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Wednesday 11/04/26
Thru the Bible: Old Testament Review – Joshua Part 3
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Thru the Bible: Old Testament Review – Joshua Part 3
Joshua Part 3
Now we left off last week with Joshua discovering and addressing the sin that caused their defeat at Ai and their subsequent victory against them afterwards.
These offered good examples of the need to acknowledge God in all our ways, to consult Him prior to taking action rather than assuming we have His aid in whatever we do and finally, the need for gratitude expressed.
I pointed out to you that it was due to Joshua not consulting God before attacking the city-state of Ai that all of this happened. As leader, it fell back on him!
If he had just offered a freewill offering of thanksgiving, and consulted God before launching into their second battle as he had always witnessed Moses doing, he would have heard from God regarding Achan’s sin and lives would have been spared. Achan would still have been judged, but the lives of the 30+ Israelite warriors would not have been lost.
Well I told you this BEFORE I had read further. So imagine my surprise when preparing for tonight, I discovered that offering a freewill offering of thanksgiving to God was precisely how Joshua followed the victorious campaign against Ai.
Let’s read it…
Chapter 8:
Joshua 8:30-35,
“(30) At that time Joshua built an altar on Mount Ebal to the LORD, the God of Israel, (31) just as Moses the LORD’s servant had commanded the Israelites.
He built it according to what is written in the book of the law of Moses: an altar of uncut stones on which no iron tool has been used.
Then they offered burnt offerings to the LORD and sacrificed fellowship offerings on it.
(32) There on the stones, Joshua copied the law of Moses, which he had written in the presence of the Israelites. (33) All Israel, foreigner and citizen alike, with their elders, officers, and judges, stood on either side of the ark of the LORD’s covenant facing the Levitical priests who carried it. As Moses the LORD’s servant had commanded earlier, half of them were in front of Mount Gerizim and half in front of Mount Ebal, to bless the people of Israel.
(34) Afterwards, Joshua read aloud all the words of the law–the blessings as well as the curses–according to all that is written in the book of the law. (35) There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read before the entire assembly of Israel, including the women, little children, and foreigners who were with them.”
The word for “peace” in “Peace Offering” is ֶשֶׁלם šelem which is a noun meaning thanksgiving offerings, though it is also called peace offerings.
These offerings were voluntary as I told you and were given to God in thanks or in praise to Him. These offerings were first described in the book of Leviticus.
As I told you it was among the least offered of all the offerings in Israel, though I spoke this a little presumptuously without having checked its veracity. So, naturally I looked it up.
Guess what? Well I was both wrong and right.
There are only 12 historically recorded occasions in the Old Testament where a peace offering is specifically mentioned but that is not a clear representation of how often they were offered.
Peace offerings were mandatory at distinct times:
- Annually at the Feast of weeks (Leviticus 23:19-20)
- Upon the completion of a Nazarite vow (Numbers 6:13-17)
- When God’s people survived life-threatening crises (Psalm 107).
Beyond this there were only three offerings which could be completely freewill and voluntary – The grain offering when it was offered on its own, the voluntary burnt offering and finally the peace offering.
Evidently the grain offering was the one offered the least, but this was evidently due to the fact that a peace offering could be offered instead, which while more expensive, was the only sacrifice which the offer-er could eat.
Burnt offerings were more expensive and were often offered WITH a peace offering making the peace offering the second cheapest of the freewill offerings to give and the only one they could eat. The worshiper received the majority of the meat back to throw a feast for their family, friends, and the poor. While it cannot be proven that this was the reason it was more common, it almost certainly played a part. It was also the default way Israelites marked personal milestones, answered prayers, or celebrated seasons of joy.
It was the only voluntary offering where the giver got to physically taste and share the joy of the sacrifice.
Chapter 9:
Now you remember that in Deuteronomy 20:10-15, God had established a completely different law of warfare for cities that were “very far from you, which are not of the cities of these (seven) nations nearby.”
- Instead of complete destruction, Israel was commanded to offer terms of peace first.
- If they accepted, the inhabitants were spared and subjected to forced labor. If they fought, only the men were killed, while the women, children, and livestock were spared as plunder.
So the Gibeonites set up a bit of an elaborate deception. Gibeon had heard about the specific conditions God gave them regarding taking the land of Canaan – that they were to kill them all, but if a land was far away, they were to offer them terms of peace. Those terms required the other nation to surrender to Israel and become their servants. So they outfitted men with supplies that looked worn out and bread that was dry and hard. They lied to Israel saying that all their supplies were fresh when they left on their journey – offering that as proof of how far away their country was located.
Again, Joshua did NOT consult the Lord and so he and the leaders made a treaty with them and sealed it with an oath. 3 days later they discovered the treachery but were powerless to act against them due to their oath in the name of the Lord. from that day forward the people of Gibeon (which included Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth and Kiriath Jearim) became servants who carried water supplies and wood for the Israelites.
Following this 5 kings of the Amorites joined forces against Gibeon which was a very large city out of fear from the treaty. Both Israel and Gibeon together would have made an insurmountable force. So they attacked Gibeon before Israel traveled there. The citizens sent messengers to Joshua to come to the aid of their servants. So God gave all those kings and their land into Joshua’s hand. This was the battle where God kept the sun in the sky for nearly a whole day.
Following this Israel conquered all of southern Canaan. They traveled to…
- Libnah and conquered it.
- Then from Libnah to Lachish and conquered it.
- Then King Horam of Gezer came up to help Lachish, but Joshua struck him down, as well as his army, until no survivors remained.
- They went from Lachish to Eglon and conquered it.
- And finally from Eglon to Hebron and conquered it.
Joshua 10:40-43,
“(40) Joshua defeated the whole land, including the hill country, the Negev, the foothills, the slopes, and all their kings.
He left no survivors. He annihilated everything that breathed, just as the LORD God of Israel had commanded.
(41) Joshua conquered the area between Kadesh Barnea and Gaza and the whole region of Goshen, all the way to Gibeon.
(42) Joshua captured IN ONE CAMPAIGN all these kings and their lands, for the LORD God of Israel fought for Israel.
(43) Then Joshua and all Israel returned to the camp at Gilgal.”
Chapter 11 has Joshua conquering northern Canaan
The first part of chapter 12 recounts the kings defeated by Moses while in the wilderness on the east side of the Jordan.
The second part covers all the kings – by name, which Joshua defeated on the west side of the Jordan – a total of 31 kings.
Joshua 12:1-24,
“(1) Now these are the kings of the land whom the Israelites defeated and drove from their land on the east side of the Jordan, from the Arnon Valley to Mount Hermon, including all the eastern rift valley: (2) King Sihon of the Amorites who lived in Heshbon and ruled from Aroer (on the edge of the Arnon Valley) – including the city in the middle of the valley and half of Gilead – all the way to the Jabbok Valley bordering Ammonite territory.
(3) His kingdom included the eastern rift valley from the Sea of Kinnereth to the sea of the rift valley (the Salt Sea), including the route to Beth Jeshimoth and the area southward below the slopes of Pisgah. (4) The territory of King Og of Bashan, one of the few remaining Rephaites, who lived in Ashtaroth and Edrei (5) and ruled over Mount Hermon, Salecah, all of Bashan to the border of the Geshurites and Maacathites, and half of Gilead as far as the border of King Sihon of Heshbon. (6) Moses the LORD’s servant and the Israelites defeated them and Moses the LORD’s servant assigned their land to Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh. (7) These are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the Israelites defeated on the west side of the Jordan, from Baal Gad in the Lebanon Valley to Mount Halak on up to Seir. Joshua assigned this territory to the Israelite tribes, (8) including the hill country, the foothills, the rift valley, the slopes, the wilderness, and the Negev – the land of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites: (9) the king of Jericho (one), the king of Ai – located near Bethel – (one), (10) the king of Jerusalem (one), the king of Hebron (one), (11) the king of Jarmuth (one), the king of Lachish (one), (12) the king of Eglon (one), the king of Gezer (one), (13) the king of Debir (one), the king of Geder (one), (14) the king of Hormah (one), the king of Arad (one), (15) the king of Libnah (one), the king of Adullam (one), (16) the king of Makkedah (one), the king of Bethel (one), (17) the king of Tappuah (one), the king of Hepher (one), (18) the king of Aphek (one), the king of Lasharon (one), (19) the king of Madon (one), the king of Hazor (one), (20) the king of Shimron Meron (one), the king of Acshaph (one), (21) the king of Taanach (one), the king of Megiddo (one), (22) the king of Kedesh (one), the king of Jokneam near Carmel (one), (23) the king of Dor – near Naphath Dor – (one), the king of Goyim – near Gilgal – (one), (24) the king of Tirzah (one), a total of thirty-one kings.”
Chapters 13-17 starts off with a statement that by this time Joshua was very old and there were still many lands left to conquer. It goes on to give names to all those lands.
