Judges: A Cycle of Disobedience
Judges 2:1-23; 3:1-8
INTRODUCTION: Judges, chapter one, acts as a transition between Joshua and Judges. Chapter two of Judges introduces the pattern of disobedience, destruction and deliverance that will be the pattern of the entire book. Israel, in the book of Judges, is a picture of the defeated, carnal Christian. They mix other gods with the true God. They follow the practices of the world. They cry out to God only when they are in great trouble. Otherwise, they mostly ignore Him. Because of their rebellion and disobedience, they suffer a miserable existence. They are the epitome of everything God’s people should not be.
I. A MESSAGE OF WARNING FROM GOD (2:1-5)
A. The Appearance of the Angel of the Lord (v.1)
1. He comes up from Gilgal, the first headquarters for the Israelites in the land (Joshua 4:19-20; 10:6, 43; 14:6)
2. He must have been the angel that followed Israel (Exodus 14:19; 23:20-23; 32:34; 33:2; Numbers 20:16; Isaiah 63:9)
3. This angel is identified in other places as the Lord (Genesis 16:7-13; 22:15-16) and is certainly an appearance of Jesus Christ before His coming to earth as a baby
B. The Message of the Angel (v.1-3)
1. God has kept His promises to Israel (v.1)
2. Israel has broken her promises to God (v.2)
3. The nations in the midst will be left as a thorn (v.3)
C. The Sorrow of the Children of Israel (v.4-5)
1. They lift up their voice and weep (v.4)
2. They call the place Bochim: meaning weepers (v.5)
3. They sacrifice there unto the Lord (v.5)
4. They continue disobeying the Lord (as seen in the remainder of the book of Judges)
II. THE PASSING OF THE RIGHTEOUS GENERATION (2:6-10)
A. The People Served God During Joshua’s Generation (v.6-7)
B. Joshua Dies and was Buried (v.8-9)
C. Another Generation Arose Which Knew Not the Lord (v.10)
D. NOTE: We are always only one generation away from complete rejection of God and total apostasy. We must always practice Psalm 78:1-8 and 2 Timothy 2:2.
III. THE CYCLE OF DISOBEDIENCE AND DELIVERANCE (2:11-19)
A. The Idolatry of Israel (v.11-13)
1. They did evil in the sight of the Lord; that is, they mixed Baal worship with the true ceremonies (v.11; Zephaniah 1:5)
2. They forsook the Lord God of their fathers (v.12); that is, they completely left true worship and went to the gods of the land
3. They provoked the Lord to anger (v.12; Psalm 78:54-59)
4. They made a complete change in their religion (v.13)
B. The Judgment of the Lord (v.14-15)
1. They were sold into the hands of their enemies (v.14)
2. The Lord’s hand was against them for evil (v.15)
3. They were greatly distressed in their burdens (v.15)
C. The Deliverance Through Judges (v.16-18)
1. God raised up judges to deliver them (v.16)
2. Even in this they continued after false gods (v.17)
3. Yet God delivered them because of their groanings (v.18)
D. The Return to Corruption (v.19)
1. The judge would die
2. They became even worse in their sins
IV. THE NATIONS LEFT IN THE LAND (2:20-23; 3:1-4)
A. God Determined to Leave the Unconquered Nations (v.20-21)
B. These Nations Were Left to Prove Israel (v.22-23)
C. Through These Nations Israel Continued to War (3:1-4)
V. THE OPPRESSION OF MESOPOTAMIA (3:5-8)
A. The Children of Israel Dwelt Among the Canaanites (v.5)
B. They Intermarried With Them and Served Their Gods (v.6)
C. They Did Evil in the Sight of the Lord (v.7)
D. God Sold Them into the Hand of Mesopotamia (v.8)
CONCLUSION: We stop this lesson with the oppression of the Israelites by Mesopotamia. They will be delivered in the next lesson only to fall into another disaster. They never seem to learn from their errors. There are many Christians today who live like these Israelites. They continually hurt themselves by their disobedience to the Lord yet they never seem to learn. You need to determine in your heart not to be one of these Christians.
MEMORY VERSES:
q Judges 2:13 – And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.
q Judges 2:10 – And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.
q Judges 3:6 – And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods.
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Antioch Baptist Church Knoxville, Tennessee