Do I Hear Sheep?
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 15 – 16 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 3 – 4; Proverbs 2; Psalms 6 – 10)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Isaiah 40:31
Read the “0402 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?” – (1 Samuel 15:14 )
“And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.” – (1 Samuel 15:22)
The story in 1 Samuel 15 goes like this: God wanted Saul and the people of Israel to go and utterly destroy the Amelekites, and all that belonged to them, from off the face of the earth. It is not often that God gave a commandment like this, but it is important to know that when He did, He had a good reason. We may not completely understand why God would want something like this to happen, but we know that God is God, and He knows what is best. Saul obeyed much of what God commanded him to do. He wiped out all of the Amelekites, except the king, Agag. Saul also spared the sheep, because he justified that the sheep could be used for a sacrifice. However, God was not pleased with Saul’s partial obedience, and He was not interested in Saul’s sacrifice. God wanted total obedience, which is “better than sacrifice”.
If we look carefully at the text, we can figure out why Saul did not completely obey God. Consider these verses from the passage:
“And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?” – (1 Samuel 15:17)
“And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.” – (1 Samuel 15:24)
“Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD thy God.” – (1 Samuel 15:30)
It is apparent from these verses that Saul had a problem with pride. I guess we can all relate to that, can’t we? He was more concerned about pleasing the people, and being elevated in their sight, than he was about obeying and pleasing the Lord. How many times have we compromised our obedience in order to appease the people around us?
So it was Saul’s pride that caused him to disobey. But what causes you (or me) to disobey? Is it pride like Saul? Is it covetousness? Is it laziness? We all have something in our lives that puts the pressure on us to not do what God commands us to do. God wants a total surrender though. He wants complete obedience, and He does not accept our excuses for disobedience.
Posted in Thoughts from 1 Samuel by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
Sweeter Than Honey
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 12 – 14 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Mathew 1 – 2; Psalms 1 – 5; Proverbs 1
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 27:15
Read the “0401 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“Then said Jonathan, My father hath troubled the land: see, I pray you, how mine eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.” – (1 Samuel 14:29)
“The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” – (Psalm 19:9-10)
“How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” – (Psalm 119:103)
In chapter 14 of 1 Samuel we see a great victory for Israel against their enemies, the Philistines. It all started when Saul’s son, Jonathan, and his armour bearer decide that they are going to trust God to bring a great victory. This is a very similar situation to the account of David and Goliath. Here, the massive army of the Philistines is encamped near the much smaller army of Israel. Saul, Israel’s king, is not really taking any action; so Jonathon decides to do something. Him and his armourbearer go up to where the Philistines are, and God goes with them, and gives them a great victory. This starts a chain reaction where the Philistines start running for their lives, and even fighting each other. Saul is watching this from a great distance, and is not sure what is happening, but soon realizes that his enemy is leaving. Now he decides to get involved. The rest of the people of Israel, along with Saul, join the chase, and attempt to kill all of the Philistines before they completely escape out of Israel. Saul then does something dumb. He tells all of his people that they are not to eat anything until the battle is completely over. Anybody who violates this command will be put to death. The people don’t eat, but Jonathon does. He come upon a little honey in the woods as he is chasing the Philistine army, and he eats it. Now Jonathon did not know about Saul’s order. However, the Bible says that his “eyes were enlightened”. By the way, if the rest of Israel was allowed to have a little of that honey, they would have had a lot more energy to continue in the battle. In fact, they are so famished that when it does come time to eat, they don’t even cook their meat; they eat it raw, which was forbidden by God.
There is a wonderful picture here regarding the honey. The honey is a picture of the Word of God. Notice the other verses above that compare honey to the Word. As Christians, we are supposed to be in a battle; and we need to recharge our spiritually batteries often throughout the battle. We need to take time to open the Bible, and allow God’s Word to “enlighten our eyes”, giving us the wisdom and strength that we need to face the battles that will come our way. Have you eaten your honey today? Don’t let the Saul’s of this world keep you from tasting the sweet Word of God.
By the way, have you noticed that Saul has a rather insecure and obsessive personality. Why would he come up with such a rule anyway. He wants total control over the people. He didn’t want their eyes to be enlightened. Religion can be like that today. They frown upon the people tasting of the heavenly honey themselves, because they want to control completely what spiritual nutrition the people receive.
Posted in Thoughts from 1 Samuel by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
Humble Beginnings
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 8 – 11 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 16 – 19, Revelation 20 – 22; Proverbs 31)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 3:5 & 6
Read the “0331 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And Samuel said to all the people, See ye him whom the LORD hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people? And all the people shouted, and said, God save the king.” – (1 Samuel 10:24)
“And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?” (1 Samuel 15:17)
The life of Saul has always fascinated me. Saul started out so well. If I were reading the Bible for the very first time, and just read up to chapter 11, I would see no indication at all that Saul would eventually turn bad. So far all that we have read about Saul is good. In chapter 8, we see him serving his father by searching the countryside for some lost asses. In chapter 9, he is met by Samuel the prophet and is told that “all the desire of Israel” was on him. Upon hearing this statement, Saul humbly states that he and is family were from the least of the tribes of Israel, basically stating that he was not even worthy of consideration. When it comes time for Samuel to announce to the people that Saul would be king, Saul is hiding. I don’t see even a hint of pride in this young man so far. Even when he is opposed by some ungodly men, he holds his peace, and then later when he was annointed king, some of his supporters remembered the opposition and tried to have them executed, but Saul refuses. He seems to be making all of the right moves thus far. He is humble, yet he demonstrates strong leadership when his people were threatened by the Ammonites in chapter 11. He rallies all of the people of Israel to come to the battle, and they destroy the invading army from Ammon. Saul starts out great.
I almost want to stop reading here while everything is “still good in the hood”. What happens to Saul? Does he stay on the right path or does he go off course somewhere? Well, we will read all about it in the next few days, but let me give you a little hint here. As we have already seen, Saul starts out very humble, but he will eventually become full of pride; and pride will bring about his destruction. Pride is a huge problem for most of us. Consider the following verses:
“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” – (Proverbs 16:18)
“Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.” – (Proverbs 13:10)
“These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,” – (Proverbs 6:16-17)
“A man’s pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.” – (Proverbs 29:23)
The Bible has a lot to say about pride. As we read these next few chapters, watch out for pride developing in the heart of Saul; but more importantly watch out for the development of pride in your own life.
“Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.” – (1 Peter 5:5)
Posted in Thoughts from 1 Samuel by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Lent to the Lord
Today’s Passage – 1 Samuel 1 – 3 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 10 – 12; Proverbs 29; Psalms 141 – 145)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 119:105
Read a previous post from this passage – “Eli Didn’t Correct His Children“
Read the “0329 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him: Therefore also I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he liveth he shall be lent to the LORD. And he worshipped the LORD there.” – (1 Samuel 1:27-28)
“Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.” – (Psalm 127:3)
“And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” – (Ephesians 6:4)
One of the greatest blessings and privileges in life for a married couple is to be given the opportunity to raise children in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord.” In our reading today we see Hannah, the wife of Elkanah, who desired more than anything to be given the privilege of giving birth to children. She begged God to open up her womb and she promised God that she would give the child back to the Lord. In other words, she understood that the child would not really belong to her, he would belong to the Lord. God granted her request and she was faithful to her word, and literally gave the child when he was old enough to be trained by the priest in the service of the Lord.
God has blessed my wife and I with four wonderful children, three of which are married with children of their own. One of our married children is still living and serving the Lord in our church, which is a wonderful blessing. However, two of our married children live many miles away, and though we speak with them almost daily, and even see them often, we miss them terribly. One of the most difficult things that we can do as parents is to let go of our children when they are grown. We want to keep them around us forever. However, oftentimes God may have a special plan for our children that will lead them to be apart from us geographically. As hard as that may be, we must recognize that God gave us these children for a specific purpose and a limited time. We were never owners, only stewards. They belong to the Lord. If God chooses to use them as missionaries on a foreign field, or perhaps move them to the other side of the country, that is His right; and we must not only accept His will, but support it as well.
If God has blessed you and your spouse with children, please remember that those precious ones are really only “lent” to you for a short time. You have been given the awesome responsibility of teaching a child how to love and serve God. Don’t waste time; it is very precious. You will blink your eyes twice and they will be grown and then they will move on to serve God, and raise a families of their own.
Posted in Thoughts from 1 Samuel by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Things Are Looking Up!
Today’s Passage – Ruth 1 – 4 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 7 – 9; Proverbs 28; Psalms 136 – 140)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 92:1 – 4
Read the “0328 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And she said unto them, Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the LORD hath brought me home again empty: why then call ye me Naomi, seeing the LORD hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?” – (Ruth 1:20-21)
“And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel. And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him.” – (Ruth 4:14 & 15)
I have read this story of Ruth and Naomi many times, but every time I have written or preached on the subject my focus would either be on Ruth or Boaz, the kinsman redeemer. However, this morning I got to thinking about Naomi. Naomi was a great lady who in many ways was a victim of circumstance. Things just didn’t work out for her in life as she had probably hoped and dreamed they would. I can relate to that. Sometimes I reflect on my own life and wish that I could re-do some things and perhaps make some better choices. Hindsight always reveals the wisdom of our choices. Anyway, Naomi left the land of Canaan with her husband and two sons many years prior to the time of our text. They intended only to sojourn in the land of Moab for a short time until the famine was over in their homeland. It appears that they stayed a lot longer than they intended. While living in Moab, her two sons marry women from Moab, which was also not according to God’s perfect plan because these women were not worshippers of the God of Israel. To make matters worse, her husband and both of her sons die while she is there. Now she is left in a strange land with two daughters-in-law that were in many ways still strangers to her.
Naomi is faced with a decision. Life is not working out for her in Moab, and she realizes she needs to get back to her people and to the worship of her God. Good decision. But what was she to do with her daughters-in-law? She understands they feel obligated to her and in a very real way both of them had become very attached to her. She must have demonstrated much love toward them because both of them loved her and one of them (Ruth) was willing to forsake her own happiness in order to go with Naomi. In fact, Ruth was willing to become a worshipper of Naomi’s God. It appears that Naomi represented her God very well.
The point of all of this is that though Naomi didn’t make all of the right decisions through the years and although things did not work out for her as she would have hoped, God was still very gracious to her and was willing to use her and bless her life. She left Canaan full: full of dreams and full of hope. She left Moab empty: empty of a husband, empty of her sons, and empty of material possessions; but she did have Ruth. God had graciously given her a wonderful daughter-in-law in, who proved to be more of a blessing to her than her sons ever were. I bet if there were another chapter to the Book of Ruth we would hear Naomi say, “change my name back to Naomi, I was ‘Mara’ for a while, but things are looking up.
Can you notice a pattern here that you and I can relate to? Life sometimes starts with hopes, dreams, and ambitions. They rarely work out the way we want them to. We make many mistakes along the way that further complicate things. But God just may turn our lives around before it’s all over. We may find that delight (Naomi means delight) after all, and it may just come through an unexpected source. Don’t lose hope. Keep following God. Better days are coming.
I will add one more thought regarding this passage, which may not be hermeneutically correct. I see in this story a picture of God’s love both for Israel and the Church. Naomi was from Israel. She and her family had wandered away from the “house of bread” (Bethlehem), which pictures the will of God, the place of blessing. They ended up in Moab, which has been referred to in Scripture as God’s “washpot” (Psalms 60:8; 108:9), which does not sound nearly as nice as the house of bread. But Naomi finally came to the place where she realized that she needed to get back to where she started. Israel has also wandered out of the will of God but someday they will return to the Lord (Romans 11:26) when they realize that Jesus is their Messiah and they place their faith in Him.
Ruth, on the other hand, is a picture of the Church. She is a Moabite, an “alien from the commonwealth of Israel, and stranger from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12). But God, who is rich in mercy (Ephesians 2:4), saved her, and brought her into the fold of God’s people. Again, this is only a picture or type that I see in Ruth. Ruth actually became a part of Israel by marrying into the family of Boaz. She also was the great-grandmother of David and in the lineage of the Lord Jesus Christ. However, the Church is made up of many Gentiles, like Ruth, who were gloriously saved through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Posted in Thoughts from Ruth by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
The Craziest Story in the Bible
Today’s Passage – Judges 20 – 21 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 4 – 6; Proverbs 27; Psalms 131 – 135)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 89:1
Read the “0327 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read a previous post from today’s passage – “Right in Their Own Eyes.“
Judges 19 – 21 is really one very long and very strange story, a saga really, involving a civil war within Israel. All of Israel set out to destroy the tribe of Benjamin, all because of a bizarre event that was described in chapter 19. The root cause of the problems within these chapters is the same as what caused the problems in the previous chapters. The first verse of the story and the last verse say it all.
“…there was no king in Israel…” (Judges 19:1)
“In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:25)
Not having an earthly king in Israel was not the problem. The problem was that God had been dethroned, and his Word was not being used as the ruling principles to govern life. People were doing what they wanted, instead of what God in His word said was right to do. There was no king, but there was no godly leadership in the land pointing people in the right direction. The result was that the nation divided and drifted further and further away from the will of God.
Practical Point – Whenever a nation drifts away from the principles found in the Word of God, it will devolve into a selfish, immoral, and idolatrous disaster.
“Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.” (Proverbs 14:34)
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.” (Psalm 33:12)
Whenever a family, or even an individual Christian, drifts away from the Bible, he will wander on a sea of uncertainty, and will find himself far away from the blessings of God.
In chapter nineteen, we saw the bizarre provocation that instigated the civil war that breaks out. A woman from Israel had been brutally gang raped left to die by the men of Gibeah, a city that belonged to the Tribe of Benjamin. This took place only after the woman’s husband had refused to allow the men to have sex with him, which was what they really wanted.
The man sent word to all of Israel about what had happened in Gibeah by sending to each of the tribes a part of the body of his concubine.
In chapter twenty, we will read about the problem that was caused in Israel because of what took place in Gibeah – a civil war, and a bloody and brutal civil war at that.
All of this happened because Israel is operating outside of the teachings of God. They are doing their own thing. They are making it up as they go.
“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” (Proverbs 14:12)
Here in chapter twenty, we will see Israel wake up and realize how sinful their nation had become, and they come out against Gibeah and Benjamin to purge out this heinous sin from within her borders.
I Israel Combines Forces to Confront Benjamin (vs. 1 – 17)
Verse 1 – Notice that Israel was finally unified again. (“all”, “as one man”) Instead of everyone doing their own thing, now Israel is doing one thing together. (See also vs. 8 and 11)
“Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;” (Philippians 1:27)
“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Psalm 133:1)
Notice the phrase, “from Dan even to Beerheeba.” Dan was the northernmost part of Israel and Beersheba was geographically the furthest south. You may remember that Dan was formerly called Laish but was conquered by the tribe of Dan in Judges 18.
Notice also that all of Israel is gathered in Mizpah, which was only about five miles to the north of Gibeah.
Verse 2 – Notice there were nearly a half-million soldiers from all the tribes, which is a large army. It took this heinous act from chapter nineteen to wake the nation out of their slumber and move them into unified action.
Verse 3 – Notice that the Benjamites were aware of the impending attack. I am certain that the Levite whose concubine was killed sent out a piece of her body to Benjamin as well. Besides that, an army of 400,000 could not possibly be gathered 5 miles away from Gibeah without the Benjamites being aware of what was going on. Mizpah itself was a city within the borders of the territory of Benjamin.
The leaders of the tribes that were assembled all investigate further the crime that had taken place in Gibeah.
In vs. 4 – 7, the Levite rehashes the story, but does not embellish. It states concisely what had been done.
Notice in v. 7 that he asks the same question that was asked in the last verse of chapter nineteen: “consider of it, take advice, and speak your minds.” Apparently, Israel had considered what had happened and was still considering it here and were now counseling among themselves as to what they should do.
There were many violations of the Law within Gibeah in this case, and each was punishable by death:
- The Men of Gibeah were guilty of Sodomy.
“If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.” (Leviticus 20:13)
- They were also guilty of adultery. Even if adultery was consensual, it was punishable by death.
“If a man be found lying with a woman married to an husband, then they shall both of them die, both the man that lay with the woman, and the woman: so shalt thou put away evil from Israel.” (Deuteronomy 22:22)
- They were also guilty of rape.
“But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her: then the man only that lay with her shall die: But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing; there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death: for as when a man riseth against his neighbour, and slayeth him, even so is this matter: For he found her in the field, and the betrothed damsel cried, and there was none to save her.” (Deuteronomy 22:25-27)
- They were guilty of being “sons of Belial.” (Judges 19:22 – see Deuteronomy 13:12 – 18) Belial means “worthless, good for nothing, or wicked.” Basically, it means that they have completely abandoned God.
In vs. 8 – 17, the people of Israel are determined to go up against Benjamin. They first attempt to get Benjamin to turn over the guilty men, but Benjamin refuses to do so. Though Benjamin is grossly outnumbered (16 to 1), they are dug in and determined to fight. Note – it is hard to believe that there were not at least some people who would want to do the right thing and turn over the guilty parties. Yet, it seems that they are just as unified in their defense of the wicked, and the Israelites were to condemn them.
Notice that among the soldiers of Benjamin there were seven hundred left-handed stone slingers that could hit “at an hair breath, and not miss.” This would be an extremely powerful force. David took down a nine-foot giant with a sling and a stone.
II Israel is Crushed Twice Even After Consulting with the Lord (vs. 18 – 25)
This part of the story is very difficult for me to wrap my head around. Twice, the Lord is consulted by the Israelites, and twice the Lord answers in the affirmative, but still the Israelites lose two big battles, and thousands of men are killed.
Perhaps they did not consult with God soon enough. Maybe they should have sought God before they made their plans. Perhaps they didn’t ask God the right questions.
Verse 18 – the house of God is likely a reference to the Tabernacle, which was in Shiloh. (Judges 18:31; 1 Samuel 1:9 – See Map) Some say, the reference here is to Bethel, and claim that the Tabernacle was located there at this time. The phrase, “house of God” is translated from the Hebrew words, “bayith ‘elohiym.”
First, they ask God which tribe should go up first. The answer is Judah. The Levite was originally from Bethlehem, which is within Judah.
Verses 19 – 21 – The Israelite’s lose the battle and 22,000 men.
In verses 22 – 25, the Israelites ask, “shall I go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin, my brother?” The Lord tells them to go, but they lose again – this time eighteen thousand men.
The Israelites lose 40,000 men in the first two battles, where the Benjamites only lose 1,000.
Why would God allow them to lose, especially after consulting with Him?
- He wanted them to remember just how bitter the consequences of sin are. Remember, the Israelites were just as much to blame as the Benjamites were. They had gotten away from God also.
- He wanted them to feel the pain and experience the terribleness of a civil war.
- It took several hard steps for sin to get into Israel, and it will take several hard, costly, and painful steps to get the sin purged out.
III Israel Finally Conquers Benjamin After Conferring with the Lord a Third Time (vs. 26 – 48)
This time, Phinehas consults God at Shiloh, and asks: “Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease?” (v. 28) This not likely the same Phinehas as is mentioned in Exodus, Numbers, and Joshua, unless this story is chronologically out of order, and occurs very early in the time period of the Judges. There were probably many men named Phinehas that descended from the line of Eliazar. Remember, the period of the Judges was a period of approximately 330 years from 1380 BC. To 1050 BC.
This time, the Lord tells them to go, and promises victory, which He did not do previously.
The Israelites use the same battle plan that they used in their final battle against Ai. They draw the men of Gibeah out of the city, and when they are out of the city, another army enters the city and sets it on fire. When the men of Gibeah see the fire, they turn around to help the city, but now they have attacker in front of them and behind them.
Illustration – Colonel Joshua Chamberlain of the 20th Maine at Gettysburg, at the Battle of Little Round Top. He had to hold the flank, because if the enemy broke the flank, they would have gotten behind the Union Lines.
The Men of Gibeah lose 25,000 in this battle, and with the 1,000 that they lost in the first two battles, they were down to 600 men, who hid up in the rock Rimmon for four months.
All the men (and apparently, the women) of Benjamin, besides these 600 will be killed.
In chapter 21, we will see how the people will rebuild the tribe of Benjamin. The story in chapter 21 is almost as bizarre as the story so far in chapters 19 and 20.
However, the people are still doing their own thing – they are following that which is right in their own eyes. You see, there was no king in Israel – not even God.
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
Speak Your Mind
Today’s Passage – Judges 18 – 19 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 1 – 3; Proverbs 26; Psalms 126 – 130)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 61:1 – 3
Read the “0326 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And it was so, that all that saw it said, There was no such deed done nor seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt unto this day: consider of it, take advice, and speak your minds.” – (Judges 19:30)
Judges 19 contains one of the strangest and saddest stories in all of the Bible. In this account we learn of a man from the tribe of Levi that was travelling through Israel with his concubine. In a polygamous society a concubine was a woman that was married to a man, but did not have the same status as the man’s wife or wives. At any rate this man and his wife were looking for a place to stay for the night while they were travelling through the city of Gibeah, which was occupied by the Israelite tribe of Benjamin. For a long time no one would offer them lodging for the night, until suddenly an old man who was also a sojourner in the city offered them food, and lodging at his house. During the night, the men of the city attempted force entry into this older man’s home so that they could “know” the man that was visiting. In this case the word “know” meant that the men of the city wanted to have sexual relations with the man. What happened to this man in this story is very similar to what was attempted on the two angels who visited Lot in Sodom (see Genesis 19), which indicates the level of depravity that the men of this place had reached. They are finally content to take the man’s concubine and abuse her all night long until she ultimately dies from their cruelty. The travelling man then takes the body of his wife and cuts it up into pieces, and sends a piece of her body to each of the tribes of Israel. I realize that this is a strange story, but that’s what happened, in a nutshell.
My attention is drawn to the statement made to the reader in verse 30. We are instructed to “consider of it, take advice, and speak [our] minds”. Why did God tell us to do this after reading this portion of Scripture. I believe the reason is because the wickedness committed by these people from the tribe of Benjamin in the city of Gibeah was so heinous, that God did not want it to be just swept under the rug or passed by. He wants us to think about it; to get mad about it; and to do something about it. By the way, we will read tomorrow in chapter 20 what the rest of Israel does to punish this sin. I won’t spoil the story, but let me assure you that the people of Israel pay a great price for allowing this kind of wickedness to take place in the Land of Promise.
I believe that the advice given by God to the Israelites of that day is good for us today. He wants us to get mad about sin, and then do something about it. We are to speak our minds as well when it comes to condemning sin. This world ought to have no doubt in their minds about where we stand regarding the sin that is taking place in our land; and we ought to go beyond just condemning it with our mouths; we ought also to take action against it.
“Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.” – (1 Timothy 5:20)
“This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;” – (Titus 1:13)
“Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.” – (2 Timothy 4:2)
Let’s not turn our heads to sin, but rather let’s speak the truth in love, and stand against it.
Posted in Thoughts from Judges by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Permissive Parents
Today’s Passage – Judges 14 – 17 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – 2 John, 3 John, Jude; Proverbs 25; Psalms 121 – 125
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 55:17
Read the “0325 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines. And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife. Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.” – (Judges 14:1-3)
Years ago, my wife and I were at the boardwalk with Phil and Melissa who were, I think, around 6 and 5 at the time. As they were getting out of the “moon bounce”, there was another small child there that did not want to get out when the time was up. His grandfather pleaded with him to no avail, until finally he had to go in after the little boy. He grabbed the child and began to drag him out, and the kid started kicking and screaming, and finally spit right in his grandfather’s face. The grandfather just kept sweet-talking and pleading with the child, promising him other rides and ice-cream, cotton candy, etc. just to get the kid to want to come out. I remember thinking at that moment that I would have liked to be that kid’s dad for just 5 minutes. I would have let him have his little temper tantrum, and then I would have had my big one. We would have had a “pow-wow” – I would have done the powing, and he would have done the wowing.
We can see from our passage today that Samson’s parents were far too permissive. They appeased Samson by giving him whatever he wanted. Samson was a spoiled brat. Notice in vv. 1 – 3 of Judges 14 that Samson twice orders his parents to “get” this woman from Timnath for him “to wife”. Now this woman was not an Israelite, and did not share the same beliefs that Samson’s family did. The Old Testament Law was clear that an Israelite could only marry a woman that worshipped Jehovah God. Yet, the parents reluctantly gave Samson what he wanted. What a shame. Parents are supposed to be the ones who know what is best for their children.
The Bible has a lot to say about discipline and child-rearing. I will list a few of the verses here:
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” – (Proverbs 22:6)
“Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.” – (Proverbs 19:18)
“Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.” – (Proverbs 22:15)
“Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.” – (Proverbs 23:13-14)
“The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.” – (Proverbs 29:15)
When we read these verses, we might think that God wants us to be mean and abusive to our children, which is absolutely not the case. I have only had to spank my children a couple of times each in their lives. That is all that was necessary in order for them to understand that Mom and Dad are in charge, and that the children are to submit their wills to the will of their parents. We love our children, and they love us. We have a lot of fun together, and spend a lot of time with each of them individually as well as corporately as a family, but we are their parents, not their buddies. All of our children are now grown, and our relationships with them have changed somewhat. We are now more like counselors to them, but there is still a great deal of love and respect showed to us by our grown children.
Parents, don’t buy into this modern philosophy regarding the rearing of children. Go to the Word of God. Biblical love and discipline your child before you produce a grown spoiled brat like Samson.
