Judges2

Judges chapter two begins with an angel of the LORD rebuking Israel at Bochim for failing to obey His covenant by not driving out the land's inhabitants and throwing down their altars. The people wept and sacrificed, but after Joshua and his generation died, a new generation arose that knew not the LORD. This led to widespread idolatry, provoking God's anger and His delivering them into the hands of their enemies. Though God raised up judges to deliver them, Israel repeatedly returned to their corrupt ways after each judge's death.

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The Angel's Rebuke at Bochim

And the angel of Jehovah came up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you:

and ye shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall break down their altars. But ye have not hearkened unto my voice: why have ye done this?

Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you.

And it came to pass, when the angel of Jehovah spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.

And they called the name of that place Bochim: and they sacrificed there unto Jehovah.

Death of Joshua and a Faithful Generation

Now when Joshua had sent the people away, the children of Israel went every man unto his inheritance to possess the land.

And the people served Jehovah all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work of Jehovah that he had wrought for Israel.

And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Jehovah, died, being a hundred and ten years old.

And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath-heres, in the hill-country of Ephraim, on the north of the mountain of Gaash.

And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, that knew not Jehovah, nor yet the work which he had wrought for Israel.

Israel's Apostasy and Divine Punishment

And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and served the Baalim;

and they forsook Jehovah, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the peoples that were round about them, and bowed themselves down unto them: and they provoked Jehovah to anger.

And they forsook Jehovah, and served Baal and the Ashtaroth.

And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that despoiled them; and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies.

Whithersoever they went out, the hand of Jehovah was against them for evil, as Jehovah had spoken, and as Jehovah had sworn unto them: and they were sore distressed.

The Cycle of Oppression and Deliverance

And Jehovah raised up judges, who saved them out of the hand of those that despoiled them.

And yet they hearkened not unto their judges; for they played the harlot after other gods, and bowed themselves down unto them: they turned aside quickly out of the way wherein their fathers walked, obeying the commandments of Jehovah; but they did not so.

And when Jehovah raised them up judges, then Jehovah was with the judge, and saved them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented Jehovah because of their groaning by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them.

But it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they turned back, and dealt more corruptly than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down unto them; they ceased not from their doings, nor from their stubborn way.

Remaining Nations Become a Test

And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel; and he said, Because this nation have transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto my voice;

I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations that Joshua left when he died;

that by them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of Jehovah to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not.

So Jehovah left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.

Study Notes for Judges 2

Verse 1

The 'angel of the LORD' (often interpreted as a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ or the Divine Messenger) speaks with divine authority, referencing the unconditional covenant made at the Exodus.

Verse 2

The command to avoid treaties and destroy altars was crucial for maintaining Israel's distinct identity and monotheism, as stipulated in the Mosaic Law (Exodus 23:32).

Verse 3

This is a crucial statement of divine judgment. Because Israel failed to fulfill its obligations, God allows the remaining Canaanites to become a source of affliction ('thorns') and temptation ('snare').

Verse 5

The place is named 'Bochim,' meaning 'weepers,' memorializing the spot where the people confessed their guilt and mourned their failure, though this repentance proved temporary.

Verse 6

This verse begins the transition from the successful conquest narrative (Joshua) to the failure narrative (Judges), establishing the setting for the subsequent decline.

Verse 7

The faithfulness of this initial generation stemmed from their personal experience of the powerful miracles of the Exodus and Conquest, contrasting sharply with their descendants.

Verse 10

This verse pinpoints the theological problem of the entire book: the failure to transmit the knowledge of Yahweh and His saving acts to the next generation, leading to spiritual ignorance.

Verse 11

'Doing evil in the sight of the LORD' is the recurring theological phrase used by the historian to describe covenant disobedience, specifically the worship of foreign deities (Baalim).

Verse 12

The rejection of Yahweh in favor of local Canaanite fertility gods (Baal and Ashtaroth) constituted the ultimate breach of the covenant, violating the First Commandment.

Verse 14

The result of apostasy is immediate divine judgment. God delivers them into the hands of 'spoilers' (raiders or neighboring enemies), initiating the cycle of sin and suffering.

Verse 16

This verse introduces the central mechanism of the book: God raising up temporary military and spiritual leaders (judges) as instruments of salvation in response to Israel’s distress.

Verse 17

The phrase 'went a whoring after other gods' is powerful prophetic imagery, describing idolatry as spiritual adultery, emphasizing the deep betrayal inherent in breaking the covenant bond.

Verse 18

God's intervention through the judges stemmed from His compassion ('it repented the LORD') in response to the people's groaning, demonstrating divine mercy overriding strict justice.

Verse 19

This verse highlights the downward spiritual spiral. Upon the judge's death, the people immediately relapsed, becoming 'more corrupted' than the preceding generation.

Verse 20

God reaffirms the judgment declared in verses 2-3. Since the people failed to obey the covenant, the judgment—leaving the Canaanites in place—will stand.

Verse 22

The purpose of sparing the nations is clearly stated: to 'prove Israel,' acting as a test of their faithfulness and obedience to the covenant way of life established by Moses and Joshua.

Verse 23

The remaining nations were not simply a leftover task but a deliberate divine choice designed to test the loyalty and spiritual maturity of the new, disobedient generation.

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Judges2

The Angel's Rebuke at Bochim

Death of Joshua and a Faithful Generation

Israel's Apostasy and Divine Punishment

The Cycle of Oppression and Deliverance

Remaining Nations Become a Test

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