Judges 1:27-36 – Failure to Conquer
Today, we see several examples of tribes who were unable to drive out the enemies in their lands. As we saw before, there were several reasons God allowed the Israelites to fail in conquering the land of Canaan. Here, we see that some Israelites were content with this, putting the Canaanites to forced labor rather than driving them from the land. As we will see in the next chapter, this will have disastrous consequences for the Israelites. What may have seemed a mere matter of convenience – allowing the Canaanites to remain and serve them – was really disobedience to God, who had told them to drive these nations out of the land. This disobedience will bring calamity on Israel.
This last portion of chapter 1 sets the stage for the Book of Judges. The book will be characterized by two constant struggles: one physical and the other spiritual. The physical struggle will be between the Israelites and the peoples who live among and around them. Israel will either be making progress in the conquest of the land, or it will be dominated and oppressed by its neighbors. The spiritual struggle will be between Israel and the LORD. The presence of idolatrous nations among them will present a constant temptation to Israel either to worship false gods or to worship God falsely. Their lack of faithfulness to God will cause Him to chastise them. Blessedly, His chastisement will lead to Israel’s repentance, and Israel’s repentance will lead to deliverance.
When we find that we have compromised with the world and disobeyed God, we, like Israel, need to repent. When we do, as I John 1:9 tells us, God is faithful to keep His promise to forgive us for the sake of Christ Jesus, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Questions
- Why were some Israelites content to leave Canaanites in the land?
- In what physical struggle will the Israelites be involved in?
- In what spiritual struggle will they be involved?
Prayer Points
- Pray for the preaching and hearing of God’s Word tomorrow.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters