Sapate Novema 7, 2021

there was no king in Israel

na‘e ‘ikai ha tu‘i ‘Isileli

Fakamaau 19 (Judges 19)

(v. 1) PEA ‘i he taimi ko ia na‘e ‘ikai ha tu‘i ‘Isileli; pea na‘e ai tokua ha motu‘a Līvai na‘e ‘āunofo ki he potu ki kō ‘o Mo‘unga-‘Ifalemi, na‘a ne to‘o ma‘ane sinifu ha fefine mei Pētelihema-Siuta.

(v. 1) In those days, when there was no king in Israel, a certain Levite was sojourning in the remote parts of the hill country of Ephraim, who took to himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

The story of the Levite occupies three chapters and is again a mirror held up to the times, revealing startling moral conditions and showing the conflict of good and evil among them.

In considering the story of this chapter, several things are to be carefully noted. First, we must recognize the imperfection of the times as revealed in the practice of polygamy and concubinage among the chosen people. There is no doubt that their action in these matters was in advance of that of the people of the land.

Nevertheless, the fact that a Levite had a concubine in these days was terrible, but we must consider it in the light of the times. When this is done, we notice that the sacredness in which he thought of her relation to him does stand in striking contrast to the loose ideals of the Canaanitish people. Nevertheless, the story does reveal a terrible condition of degeneracy among a section of the chosen people. The action of the men of Gibeah was nothing less than the action of the men of Sodom long before. The drastic and terrible method adopted by the Levite was intended to draw the attention of Israel to the sin of the men and reveals the conscience of the better part of the people concerning purity.

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Judges 19

This set the stage for the terrible story in the following chapters. No king in Israel meant more than the absence of a political monarch; it also meant that they refused to recognize God’s leadership over them.

What unfolds in the rest of this chapter is so distasteful that the commentator F.B. Meyer recommended not reading it. Commenting on this first verse, he wrote: “It will be sufficient to ponder these words, which occur four times in the book, without reading further in this terrible chapter, which shows the depths of the depravity to which may sink apart from the grace of God.”

He took for himself a concubine: The Levite’s concubine was recognized as his legal partner, but she did not have the same status in the home or in society as a wife.

In this sense a concubine was a legal mistress. Many prominent men in the Old Testament had concubines. Examples include Abraham (Genesis 25:6), Jacob (Genesis 35:22), Caleb (1 Chronicles 2:46), Saul (2 Samuel 3:7), David (2 Samuel 5:13), Solomon (1 Kings 11:3 – 300 concubines), and Rehoboam (2 Chronicles 11:21). Significantly, we never see this kind of family life blessed by God.

The New Testament makes it clear that from the beginning God’s plan was one man and one woman to be one flesh forever (Matthew 19:4-6), and each man is to be a “one-woman man” (1 Timothy 3:2).

 Tokonaki Novema 6, 2021

they set up Micah’s carved image

na‘a nau fokotu‘u ma‘anautolu ‘a e ‘īmisi ‘a Maika

Fakamaau 18 (Judges 18)

(v. 30-31) Pea fokotu‘u ‘e he kau Tani ma‘anautolu ‘a e ‘īmisi: pea ko Sionatane ko e foha ‘a Kēsome ko e foha ‘o Mōsese, ko ia mo hono ngaahi foha na‘e taula‘eiki ki he matakali ‘o Tani, ‘o a‘u ki he ‘aho na‘e taki pōpula ai ‘a e fonua. ‘Io, na‘a nau fokotu‘u ma‘anautolu ‘a e ‘īmisi ‘a Maika na‘a ne ngaohi, lolotonga na‘e tu‘u ‘a e fale ‘o ‘Elohimi ‘i Sailo.

(v. 30-31) And the people of Dan set up the carved image for themselves, and Jonathan the son of Gershom, son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land. So they set up Micah’s carved image that he made, as long as the house of God was at Shiloh.

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

The account of the backsliding of individuals is followed by an illustration of its widespread existence among the people. While seeking new territory the Danites found Micah and the condition of things established in his house.

When presently they moved forward to success, they did not hesitate to size Micah's images and capture his priest. The terrible decadence of the religious ideal is startlingly revealed in this whole story.

Deeply embedded in the character of the people was the consciousness of the importance of religion. Micah must worship and the Danites felt the necessity of their enterprise for maintaining some kind of relationship with God. Yet in each case there was the most violent prostitution of religion to purposes of personal prosperity.

