1 These are the nations the Lord left in order to test Israel, since the Israelites had fought none of these in any of the wars with Canaan.
2 This was to teach the future generations of the Israelites how to fight in battle, especially those who had not fought before.
3 These nations included: the five rulers of the Philistines and all of the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived in the Lebanese mountains from Mount Baal-hermon as far as the entrance to Hamath.
4 The Lord left them to test Israel, to determine if they would keep the Lord’s commands He had given their fathers through Moses.