Preliminary Thoughts on Judges 2006 February 18^th for March 16^th

The time of the patriarchs is over. The great patriarchs at the foundation of Judaism, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and later, Moses, and Joshua, are now in the past. Israel is a large nation, somewhere around a million people, and has now occupied the land promised to Abraham who, himself, lived there only as an alien and lived only to see a handful of his own descendants. The arrival of Israel has been accompanied and enabled by the overt works of a strong God, showing his ascendancy and uniqueness both through miraculous works and detailed teachings on human and community life.

Israel now moves into a new era in which they hope to live mostly at peace with their families and flocks, and with their God, in this land. The era of the momentous personalities, fashioned of momentous times, is over. Joshua is dead.

This is the period of the Judges. I donÕt know exactly why it is called this, maybe we will find out as we go along, but I do know that this is the story of Israel after the time of centralized leadership under Moses and Joshua but before they had centralized leadership under a king. As the situation warranted, a leader or ÒJudgeÓ would arise to carry the people through the various crises that would arise. Perhaps this ÒJudgeÓ was a descendants of the Judges to whom Moses delegated judicial authority at the behest of Jethro, his father-in-law. (Perhaps not, we donÕt know the actual Hebrew words for ÒjudgeÓ used here.)

In at least one case, this leader was a woman, though the culture of Israel is seen to be highly patriarchal. There are readings of this text, needing to justify a dogma of the superiority of men which is believed to permeate the Bible, that claim that this was only possible because some man or men whom God had chosen for the job of leading in that crises would not respond to him and that the only person who would was a woman. We will discuss this more when we get to that actual text, but I have to say even at this preliminary point, that I think the ascendancy of male humans in the Bible is merely self-fulfilling. For whatever reason, men were the leaders in the tribe that God chose to form into his people and it just stayed that way. Men led and men were generally accounted as more important because the men led and were therefore thought more important. Personally, I donÕt particularly believe that this feature of the culture was an important factor in GodÕs choice of that particular tribe, I think he just took it as it was and the male superiority thing wasnÕt important enough, among other pressing issues, to do anything about. This belief may not be central truth on the matter, but I would point out that it is probably not any further from truth than the prevailing beliefs about men and women within Christianity that are on the other side of the issue.

Certainly, reading the Bible through the lens of 21^st century America is, as it has been in other ages, a distorting experience.

As with other parts of the Bible that we are reviewing, it has been a long time since I was last through Judges in any kind of systematic way. I recall many stories of the various leaders of Israel and the crises to which they responded, and the often-miraculous ways in which God was still actively involved with them. Let us see, then, where the era of the Judges takes the people of Israel, and their spiritual descendants today, that is, us.

Judges 1 2006 February 20^th for March 17^th

Joshua was dead and the Israelites asked God Òwho will be the first to go up and fight for us against the Canaanites?Ó God said, ÒJudah.Ó Judah then invited Simeon to come along and help them in exchange for assistance later with SimeonÕs enemies.

They attacked and subdued the Canaanites and Perizzites and captured a king called Adoni-Bezek. Here we get some insight into the Òrules of engagementÓ of the period. They cut off Adoni-BezekÕs thumbs and big toes causing him to declare (no doubt in anguish) that he had done this same treatment to his enemies in the past, ÒSeventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have picked up scraps under my table. Now God has paid me back for what I did to them.Ó

They then advanced into the Negev and to Hebron, defeating Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. When they went against Debir, the story of Caleb and his daughter is told again. I suppose this is the same story that we saw in Joshua, but now in context of the ongoing campaign against Canaan. Caleb pledged his daughter Acsah to whoever would capture Kiriath Sepher (Debir). His youngest brother Othniel did this and thus married his niece. Afterwards Acsah approached her father on a donkey and when Caleb asked what she wanted, asked for and was given some lands in CalebÕs inheritance.

Simeon and Judah then went on to other conquests, but after they had cleaned out the hill country and moved into the plains, they were unable to prevail. The people there had iron horses and chariots. The Jebusites still lived in the area with the Benjamites at the time of this writing.

The Òhouse of JosephÓ, that is Manasseh, then marched on Bethel and used a spying, inside traitor trick reminiscent of Rahab in Jericho to take it. The people who helped the Israelis were spared. After this, they too went further and were not able to prevail any longer. Later however, ÒWhen Israel became strong, they pressed the Canaanites into forced labor but never drove them out completely.Ó

The same sort of thing happened with Ephraim (the rest of Joseph) in another region important to them.

As we consider these stories, I am troubled by what is perceived by some as Biblical inconsistency but what may be just a misunderstanding on my part regarding GodÕs role versus IsraelÕs role in these conquests.

God is only mentioned at the beginning of this chapter, when he selected Judah to go first against some of the remaining Canaanites. So far so good. It doesnÕt say anything about God ordering or suggesting collaboration with Simeon. It doesnÕt say anything about God saying that it was good policy to cut off conquered leaderÕs digits. The text makes no representation about GodÕs involvement when Judah and Manasseh and Ephraim all reached the limits of their military power and failed to prevail. Are iron chariots no match for this God? Were they on their own initiative when they lost to such technology? Have we forgotten Egypt at the Sea of Reeds?

At the end of this chapter, each of the three raiding parties has had some successes, and each had had some failures. In one case, the people with the chariots were never subdued but lived as peers in tension. In the other two cases, after a time, Israel got strong enough to subject their enemies to forced labor but not to run them off (or annihilate them, it doesnÕt say which) completely. Something else I donÕt understand here, not having a good sense of manual combat: It seems like it would be easier to annihilate enemies than to subject them to forced labor. Maybe it wasnÕt a matter of Òease.Ó

The way the story actually plays out, then, is very believable, pragmatic military progress. The spiritual dimension and the power of God do not play an enormous part in this section of text as they had with Moses and Joshua.

My struggle is that I am accustomed to preaching that offers the absolute supremacy of God based on texts that make such claims. This is not one. I have never heard a sermon on a text like this in which the realistic aspects of these campaigns and others like them are developed, nor am I likely to.

What I take away from this reading myself is that God is present with the Israelites and he gives them an edge, but that they are still operating in a realm in which they can lose, or at least fail to succeed, a realm in which they often feel they must resort to trickery and treason in order to advance their ends, a realm in which cruelty is expected, and a realm in which victories can be partial and the people of God can be overwhelmed by advanced technology. A conservative interpretation of this is that all of the fighters and leaders were not totally pure and blameless before the Lord and that this was the reason for their mediocre performance. This interpretation is not debatable apart from underlying tenets of faith, but such a claim is not supported from this text or from the vast majority of historical accounts we have covered so far in the Old Testament.

Judges 2 – 3:6 2006 February 21^st for March 20^th

This chapter sets the tone for what follows. After Joshua died (Òat age 110 and was buried at Timnath Heres in the hill country of EphraimÓ) and after everyone who remembered Joshua died, Òthe Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals.Ó

An interesting thing happened:

ÒThe angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bokim [ÒweepersÓ] and said, ÔI brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers. I said, ÒI will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.Ó Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.Õ

Later it says that because the people were fickle like this, God would leave all those people that Joshua didnÕt conquer in place as a continuing test of faithfulness for Israel. It also says, parenthetically that Òhe did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience.Ó

At the very least, it is not clear what the word ÒonlyÓ means in this statement, since two reasons for leaving these competing peoples in place have just been given.

