What is Judges about?
Judges portrays a fragmented period between Joshua and Israel’s monarchy. Repeated cycles of unfaithfulness, oppression, cries for help and deliverance frame stories of local leaders, while the final chapters show growing social and moral disorder.
A three-part reading map
- Judges 1–3:6 — setting the pattern: incomplete occupation, the next generation and the recurring cycle explained.
- Judges 3:7–16 — major deliverers: Othniel, Ehud, Deborah and Barak, Gideon, Jephthah and Samson.
- Judges 17–21 — breakdown: Micah’s shrine, the migration of Dan and the violence involving Gibeah and Benjamin.
Sample questions and answers
Notice where each answer sits in the downward movement of the book rather than treating every judge as an interchangeable hero.
How many men remained in Gideon’s army for the battle against Midian?
Reference: Judges 7:1–8
God reduced Gideon’s force to three hundred men.
What visible sign of Samson’s Nazirite dedication was linked to the loss of his strength when it was cut?
Reference: Judges 13:5; 14:6, 19; 16:17–20
Samson identified his uncut hair as the sign of his Nazirite dedication; Judges also attributes his extraordinary power to the Spirit of the LORD.
Who was the female judge who led Israel with Barak?
Reference: Judges 4:4–10
Deborah was a prophet and judge who summoned Barak.
How many men remained in Gideon’s selected army?
Reference: Judges 7:1–8
God reduced Gideon’s force to three hundred men.
Who discovered the secret connected with Samson’s strength?
Reference: Judges 16:4–20
Delilah pressed Samson until he revealed the secret.
Which woman served as a judge of Israel?
Reference: Judges 4–5
Deborah judged Israel and helped lead victory over Sisera.
Who killed Sisera with a tent peg?
Reference: Judges 4:17–22
Jael struck Sisera with a tent peg while he slept.
What sign involving wool did Gideon request?
Reference: Judges 6:36–40
Gideon asked for signs involving dew on a fleece.
What did Samson use to defeat a thousand Philistines?
Reference: Judges 15:14–17
Samson struck down a thousand men with a fresh donkey’s jawbone.
What did Gideon’s men carry along with trumpets?
Reference: Judges 7:16–22
The three hundred carried trumpets and jars concealing torches.
Which judge made a rash vow concerning whoever came out of his house?
Reference: Judges 11:29–40
Jephthah made a tragic vow before battle.
Which left-handed judge killed Eglon, king of Moab?
Reference: Judges 3:12–30
Ehud concealed a sword and killed King Eglon.
How to study Judges
For each deliverer, record the oppressor, the cry or commission, the method of deliverance and the aftermath. Then compare the opening explanation in Judges 2 with the final refrain. Pay attention to how the narratives become more complex and disturbing; the book often reports actions without presenting every action as a model to imitate.
Translation and interpretation note
The Hebrew title refers to leaders who exercised judgment or governance, not only courtroom officials. Character descriptions can be translated differently, and interpreters disagree over how the narrator evaluates some vows, violence and signs. Questions distinguish what the story explicitly says from conclusions readers may draw about a character’s motives or moral standing.