{"id":26201,"date":"2020-11-06T13:59:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-06T13:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/2020\/11\/30\/preaching-on-judges\/"},"modified":"2026-01-21T16:02:02","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T16:02:02","slug":"preaching-on-judges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/preaching-on-judges\/","title":{"rendered":"Preaching on Judges"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Historical Background<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The events in the Book of Judges take place after the death of Joshua and before the reign of Saul, Israel\u2019s first king. I find it helpful to think of this time period as a stretch of river. In the Book of Joshua, the river flows clear and strong. God\u2019s people face challenges, and they experience solutions and victories. But downriver, the Judges stretch turns murky and sluggish as sewage and other contaminants seep into the flow. The people of Israel create trouble for themselves as they allow the evil of their surrounding culture to pollute them. This is the sad story of the Book of Judges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It seems unlikely, then, that preachers would choose this dark, sordid tale for a series of sermons. Judges appears to be more suited for a mini-series on HBO with all of its sex and violence. Certainly, its R-rated contents are not suitable for children, and Bible stories are for kids\u2014right? Better to skip from Joshua to Ruth except for a sermon on the faith of Gideon or the downfall of Samson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, I am convinced that God\u2019s people today need to hear the Book of Judges proclaimed. Here are three reasons why. First, Bible stories are not just for kids. They are the most sophisticated form of communication. They present their ideas more subtly than other kinds of literature. But they do more than provide a historical record or illustrate ideas taught in the New Testament. Judges, like other Old Testament narrative books, communicate theology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second, while the English Bible\u2019s arrangement of books places Judges in \u201cthe historical books,\u201d the Hebrew Bible categorizes it as a \u201cformer prophet\u201d\u2014along with Joshua, Samuel, and Kings. Judges, then, offers a prophetic message, using story (narrative) as its delivery vehicle. As a prophetic book, Judges aims to challenge, indict, and inspire God\u2019s people. Since it belongs to Scripture, Judges is still useful today for \u201cteaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness\u201d (2 Timothy 3:16).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, the grace and faithfulness of God shine brightly in this book against the dark backdrop of sin and rebellion. Even though God\u2019s people self-destruct when they become like their pagan neighbors, God is at work intervening\u2014again and again\u2014to bring peace to those who turn back to him. Judges 5:31 expresses the vision behind all of it: \u201cSo may all your enemies perish, LORD! But may all who love you be like the sun when it rises in its strength.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chart: Preaching Through Judges<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We know the weekly grind of sermon prep is hard, whether you are in the midst of series or planning a new series. Trying to find key verses you need to highlight in your sermon, finding the historical background to the book, discovering the flow\/structure of book, and even figuring out what is the theme of each section.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is why we created this chart! This chart is designed to\u00a0save you time<\/strong>\u00a0as you prepare to preach a new sermon series from the Book of Judges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You will find a quick visual overview of the movement of the Book of Judges. It will help orient you and your hearers as you preach through the entire book or sections of the book. It provides, at a glance, one way to divide the book into pericopes. The chart includes key verses in the book, an overarching title for the book, the overall message of the book, and some historical background. It is color-coded to highlight certain defining aspects of the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This chart could be used as a slide in your church service. It could serve as an introduction to a new series or a weekly check-in before you begin preaching. It could even be printed out and given to the members of your church, as a resource to help them grasp the message of the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Sermon Series<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Typically, preachers cherry-pick this book for a sermon on Gideon (but from Judges 7 rather than Judges 8!) or on Samson. I suggest a 12-week series, which works through the entire book. This is long enough to develop the book\u2019s argument and its unique themes. Yet it is short enough to hold your listeners\u2019 attention and to keep them from becoming too overwhelmed by all the darkness Judges contains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I preach through Judges, I point out to my listeners that the book has a clear structure. It contains a double introduction and a double conclusion. The double introduction raises two problems: the war of destruction and idols. First, Israel failed to carry out the war of destruction (\u1e25erem<\/em>) against some of the inhabitants of Canaan. Second, they worshipped the idols of the nations. The conclusion deals with these same two problems, only in reverse\u2014and each problem is more internal than external. In between the introduction and conclusion, you will find the so-called \u201ccycles\u201d section. Each cycle consists of rebellion, retribution, repentance, restoration, and rest. However, these cycles form a downward spiral as each the situation in each \u201ccycle\u201d deteriorates even more than in the previous one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Text: Judges 1:1-2:5<\/h2>\n\n\n\n