My guess is that the people were unfaithful to God for two reasons, ignorance (in generations with no memory of Joshua or Moses) and iniquity (the natural perversion of the heart). It is an interesting choice for God to leave the competing religions and practitioners in place to test his people, seeing that what he claimed he wanted was their fidelity. I think it is fair to claim that God still operates in this way.

Without naming names, it says that the following would happen: When Israel was in trouble, God would raise up a ÒjudgeÓ who would lead Israel and save them from the raiders. Things would be all right as long as that judge lived, but when the judge died, the Israelites would forget what God had done for them and ÒprostituteÓ themselves by serving other gods and at that point, God would allow their enemies to prevail again and they would again be in trouble. It seems a foregone conclusion that this cycle would be repeated several times.

These nations were left as the test as to whether Israel would follow GodÕs commands handed down through Moses: the Philistines (five rulers), the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living in the mountains.

In response, ÒThe Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. They took their daughters in marriage and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods.Ó

So began the first downfall.

Judges 3:7 - 31 2006 February 21^st for March 21^st

The first judge was none other than Othniel, CalebÕs younger brother and son-in-law whom we have met before. Israel strayed into worshipping the Asherahs and Baals and God Òsold them into the hands of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram Naharaim.Ó They were under this king for eight years, then God raised up Othniel who went to war and defeated this king. After that, Israel lived in peace until Othniel died forty years later.

Next, king Eglon of Moab had the Amalekites and Ammonites join him to attack Israel and take one of the cities. The Israelites were his subjects for eighteen years.

After the Israelites cried for help God raised up a judge, Ehud, who was left-handed. He made a short sword, about 18 inches long (sounds like a dagger), and hid it under his clothing on his right thigh.

When tribute was paid to Eglon, Ehud went with them, and after the tribute bearers had gone, Ehud told the king Eglon that he had a secret message for him. They went to a private room on top of EglonÕs palace from which Eglon dismissed his attendants. It was just the two of them.

Eglon was very fat.

In private, Ehud took out his short, double-edged sword with his left hand and shoved it into EglonÕs belly so far that EglonÕs fat covered over the handle and the blade stuck out of his back. Ehud then locked the doors and escaped.

What happens next is a piece of ÒJudges humor.Ó ÒThe servants came and found the doors of the upper room locked. They said, ÔHe must be relieving himself in the inner room of the house.Õ They waited to the point of embarrassment, but when he did not open the doors of the room, they took a key and unlocked them. There they saw their lord fallen to the floor, dead.Ó

In his escape, Ehud passed by the foreign idols, who did nothing to him (more ÒJudges humorÓ) and when he got back to Israel, rallied the fighting men who came out and defeated the now headless Moab, killing ten thousand men. After that there was peace for eighty years.

And after that there is a third judge about which it says only this, ÒAfter Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath, who struck down six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel.Ó

Judges 4 2006 February 23^nd for March 22^nd

After Ehud, the Israelites strayed again and God Òsold them into the hands of Jabin, a king of Canaan.Ó JabinÕs army was led by Sisera who had nine hundred iron chariots and treated the Israelites with cruelty for twenty years.

Israel was judged in these days by a prophetess named Deborah (wife of Lappidoth). People would come to her with their disputes and she sat under a tree, the ÒPalm of DeborahÓ and adjudicated them. Deborah sent for a commander named Barak and told him to rally Naphtali and Zebulun to throw off this Jabin. Barak said he would only do it if Deborah came with him on the campaign. She agreed, but pointed out that as a result, she would get the credit for the kill, not Barak. This was fine with everyone and they went and got ten thousand troops and went off to Mt. Tabor to do the battle.

There was a brother-in-law of Moses, Heber the Kenite, who happened to be camped nearby.

When Sisera showed up for the battle with his nine hundred chariots, Deborah gave the battle speech to Barak, who led the troops to rout the Canaanites. Sisera himself abandoned his chariot and fled on foot while all of his men, ever one of them, was slain by sword.

In flight, Sisera came to HeberÕs tent and was greeted by HeberÕs wife Jael. Because the Jabins and the Hebers were friendly families, Jael invited Sisera to come into the tent and take refuge. She gave him drink and he instructed her that if anyone came by she was to deny that anyone was in there. She then covered him with a blanket and he went to sleep.

While Sisera slept, Jael came up with a tent peg and drove it into the ground through SiseraÕs head. He died. When Barak came by, Jael said, ÒI will show you the man youÕre looking for.Ó Sure enough, Òthere lay Sisera with the tent peg through his temple – dead.Ó

After this the Israelites grew stronger and destroyed king Jabin too.

Judges 5 2006 February 25^th for March 23^rd

Deborah was also a poet. She wrote a song about these events and the song gives some insight that the bare historical narrative does not. The song talks of Deborah and Barak, but the references to Barak fade out as the story goes on. They nearly seem perfunctory.

The song starts in praise of God and of congratulations to the Òprinces of IsraelÓ for following him.

ÒIn the days of Shamgar son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the roads were abandoned; travelers took to winding paths.

Village life in Israel ceased, ceased until I, Deborah, arose, arose a mother in Israel.Ó

Apparently some tribes did not join in the battle because they declined to come, not because they werenÕt asked:

ÒIn the districts of Reuben there was much searching of heart.

Why did you stay among the campfires to hear the whistling for the flocks?Ó

ÒAnd Dan, why did he linger by the ships?

Asher remained on the seacoast and stayed in his coves.Ó

Others risked their lives or rushed into battle together, but not these.

The kings of Canaan fought against Israel.

ÒÕCurse Meroz,Õ said the angel of the Lord. ÔCurse its people bitterly,

because they did not come to help the Lord, to help the Lord against the mighty.ÕÓ

Was the angel of the Lord in the battle? It does not say who Meroz is, whether this was an Israelite clan or foreign neighbors.

But Jael, wife of Heber is Òmost blessed of womenÓ because when Sisera came to her asking for water, she gave him curdled milk in a Òbowl fit for nobles.Ó Then she crushed his head as he slept with common tools.

In the next scene:

ÒThrough the window peered SiseraÕs mother; behind the lattice she cried out,

ÔWhy is his chariot so long in coming? Why is the clatter of his chariots delayed?Õ

The wisest of her ladies answer her; indeed, she keeps saying to herself,

are they not finding and dividing the spoils;

a girl or two for each man,

colorful garments as plunder for Sisera,

colorful garments embroidered,

highly embroidered garments for my neck – all this plunder?

In the end Deborah is thinking of herself in ways that we do not fully grasp. She is speaking for SiseraÕs mother. Is this from firsthand knowledge? From her imagination about the Canaanite enemies based on their experience, communications, and observations? Do these lines crush SiseraÕs mother emotionally, as a woman might crush an enemy woman? When this was written these answers might have been obvious.

ÒSo may all your enemies perish, O Lord! But may they who love you be like the sun

when it rises in its strength.Ó

After this, Òthe land had peace forty years.Ó

Judges 6 2006 February 27^th for March 24^th

The Israelites were evil again and God turned them over to the Midianites whose oppression was severe. The Israelites put up shelters in the hills and in caves. Whenever they would get a field planted, the Midianite army would come and camp on it and destroy everything. They became so poor that they cried out to God.

First, God sent a prophet who reminded them of their experiences in Egypt and chewed them out for not being faithful. Then Òthe angel of the LordÓ came and met with a man called Gideon Òunder the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite.Ó I think this detailed location is given to reinforce believability.

Gideon was working there at a threshing floor and he asked the angel why God had abandoned his people to the Midianites. GodÕs answer was indirect but conclusive, ÒGo in the strength you have and save Israel out of MidianÕs hand. Am I not sending you?Ó

Gideon protested that he was the weakest member of the weakest clan of Manasseh. God promised that he would prevail easily. Gideon then asked for a sign and asked the angel to wait until he could bring out a sacrifice. He went and prepared a goat and some broth and brought them out. The angel told him where to put these things and how to handle them. The angel then touched them and fire came out of a rock and consumed the offering.

Gideon was frightened for his life, having seen God face to face. God told him not to worry about it.

Gideon then built an altar there called ÒThe Lord is Peace.Ó (Apparently this was acceptable to God despite the Mosaic regulation not to put up altars just anywhere.) God then instructed Gideon to tear down the altar to Baal and the Asherah pole nearby. He did this, but not in the open daylight but at night. The next morning when the neighbors found their Baal and Asherah altars destroyed and discovered that it had been done by Gideon, they were going to put him to death until Joash told them that Baal could take care of himself if he wanted to. For this, they started calling Gideon Jerub-Baal meaning Òlet Baal contend.Ó

(This does not strike me as the way the 1950s version of a movie about this would have been made – the hero going out to fight his battle in private in the middle of the night and still prevailing then and going forward as a great leader.)

Gideon then went off to lead the people against Midian and he summoned many allies but before proceeding further he asked for two more signs from God. This timid approach of Gideon is not seen as a strength; it is seen as a demonstration of GodÕs power working through weakness.

In both tests he left fleeces out overnight. The first time he asked for the fleece to be covered with dew while the surrounding ground was left dry. This occurred and he wrung a cup of water out of the fleece. The next night he asked for the opposite and this, too, occurred. The ground was covered in dew and the fleece remained dry. This was convincing to Gideon as being beyond coincidence.

Judges 7 2006 March 4^th for 27^th

As Gideon and his forces camped near the Midianites ready for battle, God spoke to him and said, ÒYou have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands.Ó God didnÕt want them to believe that they were winning this battle due to their own strength, so he had Midian dismiss anyone who was afraid. On that offer, 22,000 went home and 10,000 remained in camp.

God still had too many troops for this battle, however. He had Gideon take them to the river to drink. Some lapped like dogs and the others knelt down to drink. God kept the three hundred who lapped like dogs and sent the rest home. The provisions and trumpets stayed in the war camp.

Gideon now had three hundred troops plus trumpets and provisions for thousands.

God told Gideon to go down to the camp of the enemy, just as a visiting man, and that he would receive encouragement from what he heard there. Gideon took his assistant Purah and they went down to the outskirts of the camp. The Midianites had tents and troops and camels spread across the valley, so many of them that they couldnÕt be counted, it was like looking at the sand on the seashore.

As they arrived, one Midianite soldier was talking to another. He had just awakened from a dream in which ÒA round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed.Ó

ÒThe friend responded, ÔThis can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite, God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.ÕÓ

So, in fact, Gideon was encouraged and the Midianites were pre-terrified. Gideon worshipped God, then went back to his camp and rallied his three hundred troops. Each was given a trumpet and a jar with a torch.

Gideon said, ÔFollow me down to the camp, do what I do.Õ They went to the outskirts of the Midian camp and broke their jars. Each of the three hundred men, holding the torch in his left hand and the trumpet in his right shouted, ÒA sword for the Lord and for Gideon!Ó They stood in position while the Midianites fled in terror then they started blowing the trumpets.

The route was a stampede. Midianites killed each other with their own swords in the panic. They fled down the road in total confusion. Gideon called out men from Naphtali, Asher, Manasseh, and Ephraim to fill in behind the Midianites and re-occupy their land far down the Jordan. Two Midianite leaders, Oreb and Zeeb, were captured and decapitated. The heads were brought back to Gideon.

Judges 8 2006 March 4^th for 28^th

The battle against Midian continues. Gideon and his three hundred men continued in their pursuit across the Jordan. The men of Ephraim complained bitterly that they had not been included in the original campaign, but Gideon pointed out to them that they had done much more than he had in the battle and this satisfied them.

The men were tired and hungry when they came to Succoth and asked for bread. The officials there denied them, citing that they hadnÕt captured Midianite leaders Zebah and Zalmunna yet. They were clearly hedging their bets, not wanting to be found in league with losers after the Gideon – Midian matter was settled. Gideon told them he would take care of them when he came back through victorious.

The same thing happened at Peniel.

But they kept pursuing the kings of Midian, who were by now at Karkor with fifteen thousand men remaining. ÒGideon went up by the route of the nomads east of Nobah and Jogbehah and fell upon the unsuspecting army.Ó The two kings fled but were captured and the army was routed. Twice fooledÉ.

On the way back, they captured a young man from Succoth and questioned him about the leadership from his city. Gideon then showed off the captured kings Zebah and Zalmunna, at Succoth. ÒHe took the elders of the towns and taught the men of Succoth a lesson by punishing them with desert thorns and briers. (This sounds painful but it doesnÕt go into further detail about this form of torture.) He also pulled down the tower of Peniel and killed the men of the town.Ó

He then questioned Zebah and Zalmunna and when Gideon determined to his own satisfaction that they had killed his brothers, he turned to his son Jether and told him to kill the two kings. Jether was afraid and did not, however. Hesitant É like father, like son.

Zebah and Zalmunna said, ÒCome, do it yourself. ÔAs is the man, so is his strength.ÕÓ Gideon then killed them himself and took the ornaments off of their camels.

The Israelites then asked Gideon to rule over them as their king. He said he would not do it, that they should be ruled over by God who was their king, but he did ask for a tribute of earrings, one from each manÕs plunder, which they gladly gave. He made these into an ÒephodÓ of gold which he set up in his hometown of Oprah. ÒAll Israel prostituted themselves by worshipping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family.Ó

It doesnÕt say anymore about this either. It seems that even GodÕs chosen are not perfect, even the humble, introverted, reluctant ones who defer to God, like Gideon.

Nonetheless, Midian was subdued and there was peace during the lifetime of Gideon. He had many wives and by them he had seventy sons. He also had a concubine in Shechem who bore him a son called Abimelech who we will hear more about tomorrow.

As soon as Gideon was gone, Israel went to worshipping Baals again, forgetting about God and Gideon.

Judges 9 2006 March 6^th for March 29^th

Abimelech was one of the multitude of sons of Gideon by his concubine in Shechem. He approached his motherÕs relatives in Shechem and, claiming to be their brother, asked if they would rather have him or the other seventy sons of Gideon reign over them.

They gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith and Abilemech used this money to hire Òreckless adventurers.Ó These then went up to Ophrah and murdered his seventy brothers, all on Òone stone.Ó (It doesnÕt go into any more detail about how this was accomplished.) Only one escaped, the youngest son, Jotham.

When he learned of the murders, Jotham went up on top of Mount Gerizim and shouted a parable to the people below, a parable of trees trying to get one of the trees to be their king. The olive and fig trees and then a vine declined to take time out of their busy schedules to be king, so finally the trees crowned the thorn bush. Jotham then concluded by saying that if the people had dealt properly with the sons of Gideon (Jerub-Baal), then Òmay Abimelech be your joyÓ but otherwise Òlet fire come out from Abimelech and consume you.Ó

Jotham then ran off to Beer, probably feeling powerless against Abimelech and his band of Òreckless adventurersÓ.

