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Chapters: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
Theme: Judges was written to show the certainty of God's judgment against sin. His forgiveness and restoration is just as certain for those who repent. Judges gives us the first record of a civil war in Israel."In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did what was right in his own eyes". Judges 1 __8-15_Judah captured Jerusalem and fought against the Canaanites to the south. Caleb offered his daughter, Achsah, in marriage to the one who captured Kiriath-Sepher. Othniel captured it and was given Achsah. Caleb gave her two springs of water for a wedding gift.
__16-21_The descendants of Moses father-in-law went to live in the wilderness of Judah. The LORD was with Judah and they took possession of the hill country but were unable to drive the Canaanites from the valley.
__22-28_Likewise the house of Joseph went against Bethel and the LORD was with them. Manasseh did not take possession of all of their territory and the Canaanites continued to live there. At times Israel put the Canaanites to forced labor but the Canaanites were not driven out of the land.
__29-36_Ephraim did not drive the Canaanites from among them. It was the same for Zebulun, Asher, and Naphtali. And the Amorites forced Dan to live in the hill country.
Judges 2 __6-15_The people served the LORD all the days of the elders who survived Joshua. Then there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD and they served Baal. The anger of the LORD burned against them and He gave them into the hand of their enemies.
__16-19_The LORD would raise up judges to deliver them but they would not listen. Instead they would bow down to other gods. Sometimes the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning and then He would deliver them. But when their deliver had died they would go back to their old ways.
__20-23_So the LORD left the other nations to test them to see if they would turn back to Him.
Judges 3 __9-11_Then God heard their cry to Him and raised up Othniel, Caleb's younger brother, to deliver them. While he lived they had rest for eighty years.
__12-20_Then Israel once again did evil in the sight of the LORD. So He gave them over to Moab for eighteen years. Then God raised up Ehud, a left-handed Benjamite who was appointed to take tribute to Eglon, Moab's king. After he had given the tribute to Eglon, he asked for a private audience with the king to give him a secret message.
__21-30_When the attendants had left Ehud killed Eglon and went out, locking the door behind him. He got a head start because the attendants did not immediately discover that Eglon was dead. When Ehud arrived home he assembled Israel and led the fight against Moab. They then had peace for eighty years.
__31_After him came Shamgar who struck down six hundred Philistines with an ox goad. God used him to save Israel.
Judges 4 __4-6_Deborah was a prophetess at that time and judged Israel. She sent for Barak from Kedesh-Naphtali and said to him, the LORD has commanded you to take ten thousand men from Naphtali and Zebulun and march against Sisera and Jabin's army at Mount Tabor.
__7-10_The LORD will give Sisera and his army into you your hand. Barak said he would go if Deborah went with him. She agreed but told him that the honor would not go to him but to a woman when Sisera died. Barak called together Naphtali and Zebulun and ten thousand men went with him and Deborah to Mount Tabor.
__11-15_When Sisera was told that Barak had come to Mount Tabor with an army he assembled his nine hundred iron chariots and a great army for war. Deborah encourage Barak and when he met Sisera in battle the LORD gave the Canaanites into his hand so that Sisera and his chariots fled.
__16-21_Barak pursued the chariots and the army of Sisera, destroying the entire army. Sisera fled on foot to the tent of Jael who was the wife of Heber, the Kenite. She was a relative of Moses' father-in-law. She invited Sisera in to rest, gave him milk and covered him with a blanket. As he slept she killed him with a hammer and a tent peg.
__22-24_Barak was pursuing Sisera as he came to Jael's tent. She told him to come and see the man he was looking for. Barak went into the tent and there lay Sisera dead with a tent peg through his temple and into the ground beneath. God subdued Jabin before Israel on that day. Eventually they destroyed Jabin, as well.
Judges 5 The land had rest for forty years. '.
Judges 6 __6-10_Israel was brought very low. They cried to the LORD and He sent a prophet. Speaking for God he said, I brought you out of Egypt. I delivered you. But you have not obeyed Me.
__11-13_The angel of the LORD came and sat under the oak in Orprah where Gideon was threshing wheat in a wine press. He was trying to save it from the Midianites. The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said, the LORD is with you, O valiant warrior. Gideon answered, if the LORD were with us we would not be subject to Midian.
__14-16_The LORD said to Gideon, go in your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Gideon asked, how shall I deliver Israel. I am the youngest of an unimportant family in Manasseh. The LORD said, I will surely be with you, and you shall defeat Midian.
__17-20_Gideon said, if I have found favor in your sight then show me a sign. Please do not depart until I return with an offering. He brought a kid and the broth it was boiled in and some unleavened bread. He came to the angel under the oak who told him to place the meat and the unleavened bread on the rock and to pour out the broth.
__21-24_After Gideon did this the angel touched the offering with his staff and fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the offering. Then the angel vanished from his sight. The LORD then told Gideon, peace be to you. Do not fear. You shall not die. Gideon built an alter to the LORD and named it, The LORD Is Peace.
__25-26_That night the LORD told Gideon to take his father's bull and a second bull seven years old. He was to pull down the alter to Baal and then cut down the Asherah beside it. Then he was to build an alter to the LORD and lay the second bull on it. He was to use the broken down Asherah for firewood.
__27-31_Gideon took ten servants and did what the LORD had commanded that same night, for he was afraid. In the morning when the men of the city saw what had been done, they asked who had done this. When they discovered it had been Gideon, Joash's son, they said, bring him out that he may die. Joash argued saying, if Baal is God let him content for himself.
__32-35_They renamed Gideon Jerubbaal, which means, let Baal contend against him for tearing down his alter. After that the Midianites and the Amalekites assembled themselves in the valley of Jezreel. The Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon and he blew a trumpet and the Abiezrites, Asher, Zebulun and Naphtali came to him.
__36-38_Gideon said to God, if you will deliver Israel, show me a sign. I will put a fleece on the threshing floor. In the morning if there is dew on the fleece and none on the ground around it, then I will know that you will deliver Israel. In the morning it was just as he asked. He was able to squeezed a bowl of water out of the fleece.
__39-40_Then Gideon asked the LORD not to be angry with him. Please, he said, give me one more sign. This time let there be dew all around on the ground but none in the fleece. In the morning there was dew all around on the ground but none in the fleece.
Judges 7 __3-8_God told Gideon to send anyone home who was afraid. 22, 000 went home and 10, 000 remained. Then the LORD gave another test. When the men came down to the brook, those who drank from their hand were kept and those who got down on their hands and knees to drink were sent home. 300 men remained with Gideon.
__9-14_That night the LORD told Gideon to go to an outpost of the Midianite camp. When he got there he heard a Midianite relate a dream. A loaf of barley bread tumbled into camp and knocked their tent flat. The other man responded that the loaf of bread was none other than the sword of Gideon. God has given Midian into Gideon's hand.
__15-18_When Gideon heard this, he bowed in worship. Returning to his camp he divided his men into three groups. Each man was given a trumpet and an empty pitcher with a torch inside it. They were to surround the Midianite camp. When they heard his group blow their trumpets, they were to do the same and break their pitchers that covered their torches.
__19-20_After doing this, they were to shout, for the LORD and for Gideon. When everyone blew their trumpets, smashed their pitchers and shouted, it caused much confusion in the Midianite camp.
__21-25_The LORD caused such confusion in the army of Midian, so that they drew their swords against each other. Then the Midianites fled before Gideon. Gideon sent word throughout the hill country and the Israelites came out and helped finish the Job.
Judges 8 __4-7_As Gideon and his 300 men crossed the Jordan they were weary and hungry. Gideon asked the men of Succoth for bread. Because Gideon had not yet captured Zebah and Zalmunna, the two kings of the Midianites, the men of Succoth would not give them bread. Gideon said he would return and thrash them with thorns and briers.
__8-9_He then asked the men of Penuel for bread and they also refused. Gideon promised them that he would return and tear down their tower.
__10-12_The two Midianite kings were in Kerkor with about 15,000 men, all that were left of his army. 120,000 swordsmen had fallen. Gideon went up to their camp and attacked from the east by the tents. They were unsuspecting and he captured the two kings and routed the entire army.
__13-17_Then Gideon returned from battle and captured and questioned a youth from Succoth. The young man gave the names of 27 princes and elders. Gideon presented the two kings of Midian to the men of Succoth. He then disciplined them with thorns and briers. Next he went to Penuel and tore down their tower and killed the men.
__18-21_Gideon asked Zebah and Zulmanna what kind of men they had killed at Tabor? They said that they were like Gideon, resembling the sons of a king. Gideon said, they were my brothers. If you had let them live I would not kill you. He asked his firstborn to kill them but he would not. The two kings asked Gideon to killed them. So he did.
__22-27_The men of Israel asked Gideon to rule over them. He would not consent to this. He said the LORD shall rule over you. He did ask one favor of them, that each of them give him an earring from his spoil of war. From these he made an Ephod and placed it in his city. This thing caused Israel to sin.
__28-32_Midian was subdued and the land had peace for forty years while Gideon lived. Gideon lived in his own house and had many wives and 70 sons. Abimelech was one of his sons by his concubine in Shechem. Gideon died at a ripe old age and was buried in the tomb of his father in Ophrah.
__33-35_After Gideon died Israel began worshiping Baal. They forgot about God who had delivered them from their enemies. They also forgot to show kindness to the household of Gideon.
Judges 9 __5-6_Abimelech went to his father's house at Ophrah and killed all the sons of Gideon except Jotham who hid himself. Then the men of Shechem assembled and made Abimelech their king.
__7-21_Jotham stood on Mount Gerizim and shouted out a parable about trees having a discussion about who should rule over them. Finally they chose a bramble. He finished by comparing Abimelech to the bramble because he dealt treacherously with the sons of Gideon who had delivered them from their enemies. Then Jotham escaped.
__22-57_Gaal, the son of Eber, came against Shechem and Abimelech saying, wouldn't you rather be ruled by a pure bred Canaanite then by a half breed? Eventually in the struggle a woman threw down an upper mill stone from a tower and crushed Abimelech's skull. Thus God repaid him and Shechem for what they had done to Gideon's sons.
Judges 10 __6-9_Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD by serving the Baals and Asharoth instead of God. So God gave them into the hands of the Philistines who afflicted them for 18 years. This happened on the east side of the Jordan. Then Ammon crossed the Jordan preparing to fight against Judah, Benjamin and Ephraim. Israel was distressed.
__10-15_Israel cried to the LORD and confessed their sins. The LORD replied, after all I have done for Israel, you still forsake Me and serve other gods. Let them save you. The children of Israel said, we have sinned. Please save us.
__16-18_So they put away their foreign gods that were among them and served the LORD. And God could no longer bear their misery. Ammon camped at Gilead and Israel gathered and camped at Mizpah. The leaders of Gilead asked among themselves, who will fight Ammon? He shall become head over Gilead.
Judges 11 __4-11_After a while Ammon fought against Israel. The elders of Gilead sent for Jephthah and offered to make him their leader if he would go with them to fight Ammon. So Jephthah became the leader of Gilead.
__12-28_Jephthah sent messengers to the kings of Ammon asking why they were fighting Israel? The kings of Ammon replied that Israel had taken away their land. Jephthah answered, when Israel came up from Egypt, Moses asked their permission to pass through Edom. This was denied. So now, what God has given us we will possess.
__29-31_The Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah as he passed through Gilead and Manasseh, and then went to Ammon. He made a vow to the LORD that if the LORD gave Ammon into his hand, and he returned in peace to his own house, then he would offer to the LORD as a burnt offering the first thing that came out the door of his house.
__32-33_Jephthah fought against Ammon and the LORD gave them into his hand. It was a very great slaughter. He took twenty cities from Ammon and Ammon was subdued before Israel.
__34-38_When Jephthah came to his house at Mizpah his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and dancing. She was his only child. When he saw her, he tore his clothes. He told her of his vow and he said I cannot take it back. His daughter replied, you must keep your promise. Please allow me two months to weep.
__39-40_At the end of the two months, she did according to his vow. It became a custom in Israel for the young women to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah four days each year.
Judges 12 __4-10_So Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and fought with Ephraim. 42, 000 men of Ephraim died. Jephthah judged Israel 6 years before he died. Then Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel for seven years before he died. He had thirty sons and thirty daughters.
__11-15_Elon from Zebulun judged Israel for ten years before he died. Next Abdon, the Pirathonite, judged Israel eight years before he died. He had forty sons and thirty grandsons.
Judges 13 __3-5_A man from the tribe of Dan had a wife who was barren. An angel came to her telling her that she would have a child. He was to never drink wine or strong drink. Neither was his hair to ever be cut. He was to be a Nazarite from birth. He would deliver Israel from the Philistines.
__6-14_The woman told her husband all that the angel had said. Manoah asked the LORD to send the angel to teach them how to raise the boy. So the angel came to the woman again and she ran to get her husband. The angel told the woman not to drink wine or strong drink or to eat any unclean thing.
__15-18_Manoah asked the angel to tarry while they prepared a special meal for him. He said he would not eat but they could offer the meal as a burnt offering to the LORD. Manoah did not know he had been talking with an angel of the LORD. He asked him for his name. He answered that His name was incomprehensible.
__19-20_So Manoah took a kid and a grain offering and put these on a rock and fire came up from the rock toward heaven and consumed the offering. Then the angel ascended to heaven in the flame. When Manoah and his wife saw this they fell on their faces to the ground.
__21-23_Menoah thought they would die for they had seen God. His wife pointed out that the LORD had accepted their offering and they were not dead yet. She gave birth to a son and named him Samson. The child grew and the LORD blessed him. The Spirit of the LORD began to stir him.
Judges 14 __ |