The Cycle of Forgetfulness

God’s Commanded Conquest

Judges 1:1–2 ESV

1 After the death of Joshua, the people of Israel inquired of the Lord, “Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?” 2 The Lord said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have given the land into his hand.”

Judges 1:4 ESV

4 Then Judah went up and the Lord gave the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand, and they defeated 10,000 of them at Bezek.

Judges 1:6–7 “6 Adoni-bezek fled, but they pursued him and caught him and cut off his thumbs and his big toes. 7 And Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and their big toes cut off used to pick up scraps under my table. As I have done, so God has repaid me.” And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.”

Israel begins with great dependence on God—Judah seeks the Lord’s guidance.

Early victories prove God’s faithfulness to His promises.

When God’s people trust Him, no enemy can stand.

Romans 8:31 “31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”

Joshua 23:10 “10 One man of you puts to flight a thousand, since it is the Lord your God who fights for you, just as he promised you.”

Judges 1:17–18 ESV

17 And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they defeated the Canaanites who inhabited Zephath and devoted it to destruction. So the name of the city was called Hormah. 18 Judah also captured Gaza with its territory, and Ashkelon with its territory, and Ekron with its territory.

“Israel started strong—seeking God’s guidance and experiencing His victory!

But spiritual decline rarely begins with outright rebellion. It begins when we settle for less than what God commanded. Their first steps of faith soon gave way to small steps of compromise.”

Israel’s Continued Concessions

Israel’s downfall is not immediate—it happens step by step.

They settle for coexistence with the enemy instead of complete obedience.

James 4:4 “4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

1 Corinthians 15:33 “33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.””

Quote: “The ship doesn’t sink because of the water around it. The ship sinks because of the water that gets in it.”

Humor/Illustration: “You know how diets work. Day one—grilled chicken and salad. Day five—you’re negotiating with yourself: ‘French fries are technically a vegetable, right?’ Compromise always creeps in step by step.”

“Compromise always has a root. For Israel, fear began to creep in. Instead of seeing God’s power, they focused on the enemy’s strength. Fear is often the seedbed of disobedience.”

Their Anxiety

Judges 1:19–21 ESV

19 And the Lord was with Judah, and he took possession of the hill country, but he could not drive out the inhabitants of the plain because they had chariots of iron. 20 And Hebron was given to Caleb, as Moses had said. And he drove out from it the three sons of Anak. 21 But the people of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem, so the Jebusites have lived with the people of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.

Fear of strongholds kept them from full obedience.

They saw giants instead of God’s greatness.

2 Timothy 1:7 “7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

Psalm 56:11 “11 in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

“But fear wasn’t their only problem. Once fear kept them from obedience, they discovered another temptation—profit. Why drive out the Canaanites when you can tax them, employ them, and use them? Fear led to compromise, and compromise gave way to greed.”

Their Advantage

Judges 1:27–28 ESV

27 Manasseh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean and its villages, or Taanach and its villages, or the inhabitants of Dor and its villages, or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its villages, or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages, for the Canaanites persisted in dwelling in that land. 28 When Israel grew strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but did not drive them out completely.

They chose profit over purity—forcing Canaanites into labor rather than driving them out.

Partial obedience is disobedience.

Charles Spurgeon: “Do not give fair names to foul sins. Call them what they are, and treat them accordingly.”

Matthew 6:24 “24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”

“Once you start benefiting from compromise, you start befriending it. Israel didn’t just tolerate the nations—they began to partner with them, marry them, and ultimately bow to their gods. What you permit will soon possess you.”

Their Affiliation

Judges 2:11–13 ESV

11 And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals. 12 And they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt. They went after other gods, from among the gods of the peoples who were around them, and bowed down to them. And they provoked the Lord to anger. 13 They abandoned the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth.

Judges 3:6 ESV

6 And their daughters they took to themselves for wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons, and they served their gods.

They intermarried and embraced idolatry.

What they tolerated soon controlled them.

John 17:15–16 “15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.”

2 Corinthians 6:14 “14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?”

Warren Wiersbe: “The greatest danger the church faces is not persecution from without but compromise from within.”

“And that is where compromise always leads—to corruption. Israel’s slow drift away from God finally became a tidal wave of rebellion. And the God who had given them victory now gave them over to judgment.”

Sin’s Corrupting Conclusion

Judges 2:14–15 ESV

14 So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he gave them over to plunderers, who plundered them. And he sold them into the hand of their surrounding enemies, so that they could no longer withstand their enemies. 15 Whenever they marched out, the hand of the Lord was against them for harm, as the Lord had warned, and as the Lord had sworn to them. And they were in terrible distress.

Leaking Roof: A roof rarely collapses overnight—it starts with small, ignored leaks. In the same way, compromise creeps in gradually.

Compromise leads to corruption: Israel abandons the Lord.

God gives them over to oppression—sin always enslaves.

Yet even here, God raises up deliverers in His mercy.

Galatians 6:7 “7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.”

Hebrews 2:1 “1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.”

“But even in judgment, God’s mercy shines through. He raised up judges to rescue His people, though only for a time. And every judge points us forward to the true Deliverer, Jesus Christ, who wins the final victory over sin once and for all.”

Judges 2:16–23 ESV

16 Then the Lord raised up judges, who saved them out of the hand of those who plundered them. 17 Yet they did not listen to their judges, for they whored after other gods and bowed down to them. They soon turned aside from the way in which their fathers had walked, who had obeyed the commandments of the Lord, and they did not do so. 18 Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge, and he saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge. For the Lord was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who afflicted and oppressed them. 19 But whenever the judge died, they turned back and were more corrupt than their fathers, going after other gods, serving them and bowing down to them. They did not drop any of their practices or their stubborn ways. 20 So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he said, “Because this people have transgressed my covenant that I commanded their fathers and have not obeyed my voice, 21 I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations that Joshua left when he died, 22 in order to test Israel by them, whether they will take care to walk in the way of the Lord as their fathers did, or not.” 23 So the Lord left those nations, not driving them out quickly, and he did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

Christ’s Complete Conquest

Judges 2:18 ESV

18 Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge, and he saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge. For the Lord was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who afflicted and oppressed them.

Application:

Trust God Fully: Don’t stop short of obedience out of fear—He is greater than the strongholds, the giants, and the chariots of iron!

Refuse Half-Measures: Don’t choose worldly gain over God’s command.

Guard Your Fellowship: Who or what you welcome into your life will shape your heart.

Learn from Israel’s Consequences: Sin enslaves, but God is merciful when His people repent.

Closing Challenge:

“Israel’s story is a warning and a mirror!

What began in tremendous conquest ended in terrible consequences because of gradual compromise.

Where might compromise be creeping into your life?

The same God who gave victory to Judah gives us victory in Christ.

Don’t settle for less than full obedience—because God doesn’t just want us to conquer once; He wants us to walk in victory daily.”

Group Questions

What stands out to you from Israel’s early obedience and victory? How can we practice that same dependence on God today?

Where do you see subtle compromises tempting Christians in our culture? How do we often rationalize them?

Israel feared iron chariots more than they trusted God. What “iron chariots” in your life tempt you to give in to fear instead of faith?

Why do you think Israel chose profit over purity when it came to keeping the Canaanites? Where might we do the same?

How do our relationships and partnerships influence our walk with Christ—for good or for harm?

What small compromises might be like “leaks in the roof” of your spiritual life right now?

How do you see God’s justice and mercy working together in Judges 2?

In what ways do the judges point us forward to Jesus?

How does Christ’s victory over sin free us to live in obedience today?

What’s one area of your life where God is calling you to move from partial obedience to full obedience this week?