Judges 2 10

Judges 2:10 kjv

And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.

Judges 2:10 nkjv

When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the LORD nor the work which He had done for Israel.

Judges 2:10 niv

After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel.

Judges 2:10 esv

And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers. And there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD or the work that he had done for Israel.

Judges 2:10 nlt

After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the LORD or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel.

Judges 2 verses

Judges 2 10 Meaning

Judges 2:10 signifies a pivotal decline in Israel's spiritual journey. It describes the complete passing away of the generation that personally experienced God's works and knew Him through Joshua's leadership. In their place, a new generation arose which had no experiential knowledge of Yahweh, the covenant Lord, nor any recollection of the mighty acts of salvation and deliverance He had performed for Israel, such as the Exodus and the conquest of Canaan. This spiritual ignorance and forgetfulness laid the groundwork for Israel's subsequent apostasy and suffering under the judges.

Judges 2 10 Context

Judges chapter 2 serves as the theological hinge and interpretive key for the entire book of Judges. Verse 10 specifically describes the passing of the generation of Israelites who had witnessed the great works of God during the Exodus and conquest under Joshua, and their replacement by a new generation. This new generation's lack of knowing the Lord and His works is presented as the primary reason for Israel's subsequent failure to maintain covenant fidelity and for their descent into apostasy and idolatry. It sets the stage for the recurring cycle of sin, oppression, crying out to God, and deliverance that characterizes the entire period of the judges (Jgs 2:11-19). This spiritual decline marks a significant shift from the obedient era of Joshua and directly explains the national spiritual breakdown and inter-tribal strife that followed.

Judges 2 10 Word analysis

• And all that generation also were gathered to their fathers;

  • And (וְ - we): A simple conjunction connecting this outcome directly to the preceding events of Joshua's death and the previous generation's passing.
  • all (כָּל - kol): Emphasizes totality. No exceptions; the entire cohort died out.
  • that generation (הַדּוֹר הַהוּא - ha-dor ha-hu): Refers specifically to the people mentioned in Judges 2:7, who "served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all the days of the elders who survived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord which He had done for Israel." This was a generation that had personal experience of God's power.
    • dor (דּוֹר): "generation," implying a period of human lifespan and the people living within it. Here, it denotes a distinct cohort with a shared historical and spiritual experience.
  • were gathered (וַיֵּאָסְפוּ - wayye'as'phu): A euphemism for death, meaning "they were brought together" or "joined." It often implies being joined with one's deceased ancestors in the underworld (Sheol). It highlights the definitive end of that era.
  • to their fathers (אֶל־אֲבוֹתָיו - 'el 'avotaw): A common biblical phrase denoting dying and being buried or joining ancestral spirits. (e.g., Gen 25:8; 49:29, 33). It marks the transition of leadership and responsibility to the succeeding age.

• and there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord, nor yet the work which He had done for Israel.

  • and there arose (וַיָּקָם - wayyaqom): "And stood up" or "came into being." This signifies the emergence and rise to prominence of a new, distinct group.
  • another generation (אַחֵר דּוֹר - dor 'aher): "A different generation." The qualitative difference is crucial. This is not just a next generation but a distinct kind of generation, marked by a critical spiritual deficiency.
  • after them (אַחֲרֵיהֶם - 'akhareyhem): Temporally succeeding the previous generation, highlighting a continuity in time but a discontinuity in faith.
  • who did not know (אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יָדְעוּ - 'asher lo-yad'u): The central spiritual crisis of the verse.
    • yada (יָדַע): "to know," but in a profound sense beyond mere intellectual understanding or factual acquaintance. In biblical Hebrew, especially when applied to knowing God, it signifies an intimate, relational, experiential, and covenantal knowledge, implying loyalty, obedience, and fellowship. It means to acknowledge, recognize, and respond appropriately. To "not know the Lord" is to lack a personal relationship, disregard His covenant, and ignore His authority. This is not merely ignorance but a willful disengagement or failure of heart.
  • the Lord (יְהוָה - YHWH): The personal covenant name of God, indicating His faithful and powerful nature, especially in His relationship with Israel. The lack of knowing YHWH implies a breaking of the covenant relationship Israel had with Him.
  • nor yet (וְגַם־לֹא - wagam-lo): Emphasizes the second part of their ignorance—it's not just that they didn't know God relationally, but they also lacked knowledge of His history with them.
  • the work (הַמַּעֲשֶׂה - ha-ma'aseh): "The work," referring to God's mighty deeds, particularly those of salvation, deliverance, and covenant-making. This includes the Exodus, the parting of the Red Sea, the giving of the Law, the miraculous provision in the wilderness, and the conquest of Canaan. These were foundational narratives of Israel's identity and God's faithfulness.
  • which He had done for Israel (אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל - 'asher 'asah l-Yisra'el): These works were specific to God's redemptive history with His chosen people. The new generation was ignorant of their own national and spiritual heritage.

Judges 2 10 Bonus section

The phrase "did not know the Lord" is not merely about lacking factual information about God; it highlights the failure of relational discipleship. This new generation had heard of God, but they did not experience Him or commit to Him in a covenantal relationship as their predecessors had. This profound relational void stemmed from a neglect in retelling the metanarrative of God's powerful acts for His people, thus erasing the foundational understanding of God's character and Israel's covenant obligations. The tragedy is not just the absence of knowledge, but the absence of intentional, active remembering and spiritual training within the community and families. This spiritual vacuum directly enabled syncretism and idolatry, as demonstrated by the narrative that immediately follows in Judges 2:11-13. The story of Judges 2:10 is a sober warning for every generation about the absolute necessity of diligent faith transmission.

Judges 2 10 Commentary

Judges 2:10 functions as a theological bridge explaining Israel's downward spiral throughout the book. It asserts that the moral and spiritual collapse began with a fundamental failure to transmit faith from one generation to the next. The passing of the faithful generation of Joshua was inevitable, but the subsequent rise of a generation marked by profound spiritual ignorance was not. This lack of "knowing" Yahweh points to a deficiency in relational, covenantal intimacy, not merely intellectual awareness. They didn't know who He was to them, nor what He had done for them. This meant they lost sight of their identity as God's chosen people, liberated by His power and bound by His covenant. Their ignorance of God's redemptive "work" for Israel—the Exodus, the wilderness wanderings, the conquest—severed them from their foundational history of divine grace and power, leaving them vulnerable to the idolatry and immoral practices of the surrounding Canaanite nations. The verse implicitly highlights a critical breakdown in parental and community teaching (Deut 6:7) and underscores that faith is not hereditary; it must be diligently nurtured and passed on.