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The Book of Joshua Like You_ve Never Seen Before – God_s Greatest Warrior · truthunedited

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Speaker 1: Imagine a world where rivers part at God's command, walls
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Speaker 1: collapse at the sound of trumpets, and the sun itself
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Speaker 1: obeys a warrior's prayer. Welcome to Joshua, the most explosive
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Speaker 1: book in the Bible that transforms slaves into conquerors. Here,
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Speaker 1: God's promises stop being words and become reality. This isn't
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Speaker 1: just conquest, its divine fulfillment of a four hundred year
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Speaker 1: old covenant. Joshua stands as the hinge between wilderness wandering
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Speaker 1: and promised land victory, revealing how ordinary people become extraordinary
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Speaker 1: through faith. Every chapter unleashes supernatural warfare, strategic brilliance, and
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Speaker 1: unwavering obedience that reshapes nations. This book proves that when
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Speaker 1: God fights for his people, defeat becomes impossible and victory
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Speaker 1: becomes inevitable. Prepare to witness why Joshua earned the title
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Speaker 1: of God's greatest warrior and discover the timeless principles that
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Speaker 1: still conquer giants to day. The moment had finally arrived. Moses,
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Speaker 1: the great Deliverer who had led Israel out of Egypt,
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Speaker 1: was gone for forty years. He had been their voice,
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Speaker 1: their guide, their connection to the Almighty now standing at
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Speaker 1: the edge of the promised land, the people faced an
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Speaker 1: uncertain future. Who would lead them Now? God wasted no time.
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Speaker 1: He came to Joshua, Moses's assistant, with words that would
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Speaker 1: change everything. As recorded in Joshua Chapter one, verses one
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Speaker 1: through three, the Lord said, Moses, my servant is dead. Now,
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Speaker 1: then you and all these people get ready to cross
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Speaker 1: the Jordan River into the land. I am about to
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Speaker 1: give to them, to the Israelites. I will give you
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Speaker 1: every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses.
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Speaker 1: Joshua wasn't just getting a promotion, he was receiving a
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Speaker 1: divine commission. The same God who had spoken to Moses
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Speaker 1: was now speaking to him. The promise was clear and direct.
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Speaker 1: Every step Joshua took in the land would claim territory
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Speaker 1: for Israel. This wasn't just about military conquest. It was
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Speaker 1: about divine inheritance. But God knew Joshua's heart. He understood
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Speaker 1: the weight of following in moses footsteps, so he gave
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Speaker 1: Joshua something Moses never had, a personal promise of victory.
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Speaker 1: In verses five and six, God declared, no one will
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Speaker 1: be able to stand against you. All the days of
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Speaker 1: your life as I was with Moses, so I will
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Speaker 1: be with you. I will never leave you nor forsake you.
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Speaker 1: Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people
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Speaker 1: to inherit the land. I swore to their ancestors to
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Speaker 1: give them. Three times in this conversation, God told Joshua
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Speaker 1: to be strong and courageous. This wasn't casual encouragement. It
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Speaker 1: was a divine command. God knew what lay ahead. He
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Speaker 1: knew about the giants in the land, the fortified cities,
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Speaker 1: the armies that would oppose them. But he also knew
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Speaker 1: something Joshua was still learning. With God's presence, no enemy
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Speaker 1: could stand. The secret to Joshua's strength wasn't in his
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Speaker 1: military training or natural abilities. As God explained in verses
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Speaker 1: seven and eight, be strong and very courageous. Be careful
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Speaker 1: to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you.
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Speaker 1: Do not turn from it to the right or to
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Speaker 1: the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.
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Speaker 1: Keep this book of the Law always on your lips.
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Speaker 1: Meditate on it day and night, so that you may
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Speaker 1: be careful to do everything written in it. Then you
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Speaker 1: will be prosperous and successful. Success would come through obedience
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Speaker 1: to God's word. Joshua's strength would be found in staying
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Speaker 1: close to the instructions God had already given. This wasn't
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Speaker 1: about human wisdom or strategy. It was about divine guidance
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Speaker 1: through scripture. Joshua didn't waste time questioning his calling. He
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Speaker 1: immediately stepped into his role as leader. Within days of
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Speaker 1: receiving God's commission, he was giving orders to the officers
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Speaker 1: of the people. As Joshua won ten to eleven records.
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Speaker 1: So Joshua ordered the officers of the people, go through
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Speaker 1: the camp and tell the people, get your provisions ready.
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Speaker 1: Three days from now you will cross the Jordan here
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Speaker 1: to go in and take possession of the land. The Lord,
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Speaker 1: your God is giving you for your own. Three days.
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Speaker 1: That's all the time he gave them to prepare for
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Speaker 1: the moment. They had been waiting for their entire lives.
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Speaker 1: For forty years. They had wandered in the wilderness. Now
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Speaker 1: in just three days they would cross into their inheritance.
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Speaker 1: The urgency in Joshua's voice must have been electric. But
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Speaker 1: Joshua faced a potential problem. Two and a half tribes,
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Speaker 1: Reuben Gad and half of Manasse had already received their
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Speaker 1: inheritance on the east side of the Jordan. Moses had
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Speaker 1: given them permission to s settle there because the land
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Speaker 1: was good for their livestock. Would they abandon their brothers
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Speaker 1: now that they had what they wanted? Joshua addressed them
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Speaker 1: directly in verses twelve through fifteen. But to the Reubenites,
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Speaker 1: the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, Joshua said,
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Speaker 1: remember the command that Moses, the servant of the Lord,
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Speaker 1: gave you. After he said, the Lord your God will
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Speaker 1: give you rest by giving you this land. Your wives,
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Speaker 1: your children, and your livestock may stay in the land
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Speaker 1: that Moses gave you east of the Jordan, but all
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Speaker 1: your fighting men ready for battle must cross over ahead
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Speaker 1: of your fellow Israelites. You are to help them until
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Speaker 1: the Lord gives them rest as he has done for you,
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Speaker 1: and until they too have taken possession of the land
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Speaker 1: the Lord your God is giving them. After that you
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Speaker 1: may go back and occupy your own land, which Moses,
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Speaker 1: the servant of the Lord, gave you east of the Jordan.
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Speaker 1: Toward the sunrise. This was a test of unity. These
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Speaker 1: tribes could have easily said, we are settled, this isn't
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Speaker 1: our fight anymore, But Joshua reminded them of their promise
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Speaker 1: to Moses. They were still part of Israel. Their brother's
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Speaker 1: victory was their responsibility to The response was immediate and unanimous.
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Speaker 1: In Verses sixteen through eighteen, they declared. Then they answered, Joshua,
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Speaker 1: whatever you have commanded us, we will do, and wherever
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Speaker 1: you send us, we will go, just as we fully
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Speaker 1: obeyed Moses, so we will obey you. Only. May the
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Speaker 1: Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses.
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Speaker 1: Whoever rebels against your command and does not obey it
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Speaker 1: whatever you may command them, will be put to death.
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Speaker 1: Only be strong and courageous. These weren't just polite words.
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Speaker 1: This was a covenant of loyalty. They were pledging to
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Speaker 1: follow Joshua with the same devotion they had shown Moses.
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Speaker 1: More than that, they were declaring that rebellion against Joshua's
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Speaker 1: leadership would be treated as rebellion against God himself. Joshua
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Speaker 1: was a wise military leader. Before crossing the Jordan, he
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Speaker 1: needed intelligence about what waited on the other side, so
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Speaker 1: he made a decision that would change everything. As Joshua
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Speaker 1: two one tells us, then Joshua, son of Nune, secretly
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Speaker 1: sent two spies from Shittim go look over the land.
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Speaker 1: He said, especially Jericho. So they went and entered the
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Speaker 1: house of a prostitute named Raehab and stayed there. The
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Speaker 1: SPI's mission was simple, scout the land, especially Jericho. This massive,
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Speaker 1: fortified city stood directly in their path. Its walls were legendary,
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Speaker 1: so thick that houses were built into them. If they
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Speaker 1: could understand Jericho's defenses, they could plan their approach to
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Speaker 1: the entire land. But God had a bigger plan. He
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Speaker 1: led the spies to Raehab's house, and through her he
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Speaker 1: began and to work a miracle. When the King of
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Speaker 1: Jericho heard about the spies, he sent soldiers to capture them,
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Speaker 1: but Raehab had already hidden them on her roof under
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Speaker 1: stalalks of flax. Her conversation with the king's men revealed
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Speaker 1: something remarkable, as recorded in verses eight through eleven, she
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Speaker 1: told the spies. Before the spies lay down for the night,
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Speaker 1: she went up on the roof and said to them,
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Speaker 1: I know that the Lord has given you this land,
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Speaker 1: and that a great fear of you has fallen on us,
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Speaker 1: so that all who live in this country are melting
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Speaker 1: in fear because of you. We have heard how the
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Speaker 1: Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for
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Speaker 1: you when you came out of Egypt, and what you
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Speaker 1: did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the
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Speaker 1: Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When
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Speaker 1: we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear, and
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Speaker 1: every one's courage failed because of you. For the Lord,
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Speaker 1: your God, is God in heaven above and on the
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Speaker 1: earth below. This was intelligence beyond anything Joshua could have
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Speaker 1: hoped for. The entire land was already afraid of them.
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Speaker 1: Stories of God's mighty works had traveled ahead of the
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Speaker 1: Israelite army. The psychological battle was already won. But Raehab
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Speaker 1: wasn't finished. She made a request that would save her
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Speaker 1: life and her family's lives. In verses twelve and thirteen,
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Speaker 1: she said, now, then, please swear to me by the
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Speaker 1: Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because
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Speaker 1: I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure
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Speaker 1: sign that you will spare the lives of my father
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Speaker 1: and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belonged
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Speaker 1: to them, and that you will save us from death.
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Speaker 1: The spies agreed. They gave her a scarlet cord to
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Speaker 1: hang from her window, a sign that would mark her
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Speaker 1: house for protection when the army arrived. This wasn't just
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Speaker 1: a military agreement, it was a covenant of salvation. Raehab's
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Speaker 1: faith in in Israel's God was about to be rewarded
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Speaker 1: with life. The moment of truth had arrived for three days.
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Speaker 1: The people had prepared. Now they stood at the banks
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Speaker 1: of the Jordan River, ready to enter their inheritance. But
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Speaker 1: there was a problem. It was harvest time and the
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Speaker 1: Jordan was at flood stage. The rushing waters were deeper
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Speaker 1: and wider than usual. Joshua had a solution that would
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Speaker 1: require complete faith. As Joshua three three to four records,
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Speaker 1: he gave these instructions. When you see the ark of
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Speaker 1: the Covenant of the Lord your God and the levitical
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Speaker 1: priests carrying it, you are to move out from your
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Speaker 1: positions and follow it. Then you will know which way
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Speaker 1: to go, since you have never been this way before.
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Speaker 1: But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits between
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Speaker 1: you and the ark. Do not go near it. The
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Speaker 1: Ark of the Covenant would lead them this sacred chest
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Speaker 1: contained the stone, tablets of the Ten Commandments, aaron staff,
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Speaker 1: and a jar of manner. More importantly, it represented God's
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Speaker 1: presence among his people. Where the Ark went, God went.
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Speaker 1: Joshua's faith was about to be tested in the most
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Speaker 1: dramatic way possible. In verses seven and eight, God told him,
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Speaker 1: and the Lord said to Joshua, to day, I will
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Speaker 1: begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel,
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Speaker 1: so they may know that I am with you as
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Speaker 1: I was with Moses. Tell the priests who carry the
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Speaker 1: Ark of the Covenant, when you reach the edge of
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Speaker 1: the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river. Think
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Speaker 1: about what God was asking. He wanted the priests to
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Speaker 1: walk into a flooded river while carrying the most sacred
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Speaker 1: object in Israel. There was no bridge, no boat, no
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Speaker 1: visible way across, just a promise that God would make
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Speaker 1: a way. Joshua gathered the people and explained God's plan.
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Speaker 1: In verses ten and eleven, he declared, this is how
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Speaker 1: how you will know that the Living God is among you,
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Speaker 1: and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Heavites, Perizites, Gergoshites, Amorites,
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Speaker 1: and Jebusites see the Ark of the Covenant of the
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Speaker 1: Lord of all the Earth will go into the Jordan
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Speaker 1: ahead of you. The priests stepped forward. They walked to
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Speaker 1: the water's edge with the ark on their shoulders. The
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Speaker 1: moment their feet touched the water, the impossible happened. Verses
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Speaker 1: fifteen and sixteen describe it. Now, the Jordan is at
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Speaker 1: flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the
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Speaker 1: priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their
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Speaker 1: feet touched the water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing.
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Speaker 1: It piled up in a heap a great distance away
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Speaker 1: at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarathan,
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Speaker 1: while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Araba,
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Speaker 1: that is, the Dead Sea, was completely cut off. So
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Speaker 1: the people crossed over opposite Jericho. The priests didn't move.
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Speaker 1: They stood in the middle of the river bed, holding
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Speaker 1: the ark steady, while all of Israel passed by on
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Speaker 1: dry ground. It was a miracle that echoed Moses's parting
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Speaker 1: of the Red Sea, but this time it was Joshua's
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Speaker 1: faith that had opened the way. God never wanted his
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Speaker 1: people to forget what he had done as the last
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Speaker 1: Israelite crossed the Jordan, he gave Joshua specific instructions about
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Speaker 1: creating a permanent memorial. Joshua four won three records. When
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Speaker 1: the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord
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Speaker 1: said to Joshua, choose twelve men from among the people,
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Speaker 1: one from each tribe, and tell them to take up
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Speaker 1: twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from right
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Speaker 1: where the priests are standing, and carry them over with
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Speaker 1: you and put them down at the place where you
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Speaker 1: stay to night. These weren't just any stones. They had
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Speaker 1: to come from the exact spot where the priests had
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Speaker 1: stood with the Ark, the place where God had stopped
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Speaker 1: the Jordan's flow. Each stone would represent one of the
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Speaker 1: twelve tribes, and together they would tell the story of
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Speaker 1: God's mighty power. Joshua called the twelve men and gave
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Speaker 1: them their mission. In verses five through seven, he explained,
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Speaker 1: Joshua said to them, go over before the Ark of
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Speaker 1: the Lord your God, into the middle of the Jordan.
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Speaker 1: Each of you is to take up a stone on
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Speaker 1: his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of
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Speaker 1: the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you In
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Speaker 1: the future. When your children ask you what do these
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Speaker 1: stones mean? Tell them that the flow of the Jordan
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Speaker 1: was cut off before the Ark of the Covenant of
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Speaker 1: the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of
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Speaker 1: the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be
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Speaker 1: a memorial to the Israelites forever. The stones weren't just
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Speaker 1: for this generation. They were for the children who would
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Speaker 1: come after, the ones who hadn't seen the miracle with
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Speaker 1: their own eyes. When curious young voice would ask what
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Speaker 1: do these stones mean, their parents would have a story
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Speaker 1: to tell, a story of the day God stopped a
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Speaker 1: river and led his people home. But that wasn't the
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Speaker 1: only memorial. Joshua also built a second monument in the
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Speaker 1: river bed itself. Verse nine tells us Joshua set up
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Speaker 1: the twelve stones that had been in the middle of
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Speaker 1: the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried
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Speaker 1: the Ark of the Covenant had stood, and they are
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Speaker 1: there to this day. Two memorials, one at their camp
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Speaker 1: in Gilgal, where they could see it every day, another
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Speaker 1: in the Jordan, hidden beneath the waters, known only to
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Speaker 1: God and his people. Both declared the same message, The Lord,
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Speaker 1: your God, did this remember never forget. The crossing was complete,
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Speaker 1: As Verse nineteen records, on the tenth day of the
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Speaker 1: first month, the people went up from the Jordan and
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Speaker 1: camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. They
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Speaker 1: were finally in the promised land. The wilderness years were over.
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Speaker 1: The conquest was about to begin. The news traveled fast.
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Speaker 1: Word of what happened at the Jordan River spread throughout
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Speaker 1: the land like wildfire. The Canaanite kings had heard stories
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Speaker 1: about Israel's God before, but this was different. This was
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Speaker 1: happening right next door. Joshua Fivje captures the moment now
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Speaker 1: when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and
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Speaker 1: all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard how the
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Speaker 1: Lord had dried up the Jordan before the Israelites until
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Speaker 1: they had crossed over. Their hearts melted in fear, and
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Speaker 1: they no longer had the courage to face the Israelites.
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Speaker 1: Their hearts melted. These weren't weak men. They were seasoned
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Speaker 1: warriors who had fought many battles. They ruled fortified cities
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Speaker 1: and commanded armies. But something about Israel's God terrified them
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Speaker 1: beyond reas it wasn't just the miracle at the Jordan.
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Speaker 1: The kings had been hearing stories for years. They knew
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Speaker 1: about the plagues in Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea,
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Speaker 1: the victories over Sihon and Og. Each story had chipped
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Speaker 1: away at their confidence. Now, with Israel camp just miles
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Speaker 1: from their cities, fear had turned to panic. This wasn't
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Speaker 1: an accident. God had been preparing the battlefield long before
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Speaker 1: the first Israelite soldier crossed the Jordan. The terror in
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Speaker 1: these king's hearts was a weapon more powerful than any sword.
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Speaker 1: When an enemy is already defeated in his mind, the
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Speaker 1: physical battle is half won. The psychological impact was exactly
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Speaker 1: what Israel needed. They were about to face their first
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Speaker 1: real test in the Promised Land. Jericho loomed ahead, a
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Speaker 1: massive fortress that had never been conquered. But the men
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Speaker 1: inside those walls were already afraid. God's reputation had preceded
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Speaker 1: his army, and that reputie was working in their favor.
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Speaker 1: The stage was set for something extraordinary. The enemy kings
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Speaker 1: knew they were facing more than just another nomadic tribe.
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Speaker 1: They were facing the people of the God who controlled rivers,
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Speaker 1: who had humbled the mighty nation of Egypt, who had
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Speaker 1: led his people through forty years in the wilderness. Their
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Speaker 1: fear would become Israel's advantage. But before the conquest could begin,
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Speaker 1: Israel had some unfinished business with God. During their forty
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Speaker 1: years in the wilderness, they had neglected an important covenant sign.
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Speaker 1: The Lord spoke to Joshua in Chapter five, verse two.
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Speaker 1: At that time, the Lord said to Joshua, make flint
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Speaker 1: knives and circumcise the Israelites. Again, an entire generation had
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Speaker 1: grown up without being circumcised. This wasn't rebellion, It was
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Speaker 1: simply the reality of wilderness life. But now in the
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Speaker 1: Promised Land, it was time to renew their covenant with God.
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Speaker 1: Every male had to bear the sign that marked them
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Speaker 1: as God's chosen people. Joshua obeyed immediately. Verses three and
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Speaker 1: four tell us, So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised
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Speaker 1: the Israelites at Gibeath Haraloth, which means hill of foreskins.
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Speaker 1: Now this is why he did so. All those who
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Speaker 1: came out of Egypt, all the men of military age,
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Speaker 1: died in the wilderness on the way after leaving Egypt. Uda.
