Why does the Lord leave the nations that Josue did not destroy?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

He says Israel has broken his covenant and refused his voice. He leaves those nations to test whether Israel will keep and walk in his way as their fathers did. The chapter records deliverance through judges followed by worse conduct after a judge dies.

Chapter breakdown

An angel of the Lord goes from Galgal to the place of weepers. Challoner’s separate note says he takes a man’s shape. The angel says he brought Israel out of Egypt into the land sworn to their fathers and promised never to make the covenant void, on condition that they make no league with the inhabitants and tear down their altars. They have not heard his voice, and he asks why they have done this. He says he will not destroy the inhabitants before them, so they may have enemies and those gods may be their ruin. When all Israel hears the words, they raise their voices and weep. The place is named the place of weepers, or tears, and they offer sacrifices to the Lord there.

Josue sends the people away, each to hold their own possession. Challoner explains separately that this material is inserted from Josue 24 to recall what happened before and introduce what follows. Israel serves the Lord during Josue’s days and those of the elders who live a long time after him and know all the Lord’s works for Israel. Josue son of Nun, the Lord’s servant, dies at a hundred and ten years old and is buried within his possession at Thamnathsare in mount Ephraim, north of mount Gaas. That entire generation is gathered to its fathers, and others arise who do not know the Lord or his works for Israel.

Israel does evil before the Lord and serves Baalim. They leave the Lord, their fathers’ God who brought them out of Egypt, follow the strange gods of the surrounding peoples and adore them, provoking his anger. They forsake him for Baal and Astaroth. Challoner’s separate note says the repeated falls into idolatry refer to a great part of Israel, not so universally that true worship is ever wholly abolished. He says the succession of the true church and religion is maintained throughout by priests and Levites, at least in the house of God in Silo.

In anger, the Lord gives Israel into the hands of plunderers, who take them and sell them to the surrounding enemies. Israel cannot stand against those enemies. Wherever they mean to go, the Lord’s hand is upon them as he said and swore, and they are greatly distressed. He raises judges to deliver them from their oppressors, but they do not listen. They are unfaithful with strange gods and adore them, quickly leave their fathers’ way, and do the opposite of the commandments they hear. In the judges’ days, the Lord is moved to mercy, hears the afflicted people’s groans and delivers them from the oppressors’ slaughter. After a judge dies, they return to conduct much worse than their fathers’, following, serving and adoring strange gods and retaining their own inventions and accustomed stubborn way.

The Lord’s wrath is kindled against Israel. He says this nation has made void the covenant with their fathers and despised hearing his voice. He therefore will not destroy the nations Josue left at his death, using them to test whether Israel keeps and walks in the Lord’s way as their fathers did. The Lord leaves all these nations, does not quickly destroy them and does not deliver them into Josue’s hands.

The story inside

The angel’s rebuke joins the promise of the sworn land and covenant to the commands against leagues and surviving altars. Israel responds with weeping and sacrifice. The account then recalls Josue’s earlier dismissal and death, as Challoner explains, before describing the generation that does not know the Lord’s works. Israel’s strange-god worship brings anger, plunder and distress. Judges are raised to deliver them, and the Lord hears their groans in mercy, yet they refuse commands and return to worse conduct after a judge dies. The final stated reason for leaving the nations is broken covenant and a test of Israel’s way. Challoner qualifies the breadth of the idolatry: a great part falls, while true worship continues at least at Silo through priests and Levites.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The opening promise carries stated conditions. The angel recalls Egypt, the sworn land and the covenant, then names the commands about leagues and altars that Israel has not heard. The people’s weeping and sacrifice are recorded responses; the text does not diagnose their private feelings.
2
The recalled death precedes the later generation’s conduct. Challoner says the Josue material is a repetition of earlier history. It records service during Josue’s and the elders’ days, then a generation lacking knowledge of the Lord and his works; it gives no added explanation about failed instruction.
3
Deliverance does not end the recorded return to evil. The Lord hears groans and delivers during the judges’ days, but after a judge dies the people do worse. His closing declaration ties the remaining nations to covenant violation and testing, while Challoner cautions that true worship is never wholly abolished.

