March 5, 2023
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Judges 1-2
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exposition
In these first two introductory chapters today, we see that Israel had not fully placed their hope and trust in God to fully obey Him. They said they “could not.” But God essentially said, they “would not.” This is a question worth asking ourselves. Where have you made flimsy excuses to God because you’ve put your hope in yourself or someone or something else instead of in Him? That’s what started the downward descent of Israel.
In the first two chapters of Judges, Israel failed to fully trust God’s promise and obey His word, so the Lord allowed their enemies to oppress them. Yet, God was moved by their suffering, so He raised up judges to save them. We can learn to fully trust and obey God.
April 23, 2017
The Israelites did not completely obey the Lord’s command to make no covenants with, nor allow any altars to the pagans of the Promised Land. Since they allowed them to stay in the land, the Lord said they would become “thorns” in their side and that their false gods would be a “snare” to them. Their failure to obey the Lord completely set the stage for the painful cycle of five recurring themes in the book of Judges: Rebellion, Rebuke, Repentance, Rescue, and Rest.
As you read the book of Judges, watch for these five themes. The Israelites will rebel, God rebukes them, they finally repent, God sends a judge to rescue them and they find rest (usually for 40 years or a generation). It’s exhausting to read because the Israelites are so unfaithful. Yet, God’s faithfulness remains consistent throughout!
April 24, 2014
After the generation of Israelites who had seen God’s deliverance from Egypt, provision for 40 years in the wilderness, and His power to overcome the inhabitants in the Promised Land had died, the next generation forgot the Lord. Was it the failure of the former generation that didn’t train them up in the way they should go? Did they fail to hand off the baton of faith to their children? Or was this the historical pattern of humanity, that they have such a short memory of God’s grace? Whatever the cause, it is a reminder that we are always only one generation away from falling away from the faith. Parents, we must pass on the faith to our children. And we must pray to our Lord that He visits them with revival, so that they experience His mighty works for themselves.