Devotions

Remember Your Creator

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Life in this world is serious business and we are well served by seeking and applying all of the wisdom we can find. It says in Ecclesiastes 10:1 “a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor” so what we say and the way we behave affects our relationships and has a huge impact on the outcome of events in our lives. This is why we are told in Ecclesiastes 12:1 “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth”. This world we are in is fruitful in many ways, yet we must plant and harvest and recognize the uncertainty that exists. Not everything we do will succeed but some things will and any financial manager will appreciate this advice in Ecclesiastes 11:2 “Divide your share in seven or in eight, for you do not know what disaster will happen on the earth”. Whether it is for our natural provision or in fulfilling our commission to spread the gospel of the kingdom, we must remember what it says in Ecclesiastes 11:6 “Sow your seed in the morning, and do not let your hands rest in the evening, for you do not know what will prosper— whether this or that”.

Do It With All Your Might

Ecclesiastes 9:7–12

Wisdom Is Better Than Weapons

Ecclesiastes 9:13–18 

A Little Folly Outweighs Wisdom And Honor

Ecclesiastes 10:1–11
People will often make a comment and follow it by a statement like “I was just joking” and we might take the word translated as folly here to simply mean “silliness”1 but it is more than that, “Folly (sekel) or a fool (sākāl) is associated with wickedness (7:17) and is the opposite of wisdom (2:19) … Elsewhere the foolish are said to be ‘skilled in doing evil’ (Jer. 4:22) and to be characterized by moral insensitivity (cf. Jer. 5:21).2 The connection here couldn’t be clearer, as flies spoil perfume, so a little folly spoils wisdom in

Ecclesiastes 10:1 Dead flies cause a bad smell and ruin the ointment of the perfumer. So also a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

Jesus speaks rather sternly about this in

Matthew 12:36 “But I tell you that every worthless word that they speak, people will give an account for it on the day of judgment!”

Our words matter and we are to use them for positive and constructive purposes. More importantly, we must be attentive to wisdom because even the skilled craftsman may be injured. We may know the right precautions but that doesn’t help if we aren’t attentive. We must take a break when fatigued, sharpen tools when they are dull, shore up the walls of the pit. Whatever the task, there is no room for folly.

The Wise Man Wins Favor

Ecclesiastes 10:12–20 

Send Out Your Bread On The Water

Ecclesiastes 11:1–6
There are many ways this statement “send out your bread” has been interpreted in

Ecclesiastes 11:1 Send out your bread on the water, for in many days you will find it.

Some say “The idea that this phrase refers to charitable giving comes from a parallel in Egyptian Wisdom literature. The Instruction of Ankhsheshonq says, “Do a good deed and throw it in the water; when it dries you will find it.”3

and that fits with

Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you, a good measure—pressed down, shaken, overflowing—they will pour out into your lap. For with the measure by which you measure out, it will be measured out to you in return.”

and some say it is from “the custom of sowing seed by casting it from boats into the overflowing waters of the Nile, or in any marshy ground. When the waters receded, the grain in the alluvial soil sprang up (Is 32:20).”4 and this practice in Egypt may be the meaning.

From the context though, it seems most likely this is a comment relating to commerce where “Ships on commercial voyages might be long delayed before any profit resulted. Yet one’s goods had to be committed to them. Solomon’s fleet which brought back ‘gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks’ (1 Kgs 10:22) sailed once in three years.”5

And if we read on to the next verse, we find a risk management strategy that today we would call diversification in

Ecclesiastes 11:2 Divide your share in seven or in eight, for you do not know what disaster will happen on the earth.

and having done all of this, he also says keep sowing your seed in

Ecclesiastes 11:6 Sow your seed in the morning, and do not let your hands rest in the evening, for you do not know what will prosper— whether this or that, or whether both of them alike will succeed.

Let Him Rejoice In All Of Them

Ecclesiastes 11:7–10 

Remember Your Creator

Ecclesiastes 12:1–8
Now, there is an admonition to “remember your creator” but this is admonition is to remember him early in your life when you are strong and able in

Ecclesiastes 12:1 Remember your Creator in the days of your youth—before the days of trouble come and the years draw near when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them!”

We are to fulfill what God has put in our hearts to do and do this with righteousness because in

Ecclesiastes 11:9 Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth! Follow the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes—but know that God will bring you into judgment for all these things.

