Week of 20 November 2007
*Note: The "former prophets" are those before the "book" prophets, who have scrolls named after them. These are also called the "latter" prophets.
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1: After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister,
2: "Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to the people of Israel.
7: Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law which Moses my servant commanded you; turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go.
Verse 7 is a classic Deuteronomist phrase ("turn not from [the Law] t the right or left"). The phrase, "be strong" is commonly repeated in Jewish synagogues. Note the stress on the "Law," a Deuteronomist concern introduced in the book of Deuteronomy.
8: This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall have good success."
2
1: And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, "Go, view the land, especially Jericho." And they went, and came into the house of a harlot whose name was Rahab, and lodged there.
2: And it was told the king of Jericho, "Behold, certain men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land."
3: Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, "Bring forth the men that have come to you, who entered your house; for they have come to search out all the land."
4: But the woman had hidden them; and she said, "True, men came to me, but I did not know where they came from;
5: and when the gate was to be closed, at dark, the men went out; where the men went I do not know; pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them."
6: But she had brought them up to the roof, and hid them with the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof.
7: So the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan as far as the fords; and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
8: Before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof,
9: and said to the men, "I know that the LORD has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you.
10: For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites that were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed.
11: And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no courage left in any man, because of you; for the LORD your God is he who is God in heaven above and on earth beneath.
12: Now then, swear to me by the LORD that as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father's house, and give me a sure sign,
13: and save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death."
14: And the men said to her, "Our life for yours! If you do not tell this business of ours, then we will deal kindly and faithfully with you when the LORD gives us the land."
17: The men said to her,
18: "Behold, when we come into the land, you shall bind this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down; and you shall gather into your house your father and mother, your brothers, and all your father's household.
The scarlet thread or cord may refer to the Passover blood, which spared Jewish houses from God's punishment.
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9: And Joshua said to the people of Israel, "Come hither, and hear the words of the LORD your God."
11: Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is to pass over before you into the Jordan.
12: Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man.
This is a typical model of faith, as in Jesus' miracles: faith comes before the cure. The priests must believe the waters will stop its flow before it will do so. The scene repeats the famous parting of the Red Sea, as if to prove that Joshua is a true successor to Moses.
13: And when the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be stopped from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap."
14: So, when the people set out from their tents, to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people,
15: and when those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water
16: the waters coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap far off; and the people passed over opposite Jericho.
This is apparently a "doublet" of the famous parting of the Red Sea, to link Joshua with Moses.
17: And while all Israel were passing over on dry ground, the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan.
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8: When the circumcising of all the nation was done, they remained in their places in the camp till they were healed.
The circumcision of the New Generation (remember, the old has died out) symbolically repeats the first circumcision, again linking Joshua and Moses (as later, in the New Testament, the writers will link Jesus and Moses). The Passover is also repeated for the same reason; though an added reason is God's food, the manna, is stopped. By the "reproach [insult] of Egypt" (v. 9) is meant the insult of slavery.
9: And the LORD said to Joshua, "This day I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you." And so the name of that place is called Gilgal to this day.
11: And on the morrow after the passover, on that very day, they ate of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain.
12: And the people of Israel had manna no more, but ate of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.
The point of the manna is the God provides; just like Jesus feeds the multitude when they're hungry. John makes this link even clearer when he has Jesus say he is the Bread (one of the 7 "I Am" sayings in John). Jesus goes further; he reminds the Jews that their ancestors died after eating the manna; but those who eat of his bread will have eternal life.
13: When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man stood before him with his drawn sword in his hand; and Joshua went to him and said to him, "Are you for us, or for our adversaries?"
Another scene links Joshua and Moses, who both see "God" (the angel also represents God) and both remove their shoes because they stand on holy ground. It's assumed that "angel" is a later redaction for "God."
14: And he said, "No; but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and worshiped, and said to him, "What does my lord bid his servant?"
15: And the commander of the LORD's army said to Joshua, "Put off your shoes from your feet; for the place where you stand is holy." And Joshua did so.
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1: Now Jericho was shut up from within and from without because of the people of Israel; none went out, and none came in.
2: And the LORD said to Joshua,
3: "You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days.
4: And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark; and on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, the priests blowing the trumpets.
5: And when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, as soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up every man straight before him."
15: On the seventh day they rose early at the dawn of day, and marched around the city in the same manner seven times: it was only on that day that they marched around the city seven times.
16: And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, "Shout; for the LORD has given you the city.
20: So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people raised a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.
21: Then they utterly destroyed all in the city, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and asses, with the edge of the sword.
22: And Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, "Go into the harlot's house, and bring out from it the woman, and all who belong to her, as you swore to her."
This story is puzzling; Rahab lived in the wall: how did she survive?
