Judges 2:13 (WEB)

Passage

They abandoned Yahweh, and served Baal and the Ashtaroth.

Nearby Context

Judges 2:11 The children of Israel did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and served the Baals.

Judges 2:12 They abandoned Yahweh, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the peoples who were around them, and bowed themselves down to them; and they provoked Yahweh to anger.

Judges 2:13 They abandoned Yahweh, and served Baal and the Ashtaroth.

Judges 2:14 Yahweh’s anger burned against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of raiders who plundered them. He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, so that they could no longer stand before their enemies.

Judges 2:15 Wherever they went out, Yahweh’s hand was against them for evil, as Yahweh had spoken, and as Yahweh had sworn to them; and they were very distressed.

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "They abandoned Yahweh the God of their..." into verse 14's "Yahweh s anger burned against Israel and...", so "abandoned" and "yahweh" 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 "abandoned" and "yahweh" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.