Now a new leader arrives on the scene. A man named Gaal (son of Ebed) Òmoved with his brothers into Shechem.Ó The Shechemites liked Gaal. After the grape gathering they had a festival at which Gaal cursed Abimelech and rallied the citizens of Shechem to serve ÒHamor, ShechemÕs fatherÓ (possibly an ancestor of Gaal) rather than that foreigner Abimelech and his deputy Zebul. (Apparently Abimelech didnÕt actually live in Shechem but only ruled their through this deputy.)

Zebul was angry at this and informed Abimelech, telling him to advance on the city in secret and Òwhen Gaal and his men come out against you, do whatever your hand finds to do.Ó

No doubt this is a euphemism for Òslaughter them if you can.Ó This is the way of battle.

Abimelech did this with his men in the night. The next morning, Gaal and Zebul were standing outside the gate and had an interesting exchange. Gaal saw AbimelechÕs troops advancing and said, ÒLook, people are coming down from the tops of the mountains!Ó

Zebul replied, ÒYou mistake the shadows of the mountains for men.Ó

Just imagine in the pre-technological age, seeing the sun rise and shadows advancing down the mountains, something you would see every day of the year (weather permitting). Today it was armed men running down the mountains into the city. Gaal saw the difference but the scene was ambiguous enough for an alternative interpretation to be suggested.

Gaal persisted however, and as the men drew close enough to be obvious, Zebul changed his story, ÒWhere is your big talk now, you who said, ÔWho is Abimelech that we should be subject to him?Õ ArenÕt these the men you ridiculed? Go out and fight them!Ó

The conversation at the gate had been Zebul wasting GaalÕs time so he wouldnÕt rally his men too quickly.

Gaal was now trapped. While Abimelech engaged and fought his men, Zebul drove them out of the city leaving them no retreat. Many died and Gaal and his brothers were removed from Shechem.

The next day the citizens of Shechem (the folks who had voted for Gaal after he cursed Abimelech) were coming out to work in the fields. AbimelechÕs army attacked them, killing many. ÒThen he destroyed the city and scattered salt over it.Ó The surviving citizens fled and locked themselves into the Òstronghold of the temple of El-Berith.Ó Abimelech and his men went and collected wood from a nearby mountain, piled it up against the stronghold, and set it on fire, burning or smothering everyone inside to death, Òabout a thousand men and women.Ó

Then they went to the next city, Thebez and did the same thing. During the siege, the people went to a stronghold and locked themselves in, climbing up on the roof of their tower. While Abimelech was collecting wood to burn them up too, however, a woman Òdropped an upper millstone on his head and cracked his skull.Ó

ÒHurriedly he called to his armor-bearer, ÔDraw your sword and kill me, so that they canÕt say, ÒA woman killed him.ÓÕ So his servant ran him through, and he died.Ó

When they saw that Abimelech was dead, they all went home.

In this one day the whole landscape changed. Two cities were gone, two rulers were gone, the heritage of Gideon was gone (excepting Jotham) and the tactical advantages and disadvantages of tower strongholds were demonstrated.

In this way God punished Abimelech for the murders of the seventy sons of Gideon and he also Ò[made] the men of Shechem pay for all their wickedness.Ó This was called the Òcurse of Jotham.Ó

Judges 10 - 11 2006 March 6^th for 30^th

Two more judges are mentioned, only in passing, Tola who led for twenty-three years and Jair who led for twenty-two years. Jair was notable in that he Òhad thirty sons who rode thirty donkeysÓ and ran thirty towns in Gilead. These facts are probably given to indicate great relative wealth.

The Israelites then strayed again and were given over by God to the Philistines and Ammonites. When their oppression became so great that they cried out to God, the conversation took on a new dimension. God basically said, ÔI wonÕt save you this time, cry out to those other gods you serve and Òlet them save you when you are in trouble!Ó

This sounds like the rant of prophets who will come somewhat later in the history of Israel. No individual is credited with this particular pronouncement from God.

In any case, the Israelites persisted, confessed their sin and relented. Following this, God Òcould bear IsraelÕs misery no longer.Ó

The Ammonites were called up and camped at Gilead. The Israelites camped at Mizpah and said to each other ÒWhoever will launch the attack against the Ammonites will be the head of all those living in Gilead.Ó

There was, in fact, a Òmighty warriorÓ in the area named Jepthah whose father was Gilead. There was a problem though. JepthahÕs mother was a prostitute and when he had grown up, the legitimate sons of Gilead had run him off saying he would get none of the inheritance. Now the elders of Gilead were back begging Jepthah to lead them.

The negotiation went as you might expect. Jepthah rubbed their noses in it for a while. Finally the elders swore by God to make Jepthah their leader and he took command.

He began by sending messengers to the Ammonite king asking what their problem was. Their problem was that when Israel had come out of Egypt, they had taken all of the territory that the Ammonites now claimed.

Jepthah knew the history of the conquest of Canaan, however, and sent a messenger back detailing how, when this same land was held by the Amorites under king Sihon, they had not been cooperative with the Israelites during their occupation movements. The Israelites had not threatened them but Sihon still did not trust them and would not let them cross the land peaceably. Because of this, God had given the land in question to Israel.

Jepthah concluded by saying that the Ammonites therefore had no right to this land. If they thought different they should get their god Chemosh to do something about it.

The king of the Ammonites ignored this.

In the remainder of this story you will see why you probably donÕt sing songs in Sunday School about Jepthah and why, in fact, youÕve probably never heard of him around church. This is one of those incidents that many congregations, with their particular takes on the Bible, choose to, shall we say, de-emphasize.

Jepthah, in Òthe Spirit of the LordÓ advanced against the Ammonites and made a vow to God, ÒIf you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the LordÕs, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering.Ó

It is not clear what he was thinking; this was the sort of vow that one of the enemy pagans would have made, not an Israelite worshipper of God. When he returned home victorious from the battle, having Òdevastated twenty towns,Ó however, Òwho should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of tambourines! She was an only child.Ó

ÒWhen he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, ÔOh! My daughter! You have made me miserable and wretched, because I have made a vow to the Lord that I cannot break.Ó

This unnamed daughter then said something interesting. She told her father that he must fulfill his vow, but she asked that first she be allowed for two months to Òroam the hills and weep with my friends, because I will never marry.Ó She was permitted to do this and when she came home, Jepthah did indeed fulfill his vow.

This was the origin of a custom of the time that Òeach year the young women of Israel go out for four days to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.Ó

This cannot have been in ÒGodÕs perfect planÓ for Jepthah or his daughter, yet, the fact that this incident is faithfully recorded lends believability to the account in that honesty is more important to the authors and to their God than making the people look good. In my mind this sort of thing lends credence to the story, as opposed to those from other religions such as the infant Mohammad making pronouncements from his crib or having his entire tomb carried up into heaven. It therefore irritates me to have this historical account lumped together with all of the pseudo-historical myths of other religions as if nothing associated with any religion could be believed just because most of them are fantastical.

Nonetheless, we are disappointed with JepthahÕs rash vow.

Judges 12 2006 March 6^th for 31^st

But wait, weÕre not done with Jepthah, the man who sacrificed his daughter on a vow to God.

As usual, the men of Ephraim were disgruntled that they had not been in on the fight. ÒWhy did you go to fight the Ammonites without calling us to go with you? WeÕre going to burn down your house over your head.Ó

This sounds more than merely Òdisgruntled.Ó

Jepthah was disgruntled himself, ÒI and my people were engaged in a great struggle with the Ammonites, and although I called, you didnÕt save me out of their hands. When I saw that you wouldnÕt help, I took my life in my hands and crossed over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave me the victory over them.Ó

So they had their own battle, the Ephraimites and the Gileadites, and Gilead prevailed. As the straggling Ephraimites came in from the battle, the Gileadite guards would challenge them and make them say a word, ÒShibbolethÓ, which word Ephraimites pronounced incorrectly, ÒSibbolethÓ. Any Ephraimites they detected in this way, they killed. Forty two thousand Ephraimites were killed in the entire action.

JepthahÕs reign ended when he died six years later.

Following this were three single-paragraph judges.

Ibzan led Israel for seven years. He had thirty sons for whom he took wives from outside the clan and thirty daughters whom he gave away as wives outside the clan. We have seen the significance of marrying outside of Israel, that is forbidden, but I donÕt know why marriage outside the clan is noteworthy unless it is that all of IbzanÕs children did this.

Elon from Zebulun led for ten years. Nothing seems to have happened in this period, apostasy or repentance, slavery or victory. Apparently there were peacetime judges too.

Abdon led Israel for eight years. His claim to fame was that Òhe had forty sons and thirty grandsons, who rode on seventy donkeys.Ó The Òdonkey status arms raceÓ continues.

Judges 13 - 14 2006 March 8^th for April 3^rd

This is the famous story of the judge Samson.

Israel, due to their evil, was in bondage to the Philistines for forty years. During this time there was a couple who had no children. The manÕs name was Manoah. An angel, the Òangel of the LordÓ appeared to ManoahÕs wife one day and told her that she would have a son and that he would be a Nazirite. (Recall the ÒNazirite vowÓ prescribed by Moses.) This child was to be a Nazirite even before he was born so even his mother was to follow the prescriptions of the vow: no fermented drink, nothing unclean to eat, and ÒNo razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth.Ó

I canÕt resist digressing here to point out that this is one of many ÒtemperanceÓ texts in the Bible, that is, one used against the use of alcohol. This text, however, does not speak against the use of alcohol in general, but only as one of the requirements of this special vow of higher holiness. This may also have been a text (I did mention this before) that I used in an editorial in my high school paper against restrictions on hair length imposed by our school board. Even though the context shows that it is a voluntary, special arrangement with God and not meant to be a general rule, still, no one in the principalÕs office was happy with my piece in the paper!

Continuing with SamsonÕs mother, she told her husband Manoah about this and then prayed to be visited by this angel again, not knowing that it was God himself. The angel visited them again and reiterated his prophecy. In particular, Manoah asked him, ÒWhen your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule for the boyÕs life and work?Ó God reiterated the rules that the boyÕs mother, then the boy after he was born, were to follow. Manoah then asked the angel to stay for dinner. The angel said he would not eat but that they could make a sacrifice to God. Asked his name, the angel would not tell, he said it was too wonderful to know.

When they offered their sacrifice (apparently on a home altar) the angel ascended into heaven in the flame. Manoah then realized that they had been talking to God and said, ÒWe are doomed to die!Ó His wife pointed out that God would not have accepted their offering had this been the case. They did, in fact, live.

Later, she had a baby boy and named him Samson.

Young men being the same in all times and places, Samson went down to a Philistine city and fell for a foreign woman. Over his parentÕs objections and protestations that he should marry one of his own people, Samson insisted that they arrange a marriage with this Philistine for him. He said, ÒSheÕs the right one for me,Ó and the preparations were begun.

On one trip down to Timnah (the Philistine city), Samson was approaching the vineyards of the town when Òsuddenly a young lion came roaring toward him. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat.Ó (I donÕt know how easy or hard either of these would be, but the idea of tearing up a young goat doesnÕt sound that easy to me either.)

On another trip, he revisited the lion carcass and found a beehive in it. He robbed some of the honey for a snack and shared it with his parents, but he never told them or anyone about where it came from or about the original incident with the lion.

Weddings were a big, big deal in these days, a week-long feast for everyone in town. The time for the feast came and Samson made a bet with the guests that they couldnÕt solve his riddle. The loser would give the winner thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes, a handsome prize. The bet was taken and the riddle given:

ÒOut of the eater, something to eat;

out of the strong, something sweet.Ó

(Nice translation of poetry into English, donÕt you think?)

Of course, all were clueless about this. On the fourth day of the feast, they came to SamsonÕs wife with an offer she could not refuse, ÒCoax your husband into explaining the riddle for us, or we will burn you and your fatherÕs household to death. Did you invite us here to rob us?Ó Clearly, such robbery would be a breach of matrimonial etiquette.

ÒThen SamsonÕs wife threw herself on him sobbing, ÒYou hate me! You donÕt really love me. YouÕve given my people a riddle, but you havenÕt told me the answer.Ó

There is no modern situation comedy any better than this! Apparently young women are the same across all times and places as well.

Samson replied that he hadnÕt told anyone, not even his parents, so why should he tell her? She sobbed and begged and carried on for the entire feast, however, and finally he relented and told her.

At the moment of truth, Òbefore sunset on the seventh day the men of the town said to him,

ÒWhat is sweeter than honey?

What is stronger than a lion?Ó

Samson was furious.

ÒIf you had not plowed with my heifer,

you would not have solved my riddle.Ó

Ouch! In other ancient literature, ÒplowedÓ can be a euphemism for Òhaving sex with,Ó and, although I donÕt know that it was an ancient slur, applying the term ÒheiferÓ to a modern day woman is no complement. Perhaps he exaggerated in anger, but whatever the case, ÒThe Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power. He went down to Ashkelon, struck down thirty of their men, stripped them of their belongings and gave their clothes to those who had explained the riddle. Burning with anger, he went up to his fatherÕs house. And SamsonÕs wife was given to the friend who had attended him at his wedding.Ó That is, what we would think of as the Òbest man.Ó

I am reminded of the producerÕs quip after a disastrous broadcast of the beauty contest at the end of the movie ÒMs. Congeniality,Ó ÒWell folks, good show!Ó

Samson was clever and the strongest man in the world but this isnÕt the last problem he will have around trust in a close relationship. Today we would say that Samson has problems with anger management. In this text, his aggressive actions are interpreted as holy zeal.

Judges 15 2006 March 9^th for April 4^th

Samson did not realize that his wife had been given to another. He brought some food (a young goat) and was going to visit her, but when he arrived his father-in-law would not let him come in. He tried to give Samson the womanÕs younger sister instead.

Samson was angry with the Philistines over this. He went out and caught three hundred foxes and tied their tails together in pairs with a torch then set them loose in the Philistine grain fields burning up their crops. When the Philistines found out who had done this and why, they went to the woman and her father and burned them both to death. Samson avenged this by killing many of them then fled back to Judah and hid in a cave.

Judah was still ruled by the Philistines at this point (Samson apparently did nothing as a military leader to do anything about this, as some other judges had) and they were horrified that Samson had brought all this trouble to them. They came to him with this complaint and announced that they were going to hand him over to the Philistines. Interestingly, he agreed to be bound with a rope and left for the Philistines so long as the men of Judah didnÕt kill him themselves. When the Philistines came to get Samson, Òthe ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his hands.Ó He then took a Òfresh jawboneÓ from a donkey and used it as a weapon to kill a thousand men.

ÒWith a donkeyÕs jawbone

I have made donkeys of them.

