Reasoning Through the Bible

Jephthah returns from victory over the Ammonites only to discover that his only daughter is the first person to come from his house to greet him. His careless vow suddenly becomes the defining crisis of his story.
In this session, Glenn and Steve examine whether Jephthah actually sacrificed his daughter as a burnt offering. Although the wording of the original vow refers to a burnt offering, the later passage repeatedly emphasizes her virginity, her lack of marriage, and the end of Jephthah’s family line. This provides a strong contextual case that she may have been permanently dedicated to the Lord rather than killed.
The discussion also explains that human sacrifice was clearly forbidden under the Mosaic Law. Jephthah could have appealed to the provisions of the law regarding an invalid vow rather than carrying out something God had prohibited.
Jephthah’s story offers a sobering lesson: a person may genuinely trust God, follow His direction, and still make a very foolish decision. The Bible does not hide the flaws of its people, and believers should be careful not to place Christian leaders on pedestals or discard everything good they have taught when a weakness is later revealed.
Judges 12 then records another conflict with the tribe of Ephraim. They threaten Jephthah because they were not included in the battle, even though Jephthah says he had previously asked for their help. Their jealousy and divisiveness lead to civil war and the deaths of forty-two thousand Israelites.
The session closes by examining how internal division destroys churches and communities. When believers turn inward and fight each other, ministry, outreach, and witness quickly suffer.
Scripture: Judges 11:35–12:15
Series: The Book of Judges — An RTTB Study
Questions discussed in this session:
Can people be in the will of God and still make foolish mistakes? 
Can jealousy and hatred cause people to be unreasonable? 
What should we do when we meet people who cause division? 
How effective is the church when it’s fighting amongst itself?  
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May God Bless you!! - Glenn and Steve

God refuses to help Israel because they refuse to repent, treating God like a Judges 10 records Israel falling once again into widespread idolatry. This time the people are not worshiping just one or two false gods. Scripture lists the gods of numerous surrounding nations before concluding that Israel had forsaken the Lord and no longer served Him.
In this session, Glenn and Steve begin by making an important distinction about suffering. Judges repeatedly connects Israel’s deliberate sin with painful consequences, but Scripture does not teach that every instance of suffering is caused by a person’s individual sin. Job provides a clear example of righteous suffering whose full purpose was never explained to the person experiencing it.
Israel’s situation in Judges 10, however, resulted directly from rebellion. After eighteen years of oppression, the people finally cry out to God. This time God responds differently. He reminds them of all the previous times He delivered them and tells them to seek help from the false gods they chose.
The passage raises an important question: Did Israel really want God, or did they simply want relief from suffering? Treating God like a repairman—ignoring Him until something breaks—is not the same as genuine repentance. Eventually Israel puts away the foreign gods and begins serving the Lord again.
Judges 11 then introduces Jephthah. Born to a prostitute, he is rejected by his brothers for circumstances beyond his control. Yet when Ammon threatens Israel, the same people who rejected him suddenly need his help.
Rather than respond with bitterness, Jephthah appears calm and recognizes that any victory must come from Yahweh. He first attempts to negotiate with the Ammonite king, presenting historical, theological, and chronological arguments for Israel’s right to the land.
The session concludes with Jephthah making a dangerous vow before battle. God gives him victory, but when Jephthah returns home, his only daughter comes out to meet him. The consequences of that vow will be examined in the next session.
Scripture: Judges 10:1–11:34
Series: The Book of Judges — An RTTB Study
Questions discussed in this session:
Would God sell Israel to its enemies? 
What would have happen for God say He will not help? 
Is it wise to make vows to God? 
What happens when we only go to God when we need help?  
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May God Bless you!! - Glenn and Steve

Judges 9 introduces Abimelech, one of Gideon’s sons, and records one of the darkest chapters yet in Israel’s spiritual decline. Unlike the judges whom God raised up as deliverers, Abimelech seeks power for himself. With money taken from the temple of Baal-Berith, he hires reckless men and murders his brothers so that he can become king.
In this session, Glenn and Steve examine what happens when ambition and power operate without a moral compass. Israel was supposed to be different from the nations around them, yet the people of Shechem willingly support a violent man because he is one of their relatives and promises the kind of leadership they desire.
The only surviving brother, Jotham, responds with the parable of the trees. Valuable trees refuse to abandon their useful work in order to rule, but eventually the worthless bramble accepts the position. The warning is clear: the people have chosen a ruler who provides no real protection and will ultimately bring destruction.
The chapter then descends into betrayal, crime, civil war, and violence. Abimelech and the people who empowered him eventually turn against one another. Judges 9 also raises the difficult question of God sending an evil spirit between Abimelech and Shechem. The discussion considers this statement in its larger context of divine judgment on people already committed to violence and idolatry.
Abimelech eventually dies after a woman drops a millstone on his head. Even in his final moments, he appears more concerned about his reputation than about getting right with God.
Judges 9 reminds us that sin may appear to go unpunished for a time, but God is not mocked. It also warns us to be careful whom we trust, whom we follow, and what ultimately serves as the anchor of our lives.
Scripture: Judges 9
Series: The Book of Judges — An RTTB Study
Questions discussed in this session:
What happens when we hire relatives?
What would cause tribes of Israel to fight each other?
Should churches try to be like the world? 
What happens when we make worthless people our leaders? 
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May God Bless you!! - Glenn and Steve

Judges 7 concludes with one of the most unlikely military victories in Scripture. Gideon’s three hundred men surround the Midianite camp at night carrying trumpets, clay pitchers, and torches. When they break the pitchers, reveal the torches, and sound the trumpets, confusion spreads through the enormous enemy camp. The Midianites turn their swords against one another and flee.
The strategy makes no sense from a human military perspective. That is precisely the point. God reduced Gideon’s army so dramatically that Israel could not claim the victory came through its own strength. Yahweh alone deserved the glory.
Yet this session also shows how quickly spiritual danger can follow success. The soldiers cry, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon,” perhaps revealing the first hint that Gideon’s name is beginning to share attention that belongs to God.
Judges 8 then records Gideon’s conflict with the tribe of Ephraim. They complain that they were not called into the battle earlier, even though they had years of opportunity to resist Midian. Gideon calms them through flattering language, exposing the danger of appealing to pride rather than dealing directly with truth.
As Gideon pursues the remaining Midianite kings, the Israelite towns of Succoth and Penuel refuse to provide food. Their fear reveals how comfortable they had become living under oppression. They are more afraid of Midian’s possible return than willing to support the deliverer God has raised up.
Gideon later returns and punishes these towns with extreme violence. His response goes beyond equal justice and reveals a troubling change in his character. Instead of asking God how to respond, Gideon acts according to what seems right in his own eyes.
The decline continues when Gideon takes valuable spoil from the defeated kings and accepts a large collection of gold earrings from Israel. Although he refuses the title of king and correctly says that the Lord should rule over Israel, he increasingly adopts the wealth and privileges associated with royalty.
Gideon then uses the gold to make an ephod. Whatever his original intentions may have been, the object becomes a center of false worship and a snare to Gideon, his household, and Israel.
The man who began by tearing down an idol ends by creating an object that becomes an idol.
This passage warns that victory, recognition, wealth, and influence can become dangerous when humility and obedience are lost.
Scripture: Judges 7:16–8:35
Series: The Book of Judges — An RTTB Study
 Questions discussed in this session:
What happens when people go for a long time living around evil? 
Why would tribes of Israel fight among themselves?
How can Israel forget God so quickly?
How many times should God need to remind us of His being worthy?  
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You can find free study and leader resources at the following link - Resource Page - Reasoning Through the Bible
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May God Bless you!! - Glenn and Steve

Before Gideon can confront the Midianites, God gives him a more personal assignment. He must tear down the altar of Baal that belongs to his own father, cut down the Asherah beside it, and build an altar to the Lord in its place.
In this session, Glenn and Steve examine why spiritual restoration must begin close to home. Gideon is called to deliver Israel from Midian, but the first enemy he must confront is the idolatry within his own family and community. Following God may create conflict with family traditions, established religion, or the expectations of people around us, but obedience to Christ must come first.
Gideon obeys, though he acts at night because he is afraid. His fear does not prevent him from doing what God commanded. This provides an honest picture of faith: obedience does not always require the complete absence of fear.
When the people discover that Baal’s altar has been destroyed, they demand Gideon’s death. His father Joash responds by asking why Baal cannot defend himself if he truly is a god. Gideon’s act exposes the powerlessness of the idol and earns him the name Jerubbaal, meaning, “Let Baal contend against him.”
The session also discusses Gideon’s request for the signs involving the fleece. Gideon has already seen God’s power and received the Spirit of the Lord, but he continues to seek reassurance. The conversation distinguishes between sincerely asking God for guidance and manipulating circumstances until they appear to confirm what a person already wants.
Judges 7 then records one of the most surprising battle preparations in Scripture. Gideon gathers thirty-two thousand men, but God says the army is too large. After the fearful soldiers leave and another test reduces the force further, only three hundred remain.
God gives the reason plainly: Israel might boast that its own strength produced the victory. The army must become so small that only God can receive the glory.
Even after all these signs, Gideon remains afraid. God does not condemn him. Instead, He tells Gideon to approach the enemy camp, where he overhears a Midianite dream predicting Israel’s victory. God patiently provides the encouragement Gideon needs at the moment he needs it.
Scripture: Judges 6:25–7:15
Series: The Book of Judges — An RTTB Study
Questions discussed in this session:
Did Gideon obey with full or partial faith? 
Do we sometimes move forward on partial faith? 
What happens when we make a public proclamation about our faith in God?
Do we ever have confidence one minute, and have doubts another? 
Support the show
Thank you for listening!!  Please give us a five-star rating to help your podcast provider's algorithm spread RTTB among their listeners. 
You can find free study and leader resources at the following link - Resource Page - Reasoning Through the Bible
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May God Bless you!! - Glenn and Steve