A (2) And Yahweh sold them INTO THE HAND

B (2) OF JABIN king of Canaan, that reigned in Hazor;

C (2) THE CAPTAIN OF WHOSE HOST <06635>

D (2) was SISERA, which dwelt in Harosheth of the Gentiles.

E (3) And the children OF ISRAEL cried unto YAHWEH: for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children OF ISRAEL.

F (4) And DEBORAH, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth,

G (4) she judged Israel at that time.

F′ (5) And she dwelt under the palm tree OF DEBORAH between Ramah and Bethel in mount Ephraim:

E′ (5,6 ) and the children OF ISRAEL came up to her for judgment.  And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not YAHWEH God OF ISRAEL commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?

D′ (7) And I will draw unto thee to the river Kishon SISERA,

C′ (7) THE CAPTAIN OF ARMY <06635>

B′ (7) JABIN’S, with his chariots and his multitude;

A′ (7) and I will deliver him INTO THINE HAND.

Note “Jabin’s” in verse 7 comes after “army” in Hebrew.

This chiasm was discovered whilst preparing a Bible Class talk on Judges. When reading up on what Christadelphians have written previously about Judges 1, more than one writer notes the switch from the Canaanites dwelling among the people (vv. 29,30) to the people dwelling among the Canaanites (vv. 32, 33). John Martin describes this as “the position reversed” (The Judges, p. 11), a description which alerts us to the possibility of a chiasm.

Note that in verse 30, in the Hebrew, “dwelt” comes before “the Canaanites”. The chiasm is formed, rather, by the reversal of “Canaanites” and “among”. Verse 31 may seem obscure for a central statement but it’s a pivotal point detailing the way the tribe of Asher, typical of Israel as whole, was merging with the Canaanite world. The same was true of the tribe of Naphtali mentioned in the next verse (v. 33). As John Martin wrote concerning Naphtali: “No longer was it a matter of a tribe allowing the Canaanites to dwell among them, but now we find the Canaanites are in the ascendancy and allowed the tribe of Naphatali to dwell among them.”

A (30) Neither did Zebulun DRIVE OUT

B (30) the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but THE CANAANITES dwelt

C (30) AMONG them, and became tributaries.

D (31) Neither did Asher drive out the inhabitants of Accho, nor the inhabitants of Zidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob:

C′ (32) But the Asherites dwelt AMONG

B′ (32) THE CANAANITES, the inhabitants of the land:

A′ (32) for THEY DID NOT DRIVE THEM OUT.

RS

A.(29) And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house. (30) And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his body begotten: for he had many wives. (31) And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, whose name he called Abimelech.

B.(32) And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. (33) And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made Baalberith their god. (34) And the children of Israel remembered not the LORD their God, who had delivered them out of the hands of all their enemies on every side: (35) Neither shewed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely, Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had shewed unto Israel.

C.(1) And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem unto his mother’s brethren, and communed with them, and with all the family of the house of his mother’s father, saying,

D.(2) Speak, I pray you, in the ears of all the men of Shechem,

E. Whether is better for you, either that all the sons of Jerubbaal, which are threescore and ten persons, reign over you, or that one reign over you? remember also that I am your bone and your flesh.

D’.(3) And his mother’s brethren spake of him in the ears of all the men of Shechem all these words:

C’. and their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech; for they said, He is our brother.

B’.(4) And they gave him threescore and ten pieces of silver out of the house of Baalberith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light persons, which followed him. (5) And he went unto his father’s house at Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, being threescore and ten persons, upon one stone: notwithstanding yet Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left; for he hid himself.

A’.(6) And all the men of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and went, and made Abimelech king, by the plain of the pillar that was in Shechem.

A. 10:18 And the people and princes of Gilead said one to another, What man is he that will begin to fight against the children of Ammon? he shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.

B. (11:1) Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot:and Gilead begat Jephthah. (2) And Gilead’s wife bare him sons; and his wife’s sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said unto him, Thou shalt not inherit in our father’s house; for thou art the son of a strange woman.

C.(3) Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob:and there were gathered vain men to Jephthah, and went out with him.

D.(4) And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel.

D’.(5) And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel,

C’. the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob: (6) And they said unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.

B’. (7) And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expel me out of my father’s house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress?

A’.(8) And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, Therefore we turn again to thee now, that thou mayest go with us, and fight against the children of Ammon, and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead. (9) And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight against the children of Ammon, and the LORD deliver them before me, shall I be your head? 10 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, The LORD be witness between us, if we do not so according to thy words.(11) Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the LORD in Mizpeh.

(With Tom Bennett – centres on Israel’s faithlessness in forgetting God’s deliverance from the Midianites through Gideon.)

A.(15) And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow:and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.

B.(16) Now therefore, if ye have done truly and sincerely,

C. in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands;

D.(17) (For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far,

E. and delivered you out of the hand of Midian:

D’.(18)  And ye are risen up against my father‘s house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten persons, upon one stone,

C’. and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother;)

B’.(19) If ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you:

A’.(20) But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.

(from Tom Bennett)

A.(12) And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD. (13) And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees. (14) So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.

B. (15) But when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab. (16) But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh. (17) And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was a very fat man.

C. (18) And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the people that bare the present. (19) But he himself turned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, O king: who said, Keep silence. And all that stood by him went out from him.

D. (20) And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat.

E. (21) And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly:

F. (22) And the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon the blade,

E’. so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly; and the dirt came out.

D’. (23) Then Ehud went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the parlour upon him, and locked them. (24) When he was gone out, his servants came; and when they saw that, behold, the doors of the parlour were locked, they said, Surely he covereth his feet in his summer chamber. (25) And they tarried till they were ashamed: and, behold, he opened not the doors of the parlour; therefore they took a key, and opened them: and, behold, their lord was fallen down dead on the earth.

C’. (26) And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped unto Seirath. (27) And it came to pass, when he was come, that he blew a trumpet in the mountain of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mount, and he before them. (28) And he said unto them, Follow after me: for the LORD hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand.

B. And they went down after him, and took the fords of Jordan toward Moab, and suffered not a man to pass over. (29) And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, all lusty (fat), and all men of valour; and there escaped not a man.

A’. (30) So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest fourscore years.

(From James)

A (1) Now after the death of Joshua it came to pass, that the children of Israel asked the LORD, saying, Who shall go up for us against the Canaanites first,

B (1) to fight against them?

C (2) And the LORD said, Judah shall go up:

D (2) behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.

C1 (3) And Judah said unto Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot,

B1 (3) that we may fight

A1 (3) against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with thee into thy lot. So Simeon went with him.