With a donkeyÕs jawbone

I have killed a thousand men.Ó

He was very thirsty and cried to God, ÒYou have given your servant this great victory. Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?Ó God then opened up a spring and Samson drank.

Better to kill the enemy than die at the hands of family, GodÕs people.

Judges 16:1-22 2006 March 14^th for April 5^th

Samson went to Gaza and visited a prostitute there. The people of the town thought they would catch him and kill him at dawn, but he got up in the middle of the night, picked up the doors and posts of the city gate, and carried them up to a nearby hill.

After this he fell in love with a new Philistine woman, Delilah. Rulers of the Philistines promised Delilah several fortunes if she could discover the source of SamsonÕs great strength. She tried to get him to confide in her and he told her several lies. First he told her that if he were tied up with new thongs that hadnÕt been dried they would hold him. While he was sleeping, she had this very thing done to him, then cried out, ÒThe Philistines are upon you!Ó This warning was in fact true, there were Philistines in hiding there ready to take him captive, but he broke the thongs like string near flame and escaped easily.

She tried this again and he told her that he could be secured with Ònew ropes.Ó

She had this done and the result was the same. She tried yet again and he said, ÒWeave my hair into a loom and tighten it with a pin.Ó She did this, but it had no effect on him when he was attacked.

Samson, as we have already seen, was not one to learn from or even notice his mistakes. Finally, at DelilahÕs badgering, he broke down and told her the truth; that it was because his hair had never been shaved that God had given him this great strength. (He did not mention the other provisions of the Nazirite vow, if he was even aware of them.) She realized that this was the truth and had the Philistines come again, and this time they came with the fortunes that they had promised Delilah for helping subdue Samson. Everyone believed that this time was Òthe one.Ó

She put him to sleep in her lap and had a man shave his head, then the Philistines attacked him and took him captive.

Notice that God did not leave Samson for fornication with a prostitute (or Philistine Delilah for that matter) or for outright lying several times, both direct violations of commandments, or for being just plain stupid to confide in Delilah after several trial runs exactly as he had done with his first Philistine wife. God abandoned Samson for breaking his vow, the Nazirite vow that had been made on his behalf before birth, about not cutting his hair.

Samson was subdued. The Philistines put his eyes out and put him to work running a gristmill at Gaza.

Judges 16:23 – 17:13 2006 March 14^th for April 6^th

The Philistines had a great celebration, worshipping their god Dagon for the capture of Samson.

ÒOur god has delivered our enemy into our hands,

the one who laid waste our land and multiplied our slain.Ó

They got so jazzed that they had Samson brought out to entertain them. While he was doing this, he asked his servant who led him around (because he was now blind) to lead him to the columns that supported the temple so he could lean on them. Thousands of people were in the temple, including a thousand on the roof when he got into position. Samson then prayed to God to be strengthened one more time to avenge the loss of his eyes. (Even now he is more concerned with his eyes than the people who he is supposed to be leading.)

God answered his prayer and Samson called out, ÒLet me die with the Philistines!Ó He then pushed the columns as hard as he could and brought the temple down on himself and Òon the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived.Ó

SamsonÕs fathers and brothers came and brought the body back to the family tomb. ÒSamson had led Israel twenty years,Ó if you can call it Ôled.Õ

The story now turns to a man named Micah from Ephraim. He had stolen twenty-eight pounds of silver from his mother and had heard her cursing about the loss. When he returned it to her, she blessed him and consecrated the silver to be made into an image and an idol. They gave part of the silver to a silversmith who made up these articles of worship, and Micah built a shrine in his home where they were kept. He made up an ephod and installed one of his sons as a priest. A Levite was passing through and Micah hired him to be a priest in the shrine as well for a pay of four ounces of silver a year and his food and clothes. The Levite agreed to this deal and became part of the family.

ÒIn those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.Ó

ÒMicah said, ÔNow I know that the Lord will be good to me, since this Levite has become my priest.ÕÓ

It appears that Micah had not heard all of the Law of Moses, i.e., the parts about graven images, or having other gods besides God, or worshipping in only one place, or about stealing. What he has done here is no different from what any contemporary pagan with a little silver or gold would have done. He did know that Levites were a good thing, but little else.

Judges 18 2006 March 15^th for April 7^th

Again we note that ÒIsrael had no king.Ó Possibly this is meant to explain the un-kosher story that follows.

Some men from the tribe of Dan were looking for a land to possess as their own. While they were scouting in Ephraim, they came to MicahÕs house, found his Levite priest there, and inquired as to whom he was and what he was doing there. Upon learning that he was MicahÕs hired priest, they asked him to check with God about whether their journey would be successful. He told them that they would be and they went on their way. ÒYour journey has the LordÕs approval,Ó he said.

They came to a place called Laish, a land that had everything in abundance, where the people were living in peace and had no relationships, good or bad, with any neighboring peoples. They had a good relationship with some people from Sidon, but those neighbors were far away. This looked ideal to the Danite spies and they decided to go attack and take the place.

When the five spies gave their report back in their tribe, they also mentioned the house of Micah with the ephod and the idol and the priest.

Six hundred men of Dan went on the road to go make this attack on Laish. When they came to MicahÕs house, Òthe six hundred armed men stood at the entrance to the gate.Ó

This must have been impressive to Micah.

They went in and took the ephod and the idol and also talked the Levite priest into coming with them. It was a big promotion for this Levite to be priest to 600 men and their families rather than just Micah and his mother and he was happy with the situation. They departed with their children and livestock in front of them. This was probably so that if Micah came up from behind and attacked, the children would be safe.

Micah did collect a few neighbors and ride after this army, but when he got to them he realized that he was vastly outnumbered. The Danites asked him why he had approached them as if to fight. (When youÕre spoiling for a fight, everyone who rides up looks like they want to fight.)

ÒYou took the gods I made, and my priest, and went away. What else do I have? How can you ask, ÔWhatÕs the matter with you?ÕÓ

So Micah retreated to his home and the Danites Òwent on to Laish, against a peaceful and unsuspecting people. They attacked them with the sword and burned down their city. There was no one to rescue them because they lived a long way from Sidon and had no relationship with anyone else.Ó

Maybe the object lesson here is to have better relations with your nearby neighbors, but that seems a little of a stretch. The object of most of the rest of this history of Israel is to have the true God on your side, regardless of how you behave otherwise.

In place of Laish the Danites built a city in this place and called it Dan. And, ÒThere the Danites set up for themselves the idols, and Jonathan son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests for the tribe of Dan until the time of the captivity of the land. They continued to use the idols Micah had made, all the time the house of God was in Shiloh.Ó

It appears that we were told the story of Micah only as background to this incident and explanation of the worship center in Dan. It is not clear right here what is referred to as Òthe time of the captivityÓ (is it the exile to Babylon, hundreds of years yet in the future?) but we know that GodÕs house at Shiloh was the only approved official place of worship. That is why it is mentioned.

Judges 19 2006 March 16^th for April 10^th

ÒIn those days Israel had no king.Ó Here we go again.

A man, a Levite who lived in a remote part of Ephraim, had a concubine. She was ÒunfaithfulÓ to him and returned to her fatherÕs house. I donÕt know if this unfaithfulness was unfaithfulness or if it was just the fact that she left him and returned to her former home.

In any case, the Levite got his donkeys and servant together and went on a trip to this fatherÕs house to persuade her to come back. She agreed, but the father, perhaps worried about the dangers of travel, persuaded them for several days running to stay and eat and enjoy themselves there, morning, afternoon and evening, and then because it was late to get underway, to spend the night. After about the third day of this, the man insisted on leaving regardless, even though it was already mid-day when he pulled loose.

