Judges 1:1-6
Introduction
Acts
13:20 (KJV) And after that he gave unto them judges about the space of four
hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet.
1
Kings 6:1 (KJV) And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after
the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of
Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month, that
he began to build the house of the LORD.
The
book of Judges goes from the time of the death of Joshua until the time of the
birth of Samuel who was considered a prophet.
The timing of the book of Judges fits perfectly into the two verses above
which give us a time frame.
The
Exodus took place in 1447 B.C. under the reign of Pharaoh Thutmose III.
Israel had wandered in the wilderness for 40 years bringing it to 1407
B.C. Israel enters the Promised
Land with Joshua at their helm. The
timing of the book of Joshua is about 25 years. All the wars of Joshua took
place within a 7 year time frame.
Solomon had ascended to the throne of Israel in 971 B.C. and if you add 480
years to that you come to 1447 B.C.
Acts 13:20 states that the Judges ruled for a period of about 450 years.
If you factor in the 40 year reign of David before the reign of Solomon,
you come to 1007 B.C. 1447
Minus 40 (David’s Reign) minus 4 (4th year of Solomon’s reign) minus
25 for the time of Joshua brings us to a total time of 411 years for the period
of the Judges.
Chapters one and two give details about Israel’s failure to take the land which
God had promised to them and instead of driving out the inhabitants, they lived
with them and this became a snare to them.
It
was time when there was no guiding leadership and Israel would sin and then they
would be mercifully delivered by God who would send the appropriate Judge for
that situation. It was a vicious
cycle: Sin>Captivity>Deliverance>Time of Rest and then it would start all over
again during the period of 400 years until Samuel.
Judges 1:1
Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass, that the children of Israel asked
the LORD, saying, Who shall go up for us against the Canaanites first, to fight
against them?
Joshua 13:1 (KJV) Now Joshua was old and stricken in years; and the LORD said
unto him, Thou art old and stricken in years, and there remaineth yet very much
land to be possessed.
The Lord told Joshua that there was still much land to be possessed but
Joshua was old and stricken in years.
He died at the age of 110 and he was about the same age as Caleb when
they entered the land.
Joshua 14:10 (KJV)
And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and
five years, even since the LORD spake this word unto Moses, while the children
of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and
five years old. So Joshua
started his military career at about the age of 85 and add the 25 years which
was the length of the book of Joshua, you arrive at 110 years of age.
Now that Joshua had died, Israel now lacked a central figure for a leader to
continue the battle for the land.
They were to take the rest of the land that Joshua was unable to take owing to
his age. Now they sought the Lord
to find out who is going to go lead the battle against the Canaanites.
Joshua fought the first wave of the battle for Canaan and now the second
wave would be fought through the various tribes.
Judges 1:2
And the LORD said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the land into his
hand.
The Lord then responded to their request that the tribe of Judah would go up and
lead. The Lord told them that He
already delivered the land into their hands.
It was not the entire land but the portion that would have been assigned
to Judah. The Lord knows the end
from the beginning and in His sight the battle was already won.
It is like in the Christian life, we face many battles but the war is
already won in Christ.
Judges 1:3
And Judah said unto Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot, that we may
fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with thee into thy lot. So
Simeon went with him.
The word “lot” may be understood as property or land.
Two of the sons of Leah were Simeon and Judah and that is why Judah had
extended the hand of courtesy to Simeon.
They had made a pact that if they help Judah secure their portion of
land, when it was time for Simeon to claim their land, Judah would be right
there to help them. This began the
confederacy of the southern tribes which caused a separation from the other
tribes throughout the time of the judges.
Joshua 19:1 (KJV)
And the second lot came forth to Simeon, even for the tribe of the
children of Simeon according to their families: and their inheritance was within
the inheritance of the children of Judah.
Judah and Simeon were intertwined with each other.
They were conjoined when it was time to take up arms against the
Canaanites.
Judges 1:4
And Judah went up; and the LORD delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into
their hand: and they slew of them in Bezek ten thousand men.
Bezek was located about 15 miles (24 km) northeast of Samaria.
It was a great battle in that 10,000 of the enemy was slain.
The Perizzites were first mention in Exodus 3:8 when God told Moses that
the land they would possess would contain the Perizzites.
Exodus 3:8 (KJV)
And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and
to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land
flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites,
and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
Perizzites means “villagers” or “dwellers in open countries.”
They were descendants of Ham and associated with the Canaanites.
Genesis 10:6 (KJV)
And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan.
Judges 1:5
And they found Adoni-bezek in Bezek: and they fought against him, and they slew
the Canaanites and the Perizzites.
Adoni-bezek was a king of Bezek and his name meant “lord of lightning or Bezek.”
Judah and Simeon fought against him and won the battle by slaying the
Canaanites and
Perizzites. He was probably the
king who ruled over both the Canaanites and Perizzites.
They were probably fighting from behind some city walls but as Judges 1:4
states that the Lord delivered them into their hands.
If the Lord decrees something, there is no way that it will not come to
pass no matter what fortifications are used.
Judges 1:6
But Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off
his thumbs and his great toes.