Chapter 1
The Conquest Continues
Most of this chapter will restate much of what has already been reported in the book of Joshua. Two primary issues surface in this chapter, the first being that the people of Israel no longer have a single leader over all tribes, and second, they did not purge the land of its previous inhabitants. Which then “sets the stage” for this 300-plus year period known as the “Time of the Judges,” as the source of majority of their problems between them and God is their worship of the Canaanite and other foreign gods and idols.
1:1 After the death of Joshua, the people of Israel inquired of the LORD, “Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?”
After Joshua died there were still Canaanites living in the Promised Land. Joshua had led the coalition of the men from all of the tribes to clear out the previous inhabitants of the land and now that he is dead each tribe had to conquer their own territories. Even though God had promised multiple times that He would do the fighting, they still needed to engage in the battle. Some of the tribes instead of fighting compromised and made servants out of the previous inhabitants. But here, many years after Joshua’s war campaigns, several of the tribes still had problems with those people, so they seek God’s direction (see Luke 11:9).
1:2 The LORD said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.” 3 And 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.
Undoubtedly inquired through the high priest, God responded with the instruction to send the men of the tribe of Judah to fight and He will give them victory. The context of God’s response refers to the tribe of Judah to do the conquering and clearing for all territories not just Judah’s. He promised that He would give the land into their hand, all they needed was faith! Instead, the leadership of Judah invited the men of the tribe of Simeon to join them to first fight and clear out the people in Judah’s territory, and then they would fight the Canaanites in Simeon’s territory, and so they joined forces.
1:4 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. 5 They found Adoni-bezek at Bezek and fought against him and defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6 Adoni-bezek fled, but they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and his big toes. 7 And Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy 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.
YHWH gave the men of Judah victory over the Canaanites and the Perizzites[1] and were able to defeat 10,000 of them at Bezek (the name is believed to mean ‘lightning’, exact location remains unknown, thought to be one of two ruins either Khirbet Salhab or Khirbet Ibziq). There they found Adoni-bezek (“Lord of Bezek” or “Lord of Lightning”) apparently a ruthless king and when captured they cut off his thumbs and his big toes rendering him useless in battle (see below). The king noted that being mutilated himself seemed appropriate as he did the same thing to seventy other kings who used to eat scraps from underneath his table (see also Luke 16:19-31). He was brought to the city of Jerusalem and died there. The meaning of the last part of verse seven is debated. Some believe that Adoni-bezek was mutilated and then held as a prisoner but died during the next conflict in Jerusalem. Others believe he was indeed taken as a prisoner but ended in a jail in Jerusalem where he died at a much later date (but only feasible if they were able to capture and hold the city, which according to Judges 1:21; 19:11-12, they could not). In either case they violated God’s command to show no mercy with the inhabitants (see Deuteronomy 7:1-2; 20:16-17).
1:8 And 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. 9 And afterward the men of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites who lived in the hill country, in the Negeb, and in the lowland. 10 And 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 Talmai.
The next battle scene is at the city of Jerusalem where we are told that they were able to capture the city and set it on fire, but later in this chapter we will read that they had some difficulty in holding onto the city (see verse 21). They went from there to fight the Canaanites in the hill country,[2] the Negeb (in the south), in the lowland,[3] and Hebron, where they defeated the three clans of the sons of Anak, Shesai, Ahiman, and Talmai. These names should sound somewhat familiar as we were told earlier in Joshua 15:14 that Caleb drove them out of Hebron (see also Numbers 13:22). Since this account in the book of Judges from verse ten through verse fifteen matches the account recorded in Joshua 15:13-20, this is a retelling of those events.
1:11 From there they went against the inhabitants of Debir. The name of Debir was formerly Kiriath-sepher. 12 And Caleb said, “He who attacks Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give him Achsah my daughter for a wife.” 13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, captured it. And he gave him Achsah his daughter for a wife. 14 When she came to him, she urged him to ask her father for a field. And she dismounted from her donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What do you want?” 15 She said to him, “Give me a blessing. Since you have set me in the land of the Negeb, give me also springs of water.” And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.
