The children of Israel had been “in the hands of the Philistines forty years” in Judges 13:1 and the angel of the Lord comes to a woman that was infertile to raise up a deliverer. The angel tells her in Judges 13:4–5 “So then, be careful and do not drink wine or strong drink, and do not eat anything unclean, 5 because you will conceive and bear a son. No razor will touch his head, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from birth. And it is he who will begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines.” God begins before conception preparing this man Manoah and his wife for what is ahead. Samson is born and grows to have great strength and he is a Nazirite as the angel said, but is deceived by the Philistine wife he has chosen. She manipulates him as she herself is coerced by Philistine men and then given by her father to another man. Samson burns their grain and vineyards and olive trees and they burn his wife and her father. Samson goes into hiding and the Philistines come to find him. The men of Judah cower and deliver Samson bound to the Philistines but “the Spirit of Yahweh” come on Samson and he kills one thousand of them. Israel has peace for twenty years in Judges 15:20. 

Be Attentive To All That I Said

Judges 13:9–16
Manoah and his wife lived in a time where there had been few priests and few prophets in the land so people had little real understanding about God or angels. His wife had a visitation and said to him “A man of God came to me, and his appearance was like the appearance of an angel of God, very awesome” in Judges 13:6. In response, Manoah did pray to the Lord (and not to the angel) which was correct. But his prayer was, “let the man of God whom you sent again come to us” in Judges 13:8. Manoah was not prepared for an encounter with an angelic being. Later on he addresses the angel correctly as “the angel of Yahweh” in Judges 13:16, but here he calls him a man in

Judges 13:11 So Manoah got up and went after his wife, and he came to the man and said to him, “Are you the man that spoke to the woman?” And he said, “I am.”

Manoah doesn’t question whether his wife will have a child and doesn’t question the child being a Nazirite but he does request more information about the “manner of life and work” in Judges 13:12. We understand a father asking about the kind of work his some might do, but this phrase, “manner of life” doesn’t quite convey the meaning of the word “(mišpāṭ). n. masc. justice, judgment. Containing a nuance of righteous living, generally refers to all aspects of administering justice, including making laws, enforcing laws, and decisions regarding the merit of cases.”¹ which here is Manoah asking about the kind of influence his son will have. The angel only repeats what he has already said Judges 13:4-5 because the boy is not just a Nazirite from birth, but from conception. So the angel now also cautions Manoah that his wife should “be attentive” in

Judges 13:13–14 And the angel of Yahweh said to Manoah, “Let the woman be attentive to all that I said. 14 She should not eat of anything that comes from the vine, or drink wine or strong drink, or eat anything unclean; she should keep all that I commanded.”

 

What Is Your Name

Judges 13:17–25
Manoah asks the angels name in Judges 13:17 but it isn’t given. Then, “Manoah asks if he might entertain the angel, and the messenger promises to wait until an offering is made to God. Manoah asks the messenger’s name; the angel replies that his name is completely beyond human comprehension. Finally the offering is made and miraculously consumed by a fire from heaven; Manoah realizes that he has dealt with God himself.”² so Manoah responds in

Judges 13:22 And Manoah said to his wife, “We will certainly die because we have seen God.”

his wife though understands the goodness of God and in

Judges 13:23 But his wife said to him, “If Yahweh wanted to kill us he would not have taken from our hand the burnt offering and the grain offering, or shown us all these things, or now announced to us things such as these.”

I Saw A Woman

Judges 14:1–10

We Will Burn You And Your Father’s House

Judges 14:11–20

I Gave Her to Your Companion

Judges 15:1–10
As Samson becomes a man, he has amazing strength but the Philistines coerce his wife to gain an advantage over him. Then her father gives her to another and Samson burns the grain and vineyards and olive groves in

Judges 15:5 He set fire to the torches and let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and he burned both the stacks of sheaves and the standing grain, up to the vineyards of olive groves.

then went into hiding, but the Philistines came to find him. In their search, the Philistines came and in

Judges 15:9 Then the Philistines came up and encamped in Judah, and they overran Lehi.

