Book of Judges
A Judge means a political and/or military leader of Israelities who do not form the Israel Kingdom yet. It containes stories describing Judges,
who were assigned by the God as a leader when enimies against the Israeilites invaided into Canaan and saved the Israelities.
There are 12 Judges, and Samson appears as the last Judge and he fought against the Philistines (general terms of of tribes who invaided into the ancient
Canaan ) by himself using his own physical strength. In this point he is
different from other Judges, who fought enimies as a leader organizing the Israelites.
"12 Judges"
・Othniel
・Barak
・Shamgar
・Deborah:A feamle Judge, she encouraged Barak and won against the Canaan allied armies
"Judge4-2":Jael killing Sisera:Jael was an ordinary Israeli housewife. She has known Sisera, who is a general of allied forces of Canaan. She brought Sisera in her tent
and gave a cup of milk then killed Sisera after he fell in a sleep. Eventually Israel made victory against Canaan allied forces.
・Gideon:He destroyed the altar for Baal God (the God of Storm and Welcome Rain worshipped in Canaan Area) and selected the a few elected soldiers and
made victory against the Median (One of Semitec tribes lived in ancient Palestine Area; they were absorbed into the Israelities.)
"Judge11-34":The Angel told Gideon to take meat and the unleavened bread and place them on the rock to dedicate to the God.
・Tola
・Jair
・Jephtha
"Judge11-34"：Jephtha made promise with the God to offer the first person meeting after the victory. When he won against the Ammon
(One of the Semitec tribes in ancient Palestine Area; Its ancestor is deemed as Loto.), his daughter welcomed him at first celebrating the victory,
he was obligated to offer the daughter to the God.
"Judge12-6":Infighting between Jephta and the Eheramite :When Jephta decided to fight against the Ammon, he did not ask for the help from the Eheramite.
So the Eheramite blamed Jephta fot not asking for the help. But Jephta told them that they did not help him when he needed their help and asked back
why you want to make a fight with me against the Ammon now.
・Ibzan
・Elon
・Abdon
・Samson
Samson fought against the Philistines using his own physicall strength, but he was cheated by a Philistine female, Delilah, and he lost the physical strength with
being cut his hair. He was imprisoned after having his eyes gouged out. However, as his hair grew, he regained his physical strength and destroyed Philistines shrine.
"Judge14":Samson tears a lion.
"Judge15-14"：Samson kills Philistines by a bone of donkey' jow.
"Judge16-3"：Samson and a door of Hebron shrine
"Judge16-18"Samson's hair being shaved off with Delilah
"Judge16-23"：Samson destroyed a shrine
Book of Ruth
Ruth is a Great-grandmother of King David. Ruth got married with Boas, who is a relative of her mother-in-law by the levirate marridge ( the custom for a Juish widow with marrying a brother of dead husband ） according to an old custom of the Israelities. Boas had helped Ruth who lived poorly with gleaning etc. The subject of "Book of Ruth" is to indicate Ruth's conversion and keeping to own land important.
"Ruth2-3":Ruth meets Boaz in the grain field.
Naomi told Ruth that Boaz is not her relative and also asked to wait for Boaz at grain working area and to go to bed when Boaz comes back then Boaz will teach Ruth what to do.
1 Samuel
"1 Samuel" describes about activities of Samuel as a Judge, Samuel's assignment of Saul as the first King of Israelities, activities of King David, second King and conflicts between Saul and David.
1)the Last Judge, Samuel
"1 Samuel-2":Samuel serves to the God at the Holy Place:Samuel served the God under the Priest Eli at the Holy Place, and he grew up with his ability increasing
and also he was familialized with the knowledge about the priest.
"1 Samuel-4":Fight with Philistine:As Israeli lost the Fighting against Philistine, they carried "Ark of the Covenant" in its camp to ask for the help of the
God and they fought again but they failed. Eventually not only "Ark of the Covenant" was robbed but two children of Priest Eli.
"1 Samuel-5"：Philistines brought the "Ark of the Covenant" in their shrine of Dagon（the God of ancient Phoenicians ) robbing from the Israelities,
however next morning the Statue of Dagon was found out with his body disconnected.
"1 Samuel 9":Saul was chosen as the first King of Israel. He was a tall and reputable young man.
2)Saul, the first King of Israelities
Judge Samuel poured olive oil on Saul's head due to the the God's revelation and made him the first King of Israelities.
"1 Samuel10"3) Enthronement of David
3-1)David soothed Saul who had been annoyed by the evil spirits with playing the harp.
"1 Samuel 16"
3-2)David killed Goliath, a Philistine giant, with throwing a stone to glabella and cut off his head with the sword.
3-3)David contributed a lot to Saul in wars, however Saul felt hostility against David so David escaped into the Philistines territory.
"1 Samuel20-10"
Yonatan, A son of King Saul, was very close friend of David and tried to reconcile the relation between Saul and David, whic was not successful.
Eventually Yonatan and David was forced to be separated.
"1 Samuel20-35"
Yonatan, a close friend of David, conveyed David that when King Saul noticed David's escape, if three arrows fell down in front of children, David may
feel relieved. This Yonatan's message to David is the contract and if either of them breach it, he will be punished.
"1 Samuel 24"
When Saul came back from the battle with the Philistine, he was notified that David went to the Desert. Saul gathered 3000 young men in all Israel
and tried to look for David.
