Judges 1:1 – Introduction to Judges
We are going to be looking at the book of Judges using notes written for us by Rev. Daniel Hemken, minister of Hebron RP Church in Kansas.
The Book of Judges is the sequel to the Book of Joshua. As Joshua tells us of the many successes in the conquest of Canaan by Israel under the leadership of Joshua son of Nun, Judges relates the history of the next three centuries, as Israel struggled to complete the conquest of the Promised Land. However, while Joshua reveals a trend toward faithfulness, culminating in the renewal of the Covenant between God and Israel at Shechem (Joshua 24), Judges speaks a woeful tale of a nation who repeatedly forsook the LORD their God. God would then remove His special protection from Israel, and numerous calamities would come upon them – especially oppression by enemy nations.
Nevertheless, Judges is not bleak in its outlook. Whenever the people recognized that the disasters they experienced were the consequences of their own sins, they repeatedly turned to the LORD and cried out for deliverance. Each time, God sent them a deliverer, known as a Judge, to defeat their enemies. Thus, while Judges is a book about the sinfulness of mankind, it is also a book about the grace of God, as He displays His mercy and love toward His sinful people over and over again.
Much like Israel in the time of the judges, many historically Christian nations have forgotten the LORD, today. May these nations repent and return to the ultimate Judge and Deliverer, Jesus Christ.
Questions
- What is a Judge?
- How is Judges a book about the grace of God?
Prayer Points
- Pray that your nation will repent of its sins.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.