Every Man Did What Was Right in His Own Eyes: The Rise and Fall of the Judges

Every Man Did What Was Right in His Own Eyes: The Rise and Fall of the Judges

The book of Judges is one of the darkest chapters in Israel’s story. It begins with conquest and ends with chaos. God’s chosen people, once united under Joshua, descend into moral and spiritual decay. The refrain that defines the era is chillingly modern: “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:25, NASB).

This book exposes what happens when truth becomes relative and leadership disappears. Judges is not just ancient history—it is a mirror held up to every generation that forgets God.

Biblical Foundation

“After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not know the LORD or the work that He had done for Israel. Then the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals.” (Judges 2:10–11, NASB)

“Then the LORD raised up judges who saved them from the hands of those who plundered them. Yet they did not listen to their judges, for they prostituted themselves to other gods and bowed down to them.” (Judges 2:16–17, NASB)

“In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:25, NASB)

Historical & Contextual Notes

Judges covers roughly 300 years between Joshua’s death and the rise of Samuel. Israel was supposed to live under God’s theocracy—no human king, only divine rule through covenant law. But after Joshua’s generation passed, spiritual amnesia set in. The people abandoned the LORD for the idols of Canaan.

The result was a recurring cycle: sin → oppression → repentance → deliverance → relapse. Each cycle grew worse than the last. The Hebrew term for “did evil” (עָשָׂה רַע, asah raʿ) literally means “to practice wickedness”—habitual rebellion. Israel didn’t stumble into sin; they cultivated it.

God’s response was not abandonment but discipline. He “sold them into the hands of their enemies” (Judges 2:14) to bring them back. When they cried out, He raised up deliverers—shofetim (שֹׁפְטִים), judges who were less courtroom arbiters and more regional military leaders empowered by the Spirit. Yet even their deliverance was temporary, because the people’s hearts remained unchanged.

The book’s structure is intentionally downward: each judge is more flawed than the one before. Othniel and Ehud show early faithfulness; Deborah models courage and prophecy; Gideon begins in humility but ends in idolatry; Jephthah vows rashly and sacrifices his daughter; Samson, the final judge, is strong in body but weak in soul. The closer the story moves toward its end, the more Israel resembles the nations they were meant to displace.

By the final chapters (Judges 19–21), the people are not fighting Canaanites—they’re slaughtering each other. The book closes with moral collapse, civil war, and the haunting statement that Israel had no king.

Misconceptions / Objections

1. “The Judges were heroes.”

   They were instruments, not models. Many were morally compromised, used by God despite their flaws. The message of Judges is not “be like them,” but “look how desperate we are for righteous leadership.”

2. “Israel’s problem was political.”

   It was spiritual. The absence of a king was not the issue; the rejection of God as King was. Political solutions never fix spiritual rebellion.

3. “The cycle shows God’s weakness.”

   On the contrary, it shows His patience. God’s mercy endures through centuries of betrayal, proving His covenant faithfulness even when His people are faithless.

Theological Reflection

The book of Judges reveals the consequences of moral relativism. The Hebrew word for “eyes” (ʿayin, עַיִן) often symbolizes perception or judgment. To do what is right “in one’s own eyes” means to reject God’s revelation as the standard. It is self-deification—the heart of sin itself.

Every cycle in Judges follows this moral descent: rebellion leads to ruin; idolatry leads to bondage. Yet through it all, God’s Spirit moves—raising flawed deliverers to rescue undeserving people. This tension between divine justice and mercy foreshadows the cross.

Judges also demonstrates the collapse of covenant community. Without godly leadership, worship decayed, families fractured, and tribes turned on each other. Spiritual compromise always begins in small, personal decisions and ends in national catastrophe.

Connection to Christ

Judges points forward to Christ as both the righteous Judge and the merciful Deliverer. Each imperfect judge anticipates the One who would finally end the cycle of sin.

Othniel delivers through battle; Jesus conquers through the cross.

Deborah sings victory; Jesus fulfills it in resurrection.

Gideon doubts and asks for signs; Jesus gives the ultimate sign—an empty tomb.

Samson’s death destroys enemies temporarily; Christ’s death destroys sin forever.

Where Judges ends with “no king in Israel,” the gospel opens with “the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the King.” (Matthew 1:1). Christ is the King Israel longed for, the Judge who delivers once for all.

Christ-Centered Conclusion

Judges is a warning and a promise. It warns that when people abandon God’s authority, chaos reigns. But it promises that God’s mercy remains greater than our rebellion.

The book ends in darkness, but that darkness makes the light of Christ shine brighter. Jesus ends the cycle—He becomes both the Judge and the Savior, the King who rules in righteousness and restores what sin destroyed.

Where Israel’s refrain was “every man did what was right in his own eyes,” the Church’s confession must be: “Not my will, but Yours be done.” (Luke 22:42, NASB).

Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved.