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Judges 6:10
ESV And I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.’ But you have not obeyed my voice."
NIV I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; do not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live.’ But you have not listened to me."
NASB and I said to you, 'I am the Lord your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live.' But you have not obeyed Me.’?'
CSB I said to you: I am the Lord your God. Do not fear the gods of the Amorites whose land you live in. But you did not obey me.’"
NLT I told you, ‘I am the Lord your God. You must not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you now live.’ But you have not listened to me.'
KJV And I said unto you, I am the Lord your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have not obeyed my voice.
NKJV Also I said to you, “I am the Lord your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.” But you have not obeyed My voice.’ ”

What does Judges 6:10 mean?

The Lord is speaking to His people Israel through a prophet (Judges 6:7–9). Instead of immediately sending a deliverer (Judges 2:16) to save them from the Midianites (Judges 6:1), He has sent a prophet to deliver a message to them. He wants them to hear and understand why they are suffering in this way. This comes in the form of a reminder of all God had done for the people, and how they turned from right faith to ignore their own Rescuer.

The prophet's message notes how God has used His power to save the people, first from slavery to the Egyptians (Exodus 12:51) and then from every oppressor after that (Judges 2:18). He has driven out the nations of the Promised Land before them and given His people Israel their long-awaited territory. In other words, God has done great good for Israel, generation after generation.

Here, God's prophet also points out what Israel was told when God first met with Moses (Exodus 3:6). This identification was also used to introduce the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1–2). The God who saved them demanded they worship Him alone, not other, false gods. God explicitly told them not to fear the gods of the Amorites (Joshua 24:15) who were living in the land.

The word "fear" here comes in a particular context. This helps explain why the Israelites worshipped and served false gods of the people around them. They "feared" those gods in the sense of wanting the good those idols could supposedly give. They also wanted to avoid the bad their neighbors said those deities would bring if ignored. This is not panic or terror, but a sense of awe, respect, and obedience. They respected the power and whims of gods that were not gods at all, while ignoring the power of the one, true God, Yahweh.

God ominously accuses the people of disobedience. The Lord does not want Israel to miss the connection between their disobedience and the suffering they now experience (Judges 6:1–2). God has told them over and over, throughout multiple generations, that suffering will follow their disobedience (Judges 2:19–23).

Those who heard this unnamed divine messenger must have wondered whether God would rescue the nation once again.
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