"1 Samuel 25"
After the death of Samuel, David moved to the deserts together with young subordinates. They asked for foods to the rich man called Naval, who run for sheep breeding.
But Naval refused it. The wife of Naval called Avigale, after knowing her husband refused David's request, apologied in front of David
and gave them the foods without getting the permission from Naval. Avigale became the second wife of David later.
"1 Samuel31"：Saul took his life.
2 Samuel
"2 Samuel" describes about "the reign of King David", "marriage with Bathsheba, who was a wife of Uriah the Hittite and David's subbordinate",
"Conflicts regarding Throne succession between sons of King David" and "King Solomon, who is a son between David and Bathsheba and suceeded the throne from David".
1) David consolidated South and North Israel Kingdoms and determined Jurusalem as the capital of united Israel Kingdom.
2) Bathsheba and David
2-1) David looked at Bathsheba with bathing and loved her at the first glance.
"2 Samuel11":David and Bathsheba
2-2) Bathsheba became pregnant with Devid's child. David had Uriah dispatched to the battle ground and Uriah was killed. A baby of Bathsheba had died soon.
"2 Samuel12"：Nathan, a prophet, blamed David with what he did to Ureah.
2-3) Absalom,a third eldest son of David, was confronted against David and they initiated the battle. Absalom was hunged on a oak tree wth getting his hair entangled by a branch of oak tree. Then Joab, a commannder of David forces, killed Absalom.
"2 Samuel18"：Death of Absalom
4) Eventually Salomon, a son of Bathsheba, took victory at the battles of throne succession.
1,2 Kings
"1,2 Kings" describes about "King Solomon's reign" and " the dawnfall of Israel Kingdom". After the death of King Solomon, Israel Kingdom was declined and broken into South Kingdom and North Kingdom. South Kingdom went to ruin as a result of the attack by Babylonia. A majority of the Israelities were forced to move to Babylon as a hostage. "Kings" tells about what happened to the Israelities during the Babylon captivity. A Prophet Elijha played an active part in the North Kingdom together with his teacher, a prophet Eria. Erijha caused several miracles to turn around the North Kingdom, however the decline of the North Kingdom could not be stopped and it was extinguished by Assyria.
1)Reign of King Solomon
１）Reign of King Solomon
"1 King 3" King Solomon carried out the excellent governance in the beggining of his reign and the several episodes indicating the good governance are left.
"The wise judgement of King Solomon":When two prostitutes disputed which is a mother of infant, Solomon ruled
to take the half of infant body back respectively and one prostitute worried about that a child will be dead. Then Solomon decided a prostitute who worried about the death
of an infant must be a real mother
"The faith of King Solomon":King Solomon married with a daughter of Egypt Pharaoh did not build a palace and dedicated the sacrifice placing on the higher place
to the Lord and burned incense. At night the Lord appeared in his dream and asked " What do you desire ? ". Solomom asked for the ability to judge people fair
and also to identify the goods and evils.
2) Building the shrine at Jurusalem
3) Split of Israel Kingdom
"1 King11":Lovers of King Solomon
King Solomon loved many forein women who did not follow Judaism and enshrined foreign Gods therefore the God got angry and declared that Israel Kingdom will be split
after King Solomon's death.
"1 Kings13"：the disobedient prophet
A prophet who did not follow the command of the God was biten to death.
4) Confrontation of a prophet, Elijha against a Bar prophet
"1 King17":
Elijha told Ahab, Israel King, the prophecy of the Lord :" There will be no rain in a future and fall into poor harvests."
Then Elijha concealed himself following order of the God and the God promised Elijha will be fed by ravens
" 1 Kings19"：Elijya was awaken by an angel.
Elijya slept under a tree after killing other prophet then he was awaken by an angel and the God ordered to carry out the teaching of the God.
"2 Kings2"：Appearance of a cheriot of fire and a horse of fire
Elijya went toward Jericho together with his teacher, Eliah. As they were walking, suddenly a cheriot of fire and a horse of fire appeared and separated them.
Eliah went up the heaven in a whirl wind.
"2 Kings4,6":Miracle Elijya caused
When a disciple of Elijya was dead, his wife appealed Elijya that her child would be sold as she could not pay the debt. Elijya told her to bring jars
from neighborhood and he filled oils in all jars. A wife sold oils and paid down all the debt.
"2 King5":Faith of Naaman
Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria,was suffered from leprosy and he asked Elijya to make a meadical treatment.
Elijya gave a message to Naaman to wash himself in the River Jordan. Naaman was angry with Elijya as he did not come directly.
"2 King13"：The dead person revived at the tomb of Eliya.
After the death of Eliya, the Moab invaded into Israel for plunder every year. When a person who was killed by the Moab was buried to the tomb of Eliya,
the person revived as soon as he was touched on the bone of Eliya.
"2 Kings18"：The mocking of Elijya
On the way to Bethel, Elijya was mocked by a group of children. Elijya cursed them in the name of the God.
Then two bears appeared and they were eaten to death.
5) Fall down of the North Kingdom
6)Babylon Hostage and decline of the South Kingdom
"2 Kings18"：the reign of King Hezekia: Hezekia was a great King who turned around the strength of South Kingdom against the attack of Assyria, although it was temporary.
"2 Kings 21": the reign of King Hezekia's son and/or grandson: The Religious Reform conducted by King Hezekia failed and
the Idoliazation was revived. Innocent people were persecuted and many prophets were killed.
Exodus,Numbers
Israel Kingdom2
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