Judges 2
1 And the Messenger of YHWH goes up from Gilgal to Bochim,
Now the angel of the LORD went up from Gilgal to Bochim and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I had promised to your fathers, and I said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you,
2 and says, “I cause you to come up out of Egypt, and bring you into the land which I have sworn to your fathers, and say, I do not break My covenant with you for all time; and you make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land—you break down their altars; and you have not listened to My voice—what [is] this you have done?
and you are not to make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall tear down their altars.’ Yet you have not obeyed My voice. What is this you have done?
3 And I have also said, I do not cast them out from your presence, and they have been for adversaries to you, and their gods are for a snare to you.”
So now I tell you that I will not drive out these people before you; they will be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a snare to you.”
4 And it comes to pass, when the Messenger of YHWH speaks these words to all the sons of Israel, that the people lift up their voice and weep,
When the angel of the LORD had spoken these words to all the Israelites, the people lifted up their voices and wept.
5 and they call the name of that place Bochim, and sacrifice to YHWH there.
So they called that place Bochim and offered sacrifices there to the LORD.
6 And Joshua sends the people away, and the sons of Israel go, each to his inheritance, to possess the land;
After Joshua had dismissed the people, the Israelites went out to take possession of the land, each to his own inheritance.
7 and the people serve YHWH all [the] days of Joshua, and all [the] days of [the] elderly who prolonged days after Joshua, who saw all the great work of YHWH which He did to Israel.
And the people served the LORD throughout the days of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him, who had seen all the great works that the LORD had done for Israel.
8 And Joshua son of Nun, servant of YHWH, dies, a son of one hundred and ten years,
And Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of 110.
9 and they bury him in the border of his inheritance, in Timnath-Heres, in the hill-country of Ephraim, on the north of Mount Gaash;
They buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath-heres in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
10 and all that generation have also been gathered to their fathers, and another generation rises after them who have not known YHWH, and even the work which He has done to Israel.
After that whole generation had also been gathered to their fathers, another generation rose up who did not know the LORD or the works that He had done for Israel.
11 And the sons of Israel do evil in the eyes of YHWH, and serve the Ba‘alim,
And the Israelites did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals.
12 and forsake YHWH, God of their fathers, who brings them out from the land of Egypt, and go after other gods (of the gods of the peoples who [are] around them), and bow themselves to them, and provoke YHWH,
Thus they forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they followed after various gods of the peoples around them. They bowed down to them and provoked the LORD to anger,
13 indeed, they forsake YHWH, and do service to Ba‘al and to Ashtaroth.
for they forsook Him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.
14 And the anger of YHWH burns against Israel, and He gives them into the hand of spoilers, and they spoil them, and He sells them into the hand of their surrounding enemies, and they have not been able to stand before their enemies anymore;
Then the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He delivered them into the hands of those who plundered them. He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist.
15 in every [place] where they have gone out, the hand of YHWH has been against them for calamity, as YHWH has spoken, and as YHWH has sworn to them, and they are greatly distressed.
Wherever Israel marched out, the hand of the LORD was against them to bring calamity, just as He had sworn to them. So they were greatly distressed.
16 And YHWH raises up judges, and they save them from the hand of their spoilers;
Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them from the hands of those who plundered them.
17 and they have also not listened to their judges, but have gone whoring after other gods, and bow themselves to them; they have turned aside [with] haste out of the way [in] which their fathers walked to obey the commands of YHWH—they have not done so.
Israel, however, did not listen to their judges. Instead, they prostituted themselves with other gods and bowed down to them. They quickly turned from the way of their fathers, who had walked in obedience to the LORD’s commandments; they did not do as their fathers had done.
18 And when YHWH raised up judges for them—then YHWH was with the judge, and saved them out of the hand of their enemies all [the] days of the judge; for YHWH sighs, because of their groaning from the presence of their oppressors, and of those thrusting them away.
Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for the Israelites, He was with that judge and saved them from the hands of their enemies while the judge was still alive; for the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning under those who oppressed them and afflicted them.
19 And it has come to pass, when the judge dies—they turn back and have done corruptly above their fathers, to go after other gods, to serve them, and to bow themselves to them; they have not fallen from their doings, and from their stiff way.
But when the judge died, the Israelites became even more corrupt than their fathers, going after other gods to serve them and bow down to them. They would not give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.
20 And the anger of YHWH burns against Israel, and He says, “Because that this nation has transgressed My covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not listened to My voice—
So the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He said, “Because this nation has transgressed the covenant I laid down for their fathers and has not heeded My voice,
21 I also do not continue to dispossess any from before them of the nations which Joshua has left when he dies,
I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died.
22 in order to try Israel by them, whether they are keeping the way of YHWH, to go in it, as their fathers kept [it], or not.”
In this way I will test whether Israel will keep the way of the LORD by walking in it as their fathers did.”
23 And YHWH leaves these nations, so as not to dispossess them quickly, and did not give them into the hand of Joshua.
That is why the LORD had left those nations in place and had not driven them out immediately by delivering them into the hand of Joshua.
