three years. And he died and was buried in Shamir.

Minor Judge

Jair

Judges 10:3–5 LEB

3 After him Jair the Gileadite rose up, and he judged Israel twenty-two years. 4 And he had thirty sons who would ride on thirty donkeys, and they had thirty towns that are in the land of Gilead that they called Havvoth Jair until this day. 5 And Jair died and was buried in Kamon.

Minor Judge

Jephthah

Judges 10:6–12:7 LEB

6 And again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of Yahweh. They served the Baals, the Ashtaroth, the gods of Aram, Sidon, Moab, and the gods of the Ammonites and Philistines; they abandoned Yahweh and did not serve him. 7 And the anger of Yahweh burned against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the Philistines and the Ammonites. 8 They crushed and oppressed the Israelites in that year; for eighteen years they crushed all the Israelites who were beyond the Jordan, in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead. 9 The Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight also against Judah, Benjamin, and the house of Ephraim; and Israel was very distressed. 10 Then the Israelites cried out to Yahweh, saying, “We have sinned against you; we have abandoned our God and served the Baals.” 11 And Yahweh said to the Israelites, “Did I not deliver you from the Egyptians, the Amorites, from the Ammonites, and from the Philistines? 12 And when the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and the Maonites oppressed you, you cried out to me, and I delivered you from their hand. 13 Yet you have abandoned me and served other gods. Therefore I will no longer deliver you. 14 Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your trouble.” 15 And the Israelites said to Yahweh, “We have sinned; do to us accordingly as you see fit; only please deliver us this day.” 16 So they removed the foreign gods from their midst and served Yahweh; and he could no longer bear the misery of Israel. 17 And the Ammonites were summoned, and they camped in Gilead. And the Israelites gathered and camped at Mizpah. 18 The people, the ones commanding Gilead, said to each other, “Who is the man that will begin to fight against the Ammonites? He will be as head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.” 1 Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior; he was the son of a prostitute, and Gilead was his father. 2 Gilead’s wife also bore for him sons; and the sons of his wife grew up and drove Jephthah away, and they said to him, “You will not inherit the house of our father because you are the son of another woman.” 3 So Jephthah fled from the presence of his brothers, and he lived in the land of Tob. And outlaws gathered around Jephthah and went with him. 4 After a time the Ammonites made war with Israel. 5 When the Ammonites made war with Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring Jephthah from the land of Tob. 6 And they said to Jephthah, “Come and be our commander, so that we may make war against the Ammonites.” 7 Jephthah said to the elders, “Did you not shun me and drive me out from the house of my father? Why do you come to me now when you have trouble?” 8 And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “That being so, we have now returned to you, that you may go with us to fight against the Ammonites and become for us as head of all the inhabitants of Gilead.” 9 So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “If you bring me back to fight against the Ammonites, and Yahweh gives them over to me, will I be your head?” 10 And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “Yahweh will be a witness between us; we will act according to your word.” 11 So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and commander over them. And Jephthah spoke all his words before Yahweh at Mizpah. 12 And Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites, saying, “What is between you and me that you have come to me to make war against my land?” 13 And the king of the Ammonites said to Jephthah’s messengers, “Because Israel took my land from the Arnon up to the Jabbok and the Jordan when they came up from Egypt; so then, restore it peacefully.” 14 Once again Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites, 15 and he said to him, “Thus says Jephthah, ‘Israel did not take the land of Moab or the land of the Ammonites, 16 because when they came up from Egypt, Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea and went to Kadesh. 17 Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, “Please let us cross through your land,” but the king of Edom would not listen. And they also sent messengers to the king of Moab, but he was not willing. So Israel stayed in Kadesh. 18 Then they traveled through the wilderness, went around the land of Edom and Moab, and came to the east side of the land of Moab, and they encamped beyond the Arnon; and they did not go into the territory of Moab because the Arnon was the border of Moab. 19 Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, ‘Please let us cross through your land to our country.’ 20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to cross through his territory, so Sihon gathered all his people and then encamped at Jahaz; and he made war with Israel. 21 And Yahweh, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they defeated them; and Israel occupied all the land of the Amorites inhabiting that land. 22 They occupied all the territory of the Amorites from the Arnon up to the Jabbok, and from the wilderness up to the Jordan. 23 So then Yahweh, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from before his people Israel, and you want to possess it? 24 Do you not possess what Chemosh your god gave you to possess? Whoever Yahweh our God has driven out before us, we will possess it. 25 So then, are you any better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever quarrel with Israel, or did he ever make war against them? 26 When Israel lived in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and its villages, and in all the towns that are along the Arnon, for three hundred years, why did you not recover them at that time? 27 I have not sinned against you; but you are the one who is doing wrong by making war against me. Let Yahweh judge today between the Israelites and the Ammonites.” 28 But the king of the Ammonites did not listen to the message that Jephthah sent to him. 29 And the Spirit of Yahweh came upon Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh. He passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he passed through to the Ammonites. 30 And Jephthah made a vow to Yahweh, and he said, “If indeed you will give the Ammonites into my hand, 31 whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return safely from the Ammonites will be Yahweh’s, and I will offer it as a burnt offering.” 32 And Jephthah crossed over to the Ammonites to make war against them; and Yahweh gave them into his hand. 33 And he defeated them with a very great blow, from Aroer as far as Minnith, twenty towns, up to Abel Keramim. And the Ammonites were subdued before the Israelites. 34 Jephthah came to Mizpah, to his house, and behold his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and dancing. She was his only child; he did not have a son or daughter except her. 35 And the moment he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Ah! My daughter, you have caused me to bow down, and you have become my trouble. I made an oath to Yahweh, and I cannot take it back.” 36 She said to him, “My father, you made an oath to Yahweh. Do to me according to what has gone out from your mouth, since Yahweh gave vengeance to you against your enemies, the Ammonites.” 37 And she said to her father, “Let this thing be done for me: grant me two months so that I may go wander on the mountains and lament over my virginity, I and my companions. 38 And he said, “Go.” He sent her away for two months, and she went with her friends, and she lamented over her virginity on the mountains. 39 At the end of the two months she returned to her father, and he did to her according to his vow; and she did not sleep with a man. And it became an annual custom in Israel 40 for the daughters of Israel to go and lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite for forty days of the year. 1 The men of Ephraim were called to arms, and they crossed over to Zaphon and said to Jephthah, “Why did you cross over and make war against the Ammonites, and why did you not call us to go with you? We will burn down your house over you with fire.” 2 And Jephthah said to them, “I and my people were engaged in great conflict with the Ammonites; I called you, but you did not deliver me from their hand. 3 I saw that you would not deliver us; I risked my own life, and I crossed over to the Ammonites, and Yahweh gave them into my hand. Why have you come up to me this day to fight against me?” 4 Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead, and he made war with Ephraim; and the men of Gilead defeated Ephraim because they said, “You are fugitives of Ephraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim and Manasseh.” 5 Then Gilead captured the fords of the Jordan from Ephraim, and whenever a fugitive of Ephraim said, “Let me cross over,” the men of Gilead said to him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” When he said, “No,” 6 they said to him, “Please say Shibboleth,” and if he said, “Sibboleth”—because he could not pronounce it correctly—they grabbed him and executed him at the fords of Jordan. At that time forty-two thousand from Ephraim fell. 7 Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then Jephthah the Gileadite died, and he was buried in one of the cities of Gilead.