For those of you who are wondering, he was probably very close to 85 since he and Caleb were the same basic age and in chapter 14 Caleb is identified as 85 years old. Joshua lives to 110. So he was an “old man” for 25 years then he died.
God told Joshua to divide up the land among the 9 ½ remaining tribes – with the exclusion of Levi.
Most of chapters 13-14 goes through the territories included in the Promised land to Abraham on the East and then the West of the Jordan. The land that was specifically requested by Caleb is worth reading for many reasons. First it reveals how a man held on to a promise and didn’t badger God or Joshua about it, he only brought it back up at the appropriate time. Furthermore, he remembered the details of the promise and instead of making demands or acting presumptuously, he came in humility to Joshua since he could see that it was he who God had appointed to divide up the land and seek God concerning its conquest. These are important steps which require a knowledge of how things work, a willing submission to authority even in regard to a promise God gave to him and the proper way to hold onto and lay hold of a promise from God.
So you can see the value of this portion of scripture!
Joshua 14:6-15,
“(6) The men of Judah approached Joshua in Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh (jef-UH-nuh) the Kenizzite said to him,
(7) I was forty years old when Moses, the LORD’s servant, sent me from Kadesh Barnea to spy on the land and I brought back to him an honest report.
(8) My countrymen who accompanied me frightened the people, but I remained loyal to the LORD my God.
(9) That day Moses made this solemn promise:
‘Surely the land on which you walked will belong to you and your descendants permanently, for you remained loyal to the LORD your God.’
(10) So now, look, the LORD has preserved my life, just as He promised, these past forty-five years since the LORD spoke these words to Moses, during which Israel traveled through the wilderness.
Now look, I am today eighty-five years old. (11) Today I am still as strong as when Moses sent me out. I can fight and go about my daily activities with the same energy I had then.
(12) Now, assign me this hill country which the LORD promised me at that time!
No doubt you heard at that time that the Anakites live there in large, fortified cities. But, assuming the LORD is with me, I will conquer them, as the LORD promised.”
(13) Joshua asked God to empower Caleb son of Jephunneh and assigned him Hebron.
(14) So Hebron remains the assigned land of Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this very day because he remained loyal to the LORD God of Israel.
(15) (Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba. Arba was a famous Anakite.) Then the land was free of war.”
Chapter 15 is all about Judah’s land but Judah’s land allotment included two others – that of Caleb and later that portion in their midst that was allotted to Simeon.
In verses 15-19 shows Caleb’s bold taking of the land promised him. We also see this boldness was a family trait. Caleb promised his daughter Achsah in marriage to the man who would take Kiriath Sepher.
So Othniel, son of Kenaz, a relative of Caleb, captured the land and won Achsah’s (AHK-sah) hand. I bring this up for two reasons. First because you have to like and admire Achsah since she requested land from her father in this transaction and subsequently a spring of water as well. This was bold of a female in those days, but not necessarily presumptuous or indecent. She was clearly a smart girl and was thinking ahead for her future and that of her family. This allotment of land and spring was NOT technically given to her, since land could not be owned by a woman except under very specific circumstances and that was largely to keep the land within the tribe since women were free to marry outside of their tribe if they owned land, they would take that land with them. This was an ‘Inter Vivos’ gift rather than an inheritance following her father’s death and was to be part of her dowry. In this case an ‘inter vivos’ gift would be a transfer of property given by a living father (Caleb) to his daughter upon her marriage.
This is the record of the exchange between them –
“(17) So Othniel son of Caleb’s brother, Kenaz, captured it, and Caleb gave his daughter Achsah to him as a wife.
(18) When she arrived, she persuaded Othniel to ask her father for a field. As she got off her donkey, Caleb asked her,
“What do you want?”
(19) She replied,
“Give me a blessing. Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me the springs of water also.”
So he gave her the upper and lower springs.” – Joshua 15:17-19
The second reason I mention this is because Othniel is mentioned as the brother of Caleb which might raise a few eye brows. First off, such marriages were not forbidden in the law. An uncle might marry a niece but an aunt could not marry a nephew. The laws regarding this are found in Leviticus 18:12-13. While you are free to speculate as to why, most of these laws are written from the perspective of the male – not due to some outmoded idea of male oriented laws, but because the seed comes from the male, and he was not made for the woman, but the woman for him. So for an aunt to take her nephew would have been a step in the wrong direction. For a nephew to take his aunt would also be inappropriate since she is the sister of his father and such a relation would change family dynamics in terms of authority. An uncle marrying his niece, though strange to us, would not have introduced an aberration in these regards.