Posted in Thoughts from Judges by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Teach Us
Today’s Passage – Judges 11 – 13 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – 1 John 1 – 5; Proverbs 24; Psalms 116 – 120)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 51
Read the “0324 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“Then Manoah intreated the LORD, and said, O my Lord, let the man of God which thou didst send come again unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born.” – (Judges 13:8)
In Judges chapter 13, we see the story surrounding the birth of Samson. Samson’s birth came at a time when Israel was once again away from God, and was suffering at the hands of the Philistines. An angel appeared to Samson’s mother, and told her that she was going to have a son, and that this son was to be a Nazarite from the womb. You may recall that God gave instructions regarding the vow of the Nazarite in Numbers 6; but this child, Samson, is the first example of a Nazarite in the Bible. We do not know everything about this vow, but we do know that it was a vow of separation; and we also know that the person who had taken the vow was not to drink wine, cut his hair, or touch a dead body. The interesting point about this particular case is that Samson was to be a Nazarite from birth. He never makes a vow. His separation was chosen for him by the Lord. Anyway, the angel did not appear to her husband, yet Manoah believed what the angel had told his wife. Manoah then “intreats” the Lord and asks Him to send the angel back, not to prove that it really happened, but to instruct them as to what they were supposed to do. Interestingly, the angel comes back, but only tells Manoah exactly what he had already told his wife.
I like the petition made by Manoah in Judges 13:8. He wants God to “teach” them regarding what to do with the child. Manoah acknowledged that he didn’t know what to do. He was demonstrating a dependence upon the Lord. I find myself often not knowing what to do. I often pray the prayer that Solomon prayed:
“And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?” – (1 Kings 3:7-9)
And sometimes I pray the prayer that Hezekiah prayed:
“O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.” – (2 Chronicles 20:12)
The funny thing about Manoah’s prayer is that God never did give him any more information than He already gave His wife; but He did talk to him, and somehow assured him that He was going to be with him as he raised this special child for the Lord. Manoah was just going to have to continue walking by faith. It it is often frustrationg for me to walk by faith. I want God to reveal every step of the plan to me ahead of time, but He never does. He tells me what I need to know for today, and expects me to just keep walking, and keep trusting Him. But I do not think that He is upset with me for asking Him. Those prayers are my declaration of dependence upon Him.
Posted in Thoughts from Judges by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
The Sword of the Lord, and of Gideon
Today’s Passage – Judges 7 – 8 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – 1 Peter 1 – 5; Proverbs 22; Psalms 106 – 110
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 47:1
Read a previous post from this passage – “Little is Much.”
Read the “0322 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“20 And the three companies blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal: and they cried, The sword of the LORD, and of Gideon.” (Judges 7:20)
In Judges six, we saw God’s calling of Gideon to lead Israel against the Midianites who had been oppressing them for seven years. Though Gideon is insecure and reluctant, God assures him that he is the man that God has chosen, and the man that God will equip and bless to bring victory to Israel. God gives Gideon three assurances in chapter six:
He asks the Angel of the Lord to give him a sign (v. 17), which the Angel does by consuming with fire the sacrifice and the unleavened cakes that Gideon placed upon a rock.
He also asked God to make his fleece wet while the ground remained dry.
Finally, he asks God to keep the fleece dry while the ground around it is wet.
Chapter Seven
Here, in this chapter, we will see that God will once again encourage and assure Gideon that he is doing exactly what God wants him to do.
I The Lord Culls the Crowd (vs. 1 – 8)
God does not need a big crowd to win His battles or to fulfill His will. God wanted to be sure that the people knew that the victory came from Him.
The army of Israel started out with 32,000. Gideon invited the fearful to leave and they immediately lost 10,000 and were down to 22,000. By the way – it is an amazing thing that Gideon did not leave. Then the Lord set up a test at the watering hole, and there he lost almost the entire army, leaving only 300 left to fight against the huge numbers of Midianites.
This world is enamored with big numbers. big churches, big businesses. Growth is good if God is in it, but growth should not be the primary goal. We want to reach people, and we want to see people saved, for the Lord’s sake and for their good, not just so we can inflate our egos. God should be our primary goal, not numeric growth. If we are faithful to the Lord, He will probably give the increase, but if He doesn’t, we should still be content. Little is much when God is in it. God does not need big numbers. God’s people need a big God.
“And Joab answered, The LORD make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord’s servants? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?” (1 Chronicles 21:3)
“And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the LORD will work for us: for there is no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few.” (1 Samuel 14:6)
We learn from Judges 8:10 that there were 135,000 Midianites that they were about to go up against.
