1.

Introduction to Joshua
The location of Joshua within the Scriptures
The book of Joshua is not just the historical record of a nation. Rather it contains
chosen events of Israels history which serve Gods prophetic and preaching
purposes. This prophetic history culminates in Jesus Christ as does all of the OT.
Joshuas place following the five books of Moses is like that of Acts which follows the
four Gospels. Joshua depicts the conquest of the promised land while Acts depicts
the churchs conquest of the known world. Both pause from time to time to sum up
what has been accomplished. Both reveal God at work through the human history of
his people in fulfillment of his prior promises. God is shaping history to achieve his
goal of salvation through Christ which reaches to the end of the earth.
The message of Joshua within the Scriptures
The Pentateuch ends with Israel poised on the edge of the promised land. Joshua
tells us how they entered and possessed it. It tells how God fulfilled his promises.
The fulfillment of the promised land anticipates the fulfillment of the heavenly
promised land to those who have faith in the Heir, Jesus Christ.
The man Joshua
Joshua is from the tribe of Ephraim, Josephs line. Joshua lived to be 110 years old:
40 years in Egypt, 40 years in the desert, and 30 years in the promised land of
which 7 years were devoted to the conquest and 23 years he lived on his allotted
land. The name Joshua means Yahweh is salavation. In Greek, Joshua and Jesus
are identical.
Joshua became the leader of Israel when Moses died. He gained experience when he
served by Moses side as his assistant. Joshua was the servant of Yahweh as was
Moses and king David. In the prophecy of Isaiah, Jesus is depicted as the Suffering
Servant of the Lord. God spoke to Moses as he did to Moses. Joshua is never
called a prophet or a judge or a king. When he died, no one was commissioned to fill
his post as military leader.
The dates of the events of Joshua
Scholars date Joshua in three different ways.
1. The early date (This approach is followed in this commentary and is held
by conservative scholars.) It is based on dating the exodus from Egypt
through the Red Sea in 1446 BC. That would make the beginning of the
conquest of the land of Canaan in 1406 BC.
2. The late date This view disregards OT chronology and only considers
some events in Joshua as historically accurate. It does not consider the
Scriptures as the reliable Word of God.
3. The Biblical minimalists believe that virtually none of the events in Joshua
actually took place in real history.

The Central Theme and Subthemes of Joshua

The central theme
The central theme is summarized as follows: The Lord fulfills his promise to give
the land of Canaan to his covenant people Israel as an inheritance (see Josh.
21:43-45; 23:14). The inheritance Israel received is more important that just real
estate. This land is the place where God will dwell among his people and shower
them with his blessings of grace. Ultimately God will dwell with his people in the
person of his Son, Jesus Christ. Therefore this inheritance points us to Jesus. In this
land is where Jesus would carry out his redemptive work. Israels inheritance of the
land looks forward to the new Israel which by faith receives an eternal inheritance of
the heavenly promised land.
The book of Joshua depicts divine monergism in this work of salvation. God raised
up Joshua to replace Moses. God himself performed the miracles that were
necessary for Israel to inherit the land.
He dried up the Jordan (Jos. 3 4).
He made the walls of Jericho fall down (Jos. 6).
He brought hail stones and caused the sun and moon to stand still (Jos.
10:11-14).
He hardened the hearts of the Canaanites, giving the land to Israel.
Israel conquered the promised land, but the conquest was not a complete conquest.
There were pockets of resistance. There were periods in Israels history where her
very existence was threatened (see especially the period of the judges and Israels
defeat by the Assyrians and Babylonians). Only the new Joshua, Jesus Christ, would
bring the Israel of God (Gal. 6:16) into full possession of the true land of promise
(Heb. 3:18-19; 4:1). Believers in Jesus will inherit and dwell in the new heavens and
new earth forever.
As Joshua defeated the enemies of Gods people in the OT,
so Jesus defeated the enemies of Gods people to secure salvation and an
everlasting inheritance.
God promised Israel the land of Canaan and in Joshua he fulfills that promise,
demonstrating the truth that God always keeps his promises. Likewise God
promised that the Seed would crush the serpent and indeed he did. God promised
that those who believe in Jesus will inherit eternal life. So even as we struggle on
our earthly pilgrimage, we can be sure that God will keep his promises.
The destruction of the Canaanites is a type for the total destruction of all
unbelievers at the End. Also the taking possession of the land by the Israelites is a
type of believers at the End taking possession of eternal paradise. These are the
certain promises of God.
Subthemes of Joshua
1. Scripture is divinely inspired, inerrant, and authoritative.

2. God establishes his covenant to redeem his people.

3. God graciously incorporates non-Israelites into his covenant people.
4. God establishes the public ministry to provide leadership for the salvation of
his people.
5. Leadership must be faithful to the Scriptures.
6. Faithful Israel is one untied body of believers.
7. The holiness of Israel to the divine covenant and unity.
8. The obedience of Israel leads to success according to Yahwehs word.
9. Disobedience brings disaster on Gods people.
10.Yahwehs righteous anger at and judgment upon human sin are evident in the
destruction of the pagan Canaanites under the cherem orders.
11.Teach the faith and salvation history to children and future generations.
12.God grants his people eschatological rest.
General Outline of Joshua
Jos. 1:1-5 anticipates the content of the whole book of Joshua and presents in brief
form its theme and outline. Jos. 1:2 give the theme of the book: the land I am
giving them, to the sons of Israel. Jos. 1:2-5 anticipates the four major parts of the
book.
I.
Jos. 1:2 foresees the content of the first part of the book up to 5:12 in the
words cross this Jordan.
II.
Jos. 1:3 previews the conquest of 5:13 12:24.
III.
Jos. 1:4 envisions the allotment of the land in 13:1 21:45.
IV.
Jos. 1:5 and especially the phrase all the days of your life prepares for the
last years of Joshuas life and the contents of chapters 22 24.

