battle during the entire Old Testament period. It was the battle with the other gods, i.e., the “no-gods” (Gal. 4:8; Eph. 2:12). During their lifetime, the great patriarchs Abraham and Isaac and their families lived in the midst of the polytheism and idolatry of Canaan but remained true to God. To a limited extent, so did troublesome Jacob. During and after the sojourn in Egypt Israel went the opposite direction, however. Even after the Exodus, the nation continued to serve the gods of their fathers