Episode #24 Anarchy and Chaos

In this episode, Rabbi Reinman describes the pattern of the turbulent Period of the Judges with the narrative alternating between anarchy and chaos.

Chapter Twenty-four

Anarchy and Chaos

Until now, we explored the periods of Biblical history that come to us from the generally familiar Five Books of  Moses, and therefore, we focused more on insight and analysis than on the particular details. Now, however, we move into the periods of Biblical history that come to us from the less familiar Books of the Prophets. Before we delve into analysis, therefore, a more detailed narrative is necessary.

The Book of Joshua describes the conquest of Canaan under the leadership of Joshua, the disciple of Moses and his successor. It concludes with his death after the main objectives of the war of conquest were achieved. Moses had been the uncrowned monarch of the Jewish people, and Joshua also assumed that role.[1] Joshua, however, had no successor. After he died, the period of the Judges began. All we know about this period comes to us from the Books of Judges, Ruth and I Samuel, written by the prophet Samuel, all of which were written by the prophet Samuel.[2]

During this period, which lasted four hundred years, there was no king, crowned or uncrowned. Moreover, there was not even a formal national government. There were no state institutions or bureaucracies, no standing armies, no foreign policies, treaties or alliances. “In those days,” writes the prophet, “there was no king in Israel. Everyone did as he saw fit.”^[3]

The country ran on a tribal system. Every tribe had its own lands, and the people looked to their elders, who were their grandfathers, uncles or cousins, for leadership. The elders had no formal authority, but their kinsmen followed their advice and guidance. In effect, Israel was in a state of anarchy, which means without government, and for the most part, it worked reasonably well.

Anarchy should not be confused with chaos. Anarchism seeks to create an orderly state of society without a governing authority. Chaos is confusion and disorder. Anarchy can sometimes lead to chaos. As we shall see, the cycle of anarchy and chaos defines the Period of the Judges.

The second chapter of the Book of Judges provides a snapshot of the entire period. After the Conquest under Joshua, God allowed pockets of Canaanites to remain temporarily in order to test the loyalty of the Jewish people. Would they fraternize and form bonds with the unconquered Canaanites and be corrupted? Or would they keep their distance until God would help them eliminate the last remnants?

If they passed the test, they would continue to live in Israel in safety and security. God would protect them. If they failed, one or another of their aggressive neighbors would attack and conquer them. Then they would cry out to God, and He would send a righteous Judge to lead them back to Him. The Judge would inspire the people to repent, and then God would help them expel the invaders. After a while, however, the Jewish people would stray again, and God would send another righteous Judge. The cycle would repeat itself again and again.

The Jewish people failed the test. They tired of the war and came to terms with the presence of remnants of paganism in Israel. Little by little, social barriers between Jews and Canaanites began to crumble. Although the righteous among them absolutely shunned the Canaanites, the less righteous no longer saw fraternization with the Canaanites as such a terrible thing. Initial tentative social contacts led to closer associations. The more daring friends of the Canaanites attended celebrations in the Canaanite temples, which invariably featured debauchery and promiscuity.

Slowly, significant numbers of people were drawn into the vortex of carnal pleasures. Some married Canaanites and worshipped in the Canaanite temples. Although even these unlearned Jews knew full well that “there was no substance to the pagan religions, they turned to idolatry in order to join in the public orgies.”[4] For the flesh is undeniably weak, and without powerful spiritual defenses, its appetites cannot be resisted.

Anarchy had descended into chaos.

The first attack came from the north. In 1245 b.c.e., King Cushan of the upstart Syrian principality of Aram invaded Israel. The Jewish nation, which only twenty-eight years before had crushed the Canaanite confederations, now fell helplessly to a third-rate power. The vanquished Jewish people were still free to practice their own religion if they chose to do so, since the pagans were always generous in making room for new additions to the god race. But under the Aramean military occupation, they were economically oppressed and impoverished.

The connection between the internal disintegration of Jewish society and its military defeat was not lost on the Jewish people. Belatedly, they cried out to the God of their fathers in anguish and mortification. But short of an outright miracle, what could be done? The delicate balance of society had been destroyed. The land was a spiritual and physical shambles occupied by foreign troops. How could the process of renewal begin?

The answer came in the form of a man from the tribe of Judah named Athniel ben Kenaz, one of the Elders of the Sanhedrin, a brilliant prophet with an encyclopedic knowledge of the Torah. Athniel ben Kenaz was the acknowledged gadol hador, the leading Torah sage of the generation, and immediately after the Aramean invasion, he took upon himself the mission of revitalizing the Jewish people.

