Judges 3:1-6

Nations Left to Test Israel Judges 3:1-6

Now these are the nations which the Lord left, to prove Israel by them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan;
2 Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof;
3 Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baal-hermon unto the entering in of Hamath.
4 And they were to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken unto the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.
5 And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites:
6 And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods.
7 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and forgat the Lord their God, and served Baalim and the groves.

1.

How was Israel to learn to make war? Judges 3:1

Learning war is equivalent to learning to make war upon the nations of Canaan. Joshua and the Israelites of his time had not overcome these nations by their own human power or by earthly weapons, but by the miraculous help of their God who had smitten and destroyed the Canaanites before the Israelites. The omnipotent help of the Lord, however, was only granted to Joshua and the whole nation, on condition that they adhered firmly to the law of God (Joshua 1:7) and faithfully observed the covenant of the Lord. The transgression of that covenant, even by Achan, caused the defeat of Israel before the Canaanites (Joshua 7). The generations that followed Joshua had forgotten this lesson, and consequently they did not understand how to make war. To impress this truth upon them, the Lord had left the Canaanites in the land. Necessity teaches a man to pray. The distress into which the Israelites were brought by the remaining Canaanites was a chastisement from God, through which the Lord desired to lead back the rebellious to Himself.

2.

What five lords of the Philistines oppressed Israel? Judges 3:3 These kings are rulers of the city-states of Gaza,

Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath; and they are named in Joshua 13:3. The five cities over which they ruled were known as the Philistine Pentapolis. They were important throughout the times of the judges and over into the time of David. If one were to pick any certain nation as an enemy of Israel, the Philistines would probably be the choice; and the rulers of these five cities were the leaders of the Philistines. They played a large role in the defeat of Samson, as they bribed Delilah to learn his secret (Judges 16:5; Judges 16:8).

3.

What divisions of the Canaanites are noticed? Judges 3:5

The Canaanites were all descendants of Ham, the son of Noah, but they were divided into many families. The Hittites were descendants of Heth. The Amorites were those who lived in cities, and may be traced back to Amor. The Perizzites were also villagers. The Hivites were a particular branch of the Canaanites who lived in the north near Mount Lebanon from Baal-hermon to Hamath (Judges 3:3). The Gibeonites were also called Hivites (Joshua 9). The Jebusites were a branch of the Canaanites who lived in Jebus, the location which later became known as Jerusalem. All of these were groups of Canaanites who lived in the land which had been promised to the Israelites.

4.

What were the groves? Judges 3:7

For groves, some texts read, Wooden Images. This word is translated Asheroth in the American Standard Version. Many of the images of pagan gods were set up in groves on high places. To these spots the Canaanites would gather; and undoubtedly they invited their Israelite neighbors and captors to worship with them. The fact that it is stated that Israel served the groves, suggests that the people were in spiritual bondage in this idolatrous worship.