Judges 1-3; Psalm 59
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“Do not let them live in your land, or they will cause you to sin
against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to
you.” (Exodus 23:33)
Things were going well for a while, but after Joshua died, the
Israelites failed to do all God had told them to. They did not drive out all the Canaanites, who we know from
scripture were evil people who worshiped idols through sex with sacred
prostitutes and even sacrificing their own children. God had made it clear that part of his plan in blessing the
Israelites was also punishing these nations. Many remained living among the Israelites. Instead of driving them out completely, the
Israelites forced them into labor.
I can imagine the excuses the Israelites made for doing this,
excusing it away as if it was no big deal. And maybe at first it wasn’t, but they did end up turning
their backs on God and worshiping the idols of the people they were living
with.
God knew what would be a temptation for them and what would cause
them trouble, just as He knows what those are for each of us. It is easy to make excuses for not
doing something God’s way and coming up with reasons why it is no big
deal. But those “little” things
that don’t seem like a big deal, can pull us away from God.
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