You become what you tolerate

 Welcome to the Daily Bible Chapter. My name is James Leroy Wilson and I invite you to join me as I attempt to read the Bible with fresh eyes, as if I don't know anything about it, and without consulting experts on what it "really" means. Let's see where this takes us! 

Judges 2

I'm reading Young's Literal Translation (YLT) and the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV).

Judges 2 has Joshua alive after Joshua 1 says he died. But otherwise, it's based on what happened in Judges 1. Instead of wiping out the Canaanites completely, the Israelites left many of their towns still standing and put them to forced labor.

As a literal story, the Israelites were less genocidal than The LORD had commanded them to be. You could say, they were "less evil" than their god. War is, among other things, exhausting. Imposing slavery is more profitable.

But this meant the Canaanites got to keep their customs and gods. The whole purpose of the conquest of Canaan was for those customs and gods to disappear.

Metaphorically speaking, the Canaanite gods are things in your life that you've decided will no longer be tolerated. And then you make an exception, a seemingly reasonable exception. And then because you made an exception for A, and B is very similar, you make an exception for B. And since you bent the rule for B, you can for C. Soon enough, you're tolerating everything as before.   

The Canaanite gods are also what the flesh worships: nature, the stars, elemental spirits, and other things of this world. The flesh becomes enslaved to appearances and  worldly "wisdom." The LORD represents the spirit, a higher, more imaginative outlook on life in which one can enjoy the world more fully without being enslaved by it. 

Judges 2 is a warning that we become what we tolerate. 

James Leroy Wilson writes Daily Miracles, The Daily Bible Chapter, JL Cells, and The MVP Chase. Thanks for your subscriptions and support! You may contact James for your writing, editing, and research needs: jamesleroywilson-at-gmail.com.

(Photo credit: TyshkunVictor)