Judges 1:1-10- Something To Be Commended For And Something To Be Concerned About

We are primarily going to be focusing on the first three verses of our text. Let’s read together Judges 1:1-10 & 19, “After the death of Joshua, the people of Israel inquired of the Lord, “Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?” The Lord said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.” And Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me into the territory allotted to me, that we may fight against the Canaanites. And I likewise will go with you into the territory allotted to you.” So Simeon went with him. Then Judah went up and the Lord gave the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand, and they defeated 10,000 of them at Bezek. They found Adoni-bezek at Bezek and fought against him and defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites. Adoni-bezek fled, but they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and his big toes. And Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and their big toes cut off used to pick up scraps under my table. As I have done, so God has repaid me.” And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

And the men of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it and struck it with the edge of the sword and set the city on fire. And afterward the men of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who lived in the hill country, in the Negeb, and in the lowland. And Judah went against the Canaanites who lived in Hebron (now the name of Hebron was formerly Kiriath-arba), and they defeated Sheshai and Ahiman and Talmai...And the LORD was with Judah, and he took possession of the hill country, but he could not drive out the inhabitants of the plain because they had chariots of iron.”

In the first half of Judges 1 we see that Judah and Simeon align together and they experience some military successes against the inhabitants of Canaan. This success comes to an abrupt end in Judges 1:19 when they could not defeat the chariots of iron.

In the first half of Judges 1 we see a couple of things.

• First, even though Judah and Simeon join together to form a powerful military force the scriptures still attribute any success that they have to the LORD. (4,19,22) The willingness of the LORD to do this does not mean that the LORD condones everything that is being done (3;4-7), but it does emphasize that there is not going to be any success apart from the Sovereign hand of the LORD.

• Secondly, despite the success we also see some things that are concerning.

  • They form a partnership against the clear word of the LORD. (1:1-3)

  • The way they treat Adoni-bezek. (1:4-7)

  • They fail to overcome the chariots of iron. (1:19)

  • They make an ill advised covenant with the man who founded Luz. (1:22-26)

It is easy to take a pragmatic view of the partnership that we see in the first few verses of our text. It is easy for us to be pragmatic and say that if it works it is good. However, I do not think that we should come to this text with such a pragmatic view; instead, we ought to see that these are some warning signs that will mean that Judah will not meet the objectives of their mission and they will not be commended by the LORD. (2:1-5)

Having said these things, there is something that we should commended Israel for. After Joshua dies Israel prays regarding the next step that they should take. We read in Judges 1:1, “After the death of Joshua, the people of Israel inquired of the Lord, “Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?”

Israel should be commended for praying and asking the LORD this question; however, Judah doesn’t appear to be comfortable with the mission that the LORD has assigned them. We read, “The Lord said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.” And Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me into the territory allotted to me, that we may fight against the Canaanites. And I likewise will go with you into the territory allotted to you.” (2-3)

Illustration: A friends mother asks a question.

We may read these opening words and think that Judah isn’t doing anything wrong when they engage in this partnership with Simeon. This partnership may seem like a wise and prudent action since Israel is going to war. In fact, many commentaries see this partnership as a good thing which illustrates christian unity, cooperation, and working together to accomplish God’s will. These things are good, however, I am not sure that this is the main point of Judges 1 or that that interpretation flows with the rest of this book. I have taken a different view than this so let me say a few things.

• First, this passage is a warning against not carefully following the instructions that God gives. We are not to add or take away from God’s word.

• Second, this passage shows that we need to recognize when we lack the faith to obey God and His Word. When we attempt to act against God’s word without faith we may appear to have some victories as Israel does here, but eventually we will experience a defeat and we will fail to obtain the objectives that God has given. (1:19; 2:1-5)

• Third, when we lack faith there will be other symptoms of faithlessness that will appear as we see in the first half of Judges 1. For example, when they experience some success they will become prideful and pragmatic. This seems to be how they are acting in Judges 1:5-7 with King Adoni-bezek. Eventually, however, there will be a defeat because God resists the pride. (James 4:6)

Do you remember the sermon that Ray Haas preached on March 16th that was entitled, “The Next Step: God helps us take our next step in life”? Ray’s sermon had three points and if we can apply them to this text we see that we have a problem in Judges 1. His three points were (Numbers 1:1-5),

• God directs us into our next step in life.

• God show us how to take the next step.

• God shows us who will help us take that next step in life.

If we apply these three points to our text we see that Judah’s reaction is a problem. Therefore, we should not read these things in Judges 1 and say, “This is no big deal! There is nothing to see here or to be concerned about. What they do here is wise and they have made God’s plan better.” No, we should see that their response is a problem and a failure to do exactly what the LORD has told them. (21:25) If they needed more answers or clarification they should have prayed again.

As we read the words, “After the death of Joshua…”, we see that Israel is in a time of transition. Joshua has passed away and his death is setting into motion certain responsibilities and events that were expected. Joshua had brought the people into the Promised Land where they began to enjoy their inheritance, now this next generation is supposed to complete task.

After this we are told, “...the people of Israel inquired of the Lord…”. (1) Their response is encouraging- all of God’s people pray. They are praying to the LORD to know what their next step should be, how to take it, and who should take it with them? Observation: It is commendable that Israel does not presume to know what to do in this moment without first going to God in prayer.

Note: This is a practice that Israel did not continue in future generations. In the book of Judges the LORD will raise up many judges to lead God’s people. However, when the judge dies that next generation does not pray to the LORD like Israel does here. As a result, they immediately begin to fall away from the LORD. We see this begin in Judges 2:11-12, “The land had rest for forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died. And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD.” Notice what this text does not say, “And the people of Israel again prayed…”. No, it says, “And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD.” Application: we need to pray and obey every day.

Israel has a big task ahead of them. Israel has been told by the LORD, by Moses, and by Joshua what needs to happen next and it would be a temptation to not pray and just begin the task. When we have a task to do we can busy ourselves without praying to the LORD for His wisdom, grace, and strength. It would have been easy for Israel to be like Martha who busied herself with her responsibilities and never took time to sit at the LORD’s feet. (Luke 10)

Application: There will be times when we will think that we have all the facts that we need to act, but this does not mean that we shouldn’t pray and wait upon the LORD.

When we read in verse 1 that Israel came together and prayed to the LORD I was sad because we may never experience a moment like this in our nation. Or can we experience this? Israel is God’s congregation in the Old Testament and they are surrounded by pagan nations. Similarly, we are part of the visible church in the New Covenant who can joint together to pray.

• Question: Are we engaging in this profound privilege in our homes and in our churches?

Israel is to be commended for their prayer; however, their response to God’s answer should concern us. Their response at the beginning of this book is consistent with the theme of this book, “In those day there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in their own eyes.” (21:25) This book begins where it will end.

God answers Israel’s prayer with very clear and specific instructions, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.” (2) The LORD’s response is directed primarily to the tribe of Judah and we see their reaction in verse 3, “And Judah said to Simeon his brother, “Come up with me into the territory allotted to me, that we may fight against the Canaanites. And I likewise will go with you into the territory allotted to you.”

Let’s consider six observations to think about from Judges 1:1-3.

Observation#1: Notice that God does not lay out a detailed plan. No, the LORD replies with a short and simple 13 word message, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.”

Question: Why doesn’t God say more than this? I can think of a couple reasons.

• First, perhaps He does this because Israel lacks faith. Can you imagine the confusion that God’s people experience when they lacked the faith to hear, understand, and obey His word? The LORD keeps His instructions simple because His people’s faith is small. Individuals with only a little faith find it hard to understand and apply the simplest biblical truths.

  • On the eve of this battle with the Canaanites God’s people are fearful so the LORD speaks to His people like Jesus spoke to His disciples, “I still have so much more to say, but you cannot bear to hear it now.” (John 16:12)

• Second, Doesn’t God’s short message imply that this is not to be the only time that God’s people were to pray. God’s people are to pray continually for wisdom and the grace to obey. Therefore, instead of immediately turning to their brother Simeon for help (3) Judah should have prayed again for the grace and courage to obey.

Observation#2: The few words that God spoke were sufficient to give God’s people the faith they needed to obtain complete victory. God gave Judah more than just a command; He also gave them a promise- “I have given the land into His hand”. (2) Every word of the LORD has life and is capable of strengthening our faith. Commands, warnings, and promises can all produce faith in God’s people. In our text Judah heard a command and a promise which could produce the faith to obey.

