(6) Did evil again.--Literally, added to do evil: "joining new sins to their old ones," as the Vulg. paraphrases it (Judges 2:11; Judges 3:7, &c).

Served Baalim, and Ashtaroth.--Judges 2:19. Seven kinds of idols are mentioned, in obvious symmetry with the seven retributive oppressions in Judges 10:11-12.

The gods of Syria.--Heb. Aram. (See Genesis 35:2; Genesis 35:4.) Manasseh seems to have had an Aramean concubine (1Chronicles 7:14), who was mother of Machir. Of Syrian idolatry we hear nothing definite till the days of Ahaz (2Kings 16:10; 2Kings 16:12):--

"Thammuz came next behind,

Whose annual wound in Lebanon allured

The Syrian damsels to lament his fate

In amorous ditties all a summer's day."--Par. Lost, 1

The gods of Zidon.--1Kings 11:5. As Milton borrowed his details from the learned Syntagma de Diis Syris of Selden, we cannot find better illustration of these allusions than in his stately verse:--

"Ashtoreth, whom the Phoenicians cali

Astarte, queen of heaven, with crescent horns,

To whose bright image nightly by the hour

Sidonian virgins paid their vows and songs, "--Id.

The gods of Moab.--1Kings 11:7.

" Chemosh, the obscene dread of Moab's sons.

From Areer to Nebo, and the wild

Of southmost Abarim . . .

Peor his other name."--Id.

The gods of the children of Ammon--Leviticus 18:21; 1Kings 11:7.

"First Moloch, horrid king. . . . Him the Ammonite

Worshipped in Rabba and his watery plain,

In Argob and in Basan, to the stream

Of utmost Arnon."--Id.

The gods of the Philistines.--1Samuel 5:2; 1Samuel 16:23.

"One

"Who mourned in earnest when the captive ark

Maimed his brute image; head and hands lopt off

In his own temple on the grunsel edge,

Where he fell flat and shamed his worshippers.

Dagon his name--sea-monster--upwards man

And downwards fish."--Id.

Verse 6. - Did evil again. We may conclude that Tola and Jair had used their influence to maintain the worship of Jehovah; but at their death idolatry broke out with more virulence than ever. Not only were the many altars of Baal and Ashtoreth honoured, as in former times, but new forms of idol-worship, according to the rites of all the neighbouring nations, were introduced among them. The gods of Syria, i.e. Aram, who are not usually named, but whose worship is spoken of (2 Chronicles 28:23), and whose altar attracted the attention of Ahaz (2 Kings 16:10), and one of whom was Rimmon (2 Kings 5:18); the gods of the Zidonians, Baal and Ashtoreth, probably with rites somewhat differing from those of Canaan; Chemosh, the god of the Moabites; Milcom or Moloch, the god of the children of Ammon; and Dagon, the god of the Philis-tines - all were worshipped, while the service of Jehovah was thrust aside (see 1 Kings 11:5-7).

10:6-9 Now the threatening was fulfilled, that the Israelites should have no power to stand before their enemies, Le 26:17,37. By their evil ways and their evil doings they procured this to themselves.And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord,.... After the death of the above judges they fell into idolatry again, as the following instances show:

and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth; as they had before; see Gill on Judges 2:11, Judges 2:13 and, besides these:

also the gods of Syria; their gods and goddesses, Belus and Saturn, Astarte and the Dea Syria, Lucian writes of:

and the gods of Zidon; the goddess of the Zidonians was Ashtaroth, 1 Kings 11:5 and it seems they had other deities:

and the gods of Moab; the chief of which were Baalpeor and Chemosh, Numbers 25:3.

and the gods of the children of Ammon, as Milcom or Molech, 1 Kings 11:5.

and the gods of the Philistines; as Dagon the god of Ashdod, Beelzebub the god of Ekron, Marnas the god of Gaza, and Derceto the goddess of Ashkalon:

and forsook the Lord, and served not him; not even in conjunction with the above deities, as Jarchi and others observe; at other times, when they worshipped other gods, they pretended to worship the Lord also, they served the creature besides the Creator; but now they were so dreadfully sunk into idolatry, that they had wholly forsaken the Lord and his worship at the tabernacle, and made no pretensions to it, but entirely neglected it.