Reading for December 2nd

Read Judges 1.1-21. In 1.1-21: Successful conquests by Judah and Simeon. In verse 1: In contrast to the complete conquest described in Joshua (Jos 11.23; 21.43-45), Judges 1 portrays an on gong conquest that continued after the death of Joshua. In verse 2: Judah's success contrast with the comparative failures of the northern tribes (vv. 22-36). Divine guidance in tactics and an assurance of victory were elements of holy war tradition. In verse 3: The tribes Judah and Simeone are personified as individuals. In verse 8: This assertion is in tension with v. 21. Jerusalem first becomes Israelite under David (2 Sam 5.6-9). In verse 10: These accomplishments are credited to Caleb in v. 20 (and Josh 15.14). In verses 11-15: The story of Achsah is duplicated in Josh 15.13-19. She argues that she needs pools because she has received and land (metaphorically, land of Negeb). In verse 16: The Kenites were a foreign group associated with Israel (5.24; 1 Sam 15.6).  They settled with the "people" Israel. In verse 17: Hormah is a wordplay on the Hebrew word "herem," the holy war ban inflicted on it when Judah and Simeon devoted it to destruction. In verse 19: Chariots with iron fittings gave battlefield superiority outside the broken terrain of the hill country. In verse 21: Native Jebusites remained a distinct group in Jerusalem even after David's capture of the city (2 Sam 24.18). Comments or Questions..