Part 2: The downward spiral of Israel’s apostasy (Judges 3:7-16:31), continued

Jephthah (Judges 10:6-12:7), continued

Victory and Jephthah’s foolish vow (Judges 11:29-40)

• Judges 11:30-31 – Some translations add a footnote on verse 31 saying it could be translated “whoever.”
  • Old Testament vows
    • When made, God expected vows to be fulfilled in a timely manner under normal circumstances (Numbers 30:2; Deuteronomy 23:21).
    • Human sacrifice was expressly forbidden while animal sacrifice could acceptably accompany a vow (Deuteronomy 18:10; Jeremiah 19:5; Leviticus 22:18-20).
    • If a rash (thoughtless) vow was made, atonement could be made with a sin offering (Leviticus 5:4-6).

Jephthah’s conflict with Ephraim (Judges 12:1-7)

Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon (Judges 12:8-15)

Samson (Judges 13:1-16:31)

The birth of Samson (Judges 13:1-25)

• Judges 13:5
  • Nazirite vow: Numbers 6
    • No grape juice or strong drink
    • No cutting of the hair
    • No contact with dead bodies
  • Manoah entertains an angel. Compare Gideon’s case in (Judges 6:11-21) and Abraham (Genesis 18:5-8).

Class 9 takeaway

• Jephthah was exceedingly foolish in making his vow of a burnt offering if the Lord gave the Ammonites over in victory. He made a terrible situation worse by placing blame on his daughter instead of accepting responsibility for his grave lack of sense.
• We create messages in our lives when we fail to guard our hearts and control our speech (Luke 6:43-45). We must always be people of integrity who thoughtfully make commitments and stick with them (James 5:12). And we must always remember we will be judged by our speech (Proverbs 10:19; 21:23; Matthew 12:33-37).

Introduction

• Psalms 139:23
• Lamentations 3:40
• II Corinthians 13:5 – Examine yourselves! This is a good prompt for all of us.

Your top influences

• Psalms 1:1-2
• What has influenced you the most in 2025? Who and what are you listening to?
• Did God’s word actually shape my thinking?
• Proverbs 13:20 – “Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.”

Temptations and repentance

• Proverbs 28:13
• II Timothy 2:22 – “flee youthful lusts”
  • How many times did I flee? See Genesis 39; Matthew 4.
• Matthew 5:27-30 – Which temptations usually got to me?
• What I sinned did I repent? Psalms 51:7

Relationships strengthened and people helped

• Romans 12:9-18
• The second greatest command is to love your neighbor as yourself.
• How have you been treating people?

Your daily habits

• Daniel 6:10
• What would my stats say about prayer?
• Acts 2:42
• Our habits should come naturally out of loving the Lord.
• What do my habits tel me about my heart?
• Proverbs 4:23
• Hebrews 12:1-3
• For the year ahead, are my eyes fixed on Jesus?
• Do I have people in my life who will help me spiritually?

I Timothy 6

I Timothy 6:11-16 – “Fight the good fight”

• I Timothy 6:12 – This confession is not recorded, but it seems to be referring to Timothy confessing faith in Jesus.

I Timothy 6:17-19 – “Instruct those who are rich …”

I Timothy 6:20-21 – “guard what has been entrusted to you”

• I Timothy 6:20-21 – This appears to be a criticism of Gnosticism.

II Timothy 1

Paul will be executed soon

• I Timothy 3:14
• It appears that Paul was imprisoned twice and executed during the second imprisonment. He wrote I Timothy and Titus between the two imprisonments.
• II Timothy 4:6

II Timothy 1:1-4 – “To Timothy, my beloved son”

• II Timothy 1:3 – Paul now had a clear conscience.

II Timothy 1:5 – Lois and Eunice

II Timothy 1:6-7 – “power and love and discipline”

• II Timothy 1:6 – What is this gift of God? It could be a miraculous spiritual gift or a non-miraculous gift to preach the gospel. See I Timothy 1:18; 4:14.

II Timothy 1:8-12 – “join with me”

II Timothy 1:13-14 – “Retain the standard of sound words”

• Don’t allow yourself to be pushed around because of your youth. Stick to the truth!

II Timothy 1:15-18 – Paul’s interactions

II Timothy 2

II Timothy 2:1-2 – Teach others to teach

• It was important for Timothy to not only to teach, but to encourage others to teach as well.

II Timothy 2:3-7 - Three analogies

• II Timothy 2:3-4 – The soldier
• II Timothy 3:5 – The athlete
• II Timothy 2:6 – The farmer
• The common denominator is effort. We must be willing to work.

II Timothy 2:8-10 – “Remember Jesus Christ …”

Introduction

• Psalms 119:169-176

Translation philosophies

• On the left:
  • Word-for-word: Preserves original wording, English may feel less natural.
• On the right:
  • Thought for thought: Takes liberties to emphasize readability and meaning.

New American Standard Bible; New King James Version; King James Version	English Standard Version	Christian Standard Bible	New English Translation	New International Version	New Living Translation

King James Version (1769)

Pros

• Highly accurate
• Beautiful, nostalgic wording

Cons

• Outdated words – I Thessalonians 4:15
• Based on limited manuscripts

Sample verses

• Philippians 2:6; I Thessalonians 4:4; James 2:1

New King James Version (1984)

Pros

• Still accurate
• Modernized

Cons

• Still mainly based on manuscripts the King James Version used.
• Starting to get a bit dated itself.

New American Standard Bible (1977)

• The 2020 update for the New American Standard Bible added gender inclusive language. See Philippians 4:8, where NASB 2020 changes the rendering from “brethren” to “brothers and sisters.”

Pros

• Extremely accurate
• Great for detailed study

Cons

• Stiff, unnatural wording
• May not be best for casual or devotional reading

New English Translation

• Published for free online, including 60,000 marginal notes from the translators.

Pros

• Translator notes
• Very modern

Cons

• Physical version is big
• Not widely used

New International Version (2011)

• Best-selling translation in the world.

Pros

• Highly readable
• Widely available

Cons

• Less precise
• Some choices are controversial

English Standard Version (2016)

Pros

• Very popular
• Sweet spot

Cons

• Some awkward wording
• Little transparency

Christian Standard Bible (2020)

• Previously known as the Holman Christian Standard Bible, then rebranded.

Pros

• Sweet spot
• Very modern

Cons

• Some non-traditional choices
• A few quirks

New Living Translation (2015)

Pros

• Super easy to read
• Very modern

Cons

• Lots of interpretation from translators
• Much less precise

Conclusion

• I Thessalonians 2:13