2. (1:1 5:12) The Lord Prepares Israel to

Inherit the Land
2.1 (1:1) Transition and Setting
The setting of Joshua:
. . Year: 1406 BC (based on the early date of the Exodus)
. . Month: Abib (later called Nisan) (our March April)
. . Location: Shittim in the plains of Moab east of the Jordan opposite Jericho
In the first two verses we learn immediately that even though Moses died, Gods
promises do no die. The transition between Deuteronomy and Joshua is seamless.
Deut. 34:8 speaks of the end of the 30 days of mourning for Moses death. The
events of Joshua appear to follow the days of mourning. More important is the
theological continuity from Deuteronomy to Joshua. God showed Moses before he
died the land that he promised to the patriarchs and now God is about to lead his
people into the promise land via his servant Joshua.
There is a smooth change in leadership. God chose Joshua, son of Nun, to succeed
Moses. He did this some time ago (see Num. 27:18, 22-23). We can be sure that this
Joshua is the Joshua that was commissioned earlier as he is called Joshua, son of

Nun and the minister of Moses. Another clear indication of this succession is
Yahweh speaking to Joshua as he did with Moses. It does not say how he spoke to
him.
We see that Yahweh, the God who took the initiative to save his people in Egypt,
now initiates communication with Joshua. Joshua now finds out that he is to officially
take the reins of leadership from Moses in which he is to listen to and follow
Yahwehs instructions.
As God trained and provided leadership for the OT congregation of Israel, so he
does the same for the NT church. In the NT he calls faithful pastors to lead his
people. In the stead and the command of the Lord Jesus Christ, pastors carry on
the ministry of Christ by preaching the Word and administering the Sacraments.
Excursus: The Name Yahweh
Yahweh is the proper name of God. It distinguishes the God of free and faithful
grace, who revealed himself to Israel, from the worthless idols of other nations. The
meaning of Yahweh is I am who I am (Ex. 3:14), which emphasizes the eternal
nature of the one true God. This eternal God is present with his people in history to
act for their salvation. This he does out of grace through the Seed of Abraham.
In John, Jesus uses a series of I am statements to disclose and affirm his divinity.
The God who redeemed Israel from Egypt acted to redeem the world through his
incarnate Son. Jesus is the eternal God and the Savior that took on flesh.

2.2 (1:2-9) Yahweh Encourages Joshua for Causing

Israel to Inherit the Land
2.2.1 (1:2) Moses Death Signals Israel to Cross the Jordan
The Land
The promise behind Jos. 1:2 is Gods longstanding oath to give the land of Canaan
to Abrahams offspring. But the ultimate goal in his promises to Abraham is not the
land but the blessing that will come to all nations through the lands Heir, Jesus
Christ (Gen. 12:1-7; Gal. 3:16).
Ultimately the land belongs to Yahweh (see Lev. 25:23). He would rent his land to
the Israelites for a purpose. From that nation in that land will come the promised
Seed, Jesus Christ. He will use the land to perform his work of salvation for all
people.
The results of Gods initial fulfillment of the land of promise are as follows.
1. Gods keeping of his promise of the land gives assurance that he will keep his
greatest promise of a Savior.

2. Israel, who was redeemed from slavery and brought into the promised land
by God, will have the motivation o f the Gospel to live in covenant
faithfulness until the Savior comes.
3. The Saviors cross will stand in the land conquered and allotted by Joshua.
4. All of Gods promises find their yes in Jesus (2 Cor. 1:20).
Moses My Servant Is Dead
The focus here is on the transition of leadership from Moses to Joshua. The Lord
speaks to Joshua as he did to Moses. The promise of the land by God does not die
with Moses.
In the death of Moses, Luther see an application of Law and Gospel. Moses
represents the Law and righteousness. Moses does not enter the promised land in
the righteousness of works. Joshua represents the Gospel. Joshua succeeds Moses
as the Gospel succeeds the Law. He leads the people into the promised land as the
Gospel leads people into the eternal promised land via the righteousness of Christ.
Israel enters as all believers do, with both sin and death drawing back and yielding
to grace (as the waters of the Jordan River drew back). (AE 9:284)
Moses is described as Moses my servant not in the past tense as Moses my once
faithful servant. He continues to live after his death as Gods faithful servant. For
proof of this, see the Mount of Transfiguration. There Moses, Gods servant, talks to
the Servant of the Lord about his exodus (Lk. 9:31) where he will lead Gods people
into the everlasting promised land.
Although Moses did not enter the earthly promised land, he did enter the eternal
promised land. He did this through faith in the promised Savior. Christ won
forgiveness on the cross. That forgiveness is distributed through his Word before
and after the cross.
The statement to Joshua by God that Moses is dead serves two purposes: 1) It says
that Joshua is now the national servant to Yahweh. God provides leadership for his
people (a subtheme of Joshua). 2) It is a clear signal that the days of mourning for
Moses are over and the time for Yahweh to deliver on his pledge of the land is now
here. Its time to arise and cross this Jordan.
So Now, Arise and Cross This Jordan
Yahweh told Joshua that it was now time to enter the promised land; it was time to
cross the Jordan River. Who was to cross it? Joshua and all the people of Israel. The
entire nation was to cross because Yahweh was giving the land to the sons of Israel.
Israel is entering the promised land as a single, unified nation. Those who espouse
historical criticism put forth many different views of the entry into Canaan which
differ from the plain word of God. For instance they postulate that Israel did not
come from Egypt through the wilderness or that Israel gradually infiltrated Canaan
instead of all crossing at once. Who will the reader believe, revisionist opinions or
the Word of God?

The words arise and cross into the land I am giving to them announce that the
fulfillment of the ancient promise is imminent. This then is the central theme of the
whole book of Joshua: Yahweh himself by grace freely gives the land to his covenant
people Israel, as he promised their fathers.
Yahweh was giving the land to Israel not because they deserved it (see Deut. 9:1-6).
He takes it from the Canaanites and gives it to Israel by means of Law and Gospel.
Yahweh will drive out the Canaanites in judgment and turn it over to Israel in pure
grace. Through Law and Gospel Yahweh governs the affairs of the whole world for
the good of his church throughout history.
The promise of the land is tightly coupled to the promise to bless the world. Here
Yahweh was giving the land. Later he gave his one and only Son (John 3:16). In
both cases it is God who acts in pure grace. In both cases the recipients do not
deserve the gifts that God offers. In the first case, God gives to the sons of Israel.
In the latter and greater case, God gives to the world. This significant event
anticpates the greatest event in all of history: the death and resurrection of the
promised Savior.