(Travel being dangerous in these times, it was customary to leave as early in the morning as possible in order to have as long as possible to get to a safe stopping place before dark.)

At the end of that day they were near a city of the Jebusites and the servant suggested stopping there but the man did not want to stay with aliens, he wanted to stay in an Israelite city, so they pressed on to Gibeah (occupied by Benjamites), arriving well after sunset. They went to the square and waited there but no one took them in.

An old man came in late from his fields and inquired with them about who they were and where they were going. They said they had all the provisions they needed for themselves and their animals and would be no trouble to anyone. He invited them into his home and took care of them, showing traditional hospitality, which was considerable work.

Later in the night, men from the city showed up at the hostÕs door, pounding on it and insisting that the old man turn out his guest so they could rape him. He said, ÒNo, my friends, donÕt be so vile. Since this man is my guest, donÕt do this disgraceful thing. Look, here is my virgin daughter, and his concubine, I will bring them out to you now, and you can use them and do to them whatever you wish. But to this man, donÕt do such a disgraceful thing.Ó

This unthinkable event draws no moral commentary in the narrative. One wonders what the rules of engagement were in this time and place. I have been taught that it was a hostÕs highest duty to protect his guests. It appears that the women, whether virgin daughters or property wives, were mere property, sub-human.

ÒBut the men would not listen to him. So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go. At daybreak the woman came back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight.

ÒWhen her master got up in the morning and opened the door of the house and stepped out to continue on his way, there lay his concubine, fallen in the doorway of the house, with her hands on the threshold. He said to her, ÔGet up; letÕs go.Õ But there was no answer. Then the man put her corpse on his donkey and set out for home.Ó

There is no sign in this story that the man cared anything for this woman except for whatever his legal rights were. We can imagine that this may have been why she left him to start with and why her father tried to keep them all back at his house, perhaps hoping it would be indefinite so that, under his roof, the man might treat his daughter better. We can imagine these things but there is no support for it in the text, at least apart from social context that we do not have here.

ÒWhen he reached home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and sent them into all the areas of Israel. Everyone who saw it said, ÔSuch a thing has never been seen or done, not since the day the Israelites came up out of Egypt. Think about it! Consider it! Tell us what to do!Ó

Who are they addressing? What do they refer to, Òsuch at thingÓ? The rape of the property concubine or cutting her up into pieces and shipping the pieces around the country for some reason? What is the source of outrage? Is this outrage?

The next chapter may tell.

Judges 20 2006 March 17^th for April 11^th

In response to twelve pieces of concubine being sent throughout the land, all of the fighting Israelites (except the Benjamites, the tribe of the guilty) gathered at Mizpah. Four hundred thousand fighting men attended.

ÒThe Levite, the husband of the murdered woman,Ó told his story. They had spent the night in Gibeah, the men of the city wanted to bring him out and kill him but they raped and killed his concubine instead. He then asked for their verdict, which was unanimous.

Their response was, ÒNone of us will go home.Ó This means that they would take care of the business of dealing with the sin of Benjamin before retiring to their homes and resuming their private business. A civil war had been provoked. Ten percent of the men would go and get provisions for the army and then they would advance against Gibeah as God directed by lot.

So, we see that the outrage (stated yesterday) was over the rape and abuse perpetrated by certain residents of Gibeah.

This huge army took up siege positions against Gibeah and sent word in that the Òwicked men of GibeahÓ should be sent out for punishment by death so as to Òpurge the evil from Israel.Ó The Benjamites ignored this. Rather, they mobilized twenty six thousand fighting men of their own including Òseven hundred chosen men who were left-handed, each of whom could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.Ó É special forces.

At Bethel, they inquired of God (by lot, implied) as to who should go against Benjamin first. Judah was picked. In the first action, twenty two thousand men of Judah were lost.

After a day of mourning, they inquired of God again who said, ÒGo up against them.Ó They did and, in the second action lost eighteen thousand men, Òall of them armed with swords.Ó

After a day of weeping, fasting, and presenting offerings, they inquired of God again. At this point it is noted that Phinehas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, was running the worship operation with the Ark of the Covenant. These losses in the face of GodÕs commands must have been confusing to the Israelites, and were certainly demoralizing.

This time, however, God said something more, ÒGo, for tomorrow I will give them into your hands.Ó

On this, they set an ambush. (Did it only now occur to them to do something more stragic than just marching forward with swords drawn?) One group drew the Benjaminite warriors out of Gibeah as before, and lost about thirty men in the process and causing them to think that they were prevailing again. Another group then went into the city, killed everyone, and set it on fire. (We have seen this strategy used before, in the days of Joshua.) When the fighters of Benjamin saw the smoke coming out of the city they realized that all was lost and fled in terror towards the desert. The larger army, reinforced from the rear by the group that had burned the city, easily overtook most of them. Twenty five thousand warriors of Benjamin were slain. Six hundred escaped Òand fled into the desert to the rock of Rimmon, where they stayed four months.Ó

The men of Israel then went back applied scorched-earth to everything in all of the neighboring towns, they killed all the people and livestock, and burned everything that would burn. Guilty by association, and inaction.

Judges 21 2006 March 17^th for April 12^th

In their zeal to purge all the evil from Israel by destroying Benjamin, the tribes had taken an oath at Mizpah, by God, to never give any of their daughters as wives to anyone in Benjamin.

This, now, led to a problem. The civil war was over. Benjamin had been crushed. Six hundred men of Benjamin were now in exile at Rimmon. Their families were gone and everything they had owned was destroyed. They were all that was left and there was no way for them to procreate.

ÒThe people went to Bethel, where they sat before God until evening, raising their voices and weeping bitterly. ÔO Lord, the God of Israel,Õ they cried, ÔWhy has this happened to Israel? Why should one tribe be missing from Israel today?ÕÓ

They were afraid that one of the twelve tribes would now vanish from the face of the earth. What were they to do?

Someone had an idea. A rule had been made for this day; a solemn oath had been taken Òthat anyone who failed to assemble before the Lord at Mizpah should certainly be put to death.Ó They looked through their registration records and discovered that no one from Jabesh Gilead had attended or was now present. The assembly put together twelve thousand fighting men with instructions to go to Jabesh Gilead and kill everyone there who was not a virgin woman. All the men, women, and children who were not virgin women were to be killed.

The fighting squad did this and came back with four hundred virgin women. The assembly then offered a deal to the Benjamites at Rimmon to take these women and return to their homes. The Benjamites took the deal, but there werenÕt enough women for all six hundred of them. As a result, the people were still grieved for their brothers in Benjamin.

Someone had another idea. There was an annual festival at Shiloh where girls would go out and dance. The remaining, wifeless men from Benjamin were instructed to go hide in the vineyards and, when the dancing started, rush out and grab one of the girls to take as his wife.

ÒWhen their fathers or brothers complain to us, we will say to them, ÔDo us a kindness by helping them, because we did not get wives for them during the war, and you are innocent, since you did not give your daughters to them.ÕÓ

So, they did this. ÒWhile the girls were dancing, each man caught one and carried her off to be his wife. Then they returned to their inheritance and rebuilt the towns and settled in them.Ó

At that point the civil war was over and everyone went home.

ÒIn those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.Ó

As if that was the problem.

