Judges 3:1-6 ▼

1 These were the nations the LORD permitted to remain so he could use them to test Israel--he wanted to test all those who had not experienced battle against the Canaanites.

2 He left those nations simply because he wanted to teach the subsequent generations of Israelites, who had not experienced the earlier battles, how to conduct holy war.

3 These were the nations: the five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal Hermon to Lebo-Hamath.

4 They were left to test Israel, so the LORD would know if his people would obey the commands he gave their ancestors through Moses.

5 The Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.

6 They took the Canaanites' daughters as wives and gave their daughters to the Canaanites; they worshiped their gods as well.