Micah hoped by the maintenance of some form of worship and the presence of a Levite that Jehovah would be his God, by which he evidently meant that material prosperity would come to him. The Danites, searching for new territory, were anxious to maintain religion.

Wherever religion is acknowledged and adopted merely in order to ensure material prosperity, it suffers degradation. In these stories we have a revelation of the beginnings of those terrible conditions which eventually issued in the ruin of the people.

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Judges 18

The children of Dan set up for themselves the carved image: This was the beginning of established idolatry in Israel in the Promised Land. There was individual idolatry in Israel long before this, but this is official idolatry.

Through a strange chain of events, this began with a son stealing 1,100 shekels from his mother (Judges 17:1-2). It ended with an entire tribe of Israel led into established idolatry.

So they set up for themselves Micah’s carved image: We can suppose that Micah had no idea how far-reaching the effects of his sin would become. His personal idolatry became the idolatry of an entire tribe, setting up a rival center of worship to the house of God... in Shiloh.

“Whether intentionally on the part of the writer or no, there is a touch of satire in this declaration. There, at Shiloh, was the true centre of the national life, the house of God... Nevertheless, at Dan they gathered about the false, and rendered a worship which was destructive.” (Morgan)

 Falaite Novema 5, 2021

Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

takitaha fai hono loto.

Fakamaau 17 (Judges 17)

(v. 6) Ko e taimi ko ia na‘e ‘ikai ha tu‘i ‘i ‘Isileli; na‘e takitaha fai hono loto.

(v. 6) In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

Here begins the final section of the Book of Judges which is of the nature of an appendix. The events here recorded must have taken place closely following the death of Joshua. They give us a picture of the internal condition of the people, and it is probable that they were added with that intention by the historian.

Micah's act was a violation of the second commandment. He made to himself and for his household certain images. In doing so he was not adopting the idolatries of the heathen. His mother's language reveals her recognition of Jehovah as she said, "Blessed be my son of Jehovah." Moreover, Micah's own words, when persuading a Levite to act as his priest, show the same thing, "Now know I that Jehovah will do me good. . . ." The images were intended to aid him in the worship of Jehovah but were distinctly forbidden, as we have said, in the second commandment.

The whole story is a (revelation of a degenerate condition. Micah had robbed his mother. On making restitution he accompanied the act, at her instigation, with what she supposed to be a religious movement. The consent of the Levite to become a priest in the house of Micah for the sake of a living is a further revelation of degeneracy. Micah was attempting to maintain his relationship with God by violating the commands of God. The Levite degenerated into an attempt to secure his own material comfort by compromise.

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Judges 17

There was, in fact, a king in Israel – Israel should have recognized the Lord God as their King. But since Israel rejected God as King, they were without any good and effective leadership.

This refers to the radical individualism that marked the time of the Judges. People looked to self for their guide to morality and ethics. The people genuinely felt that they did what was right, but they measured it only by their own eyes.

This is very much like the modern, “follow-your-heart” or “let-your-heart-be-your-guide” thinking. Modern culture regards this as the ideal state of society. Yet the Bible and common sense tell us that this kind of moral, spiritual, and social anarchy brings nothing but destruction.

· It seemed right to the eyes of Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit, but God said it was wrong.

· It seemed right to the eyes of the sons of Jacob to sell Joseph into slavery, but God said it was wrong.

· It seemed right to the eyes of Nadab and Abihu to offer strange fire before the Lord, but God said it was wrong.

· It seemed right to the eyes of King David to commit adultery with Bathsheba and cover it with murder, but God said it was wrong.

· It seemed right to the eyes of Judas to betray Jesus, but God said it was wrong.

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death (Proverbs 14:12). When man follows his own instincts — apart from the redeemed nature of the converted person — it leads to ruin. We need to follow God’s way, not our own.

 Tu‘apulelulu Novema 4, 2021

And he told her all his heart

ko ia na‘a ne tala ki he fefine hono loto kotoa

Fakamaau 16 (Judges 16)

(v. 16-17) Pea ‘i he‘ene fakafiu kiate ia, ‘i he‘ene lau ‘i he ‘aho kotoa pē, mo fakakina kiate ia, na‘e faifai pea ‘ikai te ne meimei kātaki ke mo‘ui; ko ia na‘a ne tala ki he fefine hono loto kotoa, ‘o ne pehē ki ai, Kuo te‘eki ke ‘ai ha tele ki hoku ‘ulu, he kuo u nofo ko e nāsili ki he ‘Otua talu hoku fanau‘i. Kapau ‘e fafai au, pea ‘e toki mahu‘i meiate au hoku ivi, pea te u vaivai ‘o tatau mo ha tangata kehe.