2.2.2 (1:3-4) A Sketch of the Land to be Given

Jos. 1:3-4 repeats the theme of the book, namely that the land is Gods outright gift
of grace, given according to his promise through his own salvific work. When
Yahweh says I have given it (1:3), it is as good as done. Yahweh will give them the
victory so that wherever they set their foot will be theirs.
The promise concerning every place where the sole of your foot may step (1:3a)
was first given by God to Moses (see Deut. 11:24). And so Yahweh can say, just as I
promised Moses (1:3b). It should come as no surprise that Yahweh keeps his
promises.
As God described the boundaries of the promised land to Moses (e.g., Ex. 23:31;
Num. 34:1-12), so he does now for Joshua (1:4). The land is described in terms of its
natural geographic borders. For similar descriptions of the promised land see Gen.
15:18-21; Ex. 23:31; Num. 34:1-12; Deut. 1:7; and Deut. 11:24. The natural borders
consist of deserts, mountains, rives, and seas. This land is not large but is made up
of great geographic variety.
This land will not fall into the hands of Israel all at once. In Ex. 23:29-30, Yahweh
said he would drive out the Canaanites little by little so that the population of
Israel will increase so that they fill the land and keep the land from becoming
desolate.
Yahweh does not explain why he chose this particular land, but it was a strategic
land bridge that connected 3 continents and 2 great civilizations: Mesopotamia and
Egypt.

2.2.3 (1:5-6) Strong Encouragement: I will be with you.

Yahweh promises Joshua: No one will be able to hold his ground against you all the
days of your life (1:5). It will make no difference if the opposing armies are larger
or stronger.
Yahwehs second promise to Joshua is: Just as I was with Moses, I will be with you
(1:5). Yahweh made the same promise to Moses at the burning bush (Ex. 3:12). This
then is an example of the subtheme: as Moses, so Joshua.
Yahweh assures Joshua even more by saying, I will not abandon you, and I will no
forsake you (1:5). With Yahwehs promises to be with him and not to abandon him,
Joshua can lead Israel with great confidence.
Yahwehs promise to be Immanuel (God with us) for Joshua looks forward to Jesus,
who was God-in-the-flesh, when he promised, I am with you always, even to the
end of the age (Mt. 28:20). And he is present in his Word and Sacraments. As God
was with Moses and Joshua, so he is also with the faithful ministers of the Gospel.
Similarly God is with all Christians and will not abandon them (Heb. 13:5).
Gods promises and assurances in 1:2-9 are preparing Joshua and Israel for
confident action. And the action they take will be according to Gods Word. His Word
her concerns the promised land.
God promised to be with and not forsake his people, yet he forsook his Son as he
hung on the cross. He deemed him accursed in order to redeem us from the curse
of the Law (Gal. 3:13).
In 1:6 Yahweh continues to encourage Joshua. God has chosen him to deliver the
land inheritance to the nation. Yahweh said, you will cause this people to inherit
the land. What could be more encouraging than knowing the successful outcome
before he even starts? Later Joshua will pass to Israel the same encouraging words
that God spoke to him (see Jos. 10:25). 900 years later Haggai repeated those
words of encouragement during the temple rebuilding project of 520 516 BC (see
Hag. 2:4). In the NT similar words of encouragement are given to believers who will
inherit the heavenly promised land through the merits of Jesus Christ (see 1 Cor.
15:58; 16:13; 1 Pet. 5:10).
The land that Israel is inheriting is the same land in which Jesus will die and rise
again. And as Joshua will cause the people to inherit the land, so Jesus will cause
believers to inherit the eternal promised land. Therefore Jesus is the new and
greater Joshua who distributes the salvation inheritance he won by his victory over
death and the grave.
The term inheritance has great theological significance in the Scriptures. The Greek
word used in the LXX for inheritance is the same word used in 1 Pet. 1:3-4 and Heb.
9:15-17. In these two periscopes the Greek word links our sure inheritance to Jesus
resurrection and death. The land inheritance therefore is a prelude to the heavenly
inheritance that awaits the one to whom the Father has been pleased to give the
kingdom (Lk. 12:32).

2.2.4 (1:7-8) Success through Scriptures

In 1:7-8 Yahweh continues to encourage Joshua. He does it by turning Joshua to the

Torah of Moses. He is referring to the Pentateuch, the first 5 books of the OT. Joshua
can go to the Torah at any time. There he can find Gods Gospel promises for
assurance, strength, and courage. In it he can find Gods commands of Law, of
which one function is to direct the people in their new life. Still today Gods people
need the third use of the Law to provide them a pattern to regulate their life.
Here the whole Torah is in focus, both Law and Gospel. Similarly to Moses
commanded you, Jesus commanded his disciples to make disciples by baptizing
and teaching (Mt. 28:19-20).
Joshua is not to turn from the Torah to the right or to the left (1:7). This is the
principle of Sola Scriptura. Human reason and institutions are not to stand in
judgment of Scripture nor undermine or overrule it. They alone are God breathed
(2 Tim. 3:16), the truth (Jn. 17:17), and cannot be broken (Jn. 10:35). Moses its
author was carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet. 1:2). They are the source and
norm of faith and life for the people of God.
The Torah is Gods Word which reveals the role of the nation of Israel and how it is to
live by gratefully obeying the covenant laws. Natural reason must bow before the
Scriptures. Therefore those who reject the supernatural claims of the Scriptures and
its historical reliability are guilty of turning to the right or to the left. Many
denominations are guilty of this today as they reject important biblical doctrines.
Yahweh instructs Joshua that the Book of the Torah is never to leave his mouth and
he is to meditate on it day and night (1:8a). This applies to Joshua as a leader who
teaches Gods Word and personally as he meditates on Gods Word. This type of
meditation is not the emptying of the mind but the filling of the mind with the Word
of Yahweh. The traditional Collect expressed mediation in this way: hear them,
read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them. Meditating on the Torah day and
night is regular and constant reading (see Ps. 1:1-2).
The purpose of faithfully meditating on the Torah is so that you will be careful to
act in accordance with all that is written in it (1:8). Reading Gods Word in faith
always leads to action as faith always acts.
God promises prosperity and success to those who meditate on his Word in faith
(1:8). This type of prosperity and success is not in worldly terms but in Gods terms.
Through his Word/Torah God creates faith in his Son as it testifies to him. Therefore
one succeeds when one believes in Jesus. And the Word motivates the Christian to
action.
Jesus powerfully and successfully used the Torah against Satan when Satan tempted
him in the wilderness. Jesus quoted Deut. 8:3; 6:16; and 6:13 in answer to Satans
temptations. Jesus was successful as he defeated Satan with the Word of Truth.
Jesus success on the cross shows that what God considers successful is seen as a
failure by the world. Therefore the terms prosper and succeed in Jos. 1:8 need
to be understood from Gods point of view. In the theology of the cross God works in

