Thanks, Alistair. Can I just add my welcome this evening? I'm Tim. I'm one of the interns here at Brunsfield.
And my job just at this moment is just to give you three minutes of introduction of where we've been.
In chapter one of Judges, way back at the start of the summer, we began with such hope for the fledgling nation of Israel.
Israel seemed to be living up to its high calling as a light among the nations.
Remember how God, we've been singing and reading about how God took them from Egypt and brought them into this land to give it to them.
And in the first chapter, there was teamwork and collaboration.
The people were inhabiting the land and all seemed well.
But even as we looked at that first chapter, there were issues bubbling beneath the surface.
And as we've gone through the whole cycle of the Judges, we've seen time and time again that Israel did not match up to what it was meant to be.
And as we've seen God striving for His people, bringing them to their senses through hostile neighbours and then raising up from among them deliverers.
At this stage in the cycle, I am just awestruck that God has continued to have dealings with these people.
Even though it seems that every chance they get, they err.
Yet God still follows them, pursues them, looks after them, cares for them, longs to draw them back to Himself.
But even in our wonder of God's faithfulness, we ought to be perturbed with where Judges has been leading us.
From the flawed Gideon to Jephthah to Samson, the last few Judges that we've looked at in the book,
they're given a lot of space and a great deal of material is taken up with the stories of their flawed manners.
And so as we round off our studies in the book tonight,
we find that our subject matter for this evening is harrowing.
It's difficult.
It is not comfortable.
Much of what is described in our passage may well be distressing for many of us and painful.
There is little light or joy in the narrative that we're going to study.
But in all that, I am utterly convinced and I believe that we are utterly convinced
that all of Scripture is God-breathed and that it is profitable to us.
And so as we think and as we pray and as we read,
would God be made glorious among us even tonight,
even in the dirty, hard, troubling parts of the Word of God that we have to deal with.
I'm just going to hand back to Alistair now.
Can we come and pray to begin with and ask God to help us to engage with this challenging portion of God's Word this evening?
Let's pray.
Father God, we come before you this evening and we come as those who are your children,
as those who know you as Savior.
And we long that you would come and meet with us here this evening.
That you would give us humility as we deal with your Word.
That you would give us love and honour and honesty.
Father, would you help me?
Would you take my words?
And would you ensure that nothing that is against your glory would be said?
And would you help all of us as we hear your Word?
That we would understand.
That we would apply it to our lives.
And that we would go away changed men and women.
Father, help us, we pray.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
We're going to read tonight.
We're not going to read the whole passage as we've done most of the other weeks.
We're just going to read a scattering of verses through the few chapters.
So we're starting in Judges chapter 19.
And we're just going to take out a scattering of verses.
Before us, we have three chapters that form three acts in a story.
In chapter 19, we find act 1.
That is the spark that starts a war.
Then in chapter 20, we find that civil war itself and how it plays out.
Finally, in act 3 in chapter 21, we find something of a reconciliation narrative.
And so that's where we're reading from this evening.
So chapter 19, and just the first kind of half line there, begins,
In those days, Israel had no king.
And then we'll skip down to verse 29, down to the end of the chapter.
And it says,
When he reached home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine limb by limb into 12 parts
and sent them into all the areas of Israel.
Everyone who saw it was saying to one another,
Such a thing has never been seen or done.
Not since the day the Israelites came up out of Egypt.
Just imagine.
We must do something.
So speak up.
Then all Israel and from Dan to Beersheba
and from the land of Gilead came together as one
and assembled before the Lord in Mizpah.
The leaders of all the people of the tribes of Israel
took their places in the assembly of God's people.
400,000 armed men with swords.
The Benjamites had heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah.
Then the Israelites said,
Tell us how this awful thing happened.
So the Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, said,
I and my concubine came to Gibeah in Benjamin to spend the night.
During the night, the men of Gibeah came after me
and surrounded the house intending to kill me.
They raped my concubine and she died.
I took my concubine, cut her into pieces
and sent one piece into each region of Israel's inheritance
because they committed this lewd and outrageous act in Israel.
Now all you Israelites, speak up
and tell me what you have decided to do.
Skipping down to verse 12.
The tribes of Israel sent messengers throughout the tribe of Benjamin
saying,
What about this awful crime that was committed among you?
Now turn those wicked men of Gibeah over to us
so that we may put them to death and purge the evil from the land.
But the Benjamites would not listen to their fellow Israelites.
From their towns, they came together at Gibeah
to fight against the Israelites.
Down again to verse 17.
Israel, apart from Benjamin,
mustered 400,000 swordsmen,
all of them fit for battle.
The Israelites went up to Bethel
and inquired of God.
They said,
Who of us is to go up first
to fight against the Benjamites?
The Lord replied,
Judah shall go first.
Down to verse 26 then.
Then all the Israelites,
the whole army,
went up to Bethel
and there they sat weeping
before the Lord.
They fasted that day until evening
and presented burnt offerings
and fellowship offerings to the Lord.
And the Israelites inquired of the Lord.
In those days,
the Ark of the Covenant was there
with Phinehas,
son of Eleazar,
son of Aaron,
ministering before it.
They asked,
Shall we go up again
to fight against the Benjamites,
our fellow Israelites,
or not?
The Lord responded,
Go,
for tomorrow I will give them
into your hands.
Skipping down to verse 46,
the end of the chapter.
On that day,
25,000 Benjamite swordsmen fell,
all of them valiant fighters.
But 600 of them turned
and fled into the wilderness
to the Rock of Rimmon,
where they stayed for four months.
The men of Israel
went back into Benjamin
and put all the towns
to the sword,
including the animals
and everything else
they found.
All the towns
they came across,
they set on fire.
The men of Israel
had taken an oath
at Mizpah.
Not one of us
will give his daughter
in marriage
to a Benjaminite.
The people went
to Bethel,
where they sat
before God
until evening,
raising their voices
and weeping bitterly,
Lord God of Israel,
they cried.
Why has this happened
to Israel?
Why should one tribe
be missing
from Israel today?
And finally,
just down to the end
of the chapter again,
down to 23.
So that is what
the Benjamites did.
While the young women
were dancing,
each man caught one
and carried her off
to be his wife.
Then they returned
to their inheritance
and rebuilt the towns
and settled in them.
At that time,
the Israelites
left that place
and went home
to their tribes
and clans,
each to his own inheritance.
In those days,
Israel had no king.
Everyone did
as they saw fit.
Apologies for skipping
through the reading.
It's one of the longest readings
in the whole of Judges
and it would have taken
an awfully long time
to have gone through
the whole section.
We begin our passage
in Act 1,
the spark of the Civil War.
And we began our passage
this evening
with the return
of a motif
that turned up
last time
when Ian was taking us
through.
There was no king
in Israel.
And that ought to be
something of a warning sign
to us
as we have read
about Israel's idolatry
over the past
couple of chapters
and here
no less than before.
As the curtain
comes up
on the stage,
we're met again
with a nameless Levite.
We should note
that only one character
in all three chapters
is given an identity
and that he merely
helps us
to date the events.
It's early
in the Judges period
and he concretes
this whole narrative
as real,
true history.
The rest of the characters
have no identity,
no names,
no lineages,
nothing.
The writer,
it's as if he's
generalizing them,
dehumanizing them.
It's a ploy
to pull us in.
Another Levite,
just like the last story
which Ian led us through.
We're introduced
to one of these men
who should have been
leading the people
of Israel
in covenant
obedience
towards God.
This man should have
known the law
and he should have
been doing it.
but his initial action
in the chapter
is startling.
He takes a concubine
to himself,
a second class wife.
It isn't overtly stated,
very little is
in these chapters
because we're meant
to infer from the story
what is going on
and this ought to be
a second warning sign
that something is going
badly wrong.
And then she leaves
and there's a
four month gap
before our friend
the Levite
goes off
in search of her
and we see
no motivation
in this.
Perhaps this is
honorable.
Perhaps he is doing
the right thing
and we find him
greeted by his wife
and welcomed
into his father-in-law's
house
in Bethlehem.
All seems well.
Celebrations
are had
and everyone
seems to be
enjoying themselves.
The father-in-law,
notice,
is a lavish host.
