Minor Judges

Text and Content

The term "Minor Judges" is the counterpart to "Major Judges," the name given to the judges whose stories are told at length in the book of Judges. It is an interpretive classification based on the length of each record, so the word "minor" says nothing about a figure's importance. The following six are commonly counted among the Minor Judges.

• Shamgar: The son of Anath. He slew six hundred Philistines with an ox goad and delivered Israel (Judges 3:31). The Song of Deborah also refers to "the days of Shamgar the son of Anath" (Judges 5:6).
• Tola: A man of Issachar. He lived in Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim and judged Israel twenty-three years (Judges 10:1-2).
• Jair: A Gileadite who judged Israel twenty-two years. His thirty sons rode on thirty young donkeys and had thirty cities, which were called Havoth-jair (Judges 10:3-5).
• Ibzan: A man of Bethlehem. He had thirty sons and thirty daughters and judged Israel seven years (Judges 12:8-10).
• Elon: A Zebulonite. He judged Israel ten years and was buried in Aijalon (Judges 12:11-12).
• Abdon: The son of Hillel the Pirathonite. His forty sons and thirty grandsons rode on seventy young donkeys, and he judged Israel eight years (Judges 12:13-15).

Background

The Hebrew word rendered "judge," shophet, derives from the verb shaphat, meaning "to judge, to govern." The records from Tola through Abdon follow a set pattern. Each briefly notes the judge's place of origin, the length of his tenure, his descendants, and his burial place, in formulas such as "judged Israel … years, and died, and was buried in …." The numbers of sons and donkeys are understood to indicate wealth and social standing. Scholars differ on the location of some place names. For example, opinion is divided over whether Ibzan's Bethlehem is Bethlehem of Judah or a town of the same name in the territory of Zebulun (Joshua 19:15).

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

The records of the Minor Judges are set between the longer deliverance narratives of Judges. They show that governance during the period of the judges continued even in times without major wars. In the New Testament, Hebrews 11:32 lists Gideon, Barak, Samson, and Jephthah as people of faith, but none of the Minor Judges is named. Acts 13:20 speaks of the entire period collectively: "he gave unto them judges."

Interpretation and Issues

• Basis for the classification: The distinction between Major and Minor Judges is generally said to have gained wide currency in scholarship through the work of the German Old Testament scholar Martin Noth. Noth held that the records of the Minor Judges came from a source different from that of the deliverer narratives, and that the Minor Judges may have held an office with judicial or administrative functions. This view has been disputed. Jephthah, whose record combines a long deliverance narrative with a closing notice in the style of the Minor Judges (Judges 12:7), is cited as a figure who links the two groups.
• Shamgar's place: Judges 3:31 does not call Shamgar a "judge" but says only that he "delivered Israel." Nor does it record his years in office or his burial place. For this reason, his inclusion among the Minor Judges is disputed. Some scholars, noting that his name and "Anath" are Canaanite in form, suggest that he may not have been an Israelite.
• The twelve judges: The six Major Judges (Othniel, Ehud, Deborah, Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson) are commonly combined with the six Minor Judges to make twelve judges. Some interpretations connect this number with the twelve tribes of Israel. However, Eli and Samuel are also recorded as having judged Israel (1 Samuel 4:18; 7:15), so the method of counting is not consistent.
• Many sons and donkeys: Some read these details as signs of peace and prosperity. Others read them as indications that the office of judge was becoming a kind of hereditary power, foreshadowing the monarchy.
• Material beyond the text: Nothing is known of the Minor Judges' deeds beyond the brief notices in the text. Descriptions added in sermons or storybooks have no basis in the biblical text.