Judges 4:11

Judges 4:11 says, Now Heber the Kenite, which was of the children of Hobab the father in law of Moses, had severed himself from the Kenites, and pitched his tent unto the plain of Zaanaim, which is by Kedesh.  Heber, from the Kinites, the descendents of Moses's father-in-law, in the south, had moved to the north.  Verse twelve adds, And they shewed Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was gone up to mount Tabor.  They, which could mean the Kinites, showed Sisera where Barak was.  Matthew Henry says that if it were the Kenites that they might have thought this to be a kindness since there was peace between Jabin and that family at this time.  Whatever the reason, it brought to fulfillment Deborah's promise that the LORD would bring Sisera to Barak.  We as followers of Christ today may innocently do something that brings trouble to others, but we should never do so deliberately.  Verse thirteen continues, And Sisera gathered together all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people that were with him, from Harosheth of the Gentiles unto the river of Kishon.  Having heard this news, Sisera gathered all his chariots to go to war with Barak.  We can be certain today that Satan has gathered all his forces to go to war with Christians throughout the world.  If we as followers of Christ are living by God's standards, Satan should always know where to find us.  Verse fourteen states, And Deborah said unto Barak, Up; for this is the day in which the LORD hath delivered Sisera into thine hand: is not the LORD gone out before thee? So Barak went down from mount Tabor, and ten thousand men after him.  Deborah told Barak it was time to get up and go meet Sisera, because the LORD had gone before him and delivered Sisera into his hand.  What we can be certain of today as Christians is that no matter what happens in this world, Jesus Christ has gone before us to ensure our everlasting victory.  Verse fifteen adds, And the LORD discomfited Sisera, and all his chariots, and all his host, with the edge of the sword before Barak; so that Sisera lighted down off his chariot, and fled away on his feet.  God caused Sisera to be so uncomfortable that he left his chariot and fled the area.  This was even before Barak and his army got there.  We do not have to depend on vast armies to defeat evil in this world today as Christians, because God goes before us and defeats them for us as long as we remain faithful to Christ.  Verse sixteen continues, But Barak pursued after the chariots, and after the host, unto Harosheth of the Gentiles: and all the host of Sisera fell upon the edge of the sword; and there was not a man left.  Though Sisera had fled his chariots, evidently the others in the chariots fled in their chariots, but it did them no good.  All of Sisera's army fell before the sword.  We need to always acknowledge that no matter how powerful our enemies may seem today  that God has already secured our victory over them, so we simply need to claim that victory. 

 

Judges 4:1

Judges 4:1 says, And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, when Ehud was dead.  After Ehud died, the people of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD.  Verse two adds, And the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, that reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera, which dwelt in Harosheth of the Gentiles.  This time, God allowed them to be defeated by Jabin, king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor.  Joshua had defeated a king by that name in a city by that name, so this was probably an ancestor, after the city had been rebuilt.  We often face the same sin once again, even when we think we have totally destroyed it from our life.  Verse three continues, And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD: for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.  The people of Isreal once again cried out to God, because Jabin had nine hundred iron chariots and he mightily oppressed them.  He oppressed them for twenty years. There are many countries with a lot of powerful armies today, some of which are oppressing and killing Christians, but we need to make sure that God isn't allowing it because of our sinfulness as professed followers of Christ.  Verse four states, And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.  Deborah who was called a prophetess, was the judge of Israel at this time.  She was intimately acquainted with God and inspired by the Holy Spirit.  I believe that God still works through both men and women to reach the world with His gospel, and all Christians are indwelled by the Holy Spirit and are empowered by Him if they are obedient to God's word.  Verse five adds, And she dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in mount Ephraim: and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.  Deborah lived under the palm tree that would become known by her name.  Matthew Henry says she either had a house under the palm tree, or it was a seat of judgment for her.  Either way, the people of Israel came to her for direction, not because she was the head of the government, but because she was directed by the Spirit of God. We need to not look for the government to solve all our problems, but we need to look to God and His leadership through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Verse six says, And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not the LORD God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of  Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?  Deborah called Barak and asked him had not God called on him to take ten thousand men of the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun and go toward Mount Tabor.  Evidently he had, but hadn't acted on it.  When God calls on us to do something for Him today, we need to act and not wait for someone else to point out what we need to be doing.  Verse seven adds, And I will draw unto thee to the river Kishon Sisera, the captain of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude; and I will deliver him into thine hand.  Deborah continued by asking Barak if God had not promised to draw Sisera, the head of the army of Jabin to him with his chariots and to deliver him into Barak's hand.  We as followers of Christ have already been given the power to defeat all our enemies spiritually, yet we often fail to live as though we believe this.  Verse eight states, And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go.  Barak said if Deborah would go with him he would go, but if she wouldn't, he wouldn't.  We need to follow God's direction even if we go alone into the battle against evil in the world today.  Verse nine adds, And she said, I will surely go with thee: notwithstanding the journey that thou takest shall not be for thine honour; for the LORD shall sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. And Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh.  Deborah said that she would go with him, but that when she did, Barak would receive no honor, but people would say that Sisera was delivered into the hand of a woman, and she went with him.  We need to go and do what God calls us to do without demanding that someone else goes with us.  Verse ten continues, And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; and he went up with ten thousand men at his feet: and Deborah went up with him.  Barak called the army as God had commanded, and Deborah went with him.  Since we as followers of Christ are all a part of God's army, we need to obediently go where He sends us.  