But notice again
that the son-in-law
wants to get home.
Down in verse 8
and beforehand even.
He tries to leave
on day 4
only to be coerced
into another day
of his father-in-law's
feasting.
On day 5
he gets up to go
but again
isn't treated
by his father-in-law's
generosity.
But as the day
drags on
on day 5
the Levite
decides he'll
stay no more
and he leaves.
I wonder
can you almost
feel for the Levite
detained and coerced
by his father-in-law
just wanting
to get home.
Perhaps you've
been to some
Christmases like
that.
I can sympathize
with this
and perhaps
in our British
mindset
we might wonder
if there's some
ulterior motives
in the father-in-law's
generosity
and his constant
desire to keep him.
Oh maybe
he'll move closer.
Maybe we can
build a house
next door
as an add-on.
But don't be
too quick
to jump
to those
conclusions.
They leave
Bethlehem
and we have
the Levite
and his concubine
and a servant
and a couple
of donkeys
and within
a couple
of hours
they approach
Jebus
the city
that we will
come to be
very familiar
with as
Jerusalem
but it's
still in the
hands of the
Canaanites.
It's still
enemy territory
and it seems
like too much
of a risk
to seek
hospitality there.
Goodness only
knows what
might befall
a good Israelite
among those
pagans.
It would be
like if some
of us east
coast folk
were driving
across the
M8 and
you saw
the Hilton
for Glasgow
and you
thought well
I don't know
Glasgow
can any good
thing happen
in Glasgow
to an
Edinburgh
man.
We'll keep
on going
until we
reach more
hospitable
territory.
And so
they keep
on going
until they
reach
Gibeah.
It's
Benjamite
territory.
It's a
walled
city so
it should
be safe
and secure
and it
should be
filled with
Israelites
who will
be friendly
to this
little band
of weary
travellers.
Worth a
late walk
surely.
They come
through the
gate into
the square
and they
wait for
someone to
offer
hospitality.
This would
have been
the normal
custom and
it would
have been
an absolute
shame on
the city
if they
didn't
offer
hospitality
to
strangers.
In any
of the
nations
never mind
Israel
and in
the context
of the
father-in-law's
lavish
generosity
in Bethlehem
this is
meant to
scream
volumes
to us
that there's
something
awfully
wrong to
us
in
Gibeah.
And then
a new
character is
brought into
the story
this sojourner
late from
his work
and he
notices these
strangers in
the square
and it
turns out
that they're
from the
same clan
and he
invites them
in and
it seems
to make the
point that
it wouldn't
be wise
for them
to stay
in the
square.
Isn't it
odd that
in this
city it
takes an
outsider to
do the
decent
thing?
And they
go and
they join
him and
soon they're
comfortable and
the party is
off to a
great start
but soon
there is a
noise and
the party is
interrupted.
Not a
group of
well-wishing
neighbours
bringing pots
of food
but a
mob.
They throw
themselves
against the
door of
the house
that the
word used
in the
NIV is
weak.
They throw
themselves
against the
door of
the house
and they
demand that
this traveller
be given
into their
hands.
We've heard
what the
Levite said
they wanted
to do
with him
and this
is a
horrendous
request
and our
minds ought
to instantly
recognise this
as what
happened to
the visitors
that came to
Lot in
Genesis 19
in Sodom
and Gomorrah
and notice
the host
tries to
bargain
with them.
He offers
them his
own daughter
as well as
the Levite's
concubine.
It does
exactly what
Lot did
or very
very similar.
But the
men of
this city
are insatiable
in their
evil desire
and they
are utterly
depraved.
And do
you notice
that we
see here
the characters
are tested.
We see
what makes
up these
people and
what we
discover is
dark.
The host
is so
twisted in
thinking that
he's willing
to offer
even his
own daughter
and the
concubine
to save
himself and
his guest.
But then
up steps
the Levite
and without
any hint
of love
or anything
that drove
him to
go and
win back
his concubine
he takes
her and
he throws
her out
to this
mob.
Out to
this pack
of ravenous
wolves.
And she
is taken
and she
is tortured.
And meanwhile
he goes to
bed.