They came to Debir where Caleb offered to give his daughter Achsah to anyone who conquered Kiribati-sepher (Debir). Caleb’s nephew Othniel captured Debir, and Caleb gave Achsah to him. Afterward, Achsah asked her father for a blessing (or perhaps a wedding gift) as she had been given land in the mostly dry Negeb (part of Judah’s inheritance, but could also refer to Debir’s dryness). She asked for “springs of water,” and Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs (unknown locations). We will soon see that Othniel will become Israel’s first judge.
1:16 And 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 Negeb near Arad, and they went and settled with the people.
The Septuagint opens verse sixteen, “And the descendants of Jethro the Kenite, the father-in-law of Moses”[4] (Joshua 1:16a, LXX).[5] We know very little about the Kenites other than Abraham was promised their land in the Abrahamic Covenant which states, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.” (Genesis 15:18-21, ESV) But we do not see them (nor the Kenizzites and the Kadmonites) listed later in Exodus 3:17 describing the people groups that need to be purged from the land during the time of Moses. There is some debate regarding whether or not Moses had a second wife based on Numbers 12:1 which identifies him married to a Cushite woman. Most consider Cush the ancient name for Ethiopia, making the reference to someone other than Zipporah (the daughter of Jethro and the wife of Moses, see Exodus 2:21), while others connect this reference to a person being from Cushan, which is in the same Midianite region Zipporah was from (see Habakkuk 3:7). So using this verse many connect the Kenites to be affiliated in some way to the Midianites. Who exactly were the Kenites? The debate continues, the name in some Semitic languages refer to being ’smiths’ as in metal smithing, but that doesn’t aid in learning about their lineage and how they survived the purge, unless the people of Israel made some agreement with them (which would have been a violation of God’s command to not make a covenant between the enemy and to devote all to destruction, see Deuteronomy 7:1-2).
This people group (whoever they are) went up with the men of Judah from the city of palms (Jericho, see Deuteronomy 34:3) into the wilderness of Judah in the Negeb near Arad (see Numbers 21:1, see also Judges 4:11) where they settled there with the people, which later was named after them (see 1 Samuel 27:10).
1:17 And 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.
The men of Judah and the men of Simeon were victorious over the Canaanites in Zephath which was destroyed. The name of the city was changed to Hormah (meaning a city devoted to destruction). This was the location where the Israelites were defeated by the Amalekites and the Canaanites after Moses told the people that as a result of them refusing to enter the Promised Land they would remain in the wilderness, so they decided to enter the land anyway except they didn’t have God with them and were defeated (see Numbers 14:36-45). We also read in Numbers 21:1-3 about Moses and the people encountering the king of Arad who, “fought against Israel, and took some of them captive. And Israel vowed a vow to the LORD and said, “If you will indeed give this people into my hand, then I will devote their cities to destruction.” And the LORD heeded the voice of Israel and gave over the Canaanites, and they devoted them and their cities to destruction. So the name of the place was called Hormah.” (ESV) The question of when Hormah was named (either here after Joshua’s death or during their time in the wilderness) is often debated. The Septuagint suggests that the name is more of a description than a proper name as the Greek word anathema means given up to destruction or accursed. (Click here to read about the use of names before a name is given)
1:18 Judah also captured Gaza with its territory, and Ashkelon with its territory, and Ekron with its territory.
The men of Judah went to and captured Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron along with their territories on the Mediterranean coast, but their hold on these cities was apparently only temporary since by the time Samson started to fight the Philistines, these cities were once again under Philistine control (see Judges 14:19; 16:21; 1 Samuel 5:10). But once again the Septuagint tells us something different, “And Judah did not receive an inheritance from Gaza or its borders, nor from Ashkelon or its borders, nor from Ekron or its borders, nor from Ashdod or its suburbs.”[6] It reports the opposite, that they were unsuccessful in purging the previous inhabitants. Which could explain the quick return as they may have never left.
1:19 And the LORD was with Judah, and he took possession of the hill country, but he could not drive out the inhabitants of the plain because they had chariots of iron.
