Judges 9-12
Judges 9-12
The book of Judges presents Israel waning in covenant faithfulness, and chs 9-12 record some of the most disturbing scenes in the Old Testament. This was so because Israel was unfaithful to heed the law in the Promised Land (cf. Dt 7; Josh 23), and their leaders failed to sustain the acts of deliverance God worked on their behalf. These chapters reveal both of these, mainly under the leadership of Abimelech and Jephthah—whose collective leadership was founded on love of power, and bargaining with God:
- Abimelech’s leadership was founded on a desire for power (9.1-57). The reader is first introduced to Abimelech in the record of Gideon’s children (cf. 8.30-31); Gideon’s many wives bore him 70 sons, and his concubine in Shechem bore him Abimelech. His rise to power in Israel came at a time when there was a leadership vacuum following the death of his father, Gideon. In this state of affairs Abimelech approached his kin in Shechem—an historic and noteworthy city (cf. Gen 12.6-7; Jos 24)—with the proposition that they either “remember that I am your own flesh and blood” (v. 2) and invite him to rule over them, or allow Gideon’s other 70 sons—non-relatives—to fill the leadership void in Israel. Abimelech’s audacious pursuit of power provides a character contrast with the humility of his father, who considered himself unqualified to lead God’s people (cf. 6.15). The men of Shechem were easily persuaded (v. 3), and with their payment Abimelech “hired worthless and reckless men…and they followed him” (v. 4). Together they slaughtered all of Gideon’s sons, save Jotham—who confronted the leaders of Shechem because they had not “done well by Jerubbaal (Gideon)” (v. 16), nor properly rewarded his family for all that he had done. Ultimately Jotham’s curse of Abimelech and Shechem was realized, as “God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the lords of Shechem” (v. 23-55), a curse which culminated with a millstone fracturing Abimelech’skull; “In this way, the evil that Abimelech had done against his father, by killing his 70 brothers, God turned back on him” (v. 56)
- Jephthah’s judgeship was characterized by bargaining with God (10.6-12.7). When the Israelites again worshiped the gods of the Canaanite inhabitants, the LORD handed them over to these pagans—who even crossed the Jordan and fought against Judah, Benjamin, and the house of Ephraim to the degree that all “Israel was greatly oppressed” (10.9). Israel again cried out to the LORD—who had grown weary of their false repentance (10.11-14)—for deliverance, saying, “We have sinned. Deal with us as You see fit; only deliver us today!” (10.15). Only the LORD’s pity saved Israel, as “He became weary of Israel’s misery” (10.16). The leaders of the Israelites in Gilead, those most threatened by the Ammonite aggression, desperately cried out: “Which man will lead the fight against he Ammonites? He will be the leader of all the inhabitants of Gilead” (10.18). They settled on Jephthah, a prominent Gileadite warrior, whom they had earlier driven away because of his impure lineage (11.1-8). Yet, even Jephthah’s preliminary act reveals the weakness for which he would be remembered, namely bargaining with God; he said to the elders of Gilead: “If you are bringing me back to fight the Ammonites and the LORD gives them to me, I will be your leader” (11.9). After an unsuccessful attempt to engage the Ammonite king in diplomacy (11.12-28), Jephthah “made his vow to the LORD: ‘If You will hand over the Ammonites to me, whatever comes out of the doors of my house to greet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites will belong to the LORD, and I will offer it as a burnt offering” (11.31). That the text is more interested in a character study of Israel’s judge than a detailed account of the proceeding battle is evident from the fact that only two verses record the great slaughter that ensued as the LORD handed the Ammonites over to Jephthah and the Israelite warriors, while 11.34-40 detail Jephthah’s remorse for bargaining with God—at the expense of his daughter. Despite the victory Jephthah enjoyed over the Ammonites, Israel’s escalating internal strife was evidenced in Ephraim’s accusation against Jephthah and Gilead (12.1-7).
In the New Testament, Paul took up these themes of leaders pursuing power and bargaining with God; the contrast between Abimelech and Jephthah, and what he wrote to the Corinthians, show that he was ministering in a different epoch than they, with greater understanding of God’s faithfulness. The Corinthians questioned Paul’s apostleship because he had changed his travel plans, and in their mind seemed to be vacillating in his relationship with them. While he had written saying: “I will come to you after I pass through Macedonia—for I will be traveling through Macedonia—and perhaps I will remain with you, or even spend the winter, that you may send me on my way wherever I go. I don’t want to see you now just in passing, for I hope to spend some time with you” (1 Cor 16.5-6a), he changed course and actually avoided them for a time—because their behavior was worthy of discipline and he didn’t want to inflict pain on them, or himself (cf. 2 Cor 1.23-2.2)
When Paul wrote of his plans at the conclusion of 1 Corinthians, he went on to say that he would do this, “if the Lord allows” (1 Cor 16.b). He thus opened 2 Corinthians by defending himself in the matter—and he did so in light of God’s faithfulness in Christ. For him, the vows and maneuvering that characterized Abimelech and Jephthah were unnecessary; their days were lived in the shadow of the storyline of Scripture, before the coming of Christ. He thus wrote:
“In this confidence, I planned to come to you first, so you could have a double benefit, and to go on to Macedonia with your help, then come to you again from Macedonia and be given a start by you on my journey to Judea. So when I planned this, was I irresponsible? Or what I plan, do I plan in a purely human way so that I say ‘Yes, yes’ and ‘no, no’ simultaneously? As God is faithful, our message to you is not ‘Yes and no.’ For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me and Silvanus and Timothy—did not become ‘Yes and no’; on the contrary, ‘Yes’ has come about in Him. For every one of God’s promises is ‘Yes’ in Him. Therefore the ‘Amen’ is also through Him for God’s glory through us” (2 Cor 1.15-20).
*For a complete list of references, please see scripturestoryline.com