Category: Bible Trekking

The end of Samson and Micah’s priest

April 8, 2020

Samson and Delilah meet in Judges 16.  She will be his demise.  She just wants to use him as he wants to use her.  The constant tricks that he plays on her make the Philistines hate both.  Time and again they believe they can kill him and each time he escapes.

As we stupid men sometimes do, he finally confesses the true source of his strength.  Delilah allows someone to remove his braids while he is asleep.  When he tries to shake them off, he cannot, and they gouge out his eyes and take him captive.

Samson becomes a laughingstock to the Philistines, and they neglect to notice that his hair and strength are returning.  The finale is one you do not want to miss.  He gets revenge in a creative way.  Samson may be the most famous of the judges even though he is one of the vilest and immoral.

Judges 17 tells the story of Micah’s idol.  It is repeated that everyone did what they thought was right during the period of the judges.  Today that is a similar philosophy.  Micah stole silver from his mother, and she gave some of it to him to create an idol after he returned it.

This makes no sense.  Give someone the money they stole from you.  The law of Jehovah states not to make any images to be worshipped.  Despite this, Micah creates a shrine and appoints his own priest.  That is the type of behavior that causes Yahweh to bring bondage on Israel.

A Levite takes the job and Micah believes he is blessed by God for doing the correct things.  Tomorrow we will see just how wrong he was.

The story of the Danites taking their land in Canaan is told in Judges chapter 18.  Five spies are looking for a likely place to conquer.  They have been wandering for many years and have decided to find their own land.  They come across Micah’s priest and he sends them on their journey with a blessing.

Laish is the name of the city that they discover that is unprotected and they return to the main camp to bring the clan.  Six hundred fighting men approach Micah’s home and steal his silver and priest.  In the end, Micah escapes with his life, but not his treasure.

The people of Laish are also destroyed and after the Danites are done with them the city is rebuilt and renamed.  The question is often asked, “Why did God allow the Israelites to be so cruel to innocent people.  In this case, I do not believe you can blame God.  This is not the area that was given to Dan.  You will notice that at no point does the priest enquire of Jehovah and the god he serves is an idol or statue.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Samson the Nazarite

April 7, 2020

Judges 13 through 16 tells the history of the most famous of the judges.  Samson was born to a family from Dan.  Chapter thirteen explains that he was to be a Nazarite from birth.  That is why his hair was never cut.  God ties his obedience to the strength he is known for.

A messenger from Yahweh announces the coming pregnancy.  Samson’s father did not believe his wife, but the messenger returned and proved who he was by rising into the sky in the flame from a burnt offering.  When the baby is born, his mother and father follow the instructions they were given.

Samson’s problems with the Philistines that are ruling over Israel begins in Judges 14 with his wife.  God allows him to marry a Philistine to cause discord that will develop into an open war.  During the wedding feast, his thirty philistine groomsmen force his bride to trick the answer to a riddle from him.  The joke is on them because he kills thirty Philistines to give them their prize.

Afterward, he leaves and his wife is given to another man.  This begins the war between Samson and the Philistines.

The story continues in Judges 15 when Samson returns to his wife.  After finding she has married another man, he burns their fields.  When they find out why it happened, they burn the woman and her father.  After killing many of them, he hides in a cave.  The Israelites come to turn him over to the Philistines.

Three thousand soldiers came to kill him. He broke the ropes holding him and slaughtered one-third of them with a donkey’s jawbone.  For twenty years he led the Jews against Philistia.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Jephthah of Gilead

April 7, 2020

Tola, Jair, and Jephthah are listed in Judges 10.  We only start the story of Jephthah.  The people of Gilead are looking for a leader because the Ammonites and preparing to attack them.

Judges 11 tells more of the story of Jephthah and Gilead.  His father had other sons by his wife, but Jephthah’s mother was not married to his father.  Another fine family in the Israelite lines.  These half-brothers ran him out of town.

Later the town fathers decided to override the sibling rivalry.  They offer Jephthah the leadership of Gilead, if he will lead the attack on their enemies.  He leads the Jews to victory over the Ammonites.  He has made a vow to offer a human sacrifice of the first person to welcome him home after his return.  That person is his daughter.  He is going to go back on his vow to Jehovah.  She convinces her father to give her time to mourn her early death and then return to die at his hand.  Not exactly what we would think of as Godly behavior.

The story of Jephthah ends in Judges 12.  Ephraim and Gilead fight each other over the failure of Jephthah to allow Ephraim’s descendants to fight with them.  Gilead defeated Ephraim.

Ibzon, Elan, and Abdon are three more judges that ruled during the time before Israel had a king.  The cycle continues with Israel rejecting God, being overtaken by others and crying to Jehovah for a leader.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Beyond Gideon

April 1, 2020

Judges 8 23

Judges 8 completes the tale of Gideon and the Midianites.  Two rulers fled after the battle.  They were pursued, but other Israelites would not help Gideon and his men capture them.  He made promises of how he would reward them once his job was finished.  He followed through on those promises.

Gideon is one of those Jewish judges that show what happens when men try to follow God’s will.  He declined a leadership role but accepted payment from the people.  That payment became a stumbling block for the Hebrews.

After his death, forty years later, the Israelites turned away from Jehovah again and followed a foreign god.  The cycle continues.

Abimelech is the son of Gideon.  Judges 9 tells of his treachery to claim kingship over Shechem.  His father had declined this offer.  Sixty-nine other sons are murdered to prevent their claiming a right to the crown.  The surviving son tries to challenge his brother to no avail.

Abimelech is not a good leader.  Read the story of how he eventually destroyed the city and murdered more innocent people.  God avenged the city as well as the children of Gideon with a millstone that is dropped from a tower.  These stories of inhumanity are common in our country as well as the Bible.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Laying out a fleece

March 31, 2020

The Midianites are the oppressors in Judges 6 and Gideon becomes the Judge hero.  The story is one of real reliance on Jehovah.  Let’s revue how this took place.  The judge who preceded him is not named.  The sin of Israel is pointed out.  Gideon is not a warrior or an important leader.  He hesitates and asks for proof that he is being called.

The first sign is the burning of an offering that he presents to Yahweh’s messenger.  The fire appears from the rock he placed it on.  He responds with another sacrifice and destroying the Baal altar and cuts down the Asherah pole that is used for idol worship.  His life is threatened by the people and he shows the first signs of leadership by threatening those who threaten him.

The fleece or sheepskin that he uses is very well known.  At first, it seems that the dew on the skin and not on the ground should be enough.  Then the judge asks for it to be reversed.  When this happens, God is ready to show His true power.  Tomorrow the battle.

Gideon has thirty-two thousand men according to Judges chapter seven.  Jehovah says that is too many.  The victory would be accredited to them.  God wants the victory to be only coming from Him.  Gideon announced that any who were afraid or wanted to go home, could.  Twenty-two thousand left.

These were still more than Yahweh needed.  They go to the water and as they drink, those who bend down to the water are disqualified.  Those who remain had used their hands to scoop up the water to bring it to their mouths while remaining alert.

The battle strategy is very odd.  Each soldier is equipped with a trumpet, lamp, and pot.  The lamps are lit and placed in the pots.  The procedure is to break the jars and blow the trumpets to cause confusion in the enemy camp.  It works and the Israelites are victorious.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Deborah and Barak

March 30, 2020

The first of the judges mentioned in Judges 3 is Othniel, the younger brother of Caleb.  He comes on the scene to destroy the King of the Arameans who had ruled over God’s people for eight years.  Forty years of peace come until his death.

The next to oppress the Israelites is the Moabites.  This lasted for eighteen years before they called out to Jehovah for deliverance.  This is an interesting story and we are even told that Ehud the judge, is left-handed.  This time Israel rules over Moab for eighty years.

Chapter three ends with Shamgar killing six hundred Philistines and rescuing the Israelites.

The story of the judge Deborah is given in Judges chapter four.  She is a prophetess who is already leading Israel.  Deborah asks Barak to gather men to fight for Israel.  He agrees, but only if she will go with them.  Her reply is that she will.  However, the glory and fame will belong to her, not to him.  He agrees and they go to battle.  The death of the King of Canaan at the hands of another woman is very interesting.  Do not miss these verses.  Tomorrow we will read the song of Deborah.

Judges 5 gives us the song that Deborah wrote and sang after the defeat of the Canaanites.  The plight of Israel for the twenty years that they were oppressed by their enemies is given in the early part.  The poetical story of the battles is easy to listen to unlike some of the other verses in the Bible.  Jael is extolled for the execution of the Canaanite king.  The song also evokes the emotions of the enemy as they are defeated.  Forty years of peace follow Deborah and Barak’s victory.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

What is a Judge?

March 29, 2020

Judges 1 begins with the death of Joshua and continues the story of the conquest of the different regions of Canaan by the eleven tribes of Israel.  Caleb is mentioned again, and the story of his daughter and the spring is retold.  As you read the account of each tribe, note the ones that leave some of the early inhabitants still in the land and make them their slaves.  This was not Jehovah’s will but gave the Jews free labor.  Note these groups and how this will cause trouble later.

