The judges were temporary deliverers and leaders whom God raised up during Israel’s unsettled period between Joshua and Saul. Their authority was generally limited, and their ministries repeatedly followed Israel’s repentance after oppression.
Definition
The judges were temporary deliverers and leaders whom God raised up during Israel’s unsettled period between Joshua and Saul. They first rescued the Israelites from oppression and then administered justice. Their authority usually extended only over portions of the country, and some judges may have served at the same time.
Biblical Usage
The judges repeatedly appear in a cycle of oppression, deliverance, and renewed disorder. Their work supplied Israel’s need for leadership before the monarchy. The listed judges include Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah and Barak, Gideon, Abimelech, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Samson, Eli, and Samuel.
Historical Background
The period included servitudes under Mesopotamia, Moab, Canaan, Midian, Ammon, and the Philistines. The supplied chronology gives differing periods of oppression and rest, while noting that some judges probably ruled simultaneously. Samuel’s administration brought a more settled government before the people demanded a king.
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Smith's Bible Dictionary
The judges were temporary and special deliverers, sent by God to deliver the Israelites from their oppressors; not supreme magistrates, succeeding to the authority of Moses and Joshua. Their power only extended over portions of the country, and some of them were contemporaneous. Their first work was that of deliverers and leaders in war; they then administered justice to the people, and their authority supplied the want of a regular government. Even while the administration of Samuel gave something like a settled government to the south, there was scope for the irregular exploits of Samson on the borders of the Philistines; and Samuel at last established his authority as judge and prophet, but still as the servant of Jehovah, only to see it so abused by his sons as to exhaust the patience of the people, who at length demanded a king, after the pattern of the surrounding nations. The following is a list of judges, whose history is given under their respective names:— First servitude, to Mesopotamia— 8 years. First judge: Othniel. 40 years. Second servitude, to Moab— 18 years. Second judge: Ehud; 80 years. Third judge: Shamgar.—- Third servitude, to Jabin and Sisera— 20 years. Fourth judge: Deborah and Barak. 40 years. Fourth servitude, to Midian— 7 years. Fifth judge: Gideon; 40 years. Sixth judge: Abimelech; 3 years. Seventh judge: Tola; 23 years. Eighth judge: Jair. 22 years. Fifth servitude, to Ammon— 18 years. Ninth judge: Jephthah; 6 years. Tenth judge: Ibzan; 7 years. Eleventh judge: Elon; 10 years. Twelfth judge: Abdon. 8 years. Sixth servitude, to the Philistines— 40 years. Thirteenth judge: Samson 20 years. Fourteenth judge: Eli; 40 years. Fifteenth judge: Samuel. More than likely some of these ruled simultaneously. On the chronology of the judges, see the following article.
