SCRIPTURE BY DEBORAH HILLMAN
Scripture Lesson Text: Judges 10: 10-18
Related Scriptures: Deuteronomy 32: 15-18; Judges 10: 1-9; Nehemiah 1: 4-10; Isaiah 63: 15-19; Daniel 9: 3-19
We are told in this week’s lesson, that yet again Israel had sinned against God with false idols, but God would not initially forgive and deliver them from their enemies. They would first have to confess, and turn from their disobedience and follow God wholeheartedly. The Israelites had been oppressed for 18 years by many enemies, but they still hadn’t realized the errors of their ways. Restoration with God starts with genuine confession of one’s sin, leading to obedience.
Deuteronomy 32: 15-18 reminds us of Israel’s worshipping of false gods and how they made light of their salvation from the one true God. Jeshurun was one of the names of Israel , meaning”one who is upright”. Judges 10: 1-9 tells us that once again Israel had done evil in the sight of the Lord worshipping false idols and gods. This displeased God so he turned them over to the Philistines and Ammonites who oppressed them for 18 years. Nehemiah 1: 4-10 explains how Nehemiah laid his petition before the Lord and Nehemiah weeps, mourns, fasts, and prays for days, on behalf of the nation of Israel.
Isaiah 63: 15-19 emphasizes that Israel was God’s chosen people, but also highlighting the current relationship with God. Isaiah pleads with God to have mercy on them. Daniel 9: 3-19 shows how Daniel prayed passionately about the disobedience and the sin of Israel. This was a prayer of confession, “ we” not they. Daniel asks God to forgive and to restore Jerusalem.
Judges 10:10-18
SYNOPSIS BY BRITTENNE BOYKIN
In today’s lesson the children of Israel have adopted the worship and practices of other gods and God’s anger is kindled. Judges 10 finds them acknowledging that they have sinned against God because they had forsaken Him and served other gods. (Vs.10) God then recounts how He, the Almighty God, had delivered them and kept them from their enemies. (Vs.11) He reminds them how they had cried out to Him and He alone had rescued them. It blows my mind that God, even when we disobey Him, will still in His kindness dialogue with us as He did the Israelites.
In His anger He tells them that He will no longer deliver them. (Vs.11-13) Can you imagine that God tells them literally to go and cry out to the other gods they had chosen, in times of suffering or trouble (Vs.14) Once again the children of Israel acknowledged their sin, and placed their fate in the hands of God, if He would only deliver them from the danger they faced. (VS.15) Israel truly repented and turned away from serving strange gods and served the true and living God. They made the tangible step of taking down the foreign idols. (Vs.16)
The text continues to unfold in epic fashion, that both the enemy Ammonites and Israel have gathered. There was just one big issue, Israel was without a leader to lead the fight! One thing was for sure the man who would lead would be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead. (Vs.18) This leader would be perhaps a man of noble birth or a skilled warrior. I encourage you to read the rest of Judges and see how the story ends.
PRACTICAL APPLICATION BY RAUFU SPAGNOLETTA
Since I was a babe in Christ, scriptures such as “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish ” (Luke 13:3, 5), and “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth not, to him it is sin” (James 4:17), have ordered my steps in the Word. I have been properly discipled “to be quick to repent” and “it is a sin not to obey the truth that I have been taught.” Through the grace of the Holy Spirit I continue to live out these foundational principles.
Repeatedly in the past, Israel’s concern had been more for a deliverance from oppression than for a relationship with God. This was the nature of their initial confession (Judges 10:10). Israel’s ingratitude for God’s past deliverances led God to challenge the sincerity of their confession and for the first time God rejected their cry for deliverance! They were told to seek deliverance from the gods they chose to worship. Herein is a pivotal point in the lesson!
Knowing only God could deliver them, Israel coupled their confession (Judges 10:15) with repentance . “And they put away their strange gods from among them, and served the LORD: and His soul was grieved for the misery of Israel” (Judges 10:16). Like the perfect loving parent, God hated to see Israel suffer, even when it was good for them. He longed to rescue them but would not do it until it was good for them. So it is with us at times, God will allow us to suffer the consequences of our sin because He requires genuine repentance with our confession (Romans 2:4)!
