The Meaning of Judges 2:12 Explained

Judges 2:12

KJV: 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.

YLT: and forsake Jehovah, God of their fathers, who bringeth them out from the land of Egypt, and go after other gods (of the gods of the peoples who are round about them), and bow themselves to them, and provoke Jehovah,

Darby: and they forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; they went after other gods, from among the gods of the peoples who were round about them, and bowed down to them; and they provoked the LORD to anger.

ASV: and they forsook Jehovah, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the peoples that were round about them, and bowed themselves down unto them: and they provoked Jehovah to anger.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

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. 

What does Judges 2:12 Mean?

Context Summary

Judges 2:6-15 - A Generation That Knew Not Jehovah
What a thrilling experience it must have been to hear Joshua and Caleb talk of Egypt, the Red Sea, and Sinai! The younger men would stand awestruck as the veterans narrated their experiences of God. Open your diaries of the past, ye older saints, and tell what the Lord hath done for you. It will hearten us for the fight, Malachi 3:16.
Joshua was carried to his last resting-place in his inheritance-"the portion of the sun"-amid the respect and affection of the entire people. Like Moses, he had deserved to be known as "the servant of the Lord." The elders, who had witnessed the conquest of Canaan, took up his testimony and told of Jericho and the valley of Ajalon. But these also were "gathered unto their fathers," which implies more than burial. They joined the great throng of holy ones who are gathering around our Lord, awaiting the hour when, as a radiant throng, they shall issue forth with Him to take up the kingdom of the world. What a gathering that will be! Whatever else we miss, let us see to it that we stand in our lot, "at the end of the days," Genesis 49:33; Genesis 50:14; Daniel 12:13. [source]

Chapter Summary: Judges 2

1  An angel rebukes the people at Bochim
6  The wickedness of the new generation after Joshua
14  God's anger and pity toward them
20  The Canaanites left to prove Israel

What do the individual words in Judges 2:12 mean?

and they forsook - Yahweh God of their fathers who had brought them - out of the land of Egypt and they followed - gods other from [among] the gods of the people who [were] all around them and they bowed down to them and they provoked to anger Yahweh
וַיַּעַזְב֞וּ אֶת־ יְהוָ֣ה ׀ אֱלֹהֵ֣י אֲבוֹתָ֗ם הַמּוֹצִ֣יא אוֹתָם֮ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַיִם֒ וַיֵּלְכ֞וּ אַחֲרֵ֣י ׀ אֱלֹהִ֣ים אֲחֵרִ֗ים מֵאֱלֹהֵ֤י הָֽעַמִּים֙ אֲשֶׁר֙ סְבִיב֣וֹתֵיהֶ֔ם וַיִּֽשְׁתַּחֲו֖וּ לָהֶ֑ם וַיַּכְעִ֖סוּ יְהוָֽה

וַיַּעַזְב֞וּ  and  they  forsook 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: עָזַב 
Sense: to leave, loose, forsake.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
יְהוָ֣ה ׀  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
אֱלֹהֵ֣י  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
אֲבוֹתָ֗ם  of  their  fathers 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: אָב  
Sense: father of an individual.
הַמּוֹצִ֣יא  who  had  brought  them 
Parse: Article, Verb, Hifil, Participle, masculine singular
Root: יׄוצֵאת 
Sense: to go out, come out, exit, go forth.
אוֹתָם֮  - 
Parse: Direct object marker, third person masculine plural
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
מֵאֶ֣רֶץ  out  of  the  land 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
מִצְרַיִם֒  of  Egypt 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: מִצְרַיִם  
Sense: a country at the northeastern section of Africa, adjacent to Palestine, and through which the Nile flows adj Egyptians = “double straits”.
וַיֵּלְכ֞וּ  and  they  followed 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
אַחֲרֵ֣י ׀  - 
Parse: Preposition
Root: אַחַר 
Sense: after the following part, behind (of place), hinder, afterwards (of time).
אֱלֹהִ֣ים  gods 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
אֲחֵרִ֗ים  other 
Parse: Adjective, masculine plural
Root: אַחֵר  
Sense: another, other, following.
מֵאֱלֹהֵ֤י  from  [among]  the  gods 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
הָֽעַמִּים֙  of  the  people 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: עַם 
Sense: nation, people.
אֲשֶׁר֙  who  [were] 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
סְבִיב֣וֹתֵיהֶ֔ם  all  around  them 
Parse: Adverb, third person masculine plural
Root: מוּסָב 
Sense: places round about, circuit, round about adv.
וַיִּֽשְׁתַּחֲו֖וּ  and  they  bowed  down 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hitpael, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: שָׁחָה  
Sense: to bow down.
לָהֶ֑ם  to  them 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine plural
וַיַּכְעִ֖סוּ  and  they  provoked  to  anger 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hifil, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: כָּעַס  
Sense: to be angry, be vexed, be indignant, be wroth, be grieved, provoke to anger and wrath.
יְהוָֽה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.