And after
the horror
of what
you see
in those
verses
26,
25,
26,
in 27
we ought
to be
utterly
staggered
because it
seems that
the Levite
has lost
no sleep
whatsoever.
He seems
to have
gone to
bed
and slept
soundly
and risen
again in
the morning
without a
second thought.
And he
rises and
opens the
door and
finds the
concubine
lying
basically
across the
threshold.
She's lying
on the
welcome
mat
grasping
for
shelter
and for
protection.
temptation.
But as
he steps
over her
body,
the only
words that
we hear
from him
are those
of impatience
and callousness.
Come on,
get up.
Do you hear it?
You're holding me
back down there.
What's wrong
with you?
And there's
no response.
And his
callousness
is gut
wrenching.
There's no
remorse.
There's no
sorrow.
Just a desire
to go on
and get back
home and be
done with it.
And when he
arrives home,
he takes his
concubine
and cuts her
into pieces
like he would
have done
with an
animal
and he
sends them
throughout the
land.
The levels
of depravity
exhibited here
are
off the
charts.
This poor
woman
is treated
with no
respect either
in life
or in
death.
We can't
even tell
when she
died
from the
Hebrew
whether
it's due
to the
mob's
violence
while she
is waiting
at the
daybreak
or whether
on the
journey
home
or even
at the
hands
of her
master.
The
callousness
and the
cold-heartedness
and the
depravity
of everyone
involved
is brutal.
These
people
who were
meant to
be the
shining
light of
God's
goodness
to the
nations
are living
out the
very worst
of the
Canaanites
sin.
And so
debauched
have they
become
that anyone
in Gibeah
who walked
past them
in the
square
they maybe
didn't take
part in the
sin but
they just
walked on
past
these soon
to be
victims
of the
mob.
But notice
that in
every case
it comes
back to
the same
stem.
Every
person is
just doing
what is
right in
their own
eyes.
Those words
are even
put into
the mouth
of the
host while
he's
bartering
with the
crowd.
In
verse
24 he
talks about
bringing out
these women.
I will
bring them
out for
you now
and you
can
it's not
clear that
it's the
same phrase
but it's
the same
phrase as
at the
end of
the chapter
that you
could do
whatever you
want to
them.
Whatever
is right
in your
eyes.
This is
the moral
system of
their lands.
This is
the overriding
idea behind
this people's
culture.
And isn't
it sickening
to behold?
But can
we take a
moment maybe
to consider
our own
land and
even our
own culture?
Because the
mantra of
our age is
not so very
far from
this repeated
refrain in
these chapters.
The people
do what is
right in
their own
eyes.
perhaps that
is part of
the reason
why women
are
objectivized
and dehumanized
and attacked
even on our
streets and
in our
parks.
lives.
If you
want a
startling
reminder of
the
barbarianism
of our
culture,
go and
look at
some of
the statistics
of sexual
crime in
this country.
and do
we wonder
that the
culture
shapers,
that the
people that
we allow
to speak
into our
lives through
culture are
revealed to
be sexually
immoral and
that they're
displayed to
be.
Oddly, I
noticed a
message on
my Twitter
just today
of a
Christian
commenting on
it and
saying,
isn't it
strange how
all these
things can
be done
in films
and yet
when one
of their
own does
it in
real life
they're all
ashamed.
The body
parts of
this poor
woman are
sent throughout
the land
and all
who look on
it are
horrified and
so they
should be.
And so we
transition into
the next
act of
the story.
Act two,
the civil
war.
It's an
odd thing at
the start of
chapter 20
because these
horrific acts
manage to
produce something
positive that
we haven't
seen ever.
The people
are united.
The whole of
Israel, the
author makes a
very telling
point from
Land O'Groats
to, I'm
going the
wrong way
now, am I?
Land's End
to John O'Groats
and even to
Straban, you
could say, if
you want to
include Northern
Ireland in our
collection.
The people are
united, but
this is so
bitter in the
mouth because
their unity is
based on such
horrific
circumstances.
And it
isn't for the
worship of
God or for
the fulfilling
of God's
purposes.
It's for
retribution and
to fight within
each other.
