18-20 God was so thoroughly angry that he got rid of them, got them out of the country for good until only one tribe was left—Judah. (Judah, actually, wasn’t much better, for Judah also failed to keep God’s commands, falling into the same way of life that Israel had adopted.) God rejected everyone connected with Israel, made life hard for them, and permitted anyone with a mind to exploit them to do so. And then this final No as he threw them out of his sight.

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18 So the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence.(A) Only the tribe of Judah was left, 19 and even Judah did not keep the commands of the Lord their God. They followed the practices Israel had introduced.(B) 20 Therefore the Lord rejected all the people of Israel; he afflicted them and gave them into the hands of plunderers,(C) until he thrust them from his presence.(D)

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