Study notes

Judges 10

Introducing JudgesWho wrote it, when, why, and what to look for as you read

10:1

Tola was the first of five minor judges, but little is known about him. Among the five, only Tola was said to save Israel. He came after Abimelech died, when Israel needed help, though not from a foreign enemy.

10:1–5

Each of the five minor judges (see also Isaiah 12:8–15) led Israel for a set number of years. During this time after Gideon, the phrase the land had rest for forty years (Judges 3:11, 30; 5:31; 8:28) does not appear again. The details about these mysterious figures include their birthplaces and burial sites, and sometimes a brief family history or notable family traits. Four of the five names are found in other family records:

The absence of specific military achievements and the frequent mention of “judging” suggest they had administrative or judicial roles.

10:1–12:15 Section

The judge Tola led in Ephraim. The judge Jair led in Gilead.

God wanted his people to live as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. But they weren’t doing that. The Israelites continued to worship the gods of the people groups around them. Because of this, the covenant curses came on them. The Philistines and the Ammonites treated them badly. God said he would no longer save the Israelites from their enemies. Yet he didn’t want Israel to keep suffering. So he forgave them when they stopped worshipping false gods.

God saved the tribes east of the River Jordan from the Ammonites. The story of Jephthah shows how this happened. It also shows how the Israelites used Canaanite worship practices to worship God. Jephthah made a promise to God that he shouldn’t have made. In Leviticus 5:4–6 and Leviticus 27:1–8 the Law of Moses explained how to stop such promises. But Jephthah kept his promise and killed his daughter.

Sacrificing children was one way that the Canaanites worshipped their false gods. Jepthah tried to use this evil practice to serve the true God. This story also shows the troubles between the tribes east and west of the River Jordan. There was war between the tribe of Ephraim and the tribes living in the Gilead area.

After Jephthah’s time there were other judges. Ibzan was a judge in Bethlehem. Elon was a judge in the Zebulun area. And the judge Abdon led the Israelites in the hill country of Ephraim.

10:6

And again the Israelites did evil...they forsook the LORD: This time, their turning away was more complete than before. They worshiped Baal, Ashtoreth, and other local gods.

10:6–16

The Lord responded to his people's complete abandonment by allowing severe oppression (Judges 10:8). As usual, Israel called out to the Lord for help (Judges 10:10) only after facing great hardship (10:9). Normally, Israel's cry led to divine help, but God's choice to leave them to their chosen gods marks a change in the cycle described in Judges 2:10–19. Only when the Israelites put aside their foreign gods and served the Lord did he act to save them again (Judges 10:17–11:33).

10:7–8

  • the Philistines: See study notes on Judges 3:3 and 13:1.

  • The Ammonites lived east of the Jordan River (see study note on Judges 3:12–13). They started by oppressing the Israelite tribes in Transjordan and then attacked the tribes west of the Jordan River as well.

10:17–18

The story goes back to the Ammonite oppression, setting the stage for Jephthah's tale.

10:18

The leaders of Gilead, desperate for guidance, did not ask the Lord (compare Judges 1:1; 20:18). They decided that whoever volunteered to lead would become the ruler of Gilead.

Verse notes: Adapted by Mission Mutual (Aquifer Open Study Notes) from Tyndale Open Study Notes © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. CC BY-SA 4.0. Section notes: Biblica Study Notes © 2023 Biblica, Inc. CC BY-SA 4.0, via BibleAquifer. About the sources