Judges 2 · Verse 11

Judges 2:11

And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim:
Judges 2:11, King James Version

Judges 2:11 in other translations

BSBAnd the Israelites did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals.
WEBThe children of Israel did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight, and served the Baals.
ASVAnd the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and served the Baalim;
YLTAnd the sons of Israel do the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, and serve the Baalim,
DARBYAnd the children of Israel did evil in the sight of Jehovah, and served the Baals.
BBEAnd the children of Israel did evil in the eyes of the Lord and became servants to the Baals;
WebsterAnd the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim:

What does Judges 2:11 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Judges 2:11-19

Jud 2:11-19. Wickedness of the New Generation after Joshua.

11-19. the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord--This chapter, together with the first eight verses of the next [Jud 2:11-3:8], contains a brief but comprehensive summary of the principles developed in the following history. An attentive consideration of them, therefore, is of the greatest importance to a right understanding of the strange and varying phases of Israelitish history, from the death of Joshua till the establishment of the monarchy. served Baalim--The plural is used to include all the gods of the country.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 11 Served Baalim - The word בעלים baalim signifies lords. Their false gods they considered supernatural rulers or governors, each having his peculiar district and office; but when they wished to express a particular בעל baal, they generally added some particular epithet, as Baal-zephon, Baal-peor, Baal-zehub, Baal-shamayim, etc., as Calmet has well observed. The two former were adored by the Moabites; Baal-zebub by the Ekronites. Baal-berith was honored at Shechem; and Baal-shamayim, the lord or ruler of the heavens, was adored among the Phoenicians, Syrians, Chaldeans, etc. And whenever the word baal is used without an epithet, this is the god that is intended; and probably, among all these people, it meant the sun.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Judges 2:6-23

We have a general idea of the course of things in Israel, during the time of the Judges. The nation made themselves as mean and miserable by forsaking God, as they would have been great and happy if they had continued faithful to him. Their punishment answered to the evil they had done. They served the gods of the nations round about them, even the meanest, and God made them serve the princes of the nations round…

Read the full comment on Judges 2:6-23 →

Judges 2:11 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיַּעֲשׂ֧וּvai.ya.'a.Suand they didH6213
בְנֵֽי\־ve.nei-[the] people ofH1121
יִשְׂרָאֵ֛לYis.ra.'ElIsraelH3478
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
הָרַ֖עha.Ra'the evilH7451
בְּעֵינֵ֣יbe.'ei.Neiin [the] eyes ofH5869
יְהוָ֑הYah.wehYahwehH3068
וַיַּעַבְד֖וּvai.ya.'av.Duand they servedH5647
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
הַבְּעָלִֽים\׃ha.be.'a.Limthe BaalsH1168

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Judges 2:11

  • Judges 10:6

    And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the Lord, and served not him.

  • Judges 4:1

    And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord, when Ehud was dead.

  • Judges 3:7

    And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and forgat the Lord their God, and served Baalim and the groves.

  • Judges 6:1

    And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord: and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years.

  • 1 Kings 18:18

    And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.

  • Judges 8:33

    And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made Baal–berith their god.

  • Judges 13:1

    And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years.

  • 2 Chronicles 33:6

    And he caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom: also he observed times, and used enchantments, and used witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirit, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger.

  • Judges 10:10

    And the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, saying, We have sinned against thee, both because we have forsaken our God, and also served Baalim.

  • Jeremiah 2:23

    How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;

  • 2 Chronicles 28:2

    For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made also molten images for Baalim.

  • Jeremiah 9:14

    But have walked after the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught them:

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
did evil.
4:1; 6:1; 13:1; Ge 13:13; 38:7; 2Ch 33:2,6; Ezr 8:12
and served Baalim.{Bäâlim,} or lords, seems to have been the common appellation of the Syrian gods; whence we have Baal-peor, Baal-zebub, etc.
3:7; 10:6,10; 1Sa 7:4; 1Ki 18:18; 2Ch 28:2; 33:3; Jer 2:23; 9:14
Ho 2:13-17

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Judges 2:10

    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 2:11

    And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim:

  • Judges 2:12

    And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the Lord to anger.

Read all of Judges 2

Judges 2:11 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y los hijos de Israel hicieron lo malo en ojos de Jehová, y sirvieron á los Baales:
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et les fils d’Israël firent ce qui est mauvais aux yeux de l’ Éternel, et servirent les Baals.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und die Kinder Israel taten, was böse war in den Augen Jehovas und dienten den Baalim.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Feceruntque filii Israël malum in conspectu Domini, et servierunt Baalim.