In this chapter, God sends a message to the Israelites and my confusion after reading chapter 1 is put to rest. The chapter begins, “The angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bokim with a message for the Israelites. He told them, “I brought you out of Egypt into this land that I swore to give your ancestors, and I said I would never break my covenant with you. For your part, you were not to make any covenants with the people living in this land; instead, you were to destroy their altars. Why, then, have you disobeyed my command? Since you have done this, I will no longer drive out the people living in your land. They will be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a constant temptation to you.” When the angel of the Lord finished speaking, the Israelites wept loudly. So they called the place “Weeping,” and they offered sacrifices to the Lord.” (Judges 2:1-5)
The next paragraph summarizes Joshua’s death, indicating that he died at the age of 110. It states before his death, he sent the people away to take possession of the land given to them, and that the Israelites served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and all the leaders who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel (So they served the Lord and not other gods while Joshua was alive).
The chapter continues, “After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did what was evil in the Lord’s sight and worshiped the images of Baal. They abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They chased after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them. And they angered the Lord. They abandoned the Lord to serve Baal and the images of Ashtoreth. This made the Lord burn with anger against Israel, so he handed them over to marauders who stole their possessions. He sold them to their enemies all around, and they were no longer able to resist them. Every time Israel went out to battle, the Lord fought against them, bringing them defeat, just as he promised. And the people were very distressed.” (Judges 2:10-15)
God then established judges to rescue the Israelites from their enemies, but the people did not listen to the judges. Instead they prostituted and bowed down to other gods. Whenever the Lord placed a judge over Israel, he was with the people of Israel, but the people would return to their corrupt, evil, and stubborn ways after the judge died. “So the Lord burned with anger against Israel. He said, “Because these people have violated the covenant I made with their ancestors and have ignored my commands, I will no longer drive out the nations that Joshua left unconquered when he died. I did this to test Israel -- to see whether or not they would obey the Lord as their ancestors did.” That is why the Lord did not quickly drive the nations out or allow Joshua to conquer them all.” (Judges 2:20-23)
Wow! How is the Lord testing us, and more importantly, are we passing or failing His test?
Lord, thank you for your Word today! Help us recognize your awesomeness, and follow your commands. We love you!
May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
….AND MAY WE ALL PRACTICE THIS WITH ONE ANOTHER.
Hey Lan, when I first read this chapter in the Bible, it answered an important question of today. "For your part, you were not to make any covenants with the people living in this land; instead, you were to destroy their altars. Why, then, have you disobeyed my command? Since you have done this, I will no longer drive out the people living in your land. They will be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a constant temptation to you.”
If anyone is wondering why the Nation of Israel is fighting with the Palestinians today, this verse is the reason. I love the Old Testament! 😊