Conclusion: Book of Judges
July 10, 2022
The pattern of behavior in the book of Judges is clear: the people rebelled through idolatry and disbelief, God brought judgment through foreign oppression, God raised up a deliverer—or judge, and the people repented and turned back to God. Then the people fell back into sin, the cycle started over again.
Judges 19:1-3 In those days Israel had no king. Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. 2 But she was unfaithful to him. She left him and went back to her parent’s home in Bethlehem, Judah. After she had been there four months, 3 her husband went to her to persuade her to return. He had with him his servant and two donkeys. She took him into her parent’s home, and when her father saw him, he gladly welcomed him.
A concubine was something like a wife, but not quite. She was something like a slave, but not quite. She was something like a mistress, but not quite. A concubine was for having babies or sex.
A Levite takes a concubine, a secondary wife. The concubine cheats on the Levite and goes back home. After four months, the Levite pursues the concubine again.
No names are given because the author wants us to know that this is typical behavior in Israel during the days of the Judges. These are little acts of indiscretion among some unnamed people, which you wouldn’t think would amount to much, but it does!
The concubine’s father keeps the Levite for five days, after that the Levite and his concubine leave for home. (JEBUS) End up at Gibeah, a town in the territory of the tribe of Benjamin.
Since there were no hotels in those days, it was customary for people to invite travelers into their homes.
Judges 19:16 That evening an old man from the hill country of Ephraim, who was living in Gibeah (the inhabitants of the place were Benjamites), came in from his work in the fields.
Judges 19:20 “You are welcome at my house,” the old man said. “Let me supply whatever you need.
Judges 19:22-26 While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, “Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him.” 23 The owner of the house went outside and said to them, “No, my friends, don’t be so vile. Since this man is my guest, don’t do this outrageous thing. 24 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 as for this man, don’t do such an outrageous thing.” 25 But 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. 26 At daybreak the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight.
WOW! It sounds a lot like Sodom (GEN 19). Only it’s not Sodomites or Canaanites that want to rape the Levite; they are Israelites, the people of God! The Levite, in callous disregard for his concubine, pushes her out to the crowd, who violate her all night.
Judges 19:27-30 When 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. 28 He said to her, “Get up; let’s go.” But there was no answer. Then the man put her on his donkey and set out for home. 29 When 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. 30 Everyone who saw it was saying to one another, “Such a thing has never been seen or done, not since the day the Israelites came up out of Egypt. Just imagine! We must do something! So speak up!”
The Levite’s callous disregard for his concubine leads to a callous disregard for her body. He divides it into 12 pieces and sends them to each of the 12 tribes of Israel. What started out as small acts of indiscretion has now become a national crisis. The whole nation is up in arms over what happened in the little town of Gibeah.
So what does Israel do?
Judges 20:18 The Israelites went up to Bethel and inquired of God. They said, “Who of us is to go up first to fight against the Benjamites?”
Notice, that they don’t ask IF they should fight the tribe of Benjamin. They ask WHO should fight them. Israel is not interested in discerning God’s will here. They just want God to help them with what they have already decided to do.
As a result, Israel loses 22,000 soldiers the next morning in their battle against the tribe of Benjamin. So, they come to God again.
Judges 20:23 The Israelites went up and wept before the Lord until evening, and they inquired of the Lord. They said, “Shall we go up again to fight against the Benjamites, our fellow Israelites?”
This time, Israel comes to God with tears, but still they lose 18,000 soldiers the next day. Because they’re STILL not interested in doing GOD’S will. They just want God to bless THEIR will.
Now, God is not playing with them here; He’s proving them, trying to move them into a right relationship with Himself. Well, finally, the third time they come to God with the right attitude.
Judges 20:26-28 Then all the Israelites, the whole army, went up to Bethel, and there they sat weeping before the Lord. They fasted that day until evening and presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings to the Lord. 27 And the Israelites inquired of the Lord. (In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there, 28 with Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, ministering before it.) They asked, “Shall we go up again to fight against the Benjamites, our fellow Israelites, or not?” The Lord responded, “Go, for tomorrow I will give them into your hands.”
