Difference between revisions of "Judges"

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[[Judges 1-2 | '''I. Introduction: Israel has broken the covenant of complete conquest (Judges 1-2)''']]
 
[[Judges 1-2 | '''I. Introduction: Israel has broken the covenant of complete conquest (Judges 1-2)''']]
::[[Judges 1 | '''A. First rebuke (Chapter 1)''']]
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::[[Judg 1:1-36 | '''A. First rebuke (1:1-36)''']]
:::[[Judg 1:1-26 | a. second generation conquers Canaan, Joshua dies (1:1-26)]]
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:::• Joshua dies, portions of Canaan conquered by second generation (1:1-26)
::::[[Judg 1:27-36 | b. but fails to conquer all of Canaan (1:27-36)]]
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:::• portions of Canaan not conquered by second generation (1:27-36)
:::::[[Judg 2:1-5 | c. angel rebukes disobedience, announces lesser covenant (2:1-5)]]
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::[[Judges 2 | '''B. Second rebuke (Chapter 2)''']]
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::[[Judg 2:1-23 | '''B. Second rebuke (2:1-23)''']]
:::[[Judg 2:6-10 | a. second generation faithful, Joshua dies (2:6-10)]]
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:::a. angel rebukes disobedience, announces lesser covenant (2:1-5)
::::[[Judg 2:10-19 | b. third generation idolatrous, judges (2:10-19)]]
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::::b. Joshua and second generation were faithful (2:6-10)
:::::[[Judg 2:20-3:6 | c. Lord rebukes disobedience, announces lesser covenant (2:20-3:6)]]
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::::b. third generation is unfaithful (2:11-19)
 +
:::a. Lord rebukes disobedience, announces lesser covenant (2:20-23)
  
  
 
[[Judges 3-16 | '''II. Development: Israel delivered from foreign destruction but spirals into apostasy (Judges 3-16)''']]
 
[[Judges 3-16 | '''II. Development: Israel delivered from foreign destruction but spirals into apostasy (Judges 3-16)''']]
 +
  
 
:[[Judges 3-5 | '''1. First pair: Ehud & Deborah-Barak (Chapters 3-5)''']]
 
:[[Judges 3-5 | '''1. First pair: Ehud & Deborah-Barak (Chapters 3-5)''']]
::● [[Judg 3:6-11 | Otniel: pattern of wickedness, captivity, repentance, and deliverance (3:6-11)]]
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::● [[Judg 3:1-11 | Othniel: pattern of wickedness, captivity, repentance, and 40 years deliverance (3:1-11)]]
  
 
::[[Judg 3:12-31 | '''A. Ehud: 80 years of rest (3:12-30)''']]
 
::[[Judg 3:12-31 | '''A. Ehud: 80 years of rest (3:12-30)''']]
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::• [[Judg 3:12-31 | ''Shamgar briefly mentioned (3:31)'']]
 
::• [[Judg 3:12-31 | ''Shamgar briefly mentioned (3:31)'']]
  
::[[Judges 4-5 | '''B. Deborah & Barak: Israelite woman kills foreign general (Chapter 4:1-5:31)''']]
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::[[Judges 4-5 | '''B. Deborah & Barak: Israelite woman kills foreign general (4:1-5:31)''']]
  
  
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[[Judges 17-21 | '''III. Conclusion: Israel has broken all covenants and is self-destructing (Chapters 17-21)''']]
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[[Judges 17-21 | '''III. Conclusion: Israel has broken all covenants and is self-destructing (Judges 17-21)''']]
  
::[[Judges 17-18 | '''A. Dan: apostatizes and abandons land of inheritance (Judges 17:1-18:31)''']]
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::[[Judges 17-18 | '''A. Dan: apostatizes and abandons land of inheritance (17:1-18:31)''']]
  
::[[Judges 19-21 | '''B. Benjamin: countenances rape and murder and is nearly destroyed (Judges 19:1-21:25)''']]
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::[[Judges 19-21 | '''B. Benjamin: countenances rape and murder and is nearly destroyed (19:1-21:25)''']]
  
 
::[[Ruth | '''● Ruth (Ruth)''']]
 
::[[Ruth | '''● Ruth (Ruth)''']]

Revision as of 01:05, 12 November 2013

The Old Testament > Judges

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This page would ideally always be under construction. You are invited to contribute.