Jehovah’s messenger speaks in Judges 2 and condemns the Israelites for their failure to occupy all the land they were given. This sets up the cycle for the entire book. They were to teach their children and grandchildren about Yahweh, and they failed. Due to this the next generations fell away. Some few continued as they should, but most did not. These few were the Judges that rescued their brothers and sisters. The stories are varied and extremely interesting. We will see the results of disobedience throughout the Old Testament. The Lord will fight for Israel under some leaders and not others.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Joshua dies

March 28, 2020

Joshua Dies 001

Joshua 22 marks the time for the two- and one-half tribes that were given land east of the Jordan to return home.  They have accomplished the task assigned to them.  As they are returning home, they build a huge altar near the river.

The balance of the Israelites thought they were already rebelling against Yahweh.  A delegation is sent to confront the Reubenites and Gadites with their sin.  A battle will ensue if the problem isn’t dealt with promptly.

The altar is a reminder to both groups of Israelites to never forget that they are family.  Their heritage is the same, no matter which side of the river they live on.  The altar was named Ed according to the King James Version or Witness if you are reading the New Living Translation.

Joshua reminds the people in chapter 23 what Jehovah has done for them.  He also tells them to remain faithful to God.  The good and bad promises are brought up once more.  Joshua is preparing for the end of his life by being sure the Israelites know that it was not his great leadership skills that gave them the property.  He reminds them that God had promised it and gave it to them with very little trouble.  They should remember this forever.

Joshua 24 records the final words that the leader that replaced Moses and brought them into the land, had for the people of Israel.  He reminds them of where they came from.  He retells all the historical stories from Abraham to Moses and into the promised land.  He emphasizes the promise they have made to Jehovah and those that He made to them and kept.  He ends his words with this declaration which hangs in my home.  “Choose you this day whom you will serve.  As for me and my house, we will serve The Lord.”

They promise once again that they will not worship other gods and will stay true to Yahweh who brought them into their new homes.  Joshua reiterates the curses that Moses had recorded for them in the Law.  Even Christians today do not keep the law.  Our salvation is not from the Law, but by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

Joshua dies and is buried.  Joseph’s bones are also buried with his ancestors as he requested before he died in Egypt.  Moses had them carry Joseph out and Joshua took over after Moses.  The elders who followed Joshua carried this out after Joshua’s death.  Tomorrow we begin the period and the book of the Judges.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Cities of refuge

March 28, 2020

Cities of Refuge 001

In Joshua 19 Simeon is given land from Judah because they did not need all that had been given to them.  Zebulon, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan are the last to receive their land.  Joshua’s town is in Ephraim.  Today, the country of Israel occupies a much smaller area than that given originally by Jehovah and occupied by them at the time spoken of here.

The cities of refuge are chosen in Joshua 20.  This is a place that those who are waiting for trial for murder can stay with safety to prevent revenge for accidental death.  This is one of the reasons that American laws differentiate between manslaughter and other levels of murder.  Our crime of manslaughter is the one that is being dealt with in these verses.  If you intentionally killed someone, you would not be allowed refuge in these cities for long.  Once your trial was held and you were found guilty of premeditated murder, you would be executed.

The priests which are descended from Levi must settle among the others and this is decided in Joshua 21.  While Jerusalem became the center of the Jewish religion after the temple was constructed, now it is in Shiloh.  The Levites must be distributed in each of the other eleven tribes.  Their job is to keep the Israelites trained on worshipping Jehovah.  Despite the presence of the priestly families, the people eventually worshiped other Gods and brought God’s rejection upon themselves.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

The distribution continues

March 28, 2020

Map-Canaan-Twelve-Tribes

The Clans of Joseph are next in Joshua 16. The two tribes that come from Joseph are Manasseh and Ephraim. These are the names of his two sons that were born in Egypt while he was the right-hand man of Pharaoh. The first allotment is for the descendants of Ephraim. We again read the disturbing words that they did not dislodge all the Canaanite groups. This failure to follow Jehovah’s instructions will be paid for by future generations. What are we doing, or have we done that will affect our children, grandchildren, or great-grandchildren?

The inheritance for Manasseh is shown in Joshua 17.  One interesting part of this distribution is the lands given to the daughters of Zelophehad who had no sons and only daughters.  Moses had instructed Joshua to give the daughters the land that would be their father’s.  An equal share for him as his brothers had was given to the daughters with the provision they must marry within the clan.  Their father’s allotment could not go to another tribe.

They came to Joshua asking for another allotment because they were so numerous.  The hill country was already theirs.  All they had to do was follow Yahweh’s instructions and drive the Canaanites from the land.  Ultimately the people of the hills were subjugated, but once more some of them were left living in the land.

The tent of meeting or the tabernacle is set up at Shiloh in Joshua 18.  Joshua has each tribe select three men to map the remaining territory for the balance of the families to divide.  The land is split into seven equal parcels and lots are cast to distribute it.

Benjamin is the next family group to be awarded land.  There are six more parcels of ground to be handed down.  Jehovah is the one that makes the decisions.  The casting of dice is not a random chance.  God can control anything He wants to.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger