the chronology of the judges
TRANSCRIPT
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Adventist International Institute
of Advanced Studies
Theological Seminary
THE CHRONOLOGY OF
THE PERIOD OF THE JUDGES
A Paper
Presented in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirement for the Course
OTST 834 Seminar in Biblical History and Backgrounds
By
Patrick Etough A.
April 2010
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THE CHRONOLOGY OFTHE PERIOD OF THE JUDGES
Introduction
For centuries, biblical scholars have widely accepted biblical chronology of
Joshua to Kings as representing an accurate figure. But the new paradigm in Biblical
scholarship is to distance from the old landmark concerning the biblical chronology. Until
recently, to explain the 480 years of 1 Kgs 6:1, for example, Kenneth A Kitchen uses and
appeals to the oft-repeated explanation that this figure is not a total time span, but rather 12
generations made up of an ideal (or full as Kitchen says) generations of 40 years each.1
However, Bryant G. Wood contends that there here is no basis for such an
interpretation, biblical or otherwise. Nowhere in the Bible is it hinted that a full or ideal
generation was 40 years in length. Quite the contrary, in the Hebrew Bible 40 years is often
stipulated as a standard period of elapsed time2. Nevertheless, for Kitchen, Joshua, Moses, the
wilderness years, and the exodus are preceding Merenptah mentions of Israel in Canaan in
his fifth year in ca.1209/1210 B.C. Hence they were contemporary. In this scheme, the
period of the Judges would be placed ca. 1200 B.C. Robert Coote is even more drastic
1
K.A. Kitchen, On the Reliability of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids:Eerdmans, 2003), 307; William F. Albright, A Revision of Early Hebrew Chronology,JPOS1 (1921) 64 n. 1.
2Bryant G. Wood, The Rise and Fall of the 13th-Century Exodus ConquestTheory,Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society48 no 3 (2005): 484,206-207.
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concerning the era of the exodus, conquest, or judges, when he says that [T]hese periods
never existed1
Besides, scholars have recently suggested that the Chronology in the Book of
Judges is a theological and literary creation. For example, the occurrence of repeated 40
years are said to belong, however to the Deuteronomist historian.2 It appears that the
nonexperts have nothing to say, but, the chronology of the Bible need to assessed in order to
evaluate how frightening the image is.
The aim of this term paper is to see whether the Biblical data can figure out a
normal picture that can confirm or infirm the tradition of the Exodus. The premise of this
paper is that the chronology of the book of Judges is not a fancy one. The problem is of
importance since well-known scholars have embraced the 13th-century; for example, the late
R. K. Harrison, held the 13th-century date as reliable.3
The Assyriologist and scholars of
renown Donald J. Wiseman holds to the 13th-century exodus date.4 To these we can add the
1Ancient Israel: A New Horizon(Minneapolis: Fortress, 1990) 2-3.
2Jeremy Hughes, Secrets of the Times: Myth and History in Biblical Chronology, Journalfor the Study of the Old Testament Sup. 66(JSOT Sup.), (Sheffield: Sheffield AcademicPress, 1990), 71.; nowadays scholarship lends to a pan Deuteuronomist history; howeverwhat do we know about him and what is not even Deuteronomist in the Hebrew Bible?How does it relate to the books of Joshua-king? In fact, voices started to question whetherone should continue to talk about the Deuteronomistic author when there are no clear hintsin how Deuteronomy relate to these books. Is such an unified work ever existed? How dowe explain the uniqueness of each book? See Lindo S. Sharing and Steven L. McKenzie, TheElusive Deuteronomist: The Phenomenon of Pan-Deuteronomism, JSOT Sup. No 268 (1999), 68,116.
3
R. K. Harrison, Introduction to the Old Testament(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1969),115-16.
4Cf. 1 & 2 Kings(TOTC; Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1993), 104.
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names of Alan Millard,1
and, of course, Kitchen, who has been championing the date for
long.2
Models for the Conquest of Canaan
The study of the Chronology of Judges implies an understanding of how
Canaan was conquered. In fact, the disbelief of the Biblical chronology of Joshua-Judge is
usually connected to Israel settlement in Canaan. Theories about Israelite nomadism have
been strongly challenged in recent years and confidence in the conquest model has
disappeared as the matches between biblical accounts of conquest and archaeological
evidences are usually interpreted as if God did not exist.
Four models have been used into scholarship. The conquest model, which is
tied to the arrival of Israel as it found in the Biblical text of Joshua. The infiltration model,
which is based on an existing Israelite league or confederation in a nomadic fashion, the
liberation model suggesting that Israel came from an outside position and by the help of
some Canaanite populations; yet this allow also that this group of Israelite might have come
from Egypt, where they escaped from slavery. This theory is also known as the revolution
model. The other model, called the pioneer settlement model consider that Israel was a
native of Canaan and then they settled from the urban part of the land to the wilds of the
highlands3
1
Picture Archive of the Bible(Tring, Herts.: Lion Books, 1987), 22.2Ancient Orient and the Old Testament(Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1966) 57-69;
Idem., The Bible in Its World(Exeter: Paternoster, 1977) 75-79; Idem., On the Reliability of theOld Testament(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003) 307-9.
3See Susan Niditch, Judges, Oxford Bible Commentary, eds. John Barton andJohn Muddiman (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), 176-78.
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Biblical Model
Notwithstanding the new trend in scholarship, the biblical model is still valid.
Chronologically speaking, Judges follows the death of the disciples of Moses, Joshua (Josh
24:29; Jdg 2:8), after the seven years of conquest (Josh 14:6-10). 1 Within the scale of Israel
chronology, the book of Judges is set in a time of turmoil, and before the existing king who
ruled Israel or before any ritual actions and sacred sanctuary whereby worship was
centralized. Leaders, at times, could even be boasting villain whose influence last only
during their lifetimes, for at that times, the twelve tribes were seen as unity. They had to
unite to fight enemies as a member of one family; this could justify why judges were rotating,
geographically speaking.
