Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

• Outline
  I. The reason for Israel's apostasy 1:1-3:6A. Hostilities between the Israelites and the Canaanites after Joshua's death 1:1-2:51. Initial successes and failures ch. 12. The announcement of God's discipline 2:1-5B. Israel's c...
• I. THE REASONS FOR ISRAEL'S APOSTASY 1:1--3:6
  The first major section in the book (1:1-3:6) explains very clearly why the period of the judges was a dark chapter in Israel's history. God revealed the reasons for Israel's apostasy and consequent national problems in terms...
• II. THE RECORD OF ISRAEL'S APOSTASY 3:7--16:31
  Israel's JudgesJudgeScriptureIsrael's OppressorsLength in YearsNation(s)King(s)OppressionJudgeshipPeaceOthniel3:7-11MesopotamiaCushan-rishathaim8(ca. 1358-1350 B.C.)40(ca. 1350-1310 B.C.)Ehud3:12-30Moab (with Ammon & Amal...
• The faithful and unfaithful participants 5:12-18
  God had to rouse Deborah to oppose the Canaanites; she did not initiate this action. God also aroused her to sing His praise after the victory. After God stimulated Deborah and Barak into action, several Israelite survivors o...
• D. The fourth apostasy 6:1-10:5
  The writer of Judges structured this book so the story of Gideon would be its focal center."Within the main body of the book, seven major narrative blocks can be noted. Moreover, there are certain parallel features between th...
• 1. The story of Gideon 6:1-8:32
  Tanner also pointed out that the Gideon narrative consists of five primary structural sections."The first section (6:1-10) provides the introduction and setting before Gideon's debut, the second section (6:11-32) gives the co...
• Gideon's public confession 6:25-32
  "Under normal circumstances the narrative should have proceeded directly from v. 24 to vv. 33-35, and then on to 7:1. But the normal sequence is interrupted twice to deal with a pair of abnormalities. The first is an objectiv...
• Gideon's personal struggle to believe God's promise 6:33-7:18
  "The primary matter in the Gideon narrative is not the deliverance itself, but rather something more personal, namely, Gideon's struggle to believe God's promise. . . ."Judges 6:33-7:18 is arranged in the following concentric...
• The mobilizing of four tribes in fear 6:33-35
  Some time later Israel's enemies from the East again crossed the Jordan and massed their forces in the Valley of Jezreel near Gideon's home (v. 33). They numbered 135,000, or 135 units, depending on the meaning of elephhere (...
• The mobilizing of Gideon's band in faith 7:15-18
  Upon hearing this interpretation Gideon received courage to believe that God would indeed grant him victory (v. 15)."No character in the book receives more divine assurance than Gideon and no one displays more doubt. Gideon i...
• The resentment of the Ephraimites 8:1-3
  Gideon had not invited the men of Ephraim to join him when he recruited the tribes of Manasseh, Asher, Zebulon, and Naphtali (6:35). I assume he did this at the Lord's command since he did not need more soldiers. The men of E...
• Gideon's compromise 8:22-28
  The supernatural victory God had given His people elevated Gideon into national recognition. Some of the men of Israel invited Gideon to be their king and to begin a dynasty of rulers (v. 22). Perhaps they were from the north...
• 2. Oppression under the Ammonites 10:8-18
  The Israelites felt the main influence of the Ammonites on the east side of the Jordan River that bordered Ammon (v. 8). However the Ammonites also attacked the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim west of the Jordan (v. 9)...
• Jephthah's vow and victory 11:29-33
  God's Spirit then clothed Jephthah guaranteeing divine enablement and victory in the approaching encounter with the Ammonite army (v. 29; cf. 3:10; 6:34; 14:6, 19; 1 Sam. 10:10). He travelled through Gilead in the tribal terr...
• The fate of Jephthah's daughter 11:34-40
  Verses 1-33 record Jephthah's success. The rest of his story (11:34-12:7) relates his failure. The writer likewise recorded Gideon's success first (6:1-8:23) and then his failure (8:24-9:57). We shall find a similar pattern w...
• Samson and Delilah 16:4-21
  The first three verses present Samson sowing "wild oats."Verses 4-21 picture him reaping a bitter harvest (cf. Gal. 6:7).Samson allowed a woman to seduce him again. She lived in the Sorek Valley between Samson's home area of ...
• III. THE RESULTS OF ISRAEL'S APOSTASY chs. 17--21
  The following two extended incidents (ch. 17-21) differ from the records of the judges just completed (chs. 3-16). They are not accounts of the activities of any of Israel's judges. They are the record of events that took pla...
• The establishment of idolatry at Dan 18:27-31
  The Danites' defeat of the inhabitants of Laish appears cruel and unjustified (cf. 9:45-49). The town that seemed so desirable to the spies was really vulnerable and isolated. Its advantages proved to be weaknesses. Since God...
• Conclusion
  The Book of Joshua recorded Israel's victory over her enemies through trust in and obedience to God. The Book of Judges shows the defeat of the nation by its enemies from without and within due to refusal to trust and obey Go...
• Bibliography
  Aharoni, Yohanan. Land of the Bible. Phildelphia: Westminster Press, 1962.Aharoni, Yohanan, and Michael Avi-Yonah. The Macmillan Bible Atlas. Revised ed. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1977.Albright, William Foxwell. The...
• 1. Saul's disobedience at Gilgal 13:1-15
  The writer introduced the history of Saul's reign by referring to the king's age and possibly the length of his reign. Verse one contains a textual corruption in the Hebrew text.132There the verse reads, "Saul was . . . years...
• 2. Restoring fellowship with Yahweh ch. 14
  God blessed David and his kingdom because David had honored God by seeking to bring the ark into Jerusalem. The Chronicler recorded three instances of divine blessing in this chapter.First, God gave David favor in the eyes of...
• The faithful king to come 9:2-7
  In contrast to Ahaz, who refused to listen to and obey God, the Lord would raise up a faithful king who would be born and reign in the future (the Millennium). This pericope climaxes the present section (7:1-9:7) dealing with...
• The certainty of these benefits 62:1-9
  It seemed to Isaiah's audience that the promises in chapter 60 could hardly come to pass since the Babylonian exile was still ahead of them. The Lord assured them that He would surely fulfill these promises."Much of this chap...
• The first oracle 4:6-7
  4:6 The angel announced a word of explanation from Yahweh that Zechariah was to pass on to Zerubbabel, the descendant of David who was the leader of the first group of returnees from exile.88He was to tell him, "not by might ...