Judges 2:21 (WEB)

Passage

I also will no longer drive out any of the nations that Joshua left when he died from before them;

Nearby Context

Judges 2:19 But when the judge was dead, they turned back, and dealt more corruptly than their fathers in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down to them. They didn’t cease what they were doing, or give up their stubborn ways.

Judges 2:20 Yahweh’s anger burned against Israel; and he said, “Because this nation transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and has not listened to my voice,

Judges 2:21 I also will no longer drive out any of the nations that Joshua left when he died from before them;

Judges 2:22 that by them I may test Israel, to see if they will keep Yahweh’s way to walk therein, as their fathers kept it, or not.”

Judges 2:23 So Yahweh left those nations, without driving them out hastily. He didn’t deliver them into Joshua’s hand.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "longer", "drive", "nations", "joshua", "left", "died", and "before". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "longer" and "drive", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "Yahweh s anger burned against Israel and..." into verse 22's "that by them I may test Israel...", so "longer" and "drive" 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 "longer" and "drive" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.