Please also read the story of at least one of the following Judges: Ehud (Judges 3), Deborah (Judges 4-5), Jephthah (Judges 11-13), or Samson (Judges 14-16).
The first question for your next midterm exam asks you to talk about the figures in Joshua and Judges as "heroes with warts" or "warts with a hero." You might think about that question as you do the readings.
For the post here, evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of whatever figure in these chapters you find the most interesting (Joshua, Gideon, Deborah, Abimelech, etc.) What do you think of this person? What's admirable/not so admirable? A hero with warts? A wart with a hero? For extra credit, you can comment on an additional figure. Please put "extra" comments in a separate post.
By the way, the picture here is Ben Victor's statue of Samson. Ben took my History 413 class here at NSU quite a few years ago. And, just in case you are wondering, he didn't use a younger version of me as his model for Samson.
Ehud's strengths were he was left handed, crafty and intelligent. His weaknesses were in his character he was aggressive. He strapped a double edged sword to his thigh and then used it to stab the King Elgon so deep his fat absorbed it. I find his intelligence in getting the king alone admirable however I find the way he killed him unamiable. I think he was a hero with warts because while what he did and the form he did it in were rather brutal he did ultimately do what was right by his people.
ReplyDeleteI think that Samsons strength other than his obvious super strength was his bravery that he showed when fighting against the philistines as he faced off against an army of philistines just by himself. If then I had to point out Samsons weaknesses I would have to say they are his anger and also his lust of women. In his story many of Samsons actions are driven by anger such as the killing of the Groomsmen and the burning of the field with foxes. Now of course this may have been a part of Gods plan since he had Samson go against the philistines. His second weakness ended up being his downfall because it was his attraction to the women Delilah and her seduction of him that had him tell her about his hair which ended up badly for him. If I had to choose, I would put samson as a hero with warts. -Christian Zetterlund
ReplyDeleteGideon almost seems to have more flaws than redeemable qualities. He rises up to become a strong and strategic military leader, taking only 300 men and using the night, noise, and confusion to defeat the Midian army. Using the pots and the trumpets was a terrific strategy to throw his enemy into a chaotic environment. But even though he is victorious, Gideon did not start with much confidence, and he's skeptical of the Lord's commands, constantly asking Him for confirmation through different signs. After his military victory, Gideon's character seems to deteriorate after he kills Zebah and Zalmunna on the grounds of personal vengeance. Finally, his last recorded act is making an idol from his spoils of war, completely turning away from the Lord and reversing the effects of his earlier action, tearing down his father's pagan altar.
ReplyDeleteSamson in my opinion had the strength to repent and his weakness was maybe human attraction or being gullible and too trusting. Although he didn't trust her and continued to lie about the reason of his strength from God. That underestimation of trusting that she would forget of her efforts towards helping the phillistines. I think this story says that you can't trust everyone but you can always trust God to forgive and give aid when in need.
ReplyDeleteI chose Abimelech and I think he is wart with hero. He seemed very fearful of competition killing his 70 brothers in a brutal display but appears to cunning in the conflicts he engages in. I think it shows cowardice that would rather be run through by his own armor bearer than to have it said that he died by a woman, but also maybe that would have harmed the credibility of the remaining men he left and caused some unrest so for that reason it could have been seen as the best he could do given the scenario. Ultimately God repays a curse on the men of Shechem for the act of Abimelech killing his father's 70 sons so that conclusively puts him in the warts with hero camp and only judged years on top of that.
ReplyDeleteJoshuas strengths thrived, I believe from the wandering of the desert for forty years and also that the nation of Israel heeded to the voice of God and followed Joshua as their leader. His strengths were that he was faithful to God and a mighty warrior in the conquest of Canaan.
ReplyDeleteJoshua was a hero of the Israelites in their conquest and knew that all credit was to be due to the Lord. This makes him admirable among most of Israel, especially the Israelites who had died during the forty years of wandering.
Joshua had few warts, which was the occasion where he forgot to consult the Lord in the taking of the city of Ai which results in a loss of men in battle.
I am technically going over two people - Deborah and Jael.
ReplyDeleteThey are both women, both wives.
Deborah's strengths are that she is wise (the people of Israel came to her for judgment and to seek help), courageous (she went to battle with Barak when he said he would go if she did), and fierce (she scolded Barak for not doing his due diligence in completing the Lord's commands).
Her weaknesses is... well, not much. She pretty much vanishes after the Bible mentions she went with Barak to Kedesh. There is no mention of her fighting, nor what she did in the city. One can assume that, given her status as a woman, she was not allowed to do certain things, fighting possibly being one of them. Or maybe, especially given her status as a priestess, she was exempt from battle or it went against her values. Either way, there is not much to go off of after the fact.
