Paul in his summary of Israelitish history (Acts 13) says — ”And after that He gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet” (Acts 13:2020And after that he gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet. (Acts 13:20)). In the following list we have not included Eli, who exercised the priestly functions as well as judging in a civil capacity; nor Samuel, who, while ruling Israel, also filled the prophetic office. We have noted only those recorded in the book of Judges — from Othniel to Samson.
These judges were extraordinary deliverers raised up by God from time to time, in answer to His people’s cries and tears. Their condition was most deplorable. The wonders of God in Egypt and at the Red Sea; and the still more recent marvel of the Jordan affording a dry passage into Canaan, with all the forty years’ story of grace in the wilderness were fading from their memories, and certainly losing their freshness and power in their souls. Departure from the Lord is ever the effect of resting upon the demonstrations of Jehovah’s love and care, instead of knowing and resting upon that love itself. In order to recover the wandering heart of Israel, and wean the people from the idolatry and sin of the surrounding heathen, they were delivered into the hands of the nations whom they had failed to drive out; there to learn through bitter experience the folly of departing from the living God. Upon their repentance, God raised up a class of saviours, who, in themselves, and by their mode and way of deliverance, were fitted to humble Israel, and, besides, vindicate the sovereignty and grace of Jehovah.
1. Othniel, Lion of God. (Judg. 3:5-115And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites: 6And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods. 7And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and forgat the Lord their God, and served Baalim and the groves. 8Therefore the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel served Chushan-rishathaim eight years. 9And when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. 10And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went out to war: and the Lord delivered Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushan-rishathaim. 11And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died. (Judges 3:5‑11))
It was out of Mesopotamia that Israel’s great progenitor was called (Acts 7:2-32And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran, 3And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall show thee. (Acts 7:2‑3)); and into the hands of that power Israel was first delivered. This period of servitude lasted eight years. The deliverer from Mesopotamian bondage was Othniel, whose courage and valour was put to the test in the capture of the strong city Kirjath-sepher; and, as reward, received Caleb’s daughter, Achsah, to wife (Josh. 15:15-1715And he went up thence to the inhabitants of Debir: and the name of Debir before was Kirjath-sepher. 16And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kirjath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife. 17And Othniel the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. (Joshua 15:15‑17)). Forty years’ rest was the result of the mighty deliverance wrought by “Caleb’s younger brother.” The sovereignty of God in the choice of a younger brother is not to be overlooked.
2. Ehud, Unity. (Judg. 3:12-3012And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord: and the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the Lord. 13And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees. 14So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years. 15But when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab. 16But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh. 17And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was a very fat man. 18And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the people that bare the present. 19But he himself turned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, O king: who said, Keep silence. And all that stood by him went out from him. 20And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlor, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat. 21And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly: 22And the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon the blade, so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly; and the dirt came out. 23Then Ehud went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the parlor upon him, and locked them. 24When he was gone out, his servants came; and when they saw that, behold, the doors of the parlor were locked, they said, Surely he covereth his feet in his summer chamber. 25And they tarried till they were ashamed: and, behold, he opened not the doors of the parlor; therefore they took a key, and opened them: and, behold, their lord was fallen down dead on the earth. 26And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped unto Seirath. 27And it came to pass, when he was come, that he blew a trumpet in the mountain of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mount, and he before them. 28And he said unto them, Follow after me: for the Lord hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand. And they went down after him, and took the fords of Jordan toward Moab, and suffered not a man to pass over. 29And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, all lusty, and all men of valor; and there escaped not a man. 30So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest fourscore years. (Judges 3:12‑30))
The second captivity lasted eighteen years, and that under a people peculiarly obnoxious to Israel, whose origin was disgraceful (Gen. 19), and who were forever debarred from entering into the congregation of the Lord (Deut. 23:3-63An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the Lord for ever: 4Because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee. 5Nevertheless the Lord thy God would not hearken unto Balaam; but the Lord thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee, because the Lord thy God loved thee. 6Thou shalt not seek their peace nor their prosperity all thy days for ever. (Deuteronomy 23:3‑6)). As in the previous deliverance, a forty years’ rest and quiet was secured, so by this second intervention of Jehovah in the judgment of Moab and deliverance of His people, they enjoyed a rest of 80 years. The deceit practiced upon the fat King of Moab, and the extermination of all the men of war — ten thousand in all — may be safely left as written. The Word of God records facts, states things as they occurred, neither explaining nor defending the actions of men. God makes the wrath of man to praise Him, and so turned to the blessing of His people the death of Eglon, King of Moab, and his men of war. The sovereignty of God in the choice of Ehud, a “left-handed” man, is once more observable.
The Philistines next come upon the scene as the oppressors of the southern tribes of Israel. How long this third captivity lasted, or how long Shamgar judged Israel, we are not informed. The whole history of this time is briefly summed up in one verse. The bold and daring exploit of Shamgar killing 600 Philistines with an ox-goad reminds us of the doings of Samson amongst that same people; and one cannot fail to remark upon the sovereignty of the mode of deliverance. Who ever heard of victories obtained over a brave and warlike people by the use of such an instrument as an ox-goad, and that, too, wielded by a single arm? One man successfully opposing and overcoming 600!
4. Deborah and Barak, bee, lightning. (Judg. 4, 5)
The tribes located in northern Canaan now come under the cruel and iron yoke of Jabin, king of Canaan, who for twenty years “mightily oppressed Israel.” This king seems to have had a large army, well supplied with war chariots, and commanded by an able and experienced captain. The Israelites, on the contrary, could oppose no cavalry to the 900 iron chariots of Sisera, nor could a weapon of war be found amongst 40,000 of the people (Judg. 5:88They chose new gods; then was war in the gates: was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel? (Judges 5:8)). But what of the mighty host of Sisera or his iron chariots, were they ever so strong and countless? Dare the puny arm of man be bared in presence of Jehovah’s power? The cry of the oppressed people again enters the ear of God, and He raises up an instrument which certainly reflected no honour upon Israel. Deborah, a woman, not only judged the people, but also prophesied in the Lord’s name, so that the moral condition of the people could scarcely be lower. Barak, the son of Abinoam, refused to take the leadership of the Lord’s host, save as directed by, and in the presence of, a woman (Judg. 4:8-98And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go. 9And she said, I will surely go with thee: notwithstanding the journey that thou takest shall not be for thine honor; for the Lord shall sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. And Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh. (Judges 4:8‑9)). The truly humbling death of the Canaanitish captain, and the utter destruction, even to a man, of his mighty army, covered with renown the name of the Lord of Hosts (Judg. 5). A forty years’ quiet was the result of this mighty victory.
5. Gideon, Breaker. (Judg. 6-8)
The next oppression was from the east. The Midianites, a powerful people, were joined by the Amalekites and the nomadic tribes of the desert, who, with their camels and cattle entered the land in countless numbers, and pitched their tents in the very heart of the country. Plunder was evidently the object of this motley host; “they entered the land to destroy it.” In a short time they turned a large portion of the fairest part of the country almost into a desert, sweeping away the growing crops and removing all the beasts of burden and domestic animals. The heavily burdened and cruelly oppressed people had to flee from their dwellings and betake themselves for safety to the mountains. This awful time of distress lasted seven years, when the people again turning to Jehovah were faithfully addressed by a prophet whose name is not recorded. Then Gideon was raised up, but first he must clear his father’s house of idolatry ere he could become a suited vessel in Jehovah’s hands for the deliverance of the people. The moral training to which Gideon was subjected, is well worthy of being carefully pondered by those serving in the church of God, while the numbers, manner, and instruments employed in the glorious and complete discomfiture of the mighty and numerous hosts opposed to Israel, conspicuously displayed the weakness of man and the power of Jehovah. What a lesson we learn in that 300 tried and tested men approached the host of Midian with neither sword nor spear in hand! The broken pitchers were the fitting expression of human weakness; and the trumpets giving forth their blast were a call to Jehovah as in ancient days, when it was said — ”Rise up, Lord, and let Thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate Thee flee before Thee” (Num. 10:3535And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, Rise up, Lord, and let thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate thee flee before thee. (Numbers 10:35)). As the result of the mighty victory gained over Midian and his confederates, another forty years’ peace was secured. The total inability of man to hold himself in the place of blessing is sorrowfully demonstrated in the closing years of Gideon’s administration. His sun, which rose so fair, went down in a dark back-ground of worldliness and idolatry (Judg. 8:24-2724And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings of his prey. (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.) 25And they answered, We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of his prey. 26And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was a thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold; beside ornaments, and collars, and purple raiment that was on the kings of Midian, and beside the chains that were about their camels' necks. 27And Gideon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city, even in Ophrah: and all Israel went thither a whoring after it: which thing became a snare unto Gideon, and to his house. (Judges 8:24‑27)).
6. Abimelech, Father of the King. (Judg. 9)
The signal deliverance obtained over the allied forces of Midian kindled quite a loyal feeling among the men of Israel. They entreated Gideon to assume the royal prerogative, and to transmit the same to his sons, of whom he had a goodly number, “three score and ten.” Most nobly was the proffered crown rejected, and Jehovah’s rule over the people maintained: “I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the Lord shall rule over you” (Judg. 8:22-2322Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son's son also: for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian. 23And Gideon said unto them, I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you: the Lord shall rule over you. (Judges 8:22‑23)). It would have been well for the people of Shechem, and well, too, for Abimelech if he had caught the spirit of his father. But ambition and love of power obtained the mastery in the mind of Abimelech, who of all the sons of Gideon had least right to assume royal or other power in Israel, being the son of a concubine. By craft he secured the good-will of the inhabitants of Shechem, and then cruelly murdered, “upon one stone,” his sixty-eight brothers, Jotham, the youngest, escaping. Abimelech was the first person in Israel who usurped royal power. It was on the occasion of Abimelech’s accession to the throne, when the elders and men of Shechem were gathered in the valley beneath, that Jotham, standing on a commanding position on the cliffs above, addressed to the assembled congregation the most ancient parable recorded. It was a keen, pointed home-thrust to the conscience of both king and people.
Craft and cruelty inaugurated Abimelech’s accession to the throne; but a throne established on iniquity and blood cannot prosper, as the men of Shechem found to their cost, as also the king, who died a shameful and humbling death, especially so regarded by an eastern monarch, and that after a short-lived, troublesome reign of but three years (Judg. 9:3-573And his mother's brethren spake of him in the ears of all the men of Shechem all these words: and their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech; for they said, He is our brother. 4And they gave him threescore and ten pieces of silver out of the house of Baal-berith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light persons, which followed him. 5And he went unto his father's house at Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, being threescore and ten persons, upon one stone: notwithstanding yet Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left; for he hid himself. 6And all the men of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and went, and made Abimelech king, by the plain of the pillar that was in Shechem. 7And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said unto them, Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you. 8The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. 9But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honor God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? 10And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us. 11But the fig tree said unto them, Should I forsake my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees? 12Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and reign over us. 13And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? 14Then said all the trees unto the bramble, Come thou, and reign over us. 15And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. 16Now therefore, if ye have done truly and sincerely, in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands; 17(For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian: 18And ye are risen up against my father's house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother;) 19If ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you: 20But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech. 21And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother. 22When Abimelech had reigned three years over Israel, 23Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech: 24That the cruelty done to the threescore and ten sons of Jerubbaal might come, and their blood be laid upon Abimelech their brother, which slew them; and upon the men of Shechem, which aided him in the killing of his brethren. 25And the men of Shechem set liers in wait for him in the top of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them: and it was told Abimelech. 26And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brethren, and went over to Shechem: and the men of Shechem put their confidence in him. 27And they went out into the fields, and gathered their vineyards, and trode the grapes, and made merry, and went into the house of their god, and did eat and drink, and cursed Abimelech. 28And Gaal the son of Ebed said, Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? is not he the son of Jerubbaal? and Zebul his officer? serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem: for why should we serve him? 29And would to God this people were under my hand! then would I remove Abimelech. And he said to Abimelech, Increase thine army, and come out. 30And when Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was kindled. 