Judges 10-11

Intro

D-groups

Equipping Dinner

Read Judges 10:6-9

I. Tola & Jair vs. 1-5

In five short verses we see the tenure of two of the minor judges, Tola & Jair

The only thing we know about Tola was that he from the tribe of Issachar and the son of a Dodo

He ruled for 23 years

After him was Jair who judged for 22 years

He had 30 sons who rode on 30 donkeys

We know that he was wealthy because to provide donkeys for 30 sons took a lot of money

II. Oppressed by Philistines vs. 6-9

It didn’t take long for the Israelites to fall back into sin once the judges died

The sins they were guilty of was Idol worship

As I’ve said many times the worship practices of these pagan gods often included prostitution and child sacrifice

1 Kings 14:23–24 ESV

For they also built for themselves high places and pillars and Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree, and there were also male cult prostitutes in the land. They did according to all the abominations of the nations that the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.

These were an abomination to a jealous God

He sells them into the hand of the Philistines and Ammonites

For 18 years they crushed the people of Israel

The Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim

III. Cry out to the gods vs. 10-18

As became typical, Israel cried out to the Lord in their distress

They admit they have sinned against the Lord by serving Baals

The Lord’s reply is unique

He asks them questions

Did I save you from Egypt and a whole host of other countries?

Vs. 13 Yet you have forsaken me

Forsaken means to leave behind or turn ones back on

Jeremiah 2:13 ESV

for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

vs. 14 God pulls a new response

Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; Let them save you

This had to ring hollow for Israel

They knew these gods were merely statues

They followed them because they were able to fulfill their passions and pleasures

When they got into trouble they didn’t run to Baal, but to the living God

vs. 15 Israel’s response: “Do whatever seems good, only deliver us”

They put away their foreign gods and served the Lord

vs. 16 God became impatient over the misery of Israel

God looked upon disobedient Israel with compassion, not hatred.

It was “difficult” for God to allow Israel to stay in their misery, though it was best for them.

Like the perfect loving parent, God hated to see Israel suffer, even when it was good for them.

He longed to rescue them but would not do it until it was good for them.

“The Hebrew word literally means ‘impatient.’

It suggests God’s restlessness in the presence of suffering.

It is the restlessness of His love, and that is the cause of His anger, and the governing principle in all its activities.”

“God grieves for the miseries to which his creatures are reduced by their own sins.

IV. Gilead Begs Jephthah to Lead vs. 1-11

After Diplomatic means have been exhausted the armies draw battle lines

The Ammonites encamped at Gilead

Israel camped at Mizpah

There was one problem with Israel

There was no leader

vs. 18 Who is the man that lead the fight

Nothing is more demoralizing than being leaderless

Jephthah was a mighty warrior

There was one problem, he was the son of a prostitute

His father was Gilead which gave him rights, but his brothers chased him off

They weren’t about to share their inheritance with an illigetimate son

Jephthah flees to Tob until they need a mighty warrior

The Elders of Gilead go to Tob and beg Jephthah to lead them in battle

Jephthah replies: “Didn’t you hate me and drive me out?”

Why are you coming to me now?

The Elders offer him headship over the tribe

Isn’t it interesting how quickly people flip when things aren’t going away?

The science changes when 51% of the people in the president’s party don’t want him to run again

Now masks and vaccines aren’t mandatory

V. Ammonite Dispute vs. 12-28

Before Countries went to battle they would often try to settle the dispute by diplomatic relations

Jephthah sends messengers to the king of the Ammonites asking what’s the problem

He still has a beef 300 years later that Israel took their land

He wants Israel to restore it peaceably

The King of Ammon declared that he and his men were only reclaiming land that the Jews, under the leadership of Moses, had stolen from them. I

f Israel would restore that land, he would call off his troops.

This wasn’t the full truth or story

Time makes us forget the facts

Jephthah gives the king a history lesson

vs. 14-22 Just the facts

Israel asked for passage through their land and were denied

Sihon the king feared Israel and declared war on them

They lost and Israel took possession of the land

vs. 23-24 The Lord had given Israel the land

Jephthah was always careful to give the Lord the glory for any victories Israel won.

When the other nations captured enemy territory, they claimed that it was “the will of their god” that they take the land; and they gave their idols credit for the victory.

Jephthah declared that the God of Israel was the true God and that His will had been fulfilled in allowing Israel to take the land.

It was Jehovah who gave Israel the victory.

vs. 25-26 Israel had lived on the land for centuries

“Three hundred years” is a round figure, but it comes close to the total number of years given in the Book of Judges for the periods of oppression and of peace.

During those three centuries, the people of Ammon didn’t try to reclaim their territory

This section does tell us two things about Jephthah:

(1) He knew the Scriptures and the history of his people, and (

2) he was not a hothead who was looking for a fight.

Being a military man himself, Jephthah knew that a war could result in thousands of Jewish men being killed; and he wanted to avoid that if at all possible.

VI. Jephthah’s Fatal Oath vs. 29-40

The Spirit of the Lord is on Him

He is headed to battle the Ammonites

Which means he was the anointed leader

Last Sunday I talked about what Jesus said about oaths

He told us not to swear by anything and not to get into oaths

Jephthah falls into a fatal error

He wants to be victorious to show up the brothers who rejected him

In reality he didn’t need to make the oath at all

God would’ve given him the victory but in his impulsiveness he walks in the flesh

He pledges that he will sacrifice the first thing that comes out of his house when he arrives home

Normally Jews kept their animals in their homes at night because it was an extra source of heat

Jephthah was expecting an animal to come out, but it’s his daughter

She came out with tambourines celebrating his victory with dancing

This broke Jephthah’s heart because she was his only child

He revealed his vow to his daughter and she tells him that he has to keep it

She only asks for two months to weep over her virginity

Jephthah kept his vow and the women of Israel commemorate her death for four days each year