 

What Is This You Have Done To Us

Judges 15:11–20
Rather than stand against the Philistines to throw off their oppression, the men of Judah join together and find Samson in

Judges 15:11 Then three thousand men from Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and they said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines are ruling over us? What is this that you have done to us?” And he said to them, “Just as they did to me, so I have done to them.”

but the men of Judah just want to give the Philistines what they want, Samson. And after they agree not to kill him, Samson goes with them in Judges 15:14 but when the Philistines saw Samson, they came shouting in

Judges 15:14 As he came up to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting to meet him; and the Spirit of Yahweh rushed on him, and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax that has burned with fire, and his bindings melted from his hands.

and as “the Spirit of Yahweh rushed on him” Samson killed a thousand of them in

Judges 15:15 And he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey; he reached down and took it and killed one thousand men with it.

and because of his action, in

Judges 15:20 And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

Entice Him And Find Out How We Can Overpower Him

Judges 16:1–9

He Confided Everything

Judges 16:10–17

Study Verses

• Judges 13:9–16 Be Attentive To All That I Said
• Judges 13:17–25 What Is Your Name
• Judges 15:11–20 What Is This You Have Done To Us

Today’s Reading

• Judges 13:9-25
• Judges 14:1-20
• Judges 15:1-20
• Judges 16:1-17

---

References

• 1. Garrett, J. K. (2014). Justice. D. Mangum, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, & R. Hurst (Eds.), Lexham Theological Wordbook. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
• 2. Bowling, A. C. (1995). Judges. In Evangelical Commentary on the Bible (Vol. 3, p. 171). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.

Jesus said in Luke 17:1 “It is impossible for causes for stumbling not to come, but woe to him through whom they come!” and here in Judges, we first have the rejection of Jephthah by his own people because in Judges 11:1 “he was the son of a prostitute”. But the nature of his birth was not his choice and God uses him to deliver Israel. Then there is the declaration of war against Israel in Judges 11:13 And the king of the Ammonites said to Jephthah’s messengers, “Because Israel took my land from the Arnon up to the Jabbok and the Jordan when they came up from Egypt; so then, restore it peacefully.” but this wasn’t his land and Jephthah explains four reasons why he is in error saying in Judges 11:27 I have not sinned against you; but you are the one who is doing wrong by making war against me. Let Yahweh judge today between the Israelites and the Ammonites.” and there are times when we must stand our ground and trust God as our deliverer. Finally, God answers the cry of a woman that is barren and gives her a son, Samson he will be named, and a Nazirite from birth, born into a time and place where little is known or understood about God’s ways. Yet God, as he has through generations, raises up a deliverer to break the yoke of injustice. 

You Will Not Inherit the House of Our Father

Judges 11:1–10
Israel has turned their hearts to the Lord by removing “the foreign gods form their midst” in Judges 10:16 but the Ammonites have “camped in Gilead. And the Israelites gathered and camped at Mizpah” in Judges 10:17. Israel did not have a leader but there was one man that was capable in

Judges 11:1 Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior; he was the son of a prostitute, and Gilead was his father.

However, Jephthah was an outcast because in

Judges 11:2 Gilead’s wife also bore for him sons; and the sons of his wife grew up and drove Jephthah away, and they said to him, “You will not inherit the house of our father because you are the son of another woman.”

so Jephthah lived far East, at the border or just beyond the land of Gilead and Manasseh in

Judges 11:3 So Jephthah fled from the presence of his brothers, and he lived in the land of Tob. And outlaws gathered around Jephthah and went with him.

Now, the Ammonites declare war on Israel so in

Judges 11:5 When the Ammonites made war with Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring Jephthah from the land of Tob.

but Jephthah challenges their request and rightly so, in

Judges 11:7 Jephthah said to the elders, “Did you not shun me and drive me out from the house of my father? Why do you come to me now when you have trouble?”

and Jephthah secures a pledge from them that he will be their leader because they have shunned him in the past and if he is to risk his life, he wants a guarantee for the future in

Judges 11:9 So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “If you bring me back to fight against the Ammonites, and Yahweh gives them over to me, will I be your head?”