Judges 3:24

Judges 3:24 says, When he was gone out, his servants came; and when they saw that, behold, the doors of the parlour were locked, they said, Surely he covereth his feet in his summer chamber.  After Ehud left, Eglon's servants noticed that his door was locked.  They thought he was sleeping  and didn't want to disturb him.  Verse twenty five adds, And they tarried till they were ashamed: and, behold, he opened not the doors of the parlour; therefore they took a key, and opened them: and, behold, their lord was fallen down dead on the earth.  Eventually, they were ashamed of their inaction in not checking on Eglon, so they opened the door and found him fallen down dead.  We can assume they didn't immediately see the knife, because it was hidden in his fat.  Verse twenty-six continues, And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped unto Seirath.  While the servants waited to check on Eglon, Ehud escaped.  We could say he was fortunate in being able to dispose of the king and escape, but I would say that God was with him in both cases.  We may sometimes tend to write things off to fate or good fortune when we should be praising God for blessing us.  Verse twenty-seven states, And it came to pass, when he was come, that he blew a trumpet in the mountain of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mount, and he before them.  After Ehud escaped, he blew the trumpet to call the people of Israel to him, and they came.  One day, the trumpet of the Lord is going to sound to call all His people, not to war, but to everlasting victory.  Verse twenty-eight adds, And he said unto them, Follow after me: for the LORD hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand. And they went down after him, and took the fords of Jordan toward Moab, and suffered not a man to pass over.  Ehud called on them to follow him, because the LORD had delvered their enemies the Moabites into ther hands.  Today, we are to call people to follow Jesus Christ, because He has given us everlasting victory over all our enemies.  Of course, the people of Israel had to put their faith in Ehud's declaration, just as people today have to put their faith in our declaration of the gospel.  Verse twenty-nine continues, And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, all lusty, and all men of valour; and there escaped not a man.  The Israelites killed ten thousand men at that time, all who were fit and ready for war.  No matter how strong our enemies may be today, as long as we are faithful to Jesus Christ, He has already given us the victory.  Verse thirty says, So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest fourscore years.  The Moabites were subdued that day, and Israel was at peace for eighty years.  God has subdued all our enemies spiritually if we are followers of Christ, and we have not eighty years but everlasting peace through our faith in Him.  Verse thirty-one adds, And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel.  After Ehud, Shamgar was the judge of Israel.  Matthew says that Shamgar acted in a different part of Israel to deliver them from the Philistines.  We can accurately say that God always has someone ready to do His work, as long as that person is willing to follow Him by faith. 

