The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Judges 2:6-15,
"After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take
possession of the land, each to his own inheritance. 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...
After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers,
another generation grew up, who knew neither the Lord nor what he had
done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord
and served the Baals. They forsook the Lord, the God of their fathers,
who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various
gods of the peoples around them. They provoked the Lord to anger
because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. In his
anger against Israel the Lord handed them over to raiders who
plundered them. He sold them to their enemies all around, whom they
were no longer able to resist. 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."
Here, I believe is the "heart and soul" of why Judges is such a
depressing book for me. The Israelites had forsaken the Lord and
turned to the false gods of the peoples they now shared the promised
land with. Earlier in the chapter we are told the Israelites made
"covenants" with the very people the Lord had commanded they destroy,
Judges 2:1-3. Because of this the Lord told them he would no longer
drive out these people and they would become thorns in Israel's side
and their gods would be "a snare" for them. So, why did Israel
forsake the Lord? We are told, "another generation grew up, who knew
neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel." Why didn't they
know the Lord? Why did they not know of the breath-taking things the
Lord had done for them as a people?
I can only surmise the older generation must not have raised up their
children in the manner they were told to. Joshua had told this
previous generation, "Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses
gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you
may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law
depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may
be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous
and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do
not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be
with you wherever you go." The Israelites were to meditate on the
Scriptures "day and night".
Before entering into the promised land Moses told the Israelites,
"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your
God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your
hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at
home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you
get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your
foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your
gates." Deuteronomy 6:4-9. He went on to say, "be careful that you do
not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of
slavery... Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around
you; for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his
anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of
the land." Deuteronomy 6:12-14.
These are the very things the Israelites failed to do, the same things
they were warned of. They must have failed to meditate on the law, the
Scriptures. They certainly must have failed to impress the Scriptures
"on your children". It is these, their children who now forsook the
Lord and turned to these false Gods.
It makes you think about our responsibilities today in our own
families. Are we focusing on the Lord? Do we meditate on the
Scriptures? How much do we keep the Lord in mind from day to day? No
wonder the Lord told us to share in the loaf and pass the cup in
remembrance of him. The words of the writer of Hebrews seems fitting
here, "Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most
Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for
us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great
priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere
heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to
cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with
pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he
who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one
another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting
together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one
another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Hebrews
10:19-25.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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