Ibzan - A Judge of Israel

Ibzan’s story can be found in Judges twelve verses eight through ten. His father was Salmon, also known as Salma. His mother was Rahab. Ibzan’s hometown was Beth-lehem. This would be Eprath, not Jerusalem. Ibzan became judge after Jephthah’s death. He was the twelfth judge of Israel.

Ibzan had thirty sons and thirty daughters. A large family suggests that he was polygamous, meaning that he had more than one wife. This was tolerated, but never in God’s plan. Large families were a sign of wealth and power. He gave his daughters away in marriage to those outside of his clan, probably outside of Israel. For his sons, he brought in thirty young women from outside of his clan to be married to. This would suggest that he was seeking political alliances and to extend his sphere of influences. He encouraged his sons to have only one wife.

Ibzan is also known as Boaz. He married Ruth the Moabite. Ruth had previously been married to Ibzan’s cousin. When she was widowed, she moved to Judah with Naomi, her mother in law. There she met Boaz. She was his last wife, and together they had a son named Obed. They are the ancestors of King David who was born four generations later. Nothing is said about his adversaries, so there was probably not a threat to Israel during his lifetime. Therefore, Ibzan never fought any major battles.

Ibzan judged Israel for seven years. When Ibzan died, he was buried in Beth-lehem, his hometown. Elon judged Israel for ten years after Ibzan’s death.