And in all of our doing, let us rejoice and how much better it is to have that rejoicing all of your life in

Ecclesiastes 11:8a “For if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in all of them!”

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • Ecclesiastes 9:7–18
  • Ecclesiastes 10:1–20
  • Ecclesiastes 11:1–10
  • Ecclesiastes 12:1–8

References

  • 1. Strong, J. (2009). A Concise Dictionary of the Words in the Greek Testament and The Hebrew Bible (Vol. 2, p. 83). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.
  • 2. Eaton, M. A. (1983). Ecclesiastes: An introduction and commentary (Vol. 18, p. 151). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
  • 3. Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ec 11:1). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
  • 4. Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 1, p. 412). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
  • 5. Eaton, M. A. (1983). Ecclesiastes: An introduction and commentary (Vol. 18, p. 159). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
Devotions

I Said “I Will Be Wise!”

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We are born as creative and inquisitive beings, in the image of God. Yet, this very nature, separated from God, can lead to destruction. The simplest misfortune is one that is so taken by wealth or possessions or honor that they cannot enjoy it in Ecclesiastes 6:2 “God gives a man wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires; yet God does not enable him to enjoy it”. Some are never satisfied in Ecclesiastes 6:7 “All of a man’s toil is for his mouth—yet his appetite is never satisfied”. It is good for us to set ourselves to understand and to gain wisdom even though the depths of evil or the schemes of evildoers is “beyond my grasp” in Ecclesiastes 7:23. It is still good for us to gain wisdom to order our lives as in Ecclesiastes 7:18 “It is good to take hold of the one and also must not let go of the other; for whoever fears God will hold both of them secure”. We are to take hold of our life for righteousness and not let evil go unpunished. 

His Heart Is Not Satisfied With His Prosperity

Ecclesiastes 6:1–12
Here is described a “misfortune” in

Ecclesiastes 6:1 Here is another misfortune that I have seen under the sun, and it is prevalent among humankind.

and it is that a man, though this is written by a man about men, we can certainly apply this in the gender-neutral sense because women also may fall into this trap. So, we can easily read “a man” as “a person” and “him” as “them” in

Ecclesiastes 6:2 God gives a man wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires; yet God does not enable him to enjoy it—instead someone else ends up enjoying it. This is vanity—indeed, it is a grievous ill!

this is the person that is “not satisfied with his prosperity” in Ecclesiastes 6:3. We might describe them as a workaholic or as driven or as greedy or even as those that are so needy in their own soul that they cannot be satisfied trying to prove their worth by amassing things.

There is in our physical nature a need we all have for preservation. It is for our own well being but it can run rampant as in

Ecclesiastes 6:7 All of a man’s toil is for his mouth—yet his appetite is never satisfied.

Somehow, we must learn to be content, to be satisfied in

Ecclesiastes 6:9 Better to be content with what your eyes see than for your soul to constantly crave more. This also is vanity and chasing wind!

Wisdom Restores Life To Its Possessor

Ecclesiastes 7:1–12 

Whoever Fears God Will Hold Both Secure

Ecclesiastes 7:13–18
There are in this life, those that are righteous and those that are wicked. Yet, as a leader, whether as a king or a parent, or even among peers, there is a danger of destroying yourself in these extremes and this is based on your behaviour, your actions:

  • “Do not act excessively wise” in Ecclesiastes 7:16.
  • “Do not act excessively wicked” in Ecclesiastes 7:17.

The wise man will recognize that he must “take hold” of his own life and personally live a righteous life but he cannot force that on others. Also, the wise man will recognize that there must be an end to evil, he cannot “let go” and allow it to go unpunished. So, here is the path of the wise in

Ecclesiastes 7:18 It is good to take hold of the one and also must not let go of the other; for whoever fears God will hold both of them secure.

 

I Said “I Will Be Wise!”

Ecclesiastes 7:19–29
We can all recognize the value of wisdom, it is the simple solution that comes in the middle of a crisis or the “Ahah!” moment when we understand what to do next. The word used here is “(ḥokmâ). n. fem. wisdom, skill. Refers generally to practical skill or special expertise ranging from technical skills to shrewdness, discernment, or understanding.1 but it is clear from the context that wisdom here is more than just aggregate skill and knowledge. Certainly, two minds are better than one, but here, there is that moment of insight that comes and brings a new idea, a new or better way to do things, a “shrewdness, discernment, or understanding” that is wisdom.