The pattern of the book is simple, for it is delineated between apostasy, and
punishment by allowing the enemies to have durable dominance on Gods people; then, the
people would distress and repent, and the raising of a deliverer or the Judge who would
deliver them by Gods power, then would follow a time of rest or peace until the death of
the leader; yet also another relapse into apostasy would come (3:7-10;12;15; 4:1; 6:1-10; 10:6-
16; 13:1).
The Biblical Chronology
Nevertheless, Does the Bible provide us with an absolute date for the exodus or
any others events for that matter? Do the books of Joshua-Judges can be used for a serious
1
The Assemblies of Gilgal and Shilo, The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary(SDABC), ed. Francis D. Nichol (Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald, 1977), 2:125,suggest that the campaigns of Jordan lasted six or seven years since Caleb was 40 years in thesecond years of the Exodus, hence his discourse in Josh 14:6-15 would have been in the46th/47th years.
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dating of OT events? James K. Hoffmeir rejects these options.1 He says that Biblical figures
taking back from 1 Kgs 6:1 in a retrograded order to the book of Exodus when he considers
the data of the OT:
3 years Solomons 4th year (1 Kgs 6:1)40 years - the length of Davids reign (1 Kgs 2:10)40 years - the length of Sauls reign (1 Sam 13:1)230 years - estimated length of Samuels leadership340 years - length of Elis judgeship (1 Sam 4:18)20 years - length of Samsons judgeship (Judg 15:20)40 years - length of Philistine oppression (Judg 13:1)8 years - length of Abdons judgeship (Judg 12:14)10 years - length of Elons judgeship (Judg 12:11)
7 years - length of Ibzans judgeship (Judg 12:9)6 years - length of Jephthahs judgeship (Judg 12:7)
18 years - length of Ammonite oppression (Judg 10:8)22 years - length of Jairs judgeship (Judg 10:3)23 years - length of Tolas judgeship (Judg 10:2)3 years - length of Abimelechs rulership (Judg 9:22)40 years - period of Gideons deliverance and peace (Judg 8:22)
7 years - length of Midians oppression (Judg 6:1)40 years - period of peace after Deborah and Barak's victory (Judg 5:31)20 years - length of Jabins oppression (Judg 4:3)3 years - length of Shamgars judgeship (Judg 3:31)80 years - period of Ehuds deliverance and peace (Judg 3:30)18 years - length of Moabite oppression (Judg 3:14)
40 years - period of peace after Othniels victory (Judg 3:11)8 years - length of Mesopotamian oppression (Judg 3:8)
20 years - period from end of conquest to death of Joshua and the elders (Judg 2:6-7)1
7 years - period of Joshuas conquest until the tribal allotments1
1James K. Hoffmeir, What is the Biblical Date for the Exodus? A Response toBryant Wood,Journal of Evangelical Theological Society (JETS) 50 no 2 (2007): 226.
2Ibid., he says, There is a textual problem with 1 Sam 13:1 in the MT. The textliterally reads: Saul was . . . years old when he began to reign; and he reigned . . . and twoyears (RSV). Clearly, the 10 figure did not survive. As a consequence, some LXX witnesses
drop the verse altogether, while others read that he was 31 years when he began to reign andreigned 42 years, and others switch it around. Paul allots Saul 40 years in Acts 13:21.
7According to 1 Sam 7:15, Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. For thepurpose this study, I offer the conservative sum of 30 years. Probably a longer period is inview by the 1 Sam 7:14 reference. Ibid., 226.
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40 years - length of time in the wilderness (Num 14:33)633 years - total number
Hoffmeir listing does not account for any overlapping. Yet, it is difficult to
place consecutively the chronological periods of the events given in the book of Judges. It
seems difficult to harmonize them with the book of 1 Samuel-to 1 Kgs 6:1 and at the same
time do justice to the early date scheme. Various solutions have been proposed. Do the
Judges were overlapping? The text does not help much as to answer that. The writers was
interested to show only that whenever the people forsook the Lord he sold them in the hand
of the enemies and then delivered them after repentance by the effort of the Judges.
Prior to the 1970s, it was a common practice to identify the Patriarchal period,
the route of the Exodus, and the Israelite Conquest of Canaan in direct relation to
archaeological finds. This was a dominant agenda among leading scholars like William F.
Albright and his followers, Roland de Vaux, and the founders of biblical archaeology in
Israel, which included Benjamin Mazar, Yigael Yadin, and others. Modern scholars over the
past three decades, and, today, many scholars have abandoned the biblical model and regard
these stories as late fictional creations with distinct theological and ideological messages and
little or no chronological worth. Others emphasize that these accounts reflect and preserve
certain components that are rooted in second-millennium B.C. material from everyday life,
while conservative scholars still claim that many of these stories reflect true historical events
as they stand in the Hebrew text. Today, almost all the critical scholars have accepted that
1 Here he says, This figure is an estimate, and the figure minimal. If we takeJoshua's lifespan of 110 years literally, and realize that he is called a youth (1?3) in Exod33:11 while the Israelites were at Mt. Sinai, even if we allot him 25 years, plus 40 years forthe remaining time in the wilderness, and 7 years for the conquest, this would make him 72,giving him 38 years until his death and the beginning of the period of the judges. So the 20-year figure suggested here is minimal indeed.
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the stories as they have come down to us are a product of a Deuteronimist Israelite hand
from the time of the monarchy of even later.1
The months were numbered from Abib or Nissan, in the spring, whereas the
years were generally reckoned from the fall. This paper accept the Hebrew dating models of
kings that puts the spring of Solomons 4th year in 966 B.C., in the year 480 from Exodus.
Then the Exodus, in the 1st year of that period, 479 years earlier, was in 1445 B.C., and thus
the conquest of Heshbon and the other Amorite territory late in 1406; the crossing of the
Jordan in the spring of 1405, and the gathering at Gilgal after the war in Canaan, in 1400 or
1399.2
This paper does not regard the book of Judges as an embellished account of
what happened between the period of conquest and the rise of the monarchy. The book is
considered as historical, and his actors are also considered as historical figures that are
arranged in the order of their occurrence as to the events in which they are mentioned, as
well as the numbers within the text would not be imaginary.3
The Theory of Round Numbers
As mentioned in the introduction, mostly scholars who accept the late dating
scheme see the terminus ad quemfor Israel settlement ca. 1212 B.C. based on the stele of the
Egyptian Pharaoh Mer-ne-Ptah in his fifth year mentioning Israel as a people living in
1
Israel Finkelstein And Amihai Mazar, The Quest For The Historical Israel:DebatingArchaeology And The History Of Early Israel(Leiden: Brill, 2007), 68.
2The Assemblies of Gilgal and Shilo, SDABC, 2: 125.
3For the evaluation of Judges in the twentieth century, especially in the last twodecades, see Marc Zvi Brettler, The Book of Judges(London: Routlege, 2002), 3-10.
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Canaan whom he has pacified. This has caused proponents of this model to consider the
number 480 in 1 Kgs 6:1, and the 300 years of Jephtah as merely symbolic numbers or round
numbers.1 It is considered to be intentionally exaggerated numbers in order to strengthen
his dispute with the Ammonites.2
However, the review of biblical usage of the number 40 gives another picture.
The expression occurs 93 times in the Hebrew Bible. Usually, it is used within the frame of
the record of the age, and the chronology of kings. For example, Solomon reigned and
David reigned 40 years (1 Kgs 2:10; 1 Kgs 11:42); Elis judgeship lasted 40 years (1 Sam
4:18); the period of peace after Deborah and Baraks victory was 40 years (Judg 5:31); 40
years of peace followed Gideon's delivery (Judg 8:22); and the Philistines oppressed Israel
for 40 years leading to Samsons exploits (Judg 13:1). next, too, there is the noticeable
division of Moses life into three 40-year periods (Exod 7:7; Deut 34:7) and the 40 years in
the wilderness (Num 14:33-34; 32:13; Deut 2:7; 8:2, 4).
1Kitchen,Ancient Orient, 72-73; H. H. Rowley, From Joseph To Joshua: Biblical
Traditions In The Light Of Archaeology(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1950), 87-88.
2Hoffmeir, 236; However, scholars continue to suggest that, in addition, Judg
11:26 argues for a 15th-century exodus-conquest. In this passage Jephthah stated in aletter to the king of Ammon, for three hundred years Israel occupied Heshbon, Aroer,
the surrounding settlements and all the towns along the Arnon. Although it is not
possible to calculate precise dates for Jephthah, various scholars have estimated the
beginning of his judgeship between 1130 and 1073 BC. SO the implication is that thetribe of Reuben had been occupying the disputed area from the Wadi Hes-ban to the
Arnon River since ca. 1400 BC. See Bimson,Redating103 (1130 BC); John H. Walton,Chronological and Background Charts of the Old Testament(Grand Rapids: Zondervan,
1978) 48 (1086 BC); Leon Wood,Distressing Days of the Judges (Grand Rapids:Zondervan, 1975) 411 (1078 BC); Kitchen,Reliability 207 (1073 BC);Wood, The RiseAnd Fall Of The 13th-Century Exodus-Conquest Theory, 475-89.
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The right question to ask is why the number 40 does occurs so frequently? And
is it just a coincidence that the last judge and the first three kings, Eli, Saul,
David, and
Solomon, ruled for 40 years? Hoffmeir indicates that the phenomenon is not unique to
Israelites historiography. By way of contrast, no Egyptian pharaoh in 3000 years of recorded
history ruled 40 years, and only two early Assyrian kings are allotted approximately 40 years
in recently published eponym lists from Kultepe, Irishum I (c. 1974-1935 BC, Middle
Chronology) and Sharrukin (c. 1920-1881 BC).
Wood suggests that for the Hebrew Bible 40 years are often stipulated as a
standard period of elapsed time.1
However, not only it could mean that, but also, the
number 40 simply seems to shows that God is behind the scene, He is at work in the life
and events of his people. For example, we see also in the New Testament that all the
generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, given that there are from
David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to
1Wood, 484, here is the summary of 40 in the Bible: During the flood it rained
for 40 days and nights (Gen 7:4,12,17); 40 days after the ark landed Noah sent out a raven(Gen 8:6); Isaac was 40 years old when he married Rebekah (Gen 25:20), as was Esau whenhe married Judith (Gen 26:34); the embalming of Jacob took 40 days (Gen 50:3); the spiesspent 40 days in Canaan (Num 13:25; 14:34); Joshua was 40 when he went with the spies toCanaan (Josh 14:7); Israel spent 40 years in the wilderness (Exod 16:35; Num 14:33, 34;32:13; Deut 2:7; 8:2, 4; 29:5; Josh 5:6; Neh 9:21; Ps 95:10; Amos 2:10; 5:25); Moses was onMt. Sinai 40 days and nights the first time he received the law (Exod 24:18; Deut 9:9, 11), ashe was the second time (Exod 34:28; Deut 10:10); Moses fasted 40 days and nights for thesin of the golden calf (Deut 9:18, 25); there were 40 years of peace during the judgeships ofOthniel (Judg 3:11), Deborah (Judg 5:31), and Gideon (Judg 8:28); the Israelites wereoppressed by the Philistines 40 years (Judg 13:1); Eli judged Israel 40 years (1 Sam 4:18); Ish-
Bosheth was 40 when he took the throne following Saul's death (2 Sam 2:10); David reignedfor 40 years (2 Sam 5:4; 1 Kgs 2:11; 1 Chr 29:27), as did Solomon (1 Kgs 11:42; 2 Chr 9:30)and Joash (2 Kgs 12:1; 2 Chr 24:1); Elijah traveled 40 days and nights from the desert ofBeersheba to Mt. Horeb (1 Kgs 19:8); Ezekiel lay on his right side for 40 days for the 40years of the sins of Judah (Ezek 4:6); Ezekiel predicted that Egypt would be uninhabited for40 years (Ezek 29:11-13); and Jonah preached that Nineveh would be overturned in 40 days(Jon 3:4).
