This final verse of the section is a kind of climax of the introductory material and a very important point is being made. Because the Israelites were unable to drive out the Canaanites and ended up living with them side by side, they intermarried with them. This inevitably led to their abandoning Yahweh, as they turned to worship the gods of the Canaanites.

Quoted with permission from Zogbo, Lynell and Ogden, Graham S. A Handbook on Judges. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .