Judges

Judges Chapter 10

Tola and Jair

• Judges 10:1  And after Abimelech there arose to defend Israel Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar; and he dwelt in Shamir in mount Ephraim. 

Tola was the 8th judge of Israel. He judges Israel 23 years.

• Judges 10:2  And he judged Israel twenty and three years, and died, and was buried in Shamir. 
• 3  And after him arose Jair, a Gileadite, and judged Israel twenty and two years. 
• 4  And he had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass colts, and they had thirty cities, which are called Havothjair unto this day, which are in the land of Gilead. 
• 5  And Jair died, and was buried in Camon. 

There was another Jair in the days of Joshua. This one may have been a descendent who lived in the days of Joshua. He is mentioned in Numbers 32:41. This Jair though had 30 sons.

Further Disobedience and Oppression

• Judges 10:6  And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD, and served not him. 
• 7  And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the children of Ammon. 

So here we go again. They worshipped the gods of Syria, Zidon, Moab, Ammon and the Philistines. God gave them up to come under bondage by those that served the same false gods the tribes of Israel forsook God to serve. It is a picture of what happens when we forsake the real God and choose to live according to the flesh, or what is right in our own eyes. We become under bondage to that sin until it consumes us, destroys our souls unless somehow we repent and return to the Lord who saved us. What a mess.

False religion, idols or even secular humanism only gets us deeper into destruction, misery and human suffering. God has a better way. That is where Jesus comes in. He is our hope, our salvation, and the one who enables us to have eternal life with a new body that cannot die or suffer pain and sorrow.

• Judges 10:8  And that year they vexed and oppressed the children of Israel: eighteen years, all the children of Israel that were on the other side Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead. 

The Amorites were from the line of Ham, one of the sons of Noah. They came from Ham's son Canaan. The sons of Ham were recorded in Genesis chapter 10. For some reason Noah cursed Canaan after the incident recorded in Genesis chapter 9. Perhaps Canaan was a partaker of the sin Ham committed against Noah. This part is a puzzle. Noah may have been giving a prophecy seeing the future that the children of Canaan would be partakers of evil and would be wiped out. Perhaps also Canaan was influenced by his father Ham and inherited the evil that his father did.

People of today might think it strange for Noah to be upset by this but we today have forgotten that after the sin of Adam and Eve, God made them clothes to cover their nakedness. Modesty is very biblical in both the Old and New Testament.

• 9  Moreover the children of Ammon passed over Jordan to fight also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim; so that Israel was sore distressed. 

The children of Ammon were descendants of Lot the nephew of Abraham. They came over the river Jordan to fight against the tribes of Judah, Benjamin and Ephraim. Again we see the sins of Israel where they started worshipping the false idol gods of other nations which caused God to remove His hand of protection and they came under bondage to the nations they were following after for 18 years. Seems as if what we follow after and desire, ends up bringing us into bondage.

• Judges 10:10  And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, saying, We have sinned against thee, both because we have forsaken our God, and also served Baalim. 

God was justified in that which He allowed because they knew better. This also shows us how much we need Jesus Christ into our lives and the Holy Spirit that He gives to all that receive Him.  Jesus died for sins, and rose again after 3 days to give us the power to become free from sin and inherit eternal live. When He returned to be with our Father in Heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to abide within each one of us who receive Jesus and turn away from our sins. God made a way so that we do not have to turn to idols and other things to satisfy the longing of our souls. We can be free, walk in the Holy Spirit, and have peace, love and joy in our lives instead of hating and misery.

• Judges 10:11  And the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Did not I deliver you from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines? 
• 12  The Zidonians also, and the Amalekites, and the Maonites, did oppress you; and ye cried to me, and I delivered you out of their hand. 
• 13  Yet ye have forsaken me, and served other gods: wherefore I will deliver you no more. 
• 14  Go and cry unto the gods which ye have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your tribulation. 

God was angry with them and told them to go ahead and trust in the other gods they chose to deliver them. False religion and idols have no power to deliver a cat out of a high tree. They are empty of any power. There is evil spirits though that present around these idols and can influence them to do evil. The idols themselves have no power to save. Satan though will eventually steal, kill and destroy those that follow his ways.

It seems though that idol worship is revived in the latter days before the end times before God brings final judgments upon the earth.

• Revelation 9:20  And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: 
• 21  Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts. 

Even after the plagues and warnings from God, their hearts are so hardened they do not repent.

• 1Corinthains 10:20  But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.

Idol worship is worshipping devils not the real Holy everlasting God who created us.

• 1Timothy 4:1  Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 

This is sad to read but God gave His best to save mankind from their evil fate. He sent His own Son to make the way for eternal life and freedom from the bondage of sin.

• Judges 10:15  And the children of Israel said unto the LORD, We have sinned: do thou unto us whatsoever seemeth good unto thee; deliver us only, we pray thee, this day. 
• 16  And they put away the strange gods from among them, and served the LORD: and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel. 

God is merciful and actually grieves for the misery they are suffering. Here we see a picture of true repentance. It is acknowledging their sin, putting away their sin but also realizing God is justified in judging their sin. True repentance is making restitution for sin, not just asking for forgiveness. We have to desire to be free from what causes us to sin against God.

• Judges 10:17  Then the children of Ammon were gathered together, and encamped in Gilead. And the children of Israel assembled themselves together, and encamped in Mizpeh. 
  18  And the people and princes of Gilead said one to another, What man is he that will begin to fight against the children of Ammon? he shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead. 

Deliverance is on the way. DC

Judges Chapter 11