For the next eight years, Athniel ben Kenaz rebuked the Jewish people for their transgressions and exhorted them to rededicate themselves to God and His Torah. In cities, towns and villages across the land, he made fiery speeches to increasingly larger assemblies of Jews from all walks of life, reprimanding, cajoling, chastening and inspiring. Slowly but surely, even the simplest people repented and returned to the God of their fathers.

During all this time, the Aramean occupiers did not interfere with Athniel ben Kenaz’s spiritual crusade, because his oratory had no political content. But under their very eyes, the fragmented and demoralized Jews were transformed into a cohesive and inspired people. Under the very eyes of the occupiers, Athniel ben Kenaz was mobilizing a Jewish revolt whose secret weapon was the Torah. Idolatry and pagan associations were expunged, and the national zeal for Torah was rekindled.

In 1237 b.c.e., under the leadership of Athniel ben Kenaz, the oppressed people of Israel revolted and expelled the invaders, and once again, peace and prosperity returned to the land. Athniel ben Kenaz had no official executive position or authority. His leadership derived from the moral power of his message. The unofficial designation he bore was Shofet, or Judge, who judged the actions of his people, rebuked them and inspired them to improve. Athniel was probably a member of the Sanhedrin, the high court, but it is not clear if all the other Judges were as well.

The peace lasted only thirty-two years until the death of Athniel ben Kenaz.[5] With the passing of the great sage, the earlier patterns repeated themselves, triggering a cycle that would regulate the next three centuries of Jewish history. As society degenerated, it would fall victim to invasion by one or more hostile neighbors. This would bring the people back to their senses, and they would turn to the leading sage of the time, who was traditionally called the Judge of Israel. The Judge would then repair the spiritual damage to society, rally the people around the Torah and lead them to victory. Another interlude of peace would return for the remainder of that Judge’s life, after which the cycle would usually start again.

Ultimately, these centuries came to be known as the Period of the Judges. They were characterized by an uninterrupted state of anarchy with periodic descents into chaos. The Judges led the Jewish people during these periods without official authority and became the models for the great sages who would lead the Jewish people in exile. In all times, the core element of the Jewish people would follow the moral leadership of Torah sages on all matters. The history of this period had shown the wisdom of accepting their counsel and leadership.

And thus, as we look back at this period, we encounter familiar names on this oft-repeated cycle of rise and decline. According to the Gemara, each of the tribes contributed a Judge to the nation at one time or another.[6]  In 1187 b.c.e., Ehud ben Geira drove out an alliance of Moabites, Ammonites and Amalekites who had seized the city of Jericho. Half a century later, Shamgar ben Anath turned back an incursion by the Philistines who were a rising power. In 1105 b.c.e., the prophetess Deborah led the Jews to victory over a powerful Canaanite army of occupation. In 1085 b.c.e., Gideon defeated a combined army of Midianites and Amalekites.[7] In 980 b.c.e., Jephte repulsed a combined Ammonite and Philistine invasion and devastated the kingdom of Ammon.

After Jephte, three successive judges, Ivtzan,[8] Eilon and Avdon, presided over a secure and peaceful society. But trouble was brewing to the southwest. The Philistines were no longer a rising power. They had arrived. For three centuries, the periodic attacks had come from relatively minor powers. Philistia, however, was an altogether different story.

[1] Bamidbar 27:21, Yoma 73b, Rashi.

[2] Bava Basra 14b.

[3] Judges 17:6, 21:25.

[4] Bab. Tal., Sanhedrin 63b. This explains the initial experimentation with idolatry. See discussion at the end of Chapter 7 with regards to its subsequent attractions.

[5] Judges 3:11. According to Metzudath David, based on Seder Olam, the forty years of Athniel ben Kenaz include the eight years of oppression.

[6] Bab. Tal., Sukkah 27b

[7] Following the death of Gideon in 1045 b.c.e., there was an abortive attempt by Abimelech, his son by one of his concubines, to establish a monarchy without the sanction of any of the sages or prophets. With the financial support of his mother’s kinsmen in Shechem in the land of Ephraim, Abimelech mobilized a small private army of vagrants and scoundrels. He then proceeded to murder most of his brothers and proclaim himself king. For three years, this brutal despot dominated his unwilling countrymen until he met a violent death during a revolt in his power base of Shechem. The reign of Abimelech was an aberration, and his name does not appear on the king lists of Israel. After his death, the succession of Judges resumed with Tola ben Puah in 1042 b.c.e., followed by Yair of Gilead in 1019 b.c.e.

[8] Ivtzan, who came from Bethlehem in the tribal lands of Judah, was also known as Boaz. (Bab. Tal., Baba Bathra 91a) He married Ruth, the righteous convert descended from King Eglon of Moab. (Bab. Tal., Nazir 23b) The story of Boaz and Ruth is chronicled in the Book of Ruth. Their great-grandson was King David.