As for Jael, she has plenty of strengths, some she shares with Deborah. Fearless, brave, and willing to put herself into danger. She was smart, and was able to lull Sisera into a sense of security. She is also strong, given how she was able to hammer the tent post through his skull. While it's easy to do so with a hammer and such, one can only assume it still requires some amount of strength to make it go through his head completely.
Her weaknesses could be that she is foolish - what if Sisera had awoken as she readied the tent stake? Or what if he never went to sleep and instead attacked her? These are both possibilities. I can only hope she had some consideration for what she might do if things didn't go her way the first time.
Overall, I enjoyed both of these characters. We focus plenty more on men, so to see that God does not discriminate in who He blesses to carry out his command is very interesting!
Samson: Samson is my favorite Judge of Israel, or he's at least my favorite to read about. At first glance, it's easy to dismiss Samson as a wart with a hero, but in my opinion he's a hero with a very many warts. As I said earlier, it's easy to dismiss Samson as a guy with a very weak moral center, but I don't really think of him like that. In my mind, he's more of a country good old boy. Samson enjoys getting into fights and having a good time. This is demonstrated with the riddles he gives to the Philistines. Samson doesn't seem to be upset that his wife sold him out, he's upset that he lost a bet. Samson also seems to have an invincibility complex, when he's with Delilah he knows that she's going to betray him again, and he doesn't care. He thinks that God's going to save him. In my mind, the true character of Samson shines through in his death, he's completely willing to sacrifice himself to break the Philistine yoke. Samson above all other judges feels very human. He makes all the mistakes we do, but he also gives up his life for his countrymen.
ReplyDeleteExtra:
ReplyDeleteEhud is a hero. His story is short but fascinating. You can learn a lot from his character by how he kills King Eglon. He isn’t afraid to walk straight into the jaws of death and put his life on the line for Israel. He also manages to escape without trouble. He’s clearly someone who thinks things through and is able to come up with a plan. Even the size of the sword is interesting to me. It’s long enough to go through Eglon’s stomach, but not so long as to be exposed. Ehud most likely thought of that as well. In addition to his military prowess in battle, if Ehud is able to lead a campaign against Moab and secure peace for 80 years, he also proves capable of maintaining order, something someone like Abimelech could never do. Just because someone's story isn't long, doesn't mean they're not important.
Walker Larson
Dylan Schimke
ReplyDeleteI read the passages regarding Samson, and I think he is a hero with warts. He does many things that give him those warts, but it is never a rash decision. The Philistines are ruling over the Israelites and Samson is one of the only people that they cannot control. He takes revenge on the Philistines dishonoring him and to me he doesn't do anything to them first. Samson is very relatable as well; he makes mistakes like any other human and yet he still sacrificed himself to bring down some of the leaders of the Philistines.
Dylan Schimke Extra:
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading Gideon's story in chapter 6-8. I think he is truly a hero because of the things he did for Israel. Firstly, he was a doubter when the angel appeared to him while he was hiding grain, but after an offering, he got on board with God. Gideon was doubtful because he was from the weakest tribe in Israel, and he wasn't even the strongest in that tribe. He asked for two more signs, via a fleece on the ground, and God was patient with him because His plans for Gideon were great. Gideon than gathered a huge army to attack the Midianites, who were constantly raiding them and impoverishing the Israelites. God than told Gideon to reduce his army to 300 warriors, and Gideon did so. Gideon and the men than snuck up to the enemy camp and blew their ram horns, sending the Midianites into a panic and they started attacking one another. They then fled and Gideon destroyed them, ending their wickedness over Israel. He is a hero because he wasn't the strongest warrior, but he did the conquered the toughest tasks. He destroyed his father's idol to Baal, gathered thousands of troops, and destroyed the enemies that threatened Israel. Although shortly after his successes, the next generation quickly when astray and didn't worship the Lord, Gideon is still a hero in my eyes.
Joshua seems to have a lot of strengths and appears as a hero for the Israelites. Through his leadership a large portion of the promise land is conquered by the Israelites. I find it interesting though that when Joshua dies, there is still parts of the promised land that have not been captured yet. This somehow seems a little fitting, that even though he was this great leader when he died the people still needed him. And because all of the land wasn't completely captured and it's residents driven out, the Israelites fell into sin after Joshua's death. It is also interesting how like Moses, right before Joshua dies he urges the people not to fall away from God and instead worship other idols. A good leader should want the best for their people and that seems to be Joshua's intent, as he doesn't want to see the Israelites fall away into a life of sin.
ReplyDeleteExtra Post: Samson
ReplyDeleteI've never read the story of Samson before, although I had kind of heard about him before (although my knowledge only went as far as knowing that he had long hair that somehow was his strength). Samson's story is kind of interesting because while he is both a strong leader, it seems to me that he has his weaknesses too. In his first marriage, he gets upset when he loses the bet with the riddle. Although he told his wife the answer to the riddle so I don't really know why he got so upset, he had to know that she would tell the people the answer. Then of course there is also the part where Samson lies to Delilah about what the weakness of his power is. Clearly Samson didn't want to tell Delilah what his weakness is, which shows that he doesn't trust her which is clearly warranted considering she is trying to kill him. But I think its more interesting that Samson lies to Delilah again and again. This to me kind of seems like Samson just loves having the upper hand over people. Delilah wanted to know what Samson's weakness was, Samson knew this, so he held it over her.
Joshua has to be the most admirable figure in these readings. After being under Moses and learning from his successes and mistakes when his time comes to take leadership, he doesn't hesitate a bit. Also in his leadership, he has a proper submission the Lord. When the people disobey and take possessions from the people of Ai, it was Joshua who fell on his knees in prayer to the Lord and asked for forgiveness. This wouldn't seem like an action somebody would take after he had just led and won a battle against a people group. Humble leaders are the greatest leaders.
ReplyDeleteAndrew
DeleteExtra
ReplyDeleteAlthough we have very little of this figure in Scripture, Othniel seems to be best example of an admirable character with no warts mentioned. i picked him because his story is simple and his obedience is simple. After the Israelites had been disobedient for eight years and were captured. The Lord raised up a leader and the "Spirit" was upon him. He was guided by the Lord and obeyed his calling. As a result, he had defeated the people holding them captive and gave the people rest. Simple story but not a simple act done by Othniel.
-Andrew
I think Samson is a very interesting figure. He is probably one of the most known judges in the Bible (but for good reason, I think). Of course, Samson has many strengths, literally and spiritually. He saved the Israelites just like other judges in the Bible did, and he was incredibly strong. Born of a divine birth from previously barren parents, Samson really had a good start, but, in my opinion, he is more of a wart than a hero--a wart with heroic characteristics. The biggest weakness for Samson is temptation, especially the temptation of women. This weakness proved to be eventually fatal and cause Samson to lose his strength and dignity (although he redeemed himself in the end). In my opinion, I do not think that Samson is meant to be viewed mostly as a hero. Yes, he did some great things, but at the end of the day, he seemed to value temptation and lust over almost everything else. That, I think, is why Samson is such an important figure. I guarantee that every single person has dealt with a feeling like this. Everyone struggles with temptation, and I think the story of Samson shows that everyone, even judges chosen by God with superhuman strength, have drastic weaknesses that cause them to be blinded by desire and overlook the things that matter most. Samson was probably one of the strongest humans on the planet, and he took that for granted after wasting his time lusting and desiring over women that only wish him harm. This is a long-winded explanation, but, regardless of his many many warts, Samson is still regarded as one of the most important judges in the Bible because of the lessons learned throughout after learning about him.
ReplyDeleteLauren Bland
Jephthah was driven out because he was the son of a concubine, yet when his people were in distress, he showed great tolerance by accepting their request to lead them. Before going into battle, he logically defended Israel’s position. However, I think his decision 11:30-31 was very hasty and wrong. Ultimately, because his approach was based on a "give and take" logic—saying to God, "If you give me victory, I will give you something in return"—I think it was an arrogant mindset. As a consequence, his daughter was sacrificed, which I believe was a form of punishment for that attitude.
ReplyDeleteSophia Lee
Joshua was a leader of the Israelites who took after Moses. He helped guide them and was a strong leader. Moses trusted him enough to be appointed. He conquered towns like Jericho. He separated the 12 tribes. His lesson was to remain loyal to God. He was a true leader. His mentor helped shape his destiny. His instructions may not make sense but were sent by God. Instead, his methods may have been evil, but his reasonings were not. He was a true leader.
ReplyDeleteIn the passages of Judges that concern him, Gideon is a figure that portrays a mixture of admirable and flawed qualities. One of Gideon's weaker flaws is his doubts about the Lord's plan for him. When he was first called to serve the lord, Gideon doubted the Lord's power and plan for him. He only followed God's instructions after he got them proven to him. As a man from a small tribe, he questions his role in God's plan and therefore installs doubt in himself and the world. Gideon ultimately did have faith in God. Although he had his initial insecurities when he was called, he ended up trusting God's plan for him while raising an army and fighting the battle. When he was eventually invited to be kind, Gideon turned it down telling the people of Israel that God is the one true king. He brought 40 years of peace to God's people and for this I believe that he is a very warty hero, but a hero at that.
ReplyDelete- Jorja Whempner