DISCUSSION
What would it look like if the LORD handed you over to idolatry? What would it look like if LORD let you reap what you sow?
Here is the answer: if God hands us over to the idols that our sinful flesh desires and if He let’s us reap everything we sow, we will have no peace with God and no peace with man. We could say it another way: we will have war with God and war with man.
1. Read chapter 9 verses 1-21. Though Gideon has plenty of apparent sins, how is contrasted with his son Abimelech? What can we learn from Jotham’s words to the leaders of Schechem?
2. Read verses 22-57. What do we learn here about Abimelech’s pride? What do we learn here about the LORD’S justice? What else stands out to you in these verses and why?
ABIMELECH: Judges 9
Judges 9
March 1, 2020 • Brett Baggett
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Judges 2020
HALF-HEARTED: Judges 1:1–2:5
January 12, 2020 • Brett Baggett
DISCUSSION 1. Read Judges 1 verses 1-7. What do we learn about the period of history in which this book is set, according to verse 1? How does this differ from Joshua chapter 1, which followed the death of Moses? Who did the LORD tell to go up against the Canaanites and who actually went? How does Adoni-bezek respond once they “caught him and cut off his thumbs and his big toes”? What can we learn from all of this? 2. Read verses 8-15. How does Joshua 15:13-19 help tie the book of Joshua and the book of Judges together? How does 1 Samuel 18:25 help us understand what is happening here with Caleb, Achsah, and Othniel? What else stands out to you and why? 3. Read verses 16-36. What had the LORD commanded his people to do in Joshua 6:17 and 11:14? How do these verses help us see the half-hearted obedience of the LORD’S people? 4. Read chapter 2 verses 1-5. Who is “the angel of the LORD” and how can we tell? What did he do? What did he promise? What did he command? What did the people do in response? What did the LORD do in response to their disobedience? How did the people respond to the LORD’S discipline? How does Hebrews 12:3-17 help clarify?
IDOLATROUS: Judges 2:6-3:6
January 19, 2020 • Brett Baggett
DISCUSSION 1. Read verses 6-10. What marked the people of God during the time that Joshua and his fellow elders lived? What happened after the generation of Joshua? How should this sober us as we teach the next generation and make disciples in our day? 2. Read verses 11-15. What are some of the words used to describe what the people of Israel did after the death of Joshua and his generation? What are some of the words used to describe the LORD’S response to their apostasy? *apostasy: “abandonment of former faith.”What is the state of the people of Israel as described in verse 15? How do we see the sovereignty of God in these verses as opposed to a naturalistic view of history? 3. Read verses 16-23. These verses serve as a summary of the entire book of Judges. What did the LORD do in response to the “terrible distress” of the people? What did the people do in response to the LORD sending them Judges to save them? What else stands out to you in these verses and why? 4. Read chapter 3 verses 1-6. Why did the LORD leave the other nations among the people of Israel according to verse 2? Why did the LORD leave the other nations among the people of Israel according to verse 4? Is testing the same thing as tempting? How do James 1:13 and 1 Peter 4:12-13 help clarify?
OTHNIEL AND EHUD: Judges 3:7-31
January 26, 2020 • Brett Baggett
DISCUSSION 1. Read verses 7-11. What does the writer mean when he says “they forgot the LORD”? What do we learn about salvation and God’s grace in this passage? 2. Read verses 12-14. What did the people of Israel do? What did the LORD do in response? 3. Read verses 15-30. What is the significance of Ehud being left-handed (verse 15)? What stands out to you in this passage and why? What should we learn from these verses? 4. Read verse 31. What light does the ESV Study Bible note on Judges 3:31 shed on the identity of Shamgar?