First Reading

The children of Israel offended the Lord by serving the Baals.

Abandoning the Lord, the God of their fathers,

who led them out of the land of Egypt,

they followed the other gods of the various nations around them,

and by their worship of these gods provoked the Lord.

Because they had thus abandoned him and served Baal and the Ashtaroth,

the anger of the Lord flared up against Israel,

and he delivered them over to plunderers who despoiled them.

He allowed them to fall into the power of their enemies round about

whom they were no longer able to withstand.

Whatever they undertook, the Lord turned into disaster for them,

as in his warning he had sworn he would do,

till they were in great distress.

Even when the Lord raised up judges to deliver them

from the power of their despoilers,

they did not listen to their judges,

but abandoned themselves to the worship of other gods.

They were quick to stray from the way their fathers had taken,

and did not follow their example of obedience

to the commandments of the Lord.

Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, he would be with the judge

and save them from the power of their enemies

as long as the judge lived;

it was thus the Lord took pity on their distressful cries

of affliction under their oppressors.

But when the judge died,

they would relapse and do worse than their ancestors,

following other gods in service and worship,

relinquishing none of their evil practices or stubborn conduct.