We are first told that YHWH was with the men of Judah as they conquered the hill country (see commentary and associated footnotes for verses 8-10 above). But they were unsuccessful in driving out the people in the plain. It appears that they had sufficient faith to fight when they had the advantage but when they saw the that the enemy had chariots, their faith wavered and so they failed.
1:20 And Hebron was given to Caleb, as Moses had said. And he drove out from it the three sons of Anak.
Earlier we read that Judah went against those living in Hebron (formerly Kiriath-arba) and defeated Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, the three sons of Anak (see verse ten above). Here Caleb is credited for the capture (as reported in Joshua 15:14 (see also Numbers 13:22), he was also given the city (God told Moses that Caleb would inherit land, but He did not specify Hebron by name, see Numbers 14:24, see also Joshua 14:8-9; 20:7; 21:11-12).
1:21 But the people of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem, so the Jebusites have lived with the people of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.
In verse eight we read that the men of Judah captured Jerusalem and set it on fire. Here we see that the men of Benjamin were unable to purge the Jebusites from the city (also known at this time as Jebus, see Joshua 19:10). They will remain the city’s occupants for several hundred years (until King David’s reign).
1:22 The house of Joseph also went up against Bethel, and the LORD was with them. 23 And the house of Joseph scouted out Bethel. (Now the name of the city was formerly Luz.) 24 And the spies saw a man coming out of the city, and they said to him, “Please show us the way into the city, and we will deal kindly with you.” 25 And he showed them the way into the city. And they struck the city with the edge of the sword, but they let the man and all his family go. 26 And the man went to the land of the Hittites and built a city and called its name Luz. That is its name to this day.
The tribe of Joseph consisted of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh (in this scenario likely just the west-of-the-Jordan half of the tribe). The city of Bethel was in the tribe of Ephraim’s territory. The name was given to the location by Jacob after his dream where God spoke to him, the name means “house of God.” Following a similar strategy Joshua used at Jericho, the tribe of Joseph sent spies to evaluate if the city had any potential weaknesses to breech and enter. The spies encounter a man who was willing to show them how to enter the city. They were able to conquer the city but let the man and his family go who then traveled north to the land of the Hittites (Syria, see Joshua 1:4). The rebuilt city of Luz has never been discovered.
1:27 Manasseh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean and its villages, or Taanach and its villages, or the inhabitants of Dor and its villages, or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its villages, or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages, for the Canaanites persisted in dwelling in that land. 28 When Israel grew strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but did not drive them out completely.
For the remainder of the chapter the author reports several more failures to eradicate the Canaanites. The cities of Beth-shean (also spelled Beth Shan), Taanach, Dor, Ibleam, and Megiddo, along with their villages in Manasseh’s north were not driven out, but later when the Israelites grew in number they enslaved the Canaanites.
1:29 And Ephraim did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, so the Canaanites lived in Gezer among them.
The men of Ephraim were not able to remove the Canaanites from Gezer in the southwestern region of their territory.
1:30 Zebulun did not drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, or the inhabitants of Nahalol, so the Canaanites lived among them, but became subject to forced labor.
The people of Zebulun were not able to eliminate the inhabitants of Kitron and Nahalol (a city given to the Levites, see Joshua 21:35). But were able to make them slaves.
1:31 Asher did not drive out the inhabitants of Acco, or the inhabitants of Sidon or of Ahlab or of Achzib or of Helbah or of Aphik or of Rehob, 32 so the Asherites lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land, for they did not drive them out.
The tribe of Asher were not able to eradicate the inhabitants of Acco (south coast), Sidon (north coast), Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik (southern region, also spelled Aphek), and Rehob. The Septuagint version, beside the names of the cities spelled differently, offers a little more information. “And Asher did not drive out the inhabitants of Acco, and they were subjected to pay tribute, nor the inhabitants of Dor nor the inhabitants of Sidon nor the inhabitants of Dalaph nor Aschazei nor Chebda nor Naei nor Ereo. And Asher dwelt in the midst of the Canaanites inhabiting the land because he was not strong enough to drive them out.”[7] (Judges 1:31-32, LXX)
1:33 Naphtali did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, or the inhabitants of Beth-anath, so they lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land. Nevertheless, the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath became subject to forced labor for them.
