Renewing Your Mind — "The Need for Judges" (February 14, 2026)

Podcast: Renewing Your Mind
Host: Ligonier Ministries (Nathan W. Bingham, W. Robert Godfrey)
Episode Theme: Understanding why Israel needed Judges, the meaning of their leadership, and how this history points to the need for a true King – ultimately found in Jesus Christ. Special focus is placed on setting the context for the life of Samson, the last judge.

Episode Overview

This episode explores the historical and theological reasons God instituted judges in Israel following a period of spiritual decline. Dr. W. Robert Godfrey provides deep biblical context from the Book of Judges, showing how these imperfect leaders highlighted Israel’s ongoing need for faithful, godly leadership — a theme that culminates in the hope of a true, perfect King. The episode sets the scene for the introduction of Samson, the final and most detailed judge, and draws practical spiritual lessons for believers today.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Israel’s Spiritual Decline and the Institution of Judges

• Spiritual Pattern: Before the judges, Israel enjoyed strength but then entered a prolonged downward spiritual spiral.
  • “Before the Judges, there was great strength in Israel and then gradual spiritual weakening...” – Dr. Godfrey [00:00]
• Role of Judges: God established the office of judge as a response to Israel’s compromised state, not as rulers in the judicial sense, but as leaders and deliverers.

Structure & Surprising Scope of the Book of Judges

• Book Composition: Only about 75% of Judges is actually about judges; the rest provides crucial context on Israel’s condition before and after them.
• The Big Lesson: The Old Testament repeatedly shows God’s people “need a faithful leader. And the Judges failed in that leadership. The Judges could not provide the leadership the people needed.” – Dr. Godfrey [02:49]
• Transition to Kingship: Judges demonstrates that simply having judges wasn’t enough; even kings failed — the people need a perfect King.

The Nature and Function of Judges

• The Hebrew Word: The term "judge" is better understood as “decider” — not a court official, but a deliverer and leader.
• Function: Judges are “deliverers from sin and deliverers from enemies. That’s their important function. In a real sense, they are saviors of Israel. They’re not the Savior… but they are pointing to the people’s need of salvation.” – Dr. Godfrey [05:15]
• Spiritual Principle: God’s discipline involved allowing oppressors to afflict Israel until the people repented, prompting God to raise up a judge to deliver them.

The Need for a True King

• Joshua’s Warning: At the close of his life, Joshua warned that Israel would not be able to serve God faithfully without a leader:
  • "'You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God...' That's a very solemn warning." [10:35]
• Persistent Need: “Right from these last words of Joshua, the people of God are being prepared for their need of a king. And that’s why this book is so important transitionally…” [11:24]
• Kingship & Tribe of Judah: God’s plan pointed specifically to a king from Judah (not Benjamin, i.e., not Saul). Dr. Godfrey calls Saul a “bozo from Benjamin” — a memorable and lighthearted phrase to underscore the Bible’s emphasis on David’s lineage. [17:57]

The Book of Judges as Theological and Historical Preparation

• Big Picture: Judges is “a tract for the house of David,” intended to highlight Judah’s role and prepare for David and, ultimately, Messiah (“David’s greater son”).
  • “God knows what he’s doing, and what he’s doing through this book is showing us how much Israel needs not only a king, but needs a king from Judah and specifically needs David of Judah to be king.” – Dr. Godfrey [21:02]
• Biblical Structure: There’s a purposeful arrangement — Judges comes after Joshua (last leader) and before Ruth (the story of David’s family).

Patterns from the Psalms: Israel’s Ups and Downs

• Psalm 85 & 80: Dr. Godfrey illustrates Israel’s (and the church’s) spiritual ‘ups and downs’ using the Psalms, paralleling the nation’s history in Judges.
  • “You restored the fortunes of Jacob. Now, if the fortunes of Jacob were restored, they had to have gone downhill, right? So here’s an up. You were favorable because there’d been a down.” – Dr. Godfrey [22:55]
• Practical Application: The same spiritual cycles can be observed in church history and even in modern times.
  • “If you’re tempted to think that the life of the church of Jesus Christ is always up, up, up, I have a series on church history to commend to you.” [23:07]
• Spiritual Exhortation: As modern believers, we must not become angry culture warriors but “prayerful, loving, concerned people that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ might be known far and wide.” [23:56]

Promise of a Perfect Deliverer

• Sanctification and Holiness: Genuine revival and restoration require both faith in God’s forgiveness and a call to holiness.
  • “The word of grace is never a word that says, okay, you’re now forgiven, so it’s fine with me if you live any way you want.” – Dr. Godfrey [24:10]
• Hope for a True Savior: The Old Testament pattern of strongmen (like Samson) and their insufficiency points to the ultimate “Son of Man” — Jesus Christ — who alone can deliver God’s people.

Focusing on Samson

• Transition: The episode concludes by noting Samson as the last and most prominent judge, paving the way thematically for subsequent episodes on his life and significance.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “The big point is this: Everyone did what was right in their own eyes because there was no king in Israel.” – Dr. Godfrey [05:03]
• “The people of God need a faithful leader. And the Judges failed in that leadership.” – Dr. Godfrey [05:26]
• “He may be functioning just as a Calvinist and saying, you’re all totally depraved. That’s perfectly possible. It may be part of what’s going on here.” – Dr. Godfrey, on Joshua’s warning [10:55]
• “Saul is the bozo from Benjamin. I’m coining that term. I don’t think it’s in most of the commentaries.” – Dr. Godfrey, humorously distinguishing Saul from David [17:57]
• “We not allow ourselves to be angry culture warriors, but we become prayerful, loving, concerned people.” – Dr. Godfrey [23:56]
• “The Son, Israel, the Son is only going to be saved when God raises up the Son of man, the man of his right hand.” – Dr. Godfrey [24:00]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction & Context: 00:00–01:36
• What is the Book of Judges About? 01:36–05:26
• Why Judges Aren’t Enough – Need for a King: 05:26–13:00
• Tribe of Judah vs. Benjamin; Saul vs. David: 13:00–21:25
• Patterns of Spiritual Life (Psalms): 21:25–23:42
• Application for Today & Call to Prayerfulness: 23:42–24:30
• Preview of Samson Series: 24:27–end

Final Takeaways

• The Book of Judges is more than a history of leaders; it's a theological reflection on human inability, the persistent need for godly leadership, and how all imperfect deliverers point to Christ.
• Through Israel's cycles of decline and deliverance, the urgent need for a king “after God’s own heart” becomes evident.
• Samson, as the final judge, serves as both a “strongman” and a poignant example of this need — transitioning the narrative to the coming of David and, ultimately, Christ.
• For listeners today, the lesson is two-fold: to recognize our own need for repentance and faithful leadership, and to rest on God’s provision of a perfect King, Jesus Christ.