FocusIncomplete obedience and recurring apostasy
Connection to the wholeThis opening unit introduces the chapter’s movement. The opening explains the conditions and recurring pattern that frame the accounts of the judges.
interpretation Judges 3:6
KJVAnd they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods.
Read it in context
Nations Left to Test Israel
Start reading at Judges 3:1 (Judges 3:1 to Judges 3:6).
An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
This opening unit introduces the chapter’s movement. The opening explains the conditions and recurring pattern that frame the accounts of the judges.
- 3:1 Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to prove Israel by them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan;
- 3:2 Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof;
- 3:3 Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baalhermon unto the entering in of Hamath.
- 3:4 And they were to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken unto the commandments of the LORD, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.
- 3:5 And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites:
- 3:6 And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods.
Who
- Who wrote the book? Samuel is the traditional Jewish attribution. The final writer cannot be identified with certainty; Samuel's name should therefore be given as a traditional answer, not a verified signature. Historical source: Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra 14b–15a (record of Jewish attribution, not contemporary proof). traditionally held
- Who was present or being addressed in this passage? In the surrounding chapter context (Judges 3:1–3:31): The accounts concern the Israelites and their deliverers Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar, with the named foreign rulers and oppressors in their respective episodes. stated in the text
- Who was the book written to? Israel, looking back on the period between Joshua and the monarchy. The repeated notice that Israel had no king addresses readers for whom that earlier situation needed explanation. Biblical references: Judges 17:6; Judges 21:25. book background
What
- What is the topic of this reading unit? Nations Left to Test Israel. Read Judges 3:1 through Judges 3:6 as a connected unit. interpretation
- How does it contribute to the book? This opening unit introduces the chapter’s movement. The opening explains the conditions and recurring pattern that frame the accounts of the judges. interpretation
When
- When are the events or message set? The opening follows Joshua's death. The accounts cover the period before kingship, but the book does not supply a single modern calendar date for every episode. book background
Where
- What is the book’s geographic setting? The episodes move among Israel's tribal territories and surrounding peoples. A location in one judge's account should not be assigned to another without textual support. book background
- Where does the context start? This passage sits in Nations Left to Test Israel (Judges 3:1 to Judges 3:6). Start reading at Judges 3:1. An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
How
- How does this book connect with Jesus Christ? Acts 13 recalls the judges as part of Israel's history before moving to David and the promised Saviour, Jesus. This historical connection does not make every judge's conduct exemplary. See Acts 13:20, Acts 13:22, Acts 13:23. interpretation
- How should this book guide our response? Recognize the danger of recurring unfaithfulness and self-directed conduct. Distinguish the LORD's deliverance from a deliverer's sins, and do not treat a vow or violent act as approved merely because it is narrated. interpretation
Cited: Judges 3:1, Judges 3:6, Acts 13:20, Acts 13:22, Acts 13:23
Who wrote it, and how we know
Samuel (traditional)
From early tradition
What Scripture saysThe book does not name its author.
Early traditionJewish tradition (Baba Bathra 14b) names Samuel.
What is debatedAuthorship is not stated in Scripture and cannot be confirmed. The repeated note that there was no king in Israel suggests a writer during the monarchy.
Related passages
- And they took their daughters to be their… Exod 34:16 Deut 7:3-4 1 Kgs 11:1-5 Ezra 9:11-12 Neh 13:23-27 Ezek 16:3
Cross references from CrossReferences-org (CC BY 4.0).
Macro-Structure
See how this passage fits the chapter and the book.
Macro-Structure of Judges 3
Judges describes Israel after Joshua, including repeated apostasy and deliverance. It does not name its author. Narrated violence, vows, and misconduct are not endorsements merely because they appear in the account. Local headings and stanza divisions are editorial reading aids adapted from public-domain BSB headings; verse boundaries and Scripture links use the KJV. Connections describe the surrounding book movement.
Judges 2:10 Judges 2:16 Judges 21:25
Othniel
Judges 3:7–11FocusOppression and deliverance
Connection to the wholeThe deliverers' accounts develop the repeated cycle while also revealing failures among leaders and people.
interpretation Ehud
Judges 3:12–30FocusOppression and deliverance
Connection to the wholeThe deliverers' accounts develop the repeated cycle while also revealing failures among leaders and people.
interpretation Shamgar
Judges 3:31–31FocusOppression and deliverance
Connection to the wholeThis unit closes the chapter’s selected reading divisions. The deliverers' accounts develop the repeated cycle while also revealing failures among leaders and people.
interpretation Suggested literary divisions. Headings summarize the passage; they are not part of the biblical text.
Macro-Structure of Judges
Judges describes Israel after Joshua, including repeated apostasy and deliverance. It does not name its author. Narrated violence, vows, and misconduct are not endorsements merely because they appear in the account.
Judges 2:10 Judges 2:16 Judges 21:25
FocusIncomplete obedience and recurring apostasy
Connection to the wholeThe opening explains the conditions and recurring pattern that frame the accounts of the judges.
interpretation The judges and Israel's recurring distress
Judges 3:7–16:31FocusOppression and deliverance
Connection to the wholeThe deliverers' accounts develop the repeated cycle while also revealing failures among leaders and people.
interpretation Disorder within Israel
Judges 17:1–21:25FocusCorrupted worship and communal violence
Connection to the wholeThe closing accounts expose religious and social disorder, repeatedly drawing attention to the absence of a king and self-directed conduct.
interpretation Suggested literary divisions. Headings summarize the passage; they are not part of the biblical text.