 

What is Between You and Me

Judges 11:11–28
Jephthah seals his position as the commander with pledges before the Lord in

Judges 11:11 So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and commander over them. And Jephthah spoke all his words before Yahweh at Mizpah.

and is now empowered to speak for Gilead and, since for Israel, there is no cause for war with the Ammonites, Jephthah’s first official act is to ask the Ammonites why they have declared war in

Judges 11:12 And Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites, saying, “What is between you and me that you have come to me to make war against my land?”

Though Jephthah is described as a mighty warrior, it is also clear that he is a man that prefers peace. Jephthah begins with diplomacy to avoid war if possible and “in pursuing such a course he was acting as became a leader in Israel (De 20:10–18)”.¹

The answer that comes back is in

Judges 11:13 And the king of the Ammonites said to Jephthah’s messengers, “Because Israel took my land from the Arnon up to the Jabbok and the Jordan when they came up from Egypt; so then, restore it peacefully.”

but this land was not taken from the Ammonites and Jephthah begins to recount the details of Israel’s march from Egypt and their considerate requests to pass through Edom and Moab and then the land of the Amorites. Israels requests were denied by all, but the Amorites took up arms against Israel in

Judges 11:20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to cross through his territory, so Sihon gathered all his people and then encamped at Jahaz; and he made war with Israel.

1. It was “Yahweh, the God of Israel” that gave the victory in
   

   Judges 11:21 And Yahweh, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they defeated them; and Israel occupied all the land of the Amorites inhabiting that land.

   and it was god that drove out the Amorites in

   Judges 11:23 So then Yahweh, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from before his people Israel, and you want to possess it?

2. You possess what your god gave you and we’ll possess what our God gave us in Judges 11:24.
3. The “king of Moab” never made war against Israel in Judges 11:25.
4. And, for three hundred years Israel lived here in Judges 11:26.

So, Jephthah has exposed the hidden motives of the king of the Ammonites, he just wants the land and the power over Israel so he can exact tribute. Jephthah finishes with a charge against this king “you are the one who is doing wrong by making war” in

Judges 11:27 I have not sinned against you; but you are the one who is doing wrong by making war against me. Let Yahweh judge today between the Israelites and the Ammonites.”

Jephthah Made a Vow to Yahweh

Judges 11:29–40

I Called You, But You Did Not Deliver Me

Judges 12:1–7

He Judged Israel

Judges 12:8–15 

A Nazirite of God From Birth

Judges 13:1–8
Israel repeats this pattern of turning from God and serving other gods in

Judges 13:1 And again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and Yahweh gave them into the hand of the Philistines forty years.

but God intervenes to raise up a deliverer for them. And to do this, he chooses a women that is “infertile” and an angel appears to her bringing this message in

Judges 13:3–5 And an angel of Yahweh appeared to the woman, and he said to her, “Behold, you are infertile and have not borne children, but you will conceive and bear a son. 4 So then, be careful and do not drink wine or strong drink, and do not eat anything unclean, 5 because you will conceive and bear a son. No razor will touch his head, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from birth. And it is he who will begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines.”

This is in a time when Israel was far from the Lord. There is no mention of a priest or a prophet and when this man Manoah hears the report from his wife, he doesn’t know what to do so he prays in

Judges 13:8 Then Manoah prayed to Yahweh and said, “Excuse me, my Lord, please let the man of God whom you sent again come to us and teach us what we should do concerning the boy who will be born.”

by is approach, we might understand that Manoah is somewhat superstitious about god and spirits and the intent of this being toward them, but he did understand this was a powerful being.

Study Verses

• Judges 11:1–10 You Will Not Inherit the House of Our Father
• Judges 11:11–28 What is Between You and Me
• Judges 13:1–8 A Nazirite of God From Birth

Today’s Reading

• Judges 11:1-40
• Judges 12:1-15
• Judges 13:1-8

---

References

• 1. Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 1, p. 166). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

The Lord delivered Israel by the hand of Gideon and Israel has peace through the end of Gideon’s life but the people are not following God as their ruler as Gideon had said in Judges 8:23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; Yahweh will rule over you.” One of Gideon’s sons stirs up “the lords of Shechem” in Judges 9:2 to make him their king and then he, Abimelech, kills all but one of his brothers. As “the lords of Scechum” declare Abimelech king, Jotham, the brother that got away, declares to them, in Judges 9:16 “if you have acted in good faith” … but they have not and this will end badly for these opportunists, Abimelech and “the lords of Shechem” who would usurp the Lord’s place. Finally, Israel understands they cannot just cry out to God for deliverance, they must turn to him as in Judges 10:16 “So they removed the foreign gods from their midst and served Yahweh”. 

