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Judges in the Bible

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Compiled by The BibleStudyTools Staff on 02/06/2019
Judges in the Bible

Who were the Judges in the Bible?

Most of the biblical Judges can be found, as expected, in the Book of Judges with additional judges in the books of Joshua and Samuel. They were described as individuals who occupied positions as military rulers in times of conflict, in the era preceding Israelite sovereignty being established.

A repeating trend is commonly conveyed in the Book of Judges to demonstrate the necessity for the numerous judges: apostasy of the Israelite people, catastrophe occurs as punishment from God, then pleading to the Lord for salvation. The biblical narrative of the judges appears to depict successive individuals, each from a different tribe of Israel, portrayed as chosen by God to redeem the people from their enemies (and their own sinful ways) then again secure justice and reverence in society.

List of the Judges found in the Bible:

  1. Joshua
  2. Othniel 
  3. Ehud 
  4. Shamgar 
  5. Deborah 
  6. Gideon 
  7. Abimelech 
  8. Tola 
  9. Jair 
  10. Jephthah 
  11. Ibzan 
  12. Elon 
  13. Abdon 
  14. Samson
  15. Eli 
  16. Samuel

Discover the many Bible verses about these Judges in this collection of scripture quotes!

2 Samuel 15:4

4 And Absalom would add, “If only I were appointed judge in the land! Then everyone who has a complaint or case could come to me and I would see that they receive justice.”
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Revelation 20:4

4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
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Ruth 1:1

1 In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab.
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Deuteronomy 25:1-2

1 When people have a dispute, they are to take it to court and the judges will decide the case, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty.
2 If the guilty person deserves to be beaten, the judge shall make them lie down and have them flogged in his presence with the number of lashes the crime deserves,
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1 Samuel 7:15-17

15 Samuel continued as Israel’s leader all the days of his life.
16 From year to year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah, judging Israel in all those places.
17 But he always went back to Ramah, where his home was, and there he also held court for Israel. And he built an altar there to the LORD.
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2 Chronicles 19:5-7

5 He appointed judges in the land, in each of the fortified cities of Judah.
6 He told them, “Consider carefully what you do, because you are not judging for mere mortals but for the LORD, who is with you whenever you give a verdict.
7 Now let the fear of the LORD be on you. Judge carefully, for with the LORD our God there is no injustice or partiality or bribery.”
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Judges 3:9-11

9 But when they cried out to the LORD, he raised up for them a deliverer, Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, who saved them.
10 The Spirit of the LORD came on him, so that he became Israel’s judge and went to war. The LORD gave Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram into the hands of Othniel, who overpowered him.
11 So the land had peace for forty years, until Othniel son of Kenaz died.
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Judges 2:16-19

16 Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of these raiders.
17 Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. They quickly turned from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the LORD’s commands.
18 Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the LORD relented because of their groaning under those who oppressed and afflicted them.
19 But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their ancestors, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.
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Judges 4:4-10

4 Now Deborah, a prophet, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading Israel at that time.
5 She held court under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went up to her to have their disputes decided.
6 She sent for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, “The LORD, the God of Israel, commands you: ‘Go, take with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun and lead them up to Mount Tabor.
7 I will lead Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his troops to the Kishon River and give him into your hands.’ ”
8 Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.”
9 “Certainly I will go with you,” said Deborah. “But because of the course you are taking, the honor will not be yours, for the LORD will deliver Sisera into the hands of a woman.” So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh.
10 There Barak summoned Zebulun and Naphtali, and ten thousand men went up under his command. Deborah also went up with him.
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Exodus 18:13-26

13 The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening.
14 When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?”
15 Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will.
16 Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.”
17 Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good.
18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.
19 Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to him.
20 Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave.
21 But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
22 Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you.
23 If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”
24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said.
25 He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
26 They served as judges for the people at all times. The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.
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