The Book of Judges is a wild journey through a few centuries of Israel's history. Between Joshua's death and the establishment of the monarchy, it contains some of the most interesting and comical and disturbing graphic stories in the Old Testament. So you just need to know what you're in for, and you probably do. Even the name of the book, Judges, sounds rather heavy and serious. But these aren't the kind of judges who might first come to mind. If we're picturing black robed individuals, deliberating matters of law, we will be surprised at what these judges are up to. And these judges are instruments of divine deliverance and judgment. They are judges in that sense, as God, the righteous judge, brings deliverance and judgment through them. They are deliverers and saviors for a nation that's being ensnared with idolatries and temptations of the land they have inherited. When you come to look at the length of Judges, 21 chapters, it's shorter than the previous books of Joshua and then the Torah before that. We must remember that it comes chronologically after those books, nevertheless. Those books are the background against which to interpret its many stories. The previous biblical narratives and the many biblical laws will help us to have the backdrop and lenses through which to see and read and interpret the 21 chapters of Judges. In order to think well about the book, a word from 20,000 feet about its literary structure. This will help us see three big movements in the book. Chapter 1, 1 to 3, 6 is the book's introduction, and it feels like there's more than one introduction. We're calling it a double introduction, and we'll see why in due course. The chapters about the judges are from 3.7 to 16.31. And then there's a conclusion which is long enough with multiple stories that it's been called a double conclusion. So the three movements and judges are an opening introduction, concluding chapters, and then the stories of the judges in the middle. The double introduction, we'll spend just a few weeks on, getting us to all the setup of these great stories of the judges that follow. From 1.1 to 3.6, these introductory chapters begin with Joshua's death as a reference point. 1.1 references Joshua's death, and chapter two, verse six, resets the scene at Joshua's death. Why a double introduction? The Double Introduction is about, first of all, a military angle, the military situation of the land. That's all of Chapter 1 and the first part of Chapter 2. The rest of Chapter 2 and the first part of 3 is the religious situation. And it helps actually to explain a bit more about why we read what we read in chapter one. The first chapter summarizes Israel's military situation. When we were in the book of Joshua together most recently, we spoke about the conquest of the land. And we spoke about them subduing their enemies. And it is true that the book of Joshua reports the subduing of the hostile forces. But there is a tension that I want you to feel when you open the book of Judges, because there are remaining Canaanites. There will be people after the death of Joshua who must be overcome. In other words, there is an already not yet feel to the conquest. Yes, the conquest has already happened, but in another sense, it doesn't feel as complete as it should. And in Judges chapter one, you will get a sense of that. We will get a sense, in fact, that the incompleteness of the conquest is connected to some disobedience, some distrust from within the Israelites. The passage tonight seems to start well. Just like some books that begin these biblical stories that lay out an opening section that then take you on a journey that by the end of the story, you might be in a whole different situation. The book of Judges is that way. Joshua has died. People are seeking word from the Lord about what to do and who is to lead and what tribe is to step forward. But by the end of the book, there are people in the land that look more like Sodom and Gomorrah than the light of the nations. By the end of the book, we've seen a series of judges, both major figures and even some minor figures, who though delivering Israel, weren't necessarily marked with a lot of consistent morally exemplary behavior. But in some cases were judges with very obvious blights upon their actions and character. In the end, the book of Judges highlights the mixed situation in the land. Just like when we as Christians think of this as a template where we have been redeemed, we have come to find our rest and refuge in Christ, and yet we know there is indwelling sin. We know the temptations and snares that linger and the old life in Adam that calls to us. Here is a narrative depiction of a people brought out of captivity and must now deal with the sin in their midst. How will they fare? The book of Judges seems to fit very much in the subject of sanctification. Will this be a people made holy? Will this be a people pursuing what is right and turning from what is evil? Or will they enter this land and become like the Canaanites? One way to describe the book of Judges is as a slow decline into the Canaanization of Israel. And that's not something we would want to see happen. And yet the narratives of the book do describe the nation's decline in that way. In verses 1 and 2, we'll notice a situation of inquiry after this report of Joshua's death. In verses 1 and 2, the appointment of Judah as a tribe after the death of Joshua, we're told. 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've given the land into his hand. Now on your map, you'll notice that Judah has various territory in the southern part of the promised land. And in the southern part of the promised land, Judah's territory will include some lingering skirmishes and Canaanites that are in view here. It seems as if now they're saying, let's complete the conquest. We've subdued our enemies as a whole. The land is ours. And yet there is work still to be done. So let us put low and let us bring low these idolaters and these Canaanites. And this occurs after the death of Joshua, so chronologically we have to see this book as following the long 24-chapter story of the book known as the Book of Joshua. That leader has died. And we're used to, at this point, expecting a new individual to rise and take the lead. Because God brought out the Israelites from Egypt under Moses' leadership. And then when Moses was soon to die, he raised up Joshua, commissioned him under the Lord's own direction. Joshua would lead once Moses died. But now Joshua has died. So who's gonna be this new Moses, new Joshua figure? Well, you go into the book of Judges and you find that there's actually not a particular individual who's been set apart and commissioned and anointed and raised up. It doesn't feel that way. So they inquired the Lord, who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites to fight? And the answer is Judah. In verse two, Judah shall go up. Behold, I've given the land into his hand. Judah is the most important of the 12 tribes. Judah's tribe is associated with royal expectation. From Genesis 49 verse 10, we remember that the scepter shall not depart from Judah, Jacob said, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet until tribute comes to him and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. We are expecting great things from Judah. We're expecting leadership and royalty, authority, and we're expecting a kind of prominence that at this point hasn't yet come to pass. The Israelites say, who shall go up and fight against the Canaanites? And all of a sudden, Judah is put forward. That's not a random selection. Judah's tribe has been endowed by divine blessing and equipping for leadership. It will be from Judah that David will descend. It will be from Judah that the Messiah descends. So Judah's prominence is something we see in Judges chapter 1. There will be some other tribes that are mentioned, especially their failures. But Judges 1 is very interested in putting forth Judah. highlighting and emphasizing that. And that's because when Judges is followed later by Ruth and 1st and 2nd Samuel, the monarchy is going to be established and eventually the king they need will be David from the tribe of Judah. So prior to all those kings for Israel, we have some Judah prominence. And that seems to be foreshadowing some later prominence that David himself will occupy. How did they inquire of the Lord? Well, we know that according to the books of Leviticus and Exodus before that, the high priest would use particular stones called the Urim and Thummim associated with his breast piece for discerning the will of the Lord with various questions. Perhaps this is what was implied. Who shall go up for us? They inquire. And the answer from the Lord, perhaps through the high priest or an unnamed prophet. The Lord says, Judah shall go up. Behold, I've given the land into his hand. And what we read in the next chunk of verses that we'll discuss tonight, not all of chapter one. We'll look at the first part of this double introduction tonight and next week, from chapter 1-1 to 2-5. Tonight, starting into that, starting into chapter 1, we're going to look at the victories of Judah, but also some of the mixed situation that's going to set up these judges. Judah makes a pact with Simeon immediately in verse 3. 