Othniel

Othniel was an Israelite judge, the son of Kenaz and the nephew (or brother) of Caleb.

In the process of helping Caleb capture the city of Debir (Kiriath Sepher), Othniel won the city and married Achsah. When Caleb gave Othniel the land and Achsah, she asked her father for springs of water. Caleb then gave her “the upper and lower springs.”

After the death of Joshua, the Israelites gradually turned away from God and did what was evil in the Lord’s sight. They forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Asherahs. So the Lord’s anger was kindled, and He handed them over to King Cushan-Rishathaim of Mesopotamia. When the Israelites cried out to the Lord after serving the king for eighteen years, the Lord raised up Othniel as their deliverer. He saved the Israelites from the oppression of Cushan-Rishathaim. The Bible says that “the Spirit of the Lord came on him” when he delivered Israel. He served as a judge for forty years.

In Jewish legend, Achsah complained to her father that after Othniel captured the city, he did nothing but study the five books of Moses. It is said that while everyone else was mourning Moses, he was diligently memorizing God’s law. He is said to have been able to recite 3,000 laws. Because of this, he became another great man of faith and the first judge after Joshua.