(v. 16-17) And when she pressed him hard with her words day after day, and urged him, his soul was vexed to death. And he told her all his heart, and said to her, “A razor has never come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If my head is shaved, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak and be like any other man.”

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

Here we have the sad and awful account of Samson's relapse and final fall. He went to Gaza. It is easy to imagine how much there must have been in Gaza which should have appealed to one acting for the fulfillment of the divine purpose. There were idolatries and evil things against which he should have flung himself in force. But he did not. He was still swayed by the strength of his animal nature, and the tragic sentence is written, ". . .

Samson went to Gaza, and saw there a harlot."

In the midst of his sin, his enemies attempted to imprison him. He broke through by plucking up the gates of the city and carrying them to the top of an adjacent mountain. Even then, however, he did not learn his lesson and we see him in the toils of Delilah. At last she triumphed, and the man who had long since ceased to be in any deep sense a Nazarite was at last shorn of even the outward symbols of his vow.

There is nothing perhaps in the sacred writings at once more pathetically tragic than the vision of Samson with his eyes put out, grinding in the prison house of the Philistines. It is a picture and a parable needing no enforcement of exposition to make it powerful.

At last, out of the depths of his degradation, he cried to God, and in his death struck the heaviest blow at the people from whose oppression he ought to have delivered his people.

At this point ends the history of this Book. It is taken up again in the first Book of Samuel. The remaining chapters of the Book and the Book of Ruth have their chronological place in the period already surveyed.

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Judges 16

Earlier Samson gave into the nagging of his Philistine wife (Judges 14:15-18). Now he yielded to the nagging of Delilah. She certainly sinned by using such terrible manipulation, but Samson also sinned by yielding to that manipulation.

Her previous complaint that Samson’s love for her was empty and a hollow protest. Delilah had no love for him, and she expected Samson to destroy himself and his service for God to “prove” his love for her.

He told her all his heart: When Samson did this, it was a very sad scene. He had to know what was to come. He faced the choice between faithfulness to his God and continuing an ungodly relationship.

In this we see the strongest man in the world weak under the power of an ungodly relationship. Perhaps Samson figured that because he was strong in one are of his life, he was strong in all areas. In this he was desperately wrong.

Then she lulled him to sleep on her knees: No doubt, Delilah used sweet words to lull Samson to sleep. Her pretended love for Samson for the sake of money is deeply troubling.

“As long as he is consecrated he is strong; break that, he is weak as water. Now there are a thousand razors with which the devil can shave off the locks of a consecrated man without his knowing it. Samson is sound asleep; so clever is the barber that he even lulls him to sleep as his fingers move across the pate, the fool’s pate, which he is making bare. The devil is cleverer far than even the skillful-barber; he can shave the believer’s locks while he scarcely knows it.” (Spurgeon)

There was nothing magical in Samson’s hair. We might also say that Samson began breaking his Nazirite vow before this. Yet there came a time when Samson finally had to reckon with his rejection of God’s mercy.

“Not that his hair made him strong, but that his hair was the symbol of his consecration, and was the pledge of God’s favor to him. While his hair was untouched he was a consecrated man; as soon as that was cut away, he was no longer perfectly consecrated, and then his strength departed from him.” (Spurgeon)

“In the opinion of some persons Samson looked much improved when his matted hair was gone. He was more presentable; more fit for good society. And so in the case of churches, the notion is that they are all the better for getting rid of their peculiarities.” (Spurgeon)

 Pulelulu Novema 3, 2021

And God split open the hollow place

Ka ka foa‘i ‘e he ‘Otua ‘a e luo

Fakamaau 15 (Judges 15)

(v. 18-20) Pea ne mate he fie inu, ‘o ne tautapa ki he ‘Eiki, ‘o ne pehē, Ko eni kuo ke fakafai ‘i ho‘o tamaio‘eiki ‘a e fu‘u fakahaofi ko eni, ka u mate ai au he fie inu, ‘o tō ki he nima ‘o e fa‘ahinga ta‘ekamu na. Ka ka foa‘i ‘e he ‘Otua ‘a e luo na‘e ‘i Lehi, pea na‘e ha‘u mei ai ‘a e vai; pea ne inu, pea toe ake hono laumālie, ‘o ne mo‘ui: ko hono ‘uhinga ia na‘e ui ai hono hingoa ko Eni-Hākole (ko e Vaikeli ‘o e Tautapa), ‘a ia ‘oku tu‘u ‘i Lehi ‘o a‘u ki he ‘aho ni. Pea ne fai fakamaau ‘i ‘Isileli ‘o uofulu ta‘u, ‘i he kuonga ‘o e kau Filisitia.