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. There's a practical value to this. You should look back at your map for a moment. And in the territory of the judges, what do you notice about Simeon? You'll notice that the tribe of Simeon is actually located inside the territory of Judah. And so in the territory of Judah, you have Simeon his brother. These are spoken about as if they're individuals. Those individuals, those sons of Jacob have long died. We're talking about the tribes as collective individuals, if you will. So Judah says to Simeon his brother, but this is much later than those earlier individuals whose names are for the tribes. This is the tribe of Judah and the tribe of Simeon. And Judah says, come with me into the territory allotted to me. Because in the territory of Judah, there are going to be towns and villages named where more Canaanites will be subdued. And Simeon is being brought into this with a kind of pact. And he says, you come with me and then with your territory, we'll go with you. And so together, we're going to have this kind of sibling bond. Now my leaning on this is that this is a good thing. Not all interpreters view this as a good thing. Some people have looked at Judah's action here as an example of distrust because Judah, they think, should have just gone by themselves and trusted God and not try to bring in other forces with them. And so they might say, here is an unrighteous or unnecessary pact. What is Judah afraid of? God will give them victory, and they shouldn't think to themselves, well, we'll have victory if we can just get more people involved. Let's increase our numbers, and then our chances will increase, right? And so some interpreters think maybe Judah's operating that way. I don't think that's a necessary conclusion. I think it's fine in my view here that Judah and Simeon are allying together because there's a practical value of Simeon's location. Simeon is also a very small tribe and Judah a very mighty group. And so by deferring to Simeon for some help, it's as if they are demonstrating the unity among the tribes rather than some kind of disloyalty. So I don't look at this pact with Simeon and see anything suspicious here. I see this as the brother tribes coming together in unity to subdue the wicked. And the first place they go is Bezek. In verses 4 to 7, the victory at Bezek is described. And Bezek seems to be near Jerusalem because of what happens next. The victory's impressive. In verses four to seven, we read, 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. So this figure, obviously a rounded number, 10,000, who knows what the exact numerical precise number is, but 10,000 is a rounded figure to give you a sense of the greatness of the victory. All these thousands of Bezekites are brought down. But among the number of the 10,000. One is isolated here in verse five. They found Adonai Bezek at Bezek. Now Adonai Bezek means the Lord of Bezek. It's probably not exactly his proper name that his parents gave him at birth. It's more like a title. So whoever is the leader or governing authority over this town is the Lord of Bezek. So Adonai Bezek is probably a title that would apply to whoever's there. Like you might refer to somebody as mayor or governor, a title that would be for whoever's over that region at that time. Adonai Bezek, whoever this guy actually is, here's his title, and they fought against him and they defeated Canaanites and Perizzites. Adonai Bezek fled. Now he's the first Canaanite by name we meet in the book. The Judahites and the Simeonites, these brotherly united people, they're coming together and they are causing a mighty Canaanite ruler to flee. But they catch him. In verse six, they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and big toes. Okay. You say, okay, that just got weird really quickly. What's happening here in verse six? Oh, judges, you know, this book is full of fascinating details. Here's one. They cut off his thumbs and big toes. The only time prior to this, attention is given to thumbs and big toes is when the priests are being ordained for tabernacle ministry and blood is applied to the toes and thumbs of the priests who are going to do that very sacred work. But of course, Adonai Bezek is engaged in all sorts of unholy leadership and profaning of all kinds of sacred things in the land as a Canaanite ruler. Consider the practical effects of thumbs and big toes being removed from a mighty king. First of all, it would be humiliating because he could no longer wield a weapon as he could or flee as he could. They don't do this to all the people. There is a particular act here applied to this ruler in verse six and verse seven gives us a little bit of insight. Adonai Bezek said, 70 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. So the next thing we realize about Adonai Bezek here is he's understanding what just happened to him as a kind of divine justice. Because he says, man, I did this to all kinds of people. 