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This delightful story is typical of the Jacob deception tales. Its main point seems to be etiological: to explain why Gibeonites carry water and cut wood. A second reason is to show the importance of an oath: to swear falsely was an insult against God, even though one was deceived when doing so.
3: When the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai,
4: they on their part acted with cunning, and went and made ready provisions, and took worn-out sacks upon their asses, and wineskins, worn-out and torn and mended,
5: with worn-out, patched sandals on their feet, and worn-out clothes; and all their provisions were dry and moldy.
6: And they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Israel, "We have come from a far country; so now make a covenant with us."
7: But the men of Israel said to the Hivites, "Perhaps you live among us; then how can we make a covenant with you?"
8: They said to Joshua, "We are your servants." And Joshua said to them, "Who are you? And where do you come from?"
9: They said to him, "From a very far country your servants have come, because of the name of the LORD your God; for we have heard a report of him, and all that he did in Egypt,
10: and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, Sihon the king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who dwelt in Ash'taroth.
11: And our elders and all the inhabitants of our country said to us, `Take provisions in your hand for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to them, "We are your servants; come now, make a covenant with us."'
12: Here is our bread; it was still warm when we took it from our houses as our food for the journey, on the day we set forth to come to you, but now, behold, it is dry and moldy;
13: these wineskins were new when we filled them, and behold, they are burst; and these garments and shoes of ours are worn out from the very long journey."
14: So the men partook of their provisions, and did not ask direction from the LORD.
15: And Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them, to let them live; and the leaders of the congregation swore to them.
16: At the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, they heard that they were their neighbors, and that they dwelt among them.
17: And the people of Israel set out and reached their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephi'rah, Be-er'oth, and Kir'iath-je'arim.
18: But the people of Israel did not kill them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel. Then all the congregation murmured against the leaders.
19: But all the leaders said to all the congregation, "We have sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel, and now we may not touch them.
20: This we will do to them, and let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we swore to them."
21: And the leaders said to them, "Let them live."
27: But Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD, to continue to this day, in the place which he should choose.
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This is one of the most famous stories in the Bible. It's probably based on a metaphor. Indeed, when we work hard, it's as if the day was longer. Note this miracle is entirely the call of Joshua; even Moses was unable to do this (in fact, Moses was punished for trying to do a miracle himself, by striking the rock).
12: Then spoke Joshua to the LORD in the day when the LORD gave the Amorites over to the men of Israel; and he said in the sight of Israel, "Sun, stand thou still at Gibeon, and thou Moon in the valley of Ai'jalon."
13: And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies.
14: There has been no day like it before or since, when the LORD hearkened to the voice of a man; for the LORD fought for Israel.
40: So Joshua defeated the whole land; he left none remaining, but utterly destroyed all that breathed, as the LORD God of Israel commanded.
42: And Joshua took all these kings and their land at one time, because the LORD God of Israel fought for Israel.
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15: As the LORD had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD had commanded Moses.
23: And the land had rest from war.
Note: the Afro-American spiritual, "Joshua Fit de Battle of Jericho," repeats these words: "He never stopped his work until his work was done."
23
1: A long time afterward, when the LORD had given rest to Israel from all their enemies round about, and Joshua was old and well advanced in years,
2: Joshua summoned all Israel, their elders and heads, their judges and officers, and said to them,
6: "Be steadfast to keep and do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left,
7: that you may not be mixed with these nations left here among you, or make mention of the names of their gods, or swear by them, or serve them, or bow down yourselves to them,
8: but cleave to the LORD your God as you have done to this day.
This is classic Deuteronomist language, stressing the law at all times and not moving left or right of the law!
12: For if you turn back, and join the remnant of these nations left here among you, and make marriages with them, so that you marry their women and they yours,
13: know assuredly that the LORD your God will not continue to drive out these nations before you; but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a scourge on your sides, and thorns in your eyes, till you perish from off this good land which the LORD your God has given you.
These verses were probably written after the Exile: prophecy after the fact, since this is exactly what happened. Indeed, we find out in the next book, Judges, that the conquest was not as perfect or complete as this book makes out; hence the problems for the Israelites, who were tempted to follow other gods. One English translation of v. 14 gave English a famous phrase ("the way of all flesh"; though here it's translated as "the way of all the earth," meaning "death"). One of the most famous novels in the English language is titled, The Way of All Flesh.
14: "And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one thing has failed of all the good things which the LORD your God promised concerning you; all have come to pass for you, not one of them has failed.
15: But just as all the good things which the LORD your God promised concerning you have been fulfilled for you, so the LORD will bring upon you all the evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God has given you,
16: if you transgress the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them. Then the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land which he has given to you."
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1: Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem.
2: And Joshua said to all the people,
14: "Fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.
This repeats the Deuteronomist's message in the previous book of Deuteronomy, and must have served as a model text for a gospel song by Shirley Caesar, "Choose Ye This Day."
