Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Judges 16:7-31
II. THE RECORD OF ISRAEL’S APOSTASY 3:7-16:31"The judges are twelve in number, reckoning either Deborah or Barak as a judge and omitting Abimelech, whose status in fact depended wholly on his descent from Gideon, and who was in effect not a ’deliverer’, and a ’judge’ only in the sense of a local ruler on his own account." [Note: John Gray, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, p. 189.] Israel’s JudgesJudgeScriptureIsrael’s OppressorsLength in YearsNation(s)King(s)OppressionJudgeshipPeaceOthnielJudges... read more
Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Judges 16:4-21
Samson and Delilah 16:4-21The first three verses present Samson sowing "wild oats." Judges 16:4-21 picture him reaping a bitter harvest (cf. Galatians 6:7).Samson allowed a woman to seduce him again. She lived in the Sorek Valley between Samson’s home area of Zorah and Eshtaol and the Philistine town of Timnah. The place itself was a compromise between Israelite and Philistine territory. Her name "Delilah" is evidently Jewish and probably means "devotee" or "worshipper." [Note: Ibid, pp.... read more