Judges by the Dozen Trivia Quiz

Answer:

According to estimates of biblical scholars, the time of the Judges began about 18 years after the death of Joshua, who led the Israelites into the Promised Land after Moses' death. From the first judge (Othniel) until the crowning of King Saul, there was a span of 300 years.

By tradition, the author of the Book of Judges was Samuel, and while the book only lists 12 judges, there are a few more named in the Book of 1 Samuel, also, including the priest Eli, as well as Samuel and his two sons, Joel and Abijah.

Judges recounts a cycle experienced by the Israelites, in which they rebelled against their God (worshipping false gods), and were punished for it, typically by the non-Israelites in the region. When they finally repented their ways and called upon God for aid, He would send a judge (ruler) - to free them from their oppressors. And then the cycle would begin again with rebellion...

The 12 judges, in order as presented in Judges, were: Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, Gideon, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Samson. Of some of them, we know little more than their names, while others have detailed stories and timelines. The most well-known are Gideon, who achieved a major victory with small numbers, and Samson, who had incredible strength and was deceived by Delilah.