The man is
called to give
his account and
we read it.
Did you notice
how airbrushed
the tale was?
Something that
I was taught
recently.
never trust
what comes out
of people's
mouths in the
Bible.
Trust what the
narrator says,
but don't always
trust what the
person says of
his own actions.
And here's a
perfect case.
The man
airbrushes
his
account and
it's a
masterpiece of
playing the
victim.
Nothing is
mentioned about
his own
culpability.
Nothing is
mentioned about
his own
pardon,
the murder
or the
death of
his concubine.
And instantly
the people hear
this and they
respond in
verses 8 to
10.
They know
what they
should do.
Or at least
they think
they do.
The passage
again isn't
clear, but I
wonder if even
this decision,
which many of
us would think
of positively,
I wonder if
this is the
people just
doing what's
right in
their own
eyes.
Notice that
they don't
inquire of
God at
this stage.
There's no
mourning, no
sorrow, no
repentance,
merely outrage
in a plan.
But if the
eleven tribes
that met
are rash
and foolish,
perhaps we
should go on
to consider
the Benjamites.
They're called
to give over
their guilty
men to
be punished.
But Benjamin
chooses those
rapists over
the nation of
Israel.
Blood seems
to be thicker
than all
else here.
And rather
than dealing
with the sin
of Gibeah,
Benjamin
musters its
army and
prepares for
full-scale
civil war.
The camera
pans back to
the camp of
Israel in
verse 18.
And if we're
not careful,
we may
misinterpret
what we see
and hear.
The Israelites
go to God
with their
plan and
ask who
should attack
first.
And the
response from
God is that
Judah should
go up first.
And in that
we get this
little poignant
reminder of
what happened
way back in
the start of
Judges again.
Judges 1
it says,
after the
death of
Joshua,
the Israelites
asked the
Lord,
who of us
should go up
first to
fight against
the Canaanites?
The Lord
answered,
Judah shall
go up.
I have
given the
land into
their hands.
And do you
notice how
similar it is,
but yet how
different.
Judah was
meant to
go up
first.
but not
in this
way,
not to
lead a
civil war.
Again,
the passage
isn't clear
here,
but it's
my view
that Israel
is merely
seeking God
to rubber
stamp their
own plans.
And there
are three
battles that
then follow
between Israel
and Benjamin.
The first
two days,
there are
harrowing
losses
incurred by
the Israelites.
Israelites.
Israel is
literally
decimated
with one
in ten
men
falling to
the
Benjamites.
But on
the second
night,
they seek
God with
seemingly a
fresh zeal.
They're
assured of
victory,
and on
the third
day,
they lay
an ambush,
very
similarly to
what the
children of
Israel did
against
Ai,
way back
in Joshua.
and they
utterly
defeat the
army of
Benjamin.
The defeat
is given
in two
formats,
but the
overview is
that 25,000
Benjamites
die,
and only
600 men
of the
whole of
Benjamin
survive.
But notice
what happened.
We read it
in verse
48.
The men
of Israel,
chapter 20,
verse 48,
the men of
Israel went
back to
Benjamin,
and put
all the
towns to
the sword,
even the
animals,
and everything
else they
found.
Not
content with
the defeat
of the
Benjamites,
it seems
that the
army of
Israel,
because of
the losses
they incurred,
turned to
genocide,
and they
wipe out
the tribe.
This is
vicious
retribution,
and this
is totally
unnecessary.
And I
wonder if
we could
step back
a little
and consider
this chapter,
because I
confess that
on my first
reading of
this chapter,
I completely
missed what
was going
on here.
In fact,
I missed
it on my
second and
my third
reading,
and it
wasn't until
I read
someone else's
work on
it that
I started
to piece
together what
was actually
going on.
And I
wonder if
at the
end of
our series
of judges,
whether some
of us are
maybe realizing
that this
incredible book,
it does not
give up its
treasure to
an idle
glance.
And I
wonder if
among the
horrors of
these chapters,
we might find
that we need
to approach
our Bibles
with a
fresh resolve,
to come
with open
minds,
and to
wrestle with
this book
that will
challenge our
presuppositions
and demolish
our cultural
assumptions.
