Judges1

After Joshua's death, the tribe of Judah, with the Lord's guidance, led the initial conquest against the Canaanites, achieving significant victories including the defeat of Adonibezek and the capture of Jerusalem. However, despite these early successes, many Israelite tribes, and even Judah in some areas, failed to completely dispossess the indigenous inhabitants. This resulted in the Canaanites dwelling among them, often becoming tributaries, marking a departure from the full conquest commanded.

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Judah and Simeon Receive the Commission

And it came to pass after the death of Joshua, that the children of Israel asked of Jehovah, saying, Who shall go up for us first against the Canaanites, to fight against them?

And Jehovah said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.

And Judah said unto Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with thee into thy lot. So Simeon went with him.

And Judah went up; and Jehovah delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand: and they smote of them in Bezek ten thousand men.

And they found Adoni-bezek in Bezek; and they fought against him, and they smote the Canaanites and the Perizzites.

But Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.

And Adoni-bezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their food under my table: as I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

Judah’s Campaigns in the South

And the children of Judah fought against Jerusalem, and took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.

And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites that dwelt in the hill-country, and in the South, and in the lowland.

And Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron (now the name of Hebron beforetime was Kiriath-arba); and they smote Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai.

And from thence he went against the inhabitants of Debir. (Now the name of Debir beforetime was Kiriath-sepher.)

And Caleb said, He that smiteth Kiriath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.

And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife.

And it came to pass, when she came unto him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she alighted from off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wouldest thou?

And she said unto him, Give me a blessing; for that thou hast set me in the land of the South, give me also springs of water. And Caleb gave her the upper springs and the nether springs.

And the children of the Kenite, Moses’ brother-in-law, went up out of the city of palm-trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which is in the south of Arad; and they went and dwelt with the people.

And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they smote the Canaanites that inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the city was called Hormah.

Also Judah took Gaza with the border thereof, and Ashkelon with the border thereof, and Ekron with the border thereof.

And Jehovah was with Judah; and drove out the inhabitants of the hill-country; for he could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.

And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses had spoken: and he drove out thence the three sons of Anak.

Benjamin and Joseph Failures

And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwell with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem unto this day.

And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Beth-el; and Jehovah was with them.

And the house of Joseph sent to spy out Beth-el. (Now the name of the city beforetime was Luz.)

And the watchers saw a man come forth out of the city, and they said unto him, Show us, we pray thee, the entrance into the city, and we will deal kindly with thee.

And he showed them the entrance into the city; and they smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man go and all his family.

And the man went into the land of the Hittites, and built a city, and called the name thereof Luz, which is the name thereof unto this day.

Widespread Tribal Compromise

And Manasseh did not drive outthe inhabitants ofBeth-shean and its towns, norofTaanach and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Dor and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns; but the Canaanites would dwell in that land.

And it came to pass, when Israel was waxed strong, that they put the Canaanites to taskwork, and did not utterly drive them out.

And Ephraim drove not out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.

Zebulun drove not out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and became subject to taskwork.

Asher drove not out the inhabitants of Acco, nor the inhabitants of Sidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob;

but the Asherites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for they did not drive them out.

Naphtali drove not out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth-anath; but he dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath became subject to taskwork.

And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the hill-country; for they would not suffer them to come down to the valley;

but the Amorites would dwell in mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim: yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they became subject to taskwork.

And the border of the Amorites was from the ascent of Akrabbim, from the rock, and upward.

Study Notes for Judges 1

Verse 1

This verse marks the transition from the unified leadership of Joshua to the decentralized tribal initiatives, indicating that Israel still sought divine guidance (likely via the high priest/Urim and Thummim) before military action.

Verse 2

Judah, the tribe from which the Messiah would eventually come (Gen. 49:10), is chosen by God to lead the first wave of conquest, demonstrating their preeminence among the tribes.

Verse 3

Judah sought a strategic alliance with Simeon. Simeon’s territory was located entirely within Judah’s allotment (Josh. 19:1), making mutual assistance necessary for them both to secure their inheritance.

Verse 6

Mutilating the hands and feet was a common ancient practice intended to permanently cripple a defeated enemy, rendering them useless as warriors or runners.

Verse 7

Adonibezek recognizes the principle of divine justice (lex talionis) at work. This foreign king implicitly acknowledges that Israel’s God controls history and justly repays cruelty.

Verse 8

This capture likely refers to the lower city of Jerusalem; the Jebusite fortress (the City of David, cf. v. 21) remained unconquered until the time of King David (2 Sam. 5:6-7).

Verse 12

This account is a virtual repetition of Joshua 15:16-19. It highlights Othniel’s prowess; he later becomes the first Judge of Israel (Judges 3:9-11), establishing his early leadership credentials.

Verse 15

Achsah’s request for springs of water demonstrates wisdom and initiative. She understood that even a promised land was useless without essential resources to sustain life and agriculture.

Verse 16

The Kenites, descendants of Moses’ father-in-law, were non-Israelite allies who maintained fidelity to Israel and settled peacefully in the southern wilderness, illustrating a positive integration.

Verse 19

This is a pivotal theological statement. Although 'the LORD was with Judah,' their failure to conquer the valley is attributed to the enemy’s superior technology (iron chariots), implying a lack of faith in God’s ability to overcome material obstacles.

Verse 21

The failure of Benjamin to expel the Jebusites from Jerusalem is the first explicit failure listed, immediately following Judah's success, setting a negative tone for the rest of the chapter.

Verse 22

The 'house of Joseph' refers to the combined strength of Ephraim and Manasseh. They initially showed more vigor than Benjamin, though their success was still incomplete (v. 29).

Verse 26

The spared man established a city named Luz in the land of the Hittites. This suggests that while Israel spared some individuals, they likely relocated, potentially spreading Canaanite influence elsewhere.

Verse 27

This verse begins the long list of tribes who failed to secure their allotted territories. The phrase 'the Canaanites would dwell in that land' shows the resilience and successful resistance of the native inhabitants.

Verse 28

Putting the Canaanites to tribute was a compromise that violated God's covenant command to drive them out completely (Deut. 7:2). This pragmatic solution led directly to future spiritual contamination.

Verse 32

Asher’s failure was total; they ended up dwelling 'among the Canaanites' rather than possessing the land, demonstrating the danger of compromise leading to cultural assimilation.

Verse 34

Dan’s failure was particularly severe: instead of conquering the inhabitants, the Amorites successfully forced the Danites into the mountains, reversing the intended conquest and leading later to Dan’s relocation (Judges 18).

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Judges1

Judah and Simeon Receive the Commission

Judah’s Campaigns in the South

Benjamin and Joseph Failures

Widespread Tribal Compromise

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