Pattern of Sin and Judgment

2 The Angel of the Lord j went up from Gilgal to Bochim k and said, “I brought you out of Egypt and led you into the land l I had promised to your fathers. m I also said: I will never break My covenant with you. 2 You are not to make a covenant n with the people who are living in this land, and you are to tear down their altars. o p But you have not obeyed Me. What is this you have done? 3 Therefore, I now say: I will not drive out these people before you. q They will be thorns r s in your sides, t and their gods will be a trap for you.” u 4 When the Angel of the Lord had spoken these words to all the Israelites, the people wept loudly. 5 So they named that place Bochim v and offered sacrifices there to the Lord.

Joshua’s Death

6 Joshua sent the people away, and the Israelites went to take possession of the land, each to his own inheritance. w 7 The people worshiped the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime and during the lifetimes of the elders who outlived x Joshua. They had seen all the Lord’s great works y He had done for Israel.

8 Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110. 9 They buried him in the territory of his inheritance, in Timnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, z north of Mount Gaash. 10 That whole generation was also gathered to their ancestors. After them another generation rose up who did not know the Lord a or the works He had done for Israel.

11 The Israelites did what was evil in the Lord’s sight. b They worshiped the * Baals c 12 and abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods from the surrounding peoples d and bowed down to them. They infuriated the Lord, e 13 for they abandoned Him and worshiped Baal and the * Ashtoreths. f

14 The Lord’s anger burned against Israel, and He handed them over to marauders who raided them. He sold g them to h the enemies around them, and they could no longer resist their enemies. 15 Whenever the Israelites went out, the Lord i was against them j and brought disaster on them, just as He had promised and sworn to them. k So they suffered greatly.

16 The Lord raised up l judges, who saved them from the power of their marauders, 17 but they did not listen to their judges. Instead, they prostituted m themselves with other gods, bowing down to them. They quickly turned from the way n of their fathers, who had walked in obedience to the Lord’s commands. They did not do as their fathers did. 18 Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for the Israelites, the Lord was with o him and saved the people from the power of their enemies while the judge was still alive. p The Lord was moved to pity whenever they groaned because of those who were oppressing and afflicting them. 19 Whenever the judge died, the Israelites would act even more corruptly q than their fathers, going after other gods to worship and bow down to them. They did not turn from their evil practices or their obstinate r ways.

20 The Lord’s anger burned against Israel, and He declared, “Because this nation has violated My covenant s that I made with their fathers t and disobeyed Me, 21 I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations Joshua left u when he died. v 22 I did this to test Israel and to see whether they would keep the Lord’s way w by walking in it, as their fathers had.” x 23 The Lord left these nations and did not drive them out immediately. He did not hand them over to Joshua.