Judges 11-19

“In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit” (17:6). The book of Judges tells how, after the death of Joshua, the Israelites began to worship the gods of the Canaanites (2:10-12). Their idolatry caused spiritual chaos. Without a king or temple, their communal life disintegrated into constant violence and revenge, and instead of corporate worship, individuals like Micah “bought” their own priest (ch 17). The spiral of evil culminated with the horrific rape and murder of a vulnerable woman (19:25).

“He raised up for them a deliverer” (3:9). Israel, like all of us, was their own worst enemy. But the Lord promised a Deliverer – one who would conquer sin and death and set us truly free.