The book of Judges: Variations on a theme
by Jim Herst
and Tim Finlay
The Old Testament book of Judges tells the story of what could be called the 'Dark Ages' of the chosen people. When the book opens, the 12 tribes of Israel are on the edge of national success. Under Moses and his successor Joshua, they have been liberated from slavery and have begun to occupy and settle in their Promised Land.
But something goes terribly wrong. By the time the book closes, central leadership has broken down and the tribes are at each other's throats. The people are oppressed on every side by enemies and in danger of national extinction. This book contains some of the most gruesome stories in the Bible - episodes of idolatry, theft, rape, murder and civil war.
What went wrong? Let's take a closer look.
Getting
nowhere fast
After Joshua's death, the Israelites needed a new leader. They asked, 'Who will be the first to go up and fight for us against the Canaanites?' (Judges 1:1). God chose the tribe of Judah, with the ironclad promise, 'I have given the land into their hands' (verse 2). Sadly, Judah's faith started to crumble even before they set foot on the battlefield. Instead of taking God at his word, they turned to the tribe of Simeon for additional military support (verse 3). They soon paid a heavy price.
Although Judah conquered several areas in the Negev and Western foothills, as well as cities such as Hebron and Debir, their victory was woefully incomplete. Jerusalem, for example, was either not taken completely, or later recaptured by its inhabitants (Judges 1:8, 21). In fact, this fortress city was not taken until the time of David, hundreds of years later. The pattern of failure was repeated across the country as the various tribes suffered military debacles. Because of their covenant with God, success would not be due to their military superiority or the brilliance of their tactics. They were outnumbered and 'outgunned' by their enemies. If they were to succeed in occupying the Promised Land, it would be because they relied on God. They forgot this, and as a result:
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Manassah failed at Beth Shan, Taanach, Dor, Ibleam and Megiddo (Judges 1:27)
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Ephraim failed at Gezer (verse 29)
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Zebulun failed at Kitron and Hahalol (verse 30)
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Asher failed at Acco, Sidon, Ahlab, Aczib, Helbah, Aphek and Rehob (verses 31-32)
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Dan failed against the Amorites (verse 34)
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The house of Joseph also failed to drive out the Amorites (verses 35-36)
A broken covenant God had intended to make Israel a holy nation. To this end, he made a sacred covenant with them at Mt. Sinai (Exodus 19:5-8; 24:1-8). For their part, the Israelites were to love God and obey his law (Deuteronomy 6:5; Joshua 22:5). In particular, they were to follow God's command not to make any treaties with the pagan nations of the land (Exodus 34:11-16; Deuteronomy 7:1-5).
But when the elders who had served with Joshua also died, the people turned aside from God. The younger generation abandoned the faith of their fathers and began to worship the gods of the Canaanites (Judges 2:10-15). Indeed, the major cause of decline in this period of Israel's history was idolatry - turning away from the one true God to follow pagan gods.
When Israel rejected God, his agreement to help them conquer the land and drive out the pagan Canaanite nations was no longer binding. God sent an angel to remind the people of the dire consequences of their faithless disobedience:
'I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers...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' (Judges 2:1-3).
This is exactly what happened: 'The Israelites held the mountains, but the foreign-held valleys, cutting through the land, separated the tribes. Soon, each group of isolated Israelites began operating independently.... The next generation lost its national identity.... Though descended from 12 brothers, the Israelites spent more time fighting each other than the foreign oppressors' (New Student Bible 1).
Variations on a theme
Although anarchy existed in Israel during much of the period of the judges, the story shows that God was still working out his purpose with them. The entire story is a monument to God's patience, love and mercy. Time after time, the people became trapped in a downward spiral toward moral degeneracy, and the refrain, 'The Israelites once again did evil in the sight of the Lord', recurs like a monotonous litany throughout the book. Yet, every time the Israelites repented, God forgave them and sent a deliverer (or 'judge' - hence the name of the book).
The central section of the book (chapters 3:7-16:31) tells us of six judges God raised up to deliver his people from their enemies. These stories - with their pattern of Israel's sin, sorrow, repentance and restoration - illustrate what is often called the 'cycle of sin'. At first glance, the stories all seem to follow the same theme. But there are subtle and important differences. These small divergences are important, like when a musician plays variations on a theme.
First we hear what could be called the 'base' theme. Then it is played again, with a few variations. As the variations are developed, the base theme recedes further and further into the background, and may even be no longer recognizable to the untrained ear. But the trained listener can appreciate what is happening.
The chronicler of Judges uses much the same technique, and we need to read carefully to appreciate the lesson. These are not just stories - they are a variation of a theme.
The first story is of Othniel (Judges 3:7-11). He was the nephew of Caleb, one of the nation's founding heroes (see Numbers 14:6,30). This short account of Othniel is the 'base theme' - the one by which to view the others. As you read it, look for the following sequence:
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The Israelites do evil (verse 7).
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God allows them to become the captives of their enemies (verse 8).
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The Israelites repent and cry out to God for help (verse 9).
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God raises up a judge or deliverer (verse 9).
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God delivers the enemy leader into the hand of the judge (verse 10).
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The land has rest and peace under the judge's leadership (verse 11).
The stories of the other five judges also have the first two elements: the people sinning and becoming captives. However, the later stories get progressively further from the model story as far as the other four elements are concerned. This progressive departure from the model story is a literary device that the author uses to reflect the moral decline of Israel.
The second story, of Ehud, follows the model story almost exactly (Judges 3:12-30).
In the third, however, Barak, a capable military leader, displays an initial lack of faith (Judges 4:8). Having been told by Deborah, a prophetess and judge, that God would deliver the enemy into his hands, Barak is still not prepared to deliver Israel until he has the additional assurance of Deborah's presence at the battle (Judges 4:4-8). Consequently, the honor of killing the enemy leader, Sisera, goes not to Barak but to a woman, Jael (verses 9,15-21).
The next judge, Gideon, requires even more than the support of a godly prophet or prophetess. He requests several specific signs from God before he is prepared to accept responsibility (Judges 6:17,36-37,39). With the background of Barak's experiences in mind, it is not surprising that the glory of capturing two of the Midianite leaders, Oreb and Zeeb, goes not to Gideon but to the rival tribe of Ephraim (Judges 11:30-31).
Jephthah's story deviates even further. The people, rather than God, elect Jephthah as their leader (Judges 11:1-40). And although God does grant Jephthah victory over his enemies, Jephthah's triumphant return home is transformed into personal disappointment and anguish because of a rash vow he had made (Judges 11:30-31). Moreover, the land does not have peace under Jephthah's leadership.
The final episode, that of Samson (Judges 13-16), represents the most radical departure from the ideal model of deliverance. The people do not even cry out to God for help, the land does not have rest under Samson's leadership and Samson himself is a self-willed man, who at first seems more intent on fulfilling his own agenda than being a servant of God.
If Barak is to be criticized for depending too much on the presence of a faithful prophetess, Deborah, how much more so Samson, who puts too much trust in a Philistine profiteer, Delilah (Judges 16:21). Samson eventually delivers his people, but only after he himself is captured, blinded and enslaved by his enemies.
So what we have is a sad sequence of decline and moral decay. When the book opens, the Israelites were serving God under Joshua and the elders who outlived him. But it closes on this tragic note: 'In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes' (Judges 21:25).
Jesus Christ breaks the cycle of sin
Old Testament scholar Arthur Cundall identifies the central message of the book of Judges: "The period of the judges' is a faithful witness to the fact of man's frailty and to his need not of a merely temporal deliverer, but of an eternal Saviour who can effect a perfect redemption."
Cundall's comment could also apply to the history of the modern world. We live in a society that is supposedly so much more sophisticated and enlightened than that of ancient Israel. And yet much of our behavior has been just as barbaric and faithless as that of the Israelites. Our society, just like theirs, continues to be "a faithful witness to the fact of man's frailty and of his need for an eternal Saviour."
The good news of the gospel is that there is an eternal Savior who has already broken the cycle of sin by offering a perfect redemption for the whole world. He is the God-man, Jesus Christ. And the basic message of the Old Testament book of Judges - that sin leads to slavery while repentance leads to redemption - provides a fitting background for the New Testament teaching: because Jesus died for our sins, God grants us repentance and delivers us from spiritual slavery.
Copyright ©
2001
