Week 72, Day 1: Micah’s Idol
Today’s Reading: Judges 17:1-13
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
Verse 6 sums this chapter up well. “In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.” When man is without guidance and left to “figure” things out for himself we have a real mess. This chapter demonstrates that well. We are introduced to a man named Micah whose understanding of what God wants has been so distorted that he thinks that having a graven image will please the Lord. Without the revealed word of God man has come up with a lot of different things in his “service” to a god. Micah sets up a household idol, an ephod – perhaps similar to what the priest wore, and sets up a Levite to be the priest to his household. He has an official garb for the priest (the ephod) and even finds a real Levite to serve as his priest. But whatever man comes up with is just a sad attempt at true worship. When left to his own devices man comes up with many ways to serve god but it just ends up being that he serves a god of his own imagination.
It is sad to see that things in Israel have progressed to this point. Even the Levite who should be familiar with how to serve God correctly has sold himself into paigan idolatry. The question for us today is how do we avoid digressing into such a wretched state of religious decay? We have to know who is our king and where to find instruction for how to serve the king of kings.
Question: Is there any difference when someone serves a graven image or when someone serves a god of their own imagination (they insert practices or beliefs not found in the Bible and say that is what “my” god wants)?
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Week 71, Day 5: Samson Tells All
Today’s Reading: Judges 16:1-31
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
Samson’s account continues to be one that baffles me. Here we have two accounts of Samson’s interaction with other women. With Delilah we are told that he love her. And yet what we see from Delilah is constant betrayal and a lack of care. But of course these kind of relationships are not new to us. There are plenty of examples today of this kind of attitude in relationships. One person is abused, mistreated, scorned, and neglected. And still they say, but I love him, he needs me, etc. Samson’s “love” should be a good warning for us to consider when it comes to who people choose to date. By the time marriage comes there should be a good understanding of the character of that person and a clear respect for God’s word in the other person.
Samson’s life as a judge continues to be one that breaks the mold of what I would think of as a judge. His life was “interesting” to say the least. It is very fascinating to see God use some people to accomplish His will.
Question: What do you think we can learn from Samson finally giving into Delilah’s constant nagging? What can Samson’s relationship with a gentile woman teach regarding relationship today with unbelievers?
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Week 71, Day 4: Samson’s Revenge
Today’s Reading: Judges 15:1-20
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
We now see the fullness of how the Lord was working through Samson’s marriage to cause an occasion for conflict. Samson’s wife had been given to another and when he finally got around to wanting to go back to her he seeks revenge. Again, Samson is not the picture of moral integrity. He had left his wife behind after the feast in chapter 14. After burning the Philistines’ fields, the Philistine’s burn his wife and father-in-law. Instead of taking this as being the punishment his wife and father-in-law deserved, Samson takes this as another occasion to strike the Philistines. He struck them ruthlessly with a great slaughter. We are not told what number equalled a great slaughter but it certainly gives us the picture of Samson inflicting great loss upon them.
And then we have the better known account of Samson killing the 1000 men with a jawbone of a donkey. Again, Samson’s life has some very interesting twists and turns in it. He was one of the most unique judges of Israel.
Question: How would you define the term judge as used here in chapter 15 and in the rest of the book of judges?
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Week 71, Day 3: Samson’s first wife
Today’s Reading: Judges 14:1-20
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
Some time has passed since chapter 13 when Samson’s birth was foretold. Now we have him old enough that he is wanting to marry. The problem is that he decides he wants to marry a Philistine woman. His standard upon which he bases his decision is not complicated. He says he wants to marry her because she looks good to him. Thus the stage is set for conflict to come about between Samson and the Philistines.
At the marriage feast Samson gives a riddle with the conditions that if they cannot answer it then he will be given 30 changes of clothes. The Philistines use his new wife to get the answer from him. We are told twice that the Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson. Already God is beginning to use Samson to work toward delivering Israel. Samson’s actions are going to be very different than we have seen any judge yet. His ability to deliver Israel will come in different ways than other judges. We’ll discuss this more in the next chapters. Also notice how much more is said about Samson than the other judges.
Question: Should Samson’s father have encouraged him not to marry the Philistine woman? Why or why not?
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Week 71, Day 2: Simple Instructions
Today’s Reading: Judges 13:1-25
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
After Israel once again begins to do evil before God, He gives them into the hands of the Philistines for 40 years. This is a long oppression. We are not told that Israel cried out to God for deliverance. We are introduced to the family through whom the next judge would come. This time, instead of picking a man from among Israel, God raised up a judge from the womb. God knew what Samson would do and also knew how he would do it (via being a nazarite). Another interesting things is that God chose a barren woman to bring about this child through. We are not told her age like we are with Sarah. But enough time has passed that it was evident that she was barren. It is interesting that God would choose a woman unable to have children to bring forth the next judge. So there are several things about this account that are very interesting to consider.
Her husband, Manoah, request that God send back the angel to teach them what to do. When the angel comes back the instructions are very simple and the same as what was given before. They were very simple instructions and the woman had heard them well enough to repeat them to her husband. Accounts like these make me think of how patient God is with us at times. Giving us time for His words to “sink” in. We can understand the commands but then have a hard time sometimes for things to “click”. I don’t know if that is the case here or if it was perhaps Manoah just wanting to see the angel himself. We do also see another temptation of man evident here. Manoah wants to know the angel’s name so that when the child comes they may honor the angel. What? Giving honor to an angel, a messenger from God. Man seems likely to be drawn away to wanting to honor the wrong things. Instead of realizing that he should honor God for this miracle, Manoah wants to honor the messenger. How many times man places honor on the wrong things or puts his focus in the wrong direction?
