Christ in All of Scripture – Judges 2:16-19

Judges 2:16-19
"Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them out of the hand of those who plundered them. Yet they did not listen to their judges, for they whored after other gods and bowed down to them. They soon turned aside from the way in which their fathers had walked, who had obeyed the commandments of the LORD, and they did not do so. Whenever the LORD raised up judges for them, the LORD was with the judge, and he saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge. For the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who afflicted and oppressed them. But whenever the judge died, they turned back and were more corrupt than their fathers, going after other gods, serving them and bowing down to them. They did not drop any of their practices or their stubborn ways."

The Lord provides judges and saviors. These key verses equate Israel’s idolatry with spiritual whoredom (v. 17). Throughout Judges, a persistent cycle of sin, subjugation, and supplication is met with the Lord’s unfailing provision of salvation. Mercy keeps following failure.

Astonishingly, God’s compassion for his people extends deeper than the failure of his people even when those failures are self-inflicted. The ultimate Judge and Savior, Jesus (Matt. 1:21), represents this grace in its ultimate form, interrupting the ongoing cycle of sin in the lives of his people throughout time and throughout the world. There is no sin, no failure, and no act of unfaithfulness that is beyond the reach of Christ’s redemptive love. Having received from God such undeserved assurances of forgiveness and reconciliation, we are now called to respond with wholehearted obedience to him and to extend his grace to others (2 Cor. 5:18–21).

This series of posts pairs a brief passage of Scripture with associated study notes drawn from the Gospel Transformation Bible. For more information about the_ Gospel Transformation Bible, please visit GospelTransformationBible.org.

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