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Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations (Matt 1:17). Thus, there are no strong warrants
to doubt biblical numbers when they are not too large and are consequently used within a
narrative and other books.
furthermore, the Study by Umberto Cassuto upon the Hebrew numbers in the
Bible is significant. He posits that whenever a biblical number is written in ascending order
(e.g. thirty and one hundred), the number is intended to be understood as a precise number:
since the tendency to exactness in these instances causes the smaller numbers to be given
precedence and prominence. On the other hands, those written in descending order (two
hundreds and twenty), are too be taken as non-technical numbers within the narrative,
poems, speeches or the like. The number in 1 Kgs 6:1 being written in ascending order, in
the eightieth year and four hundredth year, hence has to be taken as a accurate numeral.1
The Historical and Literary Context of the book of Judges
Obviously establishing a precise chronology for the period of Judges involves
the discussion over debated of the dating of Exodus, which waves between an early date ca.
1440 B.C. and a late date ca. 1290 B.C., as well to what extend the Judges overlapped among
the different periods of their rules in the time of oppression and of their estate of peace and
rest (rule of Judges 9:22; 10:2,3; 12:7,9,14; 15:20; peace: 3:11,30; 5:31; 8:28; oppression
3:8,14; 4:3; 6:1; 10:2,3; 13:1 ).
But, this paper accepts the early dating model. After the death of Joshua at the
age of 110 (1:1; cf. 2:8), Judah helped with Simeon fought for his allotted in the Canaanites
1Umberto Cassuto, The Documentary Hypothesis and the Composition of the Pentateuch(Jerusalem: Magnes, 1961) 52.
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and Perizzites territory unto Debir. By Gods help they subjugated Adoni Bezek, captured
Jerusalem and defeated the Canaanites in the Negev, at Hebron, as far as Hormah. Even,
Judah was able to takeGaza, Askhalon and Ekron and their provinces (1:1-18).
However, though the Lord was with them, they did not drive out the
inhabitants. This was true for Judah, Benjamin, Manasseh, Ephraim, Zabulon, Asher,
Naphtali, and Dan who was retrenched into the hill country by the Amorites (1:19-36). They
forced these autochthones to labor for them.
Chapter 2, starts with the police report of the Angel of the Lord; he then said:
Now the angel of the LORD went up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, I brought you
up from Egypt and brought you into the land that I swore to give to your fathers. I said, 'I
will never break my covenant with you, and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants
of this land; you shall break down their altars. But you have not obeyed my voice. What is
this you have done?So now I say, I will not drive them out before you, but they shall
become thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you. Then the main narrative
who is covered in the chronological motif of the book is introduced by and it happen,
which signals a past tense narrative (49 x in the book). A reading of the book of Judges
reveals that the book is symmetric and embodies seven narratives. The book of Judges
seems to propose a concentric chiasm:1
A. OTHNIEL (3:7-11): Represents faithfulness compared to others (1:11-15)
B. EHUD and SHAMGAR: Killed the enemies (3:28-30)
C. DEBORAH,BARAK, JAEL (4:1-5:31)
1I am indebted to J. Robert Vannoy, Judges: Theology of,New InternationalDictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis, ed. Willem A. Van Gemeren(Grand Rapids,MI: Zondervan, 1997), 4:830.
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GIDEON: Against Gods enemy (6:-8:32)
C. ABIMELECH,TOLA, and JAIR (8:33-10:5)
B. JEPHTAH, IZDAN,ELON,ABDON (10:6-12:15)
A. SAMSOM (13:1-16:31): Samson unfaithfulness resemble the Israelites in chp 1.
This structure emphasizes the narrative of Gedeon. It takes ten mini narratives
introduces by and it happen (6:7,25,27,38,40; 7:6,9,15; 8:26,27) and close by his
death in 8:33 by the same device. At this narratives starting from his career until death
shows the decline of Israelite society as a whole.
The following chronological table is built upon the background of the people
response to Gods message that came because of the unfaithfulness of Israel to carry Gods
commandment (see 1:28-36-2:1-3). Then it is followed by the death of Joshua and his burial
until the next generation who did not testifies of the powerful deeds of Gods in the life of
Joshua. The book is in fact a story about how Israel reacted in the situation their
unfaithfulness created to Gods obedience. In fact, the book is a vindication of God
faithfulness (2:11-3:4).
Discussion of the Chronology
It is important to know that any chronology is not infallible. For example, the
Egyptian chronology is still hard to be anonymously accepted. To this day, the construction
of a final Egyptian chronology remains an extremely difficult task.1 Herodotus and Scaligers
chronology have chronological contradiction. For example, Herodotus made Rameses II of
the 19th Dynasty (ca. 1345-1200 B.C.) to succeed Cheops in the 4th Dynasty(ca. 2600-2480
1Chantepie de la Saussage, D.P. Illustrated History of Religions(Sposo-Preobrazhenky Staurapigial Monastery of Valaam ; reprint 1992), 1: 95-98.
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B.C.). Herodotus chronology was much shorter than Scanligers version of kings
chronology; and it does not concurs with the list of Kings found in Manethos fragment1
Usually two schemes of Egyptian chronology exist, and they were developed in
the 19th century. The consensual version is the short one, though containing also deep and
unresolved contradictions.2
Therefore, the problem related to chronological studies must always take into
account the possibility of simultaneous and paralleled reigns; this would reduce to a large
extend the excess of years found. For example, a simultaneous reign was a tool that helped
to reduce for 30 years the discrepancies in Manethos chronology.
In term of chronology, the distinction drawn at time between minor and major
Judges is not followed in the following table.3 They were all Judges according to the text,
though they did not have the function of deliverers for they exercised their Judgeship in
time of peace. Concerning the text of chronological data, the Massoretic Text, the Targum
and the LXX all agree, and there are no textual corruptions:
Deliverance to the Oppressors Formula of Repentance Deliverance and Peace
X period of the elders (2:7)
1Anotoly T. Fomenko, History: Fiction or Science?(London: Delamere Ressource,2003), 23.
2Ibid., 24.