I Am Your Bone and Your Flesh

Judges 9:1–11
Gideon had refused to be a leader over Israel and understood that the Lord was their king in

Judges 8:23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; Yahweh will rule over you.”

but Gideon has died and Israel has forgotten Gideon’s family in

Judges 8:34–35 The Israelites did not remember Yahweh their God, who had delivered them from the hand of their enemies from all around, 35 nor did they show favor to the house of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) in accordance with all the good that he did for Israel.

This decision of Gideon to refuse to rule over Israel was, in the mind of Abimelech, one of Gideon’s sons, was a missed opportunity. So, as soon as his father was dead, he went to his mother and grandfather to have them speak for him, to promote him as their ruler in

Judges 9:2 “Speak to the lords of Shechem, ‘What is better for you, that seventy men all from the sons of Jerub-Baal rule over you, or that one man rules over you?’ Remember that I am your bone and your flesh.”

and his mother and grandfather agreed and “the lords of Shechem” in Judges 9:3 agreed and in

Judges 9:4 And they gave to him seventy pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, and Abimelech hired with them worthless and reckless men, and they followed him.

This money didn’t come from the city treasury or the leaders own support, instead, it was from the temple of the god the people had begun to follow “in Judg 8:33, baʿal bĕrı̂t was seen to be a pagan deity. Mulder (TDOT, 2:194) has pointed out the association of this deity with wine festivals in Judges 9:27¹

Abimelech then attempted to do away with anyone that might have a claim as ruler by killing all of his brothers but one in

Judges 9:5 And he went to his father’s house at Ophrah, and he killed his brothers, the sons of Jerub-Baal, seventy men, on one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerub-Baal survived, because he hid himself.

and it seems “the lords of Shechem” were as opportunistic as Abimelech and in

Judges 9:6 All the lords of Shechem and Beth-Millo gathered, and they went and made Abimelech as king, near the oak of the pillar that is at Shechem.

 

If You Have Acted In Good Faith

Judges 9:12–21
There is one other surviving son of Gideon and he speaks out in the assembly of “the lords of Shechem” declares “if you have acted in good faith” in Judges 9:16 with the house of Gideon, “then rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you” in Judges 9:19. But then, Jotham declares the evil that Abimelech has committed against his own family, the sons of Gideon, and their own participation with him in

Judges 9:18 but today you have risen against the house of my father and killed his sons, seventy men on one stone, and you have made Abimelech, the son of his slave woman, a king over the lords of Shechem, because he is your relative—

Jotham, the surviving brother of Abimelech, now prophecy’s a curse that will come true, and one they have brought on themselves in

Judges 9:20 But if not, let a fire come out from Abimelech and let it devour the lords of Shechem and Beth-Millo; and let a fire come out from the lords of Shechem, and from Beth-Millo, and let it devour Abimelech.

That The Violence Done Would Be Avenged

Judges 9:22–32

You Must Act According to Opportunity

Judges 9:33–43

What You Have Seen Me Do, Quickly Do Also

Judges 9:44–57

Again, The Israelites Did Evil in the Eyes of Yahweh

Judges 10:1–9 

They Removed The Foreign gods From Their Midst and Served Yahweh

Judges 10:10–18
Through all of this time, the Lord has delivered Israel as soon as they cry out to him, but now, as they cry out, the Lord says in

Judges 10:13–14 Yet you have abandoned me and served other gods. Therefore I will no longer deliver you. 14 Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your trouble.”

It isn’t that the Lord doesn’t want to help them, it is that they are abusing his help. They call on the Lord when they have pain and trouble, then don’t care anything about him when times are good. God will not support their bad behavior any more. And Israel gets the point, they cry out to God to deliver them in Judges 9:15, but they take action so actually turn to the Lord in

Judges 10:16 So they removed the foreign gods from their midst and served Yahweh; and he could no longer bear the misery of Israel.

