Judges 1:36

21-36 The people of Israel were very careless of their duty and interest. Owing to slothfulness and cowardice, they would not be at the pains to complete their conquests. It was also owing to their covetousness: they were willing to let the Canaanites live among them, that they might make advantage of them. They had not the dread and detestation of idolatry they ought to have had. The same unbelief that kept their fathers forty years out of Canaan, kept them now out of the full possession of it. Distrust of the power and promise of God deprived them of advantages, and brought them into troubles. Thus many a believer who begins well is hindered. His graces languish, his lusts revive, Satan plies him with suitable temptations, the world recovers its hold; he brings guilt into his conscience, anguish into his heart, discredit on his character, and reproach on the gospel. Though he may have...

Verse Judges 1:36. _AKRABBIM_] Of _scorpions_; probably so called from the number of those animals in that place. _FROM THE ROCK, AND UPWARD._] The Vulgate understand by סלע _sela,_ _a rock_, the city _Petra_, which was the capital of _Arabia Petraea_. THE whole of this chapter appears to be designed as a sort of _supplement_ to those places in the book of Joshua which are referred to in the notes and in the margin; nor is there any thing in it worthy of especial remark. We everywhere see the same fickle character in the Israelites, and the goodness and long-suffering of God towards them. An _especial Providence_ guides their steps, and a _fatherly hand_ chastises them for their transgressions. They are obliged to live in the midst of their enemies, often straitened, but never overcome so as to lose the l

THE GOING UP TO AKRABBIM - See the margin and references; properly “the ascent of scorpions,” with which the whole region abounds. THE ROCK - Petra, the capital of Idumea, so called from the mass of precipitous rock which encloses the town, and out of which many of its buildings are excavated. The original word “Selah” is always used of the rock at Kadesh-Barnea Numbers 20:8, near Petra (compare Obadiah 1:3). This leads us to look for “the ascent of scorpions,” here coupled with סלע הס _has_-_sela‛_, in the same neighborhood....

EXPOSITION JUDGES 1:21 This verse is identical with Joshua 15:63, except that there we read "the children of Judah" instead of "the children of Benjamin," as in this verse. The boundary line between Judah and Jerusalem passed through JEBUS or JEBUSI, as Jerusalem was anciently called (see Joshua 15:8; Joshua 18:28; Judges 19:10, Judges 19:11;...

AND THE COAST OF THE AMORITES [WAS] FROM THE GOING UP TO AKRABBIM,.... Of which Numbers 34:4 and Joshua 15:3: FROM THE ROCK, AND UPWARDS; even from the city Petra in Idumea, and beyond that; and there was a country near Idumea, called Acrabatane, from this mountain Akrabbim, "Then Judas fought against the children of Esau in Idumea at Arabattine, because they besieged Gael: and he gave them a great overthrow, and abated their courage, and took their spoils.'' (1 Maccabees 5:3) such was the extent of these people, that their coast reached from the places, mentioned to the mountains where the above cities of Dan were; they were the most powerful people among the Canaanites, and lay on both sides of Jordan, and were very troublesome to Israel, yet were at le

ANALYSIS AND ANNOTATIONS I. THE INTRODUCTION: ISRAEL'S FAILURE AND THE RESULTS 1. Israel's Failure in mingling with the Canaanites CHAPTER 1 _ 1. The question and the answer (Judges 1:1)_ 2. Adoni-Bezek (Judges 1:5) 3. Jerusalem (Judges 1:8) 4. Judah's victory and failure (Judges 1:9) 5. The children of Benjamin and their failure (Judges 1:21) 6. The failures of others (Judges 1:22) The book begins with an inquiry of the Lord.

JUDGES 1:1 TO JUDGES 2:5. THE CONQUESTS AND SETTLEMENTS OF THE ISRAELITES IN WESTERN PALESTINE. From this introduction, which is one of the most valuable parts of early Hebrew history, we learn that the various tribes invaded the land either singly or in small groups; that they had failures as well as successes; that in many instances they did not destroy the older population, but settled peacefully among them; and that, in particular, the larger cities of Canaan, as well as the fertile valleys and the Maritime Plain, remained in the possession of the Canaanites. The conquests of Judah were separated from those of Joseph by a belt of walled cities with Jerusalem in its centre. Another line of strongholds, extending from Bethshan near the Jordan to Dor on the sea coast, shut up Ephraim and Manasseh in the central highland

COAST. border or boundary. Judges 2 gives. summary of events from Judges 3:1; Judges 3:16; Judges 3:31. The period it covers is therefore 1434-1100, i.e. 334 years....

_the border of the Amorites_ The text describes a boundary line; but there was no boundary between the Israelites and the Amorites, i.e. the old Canaanite population, for they occupied the same territory. Some recensions of LXX (cod. A, Lucian), Ethiop., Syro-Hex., read -the border of the Amorite was the Edomite"; this suggests that the Hebr. text should be corrected to THE BORDER OF THE EDOMITE. The verse indicates the S. frontier of Judah which extended -unto the border of Edom," Joshua 15:1. _the ascent of Akrabbim_ i.e. -the Scorpions" Pass" Numbers 34:4; Joshua 15:3, must be one of the chief passes which lead up from the -Arâbah S. of the Dead Sea, probably the Naḳb eṣ-Ṣafâ, on the N. side of the Wadi el-Fiḳra.

AND THE COAST OF THE AMORITES WAS FROM—THE ROCK— By _the rock,_ the Vulgate understands the city of Petra, in the Hebrew סלע _selang,_ which stood upon the confines of Idumaea, and was the capital of Arabia Petraea; Amaziah called it _Joktheel,_ 2 Kings 14:7. It is remarkable, that some of the old inhabitants continued there till after our Saviour's time. See Bishop Patrick. From the whole we may observe, that sloth and covetousness, unbelief of God's power, and want of detestation of idolatry, were still too much rooted in this stiff-necked people; yet God wonderfully bore with them....