Judges 3:12

Judges 3:12 says, And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD.  This is the pattern we will find throughout the book of Judges.  The people of Israel will do evil against God, He will allow them to be conquered because of their sin, they will eventually cry out to Him, He will raise up a Judge to deliver them, then they will soon fail back in to sin again,and the cycle repeats.  Verse thirteen adds, And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees.  This time, God allowerd Eglon, the king of Moab to defeat them   Eglon allied with the people of Ammon and Amalek, and they defeated the people of Israel.  Today, people who may not even particularly like each other will often unite against Christians, but hopefully it won't be because we have turned against God.  Verse fourteen continues, So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.  The people of Israel were under the rule of Eglon for eighteen years.  Until we call on God for deliverance, we will remain under the power of sin if we have turned away from Him.  Verse fifteen states, But when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab.  After eighteen years, the people of Israel cried out to God, and He raised up another deliverer, or Judge, a Benjamite named Ehud, who was left-handed.  Then, God always raised up the right man at the right time to deliver the people of Israel, but also at the right time He later sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to deliver us from the power of sin once and for all.  Verse sixteen adds, But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh.  Ehud was clever in his approach to defeat Eglon.  He made a dagger which he strapped to his right thigh under his clothes.  Verse seventeen continues, And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was a very fat man.  Ehud brought a present to Eglon, who we are told was a very fat man.  Many people today have grown materially fat by abusing those who follow Christ.  Verse eighteen says, And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the people that bare the present.  After Ehud presented the present, the people who carried the present in were sent away by Ehud.  Verse nineteen adds, But he himself turned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, O king: who said, Keep silence. And all that stood by him went out from him.  Ehud returned and told Eglon he had a secret errand for him, and asked Eglon to keep it a secret, so he sent away the others who were there.  Ehud was now alone with Eglon.  We often have to simply get alone with our sins and confront them head on in order to overcome them.  Ultimately, it is always up to us to acknowledge our sins, as the people of Israel were acknowledging theirs, and ask for forgiveness through our Deliverer, Jesus Christ.  Verse twenty continues, And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat.  When they were alone in the summer palace, Ehud told Eglon that he had a message from God for him.  We today have a message from God for the lost people of the world, even our enemies, and that is that Jesus Christ died for their sins, and that they can have everlasting life through putting their faith in Him as their Savior and Lord.  Verse twenty-one states, And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly:  Ehud retrieved the dagger with his left hand and thrust it into Eglon's belly.  Verse twenty-two adds, And the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon the blade, so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly; and the dirt came out.  Eglon was so fat that he could not pull the dagger out, because fat closed over the dagger.  Verse twenty-three continues, Then Ehud went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the parlour upon him, and locked them.  Ehud left Eglon alone and locked him in the summer palace to die.  Now, we as Christians are not called on to kill our enemies, but we are called on to kill any sin that enslaves us through the power of the Holy Spirit, and we alone can do that.

Judges 3:1

Judges 3:1 says, Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to prove Israel by them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan;  God had told the people of Israel to drive out all the people that they found in the Promised Land, but they didn't obey Him and do so.  God could have removed them Himself, but He left them instead to prove the faithfulness of Israel.  God could remove all sin from our lives today as Christians, but He doesn't, leaving it up to us to be faithful in the face of temptation.  Verse two adds, Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof;  God left these nations so that the new generation of Israel might know about war, when they had not before.  We cannot know how to defeat sin by faith in Jesus Christ if we never face the temptation to sin.  Verse three continues, Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baalhermon unto the entering in of Hamath.  Then, we are given a list of all the enemies of the people of Israel that remained.  We may not be able to list all of our spiritual enemies in the world today, but we do know that they are numerous.  If we live by faith in Jesus Christ though, He gives us the power to defeat them all.  Verse four concludes, And they were to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken unto the commandments of the LORD, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.  We are told that these enemies were left to prove Israel's faith.  We will never know if we will be faithful to God if we never face temptation.   God tells us that we are to go into all the world sharing the gospel, and we will certainly face many enemies and temptations when we do.  Still, God gives us the power to overcome them all by faith.  Verse five states, And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites:  Verse six adds, And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods.  Not only did the people of Israel not drive out all their enemies, they intermingled with them by marriage.  We may not have all our enemies driven out today, but we should never intermingle with them by marriage.   Though we are commanded to go into the world, we are not commanded to allow ourselves to become the same as they are.  As followers of Christ, we are to be a people set apart from the world spiritually.  Verse seven declares, And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgat the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves.  When the people of Israel began to intermingle physically with other people around them, they soon forgot God and began to worship the false gods they worshipped.  We cannot follow God by faith and allow any false gods to begin to control us.  Verse eight adds, Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel served Chushanrishathaim eight years.  Because of their disobedience, God allowed the people to Israel to be defeated by the king of Mesopotamia, and they served him for eight years.   If we allow other gods into our lives today, we will be under their power until we turn to God and ask for His forgiveness.  Verse nine says, And when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.  After they were once again enslaved, the people of Israel cried out to God for deliverance, and He raised up a deliverer.  If we are under the power of sin today as Christians, we simply need to cry out to God, because He has already provided the only deliverer we will ever need, and that is Jesus Christ.  Verse ten adds, And the Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went out to war: and the LORD delivered Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushanrishathaim.  Othniel, Caleb’s younger brother, was the deliverer that God raised up, and he through the power of God defeated Chushanrishathaim.  God sent Jesus Christ to deliver us from all our sins, and as long as we are faithful to Him, they will never again have power over us.  Verse eleven, And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.  Under the leadership of Othniel, the people of Israel lived at peace for forty years, then he died.  Of course, this peace came from faithfulness to God, and if we want to be at peace today, we must be faithful to God and follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit, Who will never die, nor forsake us, as long as we are obedient to His leadership. 

