Judges

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

Moses was the nation's judge after Israel left Egypt. At Jethro's suggestion, just before the giving of the Sinaitic law (Exodus 18;  Deuteronomy 1:9, etc.), he appointed captains, rulers of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, namely, the recognized heads of tribes or of chief houses in them, to judge at all seasons small matters, reserving the great ones for himself to decide, upon the principles which he should learn from God. These would number 78,600. But the elders (chosen from the elders who headed Israel in seeking freedom, and from the officers, the reluctant instruments of Egyptian tyranny:  Exodus 3:16;  Exodus 5:6, etc.), appointed  Numbers 11:16, etc., were only seventy (the same number as had gone up with Moses unto the Lord in the mountain, Exodus 24), endued by God with the Spirit as Moses' council. This council fell into desuetude under the judges and kings; but after the monarchy the Sanhedrin was modeled on this prototype.

Regard to locality modified the genealogical principle of selection upon Israel's entrance into Canaan ( Deuteronomy 16:18). The Levites, as the ultimate sources under God of jurisprudence, taught the people the law, to enable the judges and those judged to understand the right principle of decisions ( Deuteronomy 17:8-13). The "judges" are mentioned  Joshua 24:1. Their sacro-sanctity is marked by their bearing the designation "gods," as exercising some of God's delegated power:  Psalms 82:1;  Psalms 82:6;  Exodus 21:6, Hebrew "gods" for "'judges," God being the source of all justice. The qualifications of a judge are given ( Exodus 18:21), "able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness"; "not wresting judgment, not respecting persons, neither taking a gift" (so universal a practice with Eastern judges),  Deuteronomy 16:19; "not respecting the person of the poor, nor honouring the person of the mighty" ( Leviticus 19:15); "not afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is God's" ( Deuteronomy 1:17).

Especially compare Jehoshaphat's charge to his judges ( 2 Chronicles 19:6-7). Judging was the only royal function, under the theocracy, which was committed to man, and being moreover in the hands of the people's natural leaders it held a very high place in popular estimation. The place of judgment was the open space before the gate, the place of public resort ( Psalms 69:12;  Proverbs 8:15). The higher order of judges were called "princes," the lower "elders" (  Judges 8:14 ;  Exodus 2:14 ; Representing The Hebrew Nasiy' , Sar , Nadiyb , Nagid ; Nasiy' Expressing "High Birth", Nadiyb "Princely Qualities", Nagid "Prominent Station", Sar "Active Official Authority) . In  Judges 8:14 the elders of Succoth are 77, i.e. 70, the number of Jacob's family with which Succoth was connected ( Genesis 33:17;  Genesis 46:27), with the sacred seven added ( Exodus 24:9).

The custody, in the sanctuary, of the standard weights and measures made an appeal to the priesthood in disputes a necessity; and in final appeals the high priest, as chief legal authority, decided difficult cases before the time of the kings ( Deuteronomy 17:8;  Deuteronomy 17:12). The Hebrew Shophetim , "judges", correspond to the suffetes, the chief magistrates of Phoenician colonies. None of the nation's deliverers called "judges" ( Judges 2:16-19;  Acts 13:20) were of a priest's family; Eli was not a deliverer or saviour ( Obadiah 1:21;  Judges 3:9;  Judges 3:15). Their main office was to judge or rule righteously ("feed" or tend,  1 Chronicles 17:6) in deciding cases ( Judges 4:5;  Judges 10:2;  1 Samuel 7:15;  1 Samuel 8:3), this function of the priesthood being in abeyance after the time of Joshua; their delivering Israel was an act of Jehovah's "righteousness" or faithfulness to His covenant, consequent upon the people's penitently turning to Him ( Judges 5:11;  Isaiah 45:8).

These extraordinary judges, raised by God, the temporal as well as spiritual King of Israel, as His vicegerents, between Joshua and the kings were 13: Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah and Barak, Gideon, Abimelech (an usurper), Tola, Jair Jephtha, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon (Bedan  1 Samuel 12:11), Samson. (On The Dates See Chronology.) "Saving" Israel is applied to them frequently ( Judges 3:9 margin, Judges 31;  Judges 6:15;  Judges 7:7;  Judges 11:1, margin); the Lord "raised them up" ( Judges 2:16) at intervals, as need required, by causing His Spirit to come upon them ( Judges 3:10;  Judges 6:34;  Judges 11:29;  Judges 13:25); Barak was called by a prophetess, Deborah (Judges 4); His providence overruled the people's choice in Jephthah's case. The judges ruled more continuously from Gideon's time; his sons are regarded as his natural successors ( Judges 9:1-3); so Samuel's sons ( 1 Samuel 8:1;  1 Samuel 7:15), he ruled until his death; so too Eli ( Judges 4:18).

Afterward, the king was expected to hear causes in person, and therefore should write and read continually a copy of the law ( 2 Samuel 15:1-4;  Deuteronomy 17:18-19). David probably delegated some of the judicial office to the 6,000 Levites, and especially Chenaniah and his sons ( 1 Chronicles 23:4;  1 Chronicles 26:29). Solomon was most famed for his judgments ( 1 Kings 3:9;  1 Kings 3:16;  Psalms 72:1-4;  1 Kings 2:5-6;  1 Kings 2:33-34;  1 Kings 2:46).

Two examples of forms of procedure occur: a civil case ( Ruth 4:2), in which Boaz calls in ten elders to witness the redemption by him of the kinsman's right from the one whose claim was first, and whom he summoned to appear"in the gate," the usual place of judgment; and a criminal one ( 1 Kings 21:8-14), where the eiders and nobles judge, on the testimony of witnesses, in the presence of the people. So in the case of the manslayer ( Joshua 20:4-6;  Deuteronomy 19:12;  Numbers 35:24-25). Fees were not allowed judges ( 1 Samuel 12:3), but were regarded as bribery. Professed advocates were unknown in early times; but voluntary pleading for the defenseless was esteemed meritorious ( Job 16:21;  Proverbs 31:9;  Isaiah 1:17).

Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary

is applied to certain eminent persons chosen by God himself to govern the Jews from the time of Joshua till the establishment of the kings. For the nature and duration of their office, and the powers with which they were invested, see Jews. The judges were not ordinary magistrates, but were appointed by God on extraordinary occasions; as to head the armies, to deliver the people from their enemies, &c. Salian has observed, that they not only presided in courts of justice, but were also at the head of the councils, the armies, and of every thing that concerned the government of the state; though they never assumed the title either of princes, governors, or the like.

Salian remarks seven points wherein they differed from kings,

1. They were not hereditary.

2. They had no absolute power of life and death, but only according to the laws, and dependently upon them.

3. They never undertook war at their own pleasure, but only when they were commanded by God, or called to it by the people.

4. They exacted no tribute.

5. They did not succeed each other immediately, but after the death of one there was frequently an interval of several years before a successor

was appointed.

6. They did not use the ensigns of sovereignty, the sceptre or diadem.

7. They had no authority to make any laws, but were only to take care of the observance of those of Moses.

Godwin, in his "Moses and Aaron," compares them to the Roman dictators, who were appointed only on extraordinary emergencies, as in case of war abroad, or conspiracies at home, and whose power, while they continued in office, was great, and even absolute. Thus the Hebrew judges seem to have been appointed only in cases of national trouble and danger. This was the case particularly with respect to Othniel, Ehud, and Gideon. The power of the judges, while in office, was very great; nor does it seem to have been limited to a certain time, like that of the Roman dictators, which continued for half a year; nevertheless, it is reasonable to suppose, that, when they had performed the business for which they were appointed, they retired to a private life. This Godwin infers from Gideon's refusing to take upon him the perpetual government of Israel, as being inconsistent with the theocracy.

