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Judges 1-2
New Life Version
Judges 1-2
New Life Version
Adoni-bezek Is Taken
1 After the death of Joshua, the people of Israel asked the Lord, “Who will be first to go up and fight against the Canaanites for us?” 2 The Lord said, “Judah will go up. See, I have given the land into his hand.” 3 Then Judah said to his brother Simeon, “Come with me into the land which is given to me. Let us fight against the Canaanites together. Then I will go with you into the land which is given to you.” So Simeon went with him. 4 Judah went up, and the Lord gave the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hands. They killed 10,000 men at Bezek. 5 They found Adoni-bezek in Bezek and fought against him, and they won the war against the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6 Adoni-bezek tried to run away, but they went after him and caught him. They cut off his thumbs and big toes. 7 Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off had to gather their food under my table. Now God has paid me for what I have done.” So they brought him to Jerusalem and there he died.
8 Then the men of Judah fought against Jerusalem and took it. They destroyed it with the sword and set the city on fire. 9 After this the men of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites living in the hill country, in the Negev and in the plains. 10 Judah went against the Canaanites who lived in Hebron. (The name of Hebron was Kiriath-arba before.) They won the war against Sheshai and Ahiman and Talmai.
11 From there Judah went against the people of Debir. (The name of Debir was Kiriath-sepher before.) 12 Caleb said, “I will give my daughter Achsah as a wife to the one who fights against Kiriath-sepher and takes it.” 13 Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, took the city. So Caleb gave him his daughter Achsah for a wife. 14 When she came to Othniel, she talked him into asking her father for a field. As she came down from her donkey, Caleb said to her, “What do you want?” 15 She said to him, “Give me a special gift. You have given me the land of the Negev. Give me the wells of water also.” So Caleb gave her the wells in the high land and in the valley.
16 The children of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went with the people of Judah from Jericho to the desert of Judah south of Arad. They went and lived with the people. 17 Then Judah went with his brother Simeon. They killed the Canaanites living in Zephath and destroyed the whole city. The name of the city was called Hormah. 18 Judah took Gaza with its land, Ashkelon with its land, and Ekron with its land. 19 The Lord was with Judah. They took the hill country for their own. They could not drive out the people living in the valley, because they had iron war-wagons. 20 They gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had promised, and he drove out the three sons of Anak. 21 But the people of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem. So the Jebusites have lived with the people of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.
22 The men of the family of Joseph went up against Bethel. And the Lord was with them. 23 Those of the family of Joseph spied out Bethel. (The name of the city was Luz before.) 24 The men who were spying out Bethel saw a man coming out of the city. They said to him, “Show us the way into the city, and we will be kind to you.” 25 So he showed them the way into the city. They destroyed the city with the sword. But they let the man and all his family go free. 26 The man went into the land of the Hittites. He built a city there and gave it the name of Luz. That is its name to this day.
Some of the People Were Not Driven Out of the Land
27 But the men of Manasseh did not take for their own Bethshean and its towns or Taanach and its towns. They did not drive out the people of Dor and its towns, or of Ibleam and its towns, or of Megiddo and its towns. So the Canaanites stayed in that land. 28 When Israel became strong, they made the Canaanites work for them. But they did not drive all of them out.
29 Ephraim did not drive out the Canaanites who were living in Gezer. So the Canaanites lived in Gezer among them.
30 Zebulun did not drive out the people of Kitron or the people of Nahalol. So the Canaanites lived among them and were made to work.
31 Asher did not drive out the people of Acco, or the people of Sidon, Ahlab, Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, or Rehob. 32 So the Asherites lived among the Canaanites, the people of the land. For they did not drive them out.
33 Naphtali did not drive out the people of Beth-shemesh or the people of Beth-anath. But they lived among the Canaanites, the people of the land. The people of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath were made to work for them.
34 The Amorites drove the people of Dan into the hill country. They did not let them come down to the valley. 35 The Amorites would not leave Mount Heres, Aijalon or Shaalbim. But when the family of Joseph became strong, they made the Amorites work for them. 36 The land of the Amorites was from the hill-side of Akrabbim, up from Sela.
The Angel of the Lord Speaks to Israel
2 The angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, “I brought you out of Egypt and led you into the land I promised your fathers. I said, ‘I will never break My agreement with you. 2 Do not make any agreement with the people of this land. Tear down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed Me. What is this you have done? 3 So now I say, ‘I will not drive them away from you. They will be like thorns in your sides. Their gods will be a trap to you.’” 4 When the angel of the Lord spoke these words to all the people of Israel, the people cried in a loud voice. 5 So they called that place Bochim. And there they gave gifts in worship to the Lord.