Ecclesiastes 7:19 Wisdom gives more strength to the wise than ten rulers who are in the city.

Yet, in seeking wisdom, we find there is more to know than we can discover in

Ecclesiastes 7:23–24 All this I have tested with wisdom. I said, “I will be wise!” but it was beyond my grasp. 24 Whatever is—it is far beyond comprehension. Who can discover it?

There are many facts we can know about our world, but when it comes to understanding “that wickedness is foolishness and that folly is delusion” in Ecclesiastes 7:25 it is beyond our ability because in

Ecclesiastes 7:29 Look! This alone I found: God made mankind upright, but they have devised many schemes.”

We are made in the image of God and are by nature creative beings, yet we are in this fallen world and separated from God. Here, that creative nature that is in us also devises evil. Here, the teacher, the writer of Ecclesiastes, Solomon has written what is later described in

Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful more than anything else, and it is disastrous. Who can understand it?

There Is A Proper Time And Right Procedure

Ecclesiastes 8:1–8

Sometimes Those In Authority Harm Others

Ecclesiastes 8:9–17

All Are In The Hand Of God

Ecclesiastes 9:1–6

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • Ecclesiastes 6:1–12
  • Ecclesiastes 7:1–29
  • Ecclesiastes 8:1–17
  • Ecclesiastes 9:1–6

References

  • 1. Nettelhorst, R. P. (2014). Wisdom. D. Mangum, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, & R. Hurst (Eds.), Lexham Theological Wordbook. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
Devotions

This Also Is A Gift of God

by  • 

Though there is much for us to learn about the world around us and there is much we can learn from the past, in Ecclesiastes 3:11 “yet no one can grasp what God does from the beginning to the end”. This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t learn or grow in knowledge and wisdom, it is that we also should remember to enjoy the days of our lives. Though it is true that in Ecclesiastes 3:16 “instead of justice there was evil; instead of righteousness there was wickedness”. God has established a time for judgement in Ecclesiastes 3:17 “God will surely judge the righteous and the wicked, for he has appointed a time of judgment for every deed and every work.” Until then, it is good for us to have a spouse, one we can share our life with.

For Everything There Is An Appointed Time

Ecclesiastes 3:1–9 

This Also Is A Gift of God

Ecclesiastes 3:10–15
God has put a memory of the past in us, we learn from it, we are interested in it. But there seem to be two parts to our history.

  • There is the body of human knowledge that records what we know about the world around us. We have seen this body of knowledge, the record of human discovery growing at an ever increasing rate. Even so, “no one can grasp what God does from the beginning to the end” in Ecclesiastes 3:11.
  • And, there is the record of activities in our lives that show the way people have lived. Though this changes from generation to generation, and there are conveniences that we enjoy today, the more important thing is for us to enjoy the life God has given us as in Ecclesiastes 3:12–13 So I realized that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and enjoy themselves during their lives. 13 And for anyone to eat and drink, that is, to enjoy the fruit of all his toil, this also is a gift of God.

 

Instead Of Justice There Was Evil

Ecclesiastes 3:16–22
Solomon describes life as he has experienced it in its fallen state in

Ecclesiastes 3:16 I saw something else under the sun: instead of justice there was evil; instead of righteousness there was wickedness.

Many others have also wondered, how is it those bad things happen to good people? Or we might also ask, how is it that wicked people rule? The wise man that Solomon was, answered this question in

Ecclesiastes 3:17 So I said to myself, “God will surely judge the righteous and the wicked, for he has appointed a time of judgment for every deed and every work.”

Our problem is we want that judgement to happen right now, but God has chosen to hold that judgement until the end (see Revelation 19 and Matthew 25:31-46). Yet, there is something that had not been revealed even to Solomon and that is the entrance of Light into the world through Jesus Christ. We now know that we have “life and immortality” in

2 Timothy 1:10 but has now been disclosed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought to light life and immortality through the gospel.

