Judges 2:6

Context

The End of an Era

2:6 When Joshua dismissed¹ the people, the Israelites went to their allotted portions of territory,² intending to take possession of the land.

Judges 2:11-15

Context

A Monotonous Cycle

2:11 The Israelites did evil before³ the Lord by worshiping⁴ the Baals. 2:12 They abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors⁵ who brought them out of the land of Egypt. They followed other gods – the gods of the nations who lived around them. They worshiped⁶ them and made the Lord angry. 2:13 They abandoned the Lord and worshiped Baal and the Ashtars.⁷

2:14 The Lord was furious with Israel⁸ and handed them over to robbers who plundered them.⁹ He turned them over to¹⁰ their enemies who lived around them. They could not withstand their enemies’ attacks.¹¹ 2:15 Whenever they went out to fight,¹² the Lord did them harm,¹³ just as he had warned and solemnly vowed he would do.¹⁴ They suffered greatly.¹⁵

[2:6] ¹tn Or “sent away.”

[2:6] ²tn Heb “the Israelites went each to his inheritance.”

[2:11] ³tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

[2:11] ⁴tn Or “serving”; or “following.”

[2:12] ⁵tn Or “fathers.”

[2:12] ⁶tn Or “bowed before” (the same expression occurs in the following verse).

[2:13] ⁷tn Some English translations simply transliterate the plural Hebrew term (“Ashtaroth,” cf. NAB, NASB), pluralize the transliterated Hebrew singular form (“Ashtoreths,” cf. NIV), or use a variation of the name (“Astartes,” cf. NRSV).

[2:14] ⁹tn Or “The Lord’s anger burned [or “raged”] against Israel.”

[2:14] ¹⁰tn Heb “robbers who robbed them.” (The verb שָׁסָה [shasah] appears twice in the verse.)

[2:14] ¹¹tn Heb “sold them into the hands of.”

[2:14] ¹²tn The word “attacks” is supplied in the translation both for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[2:15] ¹¹tn The expression “to fight” is interpretive.

[2:15] ¹²tn Heb “the Lord’s hand was against them for harm.”

[2:15] ¹³tn Heb “just as he had said and just as he had sworn to them.”

[2:15] ¹⁴tn Or “they experienced great distress.”