70 kings, they used to scramble for scraps under my table. It almost seems like a kind of cruel sport he's recalling, right? Where he says, yeah, all these kings, they needed to eat, but their thumbs and their toes, like I disabled them in some way. There was some mutilation applied. And so they used to scramble and scrap for stuff under my table. That's what I did. And what I did has come back upon me. Perhaps it might remind us of Proverbs 1 verse 31 where it says of the wicked, they shall eat the fruit of their way and have their fill of their own devices. And here this king in his wickedness has now been brought low and those at Bezek, 10,000 troops overcome and this particular king is interpreting something with this statement. The biblical author does not make a comment about the rightness or wrongness of the actions. In fact, the only comment you get is from Adonai Bezek's lips. And I think this is instructive for us because his interpretation is that this is a divine judgment upon him. I think we should take that seriously. And that this was not some protocol where the Israelites would engage in the torture of their combatants or something like that. That's not what we see in Joshua and that's not what we see in Judges. But this is a particular ruler who is experiencing the divine retribution of God and doesn't it feel like a kind of eye for an eye principle? Multiple Old Testament scholars have noted the similarity to this idea of eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth, where this wicked evil king Adonai Bezek believes that what he has now experienced is the judgment of the Lord. And so they bring him to Jerusalem because that's where they're going next, and he dies there. It doesn't tell us how long it took before he died. It doesn't tell us what he died from. It just tells us that he died. So verses four to seven tell us a victory at Bezek, and then on their way to Jerusalem, they take the king. In verse eight, they go to Jerusalem. In verse eight, the capture of Jerusalem is described. 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. Now at this point, you should know something about the land. that Jerusalem was not initially in the land of Judah. It's right at the border of and barely over the line of into the tribe of Benjamin. But Benjamin could not secure the city. And eventually the tribe of Judah absorbs the city of Jerusalem such that when we meet the city of Jerusalem in later Old Testament passages, it belongs to the tribe of Judah. And so the prominence of Judah is being further displayed in that they go to this city where there are enemies unsubdued. And it says in verse eight, they fought and they captured it and they struck it with the edge of the sword and they set it on fire. That's the kind of stuff you read about Jericho, Ai and Hazor in the book of Joshua. They apply the acts of the ban upon these in Jerusalem who are these wicked Canaanites. Now, no matter this victory here, it doesn't stick. Later in the reign of David, do you recall that in 2 Samuel 5, David has to go and subdue the enemies of God who are in Jerusalem. They're called the Jebusites. Another name for Jerusalem is Jebus. And the Jebusites are people of Jerusalem who seem to have regained control of the city at some later point. David himself, also from Judah's tribe, will later subdue it. But here there is this victory, even if it's temporary, and they have a hold on this city. In verses 9 to 19, there are a series of victories in the southern part of the land that are all in Judah's territory. And there's a preview given in verse 9. So in these victories in verses 9 to 19, here's the preview in verse 9. Afterward, the men of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who lived in the hill country, in the Negev, and in the lowland. And I take this to mean, well, I don't have a map on the board, I was about to, or the screen. If you see on your map, you'll be able to see the Negev area, which is desert territory. and then hill country, northeast of that, and near the coast of the Mediterranean, the lowlands that are in view here. Some of these various peoples are anti-Yahweh and anti-Israel. And they're completing the conquest by giving you a preview of certain battles here, and the hill country comes first. In verses 10 to 15, they go to the hill country, and in verse 10, 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 Taumai. Now we're continuing the theme here of referencing individuals who represent lines of descent. Sheshai and Ahiman and Taumai are ancient gigantic warriors. They are part of a group of mighty warriors called the Anakim. headed by a man named Arba. So Kiriath Arba was named after this ancestor of these gigantic warriors. And this place was later called Hebron. So when Judah goes against the Canaanites, they are coming to fight giants. Long before David brings down Goliath and first Samuel, people from his tribe are bringing down giants at Hebron. These mighty figures are part of these family lines of Sheshai and Ahimon and Talmai. We may recall that the people in numbers were very nervous about the height and strength and intimidation of those in the land. Those spies came in, scouted out, came back with a bad report, and they said, we're going to be devoured by those people. But what happens is the victory of the Lord in the days of Joshua and after Joshua's death brings down these mighty warriors. And in verse 10, there's an instance of, in Hebron, these mighty warriors brought down. In verse 11, from there