The people of Naphtali could not remove the residents of Beth-shemesh (the house or temple of Shamash the Canaanite sun god) and Beth-anath (Anath was a Canaanite fertility goddess), but became slaves for them.
1:34 The Amorites pressed the people of Dan back into the hill country, for they did not allow them to come down to the plain. 35 The Amorites persisted in dwelling in Mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim, but the hand of the house of Joseph rested heavily on them, and they became subject to forced labor. 36 And the border of the Amorites ran from the ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela and upward.
Even though surrounded by the tribes of West Manasseh and Ephram to the north, Benjamin to the east, and Judah to the south, the tribe of Dan had problems with the Amorites whose border is identified as being the ascent of Akrabbim (also known as Scorpion Pass) from Sela upward near the southwest end of the Dead Sea (see Joshua 15:2-3). The Amorites pushed the people of Dan out the valley and also remained residents of the Mount Heres region including the cities of Aijalon and Shaalbim (the pursuit of a different land inheritance for the people of Dan will be the central theme of Judges 18). But the tribe of Joseph was able to overwhelm and conquer the Amorites forcing them to slavery.
Considerations
Mutilate to Master
By cutting off someone's thumbs and their big toes would indeed render a warrior worthless, especially in those days when swords, bows, and arrows were the weapons. But why did the men of Judah practice such a horrific mutilation? We do not read here (or anywhere else in the Bible) where God allowed, or gave any instructions to do this. Some believe that it was a well-known practice of Adoni-bezek (which he admits to in verse seven) and therefore the people thought he deserved the same punishment. One commentator appropriately expressed:
How horrible is the history of human cruelty! It is the mark of ungodliness, that it glories in the agony of him whom it calls an enemy. The mutilation of the human body is the tyranny of sin over the work of God, which it nevertheless fears.[8]
Slavery
This often brutal and dehumanizing practice is never forbidden in the Bible. God had specific laws pertaining to slavery, but nonetheless it was allowed (click here to read about slavery, servitude, and the concept of a bond-servant). As we begin our study of the book of Judges it should be noted that Israel’s issues and problems with God were not related to slavery, but with who they enslaved. God on several occasions told Moses, Joshua, and the people of Israel that the inhabitants of the Promised Land were to be destroyed. Why? Because they practiced vile pagan rituals that effectively polluted them and everything they owned. So why not enslave them? Two thoughts: First, they can begin to depend on others doing the work instead of relying on God. But more importantly is number two, observing or otherwise being influenced by pagan rituals, which in turn encourages them to worship idols. Slavery is bad, but idol worship will push the person away from God.
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[1] Click here to read commentary for Genesis 13:5-7.
[2] There are several "hill country" regions in Israel, most notably Galilee, Ephraim, Manasseh (west of Jordan) and Judah. Being the location of many Biblical cities and events, such as Jerusalem, Hebron, and Shechem. This reference is likely the hill country of northern Judah.
[3] The "lowlands" are typically the region between the hill country and the coastal plain also known as the Shephelah. Often described as 'gentle' or rolling hills.
[4] Brannan, R., Penner, K. M., Loken, I., Aubrey, M., & Hoogendyk, I., eds. (2012). The Lexham English Septuagint (Jdg 1:16). Lexham Press.
[5] Click here to read about the Septuagint.
[6] Brannan, R., Penner, K. M., Loken, I., Aubrey, M., & Hoogendyk, I., eds. (2012). The Lexham English Septuagint (Jdg 1:18). Lexham Press.
[7] Brannan, R., Penner, K. M., Loken, I., Aubrey, M., & Hoogendyk, I., eds. (2012). The Lexham English Septuagint (Jdg 1:31–32). Lexham Press.
[8] Lange, J. P., Schaff, P., Cassel, P., & Steenstra, P. H. (2008). A commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Judges (p. 30). Logos Bible Software.