Study Verses

• Judges 9:1–11 I Am Your Bone and Your Flesh
• Judges 9:12–21 If You Have Acted In Good Faith
• Judges 10:10–18 They Removed The Foreign gods From Their Midst and Served Yahweh

Today’s Reading

• Judges 9:1-57
• Judges 10:1-18

---

References

• 1. Lewis, T. J. (1992). Baal-Berith (Deity). In D. N. Freedman (Ed.), The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (Vol. 1, p. 550). New York: Doubleday.

Israel was devastated as year after year, the people of the East came and stole their crops and flocks. The people were hiding, as was Gideon when the angel of the Lord appeared to him and called him to deliver the nation. As Gideon followed what the Lord said, he had some success and then he was confronted by the enemy in Judges 7:12 Now the Midianites, Amalekites, and all the people of the east were lying in the valley, like a great multitude of locusts; their camels were without number, as numerous as the sand that is on the shore of the sea. God helped Gideon select three hundred men who would, in God’s hands, rout and destroy an army numbered at one hundred and thirty-five thousand. Israel was free, and people looked at Gideon as if he had done this great thing and asked him to in Judges 8:22 “Rule over us”. Gideon refused in Judges 8:23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; Yahweh will rule over you.” This was always what the Lord had planned for them, as it says in Jeremiah 30:22 ‘And you will be to me a people, and I will be to you God.’ ”

I Will Deliver You With The Three Hundred Men

Judges 7:1–8 

Behold I Had A Dream

Judges 7:9–17
Gideon has been busy proving God to be sure he will deliver Israel as he has said but now he sees the army gathered in the valley below in

Judges 7:12 Now the Midianites, Amalekites, and all the people of the east were lying in the valley, like a great multitude of locusts; their camels were without number, as numerous as the sand that is on the shore of the sea.

and the Lord says to him in

Judges 7:9 And that night Yahweh said to him, “Get up; go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand.

but God knows Gideon is still unsure so he says “if you are afraid, go down to the camp with Purah your servant, and you will hear what they say; and afterward you will have courage” in Judges 7:1-11.

Gideon doesn’t know it, but God has already been working among the army of the Midianites and Amalekites. Yes, this is a huge army, but they are all wondering about this enemy they will face and God gave one of them a dream in

Judges 7:13 When Gideon came, a man was recounting a dream to his friend, and he said, “Behold, I had a dream; a round loaf of barley bread was tumbling into the camp of Midian, and it came up to the tent, it struck it, and it fell and turned it upside down so that the tent fell.”

It doesn’t sound bad, a loaf of bread knocked the tent over, but the interpretation names Gideon and God, the God of Israel, in

Judges 7:14 His friend answered him and said, “This cannot be anything except the sword of Gideon son of Jehoash, a man of Israel; God has given Midian and the entire camp into his hand.”

There has been talk throughout the army about the God of Israel and about Gideon and they are already saying “God has given Midian and the entire camp into his hand”. 

Blow The Trumpet

Judges 7:18–25
The Lord tells Gideon he will deliver the whole army to him using three-hundred men. And now we see the strategy unfolding. Gideon divides the men into three groups and sends them to line up one hundred across in a line on three sides of the encampment. Each man carries a trumpet and a torch is hidden in a jar. Then he prepares them in

Judges 7:18 When I and all who are with me blow on the trumpet, you must also blow on the trumpets and surround the camp, and you must say, ‘To Yahweh and to Gideon!’ ”

They also wait though, until after the changing of the guard in the middle of the night. He waits until most of the army is hard asleep in

Judges 7:19 So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle night-watch, when they had just finished setting up the guards, and they blew on the trumpets and smashed the jars that were in their hands.

Gideon and his men each stood in their place with trumpets and shouting and as the army awoke, startled, they turned on each other and fled for their lives in

Judges 7:22 When they blew the three hundred trumpets, Yahweh set the sword of each one against his neighbor throughout the whole camp, and the camp fled as far as Beth Shittah toward Zererah, up to Abel Meholah, the border by Tabbath.

