Judges 2:10-23

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Judges 2:6-23

The beginning of this paragraph is only a repetition of what account we had before of the people's good character during the government of Joshua, and of his death and burial (Josh. 24:29, 30), which comes in here again only to make way for the following account, which this chapter gives, of their degeneracy and apostasy. The angel had foretold that the Canaanites and their idols would be a snare to Israel; now the historian undertakes to show that they were so, and, that this may appear the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:10

And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers ,.... Were dead and buried, that is, the greatest part of those that were contemporaries with the elders that outlived Joshua; for they might not be all dead, at least not all that came out of Egypt, and still less all that came into the land of Canaan; for, according to the computation of Ben Gersom, the time of Joshua and the elders were but twenty seven years; and there were no more than sixty seven years from their coming out... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:11

And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord ,.... Openly and publicly, boldly and impudently, in the very face of God, and amidst all the good things they received from him, which were aggravating circumstances of their sins; what the evil was they did is next observed: and served Baalim ; the idol Baal, as the Arabic version, of which there were many, and therefore a plural word is used; to which the apostle refers 1 Corinthians 8:5 ; for the word signifies "lords",... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:12

And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers ,.... The covenant God of their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and of their more immediate ancestors; his worship they forsook, neglected his tabernacle, and the service of it: which brought them out of the land of Egypt ; out of wretched misery and bondage there, with an high hand, and outstretched arm; and led them through the wilderness, and provided for them there, and brought them into the land of Canaan, a land flowing with milk... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:13

And they forsook the Lord ,.... The worship of the Lord, as the Targum; this is repeated to observe the heinous sin they were guilty of, and how displeasing it was to God: and served Baal and Ashtaroth ; two images, as the Arabic version adds; Baal, from whence Baalim, may signify the he deities of the Gentiles, as Jupiter, Hercules, &c.; and Ashtaroth their female deities, as Juno, Venus, Diana, &c.; the word is plural, and used for flocks of sheep, so called because they make... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:14

And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel ,.... For the idolatries they were guilty of; it burned within him, it broke forth, and was poured out like fire on them, and consumed them; see Nahum 1:6 , and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them ; that rifled their houses, and plundered them of their goods and substance: and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about ; the is, delivered them into their hands, who carried them captive, where... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:15

Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for evil ,.... They prospered not in any business they undertook, or put their hands unto; or in any expedition they went upon, or when they went out to war, as Kimchi, Ben Melech, and Abarbinel explain the phrase: the battle went against them, because God was against them; his hand was against them, and there was no resisting and turning that back; and this sense seems to agree with what goes before and follows after; though... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:16

Nevertheless, the Lord raised up judges ,.... Who are particularly mentioned by name, and their exploits recorded, in some following chapters, and from whom the book in general has its name: these were men that God raised up in an extraordinary manner, and spirited and qualified for the work he had to do by them; which was to deliver the people of Israel out of the hands of their oppressors, and restore them to their privileges and liberties, and protect them in them, and administer justice... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:17

And yet they would not hearken unto their judges ,.... Afterwards, or not always; but when they admonished them of their sins, and advised them to walk in the good ways of God, and serve him only; they turned a deaf ear to them, and went on in their own ways, which is a sad aggravation of their iniquities: but they went a whoring after their gods, and bowed themselves unto them ; committing spiritual adultery, for such idolatry is, and is often so represented in Scripture; for by it they... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 2:18

And when the Lord raised them up judges, then the Lord was with the judge ,.... Every one of them that he raised up; as he stirred up their spirits for such service, to judge his people, and qualified them for it, he assisted and strengthened them, and abode by them, and succeeded them in whatsoever they engaged for the welfare of the people; the Targum is,"the Word of the Lord was for the help of the judge:" and delivered them out of the hands of their enemies all the days of the judge ... read more

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