What is the book of Judges?
Judges is an account of events in Israel’s history. It’s recorded as a collection of stories. These were passed down within Israelite and Jewish families for hundreds of years.
These stories were written down by Israelites. It’s thought that some were written down between 1375 and 1050 BC. Others were written down later.
Who was this book written for?
For the people of Israel.
Why was Judges written?
To show what happened among the Israelite tribes in Canaan after Joshua died.
To record the stories of the tribes’ work to drive the Canaanites out. The stories show how the Israelites didn’t stay committed to the Mount Sinai covenant.
To record the stories of 12 leaders who were called judges. They led in different areas of the nation of Israel.
Main ideas
The pattern of sin, suffering and salvation happened over and over again.
God used leaders who were faithful to him. He also used leaders who weren’t faithful to him.
The Israelites failed to live as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.
Outline
The Israelites didn’t drive out all the Canaanites (1).
The pattern of sin, suffering and salvation is described (2:1 – 3:6).
12 judges who led after Joshua (3:7 – 16:31).
The Israelites didn’t live as a kingdom of priests or a holy nation (17 – 21).