⁶The people of Israel again did what the Lord considered evil. They began to serve other gods and goddesses—the Baals and the Astartes—and the gods of Aram, Sidon, Moab, Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines. They abandoned the Lord and did not serve him.

⁷The Lord became angry with the people of Israel. So he used the Philistines and Ammonites to defeat them. ⁸They oppressed and crushed the people of Israel that year. For 18 years they oppressed all who lived east of the Jordan River in the land of the Amorites in Gilead. ⁹Ammon also crossed the Jordan River to fight the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim. So Israel suffered a great deal.

¹⁰Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. They said, “We have sinned against you. We have abandoned our God and served other gods—the Baals.”

¹¹The Lord said to the people of Israel, “When the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, ¹²the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and the Maonites oppressed you, you cried out to me for help. Didn’t I rescue you from them? ¹³But you still abandoned me and served other gods. That’s why I won’t rescue you again. ¹⁴Cry out for help to the gods you chose. Let them rescue you when you’re in trouble.”

¹⁵The people of Israel said to the Lord, “We have sinned. Do to us whatever you think is right. But please rescue us today!” ¹⁶Then they got rid of the foreign gods they had and served the Lord. So the Lord could not bear to have Israel suffer any longer.

Read in Logos