Question 1

Who is the angel of the Lord at the start of this passage?

Accepted Answer

In this passage the angel of the Lord speaks as if he is God Himself. He says, “I made you to go up out of Egypt” and “I will never break my covenant with you.” So this is not just a regular messenger repeating someone else’s words. Through this angel, God reminds Israel what He has done for them and what He commanded. The focus is not on the angel’s appearance but on God’s voice, calling His people to remember the covenant and face their disobedience.

Question 2

What is the meaning of the place name Bochim where Israel wept?

Accepted Answer

Bochim means “weepers.” After the angel of the Lord rebuked Israel for making peace with the Canaanites and not tearing down their altars, the people lifted up their voices and wept. They felt the weight of their sin and the warning that the remaining nations and their gods would trap them. They named the place Bochim to mark that shared grief. They also sacrificed to the Lord there, showing some desire to return to Him, even though the passage later shows their change did not last.

Question 3

Why did God say the remaining nations would be thorns and snares to Israel?

Accepted Answer

God had told Israel not to make agreements with the people of the land and to destroy their altars. Because they disobeyed, He said He would no longer drive out those nations. Instead, they would be like thorns in Israel’s sides, bringing pain and trouble, and their gods would be a snare, pulling Israel into idol worship. This shows that when God’s people refuse to remove what tempts them to sin, those very things often become sources of ongoing hurt and spiritual danger.

Question 4

What does this passage show about the change between Joshua’s generation and the next?

Accepted Answer

The passage says that the people served the Lord during Joshua’s life and the lives of the elders who had seen God’s great works. But after that generation died, another generation arose that did not know the Lord or what He had done for Israel. As a result, they did evil, turned to Baalim and Ashtaroth, and left the God who brought them out of Egypt. This shows how quickly faith can fade if God’s works and ways are not passed on and remembered.

Question 5

Why did God’s anger burn against Israel in this passage?

Accepted Answer

God’s anger burned because Israel left Him for other gods. They did evil in His sight, served Baalim, and bowed to the gods of the surrounding peoples. Twice the passage says they forsook the Lord who brought them out of Egypt. This was not a small slip but breaking the covenant, chasing other gods, and ignoring His commands. God’s anger shows that He takes His relationship with His people seriously and that turning to idols has real consequences.

Question 6

Why did God deliver Israel into the hands of spoilers and enemies?

Accepted Answer

God delivered Israel into the hands of spoilers and enemies as a direct response to their breaking His covenant. They had chosen the gods and ways of the nations around them, so He allowed those nations to overpower them. Wherever they went, the hand of the Lord was against them, just as He had warned. This was not random suffering but discipline meant to show them the emptiness of their idols and to drive them to cry out to Him again.

Question 7

If God was angry, why did He still raise up judges to save Israel?

Accepted Answer

Even though God was angry at Israel’s sin, He did not abandon them. The passage says He raised up judges who delivered them from those who spoiled them. When the Lord raised up a judge, He was with that judge and rescued the people all the days of that leader. It also says it grieved the Lord because of their groaning under oppression. So we see both His justice in punishing sin and His mercy in hearing their cries and sending help.

Question 8

What is the cycle of sin and deliverance described in this passage?

Accepted Answer

The pattern goes like this: Israel forgets the Lord and serves idols. God’s anger is kindled, and He gives them into the hands of their enemies. They suffer and are greatly distressed, and then they groan and cry out. God raises up a judge, is with that judge, and delivers them. While the judge lives, things improve, but when the judge dies, they quickly turn back, often becoming even more corrupt than before. This cycle repeats, showing the depth of their unfaithfulness and God’s patient mercy.

Question 9

What does it mean that God left the nations to prove Israel?

Accepted Answer

At the end of the passage, God says He will no longer drive out the remaining nations. Instead, He leaves them “that through them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the LORD.” This means the presence of these nations would test Israel. Surrounded by other peoples and their gods, Israel would have to choose whether to walk in God’s ways like their fathers did or follow the idols around them. Their response in that ongoing test would reveal what was truly in their hearts.

Question 10

How can the message of this passage speak to believers today?

Accepted Answer

This passage warns how easy it is to drift when God’s past work is forgotten and when tempting influences are left in place. Israel wept, but their sorrow often did not lead to lasting change. Yet God kept reminding them, disciplining them, and raising up help. For believers today, it encourages honest repentance that leads to real obedience, steady remembering of what God has done, and trust that even when God disciplines, He is still merciful and ready to restore those who turn back to Him.

Judges 2:1

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 sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you.

Israel Rebuked at Bochim

Joshua’s Death and Burial

Israel’s Unfaithfulness

Judges Raised Up

Israel Rebuked at Bochim

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Judges 2:1

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 sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you.

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Israel Rebuked at Bochim

Joshua’s Death and Burial

Israel’s Unfaithfulness

Judges Raised Up

Israel Rebuked at Bochim

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