ways opposite of what the world expects. A successful man (from the worlds
perspective) in Jesus parable is called a fool by God in Lk. 12:20. A sickly beggar
whose friends are dogs is a success as angels carry him to Abrahams side in
heaven in Lk 16:22, while a wealthy man in hell is a failure (Lk. 16:23). Believing or
rejecting Moses and the Prophets (Lk. 16:29) marks the difference in Gods eye
between success and failure.
Joshua will soon succeed in military victories, but these will result not from human
strategy and power but from meditation on and belief in the promises of Yahweh in
the Torah. The Scriptures alone make us wise for salvation and equip us for every
good work (2 Tim. 3:15-17).
Yahweh strongly directs Joshua to the written Word, the Scriptures of his day the
Pentateuch. Joshua is to turn to them for authority and success. Scripture alone is
not just a reformation saying. It is a formal principle established by God himself for
his people success and prosperity. These words to Joshua apply to NT Christians as
well. The Scriptures are the only source and norm of Christian doctrine and life. All
doctrines are judged by the Scriptures.

2.2.5 (1:9) Exhortation and Promise from the Highest

Authority
Joshuas commission to lead Israel comes from Yahweh; he has commanded him.
From this truth Joshua should know: 1) Joshua has authority because Yahweh has
given it to him. 2) Since his commission came from Yahweh, Joshua need not fear. 3)
Joshua will succeed since Yahweh was with him.
Jos. 1:9 is like Mt. 28:18-20. There Jesus 1) emphasizes his authority, 2) imparts his
authority to his disciples, and 3) promises his abiding presence in his Word and
Sacraments.
The words to Joshua and the words of Jesus to be strong and courageous, to not
be terrified, and to not be dismayed are meant to produce confident action. Even
though the task be large, the Lords leaders may be confident.

2.3 (1:10-11) Joshua Commands the Officers to

Muster the People
Inspired by Gods Word, Joshuas first action as Israels leader shows that his faith
has been reinforced and empowered. As Luther said, faith is never alone. It is
always accompanied by good works. Thus it is impossible to separate works from
faith, quite as impossible as to separate heat and light from fire (Luthers preface
from Romans).
From his words in 1:10-11, several truths are known about Joshua.
Joshua acts in God-given faith.
Joshua obeys Gods command to prepare to cross the Jordan (1:2) whole
heartedly without questioning how when the Jordan was at flood stage.

Joshua displays wisdom in two ways in his words. 1) He delegates authority to

his officers. 2) He set up lines of communication. It went from God to Joshua
to his officers to the people. In communicating Gods Word, the whole nation
will have provisions for marching and hearts for receiving from Yahweh the
gift of the land across the Jordan.
As Israel obeyed Moses, so they will obey Joshua, modeling the reverence
that Christians should have toward their pastors (1 Tim. 5:17).

2.4 (1:12-15) Joshua Reminds the Transjordan

Tribes of Their Duty toward All Israel
Two and a half tribes have already settled east of the river where they camped.
Moses now addresses these tribes about their promise to help their brothers
conquer the territory west of the Jordan. The background for these verses is in Num.
32 and Deut. 3:12-20. The land they inherited will be described in Jos. 13:8-32. After
helping conquer the promised land, Joshua will send them back to their land in 22:4.
Joshua now reminds the two and a half tribes of the command of Moses. He
paraphrases the words of Moses in Num. 32:20-22 and Deut. 3:18-20. A key concept
of Moses command that Joshua picked up on was that of Yahweh giving rest. Their
pagan enemies have been defeated. Yahweh has given them their land. They have
God-given rest. But they cannot be satisfied until all Israel receives its rest.
The rest they received from their military victories and the rest they receive on the
Sabbath provided a temporary rest. Both looked forward to the ultimate rest that
God graciously promises, an eternal rest earned by Jesus Christ, the NT Joshua.
Heb. 4:1-12 points out that the rest won by Joshua was a preliminary rest, while the
rest won by Jesus was permanent rest, bringing rest for those weary and burdened
by sin. The rest won by Jesus is heavenly and eternal.
The people of Israel would receive their rest as a gift from God by faith (cf. 1 Cor.
10:1-13; Heb. 4:1-12), as is the rest of Jesus.
The two and a half tribes had already received their rest as do Christians who have
faith in Jesus. The two and a half tribes then face the same temptation as Christians
do. Will they be selfish and content with their own rest or will they battle the enemy
so that all Christians will receive their rest? Only after OT Israel became established
in the promised land could Christ come according to the flesh (Rom. 9:5) and give
the world his everlasting peace and rest.
Having been reminded of their promise and obligation to their brothers, will Rueben,
Gad, and Manasseh help their brothers enter their rest?

2.5 (1:16-18) The Transjordan Tribes Respond

The eastern tribes will indeed participate with their brothers in the conquest of the
land. Their answer is positive and emphatic, going beyond their promise. They

affirm complete allegiance to Joshua (and thereby to Yahweh who commissioned

him). They expect Yahweh to be with Joshua even as he was with Moses. In
repeating some of Yahwehs encouragements to Joshua, the people acknowledge
Joshuas position of leadership.
The seriousness of their commitment is evident in their pledge to impose the death
penalty upon anyone who rebels against Joshuas words. Rejection of Joshua is
rejection of Yahweh since he ordained Joshua as his servant. Joshua is a fulfillment
of Deut. 18:15-20 where God promised to raise up a prophet like Moses and the
people are to listen to him. The ultimate fulfillment is Jesus Christ who was the
Prophet that all people should listen to.
In chapter 1 Joshua has received encouragement from Yahweh and the support of
the people. The reader anticipates that success will follow Joshua and Israel. The
concord that exists between Joshua and the congregation of Israel is a model for
every congregation. The faith and obedience shown by Israel in their God-chosen
leader should be the same for Christians (1 Thess. 5:12-13; 1 Tim. 5:17-20; Heb.
13:17). Such obedience is dependent on the faithfulness of the pastor to Gods
Word.