15: And if you be unwilling to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
16: Then the people answered, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;
17: for it is the LORD our God who brought us and our fathers up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, and who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed."
29: After these things Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being a hundred and ten years old.
The book of Judges is the 3d installment of what is known as the Deuteronomist History (the second after Joshua). As usual, history is replaced by theodicy (explaining the ways of God): the D writer must justify why God's promise "failed": it's because the people failed God, not because God failed the people. The common pattern is apostasy (forsaking God), punishment, repentance, and deliverance. That's where the "judges" come in (all 12 of them, though the number was probably made up to match the 12 tribes, the way Jesus' 12 apostles match the 12 tribes). The word "judge" covers many meanings, least of all the modern meaning: a judge was more like a military or tribal leader; probably "wise man," or "leader" is a closer meaning.
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6: and they took their daughters to themselves for wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons; and they served their gods.
7: And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, forgetting the LORD their God, and serving the Ba'als and the Ashe'roth.
Ba'al (Baal; Bel) is one of the Canaanite Lords or gods; Ashtaroth is plural for the fertility goddess Asherah. Fertility goddesses were popular because they promised new life. That's why the "masculine" God repeatedly says, as blessing, "Be fruitful and multiply," taking the place of a fertility goddess.
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4: Now Deb'orah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapp'idoth, was judging Israel at that time.
6: She sent and summoned Barak the son of Abin'o-am from Kedesh in Naph'tali, and said to him, "The LORD, the God of Israel, commands you, `Go, gather your men at Mount Tabor, taking ten thousand from the tribe of Naph'tali and the tribe of Zeb'ulun.
7: And I will draw out Sis'era, the general of Jabin's army, to meet you by the river Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.'"
8: Barak said to her, "If you will go with me, I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go."
9: And she said, "I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the LORD will sell Sis'era into the hand of a woman." Then Deb'orah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh.
Deborah (the subject of a Handel oratorio) is one of the great names in the Bible and this story one of the most famous. She is one of the 12 judges. The irony of Deborah's prophecy is that the woman she refers to is not herself but Jael (below). Note that "judges" usually summoned (called) only a few tribes. There was little unity in the pre-monarchal period. Many scholars see the book of Judges as an explanation for why the monarchy, which followed, was necessary. The story of Jael and Sisera (below) has been the subject of numerous paintings.
10: And Barak summoned Zeb'ulun and Naph'tali to Kedesh; and ten thousand men went up at his heels; and Deb'orah went up with him.
15: And the LORD routed Sis'era and all his chariots and all his army before Barak at the edge of the sword; and Sis'era alighted from his chariot and fled away on foot.
16: And Barak pursued the chariots and the army and all the army of Sis'era fell by the edge of the sword; not a man was left.
17: But Sis'era fled away on foot to the tent of Ja'el, the wife of Heber the Ken'ite; for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Ken'ite.
18: And Ja'el came out to meet Sis'era, and said to him, "Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me; have no fear." So he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a rug.
19: And he said to her, "Pray, give me a little water to drink; for I am thirsty." So she opened a skin of milk and gave him a drink and covered him.
20: And he said to her, "Stand at the door of the tent, and if any man comes and asks you, `Is any one here?' say, No."
21: But Ja'el the wife of Heber took a tent peg, and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple, till it went down into the ground, as he was lying fast asleep from weariness. So he died.
22: And behold, as Barak pursued Sis'era, Ja'el went out to meet him, and said to him, "Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking." So he went in to her tent; and there lay Sis'era dead, with the tent peg in his temple.
23: So on that day God subdued Jabin the king of Canaan before the people of Israel.
24: And the hand of the people of Israel bore harder and harder on Jabin the king of Canaan, until they destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.
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The following is one of the oldest texts in the Bible: The Song of Deborah. The song contrasts the victory of the Israelites against the defeat of Sisera; Deborah against Sisera's mother; the warrior's aims (spoils) against his just deserts: he didn't bring home women captives, as his mother thinks, but rather he was killed by a woman:
23: Then sang Deb'orah and Barak the son of Abin'o-am on that day:
24: "Most blessed of women be Ja'el, the wife of Heber the Ken'ite, of tent-dwelling women most blessed.
25: He asked water and she gave him milk, she brought him curds in a lordly bowl.
26: She put her hand to the tent peg and her right hand to the workmen's mallet; she struck Sis'era a blow, she crushed his head, she shattered and pierced his temple.
In the prose version, last chapter, Sisera is sleeping; here he's standing. Note the repetitions in v. 27, as if to enjoy the victory. Then note the wonderful human sketch of the mother, with full irony:
27: He sank, he fell, he lay still at her feet; at her feet he sank, he fell; where he sank, there he fell dead.
28: "Out of the window she peered, the mother of Sis'era gazed through the lattice: `Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why tarry the hoofbeats of his chariots?'
29: Her wisest ladies make answer, nay, she gives answer to herself,
30: `Are they not finding and dividing the spoil? -- A maiden or two for every man; spoil of dyed stuffs for Sis'era, spoil of dyed stuffs embroidered, two pieces of dyed work embroidered for my neck as spoil?'
31: "So perish all thine enemies, O LORD! But thy friends be like the sun as he rises in his might." And the land had rest for forty years.
Note the refrain of "rest" in v. 31; and the refrain that begins chapter 6 ("the people did what was evil"):
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11: Now the angel of the LORD came and sat under the oak at Ophrah, which belonged to Jo'ash the Abiez'rite, as his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press, to hide it from the Mid'ianites.
This verse is later echoed in the famous Annunciation scene, when the angel of the Lord tells the Virgin Mary, "The Lord is with you," which later became the famous "Ave Maria" ("Hail Mary").
12: And the angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, "The LORD is with you, you mighty man of valor."
13: And Gideon said to him, "Pray, sir, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this befallen us? And where are all his wonderful deeds which our fathers recounted to us, saying, `Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?' But now the LORD has cast us off, and given us into the hand of Mid'ian."
Note, as usual, the confusion between "Lord" and "Angel of the Lord," a result of redactions (later Jews thought it was disrespectful to imagine God speaking directly to humans).
14: And the LORD turned to him and said, "Go in this might of yours and deliver Israel from the hand of Mid'ian; do not I send you?"
15: And he said to him, "Pray, Lord, how can I deliver Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manas'seh, and I am the least in my family."
Note the Bible motif, where God always chooses the weakest or least likely savior; this climaxes in the son of God himself (Jesus) who comes in the form of a lowly person. God is not only "with" Jesus, but IS Jesus!
16: And the LORD said to him, "But I will be with you, and you shall smite the Mid'ianites as one man."
25: That night the LORD said to him, "Take your father's bull, the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Ba'al which your father has, and cut down the Ashe'rah that is beside it;
26: and build an altar to the LORD your God on the top of the stronghold here, with stones laid in due order; then take the second bull, and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Ashe'rah which you shall cut down."
Gideon, by the way, is one of the most famous names in the Bible and gave his name to the so-called "Gideon Bible" (Bibles put into hotel rooms by the Gideon Society). Note in v. 27 that Gideon, like all the Bible's heroes, is afraid and does what God commands at night!
27: So Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had told him; but because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night.
28: When the men of the town rose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Ba'al was broken down, and the Ashe'rah beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered upon the altar which had been built.
29: And they said to one another, "Who has done this thing?" And after they had made search and inquired, they said, "Gideon the son of Jo'ash has done this thing."
30: Then the men of the town said to Jo'ash, "Bring out your son, that he may die, for he has pulled down the altar of Ba'al and cut down the Ashe'rah beside it."
31: But Jo'ash said to all who were arrayed against him, "Will you contend for Ba'al? Or will you defend his cause? Whoever contends for him shall be put to death by morning. If he is a god, let him contend for himself, because his altar has been pulled down."
32: Therefore on that day he was called Jerubba'al, that is to say, "Let Ba'al contend against him," because he pulled down his altar.
This whole story is apparently an etiological story, explaining why a Hebrew, Gideon, is known as Jerubba'al, a Canaanite name with the word "Ba'al" in it! So this story gives a kind of "etymological" (word) gloss on the name; which, then, is not in praise of Ba'al but in mockery of Ba'al.
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1: Then Jerubba'al (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him rose early and encamped beside the spring of Harod; and the camp of Mid'ian was north of them.
2: The LORD said to Gideon, "The people with you are too many for me to give the Mid'ianites into their hand, lest Israel boast, saying, `My own hand has delivered me.'
3: Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, `Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home.'" And Gideon tested them; twenty-two thousand returned, and ten thousand remained.
4: And the LORD said to Gideon, "The people are still too many; take them down to the water and I will test them for you there.
5: So he brought the people down to the water; and the LORD said to Gideon, "Every one that laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set by himself; likewise every one that kneels down to drink."
6: And the number of those that lapped, putting their hands to their mouths, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people knelt down to drink water.
Most scholars have pointed out the confusion of this text, which uses "lap" in two different ways. But the idea seems to be to separate those who lap with their tongues from those who lap by drinking water pooled first in their hands. If this reading is correct, the reason is that the second would make better soldiers, since more cautious (soldiers who kneel down and drink straight from the water could be killed while doing so; while those who lap from their hands could keep their eyes open for danger). Regardless, the main idea is that the victory belongs to God, not to armies.
7: And the LORD said to Gideon, "With the three hundred men that lapped I will deliver you, and give the Mid'ianites into your hand; and let all the others go every man to his home."
16: And Gideon divided the three hundred men into three companies, and put trumpets into the hands of all of them and empty jars, with torches inside the jars.
