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Judges, Israel Doesn't Keep Their Promise

Finally the second of God's great promises to Abraham have been fulfilled. This nation, Israel, now has its own land. Throughout the book of Joshua we have seen how time and again God has kept his end of the covenant between Israel and himself. He has given them victory against nations and peoples much stronger and larger than their own.

Under Joshua's leadership the people of Israel followed God's commandments, but now Joshua is dying. The question of leadership arises. There is no human king ruling in Israel. Who shall the people follow? God or themselves?

Background

We do not know who wrote the book of Judges. The book itself does not name anyone in particular. Long standing tradition has held that the prophet Samuel wrote the book. This makes sense, given that he is the last of the judges. Still we don't actually know who the human author is.

What we do know is that Judges is meant to be read with Joshua. Thematically they run together. Judges picks up right where Joshua leaves off. The land (at least most of it) has been conquered and now its time to see how Israel lives in it. 

One thing of interest that not many people realize about the book of Judges. The judges themselves are usually not saving the entire nation of Israel. They usually end up working exclusively within a particular tribe or area. They are local leaders, not national ones. This better explains the author's lament that there is no king, no national ruler who points the people to God.

Themes

"In those days there was no king in Israel.Everyone did what was right in his own eyes." Judges 21:25

That is the last verse in the book of Judges, and it sums it up perfectly. Israel ceased to follow God and did whatever they deemed right. This goes back to the first sin in Genesis, with the tree of the "knowledge of good and evil." The people of Israel took it upon themselves to decide what was right and what was wrong, attempting to rob God of his authority. 

Well, as you can imagine, God does not take kindly to this. Israel has broken the covenant, so God is no longer obliged to protect them. He allows foreign enemies to come in and conquer his people. They are generally enslaved and oppressed. Then, like children getting a spanking, they realize what they did wrong. They cry out to God for help and he answers by sending a judge.

While the judge is alive Israel usually does much better at following God. Of course not all of the judges are particularly good at it. When the judge dies the people then, without fail, revert back to their sinful ways. It's a devastating cycle.

Theological Point

In the book of Joshua we saw just how faithful God is, and he continues to be faithful here. The biggest point that Judges makes, however, has to be about sin. Sin is cyclical. On our own power it is impossible to escape. No matter what happens we always end up falling back into sin. 

The book of Judges also makes the point that we need a savior to get us out of sin. The judges are temporary solutions. They help the nation when they are alive, but once they die it's like they were never there. The book longs for the king who will set things straight, who will lead Israel to God. More immediately that king is David, but we also know that David is foreshadowing Jesus.

Conclusion

The book of Judges is hard to read. It is full of ups and downs, people following God and then falling back into sin. One reason it may be hard to read is because we see the same story happening in our own lives. How often do we have a spiritual high and follow God, only to tumble back down into the same old sin? We need a savior, and Jesus isn't a temporary measure like the judges.

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