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Something is overtly out of whack in this verse. Judah is leading
by example for the benefit of the other eleven tribes of Israel by being the
first in finalizing the conquest of their portion of the land (Jdg 1:1-2). So
Judah makes a pact with Simeon, “You help me; I help you” (Jdg 1:3). So we begin
to read in Judges 1 how successful they were in driving out the Canaanites in
their portion of the land.
There is a rhythmic pattern of one victory after another. You
begin to get excited for them over their triumphs in purging the pagan
influence out of their inheritance as was ordered by the LORD. Then we come to an
invisible wall called “but” in verse 19. On the other side of “but” is one of
the major contributions to the turbulence of the next 350 years during the
period of the Judges, a time when there was no king in Israel and every man did
what was right in his own eyes (Jdg 21:25) – "Like a bad neighbor, idols are
there” (cf. Jdg 3:6,7; Josh 24:14, 15, 16). Then the fun began (cf. Jdg 3:8; cf
Josh 24:20). They just didn’t get it; drive out your pagan neighbors; the local
idol drugs are gone. “But they could not drive out the inhabitants of the
lowland.”
This is disappointing to read. The Israelites were victorious in
their conquest under Joshua. Now it was the responsibility of the individual
tribes to put the refining touches on driving out the inhabitants living within
the tribe’s territory. You would at the least expect Judah, of all the tribes,
to be successful in a more thorough conquest of their inheritance. But verse 19
tells of a hiccup in that project. It appears there is an elevation problem; the
mountain folk was easier to drive out than those living at a lower elevation on
the plains who, incidentally, had chariots of iron, unlike the people in the
mountains.
Actually, geography was only a minor challenge; the military
hardware was circumstantial. They looked at these war machines as an excuse
rather than a reason to drive them out. The major issue was a
spiritual elevation problem. Was not Yahweh all-powerful? Had not Joshua
promised they could conquer the lowlands (cf. Josh 17:16, 17:18)? Did not the
LORD promise to Joshua, “Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon
I have given you, as I said to Moses” (Josh 1:3)? Had they so quickly forgotten
the victory at the waters of Merom where there were gathered many horses and
chariots (Josh 11:4-9)? The elevation problem was not the lowlands; the tribes
simply would not rise to the occasion in full obedience and trust in the power
of God for victory. Look at our M-G verse again.
“So the [omnipotent] LORD was with Judah. And they drove out the
mountaineers, but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the lowland,
because they had chariots of iron.”
What is wrong with this picture – “the LORD was with Judah … but
they could not drive out the inhabitants of the lowland?” Do you mean to tell me
that the Creator God of the Universe and Judah combined couldn’t drive them
out? Judah looked at the circumstances and forgot the promise Joshua relayed
to them that God would drive out the remaining Canaanites so they could fully
possess their inheritance (Josh 23:5, 6). The problem was the LORD was “with”
(fully engaged, with them and would fight for them) Judah, but Judah was not
with or fully engaged with Yahweh. By this, I mean Judah’s trust and obedience
in God for victory had a limit. They were being victorious until they saw the
chariots of iron and fear and worry replaced their courage and confidence in
being able to drive out the Canaanites in the lowlands. The chariots created
doubt and prevented Judah from fully trusting and obeying the promise that God
would give them victory through His power.
The end result was that Judah and Simeon settled for less than
what God had promised to all the tribes through Joshua (Josh 1:6-9). We see in
Judges 1 that this was to be the template for the rest of the tribes; nine
times we read of the failure of a tribe failing to drive out the inhabitants of
their land. In their hearts, they had transformed God from being omnipotent to
impotent through unbelief.
Eventually, idolatry became an enticing and entrenching problem for Israel, and
God would “no longer drive out before them any of the nations which Joshua left
when he died” (Jdg 2:21). He would use these pagan nations to “test Israel,
whether they will keep the ways of the LORD, to walk in them as their fathers
kept them, or not” (Jdg 2:22). God in His omniscience did a wise thing while
the land was being conquered under Joshua, “Therefore the LORD left those
nations, without driving them out immediately; nor did He deliver them into the
hand of Joshua” (Jdg 2:23; 3:1, 4; cf. Josh 23:13, 14). He knew it would be
necessary to test the nation’s faithfulness to Him.
Imagine our sinful human nature within us being like those
nations that were not driven out of the land to test our faithfulness to God
like it did the Israelites, and this is not to be considered as a precise
analogy. The sting of sin is gone forever; we can say no to the flesh; but its
influence within us always remains a potential threat. When you add Satan and
the world system opposing us and the things of God, we must come to that point as
Joshua did in his life, “But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD”
(Josh 24:15), or we’re in trouble if we don’t!
Since God knows the heart of man (1 Kgs 8:39), this ever-living-within-us-test
on this side of eternity is for our awareness and responsibility to respond
differently to its whims and dictates, those fleshly impulses. This test of
obedience isn’t to keep God informed on where we are. When God was inquiring about
Adam’s whereabouts in the Garden, He knew where he was; He just wanted Adam to
be aware of where he was. Adam wasn’t where he was supposed to be. Where does God want us
to be? He wants us to “be holy as He is Holy,” according to the Scriptures.
God desires for us to demonstrate those qualities that draw men to accept
Christ (Heb 2:14). Do you want another word for it? He desires for us to be like
Christ which covers a host of things (cf. Gal 5:22-23; 2 Pet 3:18).
When I read of the tragic failure of God’s people settling for
less because of a lack of trust and obedience, I see a reflection of some of my
experiences as a believer. I never have responded to those tribal actions for
failing to drive out the enemy as “How could they be so unfaithful in light of
all that God had done for them?” For this is a question I have had to ask
myself throughout my undulating walk as a Christian. I am not projecting any
sympathy for disobedience to God; Israel disobeyed God and robbed themselves of
His blessings; and it cost them. It was spiritual stupidity on their part, and
I have been spiritually stupid at times as well. I simply cannot think of a
better word to describe being disobedient to God than acting stupidly!
If it makes you feel any better even the Apostle Paul struggled
with his sinful nature. In Rom 6 he speaks of the necessity of putting to death
the members of the flesh. He is well aware of the struggle between the new
nature and the flesh (the old nature) in Rom 7. In Rom 13:14 he speaks of the
importance of being clothed in the righteousness of Christ – in order to avoid
making provision for our sinful nature and indulging in evil desires. I have never
understood how anybody could make the claim as if their sinful nature had left their body (cf. 1 Jn 1:8), and they no longer sin!
Like Paul, every believer struggles with his or her sinful human
nature. For some, it is a cyclical battle like the nation of Israel during the
time of the Judges. It goes something like this. We are enjoying the blessings
of the Lord, and we find ourselves in disobedience to Him because of some unwise
choices. Hammered by guilt and defeat, we finally come to our senses and repent.
We again enjoy a time of peace and prosperity in obedience to God. Then we slip
right back into disobedience, maybe over the same sin, and find ourselves in a
place we shouldn’t be. Chastened, we eventually repent, and God in His mercy and
grace restores us. If the truth is known, we have lost count of the endless cycles.
We feel like a dog chasing its tail; round and round he goes. When he stops, nobody knows. We question, “How can God love me when I live like this?”
God can love us no more or no less because His love is immutable
or unchangeable. God’s love is infinite and eternal toward us who believe. Even
in our unbelief or unfaithfulness, God is faithful for He promised to never
leave us or forsake us (Heb 13:5). You may be wondering how do I stop this vicious cycle
and stay on track in obeying God’s will? Depending upon your situation, this
might require a series of complex answers over a period of time from godly
counseling. Positional sanctification, our salvation experience, is
instantaneous, secure, and eternal. Progressive sanctification (spiritual growth
or spiritual maturity in Christ) is a lifelong process, and just as there are
consequences we have to live with when we rebel against the Lord, though forgiven,
there are consequences from our obedience as well, blessed of God.
Remember the words of Joshua when the men of war were returning
to their inheritance on the east side of Jordan after the conquest of the land
was over?
“But take careful heed … to love the LORD your God, to walk in
all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him
with all your heart and with all your soul” (Josh 22:5).
Christianity has been and always will be a second-by-second, minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, day-by-day, month-by-month, and year-by-year relationship
with Yahweh, not a bunch of religious rules and regulations to check off to affirm spirituality. There
will never be any healing or blessing in our life as a believer as long as we
consider those words from Joshua to be optional.
It is the Divine maxim dressed
in the imperative (Deut 6:5) often ignored by the majority. It not only is a
love that drives trust and obedience without hesitation or without question, but
it also is a love that puts God above all peoples, places, or things. This kind
of love makes all the difference in the world and generates the kind of drive
needed to be blessed by God. <><
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