A man gives his concubine (somewhere between wife and mistress) to a group of ravenous men who destroy her in a Benjamite town. Almost dead, she returns to the house and lies down, surely hoping someone will rescue her and care for her wounds. The man opens the door to leave in the morning. Apparently [...]
Archive for the ‘Judges’ Category
Day 84: Judges 19-21
Posted in Bible in a Year 2011-2012, Judges, tagged death, domestic violence, Family, life, Love, real men don't hit women on November 23, 2011 | 1 Comment »
Day 83: Judges 16-18
Posted in Bible in a Year 2011-2012, Judges, tagged death, faith, life, prayer, Samson, strength on November 22, 2011 | 1 Comment »
Samson continues his wild life, visiting a prostitute, showing off his strength, falling in love with another woman, and lying to her three times. Then he finally tells her his secret, and his demise begins. Near the end of his life, Samson finally prays. I won’t belabor Samson’s vices here. You can read my previous [...]
Day 82: Judges 13-15
Posted in Bible in a Year 2011-2012, Judges, Leadership, tagged faith, God, life, mission, Samson, spirituality on November 21, 2011 | 1 Comment »
Samson is secretive of his treatment of animals and rebellious in his choice of a wife. She manipulates and betrays him at the wedding party, so he throws a temper tantrum and runs from his new vow. Then his bride hooks up with one of his groomsmen. When Samson finds out, his anger explodes in [...]
Day 81: Judges 10-12
Posted in Bible in a Year 2011-2012, Holidays, Judges, Parenting, Relationships, tagged career, Family, Parenting, Thanksgiving on November 20, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
In the heat of battle, Jephthah promises to sacrifice to God “whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites.” To his surprise, as soon as he gets home, his daughter dances out to meet him. Jephthah is a “mighty warrior,” but he’s not [...]
Day 80: Judges 8-9
Posted in Bible in a Year 2011-2012, Judges, tagged faith, God, Love, spirituality on November 19, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal-Berith as their god and did not remember the LORD their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. They also failed to show any loyalty to the family of Jerub-Baal [...]
Day 79: Judges 6-7
Posted in Bible in a Year 2011-2012, Judges, Leadership, tagged angel of the Lord, faith, Gideon on November 18, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
“The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.” Those are the words Gideon hears in Judges 6. He replies by asking why so many horrendous things have happened to his people if the Lord is with them. Have you ever asked that or something similar? Many have. I have. You are not alone. And that’s the [...]
Day 78: Judges 3-5
Posted in Bible in a Year 2011-2012, Judges, tagged Deborah, Jael, Poetry, prose, Sisera on November 17, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
At her feet he sank, he fell; there he lay. At her feet he sank, he fell; where he sank, there he fell—dead. Those words from Deborah’s song in Judges 5 gross me out and simultaneously inspire me. Despite the gruesomeness the lines show the poet’s skill that even survives the translation from Hebrew to [...]
Day 77: Judges 1-2
Posted in Bible in a Year 2011-2012, Judges, tagged idolatry, polytheism, war, worship on November 16, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
It’s more than war. The Israelites conquer several towns but not others, and they leave survivors in some. This incomplete warfare was due to an insufficient faith in God and a fear of uncontrollable circumstances. If this story were just about war, it would not resonate with me. Thankfully, as we see in the beginning [...]
