1:1 The people of Israel had finally entered and taken control of the land promised to their ancestors (Genesis 12:7; Exodus 3:16, 17). The book of Judges continues the story of this conquest that began in the book of Joshua. Through God’s strength, the Israelites had conquered many enemies and overcome many difficulties, but their work was not yet finished. They had effectively met many political and military challenges, but facing spiritual challenges was more difficult. The unholy but attractive lifestyle of the Canaanites proved more dangerous than their military might. The Israelites gave in to the pressure and compromised their faith. If we attempt to meet life’s challenges with human effort alone, we will find the pressures and temptations around us too great to resist.
1:1 Soon after Joshua died, Israel began to lose its firm grip on the land. Although Joshua was a great commander, the people missed his spiritual leadership even more than his military skill, for he had kept the people focused on God and his purposes. Joshua had been the obvious successor to Moses, but there was no obvious successor to Joshua. During this crisis of leadership, Israel had to learn that no matter how powerful and wise the current leader was, their real leader was God. We often focus our hope and confidence on some influential leader, failing to realize that in reality it is God who is in command. Acknowledge God as your commander in chief, and avoid the temptation of relying too heavily on human leaders, regardless of their spiritual wisdom.
1:1 Everyone wants guidance in making tough decisions. The Israelites were no different. To ask for this national guidance, the elders probably gathered at the Tabernacle in Shiloh as they had done when the land was divided (Joshua 18). There they may have used the Urim and Thummim to seek God’s answers. These were two stones or plates made according to God’s instructions and used to seek his guidance in making difficult decisions that involved the entire nation. They were used to take away the possibility of human error and allow God to make the choice.
1:1 The Canaanites were all the people who lived in Canaan (the Promised Land). They lived in city-states where each city had its own government, army, and laws. One reason Canaan was so difficult to conquer was that each city had to be defeated individually. There was no single king who could surrender the entire country into the hands of the Israelites.
Canaan’s greatest threat to Israel was not its army, but its religion. Canaanite religion idealized evil traits: cruelty in war, sexual immorality, selfish greed, and materialism. It was a “me first, anything goes” society. Obviously, the religions of Israel and Canaan could not coexist.
1:2 The book of Joshua tells of a swift and thorough conquest of enemy armies and cities, while the book of Judges seems to suggest a more lengthy and gradual conquest. When the Israelites first entered the Promised Land (Joshua 1–12), they united as one army to crush the inhabitants until they were too weak to retaliate. Then, after the land was divided among the 12 tribes (Joshua 13–24), each tribe was responsible for driving out the remaining enemy from its own territory. The book of Judges tells of their failure to do this.
Some tribes were more successful than others. Under Joshua, they all began strong, but soon most were sidetracked by fear, weariness, lack of discipline, or pursuit of their own interests. As a result, their faith began to fade away, and “every man did that which was right in his own eyes” (17:6). In order for our faith to survive, it must be practiced day by day. It must penetrate every aspect of our lives. Beware of starting out strong and then getting sidetracked from your real purpose—loving God and living for him.
1:6 The maiming of Adoni-bezek was one example in a long string of actions that demonstrated Israel’s tendency to disobey God’s instructions by only giving partial obedience. Enemy kings were supposed to be executed, not humiliated. This defeated king recognized God’s righteous punishment more clearly than God’s people acknowledged God’s commands. When we understand what God tells us to do, we run great danger if we don’t carry out both the letter and the spirit of his words.
1:8 Although the Israelites conquered Jerusalem, they did not occupy the city until the days of David (2 Samuel 5:6-10).
1:12-15 This same event is recorded in Joshua 15:16-19. Caleb was one of the original men who scouted out the Promised Land (Numbers 13–14) and, with Joshua, encouraged the people to conquer it. For his faithfulness, he was given the land of his choice.
1:19 Why did God order the Israelites to drive the Canaanites from their land? Although the command seems cruel, the Israelites were under God’s order to execute judgment on those wicked people. The other nations were to be judged for their sin as God had judged Israel by forcing them to wander for 40 years before they were allowed to enter the Promised Land. Over 700 years earlier, God had told Abraham that when the Israelites entered the Promised Land, the gross evil of the native people would be ready for judgment (Genesis 15:16). But God wasn’t playing favorites with the Israelites because eventually they, too, would be severely punished for becoming as evil as the people they were ordered to drive out (2 Kings 17; 25; Jeremiah 6:18, 19; Ezekiel 8). God is not partial; all people are eligible for God’s gracious forgiveness as well as for his firm justice.
1:19 Canaanite chariots pulled by horses were among the most sophisticated weapons of the day. Israelite foot soldiers were absolutely powerless when a speeding iron chariot bore down upon them. This is why Israel preferred to fight in the hills where chariots couldn’t venture.
1:21ff Tribe after tribe failed to drive the evil Canaanites from their land. Why didn’t they follow through and completely obey God’s commands? (1) They had been fighting for a long time and were tired. Although the goal was in sight, they lacked the discipline and energy to reach it. (2) They were afraid the enemy was too strong—the iron chariots seemed invincible. (3) After Joshua’s death, power and authority were decentralized to the tribal leaders, and the tribes were no longer unified in purpose. (4) Spiritual decay had infected them from within. They thought they could handle the temptation and be more prosperous by doing business with the Canaanites.
We, too, often choose to tolerate sin rather than drive it from our lives. We may know what to do but just don’t follow through. This results in a gradual deterioration of our relationship with God. In our battles, we may grow tired and want rest, but we need more than a break from our work. We need to know that God loves us and has given us a purpose for life. Victory comes from living according to his purpose and from being willing to fully obey him.