BAD BOYS
OF THE BIBLE
BAD BOYS
OF THE BIBLE
EXPLORING MEN OF
QUESTIONABLE VIRTUE
BARBARA J. ESSEX
To the memories of my mother and father, Archie M. Simmons Essex and Nathan M. Essex, who taught me everything about hanging tough
The Pilgrim Press, 700 Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44115-1100
© 2002 by Barbara J. Essex
All rights reserved. Published 2002
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper
This book has been reproduced as a digital reprint.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Essex, Barbara J. (Barbara Jean), 1951-
Bad boys of the Bible : exploring men of questionable virtue / Barbara J. Essex.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. ).
ISBN 978-0-8298-1466-8 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Men in the Bible. I. Title.
BS574.5 .E87 2002
221.9′22′081 – dc21
2002072099
CONTENTS
1Adam: “But It’s Not My Fault!”
2Cain: “Am I My Brother’s Keeper?”
4Lot: “Don’t Worry, Just Be Happy!”
5Jacob: “All That Heaven Allows!” (Part A)
6Jacob: “All That Heaven Allows!” (Part B)
7Jephthah: “Can I Change My Mind?”
8Samson: “Who Is the Greatest?”
Suggestions for Teaching and Preaching
Bibliography and Additional Resources
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
No work springs forth from a vacuum. I have been blessed to have my journey companioned by folks who support and challenge me. I am most grateful to Kim Sadler, who continues to place unconditional trust in my ability to “say it plainly.” I am grateful to Michael Lawrence, who pushes me to “get it done, girl!” My conversation partners—Linda Sroufe, Edward Goode, Ronald Wells, Garfield Byrd, Gayle Dickson, Sheri Bryant, Leila Llewelyn, and Patricia Essex—never let me forget that I have a job to do. They help me know what solid ground is. Their love and support sustained me during the most challenging times of getting this work completed. A special thank-you goes to the students, faculty, and administrators at Pacific School of Religion, who allowed me ample space to whine about how much it takes to write a book and engage in ministry full-time and overtime—and they still encouraged me in this effort. A special word of thanks goes to Chidinma Uzoma, Chris Evans, Johari Jabir, and Rebecca Schroeder. I am grateful to congregations across this country that suffered through my tentative attempts to share the “Good News” through the stories of biblical “bad boys.” And I am most grateful to Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr., whose lively and powerful teaching and preaching opened a new dimension of faith and understanding for me and countless others.
Any strength of this volume is due to input from all who challenged my thinking and research. Any weakness is due to my own inadequacies.
GETTING STARTED
This Bible study was designed as an eight-week program. The ideal length of time for each session is one and a half to two hours; feel free, however, to make adjustments that work for your group. You will need a Bible, this book, and a notebook or journal.
For those using this resource for personal study, I encourage you to allot the same amount of time for each study unit. You will need a journal in which to record your reflections and questions.
At the end of this book, there is a section on suggested ways of preaching and teaching the “bad boys.” The resources section lists some additional books and articles that will give more details about the texts than we can cover in this volume. You may want to include other materials that you have found enlightening and inspirational.
Keep an open mind and have fun exploring these “bad boys”!
INTRODUCTION
“You’re writing a book about the bad boys of the Bible? Are there any other kind?” The questions were often asked in jest, but they contain an element of truth. Many of the men in the Bible have both heroic and sordid qualities. They are called and anointed by God to do great things. They accomplish much and present themselves as pioneers and able servants of God. They proclaim powerful insights about the relationship between God and God’s people. They perform magnificent acts of valor and courage. They symbolize the tenderness and nurture inherent in a close, intimate relationship with God. They exercise justice and are able to present a bigger picture than the human mind can grasp. But they also commit outrageous acts. They lie, cheat, and steal. They kill and maim. They are cunning and underhanded. They are arrogant, uncontrollable, and weak. They whine and complain. They betray and deceive. They rape and plunder. Their stories are a mixture of curiosity, shame, anger, sadness, and triumph. Their stories are those of human beings who are strong and weak, faithful and challenged. This book will explore their contexts of leadership and their challenges of character as they attempt to work on behalf of God and God’s people.
The stories of these selected “bad boys” are strange accounts of good and bad, obedience and failure. For instance, when Moses, the great deliverer and liberator, receives his call from God, he is a fugitive murderer hiding out from the Egyptian court that saved his life and raised him. Jephthah, a warrior for Israel in the days before monarchs ruled the nation, wages a successful military campaign against the dreaded Philistines. Yet he makes a foolish, irrevocable vow and murders his daughter, his only child. Jonah is a prophet of great preaching ability; on the strength of one sermon, Jonah saves the entire city of Nineveh. However, he