Judges (KJV)
21 chapters · 618 verses. Choose a chapter to read it in the King James Version.
About the Book of Judges
Judges depicts a recurring cycle of sin, oppression, repentance, and deliverance through God-raised leaders during a turbulent period before the monarchy. It exposes Israel's spiritual decline and the need for faithful leadership.
- Genre
- Historical narrative
- Author
- Anonymous; traditionally attributed to Samuel
- First audience
- Israel under the monarchy, reflecting on the era before kings
How to read it: Read narrative descriptively — it reports what happened, including flawed people, without necessarily endorsing it.
It opens: “Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass, that the children of Israel asked the LORD, saying, Who shall go up for us against the Canaanites first, to fight against them?” (Judges 1:1)
Chapters
Key verses in Judges
The verses of Judges that the rest of Scripture cross-references most often.
And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith.
And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel.
And they put away the strange gods from among them, and served the LORD: and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.
And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD, and served not him.
Then all the children of Israel went out, and the congregation was gathered together as one man, from Dan even to Beersheba, with the land of Gilead, unto the LORD in Mizpeh.