Now that the enemy was on the run, Gideon sent messengers to the tribes around and they joined in chasing down the fleeing soldiers in

Judges 7:23 And the men of Israel were called from Naphtali, from Asher, and from all of Manasseh, and they pursued after Midian.

Please Give Us Loaves of Bread

Judges 8:1–9

He Routed The Entire Army

Judges 8:10–19 

Yahweh Will Rule Over You

Judges 8:20–28
Gideon had not only rallied the men of Israel to fight their enemy, he led them to complete victory. The marauding army that had come year after year had been slain, “about fifteen thousand men remained from the entire army of the people of the east; those that fell in battle were one hundred and twenty thousand swordsmen.” in Judges 8:10. So, it isn’t surprising that in

Judges 8:22 The men of Israel said to Gideon, “Rule over us, both you and your sons, and your sons’ son, for you have delivered us from the hand of Midian.

but Gideon knew that it wasn’t by his strength or ability that this victory was won, it was only by the leading and power of God on their behalf so Gideon says no, in

Judges 8:23 But Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you; Yahweh will rule over you.”

Gideon was right, Yahweh was to rule over Israel, but Gideon also made two mistakes. God used Judges in Israel to keep order and peace and Gideon did not take on the leadership position the people needed. And, he took for himself plunder, and the ephod he made became a symbol of power that turned the eyes of the people from the Lord in

Judges 8:27 Gideon made an ephod out of it, and he put it in his town in Ophrah, and all Israel prostituted themselves to it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family.

While “the land rested forty years” in Judges 8:27, the seeds were sown for rebellion to come through Gideon’s own children.

The Israelites Did Not Remember Yahweh Their God

Judges 8:29–35

Study Verses

• Judges 7:9–17 Behold I Had A Dream
• Judges 7:18–25 Blow The Trumpet
• Judges 8:20–28 Yahweh Will Rule Over You

Today’s Reading

• Judges 7:1-25
• Judges 8:1-35

---

The Israelites are hiding from “the people of the East” in Judges 6:3 that would “come up like a great number of locusts” in Judges 6:5 because these people came year after year and in Judges 6:4 “they left no produce in Israel, or sheep, ox, or donkey”. When they cried out to the Lord, he sent them a prophet that proclaimed “‘I am Yahweh your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.’ But you have not listened to my voice.” in Judges 6:10, a message to turn their hearts toward God. And then, the Lord appears to Gideon. There was no warrior, there was no defender until the word of the Lord came in Judges 6:12 The angel of Yahweh appeared to him and said to him, “Yahweh is with you, you mighty warrior.” Gideon reacts like any of us might and he questions the Lord because he knows he alone is not able to accomplish this, then in Judges 6:14 And Yahweh turned to him and said, “Go in this your strength, and you will deliver Israel from the palm of Midian. Did I not send you?”. In our own strength, we fail, but where the word of the Lord is, there is victory.

Wake Up, Wake Up, Sing a Song!

Judges 5:12–21

Those Who Love Him Are Like the Rising Sun

Judges 5:22–31 

The Israelites Made For Themselves Hiding Places

Judges 6:1–10
When the Israelites fell away from the Lord, they fell into oppression and others ruled over them as in

Judges 6:2 The hand of the Midianites prevailed over Israel; because of the presence of the Midianites, the Israelites made for themselves hiding places that were in the mountains, caves, and strongholds.

This wasn’t just another king ruling over them as in requiring tribute payments for protection, this was constant raiding to plunder and steal anything of value. And, this wasn’t just a few bands of marauders, but “the people of the East” in Judges 6:3 that would “come up like a great number of locusts” in Judges 6:5 and in

Judges 6:4 They would camp against them and destroy the produce of the land as far as Gaza; they left no produce in Israel, or sheep, ox, or donkey.

and the result was exactly what you would expect of a plaque of locusts that came year after year, in

Judges 6:6 Israel was very poor because of the presence of the Midianites, and the Israelites cried out to Yahweh.

As they cry out to the Lord, he responds and sends a prophet who tells them, “‘I am Yahweh your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.’ But you have not listened to my voice.” in Judges 6:10.

Repentance comes first. They cry out to the Lord, but they must also turn from “the gods of the Amorites” and return to the Lord who is there waiting to deliver them.Yahweh Is With You, You Mighty Warrior 

Yahweh Is With You, You Mighty Warrior

Judges 6:11–17
After the Lord sends a prophet, the “angel of Yahweh” appears in Judges 6:11. This appearance though, begins with the angel sitting under an oak tree as if he is just watching Gideon. Gideon is hiding as he threshes the little bit of wheat he has. Then the angel appears and speaks in

Judges 6:12 The angel of Yahweh appeared to him and said to him, “Yahweh is with you, you mighty warrior.”

Gideon’s response is actually quite negative and he complains to the “angel of Yahweh” about their circumstance and complains that God has allowed this to happen to them and has not intervened in

Judges 6:13 Gideon said to him, “Excuse me, my lord. If Yahweh is with us, why then has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonderful deeds that our ancestors recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not Yahweh bring us up from Egypt?’ But now Yahweh has forsaken us; he has given us into the palm of Midian.”

Then, there is a command spoken by the Lord. This is not the “angel of Yahweh” but “Yahweh” in

Judges 6:14 And Yahweh turned to him and said, “Go in this your strength, and you will deliver Israel from the palm of Midian. Did I not send you?”

Again, Gideon complains that his clan is the weakest and he is the youngest in Judges 6:15. And again, “Yahweh”, the Lord himself says in

Judges 6:16 And Yahweh said to him, “But I will be with you, and you will defeat Midian as if they are one man.”

and still, having seen an angel and with the Lord speaking to him as one man speaks to another, Gideon still says, “show me a sign” in Judges 6:17.

Peace Be With You You Will Not Die

Judges 6:18–27

Who Did This Thing?

Judges 6:28–35 

In Order To See That You Will Deliver

Judges 6:36–40
Gideon has acted and has torn down the altar as the Lord had said to him. And though there was a reaction by the people of Israel, they recognized that if Baal were a God, he could defend himself so Gideon begins to gain some support. But it isn’t that way with the those that were oppressing Israel as they gathered against them in

Judges 6:33 Then all the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people of the east gathered together and crossed the Jordan; and they camped in the valley of Jezreel.

Gideon asks the Lord again for a sign in

Judges 6:36 Then Gideon said to God, “In order to see that you will deliver Israel by my hand, just as you have said”

The Lord has been working through Gideon, he has appeared to him and spoken to him and consumed Gideon’s offering with fire, and still, Gideon asks for a sign. We might understand though, that there were few prophets in the land, and there is no mention of priests. Gideon only knew a little history and what God was teaching him. There isn’t any complaint from God about this request and the Lord does confirm for Gideon that what he has said, he will perform in Judges 6:38 “it was so” and in Judges 6:40 “And God did so”.

Study Verses

• Judges 6:1–10 The Israelites Made For Themselves Hiding Places
• Judges 6:11–17 Yahweh Is With You, You Mighty Warrior
• Judges 6:36–40 In Order To See That You Will Deliver

Today’s Reading

• Judges 5:12-31
• Judges 6:1-40

---

Israel experiences oppression as they fall away from God and serve the nations around them or fall under the oppression of those among them. This is just what the Lord had said to them in Judges 2:3 “Now I say, I will not drive them out from before you; they will become as thorns for you, and their gods will be a trap for you.” Yet, every time they cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer who judged them, got their focus back on God, and then shook off the oppression so they had peace, or as it says in Judges 3:11 “So the land rested forty years”. But God never acted alone, He only acted at their request and only with their participation. After they were delivered, Deborah and Barak sang “Yahweh, you went down” in Judges 5:4 and it was a victory delivered by the Lord by an army of men that went, even though they were not men of war and may not have been equipped as the warriors they faced. They believed God and went forward.

