JUDGES
(BOOK
OF)
required
being
carried
off
by
the
Benjamites
during
the
annual
feast
at
ShUoh.
The
children
of
Israel
then
depart
every
man
to
his
home.
The
narrative
appropriately
ends
with
the
words,
'Every
man
did
that
which
was
right
in
his
own
eyes.'
Although
these
chapters
have
been
very
considerably
worked
over
by
later
hands,
it
is
probable
that
they
have
some
basis
in
fact;
it
is
difficult
to
account
for
their
existence
at
all
on
any
other
hypothesis,
for
in
themselves
they
are
quite
purposeless;
there
cannot
originally
have
been
any
object
in
writing
such
a
gruesome
tale,
other
than
that
of
recording
something
that
actually
happened.
The
Book
of
Judges
itself
is
comprised
in
2«-16s';
and
here
it
is
to
be
noticed,
first
of
all,
that
a
certain
artificiality
is
observable
in
the
structure;
the
exploits
of
twelve
men
are
recounted,
and
the
idea
seems
to
be
that
each
represents
one
of
the
twelve
tribes
of
Israel,
thus:
Judah
is
represented
by
Othniel,
Benjamin
by
Ehud,
the
two
halves
of
the
tribe
of
Manasseh
by
Gideon
(West)
and
Jair
(East),
Issachar
by
Tola,
Zebulun
by
Elon,
NaphtaU
by
Barak,
Ephralm
by
Abdon,
Gad
by
Jephthah,
and
Dan
by
Samson;
besides
these
ten
there
are
Shamgar
and
Ibzan,
two
unimportant
Judges,
but
against
them
there
are
the
two
tribes
Eeuben
and
Simeon,
who,
however,
soon
disappear;
while
the
tribe
of
Levi,
as
always,
occupies
an
exceptional
position.
This
general
correspondence
of
twelve
judges
to
the
twelve
tribes
strikes
one
the
more
as
artificial
in
that
some
of
the
judges
play
a
very
humble
part,
and
seem
to
have
been
brought
in
to
make
up
the
number
twelve
rather
than
for
anything
else.
'The
following
is
an
outline
of
the
contents
of
these
chapters:
—
There
is,
fiist
of
all,
an
introduction
(2^-3^)
which
contains
a
brief
but
comprehensive
resume
of
the
period
about
to
be
dealt
with;
as
long
as
Joshua
was
alive,
it
says,
the
children
of
Israel
remained
faithful
to
Jahweh;
but
after
his
death,
and
after
the
generation
that
knew
him
had
passed
away,
the
peoplefoisook
Jahweh,
theGod
of
theirfatheis.andserved
Baal
and
Ashtaroth;
the
consequence
was
that
they
were
oppressed
by
the
surrounding
nations.
2i5-i9
sound
what
is
the
theme
of
the
whole
book:
the
nation
distressed,
a
judge
raised
up
who
delivers
them
from
their
oppressors,
relapse
into
idolatry.
The
introduction
closes
with
a
list
of
the
nations
which
had
been
left
in
the
Promised
Land
with
the
express
purpose
of
'proving'
the
Israelites.
IF
or
the
historical
value
of
this
Introduction,
see
§
5.]
Of
the
twelve
Judges
dealt
with,
seven
are
of
quite
subordinate
importance,
little
more
than
a
bare
mention
of
them
being
recorded;
they
are:
Othniel
(3'-"),
who
deUvers
the
children
of
Israel
from
C)ushan-rishathaim,
king
of
Mesopotamia;
he
is
mentioned
incidentally
in
1*3
as
marrying
the
daughter
of
Caleb;
Shamgar
(Z^),
of
whom
nothing
more
is
said
than
that
he
killed
six
himdred
Philistines;
Tola
(lO'-^);
Jair
(103-5);
Jtizan
(12'-i»);
Elon
(12"-
");
and
Abdon
(12"-").
Of
real
importance
are
the
accounts
which
are
given
of
the
other
five
judges.
(1)
SAiid,
who
delivers
Israel
from
Eglon,
king
of
Moab
(3'^-3°).
(2)
Barak,
who
is,
however,
rather
the
instrument
of
Deborah;
chs.
4.
5
give
accounts,
in
piose
and
poetry
respectively,
of
the
Israelite
victory
over
Sisera.
(3)
Gideon.
Of
the
last
there
are
likewise
two
accounts
(S-S^
and
8*-"),
with
a
later
addition
(S^^-as);
some
introductory
words
(6^-^*)
tell
of
the
Midianite
oppression;
&^-^
describe
the
call
of
Gideon,
of
which
a
second
account
is
given
in
625.32;
the
invasion
of
the
Midianites
and
Gideon's
prep-arations
to
resist
them
(6»-i=)
follows;
and
in
6"-"
the
story
of
the
sign
of
the
fleece
is
told.
Ch.
7
gives
a
detailed
account
of
Gideon's
victory
over
the
Midianites,
and
8'-*
contains
an
appendixwhich
tells
of
Ephraim's
dissatisfaction
with
(Gideon
for
not
summoning
them
to
repel
the
Midianites,
and
the
skilful
way
in
which
Gideon
pacifies
them.
In
Jg
84-21
comes
the
second
account
of
Gideon's
victory,
the
result
of
wiiich
is
the
offer
to
him
of
the
kingship
and
his
refusal
thereof
(822-28);
ga-is
forms
a
transition
to
the
story
of
Gideon's
son,
Abimelech
(see
below).
(4)
The
history
of
Jephthah
is
prefaced
by
10"-
",
which
tells
of
the
Ammonite
oppression;
Jephthah's
exploits
are
recounted
in
111-12';
a
biographical
note
(11'-')
introduces
the
hero,
and
a
long
passage
(11*-^')
follows,
describing
how
the
conflict
with
the
Ammonites
arose;
it
is
a
question
concerning
the
owner-ship
of
the
lands
between
the
Jabbok
and
the
Amon,
which
are
claimed
by
the
Ammonites,
but
which
the
Israelites
maintain
have
been
in
their
possession
for
three
hundred
years.
As
no
agreement
is
arrived
at,
war
breaks
out.
A
JUDGES
(BOOK
OF)
section,
which
is
of
great
interest
archaologically
(W°-*°),
tells
then
of
a
vow
which
Jephthah
made
to
Jahweh,
to
the
effect
that
if
he
returned
victorious
from
the
impending
struggle
with
the
Ammonites,
he
would
offer
up
in
sacrifice
the
first
person
whom
he
met
on
his
return
coming
out
of
his
dwelbng.
He
is
victorious,
and
the
first
to
meet
him
was,
as
according
to
the
custom
of
the
times
he
must
have
expected
(see
Jg
5^8
i
s
isi-
?,
Ps
68"),
his
daughter—
the
words
in
v.^^,
'
and
she
had
not
known
man,'
are
significant
in
this
connexion;
—
his
vow
he
then
proceeds
to
fulfil.
The
next
passage
(12i-8),
which
tells
of
a
battle
between
Jephthah
and
tne
Ephraimitra,in
which
the
latter
are
worsted,
reminds
one
forcibly
of
S^-^,
and
the
two
passages
are
clearly
related
in
some
way.
(5)
Lastly,
the
history
of
Samaon
and
his
doings
is
recorded,
chs.
13-16;
th^e
chapters
contain
three
distinct
stories,
but
they
form,
a
self-contained
whole.
The
first
story
(ch.
13)
tells
of
the
wonderful
experiences
of
the
parents
of
the
hero
prior
to
his
birth;
how
an
angel
foretold
that
he
was
to
be
bom,
and
that
he
was
to
be
a
Nazirite;
and
how
the
angel
ascended
in
a
fiame
from
the
altar
on
which
Manoah
had
offered
a
sacrifice
to
Jahweh;
w."-
^
record
his
birth
and
his
growth
to
manhood,
the
spirit
of
Jahweh
being
upon
him.
The
fourteenth
chapter
gives
an
account
of
Samson's
courtship
and
marriage
with
the
Philis-tine
woman
of
Timnah:
w.*-*
his
first
meeting
with
her,
and
his
desire
that
his
parents
should
go
down
to
Timnah
to
secure
her
for
him,
they
at
first
demur,
but
ultimately
they
accompany
him
thither.
His
exoloit
with
the
lion,
his
riddle
during
the
wedding-feast,
the
craft
of
his
wife
in
obtaining
the
answer
tc
the
riddle
from
him,
and
the
way
in
which
he
paid
the
forfeit
to
the
wedding
guests
for
having
found
out
the
answer
to
the
riddle,
—
all
this
is
told
in
the
remainder
of
the
chapter
(w.*-^").
Further
exploits
are
recounted
in
ch.
15:
Samson's
burning
of
the
Philistines'
fields
by
sending
into
them
foxes
with
burning
torches
tied
to
their
tails
(w.^-^);
the
Philistines
attack
Judah
in
consequence,
but
the
men
of
Judah
bind
Samson
with
the
purpose
of
delivering
him
up;
he,
however,
breaks
his
bonds,
and
kills
a
thousand
Philistines
with
the
jawbone
of
an
ass
(w.^-^^);
the
remaining
verses
describe
the
miracle
of
the
origin
of
the
spring
in
En-hakkore
(w.i^-^o).
In
ch.
16
there
is
a
continuation
of
Samson's
adventures:
his
carrying
off
the
gates
of
Gaza
(w.^
-^)
;
his
relationship
with
Delilah
and
her
treachery,
resulting
in
his
final
capture
by
the
Philistines
(w.^-22);
their
rejoicing
(w.^^-ss);
the
destruction
of
the
house,
and
death
of
Samson
(w.26-30)j
his
burial
(v.^i).
The
section
dealing
with
Abimelech
(ch.
9),
though
cer-tainly
belonging
to
the
Gideon
chapters
(6-8)
stands
on
a
somewhat
different
basis,
inasmuch
as
Abimelech
is
not
reckoned
among
the
judges
(see
following
section):
Abime-lech
is
made
king
of
Shechem
(w.i-^);
Jotham
his
brother,
deUvers
his
parable
from
Mt
Gerizim.
and
then
flees
(yJ'-^)
;
thequarrel
between
AbimelechandtheShechemites(w
.22-26);
Gaal
raises
a
revolt
among
the
Shechcmites
(w.26-m):
Abimelech
quells
the
revolt
(w.**-*i);
Shechem
is
captured
and
destroyed
(w.^2-«);
its
tower
burned
(w."-<9);
Abimelech's
attack
on
Thebez,
and
his
death
(w.^"-*').
Lastly,
there
is
the
short
section
IQfi-^^,
which,
Uke
V-2^,
partakes
of
the
nature
of
Introduction,
and
is
of
late
date.
3.
Arrangement
and
Sources.
—
The
question
of
the
sources
of
our
book
is
a
difficult
and
complicated
one;
the
different
hypotheses
put
forward
are
sometimes
of
a
very
contradictory
character,
and
proportionately
bewildering.
It
seems,
indeed,
not
possible
to
assign,
with
any
approach
to
certainty,
the
exact
source
of
every
passage
in
the
book;
but
there
are
certain
indica-tions
which
compel
us
to
see
that
the
book
is
compiled
from
sources
of
varying
character
and
of
different
ages;
so
that,
although
we
shall
not
attempt
to
specify
a
source
for
every
passage
—
believing
this
to
be
impos-sible
with
the
book
as
we
now
have
it
—
yet
it
will
be
possible
to
point
out,
broadly,
the
main
sources
from
which
it
is
compiled.
(1)
It
may
be
taken
for
granted
that
the
exploits
of
tribal
heroes
would
be
commemorated
by
their
descendants,
and
that
the
narrative
of
these
exploits
would
be
composed
very
soon,
probably
immediately
in
some
cases,
after
the
occurrences.
So
Ingrained
is
this
custom,
that
even
as
late
as
the
Middle
Ages
we
find
it
still
in
vogue
in
Europe,
the
'Troubadours'
being
the
counterpart
of
the
singers
of
far
earlier
ages.
It
is
therefore
clear
that
there
must
have
existed
among
the
various
IsraeUte
tribes
a
body
of
traditional
matter