3
See for eg., P.E. Satterthawaite, Judge, Dictionary of the Old Testament HistoricalBooks (DOTHB), eds. Bill T. Arnold and H.G.M. Williamson (Downers Grove, IL: 2005),582-84; Kitchen, Reliability, 200,202, he says, The only difference between the major andminor judges is that the former are reported on in some detail, for their role as (in theancient author's eyes) divinely commissioned deliverers for Israel locally and sometimesmore widely.
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Cushan-Rishathaim: 8Years (3:8) ((Qal, v. 9 Othniel 40 years (3:11)
Moab, Eglon 18 years (3:14) ((Qal, v.15 Ehud 80 years (3:30)
Jabin King of Canaan 20 years (4:1-3) ((Hiphil, v. 13 Deborah/Barak40 years (5:31)
Midian 7 years (6:1) (Qal, 6:6) Gideon 40 Years (6:2-8,28)
Family and tribal strive underAbimelech and genocide 3 years (9:22)Tola, son of Puah 23 (10:1-2)
Jair of Galaad 22 years (10:3)
Philistines/Ammonites 18 years (10:8) ((Qal, 10:10 Jephta 6 years (12:7)
Ibzan of Bethlehem 7 years (12:8-9)
Elon, Zebulon10
years (12:11)
Abdon son of Hiller 8 years
Philistines 40 years (13:2-15) Samson 20 years (15:20/16:31)
Total years of persecution =111 years Total years of rest = 299 years
Total years from the death of the elders to the first years of Jephta 301/300 years
Total years 410 years (111+299) from the death of elders to the death of Samson
There is a three units moves that have been notices by L.G. Stone, that the
literary moves is segmented in three units: successful Judges (Ehud and Deborah),
transitional Judges (Gideon and Abimelech), and tragic leaders (Jephthah and Samson).
Added to that is the fact that Othniel, Ehud, Deborah and Gideons time is a multiple of the
oppression years.1
In Judges 2:7 it is said: And the people served the LORD all the days of
Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work
that the LORD had done for Israel. In this chart, it represents the x- period, if we add the
1L.G. Stone, Judges, Book of, DOTHB, 601.
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x years (from oppression and deliverance under Othniel until the Philistines/Ammonites),
until the time Jephtah said, While Israel lived in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and
its villages, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, 300 years, why did you
not deliver them within that time? (11:26), we obtain 301/300 + x (x may stand for 25 or
more). From the Ammonites/Philistines persecution, there are 109 years. Hence, the total
oppression and deliverance, which is 410 years, could be more than this figure, for example
450 years of length if the period of the elders is taken to be 40 years.
The idolatry-deliverance proceeded by the cry for help is lacking during the
period of the Judges of peaceful, and also in the case of Samson. The texts vary in many
occasions, small spaces are reserved with some Judges whereas Gideons family occupied 3
chapters, and Samsons story is not as straightforward as Othniel case is.
A closer look at the geographical repartition of the Judges lends to understand
that they were some overlap between the periods:
North South/West East
Othniel 40 yearsvs
Cushan-Rishathaim: 8Years
Samson 20 yearsvs
Philistines 40 years
Ehud 80 yearsvs
Moab, Eglon 18 yearsDeborah/Barak40 years
vsJabin King of Canaan 20 years
Gideon 40 YearsVs
Midian 7 yearsAbimelech 3 years
Tola, son of Puah 23
Jair of Galaad 22 years
Jephta 6 yearsvs
Philistines/Ammonites 18 yearsIbzan of Bethlehem 7 years
Abdon son of Hiller 8
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The obvious distribution shows that disobedience did not affect the tribes in the
same way. The northern part spent about 28 years of affliction under the Canaanites
monarch and spent eventually 80 years of rest. Samson in the south-west partly covered the
40 years of hardship under the dominion of the Philistines. For he was Judges in the
days of the Philistines according to the text. Gideons episode involves several episodes,
but his legacy brought familys strive, internal fight and genocide for 3 years; the Eastern part
of Israel shows more stability, however. Their Judges have the privilege to be presented
through their posterity in life (eg., Jair, and Abdon).
The persecution under the time of Samson seems to be contemporaneous. The
text asserts that: So the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he sold them
into the hand of the Philistines and into the hand of the Ammonites (ESV, 10:7), Hence, the
40 years of the Philistines oppression seem to have been partly contemporaneous with the
18 years of servitude to the Ammonites. This means that we have 20 years to take away,
since Samson Judgeship lasted 20 years in the same period.
Then follows the description of the Ammonite oppression and the deliverance
by Jephthah (10:8 to 12:7), and after this an enumeration of the three judges who succeeded
him, evidently unimportant characters of whom little more is recorded than the duration of
their judgeships, totaling 25 years (12:815). Then chapter 13 returns to the 40-years of the
Philistine oppression to recount the life of Samson, and how he began to deliver Israel
from the Philistines. Thus, the Scripture indicates that the Philistine oppression and the
Ammonite oppression were contemporaneous.1
1Some periods overlap, SDABC, 2:127.
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Period of Judges and the elders 410 + x years
Elies Judgeship 40 years (1 Sam 4:18)1
Samuel Judgeship 12 years (7:2?)
Sauls reign 40 years (cf. Acts 13:21; 1 Sam 13:1)
Davids reign 40 years (2 sam 2:11; 5:4,5)
Solomons fourth reign = 480 (3 years) 1 Kgs 6:1 = 543 years to the Exodus + x
Minor Problems Related to Chronology
The Age of Joshua
Another element that needs at this stage to be dealt with is the age of Joshua.
What was the x age of Joshua and the elders?. Caleb could have been older than Joshua,
because he is usually named before him (Num 14:38; 26:65; 32:12); yet Joshua also is named
before him (Num 14:6). In addition, he is named as a young man in Exod 33:11.
However, the term in the context of service could mean also (man) servant (cf. Gen 22:3).
Joshua was already 85 years old during the time of the conquest, but he is never called old,
whereas at the same period, Joshua is called old (Josh 14:13; Judg 1:20 ). Joshua would
have had 102 years (cf. Josh 13:1) and after 7 years of conquest, he had 110 years (Josh 23:1;
24:29). Thus, the elders who survived Joshua would have been in twenty more years, there
Joshua and the elders would take roughly 25 years. Finally, we have the final figure of 568
years from the elders to the fourth years of Solomon.
1Some Greek versions and two Latin version (93,94) have 20, but it ought to be
discarded since the Latin is often a daughter translation of the LXX.
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Problems with the Reign of Saul
Concerning the exact reign of Saul, most commentators consider it to be an
omission by the copyist. MT and Targum have the first impossible reading: MT-13a
/TG13a And Saul was a year old.they were no sins in him (MT lack
the phrase)/when he became king and he reigned two years over Israel. MT13b-
/ TG13b .1 The entire verse is missing in LXXB.
LXXOP partially and the LXXL omit the v.2 Others witnesses of Lucianic origins have
30 years(oe2; bc2 = MT; cf. NIV, NLT), according to Ralph W. Klein, it
seems to be a secondary calculation (cf. 2 sam 5:4).3
Josephus seems to mingle two
different tradition Now Saul, when he had reigned eighteen years while Samuel was alive
( (Ant 6:378 ),
two [and twenty] ( (Ant. 6:378 ), yet elsewhere he says that Saul was in
power for twenty years (Ant. 10.143). The book of Acts of Apostle has the tradition of forty
(13:21) which confirms the figure of Josephus. The Peshitta has 21 years, but omits the 2
years of reign.
It is suggested that: The corresponding formula for David appears in 2 Sam.
5:4 (see also 2 Kings 21:1; 24:8, 18; etc.). If the similar omissions to those that appear to
have occurred in 1 Sam. 13:1 had been made in a comparable text, such as 2 Kings 21:1, it
1 NRSV, NJPST, NET and P.K., McKarter, I Samuel, Anchor Bible, vol. 8(Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1980), Emmanuel Tov, Textual Criticism of the HebrewBible(Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992), 10, 253, give a summary of the unusual aspect of thetext which has been altered during the transmission of the text.
2And have (Simmachus has ).
3Ralph W. Klein, 1 Samuel, Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 10, ed. David A.Hubbard (Word: Texas, 1983), 122 no 1a.
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would read: Manasseh was years old when he began to reign, and reigned and five
years in Jerusalem. In basic construction the two passages are identical.1
Juluis Wellhausen suggests to correct two as it is a corrupt duplication of
the following years, hence it would be like this: Saul wasyears old when he began
to reign, and he reignedyears over Israel2 However, the first clause is clearly corrupt,
whereas, the second part is not at all, two years is textually what stands. The fact that the
Peshitta omits two years of reign seems to show that two is the original figure. According to
the note of NET bible:
The statement in v. 1 is intended to be a comprehensive report on the length of Saulsreign, the number is too small. According to Acts 13:21 Saul reigned for forty years.Some English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT), taking this forty to be a roundnumber, add it to the two years of the MT and translate the number in 2 Sam 13:1as forty-two years. While this is an acceptable option, the present translation insteadreplaces the MTs two with the figure forty. Admittedly the textual evidence forthis decision is weak, but the same can be said of any attempt to restore sense to thisdifficult text (note the ellipsis marks at this point in NAB, NRSV).
The important question is whether two years allows enough time for the various
events that are reported about Saul life in the Bible to probably having taken place. The
phrase seems faulty, for it is not the Hebrew formula of two years (see 2 sam
2:10, , or the dual in 1 Kg 15:25, 16:8, 22:52, 2 Kgs 15:23, 21:19, ). S.R.Drivers understands that the text is possibly a late insertion into the MT, conceivably, it was
11Saul Reigned one year, SDABC, 2:505.
2Julius Wellhausen, Der Text der Bcher samuelis untersucht(Gttingen:
Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht, 1871), cited in McCarter, 222; Paul Dhorme, Les livres de Samuel(Paris Gabalda and Cie., 1910), 108, says, le verset, inintelligible dans lhbreu actuel,nexiste pas dans G (B,A). La formule est celle de II Sam. X,4; I Reg. XIV,21, etc SelonHitzig, suivi par Wellhausen, le rdacteur avait laiss un espace blanc devant et .Lespace aurait t combl devant par une double lecture des premires lettres du mot.Selon Peters, un manuscrit aurait eu en marge deuxime anne, do un rdacteuraurait tir la formule courante, dbutant par .
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a marginal reading that found is way into the main text.1 In addition, he says, in view of the
age at which Jonathan, almost immediately after Sauls accession, appears, a higher figure
seems to be required.2
Josephus Reckoning
After the Judgeship of Elie, Samuel reigned 12 years and with the king Saul, he
judged for 18 years; hence 30 years, though we consider only 12 for our chronological
computation (Ant. 6.294). Concerning the death of Saul, Josephus said: Now Saul, when he
had reigned eighteen years while Samuel was alive, and after his death two [and twenty],
ended his life in this manner. (Ant 6:378). Seems to mean that Saul had reigned 18 years
while Samuel was alive, and 2 after his death; hence Saul reign 22 more after Samuel death,
therefore it agrees with the forty years of Acts his total reign.
This figure gives more than five-century between Joshua and the third years of
Solomon (if we consider one years of Co-regency). It is exactly 529 years to the Exodus,
thus 49 years of excess need to be explained.
Attempts of Synchronization
If we accept the fourth year of Solomon to be in the spring 966B.C., then a
sketch of the chronology of Judges may be undergone. In addition, if we take from the
480th year after the Exodus will make the Exodus commences in the year ca.1445 B.C., and
the crossing of the Jordan at ca. 1405 B.C. Now in working forward until the time of
1S.R. Driver,Notes on the Hebrew Text and Topography of the Book of Samuel of Samuel,2d ed. rev. and enl. (Oxford: Clarendon, 1913), 97 no 1.
2Ibid.; see also Alden Thompson,A Prcatical Guide to Abundant Christian Living inthe Book of Samuel, The Abundant Life Bible Amplifier, ed. George Knight (Boise, ID:PacificPress, 1995), 103-104.
