and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done?
English Standard Version (ESV)
God's question, "Why have you done this?" isn't just asking for an explanation; it's a profound accusation that highlights their deep ingratitude and the wicked desires stirring within their hearts. By failing to destroy the altars and by making alliances, they showed they preferred the familiar, idolatrous practices of the land over God's commands.
and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done?
English Standard Version (ESV)
An angel of the Lord has just appeared to the Israelites, reminding them of God's promises and their own disobedience. This verse is the angel's direct reprimand, pointing out how they've broken explicit commands to make no treaties and destroy altars of the Canaanites, setting the stage for God's judgment that these nations will become a constant thorn in their side.
Imagine God laying out the terms of a promise, making it crystal clear. Then, years later, He reminds them of His faithfulness and their failure. This verse is that moment of divine accounting.
The Angel of the Covenant, likely the pre-incarnate Son of God, confronts Israel. He reminds them of the foundational promises made when they left Egypt: 'I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers.' This wasn't a casual promise; it was a covenant, a binding agreement. God was faithful to His part, bringing them into the land. Now, the focus shifts to Israel's end of the deal.
God gave Israel a stark command: no compromises, no alliances with the people of the land. Why was this so crucial, and what happens when they ignore it?
The commands 'you shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land' and 'you shall break down their altars' were not arbitrary rules. They were designed to protect Israel's spiritual distinctiveness and devotion to Yahweh. Making covenants meant allowing the Canaanites' idolatrous practices and their gods to infiltrate Israelite life. Breaking down altars was a decisive act of cutting off any possibility of returning to false worship. Disobedience here wasn't just a social or political misstep; it was a direct threat to their covenant relationship with God and their unique identity.
A question hangs in the air, heavy with disappointment and consequence: 'Why have you done this?' It’s not just an inquiry; it’s a divine challenge to their motives and their memory.
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This final question is the heart of the rebuke. It cuts through any excuses and goes straight to the core of Israel's failure. They had experienced God's miraculous deliverance and provision, yet they chose to disobey His clear commands and embrace practices that He abhorred. The commentaries suggest this disobedience stemmed from the wickedness of their hearts, ingratitude, and a lingering attraction to idolatry. The weeping that follows (v. 4-5) is a response to their sin, but God's question demands an accounting for why they actively chose the path that led to such sorrow.
Understand the original words
mizbeach · Hebrew Noun
A raised structure, usually of earth or stone, used for offering sacrifices and burnt offerings as an act of worship, atonement, or consecration to a deity. In the Old Testament, God commanded the destruction of foreign altars to prevent idolatry.
shama' qol · Hebrew Verb
To hear, listen, and pay attention with the intention of obedience. It implies not just cognitive reception but a responsive action following the expressed will of God.
This verse highlights a critical turning point where Israel's failure to obey God's direct command to eliminate Canaanite influence leads to future struggles and oppression. The reproach from the Angel of the Lord underscores that their spiritual compromise directly violated the foundational terms of their covenant with God.
c. 1400-1200 BC
Israel Conquers Canaan
Following their exodus from Egypt, the Israelites under Joshua's leadership enter and begin to conquer the land of Canaan, as promised by God. However, they do not fully drive out the Canaanite inhabitants.
c. 1380-1070 BC
Period of the Judges Begins
After Joshua's death, Israel enters a period where tribal leaders, called judges, govern. This era is marked by cycles of sin, oppression, and deliverance.
Undated, Early Judges Period— this verse
Angel Confronts Israel at Bochim
An angel of the Lord appears to the Israelites at Bochim, rebuking them for breaking their covenant with God by making peace treaties and alliances with the remaining Canaanites and adopting their idolatrous practices.
Throughout the Judges Period
Canaanite Influence Grows
Despite God's warnings, the Israelites continue to intermarry with and adopt the religious and cultural practices of the Canaanites, leading to widespread idolatry.
c. 1070 BC
End of the Judges Period
The period of the Judges concludes, marked by the continued spiritual decline of Israel and the rise of the Philistine threat, leading to the anointing of the first king, Saul.
This passage directly lays out the command not to make a covenant or show mercy to the inhabitants of the land, establishing the foundation for the reproach in Judges 2:2.
Deuteronomy 7:2This verse reiterates the command to make no covenants and to destroy the altars of the inhabitants, highlighting Israel's repeated disobedience to God's clear instructions.
Joshua 23:13Joshua warns the Israelites that if they do not drive out the inhabitants, they will become 'thorns in your eyes and scourges on your sides,' directly foreshadowing the consequences of their disobedience mentioned in Judges 2.
Romans 6:16This New Testament passage draws a parallel between yielding to sin and becoming a slave to it, reflecting the Israelites' spiritual enslavement to the Canaanite ways after failing to obey God's command for separation.
bensonJudges 2:2: "And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my voice: why have ye done this?"
Jdg 2:2-5 . Ye shall make no league, &c. — These express and frequently-repeated commands of God they had disobeyed. Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out, &c. — That is, I have now taken up this peremptory resolution. They shall be as thorns in your sides, &c. — This signifies what they were assuredly to expect in brea…
gillJudges 2:2: "And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my voice: why have ye done this?"
And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land,.... This the Lord charged them not to do, when he covenanted with them, and assured them of bringing them into the land; and yet they had done it, as some instances in the preceding chapter show, which were the occasion of the angel's coming to them to rebuke them, see…
God's question, "Why have you done this?" isn't just asking for an explanation; it's a profound accusation that highlights their deep ingratitude and the wicked desires stirring within their hearts. By failing to destroy the altars and by making alliances, they showed they preferred the familiar, idolatrous practices of the land over God's commands.
An angel of the Lord has just appeared to the Israelites, reminding them of God's promises and their own disobedience. This verse is the angel's direct reprimand, pointing out how they've broken explicit commands to make no treaties and destroy altars of the Canaanites, setting the stage for God's judgment that these nations will become a constant thorn in their side.
An angel of the Lord has just appeared to the Israelites, reminding them of God's promises and their own disobedience. This verse is the angel's direct reprimand, pointing out how they've broken explicit commands to make no treaties and destroy altars of the Canaanites, setting the stage for God's judgment that these nations will become a constant thorn in their side.
"and you shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall break down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed my voice. What is this you have done?" — God's question, "Why have you done this?" isn't just asking for an explanation; it's a profound accusation that highlights their deep ingratitude and the wicked desires stirring within their hearts.…
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Last reviewed October 2026