Judges 2:13 (KJV)

Passage

And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.

Nearby Context

Judges 2:11 And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim:

Judges 2:12 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.

Judges 2:13 And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth.

Judges 2:14 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.

Judges 2:15 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.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "forsook", "lord", "served", "baal", and "ashtaroth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "forsook" and "lord", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "And they forsook the LORD God of..." into verse 14's "And the anger of the LORD was...", so "forsook" and "lord" belong inside that flow. In Judges context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "forsook" and "lord" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.