I Saw All The Oppression That Occurs Under The Sun

Ecclesiastes 4:1–6 

Two Are Better Than The One

Ecclesiastes 4:7–16
God has made us as social beings, but even more than that, he made the relationship between a man and a woman to be enduring. Here, a man that is all alone lamented in

Ecclesiastes 4:8 Sometimes a man is all alone with no companion; he also has neither son nor brother. Yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eye is not satisfied with wealth. He laments, “For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?” This also is vanity—it is an unhappy business!

and then he describes the benefit of having a spouse in Ecclesiastes 4:9–12:

  • They enjoy their reward better together.
  • If they fall they have help up.
  • They keep each other warm.
  • They are safer together.
    Then there is the problem of aging because we gain wisdom and knowledge and perhaps even position but when we close the door on input from others we become like the foolish king in

    Ecclesiastes 4:13 A poor but wise youth is better than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to receive advice.

    Even though this king had years of service and many people around him, all of that is forgotten in

    Ecclesiastes 4:16 There is no end to all the people, to all who were before him. Yet the later generation will not rejoice in him, for this also is vanity and chasing wind!

    Fulfill What You Vow!

    Ecclesiastes 5:1–9

    There Is A Grievous Evil Under The Sun

    Ecclesiastes 5:10–20

    Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • Ecclesiastes 3:1–22
  • Ecclesiastes 4:1–16
  • Ecclesiastes 5:1–20
Devotions

There Is Nothing Better

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Solomon was the wisest man of his time in 1 Kings 4:29–30 “God gave wisdom to Solomon and very great discernment, as well as breadth of understanding … greater than the wisdom of all the people of the east and more than all the wisdom of Egypt.” and he describes himself in Ecclesiastes 1:12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. Yet he describes the greatest satisfaction in life simply in Ecclesiastes 2:24–25 “There is nothing better for a person than to eat and drink and find delight in his toil. For I also realized that this is from the hand of God! 25 For who can eat, and who can enjoy life apart from him?” For Solomon, it seems that a persons profession or their education wasn’t the most important thing, it was much more important that they delight in expressing and in being who God made them to be.

Why, Yahweh, God of Israel, Has It Happened

Judges 21:1–12
Israel laments what has happened to Benjamin but is now restrained by the oath they have made in

Judges 21:1 The men of Israel had sworn at Mizpah, saying, “None of us will give his daughter to Benjamin as a wife.”

and their requirement that every tribe, every city of Israel must be involved in

Judges 21:5 And the Israelites said, “Who in the assembly has not come up from all the tribes of Israel to Yahweh?” For a solemn oath was taken concerning whoever did not come up to Yahweh at Mizpah, saying, “He will certainly be put to death.”

Yet they use this to kill every man and woman of Jabesh-Gilead, sparing only their virgin daughters who they sent to Benjamin.

Seize For Yourselves A Wife

Judges 21:13–25

What Does A Person Gain In All His Toil

Ecclesiastes 1:1–9 

What Is Twisted Cannot Be Straightened

Ecclesiastes 1:10–18
There is a truth here that every generation is born new into their world. They must learn and be educated by those around them. What we learned as children is what our parents thought to teach us and some we glean from the world around us. So, as it says in

Ecclesiastes 1:10 There is a thing of which it is said, “Look at this! This is new!” But it already existed in ages past before us.

So, it is also true that we must seek to know and understand and it is a challenging task as in

Ecclesiastes 1:13 I applied my mind to seek and to search by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. It is a grievous task God has given to humans to be busy with.

And, it is also true that we come into positions of leadership and authority in the world, not just through gaining knowledge, but through wisdom in

Ecclesiastes 1:16 I said to myself, “Look! I have become great and have increased in wisdom more than anyone who has preceded me over Jerusalem. I have acquired a great deal of wisdom and knowledge.”

It is also true that there are some things that “cannot be straightened” in Ecclesiastes 1:15 and I think here of trees on the windswept plains that are bent overtime or the orphaned infant that was never nurtured so matures lacking the ability to bond in relationships. In this natural world, there are needs that “cannot be counted”.

Come! I Will Test Whether It Is Worthwhile

Ecclesiastes 2:1–9 

Wisdom Has An Advantage Over Folly

Ecclesiastes 2:10–16
The key to gaining wisdom is to seek it everywhere and to enjoy getting it, to rejoice in the effort it takes to understand in

Ecclesiastes 2:10 I neither withheld anything from my eyes that they desired, nor did I deprive any pleasure from my heart. My heart rejoiced in all my toil, for this was my reward from all my toil.

