Judges 2:17

Judges 2:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And yet they would not hearken unto their judges, but they went a whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them: they turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obeying the commandments of the Lord; but they did not so.
• New International Version (NIV)Yet they would not listen to their judges but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. They quickly turned from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the Lord’s commands.
• English Standard Version (ESV)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.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Yet they would not listen to their judges, but they played the harlot with other gods, and bowed down to them. They turned quickly from the way in which their fathers walked, in obeying the commandments of the Lord; they did not do so.

Context of Judges 2:17

15Whenever the Israelites went out, the Lord was against them and brought disaster on them, just as he had promised and sworn to them. So they suffered greatly. 16The Lord raised up judges, who saved them from the power of their marauders, but they did not listen to their judges. Instead, they prostituted themselves with other gods, bowing down to them. They quickly turned from the way of their ancestors, who had walked in obedience to the Lord’s commands. They did not do as their ancestors did. 18Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for the Israelites, the Lord was with him and saved the people from the power of their enemies while the judge was still alive. The Lord was moved to pity whenever they groaned because of those who were oppressing and afflicting them. 19Whenever the judge died, the Israelites would act even more corruptly than their ancestors, following other gods to serve them and bow in worship to them. They did not turn from their evil practices or their obstinate ways.

Judges 2:17 word by word

וְגַ֤ם אֶל־שֹֽׁפְטֵיהֶם֙ לֹ֣א שָׁמֵ֔עוּ כִּ֣י זָנ֗וּ אַֽחֲרֵי֙ אֱלֹהִ֣ים אֲחֵרִ֔ים וַיִּֽשְׁתַּחֲו֖וּ לָהֶ֑ם סָ֣רוּ מַהֵ֗ר מִן־הַדֶּ֜רֶךְ אֲשֶׁ֨ר הָלְכ֧וּ אֲבוֹתָ֛ם לִשְׁמֹ֥עַ מִצְוֹת־יְהוָ֖ה לֹא־עָ֥שׂוּ כֵֽן׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And yet they would not hearkenשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: obeyH8085
• unto their judgesשָׁפַטshâphaţ · to judgeH8199
• but they went a whoringזָנָהzânâh · to fornicateH2181
• afterאַחַר'achar · afterH310
• otherאַחֵר'achêr · anotherH312
• godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• and bowedשָׁחָהshâchâh · to bowH7812
• themselves unto them: they turnedסוּרsûr ώûr · to turn aside: turn asideH5493
• quicklyמַהֵרmahêr · quicklyH4118
• out of the wayדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: conductH1870
• which their fathersאָב'âb · fatherH1
• walked inהָלַךְhâlak · to go: walkH1980
• the commandmentsמִצְוָהmitsvâh · commandmentH4687
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• they didעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213

Cross-references for Judges 2:17

• 1 Samuel 8:5They said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Therefore, appoint a king to judge us the same as all the other nations have.”
• 1 Samuel 12:12But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was coming against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king reign over us’ — even though the Lord your God is your king.
• 2 Chronicles 36:15But the Lord, the God of their ancestors sent word against them by the hand of his messengers, sending them time and time again, for he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place.
• Psalms 106:43He rescued them many times, but they continued to rebel deliberately and were beaten down by their iniquity.
• Exodus 34:15“Do not make a treaty with the inhabitants of the land, or else when they prostitute themselves with their gods and sacrifice to their gods, they will invite you, and you will eat their sacrifices.
• Leviticus 17:7They must no longer offer their sacrifices to the goat-demons that they have prostituted themselves with. This will be a permanent statute for them throughout their generations.
• Psalms 73:27Those far from you will certainly perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.
• Psalms 106:39They defiled themselves by their actions and prostituted themselves by their deeds.
• Hosea 2:2Rebuke your mother; rebuke her. For she is not my wife and I am not her husband. Let her remove the promiscuous look from her face and her adultery from between her breasts.
• Revelation 17:1Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me: “Come, I will show you the judgment of the notorious prostitute who is seated on many waters.
• Exodus 32:8They have quickly turned from the way I commanded them; they have made for themselves an image of a calf. They have bowed down to it, sacrificed to it, and said, ‘Israel, these are your gods, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.’”
• Deuteronomy 9:12“The Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go down immediately from here. For your people whom you brought out of Egypt have acted corruptly. They have quickly turned from the way that I commanded them; they have made a cast image for themselves.’
• Galatians 1:6I am amazed that you are so quickly turning away from him who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel —
• Judges 2:7The people worshiped the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime and during the lifetimes of the elders who outlived Joshua. They had seen all the Lord’s great works he had done for Israel.
• Joshua 24:24So the people said to Joshua, “We will worship the Lord our God and obey him.”

Commentaries on Judges 2:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Went a whoring after other gods - Idolatry, or the worship of strange gods, is frequently termed adultery, fornication, and whoredom, in the sacred writings. As many of their idolatrous practices were accompanied with impure rites, the term was not only metaphorically but literally proper.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-23Verses 6-23 We have a general idea of the course of things in Israel, during the time of the Judges. The nation made themselves as mean and miserable by forsaking God, as they would have been great and happy if they had continued faithful to him. Their punishment answered to the evil they had done. They served the gods of the nations round about them, even the meanest, and God made them serve the princes of the nations round about them, even the meanest…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-19The Lord appointed judges who led to some temporary recovery. People later described them as "judging" Israel (for example, Judges 3:10; 4:4; 10:2–3), but they were mainly famous for their military successes.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 11-1911-19. the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord--This chapter, together with the first eight verses of the next [Jud 2:11-3:8], contains a brief but comprehensive summary of the principles developed in the following history. An attentive consideration of them, therefore, is of the greatest importance to a right understanding of the strange and varying phases of Israelitish history, from the death of Joshua till the establishment of the…Read the comment

Topics related to Judges 2:17

• Baal
• Character
• Instability
• Israel
• Judge
• Whoredom

In the dictionaries

• Raise
• Sell
• Abdon (1)
• Judges, Book of
• faithful, faithfulness, trustworthy

Commentaries on Judges 2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings