Chapter Seven

The week of March 4


The Battle Begins

So Moses, God’s servant, has died and Joshua is solely in command. The promised land lies on the other side of the Jordan with Jericho just a few miles away. After all the starts and stops, Israel is about to conquer the land God had given to them. During the era of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob, God’s people had blended in with the various peoples but this people could not blend in very well. They had left Canaan with 72 people; they are returning with 2 million. Like a migration in the Serengeti, but with a permanent end point, Israel will not be denied.

Pp 89-90  Joshua gives a strong admonition to ‘Be strong and courageous’. Forty years before, Israel had stepped back from taking Canaan and the result was a wandering in the wilderness. Why was this reminder and the encouragement to be courageous important?

P 90-1  Rahab, a woman who had a reputation, is listed as a person of faith in Hebrews (11:31). Certainly she had heard of Israel’s exploits and was self-protective. But she lived by faith in protecting the spies who had come to see the physical weaknesses and the psychological state of mind in Jericho. Do we see the faithful things that ordinary people do to lay the groundwork for faith and the gospel?

92-3  The march around Jericho was a peculiar battle strategy. Knowing the state of mind in Jericho, what do you think their people were thinking during this seven-day siege? The walls of the city were not so weak to simply crumble from shouting and trumpet blasts. God may use human efforts, but He also may intervene in one-of-a-kind ways. When has God intervened in your life in which the ending may only be explained by His intervention?

94-5  Following this stirring victory comes a ignoble defeat because of Achan’s sin. Have  you had mountain to valley experiences that may seem confusing, but may be explained by sin? Does it seem fair that one person’s sin may cause a discipline for the whole people (such as the defeat at Ai)? The battle tactics, like Israel’s ‘bait and switch’ in order to take Ai, have been studied by military leaders throughout history. General George S. Patton of WW II fame regularly studied Old Testament battle plans, like these stories and the battles of King David. God’s intervention may not always be duplicated but strategies God-given to leaders, can be understood and applied to today.

I have always seen Joshua and Moses as generals. They had a large contingent of soldiers and civilians and needed to care for them before, during, and after the battles, much like generals during the Civil War.  They understood where they came from: their history- Genesis & Exodus, their traditions- Leviticus; their strength- Numbers, and the charge from Moses their leader- Deuteronomy. The key was not merely understanding this, but communicating it to their leaders and people. What happens when life is not passed on?

95-6 The side story of the Gibeonites is an interesting one. They realized they were doomed to be obliterated, so they sued for peace. Pretending to be from a great distance they put themselves as servants to Israel, cutting wood and carrying water (a needful thing). By the time the ruse is discovered, an oath has been made. So because of this vow, they were allowed to live in the land. When have you made a pledge that would have been different if you had discovered the reality of the situation?

98-9  The wanton killing of all who breathed with no survivors left feels troubling. Why did God want to totally destroy them? There is much we don’t know but this we do: throughout history and Scripture the intermarrying of people of faith with those of cultic religions always ruins the community and morals of the people of faith. There is ample evidence of this. Also, the degrading nature of the Canaanite peoples (including regular child sacrifice), caused God to make his people holy by removing this immoral people from the land. This was similar to what happened prior to the flood. While this is a hard thing to accept, we can understand that God’s righteous jealousy for a holy (set apart) people of His own possession is the motivation behind it.

100-2 This chapter ends with Joshua retelling the story that had been passed on to him. There were also new contributions, such as the glories of victories; and several  disappointments, such as the repercussions of Achan’s sin. Do we retell the stories of faith passed on to us along with the way God has weaved our life together as highs and lows?