Because the
sad reality is,
I can be far
too familiar
with this book,
not in the
good way,
but in the
way that allows
me to skim
a passage and
not actually
get what it's
saying.
There was
an author
who famously
asked of
a man who
read his
Bible,
he said,
does the
Bible read
you back?
And I
wonder if
that's true
for many
of us
anymore who
have been
Christians for
quite some
time.
And here
at the end
of chapter
20 and
the end
of this
second act,
we're forced
to stop
and to look
back at the
wreckage of
the past
two chapters,
which go
from societal
breakdown to
personal
troubles,
to a lack
of hospitality,
to raw
and blatant
evil,
to cowardice,
to treachery,
to rape,
to murder,
to callousness,
to horror,
to civil war,
to the decimation
of the nation,
to the
genocide of a
tribe.
and dare we
turn on our
television and
claim that we
live in a
world that has
progressed beyond
this.
Alistair in his
prayer very
poignantly brought
out some of what
happens in our
world today.
This is brutal.
And as we
look back across
everything that
has happened,
the key that I
see is that
everyone has
done what
seems right in
their own eyes.
There is no
king, there is
no moral
authority, and
God seems very
far away from
these situations.
Yet there is
one more chapter.
Perhaps we
will end with a
silver lining.
Perhaps something
will turn around
good out of all
of this.
And I have
kind of called
this the
reconciliation.
And the
chapter seems
to begin well
given the
circumstances.
Israel comes
to their senses,
they realise
what has
happened, and
there is
mourning at
the destruction
of Benjamin.
At least, but
notice how it is
set up.
Notice what
the people say
in verse 3,
another translation
puts it this
way.
Why, O
Lord, God of
Israel, has
this come
about in
Israel so
that one
tribe should
be missing
in Israel?
Perhaps the
obvious answer
was that your
own army went
on a scorched
earth policy.
I mean, isn't
that fairly
obvious?
And it seems
that the
Israelites are
completely unwilling
to take
responsibility for
their actions.
servants.
And so
there's this
problem.
These 600
men of
Benjamin are
without families,
and if only
there were some
way to furnish
them with
wives, so
that the tribe
of Benjamin
can be
restored.
But the
men of Israel
have sworn
this oath
that none
of them
would give
their daughters
another rash
oath like
one we've
seen before.
And do you
see this
recurring theme?
They've
hastily done
what they
see to be
right in
their own
eyes, and
now there's
another
problem.
And so
they hatch
another
harebrained
idea.
To heal
the wounds
of this
unfortunate
civil war,
they're going
to send
an army
to go
and to
massacre a
town who
hadn't
contributed
to the
army.
Doesn't
that sound
like a
wonderful
way to
create
reconciliation
and peace
in your
land?
Not only
that, but
in response
to the
evil of
Gibeah,
which centered
around the
mistreatment
and abuse
of a
woman,
they're going
to go
and become
a state
sponsor of
human trafficking
and forced
marriages.
Oh,
wonderful,
you men
of Israel,
how clever
of you
to work
out that
plan.
it's so
twisted
and so
perverted
that we
read this
and we
almost don't
comprehend
the immensity
of the
evil that
is going
on.
Seven,
sorry,
400 young
women,
probably no
older than
14 or
15,
are brought
to this
remnant of
Benjamin,
seeing their
families slaughtered
and so peace
is made
between Israel
and Benjamin.
And notice
the audacity
of verse
15.
The people
were sorry
for Benjamin.
Why?
Because the
Lord had
made a
breach in
the tribes
of Israel.
They blamed
God for
this mess.
And you
notice there
were 600
and they
only got
400 of
these women.
There's not
enough,
there's still
lack.
And so
they come
up with a
second plan,
a yet
another plan.
This time
the Benjamites
are instructed
to go up
and kidnap
children as
they take
part in
the local
gala.
Doesn't
that sound
like a
wonderful
plan?
And the
army would
smooth it
over with
their fathers
and brothers
under the
threat of
another town
massacre.
And so
ends the
book of
Judges.
with the
Benjamites
going home
to rebuild
their cities
with these
children for
women,
for wives,
and the
rest of the
people of
Israel returning
to their
inheritance.
These are
dark days
indeed.
And we
see how
utterly
twisted the
minds of
the Israelites
have become.
them.
They're
full of
this sort
of loophole
logic.
They claim
to do
everything by
the book.
They claim
to do this
for God's,
and yet what
they do is
utterly vile.
they are so
far from the
light that
they were
meant to
be to the
nations.
Because they
have well
and truly
conformed to
the pattern
of this
world.
Merely using
God's name
as a
convenient
shield for
their
immorality
and idolatry
and their
evil
practices.
And I
wonder if
for a
moment we
can just
focus in on
the refrain of
these chapters
which topped
and tailed our
passage for
tonight.
In those
days there
was no
king in
Israel.
Everyone
did what
was right
in their
own eyes.
Because
as Alistair
pointed out
thankfully a
king has
come.
not David
or Solomon
who were
but types
and shadows
and yet
they solved
so much
of this.
No,
they were
only forerunners
of a
greater king.
No,
the answer
to these
horrific
acts and
sins is
found in
Jesus Christ.
Because
only in
Jesus Christ
can we
find how
a perfectly
holy God
can be
continually
gracious
to such
an atrociously
vile nation
as this.
Far beyond
the point
that we
would have
given up
hope.
Only in
the atoning
death of
Christ is
there any
way that
these men,
any way that
this nation
can be brought
around.
and yet
also in
Christ we
find the
one who
is the
king that
brings us
into obedience
with God's
will.
It was
interesting this
morning,
we were
hearing of
one who
demands our
decision making
to be
determined by
cross bearing
rather than
by comfort.
I wonder
if that's
another way
of representing
what's said
here,
that their
decision making
is determined
by what was
right in their
own eyes,
when actually
they should
have been
determining it
by the law
that God
gave them
as a
nation.
Now when I
say that
we look
forward to
Christ,
I'm not
making light
of the pain
that have
been caused
by these
men nor
by those
even of
God's
family in
our day
and age
who have
done what
is right
in their
own eyes.
It is
maybe only
a slight
comfort to
some of
us that
our Saviour
knows and
cares that
he lived
on this
earth with
all of its
pains,
that he
even died
taking the
wrath of
God and
feeling the
pain of
every sin.
As Hebrews
puts it,
we have a
great high
priest who
cares for
us and
he is our
king.
And so
as we
finish
Judges,
this
incredible
catalogue of
Israel's
failures,
mingled with
the utterly
amazing grace
of God in
preserving his
people,
despite their
being conformed
to the
patterns of
the prevailing
society,
may we
never be so
foolish as
to think that
we will not
fall as the
Israelites did.
But would
we be filled
with a
fresh zeal
to seek
God anew
and to be
conformed to
the image of
his son,
the king of
kings who
leads us in
being salt
and light
among dark
and dying
generations.
May we
see even in
the darkness
of the
horrors of
judges that
God is
light and
that his
love and
his mercy
shine even
in the muck
and the
mire of
these tragic
accounts.
And as
we live in
this world,
would we
be able to
minister that
grace to
others who
are so
entangled by
the darkness
that only the
God of
judges is
relatable for
them?
Let's pray
just before we
close this
evening.
Father,
we look
at what
went on
there in
those days
in Gibeah
and the
surrounding
area and
our question
must be
why?
We are
horrified by
the sin
of your
people.
and we
wonder how
it could
ever have
happened that
way with
all that
they had
of you,
with all
that they
had seen
of your
goodness,
with all
that they
must have
heard of
your law.
And in
our day
and age,
we would
pray that
we would
not become
like them.
either like
the men
who just
walked past
those
sojourners
in the
square waiting
for the
eventual
mob to
come upon
them,
nor like
any of the
other characters
who acted
with callousness
and evil
in their
hearts.
men.
But would
we be
those
who,
gazing at
your
son,
would be
like him,
who would
be
transformed
from the
image of
this world
into the
image of
him,
and who
would be
of great
use in
this world,
pointing
sinners
back to
you.
Father,
only you
can do
this by
your
spirit,
and only
in Jesus'
name.
So we
pray in
his name.
Amen.