How does Judges 1:28 relate to God's commands in Deuteronomy? Setting the Scene • Judges 1 opens just after Joshua’s death. Tribes are settling into their territories. • Judges 1:28: “But when Israel became strong, they pressed the Canaanites into forced labor, but they never drove them out completely.” • The verse sounds like success—Israel is “strong.” Yet their choice clashes sharply with God’s earlier directives. God’s Clear Commands in Deuteronomy • Deuteronomy 7:2: “Make no covenant with them and show them no mercy.” • Deuteronomy 7:5: “Tear down their altars, smash their sacred stones, cut down their Asherah poles, and burn their idols in the fire.” • Deuteronomy 20:16-18: “You must not leave alive a single soul… so that they cannot teach you to do all the detestable things they do for their gods.” • Deuteronomy 12:29-31 warns that any remaining pagans would lure Israel into idolatry. What Israel Did Instead—Judges 1:28 • Forced labor looked practical—why waste manpower driving Canaanites out when they could serve as workers? • Israel measured success by economic gain and military dominance, not by wholehearted obedience. • Partial obedience = disobedience. They kept the people, the culture, and eventually the idols (Judges 2:10-13). Points of Connection • Command vs. Compromise – Deuteronomy demanded total removal; Judges records selective removal. • Motive vs. Method – Deuteronomy aimed at protecting Israel’s worship; Judges shows Israel seeking material benefit. • Warning vs. Consequence – Deuteronomy foretold spiritual corruption (7:4). Judges immediately displays it (2:11-13; 3:5-7). Ripple Effects Through Scripture • Judges 2:1-3: the Angel of the LORD rebukes Israel for failing to drive out the nations, announcing those nations will become “thorns in your sides.” • Joshua 23:12-13 had warned of snares if alliances were made. • Centuries later, Solomon’s divided heart (1 Kings 11:1-8) mirrors the same pattern—foreign peoples left in the land, foreign gods entering Israel’s worship. Lessons for Us Today • God’s commands are given for our protection and His glory; altering them endangers both. • Strength and success, apart from obedience, are deceptive. Israel was “strong,” yet spiritually vulnerable. • Small compromises in culture and worship open doors to larger departures from the Lord. • True victory is measured not by control over circumstances but by faithfulness to clear, revealed truth. |
    |