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- Othniel. What does the name Othniel mean? It means Strength of God or Lion of God. עׇתְנִיאֵל ʻOthnîyʼêl, oth-nee-ale’; from the same as H6273 and H410; force of God; Othniel, an Israelite:—Othniel.
- Ehud. What does the name Ehud mean? It means, I will give thanks. אֵהוּד ʼÊhûwd, ay-hood’; from the same as H161; united; Ehud, the name of two or three Israelites:—Ehud.
- Shamgar. What does the name Shamgar mean? His name means, Sword. שַׁמְגַּר Shamgar, sham-gar’; of uncertain derivation; Shamgar, an Israelite judge:—Shamgar.
- Deborah. What does the name Deborah mean? It means, bee. דְּבּוֹרָה Dᵉbôwrâh, deb-o-raw’; or (shortened) דְּבֹרָה Dᵉbôrâh; the same as H1682; Deborah, the name of two Hebrewesses:—Deborah.
Jan 14, 2024 · In this comprehensive article, we will explore the judges in depth – who they were, the role they played, the challenges they faced, and the legacy they left behind. We will examine key judges like Deborah, Gideon, and Samson while analyzing the overarching themes of this impactful period.
- Othniel
- Ehud
- Shamgar
- Deborah
- Gideon
- Tola
- Jair
- Jephthah
- Ibzan
- Elon
Othniel was either the nephew or brother of Caleb (one of the 12 spies sent to the land of Canaan), and Israel’s first judge. After the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, Othniel freed the Israelites from King Cushan-Risathaim, who ruled the region of Aram Naharaim (part of Mesopotamia). Cushan-Risathaim had oppressed the Israelites for eight years,...
Ehud, whose name means “where’s the glory?” is most known for two things: 1. Being left handed 2. Brutally killing the king of the Moabites After Othniel died and the Israelites fell back into disobedience, “the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel” (Judges 3:12). Eglon gathered the support of the Ammonites and Amalekites and together the...
Shamgar son of Anath was a judge, but we only get one verse to learn of his accomplishments: An oxgoad is essentially an ancient cattle prod, an eight foot wooden rod with a metal spike on the end. OK so it was basically a spear, but saying he killed 600 Philistines with a cattle prod sounds way more impressive, right? The only other mention of Sha...
Deborah was both a prophetess and judge. Her name means “honey bee,” and she was also the wife of a man named Lappidoth. Deborah was the only female judge. After the death of Ehud, the Israelites “did evil in the eyes of the Lord” (Judges 4:1), so God handed them over to Jabin, king of Canaan. With his commander Sisera and an army of chariots, he o...
Gideon is one of the most well-known and important leaders from the Book of Judges. There are more verses dedicated to him than any other judge. Interestingly, while he’s listed among the judges, the Bible never explicitly calls him a judge or states that he “saved Israel,” as we see with most of the other judges. His name means “hewer, slasher, ha...
Tola, son of Puah, was a “minor judge” (which just means the Bible doesn’t say much about him) who led Israel for 23 years after the death of Abimelech (Gideon’s son). He was from the tribe of Issachar, and his grandfather was a man named Dodo. When Tola died, he was buried in Shamir. When Tola came onto the scene, Israel was a mess. Gideon had 70 ...
Jair gets about the same coverage as his predecessor, Tola: a whopping three verses: Since he was a Gileadite, scholars believe Jair was likely a descendant of a much older Jair: Jair, son of Manasseh. This first Jair was the one who named these thirty towns Havvoth Jair (which just means “towns of Jair”). As with Tola, Jair is sometimes referred t...
Jephthah was a mighty warrior and the son of a prostitute. His father, Gilead, also had sons through his wife, and Jephthah’s half brothers drove him away to the land of Tob, where Jephthah led a “gang of scoundrels” (Judges 11:3). We read about Jephthah in Judges 10:6–12:7, and while he delivered Israel from its enemies, his story ends in one of t...
Ibzan of Bethlehem led Israel for seven years. He’s only mentioned in Judges 12:8–10. While the Bible tells us Ibzan “judged” Israel, it gives no record of any battles he fought or enemies he overthrew, nor does it say he “saved” Israel, as we see with several other judges. Pretty much the only thing we know about Ibzan is that he had 30 sons and 3...
Elon from the tribe of Zebulun is perhaps the most unknown judge. We only get two sentences about him, and there’s little we can gather from them: Again, we don’t know if Elon’s role as judge included any military leadership, or if this was a period of peace. His name means either “oak” or “terebinth” (another type of tree), which doesn’t tell us m...
- OTHNIEL in Hebrew means: God is force – Tribe of Judah – 40 years of peace until he died – 1373BC-1334BC – Judges 3:9-11.
- EHUD in Hebrew means: strong. He was the 2nd Left handed son of Gera the Benjamite 1316BC-1237BC. Peace for 80 years. Judges 3:12-30.
- SHAMGAR in Hebrew means: cupbearer, fleer – Tribe of Benjamite – ? years. Son of Anath Judges 3:31.
- DEBORAH in Hebrew means: bee, wasp (prophetess) 40 years 1237BC-1198BC – Judges 4-5. Tribe of Ephraim. Wife of Lapidath.
God raised them to deliver Israel from its enemies, and they settled disputes and presided over other judicial matters affecting the people. The 12 judges in the Bible were the following: Othniel (1373-1334 B.C.), Ehud (1316-1237 B.C.), Shamgar (1262-1247 B.C.), Deborah (1237-1198 B.C.), Gideon (1191-1151 B.C.), Tola (1149-1126 B.C.), Jair ...
The Book of Judges (Hebrew: ספר שופטים, romanized: Sefer Shoftim; Greek: Κριτές; Latin: Liber Iudicum) is the seventh book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament.
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Background and Setting. Judges is a tragic sequel to Joshua. In Joshua, the people were obedient to God in conquering the Land. In Judges, they were disobedient, idolatrous, and often defeated. Judges 1:1–3:6 focuses on the closing days of the book of Joshua.
