The book of Judges is basically a history of how everything went wrong after Israel entered the Promised Land. It is a roller coaster ride of ups and downs. Israel turns from the Lord, the Lord judges them through their enemies, Israel groans for deliverance, the Lord hears and has mercy, the Lord sends them a deliverer, they serve the Lord during the days of the deliverer, and then the cycle begins again.
Why this endless cycle? Why do the Israelites time and time again turn from the Lord after he delivers them through a judge? There are two answers for their constant return to sin found in the opening chapters.
First, they never completely removed the foreigners from the land. As discovered in chapter one, most of the tribes stopped short of total conquest. Once they had the majority control of their territory, they would settle. They were tired of war and figured they could use some servants anyway. However, inevitably the Israelites would become infatuated with foreign gods and begin to serve them. This would not have happened, at least not as easily, if they would have removed all foreigners and false places of worship! They settled, and as a result, they turned from God!
Second, they neglected their God-given responsibility to train and teach their children about God. Family worship disappeared, and with it, so did faith in God! 2:10 – “And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.” Deut 6:7 is a clear mandate for parents to teach their children. No wonder Israel continued to turn from the Lord! They tolerated false gods and they neglected family worship! May we not do the same!
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