Beside these superior judges, every city in the commonwealth had its elders, who formed a court of judicature, with a power of determining lesser matters in their respective districts. The rabbies say, there were three such elders or judges in each lesser city, and twenty-three in the greater. But Josephus, whose authority has greater weight, speaks of seven judges in each, without any such distinction of greater and less. Sigonius supposes that these elders and judges of cities were the original constitution settled in the wilderness by Moses, upon the advice given him by Jethro,  Exodus 18:21-22 , and continued by divine appointment after the settlement in the land of Canaan; whereas others imagine that the Jethronian prefectures were a peculiar constitution, suited to their condition while encamped in the wilderness, but laid aside after they came into Canaan. It is certain, however, that there was a court of judges and officers, appointed in every city, by the law of Moses,  Deuteronomy 16:18 . How far, and in what respects, these judges differed from the elders of the city, it is not easy to ascertain; and whether they were the same or different persons. Perhaps the title elders may denote their seniority and dignity; and that of judges, the office they sustained. The lower courts of justice, in their several cities, were held in their gates,  Deuteronomy 16:15 . Each tribe had its respective prince, whose office related chiefly, if not altogether, to military affairs. We read also of the princes of the congregation, who presided in judiciary matters. These are called elders, and were seventy in number,  Numbers 11:16-17;  Numbers 11:24-25 . But it does not appear whether or not this consistory of seventy elders was a perpetual, or only a temporary, institution. Some have supposed that it was the same that afterward became famous under the appellation of sanhedrim; but others conceive the institution of the seventy elders to have been only temporary, for the assistance of Moses in the government, before the settlement in the land of Canaan; and that the sanhedrim was first set up in the time of the Maccabees. See Sanhedrim .

Judges, Book Of a canonical book of the Old Testament, containing the history of the Israelitish judges, of whom we have been speaking in the preceding article. The author is not known. It is probable the work did not come from any single hand, being rather a collection of several little histories, which at first were separate, but were afterward collected by Ezra or Samuel into a single volume; and, in all likelihood, were taken from the ancient journals, annals, or memoirs, composed by the several judges. The antiquity of this book is unquestionable, as it must have been written before the time of David, since the description,  Judges 1:21 , was no longer true of Jerusalem after he had taken possession of it, and had introduced a third class of inhabitants of the tribe of Judah. Eichorn acknowledges that it does not bear the marks of subsequent interpolation. Dr. Patrick is of opinion that the five last chapters are a distinct history, in which the author gives an account of several memorable transactions, which occurred in or about the time of the judges; whose history he would not interrupt by intermixing these matters with it, and therefore reserved them to be related by themselves in the second part, or appendix.

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

In Hebrew Shophetim, were the rulers, chiefs, or leaders of Israel, from Joshua to Saul. They were very different from the ordinary administrators of justice among the Hebrews, respecting whom, see Justice . The Carthaginians, a colony of the Tyrians, had likewise governors, whom they called Suffetes, or Sophetim, with authority almost equal to that of kings.

The dignity of judge was for life; but the succession was not always constant. There were anarchies, or intervals, during which the commonwealth was without rulers. There were likewise long intervals of foreign servitude and oppression, under which the Hebrews groaned without deliverers. Although God alone regularly appointed the judges, yet the people, on some occasions, chose that individual who appeared to them most proper to deliver them from oppression; and as it often happened that the oppressions which occasioned recourse to the election of a judge were not felt over all Israel, the power of such judge extended only over that province which he had delivered. Thus it was chiefly the land east of the Jordan that Ehud, Jephthah, Elon, and Jair delivered and governed; Barak and Tola governed the northern tribes; Abdon the central; and Ibzan and Samson the southern. The authority of judges was little inferior to that of kings: it extended to peace and war; they decided causes with absolute authority; but had no power to make new laws, or to impose new burdens on the people. They were protectors of the laws, defenders of religion, and avengers of crimes, particularly of idolatry; they were without salary, pomp, or splendor; and without guards, train, or equipage, other than that their own wealth afforded.

The command of Jehovah to expel or destroy all the Canaanites, was but imperfectly executed; and those who were spared infected the Hebrews with the poison of their idolatry and vice. The affair of Micah and the Levite, and the crime at Gibeah which led to the ruinous war against the Benjamites, though recorded at the close of the book of  Judges 17:1-21:25 , occurred not long after the death of Joshua, and show how soon Israel began to depart from God. To chastise them, he suffered the people of Mesopotamia and of Moab, the Canaanites, Midianites, Ammonites, and Philistines, in turn to oppress by their exactions apart of the tribes, and sometimes the whole nation. But before long, in pity for their sufferings, he would raise up one of the military and civil dictators above described. Fifteen judges are named in the Bible, beginning with Othniel, some twenty years after Joshua, and continuing till the coronation of Saul.

The time from Othniel to Saul, according to the received chronology, it is about 310 years. It is supposed that some periods overlap each other; but chronologists are not agreed as to the mode of reconciling the accounts in Judges with other known dates, and with  1 Kings 6:1 , and  Acts 13:20 , though several practicable methods are proposed, the examination of which would exceed the limits of this work.

THE Book Of Judges contains the annals of the times in which Israel was ruled by judges, and is often referred to in the New Testament and other parts of the Bible. It appears to have been written before David captured Zion,  Judges 1:21 , and yet after a regal government was introduced,  Judges 17:6   18:11   21:25 . Who was its author is unknown; the majority of critics ascribe it to Samuel, B. C. 1403, but many regard it as a compilation by Ezra. It illustrates God's care over his people, mingling his long-suffering with timely chastisements. The period of the judges was, on the whole, one of prosperity; and while the providence of God confirmed his word, "If ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured by the sword," it is no less faithfully assured the, "If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall east of the good of the land."

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

Judges An examination of   Exodus 18:1-27 shows that the Hebrew word for to ‘judge’ means originally to pronounce the oracle; thus, when we read of Moses sitting to ‘judge the people’ (  Exodus 18:13 ), a reference to   Exodus 18:15-16 shows that what is meant is the giving of Divine decisions: ‘… the people come unto me to inquire of God: when they have a matter they come unto me; and I judge between a man and his neighbour, and I make them know the statutes of God, and his laws’ (cf.   Exodus 18:19-20 ). In the next place, the same chapter shows the word in process of receiving a wider application; owing to the increasing number of those who come to seek counsel, only specially difficult cases are dealt with by Moses, while the ordinary ones are deputed to the heads of the families, etc., to settle (  Exodus 18:25-26 ). A ‘judge’ was therefore originally a priest who pronounced oracles; then the elders of the people became judges. But at an early period the functions of the ‘judges,’ at any rate the more important of them, were exercised by a chief, chosen from among the elders probably on account of superior skill in warfare, an hereditary succession would, however, naturally tend to arise who was to all intents and purposes a king. So the probability is that those who are known as the ‘judges’ in popular parlance were in reality kings in the ordinary sense of the word. In connexion with this it is interesting to note that in somewhat later times than those of the ‘judges’ one of the main duties of the king was to judge, see e.g.   2 Samuel 15:1-6 , ‘… there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee. Absalom said moreover, Oh that I were made judge in the land.… And on this manner did Absalom to all Israel that came to the king for judgment’ (cf., further,   1 Kings 3:9 ,   2 Kings 15:5 ); moreover, ‘judge’ and ‘king’ seem to be used synonymously in   Amos 2:3 ,   Hosea 7:7 ,   Psalms 2:10 . The offer of the kingship (hereditary) to the ‘judge’ Gideon (  Judges 8:22 ff.) fully bears out what has been said. The fact probably is that the Deuteronomic legislators, on theocratic grounds, called those rulers ‘judges’ who were actually kings in the same sense as Saul was; fundamentally there was no difference between the two, but nominally a difference was implied.

W. O. E. Oesterley.

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Judges. The judges were temporary and special deliverers, sent by God to deliver the Israelites from their oppressors; not supreme magistrates, succeeding to the authority of Moses and Joshua. Their power only extended over portions of the country, and some of them were contemporaneous.

Their first work was that of deliverers and leaders in war; they then administered justice to the people, and their authority supplied the want of a regular government. Even while the administration of Samuel gave something like a settled government to the south, there was scope for the irregular exploits of Samson on the borders of the Philistines; and Samuel, at last, established his authority as judge and prophet, but still as the servant of Jehovah , only to see it so abused by his sons as to exhaust the patience of the people, who at length demanded a King , after the pattern of the surrounding nations.

The following is a list of judges, whose history is given under their respective names: -

First servitude, to Mesopotamia - 8 years.