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Solomon we find interesting complementally chronological data as the following table will
show:1
ISRAEL UNDER THEJUDGES B.C. EGYPTIAN KINGS
The Exodus 1446Eighteenth Dynasty Wandering period in the Wilderness (40 years) 1446-1406
Invasion of Canaan (6/7 years) 1406-1399 Amenhotep III
Israel under Joshua and the elders (25 years) 1399-1374 Ikhnaton, Smenkhkare
Tutankhamen, EyeOthniels liberation from Chushan rishathaims8year oppression and period of rest of 40years (= 48 years) 1374-1326
Harmhab
Nineteenth Dynasty
Ramses I
Seti I
Seti in Palestine
Ramses II
Ehuds liberation from 18 years of Moabiteoppression and 80 years rest of southern andeastern tribes (= 98 years) 1326-1228 Battle at Kadesh
Deborah and Baraks liberation after Jabins 20years of oppression in the north and 20 Rest inthe north (40 years) 1228-1118
Merneptah and other weak kings
Twentieth Dynasty
Gideons liberation from 7year Midianiteoppression and 40 years of Gideons rule(47 years) 1118-1141 Ramses III
Abimelechs kingship over Shechem for 3 years 1141-1138 War against Peoples of the Sea
Jephta and the Philistines/Ammonites
oppression (24 years)
1138-1114
Tola, Jair, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon peacefulsyears(63)
1144-1044 Ramses IV-XI
Twentyfirst Dynasty
Beginning of Philistine oppression anddeliverance from Samson (40 20 = 20 years)
1044-1024
Elie Judges in Israel (40 years) 1024-984 (High priests of Amen as kings ofEgypt)
Samuel judge in Israel (12 years) 984-972
Sauls reign (40 Years) 972-932
Davids reign (40 years) 932-892
Solomon beginning reign (3 years) 892-889
1Chronology of the Period, SDBC, 2:35; cf. 1:191.
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There is a gap of 77 years from the 4th year of Solomon (is the 3th year, since
they had 1 year of co-regency, cf. 1 Chr 28-29) to the years of the Exodus 1446 B.C. As fair
as possible, it is not really possible to present a complete an exact scheme of chronology
based on the date given in Joshua-Judges. What has been done is a tentative chronology
that, possibly, may fit within the frame of the Exodus-monarchic period in the 480th year or
fourth year of Solomon reign.
Thus, if the 1st year of the Exodus has to be placed earlier in 1446 B.C. and the
conquest in 1406 after the crossing of the Jordan in the spring 1405, there is this uncertain
77 years that need to be play off. The chronology suffers from the fact that the book of
Judges lack of important details of the history during the period. What was evident for the
writer of Judges is not for our modern time. But whether many of these events happened in
succession or had some contemporaneity in other tribes, the writer is all inclusive.
Kitchen sees the Judges as a series of local leaders who partly covered the same
period in their leadership with other Judges in other geographical area. He telescopes the
period of the Judges drastically. For example, Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar delivered their
population around 1195-1170 B.C. whereas, Deborak and Baraks deliverance and the forty
years of peace that came after overlapped with the eighty years of peace following Ehuds
victory (Judg 3:30; 5:31); Jephtah and Samson are considered by him to be contemporary in
the time of Elis Judgeship.1 While it is true that, this paper agrees with the fact that
different parts of the land knew peace and conflict at the same time, but to fit these events
within 160 years only, from ca. 1200-1042 B.C. is incompatible with the Biblical account.
1Kitchen, On theReliability, 204-10.
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Kitchens approach has the merit to accommodate almost all given in Judges,
however, it does fail to interpret the figure given in Judg 11:26, the 300 years and 1 Kgs 6:1,
the 480 years symbolically. Yet, in 1 Kgs 6: 37, in conclusion says, In the fourth year the
foundation of the house of the LORD was laid, in the month of Ziv, hence this can be
hardly be considered as figurative in essence.
P.E. Satterthwaite, says that a corollary of Kitchens approach is that Israel had
more local leaders than mentioned in the book. Then there are matters to inquire, what was
their achievement? Why the text of Judges did not include them?1
As suggested earlier, we agree with Kitchen when he indicates certain that many
periods partly cover the same time. However, Kitchen radical 160 years seems too high.
The 63 years of what of the peaceful Judges (Tola = 22 years, Jair = 22 years, Ibzan = 7
years, Elon =10 years, Abdon = 8 years = 70) would have as well overlap geographically and
chronologically.
Despite the image of negativistic interpretations of the archaeological data, there
are in some cases the archeological data do not contradict at all the Conquest stories.
Though Archeology, in the hands of skeptical excavators, cannot confirm that Israelite tribes
were responsible for the destruction of the Canaanites cities, the Israelites Conquest remains
an historical event, because they would have been more difficult to create of all pieces such a
story. How can we imagine, as many do, that all these were a melting pot of invented
memories? 2
1Judges, Dictionary of the Old Testament: Historical Books, eds. Bill T. Arnold andH.G.M. Williamson (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2005), 591.
2See for these Amihai Mazar, The Patriarchs, Exodus, and Conquest Narrativesin Light of Archaeology, in Israel Finkelstein And Amihai Mazar, The Quest For The HistoricalIsrael:Debating Archaeology And The History Of Early Israel(Leiden: Brill, 2007), 78.
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Given an Exodus toward ca. 1446 B.C. and a defeat of Sihon ca. 1406 B.C., then
Jephthah statement would be placed ca. 1106 B.C., eighteen years after the
Philistine/Ammonites oppression (10:7-8) began, ca. 1124 B.C. (Howard, 118).1
Conclusion
Clearly, much of what we have suggested is not speculative. The Biblical data
can figure out a normal picture that can confirm the Early date scheme as 1 Kings 6:1 holds
and it may as well infirm the tradition of an late model for the Exodus.
It has been seen that the disbelief of Biblical chronology of Joshua-Judges has
followed four avenues: the conquest model, the infiltration model, the liberation model, and
the pioneer settlement model. Yet, the paper has suggested that the biblical model is still
valid based on the context of the book of Judges itself. Hence the book of Judges is not an
embellished account of the period before the monarchy, it is historical in nature. For the use
of round number, in fact, the expression of the years in 40 years is unique to Israel and it
may imply that God is behind the scene of the life of his people.