If Judah had responded to this command and promise in faith the victory was assured. They did not need Simeon’s help because the LORD was going to fight for them. Proverbs 13:13 says, “Whoever despises the Word brings destruction on himself, but he who reveres the commandment will be rewarded.” Although it is subtle, Judah does not fully receive and act upon this command. In a sense Judah despised it and added to it.

Observation#3: Some of us like more information than what God provides here. For some, this short reply from God would have left us with more questions than answers. We would still be wondering, “Why do we have to go fight first? Who will lead us? Who should we attack first? What is the best way to defeat those iron chariots? What will we do when we face those giants of Anak?”

We know that Judah had questions and concerns because they add to the words that the LORD had given them. When these questions arose in their hearts they turned to Simeon and formed an alliance. Instead, they should have looked to the LORD again in prayer for grace and strength to obey.

A moment ago I mentioned how Israel was not like Martha, however, now after they pray that they become like her by expecting their brother to help them fulfill their task. Like Martha they think they need the help of their sibling as they begin to busy themselves with their own plans.

Observation#4: God will often answer our prayer but then more prayer is needed for our faith and the grace to respond well. Did you know that Judah was the largest of the tribes and yet they lacked the confidence in God and the courage to obey His Word. This will always be the case when we look at ourselves and not to the LORD. The answer to this dilemma is to look to the LORD and away from ourselves. (Prov. 20:7)

Observation#5: The LORD’s reply was about what Judah was to do but the other tribes had an opportunity to support and encourage Judah to obey what was commanded. The whole nation prayed and so God’s response would have been known by all of them. (1) This becomes clear even by the way God speaks in verse 2 when He says, “I have given the land into his hand”. The LORD does not say, “I have given the land into your hand (Judah)”; but the LORD speaks to everyone and says, “I have given the land into his hand”

When Judah began to deviate from what God had said the other tribes should have confirmed what God said and then encouraged Judah to respond in obedient faith. Instead Simeon becomes a partner and the other tribes remain silent or even encourage these things.

• Observation: The tribes are beginning to sin like Adam and Eve when they disobeyed the Word of the LORD. After they sinned God comes to them and says, “What is this that you have done?” (Genesis 3:13) Similarly, in Judges 2:2 the LORD says, “But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done?”

Observation#6: Why didn’t Simeon, or any of the other tribes, object to Judah’s plan? Why didn’t anyone begin to voice some concern about this small deviation from what God has said? Why was there not one person who said, “Did you not listen to what the LORD just said, ‘I have given the land into Judah’s hand’?”

What God said was not hard to understand or complicated. Therefore, what we see happening is a problem with the faith of God’s people to carefully hear and obey God’s word. In Judges 1 Israel is content to be pragmatic and apathetic towards God and His word. The little victories they may achieve will soon be confronted by God when He says, “You have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done?” (Judges 2:2b) Application: O how we can sin in similar ways. We need to remain so diligent to hear, understand, and obey God’s word without making excuses. We need to try to rescue any brother or sister who is about to sin as Israel does here. (James 5:19-20)

Conclusion: Today we have seen a picture of Israel where they can be commended for their prayer but criticized for their response to God’s reply. Israel asks, “Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?” (1) Then the LORD responds, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.” (2)

In the Book of Judges the tribe of Judah, and the whole nation, will fail to obey the LORD and take full possession of their inheritance. However, the book of Judges points us to another picture. It is no accident that the Lord said to Israel, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.”

God knew that His people would not be able to succeed in the task they had been given. (Joshua 24:19) But God also knew that one day He would send Israel’s King into the world through the tribe of Judah. King Jesus would go up and defeat all our enemies. King Jesus would perfectly obey His Father and every promise would find their fulfillment in Him. Because of Jesus’ perfect obedience in life and in death God has “given the land into his hand”. (2) The tribe of Judah failed to receive this promise, but the LORD’s words here are pointing to a promise that has been fulfilled in Christ Jesus. (Hebrews 4:8-12)

This is the reason for our faith to not be in ourselves or anyone else, but our faith is to be in Christ alone.