March 31 – Judges 3-5

Below are my thoughts from the daily Bible reading of the West Side Church of Christ. Today’s reading comes from Joshua 31-35. Before reading I invite you to pray and asked God to speak to you as you read his word.

Yesterday we began the book of Judges. Judges records roughly 400 years of time. It spans the distance between the time of Joshua where the Israelites had a leader over them like Moses and Joshua to the time when they had a king like Saul and David. During this time of the judges the Israelites had no one ruler outside of the high priest. God was ultimately their king. He let the people of the land oppress them to teach them trust in himself and to turn him.

Chapter three opens up changing the narrative from the days of Joshua in chapter one and two to the new order of business. Quickly we see the people fall into traps with the people who were left in the land. They are intermarrying with them but worst of all they are worshiping their gods. Because of this turning from God, he oppresses them with the people of the land. From time to time he will rise up men and a woman which we will call judges. These people deliver the Israelites from the oppression. This will be a dark week or two as we read through the book of Judges.

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