Historical setting

This heading should be brief and explain facts about the historical setting that will help a reader to understand the book. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →

A broader treatment of the history of ancient Israel, including Judges, is found at Old Testament: Historical Overview.


Summary

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Discussion

This heading is for more detailed discussions of all or part of a passage. Discussion may include the meaning of a particular word, how a doctrinal point is developed throughout the passage, insights to be developed in the future, and other items. Contributions may range from polished paragraphs down to a single bullet point. The focus, however, should always be on understanding the scriptural text consistent with LDS doctrine. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →

The Book of Judges can be understood as explaining: (1) why the Israelites failed to finish conquering Canaan despite a promising start under Joshua; (2) why Israel needed a king despite Gideon’s refusal of that position; and (3) that an Israelite king should be descended from David of Judah, not from Joseph (Manasseh and Ephraim) as in the Northern Kingdom, and not even from Saul of Gibeah in Benjamin. These answers are not wrong, but there is more.

The Book of Judges also sets forth and illustrates the new, lesser covenant established by the Lord between himself and Israel. In Genesis 17:8, Exodus 34:10-17, Deuteronomy 7:1-5, ____ the Lord promised to give all of the land of Canaan to the Israelites. But the Lord also established conditions that the Israelites were to: (1) not make any alliances with the Canaanites, (2) throw down their heathen altars, and (3) not intermarry with them. In Judges 2:2 Israel is rebuked for violating the first two conditions, and in Judges 3:6 the Israelites are reported to violate the third condition. In Judges 2:1-5 and 2:20-3:4 the Lord therefore declares broken his previous covenant to deliver the entire land of Canaan to the Israelites, and in its place he declares that foreign nations will be left in Canaan to prove his people Israel and to be thorns in their sides. The former covenant will not be restored until the time of King David.

The Book of Judges is also about how Israel gets from Deborah, in which Israel is shown to be so strong that an allied woman can slay a foreign general, to Samson, in which Israel is now so weak that a foreign woman can defeat Israel’s greatest physical hero. The turning point appears to be Gideon’s final recorded act in making a golden ephod. Significantly, this is the first reported act by an Israelite leader to turn the people toward idolatry. Previously the people had often fallen into idolatry, and leaders were sometimes slow to trust the Lord, but those leaders were also consistently portrayed as faithful and able to each deliver 40 years of rest. The account of Gideon’s ephod is also followed by 40 years of rest, but it is the last rest that Israel will enjoy.

The account of Gideon’s ephod is immediately followed by the story of Abimelech and the town of Schechem, which illustrates Israel’s turning away from the Lord who has repeatedly delivered them. The many obvious parallels between the stories of Gideon and Jephthah show that Abimelech is the central story of Judges (to the extent that there is one). The next story is of Jephthah, who is able to defeat the Ammonites but not to deliver rest. And the last story of the group is of Samson, who does not even pretend to lead. The Samson story illustrates Israel’s failure to keep its covenants and to be an example to the nations as enjoined in Deuteronomy 4:6-8. The apparent lesson is that, although the people may have been idolatrous, they could be delivered by a strong righteous leader, but deliverance and rest become impossible when the leaders actually incite sin. Also see references to the Pattern on the other page.

It is likely that Judges covers about 250-300 years between about 1350-1300 BC to 1050 BC. Judges recounts a little more than 400 years of history, but some of the judges were probably regional and concurrent with each other, so that many years are counted twice. Judges also ends with two stories in which grandsons of Moses and Aaron figure prominently, but those two men would likely have been dead by the end of this time period. So the material in Judges has probably been arranged out of strict chronological order in order to make clear the lessons that its author sought to teach. The judgeships of Eli and Samuel occur after the end of Judges.

