Why are we weak? (Judges 2-4; 6-8; 13-16)

2:2

Why are we weak? The Israelites witnessed many miracles. They were led by the Lord to the promised land. They were asked to “make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars…” They were supposed to keep themselves separate from the Canaanites and not start worshiping their idols.

But, the Israelites didn’t follow through. “…but ye have not obeyed my voice: why have ye done this?” The important part of this for me is the last five words of this verse. Why were they not obedient?

Why are we not obedient? I think it’s important for us to know. There are several reasons why we aren’t obedient. I can think of four:

1. We’ve established a pattern of making bad choices. It’s a habit.

2. We give into our natural urges of feeling anger, spite, pleasure.

3. We allow pride to control us. We care about what the world thinks more than what God thinks.

4. We simply get distracted and forget the Lord.

5. We give into temptation.

It’s important to consider the reasons behind our disobedience. Understanding the reasons will help us know how we can overcome. The solution to being distracted is much different than being tempted. If pride is causing us to do things contrary to the will of the Lord, how do we become more humble. How can we strengthen ourselves against temptations? How do we break habits?

Again, understanding why we do what we do is the first step to making a plan to overcome the problem. Once we understand the problem, we can work on a solution. So, ask yourself, “why have ye done this?”

2:12

”And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the Lord to anger.” What and WHO we are around matters. It is human nature to assimilate. We grow to become like those we associate with. This is true for adults but especially young men and women.

The choices they make about who to spend time with may have intense consequences for their entire lives. Patterns of thinking are contagious. It is incredibly hard to be around people without adopting their mindset.

This underscores why it’s so important to build a relationship with the Savior. This is why we need to immerse ourselves in the scriptures often. As we become better acquainted with the character of Christ, we will adopt more and more of his characteristics. It’s natural. We just need to take advantage of this human trait.

2:17

The Israelites seem to bounce back and forth about whether they will follow the Lord or not. We will see it agin and again. “…they turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in…” It’s important to realize that they aren’t different than we are.

3:9

We see the Lord providing a deliverer. “And when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them.” As soon as they repent, the Lord is merciful.

3:12

It doesn’t last. “And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died. And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord.” They were able to maintain righteousness for a few decades.

3:15

Again, the Lord is merciful. “So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years. But when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised them up a deliverer.” The deliverer was Ehud. He killed the fat Eglon.

4:1

It doesn’t last. “And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord, when Ehud was dead.” When they had the guidance of Ehud, they were able to maintain righteousness. As soon as their deliverer was not around, they faltered. I think this illustrates the importance of staying immersed in study, church/temple attendance and listening to our living prophets. If we disconnect, we are vulnerable - no matter our spiritual strength.

4:8-9, 14

Deborah sounds amazing. I have to think that there were many additional women of significance and leadership who didn’t get written about.

Barak relies on Deborah. “And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go.” It’s good that he recognized his dependence on something outside of himself.

Deborah agrees. “And she said, I will surely go with thee: notwithstanding the journey that thou takest shall not be for thine honour.” It’s interesting to me that she specifies that she’s not doing it for his honor. It suggests that Barak was tempted by pride. Aren’t we all?

Whenever we accomplish something great, we are tempted to (at least to ourselves) take credit. It’s important for us, to maintain our humility, that we give credit to God when we are blessed to accomplish anything. It is ALWAYS the Lord’s strength that is behind us. He strengthens us. He prepares a way and provides us with the opportunity in the first place. Deborah reminds him of this. “And Deborah said unto Barak, Up; for this is the day in which the Lord hath delivered Sisera into thine hand: is not the Lord gone out before thee?”

When we are faced with an overwhelming trial we should remember “is not the Lord gone out before thee?” If we are embarking on a mission or starting a career, we should have this same thought.

6:1

The Israelites‘ righteousness didn’t last. “And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord: and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.”

6:7

Because they suffered, they turned to the Lord again. “And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord because of the Midianites, That the Lord sent a prophet unto the children of Israel.” The Lord is merciful.

