Shoo! Shoo!

Read Judges 1:1–3:6

7. The Israelites served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and the leaders who outlived him—those who had seen all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.
8. Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110.
9. They buried him in the land he had been allocated, at Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
10. After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel.
11. The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight and served the images of Baal.
12. They abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them. And they angered the Lord.
13. They abandoned the Lord to serve Baal and the images of Ashtoreth. Judges 2:7-13

Pest control is a multibillion dollar national industry. Is this due to an irrational obsession with bugs? Not at all. Termites and carpenter ants can do serious damage to a home. Rats and many insects carry diseases. Bee stings can be life threatening to people who are allergic to them.

Did the Israelites understand this? In this reading, evidence mounts that they did not. But their pests bring a different kind of threat than to house and health; this time, compassion and convenience go too far, and it costs God’s people dearly.

As you read this passage, you will also find other lessons: conditions on claiming God’s promises, peer pressure, and the value of obstacles and problems.

God’s people failed to drive the evil Canaanites from their land (Judges 1:21, 27-36). Why didn’t they follow through and completely obey God’s commands? First, they had been fighting for a long time and were tired. Although the goal was in sight, they lacked the discipline and energy to reach it. Second, they were afraid the enemy was too strong—the iron chariots seemed invincible. Third, since Joshua’s death, power and authority had been decentralized to the tribal leaders, and the tribes were no longer unified in purpose. Fourth, spiritual decay had infected them from within. They thought they could handle the temptation of doing business with the Canaanites.

Don’t coddle sin. Know that God has given you the means to do what he commands—whether you are tired, apathetic, confused, or just lazy. Victory comes from pressing on to do God’s will today. Drive out those pesky sins!