Since Othniel is said to be the son of Kenaz and Caleb is a son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, we can easily see this relation was NOT that of an uncle marrying his niece. If we were to turn to Judges 1:13 & 3:9 we’d see that Kenaz was in fact Caleb’s younger brother. So Othniel was Caleb’s nephew making this a marriage between 1st cousins which was permitted under the law.
Chapters 16-17 cover the land allotment for Ephraim and Manasseh the tribal sons of Joseph.
Lots cast for remaining lands
Joshua 18:1-10,
“(1) The entire Israelite community assembled at Shiloh and there they set up the tent of meeting. Though they had subdued the land, (2) seven Israelite tribes had not been assigned their allotted land.
(3) So Joshua said to the Israelites:
“How long do you intend to put off occupying the land the LORD God of your ancestors has given you?
(4) Pick three men from each tribe. I will send them out to walk through the land and make a map of it for me.
(5) Divide it into seven regions.
Judah will stay in its territory in the south, and the family of Joseph in its territory in the north. (6) But as for you, map out the land into seven regions and bring it to me. I will draw lots for you here before the LORD our God. (7) But the Levites will not have an allotted portion among you, for their inheritance is to serve the LORD.
Gad, Reuben, and the half–tribe of Manasseh have already received their allotted land east of the Jordan which Moses the LORD’s servant assigned them.”
(8) When the men started out, Joshua told those going to map out the land,
“Go, walk through the land, map it out, and return to me. Then I will draw lots for you before the LORD here in Shiloh.”
(9) The men journeyed through the land and mapped it and its cities out into seven regions on a scroll. Then they came to Joshua at the camp in Shiloh.
(10) Joshua drew lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD and divided the land among the Israelites according to their allotted portions.”
Ends with Joshua 19:49-51,
“(49) When they finished dividing the land into its regions, the Israelites gave Joshua son of Nun some land.
(50) As the LORD had instructed, they gave him the city he requested – Timnath Serah in the Ephraimite hill country. He built up the city and lived in it.
(51) These are the land assignments which Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the Israelite tribal leaders made by drawing lots in Shiloh before the LORD at the entrance of the tent of meeting.
So they finished dividing up the land.”
Chapter 20 – Cities of Refuge
There is a lot of detail here but the most important things are:
- There were Six Cities of Refuge in total
- They were chosen from the 48 cities assigned to the Levites, who acted as neutral judicial mediators.
- West of the Jordan River: Kedesh (in Galilee), Shechem (in Ephraim), and Hebron / Kiriath–arba (in Judah).
- East of the Jordan River: Bezer (in Reuben), Ramoth / Ramoth–Gilead (in Gad), and Golan (in Manasseh).
- They served as a safe harbor for those who had unintentionally killed someone so that anyone close to the victim could not retaliate without due process.
- The guilty party was given this place and a time to present their case before the elder judges at the city gate. If it was determined that this was an accident, they were granted asylum inside the city only they had to remain inside the boundaries of the city of refuge.
- They were safe there until the death of the current High Priest.
- If they left the city limits for any reason before the High Priest died they were free game.
- Once the High Priest died, they could freely return to their home property with no further fear of retaliation.
- If the person was found guilty of intentional and premeditated murder, they were not afforded the city’s protection and were summarily handed over to be executed.
- The roads leading to these cities were maintained and made especially wide (up to double standard road widths) with clear signposts at crossroads and repaired regularly so refugees could reach safety quickly.
All of this is why many people think that it was in reference to these cities that Jesus based His teachings on being a city set upon a hill.
Chapter 21 – Levites cities and pastureland
Chapter 22 – Eastern tribes finally allowed to go home after helping their brother tribes settle in their land but soon afterwards there arose a misunderstanding which also teaches us a lesson.
After leaving for their own allotted land east of the Jordan river, the men of war from Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh built a huge, and VERY visible altar on the west side of the Jordan before crossing over to their side.
When the rest of Israel learned of the altar, they assumed the worst of these eastern tribes believing it to be an altar to a pagan deity and feared God’s wrath on all of Israel as a result. So the western tribes discussed it and sent a diplomatic delegation of 10 leaders representing each of the western tribes all led by Phinehas the priest since the priests were those vested with authority to represent God to the people and the people to God. They confronted them about their perceived treason – having already purposed to go to war against them and stave off the wrath of God.
Phinehas confronted them in Gilgal and sharply rebuked them, invoking past national disasters caused by rebellion – namely the sin of Baal-Peor and Achan’s theft.
Additionally he offered to let them relocate to the western side of the Jordan just in case they felt their land was defiled.
The 2½ tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh responded with humility and clarified their intention. The altar was erected as a monumental witness (“Ed”). They had feared that future generations of Israelites from the western tribes might use the natural barrier of the Jordan River to ostracize them from greater Israel and claim the eastern families had “no portion in the Lord“. This altar was to serve as tangible proof that they shared the same covenant and faith.
Upon hearing this explanation, Phinehas and the delegation returned to the western assembly with the news. Their civil war was averted, and the tribes praised God for preserving their national unity.
Chapter 23 – Joshua’s commission to the leaders
Joshua 23:1-16,
“(1) A long time after the LORD had given Israel rest from all the enemies around them, Joshua was old, getting on in years.
(2) So Joshua summoned all Israel, including its elders, leaders, judges, and officers, and said to them,
“I am old, getting on in years, (3) and you have seen for yourselves everything the LORD your God did to all these nations on your account, because it was the LORD your God Who was fighting for you.
(4) See, I have allotted these remaining nations to you as an inheritance for your tribes, including all the nations I have destroyed, from the Jordan westward to the Mediterranean Sea.
(5) The LORD your God will force them back on your account and drive them out before you, so that you can take possession of their land, as the LORD your God promised you.
(6) “Be very strong, and continue obeying all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, so that you do not turn from it to the right or left (7) and so that you do not associate with these nations remaining among you.
Do not call on the names of their gods or make an oath to them; do not worship them or bow down to them.
(8) Instead, remain faithful to the LORD your God, as you have done to this day.
(9) “The LORD has driven out great and powerful nations before you, and no one has been able to stand against you to this day.
(10) One of you routed a thousand, because the LORD your God was fighting for you, as He promised.
(11) So be very diligent to love the LORD your God for your own well-being. (12) For if you turn away and cling to the rest of these nations remaining among you, and if you intermarry or associate with them and they with you, (13) know for certain that the LORD your God will not continue to drive these nations out before you. They will become a snare and a trap for you, a scourge for your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you disappear from this good land the LORD your God has given you.”
This has ALWAYS been God’s judgment on ANY people who did not honor Him. Either in initially seeking Him in the land He gave them OR in being loyal to Him in the land He gave them as their God.
This is one of the strongest arguments in existence for the proper understanding of the “sons of God” marrying the “daughters of men“, an issue which has gained such mystical attention in our day. It was an intermarrying of the godly line of Seth with the ungodly lineage of Cain and the result was a moral corruption of all humans save Noah and his family – and the result was the same. It was due to their ungodliness that the flood came and swept them all away – they were made to “disappear from the good land God had given them.”
Now regarding this phrase “a scourge for your sides and thorns in your eyes”, you no doubt recall that for literal decades, I’ve taught you that it was from this and two other expressions in Numbers 33:55 and Judges 2:3 that Paul drew his expression “thorn in the flesh” in this letter to the Corinthians (2 Corinthians 12:7). Even many biblical scholars and commentators note a linguistic and thematic connection between all of these.
In the three Old Testament passages, God used this precise linguistic formula in both warning and in rebuke with Israel regarding the continuous harassment they faced from surrounding and hostile nations.
When Paul deliberately employed the use of the same language it forced the understanding of his words into a mode of interpretation. Paul knew his audience was very familiar with the Old Testament scriptures/ If they had NOT been when he first met them, they were by the time he finished his apostolic ministry among them. In the case of this reference in 2 Corinthians Paul specifically says as much. [1 Corinthians 11:2; 15:3 as well as in Acts 18:4–8]
As such Paul knew these believers were familiar with this idiom and its pattern of use in the Old Testament scriptures. By connecting his “thorn” to that of these warnings to Israel, he was painting a clear picture of the precisely type of buffeting he was receiving from the messengers of satan. It was a persistent harassment from an opposing force – no doubt the Jews, who persecuted him and his fellow laborers and hindered their work of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ the Messiah. It was decidedly NOT a physical medical condition.
“(14) I am now going the way of all the earth, and you know with all your heart and all your soul that none of the good promises the LORD your God made to you has failed.
Everything was fulfilled for you; not one promise has failed.