17: And he said to them, "Look at me, and do likewise; when I come to the outskirts of the camp, do as I do.
18: When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then blow the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and shout, `For the LORD and for Gideon.'"
19: So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, when they had just set the watch; and they blew the trumpets and smashed the jars that were in their hands.
20: And the three companies blew the trumpets and broke the jars, holding in their left hands the torches, and in their right hands the trumpets to blow; and they cried, "A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!"
21: They stood every man in his place round about the camp, and all the army ran; they cried out and fled.
22: When they blew the three hundred trumpets, the LORD set every man's sword against his fellow and against all the army; and the army fled.
1: Now Abim'elech the son of Jerubba'al went to Shechem to his mother's kinsmen and said to them and to the whole clan of his mother's family,
2: "Say in the ears of all the citizens of Shechem, `Which is better for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubbaal rule over you, or that one rule over you?'"
3: And his mother's kinsmen spoke all these words on his behalf in the ears of all the men of Shechem; and their hearts inclined to follow Abim'elech, for they said, "He is our brother."
4: And they gave him seventy pieces of silver out of the house of Ba'al-be'rith with which Abim'elech hired worthless and reckless fellows, who followed him.
5: And he went to his father's house at Ophrah, and slew his brothers the sons of Jerubba'al [Gideon]; but Jotham the youngest son hid himself.
6: And all the citizens of Shechem came together, and all Beth-millo, and they went and made Abim'elech king, by the oak of the pillar at Shechem.
The book of Judges seems to be of two minds about kings. On the one hand, the lack of a king is causing a lot of problems, because tribal (=12 tribes) unity is difficult and there are many wars to fight. On the other hand, the irony of "all the citizens of Shechem came together" in order to acclaim a worthless tyrant as king, points out the problem with kings too, as the following speech of Jothan shows (one of only two fables in the Bible). The point of the fable is that only worthless people (people without talent) become king. Note Jothan's fine rhetoric after the fable:
7: When it was told to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim, and cried aloud and said to them, "Listen to me, you men of Shechem, that God may listen to you.
8: The trees once went forth to anoint a king over them; and they said to the olive tree, `Reign over us.'
9: But the olive tree said to them, `Shall I leave my fatness, by which gods and men are honored, to sway over the trees?'
10: And the trees said to the fig tree, `Come reign over us.'
11: But the fig tree said to them, `Shall I leave my sweetness and my good fruit, and to sway over the trees?'
12: And the trees said to the vine, `Come reign over us.'
13: But the vine said to them, `Shall I leave my wine which cheers gods and men, and go to sway over the trees?'
14: Then the trees said to the bramble, `Come reign over us.'
15: And the bramble said to the trees, `If in good faith you are anointing me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.'
The speech is ironic, since the bramble offers no shade and causes fires.
16: "Now therefore, if you acted in good faith and honor when you made Abim'elech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubba'al [Gideon] and his house, and have done to him as his deeds deserved --
17: for my father fought for you, and risked his life, and rescued you from the hand of Mid'ian;
18: and you have risen up against my father's house this day, and have slain his sons, seventy men on one stone, and have made Abim'elech, the son of his maidservant, king over the citizens of Shechem, because he is your kinsman --
19: if you then have acted in good faith and honor with Jerubba'al and with his house this day, then rejoice in Abim'elech, and let him rejoice in you;
20: but if not, let fire come out from Abim'elech, and devour the citizens of Shechem, and Beth-millo; and let fire come out from the citizens of Shechem, and from Beth-millo, and devour Abim'elech."
This (v. 20) prophecy comes true (below).
21: And Jotham ran away and fled, and went to Beer and dwelt there, for fear of Abim'elech his brother.
22: Abim'elech ruled over Israel three years.
23: And God sent an evil spirit between Abim'elech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abim'elech.
56: Thus God requited the crime of Abim'elech, which he committed against his father in killing his seventy brothers;
57: and God also made all the wickedness of the men of Shechem fall back upon their heads, and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubba'al.
11
1: Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior, but son of a harlot. Gilead was the father of Jephthah.
2: And Gilead's wife bore him sons; and when his wife's sons grew up, they thrust Jephthah out, and said to him, "You shall not inherit in our father's house; for you are the son of another woman."
3: Then Jephthah fled from his brothers, and dwelt in the land of Tob; and worthless fellows collected round Jephthah, and went raiding with him.
4: After a time the Ammonites made war against Israel.
5: And when the Ammonites made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring Jephthah from the land of Tob;
6: and they said to Jephthah, "Come and be our leader, that we may fight with the Ammonites."
7: But Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, "Did you not hate me, and drive me out of my father's house? Why have you come to me now when you are in trouble?"
8: And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, "That is why we have turned to you now, that you may go with us and fight with the Ammonites, and be head over the inhabitants of Gilead."
