Judges, Book of: Is so called because it contains the history of the deliverance and
government of Israel by the men who bore the title of the "judges."
The book of Ruth originally formed part of this book, but about A.D.
450 it was separated from it and placed in the Hebrew scriptures
immediately after the Song of Solomon. The book contains,1. An introduction (1-3:6) connecting it with the previous
narrative in Joshua, as a "link in the chain of books."
2. The history of the thirteen judges (3:7-16:31) in the following
order:
a. FIRST PERIOD (3:7-ch. 5) Years
1. Servitude under Chushan-rishathaim of Mesopotamia 8
(1) OTHNIEL delivers Israel, rest 40
2. Servitude under Eglon of Moab: Ammon, Amalek 18
(2) EHUD'S deliverance, rest 80
(3) SHAMGAR Unknown.
3. Servitude under Jabin of Hazor in Canaan 20
(4) DEBORAH and, (5) BARAK 40
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206
b. SECOND PERIOD (6-10:5)
4. Servitude under Midian, Amalek, and children of
the east 7
(6) GIDEON 40
ABIMELECH, Gideon's son, reigns as king over Israel 3
(7) TOLA 23
(8) JAIR 22
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95
c. THIRD PERIOD (10:6-ch. 12)
5. Servitude under Ammonites with the Philistines 18
(9) JEPHTHAH 6
(10) IBZAN 7
(11) ELON 10
(12) ABDON 8
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49
d. FOURTH PERIOD (13-16)
6. Seritude under Philistines 40
(13) SAMSON 20
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60
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In all 410
Samson's exploits probably synchronize with the period immediately
preceding the national repentance and reformation under Samuel
(1 Samuel 7:2-6) After Samson came Eli, who was both high priest and
judge. He directed the civil and religious affairs of the people
for forty years, at the close of which the Philistines again
invaded the land and oppressed it for twenty years. Samuel was
raised up to deliver the people from this oppression, and he judged
Israel for some twelve years, when the direction of affairs fell
into the hands of Saul, who was anointed king. If Eli and Samuel
are included, there were then fifteen judges. But the chronology of
this whole period is uncertain.
3. The historic section of the book is followed by an appendix
(17-21) which has no formal connection with that which goes
before. It records
a. the conquest (17, 18) of Laish by a portion of the tribe
of Dan; and
b. the almost total extinction of the tribe of Benjamin by
the other tribes, in consequence of their assisting the
men of Gibeah (19-21).
This section properly belongs to the period only a few years
after the death of Joshua. It shows the religious and moral
degeneracy of the people. The author of this book was most
probably Samuel. The internal evidence both of the first sixteen
chapters and of the appendix warrants this conclusion. It was
probably composed during Saul's reign, or at the very beginning
of David's. The words in
(Judges 18:30,31) imply that it was
written after the taking of the ark by the Philistines, and
after it was set up at Nob
(1 Samuel 21:1-6) In David's reign the
ark was at Gibeon
(1 Chronicles 16:39)