2.6 (2:1-24) The Spies and Rahab

Chapter 2 is divided into 4 parts.
1. 2:1-7 Joshua sends two spies to Jericho, and Rahab the prostitute hides them.
2. 2:8-14 Rahab confesses her faith while Canaan fears. Rahab secures a deal to
save her and her family when the city is conquered.
3. 2:1-21 The spies escape with Rahabs help and review their deal with her.
4. 2:22-24 The spies return to camp and give their positive report to Joshua.
Chapter 2 has a chiastic structure to it.
A The commision of the spies by Joshua (2:1a)
. . B Arrival/concern: protection of the spies (2:1b-7)
. . . . C Confession of faith (2:8-14)
. . B Escape/concern: protection of Rahab and her family (2:15-21)
A Spies return to Joshua (2:22-24)

2.6.1 (2:1-7) Spies are Sent by Joshua and Hidden by

Rahab
Having faith does not necessarily mean that Gods people will always sit passively
waiting for Yahweh to take action. Gods people are to act wisely, being in tune with
God. They know when to act confidently, trusting in Gods promises and when to
allow God to be God.
38 years earlier Moses sent spies into Canaan. They reported back in unbelief and
fear which resulted in a plague and almost 4 decades of wandering in the
wilderness for the rebellious generation.
This time when sending the spies:

1. Joshua sends just 2 spies, not 12.

2. Joshua spoke secretly to the 2 agents. The rest of the people of Israel did not
know about the spy mission. When they returned, they reported directly to
Joshua (2:24).
3. While they are to gather information on the whole land, they are to
concentrate on Jericho first, as they will drive out the Canaanites little by
little.
Joshua sends the spies out from Shittim, which is 8 miles from the Jordan River and
13 miles from Jericho. Conquering Jericho first would be a strategic move for a
couple of reasons. 1) It controlled the major passes into the heart of the land to the
west. 2) It was near the main fords across the southern Jordan that link the area to
the east. 3) It held control over the fresh spring water critical to the district. Taking
Jericho would be a big step in taking the heart of Canaan.
Why did the spies choose to enter the house of a prostitute? Perhaps they thought it
would provide good cover. Two male travelers in a sex-saturated society would not
attract special notice by entering her house. Also with many visitors stopping at this
establishment, it may be a place where they could pick up some good information
on Jericho and the surrounding environs. Her house was also part of the city wall.
Therefore it was a place where they could make a quick escape. It also appears that
Yahweh led them there. As we will see Yahweh had plans for Rahabs earthly and
eternal salvation. Rahab even became a link in the line of the Savior (Mt. 1:5). The
grace shown to the prostitute Rahab anticipates the grace Jesus would show to a
sinful women (e.g., Lk. 7:36-50; Jn. 8:3-11). The NT says Rahab was justified through
faith (Heb. 11:31).
Rahab hid the spies, but their cover was blown. An unknown informer told the king.
The safety of the spies, the destiny of Rahab and her family, and the greater
mission of Israel were all in jeopardy. Yet ultimately it was Yahweh who was in
control. And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God
(Rom. 8:28).
Rahab disobeyed the king. She chose to obey God rather that man (Acts 5:29). To
do so she told a lie. Several points can be made about this.
1. Two NT passages commend Rahab (Heb. 11:31; James 2:25). They do so with
the big picture in mind. She confessed Israels God as the one, almighty God
of heaven and earth (Jos. 2:9-11). She risked her own safety and assisted the
Israelite conquest of the land.
2. The NT passages do not endorse every detail about Rahab. They do not
necessarily consider her deception as model behavior for other believers.
3. Rahabs good works were not without sin. Similarly everything done by
Christians is tainted by sin. Yet God works through them to accomplish the
salvation of his people.
4. The purpose for the lie was to protect the lives of the two Israelite spies as
well as her own life and her relatives. She is working to preserve life (5 th
commandment). However, this does not imply a general principle that the
end justifies the means.
5. She has to respond on the spot, doing what she thinks best under the
circumstances.

6. Hospitality was important culturally. She was protecting her house guests.
7. Rahab became a justified believer. Therefore she was completely forgiven
and considered holy in Gods sight. Justification is instantaneous, but
sanctification is a long, ongoing process throughout life. She will grow in
sanctification but the sinful nature remains with us throughout life.
8. As a saint and like all saints, she had a paraclete (defense lawyer)before
the Father: Jesus Christ the Righteous One who is the expiation of our sins.
9. Not all forms of deception are immoral. Sometimes deception is smart. Jesus
himself out smarted his opponents but was not deceitful. His parables
confused his opponents so they would not understand (Mt. 13:10-15).
10.In the NT James said that Rahab was justified by works (James 2:25). We
never merit grace and forgiveness of sins. Rather James is talking about the
works of those justified. A few verses before James said that regeneration
takes place through the Gospel (James 1:18). Justification by works is the
visible demonstration to other people that we have been justified by faith.
God can see faith in the heart, but people can only see the works that are the
fruit of faith, works that flow from faith and presuppose faith.
Jos. 2:1-7 is intense with drama. It involves: spies, a prostitute, a king in panic,
cover blown, a cover up, the cover of night, men hidden by flax on a roof, a
misguided wild chase, and a quick closing of the city gate. The quick closing of the
gate shows the deep fears of the citizens of Jericho. They are afraid of Yahweh and
his acts of judgment (see 2:9-11). They deserve judgment because of their false
gods and unrepentant sin. Their sin has reached the full measure God spoke to
Abraham about (Gen. 15:16).
Archaeology has turned up the detestable religious practices of the Canaanites:
polytheistic idolatry, child sacrifice, religious prostitution, and divination. Gods
judgment for their sin now approaches. And it is a horrible thing to fall into the
hands of the living God (Heb. 10:31). They are fearful for good reason. But a closed
city gate cannot defend them against Yahweh.
In our modern times, we close our own gates thinking we can defend ourselves
by: denying our sin, dulling our guilty feelings through substance abuse, denying a
righteous God, and rejection of the Scriptural teaching of hell.
While Jericho shakes in fear, the spies escape safely and Rahab and her family will
be saved by grace through faith.
Excursus: Jericho
Jericho is one of the oldest cities in the world. At the time of the spies, the site had
probably been settled for several thousand years. At the time of Joshua (about 1400
BC), Jericho was an independent city-state under a king.
OT Jericho is commonly identified with Tell es-Sultan, a mound of ruins a mile
northwest of modern Jericho and 4 miles west of the Jordan River. The Tell esSultan covers only about 8 acres. Ancient cities were small by modern standards.

