Judges 21: Spiritual Anarchy

“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9)”

Have you ever watched the news or read the newspaper in disgust by the violent and terrible acts that people do? Not a day goes by when we don’t see some unbelievable act of cruelty. How can people do this to one another? Jeremiah answers the question by pointing out the deceitfulness of our hearts. We don’t realize how easy it is to convince ourselves that wrong is right. In addition we should never say, “I would never do such a thing.” The context for the Rwanda Genocide didn’t form over night, but it took decades of dehumanizing hate and prejudice that lurked around and poisoned them until it was finally ignited in 1994. They deceived themselves over generations until as one perpetrator described “they were taken over by Satan.” The genocide of the Benjamites in Judges was no different.

With every successive judge, Israel walked farther away from God. They did what was right in their own eyes (v. 25) and the greater the distance from God the more heinous they acted. In chapter 21, when Israel finally came to their senses after their bloodlust they realized that they had effectively annihilated one of the twelve tribes (v. 3). They had killed every woman of the tribe, left only 600 men, and then swore to never allow them to marry their daughters. To preserve the tribe, they slaughtered everyone but the virgin daughters in Jabesh-gilead and kidnapped the girls of Shiloh as they celebrated in the fields to give them wives. This was “right” in Israel’s eye.

What was God’s response? Deafening silence. All that is said is an editorial refrain saying, “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. (v. 25)” The Israelites deceived themselves and did what they thought best, just like the Rwandan Hutus who murdered a tenth of their countrymen. Judges 17-21 portrays Israel in spiritual anarchy.

But God’s response doesn’t come in the book of Judges but in Samuel when he removes the wicked leaders of Israel and replaces them with Samuel and David. There is something better that God has in store for Israel than spiritual anarchy. But the kings of Israel don’t fair much better. They repeatedly led Israel and Judah astray which ended in exile. Israel doesn’t find its true king and leader until Jesus comes as king and deliverer. It is only in following Christ that God’s people can defeat spiritual anarchy and live rightly before God.

Our hearts may be easily deceived but God does not let his people wander aimlessly. The Holy Spirit gives us the guidance and the strength to see the deception and fight against it. We cannot allow the lies to rule our lives but must instead focus on the grace and love of Christ.

Posted by Aaron Miner