Judges 2:23
New International Version
The LORD had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua.

New Living Translation
That is why the LORD left those nations in place. He did not quickly drive them out or allow Joshua to conquer them all.

English Standard Version
So the LORD left those nations, not driving them out quickly, and he did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

Berean Standard Bible
That is why the LORD had left those nations in place and had not driven them out immediately by delivering them into the hand of Joshua.

King James Bible
Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.

New King James Version
Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out immediately; nor did He deliver them into the hand of Joshua.

New American Standard Bible
So the LORD allowed those nations to remain, not driving them out quickly; and He did not hand them over to Joshua.

NASB 1995
So the LORD allowed those nations to remain, not driving them out quickly; and He did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

NASB 1977
So the LORD allowed those nations to remain, not driving them out quickly; and He did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

Legacy Standard Bible
So Yahweh allowed those nations to rest, not dispossessing them quickly; and He did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

Amplified Bible
So the LORD allowed those nations to remain, not driving them out at once; and He did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

Christian Standard Bible
The LORD left these nations and did not drive them out immediately. He did not hand them over to Joshua.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The LORD left these nations and did not drive them out immediately. He did not hand them over to Joshua.

American Standard Version
So Jehovah left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.

Contemporary English Version
That's why the LORD had not let Joshua get rid of those enemy nations all at once.

English Revised Version
So the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
So the LORD let these nations stay. He had not handed them over to Joshua or forced them out quickly.

Good News Translation
So the LORD allowed these nations to remain in the land; he did not give Joshua victory over them, nor did he drive them out soon after Joshua's death.

International Standard Version
So the LORD caused those nations to remain and did not expel them quickly. He did not give them into Joshua's control.

Majority Standard Bible
That is why the LORD had left those nations in place and had not driven them out immediately by delivering them into the hand of Joshua.

NET Bible
This is why the LORD permitted these nations to remain and did not conquer them immediately; he did not hand them over to Joshua.

New Heart English Bible
So the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.

Webster's Bible Translation
Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out speedily, neither did he deliver them into the hand of Joshua.

World English Bible
So Yahweh left those nations, without driving them out hastily. He didn’t deliver them into Joshua’s hand.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And YHWH leaves these nations, so as not to dispossess them quickly, and did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

Young's Literal Translation
And Jehovah leaveth these nations, so as not to dispossess them hastily, and did not give them into the hand of Joshua.

Smith's Literal Translation
And Jehovah will leave these nations, not to drive them out quickly, and he gave them not into the hand of Joshua.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
The Lord therefore left all these nations, and would not quickly destroy them, neither did he deliver them into the hands of Josue.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Therefore, the Lord left all these nations, and he was not willing to quickly overthrow them, nor did he deliver them into the hands of Joshua.

New American Bible
Therefore the LORD allowed these nations to remain instead of expelling them immediately. He had not delivered them into the power of Joshua.

New Revised Standard Version
the LORD had left those nations, not driving them out at once, and had not handed them over to Joshua.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Therefore the LORD left these nations, and did not destroy them hastily; neither had he delivered them into the hand of Joshua.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And LORD JEHOVAH left these nations behind them, and he did not destroy them quickly, and LORD JEHOVAH did not deliver them into the hand of Yeshua
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
So the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered He them into the hand of Joshua.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
So the Lord will leave these nations, so as not to cast them out suddenly; and he delivered them not into the hand of Joshua.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Judges Raised Up
22In this way I will test whether Israel will keep the way of the LORD by walking in it as their fathers did.” 23That is why the LORD had left those nations in place and had not driven them out immediately by delivering them into the hand of Joshua.

Cross References
Judges 3:1-4
These are the nations that the LORD left to test all the Israelites who had not known any of the wars in Canaan, / if only to teach warfare to the subsequent generations of Israel, especially to those who had not known it formerly: / the five rulers of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived in the mountains of Lebanon from Mount Baal-hermon to Lebo-hamath. ...

Deuteronomy 7:22
The LORD your God will drive out these nations before you little by little. You will not be enabled to eliminate them all at once, or the wild animals would multiply around you.

Exodus 23:29-30
I will not drive them out before you in a single year; otherwise the land would become desolate and wild animals would multiply against you. / Little by little I will drive them out ahead of you, until you become fruitful and possess the land.

Joshua 23:12-13
For if you turn away and cling to the rest of these nations that remain among you, and if you intermarry and associate with them, / know for sure that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become for you a snare and a trap, a scourge in your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land that the LORD your God has given you.

Numbers 33:55-56
But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land before you, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides; they will harass you in the land where you settle. / And then I will do to you what I had planned to do to them.”

Psalm 106:34-36
They did not destroy the peoples as the LORD had commanded them, / but they mingled with the nations and adopted their customs. / They worshiped their idols, which became a snare to them.

2 Kings 17:20-23
So the LORD rejected all the descendants of Israel. He afflicted them and delivered them into the hands of plunderers, until He had banished them from His presence. / When the LORD had torn Israel away from the house of David, they made Jeroboam son of Nebat king, and Jeroboam led Israel away from following the LORD and caused them to commit a great sin. / The Israelites persisted in all the sins that Jeroboam had committed and did not turn away from them. ...

