I’m not going to lie. This story in Judges is one of the most disturbing and perplexing stories in all of Scripture. This is not a story I learned in Vacation Bible School. This is not a story I’ve ever heard a sermon based on. This is definitely one of those “rated-R” moments of the Bible.
So what’s it doing the Bible? And what does it have to do with our lives?
The story bookends with 19:1 and 21:25 “And Israel had no king.” The implication, as given at the end: “All the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.” Never in Judges is this communicated to be a good thing.
I wonder if this story is to remind us just how depraved and corrupt we can be. We live in a world that celebrates freedom as doing whatever you feel like doing.
Maybe Judges isn’t just about cycles, but about spiraling, spiraling out of control.
Fiftyeight 