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Of the Iudges of Israel after Iosuas death, vntill Saul the first king of Israel: of their gouernment, warres, and continuance.
THe Hebrewes had none to gouerne them 8. yeeres after, (so long inter regnum con∣tinued,) whereby the Israelites euer rebel∣ling against God, cōtemned the lawes, de∣spised religiō, quiteforgat Moses & Iosua, & the benefits of God toward thē: a thing almost incredible, that so soonefrō God
they would fall, hauing tasted of his goodnes and mercie so * 1.1 long: for after they had entred into the lande of Canaan, and had seene the promise of God performed, (insteed of thanks for the same) they rebelled and prouoked God to anger: for * 1.2 he suffered them to be vexed and tormented by tyrants, he tooke their libertie away from them, and left them destitute of all comfort and helpe: yet God raised from time to time such as should defend them, if they would be obedient and thankefull vnto God: and although the Israelites fell to ido∣latrie after Iosuas death, and thereby were giuen vnto their e∣nemies handes, as the tribe of Beniamin 1005. in one day slaine, and so the tribe of Dan, with others: yet God left them not for all their ingratitude, but stirred good and godly Iud∣ges, as Othoniel, Ehud, Gedeon, and others, to deliuer them in extremities.
The Lorde pitied them, and raised Othoniel of the tribe of Iuda, the yonger brother of Caleb, which gouerned the Israe∣lites 8. yeeres, animated them againe to goe to warre against the king of Syria, whom God deliuered to the hands of Otho∣niel, and brought them to the fauour of God, that Israel had rest 40. yeeres, 32. vnder Iosua, and 8. vnder Othoniel: yet still Israel offended God, and committed wickednes before the Lord so long, vntill that Eglon king of Moab, was by God ap∣pointed * 1.3 to bee their scourge. Hee smote them and afflicted them, and kept them vnder him 18. yeeres, vntill Ehud of the tribe of Beniamin, a man whome God appointed to defende and to deliuer his people, euen he ouerthrewe the Moabites, slewe 10000. at one time, and killed Eglon the king of Moab, * 1.4 and caused Israel to haue rest 80. yeeres, the whole time of his gouernment. But when this good Iudge died, the chil∣dren of Israel againe fell from the Lord. Then Iabin the king * 1.5 of Canaan had them in his power, troubled and persecuted them extremely: for God had sold them for their wickednes vnto the handes of Iabin and Sisera his Generall, yet still his mercie continued with them: for Debora and Barach of the * 1.6 tribe of Nephthali, were of God appointed to defend the He∣brewes:
for Israel preuailed against Iabin king of Canaan, and prospered vnder Debora and Barach, while Debora and Barach gouerned, which was fourtie yeeres. Some writers doe in∣terpose Shamgar to be the thirde Iudge of Israel, compting Othoniel to be first Iudge that deliuered Israel after Iosua, E∣hud * 1.7 the seconde Iudge that killed Eglon, and then Shamgar, which slewe of the Philistims sixe hundred with an Oxe goade.
Nowe while these thinges were done amongest the Israe∣lites, reigned in Niniue Pannias, in Athens reigned Pandion the 8. king of the Athenians. About this time Bithinia was buil∣ded. Gedeon the first Iudge, one of the tribe of Manasses, after * 1.8 that Israel committed wickednes, was sent by God to deli∣uer them from the Madianites, who at that time oppressed Israel miserably: but they alwaies in great extremities, at the * 1.9 last pinch, when necessitie forced them, and miserie oppres∣sed them, according to their wonted maner, cried vnto the Lorde, and he heard them, and helped them by Moses in E∣gypt, and in the wildernes by Iosua, to come to the lande of Canaan, and in the lande by Othoniel, in often deliuering Isra∣el from the king of Syria, by Ehud, in sauing them from Eglon * 1.10 the king of Moab, whome Ehud most boldely and zealously killed in his priuie chamber, by Shamgar, in defending them * 1.11 from the Philistims, of whome he slewe sixe hundred with an Oxe goade, by Barach and Debora from Iabin king of Canaan, * 1.12 and Sisera, and nowe by Gedeon, whom God raised to defend them, and to deliuer them from the Madianites, who preuai∣led much against Israel: for both the Madianites, and the A∣malekites, brought Israel into so great misery, that they made * 1.13 them dennes in the mountaines, and caues to hide them∣selues from the Madianites. After seuen yeeres oppression and affliction, then they cried vnto God, when they were most afflicted and persecuted, and not before.
But the mercie of God was with them for all their vilenes and stubbornes. Gedeon was called by God to be their aide, who ouerthrewe the Madianites, and ouercame the Amale∣kites, * 1.14
not by strength or force of Israel, but by the workes and wonders of God, as you may reade in the Iudges at large: for with three hundred, Gedeon slewe one hundred and twentie thousand of the Amalekites, Madianites, and Arabians. And though Ephraim murmured against Gedeon, yet he appeased them, and reuenged him selfe on them of Succoth and Penu∣el. Reade the 8. of the Iudges, you shall be satisfied. By Ge∣deon nowe againe Israel was restored to the former libertie and dignitie, hauing vanquished the Madianites, and slaine Oreb and Zeeb, two of their princes, and their heads brought * 1.15 to Gedeon beyond Iordan.
Nowe reigned Panninas in Niniue, the fiue and twentieth king of the Assyrians. Pandayon of that name the second king after Cecrops, reigned in Athens. Euristheus the first king of * 1.16 Mycena: this was that king, whose fame was great in Greece: he brought the Argiues and their kingdome subiect vnto My∣cena, which kingdome continued from Iacobs birth, vntill Ge∣deons time, fiue hundred and fiftie yeeres, during which time reigned foureteene kings ouer the Argiues.
About this time reigned in Troy, Ilus the fourth king: of * 1.17 this kings name Troy was called Ilion, being first called Dar∣dania by Dardanus, who first builded it, in the last yeere of As∣catades the eighteenth king of Assyria, at which time Moses di∣ed in the plaine of Moab. Then Tros altered the name of Dar∣dania after his owne name, being the third king of Troy, and called it Troia, and nowe last of all by Ilus the fourth king, cal∣led * 1.18 Ilion. Dedalus, of whome the Poets fained much, flouri∣shed likewise about this time, and fled with his sonne Icharus * 1.19 from Greece vnto Creete, vnto king Minoes.
Mydas gouerned nowe in Phrygia. This was he, of whome the prouerbe is made, Midas eares, &c. And in Sicyonia reig∣ned Polybus their second king in Gedeons time. Cadmus, who for ielousie of his wife Armonia the sister of Iasius, brought letters first into Greece from Phenicia, as Xenophon sayth, 17. * 1.20 letters.
Nowe after Gedeon had gouerned Israel fourtie yeeres, he
likewise died, hauing left behinde him three score and tenne sonnes, lawfully gotten by wedlocke, and one bastard by his concubine Druma, a woman of Sichem. This bastard was na∣med Abimelek, a wicked and a cruell tyrant, full of all mis∣chiefe, * 1.21 and bent to all wickednes: hee slewe by his treache∣rie, conferring with his mothers kinsfolkes, all his bre∣thren, onely Iotham by fleeing escaped, who a little after∣wards * 1.22 tolde the people of Sichem the parable of the trees, of the figge tree, and of the vine tree, and of the bramble. This Abimelek, when hee had vsurped the kingdome, and put all his brethren to death, vsing all kinde of tyrannie in such sort of wickednes, that after he had slaine all the Sichemites, and taken the Citie, and burned a thousand of men in the Towre, he then destroied the Citie, and sowed salt there∣in, that it might bee vnfruitefull, and neuer serue to any vse.
Thus was Sichem destroied for their vngratitude to Gede∣ons sonnes. Then Theber and Abimelech besieged it, where a woman threw a peece of a milstone vpon Abimelechs head, and slewe him, after he had vsurped three yeeres the gouern∣ment.
Thus God taketh vengeance on tyrants, by such mise∣rable death: for marke the calamitie that fell vpon the po∣steritie of Gedeon, a man of singular fauour with God, and yet three score and tenne of his sonnes by wedlocke slaine, and his bastard the tyrant that slewe them, to succeede him. The sinne of Israel was the cause thereof, and of many more plagues.
Miletum, a towne in Miletia the Countrey of Thales, one * 1.23 of the seuen wise men of Greece, was about this tyme buil∣ded, and Tyre an other famous towne was builded in Pheni∣cia: * 1.24 this was builded 240. yeeres before the Temple of Salo∣mon was builded.
Thola of the tribe of Isachar, nowe iudged Israel three and * 1.25 twentie yeeres, during which tyme, the people liued in tranquillitie and peace in the beginning of the fourth
Iubile, at which tyme flourished Orpheus the Thracian, and the great Musician. Sosarinus the 26. king of the Assyri∣ans, reigned in Niniue at this time. Hercules the sonne of Am∣phitrion, * 1.26 was likewise in this age borne.
After Thola, succeeded not by succession (as I wrote be∣fore) but by the election of God, (for the will of the Lorde should be a lawe to his people) Iair the Gileadite, of the tribe * 1.27 of Manasses, the 8. Iudge of Israel, vnder whom likewise the I∣sraelites liued quietly all the time of his gouernment, which was 22. yeeres: who ruled Israel in prosperitie, hauing 30. * 1.28 sonnes that rode on 30. assecoltes, men of great authoritie: and they had 30. cities in the land of Gilead. As soone as Iair * 1.29 died, Israel wrought wickednes in the sight of the Lord: they serued Baalim and Astaroth, the gods of Syria and Sidon: and God was angrie, and gaue them to the handes of the Phili∣stims, and the children of Ammon, who vexed and oppressed Iuda, * 1.30 Beniamin, and the house of Ephraim, against whom the children of Ammon went ouer Iordan to fight with them: so that all Israel, specially they that dwelt in the lands of the A∣morites beyond Iordan, were sore tormented. * 1.31
Then they cried, then they praied, then they confessed their sinnes, and sayde, they had serued Baalim. God most mercifully heard their crie, and appointed them Ieptha a va∣liant * 1.32 Captaine, the sonne of a stranger, and therefore was chased away by his brethren, and nowe by God appointed their Captaine: whome they reiected before as no body, nowe God hath chosen to doe these enterprises. Men of∣ten desire helpe, euen of those, whome before they haue re∣fused. This poore abiect, exiled and banished by his bre∣thren, slewe and destroied the Ammonites, and tooke twen∣tie of their cities, for the which fact, Ieptha was much enui∣ed by the men of Ephraim, in the like sort as they of Sichem did enuie Gedeon: notwithstanding, he killed 42. thousand Ephramites.
Thus Ieptha ruled Israel 6. yeeres, and ended his gouern∣ment * 1.33 most happily. Tantanes reigned and gouerned the
Assyrians about this time: and Theseus the 10. king of A∣thens ouercame the monster Minotaurus. The historie you * 1.34 shall reade in Plutarch, in the life of Theseus: for the Athenians paied tribute to Minoes king of Creete, for the death of Andro∣gius * 1.35 his eldest sonne, who was by treason slaine in the Coun∣trey of Attica: for the which cause Minoes pursuing the re∣uenge of his death, the Athenians by entreatie of peace, to appease Minoes wrath, sent to Minoes, which peace being granted vpon condition, that the Athenians should be bound to sende him yeerely vnto Creete 7. yong boies, and as many yong girles, some say, to feed Minotaurus the huge monster; others say they were shut within the Labyrinth, wandring vp and downe, and could get no place to come to, vntil such * 1.36 time as they died: some others say, that king Minoes kept these youthes of Athens as prisoners within the Labyrinth, in memorie of his sonne Androgeus. Howsoeuer it was, The∣seus, after he had fortified Athens with people, to whome he gaue lawes, and coyned money, with moe things, sailed from Athens vnto Creete, and wanne the citie of Gnosus, slewe Deucalion with all his Garde and Officers, and killed Mino∣taurus. * 1.37
About this time, Hercules instituted certaine games or ma∣steries, called afterwards Olympiades, in respect of Mount O∣lympus, * 1.38 the place where these exercises were appointed. This was 430. yeeres before any Olympiade began. Likewise in the time of this Iudge Iephthe, Theseus rauished Helene Menelaus * 1.39 wife, & was by Aedoneus king of the Molossians, taken and im∣prisoned: but by his companion Hercules he was rescued and deliuered. Hercules tooke Ilion, killed Laomedon the king, and gaue the kingdome to Priamus his sonne.
At what time, the Amazones, a people of Scythia, mooued warres against the Thebans: here is the first mention made of them in histories, of whose originall you may reade Iustine, * 1.40 where you shall see more. Nowe after Ieptha had gouerned I∣srael 6. yeeres, obeying God in all thinges, saue in his rashe vowe, in sacrificing his daughter, he died, and was buried in
one of the cities of Gilead.
Abesan the Bethlemite, of the tribe of Iuda, gouerned the I∣sraelites * 1.41 7. yeeres. Certaine writers suppose this Abesan to be the Prophet Dauids Grandfather: for Ishai Dauids father, was borne in the time of Iair, in the which time happened in∣ter regnum for 18. yeeres, whereby the Hebrewes were com∣pelled to serue the children of Ammon, and the Philistims. They were in great miserie this time, vntill Israel repented, * 1.42 which was the onely repentance & acknowledging of sinnes we can reade of Israel, described in the Iudges at large. This Abesan had 30. sonnes, and 30. daughters, and he sent his 30. daughters to bring other 30. more for his sonnes, and when he had gouerned 7. yeeres, he died, and was buried at Beth∣lehem. Then Elon came in steede of Ieptha: he was of the tribe * 1.43 of Zabulon, and he iudged Israel 10. yeeres, and died, and was buried in the Countrey of Zabulon. After him Abdon of the * 1.44 tribe of Ephraim, iudged Israel 8. yeeres. Of these three last Iudges there is nothing left in memorie woorth the wri∣ting.
During this time, in Niniue gouerned Tanteus, the 29. king of the Assyrians Mezentius gouerned the Tuscans: but be∣ing driuen by the people, called Vitulones, out of his chiefe * 1.45 citie, he fled vnto an other citie of his, called Carites, and from thence gathered a great armie, and went in armes a∣gainst Aeneas with Turnus. Protheus the Egyptian, a Priest of great Ianus, flourished this time. Likewise happened this season, a great deluge in Egypt, called diluuium Pharaonicum, in * 1.46 so much that the Isle of Pharaoh was drowned with water. A∣gamemnon reigned nowe in Mycena, of whom Thucidides doth make mention in the preface of his first booke.
About this time, Helene againe was taken away by Paris: hereby the Grecians did gather a great armie for rescuing of * 1.47 Helene: after, Messengers being sent vnto Priamus, and being denied of restoring of Helene, the Greekes prepared for warres 1210. nauies, as Dares Frigius writeth. After this greatwarre, the Latines beganne their kingdome, ouer whome Aeneas
after Latinus time was the first king, hauing married Laui∣nia, Latinus daughter. All these things were done in the be∣ginning of the sixt Iubile, at which time reigned in Athens, Demophon the 12. king of the Athenians, and one Mopsus reigned in Cilicia, of whome they were named afterwarde Mopsecrenae.
Then after Abdons death, Israel had no Iudge for fourtie * 1.48 yeeres, but continued in their wickednes, and offended the Lorde, whereby they were oppressed by the Philistims, vntill the birth of Samson, of the tribe of Dan, whom God had bles∣sed with many vertues, as strēgth, courage, godlines, & zeale to reuenge the people of god vpō the Philistims. This was the last Iudge of Israel: but for that the historie is written in the 13. 14. 15. and 16. of the Iudges, I will omit other things: for during the time of Samson, which was twentie yeeres, Isra∣el * 1.49 was by the Philistims much molested, and fourtie yeeres af∣ter Samson, when the Israelites were gouerned vnder Ely the * 1.50 high Priest. Nowe the Iudges of Israel ended that gouern∣ment, which God deliuered them euen from Moses death, vntill the birth of Samuel, 357. yeeres, adding thereunto 40. yeeres of Moses gouernment, doeth make the continuance of the Iudges of Israel to be 380. and 17.