(v. 18-20) And he was very thirsty, and he called upon the Lord and said, “You have granted this great salvation by the hand of your servant, and shall I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” And God split open the hollow place that is at Lehi, and water came out from it. And when he drank, his spirit returned, and he revived. Therefore the name of it was called En-hakkore; it is at Lehi to this day. And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

Here we have the record of further exploits by Samson and once more the circumstances of them were not to his credit.

His revenge on the Philistines in the destruction of their property and their slaughter served in the wider outlook to limit the oppression of the Philistines The action of the men of Judah in binding him and handing him over to the Philistines was utterly contemptible, and in this connection the great possibility of the man flamed into view. We see him breaking the bonds that bound him and with terrific onslaught, armed only with the jawbone of an ass, slaying a thousand of their number. We are conscious of what he might have done had he been wholly yielded to that "Spirit of Jehovah" who came mightily upon him, instead of being so largely governed by the fires of his own passion.

After this victory there was perhaps a break during which he realized his a possibility more perfectly. Miraculously refreshed with water, he revived, and it is said that he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines for twenty years.

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Judges 15

Samson needed this thirst to remind himself of his own weakness and need right after such a great victory. After a great victory we need to remember our mortality.

“It is very usual for God’s people, when they have had some great deliverance, to have some little trouble that is too much for them. Samson slays a thousand Philistines, and piles them up in heaps, and then he must needs die for want of a little water!” (Spurgeon)

Matthew Poole comments on Samson’s great thirst: it was “partly sent by God, that by the experience of his own impotency he might be forced to ascribe the victory to God only, and not to himself.”

God split the hollow place that is in Lehi, and water came out, and he drank; and his spirit returned, and he revived: This is an example of the principle that God’s work, done God’s way, will always be provided for by God. Here the Lord showed His faithfulness to Samson by supplying the needs of His servant.

In his sermon The Fainting Hero, Charles Spurgeon pointed out that the believer can look at heaps upon heaps of defeated enemies: Heaps of your sins, heaps of your doubts and fears, heaps of our temptations, heaps of many of your sorrows. Yet, despite all these victories, fresh challenges will come, even as a deadly thirst and fatigue overcame Samson. Through this all, Samson could count on the fact that the past victory was a promise of future deliverance.

“With that simple minded faith which was so characteristic of Samson, who was nothing but a big child, he turned his eye to his heavenly Father, and cried, ‘O Jehovah, thou hast given me this great deliverance, and now shall I die for thirst? After all that thou hast done for me, shall the uncircumcised rejoice over me because I die for want of a drink of water?’ Such confidence had he, that God would interpose on his behalf.” (Spurgeon)

“Be of good courage, fainting warrior! The God who made thee, and has used thee, knows thy frame, and what thou needest before thou askest.” (Meyer)

 Tusite Novema 2, 2021

His father and mother did not know that it was from the Lord

He na‘e ‘ikai ‘ilo ‘e he‘ene tamai pe ko ‘ene fa‘ē, ko e me‘a mei he ‘Eiki ia

Fakamaau 14 (Judges 14)

(v. 4) He na‘e ‘ikai ‘ilo ‘e he‘ene tamai pe ko ‘ene fa‘ē, ko e me‘a mei he ‘Eiki ia, he‘ene kumi hano ava ke fai mo e kau Filisitia; he ko e taimi ko ia ko e kau Filisitia na‘e pule ki ‘Isileli.

(v. 4) His father and mother did not know that it was from the Lord, for he was seeking an opportunity against the Philistines. At that time the Philistines ruled over Israel.

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

This is the record of tragic things. The boy Samson had grown to manhood's estate full of strength and passion. Going to Timnah, he saw a woman of the Philistines and desired to take her to wife. His parents attempted to dissuade him, but he allowed himself to be swept by his passion and determined to realize his own desires. All through the transactions connected with this woman, he is seen as a man of animal strength, bold, adventurous, determined, and of sporting propensities. There is nothing to admire in him in all his doings.

Two things, however, in the course of the narrative arrest our attention. First, the statement, "His father and his mother knew not that it was of Jehovah" (verse Jdg 14:4 ) ; and, second, the declaration, "The Spirit of Jehovah came mightily upon him" (verse Jdg 14:19 ). In these statements the fact of the overruling of God is clearly revealed. The phrase, "It was of Jehovah," is used in the sense in which we find it inJoshua 11:20; Joshua 11:20. God makes even the wrath of man praise Him as He compels it to contribute to the accomplishment of His own purpose. This fact, however, in no sense justified the sin of Samson in seeking a wife of the Philistines in violation of the expressed commands of God. The impetuous passion in which he slew thirty men of the Philistines to pay his sporting debt was utterly reprehensible. Yet this also contributed to the purpose of God in the destruction of the Philistines.

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Judges 14

His father and mother did not know that it was of the Lord: As the rest of the chapter shows, some good ultimately came out of this ungodly marriage. Many Philistines were killed and they were kept off balance in their attempts to dominate the Israelites.

However, none of that justified Samson’s actions. Though God can make even the evil of man to serve His purposes, it never justifies the evil that man does.

He was seeking an occasion to move against the Philistines: In accomplishing this purpose, God did not make a reluctant Samson pursue the Philistine woman for marriage. God allowed Samson to do what he wanted to do, though the act itself was sinful. God allowed it for reasons in both Samson’s life and for reasons on a larger scale.

Someone today might justify their desire to marry a non-Christian because they trust some good will come out of it – such as their non-Christian partner eventually coming to Jesus. Things may work out that way, but even though God used Samson’s marriage to a Philistine woman, it all came at a great personal cost to Samson.

No matter how much good God can bring out of even the bad things we do, He can always bring far more good out of our obedience – and we ourselves experience much less pain.

 Monite Novema 1, 2021

he child shall be a Nazirite to God

ko e tamasi‘i te ne nofo ko e nāsili kia Sihova

Fakamaau 13 (Judges 13)

(v. 4-5) Pea ko ia ke ke faka‘ehi‘ehi mu‘a, ‘o ‘oua te ke inu uaine, pe ha kava mālohi, pea ‘oua te ke kai ha me‘a ‘oku tapu; he, vakai, te ke feitama, ‘o ke fā‘ele‘i ha tama tangata, pea ‘e ‘ikai apo ha tele ki hono ‘ulu: he ko e tamasi‘i te ne nofo ko e nāsili kia Sihova mei hono fanau‘i: pea ko ia ia te ne kamata ke fakahaofi ‘a ‘Isileli mei ke kau Filisitia.

(v. 4-5) Therefore be careful and drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he shall begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines.”

G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

Once again we read that "Israel again did that which was evil," and once again they were delivered to discipline at the hands of their enemies. In this connection we have one of the strangest stories of the Old Testament, the story of Samson. It is the story of a great opportunity and a disastrous failure in the case of a man who might have wrought a great deliverance but failed.

Everything would seem to have been in his favor. His birth was foretold by an angel visitor. The foretelling led to his special training, for Manoah his father inquired diligently of the angel how he should be trained. These facts make the story of Samson's failure the more terrible. There is an almost weird suggestiveness in the phrase used by the angel concerning him, "He shall begin to save Israel." His ultimate failure was as certainly foreknown as was his opportunity.

Samson seems to stand as a symbol of the nation in his strength and possibility and also in his ruin and comparative failure. This will be seen as we follow the story. In the light of the after years there is a tragic pathos in this account of beginnings. "The Spirit of Jehovah began to move him." Had he but yielded to the impulses of the Spirit, how different a story might have resulted.

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Judges 13

The child shall be a Nazirite to God: Numbers 6:1-21 describes the vow of a Nazirite. When under the vow, people regarded themselves as specially devoted to God, leaving their hair uncut, drinking no wine and eating no grape products, and avoiding any contact with anything dead.

From the womb: There was nothing particularly unusual about someone taking the vow of a Nazirite for a specific period of time. What was unusual in Samson’s case was that he was to live under the vow from his birth, and that his vow was intended to be a lifetime vow.

Please be careful not to drink wine or similar drink, and not to eat anything unclean: Manoah’s wife also had to share in the Nazirite vow during the time she carried Samson.

He shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines: “There is almost a weird suggestiveness in the phrase used by the angel concerning him, ‘He shall begin to save Israel.’ His ultimate failure was as certainly foreknown as was his opportunity.” (Morgan)