A Typical Story
Opening Prayer
Lord, Your Word has so much to teach me. Help me to look out for the warnings this passage contains.
Read JUDGES 2:6–23
6 After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, each to their own inheritance. 7 The people served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.
8 Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten. 9 And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Heres in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
10 After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. 11 Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals. 12 They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They aroused the Lord’s anger 13 because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. 14 In his anger against Israel the Lord gave them into the hands of raiders who plundered them. He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist. 15 Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the Lord was against them to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. They were in great distress.
16 Then the Lord raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of these raiders. 17 Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. They quickly turned from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the Lord’s commands. 18 Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the Lord relented because of their groaning under those who oppressed and afflicted them. 19 But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their ancestors, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.
20 Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel and said, “Because this nation has violated the covenant I ordained for their ancestors and has not listened to me, 21 I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. 22 I will use them to test Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the Lord and walk in it as their ancestors did.” 23 The Lord had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Is there a part of your heart or life in which you have turned away from God?There are two sides to every story: the human and the divine. The tribes of Israel (who are so like us) do evil and serve other gods (11), they forsake the Lord (13), they face constant defeats (15), they do not listen to the judges raised up by God for their protection (16,17) and they refuse to give up their stubborn ways (19). In spite of the distress they land themselves in, they fail to cry to God for mercy and forgiveness. How very human they are.
What does the Lord do? He responds to their distress (15). Out of compassion for his people, he stands by the judges throughout their lifetime (18). But in the end he determines not to intervene any more but to leave the enemies as a test to see if his people will come to their senses (22). Would you say that this is an act of judgment or of grace?
In 1 Corinthians 10:13, Paul teaches us that some temptations are there to test us out. Defeat is not inevitable: temptations can be overcome. The Lord knows what he is doing.
Apply
How can you learn from the tests and trials you are going through and draw closer to God?
Closing prayer
God, I praise You that Your compassion does not fail and that You are always there for us.
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