Test your recall

Which two conditions does the angel say Israel failed to hear, and how does the repeated return to worse conduct lead into the Lord’s stated reason for leaving the nations?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 25175–25199
Judges Chapter 2 An angel reproveth Israel. They weep for their sins. After the death of Josue, they often fall, and repenting are delivered from their afflictions, but still fall worse and worse. 2:1. And an angel of the Lord went up from Galgal to the place of weepers, and said: I made you go out of Egypt, and have brought you into the land for which I swore to your fathers: and I promised that I would not make void my covenant with you for ever: An angel.... Taking the shape of a man. 2:2. On condition that you should not make a league with the inhabitants of this land, but should throw down their altars: and you would not hear my voice: why have you done this? 2:3. Wherefore I would not destroy them from before your face; that you may have enemies, and their gods may be your ruin. 2:4. And when the angel of the Lord spoke these words to all the children of Israel: they lifted up their voice, and wept. 2:5. And the name of that place was called, The place of weepers, or of tears: and there they offered sacrifices to the Lord.
Lines 25201–25220
2:6. And Josue sent away the people, and the children of Israel went every one to his own possession to hold it: And Josue, etc.... This is here inserted out of Jos. 24, by way of recapitulation of what had happened before, and by way of an introduction to that which follows. 2:7. And they served the Lord all his days, and the days of the ancients, that lived a long time after him, and who knew all the works of the Lord, which he had done for Israel. 2:8. And Josue, the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being a hundred and ten years old; 2:9. And they buried him in the borders of his possession in Thamnathsare, in Mount Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaas. 2:10. And all that generation was gathered to their fathers: and there arose others that knew not the Lord and the works which he had done for Israel.
Lines 25222–25237
2:11. And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they served Baalim, 2:12. And they left the Lord, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt: and they followed strange gods, and the gods of the people that dwelt round about them, and they adored them: and they provoked the Lord to anger, They followed strange gods.... What is here said of the children of Israel, as to their falling so often into idolatry, is to be understood of a great part of them; but not so universally, as if the true worship of God was ever quite abolished among them: for the succession of the true church and religion was kept up all this time by the priests and Levites, at least in the house of God in Silo. 2:13. Forsaking him, and serving Baal and Astaroth
Lines 25239–25261
2:14. And the Lord being angry against Israel, delivered them into the hands of plunderers: who took them and sold them to their enemies, that dwelt round about: neither could they stand against their enemies: 2:15. But whithersoever they meant to go, the hand of the Lord was upon them, as he had said, and as he had sworn to them: and they were greatly distressed. 2:16. And the Lord raised up judges, to deliver them from the hands of those that oppressed them: but they would not hearken to them, 2:17. Committing fornication with strange gods, and adoring them. They quickly forsook the way, in which their fathers had walked: and hearing the commandments of the Lord, they did all things contrary. 2:18. And when the Lord raised them up judges, in their days, he was moved to mercy, and heard the groanings of the afflicted, and delivered them from the slaughter of the oppressors. 2:19. But after the judge was dead, they returned, and did much worse things than their fathers had done, following strange gods, serving them, and adoring them. They left not their own inventions, and the stubborn way, by which they were accustomed to walk.
Lines 25263–25276
2:20. And the wrath of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he said: Behold this nation hath made void my covenant, which I had made with their fathers, and hath despised to hearken to my voice: 2:21. I also will not destroy the nations which Josue left when he died: 2:22. That through them I may try Israel, whether they will keep the way of the Lord, and walk in it, as their fathers kept it, or not. 2:23. The Lord therefore left all these nations, and would not quickly destroy them, neither did he deliver them into the hands of Josue.