Major judge

Son of a prostitute

Led the people against the Ammonites. Makes a vow to God that the first thing that leaves his house will be sacrificed. His first daughter runs out to see him upon his return and he has to sacrifice her. This is the only clear example in the Old Testament of an Israelite practicing human sacrifice to the Lord. Such practice is denounced by the prophets.

The Ephraimites become jealous because they had not shared in the glory of Jephthah’s victory - fighting tribe. They decide to attack Jephthah and the Gileadites. They loose. Now as fugitives from battle they tried to slip back across the Jordan. The Gileadites controlled the crossing places.

Make each person prove where he was from by giving a password:

Shibboleth –ear of grain

free to go

Sibboleth

killed

Ibzan

Judges 12:8–10 LEB

8 After him Ibzan from Bethlehem judged Israel. 9 He had thirty sons. He gave his thirty daughters away in marriage outside his clan and brought in from outside thirty young women for his sons. He judged Israel for seven years. 10 Then Ibzan died and was buried in Bethlehem.

Minor Judge

Elon

Judges 12:11–12 LEB

11 After him Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel, and he judged Israel ten years. 12 Then Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried in Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.

Minor Judge

Abdon

Judges 12:13–15 LEB

13 After him Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite judged Israel. 14 He had forty sons and thirty grandsons that rode on seventy male donkeys. He judged Israel for eight years. 15 Then Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite died and was buried in Pirathon, in the land of Ephraim in the hill country of the Amalekites.

Minor Judge

Samson

Judges 13:1–16:31 LEB

1 And again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and Yahweh gave them into the hand of the Philistines forty years. 2 There was a certain man from Zorah, from the tribe of the Danites, and his name was Manoah; his wife was infertile and did not bear children. 3 And an angel of Yahweh appeared to the woman, and he said to her, “Behold, you are infertile and have not borne children, but you will conceive and bear a son. 4 So then, be careful and do not drink wine or strong drink, and do not eat anything unclean, 5 because you will conceive and bear a son. No razor will touch his head, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from birth. And it is he who will begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines.” 6 And the woman came and told her husband, saying, “A man of God came to me, and his appearance was like the appearance of an angel of God, very awesome. I did not ask him from where he came, and he did not tell me his name. 7 And he said to me, ‘Look, you will conceive and bear a son, so then, do not drink wine or strong drink, and do not eat anything unclean, for the boy will be a Nazirite of God from birth until the day of his death.’ ” 8 Then Manoah prayed to Yahweh and said, “Excuse me, my Lord, please let the man of God whom you sent again come to us and teach us what we should do concerning the boy who will be born.” 9 And God listened to the voice of Manoah, and an angel of God came again to the woman; she was sitting in the field, but Manoah her husband was not with her. 10 The woman quickly ran and told her husband, and she said to him, “Look! The man who came to me the other day appeared to me.” 11 So Manoah got up and went after his wife, and he came to the man and said to him, “Are you the man that spoke to the woman?” And he said, “I am.” 12 And Manoah said to him, “Now when your words come true, what will be the boy’s manner of life and work?” 13 And the angel of Yahweh said to Manoah, “Let the woman be attentive to all that I said. 14 She should not eat of anything that comes from the vine, or drink wine or strong drink, or eat anything unclean; she should keep all that I commanded.” 15 And Manoah said to the angel of Yahweh, “Please stay, and let us prepare a young goat for you.” 16 The angel of Yahweh said to Manoah, “If you keep me, I will not eat your food, but if you prepare a burnt offering for Yahweh, you can offer it (for Manoah did not know that he was an angel of Yahweh).” 17 And Manoah said to the angel of Yahweh, “What is your name so that when your words come true we may honor you?” 18 But the angel of Yahweh said to him, “Why do you ask my name? It is too wonderful.” 19 And Manoah took the young goat and the grain offering, and he offered it to Yahweh on the rock, to the one who performs miracles. And Manoah and his wife were watching. 20 And when the flame went up toward the heaven from the altar, the angel of Yahweh went up in the flame of the altar to heaven while Manoah and his wife were watching. And they fell on their faces to the ground. 21 The angel of Yahweh did not appear again to Manoah and his wife, and then Manoah knew that he was a messenger of Yahweh. 22 And Manoah said to his wife, “We will certainly die because we have seen God.” 23 But his wife said to him, “If Yahweh wanted to kill us he would not have taken from our hand the burnt offering and the grain offering, or shown us all these things, or now announced to us things such as these.” 24 The woman bore a son, and she called him Samson; the boy grew big, and Yahweh blessed him. 25 And the Spirit of Yahweh began to stir him in the camp of Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol. 1 And Samson went down to Timnah, and he saw a woman in Timnah from the daughters of the Philistines. 2 He went up and told his father and mother, and he said, “I saw a woman in Timnah from the daughters of the Philistines; so then, take her for me as a wife.” 3 But his father and mother said to him, “Is there not a wife among the daughters of your relatives, or among all our people, that you must take a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” But Samson said to his father, “Take her for me because she pleases me.” 4 His father and mother did not know that this was from Yahweh; he was seeking for an occasion against the Philistines. Now at that time the Philistines were ruling in Israel. 5 And Samson and his father and mother went down to Timnah, and they came to the vineyards of Timnah, and suddenly a young lion came roaring to meet him. 6 And the Spirit of Yahweh rushed upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one might tear apart a male kid goat (he was bare-handed). But he did not tell his father and mother what he had done. 7 Then he went down and talked to the woman, and she pleased Samson. 8 And he returned after awhile to marry her, and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion, and there was a swarm of wild honey bees in the body of the lion, and honey. 9 He scraped it out into his hands, and he went on, eating it as he went. And he went to his father and mother and gave some to them, and they ate it. But he did not tell them that he had scraped the honey from the body of the lion. 10 His father went down to the woman, and Samson prepared there a feast, as young men were accustomed to doing this. 11 When they saw him, they took thirty companions, and they were with him. 12 And Samson said to them, “Let me tell you a riddle. If you can fully explain it to me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, I will give to you thirty linen garments and thirty festal garments. 13 But if you are unable to explain it to me, you must give me thirty linen garments and thirty festal garments.” So they said to him, “Tell your riddle; let us hear it.” 14 He said to them, “From the eater came out food, From the strong came out sweet.” But they were unable to explain the riddle for three days. 15 When it was the fourth day, they said to Samson’s wife, “Entice your husband and tell us the riddle, or we will burn you and your father’s house with fire. Have you invited us to rob us?” 16 And Samson’s wife wept before him, and she said, “You must hate me; you do not love me. You told the riddle to my people, but you have not explained it to me.” He said to her, “I have not explained it to my father and mother. Why should I explain it to you?” 17 She wept before him the seven days of their feast; and it happened, because she nagged him, on the seventh day he explained it to her, and she told the riddle to her people. 18 The men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down, “What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion?” And he said to them, “If you had not plowed with my heifer, you would not have found out my riddle.” 19 And the Spirit of Yahweh rushed on him, and he went down to Ashkelon. He killed thirty men from them, and he took their belongings, and he gave festal garments to the ones that explained the riddle. He was angry, and he went up to his father’s house. 20 And Samson’s wife was given to his companion who was his best man. 1 After a while, at the time of the wheat harvest, Samson visited his wife with a young goat. He said, “I want to go to my wife’s private room.” But her father would not allow him to enter. 2 Her father said, “I really thought that you hated her, so I gave her to your companion. Is not her younger sister more beautiful than she? Please, take her instead.” 3 And Samson said to them, “This time, as far as the Philistines are concerned, when I do something evil I am without blame.” 4 And Samson went and captured three hundred foxes, and he took torches. He turned them tail to tail, and he put one torch between two tails. 5 He set fire to the torches and let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and he burned both the stacks of sheaves and the standing grain, up to the vineyards of olive groves. 6 And the Philistines said, “Who has done this?” And they said, “Samson the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he took his wife and gave her to his companion.” And the Philistines went up and burned her and her father with fire. 7 Samson said to them, “If you want to behave like this, I swear I will not rest unless I have taken revenge on you.” 8 And he gave them a thorough beating, and he went down and stayed in the cleft of the rock of Etam. 9 Then the Philistines came up and encamped in Judah, and they overran Lehi. 10 And the men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against us?” And they said, “To bind Samson; to do to him just as he did to us.” 11 Then three thousand men from Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and they said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines are ruling over us? What is this that you have done to us?” And he said to them, “Just as they did to me, so I have done to them.” 12 They said to him, “We have come down to bind you and give you over into the hand of the Philistines.” And Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you will not attack me yourselves.” 13 They said to him, “No, we will only bind you and give you into their hand; we will certainly not kill you.” So they bound him with two new ropes, and they brought him up from the rock. 14 As he came up to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting to meet him; and the Spirit of Yahweh rushed on him, and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax that has burned with fire, and his bindings melted from his hands. 15 And he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey; he reached down and took it and killed one thousand men with it. 16 And Samson said, “With the jawbone of the donkey, heap upon heap; with the jawbone of the donkey, I struck dead one thousand men.” 17 And it happened, when he finished speaking he threw the jawbone from his hand; and he called that place Ramath Lehi. 18 And he was very thirsty, and he called to Yahweh and said, “You gave this great victory into the hand of your servant, but now I must die of thirst and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?” 19 So God split the hollow place that is at Lehi, and water came out from it; and he drank, and his spirit returned, and he was revived. Thus he called its name The Spring of Ha-Qore, which is at Lehi to this day. 20 And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years. 1 Samson went down to Gaza; there he saw a prostitute and had sex with her. 2 The Gazites were told, “Samson has come here,” so they surrounded the place and lay in ambush for him all night at the city gate. They kept silent all night, saying, “We will wait until the morning light, and then we will kill him.” 3 But Samson lay until the middle of the night; he got up in the middle of the night and took hold of the doors of the city gate and the two door posts, tore them loose with the bar, put them on his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the hill that is in front of Hebron. 4 After this he fell in love with a woman in the wadi of Sorek, and her name was Delilah. 5 And the rulers of the Philistines came up to her and said, “Entice him and find out what makes his strength so great, and how we can overpower him, so that we may bind him up in order to subdue him; each of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver. 6 So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me what makes your strength so great, and with what can you be tied up to subdue you?” 7 Samson said to her, “If you tie me up with seven fresh bowstrings that are not dried up, I will become weak like everyone else.” 8 So the rulers of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh bowstrings that were not dried up, and she tied him up with them. 9 The ambush was sitting in wait for her in an inner room. And she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you Samson!” And he snapped the bowstrings just as flax fiber snaps when it comes close to fire. And the secret of his strength remained unknown. 10 Delilah said to Samson, “Look, you have mocked me and told me lies. Please tell me how you can be bound.” 11 He said to her, “If they tie me tightly with new ropes that have not been used, I will become weak and be like everyone else.” 12 So Delilah took new ropes and tied him up with them, and she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” (The ambush was sitting in an inner room.) But he snapped them from his arms like thread. 13 And Delilah said to Samson, “Until now you have mocked me and told lies to me. Tell me how you can be bound.” And he said to her, “If you weave seven locks of my head with warp-threads.” 14 She fastened it with the pin and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And Samson woke up from his sleep and tore loose the loom pin of the web and the warp-threads. 15 And she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and you have not told me how your strength is so great.” 16 And because she nagged him day after day with her words, and pestered him, his soul grew impatient to the point of death. 17 So he confided everything to her, and he said to her, “A razor has never touched my head, for I am a Nazirite of God from birth. If I am shaved my strength will leave me, and I will become weak, like everyone else. 18 Delilah realized that he had confided in her, so she sent and called the rulers of the Philistines, saying, “Come up one more time, for he has confided in me.” And the rulers of the Philistines came up, and they brought the money with them. 19 And she put him to sleep on her lap; then she called the men and shaved off seven locks of his head. Then she began to subdue him, and his strength went away from him. 20 And she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he woke up from his sleep and said, “I will go out just like every other time and shake myself free,” but he did not know that Yahweh had left him. 21 And the Philistines seized him, gouged his eyes, and brought him to Gaza. They tied him up with bronze shackles, and he became a grinder in the prison. 22 But the hair of his head began to grow back after it had been shaved off. 23 The rulers of the Philistines had gathered to sacrifice a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice. And they said, “Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hand.” 24 And the people saw him, and they praised their god, for they said, “Our god has given into our hand those who hate us, devastate our land, and have killed many of us.” 25 After awhile, when their hearts were merry, they said, “Call Samson and let him entertain us.” And they called Samson from the prison, and he entertained them. And they made him stand between the pillars. 26 Then Samson said to the servant who was holding him by his hand, “Position me so that I can touch the pillars on which the house rests, so I can lean on them.” 27 And the house was full of men and women, and all of the rulers of the Philistines were there—about three thousand men and women were on the roof watching the performance of Samson. 28 And Samson called to Yahweh and said, “My Lord Yahweh, remember me! Please give me strength this one time, O God, so that I can repay with one act of revenge to the Philistines for my eyes.” 29 And Samson reached out and held two of the middle pillars on which the house was resting, and he leaned on them, one on his right and one on his left. 30 And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” And he pushed with all his strength, and the house fell on the rulers and all of the people who were with him. And the dead whom he killed in his death were more than those he killed in his life. 31 His brothers and his whole family came down and picked him up; and they brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father; he judged Israel twenty years.