First Judge: Othniel. 40 years. -

Second servitude, to Moab - 18 years.

Second Judge: Ehud; 80 years.

Third Judge: Shamgar. -

Third servitude, to Jabin and Sisera - 20 years.

Fourth Judge: Deborah and Barak. 40 years. -

Fourth servitude, to Midian - 7 years.

Fifth Judge: Gideon; 40 years.

Sixth Judge: Abimelech; 3 years.

Seventh Judge: Tola; 23 years.

Eighth Judge: Jair. 22 years. -

Fifth servitude, to Ammon - 18 years.

Ninth Judge: Jephthah; 6 years.

Tenth Judge: Ibzan; 7 years.

Eleventh Judge: Elon; 10 years.

Twelfth Judge: Abdon. 8 years. -

Sixth servitude, to the Philistines - 40 years.

Thirteenth Judge: Samson 20 years.

Fourteenth Judge: Eli; 40 years.

Fifteenth Judge: Samuel.

More than likely some of these ruled simultaneously. On the chronology of the judges, See Judges, The Book of . .

People's Dictionary of the Bible

Judges. The judges were rulers sent of God to deliver the Israelites from their oppressors. Their power extended over portions of the country only, and some of them were contemporaneous. Their chief work was that of deliverers and captains in war. While Samuel as a judge gave something like a settled government to the south, there was scope for the irregular exploits of Samson on the borders of the Philistines. Samuel at last established his authority as judge and prophet, but stall as the servant of Jehovah, only to see it so abused by his sons as to exhaust the patience of the people, who at length demanded a King, after the pattern of the surrounding nations. The following is a partial list of the judges, and the approximate length of their rule: First oppression, by Mesopotamia—8 years. First judge: Othniel—40 years. Second oppression, by Moab—18 years. Second judge: Ehud—60 years; third judge: Shamgar—unknown. Third oppression, by Jabin and Sisera—20 years. Fourth judge: Deborah and Barak—10 years. Fourth oppression, by Midian—7 years. Fifth judge: Gideon—40 years; sixth judge: Abimelech—3 years; seventh judge: Tola—23 years; eighth judge: Jair—22 years. Fifth oppression, by Ammon—18 years. Ninth judge: Jephthah—6 years; tenth judge: Ibzan—7 years; eleventh judge: Elon—10 years: twelfth judge: Abdon—8 years. Sixth oppression, by the Philistines—40 years. Thirteenth judge: Samson—20 years; fourteenth judge: Eli—40 years; fifteenth judge: Samuel.

Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary

The judges which governed in Israel were, from the death of Joshua until the Israelites demanded a king over them, and Saul was appointed, a period of about three hundred and thirty-nine years. They were called in Hebrew ShophaTim The Book of Judges is supposed to have been written by Samuel. Some have thought that the Sanhedrim, which was a council consisting of seventy elders, always presided beside those judges, and regularly continued from the time of the Lord's appointment (see  Numbers 11:16-17) until the days of the Lord Jesus Christ. But there doth not seem to be sufficient foundation for this belief. During the Babylonish captivity such a thing was hardly possible; neither during the reign of the kings before the captivity, do we meet with any account of the Sanhedrim. That such a court subsisted in the time of our Lord is certain, and continued until the destruction of the temple.

We have but little account in Scripture concerning this Sanhedrim. That this court, composed of seventy persons, possessed great power, even in the days when the Jews were under tribute to the Romans, is certain But thought they contended with Pilate, in their wishes for the death of Christ, that they had a law, yet we do not find, excepting upon this occasion, any mention made of its exercise. It seemed to have been but the mere shadow of authority; for the whole substance was taken into possession by the Roman Governor.