They weep and fast and sacrifice to the Lord, repenting of their sins and renewing the covenant they had with Him.
Now they’re truly interested in doing GOD’s will, so God gives them victory. They eliminate the entire tribe of Benjamin except for 600 men, who escape. Judges 20:47 But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon,..
There is no reason why God should have communicated with such a corrupt, apostate people.” And yet He does. Why? because they turn from their sin and turn to Him for guidance.
You and I should do the same. No matter how great our trouble, we can turn from our sin and turn to the Lord for His guidance. Don’t just look for God to bless YOUR plans. Seek to discover HIS plans for your life.
In Judges 21, Israel is in a mess again, because they go back to doing their own thing. One of their tribes is nearly wiped out, with only 600 men left of the tribe of Benjamin. Israel swore an oath not to give any of their daughters in marriage to the men of Benjamin. Judges 21:1 Now the men of Israel had sworn an oath at Mizpah, saying, “None of us shall give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife.”
So, they complain to the Lord about it.
Judges 21:3-4 “Lord, God of Israel,” they cried, “why has this happened to Israel? Why should one tribe be missing from Israel today?” Early the next day the people built an altar and presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings.
It’s almost as if they’re blaming God! The next day, they offer sacrifices, but they never ask God what they should do.
Instead, they come up with their own hair-brained scheme.
They decided to slaughter a whole city of Israelites, a city that refused to join Israel in the fight against Benjamin.
This was doing one bad thing to make up for another. Israel instead should have repented of their foolish oath made at Mizpah, and they should have agreed to give their daughters as wives to the men of the tribe of Benjamin, renouncing the foolish vow before God.
But they decide that since no one from Jabesh-Gilead answered their call to arms, they would slaughter all its inhabitants, except for 400 young virgins.
These, they gave to the 600 men of the tribe of Benjamin, but they were still 200 short! Judges 21:18-25 We can’t give them our daughters as wives, since we Israelites have taken this oath: ‘Cursed be anyone who gives a wife to a Benjamite.’ 19 But look, there is the annual festival of the Lord in Shiloh, which lies north of Bethel, east of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah.” 20 So they instructed the Benjamites, saying, “Go and hide in the vineyards 21 and watch. When the young women of Shiloh come out to join in the dancing, rush from the vineyards and each of you seize one of them to be your wife. Then return to the land of Benjamin. 22 When their fathers or brothers complain to us, we will say to them, ‘Do us the favor of helping them, because we did not get wives for them during the war. You will not be guilty of breaking your oath because you did not give your daughters to them.’” 23 So that is what the Benjamites did. While the young women 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. 24 At that time the Israelites left that place and went home to their tribes and clans, each to his own inheritance. 25 In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.
So they invite the 200 Benjamites to kidnap the young ladies dancing at a festival in Shiloh.
They had sworn an oath not the GIVE their daughters in marriage to the tribe of Benjamin. But they reasoned that if the men of the tribe of Benjamin TOOK their daughters, they would not be violating their oath.
Their crazy scheme involves violence against hundreds of teenage girls. So: Levite takes a concubine and she’s unfaithful.
The rape of one woman in Judges 19 has multiplied into the rape of 600 women in Judges 21. The Israelite society is all messed up! Why?
Judges 21:25 In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.
Everybody does what they THINK is right, not what God SAYS is right.
The conclusion of Judges again highlights the corruption and sinfulness of life without God and without His Word.
Man’s attempts at doing “what is right in their own eyes” will never succeed, we will be lost, like sheep that have gone astray. (Garden-Noah’s day)
We have learned throughout Judges What happens when man rejects God and His word. And unfortunately, we are learning it firsthand today.
I PRAY that we will continue to grow and to love Him and His Word.
Seek To UNDERSTAND God’s heart and cultivate a desire and a delight in DOING what God says.
We fight the enemy the same way Jesus fought him – we stand on the WORD of GOD.
Keep falling in love with God. Keep falling in love with His Word.
Do life God’s way. That’s the only right way to live.
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