The Death of Joshua
6 When Joshua sent the people of Israel away, each one went home to his own land. 7 The people served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all the days of the leaders who lived longer than Joshua and who had seen all the great works the Lord had done for Israel. 8 Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died when he was 110 years old. 9 They buried him within his land in Timnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. 10 All the people of that day died. The children who came after them did not know the Lord. They did not know about the things He had done for Israel.
Israel Is No Longer Faithful to the Lord
11 Then the people of Israel sinned in the eyes of the Lord. They served the Baals, the gods of the Canaanites. 12 They turned away from the Lord, the God of their fathers, Who had brought them out of the land of Egypt. They followed other gods of the nations around them, and worshiped them. So they made the Lord angry. 13 They turned away from the Lord and served Baal and the Ashtaroth. 14 The Lord was angry with Israel. He gave them into the hands of angry men who robbed them. He sold them into the hands of those around them who hated them. The people of Israel could no longer stand in front of those who hated them. 15 The Lord punished them everywhere they went. The Lord did what He had told them and promised them He would do. The people were very troubled.
16 Then the Lord gave them special men to judge between what was right or wrong. These men saved them from those who robbed them. 17 But the people did not listen to those chosen to judge. The people were not faithful to the Lord and they worshiped other gods. They were quick to turn aside from the way their fathers had walked in obeying the Laws of the Lord. They did not do as their fathers had done. 18 When the Lord gave them special men to judge them, the Lord was with the judge. And He saved them from those who hated them. For the Lord showed them pity because of their pain when others made it hard for them and hurt them. 19 But when the judge died, they would turn again and act worse than their fathers. They would follow other gods and serve them and worship them. They would not give up their sinful acts or their strong wills. 20 So the anger of the Lord was against Israel. He said, “This nation has sinned against My agreement I made with their fathers. They have not listened to My voice. 21 I will stop driving away from them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. 22 I will use them to test Israel. I will see if Israel will keep the way of the Lord to walk in it like their fathers did, or not.” 23 So the Lord let those nations stay. He was not quick to drive them out. And He did not give them into the power of Joshua.
Judges 1-2
New International Version
Judges 1-2
New International Version
Israel Fights the Remaining Canaanites(A)
1 After the death(B) of Joshua, the Israelites asked the Lord, “Who of us is to go up first(C) to fight against the Canaanites?(D)”
2 The Lord answered, “Judah(E) shall go up; I have given the land into their hands.(F)”
3 The men of Judah then said to the Simeonites their fellow Israelites, “Come up with us into the territory allotted to us, to fight against the Canaanites. We in turn will go with you into yours.” So the Simeonites(G) went with them.
4 When Judah attacked, the Lord gave the Canaanites and Perizzites(H) into their hands, and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek.(I) 5 It was there that they found Adoni-Bezek(J) and fought against him, putting to rout the Canaanites and Perizzites. 6 Adoni-Bezek fled, but they chased him and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes.
7 Then Adoni-Bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have picked up scraps under my table. Now God has paid me back(K) for what I did to them.” They brought him to Jerusalem,(L) and he died there.
8 The men of Judah attacked Jerusalem(M) also and took it. They put the city to the sword and set it on fire.
9 After that, Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites living in the hill country,(N) the Negev(O) and the western foothills. 10 They advanced against the Canaanites living in Hebron(P) (formerly called Kiriath Arba(Q)) and defeated Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai.(R) 11 From there they advanced against the people living in Debir(S) (formerly called Kiriath Sepher).
12 And Caleb said, “I will give my daughter Aksah in marriage to the man who attacks and captures Kiriath Sepher.” 13 Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, took it; so Caleb gave his daughter Aksah to him in marriage.
14 One day when she came to Othniel, she urged him[a] to ask her father for a field. When she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her, “What can I do for you?”
15 She replied, “Do me a special favor. Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me also springs of water.” So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.(T)
16 The descendants of Moses’ father-in-law,(U) the Kenite,(V) went up from the City of Palms[b](W) with the people of Judah to live among the inhabitants of the Desert of Judah in the Negev near Arad.(X)
17 Then the men of Judah went with the Simeonites(Y) their fellow Israelites and attacked the Canaanites living in Zephath, and they totally destroyed[c] the city. Therefore it was called Hormah.[d](Z) 18 Judah also took[e] Gaza,(AA) Ashkelon(AB) and Ekron—each city with its territory.
19 The Lord was with(AC) the men of Judah. They took possession of the hill country,(AD) but they were unable to drive the people from the plains, because they had chariots fitted with iron.(AE) 20 As Moses had promised, Hebron(AF) was given to Caleb, who drove from it the three sons of Anak.(AG) 21 The Benjamites, however, did not drive out(AH) the Jebusites, who were living in Jerusalem;(AI) to this day the Jebusites live there with the Benjamites.
22 Now the tribes of Joseph(AJ) attacked Bethel,(AK) and the Lord was with them. 23 When they sent men to spy out Bethel (formerly called Luz),(AL) 24 the spies saw a man coming out of the city and they said to him, “Show us how to get into the city and we will see that you are treated well.(AM)” 25 So he showed them, and they put the city to the sword but spared(AN) the man and his whole family. 26 He then went to the land of the Hittites,(AO) where he built a city and called it Luz,(AP) which is its name to this day.
27 But Manasseh did not(AQ) drive out the people of Beth Shan or Taanach or Dor(AR) or Ibleam(AS) or Megiddo(AT) and their surrounding settlements, for the Canaanites(AU) were determined to live in that land. 28 When Israel became strong, they pressed the Canaanites into forced labor but never drove them out completely.(AV) 29 Nor did Ephraim(AW) drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer,(AX) but the Canaanites continued to live there among them.(AY) 30 Neither did Zebulun drive out the Canaanites living in Kitron or Nahalol, so these Canaanites lived among them, but Zebulun did subject them to forced labor. 31 Nor did Asher(AZ) drive out those living in Akko or Sidon(BA) or Ahlab or Akzib(BB) or Helbah or Aphek(BC) or Rehob.(BD) 32 The Asherites lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land because they did not drive them out. 33 Neither did Naphtali drive out those living in Beth Shemesh(BE) or Beth Anath(BF); but the Naphtalites too lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land, and those living in Beth Shemesh and Beth Anath became forced laborers for them. 34 The Amorites(BG) confined the Danites(BH) to the hill country, not allowing them to come down into the plain.(BI) 35 And the Amorites were determined also to hold out in Mount Heres,(BJ) Aijalon(BK) and Shaalbim,(BL) but when the power of the tribes of Joseph increased, they too were pressed into forced labor. 36 The boundary of the Amorites was from Scorpion Pass(BM) to Sela(BN) and beyond.(BO)
The Angel of the Lord at Bokim
2 The angel of the Lord(BP) went up from Gilgal(BQ) to Bokim(BR) and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt(BS) and led you into the land I swore to give to your ancestors.(BT) I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you,(BU) 2 and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land,(BV) but you shall break down their altars.(BW)’ Yet you have disobeyed(BX) me. Why have you done this? 3 And I have also said, ‘I will not drive them out before you;(BY) they will become traps(BZ) for you, and their gods will become snares(CA) to you.’”
4 When the angel of the Lord had spoken these things to all the Israelites, the people wept aloud,(CB) 5 and they called that place Bokim.[f](CC) There they offered sacrifices to the Lord.
Disobedience and Defeat(CD)
6 After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, each to their own inheritance. 7 The people served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.(CE)
8 Joshua son of Nun,(CF) the servant of the Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten. 9 And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Heres[g](CG) in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
10 After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.(CH) 11 Then the Israelites did evil(CI) in the eyes of the Lord(CJ) and served the Baals.(CK) 12 They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods(CL) of the peoples around them.(CM) They aroused(CN) the Lord’s anger(CO) 13 because they forsook(CP) him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.(CQ) 14 In his anger(CR) against Israel the Lord gave them into the hands(CS) of raiders who plundered(CT) them. He sold them(CU) into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist.(CV) 15 Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the Lord was against them(CW) to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. They were in great distress.(CX)
16 Then the Lord raised up judges,[h](CY) who saved(CZ) them out of the hands of these raiders. 17 Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted(DA) themselves to other gods(DB) and worshiped them.(DC) They quickly turned(DD) from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the Lord’s commands.(DE) 18 Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved(DF) them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the Lord relented(DG) because of their groaning(DH) under those who oppressed and afflicted(DI) them. 19 But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt(DJ) than those of their ancestors,(DK) following other gods and serving and worshiping them.(DL) They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn(DM) ways.
20 Therefore the Lord was very angry(DN) with Israel and said, “Because this nation has violated the covenant(DO) I ordained for their ancestors and has not listened to me, 21 I will no longer drive out(DP) before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. 22 I will use them to test(DQ) Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the Lord and walk in it as their ancestors did.” 23 The Lord had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua.(DR)
Footnotes
- Judges 1:14 Hebrew; Septuagint and Vulgate Othniel, he urged her
- Judges 1:16 That is, Jericho
- Judges 1:17 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
- Judges 1:17 Hormah means destruction.
- Judges 1:18 Hebrew; Septuagint Judah did not take
- Judges 2:5 Bokim means weepers.
- Judges 2:9 Also known as Timnath Serah (see Joshua 19:50 and 24:30)
- Judges 2:16 Or leaders; similarly in verses 17-19
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