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Speaker 1: This was a vulnerable moment for Israel. The entire army
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Speaker 1: was recovering from surgery, unable to fight if attacked. But
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Speaker 1: God had already taken care of that problem. The enemy
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Speaker 1: kings were too afraid to approach. Divine protection covered them
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Speaker 1: while they renewed their covenant. The circumcision had deeper meaning,
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Speaker 1: as verse nine explains. Then the Lord said to Joshua
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Speaker 1: to day, I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt
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Speaker 1: from you. So the place has been called Gilgall to
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Speaker 1: this day. The name Gilgal means rolling. God had rolled
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Speaker 1: away their shame, their past, their identity as slaves. The
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Speaker 1: moment of truth had arrived for three days. The people
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Speaker 1: had prepared. Now they stood at the banks of the
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Speaker 1: Jordan River, ready to enter their inheritance. But there was
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Speaker 1: a problem. It was harvest time and the Jordan was
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Speaker 1: at flood stage. The rushing waters were deeper and wider
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Speaker 1: than usual. Joshua had a solution that would require complete faith.
20:34
Speaker 1: As Joshua three three to four records, he gave these instructions.
20:39
Speaker 1: When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord,
20:42
Speaker 1: your God, and the levitical priests carrying it, you are
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Speaker 1: to move out from your positions and follow it. Then
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Speaker 1: you will know which way to go, since you have
20:52
Speaker 1: never been this way before. But keep a distance of
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Speaker 1: about two thousand cubits between you and the ark. Do
20:59
Speaker 1: not go near it. The Ark of the Covenant would
21:02
Speaker 1: lead them. This sacred chest contained the stone tablets of
21:06
Speaker 1: the Ten Commandments, aaron staff, and a jar of manner.
21:11
Speaker 1: More importantly, it represented God's presence among his people. Where
21:16
Speaker 1: the Ark went, God went. Joshua's faith was about to
21:20
Speaker 1: be tested in the most dramatic way possible. In verses
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Speaker 1: seven and eight, God told him, and the Lord said
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Speaker 1: to Joshua, to day, I will begin to exalt you
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Speaker 1: in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know
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Speaker 1: that I am with you as I was with Moses.
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Speaker 1: Tell the priests who carry the Ark of the Covenant,
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Speaker 1: when you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go
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Speaker 1: and stand in the river. Think about what God was asking.
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Speaker 1: He wanted the priests to walk into a flooded river
21:51
Speaker 1: while carrying the most sacred object in Israel. There was
21:54
Speaker 1: no bridge, no boat, no visible way across, just a
21:58
Speaker 1: promise that God would make away. Joshua gathered the people
22:02
Speaker 1: and explained God's plan in verses ten and eleven, he declared,
22:07
Speaker 1: this is how you will know that the Living God
22:10
Speaker 1: is among you, and that he will certainly drive out
22:13
Speaker 1: before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Heavites, Perizites, Gergoshites, Amorites, and Jebusites.
22:21
Speaker 1: See the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord of
22:24
Speaker 1: all the Earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you.
22:27
Speaker 1: The priests stepped forward. They walked to the water's edge
22:30
Speaker 1: with the ark on their shoulders. The moment their feet
22:33
Speaker 1: touched the water, the impossible happened. Verses fifteen and sixteen
22:38
Speaker 1: describe it. Now, the Jordan is at flood stage all
22:42
Speaker 1: during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried
22:45
Speaker 1: the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the
22:48
Speaker 1: water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled
22:52
Speaker 1: up in a heap a great distance away at a
22:54
Speaker 1: town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarathan, while the
22:58
Speaker 1: water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah, that is,
23:02
Speaker 1: the Dead Sea, was completely cut off. So the people
23:05
Speaker 1: crossed over opposite Jericho. The priests didn't move. They stood
23:10
Speaker 1: in the middle of the river bed, holding the ark
23:12
Speaker 1: steady while all of Israel passed by on dry ground.
23:17
Speaker 1: It was a miracle that echoed Moses' parting of the
23:19
Speaker 1: Red Sea, but this time it was Joshua's faith that
23:23
Speaker 1: had opened the way. God never wanted his people to
23:26
Speaker 1: forget what he had done. As the last Israelite crossed
23:30
Speaker 1: the Jordan, he gave Joshua specific instructions about creating a
23:34
Speaker 1: permanent memorial. Joshua four one three records when the whole
23:40
Speaker 1: nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua,
23:44
Speaker 1: choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe,
23:48
Speaker 1: and tell them to take up twelve stones from the
23:51
Speaker 1: middle of the Jordan, from right where the priests are standing,
23:54
Speaker 1: and carry them over with you and put them down
23:56
Speaker 1: at the place where you stay tonight. These weren't just
24:00
Speaker 1: any stones. They had to come from the exact spot
24:03
Speaker 1: where the priests had stood with the ark, the place
24:06
Speaker 1: where God had stopped the Jordan's flow. Each stone would
24:10
Speaker 1: represent one of the twelve tribes, and together they would
24:14
Speaker 1: tell the story of God's mighty power. Joshua called the
24:17
Speaker 1: twelve men and gave them their mission. In Verses five
24:21
Speaker 1: through seven, he explained Joshua said to them, go over
24:25
Speaker 1: before the Ark of the Lord, your God, into the
24:28
Speaker 1: middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take
24:31
Speaker 1: up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number
24:34
Speaker 1: of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a
24:36
Speaker 1: sign among you in the future. When your children ask
24:40
Speaker 1: you what do these stones mean, tell them that the
24:43
Speaker 1: flow of the Jordan was cut off before the Ark
24:46
Speaker 1: of the Covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan,
24:50
Speaker 1: the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones
24:53
Speaker 1: are to be a memorial to the Israelites forever. The
24:57
Speaker 1: stones weren't just for this generation. They were for the
25:01
Speaker 1: children who would come after, the ones who hadn't seen
25:04
Speaker 1: the miracle with their own eyes. When curious young voices
25:08
Speaker 1: would ask what do these stones mean, their parents would
25:11
Speaker 1: have a story to tell, a story of the day
25:14
Speaker 1: God stopped a river and led his people home. But
25:17
Speaker 1: that wasn't the only memorial. Joshua also built a second
25:22
Speaker 1: monument in the river bed itself. Verse nine tells us
25:25
Speaker 1: Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in
25:28
Speaker 1: the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the
25:31
Speaker 1: priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant had stood.
25:34
Speaker 1: And they are there to this day. Two memorials, one
25:39
Speaker 1: at their camp in Gilgal, where they could see it
25:42
Speaker 1: every day, another in the Jordan, hidden beneath the waters,
25:46
Speaker 1: known only to God and his people. Both declared the
25:50
Speaker 1: same message, The Lord, your God, did this, Remember, never forget.
25:56
Speaker 1: The crossing was complete, as verse nineteen recorded, on the
26:00
Speaker 1: tenth day of the first month, the people went up
26:03
Speaker 1: from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern
26:07
Speaker 1: border of Jericho. They were finally in the promised land.
26:12
Speaker 1: The wilderness years were over. The conquest was about to begin.
26:17
Speaker 1: The news traveled fast. Word of what happened at the
26:20
Speaker 1: Jordan River spread throughout the land like wildfire. The Canaanite
26:25
Speaker 1: kings had heard stories about Israel's God before, but this
26:29
Speaker 1: was different. This was happening right next door. Joshua Fivje
26:34
Speaker 1: captures the moment now when all the Amorite kings west
26:38
Speaker 1: of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the
26:41
Speaker 1: coast heard how the Lord had dried up the Jordan
26:44
Speaker 1: before the Israelites until they had crossed over. Their hearts
26:48
Speaker 1: melted in fear, and they no longer had the courage
26:51
Speaker 1: to face the Israelites. Their hearts melted. These weren't weak men.
26:56
Speaker 1: They were seasoned warriors who had fought many battles. They
27:00
Speaker 1: ruled fortified cities and commanded armies. But something about Israel's
27:05
Speaker 1: God terrified them beyond reason. It wasn't just the miracle
27:09
Speaker 1: at the Jordan. The kings had been hearing stories for years.
27:13
Speaker 1: They knew about the plagues in Egypt, the parting of
27:16
Speaker 1: the Red Sea, the victories over Sihon and Og. Each
27:21
Speaker 1: story had chipped away at their confidence. Now, with Israel
27:24
Speaker 1: camp just miles from their cities, fear had turned to panic.
27:29
Speaker 1: This wasn't an accident. God had been preparing the battlefield
27:32
Speaker 1: long before the first Israelite soldier crossed the Jordan. The
27:36
Speaker 1: terror in these king's hearts was a weapon more powerful
27:40
Speaker 1: than any sword. When an enemy is already defeated in
27:43
Speaker 1: his mind, the physical battle is half won. The psychological
27:48
Speaker 1: impact was exactly what Israel needed. They were about to
27:51
Speaker 1: face their first real test in the Promised Land. Jericho
27:55
Speaker 1: loomed ahead, a massive fortress that had never been conquered.
27:59
Speaker 1: But the men inside those walls were already afraid. God's
28:04
Speaker 1: reputation had preceded his army, and that reputation was working
28:09
Speaker 1: in their favor. The stage was set for something extraordinary.
28:14
Speaker 1: The enemy kings knew they were facing more than just
28:17
Speaker 1: another nomadic tribe. They were facing the people of the
28:20
Speaker 1: God who controlled rivers, who had humbled the mighty nation
28:24
Speaker 1: of Egypt, who had led his people through forty years
28:27
Speaker 1: in the wilderness. Their fear would become Israel's advantage. But
28:32
Speaker 1: before the conquest could begin, Israel had some unfinished business
28:37
Speaker 1: with God. During their forty years in the wilderness, they
28:40
Speaker 1: had neglected an important covenant sign. The Lord spoke to
28:44
Speaker 1: Joshua in Chapter five, verse two. At that time, the
28:48
Speaker 1: Lord said to Joshua, make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites. Again,
28:55
Speaker 1: an entire generation had grown up without being circumcised. This
28:59
Speaker 1: wasn't really rebellion. It was simply the reality of wilderness life.
29:03
Speaker 1: But now in the Promised Land, it was time to
29:06
Speaker 1: renew their covenant with God. Every male had to bear
29:10
Speaker 1: the sign that marked them as God's chosen people. Joshua
29:15
Speaker 1: obeyed immediately. Verses three and four tell us, so Joshua
29:19
Speaker 1: made flint knives and circumcised the Israelites at gibeath Haraloth,
29:24
Speaker 1: which means hill of foreskins. Now this is why he
29:28
Speaker 1: did so. All those who came out of Egypt, all
29:32
Speaker 1: the men of military age, died in the wilderness on
29:35
Speaker 1: the way after leaving Egypt Uda. This was a vulnerable
29:39
Speaker 1: moment for Israel. The entire army was recovering from surgery,
29:44
Speaker 1: unable to fight if attacked. But God had already taken
29:48
Speaker 1: care of that problem. The enemy kings were too afraid
29:52
Speaker 1: to approach. Divine protection covered them while they renewed their covenant.
29:57
Speaker 1: The circumcision had deeper meaning, as Vers nine explains, Then
30:01
Speaker 1: the Lord said to Joshua to day, I have rolled
30:05
Speaker 1: away the reproach of Egypt from you. So the place
30:08
Speaker 1: has been called Gilgal to this day. The name Gilgal
30:12
Speaker 1: means rolling. God had rolled away their shame, their past,
30:17
Speaker 1: their identity as slaves. Joshua selected thirty thousand fighting men
30:21
Speaker 1: for the mission. His plan was detailed. The main army
30:25
Speaker 1: would pretend to flee like before, luring Eye's forces away
30:29
Speaker 1: from the city, while the ambush force would capture the
30:32
Speaker 1: empty city. The strategy worked perfectly. When the King of
30:37
Speaker 1: I saw Joshua's army approaching he confidently led his men
30:41
Speaker 1: out to fight. Joshua pretended to be defeated and ran
30:46
Speaker 1: toward the wilderness. The men of I chased eagerly, leaving
30:49
Speaker 1: their city defenseless. As Verse seventeen tells us, not a
30:54
Speaker 1: man remained in Aye or Bethel who did not go
30:57
Speaker 1: after Israel. They left the city open and went in
31:00
Speaker 1: pursuit of Israel. At the perfect moment, Joshua signaled the ambush.
31:06
Speaker 1: Verse eighteen records then the Lord said to Joshua, hold
31:11
Speaker 1: out toward I the javelin that is in your hand,
31:14
Speaker 1: for into your hand I will deliver the city. So
31:18
Speaker 1: Joshua held out toward the city the javelin that was
31:21
Speaker 1: in his hand. The ambush force captured Eye and set
31:25
Speaker 1: it on fire. When the men of I saw their
31:28
Speaker 1: city burning, they realized they were trapped. Verse twenty two
31:32
Speaker 1: describes the complete route. Those in the ambush also came
31:36
Speaker 1: out of the city against them, so that they were
31:39
Speaker 1: caught in the middle with Israelites on both sides. Israel
31:43
Speaker 1: cut them down, leaving them neither survivors nor fugitives. Every
31:49
Speaker 1: soldier from I was killed, The king was captured and executed.
31:54
Speaker 1: The city was destroyed, but this time Israel kept the
31:58
Speaker 1: livestock and plunder the victories at Jericho and II. Joshua
32:03
Speaker 1: led the entire nation north to Mount Ebol. He had
32:06
Speaker 1: a sacred duty to fulfill that Moses had commanded Joshua.
32:11
Speaker 1: Eight thirty thirty one tells us. Then Joshua built on
32:15
Speaker 1: Mount Ebol an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel,
32:18
Speaker 1: as Moses, the servant of the Lord, had commanded the Israelites.
32:23
Speaker 1: He built it according to what is written in the
32:26
Speaker 1: Book of the Law of Moses, an altar of uncut
32:29
Speaker 1: stones on which no iron tool had been used on it.
32:34
Speaker 1: They offered to the Lord burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings.
32:39
Speaker 1: This wasn't just any altar. It had to be built
32:42
Speaker 1: exactly as Moses had specified, made of stones that had
32:46
Speaker 1: never been touched by iron tools. But building the altar
32:50
Speaker 1: was only the beginning. Joshua gathered all of Israel for
32:53
Speaker 1: something extraordinary. Verse thirty four describes what happened afterward. Joshua
32:59
Speaker 1: read all the words of the Law, the blessings and
33:02
Speaker 1: the curses, just as it is written in the Book
33:06
Speaker 1: of the Law, and the entire Law of Moses was
33:09
Speaker 1: read aloud to the assembled nation, every commandment, every promise,
33:13
Speaker 1: every warning. The people stood in two groups, half facing
33:17
Speaker 1: Mount Gerizim for the blessings and half facing Mount Ebal
33:21
Speaker 1: for the curses. Verse thirty five emphasizes how complete this
33:25
Speaker 1: ceremony was. There was not a word of all that
33:29
Speaker 1: Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the
33:32
Speaker 1: whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children and
33:36
Speaker 1: the foreigners who lived among them. Every single word, nothing
33:41
Speaker 1: was left out. Everyone needed to understand what God expected
33:45
Speaker 1: and what would happen if they obeyed or disobeyed. This
33:49
Speaker 1: Covenant renewal reminded Israel that their success depended on their
33:54
Speaker 1: relationship with God, not just military skill. Joshua had learned
33:59
Speaker 1: this lesson after Achan sin, and he wasn't going to
34:02
Speaker 1: let his people forget it. While Joshua was conducting the
34:06
Speaker 1: Covenant renewal ceremony at Mount Ebel, news of Israel's victories
34:11
Speaker 1: was spreading like wildfire throughout Canaan. The kings were starting
34:15
Speaker 1: to panic, but not everyone chose to fight in the
34:18
Speaker 1: city of Gibeon. The leaders came up with a different plan,
34:22
Speaker 1: one that involved elaborate lies, clever tricks, and carefully prepared
34:27
Speaker 1: fake evidence. The Gibeonites were part of the high Vite people,
34:32
Speaker 1: and they knew they were marked for destruction according to
34:35
Speaker 1: God's command. They had heard about the miraculous fall of
34:39
Speaker 1: Jericho and the clever conquest of Eye, and they understood
34:43
Speaker 1: that Israel's God was too powerful to resist in battle,
34:48
Speaker 1: so they decided to try deception instead of resistance. Joshua
34:53
Speaker 1: nine three five describes their elaborate and carefully planned scheme. However,
34:59
Speaker 1: when the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done
35:02
Speaker 1: to Jericho and to Ai, they resorted to a ruse.
35:06
Speaker 1: They went as a delegation whose donkeys were loaded with
35:09
Speaker 1: worn and patched sacks and old wine skins cracked and mended.
35:13
Speaker 1: They put worn and patched sandals on their feet and
35:16
Speaker 1: wore old clothes. All the bread of their food supply
35:20
Speaker 1: was dry and moldy. Every single detail was carefully planned
35:25
Speaker 1: to support their false story. The old sacks, cracked wine skins,
35:30
Speaker 1: worn out sandals, and moldy bread were all supposed to
35:33
Speaker 1: prove that they had traveled a very long distance to
35:36
Speaker 1: reach Israel. They wanted to look exactly like travelers who
35:40
Speaker 1: had come from a far country, not from a nearby
35:43
Speaker 1: city that was supposed to be destroyed. When the delegation
35:47
Speaker 1: reached Joshua at his camp in Gilgal, they put on
35:50
Speaker 1: quite a convincing performance. Verses six through nine record their
35:55
Speaker 1: carefully rehearsed speech. Then they went to Joshua in the
35:58
Speaker 1: camp at Gilgal and said to him and the Israelites,
36:02
Speaker 1: we have come from a distant country. Make a treaty
36:05
Speaker 1: with us. The Israelites said to the Highvites, but perhaps
36:09
Speaker 1: you live near us, so how can we make a
36:12
Speaker 1: treaty with you. We are your servants, they said to Joshua.
36:16
Speaker 1: But Joshua asked, who are you and where do you
36:20
Speaker 1: come from? They answered, your servants have come from a
36:23
Speaker 1: very distant land because of the fame of the Lord,
36:26
Speaker 1: your god. For we have heard reports of him all
36:29
Speaker 1: that he did in Egypt, and all that he did
36:32
Speaker 1: to the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, Sihon,
36:36
Speaker 1: king of Heshpan, and og king of Bashan, who reigned
36:39
Speaker 1: in Ashtaroth. Their story was not only clever, but also
36:43
Speaker 1: psychologically shrewd. They mentioned only the old victories that had
36:48
Speaker 1: happened before Israel crossed the Jordan, Egypt, Sihon and Og,
36:53
Speaker 1: but nothing about the recent battles at Jericho or Iy.
36:57
Speaker 1: This was supposed to prove that they had left their
36:59
Speaker 1: des distant homeland before those recent victories occurred. They even
37:04
Speaker 1: showed their moldy bread and worn out equipment as physical evidence.
37:08
Speaker 1: In verses twelve and thirteen, they continued their deception. This
37:13
Speaker 1: bread of ours was warm when we packed it at
37:16
Speaker 1: home on the day we left to come to you.
37:18
Speaker 1: But now see how dry and moldy it is. And
37:21
Speaker 1: these wine skins that we filled were new, but see
37:24
Speaker 1: how cracked they are. And our clothes and sandals are
37:27
Speaker 1: worn out by the very long journey. The deception worked perfectly.
37:33
Speaker 1: Joshua and the leaders of Israel examined all the evidence
37:37
Speaker 1: and concluded that the Gibionites must be telling the truth.
37:40
Speaker 1: But they made a crucial mistake. Verse fourteen reveals their
37:45
Speaker 1: critical error. The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not
37:50
Speaker 1: inquire of the Lord. After all the miracles they had witnessed,
37:54
Speaker 1: they made this important decision based entirely on human wisdom.
37:59
Speaker 1: They forgot to ass Us God for guidance. The treaty
38:02
Speaker 1: was signed quickly, and the oath was sworn before God.
38:05
Speaker 1: Once the oath was made, it couldn't be broken. Three
38:09
Speaker 1: days later the truth came out. Verse sixteen tells us
38:13
Speaker 1: three days after they made the treaty with the Gibionites,
38:16
Speaker 1: the Israelites heard that they were neighbors living near them.
38:20
Speaker 1: The Gibionites weren't from a distant country at all. They
38:24
Speaker 1: lived right there in Canaan, in cities that were supposed
38:27
Speaker 1: to be destroyed. When Israel reached the Gibionite cities, they
38:32
Speaker 1: were furious but helpless. They couldn't attack because of the
38:36
Speaker 1: sacred treaty. Joshua confronted the Gibionites about their deception. Their
38:41
Speaker 1: answer in verse twenty four was honest about their motives.
38:45
Speaker 1: They answered, Joshua, your servants were clearly told how the
38:49
Speaker 1: Lord your God had commanded his servant Moses, to give
38:52
Speaker 1: you the whole land and to wipe out all its
38:55
Speaker 1: inhabitants from before you. So we feared for our lives
38:58
Speaker 1: because of you, and that is why we did this.
39:02
Speaker 1: They had lied because they were terrified. Joshua couldn't kill
39:05
Speaker 1: them because of the treaty, but he could punish them.
39:09
Speaker 1: Verse twenty seven describes their sentence that day. He made
39:14
Speaker 1: the Gibionites wood cutters and water carriers for the assembly,
39:17
Speaker 1: to provide for the needs of the altar of the
39:20
Speaker 1: Lord at the place the Lord would choose, And that
39:24
Speaker 1: is what they are to this day. The Gibionites became
39:29
Speaker 1: permanent servants to Israel. Their clever plan had saved their lives,
39:34
Speaker 1: but it had also made them slaves forever. The news
39:38
Speaker 1: of the Gibionite treaty sent shockwaves throughout the rest of Canaan.
39:42
Speaker 1: If one city could make peace with Israel, others might follow.
39:46
Speaker 1: The Canaanite kings realized they needed to act fast to
39:50
Speaker 1: stop this dangerous trend. Five powerful kings decided to join
39:55
Speaker 1: forces and teach the Gibionites a lesson they would never forget.
40:00
Speaker 1: Joshua ten three to five describes the coalition. So Adoni Zada,
40:04
Speaker 1: king of Jerusalem, sent word to Hoham, King of Hebron, Piram,
40:09
Speaker 1: King of Jarmuth, Jaffia King of Lakish, and Debir, King
40:13
Speaker 1: of Eglon, come up and help me attack Gibeon. He said,
40:17
Speaker 1: because it has made peace with Joshua and the Israelites.
40:21
Speaker 1: Then the five kings of the Amorites, the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lakish,
40:28
Speaker 1: and Eglon, joined forces. They moved up with all their
40:32
Speaker 1: troops and took up positions against Gibeon and attacked it.
40:35
Speaker 1: This was serious trouble for Gibeon. Five armies had surrounded
40:39
Speaker 1: their city and they were badly outnumbered. The Gibeonites sent
40:43
Speaker 1: an urgent message to Joshua at Gilgal, recorded in verse six.
40:48
Speaker 1: The Gibionites then sent word to Joshua in the camp
40:52
Speaker 1: at Gilgal, do not abandon your servants. Come up to
40:55
Speaker 1: us quickly and save us. Help us, because all the
40:59
Speaker 1: Amorite kings from the hill country have joined forces against us.
41:04
Speaker 1: Joshua was faced with a dilemma. The Gibeonites had tricked him,
41:08
Speaker 1: but a treaty was still a treaty. He decided to
41:12
Speaker 1: honor the agreement. He gathered his entire army and marched
41:16
Speaker 1: all night from Gilgal to Gibeon. But before he left,
41:20
Speaker 1: God gave him a promise. Verse eight records the Lord's words.
41:26
Speaker 1: The Lord said to Joshua, do not be afraid of them.
41:29
Speaker 1: I have given them into your hand. Not one of
41:32
Speaker 1: them will be able to withstand you. The surprise attack
41:37
Speaker 1: worked perfectly. Joshua's army arrived at dawn and caught the
41:41
Speaker 1: Five Kings completely off guard. As verse ten describes, the
41:45
Speaker 1: Lord threw them into confusion before Israel, so Joshua and
41:49
Speaker 1: the Israelites defeated them completely at Gibeon. Israel pursued them
41:54
Speaker 1: along the road going up to beth Horn and cut
41:56
Speaker 1: them down all the way to Azakar and Makeda. But
41:59
Speaker 1: God wasn't finished helping. As the enemy armies fled in panic,
42:04
Speaker 1: he sent supernatural reinforcements from the sky. Verse eleven tells
42:08
Speaker 1: us as they fled before Israel on the road down
42:11
Speaker 1: from bethoron to Azeka, the Lord hurled large hailstones down
42:16
Speaker 1: on them, and more of them died from the hail
42:19
Speaker 1: than were killed by the swords of the Israelites. Giant
42:22
Speaker 1: hailstones fell from heaven, targeting only the enemy soldiers while
42:27
Speaker 1: sparing the Israelites. It was a miracle that showed God's
42:30
Speaker 1: precise control over nature. But even this wasn't enough for Joshua.
42:36
Speaker 1: He wanted to finish the job completely and daylight was
42:39
Speaker 1: running out. What Joshua did next was unprecedented in human history.
42:45
Speaker 1: Verse twelve records his bold prayer on the day the
42:48
Speaker 1: Lord gave the Amorites over to Israel. Joshua said to
42:51
Speaker 1: the Lord, in the presence of Israel, sun stands still
42:55
Speaker 1: over Gibeon, and you moon over the valley of a Jalon.
43:01
Speaker 1: Joshua commanded the sun and moon to stop moving. It
43:05
Speaker 1: was an incredible request, asking God to halt the rotation
43:08
Speaker 1: of the earth so that the battle could continue. But
43:11
Speaker 1: God honored his faith. Verses thirteen and fourteen describe what happened.
43:16
Speaker 1: So the sun stood still and the moon stopped till
43:20
Speaker 1: the nation avenged itself on its enemies. As it is
43:22
Speaker 1: written in the Book of Jeshar, the sun stopped in
43:26
Speaker 1: the middle of the sky and delayed going down about
43:28
Speaker 1: a full day. There has never been a day like
43:31
Speaker 1: it before or since, a day when the Lord listened
43:34
Speaker 1: to a human being. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel.
43:39
Speaker 1: The longest day in history had just happened. The sun
43:43
Speaker 1: stood still for almost twenty four hours, giving Israel enough
43:47
Speaker 1: time to completely destroy their enemies. It was a miracle
43:51
Speaker 1: that demonstrated God's absolute power over creation and his willingness
43:56
Speaker 1: to intervene for his people. The Five King coalition was
44:00
Speaker 1: wiped out. The hailstones and the extra daylight had made
44:04
Speaker 1: Israel's victory total and complete. The message was clear to
44:09
Speaker 1: every other Canaanite city there was no point in fighting
44:13
Speaker 1: against Israel's God. He controlled the very heavens themselves. During
44:18
Speaker 1: the heat of battle, the Five Kings who had started
44:21
Speaker 1: this war realized they were facing disaster as their armies
44:25
Speaker 1: crumbled under Israel's attack and God's hailstones. They tried to
44:29
Speaker 1: save themselves by running away and hiding. Joshua ten sixteen
44:34
Speaker 1: seventeen tells us where they went now. The five Kings
44:38
Speaker 1: had fled and hidden in the cave at makada. When
44:41
Speaker 1: Joshua was told that the five Kings had been found
44:44
Speaker 1: hiding in the cave at Makadah, he said, roll large
44:48
Speaker 1: rocks up to the mouth of the cave and post
44:51
Speaker 1: some men there to guard it. Joshua had more important
44:55
Speaker 1: things to do than deal with hiding kings. The battle
44:59
Speaker 1: was still raging and he wanted to make sure none
45:02
Speaker 1: of the enemy soldiers escaped, so he sealed the cave
45:05
Speaker 1: with large rocks and left guards to watch it while
45:08
Speaker 1: he finished destroying the armies. His instructions to his soldiers
45:12
Speaker 1: were clear and urgent, as recorded in verses eighteen and nineteen.
45:17
Speaker 1: But don't stop pursue your enemies, attack them from the rear,
45:21
Speaker 1: and don't let them reach their cities. For the Lord
45:24
Speaker 1: your guard has given them into your hand. There would
45:28
Speaker 1: be time to deal with the kings later. Right now,
45:31
Speaker 1: the priority was making sure their armies were completely eliminated.
45:36
Speaker 1: After the battle was won and the enemy forces were destroyed,
45:40
Speaker 1: Joshua returned to deal with the trapped kings. What happened
45:44
Speaker 1: next was both a military ceremony and a powerful message
45:48
Speaker 1: to all of Israel. Verses twenty two through twenty four
45:52
Speaker 1: described the scene. Joshua said, open the mouth of the
45:57
Speaker 1: cave and bring those five kings out to me. So
46:01
Speaker 1: they brought the five kings out of the cave, the
46:04
Speaker 1: kings of Jerusalem. Hebron Jarmuth, Leakish, and Egglon. When they
46:08
Speaker 1: brought these kings to Joshua, he summoned all the men
46:12
Speaker 1: of Israel and said to the army commanders who had
46:14
Speaker 1: come with him, come here and put your feet on
46:18
Speaker 1: the necks of these kings, so they came forward and
46:22
Speaker 1: placed their feet on their necks. This wasn't cruelty for
46:26
Speaker 1: its own sake in ancient warfare. This was a symbolic
46:30
Speaker 1: act that showed complete victory over your enemies. The commanders
46:34
Speaker 1: who had fought bravely were being honored, and the defeated
46:37
Speaker 1: kings were being publicly humiliated. Joshua used this moment to
46:41
Speaker 1: teach his men an important lesson. His words in verse
46:45
Speaker 1: twenty five were meant to encourage them for future battles.
46:49
Speaker 1: Joshua said to them, do not be afraid, do not
46:53
Speaker 1: be discouraged. Be strong and courageous. This is what the
46:57
Speaker 1: Lord will do to all the enemies you are going
47:00
Speaker 1: to fight. These five kings had seemed so powerful when
47:05
Speaker 1: they formed their coalition. They ruled major cities and commanded
47:09
Speaker 1: large armies, But now they were helpless prisoners, completely at
47:14
Speaker 1: Israel's mercy. Joshua wanted his commanders to remember this moment
47:18
Speaker 1: when they faced other enemies in future battles. The execution
47:23
Speaker 1: was swift and decisive. Verse twenty six records. Then Joshua
47:28
Speaker 1: put the kings to death and exposed their bodies on
47:31
Speaker 1: five poles, and they were left hanging on the poles
47:34
Speaker 1: until evening. The public display served as a warning to
47:38
Speaker 1: other Canaanite rulers about what happened to those who opposed Israel.
47:42
Speaker 1: At sunset, the bodies were taken down and thrown back
47:46
Speaker 1: into the cave where the kings had tried to hide.
47:49
Speaker 1: Large rocks were piled over the entrance, creating a permanent memorial.
47:54
Speaker 1: As Verse twenty seven states, at sunset, Joshua gave the order,
47:59
Speaker 1: and they took them down from the poles and threw
48:02
Speaker 1: them into the cave where they had been hiding. At
48:05
Speaker 1: the mouth of the cave, they placed large rocks, which
48:08
Speaker 1: are there to this day. The cave became a monument
48:12
Speaker 1: to God's victory. Travelers passing by would see the rocks
48:16
Speaker 1: and remember the day when five kings tried to destroy
48:19
Speaker 1: Gibeon and ended up destroying themselves instead. With the five
48:24
Speaker 1: kings dead and their armies destroyed, Joshua saw an opportunity
48:28
Speaker 1: he couldn't waste. The major cities of southern Canaan were
48:32
Speaker 1: now defenseless, their rulers dead, and their soldiers eliminated. It
48:37
Speaker 1: was time to complete the conquest of the entire region,
48:40
Speaker 1: while the cities were unable to resist. The first target
48:44
Speaker 1: was Machidai itself, the city near the cave where the
48:47
Speaker 1: kings had hidden. Joshua ten twenty eight describes its swift capture.
48:53
Speaker 1: That day, Joshua took Makeda. He put the city and
48:57
Speaker 1: its king to the sword and totally destroy everyone in it.
49:01
Speaker 1: He left no survivors, and he did to the king
49:04
Speaker 1: of Makkada as he had done to the King of Jericho.
49:07
Speaker 1: There was no resistance. With their king dead and their
49:11
Speaker 1: army gone, Makkadah fell easily. The pattern was set for
49:15
Speaker 1: what would become a lightning campaign across the southern territories.
49:20
Speaker 1: Next came Libna, another fortified city that might have taken
49:24
Speaker 1: weeks to conquer under normal circumstances. But these weren't normal circumstances.
49:31
Speaker 1: Verses twenty nine and thirty tell us. Then Joshua and
49:34
Speaker 1: all Israel with him moved on from Makkadah to Libna
49:38
Speaker 1: and attacked it. The Lord also gave that city and
49:41
Speaker 1: its king into Israel's hand. The city and everyone in
49:45
Speaker 1: it Joshua put to the sword. He left no survivors there,
49:50
Speaker 1: and he did to its king, as he had done
49:52
Speaker 1: to the king of Jericho. The momentum was building. Each
49:56
Speaker 1: victory made the next one easier as words spread that
50:00
Speaker 1: resistance was useless. The cities were falling like dominoes, and
50:04
Speaker 1: Joshua's army was growing more confident with each success. Lakish
50:09
Speaker 1: was next, and this city tried to hold out longer
50:12
Speaker 1: than the others, but even their defiance couldn't last. Verses
50:16
Speaker 1: thirty one and thirty two described the siege. Then Joshua
50:21
Speaker 1: and all Israel with him moved on from Libna to Lakish.
50:25
Speaker 1: He took up positions against it and attacked it. The
50:28
Speaker 1: Lord gave Lakish into Israel's hands, and Joshua took it
50:32
Speaker 1: on the second day. The city and every one in
50:36
Speaker 1: it he put to the sword, just as he had
50:38
Speaker 1: done to Libna. Two days was all it took to
50:42
Speaker 1: capture a major Canaanite stronghold. The psychological impact of the
50:46
Speaker 1: earlier victories had broken the will to resist, but Lakish
50:51
Speaker 1: had one last surprise. Verse thirty three tells us. Meanwhile, Horum,
50:56
Speaker 1: king of Geizer, had come up to help Lakish, but
50:59
Speaker 1: Joshua defeated him and his army until no survivors were left.
51:04
Speaker 1: Even reinforcements couldn't save Lukish King Horum and his entire
51:08
Speaker 1: army were wiped out. The campaign continued relentlessly. Eglon was
51:13
Speaker 1: captured in a single day. Verses thirty four and thirty
51:17
Speaker 1: five record. Then Joshua and all Israel with him went
51:21
Speaker 1: up from Lakish to Eglon. They took up positions against
51:24
Speaker 1: it and attacked it. They captured it that same day
51:28
Speaker 1: and put it to the sword and totally destroyed everyone
51:31
Speaker 1: in it, just as they had done to Lakish. Then
51:33
Speaker 1: came Hebron, the ancient city where Abraham had lived. Verses
51:38
Speaker 1: thirty six and thirty seven describe its fate. Then Joshua
51:42
Speaker 1: and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to
51:45
Speaker 1: Hebron and attacked it. They took the city and put
51:48
Speaker 1: it to the sword, together with its king, its villages,
51:51
Speaker 1: and everyone in it. They left no survivors, just as
51:55
Speaker 1: at Eglon, they totally destroyed it and everyone in it. Finally,
52:00
Speaker 1: the Bier was conquered, completing the Southern campaign. Verses thirty
52:04
Speaker 1: eight and thirty nine tell the story. Then Joshua and
52:08
Speaker 1: all Israel with him turned around and attacked de Ber.
52:12
Speaker 1: They took the city, its king, and its villages and
52:15
Speaker 1: put them to the sword. Everyone in it they totally destroyed.
52:19
Speaker 1: They left no survivors. They did to Deba and its king,
52:23
Speaker 1: as they had done to Libna and its king, and
52:26
Speaker 1: to Hebron. Seven major cities conquered in rapid succession. The
52:32
Speaker 1: entire southern region of Canaan was now under Israeli control.
52:37
Speaker 1: Joshua's summary shows how complete the victory was. Verses forty
52:41
Speaker 1: through forty two give the final tally. So Joshua subdued
52:45
Speaker 1: the whole region, including the hill country, the Negev, the
52:49
Speaker 1: western foothills, and the mountain slopes, together with all their kings.
52:54
Speaker 1: He left no survivors. He totally destroyed all who breathed,
52:58
Speaker 1: just as the Lord, the God, God of Israel had commanded.
53:02
Speaker 1: Joshua subdued them from Kadesh, Barnea to Gaza, and from
53:06
Speaker 1: the whole region of Goshen to Gibeon. All these kings
53:09
Speaker 1: and their lands Joshua conquered in one campaign, because the Lord,
53:14
Speaker 1: the God of Israel, fought for Israel one campaign. In
53:19
Speaker 1: a matter of weeks, Joshua had conquered an entire region
53:23
Speaker 1: that should have taken years to subdue. The secret wasn't
53:26
Speaker 1: superior strategy or overwhelming numbers. It was divine intervention. The
53:32
Speaker 1: Lord God of Israel had fought for his people, and
53:35
Speaker 1: no human army could stand against him. The chapter ends
53:39
Speaker 1: with a simple statement. Then Joshua returned with all Israel
53:43
Speaker 1: to the camp at Gilgal. The Southern campaign was over,
53:47
Speaker 1: the region was conquered, and it was time to prepare
53:50
Speaker 1: for the next phase of God's plan. News of Israel's
53:54
Speaker 1: complete victory in the south spread quickly throughout northern Canaan
53:58
Speaker 1: king Jabin of hayes Or knew he had to act fast.
54:02
Speaker 1: Hazo was the most powerful city in the north, often
54:05
Speaker 1: called the head of all these kingdoms. If anyone could
54:09
Speaker 1: organize resistance against Israel, it would be him. Jabin began
54:13
Speaker 1: reaching out to every king in the north. His message
54:17
Speaker 1: was simple, unite now, or be destroyed separately. Later, Joshua
54:23
Speaker 1: eleven one two describes how this massive coalition formed. When Jabin,
54:29
Speaker 1: king of Hazar, heard of this, he sent word to Jobab,
54:32
Speaker 1: king of Madon, to the kings of Shimron and Akshaf,
54:36
Speaker 1: and to the northern kings who were in the mountains
54:39
Speaker 1: in the Arabah south of Kinnerath, in the western foothills,
54:43
Speaker 1: and in Nafath door on the west. This wasn't just
54:46
Speaker 1: a local alliance. Jabin was calling together kings from mountains, valleys,
54:51
Speaker 1: coastal regions, from every corner of northern Canaan. He understood
54:56
Speaker 1: this would be the last chance for organized resistance against
54:59
Speaker 1: Isa rails advance. The response was overwhelming. Kings came from everywhere,
55:05
Speaker 1: bringing their armies. Verse three shows how broad this coalition became.
55:10
Speaker 1: They came out with all their troops and a large
55:13
Speaker 1: number of horses and chariots, a huge army as numerous
55:17
Speaker 1: as the sand on the sea shore. The sight must
55:21
Speaker 1: have been incredible. Army after army streaming toward the waters
55:25
Speaker 1: of Merom, chariots rolling across the landscape, horses thundering weapons
55:31
Speaker 1: glinting in the sun. The dust clouds from all these
55:35
Speaker 1: moving forces would have been visible for miles. But it
55:39
Speaker 1: wasn't just the number of soldiers that made this coalition dangerous.
55:43
Speaker 1: Verse four reveals what made this army different. They came
55:46
Speaker 1: out with all their troops and a large number of
55:49
Speaker 1: horses and chariots, a huge army as numerous as the
55:52
Speaker 1: sand on the seashore. Horses and chariots were the ancient
55:56
Speaker 1: world's tanks and fighter jets. Israel had been fighting infantry
56:01
Speaker 1: armies with basic weapons. Now they faced cavalry units and
56:05
Speaker 1: armoured vehicles. The technological advantage was completely on the enemy's side.
56:10
Speaker 1: The coalition gathered at the waters of Merom, a strategic
56:14
Speaker 1: location controlling major routes into northern Canaan. From there, they
56:19
Speaker 1: could strike at Israel from multiple directions, or force Joshua
56:23
Speaker 1: to attack on ground of their choosing. Jibin must have
56:26
Speaker 1: felt confident looking over this massive force. He had united
56:30
Speaker 1: more kings than ever before. He had the largest army
56:33
Speaker 1: ever assembled in Canaan. He had superior weapons and tactical advantages.
56:39
Speaker 1: By every human measure. Israel faced impossible odds. When Joshua
56:44
Speaker 1: received reports about the massive enemy coalition at the waters
56:47
Speaker 1: of Merom, he must have been concerned. His scouts told
56:51
Speaker 1: him about the incredible army size, the horses and chariots,
56:55
Speaker 1: the strategic position. This was unlike anything Israel had faced before.
57:01
Speaker 1: But God wasn't worried about horses, chariots or large armies.
57:05
Speaker 1: He had promised to give Israel the entire land, and
57:08
Speaker 1: that promise included the North. Before Joshua could become anxious
57:13
Speaker 1: about the overwhelming odds, the Lord spoke with words of
57:17
Speaker 1: comfort and specific instructions. Joshua eleven six records God's reassuring message.
57:24
Speaker 1: The Lord said to Joshua, do not be afraid of them,
57:27
Speaker 1: because by this time tomorrow I will hand all of
57:30
Speaker 1: them slain over to Israel. You are to hamstring their
57:34
Speaker 1: horses and burn their chariots. God's promise was specific and encouraging.
57:41
Speaker 1: By this time tomorrow, the entire coalition would be defeated,
57:46
Speaker 1: not just beaten back, but completely destroyed. The timing was precise.
57:52
Speaker 1: Twenty four hours from now, this massive threat would be eliminated.
57:56
Speaker 1: God also gave Joshua unusual instructions about the horses and
58:00
Speaker 1: chariots after victory. Instead of keeping these valuable military assets,
58:06
Speaker 1: they were to be destroyed. The horses were to be hamstrung,
58:10
Speaker 1: making them unable for warfare, and the chariots burned. This
58:15
Speaker 1: command revealed something important about God's plan for Israel. They
58:19
Speaker 1: weren't supposed to rely on superior weapons or military technology
58:24
Speaker 1: for victories. Their strength was to come from the Lord alone,
58:28
Speaker 1: not from horses and chariots. Like other nations. Joshua didn't
58:33
Speaker 1: hesitate or ask questions about these instructions. He had learned
58:37
Speaker 1: to trust God's commands completely, even when they seemed strange. Militarily,
58:43
Speaker 1: the same God who made Jericho's walls fall and stopped
58:47
Speaker 1: the sun over Gibeon was now promising victory over this
58:51
Speaker 1: northern coalition. The instructions to destroy the horses and chariots
58:56
Speaker 1: served a practical purpose. If Israel kept these words weapons,
59:00
Speaker 1: it might tempt them to rely on military might rather
59:03
Speaker 1: than divine power in future battles. It would also prevent
59:07
Speaker 1: captured equipment from being recaptured and used against them. Later,
59:12
Speaker 1: Joshua began making battle plans based on God's promise. He
59:16
Speaker 1: wouldn't wait for the enemy to attack or find a
59:19
Speaker 1: defensive position. Instead, he would strike first and hard. The
59:25
Speaker 1: element of surprise would be crucial against such a large force.
59:29
Speaker 1: Verse seven describes Joshua's response. So Joshua and his whole
59:34
Speaker 1: army came against them suddenly at the waters of Mirum
59:37
Speaker 1: and attack them. There was no lengthy preparation, no complex maneuvering,
59:43
Speaker 1: no attempt to match enemy numbers, just a swift, decisive
59:48
Speaker 1: assault based entirely on God's promise. The attack caught the
59:52
Speaker 1: coalition completely off guard. They expected Israel to approach cautiously,
59:57
Speaker 1: not launch an immediate assault against over will numbers. But
1:00:01
Speaker 1: that's exactly what made the strategy so effective. The battle
1:00:05
Speaker 1: at the Waters of Merum was swift and devastating, just
1:00:09
Speaker 1: as God promised. The massive Northern coalition was completely destroyed
1:00:14
Speaker 1: within twenty four hours. The horses and chariots that seemed
1:00:18
Speaker 1: so intimidating proved useless against divine intervention. As enemy forces
1:00:24
Speaker 1: fled in panic, Joshua pursued them relentlessly. But his main
1:00:29
Speaker 1: target wasn't just the armies. It was the cities they
1:00:32
Speaker 1: came from, especially Hazer, the head of all these kingdoms.
1:00:36
Speaker 1: If he could capture and destroy Hazer, it would send
1:00:39
Speaker 1: a clear message that no city could stand against Israel.
1:00:44
Speaker 1: Hazer was an impressive target. It was one of the
1:00:47
Speaker 1: largest cities in ancient Canaan, covering over two hundred acres
1:00:51
Speaker 1: and housing perhaps forty thousand people. Its walls were massive,
1:00:55
Speaker 1: its defenses strong, and it had been the dominant northern
1:00:59
Speaker 1: power for sale centuries. But none of that mattered when
1:01:02
Speaker 1: facing Israel's god Joshua eleven ten eleven describes what happened
1:01:07
Speaker 1: to this great city at that time. Joshua turned back
1:01:10
Speaker 1: and captured Haeser and put its king to the sword.
1:01:14
Speaker 1: Haesar had been the head of all these kingdoms. Every
1:01:17
Speaker 1: one in it they put to the sword. They totally
1:01:20
Speaker 1: destroyed them, not sparing any one that breathed, and he
1:01:24
Speaker 1: burned Haeser itself. The destruction was complete and systematic. The
1:01:30
Speaker 1: king who tried to organize resistance was killed, Every person
1:01:34
Speaker 1: in the city was eliminated according to God's command, and
1:01:37
Speaker 1: then the city itself was burned to the ground, something
1:01:41
Speaker 1: Joshua didn't do to every conquered city. The burning of
1:01:45
Speaker 1: Hazar was particularly significant. This wasn't just about destroying a
1:01:49
Speaker 1: military target. It was about eliminating the center of Canaanite
1:01:54
Speaker 1: power in the north. Haesar had been where kings gathered,
1:01:58
Speaker 1: policies were made, resistance organized. By burning it completely, Joshua
1:02:04
Speaker 1: ensured it could never again serve as a rallying point
1:02:07
Speaker 1: for Israel's enemies. But Joshua didn't stop with Hazor. He
1:02:11
Speaker 1: systematically attacked every city that had been part of the coalition.
1:02:15
Speaker 1: Verse twelve tells us Joshua took all these royal cities
1:02:19
Speaker 1: and their kings and put them to the sword. He
1:02:22
Speaker 1: totally destroyed them, as Moses, the servant of the Lord,
1:02:25
Speaker 1: had commanded. This was methodical warfare designed to eliminate organized
1:02:30
Speaker 1: resistance permanently. Each king who joined the coalition was killed,
1:02:35
Speaker 1: Each city that sent troops was captured, each center of
1:02:39
Speaker 1: power was dismantled. Joshua was ensuring that the northern territories
1:02:43
Speaker 1: could never again mount effective opposition. The reference to moses
1:02:47
Speaker 1: commands is important. Joshua wasn't acting on personal initiative or cruelty.
1:02:54
Speaker 1: He was carefully following instructions that God had given through
1:02:57
Speaker 1: Moses about conducting warfare in the Promised Land. These weren't
1:03:03
Speaker 1: arbitrary acts of violence, but obedience to divine commands. Verse
1:03:08
Speaker 1: fifteen summarizes this obedience. As the Lord commanded his servant Moses,
1:03:13
Speaker 1: so Moses commanded Joshua, and Joshua did it. He left
1:03:18
Speaker 1: nothing undone of all that the Lord commanded Moses. Joshua
1:03:22
Speaker 1: was proving himself a faithful successor to Moses, not just
1:03:26
Speaker 1: in military leadership, but in spiritual obedience. Every command was followed,
1:03:32
Speaker 1: every instruction obeyed, every detail attended to the Conquest of
1:03:39
Speaker 1: the North wasn't just a military campaign, It was an
1:03:42
Speaker 1: act of worship through complete obedience. While individual battles often
1:03:48
Speaker 1: seemed to happen quickly, the overall campaign took much longer
1:03:51
Speaker 1: than many realize. The victories at Jericho I and the
1:03:55
Speaker 1: Northern Coalition might give the impression that Israel conquered the
1:03:59
Speaker 1: entire land and in just a few months, but the
1:04:02
Speaker 1: reality was quite different. Joshua eleven eighteen reveals the true timeline.
1:04:09
Speaker 1: Joshua waged war against all these kings for a long time.
1:04:14
Speaker 1: This wasn't a brief campaign that wrapped up in a
1:04:16
Speaker 1: single season. It was an extended military operation that continued
1:04:21
Speaker 1: for years, requiring persistent effort and sustained commitment. The phrase
1:04:26
Speaker 1: a long time indicates the conquest was a gradual process
1:04:30
Speaker 1: of consolidating control over territory, eliminating pockets of resistance, and
1:04:35
Speaker 1: establishing Israeli authority throughout the land. Some cities fell quickly,
1:04:41
Speaker 1: others required lengthy sieges, and some areas needed multiple campaigns
1:04:46
Speaker 1: to secure completely. The scope of Joshua's conquests was impressive
1:04:51
Speaker 1: in its geographical extent. Verse sixteen describes the territories under
1:04:57
Speaker 1: Israeli control. So Joshua took the this entire land, the
1:05:01
Speaker 1: hill country, all the Negev, the whole region of Goshen,
1:05:05
Speaker 1: the western foothills, the Arabah, and the mountains of Israel
1:05:09
Speaker 1: with their foothills. This represented virtually every type of terrain
1:05:14
Speaker 1: and climate in the Promised Land, from the desert regions
1:05:17
Speaker 1: of the Negev in the south to mountainous areas in
1:05:20
Speaker 1: the north, from coastal plains in the west to the
1:05:24
Speaker 1: Jordan Valley in the east. Israel had established control over
1:05:28
Speaker 1: the entire country. The comprehensive nature of these conquests is
1:05:33
Speaker 1: emphasized in verse seventeen. From Mount Halak, which rises towards Seyr,
1:05:39
Speaker 1: to Balgad in the Valley of Lebanon below Mount Hermon,
1:05:43
Speaker 1: he captured all their kings and put them to death
1:05:46
Speaker 1: and deem. These geographical markers show Joshua's campaigns extended from
1:05:52
Speaker 1: the far south near Edam to the far north near
1:05:55
Speaker 1: the Jordan River. Sources it was a complete conquest that
1:05:59
Speaker 1: left no major region unconquered and no significant enemy leader alive.
1:06:04
Speaker 1: One remarkable aspect was the elimination of the Anakim, the
1:06:08
Speaker 1: giants who had terrified the original spies forty years earlier.
1:06:12
Speaker 1: Verses twenty one to twenty two described this achievement. At
1:06:16
Speaker 1: that time, Joshua went and destroyed the Anakites from the
1:06:20
Speaker 1: hill country, from Hebron, Debir, and Anab, from all the
1:06:24
Speaker 1: hill country of Judah, and from all the hill country
1:06:27
Speaker 1: of Israel. Joshua totally destroyed them and their towns. No
1:06:32
Speaker 1: Anakites were left in Israelite territory. Only in Gaza, Gath
1:06:36
Speaker 1: and Ashtod did any survive. The Anakim had been the
1:06:40
Speaker 1: source of the spies fear when they first scouted the land.
1:06:44
Speaker 1: These giants had seemed so intimidating that ten of twelve
1:06:48
Speaker 1: spies convinced the people that conquest was impossible. But now
1:06:53
Speaker 1: under Joshua's leadership, even these fearsome enemies were completely eliminated
1:06:58
Speaker 1: from most of the land. The systematic nature of conquest
1:07:02
Speaker 1: meant resistance was broken, not just militarily but psychologically. Verse
1:07:07
Speaker 1: twenty explains God's role, for it was the Lord himself
1:07:11
Speaker 1: who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel, so
1:07:15
Speaker 1: that he might destroy them totally, sparing them no mercy.
1:07:18
Speaker 1: As the Lord had commanded Moses, God had hardened the
1:07:22
Speaker 1: hearts of Canaanite peoples, making them fight rather than surrender
1:07:26
Speaker 1: or flee. This ensured they would be eliminated completely, rather
1:07:31
Speaker 1: than remaining as potential future problems. It was a divine
1:07:35
Speaker 1: strategy that guaranteed the thoroughness of conquest. The end result
1:07:40
Speaker 1: was exactly what God had promised from the beginning. Verse
1:07:43
Speaker 1: twenty three summarizes the achievement. So Joshua took the entire land,
1:07:49
Speaker 1: just as the Lord had directed Moses, and he gave
1:07:52
Speaker 1: it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal divisions.
1:07:57
Speaker 1: Then the land had rest from war. The long years
1:08:00
Speaker 1: of warfare were finally over. The extended campaigns had achieved
1:08:04
Speaker 1: their purpose. The entire promised land was now under Israeli control,
1:08:09
Speaker 1: ready to be divided among the tribes as their permanent inheritance.
1:08:14
Speaker 1: Before Joshua's western conquests began, important victories had already been
1:08:19
Speaker 1: won east of the Jordan River. These earlier battles fought
1:08:24
Speaker 1: under moses leadership, established the pattern for what would happen
1:08:28
Speaker 1: in the promised land proper. They also provided inheritance for
1:08:32
Speaker 1: two and a half tribes who chose to settle in
1:08:35
Speaker 1: that region. Joshua twelve one sets the stage for remembering
1:08:39
Speaker 1: these Eastern victories. These are the kings of the land
1:08:43
Speaker 1: whom the Israelites had defeated, and whose territory they took
1:08:47
Speaker 1: over east of the Jordan, from the Arnan Gorge to
1:08:50
Speaker 1: Mount Herman, including all the eastern side of the Araba.
1:08:54
Speaker 1: This geographical description shows the extent of territories conquered under Moses,
1:09:00
Speaker 1: from the Arnan Gorge in the south near the Dead Sea,
1:09:03
Speaker 1: to Mount Hermon in the far north. Israel had gained
1:09:07
Speaker 1: control of a substantial region east of the Jordan River.
1:09:11
Speaker 1: This area was fertile, well watered, and ideal for raising livestock.
1:09:17
Speaker 1: The first major victory had been against Sihon, King of
1:09:20
Speaker 1: the Amorites. Verses two to three describe his kingdom, Sihon,
1:09:25
Speaker 1: King of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon. He ruled
1:09:29
Speaker 1: from Arrowa on the rim of the Arnan Gorge, from
1:09:32
Speaker 1: the middle of the gorge to the Jabbuk River, which
1:09:35
Speaker 1: is the border of the Ammonites. This included half of Gilead.
1:09:40
Speaker 1: He also ruled over the Eastern Araba, from the Sea
1:09:43
Speaker 1: of Galilee to the Sea of the Araba that is,
1:09:46
Speaker 1: the Dead Sea, to Beth Jeshimouth, and then southward below
1:09:50
Speaker 1: the slopes of Piska. Sihon's kingdom was strategically important because
1:09:55
Speaker 1: it controlled key trade routes and provided access to Jordan
1:09:58
Speaker 1: river crossings. When Moses requested peaceful passage through this territory,
1:10:03
Speaker 1: Sihon refused and attacked Israel instead. That decision proved fatal.
1:10:09
Speaker 1: The defeat of Sihon opened the way for Israel's approach
1:10:12
Speaker 1: to the Promised Land and gave them confidence that God
1:10:16
Speaker 1: would fight for them against seemingly impossible odds. It also
1:10:20
Speaker 1: provided valuable experience in conducting warfare in the region. The
1:10:25
Speaker 1: second major Eastern victory was against an even more formidable opponent.
1:10:31
Speaker 1: Verses four toward five described the Kingdom of Og and
1:10:34
Speaker 1: the Territory of Og King of Bashan, one of the
1:10:37
Speaker 1: last of the Rephates who reigned in Ashtaroth and Edre.
1:10:41
Speaker 1: He ruled over Mount Hermon Saleka, all of Bashan to
1:10:46
Speaker 1: the border of the people of Geshur and Maka, and
1:10:49
Speaker 1: half of Gilead to the border of Sihon. King of
1:10:52
Speaker 1: heshbon Og was one of the last of the Rephates,
1:10:57
Speaker 1: a race of giants similar to the Anarchim. His kingdom
1:11:01
Speaker 1: of Bashan was known for its fertile soil, strong cities,
1:11:05
Speaker 1: and powerful military forces. The fact that Israel defeated such
1:11:09
Speaker 1: a formidable enemy gave them tremendous confidence for future battles.