There is value in wisdom in the joy of discovery and also in the joy of knowing but in this world, things happen to everyone the same.

Ecclesiastes 2:13–14 I realized that wisdom has an advantage over folly, just as light has an advantage over darkness. 14 The wise man can see where he is walking, but the fool walks in darkness. Yet I also realized that both of them suffer the same fate.

Everyone faces sickness and disease. Everyone faces the dishonest and thieves and the abusive. Everyone faces the uncertainty of calamity that can come to the wise as easily as the fool. 

There Is Nothing Better Than To Eat and Drink and Find Delight In His Toil

Ecclesiastes 2:17–26
It is only fair that we benefit from the work of our hands and when that doesn’t happen we are robbed of God’s goodness in

Ecclesiastes 2:21 For there is a person who toils with wisdom and knowledge and skill, but he must leave his reward to someone who has not toiled for it. This also is vanity and a great calamity.

Earlier, it says enjoying our labor is a “gift of God” in

Ecclesiastes 3:13 And for anyone to eat and drink, that is, to enjoy the fruit of all his toil, this also is a gift of God.

Here, he says it in a little different way, everyone may toil and feel the pressures of life but “who can enjoy life apart from him (God)” in

Ecclesiastes 2:24–25 There is nothing better for a person than to eat and drink and find delight in his toil. For I also realized that this is from the hand of God! 25 For who can eat, and who can enjoy life apart from him?

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • Judges 21:1-25
  • Ecclesiastes 1:1–18
  • Ecclesiastes 2:1–26
Devotions

How Did This Evil Act Occur

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What should have been a night of hospitality among his brother Israelites for a traveling Levite and his party ends with the rape and death of his concubine. We may not accept this relationship, yet the man was her husband in Judges 19:3 and he reacted badly not only to her death but to the manner of her death and he sent pieces of her body all across Israel so all would know the evil thing that had happened. All of Israel reacted, ready to make war against those that had committed this act. And justice might have been done, but Benjamin chose to protect Gibeah and those that had raped and murdered and they rose up to oppose their brothers, the other tribes of Israel. Everyone lost and Benjamin was devastated in Judges 20:48. 

No One Took Them In To Spend The Night

Judges 19:11–21
This man, the Levite living as a foreigner, though he was traveling as any in their day would have, he refuses to go into “the city of the Jebusites” in Judges 19:11. Instead, they march on to a city of “the Israelites” in

Judges 19:13 And he said to his servant, “Come, let us approach one of these places; we will spend the night in Gibeah or in Ramah.”

They had an expectation of hospitality from “the Israelites” as was the custom. We understand this mindset from

Hebrews 13:2 Do not neglect hospitality, because through this some have received angels as guests without knowing it.

and Jesus said it this way in

Matthew 25:34–35 Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world! 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me as a guest,

However, in Judges 19:15 “no one took them in”. Later, “an old man was coming from his work … in the evening” in Judges 19:16 and inquired about their situation. The Levite responded, “there is no lack of anything” in Judges 19:19 though the offer of hospitality would normally include food and shelter and care for the animals. But the man responded and their need for the night was fully met in

Judges 19:20 And the old man said, “Peace to you. I will take care of your needs; however, you must not spend the night in the open square.”

The Men of The City Pounding On The Door

Judges 19:22–30 

How Did This Evil Act Occur

Judges 20:1–11
Israel is unaware of the depravity that has taken hold in some areas until the body parts of a woman show up to the leaders of every tribe. This act caused an uproar as it should have and in

Judges 20:1 All the Israelites went out, from Dan to Beersheba, including the land of Gilead, and they gathered as one body to Yahweh at Mizpah.

and the didn’t just gather for a parley, they came armed for battle in

Judges 20:2 And the leaders of all the people, all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand sword-bearing infantry.

They all had one question on their minds in Judges 20:3 “Tell us, how did this evil act occur?” so the Levite tells them about the rape of his concubine in Judges 20:4-7 and asks them what they will do about it. And all Israel responds together in Judges 20:8-11 “as one body” and agree to go, four-hundred thousand armed men, to “Gibeah of Benjamin”.

This might have ended with the lives of the few men in Gibeah that were responsible, but as often happens, others of Benjamin were offended at the charges, not to seek justice, but they were angered and banded together to defend all of Benjamin. Rather than fix the problem by removing evil from their midst, they instead amassed twenty-six thousand sword-bearing men to fight Israel, their brothers, now, their enemy in a civil war. 

Benjamin Gathered For Battle Against The Israelites

Judges 20:12–21
Israel sends messengers in

Judges 20:12–13 Then the tribes of Israel sent men throughout all the tribes of Benjamin, saying, “What is this wickedness that happened among you? 13 So then, hand over the men, the perverse lot, who are in Gibeah, so that we may kill them and purge this wickedness from Israel.” But the descendants of Benjamin were not willing to listen to the voice of their relatives, the Israelites.

This might have ended with the lives of the few men in Gibeah that were responsible, but as often happens, others of Benjamin were offended at these charges and reacted to defend Benjamin. They were not seeking justice but were angered and banded together in self-defense. Rather than fix the problem by finding the evildoers and removing evil from their midst, they instead amassed twenty-six thousand sword-bearing men to fight Israel, their brothers, now, their enemy in a civil war in

Judges 20:15 From the cities the descendants of Benjamin were counted on that day twenty-six thousand sword-wielding men, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who were counted seven hundred well-trained men.

So, on one side in

Judges 20:19 And the Israelites got up in the morning, and they encamped against Gibeah.

and on the other side in

Judges 20:21 The descendants of Benjamin went out from Gibeah, and they struck down on that day twenty-two thousand men of Israel to the ground.

and on day two, Israel loses more men in

Judges 20:25 And Benjamin went out from Gibeah to meet them on the second day, and they struck down the Israelites again, eighteen thousand men to the ground; all of these were sword-wielding.

but Benjamin then lost nearly all of their fighting force in

Judges 20:46 So all of Benjamin who fell on that day were twenty-five thousand sword-wielding men; all of these were able men.

and Benjamin lost all the cities and people and animals that Israel found in

Judges 20:48 And the men of Israel returned to the descendants of Benjamin, and they put them to the edge of the sword, both the inhabitants of city and the animals that were found; they also set on fire all the cities that they found.

And The Israelites Inquired of Yahweh

Judges 20:22–31

The Cloud of Smoke Began To Go Up From The City

Judges 20:32–41

Men From Benjamin Fell

Judges 20:42–48

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • Judges 19:11-30
  • Judges 20:1-48
Devotions

Each Did What Was Right In His Own Eyes

by  • 

The children of Israel failed to possess the land of their inheritance and now God raises up men to help them as they live under oppression. Samson is born and raised a Nazirite of God, yet no one knows the secret of his strength. But the Philistines use the women in Samson’s life by threat and by bribe to find his secret and they finally take him and blind him. After Samson’s death we find Micah, who makes for himself a shrine and hires a Levite as his priest. But the tribe of Dan leaves their inheritance because they have not been able to remove the Amorites. As they go looking for a new land, they loot Micah’s home and steal his idol and his priest. Dan has become the oppressor themselves in Judges 18:27 “And they took what Micah had made, and his priest, and they came to Laish, to a quiet and unsuspecting people, and they put them to the sword and burned the city with fire”. And this is the beginning of the end for the Northern tribes as they will dwell there only, in Judges 18:30 until the time of the captivity of the land. 

He Has Confided in Me

Judges 16:18–27
After Samson’s wife had been killed he was a judge in Israel for twenty years until “he fell in love with a woman … Delilah” in Judges 16:4. And again the Philistines came to use her against Samson in

Judges 16:5 And the rulers of the Philistines came up to her and said, “Entice him and find out what makes his strength so great, and how we can overpower him, so that we may bind him up in order to subdue him; each of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.

and as it had been with his wife, Delilah seeks to find the secret of Samson’s strength in

Judges 16:6 So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me what makes your strength so great, and with what can you be tied up to subdue you?”

and as it happened with his wife before, Samson grew weary of her nagging him in

Judges 16:16 And because she nagged him day after day with her words, and pestered him, his soul grew impatient to the point of death.

so he confided in her, it was his hair in Judges 16:16 and she called the rulers of the Philistines in Judges 16:17 who seized him and gouged out his eyes in Judges 16:21.