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

This name is applied to fifteen persons who at intervals presided over the affairs of the Israelites during the 450 years which elapsed from the death of Joshua to the accession of Saul. The station and office of these 'rulers of the people,' as the original literally signifies, are involved in great obscurity, partly from the want of clear intimations in the history in which their exploits and government are recorded, and partly from the absence of parallels in the history of other nations, by which our notions might be assisted. They may be briefly described as faithful men, who acted for the most part as agents of the Divine will, regents for the Invisible King of the chosen people; and who, holding their commission directly from Him, or with His sanction, would be more inclined to act as dependent vassals of Jehovah than kings, who, as members of royal dynasties, would come to reign with notions of independent rights and royal privileges, which would draw away their attention from their true place in the theocracy. In this greater dependence of the judges upon the Divine King we see the secret of their institution. The Israelites were disposed to rest upon their separate interests as tribes; and having thus allowed the standing general government to remain inoperative through disuse, they would in cases of emergency have been disposed to forget that Jehovah had taken upon Himself the function of their Supreme Ruler, and 'to make themselves a king like the nations,' had their attention not been directed to the appointment of officers whose authority could rest on no tangible right apart from character and services, which, with the temporary nature of their power, rendered their functions more accordant with the principles of the theocracy than those of any other public officers could be. And it is probably in this adaptation to the peculiar circumstances of the Hebrew theocracy that we shall discover the reason of our inability to find any similar office among other nations.

With regard to the nature of the office held by these judges, it is usual to consider them as commencing their career with military exploits to deliver Israel from foreign oppression; but this is by no means invariably the case. Eli and Samuel were not military men; Deborah judged Israel before she planned the war against Jabin; and of Jair, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon, it is at least uncertain whether they ever held any military command. The command of the army can therefore be scarcely considered the distinguishing characteristic of these men/ or military exploits the necessary introduction to the office. In many cases it is true that military achievements were the means by which they elevated themselves to the rank of judges; but in general the appointment may be said to have varied with the exigencies of the times, and with the particular circumstances which in times of trouble would draw the public attention to persons who appeared suited by their gifts or influence to advise in matters of general concernment, to decide in questions arising between tribe and tribe, to administer public affairs, and to appear as their recognized head in their intercourse with their neighbors and oppressors.

In nearly all the instances recorded the appointment seems to have been by the free unsolicited choice of the people. The only cases of direct Divine appointment are those of Gideon and Samson, and the last stood in the peculiar position of having been from before his birth ordained 'to begin to deliver Israel.' Deborah was called to deliver Israel, but was already a judge. Samuel was called by the Lord to be a prophet, but not a judge, which ensued from the high gifts which the people recognized as dwelling in him; and as to Eli, the office of judge seems to have devolved naturally, or rather ex-officio, upon him; and his case seems to be the only one in which the high-priest appears in the character which the theocratical institutions designed for him.

The following clear summary of their duties and privileges is given by Jahn:—'The office of judges or regents was held during life, but it was not hereditary, neither could they appoint their successors. Their authority was limited by the law alone; and in doubtful cases they were directed to consult the Divine King through the priest by Urim and Thummim . They were not obliged in common cases to ask advice of the ordinary rulers; it was sufficient if these did not remonstrate against the measures of the judge. In important emergencies, however, they convoked a general assembly of the rulers, over which they presided and exerted a powerful influence. They could issue orders, but not enact laws; they could neither levy taxes nor appoint officers, except perhaps in the army. Their authority extended only over those tribes by whom they had been elected or acknowledged; for it is clear that several of the judges presided over separate tribes. There was no income attached to their office, nor was there any income appropriated to them, unless it might be a larger share in the spoils, and those presents which were made them as testimonials of respect . They bore no external marks of dignity, and maintained no retinue of courtiers, though some of them were very opulent. They were not only simple in their manners, moderate in their desires, and free from avarice and ambition, but noble and magnanimous men, who felt that whatever they did for their country was above all reward, and could not be recompensed; who desired merely to promote the public good, and who chose rather to deserve well of their country than to be enriched by its wealth. This exalted patriotism, like everything else connected with politics in the theocratical state of the Hebrews, was partly of a religious character, and those regents always conducted themselves as the officers of God; in all their enterprises they relied upon Him, and their only care was, that their countrymen should acknowledge the authority of Jehovah, their invisible king ( sq.; comp. Hebrews 11). Still they were not without faults, neither are they so represented by their historians; they relate, on the contrary, with the utmost frankness, the great sins of which some of them were guilty. They were not merely deliverers of the state from a foreign yoke, but destroyers of idolatry, foes of pagan vices, promoters of the knowledge of God, of religion, and of morality; restorers of theocracy in the minds of the Hebrews, and powerful instruments of Divine providence in the promotion of the great design of preserving the Hebrew constitution, and, by that means, of rescuing the true religion from destruction.'

