Judges 2:16-18

Contemporary English Version

The Lord Chooses Leaders for Israel

¹⁶ From time to time, the Lord would choose special leaders known as judges.^[a] These judges would lead the Israelites into battle and defeat the enemies that made raids on them. ¹⁷ In years gone by, the Israelites had been faithful to the Lord, but now they were quick to be unfaithful and to refuse even to listen to these judges. The Israelites disobeyed the Lord, and instead of worshiping him, they worshiped other gods.

¹⁸ When enemies made life miserable for the Israelites, the Lord felt sorry for them. He would choose a judge and help that judge rescue Israel from its enemies. The Lord was kind to Israel as long as that judge lived.