JUDGES (Book)
Historical book, immediately after that of Joshua; The story continues after the death of the leader of Israel.
(a) The book of Judges is divided into three sections:
(A) Introduction: departure of the tribes to go to occupy the territories that had been assigned to them (cf. Josh. 15-21), list of the cities that the Israelites stopped taking from the idolatrous Canaanites (Judg. 1-2 :5).
(B) History of the Judges, liberators of Israel, after the death of Joshua until that of Samson (Judg. 2:6-16:31). This section has its own introduction that, relating the book of Judges to that of Joshua, resumes the account of the events of this period, and highlights the religious teaching they entail (Judg. 2:6-3:6).
Below come more or less detailed episodes about six judges, and brief allusions to six others. The usurpation of kingship by Abimelech, son of Gideon, is presented as an integral part of the story. However, far from being a liberator, Abimelech was nothing more than a bloodthirsty and fratricidal tyrant who, far from benefiting Israel, caused serious damage.
(C) This section recounts two episodes that appear as appendices from this period:
(I) the history of the idolatrous cult practiced by Micaiah and its establishment among the Danites who migrated to the north (Judg. 17-18);
(II) the crime of Gibeah and the war that followed against the tribe of Benjamin (Judges 19-21).
(b) Date.
The date of writing of the Book of Judges is difficult to determine. In any case, it is necessary to take into account the following facts: there is general agreement in granting great antiquity to the song of Deborah, composed at the same time as the events being celebrated.
The second, most important section of the book could not be written until after Samson’s death (Judg. 16:30, 31).
In the appendices, the phrase “in those days there was no king in Israel” appears four times (Judges 17:6; 18:1; 21:25) indicating that these chapters must have probably been written shortly after the establishment of the monarchy. .
When these chapters were written, it is likely that the ark was not in Shiloh (Judges 18:31). The mention “until the day of the captivity of the land” (Judges 18:30) has been interpreted by some as a mention of the destructions that Tiglath-pileser made in the north (2 Kings 15:29) or the deportation of the 10 tribes after the fall of Samaria.
But this does not agree with Jue’s statement. 18:31, “all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.” Many exegetes have interpreted the expression “captivity of the land” (v. 30) as meaning the capture of the ark by the Philistines, when Jehovah abandoned Shiloh; This opinion is supported by Houbigant’s hypothesis (1777), which assumes that the last letter of the expression “captivity of the country” has been altered: the original text would have had a “nun” (n) instead of the “tsade” (s), which would then be translated as “captivity of the Ark.”
Keil, for his part, thinks that this is an allusion to a conquest of the territory of the northern Danites and the enslavement of their population by their neighbors, the Syrians of Damascus.
In any case, this hypothesis raises fewer problems than that of making the cult instituted by Micaiah persist until the fall of Samaria. The expression “from Dan to Beersheba” (Judg. 20:1) was already used in the time of the Judges.
In the two appendices, the chronological indications relate to the period preceding David’s sovereignty over Israel as a whole.
The general introduction to the book of Judges (or at any rate to a part of its sources) was written in the period when the Jebusites still occupied the fortress of Jerusalem (Judg. 1:21; cf. 2 Sam. 5:6 , 7).
According to Jewish tradition, the author of the book is Samuel, and the opposite has not been proven (even though critics claim to see a conglomeration of diverse sources that would not have found its final draft until around the year 200 BC. !).
The three outlined sections clearly correspond to the divisions of the topic and show that the editor used ancient documents, oral or written, to relate a period that spans several centuries.
This book informs us that the different peoples who lived in Canaan were not exterminated, but rather continued to occupy the country, despite the presence of the Israelites.
Pagan influences threatened the cult of the Lord, but enough Israelites remained faithful to their God so that the true religion was safeguarded (Judg. 10:10-16; as for the neighboring towns, cf. Judg. 1:19-36; 3:13, 31; 6:3-33).
The song of Deborah, the uprising of the people to punish the criminals of Gibeah and their accomplices, all this reveals that the upright elements of the nation preserved the consciousness that they must defend a holy cause.
The passage of Jud. 2:1-23 presents, in a comprehensive way, the objective of the book: to teach us that leaving the Lord results in bondage and judgment, while repentance leads to liberation and restoration.
It has been noted that the text has a symmetrical order, recounting seven periods of apostasy, seven servitudes under seven pagan nations, and seven deliverances. Several judges are only mentioned.
These events and the people chosen to highlight their story are particularly suggestive. A parallel can be drawn between this book and church history.
After the apostolic era, we find ourselves facing a constant succession of periods of spiritual sleep, division and submission to evil, followed by awakenings and conquests, with which the cycle begins again.
One can even go so far as to say: a generational revival is necessary. Better would be a perpetual revival, which would be closer to what should be the normal state of the church.
The situation of Judges ended with the establishment of the monarchy, first of King Saul, and then of David, the king “after Jehovah’s heart.” This typical end of the time of the Judges will find its eschatological end with the coming of Christ to establish his final kingdom in Israel and the world.