Transcription: The fourth era of biblical history describes an intriguing period of national disunity known as the time of the judges. Following the death of Joshua, different judges ruled various parts of the land until the rise of the monarchy under King Saul around 1050 BC. Two books tell the fascinating story of this period, Judges and Ruth. While the first few chapters of 1 Samuel overlap this era, the focus of 1 Samuel is upon the fifth period of Israel's history, rise of the monarchy.