Judges
Chapter 10
Minor Judges I
After Abimelech, Tola, the son of Puah and Dodo, arose to save Israel. He was from the tribe of Issachar and lived at Shamir, in the mountains of Ephraim.
He was the judge of Israel for twenty-three years, and when he died, he was buried in Shamir.
After him rose Jair of Gilead, the judge of Israel for twenty-two years.
He had thirty sons who rode on thirty asses and had thirty cities which are still called the villages of Jair to this day, in the land of Gilead.
When Jair died, he was buried in Kamon.
Penitential Liturgy
The Israelites again mistreated the Lord; they served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Aram and Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites, and the Philistines. They abandoned the Lord and no longer served him.
The anger of the Lord burned against Israel, so he gave them into the hands of the Philistines and the Ammonites.
For eighteen years, all the Israelites living on the other side of the Jordan in the Amorite land of Gilead were disturbed and oppressed.
The Ammonites also crossed the Jordan to attack Judah, Benjamin, and the people of Ephraim. Israel was in great distress.
In those years, the Israelites called out to the Lord, saying:
“We have sinned against you, for we have abandoned the Lord, our God, to serve the Baals.”
When he appeared, the Philistines assigned thirty men to accompany him as his wedding companions.
The Lord said to the Israelites:
“When the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines,
the Sidonians, Amalek, and Midian oppressed you, and you cried out to me, did I not save you from their hands?
But despite this, you have abandoned me and served other gods. So I will not save you again.
Go and cry out to the chosen gods: see if they will save you in your distress.”
The Israelites answered the Lord:
“We have sinned. Do to us whatever you wish, but save us today.”
Then they put away the strange gods and served the Lord. And he could no longer endure the suffering of Israel.
The Ammonites assembled and went to encamp in Gilead. The Israelites also assembled, and they encamped at Mizpah.
Gilead’s people and leaders asked one another:
“Who will lead us all to fight against the Ammonites? Whoever he is, we shall make him head of all the inhabitants of Gilead.”
Commentaries
Minor Judges I – Penitential Liturgy.
After the death of Abimelech, which brought no positive change to the people, the only thing the Israelites could do was go back home. The first list of minor judges, Tola and Jair, appears briefly (10:1-5); the second list is found in 12:8-15. The author provides us with very little information about these two judges. We know how long their reign lasted, but their specific duties are not entirely clear.
Once these two judges died, the author emphasizes the wickedness of the people of Israel, who now worship not only the gods of the Canaanites but also those of Syria, Phoenicia, Moab, the Ammonites, and the Philistines. Confronted with this ruinous situation, the only option left for God is to hand them over to the other gods. After enduring oppression, Israel cries out to God, but this time it must negotiate and “do something extraordinary” for God to show mercy. Israel confesses and admits that it has worshipped the Baals, yet God is not “willing” to grant the requests of his people. God has always been faithful, but Israel has not. This time, Israel’s situation is hopeless; God has sworn never to save them again. Without God, Israel’s future is uncertain; therefore, they must act quickly: they need to remove the foreign gods and worship the Lord. Faced with this “change,” God cannot resist; he forgives them and offers them his friendship once more.