they went against the inhabitants of Debir, and the name of Debir was formerly Kiryat Sefer. So we're given some of these older names, Kiryat Arba in verse 10, Kiryat Sefer in verse 11, but their names that they are typically called are Hebron and Debir. And Debir, we find out in verse 11, has a whole story connected to it that we're reminded about from the book of Joshua. We're told in verse 12, Caleb said, here's our strategy. He who attacks this town, Debir, or Kiryat Sefer as it was called, whoever attacks it and captures it, I'll give him oxen my daughter for a wife. Now how's that for a strategy? Okay, so the idea is my daughter is unmarried, and this city needs to be taken, and whoever seems to demonstrate the kind of warrior strength and leadership to bring that down, you are gonna marry my daughter. This is what he says, all right? So in verse 12, that's the agreement. Now what do we know about Caleb? Caleb in verse 12 is paired with Joshua in the book of Numbers as one of two spies who came back with a good report. So we've known Caleb for a while in the book of Numbers. He continues to live into the book of Deuteronomy's days, and he goes into the promised land. He and Joshua, in fact, are the only ones of the older generation of Israelites who cross over the Jordan. All the rest of them who cross over are much younger of the younger generation that was born and that grew up in the wilderness. So Caleb is known for his faithfulness and for his rigor and for his vitality. We learn from the book of Joshua that when he was receiving his inheritance, he thought to himself in his 80s, I still got some fight in me and if there are any other giants or any others around that we need to subdue, I'm here for it. So in verse 12, we're reminded of how Hebron or how Debir was taken. I'll give Aqsa, my daughter, for a wife. Now Caleb is from a non-Israelite descent. In the book of Joshua, I highlighted this at one point, we didn't make a big deal out of it, but I want to press back on that here. Because Abraham had Isaac, Isaac had Jacob, and Jacob had the sons of Israel, but Jacob also had a brother. Esau had descendants, and one of them is named Kenaz in Genesis 36. So the Kenizzites are descendants of Esau, not Jacob. And Caleb belongs to the non-Israelites, some of whom have linked up with and are now throwing their lot in with the community of Israel. Caleb, by descent, is a non-Israelite who has joined the tribe of Judah early on, like from the days of Moses early. So when we see that going on in the book of Numbers, we need to know that that's part of his background. and that now he is involved in some important deal making here. Whoever captures this city, I'll give Aksum my daughter for a wife. Now this is the first time a woman is highlighted in the book of Judges and there will be many women highlighted in Judges to follow. In this case, the welfare of this woman is being emphasized. Even if the way Caleb describes this pact seems a little odd, I mean, if you got married, it probably wasn't because the father-in-law made this pact for the one you were marrying. In fact, it was probably something not like this at all. And what we know here is, in the ancient world, The welfare of this woman is being emphasized and she would be marrying a great warrior of the covenant community. So this wouldn't seem like a strange thing, this would probably seem like a great honor and a great relief. So in verse 13, Othniel, the son of Kenaz Caleb's younger brother, captured it. Othniel, we don't even realize here how important this man is going to be. He's going to be the first of the 12 judges that's going to be named starting in chapter 3, 7 forward. Once you get through that double introduction and the stories of the judges move forward, you get to Othniel. He's the first one. And who is he? Caleb's nephew. Caleb's nephew. Rotheniel, the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, captured it. He gave him Oxa, his daughter, for a wife, so he keeps his word, and when she came to him, she urged him to ask her father for a field, and she dismounted from her donkey, and then Caleb said to her, what do you want? I think we should imply here that part of this dowry or gift included this field, but according to Oxa, it's deficient. She says in verse 15, give me a blessing since you have set me in the land of the Negev, give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs. When you read people who are writing about this story, Aqsa is acting with wisdom and carefulness and forethought. And she's looking at what's gonna be necessary for their livelihood. And she says, we're gonna need some springs because however we're gonna build our life and whatever we're gonna plant, Just the initial allotment here of what's been given to me by my Father isn't going to suffice. And His willingness is expressed in verse 14. What is it that you want? And when she says this, give me a blessing, give me springs