Ibzan the Illustrious is not the first rich judge, but he is one of the first judges to secure himself through politics. Ibzan created a network of alliances through the marriages of his children. The verbiage used in the passage indicates that Ibzan was consistent in marrying his children outside of his clan. The word clan here can mean different families in town, out of town, out of tribal subgroup, out of the tribe and out of Israel.
By marrying outside his clan Ibzan created alliances which would’ve created security for himself and his family. It is not clear whether Ibzan violated the Law by marrying outside of Israel, but to marry that many different children (60) to that many different clans would’ve stretched what Israel could provide by itself. He likely married at least a few outside of Israel. Even a few married outside of Israel demonstrates the distance Israel’s leaders and the Law of Moses.
What this shows is that Ibzan is unwilling to trust solely in the power of God. He works to secure his position through marital alliance. It is not a bad plan either. Ibzan’s family likely had ties throughout the region for almost 1,000 years until the Assyrians conquered the region and deported all the Israelites. 1,000 years is a long time, but it isn’t eternal. It is not everlasting. This contrasts with what the Kings of Israel seek, everlasting power. It also shows us that our machinations do not last outside of God. Ibzan’s treasures were in his alliances not in heaven with God.
I don’t think we are any different today. We all want security. We all want to have a tangible reason to believe we are safe. Ibzan went for one of the most lasting things humans know of blood relationship, but it still didn’t last. Today we do all sorts of things that don’t last when we should be thinking of eternal things because we are secure in those things.
For me, I find security in videogames. Videogames are great. They are a neat art form and playing them gives me a lot of joy and a great way to relax at the end of the day. But, I play them too much, on my phone, my computer, my PlayStation, and my 3DS. They are a way to escape but they don’t last. It won’t matter what my high score on any game in a few days much less 1,000 years or eternity. I have to invest in other things that will last. Read the articles that matter. Write the posts that have the ability to change lives. Have lunch with that person to encourage him. Lives matters. It is something that can last through the ages and by changing people’s lives for the better we invest in something that will last eternally. “Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.” What part of your life are you keeping? For me it’s videogames.