PROGRESSION IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES

There are some repeated cycles in the Bible that seem to have no overall trend up (comedy) or down (tragedy).  They are more like a sine wave. The Book of Judges is a prime example. Chapter 2 lays out the repeated cycle of Israel's disobedience:

Repeated Cycles in the Book of Judges

  1. sin

2. servitude

3. supplication

4. savior

5. salvation

6. silence

And this cycle is repeated 6 more times in the book. However, there is an overall downward trend to the whole book at the same time. This could have been expressed by the author simply saying that things got progressively worse and worse in Israel with time. But instead the point is made almost subliminally using a number of literary devices.

Downward Progression in The Book of Judges

1. Enemies in War: The first chapters of Judges begin with Israel fighting against enemy tribes, but the

 book ends with the Jews slaughtering each other.

2. Idolatry: It begins with the temptation of foreign idols and ends with the idols being worshiped 

within Israel.

3. Moral Character of the Judges It begins with descriptions of judges who are heroes and concludes

 with the totally flawed “judge” Samson.

3. Fate of Women It begins with strong women leaders who take events into their own hands such as 

Caleb's daughter and Deborah the judge. But then there is Jephthah's daughter who falls victim to her 

father's careless vow. Samson's wife who is forced by her family to betray her husband. And finally the 

book ends with the story of a mass abduction of women into forced marriages and the story of a 

Levite's concubine who is gang raped, killed, and dismembered. And she isn't even given the dignity of 

a name by which to remember her.

4. Times of Peace Or one can plot the years that Israel had rest from her enemies -- first four cycles 

40-80 years, and between 6 and 23 years for the subsequent cycles.

5. Times of Oppression The years that Israel was oppressed by her enemies are no more than 20 years 

for the first four cycles mentioned, but it ends with 40 years of oppression.

 

So if one were to visually plot the progression in Judges with time, it would look like a sine wave that 

moves slowly downward.