The big picture
Two more judges lead Israel, the people God has often rescued, before it turns again to other gods. Judges are leaders who guide or defend the people. The next crisis comes from the Philistines and Ammon, enemy peoples who press hard on Israel. A cry for help receives a stern answer. This time the people also remove the gods they chose, while leaders in Gilead, an eastern region, seek someone to fight.
In this chapter
- Two Judges and Their Households Pass Judges 10:1-5
Tola rises to defend Israel after Abimelech.
- Israel Puts Away Its Foreign Gods Judges 10:6-16
Israel serves many gods from surrounding peoples and stops serving God.
- A Threat Arrives Before a Leader Judges 10:17-18
Ammon's forces gather in Gilead, and Israel gathers at Mizpeh, a camp in that region.
Central truth
Israel admits its sin and removes foreign gods, while God's grief over its suffering opens a new crisis toward possible rescue.
Scripture beside the summary
Judges · King James Version · 18Judges 10:1-5
Two Judges and Their Households Pass
Tola rises to defend Israel after Abimelech. He belongs to Issachar, an Israelite tribe, and lives at Shamir in mount Ephraim. He judges for twenty-three years, then dies and is buried there. Jair, a man from Gilead, follows him for twenty-two years. His thirty sons ride thirty young donkeys and hold thirty towns. The towns carry a name linked to Jair. He dies and is buried in Camon. These brief entries preserve years, places and family details without giving an account of a particular battle.
In everyday life
A town librarian adds two former council leaders to a local timeline. One entry gives a term and a burial place. Another includes a large family and properties tied to its name. She preserves these limited facts without inventing dramatic events to fill the gaps. Israel's judges hold a role defined within God's dealings with his people.
Notice
Judges 10:4 Jair's sons, donkeys and towns are counted together. The details give a sense of his household's reach even though no particular act of rescue is described.
Judges 10:1-5
King James Version1And after Abimelech there arose to defend Israel Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar; and he dwelt in Shamir in mount Ephraim.
2And he judged Israel twenty and three years, and died, and was buried in Shamir.
3And after him arose Jair, a Gileadite, and judged Israel twenty and two years.
4And he had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass colts, and they had thirty cities, which are called Havoth-jair unto this day, which are in the land of Gilead.
5And Jair died, and was buried in Camon.
Judges 10:6-16
Israel Puts Away Its Foreign Gods
Israel serves many gods from surrounding peoples and stops serving God. His anger brings harsh rule by the Philistines and Ammon. The suffering spreads across Jordan, the river dividing parts of Israel. The people confess that they have sinned and abandoned God. He recalls repeated rescues and tells them to seek help from the gods they chose. They admit their guilt again and ask for rescue, accepting his right to deal with them. They remove their foreign gods and serve him. God is grieved by Israel's misery.
In everyday life
A gambling support volunteer hears a caller admit that repeated promises have failed. This time the caller closes betting accounts while asking for help with the harm already done. The volunteer can see an action joined to the words, though the losses remain. Israel's change concerns worship, and God's grief is not a support worker's judgement.
Notice
Judges 10:16 The people remove the foreign gods rather than only naming their sin. Their act of changed worship stands beside God's grief over the misery they face.
Judges 10:6-16
King James Version6And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD, and served not him.
7And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the children of Ammon.
8And that year they vexed and oppressed the children of Israel: eighteen years, all the children of Israel that were on the other side Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead.
9Moreover the children of Ammon passed over Jordan to fight also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim; so that Israel was sore distressed.
10And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, saying, We have sinned against thee, both because we have forsaken our God, and also served Baalim.
11And the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Did not I deliver you from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines?
12The Zidonians also, and the Amalekites, and the Maonites, did oppress you; and ye cried to me, and I delivered you out of their hand.
13Yet ye have forsaken me, and served other gods: wherefore I will deliver you no more.
14Go and cry unto the gods which ye have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your tribulation.
15And the children of Israel said unto the LORD, We have sinned: do thou unto us whatsoever seemeth good unto thee; deliver us only, we pray thee, this day.
16And they put away the strange gods from among them, and served the LORD: and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.
Judges 10:17-18
A Threat Arrives Before a Leader
Ammon's forces gather in Gilead, and Israel gathers at Mizpeh, a camp in that region. The people and their leaders ask who will begin the fight. They promise that person authority over all Gilead. No chosen fighter is named here, and no battle has yet begun. The need is clear, but the answer remains open. A people asking for rescue must now face the question of who will lead them. The promised rule gives weight to the choice they are about to make.
In everyday life
The expedition members gather at base camp after their guide withdraws. Supplies are ready and the route still lies ahead, but nobody has accepted the lead. The group agrees that whoever takes responsibility will direct the whole party. Preparation has reached the point where a person must step forward. Gilead faces an invading army, not a climb.
Notice
Judges 10:18 The offer joins leadership in battle with rule over the region. Choosing a fighter will also decide who holds authority after the immediate threat is faced.
Judges 10:17-18
King James Version17Then the children of Ammon were gathered together, and encamped in Gilead. And the children of Israel assembled themselves together, and encamped in Mizpeh.
18And the people and princes of Gilead said one to another, What man is he that will begin to fight against the children of Ammon? he shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.
Details worth noticing
The opening image
Judges 10:1 begins with “And after Abimelech there arose to defend Israel Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar; and he dwelt in Shamir in mount Ephraim.”
Where the chapter turns
Judges 10:11 forms a natural hinge: “And the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Did not I deliver you from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, from the children of Ammon, and from the…”
The final note
Judges 10:18 leaves the reader with “And the people and princes of Gilead said one to another, What man is he that will begin to fight against the children of Ammon? he shall be head over all…”
A word trail through the chapter
The words children, Israel, gods, LORD, Ammon, Gilead help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
KJV words made clear
- unto
- to
- thee
- you
- thou
- you
- wherefore
- for that reason
Music and video connected to the passage
Related media appears when its Scripture reference overlaps this study. Music and video can illuminate a theme while the biblical text remains the foundation.
