Judges, Ruth: Revised Edition (The NIV Application Commentary)

by K. Lawson Younger

THE WELL-FAMILIAR OPENING NARRATIVE FRAME components begin the narration of the cycle. “Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, so the LORD delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years” (v. 1). Yahweh’s utilization of the Philistines10 has already been anticipated in the introduction to the Jephthah story (10:7): Yahweh “sold (makar) them into the hands of the Philistines and the Ammonites.” This may imply that the Ammonite and Philistine oppressions were simultaneous. The length of the oppression is forty years, double the next longest oppression (Deborah/Barak: twenty years; see the Introduction to Judges, p. 28, n. 22). This may speak to its severity. Instead of the usual third component, “and the Israelites cried out to the LORD,” there is only silence. The Israelites do not make an appeal to Yahweh in this cycle! In the last two cycles (Gideon/Abimelek and Jephthah), this issue of crying out to Yahweh has come under close scrutiny. Israel does not deserve to be delivered (cf. the indictment of 6:7–10) and cannot manipulate Yahweh to intervene through false repentance (as Yahweh himself emphasizes in 10:10–16). In the Samson episode, the Israelites show no indication of even wanting to be delivered. Israel is utterly passive. Manoah and his wife are happy simply to avoid contact with the Philistines (14:3). And Samson does not want to fight the Philistines; he wants to copulate with their women!11