The Birth, Dedication & Mission of Samson
Volume 2, Number 29The Faith of Samson:"And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:" - Hebrews 11:32. The book of Judges mentions many who judged Israel during the time after Joshua and before King Saul but this verse only refers to these four (4) as having been borne witness to by their faith. We have studied Gideon, Barak and Jephthae and here we begin a series on Judge Samson who is probably the best known of all... Continue reading →
Jephthah, Type of Christ's Return to Israel
Volume 2, Number 28Jephthah is one of only four (4) judges of Israel named in Hebrews 11, the other three being Gideon, Barak and Samson - Hebrews 11:32. The witness of faith of each points to and is a type of a different particular aspect of the work of the second Adam who is Jesus (the author and finisher of Faith, Hebrews 12:2) in relation to the Nation of Israel. It was pointed out in Volume 2, Studies 23 - 26 that Gideon was a type of Christ in His first advent, which occurred 2000 years ago. Here, Jephthah's life and witness of... Continue reading →
Jephthah, Warrier Judge, but made a bad choise of words
Volume 2, Number 27Vol 2 - No 27, November 16, 2006The faith of Jephthah (spelled Jephthae in Hebrews 11:32.)Review: As noted in our last study, Israel had 40 years of peace during the time Gideon (aka Jerubbaal) judged but as soon as he died wickedness and idol worship prevailed again - Judges 8:32 - 35. Gideon had 70 sons by his wives and one, Abimelch, by his concubine in Shechem, Judges 8:31. After Gideon's death and the fall of Israel into sin Abimelech made a deal with his mother's people, the men of Sechem, who gave him money to hire ruthless men. With... Continue reading →
Gideon's Witness of Faith Pointed to Jesus Christ
Volume 2, Number 26Vol 2 - No 26, October 15, 2006Gideon's witness of faith - Part 4:As we complete our study of Gideon and consider the significance of his witness, three (3) important facts must be kept in mind. First; the Bible, in the original languages in which it was written, is the Word of God and from beginning to end reveals God to mankind. The Word was, is and for ever will be and approximately 2000 years ago The Word was made flesh and dwelt among mankind as Jesus Christ - John 1:1 - 4, 14. Second; The Man Jesus Christ personified... Continue reading →
God Prepares Gideon for Battle
Volume 2, Number 25Vol 2 - No 25, September 9, 2006Gideon's witness of faith - Part 3:Our last study left off at the point where the Lord chose only 300 men to accompany Gideon, Judges 7:3 - 7, to defeat an army of 135,000, Judges 8:10. His purpose for using only 300 instead of a much larger force was to make sure Israel would have no reason to boast or glory in themselves but to impress upon them that God gave the victory to them - Judges 7:2.The next few verses of the text demonstrate God's sensitivity to the doubts/fears of Gideon who... Continue reading →
Gideon Tears Down the Alter to Baal
Volume 2, Number 24Vol 2 - No 24, July 25, 2006Gideon's witness of faith - Part 2:Our last study ended with Gideon building an alter to the Lord he named Jehovahshalom, Judges 6:24, in response to the Lord's blessing of peace to him. That same night Jehovah told Gideon to take his father's seven (7) year old bullock and tear down the alter to Baal and the grove about it that his father had built and maintained - Judges 6:25. According to commentators the worship of Baal included orgies involving homosexual (1 Kings 14:24; 15:12; 22:46 & 2 Kings 23:7) as well as... Continue reading →
Gideon Called to Be Israel's Judge
Volume 2, Number 23Gideon's witness of faith - Part 1:Deborah and Barak judged Israel 40 years during which time the nation enjoyed peace, Judges 5:31b, but after they passed away Israel began worshipping the gods of the Amorites, Judges 6:10. This of course displeased God who delivered them into the hands of the Midianites for seven (7) years - Judges 6:1. (Midian was east of Canaan and before the Israelites entered the land of Canaan Midianite women caused them to worship their idols. As a result the Lord told Moses to raise an army and eradicate the Midianites. Moses did as told but... Continue reading →
Barak's Witness of Faith
Volume 2, Number 22The faith of Barak:The first 10 people mentioned by name in Hebrews 11 appear in the order in which they lived: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses and Rahab. However, the remaining six (6) men are reversed by pairs: Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthae, David and Samuel, Hebrews 11:32, that is, Barak actually lived before Gideon, Jephthae before Samson and Samuel before David. The Holy Spirit had a purpose in this order of listing when He inspired the writer of Hebrews, which we will attempt to discover. However, this study will proceed in the order in which they... Continue reading →
Joshua's Victories in Caanan
Volume 2, Number 21Vol 2 - No 21, May 31, 2006The trial of faith:In our study of the witness of faith in Hebrews 11 we are about to begin examining the lives of the last six (6) men mentioned by name therein: Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthae, David and Samuel - Hebews 11:32. Before doing so we need to review some of what led up to the times in which they lived. First to be noted is that God promised Israel through Moses that He would give them the Promised Land. His instructions were that Israel was to utterly destroy the previous inhabitants of... Continue reading →
A Look Back from Joseph & Forward from Moses
Volume 2, Number 20Vol 2 - No 20, May 7, 2006A look back from Joseph and forward from Moses in Hebrews 11:The eleventh chapter of Hebrews is being used as a general guide in these studies. As previously pointed out, there are 16 individuals, 14 men and two (2) women, named in Hebrews 11 as being borne witness to by their faith. The first group of eight (8) all lived during the time recorded in Genesis. The lives of the first seven (7); Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac and Jacob, are types pointing to a specific aspect of the finished work of... Continue reading →