Judges 2:19

Judges 2:19 says, And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they returned, and corrupted themselves more than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down unto them; they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way.  After the judge that God had placed over Israel died, the people got even worse than they had been before.  People today who have been following a particular religious leader, but who haven't really put their faith in Christ, often become worse than they were before if he dies.  Like the people of Israel, they may see him as the authority instead of seeing Gad as the authority.  We need to make sure that our faith is in Christ alone.  Verse twenty adds, And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel; and he said, Because that this people hath transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto my voice;  Once again, God's anger was hot against the actions of the people of Israel, because they had transgressed His covenant.  I believe that it was their actions, and not the people themselves, that God's anger was directed at.  God hates the sin, but loves the sinner.  Verse twenty-one states, I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations which Joshua left when he died:  God said He was no longer going to help them defeat the nations that had not been defeated when Joshua was alive.  We cannot fail to keep our covenant with God established when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord and still expect Him to give us victory over all our problems in life, but we often do expect Hin to and grumble when He doesn't.  Verse twenty-two adds, That through them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the LORD to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not.  God said He would use these other nations to see if the people of Israel would walk by faith in Him or not, as their fathers had done. When trials and tribulations come into our life as Christians, God may be allowing them to see if we are in a real covenant relationship with Him or not.  If we are, then these trials and tribulations will only strengthen our faith.  Verse twenty-three continues, Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.  God left those nations that had not been defeated by Joshua and did not drive them out of the Promised Land.  God has not driven all sin out of the world today for those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ, but He has given us victory over all sin if we put our faith in Him. 

Judges 2:11

Judges 2:11 says, And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim:  The people of Israel, God's chosen people, did evil in His sight, and served Baalim, a false god.  God chose them, but they did not choose Him.  If we are God's people, we should not do evil in His sight, and we can certainly never follow other gods and be a part of His chosen people.  Verse twelve adds, And they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the LORD to anger.  Those who were called God's people forsook Him and worshipped other Gods.  This provoked God's anger.  If we who are called Christians today are following other gods, we really are not His people and we will earn His wrath.  Verse thirteen continues, And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.  I don't think we can ever forsake our salvation if we are truly saved, but some people who profess to be saved instead follow other gods.  Verse fourteen states, And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies.  God,who had delivered the people of Israel from Egypt by His power, now removed His protective hand from them, and they were defeated by other nations.  They could not stand by their own power, and neither can we in the world today.  Verse fifteen adds, Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed.  When the hand of God was against them, they were under the power of evil.  I don't believe God sends evil our way when we refuse to accept Him as our one and only God, but He does allow evil to have power over us.  Of course, like Sodom and Gomorrah, if we reach the point where there is no hope of redemption, God may utterly destroy us, but this is not the same as sending evil on us.  Verse sixteen declares, Nevertheless the LORD raised up judges, which delivered them out of the hand of those that spoiled them.  Things were not forever hopeless, because in time God raised up judges to deliver the people of Israel from their oppressors.  When the time was right, God sent Jesus Christ to deliver anyone who will put their faith in Him as their personal Savior and Lord from the oppression of sin and the death penaty it brings.  Verse seventeen adds,  And yet they would not hearken unto their judges, but they went a whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them: they turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obeying the commandments of the LORD; but they did not so.  Though God raised up judges, the people of Israel wouldn't listen to them and  continued to chase after other gods.  Though the gospel is preached today, many people will not listen to it and continue to chase after all sorts of other gods.  Verse eighteen continues, And when the LORD raised them up judges, then the LORD was with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented the LORD because of their groanings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them. God was with the judges and delivered them from the hands of all their enemies.   God is still with Christians today, especially preachers, and will deliver them spiritually from all their enemies, no matter what happens in this lifetime.