The book of Judges is a rather depressing book about how the children of Israel just keep sinking deeper and deeper into sin and wandering farther and farther away from God.
Initially the people sank into idolatry and they were overtaken by Aram, but when the people cried out to God for help, He sent Othniel, son of Kenaz, to save them (See Judges 3:7-11). Next came the Moabite oppression under Eglon, and God sent Ehud to save them (See Judges 3:12-30). Then the Philistines were a thorn in their flesh, and God sent Shamgar son of Anath, who struck then down with an oxgoad (See Judges 3:31). Next they were overtaken by Jabin, king of Canaan. But God is good, and once again, He sent a deliverer: Barak, with the guidance of Deborah and the help of Jael (See Judges 4,5).
But they still didn’t learn their lesson. As soon as Barak and Deborah were gone, Israel returned to idolatry, and once again, they fell into the hands of their enemies. God used Midian this time, and after 7 years of oppression, the people once again cried out to God for help.
The above mentioned stories record simply that the people cried out to God for help, and He sent them a deliverer. But this time, the Bible records that God took a different, in-between step: “He sent them a prophet …” (Judges 5:8a)
Yes, God also sent them a deliverer, Gideon. But before He did, He sent a prophet. And this is the message of this unnamed prophet: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I brought you up out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. I snatched you from the power of Egypt and from the hand of all your oppressors. I drove them from before you and gave you their land. I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; do not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live.’ But you have not listened to me.” (Judg 6:8-10 NIV)
Why did God choose not to immediately send a deliverer, but instead, he sent a prophet? I mean, the people wanted relief, not someone to preach at them!
As you read through this book, you will see that this is the 5th recorded repetition of the same problem. Each time Israel fell into idolatry, each time God sent a deliverer, and each time, as soon as the judge, the deliverer, died, the people returned to their sin. So this time, God decided to send them a reminder of WHY they kept being overcome by the enemy!
Friends, when we are in the midst of problems, the last thing we want to hear is “why”. The last thing we want someone to tell us is that the problem is our own fault. God, in His love, didn’t include this step the first four times Israel fell into the same sin, but after the fifth time, God said what needed to be said. He, in His wisdom, wanted the people to understand the direct correlation between their sin and the consequences, for in His love, He hoped to prevent a 6th fall into sin!
There are two important lessons to be learned from this short passage in the Bible, for though it’s easy to be hard on Israel for repeatedly falling into the same sin, we, ourselves, are no better.
The first lesson is to not be judgmental. When someone is in the midst of a problem that they, themselves, created, we need to be sensitive to the fact that they need help, not a lecture. Remember, God saved the lecture for the 5th repetition!
The second lesson is this: When we find ourselves repeatedly falling into the same sin, let’s open our hearts to the Lord. Ask Him to tell us why, if there’s anything we, ourselves, are doing that could be precipitating the consequences, and then, let’s repent and ask God to give us the strength, wisdom and desire to not have any future repetitions!
In His love,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Speech-Language Pathologist, mother of two teens, Author and Moderator for The Nugget, a tri-weekly internet newsletter, and Scriptural Nuggets, a website devoted to Christian devotionals and inspirational poems, www.scripturalnuggets.org, with Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org.