Judges, Book of, is a book of the Bible that describes the history of the tribes of Israel from about the 1100’s to the 900’s B.C. The Book of Judges tells the stories of leaders of ancient Israel called judges. These leaders were not necessarily judges in the sense of people who make legal decisions. According to the Bible, the judges were people whom God called to lead the Israelites at critical times. Several judges were military leaders who saved the Israelites from their enemies.
The Book of Judges contains hero stories, folk tales, tribal records, religious judgments, and fragments of historical writings. Many of these sources are as old as the period of the judges. The book consists of three parts. The first part (1:1-3:6) describes Israel’s conquest of Canaan, roughly an area from east of the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, and gives a general description and interpretation of the judges. The second section (3:7-16:31) tells the stories of the judges, including such famous Biblical figures as Deborah, Gideon, and Samson. The final section (17:1-21:25) tells about the problems of two ancient tribes of Israel—the Danites and the Benjamites.
See also Bible (The Prophets) ; Deborah ; Gideon ; Samson .