of water also, He gives her this in these upper and lower springs. Now that might not seem like initially a big deal. Why is the biblical author telling you these details? We may need to remember that in the book of Numbers, the welfare of women was emphasized with the daughters of Zelophehad, who were concerned that because their father had no son, when he dies, what are they going to do for territory? And the Lord grants them provision. The biblical authors can highlight the provision for these women who need some sort of welfare attended to, but here's one of the main points and judges. I think it works by contrast. The taking care of this daughter at the beginning of the book will look very different for how daughters are treated as the book progresses, especially in the last chapters of the book, where you feel like you've been transported to Sodom and Gomorrah. So what you're looking at, I think, is a positive portrayal of a mighty warrior, Othniel, a caring father, Caleb, a shrewd and wise and forethinking woman who's like a Proverbs 31 figure thinking of her family and her land. And then some contrasts that are going to follow. In verse 16 and 17, the desert area of the Negev is highlighted. In verses 16 and 17, the descendants of the Kenite, Moses' father-in-law, went up with the people of Judah from the city of Palms into the wilderness of Judah, which lies in the Negev near Arad. And they went and settled with the people. Why do you need to know this detail? This is probably a promise fulfilled. Because earlier in the book of Exodus, we learned that Moses married someone named Zipporah and his father-in-law is a Midianite. And among the Midianites are these Canites. You can see an overlap between them in the way the Bible treats these families. And so Midianite but also Kenite can be legitimate categories to apply to Moses' father-in-law. And back in the book of Numbers, Moses invited people from that family to join them in the promised land. Here in verse 16, descendants of the Kenite, Moses' father-in-law, went up with the people of Judah. I think the purpose of this detail is to say Moses had forethought about his family when he was still alive, that they would dwell in the promised land. And verse 16 is a way of saying they did. And descendants of that family joined with Judah's tribe, and they lived among their tribe near Arad and went and settled with the people. So I take verse 16 to be a simple fulfillment of an earlier promise laid out in Numbers 10, 29. And in verse 17, still in this area, Judah went with Simeon, his brother, and they defeated the Canaanites. Do you remember what the deal was back in verse three? Simeon, you come with us and fight, and then we'll go with you. Here's the latter part of that deal. Judah's keeping their word. In verse 17, Judah went with Simeon, his brother, and they defeated the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath and devoted it to destruction. So the name of the city was called Hormah. Hormah means destruction. So they basically named it for what they did to it. So Hormah, called destruction, is what happened to the city and it was in the tribe of Simeon. So the Simeonites helped Judah with some of the villages in its region and then the Judahites went with Simeon to help with some of the adversaries in its region. And the city was called Hormat. And then in the lowland area in verses 18 and 19, you move to the Philistines. In verse 18, Judah also captured Gaza with its territory, and Ashkelon with its territory, and Ekron with its territory. Those names should sound familiar to you. Because in the book of Joshua, and in later books like 1 Samuel, we're going to see those as Philistine cities in the southwest part of the land next to the Mediterranean Sea. They're in the lowlands. So Judah captures these territories. This is a big deal because later on the Philistines are going to be a big thorn in Israel's side. In fact, David is going to slay Goliath, a giant who is from Gath, one of the Philistine cities. It is interesting here that in verse 18, only three of the five Philistine cities are mentioned. People aren't sure what to make of this. I'm not sure either what we should infer, but Ashdod and Gath are not mentioned among the list here. Only three Philistine cities. Could it be that Judah only went part of the way rather than all the way? In verse 19, the credit for all of their victory is to the Lord. The Lord was with Judah. So earlier on in the book, when the Israelites say, all right, who's gonna go up and fight the Canaanites? And the word from God is Judah's gonna go. And then Judah goes, and Judah is fighting among the land that they've been allotted, and various cities are being captured, and other inhabitants are being subdued. Here in verse 19, we read why. The Lord was with Judah. And he took possession of the hill country. But he, referring to Judah, couldn't drive out the inhabitants of the plain because