Bible Commentaries

And an ^a angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you.

(a) That is, messenger, or prophet, as some think, Phinehas.

And when Joshua had ^b let the people go, the children of Israel went every man unto his inheritance to possess the land.

(b) After that he had divided to every man his portion by lot, (Joshua 24:28).

And the people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great ^c works of the LORD, that he did for Israel.

(c) Meaning, the wonders and miracles.

And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in ^d Timnathheres, in the mount of Ephraim, on the north side of the hill Gaash.

(d) Heres, by turning the letters backward is Sereh, as in (Joshua 24:30).

And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served ^e Baalim:

(e) That is, all manner of idols.

And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and ^f Ashtaroth.

(f) These were idols, which had the form of a ewe or sheep among the Sidonians.

^g Whithersoever they went out, the ^h hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed.

(g) In all their enterprises.

(h) The vengeance.

And yet they would not hearken unto their judges, but they went a whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them: they turned quickly out of the ⁱ way which their fathers walked in, obeying the commandments of the LORD; [but] they did not so.

(i) Meaning, from the true religion.

And when the LORD raised them up judges, then the LORD was with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented the LORD because of their groanings ^k by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them.

(k) Seeing their cruelty.

I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the ^l nations which Joshua left when he died:

(l) As the Hivites, Jebusites, Amorites, etc.

That through them I may ^m prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the LORD to walk therein, as their fathers did keep [it], or not.

(m) So that both outward enemies and false prophets are but a trial to prove our faith, (Deuteronomy 13:3) ; (Judges 3:1).