How do you feel the warning and encouragement in the book of Judges apply to you?
"1 And an angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I swore unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you.
2 And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my voice: why have ye done this?
3 Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you.
4 And it came to pass, when the angel of the Lord spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.
5 And they called the name of that place Bochim: and they sacrificed there unto the Lord.
6 ¶ And when Joshua had let the people go, the children of Israel went every man unto his inheritance to possess the land.
7 And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord, that he did for Israel.
8 And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being an hundred and ten years old.
9 And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath-heres, in the mount of Ephraim, on the north side of the hill Gaash.
10 And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.
11 ¶ And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim:
12 And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the Lord to anger.
13 And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.
14 ¶ And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies.
15 Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for evil, as the Lord had said, and as the Lord had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed.
16 ¶ Nevertheless the Lord raised up judges, which delivered them out of the hand of those that spoiled them.
17 And yet they would not hearken unto their judges, but they went a whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them: they turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obeying the commandments of the Lord; but they did not so.
18 And when the Lord raised them up judges, then the Lord was with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented the Lord because of their groanings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them.
19 And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they returned, and corrupted themselves more than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down unto them; they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way." (Judges 2:1–19)
"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.
8 ¶ Therefore the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel served Chushan-rishathaim eight years.
9 And when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.
10 And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went out to war: and the Lord delivered Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushan-rishathaim.
11 And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
12 ¶ And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord: and the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the Lord." (Judges 3:5–12)
"19 And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they returned, and corrupted themselves more than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down unto them; they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way." (Judges 2:19)
"9 And when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother." (Judges 3:9)
And here's the commentary entitled: "The Lord forgives as often as I repent.":
"The book of Judges can be both a warning and an encouragement. Look for this warning and encouragement as you read Judges 2:1–19; 3:5–12. How do you feel the warning and encouragement apply to you?
For example, if Judges 2:19 were about you and your temptations rather than about the ancient Israelites, what might it say? If Judges 3:9 were about what the Lord had done to deliver you, what might it say?
Consider reading the question and answer on page 9 of For the Strength of Youth: A Guide for Making Choices. How do you feel this applies to the Israelites’ experience in the book of Judges? What does this teach you about Jesus Christ?"
If Judges 2:19 were about me and my temptations rather than about the ancient Israelites, it might say: "When things that she has to do pile up, she would do them first instead of doing scripture study first of all."
If Judges 3:9 were about what the Lord had done to deliver me, it might it say, "When Mendy cried unto the Lord, the Lord inspires her through the Spirit that she's able to know exactly what to do to get back to getting more organized and putting God first in her life and doing her scripture study first thing in the morning daily."
After Joshua died, "there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel." I feel the question and answer on page 9 of For the Strength of Youth: A Guide for Making Choices applies to this particular experience of the Israelites in the book of Judges. Sounds like those Israeli youths of that generation weren't able to enter into covenants with God through the ordinances of the gospel, they didn't grow up serving in the Lord's kingdom, and they chose to marry outside of the covenant.
The turning away from the Lord happened over and over again like a cycle--People would cry to God or repent and return to the Lord, then they would turn from Him again and worship other gods. And yet the Lord would always forgive them and provide a deliverer as often as they repented.
What this teaches me about Jesus Christ is that His mercy never runs out. He is always willing to forgive us, no matter how many times we sin. He truly hates the sin, and yet He loves the sinner.
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