THE FIRST PART: A BRID’S-EYE VIEW OF THE OLD TESTMENT
From Moses to Samuel
Message Eleven—Judges
Scripture Reading: Judg. 1:1-2; 2:11-20; 21:25; Acts 13:19-20
I. The central thought of the book of Judges is that Israel forsook God, suffered defeat by their enemies, and became rotten; and since there was no king among them, everyone did that which was right in his own eyes—Judg. 17:6; 21:25; Hosea 10:3: (Life-Study of Judges, msg.1)
Judges, is the book of Israel’s history full of miserable defeats under their enemies in the forsaking of Jehovah; this is the intrinsic significance of the book of Judges—2 Chron. 24:18. (Holy Bible Recovery Version, Judg. 1:1, footnote 1)
The content of Judges consists of the children of Israel trusting in God, forsaking God, being defeated by their enemies being delivered through the judges, and becoming corrupted—Judg. 1:1-2; 2:11-3:11: (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 1)
When the children of Israel, who had trusted in God, forsook God, they were defeated by their enemies. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 1)
Because of their miserable situation, they repented, and the Lord mercifully raised up judges to deliver them. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 1)
After the children of Israel were delivered, they became corrupted; all this became a cycle that was repeated over and over in Judges. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 1)
In the book of Judges, a particular saying is repeated a number of times: “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did that which was right in his own eyes”—Judg. 17:6. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 1)
The age of the judges may be considered the darkest period in the history of Israel; it was also a period of tragedy, the unbelief of the children of Israel caused them to wander for forty years so that even their carcasses fell in the wilderness (Heb. 3:7, 19), but their forsaking God and their idolatry after they entered the land issued in a situation of defeat and tragedy that lasted not merely forty years, but ten times forty years. (Truth Lessons, Lev. 1, vol. 1, msg. 10)
II. The book of Judges has three sections: Israel’s trusting in God (1:1—2:5); Israel’s forsaking of God (comprising their suffering of defeats, their repentance, and God’s deliverance (2:6—16:31); and Israel’s becoming corrupted (17:1—21:25): (Life-Study of Judges, msg.1)
A. Israel’s trusting in God—1:1—2:5: (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
1. Judah’s boldness and victory—1:1-21. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
2. The house of Joseph going up to fight against bethel, Jehovah being with them, and they striking the people of the city with their sword—1:22-26. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
3. The admonition of the angel of Jehovah (Christ as the Acting Jehovah in the Old Testament to Take Care of Israel)—2:1-5. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
B. Israel’s forsaking of God (Comprising Their Suffering of Defeats, Their Repentance, and God’s Deliverance)—2:6—16:31: (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
1. The First Cycle, through Othniel—3:7-11a. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
2. The Second Cycle, through Ehud and Shamgar—3:11b-31. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
3. The Third Cycle, through Deborah—4:4. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
4. The Fourth Cycle, through Gideon—6:36. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
5. The Fifth Cycle, through Abimelech, Tola, and Jair—10:1-5. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
6. The Sixth Cycle, through Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon—12:7-8, 12-13. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
7. The Seventh Cycle, through Samson—16:31. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
C. Israel’s becoming corrupted—17:6: (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
1. The Abominable Chaos in Their Worship—17:1-18:31. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
2. The Sodomitical Corruption in Their Morality—19:1-30. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
D. The reason for Israel’s forsaking of God—2:11: (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
1. Because of the death of Joshua, of the elders, and of the generation who saw all the great work of Jehovah that He had done for Israel—1:6-10. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
2. Because the present generation did not know Jehovah or the work that He had done for Israel—1:10b. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 3)
E. When the children of Israel, who had trusted in God, forsook God, they were defeated by their enemies, because of their miserable situation, they repented, and the Lord mercifully raised up judges to deliver them, as many as seven times, they rebelled, were enslaved, repented, and were delivered; all this became a cycle that was repeated over and over in Judges; this continued until Samuel was raised up by God, then the age of the judges was ended—1:1-2; 2:11-20. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 1; Truth Lessons, Lev. 1, vol. 1, msg. 10)
III. In Judges, we are concerned not with history but with learning from the types how to gain Christ and enjoy Him; how we can gain and enjoy the good land, which is a complete and all-inclusive type of Christ—1 Sam. 26:19: (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 9)
A. According to the record in Judges, in the degradation Israel became chaotic in government, in worship, and in morality, such a people surely could not gain Christ and enjoy Him—Judg. 18:31. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 10)
B. Judges is a book concerning the enjoyment of the good land, which is a type of Christ, we need to be careful every day and in every detail, keeping ourselves in the enjoyment of Christ all the time; then God’s economy will be able to go forward—Deut. 8:7-10. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 5)
C. We must take Him, love Him, honor Him, respect Him, regard Him, exalt Him, and cling to Him, rejecting Satan to the uttermost. Then we will be blessed—Col. 2:6-7. (Life-Study of Judges, msg. 6)