Israels Judges
The time of the Judges begins just after the death of Joshua to the ministry of Samuel. It spans about 180 years from about 1200 BCE to 1020 BCE. Not all the judges were God-fearing or righteous. The Tabernacle is located in Shiloh at this time but there isn’t a centrally located political capital or a city that was designated as the place for ruling or judgments. The judges listed are from different locations. It is believed that their times of judgement may have overlapped each other or some may have ruled in different locations at the same time.
During the time of the Judges of Israel, the people rebelled against God seven different times. Some call this the “sin cycle” because the people fail God over and over. Because of their rebellion and the fact, they chose to serve idols, God would strengthen one of their enemies to oppress them. This chart shows judges' names and the greatest enemy of the people during their time. Each time God only stepped in when the people repented of their evil ways and turned back to him. The rows highlighted in yellow mostly saw rest and peace because they did not rebel against God. After Samson Eli the priest and then Samuel judged Israel until God told Samuel to anoint Saul as king.