To Know Whether They Would Keep the Commands of Yahweh

Judges 3:1–6 

They Forgot Yahweh Their God

Judges 3:7–11
The Israelites fell into the trap, they were taken in by the ways of the people around them in

Judges 3:7 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of Yahweh. They forgot Yahweh their God, and they served the Baals and the Asheroth.

and because they began to serve those around them, they came under the control of a foreign king. As it says in Judges 3:8 “he sold them into the hand of … and the Israelites served …” which in this time was likely an allegiance where Israel pays tribute and receives protection. However, this tribute is costly often came with oppression so that in

Judges 3:9 The Israelites cried out to Yahweh, and Yahweh raised up a deliverer for the Israelites who delivered them, Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.

God had not intended for Israel to live under the rule of any foreign power, but that they would serve the Lord only. So, when “the spirit of Yahweh came on him, and he judged Israel” in Judges 3:10, this man Othniel rose up and defeated the foreign power. Now, as Israel was free to serve the Lord again, it says in

Judges 3:11 So the land rested forty years. Then Othniel son of Kenaz died.

As long as he lived, the people were not oppressed, they were not crying out, they had peace, “the land rested” because one man, by the spirit of God, raised a standard for them as a nation.

Yahweh Raised Up For Them a Deliverer

Judges 3:12–23

He Sounded the Trumpet

Judges 3:24–31
The Lord had raised up another, Ehud, and they followed him.

Judges 3:30 And Moab was subdued on that day under the hand of Israel. And the land rested eighty years.

 

Has Not Yahweh the God of Israel Commanded You?

Judges 4:1–11
Israel continues as a tribal nation swayed by the nations around them and still struggling with those they had allowed to remain among them that God had called thorns, in

Judges 2:3 Now I say, I will not drive them out from before you; they will become as thorns for you, and their gods will be a trap for you.”

Again, Israel was sold “into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan” in Judges 4:2 and they cried to the Lord because of the oppression in

Judges 4:3 And the Israelites cried to Yahweh, as he had nine hundred iron chariots, and he oppressed the Israelites cruelly for twenty years.

For a generation, they lived under this rule but the voice of the Lord was still there. Their were those among them that knew God and the people of Israel recognized Deborah, a prophetess in

Judges 4:4 Now at that time Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel.

There was not a man in Israel that was seeking to break the oppression they were under, yet the word of the Lord came to Deborah and she sends instruction in

Judges 4:6–7 She sent and called for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh Naphtali and said to him, “Has not Yahweh the God of Israel commanded you? ‘Go, march to Mount Tabor, and take ten thousand men from the descendants of Naphtali and Zebulun. 7 I will draw out Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and troops, to the wadi of Kishon, and I will give him into your hand.’ ”

When God speaks, he will perform his word, and yet, Barak puts a condition on God’s word to him and is never named as the leader and judge of Israel he might have been in

Judges 4:8 Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go; but if you do not go with me, I will not go.”

Has Yahweh Not Gone Out Before You?

Judges 4:12–24 

I Will Sing Praise to Yahweh

Judges 5:1–11
God is faithful to his covenant and he does deliver his people when they call on him. And though there is often a time when we may think our enemy is too big, or bigger than we are, if we will trust God’s promises and act on His Word, we will come to a place of victory. This is the song of celebration that is sung after the fear, after the uncertainty, after God has done His work in us and through us. Listen to the shout to the world in

Judges 5:3 Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes! I will sing to Yahweh; I will sing praise to Yahweh, the God of Israel.

then they sing, “Yahweh, you went down” in Judges 5:4 and it was the Lord that gave them the victory, but it was an army of Israel that went. The Lord couldn’t go down if they had not. But it wasn’t the strength of the warriors of Israel who are described in Judges 5:7 “The warriors ceased; they failed to appear in Israel” and in Judges 5:8 “a small shield or a spear was not seen among forty thousand in Israel”. The key is here, they had faith in God and acted on the word God gave them through the prophetess and they offered themselves in

Judges 5:9 My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel, those offering themselves willingly among the people; bless Yahweh!

Study Verses

• Judges 3:7–11 They Forgot Yahweh Their God
• Judges 4:1–11 Has Not Yahweh the God of Israel Commanded You?
• Judges 5:1–11 I Will Sing Praise to Yahweh

Today’s Reading

• Judges 3:1-31
• Judges 4:1-24
• Judges 5:1-11

---