6:12-16

Gideon was an interesting guy. More importantly, the Lord chose him to do something great. ”And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour. And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? but now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.” It seems that Gideon didn’t have an understanding of how this works. If we turn away from God, we are left to ourselves to get tossed about like a boat without a rudder in a stormy sea.

The Lord gives him some assurance. “And the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?” The Lord reminds him that, if God is with him, he can overcome.

Gideon misunderstands. He incorrectly believes that it is up to him. It is completely on his shoulders. “And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.” After working with many senior missionaries, I can say that a lot of us feel this way. We feel insecure about our abilities. But the point is, God is the one carrying the burden. It isn’t up to us!

”And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.” With the Lord, all things can be accomplished.

6:23

The Lord gave further assurance to Gideon. “And the Lord said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.” The same thing can be said to us. We shall overcome eventually. We may suffer throughout our lives - but, in the end, we will overcome. Christ made that possible. No matter how bad it gets, we can rest assured that we will live long past all of the suffering we endure. The thought of this should give us peace. Christ is the Prince of Peace.

6:37

Gideon asks for a sign. I don’t think this is healthy. “Behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth beside, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by mine hand, as thou hast said.” We should be able to act in faith without requiring a sign beforehand.

Having said that, I think that Gideon wasn’t asking God to prove himself. I think it was more that he was unsettled that he was chosen. It was more about getting proof about himself rather than proof in God.

7:2

We are always tempted by pride. If we can take the credit we will. God knew this about Israel. ”And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.”

God knew that, if Israel thought it was (sort of) a fair fight, they would give credit to themselves. They would take the glory. It wouldn’t be “the Lord delivered us.” Instead, it would be “look how tough we are!” It is our pride (that we all have) that tempts us to give ourselves the glory.

God only wants 300 men against the thousands of Midianites. “And the Lord said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand.” It’s interesting that the determining factor was how they drank water from the river…

8:33

Israel‘s righteousness doesn’t last. “And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god.” Again, as soon as their spiritual leader leaves, they turn.

”And the children of Israel remembered not the Lord their God, who had delivered them out of the hands of all their enemies on every side.” Even though they were just saved, they turned. Again, it’s important that we remember that we aren’t any different than the Israelites! It can happen to us.

13:1

It is now the Philistines that conquer Israel. “And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years.”

13:5-6

We learn about what can happen when the Spirit is with us. “Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him. And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.” Samson killed a lion as easily as he would a small goat.

Again, the point is that it wasn’t a matter of Samson’s strength. It was that the Spirit was with him.

16:4-5

Samson loved Delilah. “And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.” The love became a vulnerability to Samson’s strength.

“And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her, Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail against him, that we may bind him to afflict him: and we will give thee every one of us eleven hundred pieces of silver. And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound to afflict thee.”

This happens a lot with couples. I’ve seen a strong person, impervious to temptation, make bad choices because of the influence of their significant other. I’ve mainly seen righteous women lower their standards to please their husbands.

We can’t let our loyalty to our companion supersede our loyalty to God. We can’t be enticed by the idea of marital bliss at the expense of our righteousness. It’s something to be wary of.

16:21-22, 28

”But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house. Howbeit the hair of his head began to grow again after he was shaven.” I think this can be symbolic for us. No matter what our current trial, it is within us to receive strength from the Lord.

We won’t need a magic potion or a special device. No matter how bad it is, we can always turn to the Lord and receive strength. Even if it’s our own bad choices that led to our struggle.

But we do need the Lord’s help. Samson realized this. “And Samson called unto the Lord, and said, O Lord God, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.” Samson needed strength from the Lord.

The Lord gave him strength. The moment Samson asked for help, he received it. We should know that the Lord will care for us the same way. God will never withhold strength when we ask for it! He may not remove the trials in our lives, but he will ALWAYS give us strength when we ask for it. It would help if we would remember that and have faith when we need strength.