Most of the population probably lived outside the city and gathered in the city in
times of danger.
If the Tell es-Sultan is ancient Jericho, does archaeology support the fall of Jericho in
Jos. 6? Does it show that Jericho was inhabited and destroyed around 1400 BC?
Many archaeologists had many opinions over the last 100 years. Bryant G. Wood
took a fresh look at the Tell. He found strong evidence for a 1400 BC destruction.
Wood, an expert on Canaanite pottery, notes the discovery of an abundance of
pottery from that period. Carbon-14 dating of debris points to a 1400 BC date for
devastation.
The discovery of large stores of grain destroyed at the same time correlates with
two facts from the book of Joshua: 1) Jericho was taken during Abib, the month of
spring barley harvest. 2) The city fell after just 7 days, while plenty of food was still
in the houses. Jericho did not fall by the typical warfare methods of that day: a long
siege caused the starvation the inhabitants.
In the end, archaeology does not prove or disprove the Bible. The Bible is Gods
Word and therefore stands on its own.

2.6.2 (2:8-14) Rahabs Faith, Canaans Fears, and an Oath

in Yahwehs Name
The spies are not only hidden on the roof but also it is the place where Rahab where
Rahab makes a confession of faith in Yahweh, the God of heaven and earth. Rahabs
faith is obviously central to this section. The short term result of her faith is that she
obtains an oath that she and her family will be saved when the Israelites take the
land. Rahab expresses that faith when she says: I know that Yahweh has given to
you the land (2:9a).
Rahab knows the name of Yahweh because they have heard what he did for Israel in
the exodus and to the Amorite kings. She says in her confession that Yahweh has
given to you the land. In her eyes its as good as done. This statement brings out
the central theme of Joshua. The fulfillment of the promise of the land is important
to the Gospel of the OT. It is in this land that the Seed of Abraham will bless all
nations. That Seed will even be a descendant of Rahab (Mt. 1:5).
Rahabs confession includes two more statements, which are synonymous (Jos. 2:9):
dread has fallen on Canaans inhabitants and their hearts have melted with fear. By
faith she knows that Yahweh is using Israel as an agent of judgment against the
Canaanites. They expect the same treatment as the two kings that opposed Israel
(2:10b). They are terrified of Gods judgment.
Like the Canaanites, she knew Yahweh had given Israel the land (2:9) and had heard
what Yahweh did for Israel (2:10) and she knew Yahweh was God in heavens above
and on earth below (2:11). But unlike her fellow Canaanites, she was a believer, as
evidenced by her receiving the spies, hiding the spies, directing the authorities in
another direction, confessing Yahweh as the God of heaven and earth, invoking the

name of Yahweh 4 times, and securing an oath by Yahwehs name. This faith can
only be explained as an act of the Holy Spirit.
Rahab has been compared to the penitent thief on the cross.
Both confessed their faith.
Both were known as sinners.
Both faced death.
Both of them, because of their faith, are in paradise with Jesus.
The faith of Rahab is like that of another Canaanite woman who pleaded with the
greater Joshua (Mt. 15:21-28; Mk. 7:24-30). In both cases a Canaanite was
incorporated into the true Israel of God. Gods salvation extends beyond Israel.
Through her actions Rahab showed faithfulness to the spies (2:12). Now in return
Rahab asks the spies to be faithful to her and her family (2:12-13). Since Rahab in
faith knows what is going to happen (Yahweh is going to give Jericho and the land
into Israels hands), her request of the spies is preparation for a new life in the land.
The spies pledge faithfulness and trustworthiness to Rahab (2:14). Yahweh too will
be faithful to Rahab for he has plans for her as an ancestor of Christ.

2.6.3 (2:15-21) The Escape of the Spies and Conditions of

the Oath
Rahab showed faithfulness in helping the spies escape and in directing them to the
west their pursuers looked for them in the east.
Note that the author of Joshua is using prolepsis in telling the story. The events are
not told in strictly chronological order. This is done sometimes to fill in the details of
the story. Thus 2:15 may have taken place after 2:16-21 and 2:21 may have taken
place sometime later.
The conditions of the oath are:
Rahab must tie a scarlet cord in her window.
All members of Rahabs family must be inside her home to be saved.
Rahab must not tell anyone about the scarlet cord and the deal they worked
out.
If any of these terms are violated, the agreement is voided.
The scarlet cord may have been purely functional in clearly marking Rahabs house.
But some interpreters attach symbolism to its red color. The former woman of
scarlet was saved by a red cord which looked forward to the blood of Christ. Or in
terms of the Passover, which would soon be celebrated (Jos. 5:10-12), the red color
on her house is like the red blood on the door frames in Egypt. As she became part
of Israel, she too will in a sense be saved by the blood of the Passover lamb. She
is a part of the church which has eternal safety because of the blood of Christ.

Rahab has the honor of being listed in Jesus genealogy (Mt. 1:5-6). The world would
be blessed by her offspring. In this way she is like Abraham.

2.6.4 (2:22-24) The Spies Return with a Positive Report

The action from 2:16 now continues in 2:22-24. They followed Rahabs advice. They
went west, laid low, and then went back east and crossed the Jordan and briefed
Joshua.
What these two spies saw was similar to what the spies 40 years earlier saw. But
unlike the earlier spies, these spies did not give a bad report. They gave a report
similar to what Joshua and Caleb did. The reports of the two sets of spies was based
upon their faith and trust in Yahweh. The majority of the first set of spies did not
have faith, while Joshua and Caleb and these two spies believed that :Yahweh has
given into our hand the whole land (Jos. 2:24).
We too like Israel face what seems like overwhelming odds. And we, like they, can
trust in Gods promises. If he is for us, who can be against us.

2.7 (3:1 4:24) Crossing before Conquest

Chapters 3 and 4 can be divided into 4 parts.
1. 3:1-6 Preparing for the Crossing.
2. 3:7-17 Commencing the Crossing.
3. 4:1-14 Continuing the Crossing.
4. 4:15-24 Closing the Crossing.
Chapters 3 and 4 are a unit that deal with Israels crossing of the Jordan River. The
author follows a pattern in these chapters.
a) Yahweh give a command to Joshua.
b) Joshua communicates Yahwehs command to Israel.
c) Israel carries out Yahwehs command.
Also in these chapters Yahweh exalts Joshua (promised in 3:7 and fulfilled in 4:14).

2.7.1 (3:1-6) Preparing for the Crossing

Joshua and Israel break camp at Shittim. The distance from Shittim to the river is
approximately 8 miles. They stayed there 3 days (3:2). Centuries earlier only 15
miles north of Israels location, Jacob, having received freedom from his uncle
Laban, wrestled with Yahweh to receive a blessing as he reentered the promised
land. Now Israel, after receiving freedom from Egypt, is about to cross the river in
order to receive the promised blessing of the land of Canaan.
Officers give the command to the people to watch for the movement of the ark.
They are to set out when they see the Levites carrying the ark. They were to follow
the ark. The ark is the central focus of chapters 3 and 4. The ark is the visible
location of Yahwehs invisible presence. The movement of the ark was the
movement of Yahweh himself. Therefore when Israel followed the ark, they followed

Yahweh. Yahweh would go before Israel removing any obstacles that blocked their
way.
The ark portends the incarnation of Christ, the Word who became flesh and
tabernacle among us (Jn. 1:14). The incarnate Christ was the visible presence of
God among and for the benefit of his people. Even after his ascension, Christ
remains with his people through the physical and visible means of grace. Christ
promised to be with them until the end of the age. Therefore when we read OT
passages about the ark of the covenant, we relate them to the incarnate Christ and
his ongoing presence with his church through his Word and Sacraments.
The reason given for the people to keep a distance of 2000 cubits from the ark was
so that you may know the path on which you should walk (Jos. 3:4). In other
words, they had to see the ark to know where to go. So too, Christians are to fix
their eyes on Jesus (Heb. 12:2) and follow his footsteps (1 Pet. 2:21). Perhaps also
the space was given to emphasize that wherever Yahweh is is holy ground.
Before crossing, Israel is to sanctify themselves (3:5). It does not say how they were
to do it. (For another time when Israel was to sanctify themselves, see Ex. 19:10,
14-15; the preparation for the Ten Commandments.) Its purpose was to prepare
them for the miracles that Yahweh would perform. By stating this, Joshua piques the
Israelites and the readers interest as to what those miracles might be. (It is implied
that Joshua knows what Yahweh will do.)
The 3 days at the river were a time of preparation before the miracles of Yahweh.
Doesnt this apply to Christian worship? In the Divine Service Yahweh performs
miracles as his Word creates saving faith and as he distributes forgiveness of sins
through his Sacraments. As we anticipate these saving acts by God, we do well to
prepare our hearts in humble repentance. Christians anticipate his gracious gifts
each week and look forward to the Last Day when their Savior returns.
Joshua gave the order to the priests to pick up the ark and move out (3:6). And with
that Yahweh was on the move. This incident then connects Joshua to Yahweh and to
Yahwehs miracles. Through those miracles, Yahweh will exalt their new leader
Joshua, so that they give him as high respect as they did Moses.
Excursus: The Jordan River
The Jordan River plays an important part in salvation history in both the OT and NT.
Jordan means the descender. The Jordan has 4 sources near Mt. Hermon. The
Jordan descends from those sources south to the lowest point on earth, the Dead
Sea. The distance of the Jordan between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea is 70
miles as the crow flies, but 200 miles if one follows it meandering path.
The Gospel is prominent in many OT passages about the Jorda.
When Jacob was returning to the promised land, at the Jordan he confessed
Gods grace and his unworthiness (Gen. 32:10-11).
The assumption of Elijah took place at the Jordan (2 Kings 2). There Elijah
struck the waters with his mantle and both he and Elisha crossed on dry

ground (2 Kings 2:8). The mantle was passed to Elisha and Elijah was
assumed into heaven. Elisha struck the waters with the mantle and he
crossed back over.
Naaman was healed in the Jordan (2 Kings 5:14). By Gods word attached to
the waters, Naaman was healed. This incident portends the healing of Holy
Baptism.
This incident in Jos. 3-4 recalls Israels miraculous crossing of the Red Sea.
Jos. 4:23 connects the two events and reveals an evangelical focus. These
events occurred that the people of the earth might know and fear Yahweh
(Jos. 4:24). An example of this is Rahab (Jos. 2:9-10).
The NT Joshua, Jesus Christ, began his ministry at the Jordan (Mk. 1:9; Lk.
4:1; Jn. 1:28). There Jesus received a baptism appropriate for sinners. There
he began his journey to the cross where he received the wrath of God for us.
Thus as Yahweh brought Israel through the Jordan into the promised land, so
Jesus brought us through our Jordan, the waters of Baptism as we entered the
heavenly promised land.
Ezekiels vision looks forward to the new creation (Eze. 47:1-12) where a river
flows from Gods temple like the Jordan flows to the Dead Sea. But this river
heals the Dead Sea and then all kinds of fish live in the Sea that was once
dead.
The Ezekiel vision is fulfilled in Rev. 22:1-5 in eternal paradise.

The Jordan River is sung about in many Christian hymns.

Guide Me Ever, Great Redeemer (LW220). LW 220:2 alludes to the Egyptian
exodus. LW 220:3 continues with Jordan imagery providing a picture of the
believer passing through death into heaven.
Art Thou Weary, Art Thou Troubled (TLH 513). Similarly, this hymn compares
the Jordan to crossing death into life.
The spiritual Swing Low, Sweet Chariot alludes to Elijahs assumption at the
Jordan.

2.7.2 (3:7-17) Commencing the Crossing

2.7.2.1 (3:7-8) Yahwehs Command to Joshua
The account is not purely chronological. Many times Hebrew narrative emphasizes
important events by using literary repetition. With this in mind, keep the following 3
points in mind as you read chapters 3 and 4.
1) Literary pattern: Yahweh commands Joshua; Joshua communicates Yahwehs
command to the people; and the people execute the command. This leads to
inevitable repetition.
2) The account is arranged by topic and is laid out logically and not
chronologically.
3) The author finishes one section, then in the next section he goes back to
some of the important details and enlarges them and then moves on in the
story.
The words of our text begin the first of the 3 sections of Jos. 3:7-17:

1) Yahwehs command to Joshua (3:7-8).