The result of this present study fall short of about 7 years when we consider the
geographical distributions of Israel settlement and the time of peace that could have been
distributed consecutively. The results of this study, however, have only begun to illuminate
the dynamics and the difficulties tied to biblical chronology. The taking into account of
some overlaps between date and the ignorance of the ancient reckoning may probably bring
a variably of uncertainty. The date of 1446 B.C. for the Exodus agrees with Thieles scheme
1The years of peace in the book of Judges have been considered as the work ofan editor who widened the chronological date of the book extending it as far as 480 years inthe fourth years of King Solomon. See the Bibliography in Barry G. Webb, The Book ofJudges: An Integrated Reading, JSOT Sup. 46 (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1990), 243.
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except for those who presuppose at first that Judges is not reliable source for any dating
scheme. Further investigations need to be done, to first confirm what have been done and to
look for others possible explanations.
These investigations must also examine the presuppositions behind the school
of datingwhat drive them? How is that most critics will adopt the late scheme dating?
And conservative scholars tend to accept the early scheme dating? The 15th-century model,
on the other hand needs to be given adequate consideration even though there is a perceived
disparity between archaeological discoveries and the biblical narrative at Jericho and Ai.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Albright, William F. A Revision of Early Hebrew Chronology. JPOS1 (1921) 64-80.
Brettler, Marc Zvi. The Book of Judges. London: Routlege, 2002.
Cassuto, Umberto. The Documentary Hypothesis and the Composition of the Pentateuch. Jerusalem:Magnes, 1961.
Coote, Robert. Ancient Israel: A NewHorizon. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1990.
Chronology of the Period. The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary. Edited by
Francis D. Nichol. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald, 1977. 2:35.
Dhorme, Paul. Les livres de Samuel. Paris Gabalda and Cie., 1910.
Driver, S.R. Notes on the Hebrew Text and Topography of the Book of Samuel of Samuel. 2nd ed.Rev. and enl. Oxford: Clarendon, 1913.
Finkelstein, Israel And Amihai Mazar. The Quest For The Historical Israel:Debating ArchaeologyAnd The History Of Early Israel. Leiden: Brill, 2007.
Fomenko, Anotoly T. History: Fiction or Science? London: Delamere Ressource, 2003.
Harrison, R. K. Introduction to the OldTestament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1969.
Hoffmeir, James K. What is the Biblical Date for the Exodus? A Response to BryantWood. Journal of Evangelical Theological Society50 no 2 (2007): 226.
Hughes, Jeremy. Secrets of the Times: Myth and History in Biblical Chronology, Journal for theStudy of the Old Testament Supplement 66. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press,1990.
Kitchen, K.A Ancient Orient and the OldTestament. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1966
Kitchen, K.A On the Reliability of the OldTestament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003.
Kitchen, K.A The Bible in Its World. Exeter: Paternoster, 1977
Kitchen, K.A. On the Reliability of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003.
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Klein,Ralph W. 1 Samuel. Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 10. Edited by David A.Hubbard. Word: Texas, 1983.
Mazar, Amihai. The Patriarchs, Exodus, and Conquest Narratives in Light ofArchaeology. In Israel Finkelstein And Amihai Mazar, The Quest For The Historical
Israel:Debating Archaeology And The History Of Early Israel. Leiden: Brill, 2007.
McKarter, P.K.. I Samuel. Anchor Bible, vol. 8. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1980.
Millard, Alan. Picture Archive of the Bible. Tring, Herts.: Lion Books, 1987).
Niditch, Susan. Judges. Oxford Bible Commentary. Edited by John Barton and JohnMuddiman. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.
Rowley, H. H. From Joseph To Joshua: Biblical Traditions In The Light Of Archaeology. Oxford:Oxford University Press, 1950.
Satterthawaite, P.E. Judge, Dictionary of the Old Testament Historical Books. Edited by. Bill T.Arnold and H.G.M. Williamson. Downers Grove, IL: 2005. 590-600.
Saussage, Chantepie de la D.P. Illustrated History of Religions. Sposo-PreobrazhenkyStaurapigial Monastery of Valaam ; reprint 1992.
Sharing, Lindo S. and Steven L. McKenzie. The Elusive Deuteronomist: The Phenomenon of Pan-Deuteronomism, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement 268.Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1999.
Saul Reigned one year. The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary. Edited by
Francis D. Nichol. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald, 1977. 2:505.
Some periods overlap. The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary. Edited by Francis D.Nichol. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald, 1977.2:127-28.
Stone, L.G. Judges, Book of. Dictionary of the Old Testament Historical Books. Edited by. BillT. Arnold and H.G.M. Williamson. Downers Grove, IL: 2005 601-08.
The Assemblies of Gilgal and Shilo. The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary. Edited byFrancis D. Nichol. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald, 1977. 2:125-30.
Thompson, Alden. A Prcatical Guide to Abundant Christian Living in the Book of Samuel. TheAbundant Life Bible Amplifier. Edited by George Knight. Boise, ID:Pacific Press,1995.
Tov, Emmanuel. Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992.
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Vannoy, J. Robert. Judges: Theology of. New International Dictionary of Old TestamentTheology and Exegesis. Edited by Willem A. Van Gemeren. Grand Rapids, MI:Zondervan, 1997. 4:830-40.
Walton, John H. Chronological and Background Charts of the OldTestament. Grand
Rapids: Zondervan, 1978.Webb, Barry G. The Book of Judges: An Integrated Reading. Journal for the Study of
the Old Testament Supplement 46. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1990Wellhausen, Julius. Der Text der Bcher samuelis untersucht. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck und
Ruprecht, 1871.
Wiseman, Donald J. 1 & 2 Kings. TOTC; Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1993.
Wood, Bryant G. The Rise and Fall of the 13th-Century Exodus Conquest Theory.Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society48 no 3 (2005): 484,206-207.
Wood, Leon. Distressing Days of the Judges. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1975.