LetÕs recap what happened over these two days. A man had trouble with his concubine. He went to bring her back. On the way home, she was raped and killed by fellow Israelites who really wanted to rape and abuse him, even though the man had gone to pains to avoid staying in a town of non-Israelites that night for fear of this very consequence. He cut up his dead concubine and sent the pieces out to the tribes as a call to war.

It is easy to imagine that the all-night rape and murder in the square, and the cutting of a body into pieces as a message to countrymen were perverse practices adopted from the local non-Israelites, but it doesnÕt say that here. This is more like the sort of thing that comes to mind in the description of why God flooded the earth under Noah, for example.

Anyway, a civil war resulted in which some sixty thousand Israelites were lost, including nearly all of the tribe of Benjamin. This, then, caused concern that one of the twelve tribes would be lost forever. Rather than have this happen, another town of lawbreakers was identified and entirely wiped out except for the virgin women. These were brought back to be wives for the restored Benjamites. Those who didnÕt get wives from this action were instructed to raid a festival dance for other virgin women so that they could be taken without their families breaking a vow to God, a vow that was made in a hot-headed moment, never to intermarry with Benjamites.

It is clear why, with our modern ways of thinking, this episode is not taught in Sunday School. The lives of innocent women and children (after all, it was the men of Jabesh Gilead who had not attended) would be considered worth more today than tribal preservation. Even the dancing womenÕs lives would be totally and irreversibly disrupted in this unexpected kidnapping deal, though that seems minor compared to all of those who were simply killed, with or without warning, in the interest of carrying out national policy. At least the virgin women from Jabesh Gilead had nothing else to return to. Is that a form of mercy?

Neither the man with the concubine nor the old man who was his host are considered guilty for turning the woman out in the night to certain abuse and death. The violation did not have a homosexual component, although the original intent did. The old man who was the host apparently died in the war with all the others. No special dispensation was given to him as was given to Rahab the harlot at Jericho. True, Rahab asked for protection, but did this old Benjamite man even anticipate that protection would be needed?

And, God presides over all of this under the auspices of Phineas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron back at Shiloh.

Does any of this bother anyone?

The writer seems to think that a king would help. Israel will soon have a king. We will see how much that helps.

It strikes me that the stories of individuals in these calamities would make great drama. I wonder, were such dramas produced, with great care to be totally faithful to the Biblical text, how the current variations on the religious establishment would respond. Promotion? Explanation? Disappointment at misplaced priorities?

Outrage?

I wonder how Christ is revealed in this story. In the ultimate redemption of Benjamin? In one of the many massacres? In the lots that were cast resulting in ghastly military losses? Are all of these peoples lives and times merely a bad example to posterity (us) because they did Òas they saw fitÓ because they had no king?

Concluding Thoughts on Judges 2006 March 20^th for April 13^th

Thinking on the final episode that we just covered, ÒThe Levite and his Concubine,Ó where Phineas was the priest, it occurs to me that the narrative of Judges may not be entirely in chronological order. Much of it seems to be: the Israelites did as they pleased and God handed them over to subservience to neighboring heathens (the original occupants of the Promised Land who were not eradicated); then when they despaired; a judge arose and did various things for several years, some crazy, some military, some posturing; and then the people lived for several more years in peace until the Judge died and the cycle started over again. There was no reason to believe that this wasnÕt all chronological until this last episode that could not have happened very long after the death of Joshua.

Whatever the case may be two things stand out to me about the judges.

First, there doesnÕt seem to have been any official priestly connection with them. They arose and led and did various things as civilians and died without the descendants of Aaron or any of the entourage or equipage of the Tent of Meeting being much involved. There was no ordination, no anointing, or no cloud descending telling everyone to follow this person. There was occasional encouragement from God in the implied form of directives from the Urim and Thumim (or just ÒlotsÓ) but even this is not explicitly stated in much detail.

This seems strange after all the work that went into the preparation for and hosting of religious observance under the Mosaic law and after all of the effort and wordage that went into that law.

Second, the judges themselves were each believable individuals, though not all what we would call Ògodly.Ó One was a shy and hesitating private man, hardly able to lead three hundred without specific signs from God, much less tens of thousands. Another was a woman so wise and outgoing that in a crises she barely held the man who was supposed to be in charge in loose tow. Another was a wild brute, not long on brains. Many of the judges were so unremarkable that the only thing worth noting was their fleet of donkeys. Some didnÕt even rate any more than a mention of their name.

These leaders took inappropriate and sometimes irreverent vows, worshiped in ways specifically and strictly prohibited, made dishonest deals or engaged in subterfuge and in general engaged in public and private behaviors that are decidedly un-Christian. They are credited, however, with leading and saving GodÕs chosen people, largely from themselves, when relations with their neighbors got out of hand, as such relations always do. Despite the inevitability of these fluctuations in neighborly relationships and power, credit for the comings and goings of IsraelÕs situation is given to the fidelity and infidelity to the God of their heritage.

My faith is not shaken by the stories of Adam and Eve, Seth, Enoch, or Noah although a conflict arises between Bible literalists and others of strong religious persuasion who believe that these pre-written-history stories are character myths, not absolute history. My faith is, in fact, more challenged by the stories of the Judges.

God had selected a race to be his own beginning with Abraham and had raised up the greatest leader of all time, Moses, through whom to demonstrate his power and justice. Moses was such a powerful personality that everyone around him, such as his brother Aaron and his protŽgŽ Joshua, became stalwart men of faith and leadership themselves. Then, having mostly arrived in the Promised Land, what does God do with these people next? Nearly nothing for a few hundred years, that is, the period of the Judges.

How did these Judges get appointed by God to lead the people of Israel? Gideon could barely appear in public. Jephthah was a bastard with nearly no knowledge of God but plenty of street smarts. Perhaps most troublesome is the only Judge that most people could name because they learned about him in grade school Sunday School class: Samson. The story of SamsonÕs birth is, more than anything else we have seen so far, something that would nearly make one believe that some of these stories were based on sightings of space aliens. Then, the resulting man of God, a Nazirite from before birth was only moral in the sense that he was on the side of Israel. Samson was a brutal and foolish man, usually thinking with his gonads and destroying whatever was in front of him, man, beast, or property. The only thing he had straight was who were his friends (his people, the Israelites) and who were his enemies, the Philistines. Even then, he spent considerable effort going to Philistine prostitutes and trying to marry their conniving women.

I donÕt have any trouble believing in the superhuman strength of Samson but somehow much of the rest of this material was left out of those grade school Sunday School lessons.

Then it is all punctuated by the last story, one of inhospitality, rape, murder, dismemberment, and the near murder and dismemberment of the nation Israel that resulted. Therein we see other behaviors that we donÕt understand. Benjamin was going to vanish for lack of women and children, so, ÔletÕs just go out and kill some more stubborn people in order to free up some virgin women for our former enemies.Õ

Right.

The recurring refrain, at the beginning and end of most of the stories of the Judges, was that in those days Israel had no king and everyone did what they pleased or what seemed right to them. It seems to me that the conclusion we are to draw from this refrain is that a king would solve the problems of internal and external strife for this people and would also solve the problem of communicating GodÕs law and intentions to the people and getting them to behave themselves.

Was the author of Judges a monarchist under one of the righteous kings who will come later? Was it somehow necessary to have this king-less period in order to prepare for such kings? Was this just history that, for what itÕs worth, had to be told? Were things in fact better when there were kings of Israel?

© 2006 Courtney B. Duncan