Major Judge - Most Notable Judge

Samson’s mom is a baron woman who after many years will bear a son. In the scripture this always shows a moment of separateness.

She places him under the Nazirite vow

Nazirite vow

Do not drink wine

Do not touch dead bodies

Do not cut your hair

All of which he will break.

He grow up into a domineering and arrogant man. He is a thorn in the side of the Philistines. He gets engaged to a Philistine woman who Name is never given. Marring a Philistine would be unthinkable.

God using this to get at the Philistines

On the way to see the girl an lion attacked Samson. He killed the lion and leaves the carcass by the roadside. Later he comes back and he found a swarm of bees in the body of the lion. Sampson bet with the Philistine men that he could give them a riddle they could not solve. If they solved it in the time of the seven-day period of the feast he would give them thirty linen garments and thirty festal garments.

Judges 14:14 LEB

14 He said to them, “From the eater came out food, From the strong came out sweet.” But they were unable to explain the riddle for three days.

Out of the eater came something to eat, out of the strong came something sweet (14:14)

At first the men were unsuccessful. So they threatened Samson’s bride telling her that they would kill her if she did not tell them. He eventually tells her when she weeps. They answer he knows his wife has told them. The spirit of the Lord comes upon them and he kills them. Strength comes from God.

His wife is given to another man. He gets vengeance by setting the grain fields on fire by tying torches to foxes’ tails and loosing them in the fields. He also burns his ex-wife and her father to death.

Next they put pressure on the men of Judah to capture Samson for them or they would war. Samson allowed himself to be captured. Once he is handed over to the Philistines he brakes the ropes, grabbed a jawbone of a donkey, And killed 1000 Philistines.

Then he meets a woman (some consider a prostitute but lacks evidence) in Gaza named Delilah. She sets out to lead Samson to his downfall. She is under Philistine control. She seeks to find the secret of his strength. He plays with her for a time. Then with tears he gives in He tells her that the strength is in his hair. She cuts his hair, And the Spirit of the Lord was gone. He had abused the power and now had lost it. He is blinded and put to work in prison.

When he was brought out to entertain Philistine notables in the shrine of the Philistine god Dagon. He prays and his strength is returned long enough for him to pull the temple down on himself and the worshipers

Epitaph

Judges 16:30 LEB

30 And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” And he pushed with all his strength, and the house fell on the rulers and all of the people who were with him. And the dead whom he killed in his death were more than those he killed in his life.

“so those he killed at his death were more than those he had killed during his life (16:30).

Reason for failure of the Amphictyony

Lack of Mutual concern among the tribes

No earthly leader (no king)

Enemies (in and out of Canaan and among themselves)

Apostasy - Did not follow God

Chapters 17-21

The rest of the book there are not Judges but the people continue to do wrong

Micah

Micah is a man from Ephraim. He Steals from his mother (Possibly Delilah). His mom finds out about it, he confesses to his mon and then his mom blesses him in the name of YHWH. and he feels so empower by this blessing to melt down the metal and make an idol. Then he hires a Levite to be his priest.

The Danites

The story moves on, and that guy actually gets kidnapped by some people from the tribe of Dan. And then he's meant to go be a priest at idolatrous shrine for the tribe of the Danites. When that story is over at the end of chapter 18, chapter 19 begins.

Judges 18:1–2 LEB

1 In those days there was no king in Israel. And in those days the tribe of the Danites was seeking territory for itself to live in, because until that day it had not been allotted territory among the tribes of Israel. 2 The descendants of Dan sent from the whole number of their clan five capable men from Zorah and Eshtaol to spy out the land and to explore it. And they said to them, “Go, explore the land.” And they went to the hill country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and they spent the night there.

The Danites send five men to seek out an inheritance.

