Judges

“In those days there was no king. and every man did what was right in his own eyes.” The Israelites live in a repeating pattern of sinning, being oppressed by pagans, crying out to God, and having God provide a savior for them. Taught by Tom Bradford.

• Lesson 1 – Judges Introduction

  The Book of Judges Lesson 1 – Introduction Today we begin our study of the book of Judges, one of the lesser-read books of the bible and equally so one of the lesser-researched sections of Scripture by scholars. I will tell you frankly that Christian scholars in particular just don’t know quite what to do […]

• Lesson 2 – Judges 1

  The Book of Judges Lesson 2 – Chapter 1 We set the stage for exploring Judges last week and we’ll move into the 1st chapter today. What we’re going to see is a rapid slide of Israel from a pinnacle of success and accomplishment and (more importantly) harmony with God into an every man for […]

• Lesson 3 – Judges 2

  The Book of Judges Lesson 3 – Chapter 2 Judges chapter 1 gave us a short background on the political situation in the Land of Canaan that reflects the time approaching Joshua’s death and then perhaps the next decade as the elders closest to Joshua took over leadership after he was buried. In a nutshell […]

• Lesson 4 – Judges 2 Cont.

  The Book of Judges Lesson 4 – Chapter 2 Continued In Judges chapter 2 we find the beginning of the terrible unexpectedly quick slide of Israel from their golden age of unity and harmony with YHWH (under Joshua’s leadership) into rebellion and idolatry. We saw last week that the Lord God accused Israel of gross […]

• Lesson 5 – Judges 3

  The Book of Judges Lesson 5 – Chapter 3 Last week in Judges chapter 2 the Lord told Israel that as a result of their blatant idolatry (that was both a cause and an effect from their refusal to obey Yehoveh’s instructions to drive out or kill all the inhabitants of Canaan) He would allow […]

• Lesson 6 – Judges 3 & 4

  The Book of Judges Lesson 6 – Chapters 3 and 4 As we continue with Judges chapter 3, we’ll be introduced to the 2nd Judge of Israel Ehud . The first Shophet (Shofet, Judge) was Othniel from the tribe of Judah, and he fought with Kushan-Rish’atayim to eject him from the southern tribal area of […]

• Lesson 7 – Judges 4 & 5

  The Book of Judges Lesson 7 – Chapters 4 and 5 As we moved into chapter 4 last week, we encountered the female Shophet Devorah . The judges discussed in the chapters before Devorah dealt with the idolatrous rebellions of the tribes of Israel that were generally located in the southern end of the Promised […]

• Lesson 8 – Judges 5

  The Book of Judges Lesson 8 – Chapter 5 We began Judges chapter 5 last week; a section of Scripture called the Song of Deborah and we’re going to carefully dissect this song today as scholars have long recognized its importance. It is a victory song, an anthem of freedom and liberation because it was […]

• Lesson 9 – Judges 5 Cont.

  The Book of Judges Lesson 9 – Chapter 5 Continued Our subject is Judges chapter 5 known better as the Song of Deborah. We started studying it in earnest last week and ended with verse 11. We’re going to continue to carefully dissect this song as there is so much to be gleaned from it, […]

• Lesson 10 – Judges 5 & 6

  The Book of Judges Lesson 10 – Chapters 5 and 6 We’ll finish up Judges chapter 5, the Song of Deborah and begin chapter 6 today. And I’ll warn you ahead of time that we’ll be spending about as long in chapter 6 as we have with the Song of Deborah in chapter 5. Last […]

• Lesson 11 – Judges 6

  The Book of Judges Lesson 11 – Chapter 6 Judges 6 began with the chilling but familiar words: “But the people did what was evil from Adonai’s perspective….” Thus also is introduced the 5th in the series of stories (the 5th cycle) about Israel’s stubborn pattern of returning to idol worship AFTER they had been […]

• Lesson 12 – Judges 6 & 7

  The Book of Judges Lesson 12 – Chapters 6 and 7 Last time we were still in the midst of Judges chapter 6 and the anointing by God of Gideon as His newest judge (Shophet). We got as far as verse 24. We ended with Gideon finally understanding that this mysterious traveler who suddenly showed […]

• Lesson 13 – Judges 7 & 8

  The Book of Judges Lesson 13 – Chapters 7 and 8 According to Judges chapter 7 verse 4 the Lord says that the Shophet Gideon had too many troops at his disposal to fight against the invading Midianites and Amalekites; and this was after he had already dismissed about 2/3rds of the Israelite soldiers to […]

• Lesson 14 – Judges 8

  The Book of Judges Lesson 14 – Chapter 8 We have entered a fascinating and most relevant section of Judges that begins with our study of Gideon and then moves on to the aftermath of his era as a judge when one of his sons assumes a leadership position. The lessons contained here prove that […]

• Lesson 15 – Judges 9

  The Book of Judges Lesson 15 – Chapter 9 This week we will begin to explore Judges chapter 9, the story of a fellow called Avimelech, one of Gideon’s 71 sons. Like so much of Judges chapter 9 it is just example after example, lesson after lesson, and application after application of the God-principles that […]

• Lesson 16 – Judges 9 & 10

  The Book of Judges Lesson 16 – Chapters 9 and 10 We’ll continue today in Judges chapter 9, the story of Avimelech (known more as Abimelech in English) the son of Gideon born of a Shechemite concubine. Let’s briefly review: Gideon had 70 sons by his legal wives and one son by a Canaanite woman […]

• Lesson 17 – Judges 10 & 11

  The Book of Judges Lesson 17 – Chapters 10 and 11 This week we begin a 3 chapter series on the exploits of a fellow named Yiftach , or better known in English bibles as Jephthah. We finished up our last lesson by briefly discussing 2 of the 5 so-called Minor Judges, Tola and Ya’ir. […]

• Lesson 18 – Judges 11

  The Book of Judges Lesson 18 – Chapter 11 The last we met, we read in Judges 11 about the newest Judge, Yiftach (Jephthah in the English) who lived in a place called Gilead (Gilead was on the east side of the Jordan River). He had been driven out of his family home because he […]

• Lesson 19 – Judges 12 & 13

  The Book of Judges Lesson 19 – Chapters 12 and 13 This week we conclude the story of Jephthah, the Judge who liberated the northern tribes of Israel from the oppression and threats of the king of Ammon. Last time we spent a good deal of study on the matter of Jephthah’s only child, a […]

• Lesson 20 – Judges 13

  The Book of Judges Lesson 20 – Chapter 13 We just got started on studying the next judge cycle in the Book of Judges, the story of the immature and petulant strongman Samson. I gave you a bit of an overview of what to expect and drew a parallel between Paul’s lament in Romans 7 […]

• Lesson 21 – Judges 14

  The Book of Judges Lesson 21 – Chapter 14 Our discussion last week centered on the meteoric and volatile Samson, from the Book of Judges chapter 13. We examined his God-announced miraculous birth (by a mysterious manifestation of God termed the Angel of the Lord) from the long-void womb of his aged mother and we […]

• Lesson 22 – Judges 15 & 16

  The Book of Judges Lesson 22 – Chapters 15 and 16 We continue today our story of Samson that appears in the middle chapters of the Book of Judges. We finished chapter 14 last week and today we’ll begin chapter 15 and get a little way in chapter 16. When we left off Samson spotted […]

• Lesson 23 – Judges 16

  The Book of Judges Lesson 23 – Chapter 16 Samson must be one of the most ironic characters in the entire bible. It’s hard to know what to make of him, and allegorizing who he was and what he did into a wide array of sermons and topical discussions has proved to be irresistible to […]

• Lesson 24 – Judges 16, 17, & 18

  The Book of Judges Lesson 24 – Chapters 16, 17, and 18 We’ll finish up today with Samson, and also begin to deal with the concluding section of the book of Judges that is wholly different in character than the first 16 chapters. In fact, Samson and chapter 16 end the discussion of the Shophetim […]

• Lesson 25 – Judges 17 & 18

  The Book of Judges Lesson 25 – Chapters 17 and 18 We just began our study of the so-called appendices of the book of Judges that are chapters 17 through the end of the book. From a chronological standpoint these chapters belong at the beginning of the book of Judges, probably around the time of […]

• Lesson 26 – Judges 18 & 19

  The Book of Judges Lesson 26 – Chapters 18 and 19 Judges chapter 18 is the story the tribe of Dan looking for a new place to live. And despite the appearance of this story in the final chapters of the book of Judges this event actually took place just a few decades after Joshua’s […]

• Lesson 27 – Judges 20 & 21 End

  The Book of Judges Lesson 27 – Chapters 20 and 21 (End of Book) Today marks the end of the book of Judges for us, and we’re going to move fairly rapidly through Judges chapters 20 and 21 as it is mostly a self-explanatory historical account of perhaps the worst atrocity committed by Hebrews that […]