NOTES ON THE BOOK OF JUDGES (original) (raw)

The Book of Judges: An Analysis

Judges sets the stage for monarchical rule in Israel by condemning the anarchy and disobedience of Israel as the fruit of a season in history when ‘Israel had no king’ (Jgs 21:25). In examining the narrators overarching purpose and editorial comments, Biblical scholarship concludes that Judges serves as a low-key apologetic for the ideal future Davidic monarch. Via the testimony of ‘judges’ such as Gideon and Abimelech, among others, we can learn much about the responsibilities and motives that are required of any future Israelite king. Judges instructs us as to the pivotal nature of Godly leadership, faithful to both Yahweh and his covenant.

History And Prophecy In The Book Of Judges

Between Evidence and Ideology

In introductory courses to the Old Testament modern teachers usually find it helpful to confront the student with the old Jewish tradition which reckons the book of Judges together with Joshua, Samuel and Kings to the part of the canon called the Former Prophets. This can be regarded as a useful contribution to the discussion about the right view upon this and other books which are in the Christian tradition called the historical books and interpreted as giving an accurate historical picture of the situations they describe. The name 'Former Prophets' would indicate that what we find written in these books is, as formulated by L.C. Allen in a standard introduction, 'not history as modern historians might write it. Rather it is history from a prophetic point of view'. 1 Allen gives three reasons why the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings are called prophetic: '() There is a focus on prophetic messengers, especially Samuel, Nathan, Elijah, and Elisha and their role in history. () There is an anti-establishment perspective, like that of the preexilic prophets in the Latter Prophets. Failure and shortcomings in the leadership of Israelite society are continually exposed. () Events are analyzed in the light of the prophetic truth that yhwh is sovereign in history, both foretelling and fulfilling his prophetic word. ' In this contribution I want to evaluate the arguments for this commonly accepted characterization of the book of Judges. To this I shall add a discussion of the different ways in which scholars nevertheless try to reconstruct the historical facts behind the stories told about the judges, because, as Allen hastens to add: 'To make such a statement, however, is not to denigrate the historical value of the biblical books'. 1 W.S. LaSor et al., Old Testament Survey: The Message, Form and Background of the Old Testament (second edition), Grand Rapids , .

A Proposed Chronology of the Judges Era

2020

The judges were the pre-monarchic rulers in Israel. Dating the events of that era, though, is difficult. This is because the periods of oppression and rulership in the book of Judges, when added together, exceed the chronological space available by several decades. That space falls within the longer period of 1 Kings 6:1, which states that Solomon's temple was founded in the 480th year after the Exodus. Because the time periods do not fit consecutively, those who accept the historical accuracy of both 1 Kings 6:1 and the judges era data conclude that overlapping oppressions and/or rulerships occurred. However, no consensus exists on which oppressors/rulers overlapped and by how much. A chronology of the era is therefore considered by many to be unattainable. This study proposes a solution based on two guiding principles. First, the six cycles of oppression and deliverance that characterize the era follow consecutively without significant gaps (each cycle heroes a "major judge"). Second, the other leaders in those six cycles (the "minor judges," Abimelech, Eli, and Samuel) all ruled during periods of oppression. The six cycles therefore fix the chronology of the era.

The Rhetoric of the Book of Judges

1995

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The Book of Judges / Barry G Webb G; and Judges / Serge Frolov

Scriptura, 2014

hese two commentaries on the Old Testament book of Judges appeared in a matter of months from each another at Eerdmans Publishers. Both were published in well-known commentary series, each with its own focus and perspective. Both offer an extensive and valuable introduction in which discussions on exegetical method occupy prominent positions. Both offer in-depth and meticulous commentary on the different sections in the text of Judges. And yet these are two very different commentaries! Apart from the fact that the one commentary (Webb's) was written over a number of years (xvii) and the majority of the other (Frolov's) during a semester-long research leave (xv), they also employ very different methodologies. Webb's commentary keeps to the conventions of the NICOT series by paying particular attention to the text's literary features, theological themes, and implications for the life of faith today. It stands firmly in the tradition of evangelical interpretation in which the Bible is seen as more than just an ancient literary artifact. Frolov's commentary, also in line with the approach of the series FOTL, deliberately follows a form-critical study, claiming that it is the first full-scale form-critical treatment of the book of Judges since Hugo Gressmann's 1992 volume. Barry Webb starts his commentary with an extensive introduction of over seventy pages. He first argues that Judges should be seen as an "Israelite Classic" (4ff.) which forms a "conceptual unit", before discussing the period of the Judges in Israel's history. Relying mainly on conservative historical studies which take the information in the Old Testament as reliable descriptions of events of the past, he dates the exodus in 1446 B.C. with the period of the judges starting in 1326 B.C. He indicates his position in the following words: "While making full allowance for the theological agenda of Judges and its literary quality (to which we will give much attention in this commentary), there is no reason in principle why it should not preserve, and indeed be anchored in, real historical knowledge of the period in question. Nor is it necessary, or even right, to subordinate its witness about this history to reconstructions based on the current state of archaeological knowledge" (17). The introduction also includes a very useful overview of recent scholarly study of Judges, ending with an appreciation of the valuable commentary by Walter Gross (HThKAT) which appeared in 2009. Moreover Webb discusses the functioning of Judges as Christian Scripture (Judges in the New Testament, Women in Judges, and Judges and Violence), before concluding the introduction with a