Judges
10:6–10 (RSV)
6 And
the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and
served …, the gods …, the gods …, the gods …, the gods …, and the gods …; and
they forsook the Lord, and did not serve him. 7 And the anger of the Lord
was kindled against Israel, and he sold them …, 8 and they crushed and
oppressed the children of Israel that year. For eighteen years they oppressed
all the people of Israel (on the other side of the Jordan) … 9 And (they
fought) also against Judah and against Benjamin and against the house of
Ephraim; so that Israel was sorely distressed.
10 And
the people of Israel cried to the Lord, saying, “We have sinned against thee,
because we have forsaken our God and have served the (other gods).”
NOTE: I have heavily
edited the above section so as not to be distracted by the names, but to focus
on the themes and the message. Israel gave up God for other things. Yes, the
passage says 'gods' over and over again. But a god can be anything that draws
our attention away from the one true God. It is anything that captures us,
stirs our emotions, draws our interest, and happily uses our time. When we love
something above God, that thing is a god. When we think we can gain true
happiness with that thing instead of through God, that thing is a god. We still
worship gods today; we just use different names, like entertainment,
technology, toys, and sexual immorality. Those are our modern gods. They do
have specific names; I have just used categories because everyone's gods are
different to them. Just like the pagan nations who created individual gods and
put them on their mantle or a shelf on the wall, we do the same thing. God
wants our attention and our devotion. It is okay to enjoy the things of the world,
but God demands first place in the lives of those called by His name. It is not
optional. God requires it and we would be wise to obey. Not to avoid
discipline, although that is an option for God, but to enjoy life in a much
deeper and richer way.
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