6 Bible Verses about Backsliding, Israel Exanples

The entire congregation of Israelites left the desert of Sin and traveled from place to place as Jehovah commanded them. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So they complained to Moses about this: Give us water to drink! Moses said: Why do you complain to me? Why do you test Jehovah? The people were thirsty for water. They complained to Moses and asked: Why did you bring us out of Egypt? Was it to make us, our children, and our livestock die of thirst?read more.
Moses cried out to Jehovah: What should I do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me! Jehovah said to Moses: Go in front of the people. Take the elders of Israel with you. Take your rod with which you struck the river, in your hand, and go. Behold! I will stand before you there upon the rock in Horeb. Strike the rock and water will come out of it. Then the people may drink. Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel. He called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the complaining of the children of Israel, and because they tested Jehovah, saying: Is Jehovah among us or not?

The people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain. They gathered around Aaron. They said to him: We do not know what has happened to Moses, the man who led us out of Egypt. Make gods to lead us. Aaron replied: Have your wives, sons, and daughters take off the gold earrings they are wearing. Bring them to me. The people took off their gold earrings and handed them to Aaron.read more.
After he worked on the gold with a tool, he made it into a statue of a calf. Then they said: Israel, this is your god, who brought you out of Egypt. Aaron built an altar in front of it when he saw what happened. Then he announced: Tomorrow there will be a festival in Jehovah's honor. Early the next day the people sacrificed burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. After that they sat down to a feast, which turned into an orgy. Jehovah said to Moses: Go down there. Your people whom you brought out of Egypt have corrupted themselves. They have already turned from the way I commanded them to live. They made a statue of a calf for themselves. They have bowed down to it and offered sacrifices to it. They said: Israel, here is your god who brought you out of Egypt.' Jehovah added: I have seen these people. They have an iron sinew (stiff necked people) (are impossible to deal with). Now let me alone. Let my anger burn against them. I am so angry with them I am going to destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation. But Moses pleaded with Jehovah his God. Jehovah, he said, why are you so angry with your people? These are your people whom you brought out of Egypt using your great power and mighty hand! Do not let the Egyptians say: 'He was planning all along to kill them in the mountains and wipe them off the face of the earth. That is why he brought them out of our land.' Do not be so angry. Reconsider your decision to bring this disaster on your people. Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel. You took an oath, swearing on yourself. You told them: 'I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky. I will give to your descendants all the land I spoke of. It will be their long lasting possession.' So Jehovah changed his mind and did not bring disaster on his people as he threatened. Moses went back down the mountain. He carried the two stone tablets with the commandments written on both sides. God made the tablets and engraved the commandments on them. Joshua heard the people shouting and said to Moses: I hear the sound of war in the camp. Moses replied: That does not sound like a shout of victory or a cry of defeat; it is the sound of singing. Moses came close enough to the camp at the foot of the mountain to see the bull-calf and to see the people dancing. He became furious! He threw down the tablets he was carrying and broke them. He took the bull-calf that they had made, melted it, ground it into fine powder, and mixed it with water. Then he made the people of Israel drink it. Moses asked Aaron: What did these people do to harm you? Why did you make them sin in this terrible way? Aaron said, Do not be angry with me. You know the people as well as I do. They are determined to do evil. They said to me: 'That man Moses led us out of Egypt, but now we do not know what has happened to him. Make us a god to lead us.' Then I asked them to bring me their gold earrings. They took them off and gave them to me. I threw the gold into a fire, and out came this bull. Moses saw that the people were naked. Aaron had made them naked to their shame among their enemies. Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said: Who is on Jehovah's side? Come to me. All the sons of Levi came to him. He said to them, Jehovah, the God of Israel says: 'Each man put his sword by his side. Go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp. Kill each one his brother, and each one his neighbor, and each one his kindred.' The sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. About three thousand men died that day. Moses said: Today you are ordained as Jehovah's. God gave you a blessing today. Each of you fought with your own sons and brothers. The next day Moses said to the people: You have committed a serious sin. Now I will go up the mountain to Jehovah. Maybe I will be able to make a payment for your sin and make atonement with Jehovah for your sin. So Moses went back to Jehovah and said: These people have committed such a serious sin! They made a god out of gold for themselves. Will you forgive their sin? If not, please wipe me out of the book you have written. Jehovah answered Moses: I will wipe out of my book whoever sins against me. Now, go and lead the people to the place I told you about. My angel will go ahead of you. But on the day when I punish, I will punish them for their sin. Jehovah killed people because they had Aaron make the calf.

