‘In those days Israel had no king’
Judges Chapters 18 – 19 Read it here
Scholars believe the story of Samson to have been the original end of the text of Judges, with the following stories about the tribe of Dan being a collection of older oral tales. They don’t fit the story arc of the rest of the book, and are difficult to fit in.
It’s intriguing that Chapters 18 and 19 begin with the same words, “In those days Israel had no king.” It was a time the nation was leaderless and chaotic.
While God clearly had reservations about the people having a king, it is also clear that the people did not have the self-discipline to govern themselves without some kind of leader. The only times of peace seem to have been when one of the judges rose up and took on the function, if not the title, of monarch.
The story today is striking in its similarity to the story of Lot in Sodom, and these final chapters also share the disconnected feel that much of Genesis had…one story after another with little continuity.
It’s worth contemplating if the need for a ruler was inherent in the sinful, fallen state of the world. If so, has that need passed now that Jesus has come and taken the role of king for himself?
Keep that in mind as we continue reading the Bible, and particularly in our times in the New Testament when we see Jesus teaching and then see his teachings being lived out.