1:11:14
Speaker 1: Verse six summarizes what happened to these conquered territories. Moses
1:11:20
Speaker 1: the servant of the Lord, and the Israelites conquered them,
1:11:24
Speaker 1: and Moses the servant of the Lord, gave their land
1:11:27
Speaker 1: to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half tribe of
1:11:30
Speaker 1: Manassa to be their possession MUNDI. These Eastern conquests weren't
1:11:36
Speaker 1: just military victories. They were the foundation for the settlement
1:11:40
Speaker 1: of two and a half tribes. The territories of Sihon
1:11:43
Speaker 1: and Og became the inheritance of Reuben, Gad and half
1:11:47
Speaker 1: of Manassa, providing them with excellent land for their large
1:11:51
Speaker 1: herds and flocks. The reference to Moses as the servant
1:11:55
Speaker 1: of the Lord appears twice, emphasizing that these victories were
1:11:59
Speaker 1: a company through divine power, not human strength. Moses had
1:12:05
Speaker 1: been God's instrument for achieving these conquests, just as Joshua
1:12:09
Speaker 1: would be for the Western campaigns. The victories west of
1:12:12
Speaker 1: the Jordan River under Joshua's leadership were even more extensive
1:12:16
Speaker 1: than the eastern conquests under Moses. City after city fell
1:12:22
Speaker 1: to Israel's advancing army, and king after king was defeated
1:12:27
Speaker 1: and killed. The systematic nature of these conquests demonstrates both
1:12:33
Speaker 1: the thoroughness of the military campaign and the faithfulness of
1:12:37
Speaker 1: God's promises. Joshua twelve seven to Tait introduces the comprehensive
1:12:42
Speaker 1: list of Western victories. Here is a list of the
1:12:45
Speaker 1: kings of the land that Joshua and the Israelites conquered
1:12:48
Speaker 1: on the west side of the Jordan, from bayal Gad
1:12:52
Speaker 1: in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which rises
1:12:55
Speaker 1: towards Sayr. Joshua gave their lands as an inheritance to
1:12:59
Speaker 1: the tribes of Israel according to their tribal divisions. This
1:13:04
Speaker 1: introduction shows the geographical scope of Joshua's conquests from the
1:13:09
Speaker 1: far north to the deep South, and lists the various
1:13:13
Speaker 1: peoples who had been defeated. Every major group that had
1:13:17
Speaker 1: occupied the promised land was now under Israeli control or
1:13:21
Speaker 1: had been eliminated entirely. The list that follows is remarkable
1:13:26
Speaker 1: for its length and detail. Verses nine to twenty four
1:13:30
Speaker 1: provide the names of thirty one kings who were conquered
1:13:33
Speaker 1: during the Western campaigns. Each name represents not just a
1:13:36
Speaker 1: military victory, but the elimination of a center of resistance
1:13:41
Speaker 1: and the capture of strategic territory. The list begins with
1:13:45
Speaker 1: the most famous victories. The King of Jericho one, the
1:13:50
Speaker 1: King of Aie near Bethel one, the King of Jerusalem Ie,
1:13:55
Speaker 1: the King of Hebron one, the King of Jarmuth one,
1:13:59
Speaker 1: the King of Lakish one, the King of Eglon one,
1:14:04
Speaker 1: the King of gazer one, the King of Debir one.
1:14:08
Speaker 1: These names bring back memories of the major battles and
1:14:11
Speaker 1: campaigns we've already learned about Jericho with its falling walls,
1:14:16
Speaker 1: I with its clever ambush strategy, the five Kings who
1:14:20
Speaker 1: hid in the Cave, the rapid Southern campaign all are
1:14:25
Speaker 1: represented in this catalog of conquest. The list continues with
1:14:29
Speaker 1: many names that haven't appeared in the detailed battle narratives,
1:14:34
Speaker 1: showing that the conquest involved many more battles and victories
1:14:38
Speaker 1: than the detailed accounts describe. For every major campaign that
1:14:42
Speaker 1: gets full narrative treatment, there were numerous smaller actions that
1:14:46
Speaker 1: eliminated local resistance and secured strategic locations. The northern victories
1:14:52
Speaker 1: are well represented the King of Shimron mehrn one, the
1:14:56
Speaker 1: King of Akshaf one, the King of Tarnach one, the
1:15:00
Speaker 1: King of Megido one, the King of Kadesh one, the
1:15:04
Speaker 1: King of jocniam In kamel I. Some of these cities,
1:15:08
Speaker 1: like Magido and Tarnach would become famous in later Israeli
1:15:13
Speaker 1: history as important fortress cities controlling major trade routes. Their
1:15:18
Speaker 1: conquest under Joshua established Israeli control over these strategic locations
1:15:23
Speaker 1: from the very beginning. The final summary is impressive thirty
1:15:27
Speaker 1: one kings in all. Each king represented an independent city
1:15:32
Speaker 1: state with its own army, fortifications, and sphere of influence.
1:15:37
Speaker 1: The fact that all thirty one were defeated shows the
1:15:40
Speaker 1: completeness of Joshua's military success. This catalog serves several important purposes. First,
1:15:48
Speaker 1: it provides a permanent record of God's faithfulness in giving
1:15:52
Speaker 1: Israel victory over every enemy. Second, it demonstrates the systematic
1:15:58
Speaker 1: nature of the conquest, showing that no significant center of
1:16:02
Speaker 1: resistance was left unconquered. Third, it establishes the legal basis
1:16:07
Speaker 1: for Israel's claim to the entire land. Despite the impressive
1:16:11
Speaker 1: catalog of victories and the systematic nature of the conquest,
1:16:16
Speaker 1: not every part of the promised land was under Israeli control.
1:16:20
Speaker 1: When the major military campaigns ended. As Joshua grew older,
1:16:25
Speaker 1: God spoke to him about the realities of the situation
1:16:28
Speaker 1: and the work that still remained. Joshua thirteen one sets
1:16:32
Speaker 1: the context. When Joshua had grown old, the Lord said
1:16:36
Speaker 1: to him, you are now very old, and there are
1:16:39
Speaker 1: still very large areas of land to be taken over.
1:16:42
Speaker 1: This wasn't a criticism of Joshua's leadership or military effectiveness. Rather,
1:16:48
Speaker 1: it was a realistic assessment of what had been accomplished
1:16:52
Speaker 1: and what still needed to be done. The phrase very
1:16:56
Speaker 1: large areas indicates that the unconquered territories weren't just small
1:17:02
Speaker 1: pockets of resistance or isolated strongholds. These were substantial regions
1:17:08
Speaker 1: that would require significant military effort to bring under Israeli control.
1:17:14
Speaker 1: The conquest, though extensive, was still incomplete. God then provided
1:17:19
Speaker 1: a detailed description of what remained unconquered. Verses two to
1:17:24
Speaker 1: five list these territories. This is the land that remains
1:17:28
Speaker 1: all the regions of the Philistines and Geshurites, from the
1:17:31
Speaker 1: Shihor River on the east of Egypt to the territory
1:17:34
Speaker 1: of Ekron on the north. All of it counted as Canaanite,
1:17:38
Speaker 1: though held by the five Philistine rulers in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath,
1:17:43
Speaker 1: and Ekron. Indeed, the Philistine territories along the Mediterranean coast
1:17:48
Speaker 1: represented some of the most challenging areas that Israel would face.
1:17:54
Speaker 1: These people had superior military technology, including iron weapons and
1:17:59
Speaker 1: war chariots, and they controlled important trade routes and coastal cities.
1:18:04
Speaker 1: Their five major cities would remain thorns in Israel's side
1:18:08
Speaker 1: for centuries. The northern territories around Lebanon also remained outside
1:18:14
Speaker 1: Israeli control. These mountainous regions were difficult to conquer and
1:18:18
Speaker 1: were inhabited by peoples with strong military traditions and well
1:18:22
Speaker 1: fortified cities. But God's acknowledgment of these unconquered territories came
1:18:28
Speaker 1: with a promise and a plan. Verse six provides Divine
1:18:33
Speaker 1: assurance as for all the inhabitants of the mountain regions
1:18:37
Speaker 1: from Lebanon to Misrifoth Mame, that is all the Sidonians,
1:18:42
Speaker 1: I myself will drive them out before the Israelites. Be
1:18:46
Speaker 1: sure to allocate this land to Israel for an inheritance,
1:18:50
Speaker 1: as I have instructed you. God wasn't abandoning the promise
1:18:54
Speaker 1: to give Israel the entire land. Instead, he was explaining
1:18:58
Speaker 1: that the conquest would be a gradual process that would
1:19:01
Speaker 1: continue beyond Joshua's lifetime. The divine promise remained firm. These
1:19:07
Speaker 1: territories would eventually come under Israeli control. The instruction to
1:19:13
Speaker 1: allocate the unconquered territories as inheritance was significant, even though
1:19:18
Speaker 1: Israel didn't physically control these areas, yet God wanted them
1:19:22
Speaker 1: assigned to specific tribes. This showed faith in the eventual
1:19:27
Speaker 1: fulfillment of the promise and gave each tribe a stake
1:19:31
Speaker 1: in completing the conquest of their assigned regions. Verse seven
1:19:36
Speaker 1: provides the practical instruction and divide it as an inheritance
1:19:40
Speaker 1: among the nine tribes and half of the tribe of Manasse.
1:19:45
Speaker 1: The land division would proceed based on divine promise rather
1:19:48
Speaker 1: than current military control. The tribes would receive their inheritances
1:19:53
Speaker 1: by faith, trusting God to help them complete the conquest
1:19:57
Speaker 1: of their territories. Before all the western territories could be
1:20:01
Speaker 1: divided among the nine and a half tribes, it was
1:20:04
Speaker 1: important to formally recognize the inheritance that had already been
1:20:08
Speaker 1: given to the two and a half tribes east of
1:20:11
Speaker 1: the Jordan River. These tribes had received their portions under
1:20:16
Speaker 1: Moses' leadership, but their boundaries needed to be clearly defined
1:20:20
Speaker 1: and officially recorded. Joshua thirteen eight introduces this section. The
1:20:26
Speaker 1: other half of Manasse, the Rubenites and the Gadites, had
1:20:29
Speaker 1: received the inheritance that Moses had given them east of
1:20:33
Speaker 1: the Jordan, as he, the servant of the Lord, had
1:20:37
Speaker 1: assigned it to them. This reference to Moses emphasizes the
1:20:41
Speaker 1: legitimacy and divine authority behind these eastern allotments. The territory
1:20:47
Speaker 1: of Reuben was described in detail. Verses fifteen twenty one
1:20:51
Speaker 1: provide the boundaries, showing that Reuben received the southern portion
1:20:56
Speaker 1: of the conquered territory east of the Jordan. It included
1:21:00
Speaker 1: much of the former kingdom of Sihon, with its capital
1:21:03
Speaker 1: city of Heshburn and its productive agricultural areas. The territory
1:21:08
Speaker 1: of Gad was described next. Verses twenty four to twenty
1:21:12
Speaker 1: eight outline their inheritance, showing that Gad received the central
1:21:17
Speaker 1: portion of the eastern territories, including much of the fertile
1:21:21
Speaker 1: region of Gilead. This area was particularly well suited for
1:21:25
Speaker 1: raising livestock, which was exactly what the tribe of Gad needed.
1:21:29
Speaker 1: The half tribe of Manasse received the northern portion. Verses
1:21:33
Speaker 1: twenty nine thirty one described their territory, including most of
1:21:38
Speaker 1: the former kingdom of og This northern region included the
1:21:41
Speaker 1: fertile plateau of Bashan, known for its cattle and grain production.
1:21:46
Speaker 1: The mention of sixty towns shows that this was a
1:21:49
Speaker 1: heavily settled and economically productive area. An important exclusion is
1:21:54
Speaker 1: mentioned in verse thirty three. But to the tribe of Levi,
1:21:58
Speaker 1: Moses had given no inheritance. The Lord, the God of
1:22:01
Speaker 1: Israel is their inheritance, as he promised them. The Levites
1:22:05
Speaker 1: were different from all the other tribes. Instead of receiving
1:22:09
Speaker 1: a specific territory to control and develop. They were given
1:22:13
Speaker 1: the privilege of serving God directly. The Levite's inheritance was
1:22:18
Speaker 1: spiritual rather than geographical. They would receive cities scattered throughout
1:22:22
Speaker 1: all the tribal territories, along with pasture lands for their
1:22:26
Speaker 1: live stock, but their primary calling was to serve at
1:22:30
Speaker 1: the Tabernacle and later the Temple, to teach God's law
1:22:33
Speaker 1: to the people, and to maintain the spiritual life of
1:22:37
Speaker 1: the nation. This arrangement ensured that every tribe would have
1:22:41
Speaker 1: Levites living among them to provide religious instruction and leadership.
1:22:46
Speaker 1: It also prevented the Levites from becoming too focused on
1:22:50
Speaker 1: territorial concerns that might distract them from their spiritual responsibilities.
1:22:56
Speaker 1: The detailed recording of these Eastern inheritances so of several purposes.
1:23:01
Speaker 1: It provided legal documentation of tribal boundaries, It honored the
1:23:06
Speaker 1: commitments that Moses had made, and it demonstrated God's faithfulness
1:23:10
Speaker 1: in providing inheritance for his people. The precision of these
1:23:14
Speaker 1: boundary descriptions shows the importance that God places on clear
1:23:19
Speaker 1: agreements and proper administration. The time had come for the
1:23:24
Speaker 1: most important administrative task in Israel's history, the Wars were over,
1:23:29
Speaker 1: the enemies were defeated, and the land was ready to
1:23:32
Speaker 1: be divided among the tribes. This wasn't just about drawing
1:23:36
Speaker 1: lines on a map. This was about fulfilling God's ancient
1:23:40
Speaker 1: promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The process took place
1:23:45
Speaker 1: at Gilgal, the same place where Israel had first camped
1:23:49
Speaker 1: after crossing the Jordan River. It was fitting that the
1:23:52
Speaker 1: land distribution would happen at this sacred location, where they
1:23:56
Speaker 1: had renewed their covenant with God and prepared for the conquer.
1:24:00
Speaker 1: Three key leaders oversaw this crucial process. Joshua fourteen one
1:24:05
Speaker 1: introduces them. Now, these are the areas the Israelites received
1:24:10
Speaker 1: as an inheritance in the land of Canaan, which Eliazar,
1:24:14
Speaker 1: the Priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of
1:24:17
Speaker 1: the tribal clans of Israel allotted to them. Elizar the
1:24:21
Speaker 1: priest represented God's spiritual authority in the process. As the
1:24:26
Speaker 1: high priest, he would seek divine guidance through the sacred lots.
1:24:30
Speaker 1: Joshua brought his military expertise and overall leadership to ensure
1:24:35
Speaker 1: fair distribution. The tribal heads represented their people's interests and
1:24:40
Speaker 1: helped resolve any disputes that might arise. This wasn't a
1:24:44
Speaker 1: human decision making process. God himself would determine which tribe
1:24:50
Speaker 1: received which territory. The method was clearly established, as described
1:24:55
Speaker 1: in verse two. Their inheritances were assigned by lot to
1:24:59
Speaker 1: the nine and a heve half tribes, as the Lord
1:25:02
Speaker 1: had commanded through Moses. The casting of lots was a
1:25:06
Speaker 1: sacred practice that allowed God to make the decisions. Small
1:25:10
Speaker 1: stones or wooden pieces marked with tribal names would be
1:25:14
Speaker 1: placed in a container and drawn out randomly, but the
1:25:18
Speaker 1: Israelites understood that nothing was truly random. When God was involved,
1:25:23
Speaker 1: He controlled even the way the lots fell. This method
1:25:26
Speaker 1: ensured that no tribe could complain about favoritism or unfair treatment.
1:25:32
Speaker 1: The assignments came from God, not from human preferences or
1:25:36
Speaker 1: political maneuvering. It also meant that each tribe would receive
1:25:40
Speaker 1: exactly what God intended for them, whether it seemed advantageous
1:25:45
Speaker 1: or challenging. The reference to nine and a half tribes
1:25:50
Speaker 1: reminds us of something important. Verse three explains Moses had
1:25:55
Speaker 1: granted the two and a half tribes their inheritance east
1:25:58
Speaker 1: of the Jordan but had not granted the Levites an
1:26:01
Speaker 1: inheritance among the rest. The Eastern tribes were already settled,
1:26:07
Speaker 1: and the Levites would receive a different kind of inheritance,
1:26:10
Speaker 1: but there was still the question of numbers. Verse four
1:26:13
Speaker 1: provides the answer. For Joseph's descendants had become two tribes,
1:26:18
Speaker 1: Manassa and Ephraim. The Levites received no share of the land,
1:26:22
Speaker 1: but only towns to live in with pasture lands for
1:26:26
Speaker 1: their flocks and herds. Joseph's two sons, Ephraim and Manassa,
1:26:31
Speaker 1: had each become full tribes in their own right. This
1:26:34
Speaker 1: fulfilled Jacob's ancient blessing when he adopted these boys as
1:26:38
Speaker 1: his own sons. So even without Levi receiving territory, there
1:26:42
Speaker 1: were still twelve portions to distribute among the remaining tribes.
1:26:47
Speaker 1: The process was designed to be both fair and final.
1:26:50
Speaker 1: Verse five concludes, so the Israelites divided the land just
1:26:55
Speaker 1: as the Lord had commanded Moses. There would be no appeals,
1:26:59
Speaker 1: no second guessing, no redistributions. What God decided through the
1:27:04
Speaker 1: lots would stand forever. Before the formal lot casting began,
1:27:09
Speaker 1: there was one special case that needed to be addressed.
1:27:12
Speaker 1: An eighty five year old man approached Joshua with a
1:27:16
Speaker 1: request that would remind every one of God's faithfulness across
1:27:20
Speaker 1: the decades. Caleb's son of Jaofanna, had been waiting forty
1:27:25
Speaker 1: five years for this moment. He was one of the
1:27:28
Speaker 1: twelve spies who had scouted the Promised Land when Israel
1:27:31
Speaker 1: first arrived at its borders. While ten spies had brought
1:27:35
Speaker 1: back fearful reports about giants and fortified cities, Caleb and
1:27:39
Speaker 1: Joshua had urged the people to trust God and attack immediately. Now,
1:27:44
Speaker 1: decades later, Caleb was ready to claim what Moses had
1:27:48
Speaker 1: promised him. Joshua fourteen six to seven records his approach. Now,
1:27:54
Speaker 1: the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal and Caleb,
1:27:58
Speaker 1: son of Jeffuni the Kenizai, said to him, you know
1:28:01
Speaker 1: what the Lord said to Moses, the man of God
1:28:04
Speaker 1: at Kadesh Barneya about you and me. I was forty
1:28:07
Speaker 1: years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent
1:28:10
Speaker 1: me from Kadesh Barneya to explore the land, and I
1:28:14
Speaker 1: brought him back a report according to my convictions. Hm.
1:28:18
Speaker 1: Caleb's words were carefully chosen. He reminded Joshua of that
1:28:23
Speaker 1: crucial moment at Kadesh Barneya, when their minority report had
1:28:27
Speaker 1: been overwhelmed by the majority's fear. Both men had paid
1:28:31
Speaker 1: a price for their faithfulness. They had wandered in the
1:28:34
Speaker 1: wilderness for forty years along with everyone else, even though
1:28:38
Speaker 1: they had wanted to enter the land immediately. The old
1:28:42
Speaker 1: warrior continued his speech with remarkable confidence. Verses eight to
1:28:46
Speaker 1: nine reveal his unwavering faith. But my fellow Israelites who
1:28:51
Speaker 1: went up with me made the hearts of the people
1:28:53
Speaker 1: melt in fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.
1:28:59
Speaker 1: So on that day Moses swore to me, the land
1:29:02
Speaker 1: on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance
1:29:06
Speaker 1: and that of your children forever, because you have followed
1:29:09
Speaker 1: the Lord my God wholeheartedly. Caleb's faith hadn't wavered in
1:29:14
Speaker 1: forty five years. The same confidence that had made him
1:29:18
Speaker 1: want to attack the giants immediately was still burning strong
1:29:21
Speaker 1: in his heart. Moses had promised him the specific territory
1:29:25
Speaker 1: he had scouted, and now he was ready to claim it.
