Judges
God’s Law Commanded Death
The guilty ones were named and sent for, but the Benjamites rejected the request of the other tribes to surrender those wicked men of Gibeah for execution in order to purge the evil (vv. 12-13). Benjamin, because of pride, apparently felt that he could manage their own affairs and punish their …
Conditions in Israel
Forty years of rest and the next generation of Hebrews had once more forgotten God and reverted to an easygoing religion that threatened to do away with Israel’s trust in God (v. 1). To punish His people, God sent in warlike tribes from the desert (vv. 2-3). These Bedouins and shepherds who …
Destroying the Pagan Altar
Gideon’s father had set up an idol to Baal in a grove of trees on their land like the heathen nations around them. That very night God tested Gideon’s dedication by asking him to tear down his fathers’ altar and to build an altar to Jehovah in its place (vv. 25-26). In addition to this he was to sacrifice …
The Horrors of a Civil War
Her second advance against the Benjamites was again fiercely checked as 18,000 of her warriors lay dead on the field of battle (vv. 24-25). Perhaps one reason the Lord permitted Israel to have these initial defeats was to bring then to a point of repentance. Now fasting and the offering of …
War with Ephraim
The tribe of Ephraim seems to have been easily upset as they took exception to Jephthah’s strategy against Ammon (v. 1). The men of Ephraim had been angered before when Gideon did not ask them to join in his surprise attack on the camp of the Midianites. Their jealousy was a real infection that …
The Ruthless Mind of Man
Two hundred Benjamites still needed wives, but the vow at Mizpah prevented the Israelites from giving their daughters to them in marriage (v. 18). A convenient way had to be found not only to preserve their vow but also to restore the families of Benjamin (vv. 13-17). This led to the …
Wholesale Slaughter with the Jawbone of a donkey
The cords that bound Samson were snapped and he grabbed a fresh jawbone of a donkey and made a wholesale slaughter of the Philistines (vv. 14-17). A fresh jawbone of a donkey would be heavier and less brittle and thus a more effective weapon than a jawbone that was old and dry. This great …
Partial Success in Southern Canaan
After Joshua’s death Israel presses forward to exterminate the Canaanites who are still holding on to their strongholds in the land. The tribes of Judah and Simeon merged their forces to carry out a series of attacks on the Canaanites in the hill country south of Jerusalem (vv. 1-5). They captured …
Sampson was Born
Manoah wanted to have a sacrificial meal with the angel of the Lord for he was not aware that his guest was superhuman (v. 15). The angel refused to partake of such a meal but suggested instead that a sacrifice be offered to the Lord (vv. 16-18). Manoah appears to have taken the angel’s …
The Results of Sexual Perversion
While the people were enjoying themselves inside, the wicked men of Gibeah surrounded the house and demanded the old man send out the Levite to satisfy their homosexual desires (v. 22). It is unthinkable but the old man was willing to sacrifice his daughter and the Levite’s concubine …