The following is another of the famous Bible stories, with something of Greek tragedy about it. Jephthah makes a vow and must sacrifice his own daughter. Rembrandt's famous painting, The Jewish Bride, is now linked to this story. Composer Handel wrote an oratorio on the subject. Human sacrifices were prohibited in the Israelite religion. Some scholars argue that Jepthah's daughter was not sacrificed. It's difficult to interpret the story. It could be intended as a warning of how important a vow to God is and that vows should not be made recklessly. The Greek element is clear in the sudden turn of fortune from perfect joy to horrible tragedy:
30: And Jephthah made a vow to the LORD, and said, "If thou wilt give the Ammonites into my hand,
31: then whoever comes forth from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return victorious from the Ammonites, shall be the LORD's, and I will offer him up for a burnt offering."
32: So Jephthah crossed over to the Ammonites to fight against them; and the LORD gave them into his hand.
34: Then Jephthah came to his home at Mizpah; and his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances; she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
35: And when he saw her, he rent his clothes, and said, "Alas, my daughter! you have brought me very low, and you have become the cause of great trouble to me; for I have opened my mouth to the LORD, and I cannot take back my vow."
36: And she said to him, "My father, if you have opened your mouth to the LORD, do to me according to what has gone forth from your mouth, now that the LORD has avenged you on your enemies, on the Ammonites."
37: And she said to her father, "Let this thing be done for me; let me alone two months, that I may go and wander on the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my companions."
38: And he said, "Go." And he sent her away for two months; and she departed, she and her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains.
39: And at the end of two months, she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had made. She had never known a man. And it became a custom in Israel
40: that the daughters of Israel went year by year to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in the year.
12
The following shows the problems of tribal unity without a king: the Jews hurt each other more than they are hurt by outsiders. The word "shibboleth" has entered the language to mean a slogan that unites or divides people.1: The men of E'phraim were called to arms, and they crossed to Zaphon and said to Jephthah, "Why did you cross over to fight against the Ammonites, and did not call us to go with you? We will burn your house over you with fire."
2: And Jephthah said to them, "I and my people had a great feud with the Ammonites; and when I called you, you did not deliver me from their hand.
3: And when I saw that you would not deliver me, I took my life in my hand, and crossed over against the Ammonites, and the LORD gave them into my hand; why then have you come up to me this day, to fight against me?"
4: Then Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and fought with E'phraim; and the men of Gilead smote E'phraim, because they said, "You are fugitives of E'phraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of E'phraim and Manas'seh."
5: And the Gileadites took the fords of the Jordan against the E'phraimites. And when the fugitives of E'phraim said, "Let me go over," the men of Gilead said, "Are you an E'phraimite?" When he said, "No,"
6: they said to him, "Then say Shibboleth," and he said, "Sibboleth," for he could not pronounce it right; they seized him and slew him at the fords of the Jordan. And there fell at that time forty-two thousand of the E'phraimites.
13
1: And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD gave them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years.
2: And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the tribe of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had no children.
3: And the angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, "Behold, you are barren and have no children; but you shall conceive and bear a son.
4: Therefore beware, and drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean,
5: for you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the boy shall be a Nazirite to God from birth; and he shall begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines."
Notice the similarity of v. 3 (above) with the announcement of Jesus' birth to Mary in the Gospel of Luke, where a barren woman is told she will have a holy son. The story of Samson is one of the most famous in the Bible and has been the subject of many stories, operas, paintings, etc. Samson is seen as a type of Jesus, though while Jesus was perfectly obedient, Samson was perfectly disobedient! The link between the two is that both died to save others; both stretched out their arms in doing so (Samson to bring down the pillars, Jesus on the cross), and both were "sun" images (Jesus was the "Sun/Son of Righteousness," as mentioned at the end of the prophet Malachi's book, one source of Christmas Day). Cecil B. DeMille, in his Hollywood movie, pictures Samson as a Jesus-like shepherd, with a lamb in his hands! Of greater importance is Samson as a Sun myth, which is obvious in the story. In this mythical reading, Delilah is Night, who conquers the sun (Samson) by blinding him. Other details relate to this myth. (Delilah doesn't blind Samson, but is the cause of it happening.) The story of Samson has problems. He's a Nazirite, which means dedicated to God; but he violates all the laws of his mother's vow (touching dead bodies, drinking wine, etc.); intead, his mother keeps the vows (see v. 13ff.)! Scholars suspect Samson was made a Nazirite to explain his strength in his hair. Thus the link with the sun myth. In the sun myth reading, Samson's strength is in his hair because his hair represents the sun's rays. Israel wanted the Samson story (heroes are good to have) but could not accept a sun god; so Samson became a Nazirite, though parts of the story contradict this.
24: And the woman bore a son, and called his name Samson; and the boy grew, and the LORD blessed him.
14
1: Samson went down to Timnah, and at Timnah he saw one of the daughters of the Philistines.
2: Then he came up, and told his father and mother, "I saw one of the daughters of the Philistines at Timnah; now get her for me as my wife."
3: But his father and mother said to him, "Is there not a woman among the daughters of your kinsmen, or among all our people, that you must go to take a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?" But Samson said to his father, "Get her for me; for she pleases me well."
Here we see a blending of two stories; on the one hand Samson is disobedient and "headstrong"; on the other hand the writer suggests all this is in obedience to God's plan.
4: His father and mother did not know that it was from the LORD; for he was seeking an occasion against the Philistines. At that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.
5: Then Samson went down with his father and mother to Timnah, and he came to the vineyards of Timnah. And behold, a young lion roared against him;
6: and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion asunder as one tears a kid; and he had nothing in his hand. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done.
7: Then he went down and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.
8: And after a while he returned to take her; and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion, and behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey.
9: He scraped it out into his hands, and went on, eating as he went; and he came to his father and mother, and gave some to them, and they ate. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey from the carcass of the lion.
This would be unclean. So Samson not only scorned his own Nazirite vows but his mother's too!
10: And his father went down to the woman, and Samson made a feast there; for so the young men used to do.
11: And when the people saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him.
12: And Samson said to them, "Let me now put a riddle to you; if you can tell me what it is, within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty festal garments;
13: but if you cannot tell me what it is, then you shall give me thirty linen garments and thirty festal garments." And they said to him, "Put your riddle, that we may hear it."
14: And he said to them, "Out of the eater came something to eat. Out of the strong came something sweet." And they could not in three days tell what the riddle was.
15: On the fourth day they said to Samson's wife, "Entice your husband to tell us what the riddle is, lest we burn you and your father's house with fire. Have you invited us here to impoverish us?"
16: And Samson's wife wept before him, and said, "You only hate me, you do not love me; you have put a riddle to my countrymen, and you have not told me what it is." And he said to her, "Behold, I have not told my father nor my mother, and shall I tell you?"
17: She wept before him the seven days that their feast lasted; and on the seventh day he told her, because she pressed him hard. Then she told the riddle to her countrymen.
18: And the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down, "What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion?" And he said to them, "If you had not plowed with my heifer, you would not have found out my riddle."
19: And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he went down to Ash'kelon and killed thirty men of the town, and took their spoil and gave the festal garments to those who had told the riddle. In hot anger he went back to his father's house.
20: And Samson's wife was given to his companion, who had been his best man.
Samson is not acting like a judge, but like a ruffian or rebel rouser. The story shows how relationships with non-Jewish (Philistine) women are dangerous for a Jewish male. It's not spelled out if Delilah (below) is Philistine, but it's assumed she is.
15
1: After a while, at the time of wheat harvest, Samson went to visit his wife with a kid; and he said, "I will go in to my wife in the chamber." But her father would not allow him to go in.
2: And her father said, "I really thought that you utterly hated her; so I gave her to your companion. Is not her younger sister fairer than she? Pray take her instead."
3: And Samson said to them, "This time I shall be blameless in regard to the Philistines, when I do them mischief."
The sun myth is developed in the image of "torches" and the "burning" of the grain (something the sun does).
4: So Samson caught three hundred foxes, and took torches; and he turned them tail to tail, and put a torch between each pair of tails.
5: And when he had set fire to the torches, he let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and burned up the shocks and the standing grain, as well as the olive orchards.
6: Then the Philistines said, "Who has done this?" And they said, "Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he has taken his wife and given her to his companion." And the Philistines came up, and burned her and her father with fire.
7: And Samson said to them, "If this is what you do, I swear I will be avenged upon you, and after that I will quit."
8: And he smote them hip and thigh with great slaughter; and he went down and stayed in the cleft of the rock of Etam.
9: Then the Philistines came up and encamped in Judah, and made a raid on Lehi.
10: And the men of Judah said, "Why have you come up against us?" They said, "We have come up to bind Samson, to do to him as he did to us."
11: Then three thousand men of Judah went down and said to Samson, "Do you not know that the Philistines are rulers over us? What then is this that you have done to us?" And he said to them, "As they did to me, so have I done to them."
Samson does not act from "judgment," but from personal pride.
12: And they said to him, "We have come down to bind you, that we may give you into the hands of the Philistines." And Samson said to them, "Swear to me that you will not fall upon me yourselves."
13: They said to him, "No; we will only bind you and give you into their hands; we will not kill you." So they bound him with two new ropes, and brought him up from the rock.
The sun motif is developed, since the sun burns cords like "wax."
14: When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting to meet him; and the Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and the ropes which were on his arms became as flax that has caught fire, and his bonds melted off his hands.
