Judges 3:6

KJV

And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods.

KJV (with Strong's)

And they took {H3947} their daughters {H1323} to be their wives {H802}, and gave {H5414} their daughters {H1323} to their sons {H1121}, and served {H5647} their gods {H430}.

Complete Jewish Bible

taking their daughters as their wives, giving their own daughters to their sons and serving their gods.

Berean Standard Bible

And they took the daughters of these people in marriage, gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods.

American Standard Version

and they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their own daughters to their sons and served their gods.

Commentary

### SUMMARY
Judges 3:6 encapsulates a pivotal moment in Israel's spiritual decline, detailing their direct disobedience to God's commands regarding separation from the Canaanite nations. This verse vividly illustrates the twin failures of intermarriage and subsequent idolatry, revealing how the Israelites' social and familial integration with pagan peoples inevitably led to their abandonment of Yahweh worship and embrace of foreign deities. It serves as a stark precursor to the recurring cycles of apostasy, oppression, and deliverance that define the period of the Judges, highlighting the profound consequences of covenant infidelity.

### CONTEXT
* **Literary Context:** Judges 3:6 appears early in the book of Judges, immediately following the introductory chapters that set the stage for Israel's post-Joshua failures. The book chronicles a tragic cyclical pattern: Israel's **sin** (often idolatry and disobedience), God's consequent **servitude** (oppression by foreign nations), Israel's **supplication** (cries for help), God's **salvation** (raising up a judge), and a period of **silence** or peace, before the cycle repeats. Judges 3:5 establishes that Israel "lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites," setting the immediate backdrop for the actions described in verse 6. This verse marks the crucial initiation of the "sin" phase for the first major cycle of apostasy and judgment, demonstrating the direct violation of God's earlier commands to utterly dispossess the inhabitants of the land and avoid any covenant with them, as found in [Deuteronomy 7](/deuteronomy/7 "Deuteronomy 7 - Warnings Against Alliances with Other Nations") and [Exodus 34](/exodus/34 "Exodus 34 - The Covenant Renewed").

* **Historical & Cultural Context:** The Canaanites were polytheistic peoples whose religious practices centered on fertility cults, often involving ritual prostitution and child sacrifice, particularly in the worship of deities like Baal (the storm god) and Asherah (his consort). Their religious system was deeply interwoven with their daily life, agricultural cycles, and social structures. For Israel, Yahweh worship demanded exclusive devotion and a distinct moral code, standing in stark contrast to Canaanite practices. God's command to dispossess these nations and avoid intermarriage was not merely about racial purity but about preserving Israel's unique covenant identity and preventing spiritual contamination. To form marital alliances, as described in [Judges 3:6](/judges/3-6 "Judges 3:6 - Israel's Intermarriage and Idolatry"), was to integrate into their social and religious fabric, inevitably exposing Israel to, and ultimately drawing them into, the worship of foreign gods. This cultural assimilation was a direct threat to the very foundation of Israel's existence as God's chosen people.

* **Key Themes:** Judges 3:6 powerfully illustrates several critical themes. First, it highlights the theme of **intermarriage and assimilation**, explicitly stating, "And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons." This practice, strictly forbidden by God in passages like [Exodus 34:16](/exodus/34-16 "Exodus 34:16 - Warning Against Intermarriage") and [Deuteronomy 7:3-4](/deuteronomy/7-3 "Deuteronomy 7:3-4 - Prohibition of Intermarriage and Idolatry"), represented a profound compromise of Israel's distinct identity. Second, the verse immediately reveals the consequence: "**and served their gods**," underscoring the theme of **idolatry and spiritual compromise**. Intermarriage was not merely a social act but a gateway to spiritual apostasy, as familial ties inevitably led to participation in the worship of foreign deities like Baal and Asherah, directly violating the first two commandments of the Decalogue (cf. [Exodus 20:3-5](/exodus/20-3 "Exodus 20:3-5 - The First and Second Commandments")). This spiritual adultery demonstrates Israel's profound **disobedience to God's covenant**, choosing to follow their own desires and the ways of the surrounding nations rather than upholding their sacred agreement with Yahweh, setting the stage for the recurring cycles of judgment that characterize the entire book of [Judges](/judges/1 "The Book of Judges").

### EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS

#### Key Word Analysis
* **Took/Gave (Hebrew, _laqach/nathan'_):** These two verbs are used reciprocally, highlighting the active and deliberate nature of the intermarriage. _Laqach_ ("took") indicates the Israelite men taking Canaanite women as wives, while _nathan_ ("gave") signifies Israelite parents giving their daughters to Canaanite men. The pairing emphasizes a mutual, intentional exchange of marital partners, reflecting a conscious decision by the Israelites to integrate with the surrounding nations rather than maintain their distinct separation as commanded by God. This was not accidental but a chosen course of action.
* **Served (Hebrew, _'avad'_):** This verb means "to serve, to work, to worship." In this context, it denotes active, intentional worship and devotion. It implies more than passive exposure; it signifies a deliberate act of submission and allegiance to the Canaanite deities. This "serving" would have involved participating in their rituals, offering sacrifices, and adopting their religious practices, directly contrasting with the exclusive service due to Yahweh.
* **Gods (Hebrew, _'elohim'_):** While _'elohim_ can refer to the one true God, in this context, it is clearly used in the plural to denote the pagan deities of the Canaanites. This plural usage emphasizes the polytheistic nature of the worship Israel adopted, contrasting sharply with the monotheistic worship of Yahweh. It highlights the abandonment of the unique covenant relationship with the one true God for a multitude of false, lifeless idols.

#### Verse Breakdown
* **"And they took their daughters to be their wives":** This clause describes the first aspect of the prohibited intermarriage: Israelite men marrying Canaanite women. This was a direct violation of God's commands (e.g., [Deuteronomy 7:3](/deuteronomy/7-3 "Deuteronomy 7:3 - Prohibition of Intermarriage")), which explicitly forbade such unions due to their inevitable spiritual consequences.
* **"and gave their daughters to their sons":** This clause completes the picture of reciprocal integration, indicating that Israelite parents also gave their daughters in marriage to Canaanite men. This further cemented familial and social ties with the pagan nations, demonstrating a deep level of assimilation and disregard for their covenant obligations to maintain purity and separation.
* **"and served their gods":** This final clause presents the inevitable and devastating spiritual consequence of the intermarriage. The social and familial compromise directly led to religious apostasy. By forming intimate bonds with idolaters, the Israelites were drawn into the worship of foreign deities, fulfilling God's earlier warnings that such alliances would lead them astray from Him. This was the ultimate betrayal of their covenant with Yahweh.

#### Literary Devices
The verse employs several potent literary devices. **Cause and Effect** is prominently displayed, where the act of intermarriage ("took their daughters... and gave their daughters") is presented as the direct precursor and cause of the spiritual apostasy ("and served their gods"). This highlights the direct causal link between social compromise and spiritual corruption. There is also a strong element of **Irony**: Israel, chosen by God to be a distinct, holy nation set apart from the pagan world, actively chooses to assimilate with the very peoples they were commanded to dispossess. Furthermore, the verse functions as **Foreshadowing**, setting the stage for the recurring cycles of apostasy and judgment that will characterize the remainder of the book of Judges, as Israel repeatedly falls into idolatry due to their failure to obey God's commands. Finally, the verse presents a clear **Antithesis** between God's explicit commands for separation and purity and Israel's actions of integration and idolatry, underscoring their covenant infidelity.

### THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Judges 3:6 serves as a profound theological statement on the dangers of syncretism and the critical importance of covenant faithfulness. It reveals that spiritual compromise often begins with seemingly social or cultural choices. For Israel, intermarriage was not merely a social act but a direct violation of their covenant identity, designed to keep them distinct and devoted to Yahweh alone. The verse powerfully illustrates that intimate relationships with those devoted to other gods inevitably lead to a divided heart and, ultimately, to apostasy. This highlights God's unwavering demand for exclusive worship and the severe consequences of spiritual adultery, underscoring the principle that one cannot serve two masters. The narrative throughout Judges consistently demonstrates that Israel's suffering was a direct result of their turning away from God to serve foreign deities, a cycle initiated by the very actions described in this verse.

* [Deuteronomy 7:3-4](/deuteronomy/7-3 "Prohibition of Intermarriage and its Consequences")
* [Exodus 34:15-16](/exodus/34-15 "Warning Against Covenant with Inhabitants and Intermarriage")
* [1 Kings 11:4](/1_kings/11-4 "Solomon's Heart Turned by Foreign Wives")

### REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Judges 3:6 offers a timeless and sobering warning for believers today. The Israelites' failure to maintain spiritual distinctiveness, leading to intermarriage and idolatry, mirrors the subtle ways worldly influences can erode faith and devotion. In a pluralistic and increasingly secular society, the temptation to compromise one's convictions for cultural acceptance, social integration, or even perceived personal benefit remains potent. We may not bow to physical idols of Baal or Asherah, but modern "gods" like materialism, career ambition, self-worship, comfort, or even political ideologies can subtly demand our ultimate allegiance, drawing our hearts away from exclusive devotion to Christ. This verse calls us to a vigilant self-examination, urging us to discern where our allegiances truly lie and to guard against any relationship, pursuit, or cultural trend that might subtly lead us away from the purity of worship and obedience to God. It underscores the necessity of intentional spiritual separation (not isolation), maintaining a distinct Christ-centered identity in a world that constantly pressures conformity, and prioritizing our covenant relationship with God above all else.