1:29:29
Speaker 1: But Caleb wasn't finished with his remarkable speech. Verses tenty
1:29:33
Speaker 1: eleven contained some of the most inspiring words in the
1:29:36
Speaker 1: entire Bible. Now, then, just as the Lord promised, he
1:29:41
Speaker 1: has kept me alive for forty five years since the
1:29:44
Speaker 1: time he said this to Moses while Israel moved about
1:29:47
Speaker 1: in the wilderness. So here I am to day, eighty
1:29:51
Speaker 1: five years old. I am still as strong to day
1:29:54
Speaker 1: as the day Moses sent me out. I'm just as
1:29:56
Speaker 1: vigorous to go out to battle now as I was
1:29:59
Speaker 1: then eighty five years old, and still ready for battle.
1:30:03
Speaker 1: This wasn't an old man asking for a comfortable retirement village.
1:30:07
Speaker 1: This was a warrior requesting permission to fight the most
1:30:10
Speaker 1: dangerous enemies in the most challenging territory. Caleb's faith in
1:30:15
Speaker 1: God's strength had kept him young in spirit and strong
1:30:19
Speaker 1: in body. His specific request was bold, beyond imagination. Verse
1:30:24
Speaker 1: twelve reveals what he wanted. Now, give me this hill
1:30:28
Speaker 1: country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself
1:30:31
Speaker 1: heard then that the Anarkites were there, and their cities
1:30:34
Speaker 1: were large and fortified. But the Lord, helping me, I
1:30:38
Speaker 1: will drive them out, just as he said. The hill
1:30:41
Speaker 1: country around Hebron was where the Anachin lived, the giants
1:30:45
Speaker 1: who had terrified the other spies forty five years earlier.
1:30:49
Speaker 1: These were the same enemies who had made grown men
1:30:52
Speaker 1: tremble with fear, but Caleb wanted to fight them personally,
1:30:56
Speaker 1: trusting God to give him victory just as he had promised.
1:31:00
Speaker 1: Joshua must have smiled as he listened to his old
1:31:03
Speaker 1: friend's request. Here was the same faith, the same courage,
1:31:08
Speaker 1: the same trust in God that had sustained them both
1:31:11
Speaker 1: through four decades of waiting without hesitation. He granted Caleb's request.
1:31:19
Speaker 1: Verses thirteen to fourteen record the outcome. Then Joshua blessed
1:31:23
Speaker 1: Caleb's son of Jaffuna and gave him Hebron as his inheritance.
1:31:27
Speaker 1: So Hebron has belonged to Caleb's son of Jafannah the
1:31:30
Speaker 1: Kenzite ever since. Because he followed the Lord, the God
1:31:35
Speaker 1: of Israel wholeheartedly, Caleb received exactly what he had been promised.
1:31:41
Speaker 1: The territory he had scouted as a forty year old
1:31:44
Speaker 1: spy became his inheritance as an eighty five year old warrior.
1:31:48
Speaker 1: God's faithfulness had bridged the gap between promise and fulfillment,
1:31:53
Speaker 1: between hope and reality. After Caleb's special inheritance was settled,
1:31:58
Speaker 1: the formal process of land districtsui began. The first lot
1:32:02
Speaker 1: drawn belonged to the tribe of Judah, the largest and
1:32:05
Speaker 1: most influential tribe in Israel. Their territory would be extensive
1:32:09
Speaker 1: and strategically important, stretching across much of southern Canaan. The
1:32:14
Speaker 1: boundaries of Judah's inheritance were described with remarkable precision. This
1:32:19
Speaker 1: wasn't a vague assignment of general regions. It was a
1:32:23
Speaker 1: detailed legal document that established exact borders and prevented future
1:32:28
Speaker 1: disputes between tribes. The southern boundary was described first. Joshua
1:32:33
Speaker 1: fifteen one to four provides the details. The allotment for
1:32:38
Speaker 1: the tribe of Judah, according to its clans, extended down
1:32:42
Speaker 1: to the territory of Edom to the desert of Zin
1:32:45
Speaker 1: in the extreme south. Their southern boundary started from the
1:32:49
Speaker 1: Bay at the southern end of the Dead Sea, crossed
1:32:53
Speaker 1: south of Scorpion Pass, continued on to Zin, and went
1:32:57
Speaker 1: over to the south of Kadesh Barnea. Then it ran
1:33:00
Speaker 1: past Hesron up to Adar and curved around to Kaka.
1:33:04
Speaker 1: It then passed along to Asmon and joined the Wadi
1:33:08
Speaker 1: of Egypt, ending at the Mediterranean Sea. This southern border
1:33:13
Speaker 1: stretched from the Dead Sea in the east all the
1:33:16
Speaker 1: way to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. It included
1:33:20
Speaker 1: some of the most challenging terrain in the entire land,
1:33:23
Speaker 1: desert regions that required skill and determination to inhabit successfully.
1:33:29
Speaker 1: But it also included some of the most historically significant
1:33:33
Speaker 1: locations in Israel's journey. Kadesh Barnea, mentioned in the boundary description,
1:33:39
Speaker 1: was where the original spies had brought their report forty
1:33:43
Speaker 1: five years earlier. It was where Israel had made the
1:33:47
Speaker 1: fateful decision to reject God's command to enter the land
1:33:51
Speaker 1: immediately now. This historic location marked the southern edge of
1:33:56
Speaker 1: Judah's inheritance, a reminder of both failure and eventual triumph.
1:34:02
Speaker 1: The eastern boundary was simpler to describe. Verse five states
1:34:07
Speaker 1: the eastern boundary is the Dead Sea as far as
1:34:10
Speaker 1: the mouth of the Jordan. The northern boundary started from
1:34:14
Speaker 1: the Bay of the Sea. At the mouth of the Jordan.
1:34:18
Speaker 1: The Dead Sea provided a clear, unmistakable border that would
1:34:22
Speaker 1: never change or shift. The northern boundary was more complex,
1:34:26
Speaker 1: involving numerous landmarks and geographical features. Verses five to nine
1:34:32
Speaker 1: trace this border in detail, passing very close to Jerusalem,
1:34:36
Speaker 1: which at this time was still occupied by the Jebusites.
1:34:40
Speaker 1: The boundary description shows that Jerusalem was technically within Judas territory,
1:34:45
Speaker 1: even though they hadn't yet conquered it. The western boundary
1:34:49
Speaker 1: was the most straightforward of all. Verse twelve simply states
1:34:54
Speaker 1: the western boundary is the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea.
1:34:59
Speaker 1: These are the boundaries around the people of Judah by
1:35:02
Speaker 1: their clans. The Mediterranean Sea provided a natural western border
1:35:08
Speaker 1: that was easy to identify and impossible to dispute. This
1:35:12
Speaker 1: gave Judah access to coastal trade routes and fishing opportunities,
1:35:16
Speaker 1: adding to the economic potential of their territory. The precision
1:35:21
Speaker 1: of these boundary descriptions shows how seriously God took the
1:35:25
Speaker 1: matter of tribal inheritances. Every hill, every valley, every stream
1:35:30
Speaker 1: and spring was carefully noted. There would be no ambiguity
1:35:34
Speaker 1: about where one tribe's territory ended and another's began. While
1:35:39
Speaker 1: the overall boundaries of Juda's territory had been established by Lot,
1:35:43
Speaker 1: there were special arrangements within those boundaries that needed to
1:35:47
Speaker 1: be addressed. These involved personal promises and family situations that
1:35:52
Speaker 1: required individual attention. The first special case was Caleb's inheritance,
1:35:58
Speaker 1: which had already been promise by Moses decades earlier. Joshua
1:36:02
Speaker 1: fifteen thirteen records how this was handled in accordance with
1:36:06
Speaker 1: the lord's command to him. Joshua gave to Caleb, son
1:36:10
Speaker 1: of Jafuna, a portion in Judah kiriath Arba, that is,
1:36:15
Speaker 1: Hebron Arba was the forefather of Anak. Caleb wasted no
1:36:20
Speaker 1: time in claiming his inheritance at eighty five years old.
1:36:24
Speaker 1: He immediately launched a military campaign against the giants who
1:36:28
Speaker 1: had terrorized the previous generation. Verse fourteen describes his success
1:36:33
Speaker 1: from Hebron, Caleb drove out the three Anakites Sheshai, Ahimai,
1:36:38
Speaker 1: and Talmai, the sons of Anak. But Caleb wasn't satisfied
1:36:42
Speaker 1: with just securing Hebron. He had his eye on another
1:36:46
Speaker 1: important city that needed to be conquered. Verse fifteen tells
1:36:50
Speaker 1: us from there he marched against the people living in Debiir,
1:36:54
Speaker 1: formerly called kiriath Sefer. Caleb decided to use this campaign
1:37:00
Speaker 1: as an opportunity to find a husband for his daughter.
1:37:04
Speaker 1: His announcement in verse sixteen was both practical and clever,
1:37:08
Speaker 1: and Caleb said, I will give my daughter Axa in
1:37:11
Speaker 1: marriage to the man who attacks and captures Kiriath Cepher.
1:37:16
Speaker 1: The challenge was accepted by Caleb's nephew. Verse seventeen records
1:37:21
Speaker 1: Othniil's son of Kena's Caleb's brother, took it, so Caleb
1:37:25
Speaker 1: gave his daughter Axa to him in marriage. Othnil proved
1:37:29
Speaker 1: himself worthy of both the military challenge and the family connection.
1:37:33
Speaker 1: He would later become the first judge of Israel, showing
1:37:36
Speaker 1: that Caleb's evaluation of his character was accurate. But the
1:37:41
Speaker 1: story doesn't end with the wedding. Axa proved to be
1:37:45
Speaker 1: as bold and practical as her father. Verse eighteen describes
1:37:50
Speaker 1: what happened one day when she came to Othniel. She
1:37:54
Speaker 1: urged him to ask her father for a field. When
1:37:57
Speaker 1: she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her, what can
1:38:00
Speaker 1: I do for you? Aksa had noticed that their inheritance,
1:38:04
Speaker 1: while valuable, lacked something essential for agricultural success. Her request
1:38:09
Speaker 1: in verse nineteen was both respectful and direct. She replied,
1:38:15
Speaker 1: do me a special favor. Since you have given me
1:38:18
Speaker 1: land in the Negev, give me also springs of water.
1:38:22
Speaker 1: So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs. Water
1:38:27
Speaker 1: was life in the ancient Middle East, especially in the
1:38:30
Speaker 1: semi arid Negev region. Aksa understood that land without reliable
1:38:35
Speaker 1: water sources would be difficult to farm and develop. Her
1:38:39
Speaker 1: request showed practical wisdom and long term thinking. Caleb's response
1:38:45
Speaker 1: revealed the kind of father he was. He didn't just
1:38:48
Speaker 1: give his daughter one spring. He gave her both the
1:38:51
Speaker 1: upper and lower springs, ensuring that she and Othniel would
1:38:55
Speaker 1: have abundant water for their crops and livestock. It was
1:38:58
Speaker 1: a generous gift that showed his love for his daughter
1:39:01
Speaker 1: and his confidence in her judgment. After the boundaries and
1:39:05
Speaker 1: special inheritances were settled, the detailed assignment of cities within
1:39:10
Speaker 1: Judah's territory began. This wasn't just about major population centers.
1:39:16
Speaker 1: It included towns, villages, and settlements throughout the entire region.
1:39:23
Speaker 1: The cities were organized by geographical regions to make administration easier.
1:39:28
Speaker 1: Joshua fifteen twenty one thirty two lists the cities in
1:39:31
Speaker 1: the southern Negev region. The southernmost towns of the tribe
1:39:35
Speaker 1: of Judah in the Negev toward the boundary of Edom
1:39:37
Speaker 1: were Kabzil, Eder, Jagur, Kina, Diemna, Adada, Kedesh, hazor ishnan Zif, Telem, Beloth, Hazor, Hadata, Kerrioth, Hesron,
1:39:50
Speaker 1: that is Hazor AmAm, Shima, Molada, Hazargada, Heshmon, Beth, Peleet, Hazar, Shual, Birsheba, Bisiothia,
1:40:00
Speaker 1: allah Iyim, zem Eltalad, Kesil, Horma, Ziklag, Madmana, Sansana, Lebaoth,
1:40:06
Speaker 1: shilhim Ain, and Riman. A total of twenty nine towns
1:40:10
Speaker 1: and their villages. This comprehensive list shows the extent of
1:40:15
Speaker 1: Judah's inheritance in the challenging southern region. Twenty nine towns
1:40:19
Speaker 1: with their surrounding villages represented a substantial population and significant
1:40:24
Speaker 1: agricultural potential, even in the relatively harsh Negev environment. The
1:40:31
Speaker 1: western foothills or Schepela, contained another group of important cities.
1:40:36
Speaker 1: These cities controlled the approaches between the coastal plain and
1:40:40
Speaker 1: the hill country. They were strategically positioned to defend against
1:40:45
Speaker 1: attacks from the Philistine territories and to control trade routes
1:40:50
Speaker 1: between different regions. Additional cities in the foothills and hill
1:40:54
Speaker 1: country were listed with careful organization and totaling to ensure
1:40:59
Speaker 1: aki at record keeping. The attention to detail shows how
1:41:03
Speaker 1: seriously the tribal leaders took their responsibility for proper land administration.
1:41:09
Speaker 1: But the extensive lists also revealed an important limitation. Not
1:41:14
Speaker 1: every city within Judah's assigned territory was actually under their control.
1:41:19
Speaker 1: The most significant example was mentioned in verse sixty three.
1:41:24
Speaker 1: Judah could not dislodge the Jebusites who were living in Jerusalem.
1:41:29
Speaker 1: To this day, the Jebusites lived there with the people
1:41:32
Speaker 1: of Judah. Jerusalem was supposed to be part of Judah's inheritance,
1:41:37
Speaker 1: but the tribe had been unable to conquer it. The
1:41:40
Speaker 1: Jebusites had strong fortifications and a strategic position that made
1:41:45
Speaker 1: their city very difficult to capture, so they continued to
1:41:48
Speaker 1: live alongside the Israelites in an uneasy coexistence. This failure
1:41:53
Speaker 1: to completely conquer Jerusalem would have long term consequences for
1:41:58
Speaker 1: Israel's history, but he remained a foreign stronghold in the
1:42:02
Speaker 1: heart of the Promised Land for several centuries until David
1:42:06
Speaker 1: finally captured it and made it his capital. The presence
1:42:11
Speaker 1: of unconquered Canaanites also created opportunities for religious and cultural compromise.
1:42:16
Speaker 1: The phrase to this day indicates that this situation persisted
1:42:20
Speaker 1: for a considerable time after the initial conquest. It serves
1:42:25
Speaker 1: as a reminder that receiving an inheritance from God doesn't
1:42:29
Speaker 1: automatically mean that all challenges disappear. The tribes still needed
1:42:34
Speaker 1: to demonstrate faith and courage to fully possess what God
1:42:38
Speaker 1: had given them. Despite the incomplete conquest of some areas,
1:42:42
Speaker 1: Judah's inheritance was substantial and valuable. The tribe received territory
1:42:47
Speaker 1: that stretched from the Mediterranean to the Dead Sea, from
1:42:51
Speaker 1: the wilderness borders in the south to the hill country
1:42:54
Speaker 1: in the north. The descendants of Joseph, the tribes of
1:42:58
Speaker 1: Ephraim and Manasse, received the next major territorial assignment. These
1:43:03
Speaker 1: two tribes held a special place in Israel's history because
1:43:07
Speaker 1: their ancestor had been Jacob's favorite son, and Jacob had
1:43:11
Speaker 1: personally blessed Joseph's sons before his death. The territory assigned
1:43:15
Speaker 1: to Joseph's descendants was located in the central hill Country,
1:43:20
Speaker 1: some of the most fertile and strategically important land in
1:43:23
Speaker 1: all of Canaan. Joshua sixteen one to three describes the
1:43:28
Speaker 1: southern boundary of this inheritance. The allotment for Joseph began
1:43:32
Speaker 1: at the Jordan east of the waters of Jericho, and
1:43:36
Speaker 1: went up from there through the desert into the hill
1:43:39
Speaker 1: country of Bethel. It went on from Bethel, that is loose,
1:43:44
Speaker 1: to the territory of the Archits in Ataroth. Then it
1:43:47
Speaker 1: descended westward to the territory of the Jafhletites, as far
1:43:51
Speaker 1: as the region of Lower beth Horon, and on to Gezer,
1:43:56
Speaker 1: ending at the Mediterranean Sea. This boundary description shows that
1:44:01
Speaker 1: Joseph's descendants controlled key routes between the Jordan valley and
1:44:05
Speaker 1: the Mediterranean coast. The territory included important cities like Bethel,
1:44:10
Speaker 1: which would become a significant religious center in later Israelite history.
1:44:15
Speaker 1: Within this general inheritance, Ephraim received the southern portion. Their
1:44:20
Speaker 1: territory was compact but extremely valuable. It included some of
1:44:25
Speaker 1: the best agricultural land in the country and controlled important
1:44:28
Speaker 1: cross roads between north and south, east and west. The
1:44:32
Speaker 1: tribe would later produce Joshua himself, as well as other
1:44:36
Speaker 1: significant leaders in Israel's history. However, like Judah, Ephraim faced
1:44:42
Speaker 1: challenges in completely conquering their territory, Joshua sixteen ten reveals
1:44:47
Speaker 1: a significant limitation. They did not dislodge the Canaanites living
1:44:52
Speaker 1: in Gaza. To this day, the Canaanites live among the
1:44:55
Speaker 1: people of Ephraim, but are required to do forced labor.
1:45:00
Speaker 1: The failure to completely eliminate the Canaanites from Gaeyzer represented
1:45:04
Speaker 1: a compromise that would have negative consequences later. While forcing
1:45:10
Speaker 1: the Canaanites into labour service seemed like a practical solution,
1:45:14
Speaker 1: it also meant that pagan influences remained within Ephraim's territory. Manassa,
1:45:20
Speaker 1: the other half of Joseph's descendants, received territory both east
1:45:24
Speaker 1: and west of the Jordan River. The eastern portion had
1:45:28
Speaker 1: been given under Moses leadership, but now they also received
1:45:32
Speaker 1: western territory. But Manassa's inheritance included an unusual situation involving
1:45:38
Speaker 1: women's inheritance. Rites Verses three to four of chapter seventeen
1:45:43
Speaker 1: described this special case. Now Zalofi had son of Heffer,
1:45:47
Speaker 1: the son of Gilead, the son of Makhir, the son
1:45:50
Speaker 1: of Manassa, had no sons, but only daughters whose names
1:45:54
Speaker 1: were Mahla Noah, Hogla, Milka, and Tirza. They went to Eliaza,
1:46:01
Speaker 1: the priest, Joshua, son of Nun, and the leaders and said,
1:46:05
Speaker 1: the Lord commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among
1:46:08
Speaker 1: our relatives. So Joshua gave them an inheritance along with
1:46:13
Speaker 1: the brothers of their father, according to the Lord's command.
1:46:16
Speaker 1: This case had been decided earlier when Moses was still alive,
1:46:21
Speaker 1: but now it needed to be implemented in the actual
1:46:23
Speaker 1: land distribution. The daughters of Zelophihad had successfully argued that
1:46:28
Speaker 1: they should inherit their father's portion, since he had no sons.
1:46:33
Speaker 1: This precedent established important principles about women's property rights. Despite
1:46:39
Speaker 1: receiving substantial territory, the tribes of Ephraim and Manassa weren't
1:46:43
Speaker 1: satisfied with their inheritance. Joshua seventeen fourteen records their complaint.