About this time, Orestes the sixt king of Mycena, slewe Pyr∣rhus * 1.51 the sonne of Achilles, in the Temple of Apollo: for after Orestes time, there reigned no more kings in Mycena, but O∣restes sonne, named Tisamenus, after whome succeeded Pen∣thilus, and after him Cometes, the last king of Mycena. After this Cometes, descended the stocke of Heraclides, which after∣ward * 1.52 came from Peloponesus, and tooke Mycena.
Thus ended the kingdome of Mycena, who beganne their gouernment in the time of Gedeon, at what time the king∣dome of the Argiues was translated vnto Mycena, where reigned 10. kings, whose names are these.
The continuance of these kings was from the beginning of Gedeon, vntil the beginning of Elie the high Priest, which was 157. yeeres: so long continued the kingdome of Mycena. * 1.53
Now after Samsons daies, the house of Israel began accor∣ding to their vse, not to thanke God for his benefites, but stil discontented, murmuring against God, seeking newe Magi∣strates, newe lawes, wearie of their gouernment and of their * 1.54 Iudges, most desirous of change, stubborne people, and a wilfull nation, idolaters, rebellious and factious, alwaies by disobedience offending their God. God followed their hu∣mors, they had what they would, and they did what they li∣sted: * 1.55 they had Elie the high Priest for their Iudge 40. yeeres, in his time the Arke was taken by the Philistims, his sonnes slaine, and himselfe fell from his stoole, and died. After Elie the high Priest died, they had Samuel for their Prophet, but they still cried out for a king: for neither Iudge, Priest, nor Prophet might please them, but a King: and therefore God commanded Samuel to anoint Saul to be their king. But first I * 1.56 will lay downe the names of all the Iudges that iudged Israel, from the first vnto the last.
After Moses and Iosua succeeded
〈◊〉〈◊〉 de He∣bre•…•…rū admin.
The mutabi∣liue of the Is∣raelites.
Eglon king of Moab affli∣cteth Israel.
Ehud killeth Eglon.
Iabin against Israel.
Debora and Barac ouer∣threw him.
Functius and R•…•…fin.
Gedeon.
Iosephus lib. 5. cap. 7.
Othoniel.
Shamgar.
Barac and De∣bora.
The great mi∣sery of Israel.
Iudg 7.
Oreb and Zeeb 2. princes of Madianites slaine.
Euristheus.
Diuers names of Troy. Dardania.
Troiae.
Ilion.
Zeneph. de equiuecis.
The tyrannie of Abimalec.
Iotham esca∣peth.
Miletum buyl∣ded.
Tyre is builed.
Thola Iudge in Israel.
Hercules borne.
Iair the 8. Iudge of Is∣rael.
Iairs 30. sonnes.
Iairs 30. sonnes posses∣sed 30. Cities.
Israel oppres∣sed.
1. Reg. cap. 10.
Ieptha is ap∣pointed their captayne.
Ieptha ruled 6. yeeres and died.
Minotaurus.
Androgeus sonne to Mi∣noes king of Creete slaine.
Theseus sayled to Creete.
Minotaurus slayne.
The games of Olympia.
Theseus raui∣shed Helen.
Iustin. lib. 2.
Abesan suppo∣sed to be Boaz the husband of Ruth.
Iudic. 10.
Elon.
Abdon.
Herodot. lib. 2.
Diodo. lib. 2.
The second rauishment of Helen.
Eusebius.
Samson 20. yeeres.
Elie 40. yeeres.
Orestes slewe Pirrhus.
Heraclides.
Mycena.
The vilenesse of the Iewes.
Their crie for a prophet and for a king.
Samuel anoin∣ted Saul.