LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?
THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
Piecing together the story of Israel's wandering from God. It seems noteworthy that during the time when the priesthood was corrupt (see yesterday's reading in 1 Samuel 1-4) and around the time when King Jerubbaal and his men were leading Israel into idolatry (Judges 8:27), in that context "the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth" (Judges 10:6). I can understand why they wandered in the context of that kind of spiritual climate at that time in history. By this time it had been over 300 years (Judges 11:26) since Israel had entered into the Promised Land--which is a very long time; it's almost twice as long as Canada has been a country all the way from its beginning up until our own time. But alongside all the religious corruption, there had been no Promised Deliverer, no final victory over the people of Canaan, no king from the line of Judah, and for the people it might have been thinking, "so, is this all there is?" about the Promised Land. They had grown to forget the troubles of slavery, and had reached dissatisfaction, and in the context of a broken religious system that did not reflect God's wishes -they did not know that God was actively dealing with the corruption at the heart of it, or that he was slowly raising up the family of the coming King- they wandered. A couple of things: (1) What we're seeing here is some of the downstream impact of the decisions of Jerubbaal, Hophni, and Phinehas--when we see the spiritual impact that their actions had on the people, it becomes clearer why God dealt with them, noticeably, as he did. (2) The responsibility is not solely on the bad leaders, though. God holds the people personally accountable for their actions regardless of what other factors are involved (Judges 10:10-14). We might share the blame when we do wrong, but though we might be able to justifiably spread the blame, that does not mean that God considers it any more diminished in our own case.
In the absence of God, unity breaks down. It is during this time of religious breakdown that Israel fights its first real, protracted civil war. There had been close calls before which had always been averted by a shared unity around an identity of being God's people. But now when that bond is the weakest we see the ambitious Ephraimites, jealous for their own glory, going to war with the people of Gilead, leading to a death toll that was in the tens of thousands. When we lose our unity around God, we begin to compete with each other for the glory that should belong to God, or which can only be given by God. We compete with and battle against one another, and fight battles of personality over who gets the most recognition or whose authority should be the most respected. Without the Lord, God's people -all people- are a people divided.
In the absence of God, what makes sense to man ruins many lives. There are many decisions in today's reading, and throughout the book of Judges (as well as beyond), which demonstrate unbelievable decisions that made sense to people who weren't working with God's Word. Jephthah's decision to maintain his integrity and morality by burning his daughter alive is high up there on the list--there is a certain amount of inspiration because of the dedication of both Jephthah and his daughter to attempt to honor the Lord, but it is mixed with sadness and horror combined with the knowledge that this was an abomination that God never wanted.
In the absence of God, what makes sense to man ruins many lives. There are many decisions in today's reading, and throughout the book of Judges (as well as beyond), which demonstrate unbelievable decisions that made sense to people who weren't working with God's Word. Jephthah's decision to maintain his integrity and morality by burning his daughter alive is high up there on the list--there is a certain amount of inspiration because of the dedication of both Jephthah and his daughter to attempt to honor the Lord, but it is mixed with sadness and horror combined with the knowledge that this was an abomination that God never wanted.
DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?
How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR ATTITUDES I think that this chapter helps to illustrate pretty well what is also true in our own day. There have been some things in North American Christianity that have led a whole generation to walk away from Christianity as a bunch of controlling nonsense used by people in power, who don't apply its commands to themselves, regarding a God who hasn't done anything interesting lately (unless, like in the days of the Judges, you happen to take the time to look). The result is a fracturing of society, socially and morally, and a sense of restlessness and anxiety as people wander around aimlessly and try to do the best they can with the insight that they have. What is the solution? It's to return to God, regardless of what might be done by people who seem to be his major representatives (like Eli and his sons, God is likely dealing with the modern equivalents in ways you and I can't see). As we come closer to him, he brings us closer to each other as well. As we seek him, he gives us wisdom that is better than our own. It all starts with leaning in to God and casting our cares on him.
PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?
Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS, CALL, and PRAY methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.
-Sean
-Sean
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