15: And he found a fresh jawbone of an ass, and put out his hand and seized it, and with it he slew a thousand men.
16: And Samson said, "With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jawbone of an ass have I slain a thousand men."
18: And he was thirsty, and he called on the LORD and said, "Thou hast granted this great deliverance by the hand of thy servant; and shall I now die of thirst, and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?"
19: And God split open the hollow place that is at Lehi, and there came water from it; and when he drank, his spirit returned, and he revived. Therefore the name of it was called En-hakkor'e; it is at Lehi to this day.
20: And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
The story shows that Samson's strength is from God. V. 20 may have been added to make Samson seem like a judge and so include his story in the book of Judges.
16
1: Samson went to Gaza, and there he saw a harlot, and he went in to her.
2: The Gazites were told, "Samson has come here," and they surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the gate of the city. They kept quiet all night, saying, "Let us wait till the light of the morning; then we will kill him."
If Samson is a sun myth, v. 2 shows that Samson can only be killed in "the light of the morning," because the sun would not be present at night. Also, the day begins at midnight, when Samson "arose" (v. 3). The sun, like Samson, would also rise over a hill (v. 3). Also, the cycle of the sun would match the cycle of Samson's daily affairs!
3: But Samson lay till midnight, and at midnight he arose and took hold of the doors of the gate of the city and the two posts, and pulled them up, bar and all, and put them on his shoulders and carried them to the top of the hill that is before Hebron.
4: After this he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Deli'lah.
5: And the lords of the Philistines came to her and said to her, "Entice him, and see where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to subdue him; and we will each give you eleven hundred pieces of silver."
6: And Deli'lah said to Samson, "Please tell me where your great strength lies, and how you might be bound, that one could subdue you."
7: And Samson said to her, "If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings which have not been dried, then I shall become weak, and be like any other man."
8: Then the lords of the Philistines brought her seven fresh bowstrings which had not been dried, and she bound him with them.
9: Now she had men lying in wait in an inner chamber. And she said to him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" But he snapped the bowstrings, as a string of tow snaps when it touches the fire. So the secret of his strength was not known.
10: And Deli'lah said to Samson, "Behold, you have mocked me, and told me lies; please tell me how you might be bound."
11: And he said to her, "If they bind me with new ropes that have not been used, then I shall become weak, and be like any other man."
12: So Deli'lah took new ropes and bound him with them, and said to him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" And the men lying in wait were in an inner chamber. But he snapped the ropes off his arms like a thread.
13: And Deli'lah said to Samson, "Until now you have mocked me, and told me lies; tell me how you might be bound." And he said to her, "If you weave the seven locks of my head with the web and make it tight with the pin, then I shall become weak, and be like any other man."
14: So while he slept, Deli'lah took the seven locks of his head and wove them into the web. And she made them tight with the pin, and said to him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" But he awoke from his sleep, and pulled away the pin, the loom, and the web.
15: And she said to him, "How can you say, `I love you,' when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and you have not told me where your great strength lies."
16: And when she pressed him hard with her words day after day, and urged him, his soul was vexed to death.
17: And he told her all his mind, and said to her, "A razor has never come upon my head; for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother's womb. If I be shaved, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man."
18: When Deli'lah saw that he had told her all his mind, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, "Come up this once, for he has told me all his mind." Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her, and brought the money in their hands.
19: She made him sleep upon her knees; and she called a man, and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him.
20: And she said, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" And he awoke from his sleep, and said, "I will go out as at other times, and shake myself free." And he did not know that the LORD had left him.
If Delilah = Night, then the sun has been conquered (=blinded).
21: And the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with bronze fetters; and he ground at the mill in the prison.
A theme from the beginning of Exodus is slavery. Only when people follow God are they free; if they don't follow God, they become slaves to mere men, as Samson does here. Note in v. 22 that as the sun starts to rise even as it sets, so Samson's hair grows back even as it's cut.
22: But the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
23: Now the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice; for they said, "Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hand."
24: And when the people saw him, they praised their god; for they said, "Our god has given our enemy into our hand, the ravager of our country, who has slain many of us."
25: And when their hearts were merry, they said, "Call Samson, that he may make sport for us." So they called Samson out of the prison, and he made sport before them. They made him stand between the pillars;
26: and Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand, "Let me feel the pillars on which the house rests, that I may lean against them."
27: Now the house was full of men and women; all the lords of the Philistines were there, and on the roof there were about three thousand men and women, who looked on while Samson made sport.
28: Then Samson called to the LORD and said, "O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be avenged upon the Philistines for one of my two eyes."
29: And Samson grasped the two middle pillars upon which the house rested, and he leaned his weight upon them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other.
30: And Samson said, "Let me die with the Philistines." Then he bowed with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people that were in it. So the dead whom he slew at his death were more than those whom he had slain during his life.
25: In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.
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