1:46:50
Speaker 1: The people of Joseph said to Joshua, why have you
1:46:53
Speaker 1: given us only one allotment and one portion for an inheritance.
1:46:58
Speaker 1: We are a numerous people, and the Lord has blessed
1:47:01
Speaker 1: us abundantly. Their complaint reveals both ingratitude and lack of faith.
1:47:07
Speaker 1: They had received some of the best land in the
1:47:10
Speaker 1: entire country, but they wanted more. Instead of being thankful
1:47:15
Speaker 1: for God's provision, they were focused on what they thought
1:47:18
Speaker 1: they deserved based on their numbers. Joshua's response was both
1:47:22
Speaker 1: practical and challenging. He told them that if they wanted
1:47:26
Speaker 1: more land, they should go take it. God had given
1:47:30
Speaker 1: them the ability and the promise, They just needed the
1:47:33
Speaker 1: faith an effort to claim it. The forested areas could
1:47:37
Speaker 1: be cleared and developed, and even the iron chariots of
1:47:40
Speaker 1: the Canaanites weren't too powerful for God to overcome. This
1:47:45
Speaker 1: exchange reveals an important principle about God's blessings. He provides
1:47:50
Speaker 1: what we need, but He often expects us to work
1:47:53
Speaker 1: to develop and expand what he has given us. After Judah, Ephraim,
1:47:59
Speaker 1: and Manasse had received their inheritances, seven tribes still needed
1:48:03
Speaker 1: their territorial assignments. But something troubling was happening. These remaining
1:48:08
Speaker 1: tribes were showing reluctance to claim their inheritances and settle down.
1:48:14
Speaker 1: The entire congregation moved from Gilgal to a new location
1:48:18
Speaker 1: that would become the religious center of Israel. Joshua eighteen
1:48:22
Speaker 1: one records this important transition. The whole assembly of Israel
1:48:28
Speaker 1: gathered at Shiloh and set up the tent of meeting there.
1:48:32
Speaker 1: The country was brought under their control. Shiloh became the
1:48:36
Speaker 1: central sanctuary where the tabernacle would remain for several centuries.
1:48:40
Speaker 1: This location in the hill country of Ephraim was more
1:48:44
Speaker 1: centrally positioned than Gilgal had been, making it accessible to
1:48:48
Speaker 1: all the tribes. The phrase the country was brought under
1:48:51
Speaker 1: their control indicates that the major military campaigns were over
1:48:56
Speaker 1: and it was time to focus on settlement and administration.
1:49:00
Speaker 1: But Joshua noticed a problem with the seven remaining tribes.
1:49:04
Speaker 1: Verse three reveals his concern. So Joshua said to the Israelites,
1:49:09
Speaker 1: how long will you wait before you begin to take
1:49:11
Speaker 1: possession of the land that the Lord, the God of
1:49:14
Speaker 1: your fathers, has given you. The tribes were hesitating to
1:49:19
Speaker 1: claim their inheritances. Perhaps they had grown comfortable with military
1:49:23
Speaker 1: life and weren't ready to settle down to farming and
1:49:26
Speaker 1: civilian responsibilities. Maybe they were intimidated by the work involved
1:49:32
Speaker 1: in clearing land and building cities. Joshua decided to take
1:49:37
Speaker 1: decisive action to move the process forward. His solution was
1:49:41
Speaker 1: both practical and fair a comprehensive survey of the remaining
1:49:46
Speaker 1: territory that would provide detailed information for making informed assignments.
1:49:51
Speaker 1: Verses four to six describe Joshua's plan. Appoint three men
1:49:56
Speaker 1: from each tribe. I will send them out to make
1:49:58
Speaker 1: a survey of the land and to write a description
1:50:01
Speaker 1: of it according to the inheritance of each. Then they
1:50:05
Speaker 1: will return to me. You are to divide the land
1:50:08
Speaker 1: into seven parts. Judah is to remain in its territory
1:50:12
Speaker 1: on the south, and the tribes of Joseph in their
1:50:15
Speaker 1: territory on the north. After you have written descriptions of
1:50:19
Speaker 1: the seven parts of the land, bring them here to me,
1:50:23
Speaker 1: and I will cast lots for you in the presence
1:50:26
Speaker 1: of the Lord, our God. This survey expedition was remarkably
1:50:31
Speaker 1: sophisticated for its time. Twenty one men, three from each
1:50:36
Speaker 1: of the seven tribes, would travel throughout the unconquered territories,
1:50:40
Speaker 1: mapping boundaries, identifying cities, noting resources, and documenting everything they found.
1:50:47
Speaker 1: The survey team carried out their assignment with thoroughness and efficiency.
1:50:51
Speaker 1: Verses eight to nine described their work. As the men
1:50:55
Speaker 1: started on their way to map out the land, Joshua
1:50:59
Speaker 1: instructed them, go and make a survey of the land
1:51:02
Speaker 1: and write a description of it. Then return to me,
1:51:05
Speaker 1: and I will cast lots for you here at Shiloh
1:51:08
Speaker 1: in the presence of the Lord. So the men left
1:51:12
Speaker 1: and went through the land. They wrote its description on
1:51:15
Speaker 1: a scroll town by town in seven parts, and returned
1:51:19
Speaker 1: to Joshua in the camp at Shiloh. The fact that
1:51:22
Speaker 1: they wrote their findings on a scroll town by town
1:51:27
Speaker 1: shows the detailed nature of their work. This wasn't a
1:51:30
Speaker 1: rough sketch or general overview. It was a comprehensive geographical
1:51:35
Speaker 1: and demographic survey that would serve as the basis for
1:51:39
Speaker 1: permanent tribal boundaries. When the survey was complete, Joshua proceeded
1:51:44
Speaker 1: with the lot casting ceremony. Verse ten records. Joshua then
1:51:49
Speaker 1: cast lots for them in Shiloh in the presence of
1:51:52
Speaker 1: the Lord, and there he distributed the land to the
1:51:55
Speaker 1: Israelites according to their tribal divisions. The lot trusting took
1:52:00
Speaker 1: place in the presence of the Lord at the tabernacle,
1:52:03
Speaker 1: emphasizing that these assignments came from God rather than human
1:52:08
Speaker 1: decision making. Each tribe received exactly what God intended for them.
1:52:14
Speaker 1: The seven tribal assignments were then described in detail. Benjamin
1:52:18
Speaker 1: received territory between Judah and Joseph. Simeon was given land
1:52:23
Speaker 1: within Judah's territory in the south, Zebulun got hill country
1:52:28
Speaker 1: in the north, Isaka received the eastern portion of the
1:52:32
Speaker 1: Jezreel Valley. Asher was assigned the coastal territory north of
1:52:37
Speaker 1: Mount Carmel, Naftali got the northernmost territory around the Sea
1:52:41
Speaker 1: of Galilee, and Dan initially received territory west of Benjamin.
1:52:47
Speaker 1: The final assignment was special and personal Joshua nineteen forty
1:52:52
Speaker 1: nine to fifty records. When they had finished dividing the
1:52:55
Speaker 1: land into its allotted portions, the Israelites gave Joshua, a
1:53:00
Speaker 1: son of none, an inheritance among them, as the Lord
1:53:04
Speaker 1: had commanded. They gave him the town he asked for
1:53:07
Speaker 1: tim Nath Serah in the hill country of Ephraim, and
1:53:11
Speaker 1: he built up the town and settled there after, ensuring
1:53:15
Speaker 1: that every tribe received their proper inheritance. Joshua finally accepted
1:53:20
Speaker 1: a personal portion for himself, his willingness to wait until
1:53:24
Speaker 1: every one else was taken care of before claiming his
1:53:27
Speaker 1: own inheritance shows the kind of selfless leadership that had
1:53:31
Speaker 1: made him so effective. With the tribal territories assigned, two
1:53:37
Speaker 1: final administrative tasks remained that were crucial for justice and
1:53:42
Speaker 1: religious life in Israel. God had given specific commands about
1:53:46
Speaker 1: establishing cities of refuge and providing cities for the Levites,
1:53:51
Speaker 1: and now was the time to implement these important institutions.
1:53:55
Speaker 1: The cities of refuge addressed a critical need in ancient
1:53:59
Speaker 1: society what to do when some one killed another person accidentally.
1:54:05
Speaker 1: Without a proper legal system, such situations often led to
1:54:08
Speaker 1: blood feuds and cycles of revenge that could destroy entire
1:54:12
Speaker 1: families and communities. Joshua twenty one three records God's instructions
1:54:18
Speaker 1: about establishing these special cities. Then the Lord said to Joshua,
1:54:23
Speaker 1: tell the Israelites to designate the cities of refuge as
1:54:27
Speaker 1: I instructed you through Moses, so that any one who
1:54:30
Speaker 1: kills a person accidentally and unintentionally may flee there and
1:54:35
Speaker 1: find protection from the avenger of blood. The concept was
1:54:39
Speaker 1: both merciful and practical. Some one who caused an accidental
1:54:43
Speaker 1: death could flee to one of these cities and be
1:54:46
Speaker 1: safe from revenge while their case was properly investigated. This
1:54:51
Speaker 1: prevented hasty executions and gave the legal system time to
1:54:55
Speaker 1: determine whether a death was truly accidental or intentional murder.
1:55:00
Speaker 1: The procedure for using these cities was carefully regulated. The
1:55:04
Speaker 1: fugitive had to present their case to city elders, who
1:55:07
Speaker 1: would evaluate whether the claim of accidental killing was credible.
1:55:12
Speaker 1: If accepted, they would be protected from revenge, but couldn't
1:55:15
Speaker 1: simply return home immediately. Six cities were designated as refuges,
1:55:22
Speaker 1: strategically located throughout the land. Verses seven eight listhem. So
1:55:27
Speaker 1: they set apart Kadesh in Galilee in the hill country
1:55:31
Speaker 1: of Naftali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and
1:55:35
Speaker 1: kiriath Arba, that is, Hebron in the hill country of Judah,
1:55:40
Speaker 1: east of the Jordan on the other side from Jericho.
1:55:43
Speaker 1: They designated Biza in the wilderness on the plateau in
1:55:47
Speaker 1: the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead in the tribe
1:55:51
Speaker 1: of Gad, and Golan in Bashan in the tribe of Manassa.
1:55:56
Speaker 1: The geographical distribution ensured that no one in Israel was
1:56:00
Speaker 1: more than a day's journey from a city of refuge.
1:56:05
Speaker 1: Three cities were west of the Jordan and three were east,
1:56:09
Speaker 1: providing coverage for all the tribal territories. Remarkably, this protection
1:56:15
Speaker 1: was extended even to foreigners living among the Israelites. The
1:56:19
Speaker 1: system was designed to insure justice for everyone, regardless of
1:56:23
Speaker 1: their ethnic background. The second major administrative task involved providing
1:56:29
Speaker 1: cities for the Levites. Unlike the other tribes, Levi hadn't
1:56:33
Speaker 1: received a territorial inheritance. Instead, they were to be scattered
1:56:38
Speaker 1: throughout all the tribes to provide religious leadership and instruction.
1:56:42
Speaker 1: Joshua twenty one one to three describes how this was implemented. Now,
1:56:48
Speaker 1: the family heads of the Levites approached Eliaza, the priest Joshua,
1:56:52
Speaker 1: son of Nun, and the heads of the other tribal
1:56:55
Speaker 1: clans of Israel at Shiloh in Canaan, and said to them,
1:56:59
Speaker 1: the Lord commanded through Moses, that you give us towns
1:57:02
Speaker 1: to live in with pasture lands for our livestock. So
1:57:07
Speaker 1: as the Lord had commanded, the Israelites gave the Levites
1:57:10
Speaker 1: the following towns and pasture lands out of their own inheritance.
1:57:16
Speaker 1: The Levites didn't demand their cities. They respectfully approached the
1:57:20
Speaker 1: leadership and reminded them of God's command through Moses. Their
1:57:24
Speaker 1: request was both reasonable and necessary. They needed places to
1:57:29
Speaker 1: live and pasture their animals. But more importantly, every tribe
1:57:34
Speaker 1: needed Levites among them to maintain proper worship and teach
1:57:37
Speaker 1: God's law. The total allocation was substantial. Verses forty one
1:57:43
Speaker 1: to forty two provide the summary. The towns of the
1:57:46
Speaker 1: Levites in the territory held by the Israelites were forty
1:57:50
Speaker 1: eight in all, together with their pasture lands. Each of
1:57:54
Speaker 1: these towns had pasture lands surrounding it. This was true
1:57:57
Speaker 1: for all these towns. Eight cities represented a significant commitment
1:58:02
Speaker 1: from the other tribes. Each tribe had to give up
1:58:06
Speaker 1: some of their most valuable real estate to provide for
1:58:08
Speaker 1: the Levites. But this arrangement served everyone's interests by ensuring
1:58:13
Speaker 1: that religious leadership would be available throughout the land. The
1:58:17
Speaker 1: completion of these assignments marked the fulfillment of all God's
1:58:21
Speaker 1: promises regarding the land. Verses forty three forty five provide
1:58:26
Speaker 1: a powerful conclusion. So the Lord gave Israel all the
1:58:30
Speaker 1: land he had sworn to give their ancestors, and they
1:58:33
Speaker 1: took possession of it and settled there. The Lord gave
1:58:37
Speaker 1: them rest on every side, just as he had sworn
1:58:40
Speaker 1: to their ancestors. Not one of their enemies withstood them.
1:58:44
Speaker 1: The Lord gave all their enemies into their hands. Not
1:58:47
Speaker 1: one of all the Lord's good promises to the people
1:58:50
Speaker 1: of Israel failed. Everyone was fulfilled. Every promise God had
1:58:56
Speaker 1: made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had been kept. The
1:58:59
Speaker 1: land was theirs, their enemies were defeated, and they had
1:59:03
Speaker 1: rest from war. The cities of refuge provided justice, the
1:59:08
Speaker 1: levitical cities insured proper worship, and the tribal territories gave
1:59:12
Speaker 1: everyone a permanent inheritance. With the land divided among the tribes,
1:59:17
Speaker 1: there was still one crucial system that needed to be established,
1:59:21
Speaker 1: a way to protect people who killed someone by accident.
1:59:25
Speaker 1: In ancient times, when someone died, their family had the
1:59:28
Speaker 1: right to take revenge on the killer. But what if
1:59:32
Speaker 1: the death was truly an accident. The Lord spoke to
1:59:35
Speaker 1: Joshua about this important matter in chapter twenty, verse two.
1:59:40
Speaker 1: Tell the Israelites to designate the cities of refuge, as
1:59:44
Speaker 1: I instructed you through Moses. These wouldn't be ordinary cities.
1:59:48
Speaker 1: They would be special places where someone who killed accidentally
1:59:52
Speaker 1: could run for safety. The purpose was clear and merciful.
1:59:57
Speaker 1: Verse three explains, so that anyone who kills a person
2:00:01
Speaker 1: accidentally and unintentionally may flee there and find protection from
2:00:06
Speaker 1: the Avenger of blood. The avenger of blood was usually
2:00:10
Speaker 1: the closest male relative of the person who died. Under
2:00:14
Speaker 1: the law, this person had the right and duty to
2:00:17
Speaker 1: track down the killer and execute him. The process was
2:00:20
Speaker 1: carefully designed to be both fair and protective. Verses four
2:00:25
Speaker 1: to six describe exactly how it would work. When they
2:00:29
Speaker 1: flee to one of these cities, they are to stand
2:00:32
Speaker 1: in the entrance of the city gate and state their
2:00:35
Speaker 1: case before the elders of that city. Then the elders
2:00:39
Speaker 1: are to admit the fugitive into their city and provide
2:00:43
Speaker 1: a place to live among them. If the Avenger of
2:00:46
Speaker 1: Blood comes in pursuit, the elders must not surrender the
2:00:49
Speaker 1: fugitive because the fugitive killed their neighbor unintentionally and without malice.
2:00:55
Speaker 1: A forethought, this system protected innocent people while still respect
2:01:00
Speaker 1: acting the rights of families who had lost someone. The
2:01:03
Speaker 1: fugitive had to present their case to the city elders,
2:01:07
Speaker 1: who would decide if the claim of accidental killing was believable.
2:01:12
Speaker 1: Six cities were chosen to serve as refuges, spread throughout
2:01:16
Speaker 1: the entire land Verses seven eight Listhem. So they set
2:01:20
Speaker 1: apart Kadesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naftali,
2:01:24
Speaker 1: Sheshem in the hill country of Ephraim, and kiriath Arba,
2:01:29
Speaker 1: that is, Hebron in the hill country of Judah. East
2:01:33
Speaker 1: of the Jordan. They designated Bezer in the wilderness on
2:01:36
Speaker 1: the plateau in the tribe of Reuben, Ramoth in Gilead
2:01:40
Speaker 1: in the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan in
2:01:45
Speaker 1: the tribe of Manasse. The geographical distribution was perfect. Three
2:01:50
Speaker 1: cities were west of the Jordan River and three were
2:01:53
Speaker 1: east of it. No matter where someone lived in Israel,
2:01:56
Speaker 1: they were never more than a day's journey from safety.
2:02:00
Speaker 1: The tribe of Levi had a unique situation in Israel.
2:02:04
Speaker 1: Unlike the other tribes, they hadn't received a large territory
2:02:08
Speaker 1: to call their own. Instead, their inheritance was to serve
2:02:12
Speaker 1: God and teach his law to the people, but they
2:02:16
Speaker 1: still needed places to live and land for their animals.
2:02:21
Speaker 1: The Levites approached the leadership respectfully to claim what God
2:02:24
Speaker 1: had promised them. Joshua twenty one one to two records
2:02:28
Speaker 1: their request. Now, the family heads of the Levites approached Elizar,
2:02:33
Speaker 1: the priest Joshua, son of Nune, and the heads of
2:02:36
Speaker 1: the other tribal clans of Israel, at Shiloh in Canaan,
2:02:40
Speaker 1: and said to them, the Lord commanded through Moses, that
2:02:44
Speaker 1: you give us towns to live in with pasture lands
2:02:47
Speaker 1: for our live stock. The other tribes responded obediently. Verse
2:02:52
Speaker 1: three tells us so as the Lord had commanded, the
2:02:56
Speaker 1: Israelites gave the Levites the following towns and pasturelands out
2:03:01
Speaker 1: of their own inheritance. The Levites were divided into three
2:03:05
Speaker 1: main family groups, and each group received cities in different areas.
2:03:10
Speaker 1: The descendants of Aaron, who served as priests, got the
2:03:14
Speaker 1: most important assignment. They received cities in the territories closest
2:03:18
Speaker 1: to where the temple would eventually be built in Jerusalem.
2:03:22
Speaker 1: The total number of cities was impressive. Verses forty one
2:03:26
Speaker 1: forty two provide the summary. The towns of the Levites
2:03:30
Speaker 1: in the territory held by the Israelites were forty eight
2:03:34
Speaker 1: in all, together with their pasture lands. Each of these
2:03:38
Speaker 1: towns had pasture lands surrounding it. This was true for
2:03:41
Speaker 1: all these towns. Forty eight cities with their surrounding pasturelands,
2:03:46
Speaker 1: represented a major commitment from the other tribes. They were
2:03:50
Speaker 1: giving up some of their most valuable real estate to
2:03:53
Speaker 1: provide for the Levites. But this arrangement benefited everyone by
2:03:58
Speaker 1: ensuring that religious leaders, worship, and instruction would be available
2:04:02
Speaker 1: throughout the entire land. The completion of this distribution marked
2:04:08
Speaker 1: something incredibly significant. Verses forty three to forty five contained
2:04:13
Speaker 1: some of the most important words in the entire book.
2:04:16
Speaker 1: So the Lord gave Israel all the land he had
2:04:19
Speaker 1: sworn to give their ancestors, and they took possession of
2:04:23
Speaker 1: it and settled there. The Lord gave them rest on
2:04:27
Speaker 1: every side, just as he had sworn to their ancestors.
2:04:31
Speaker 1: Not one of their enemies withstood them. The Lord gave
2:04:34
Speaker 1: all their enemies into their hands. Not one of all
2:04:37
Speaker 1: the Lord's good promises to the people of Israel failed.
2:04:41
Speaker 1: Everyone was fulfilled. Every single promise that God had made
2:04:45
Speaker 1: to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had come true. The land
2:04:50
Speaker 1: was theirs. Their enemies were defeated, and they had rest
2:04:53
Speaker 1: from war. With the land distribution complete, Joshua turned his
2:04:57
Speaker 1: attention to the two and a half tribes who had
2:05:00
Speaker 1: been fighting alongside their brothers for years. The tribes of Reuben,
2:05:05
Speaker 1: Gad and the half tribe of manasse had left their
2:05:09
Speaker 1: families and homes on the east side of the Jordan
2:05:12
Speaker 1: River to help conquer the western territories. Now it was
2:05:17
Speaker 1: time for them to return home. Joshua called these tribes
2:05:22
Speaker 1: together for a special ceremony. Chapter twenty two, Verses one
2:05:26
Speaker 1: to three record his words. Then Joshua summoned the Rubenites,
2:05:31
Speaker 1: the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and said
2:05:34
Speaker 1: to them, you have done all that Moses, the servant
2:05:37
Speaker 1: of the Lord, commanded, and you have obeyed me in
2:05:40
Speaker 1: everything I commanded for a long time. Now to this
2:05:44
Speaker 1: very day, you have not deserted your fellow Israelites, but
2:05:48
Speaker 1: have carried out the mission the Lord, your God, gave you.
2:05:52
Speaker 1: These tribes had made an incredible sacrifice. Years earlier, they
2:05:56
Speaker 1: had promised to help their brothers conquer the West side
2:05:59
Speaker 1: before returning to their own families. They had kept that
2:06:03
Speaker 1: promise faithfully. Joshua announced that their military service was complete.
2:06:09
Speaker 1: Verses four to five contain his official dismissal. Now that
2:06:14
Speaker 1: the Lord your God has given them rest as he promised,
2:06:17
Speaker 1: returned to your homes in the land that Moses, the
2:06:20
Speaker 1: servant of the Lord, gave you on the other side
2:06:22
Speaker 1: of the Jordan. But be very careful to keep the
2:06:25
Speaker 1: commandment and the law that Moses, the servant of the
2:06:28
Speaker 1: Lord gave you. To love the Lord your God, to
2:06:32
Speaker 1: walk in obedience to him, to keep his commands, to
2:06:35
Speaker 1: hold fast to him, and to serve him with all
2:06:38
Speaker 1: your heart and with all your soul. But Joshua didn't
2:06:41
Speaker 1: send them home empty handed. Verses seven to eight describe
2:06:45
Speaker 1: his generous blessing. When Joshua dismissed them to their homes,
2:06:49
Speaker 1: he blessed them saying, return to your homes with your
2:06:52
Speaker 1: great wealth, with large herds of live stock, with silver, gold, bronze,
2:06:57
Speaker 1: and iron, and a great quantity of clothes, and divide
2:07:01
Speaker 1: the plunder from your enemies with your fellow tribesmen. The
2:07:05
Speaker 1: Eastern tribes had become wealthy through their share of the
2:07:09
Speaker 1: conquest plunder. Joshua told them to take this wealth home
2:07:12
Speaker 1: and share it with their relatives who had stayed behind.
2:07:16
Speaker 1: The Eastern tribe's journey home should have been a happy
2:07:20
Speaker 1: ending to their years of faithful service, but something happened
2:07:23
Speaker 1: along the way that nearly caused a civil war among
2:07:27
Speaker 1: the tribes of Israel. Chapter twenty two, verse ten describes
2:07:31
Speaker 1: what they did when they came to Galliloth near the Jordan,
2:07:34
Speaker 1: in the land of Canaan. The Rubenites, the Gadites, and
2:07:38
Speaker 1: the half tribe of Manasse built an imposing altar there
2:07:41
Speaker 1: by the Jordan. When news reached the Western tribes, they
2:07:46
Speaker 1: were horrified. Building an altar outside the designated place of
2:07:49
Speaker 1: worship looked like rebellion against God's commands. The reaction was
2:07:54
Speaker 1: swift and intense. Verses eleven to twelve show how seriously
2:07:59
Speaker 1: the way Western tribes took this situation. And when the
2:08:03
Speaker 1: Israelites heard that they had built the altar on the
2:08:05
Speaker 1: border of Canaan at Gelliloth near the Jordan on the
2:08:08
Speaker 1: Israelite side, the whole assembly of Israel gathered at Shiloh
2:08:13
Speaker 1: to go to war against them. The Western tribes were
2:08:16
Speaker 1: ready to fight their own brothers. They thought the Eastern
2:08:19
Speaker 1: tribes were starting their own rival religion, which would bring
2:08:23
Speaker 1: God's judgment on all of Israel. But before they attacked,
2:08:26
Speaker 1: they decided to send a delegation to find out what
2:08:29
Speaker 1: was really going on. They sent Phinihas, the priest, and
2:08:33
Speaker 1: ten tribal leaders to investigate. When they reached the Eastern tribes,
2:08:38
Speaker 1: Phinihas delivered a stern message accusing them of rebellion. The
2:08:42
Speaker 1: Eastern tribes were shocked by this accusation. They quickly explained
2:08:46
Speaker 1: their true motives. Verses twenty four to twenty seven revealed
2:08:51
Speaker 1: their concern. But we did it for fear that some
2:08:54
Speaker 1: day your descendants might say to ours, what do you
2:08:57
Speaker 1: have to do with the Lord, the God of his Israel.
2:09:00
Speaker 1: The Lord has made the Jordan a boundary between us
2:09:04
Speaker 1: and you, You Rubenites and Gadites. You have no share
2:09:08
Speaker 1: in the Lord. So your descendants might cause ours to
2:09:11
Speaker 1: stop fearing the Lord. That is why we said, let
2:09:14
Speaker 1: us get ready and build an altar, but not for
2:09:16
Speaker 1: burnt offerings or sacrifices. On the contrary, it is to
2:09:21
Speaker 1: be a witness between us and you and the generations
2:09:24
Speaker 1: that follow, that we will worship the Lord at his sanctuary.
2:09:30
Speaker 1: Their motive was actually the opposite of rebellion. They were
2:09:34
Speaker 1: trying to preserve their connection to God and their fellow Israelites.
2:09:39
Speaker 1: They were worried that future generations might forget that the
2:09:42
Speaker 1: Eastern tribes were part of Israel. The Altar was meant
2:09:46
Speaker 1: to be a witness, a reminder that they too belonged
2:09:49
Speaker 1: to the Lord. The explanation completely changed everything. What had
2:09:54
Speaker 1: seemed like rebellion was actually faithfulness. The crisis was over
2:09:59
Speaker 1: and civil war war was avoided through honest communication. Years
2:10:04
Speaker 1: passed after the Altar crisis was resolved. Joshua was growing old,
2:10:09
Speaker 1: and he knew his time as leader was coming to
2:10:12
Speaker 1: an end. Chapter twenty three, Verse one sets the scene
2:10:16
Speaker 1: after a long time had passed and the Lord had
2:10:19
Speaker 1: given Israel rest from all their enemies around them. Joshua,
2:10:23
Speaker 1: by then a very old man. Joshua called together all
2:10:27
Speaker 1: the leaders of Israel for an important meeting. He began
2:10:31
Speaker 1: his speech by reminding them of everything God had done
2:10:35
Speaker 1: for them. Verse three contains his opening words, You yourselves
2:10:40
Speaker 1: have seen everything the Lord your God has done to
2:10:44
Speaker 1: all these nations for your sake. It was the Lord
2:10:47
Speaker 1: your God who fought for you. Joshua wanted to make
2:10:51
Speaker 1: sure they understood that their success hadn't come from their
2:10:54
Speaker 1: own strength. God had fought for them and given them
2:10:58
Speaker 1: victory over every enemy. But then came the most important
2:11:02
Speaker 1: part of his speech, the warnings. Verses six to eight
2:11:06
Speaker 1: contain his urgent appeal, be very strong, be careful to
2:11:11
Speaker 1: obey all that is written in the book of the
2:11:13
Speaker 1: Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or
2:11:16
Speaker 1: to the left. Do not associate with these nations that
2:11:20
Speaker 1: remain among you. Do not invoke the names of their
2:11:23
Speaker 1: gods or swear by them. You must not serve them
2:11:26
Speaker 1: or bow down to them. But you are to hold
2:11:29
Speaker 1: fast to the Lord your God, as you have until now. Thadi.
2:11:34
Speaker 1: This was the key to continued success. They had to
2:11:37
Speaker 1: obey God's law completely, avoid compromising with pagan religions, and
2:11:42
Speaker 1: maintain their exclusive loyalty to the Lord. Then came the
2:11:46
Speaker 1: sobering warning about what would happen if they disobeyed. Verses
2:11:50
Speaker 1: twelve to thirteen spell out the consequences. But if you
2:11:54
Speaker 1: turn away and ally yourselves with the survivors of these
2:11:57
Speaker 1: nations that remain among you, and if you inter marry
2:12:00
Speaker 1: with them and associate with them, then you may be
2:12:03
Speaker 1: sure that the Lord your God will no longer drive
2:12:06
Speaker 1: out these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares
2:12:10
Speaker 1: and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns
2:12:14
Speaker 1: in your eyes, until you perish from this good land
2:12:17
Speaker 1: which the Lord your God has given you. The choice
2:12:21
Speaker 1: was clear. Faithfulness to God would bring continued blessing, but
2:12:26
Speaker 1: turning away from God to follow pagan practices would bring disaster.
2:12:31
Speaker 1: Some time after his first farewell address, Joshua felt the
2:12:34
Speaker 1: need to gather the people one more time. This would
2:12:38
Speaker 1: be his final speech to the nation, and he chose Shechem,
2:12:42
Speaker 1: a location with deep historical significance. Chapter twenty four, Verse
2:12:47
Speaker 1: one describes this gathering. Then Joshua assembled all the tribes
2:12:51
Speaker 1: of Israel at Chechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges,
2:12:55
Speaker 1: and officials of Israel, and they presented themselves before God.
2:13:01
Speaker 1: Joshua began his final speech not with his own words,
2:13:04
Speaker 1: but with a message from God himself. Verse two introduces
2:13:08
Speaker 1: this divine proclamation. Joshua said to all the people, this
2:13:13
Speaker 1: is what the Lord, the God of Israel says. What
2:13:17
Speaker 1: followed was a sweeping review of Israel's history from God's perspective.
2:13:22
Speaker 1: The historical review started with Abraham's family before they knew
2:13:26
Speaker 1: the true God. Verses two to three begin the story.
2:13:30
Speaker 1: Long ago, your ancestors, including Terror, the father of Abraham
2:13:34
Speaker 1: and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods.
2:13:39
Speaker 1: But I took your father Abraham from the land beyond
2:13:43
Speaker 1: the Euphrates and led him throughout Canaan, and gave him
2:13:46
Speaker 1: many descendants. I gave him Isaac. God reminded them that
2:13:51
Speaker 1: their story began with his grace, not their goodness. Abraham's
2:13:55
Speaker 1: family had been idle worshipers like everyone else, but God
2:13:59
Speaker 1: had chosen Abraham and called him away from his homeland.
2:14:03
Speaker 1: The story of the Exodus received special attention. Verses five
2:14:08
Speaker 1: seven recount this dramatic rescue. Then I sent Moses and Aaron,
2:14:14
Speaker 1: and I afflicted the Egyptians by what I did there,
2:14:17
Speaker 1: and I brought you out. When I brought your ancestors
2:14:20
Speaker 1: out of Egypt, you came to the sea, and the
2:14:23
Speaker 1: Egyptians pursued them with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea.
2:14:27
Speaker 1: But they cried out to the Lord, and he put
2:14:30
Speaker 1: darkness between you and the Egyptians. He brought the sea
2:14:34
Speaker 1: over them and covered them. The conquest was described as
2:14:38
Speaker 1: God's work, not Israel's achievement. Verses eleven thirteen summarized these victories.
2:14:45
Speaker 1: Then you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The
2:14:48
Speaker 1: citizens of Jericho fought against you, as did also the Amorites, Perizites, Canaanites, Hittites, Gergoshites, Hivites,
2:14:57
Speaker 1: and Jebusites. But I gave them into you your hands.
2:15:01
Speaker 1: I sent the hornet ahead of you, which drove them
2:15:03
Speaker 1: out before you. Also the two Amorite kings. You did
2:15:07
Speaker 1: not do it with your own sword and bow. So
2:15:10
Speaker 1: I gave you a land on which you did not toil,
2:15:13
Speaker 1: and cities you did not build, and you live in them,
2:15:17
Speaker 1: and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did
2:15:20
Speaker 1: not plant. This historical review reminded the people that everything
2:15:24
Speaker 1: they had was a gift from God, not something they
2:15:28
Speaker 1: had earned through their own efforts. After reviewing their history,
2:15:32
Speaker 1: Joshua presented the people with the most important choice they
2:15:36
Speaker 1: would ever make. His challenge was direct and personal. Verse
2:15:41
Speaker 1: fourteen contains his call to decision. Now, fear the Lord
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Speaker 1: and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods
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Speaker 1: your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt
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Speaker 1: and serve the Lord. But Joshua didn't want a hasty decision.
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Speaker 1: Verse fifteen presents the options clearly. But if serving the
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Speaker 1: Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this
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Speaker 1: day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors
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Speaker 1: served beyond the Euphrates or the gods of the Amorites
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Speaker 1: in whose land you are living. But as for me
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Speaker 1: and my household, we will serve the Lord. Joshua's personal
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Speaker 1: declaration became one of the most famous statements in the Bible.
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Speaker 1: He was willing to stand alone if necessary, but he
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Speaker 1: wanted everyone to know where he stood. The people's response
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Speaker 1: was immediate and enthusiastic. Verses sixteen eighteen record their declaration.
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Speaker 1: Then the people answered, far be it from us to
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Speaker 1: forsake the Lord to serve other gods. It was the Lord,
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Speaker 1: our God himself, who brought us and our parents up
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Speaker 1: out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed
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Speaker 1: those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on
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Speaker 1: our entire journey, and among all the nations through which
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Speaker 1: we traveled, and the Lord drove out before us all
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Speaker 1: the nations, including the Amorites who lived in the land.
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Speaker 1: We too will serve the Lord because he is our God.
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Speaker 1: But Joshua wasn't satisfied with their quick response. His next
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Speaker 1: words were surprising. Verses nineteen twenty contain his warning. Joshua
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Speaker 1: said to the people, you are not able to serve
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Speaker 1: the Lord. He is a holy god, he is a
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Speaker 1: jealous god. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins.
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Speaker 1: If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, he
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Speaker 1: will turn and bring disaster on you and make an
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Speaker 1: end of you after he has been good to you.
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Speaker 1: Joshua was trying to make sure they understood that serving
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Speaker 1: God was serious business. God's holiness meant that he couldn't
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Speaker 1: overlook sin. His jealousy meant that he wouldn't share their
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Speaker 1: devotion with other gods. The people insisted they are understood.
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Speaker 1: They reaffirmed their commitment, and Joshua made them witnesses against themselves.
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Speaker 1: Now came the practical test. Verse twenty three contains Joshua's
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Speaker 1: immediate demand. Now, then throw away the foreign gods that
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Speaker 1: are among you, and yield your hearts to the Lord,
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Speaker 1: the God of Israel. If they were serious about serving God,
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Speaker 1: they had to prove it by getting rid of their idols.
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Speaker 1: Right now, the people passed the test and made their
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Speaker 1: final pledge of loyalty. Joshua wanted to make sure this
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Speaker 1: covenant renewal was permanently recorded. Verse twenty five describes the
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Speaker 1: formal process. On that day, Joshua made a covenant for
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Speaker 1: the people, and there at Shechem he reaffirmed for them
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Speaker 1: decrees and laws. The written record was crucial. Verse twenty
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Speaker 1: six tells us and Joshua recorded these things in the
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Speaker 1: Book of the Law of God. Then he took a
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Speaker 1: large stone and set it up there under the oak,
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Speaker 1: near the holy place of the Lord. This stone would
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Speaker 1: serve as a witness to the covenant. Joshua explained its
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Speaker 1: significance in verse twenty seven. Joshua said to all the people, see,
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Speaker 1: this stone will be a witness against us. It has
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Speaker 1: heard all the words the Lord has said to us.
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Speaker 1: It will be a witness against you if you are
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Speaker 1: untrue to your God. With the covenant renewal complete, Joshua
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Speaker 1: dismissed the people for the last time. Not long after this,
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Speaker 1: the great Leader's life came to an end. Verse twenty
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Speaker 1: nine records Joshua's death. After these things, Joshua, son of Nune,
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Speaker 1: the servant of the Lord, died at the age of
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Speaker 1: one hundred and ten. Joshua was called the Servant of
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Speaker 1: the Lord, the same title that had been given to Moses.
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Speaker 1: He was buried in his own inheritance at Timnath Serah
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Speaker 1: in the hill country of Ephraim. Around the same time, Eliaza,
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Speaker 1: the High Priest, also died, but there was one more
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Speaker 1: burial that needed to be recorded. Verse thirty two tells
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Speaker 1: Us and Joseph's bones, which the Israelites had brought up
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Speaker 1: from Egypt, were buried at Shechem, in the tract of
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Speaker 1: land that Jacob bought for a hundred pieces of silver
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Speaker 1: from the sons of Hamer, the father of Shechem. This
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Speaker 1: burial fulfilled a promise that was centuries old. When Joseph
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Speaker 1: was dying in Egypt, he had made his family swear
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Speaker 1: that they would carry his bones back to the Promised Land.
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Speaker 1: Now finally he was laid to rest in the soil
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Speaker 1: of the promised Land. The book ends with a testimony
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Speaker 1: to Joshua's lasting influence. Verse thirty one provides this summary
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Speaker 1: Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and
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Speaker 1: of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced
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Speaker 1: everything the Lord had done for Israel. Joshua's leadership had
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Speaker 1: been so effective that it continued to influence Israel even
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Speaker 1: after his death. This was Joshua's greatest legacy, not just
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Speaker 1: the military victories, but the spiritual foundation he had laid
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Speaker 1: for future generations. If Joshua's story inspired you, do me
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Speaker 1: three quick favors, hit subscribe and the notification bell For
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Speaker 1: faithfulness and victory. Drop a comment telling me which part
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Speaker 1: of Joshua's journey impacted you most. Remember Joshua's challenge, choose
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Speaker 1: this day whom you will serve. The God of Joshua
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Speaker 1: is your God today He's ready to give you victory
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Speaker 1: over every giant in your life. Thanks for watching, and
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Speaker 1: God bless you.