they had chariots of iron. Hmm. It's an interesting detail. We're not expecting that. We're expecting just thorough defeat of the enemies. In fact, earlier in Joshua 17, we're told in Joshua 17, 18, you shall drive out the Canaanites though they have chariots of iron. So in the book of Joshua, they're told you're going to drive them out, though their chariots are like this. And that would be God's power displayed for the people who are trusting him, who are following him faithfully. And in verse 19, there's victory, there's victory, but then a twist. They couldn't drive out the inhabitants of the plain. Now with all the hills, with all these mountainous areas, you can see why chariots of iron might not be the main transportation of choice. Going up and down, that can be real tricky. But on the plain, where the ground is much more level, those chariots can be by the countless number and readily employed and very intimidating, visually and actually. And it says here that they couldn't drive them out because they had chariots of iron. Now I told you that in this double introduction, the first part, introduction number one, which goes from 1.1 to 2.5, we haven't seen tonight what's gonna be an interpretation of these military compromises, these incompletions. We learn from Judges chapter two, just to peek ahead for a moment, in verse two, I told you, you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land. You shall break down their altars, but you've not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done? Verse three, so now I say, I will not drive them out before you because, but rather they shall become thorns in your sides and their God shall be a snare. In other words, when you see Canaanites being unable to be driven out by the Israelites, it's due to compromise within the covenant community. It's due to some sort of spiritual problem that the biblical author's going to identify. So here's what I'm just gonna say that I think we can read this retroactively to mean. In verse 19, they couldn't drive out the inhabitants because they had chariots of iron, but it wasn't the chariots of iron that were the main problem. Yeah, Israel might not have had all these chariots of iron, but even in Joshua 17, it says, that's not gonna be a problem for you, you've got God with you. But if they begin to grow content in whatever they've accomplished to that point, if they then become reluctant to persevere in faith and hope and trust, if they begin to dabble with idolatry and covenant violations, here's what God has promised, I will not drive them out. They will seem to be too great for you. Verse 19 is describing that situation. The enemies seem too great. In what way? They can't even overcome them in the plain because of the chariots of iron. Why is that a problem? Why isn't God granting them victory? It must be a spiritual issue the biblical author's going to unfold soon. Something behind the scenes is at work. And so it's not the chariots of iron ultimately, but the failure within the people to trust God to give them victory for whatever reasons they are being tempted. Now the last part of the passage we're looking at tonight in verses 20 and 21 that will close these first 21 verses that have been giving so much attention to Judah. We see in verses 20 and 21 a contrast between Caleb and Benjamin. Back to Hebron, remember earlier Judah conquered Hebron. This was earlier called Kiriath Arba, a place of mighty giants. Well, we're told here very specifically who really did leading and fighting work. In verse 20, Hebron was given to Caleb, as Moses had said, and he drove out from it the three sons of Anak. Those three sons are called Talmai and Sheshai and Ahimon from verse 10. So those mighty, gigantic warriors, who was leading among the tribe of Judah in battle to complete conquest goals? Caleb was. He was driving them out. This gives a positive impression of his trust in Yahweh. Long before David brought down a giant, Caleb's bringing down giants. This is foreshadowing victories of people from Judah who trust God. And while Caleb is bringing down giants, here's verse 21. But the people of Benjamin didn't drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem. So the Jebusites have lived with the people of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day. One commentator said, Judah's driving out gigantic people, Benjamin can't drive out regular sized people. Benjamin here, they're not even dealing with mighty warriors. And I just thought, you know, that's the way to put it here. The contrast is obvious. Benjamin didn't drive them out. And then what happens is these Jebusites who continue in their idolatry and in the sneers of their immorality, the Jebusites lived with the people of Benjamin in Jerusalem. And you say, okay, well, is that just describing something objectively? It's not just describing something objectively. It's describing what's gonna set up the whole problem here. an intermingling of true religion and idolatry. And Israel is going to divert their attention and begin to be enamored with and entranced by the idol sites that have been left. And they're going to be drawn into relationships with the evil Canaanites who have been unsubdued. So notice that Judah's successes and Benjamin's failure are being contrasted at the beginning of Judges. And if you go to 1 Samuel, you have another contrast between Judah and Benjamin, because Saul is Israel's first king from Benjamin. to be followed by a very contrasting king, David, who brings down giants, and he is from Judah. So Judges is opening, looking at these two tribes, emphasizing a lot about Judah. This is the royal tribe. And man, Benjamin seems really deficient in what they're going to be able to do. And then by the end of the book, Benjamin is cast in the worst possible of lights. with its horrific ungodly practices and Judah must go to war against it. The biblical author has ways of introducing tribes that can come back in later stories in the same kind of pairing that we won't know until we get much later on into the book of Judges. This is a good start for Judah overall, this is a bad start for Benjamin overall, and it reminds us that we are after the days of Joshua, and post-Joshua it is a mixed situation. It doesn't seem like everything is well, because apparently chariots of iron are keeping certain areas from being conquested. That's a problem. And this initial introduction, which continues through chapter 2, 5, is going to help us see in verses 1 to 5 of chapter 2 that there are some spiritual issues. The angel of the Lord is going to indict the people for disobeying him. The problem is that these redeemed people are not dealing with the threats of idolatry and sin in their midst. There's a real lesson here, friends, because the Old Testament types and shadows form patterns and templates for Christian living. We're like those redeemed from captivity through the new exodus Jesus has brought. He's our Passover lamb. And we've been brought into a rest, a kind of inheritance already in Christ, but also to be completed at the return of the Lord Jesus, an inheritance kept in heaven for us, imperishable and undefiled. And so like the redeemed out of Egypt, we face the snares and the threats of temptation. And the Israelites did not realize that sin is crouching at the door and desires to have them. It's true for every one of those tribes. It's true for every one of us. It's true for every one of us. And in his book, The Mortification of Sin, John Owen said, be killing sin or sin will be killing you. And if these Israelites, as seems to be the case, are going to grow complacent with the snares and thorns around them and try to make life with iniquity and idolatry, then it's only a matter of time before the decline continues. A movement in the wrong direction away from the Lord, they will drift. If they don't fight their sin, they will drift. Because in the end, the problem isn't one of the peoples outwardly, it's their inner inclinations and proneness to wander. The Lord knows this about them. Let's take heart, friends. Be killing sin or sin will be killing you. John Owen is right. We're looking in the book of Judges and we can realize that to presume a kind of neutrality or to just pull back all together and be passive is to expect spiritual drift. Instead of that kind of posture, we should take sin very seriously. We should keep vigilance and attentiveness to the threats to holiness that are true in our thoughts and words and actions and environments. And these Israelites would sometimes go part of the way. But partial obedience is very dangerous. When a little bit of Jesus, a little bit of the world, and I'm just gonna try to hold on to both. But if you follow the lessons of judges, partial obedience is a recipe for disaster. Not of blessing and honor and thriving, but a recipe for disaster. And so Christ Jesus says to us, if anyone wants to follow after me, he must deny himself, he must take up his cross and he must come after me. We should love the Lord with our whole heart. We should live with vigilance that we might walk faithfully where there are threats and thorns inwardly and around seeking to devour us like sin crouching at the door. The Lord says to Cain, don't you realize in Genesis four, sin crouches at the door and desires to have you, you must master it. And that wasn't true for Cain, was it? His impulses and his passions and his sins, his flesh, it showed what he was really like inwardly, including the persecution and murder of his own brother Abel. Be killing sin or sin will be killing you. We must recognize it crouches and seeks to devour and sin is even more serious than we think it to be. We don't want to offer partial obedience. We don't want to look at the Lord and then look at the world and say, I want to try to serve both. The judges tells you, you cannot serve both. So serve the Lord. Let's pray.