The times of the judges would certainly not be considered so turbulent and barbarous, much less would they be taken, contrary to the clearest evidence and to the analogy of all history, for a heroic age, if they were viewed without the prejudices of a preconceived hypothesis. It must never be forgotten that the book of Judges is by no means a complete history. This no impartial inquirer can ever deny. It is, in a manner, a mere register of diseases, from which, however, we have no right to conclude that there were no healthy men, much less that there were no healthy seasons; since the book itself, for the most part, mentions only a few tribes in which the epidemic prevailed, and notices long periods during which it had universally ceased. Whatever may be the result of more accurate investigation, it remains undeniable that the condition of the Hebrews during this period perfectly corresponds throughout to the sanctions of the law and they were always prosperous when they complied with the conditions on which prosperity was promised them; it remains undeniable that the government of God was clearly manifested, not only to the Hebrews, but to their heathen neighbors; that the fulfilling of the promises and threatenings of the law were so many sensible proofs of the universal dominion of the Divine King of the Hebrews; and, consequently, that all the various fortunes of that nation were so many means of preserving the knowledge of God on the earth. The Hebrews had no sufficient reason to desire a change in their constitution; all required was, that they should observe the conditions on which national prosperity was promised them.

The chronology of the period in which the judges ruled is beset with great and perhaps insuperable difficulties. There are intervals of time the extent of which is not specified; as, for instance, that from Joshua's death to the yoke of Chushan-rishathaim that of the rule of Shamgar that between Gideon's death and Abimelech's accession and that of Israel's renewal of idolatry previous to their oppression by the Ammonites . Sometimes round numbers seem to have been given, as forty years for the rule of Othniel, forty years for that of Gideon, and forty years also for the duration of the oppression by the Philistines. Twenty years are given for the subjection to Jabin, and twenty years for the government of Samson; yet the latter never completely conquered the Philistines, who, on the contrary, succeeded in capturing him. Some judges, who are commonly considered to have been successive, were in all probability contemporaneous, and ruled over different districts. Under these circumstances, it is impossible to fix the date of each particular event in the book of Judges; but attempts have been made to settle its general chronology, of which we must in this place mention the most successful.

The whole period, of the judges, from Joshua to Eli, is usually estimated at 299 years, in order to meet the 480 years which are said to have elapsed from the departure of the Israelites from Egypt to the foundation of the temple by Solomon. But St. Paul says , 'God gave unto the people of Israel judges about the space of 450 years until Samuel the prophet.' Again, if the number of years specified by the author of our book, in stating facts, is summed up, we have 410 years, exclusive of those years not specified for certain intervals of time above mentioned. In order to reduce these 410 years and upwards to 299, events and reigns must, in computing their years of duration, either be entirely passed over, or, in a most arbitrary way, included in other periods preceding or subsequent. This has been done by Archbishop Usher, whose system, here peculiarly faulty, has been adopted in the Authorized Version of the Scriptures. He excludes the repeated intervals during which the Hebrews were in subjection to their enemies, and reckons only the years of peace and rest which were assigned to the successive judges. For example, he passes over the eight years of servitude inflicted upon the Hebrews by Chushan-rishathaim, and, without any interruption, connects the peace obtained by the victories of Othniel with that which had been conferred on the land by the government of Joshua; and although the sacred historian relates in the plainest terms possible that the children of Israel served the king of Mesopotamia eight years, and were afterwards delivered by Othniel, who gave the land rest forty years, the archbishop maintains that the forty years now mentioned began, not after the successes of this judge, but immediately after the demise of Joshua. Nothing certainly can be more obvious than that in this case the years of tranquility and the years of oppression ought to be reckoned separately. Again, we are informed by the sacred writer, that after the death of Ehud the children of Israel were under the oppression of Jabin king of Hazor for twenty years, and that afterwards, when their deliverance was effected by Deborah and Barak, the land had rest forty years. Nothing can be clearer than this; yet Usher's system leads him to include the twenty years of oppression in the forty of peace, making both but forty years. All this arises from the obligation which Usher unfortunately conceived himself under of following the scheme adopted by the Masoretic Jews, who, as Dr. Hales remarks, have by a curious invention included the four first servitudes in the years of the judges who put an end to them, contrary to the express declarations of Scripture, which represents the administrations of the judges, not as synchronizing with the servitudes, but as succeeding them. The Rabbins were indeed forced to allow the fifth servitude to have been distinct from the administration of Jephthah, because it was too long to be included in that administration; but they deducted a year from the Scripture account of the servitude, making it only six instead of seven years. They sank entirely the sixth servitude of forty years under the Philistines, because it was too long to be contained in Samson's administration; and, to crown all, they reduced Saul's reign of forty years to two years only.

The necessity for all these tortuous operations has arisen from a desire to produce a conformity with the date in , which, as already cited, gives a period of only 480 years from the Exode to the foundation of Solomon's temple. As this date is incompatible with the sum of the different numbers given in the book of Judges, and as it differs from the computation of Josephus and of all the ancient writers on the subject, whether Jewish or Christian, it is not unsatisfactory to find grounds which leave this text open to much doubt and suspicion. We cannot here enter into any lengthened proof; but that the text did not exist in the Hebrew and Greek copies of the Scripture till nearly three centuries after Christ, is evident from the absence of all reference to it in the works of the learned men who composed histories of the Jews from the materials supplied to them in the sacred books. This might be shown by reference to various authors, who, if the number specified in it had existed, could not fail to have adduced it.

It only remains to arrange the different systems of the chronology of this period so as to exhibit them in one view to the eye of the reader. It has been deemed right, for the better apprehension of the differences, to make the table embrace the whole period from the exode to the building of Solomon's temple. The headings are taken from Hales, simply because, from being the most copious, they can afford a framework within which all the explanations may be inserted.

The authorities for this table are: Josephus, Antiquities, v. 1-10; Theophilus, Bp. of Antioch (A.D. 330), Epist. ad Autolycum, iii.; Eusebius (A.D. 330), Praeparatio Evangelica, x. 14; Usher (1650), Chronologia Sacra, p. 71; Jackson (1752), Chronological Antiquities, p. 145; Hales (1811), Analysis of Chronology, i. 101; Russell (1827), Connection of Sacred and Profane History, i. 147.

Exodus to death of Moses	40	1648	40	1593	40	40	40	40	40	1491
Joshua (and the) Elders	26	1608	27	1553	25	25	27	27	..	1451
First Division of Lands	..	1602
Second Division of Lands	..	1596	..	..	..	..	6y. 4m.	1444
Anarchy or Interregnum	10	1582	2
I. Servitude, Mesopotamia	8	1572	8	1526	8	18	8	8	40	1413
1. Othniel	40	1564	40	1518	40	40	40	40	1405
II. Servitude, Moab	18	1524	18	1478	..	..	18	18	80	1343
2. Ehud (and)	80	1506	80	1460	80	80	80	80	1323
3. Shamgar	1	1	omitted
III. Servitude, Canaanite	20	1426	20	1380	20	20	20	20	40	1285
4. Deborah and Barak	40	1406	40	1360	40	40	40	40	1265
IV. Servitude, Midian	7	1368	7	1320	7	7	7	7	40	1252
5. Gideon	40	1359	40	1313	40	40	40	40	1245
6. Abimelech	3	1319	3	1273	3	3	3	3	9y. 2m.	1236
7. Tola	23	1316	22	1270	22	22	22	23	48	1232
8. Jair	22	1293	22	1248	22	22	22	22	1210
V. Servitude, Ammon	18	1271	18	1226	18	18	18	18	6	1206
9. Jephthah	6	1253	6	1208	6	6	6	6	1188
10. Ibzan	7	1247	7	1202	7	7	7	7	25	1182
11. Elon	10	1240	10	1195	10	10	10	10	1175
12. Abdon	8	1230	8	1185	8	8	8	1165