Daily Devotional – Tuesday, August 18, 2026
When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the LORD nor the work which He had done for Israel.
Judges 2:10 (NKJV)
Have you ever heard someone talking about something that is dear to them but not so much to you? They may tell you how God helped them through a difficult season, answered a prayer, or opened a door they never expected to open. You can appreciate the story, but you were not there when it happened to them. Something similar happened in Israel. One generation had seen God’s great works and served Him. Then that generation passed away, and another generation came along that did not know the LORD or what He had done for Israel.
More Than Stories About God
The setting makes the statement even more striking. Today’s key text says the people served the LORD during Joshua’s lifetime and during the lifetime of the elders who outlived him. These elders had seen the great works God had done for Israel. Joshua then died, and those who had shared that generation’s experience eventually died as well. After that, another generation arose. The writer does not explain every reason why this happened. He simply records the tragic condition: they did not know the LORD, nor the work He had done for Israel.
The word “know” deserves attention. The problem was not simply that this generation had never heard God’s name or had no access to Israel’s history. In this context, “know” points to knowing the LORD in the sense reflected in the preceding verse, where the earlier generation had seen His works and served Him. The new generation did not have the same knowledge of the LORD and his mighty deeds. Where this lack of knowledge led is shown in the following verses. Israel forsook the LORD and served Baals.
The Danger of Inherited Faith
That makes this passage more serious than a warning about forgetting Bible stories. God’s past works were not meant to remain as distant history. They were meant to shape Israel’s relationship with Him. Yet the next generation no longer knew the LORD in the way the previous generation had. The book of Judges then shows the consequences of that loss again and again. Israel turned away, suffered oppression, cried to God, experienced deliverance, and then turned away again. Judges 2:10 stands near the beginning of that painful pattern.
There is a question here for each of us: Is my faith only a story I inherited, or do I know the LORD for myself? You may have grown up hearing what God did for your parents, your church, or people you respect. Those stories matter. Still, someone else’s experience with God cannot become a substitute for knowing Him yourself. Open His Word and meet Him there. Pray to Him honestly. Trust Him in the situations you face today. God’s faithfulness in the past should not remain someone else’s story. Let it lead you to know the LORD for yourself.
Prayer
Lord, help me not to live on the faith and experiences of others. Teach me to know You for myself and to trust You in the realities of my own life.
