Judges 2

Some Bible versions call the emissary an “angel.” But the Hebrew word mal’ak means “messenger” or “representative,” or “envoy.” The messenger could be human or celestial. If this messenger was an angel from heaven, the obvious questions are what was the angel doing in Gilgal and why didn’t he give the message to those folks? Perhaps this messenger was an angel from heaven. Or maybe just a human in Gilgal whom God called on to deliver the message. God later called on Amos, a fig farmer from Tekoa, to deliver his message to the king of Israel, who was about to lose his country (Amos 1).

The locations of Gilgal and Bochim are both uncertain. Gilgal, however, was somewhere near the oasis town of Jericho, a few miles west of the Jordan River. Contenders for Gilgal include several dirt-covered mounds of ruins near Jericho. No winners yet. Gilgal is where the Israelites first camped after they crossed the Jordan River. It became the staging ground for their siege of Jericho. Some scholars say Bochim was another name for Bethel (Beitin), in the central hills of Canaan, roughly 10 miles (16 km) north of Jerusalem

Bochim is a Hebrew word for crying or weeping.

The Hebrew word is plural, baalim. Some scholars say this refers to different forms of the main Canaanite god, Baal. He was a god of weather and fertility in family, flocks, and fields. People worshiped him using different styles of idols and by calling him various names: Hadad, Cloud Rider, Baal of [fill in whatever the local region was, such as Baal-zephon or Baal of Peor]. Peor was a mountain in Moab where people worshiped Baal. Baal of Peor was apparently a local representation of him. When women from Moab seduced some of the Israelite men to engage in either ritual sex or just plain ol’ illicit sex, it led the men into idolatry (Numbers 25). Some scholars say one worship ritual involved entertaining Baal by letting him watch people have sex. They did this so he would make it rain. It’s a tad gross, but some taught that the rain was Baal’s semen. So, if the sex of worshipers got Baal stimulated enough, he would make it rain in this predominately dry part of the world.

Also known as Ashtarte, the Greek form of her name. Like Baal, she was a god of fertility. But she was also a go-to god for matters of love and war. Sometimes she’s described as Baal’s wife. Her figurines portray her as well-endowed, and then some—with her privates exposed and prominently displayed. She’s not the same god as Asherah (3:7), who shows up more often in Canaanite archaeological discoveries. Ashtaroth turns up in what are now Iraq and Iran—the land between the rivers, known as Mesopotamia. There, she was usually known as Ishtar.

Leaders in this Bible book are often called “judges,” but that might not be the best word to describe them. Yet the Bible book is named after that term. Most of these leaders, which some Bibles call “special leaders” or “chieftains,” were not judges who tried legal disputes and court cases. Deborah was an exception who did do that (Judges 4:5). The Bible paints these people as standout heroic figures in ancient Jewish history, though some of their stories end sadly: Samson, Gideon, Jephthah. Several of these heroic leaders were warriors: Othniel, Ehud, Barak, Gideon, and Jephthah. For others, we know little more than their names: Tola, Jair, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon. Samson was outstanding among the standouts. But not so much in a good way. It seems that everything he said and did, including what he said in his dying prayer, was for selfish reasons.