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Judges
AN
EXPOSITION,
W I T H P R A C T I C A L O B S E R V A T I O N S,
OF THE BOOK OF
J U D G E S.
This is called the Hebrew Shepher Shophtim, the Book of
Judges, which the Syriac and Arabic versions enlarge upon, and call
it, The Book of the Judges of the Children of Israel; the
judgments of that nation being peculiar, so were their judges, whose
office differed vastly from that of the judges of other nations. The
LXX. entitles it only Kritai, Judges. It is
the history of the commonwealth of Israel, during the government
of the judges from Othniel to Eli, so much of it as God saw fit to
transmit to us. It contains the history (according to Dr. Lightfoot’s
computation) of 299 years, reckoning to Othniel of Judah forty years,
to Ehud of Benjamin eighty years, to Barak of Naphtali forty years, to
Gideon of Manasseh forty years, to Abimelech his son three years, to
Tola of Issachar twenty-three, to Jair of Manasseh twenty-two, to
Jephtha of Manasseh six, to Ibzan of Judah seven, to Elon of Zebulun
ten, to Abdon of Ephraim eight, to Samson of Dan twenty, in all 299. As
for the years of their servitude, as were Eglon is said to oppress them
eighteen years and Jabin twenty years, and so some others, those must
be reckoned to fall in with some or other of the years of the judges.
The judges here appear to have been of eight several tribes; that
honour was thus diffused, until at last it centred in Judah. Eli and
Samuel, the two judges that fall not within this book, were of Levi. It
seems, there was no judge of Reuben or Simeon, Gad or Asher. The
history of these judges in their order we have in this book
And then in the
we have an account of some particular memorable events which happened,
as the story of Ruth did
in the days when the judges ruled, but it is not certain in
which judge’s days; but they are put together at the end of the book,
that the thread of the general history might not be interrupted. Now as
to the state of the commonwealth of Israel during this period,
I. They do not appear here either so great or so good as one might have
expected the character of such a peculiar people would be, that were
governed by such laws and enriched by such promises. We find them
wretchedly corrupted, and wretchedly oppressed by their neighbours
about them, and nowhere in all the book, either in war or council, do
they make any figure proportionable to their glorious entry into
Canaan. What shall we say to it? God would hereby show us the
lamentable imperfection of all persons and things under the sun, that
we may look for complete holiness and happiness in the other world, and
not in this. Yet,
II. We may hope that though the historian in this book enlarges most
upon their provocations and grievances, yet there was a face of
religion upon the land; and, however there were those among them that
were drawn aside to idolatry, yet the tabernacle-service, according to
the law of Moses, was kept up, and there were many that attended it.
Historians record not the common course of justice and commerce in a
nation, taking that for granted, but only the wars and disturbances
that happen; but the reader must consider the other, to balance the
blackness of them.
III. It should seem that in these times each tribe had very much its
government in ordinary within itself, and acted separately, without one
common head, or council, which occasioned many differences among
themselves, and kept them from being or doing any thing considerable.
IV. The government of the judges was not constant, but occasional; when
it is said that after Ehud’s victory the land rested eighty
years, and after Barak’s forty, it is not certain that they
lived, much less that they governed, so long; but they and the rest
were raised up and animated by the Spirit of God to do particular
service to the public when there was occasion, to avenge Israel of
their enemies, and to purge Israel of their idolatries, which are
the two things principally meant by their judging Israel. Yet Deborah,
as a prophetess, was attended for judgment by all Israel, before there
was occasion for her agency in war,
V. During the government of the judges, God was in a more especial
manner Israel’s king; so Samuel tells them when they were resolved to
throw off this form of government,
God would try what his own law and the constitutions of that would do
to keep them in order, and it proved that when there was no king in
Israel every man did that which was right in his own eyes; he
therefore, towards the latter end of this time, made the government of
the judges more constant and universal that it was at first, and at
length gave them David, a king after his own heart; then, and not till
then, Israel began to flourish, which should make us very thankful for
magistrates both supreme and subordinate, for they are ministers of
God unto us for good. Four of the judges of Israel are canonized
(Heb. xi. 32),
Gideon, Barak, Samson, and Jephtha. The Learned bishop Patrick thinks
the prophet Samuel was the penman of this Book.
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