Judges 18:3–6 LEB

3 While they were with the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young Levite, and they turned aside there and said to him, “Who brought you here? What are you doing in this place, and what is your business here?” 4 And he said to them, “Micah did such and such for me and hired me, and I became his priest.” 5 And they said to him, “Please inquire of God that we may know whether our journey that we are going on will be successful.” 6 And the priest said to them, “Go in peace. Yahweh is in front of you on the journey you want to go on.”

. At the house of Micah (see above) they consult with Jonathan, and are encouraged on their way. Jg 18:7-10. They search Laish, and bring back news of good hope.

Judges 18:11–13 LEB

11 Six hundred men from the clan of the Danites from Zorah and Eshtaol, armed with weapons of war, set out from there. 12 They went up and encamped at Kiriath Jearim in Judah. Therefore they called this place Camp of Dan to this day; it is west of Kiriath Jearim. 13 From there they crossed over to the hill country of Ephraim, and they came to the house of Micah.

. Six hundred men are sent to surprise it.

Judges 18:14–26 LEB

14 And the five men that went out to spy out the land (that is, Laish) responded and said to their relatives, “Do you know that there are in these houses an ephod, teraphim, and an idol of cast metal? So then, consider what you must do.” 15 So they turned to that direction, and they came to the house of the young Levite, the house of Micah, and they greeted him. 16 And six hundred men from the descendants of Dan, armed with their weapons of war, were standing at the entrance of the gate. 17 And the five men that went to spy out the land went up, and they entered there and took the carved divine image, ephod, teraphim, and the molten image. The priest was standing at the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men armed with the weapons of war. 18 When these went to Micah’s house, they took the divine carved image, ephod, the teraphim, and the molten image, and the priest asked them, “What are you doing?” 19 And they said to him, “Keep quiet! Put your hand on your mouth and come with us and be for us a father and a priest. Is it better being a priest for a house of one man or being a priest for a tribe and clan in Israel?” 20 The priest accepted the offer, and he took the ephod, teraphim, and molten image and went along with the people. 21 And they turned and went and put the little children, the livestock, and the valuable property in front of them. 22 When they were at a distance from the house, Micah and the men who were in the houses that were near the house of Micah cried out, and they overtook the descendants of Dan. 23 And they called to the descendants of Dan, who turned around to face them, and they said to Micah, “What is the matter with you that you assembled together?” 24 He said, “You took away my gods that I had made, and the priest, and then you go away. What is now left for me? How can you say to me, ‘What is the matter?’ ” 25 And the descendants of Dan said to him, “You should not let your voice be heard among us, so that ill-tempered men will not attack you, and take your life and the lives of your household.” 26 And the descendants of Dan went their way. When Micah saw that they were stronger than him, he turned to return to his house.

In their way they rob Micah of his priest and his consecrated things. Jg 18:27-29. They win Laish, and call it Dan.

Judges 18:30–31 LEB

30 And the descendants of Dan set up for themselves the carved divine image, and Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests for the tribe of the Danites until the time of the captivity of the land. 31 So they set up for themselves the carved divine image that Micah had made, all the days that the house of God was in Shiloh.

They set up idolatry, wherein Jonathan inherits the priesthood.

Concubine and the Levite

Judges chapter 19

Jg 19:1-15. A Levite goes to Beth-lehem to fetch home his concubine. Jg 19:16-21. An old man entertains him at Gibeah.

Jg 19:22-28.The Gibeonites abuse his concubine to death. Jg 19:29-30.He divides her into twelve pieces, and sends them to the twelve tribes.

This is actually the most gruesome story of rape and sexual abuse in the Hebrew Bible. It makes my stomach turn to read the story.

Near destruction of the tribe of Benjamin

What happens from it is a near civil war. One of the tribes of Israel, the Benjaminites, nearly gets wiped out. But then instead of getting wiped out, what the other tribes do is give up a bunch of women to be kidnapped and forced to marry men that they don't know so that the tribe of Benjamin can exist.

But look at the last sentence of the book of Judges

Judges 21:25 LEB

25 In those days there was no king in Israel; each one did what was right in his own eyes.

That phase has been repeated and repeated. Do you see how this final unit here of Judges has been marked by this repeated phrase?

This is setting the stage for Samuel the last of the Judges that will give rise to Saul and David