(15) Since every good thing the LORD your God promised you has come about, so He will bring on you every bad thing until He has annihilated you from this good land the LORD your God has given you. (16) If you break the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and go and worship other gods, and bow down to them, the LORD’s anger will burn against you, and you will quickly disappear from this good land He has given you.”
This is such a repeated theme throughout the Old Testament that it really is nearly a miracle that the church has seen their way clear to either forgetting it or simply being ignorant of it and its implications seeing how God does not change.
Now lets read the last and final chapter – chapter 24 to close out both this wonderful book and our night together. In it there is yet another renewal of the Covenant as in Sheckem. A call to “choose Whom you will serve”, followed by the death and burial of Joshua.
Joshua 24:1-33,
“(1) Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem and summoned Israel’s elders, leaders, judges, and officers, and they presented themselves before God.
(2) Joshua said to all the people,
“This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says:
‘Long ago your ancestors, including Terah, the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods.
(3) But I took your father Abraham from the region beyond the Euphrates River, led him throughout the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants.
I gave him Isaac, (4) and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. I gave the hill country of Seir to Esau as a possession, but Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt.
(5) “‘Then I sent Moses and Aaron, I plagued Egypt by what I did there, and afterwards I brought you out.
(6) When I brought your fathers out of Egypt and you reached the Red Sea, the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen as far as the sea.
(7) Your fathers cried out to the LORD, so He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea over them, engulfing them.
Your own eyes saw what I did to Egypt. After that, you lived in the wilderness a long time.
(8) “‘Later, I brought you to the land of the Amorites who lived beyond the Jordan.
They fought against you, but I handed them over to you. You possessed their land, and I annihilated them before you.
(9) Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, set out to fight against Israel. He sent for Balaam son of Beor to curse you, (10) but I would not listen to Balaam. Instead, he repeatedly blessed you, and I delivered you from his hand.
(11) “‘You then crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho. The people of Jericho–as well as the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites, and Jebusites–fought against you, but I handed them over to you.
(12) I sent the hornet ahead of you, and it drove out the two Amorite kings before you.
It was not by your sword or bow. (13) I gave you a land you did not labor for, and cities you did not build, though you live in them; you are eating from vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.’
(14) “Therefore, fear the LORD and worship Him in sincerity and truth.
Get rid of the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and worship the LORD. (15) But if it doesn’t please you to worship the LORD, choose for yourselves today the one you will worship: the gods your fathers worshiped beyond the Euphrates River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living.
As for me and my family, we will worship the LORD.”
(16) The people replied,
“We will certainly not abandon the LORD to worship other gods!
(17) For the LORD our God brought us and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, the place of slavery and performed these great signs before our eyes.
He also protected us all along the way we went and among all the peoples whose lands we traveled through.
(18) The LORD drove out before us all the peoples, including the Amorites who lived in the land.
We too will worship the LORD, because He is our God.”
(19) But Joshua told the people,
“You will not be able to worship the LORD, because He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not remove your transgressions and sins.
(20) If you abandon the LORD and worship foreign gods, He will turn against you, harm you, and completely destroy you, after He has been good to you.”
(21) “No!” the people answered Joshua. “We will worship the LORD.”
(22) Joshua then told the people,
“You are witnesses against yourselves that you yourselves have chosen to worship the LORD.”
“We are witnesses,” they said.
(23) “Then get rid of the foreign gods that are among you and offer your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel.”
(24) So the people said to Joshua,
“We will worship the LORD our God and obey Him.”
(25) On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people at Shechem and established a statute and ordinance for them. (26) Joshua recorded these things in the book of the law of God; he also took a large stone and set it up there under the oak next to the sanctuary of the LORD.
(27) And Joshua said to all the people,
“You see this stone–it will be a witness against us, for it has heard all the words the LORD said to us, and it will be a witness against you, so that you will not deny your God.”
(28) Then Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance.
(29) After these things, the LORD’s servant, Joshua son of Nun, died at the age of 110.
(30) They buried him in his allotted territory at Timnath–serah, in the hill country of Ephraim north of Mount Gaash.
(31) Israel worshiped the LORD throughout Joshua’s lifetime and during the lifetimes of the elders who outlived Joshua, and who had experienced all the works the LORD had done for Israel.
(32) Joseph’s bones, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the parcel of land Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for 100 qesitahs.
It was an inheritance for Joseph’s descendants. (33) And Eleazar son of Aaron died, and they buried him at Gibeah, which had been given to his son Phinehas in the hill country of Ephraim.”
Next week we will open up the book of Judges which will help categorize and clarify much that is misunderstood by the church today.
