Israel Fights the Remaining Canaanites
1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked the Lord, “Who of us is to go up first to fight against the Canaanites?”
2 The Lord answered, “Judah shall go up; I have given the land into their hands.”
3 The men of Judah then said to the Simeonites their fellow Israelites, “Come up with us into the territory allotted to us, to fight against the Canaanites. We in turn will go with you into yours.” So the Simeonites went with them.
4 When Judah attacked, the Lord gave the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands, and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek. 5 It was there that they found Adoni-Bezek and fought against him, putting to rout the Canaanites and Perizzites.
The Israelites gave in to the pressure and compromised their faith. When we try to meet life’s challenges with human effort alone, we will find the pressures and temptations around us too great to resist. When we focus our hopes and confidence on God, he will lead you well. In order for our faith to survive, it must be practiced day by day. It must be in every part of our lives. Love God and live for him.