31And he sent messengers unto Abimelech privily, saying, Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his brethren be come to Shechem; and, behold, they fortify the city against thee. 32Now therefore up by night, thou and the people that is with thee, and lie in wait in the field: 33And it shall be, that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, thou shalt rise early, and set upon the city: and, behold, when he and the people that is with him come out against thee, then mayest thou do to them as thou shalt find occasion. 34And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by night, and they laid wait against Shechem in four companies. 35And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood in the entering of the gate of the city: and Abimelech rose up, and the people that were with him, from lying in wait. 36And when Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, Behold, there come people down from the top of the mountains. And Zebul said unto him, Thou seest the shadow of the mountains as if they were men. 37And Gaal spake again and said, See there come people down by the middle of the land, and another company come along by the plain of Meonenim. 38Then said Zebul unto him, Where is now thy mouth, wherewith thou saidst, Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him? is not this the people that thou hast despised? go out, I pray now, and fight with them. 39And Gaal went out before the men of Shechem, and fought with Abimelech. 40And Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him, and many were overthrown and wounded, even unto the entering of the gate. 41And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah: and Zebul thrust out Gaal and his brethren, that they should not dwell in Shechem. 42And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people went out into the field; and they told Abimelech. 43And he took the people, and divided them into three companies, and laid wait in the field, and looked, and, behold, the people were come forth out of the city; and he rose up against them, and smote them. 44And Abimelech, and the company that was with him, rushed forward, and stood in the entering of the gate of the city: and the two other companies ran upon all the people that were in the fields, and slew them. 45And Abimelech fought against the city all that day; and he took the city, and slew the people that was therein, and beat down the city, and sowed it with salt. 46And when all the men of the tower of Shechem heard that, they entered into an hold of the house of the god Berith. 47And it was told Abimelech, that all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together. 48And Abimelech gat him up to mount Zalmon, he and all the people that were with him; and Abimelech took an axe in his hand, and cut down a bough from the trees, and took it, and laid it on his shoulder, and said unto the people that were with him, What ye have seen me do, make haste, and do as I have done. 49And all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and followed Abimelech, and put them to the hold, and set the hold on fire upon them; so that all the men of the tower of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women. 50Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it. 51But there was a strong tower within the city, and thither fled all the men and women, and all they of the city, and shut it to them, and gat them up to the top of the tower. 52And Abimelech came unto the tower, and fought against it, and went hard unto the door of the tower to burn it with fire. 53And a certain woman cast a piece of a millstone upon Abimelech's head, and all to brake his skull. 54Then he called hastily unto the young man his armorbearer, and said unto him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that men say not of me, A woman slew him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died. 55And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed every man unto his place. 56Thus God rendered the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did unto his father, in slaying his seventy brethren: 57And all the evil of the men of Shechem did God render upon their heads: and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal. (Judges 9:3‑57)).
The next defender of Israel was Tola, of whose actions, and of the state of the people during the twenty-three years of his administration we know nothing. His parentage is given, and where he dwelt and died, but nothing more.
The successor of Tola occupied the territory east of the Jordan, in the country of Gilead. He seems to have been a man fond of pomp and display, and withal very ambitious, as in the brief record we are told that his thirty sons rode on “thirty ass colts,” and they had “thirty cities” termed “Havoth-Jair,” meaning the cities or villages of Jair. Three verses have been deemed sufficient by the recording Spirit to chronicle the twenty-two years of Jair’s administration.
