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Tola and Jair
10 After Abimelech there arose to save Israel Tola the son of Puah, son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, and he lived at Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. And he judged Israel twenty-three years. Then he died and was buried at Shamir.
After him arose Jair the Gileadite, who judged Israel twenty-two years. And he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys, and they had thirty cities, called Havvoth-jair to this day, which are in the land of Gilead. And Jair died and was buried in Kamon.
Further Disobedience and Oppression
The people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the gods of the Philistines. And they forsook the LORD and did not serve him. So the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the Philistines and into the hand of the Ammonites, and they crushed and oppressed the people of Israel that year. For eighteen years they oppressed all the people of Israel who were beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead. And the Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight also against Judah and against Benjamin and against the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was severely distressed.
And the people of Israel cried out to the LORD, saying, “We have sinned against you, because we have forsaken our God and have served the Baals.” And the LORD said to the people of Israel, “Did I not save you from the Egyptians and from the Amorites, from the Ammonites and from the Philistines? The Sidonians also, and the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you, and you cried out to me, and I saved you out of their hand. Yet you have forsaken me and served other gods; therefore I will save you no more. Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress.” And the people of Israel said to the LORD, “We have sinned; do to us whatever seems good to you. Only please deliver us this day.” So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the LORD, and he became impatient over the misery of Israel.
Then the Ammonites were called to arms, and they encamped in Gilead. And the people of Israel came together, and they encamped at Mizpah. And the people, the leaders of Gilead, said one to another, “Who is the man who will begin to fight against the Ammonites? He shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.”
(ESV)
Judges 10 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
Jdg 2:11 Then the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals,
Jdg 3:7 The sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth.
Jdg 8:33 Then it came about, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the sons of Israel again played the harlot with the Baals, and made Baal-berith their god.
Jdg 10:6 Then the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the sons of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; thus they forsook the LORD and did not serve Him.
Here is an example of the subtle progression of sin in our lives. As you can see, though God continually brought along a leader to steer Israel back to Him, their hearts were drawn to false gods. What do you do with a child who has been given boundaries and protection, yet continually puts themselves in harm’s way? God’s response is sobering.
“Yet you have forsaken Me and served other gods; therefore I will no longer deliver you. 14 “Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your distress.”
Judges 10:13-14 NASB
Amazingly, there was repentance. The people heard God and counted His response as fair and just. They reflected on their behavior and were convicted to change.
This is a hard message to preach these days without sounding ‘holier than thou.’ Our culture today values independence so heavily that it’s now hateful to try and tell the truth. Often, God will allow us to sink into the gutter of our own choices before we realize our need for Him.
No matter what route we choose in life, God’s truth remains the same. We can respond and experience that truth today, or continue to do our own thing until we’ve lost everything. The message doesn’t change. God’s love is bigger than sin and shines brightly like a lighthouse in the middle of a storm. The question for many isn’t if they know about that lighthouse, but whether or not they will abandon ship and begin swimming toward it with every ounce of energy they have left.