The Angel at Bochim (Judges 2:1-5)

 

In the previous chapter of Judges there are two lists. One list concerns successes that the children of Israel had known under the guidance of Joshua and the second list concerns failures that they had experienced. Perhaps we might have been happy with that description of things because life is usually composed of progresses and declines. Maybe the children of Israel were content too, especially if we recall that initially they did not possess any of the land. Whether they were or not, there was one person who was not content, but we might be surprised at who it is.

 

Who is he?

The one concerned about the situation is called the angel of the Lord. The word angel can have the idea of messenger and on this occasion the angel had a message for the people. Yet as we look at his message, we can see that he did not pass on a message that spoke about what God had done. Instead, he passed on a message about what he had done in the past, what he had said and done, and those actions and statements were done and made by God. So, this concerned person is a divine person distinct from God.

 

Where did he come from?

The angel of the Lord travelled from Gilgal, a town on the borders of Israel. What was so significant about Gilgal? Historically, it was the place where the children of Israel camped after crossing the Jordan on their long journey from Egypt. Having made the crossing to Gilgal, it became a place where their covenant relationship with God was renewed; it was like a new start. At Gilgal, the Israelites also celebrated the Passover and in addition it was the place where the children of Israel were circumcised as a sign of their covenant relationship. Obviously, Gilgal was a place where the Israelites celebrated their delight in God and declared their allegiance to him. Gilgal then remained Joshua’s headquarters while he warred with the Canaanites and other tribes then living in Canaan.

 

The previous time this mysterious Angel is mentioned is in Joshua 5 when he met with the leader of the people of God, Joshua. Is there in the description of coming from Gilgal an insight into the divine calendar, of dates that are important to the Angel of the Lord? The previous occasion was to speak with Joshua, now several decades later he desires to speak to the people.

 

Why did he come?

Even as Joshua went out from Gilgal to fight in his campaigns, so now the Lord himself goes out from Gilgal on a mission. Yet he did not go from Gilgal to engage in war against enemies. Rather, he came to meet with his people and address them on matters that he regarded as important.

 

We are not told what the place was called prior to the Lord coming there to speak (some suggest it was near Bethel, others say Shiloh, but those suggestions are only guesses). Wherever it was, it was known to those who assembled there. We assume that information about this gathering had been conveyed to the Israelites. They had been summoned to this meeting to hear what the Lord would say, and they came in large numbers which would have been encouraging to those concerned about the state of things.

 

What did he say?

First, the Angel rehearses what he had done for Israel in the past. It was this divine Angel who had delivered them from Egypt and brought them into the promised land in line with the promises he had made to the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In passing, we may note how important it is for us to bear in mind the extraordinary activities of Jesus in Old Testament times. It was he who had interacted with the patriarchs, and it was he who liberated their descendants from slavery in Egypt and brought them to such an incredible destination.

 

Second, the Angel had arranged a covenant with them, and he would keep all the terms of it. As far as the Israelites were concerned, their responsibility as far as this covenant with God was concerned was not to enter into an agreement with the pagan inhabitants of the land. Instead, they were to destroy all aspects of pagan worship.

 

Third, the Angel charged them with a failure to do this requirement. Maybe we recall the incident with the Gibeonites who hoodwinked the Israelites into making an agreement. That was serious, yet the suggestion here is that the Israelites also made voluntary agreements with the Canaanites and so showed that they were unfaithful to the God who had redeemed them.

 

Fourth, the Angel announces judgement. The punishment was connected to their sin. The pagans would remain in the land and would become an annoyance to the Israelites as well as a source of temptation into idolatry. Anyone that knows the subsequent history of Israel will be aware of how often this was the case, how the local pagans led them astray. And when we read about those incidents we should remind ourselves of who announced them to begin with – the angel of the Lord himself.

 

How did they respond?

There was instant communal regret with much sorrow along with a religious celebration (Bochim means weeping). Yet it has been noted that there does not seem to have been any prolonged effect of this response. Several suggestions have been made as to why this was the case. One is that they regretted the consequence of their sin, but not the sin itself, and we can understand that. A man may regret stealing an item because of the punishment he receives and not because of the nature of the action.

 

Lessons from the incident

Here we have an Old Testament example of similar responses to Jesus that he received when he was on earth. We can recall the feeding of the five thousand and the devotion expressed by those who ate. They then listened to what Jesus had to say about the bread of life, and the outcome was that they refused to continue as his disciples.

 

Repentance is not a one-off action after a particular sin. Repentance is a lifelong expression of attitude. David as an adult asked God not to remember the sins of his youth as well as not remember his transgressions. By not remembering them, the Lord would remember him (Ps. 25:7).

 

The danger of a situation like this is that the Lord leaves the problem with them and gives no sign that he will take it away. Making arrangements with the Canaanites may have seemed sensible from a variety of viewpoints, yet whatever was arranged was an expression of disobedience. There are some sins that leave a lasting mark, and it is an unpleasant situation to live through when that happens.