9. Jephthah, the Opener. (Judg. 10:6-12:76And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the Lord, and served not him. 7And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the children of Ammon. 8And that year they vexed and oppressed the children of Israel: eighteen years, all the children of Israel that were on the other side Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead. 9Moreover the children of Ammon passed over Jordan to fight also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim; so that Israel was sore distressed. 10And the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, saying, We have sinned against thee, both because we have forsaken our God, and also served Baalim. 11And the Lord said unto the children of Israel, Did not I deliver you from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines? 12The Zidonians also, and the Amalekites, and the Maonites, did oppress you; and ye cried to me, and I delivered you out of their hand. 13Yet ye have forsaken me, and served other gods: wherefore I will deliver you no more. 14Go and cry unto the gods which ye have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your tribulation. 15And the children of Israel said unto the Lord, We have sinned: do thou unto us whatsoever seemeth good unto thee; deliver us only, we pray thee, this day. 16And they put away the strange gods from among them, and served the Lord: and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel. 17Then the children of Ammon were gathered together, and encamped in Gilead. And the children of Israel assembled themselves together, and encamped in Mizpeh. 18And the people and princes of Gilead said one to another, What man is he that will begin to fight against the children of Ammon? he shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead. 1Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah. 2And Gilead's wife bare him sons; and his wife's sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said unto him, Thou shalt not inherit in our father's house; for thou art the son of a strange woman. 3Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain men to Jephthah, and went out with him. 4And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel. 5And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob: 6And they said unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon. 7And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expel me out of my father's house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress? 8And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, Therefore we turn again to thee now, that thou mayest go with us, and fight against the children of Ammon, and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead. 9And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight against the children of Ammon, and the Lord deliver them before me, shall I be your head? 10And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, The Lord be witness between us, if we do not so according to thy words. 11Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the Lord in Mizpeh. 12And Jephthah sent messengers unto the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that thou art come against me to fight in my land? 13And the king of the children of Ammon answered unto the messengers of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land, when they came up out of Egypt, from Arnon even unto Jabbok, and unto Jordan: now therefore restore those lands again peaceably. 14And Jephthah sent messengers again unto the king of the children of Ammon: 15And said unto him, Thus saith Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon: 16But when Israel came up from Egypt, and walked through the wilderness unto the Red sea, and came to Kadesh; 17Then Israel sent messengers unto the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy land: but the king of Edom would not hearken thereto. And in like manner they sent unto the king of Moab: but he would not consent: and Israel abode in Kadesh. 18Then they went along through the wilderness, and compassed the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, but came not within the border of Moab: for Arnon was the border of Moab. 19And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said unto him, Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land into my place. 20But Sihon trusted not Israel to pass through his coast: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and pitched in Jahaz, and fought against Israel. 21And the Lord God of Israel delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them: so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country. 22And they possessed all the coasts of the Amorites, from Arnon even unto Jabbok, and from the wilderness even unto Jordan. 23So now the Lord God of Israel hath dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and shouldest thou possess it? 24Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever the Lord our God shall drive out from before us, them will we possess. 25And now art thou any thing better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them, 26While Israel dwelt in Heshbon and her towns, and in Aroer and her towns, and in all the cities that be along by the coasts of Arnon, three hundred years? why therefore did ye not recover them within that time? 27Wherefore I have not sinned against thee, but thou doest me wrong to war against me: the Lord the Judge be judge this day between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon. 28Howbeit the king of the children of Ammon hearkened not unto the words of Jephthah which he sent him. 29Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead, and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over unto the children of Ammon. 30And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands, 31Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the Lord's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering. 32So Jephthah passed over unto the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the Lord delivered them into his hands. 33And he smote them from Aroer, even till thou come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and unto the plain of the vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel. 34And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter. 35And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the Lord, and I cannot go back. 36And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto the Lord, do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the Lord hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon. 37And she said unto her father, Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may go up and down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my fellows. 