Tier 1 - The Books of Judges and Ruth (TNK 202 T-1)

Course Title: The Books of Judges and Ruth (TNK 202 T-1)

• ✡Course Code: TNK 202 T-1
• ✡Tier: This is a Tier 1, 3 credit, 16 week, faculty-led course offered in Spring semesters.
• ✡Discipline: The Tanakh – Old Testament Biblical Studies
• ✡Prerequisites: None
• ✡Instructor in the Video Lectures: Dr. Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum
• ✡Video Lectures: 27 video lecture presentations, a total of 14 hours
• ✡Required Textbooks: There are three required textbooks to purchase to purchase for this course (if taking the course for credit). The books are listed on the course syllabus which students have access to after they purchase the course.

 

This course is a verse-by-verse teaching exposition through the books of Judges and Ruth.  The Book of Judges describes the military and spiritual struggles of the people as they try to settle the Promised Land, how they became more and more "Canaanized" and less and less Israelite, and the contrast between God’s covenantal faithfulness and Israel’s covenantal unfaithfulness.

The Book of Ruth details the faithfulness of God in His work of loving, superintending, and providentially caring for His people. It shows how God rescued Elimelech’s family from extinction and how Elimelech’s family triumphed over tragedy, leading to the birth of David, a rightful heir to the kingship of Israel.

 

Module 1 – Introduction 

• Video Presentation 1a - Title, Author, Dates, Place in the Canon, Historical Setting
• Video Presentation 1b - Structure, Systematic Theology, Purpose, Key Verses, Judges and the New Testament, Theme

Module 1 Exam

 

Module 2 – The Prelude: Israel’s Failure to Conquer the Land 1:1-3:6 

• Video Presentation 2a – Incomplete Conquest 1:1-36 
• Video Presentation 2b – The Divine Rebuke, The Joshua Generation, and Introduction to the Cycles of Apostasy and Deliverance (2:1 to 3:6)

Module 2 Exam

 

Module 3 – The First through Fourth Cycles of Oppression and Deliverance 

• Video Presentation 3a – The First, Second and Third Cycles (Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar (3:7 – 3:31) 
• Video Presentation 3b – The Fourth Cycle, Barak and Deborah: from Sin to Deliverance (4:1-24)

• Video Presentation 3c – “Deborah’s Song of Deliverance” (5:1-31)

Module 3 Exam

 

Module 4 – The Fifth Cycle: Gideon 6:1-9:57

• Video Presentation 4a – From the Sin (6:1a) to the Sign of the Fleece (6:40) 
• Video Presentation 4b – From the Division of the Army (7:1) to the Judgeship of Gideon (8:32) 

Module 4 Exam

 

Module 5 – The Dictatorship of Abimelech (8:33), the Judgeships of Tola (10:1-2) and Jair (10:3-5) 

• Video Presentation 5 – The Dictatorship of Abimelech (8:33), the Judgeships of Tola (10:1-2) and Jair (10:3-5)

Module 5 Exam

 

Module 6 – The Sixth Cycle: Jephthah (10:6 – 12:7) and the Judgeships of Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon (12:15)

 

• Video Presentation 6a – From the Sin (10:6) to the Negotiations with the Ammonites (11:28) 
• Video Presentation 6b – From Jephthah’s Vow (11:29) to the Judgeships of Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon (12:15) 

Module 6 Exam

 

Module 7 – The Seventh Cycle: Samson, Part One (13:1 to 15:20)

• Video Presentation 7a – The Sin (13:1a) to the Fulfillment of the Promise (13:25)
• Video Presentation 7b – The Marriage of Samson (14:1) to the Judgeship of Samson (15:20) 

Module 7 Exam

 

Module 8 – The Seventh Cycle: Samson, Part Two (16:1 to 16:31) 

• Video Presentation 8 – Samson and the Gates of Gaza (16:1-3) to the Judgeship of Samson (16:31b) 

Module 8 Exam

 

Module 9 – The First Appendix: Micah and the Levite (17:1-13) to the Danite Conquest (18:31) 

• Video Presentation 9a –Micah and the Levite (17:1-13) 
• Video Presentation 9b – The Migration of Dan (18:1-31) 

Module 9 Exam

 

Module 10 – The Second Appendix: The Benjamite War (19:1 – 21:25) 

• Video Presentation 10a – The Levite and His Concubine (19:1-30) 
• Video Presentation 10b – The Tribal War Against Benjamin (20:1-48) 

Module 10 Exam

 

Module 11 – Wives for Benjamin (21:1-24), the Theme (21:25) to the Third Appendix 

• Video Presentation 11 – Wives for Benjamin (21:1-24) to the Third Appendix (Book of Ruth) 

Module 11 Exam

 

Module 12 – Introduction to the Book of Ruth 

• Video Presentation 12 – The Introduction to the Book of Ruth 

Module 12 Exam

 

Module 13 – The Commitment of Ruth (1:1-22) 

• Video Presentation 13a – Historical Background (1:1-5) 
• Video Presentation 13b – Naomi’s Return to Judah (1:6-18) to Naomi and Ruth’s Arrival in Bethlehem (1:19-22) 

Module 13 Exam

 

Module 14 – Ruth’s Reaping During the Harvest (2:1-23) 

• Video Presentation 14 – Ruth’s Reaping During the Harvest (2:1-23) 

Module 14 Exam

 

Module 15 – Ruth and the Kinsman‑Redeemer (3:1‑18) 

• Video Presentation 15 – Ruth and the Kinsman‑Redeemer ‑ 3:1‑18 

Module 15 Exam

 

Module 16 – Boaz’s Redemption of Ruth  (4:1‑17) 

• Video Presentation 16a – Boaz’s Redemption of Ruth ‑ (4:1‑17)
• Video Presentation 16b – The Genealogy (4:18-22) 

Module 16 Exam