Nehemiah 9:26-30
But they were disobedient and rebelled against You; they flung Your law behind their backs. They killed Your prophets, who had admonished them to return to You. They committed terrible blasphemies. / So You delivered them into the hands of enemies who oppressed them, and in their time of distress they cried out to You. From heaven You heard them, and in Your great compassion You gave them deliverers who saved them from the hands of their enemies. / But as soon as they had rest, they again did evil in Your sight. So You abandoned them to the hands of their enemies, who had dominion over them. When they cried out to You again, You heard from heaven, and You delivered them many times in Your compassion. ...

2 Chronicles 36:15-17
Again and again the LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to His people through His messengers because He had compassion on them and on His dwelling place. / But they mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against His people was stirred up beyond remedy. / So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who put their young men to the sword in the sanctuary, sparing neither young men nor young women, neither elderly nor infirm. God gave them all into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar,

Isaiah 63:10
But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit. So He turned and became their enemy, and He Himself fought against them.

Jeremiah 7:25-26
From the day your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have sent you all My servants the prophets again and again. / Yet they would not listen to Me or incline their ear, but they stiffened their necks and did more evil than their fathers.

Acts 13:18-19
He endured their conduct for about forty years in the wilderness. / And having vanquished seven nations in Canaan, He gave their land to His people as an inheritance.

Romans 1:21-24
For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts. / Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools, / and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images of mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. ...

Hebrews 3:7-11
Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear His voice, / do not harden your hearts, as you did in the rebellion, in the day of testing in the wilderness, / where your fathers tested and tried Me, and for forty years saw My works. ...

1 Corinthians 10:5-11
Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them, for they were struck down in the wilderness. / These things took place as examples to keep us from craving evil things as they did. / Do not be idolaters, as some of them were. As it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.” ...


Treasury of Scripture

Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.

left or suffered

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Allowed Deliver Delivered Dispossess Drive Driving Hand Hands Hastily Joshua Leaveth Nations Once Power Quickly Speedily
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Allowed Deliver Delivered Dispossess Drive Driving Hand Hands Hastily Joshua Leaveth Nations Once Power Quickly Speedily
Judges 2
1. An angel rebukes the people at Bochim
6. The wickedness of the new generation after Joshua
14. God's anger and pity toward them
20. The Canaanites left to prove Israel














So the LORD
The phrase "So the LORD" indicates a direct action or decision by God, emphasizing His sovereignty and authority over the events described. In Hebrew, "LORD" is often represented as "YHWH," the sacred name of God, which underscores His eternal and unchanging nature. This introduction sets the stage for understanding that the unfolding events are part of God's divine plan and purpose, even when they seem contrary to human expectations.

left those nations
The Hebrew root for "left" is "נָחָה" (nachah), which can mean to lead, guide, or leave. In this context, it suggests a deliberate decision by God to allow these nations to remain. Historically, these nations were the Canaanite tribes that inhabited the Promised Land. God's decision to leave them serves as a test and a means of discipline for Israel, reminding them of their covenant obligations and the consequences of disobedience.

and did not quickly drive them out
The phrase "did not quickly drive them out" highlights the gradual nature of God's plan. The Hebrew word for "drive out" is "יָרַשׁ" (yarash), meaning to dispossess or expel. This delay in driving out the nations serves a dual purpose: it tests Israel's faithfulness and reliance on God, and it prevents the land from becoming desolate and overrun by wild animals, as mentioned in Exodus 23:29-30. It teaches the Israelites patience and dependence on God's timing rather than their own.

or deliver them into the hand of Joshua
The mention of "Joshua" connects this verse to the broader narrative of Israel's conquest of Canaan. Joshua, whose name in Hebrew is "יְהוֹשֻׁעַ" (Yehoshua), meaning "The LORD is salvation," was the appointed leader after Moses. The phrase "deliver them into the hand" uses the Hebrew "נָתַן" (natan), meaning to give or deliver. This indicates that the ultimate victory over these nations was not to be achieved by human effort alone but through divine intervention and guidance. It serves as a reminder that while Joshua was a capable leader, the success of Israel's mission depended on their obedience to God and His will.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
That is why the LORD
יְהוָה֙ (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

had left those
הָאֵ֔לֶּה (hā·’êl·leh)
Article | Pronoun - common plural
Strong's 428: These, those

nations
הַגּוֹיִ֣ם (hag·gō·w·yim)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 1471: A foreign nation, a Gentile, a troop of animals, a flight of locusts

in place
וַיַּנַּ֤ח (way·yan·naḥ)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 3240: Bestow, cast down, lay down, up, leave off, let alone remain, pacify, place,

and had not
לְבִלְתִּ֥י (lə·ḇil·tî)
Preposition-l
Strong's 1115: A failure of, not, except, without, unless, besides, because not, until

driven them out
הוֹרִישָׁ֖ם (hō·w·rî·šām)
Verb - Hifil - Infinitive construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 3423: To occupy, to seize, to rob, to inherit, to expel, to impoverish, to ruin

immediately
מַהֵ֑ר (ma·hêr)
Adverb
Strong's 4118: Hastening, speedy, swift

by delivering them
נְתָנָ֖ם (nə·ṯā·nām)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular | third person masculine plural
Strong's 5414: To give, put, set

into the hand
בְּיַד־ (bə·yaḏ-)
Preposition-b | Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 3027: A hand

of Joshua.
יְהוֹשֻֽׁעַ׃ (yə·hō·wō·šu·a‘)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3091: Joshua -- 'the LORD is salvation', Moses' successor, also the name of a number of Israelites


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OT History: Judges 2:23 So Yahweh left those nations without driving (Jd Judg. Jdg)
Judges 2:22
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