38And he said, Go. And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains. 39And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel, 40That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year. 1And the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and went northward, and said unto Jephthah, Wherefore passedst thou over to fight against the children of Ammon, and didst not call us to go with thee? we will burn thine house upon thee with fire. 2And Jephthah said unto them, I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon; and when I called you, ye delivered me not out of their hands. 3And when I saw that ye delivered me not, I put my life in my hands, and passed over against the children of Ammon, and the Lord delivered them into my hand: wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me? 4Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites. 5And the Gileadites took the passages of Jordan before the Ephraimites: and it was so, that when those Ephraimites which were escaped said, Let me go over; that the men of Gilead said unto him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If he said, Nay; 6Then said they unto him, Say now Shibboleth: and he said Sibboleth: for he could not frame to pronounce it right. Then they took him, and slew him at the passages of Jordan: and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty and two thousand. 7And Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then died Jephthah the Gileadite, and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead. (Judges 10:6‑12:7))
Israel again lapsed into idolatry. The debasing, cruel, and generally obscene rites which formed an integral part of heathen worship amongst the nations in and surrounding the land of Canaan were quickly learned and practiced by the people, to whom it was said by God Himself, “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me” (Ex. 20:33Thou shalt have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:3)). The anger of Jehovah burned hot against His people, and He delivered them into the hands of the Philistines and Ammonites; the former people oppressed the tribes lying south and west, while the latter not only crushed those on the eastern boundary of the Jordan, but crossed over the river, and made the tribes of Ephraim, Judah, and Benjamin also suffer. This double and sore oppression lasted eighteen years. Once again, the deliverer arises from the land of Gilead, and from a quarter which least of all reflected honour upon Israel. Jephthah, the son of a harlot — a degree worse even than the parentage of Abimelech, son of a concubine — and expelled from home by his indignant brethren, had gathered around him a troop of bold, bad men, who lived by making raids or incursions into the surrounding parts of the country. This was the man who, in the wisdom and sovereignty of God, was destined to deliver Israel from a captivity of eighteen years. Jephthah, with all his shortcomings, was yet a man who turned to God; personally “a mighty man of valour,” yet he did not rely on the strength or bravery of his arm to accomplish deliverance for Israel, but “vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said, If Thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands.” Jephthah judged Israel six years.
The only incident recorded about this judge is that he had an equal number of sons and daughters, and, failing to get them married at home, he procured elsewhere thirty daughters for his thirty sons, and sent away his daughters where they could more readily obtain husbands. Ibzan was buried at Bethlehem, after a judgeship of seven years.
The next judge was Elon, who directed the affairs of his country for ten years. Nothing is known of this ruler, save that he was a Zebulonite.
Again the record is brief, and the materials exceedingly scanty, but enough is told us to warrant the conclusion that Abdon was a man fond of display, and bent upon the aggrandizement of his family, for not only were his sons privileged to ride on ass colts, but so were his nephews. This honourable distinction was conferred upon seventy members of his family. Abdon judged Israel eight years.
13. Sampson, Sun. (Judg. 13-16)
The circumstances narrated previous to the birth of Samson are interesting and instructive. Probably, with the exception of Isaac, he is the only one whose birth was announced before-hand, at least the only one recorded in the Old Testament. Samson was a Nazarite from his birth, and although many of his actions and ways were erratic, still so long as he preserved his Nazariteship intact, he was invincible. Practical separation from an evil world is the Christian’s only power for God, and the moment he sinks down to the level of things around, he can only become the sport of an unbelieving world, and, robbed of his strength, become weak as water. With Israel, so with the Christian. We can never be on a level with the world. Israel never did stand on equal terms with the surrounding nations; either she formed a footstool for their feet, or they were in as perfect and thorough subjection to her. As Israel walked with and confided in Jehovah, her place amongst the nations was one of headship and supremacy; but when she sank into idolatry and wickedness, she forfeited her exalted, national standing, and became a downtrodden and tributary people. What a lesson to us in all this! Israel was under the rigorous rule of their old and bitter enemies — the Philistines, then in the zenith of their power, for forty years — the longest captivity recorded. During the twenty years of Samson’s administration, he seems to have been but feebly, if at all, supported by the nation. The acts of individual prowess are truly wonderful, and have never been equalled, much less surpassed, but Samson falls before the seductions of nature, and although classed amongst the judges who are held in everlasting remembrance (Heb. 11:3232And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: (Hebrews 11:32)), yet, the close of his eventful life is full of solemn warning and instruction. Beware of nature’s enticements; beware of tampering with the world from which ye have been delivered (Gal. 1:44Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: (Galatians 1:4)).