God does not need gifted people, either:
“Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.” (1 Corinthians 1:25-29)
“And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
But, be sure about this: the three hundred men that Gideon had left were all in. I would rather have 50 people who were sold out for the Lord than 5000 who were all about themselves. These 300 men that were left were being watched, and God liked what He saw in them. Warren Wiersbe said:
“Make every occasion a great occasion, for you can never tell when somebody may be taking your measure for a larger place.”[1]
II The Lord Cheers Up Gideon and Causes the Midianites to Fear (vs. 7 – 15)
The dream was God’s way of assuring Gideon that everything was OK; that he was doing exactly what God wanted him to do, and that all would be well. Gideon was a little bit insecure. This is now the fourth time that God reassures him.
III The Lord Conceives a Strange Attack Plan (vs. 16 – 22)
Note – “middle watch” in v. 19 is from 10 PM – 2 AM.
God does not do things our way.
“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33)
Notice also that Gideon leads by example (v. 17)
IV Israel Chases the Enemy (vs. 23 – 25)
Gideon chases the enemy completely to the other side of the Jordan River. Sometimes, we win the battle, but we fail to drive the enemy completely out of our lives, which allows them to regain strength again.
Notice the story starts with Gideon hiding by a winepress and ends with the enemies of Gideon being slain by a winepress.
Conclusion
The big problems that you have in your life are not big problems to God. The big enemies that you face are not big to God. God is well able to multiple your feeble efforts to fulfill His will. The widow’s mite was an awful lot of money in the hands of God. The little lad’s lunch of loaves and fishes was multiplied to feed 5000 men, and possible 15,000 more women and children. Little is much when God is in it.
Chapter Eight
In chapter eight, we see the conclusion of the campaign against the Midianites, and we learn what happens to Gideon afterwards, and what happens to Israel when Gideon is gone.
I Gideon Placates the Ephraimites Anger (vs. 1 – 3)
As the Midianites were escaping to the south and east, Gideon called upon Ephraim, which was located to the south of the location of the battle. They were strategically in the right spot to cut off many of the escaping Midianites, and they were able to capture and kill two of the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb.
However, the Ephraimites were upset because Gideon had not initially called them to fight. (See Judges 6:35) I am not sure of the reason that Gideon didn’t call for them at the beginning of the battle, but he assures them that their role at the end of the battle was critical to Israel’s success.
Don’t be offended if you are not asked to do something. It may be that God is reserving you for something bigger later.
Illustrate – I wanted to teach the 4th – 6th grade class but wasn’t asked. Later, however, Pastor Wedemeyer asked me to be his youth director.
II Gideon Pursues After the Remaining Midianites (vs. 8 – 12)
The men of Succoth and Penuel both chose the wrong side. They calculated that the 15,000 left from Midian should easily conquer these 300 from Israel. They calculated against God. Always a mistake.
Always take the side of what is right, regardless of what you think the consequences may be. Sometimes it looks as if the devil’s crowd is winning, but you should always side with God’s people.
Note – “discomfited” means “terrified.”
III Gideon Punishes Succoth and Penuel (vs. 13 – 17)
Gideon teaches Succoth a lesson, and they he kills all the men of Penuel. These cities reaped what they sowed. They were warned, but they made a bad decision, and God was giving them exactly what he warned them that he would give.
IV Gideon Puts an End to the Princes of Midian. (vs. 18 – 21)
These princes were brutal men who had murdered members of Gideon’s family.
Notice that Jether was asked by his father to put these princes to death, but he refused.
It would have been humiliating for (and possibly more painful) for these kings to be killed by Jether, rather than Gideon. Perhaps he was afraid. Maybe, he wasn’t ready. Maybe, he wasn’t gifted to be a warrior.
V Gideon Produces an Ephod (vs. 22 – 27)
Gideon turns down the offer of being their king. This is the first mention of Israel desiring a king.
The ephod eventually became an idol that the people worshipped.
Hezekiah had the same problem with the brazen serpent. People were worshipping it, so Hezekiah destroyed it. (2 Kings 18:4)
Note – 700 shekels = 42.5 pounds.
VI Gideon Passes and the People Forget God and Gideon’s Family (vs. 28 – 35)Israel failed to continue to worship the Lord, and they also failed to appreciate Gideon.
[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1994). Be available (p. 60). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.