The Talmud states that both Judges and Ruth were written by Samuel. The Talmud also refers to the two final stories of Judges regarding Dan and Benjamin, plus the story of Ruth, as the Bethlehem Trilogy. While Judges may not have been written with Ruth in mind, it appears that Ruth was written with the stories of Dan and Benjamin in mind, and that it should therefore be read in light of the Book of Judges. The story of Ruth may have occurred about the same time as Gideon since she is the great grandmother of King David.


Points to ponder

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I have a question

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Relation to other scriptures

This heading is for notes about the relationship of this book to other sections and passages. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →

Related scriptures

Parallel passages

Text transmission

Joseph Smith Translation

The Joseph Smith Translation made changes to only one verse in Judges:[1]

  • Judges 2:18


Complete outline and page map

This heading contains an outline for the entire book. Items in blue or purple text indicate hyperlinked pages that address specific portions of this section. Click the link above and to the right to edit or add content to this heading. →


Judges

I. Introduction: Israel has broken the covenant of complete conquest (Judges 1-2)

A. First rebuke (1:1-36)
• Joshua dies, portions of Canaan conquered by second generation (1:1-26)
• portions of Canaan not conquered by second generation (1:27-36)
B. Second rebuke (2:1-23)
a. angel rebukes disobedience, announces lesser covenant (2:1-5)
b. Joshua and second generation were faithful (2:6-10)
b. third generation is unfaithful (2:11-19)
a. Lord rebukes disobedience, announces lesser covenant (2:20-23)


II. Development: Israel delivered from foreign destruction but spirals into apostasy (Judges 3-16)


1. First pair: Ehud & Deborah-Barak (Chapters 3-5)
Othniel: pattern of wickedness, captivity, repentance, and 40 years deliverance (3:1-11)
A. Ehud: 80 years of rest (3:12-30)
Shamgar briefly mentioned (3:31)
B. Deborah & Barak: Israelite woman kills foreign general (4:1-5:31)


2. Second pair: Gideon & Abimelech (Chapters 6-9)
Prophet tells Israel to trust in the Lord (6:1-10)
A. Gideon: deliverance but return to wickedness (6:11-8:35)
B. Abimelech: no invasion, Shechem kills Gideon's sons (9:1-57)


3. Third pair: Jephthah & Samson (Chapters 10-16)
Tola and Jair briefly mentioned (10:1-5)
Lord says he will no longer deliver, but Israel repents (10:6-18)
A. Jephthah: deliverance but no rest (11:1-12:7)
Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon briefly mentioned (12:8-15)
B. Samson: no deliverance, Israelite hero killed by foreign woman (13:1-16:31)
a. angel announces Samson’s birth and call to deliver Israel (13:1-25)
b. Philistine bride learns secret riddle of the honeycomb (14:1-20)
c. Samson burns crops, kills Philistines with jawbone (15:1-20)
b. Delilah learns secret of Samson’s strength (16:1-20)
a. Samson kills 3,000 Philistines as vengeance for his eyes (16:21-31)


III. Conclusion: Israel has broken all covenants and is self-destructing (Judges 17-21)

A. Dan: apostatizes and abandons land of inheritance (17:1-18:31)
B. Benjamin: countenances rape and murder and is nearly destroyed (19:1-21:25)
● Ruth (Ruth)


Resources

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Translations

  • Amplified • The Amplified Bible, 1987 update
  • NASB • New American Standard Bible, 1995 update
  • NIV • New International Version
  • RSV • Revised Standard Version

Cited references

  • Wayment, Thomas A., ed. The Complete Joseph Smith Translation of the Old Testament, p. 131. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 2009. (ISBN 1606411314) BX8630.A2 2009

Other resources

Notes

Footnotes are not required but are encouraged for factual assertions that average readers cannot easily evaluate for themselves, such as the date of King Solomon’s death or the nuanced definition of a Greek word. In contrast, insights rarely benefit from footnoting, and the focus of this page should always remain on the scriptures themselves rather than what someone has said about them. Links are actively encouraged on all sections of this page, and links to authoritative sources are preferable to footnotes.

  1. Wayment, The Complete Joseph Smith Translation of the Old Testament, p. 131.



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