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- Preaching the Living WORD through
the Written WORD - 2 Tim 4;:2 - |
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THE BEGINNING OF
THE JUDGES (OTHNIEL AND EHUD) Judges 3:1-25,
7/3/13 Grace Bible Church, Gillette,
Wyoming Pastor Daryl Hilbert
I. SETTING FOR ISREAL’S FIRST JUDGE (3:1-6) A. Chapter 2 revealed that because of
Israel’s disobedience, God would not remove the foreign nations surrounding
them. God then, used these nations to test the faithfulness of Israel, as a
buffer to bring Israel back to the Lord, and as a warning that God indeed
means His warnings as well as promises. B. [3:1] - God was now testing those who had
not fought in any of the battles against Canaan. They did not see firsthand, the
mighty deeds of God by which he delivered them. C. [3:2] - Another practical reason was that
God wanted to this new generation how to engage in battle. This is no
different today where every nation possesses a military along with training
how to fight. Otherwise they are at the mercy of any invading nation. But
this particular fighting would have included a spiritual aspect of depending
upon the Lord for victory. D. [3:3] - The major foreign forces are
named as the Philistines (Ashdod, Ashkelon, Ekron, Gath, and Gaza), the
Canaanites, the Sidonians (also called Phoenicians), and the Hivites
(possibly the Horites, who were the Gibeonites in Joshua’s time). E. [3:4] - It is mentioned a third time that
these people were for the “testing” of Israel’s obedience to God (cf. Jdg
2:22; 3:1). F. [3:5] - These newer generations of Israel
lived among four additional nations named, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites,
and Jebusites. G. [3:6] - A three-fold denigration is
observed: 1) The Israelites lived among these pagans nations, 2) they
intermarried, and 3) they worshipped and served their pagan gods. II. FIRST PERIOD (40YRS): OTHNIEL
AGAINST MESOPOTAMIANS (3:7-11) (3:7) A. [3:7] - Introduced by the phrase, “The sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of
the LORD,” Judges begins it first cycle. Their
particular evil was “forgetting” the Lord and serving Baals (plural for
various sect of Baal worship) and Asheroth (not to be confused with Ashtaroth,
cf. Jdg 2:13). Asheroth was the Canaanite goddess
of fertility often symbolized by a planted tree or decorated wooden pole (Ex
34:13; De 16:21; Jdg 6:25; 2Ch 17:6). B. [3:8] - The Israelites provoke the Lord’s
anger and as a result, He sold them (or caused them to be sold) into the
hands of Cushan-rishathaim king of
Mesopotamia. “Cushan-rishathaim” means “Cushan of Double wickedness,” a name
of intimidation. Located north of the land of Canaan, it would not be out of
the ordinary for the strong kingdom of Mesopotamia to travel far to attempt
to stretch its borders. The Israelites were in servitude for eight years. C. [3:9] - Israel cried out to the Lord (part
of the cycle) and He responded by raising up Israel’s first judge, Othniel.
Being mentioned earlier (Jdg 1:13), Othniel, was the son of Kenaz, the
younger brother of Caleb. He answered Caleb’s challenge to conquer
Kiriath-sepher (Debir) (Jdg 1:12). In so doing, Othniel won Caleb’s daughter
in marriage. D. [3:10] - The Lord raised up Othniel,
marked as God’s chosen man by the phrase, “the Spirit of the Lord came upon
him.” This was not the permanent baptism of the Holy Spirit that we learn of
in the New Testament (Ac 1:5, 8; 2:1-3). But in typical Old Testament
fashion, the Holy Spirit came upon individuals to accomplish a specific task.
Here the task would have been to lead Israel with an emphasis on military
deliverance. The Spirit’s presence did not guarantee victory but was God’s
empowerment for victory to those who cooperated and obeyed the Lord. Othniel
waged war against Cushan-rishathaim and the Lord delivered Cushan-rishathaim
into his hands. E. [3:11] - Othniel can be viewed as one of
Israel’s most successful Judges, having traveled great distance to fight a
great Mesopotamian power. After 40 years of rest, Othniel, Israel’s first
Judge, died. III. SECOND PERIOD (80YRS): EHUD AND
SHAMGAR AGAINST MOABITES (3:12-31) (3:12) A. [3:12] - After Othniel died, Israel’s
spiritual life began to wane. Once again Israel “did evil in the sight of the
Lord” (3:12). No detail is given concerning their evil but it no doubt had to
do with forsaking the Lord and idolatry. As a direct result of Israel’s evil,
the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab. Usually we read of the Lord
strengthening His people, but in Israel’s case, they needed chastening and
God permitted their enemies unhindered strength. B. [3:13-14] - Eglon allied with the sons of
Ammon and Amalek, and together they defeated Israel. Israel’s three perennial enemies are mentioned. The
Moabites were enemies of Moses when they hired Balaam to curse them. Though
unsuccessful, the Moabites influence Israel in idolatry (Num 25). As for
Amalekites, they bitterly opposed Israel in the wilderness (Ex 17:8-16).
Moving westward and crossing the Jordan River, King Eglon captured “city of palm trees” (Jericho). was taken.
Israel (Benjamites) was taken into servitude for 18 yrs. C. [3:15] - Again the sons of Israel cried
out unto the Lord and He raised up a deliverer. The deliverer was Ehud, the
son of Gera, the Benjamite. Scripture notes that he was a left-handed man, sometimes
a reference to skill (Jdg 20:16) or ambidexterity (1Ch 212:2). Apparently, a
plan of attack was devised and Israel sent their annual tribute to King
Eglon. D. [3:16-19] - Ehud made a small dagger about
18 inches long and attached it to his right thigh under his cloak. Ehud gave
the tribute directly to King Eglon, who was “a very fat man” according to the
narrative. After Ehud gave Eglon his tribute, Ehud sent those who carried the
tribute away. Ehud turned back to the king telling him he had a “secret
message” for him. Eglon told Ehud to hold this juicy morsel of a secret and
sent his officials away. E. [3:20-25] - Ehud now had a private
audience with the king in his “cool roof chamber.” The king stood up
expecting to hear Ehud’s secret. With his left hand, Ehud reached for his
dagger attached to his thigh and thrust it into the king’s belly. At this
point, Scripture gives the gruesome details that the blade penetrated so far
into the king’s stomach that his fat swallowed up and covered over the handle
of the blade. The “refuse” or “fecal matter” (TWOT) came out of the wound.
Ehud left the king’s chamber and locked the door behind him. When the
servants went to check on the king they were locked out. Believing that he
was relieving himself they did not enter. When more than sufficient time had
elapsed, they anxiously entered to the king’s chamber only to find their king
on the floor dead. IV. OBSERVATIONS AND APPLICATIONS A. The Scriptures in Judges reiterate that the
Lord would test Israel’s obedience with the co-existence of foreign evil
nations. Though God is not the agent of evil, He sovereignly chooses to
permit evil for various purposes. Testing His children is one of those
purposes. It brings His children to their knees before temptation in
dependence upon God. It brings the praise of God’s people after deliverance
from temptation. Temptation can also prove to His children the truthfulness
of God’s warnings. B. How wonderful are the examples of
courageous men and women of God (like Othniel) who trust the Lord in the most
difficult of situations and allow the Lord to be victorious. The
encouragement is in the Lord’s ability to overcome any difficulty (Ge 18:14).
The example is freely offered to any and all of God’s children through the
Spirit. The halls of our mind should be adorned with these victorious
pictures so that we too avail ourselves of victory. C. Another interpretive difficulty is in the
deceptive strategy of Eglon’s murder. It only eases the issue slightly to say
that the Lord never commanded Ehud to devise such a plan. Are there
situations where the believer is justified in lying? …..(silence)…. D. We see rare situations in Scripture of
individuals who do lie and receive no rebuke for it. Such were the cases of
Ehud and Rahab (Jos 2:1-7). E. The argument could be made is withholding
the truth the same as telling a bold face lie? Deception is deception and
there is no getting around it. Rahab lied when she said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where
they were from” (Jos 2:1-4). She lied when she, “"It came about when it
was time to shut the gate at dark, that the men went out; I do not know where
the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them” (Jos 2:5-6)
Ehud lied when he said, “I have a secret message for you, O king” (Jdg 3:19).
He lied because he did not have a secret message from God. Rather, he sought
to be alone with Eglon in order to kill him (Jdg 3:20-21). Yet there is no divine rebuke in such rare instances.
Furthermore, God is with Israel even after such situational ethics (Rahab He
11:31; Jm 2:25; Ehud - Jdg 3:28-29). F. Many commentaries seem to allow for such
instances of “not telling the truth.” Not presuming to speak for God, there
appears to be situations, particularly in war time, where deception seems to
be understandable. Announcing an attack on the walls of Jericho, would have
defeated the whole purpose. Ambush becomes useless unless the bait keeps
silent. Camouflage is not used for fighting in style. Snipers in Ghilley
suits are the norm. Even the games we play seem to have understandable
deception (Chess, Quarterback sneak, Fake bunt). Or hypothetically, would you
tell a murderer at the door that your family is upstairs sleeping? G. The believer is under the command of
Scripture to speak the truth and not lie (Ep 4:15, 25; Col 3:9). H. It is best to define these instances as
man’s ways and not God’s ways. I. These instances should not be used by a
believer to justify lying under any circumstance. J. Yet there is no divine rebuke in such
rare instances. Furthermore, God is with Israel even after such situational
ethics (cf. He 11:31; Jm 2:25). K. It comes down to two options, Option #1 In
such extreme cases of war and preservation of life, God permits the telling
of a lie or Option #2 God could have preserved life regardless if death
seemed inevitable for telling the truth. In either case, it must be stated
that God is sovereign enough to permit evil (not condone it) to accomplish
His ultimate purposes. From a Christian point of view, Option #2 is the only
viable option and we must pray that we never have to face such extreme cases
of war and preservation of life. L. However, none of these exceptions can be
applied to denying Christ. Christianity has a long history of believers who
would rather die than deny their Lord. In fact, such allegiance is required
of the believer in light of Scripture (Mt 10:33; Mk 8:38; 2Co 11:24-27; He
11:35-40; e.g. Polycarp) as well as the ultimate example of our Lord (Is
53:7; Mt 26:53). Being willing to die for a faith is the hallmark of true
faith. |
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