#### Questions for Reflection
* **In what areas of my life might I be tempted to compromise my faith for cultural acceptance or personal gain?**
* **How can I actively guard against subtle forms of idolatry (e.g., materialism, self-reliance, comfort) in my daily routines and relationships?**
* **What steps can I take to ensure my devotion to God remains exclusive and uncompromised, reflecting a truly Christ-centered life?**

### FAQ

**Why was intermarriage with the Canaanites so strictly forbidden?**

Answer: The prohibition against intermarriage was not based on racial discrimination but on the critical importance of preserving Israel's unique spiritual identity and covenant relationship with Yahweh. God knew that such alliances would inevitably lead to syncretism, where the worship of Yahweh would be blended with the pagan practices of the Canaanites. As [Deuteronomy 7:3-4](/deuteronomy/7-3 "Deuteronomy 7:3-4 - Prohibition of Intermarriage and its Consequences") explicitly states, "You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods." The primary concern was the spiritual purity of the nation and their exclusive devotion to the one true God, which was constantly threatened by the pervasive idolatry of the surrounding cultures.

**Does this verse imply that all relationships with non-believers are forbidden for Christians today?**

Answer: No, this verse does not imply that all relationships with non-believers are forbidden for Christians today. The context of Judges 3:6 is specific to ancient Israel's covenant relationship with God and their unique role as a holy nation in the Promised Land, where intermarriage with pagan idolaters was a direct path to national apostasy and the corruption of their worship. For Christians, the New Testament warns against being "unequally yoked" in marriage (cf. [2 Corinthians 6:14](/2_corinthians/6-14 "2 Corinthians 6:14 - Do Not Be Unequally Yoked")), emphasizing the importance of spiritual unity in the most intimate of human relationships. However, Christians are also called to be salt and light in the world, engaging with non-believers for the purpose of witness, evangelism, and demonstrating God's love (cf. [1 Corinthians 5:9-10](/1_corinthians/5-9 "1 Corinthians 5:9-10 - Do Not Associate with Immoral People")). The principle derived from Judges 3:6 for today is about guarding one's spiritual integrity and ensuring that one's deepest allegiances and practices remain exclusively devoted to Christ, without compromising faith through unholy alliances or the adoption of worldly values that contradict God's truth.

### CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Judges 3:6 poignantly illustrates Israel's profound failure to uphold their covenant with God, particularly their inability to maintain spiritual purity and exclusive devotion to Yahweh. Their intermarriage with pagan nations and subsequent idolatry reveal a recurring pattern of human weakness and unfaithfulness, a deep-seated inability to live up to God's holy standards. This consistent failure throughout the Old Testament narrative underscores the desperate need for a perfect deliverer and a new covenant. Jesus Christ perfectly fulfills what Israel could not. He is the true Israel, the faithful Son who never compromised His devotion to the Father, even when tempted by the world. Unlike Israel, who served other gods, Jesus perfectly embodies the exclusive worship of God, declaring, "You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve" ([Matthew 4:10](/matthew/4-10 "Matthew 4:10 - Worship God Alone")). Through His atoning sacrifice, Jesus, the [Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world](/john/1-29 "John 1:29 - Jesus, the Lamb of God"), cleanses humanity from the spiritual adultery of idolatry and establishes a [New Covenant](/jeremiah/31-31 "Jeremiah 31:31 - The New Covenant") where God's law is written on hearts, not merely on stone tablets. By His Spirit, believers are empowered to live lives of genuine purity and exclusive devotion to God, something Israel could not achieve under the Old Covenant. In Christ, we find the ultimate solution to the problem of a divided heart, enabling us to truly serve the one true God and avoid the spiritual compromises that plagued ancient Israel.

Note: Commentary is generated by AI with a directive for Biblical fidelity. Always rely on the Holy Spirit for discernment. The Scripture text and cross-references are from verified, non-AI sources.