What does Judges 21:25 mean when it says every man did what was right in his own eyes?
Judges 21:25 describes Israel’s condition when there was no king and no guiding authority, so everyone followed his own judgment. It was almost anarchy and spiritual famine; Israel was destitute because nothing guided them. This verse ends Judges’ cycle of rise and fall and fits the present day.
Les explains that Judges 21:25 is especially appropriate for the day in which we find ourselves, because the whole set of circumstances around us fits this verse. The book of Judges records Israel’s rise and fall: she would go down into sin and rebellion, cry out for help, and God would raise up a judge to bring her out; she would be spiritual for a while, then fall again. As the book ends, there was no king in Israel, and every man did what was right in his own eyes. Les says this was almost anarchy and a spiritual famine; Israel was destitute because there was nothing to guide them. He also notes that we live in a time when people hardly hear about sin and do not even know what sin is, so every man does whatever he thinks is right in his own eyes, and we are getting there fast within our own social fabric.
In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.