Question: What were the requirements for the boy to be a Nazarite? When was he to begin to keep this vow?
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Week 71, Day 1: Ephraim’s anger
Today’s Reading: Judges 12:1-15
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
We see another time here where Ephraim becomes angry that they were not summoned to come fight against Israel’s enemies. They had contended “vigorously” with Gideon in 8:1 over not being called to fight with Midian. Now they come out against Jephthah and threaten to burn down his house on him. I think this is an interesting picture to see of Ephraim. Gideon had pacified them by stoking their ego. He had told them that they had captured the leaders of Midian and how was he able to compare with them. But this time they are threatening violence and have actually come out against Jephthah. It seems like Jephthah has no choice but to fight with his brothers. How very sad but it appears to go back to a pride issue. Ephraim wanted to be treated a certain way and be included in the victories or else they were offended. Jephthah is able to give them a sound whipping. We do not see Ephraim acting in this way again during the time of the judges. Perhaps they learned a lesson here.
Question: Do the judges all come from one particular tribe or region?
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Week 70, Day 5: Jephthah’s vow
Today’s Reading: Judges 11:1-40
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
The ninth judge to deliver Israel is one that is of a different “mold”. We will see a similar situation with Samson. These men were not the examples of high moral living, and yet God chose to use them to deliver Israel through. When I say this about Jephthah I am referring specifically to who gathered around him in Tob.
I wonder if Jephthah knew God’s commands well. He made the vow to sacrifice the first thing that came out of his house to greet him. It is clear from his reaction that he thought some animal would come out to him first. But he had made a vow and appears to keep it by sacrificing his daughter. And yet God never commanded human sacrifice and condemns such practices by Israel later. This vow overshadows Jephthah’s actions. He was a very able politician and military leader. He spoke well to the king of Ammon, showing intelligence through his reasoning and tactfulness, but he showed great shortsightedness when he vowed to God. Consider carefully before you make a vow to the Lord. It is better to not vow than to make a vow and break it. And as Jephthah found out, if a vow is made rashly then it may cost you much.
Question: Why do you think Jephthah spent so much time retelling how Israel came to possess the land east of the Jordan?
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Week 70, Day 4: The misery of Israel
Today’s Reading: Judges 10:1-18
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
Chapter 10 is my favorite chapter in Judges. Why is because it shows God’s great amount of mercy. Again, Israel turned to the Baals and gods of the Canaanites. After 18 years of oppression and harassment, they cried out to God. God’s response is that He has delivered them so many times already. From the Egyptians, from the Amorites, from Ammon, from the Philistines, from the Sidonians, from the Amalekites, and from the Maonites – so many times already. They have had so many opportunities already to wake up and realize the need to serve the true God. God tells them to go and let these other gods they serve deliver them.
Even though God tells them He will deliver them no more, when Israel repents of their sin (they put away the foreign gods and began serving God) then God could no longer endure the misery of Israel. He was moved with compassion for the misery and suffering of Israel. This should teach us about the nature of God’s mercy. People who have made a real mess out of their lives can still wake up, repent, and turn to God. God will receive them and save them from their sin. But they must first have that wake up moment, like Israel did, where they realize they need God. Unfortunately many people are still in the cycle of going back and forth from the world to a short stint of service to God and then back to the world again. Such people will not be able to find rest and peace for their souls until this cycle is broken.
Question: How many times does it take before God will deliver no longer?
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Week 70, Day 3: Trouble from Within
Today’s Reading: Judges 9:1-57
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
At the end of chapter 8 we are told that Israel did not repay Gideon’s household with kindness in accordance with the kindness he had shown them. Chapter 9 explains what Israel did to Gideon’s household. Gideon had 70 children born to him. The sons of Israel had tried to make Gideon their ruler and his children to rule as well. Gideon had refused, saying that God would rule over them. But we see a reflection of this desire for someone to rule over them in the actions of the city of Shechem. Shechem is persuaded to help one of Gideon’s sons rise to power because having one man rule over them is better than having 70.
The wickedness of Abimelech and the city of Shechem is repaid by the Lord. We are told that the Lord sent an evil spirit between Abimilech and Shechem. This verse does not explain what exactly this means. We are told how the discord escalates into conflict. It is interesting how God chooses to bring about punishment. The Lord could have just struck the wicked people dead, but He chooses to cause the former allies to turn against each other. We are told the Lord caused the events to happen like this to bring about the curse of Jotham (vs. 57). In this instance God chose to bring about a fulfillment of a man’s curse.
Question: Since the people had begun to practice evil again, why is it not suprising that they elect to put an evil man as ruler over them? What does the ruler indicate about the people?
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Week 70, Day 2: As soon as
Today’s Reading: Judges 8:1-35
Some thoughts from today’s reading…
This chapter again demonstrates for us the trend of Israel. “As soon as” Gideon was dead the sons of Israel played the harlot with the Baals (vs. 33). I find it interesting to think about the timing that we see these things happening. 40 years of peace had happened. The timing is not always the same but this amount of time just makes me wonder if this is a younger, new generation that are playing the harlot or if it is everyone? Why I wonder about this is do we see a repeat of the statement in Judges 2:10. Then arose a generation that did not know the Lord nor His works. 40 years would be enough time for another generation to arise who, if not taught, would not know Jehovah’s greatness. I wonder how much of Israel’s repeated spiritual failures were related to their parenting failures. They never taught their children well.
Question: Why did the cities of Succoth and Penuel refuse to give Gideon bread?
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