They had an unreasonable desire for food in the wilderness. In the desert they tested God. He gave them what they asked for. He also gave them a degenerative disease. In the camp certain men became envious of Moses. They also became envious of Aaron, Jehovah's holy one.read more.
The ground split open and swallowed Dathan. It buried Abiram's followers. A fire broke out among their followers. Flames burned up wicked people. At Mount Horeb they made a statue of a calf. They worshiped an idol made of metal. They traded their glorious God for the statue of a bull that eats grass. They forgot the God of their salvation, the one who did spectacular things in Egypt, miracles in the land of Ham, and terrifying things at the Red Sea. God said he was going to destroy them, but Moses, his chosen one, stood in his way to prevent him from exterminating them. They refused to enter the pleasant land. They did not believe what he said. They complained in their tents. They did not obey Jehovah. Raising his hand, he swore that he would kill them in the wilderness, kill their descendants among the nations, and scatter them throughout various lands. They joined in worshiping the god Baal while they were at Peor. They ate what was sacrificed to the dead. They infuriated God by what they did, and a plague broke out among them. Phinehas stood between God and the people, and the plague was stopped. Because of this, Phinehas was considered righteous forever, throughout every generation. They made God angry by the water at Meribah. Things turned out badly for Moses because of what they did. They made him bitter so that he spoke recklessly.

Joshua son of Nun, the servant of Jehovah, died at the age of a hundred and ten years old. They buried him on the border of his inheritance in Timnath-Serah, in the mount of Ephraim, on the north side of Gaash hill. After those generations were gathered to their fathers (died) another generation followed them. This new generation did not know Jehovah or the works he had done for Israel.read more.
The children of Israel did evil in the sight of Jehovah, and served Baalim: They forsook Jehovah God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt. They followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them. They bowed to them and provoked Jehovah to anger. They forsook Jehovah and served Baal and Ashtaroth. The anger of Jehovah was hot against Israel. He delivered them into the hands of raiders who plundered them. He sold them to their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies. Wherever they went the hand of Jehovah was against them for evil. For Jehovah had sworn to them and as Jehovah had sworn they were greatly distressed. Nevertheless Jehovah established judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them. Yet they would not listen to their judges, but prostituted themselves to other gods. They worshiped them. They turned quickly, out of the way in which their fathers walked obeying the commandments of Jehovah. When Jehovah established judges he supported each judge. He delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days the judge lived. He had compassion for them as they groaned under those who oppressed and afflicted them. When the judge was dead they returned and corrupted themselves more than their fathers. They followed other gods to serve them, and to bow down to them. They did not give up their evil practices and stubborn ways. The anger of Jehovah was hot against Israel. He said: Because this people have transgressed my covenant, which I commanded their fathers, and have not listened to my voice; I will not drive out any of the nations that Joshua left when he died. That through them I may test Israel, to see whether they will keep the way of Jehovah and walk in it as their fathers did. Therefore Jehovah left those nations, without driving them out. He did not deliver them into the hand of Joshua.

They did not destroy the people as Jehovah had told them. Instead, they intermarried with other nations. They learned to do what other nations did. They worshiped their idols, which became a trap for them.read more.
They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons. They shed innocent blood, the blood of their own sons and daughters whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan. The land became polluted with blood. They became filthy because of what they did. They behaved like prostitutes. Jehovah burned with anger against his own people. He was disgusted with those who belonged to him. He handed them over to other nations, and those who hated them ruled them. Their enemies oppressed them and made them subject to their power. He rescued them many times, but they continued to plot rebellion against him and to sink deeper because of their sin.

Was it not in these things that Solomon, king of Israel, did wrong? Among a number of nations there was no king like him. He was dear to his God, and God made him king over all Israel. But even he was made to do evil by strange women.