My Lord Yahweh Remember Me!

Judges 16:28–31 

Each One Did What Was Right In His Own Eyes

Judges 17:1–13
After the time of Samson, the young man Micah robs his mother of eleven hundred pieces of silver, oddly it is the same amount each of the Philistine Lords had offered Delilah so there is likely some significance lost on us. However, Micah hears his mothers cry, the curse she pronounces, and returns the silver to her in

Judges 17:2–3 And he said to his mother, “The eleven hundred pieces of silver that were taken from you, and about which you also pronounced a curse in my hearing, are with me; I took it.” And his mother said, “Blessed be my son by Yahweh.” 3 He returned the eleven hundred pieces of silver to his mother, and his mother thought, “I will certainly consecrate to Yahweh the pieces of silver from my hand for my son to make an idol of cast metal; now then, I will return them to you.”

but this only underscores how far they have fallen from following the Law of Moses as they were not to have any graven images. This also shows something of their belief system and they are far from trusting God as they are bound by superstition as if this small statue could have any power to bless their lives. During this time, “In the popular mind, the effectiveness of a curse was real and could be counteracted only by a blessing from the person who uttered the curse. The incident displays a blending of Yahwistic ideas with idolatrous superstition. Micah is superstitiously fearful of a curse, but not attuned to true godliness. His mother is marked by the same decadent syncretism; she disobeys God and makes an idol in gratitude to him … These religious wrongs are explicitly related to the absence of a king and the resulting anarchy (v. 6).”1 However it was not that they needed a king, The Lord was their King. They needed the Priests and the Levites to teach them but they had not eliminated the pagan beliefs from the land. They had not fully possessed the land.

Inquire of God

Judges 18:1–10
The tribe of Dan is looking for a place where they can live free of the influence of the Amorites they had not driven from their land and the Philistines also had a strong presence in Judah as Samson describes. So, “The wording here does not mean that Dan had not received an inheritance, only that Dan had not secured their inheritance. Joshua 19:40–48 describes the inheritance of Dan, Josh 19:47 notes that they had lost this inheritance. Judges 1:34 indicates that the Danites were unable to defeat the Amorites. The story of Samson also indicates the Philistines had a strong presence in the region in the city of Timnah (14:1). Consequently, the tribe of Dan decided to leave the territory it was allotted and migrate north.”2

Six Hundred Men Armed With Their Weapons

Judges 18:11–20 

You Took Away My Gods That I Had Made

Judges 18:21–31
The tribe of Dan has left their inheritance as being too difficult for them to possess and now come as an armed band and loot Micah’s home. As they are departing, Micah follows and calls out to them in

Judges 18:24 He said, “You took away my gods that I had made, and the priest, and then you go away. What is now left for me? How can you say to me, ‘What is the matter?’ ”

Micah speaks the truth here, it is a shrine that he has made with no connection to the Lord. But “the descendants of Dan” are just as superstitious as Micah as they steal his idol and his paid priest for themselves. And what is even worse, they have become like the people God wanted them to remove, they are now a lawless band of raiding looters taking whatever they want which is clear in their response to Micah in

Judges 18:25 And the descendants of Dan said to him, “You should not let your voice be heard among us, so that ill-tempered men will not attack you, and take your life and the lives of your household.”

and as Dan moved on, they came across “a quiet and unsuspecting people” in

Judges 18:27 And they took what Micah had made, and his priest, and they came to Laish, to a quiet and unsuspecting people, and they put them to the sword and burned the city with fire.

Dan made this their home and set up their idols in

Judges 18:30 And the descendants of Dan set up for themselves the carved divine image, and Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests for the tribe of the Danites until the time of the captivity of the land.

Note the last statement, “until the time of the captivity of the land”. They had become the oppressors and were now subject to the same judgment that God had intended for them to bring against the Amorites and the Philistines.

A Levite Dwelled As A Foreigner

Judges 19:1–10

Study Verses

Today’s Reading

  • Judges 16:18-31
  • Judges 17:1-13
  • Judges 18:1-31
  • Judges 19:1-10

References

  • 1. Bowling, A. C. (1995). Judges. In Evangelical Commentary on the Bible (Vol. 3, p. 174). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.
  • 2. Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Jdg 18:1). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.