2) Joshuas command to Israel (3:9-13).
3) Israel obeys the command (3:14-17).
Why does Yahweh perform the miracle at the Jordan? The obvious answer would
seem to be to transport the people into the promised land. But there are other
reasons as the text states. Another reason is to exalt Joshua in the eyes of all Israel
(3:7a) (stated as fulfilled in 4:14). Joshua, as a divinely chosen minister of Gods
people, deserves respect and honor. Through the miracle God will attest that Joshua
is his chosen servant. God exalted Jesus in a similar way through miracles and
signs (Acts 2:22), especially his resurrection.
The miracles will also show that Yahweh is with Joshua just as he was with Moses
(3:7b). The Israelites will see the miracles for themselves; they will experience
them. It will be clear to all that Yahweh was present and acting through Joshua.
Pastors should receive the same respect that Joshua received. They are his
appointed shepherds.
This is only the beginning of Yahwehs exaltation of Joshua (3:7). Yahweh will use
future military victories and amazing wonders to further exalt him.
Yahweh is going to do something similar to what he did in the Exodus. The cry
crossing of the Red Sea led the Israelites to believe in Moses as Yahwehs servant
(Ex. 14:31). This exalted Moses and proved that Yahweh was present. Yahweh is
about to do the same thing for Joshua.
Here in 3:8 and in 4:2-3 and in 4:16 Yahweh ordered Joshua to issue the commands.
Joshua will give move detail in 3:10-13; 4:5-7; and 4:21-24. By involving Joshua in
the salvation event, Yahweh will exalt Joshua. It will be as Jesus said to the 72, He
who listens to you, listens to me. Joshua is simply relaying the words of Yahweh to
the people (3:9). This is what all faithful pastors and teachers of Gods word do.
The first command from Yahweh has to do with the ark (3:8). The ark has also been
mentioned in 3:3 and 3:6. This accents the central position of the ark in the
account. Thus Yahwehs presence is of central importance.
The basic command that Joshua is to give is that the priests carrying the ark are to
stand at the waters edge with the ark. The ark, a simple ordinary thing like Moses
staff, will be the means of grace. By this means the miracle will be performed.
Similarly, by means of his Word and Sacraments, God performs his miracle of
salvation.

2.7.2.2 (3:9-13) Joshua Communicates Yahwehs Command to

Israel
Joshua now relays to the people Yahwehs first command. This is the first time
Joshua declares the words of Yahweh (3:9).This is what Moses did and what all
prophets do. Joshua is never explicitly called a prophet, but this is a major part of
what Joshua does.

Joshua encourages the people to listen carefully to the word of Yahweh your God.
At Sinai a covenant was made where Yahweh took them as his people and in which
he was to be their God. How their God has something to say to them and they need
to listen.
Joshua says, By this you will know (3:10a). He does not say what this is. As we
read, we know that he is referring to the coming miracle. Jos. 3:10 gives a second
reason for the miracles (the first was Joshuas exaltation). When this happens, they
will know that the living Mighty One is living among them (3:10a). Israels God is
living as opposed to the lifeless gods of the Canaanites. Jesus is the ultimate
fulfillment of the living God who is with his people. Jesus is Immanuel (God with
us) who tabernacles among us.
Also by this the Israelites will know that Yahweh will drive out the Canaanites
(3:10b). The power he uses to perform this miracle will be a preview of his power
against the Canaanites. Gods power for Israel will also work faith. And it is in faith
that Israel will receive Gods gift of the promised land.
The people must have wondered what was about to happen.
3:15 Sanctify yourselves. For what?
3:5 miracles. What kind of miracles?
3:8 priests stop with feet in the Jordan. Why?
3:9 Come close and listen. What is he about to say?
3:10 this. What is this? How will this show that Yahweh is mighty and
living?
3:12 One man from each tribe. Why?
A first reader, as well as the people of Israel, does not know what is about to
happen. But with this build up, we know it could not be a chance event, an event
that just happens to occur.
In Jos. 3:11 the ark becomes the focus for Israel. Yahweh is associated with the ark.
Therefore as the ark lead the way, it is really Yahweh who leads Israel. They are to
follow him. And who is Yahweh? He is the Lord of all the earth. Because he is the
absolute Owner and Ruler of all things, he has the right and power to kick the
Canaanites out (3:10) and to hand it over to the Israelites. He takes it in judgment
and gives it in grace. When Israel follows him, they have nothing to fear.
Yahweh has already revealed to Joshua that each of the tribes is to be represented
by one man (3:12) and what will happen when the feet of the priests rest in the
Jordan River (3:13). In communicating this to Joshua, Yahweh makes clear to Israel
that he is working through Joshua and therefore they need to respect him and obey
his commands.
In 3:13, the Israelites learn what this miracle will be. The water of the Jordan will
be cut off and stand still in a heap when the feet of the priests rest in the Jordan
River. This same thing happened at the Red Sea. Yahweh exalts Joshua in the same
way that he did to Moses.

Now that the people know what is supposed to and is predicted to happen, they will
look to see if it actually does happen. If it happens as announced, 3 aims will be
fulfilled by Gods miracles.
1) Joshua will be exalted (3:7).
2) Israel will know the living God is in their midst (3:10).
3) Israel will know that the God who cuts off the surging water of the Jordan
River can and will cut down the Canaanites (3:10).
Excursus: The Seven Peoples of Canaan
There will be 7 nations that will receive Gods judgment and be driven out of
Canaan. In the Scriptures, 7 is the number of completeness, like 7 days makes a
complete week or the 7 letter to the 7 churches, which represents the entire church
(Rev. 2 3). Therefore the 7 nations may represent all of Israels enemies in the
land. The destruction of Israels enemies is a sign of Gods eschatological wrath on
the enemies of the church at the End.
At the time of Abraham, God said, the sin of the Amorites is not yet complete
(Gen. 15:16). Now as Israel is poised to enter the promised land, the sin of the
Amorites is complete and they will face Gods judgment. God gave them centuries
to repent. Instead they rejected him and were involved in: divination, consulting the
dead, cultic prostitution, child sacrifice, homosexuality, bestiality, and other
detestable practices.
Canaanites
Sometimes Canaanites is used in a broad sense to refer to all the people in the
land. Here in the list of nations it is used in a narrow sense for those people who live
on the Mediterranean Coast and along the Jordan River. This land and people is
named after Canaan, the grandson of Noah (Gen. 9:18).
Hittites
The Hittites had a great empire north of the northeast corner of the Mediterranean
by 1900 BC. At the time of Joshua (1400 BC), they had a resurgence of power. Gen.
10 traces Hittite ancestry from Ham through Canaan. Scholars have noticed
parallels between Hittite treaty forms and OT covenants.
Hivites
During Joshuas time, the Hivites inhabited various parts of the promised land,
including Gibeon. They continued into Davids time (2 Sam. 24:7). They may also be
called the Horites.
Perizzites
Little is known of the Perizzites. Jos. 17:15 indicates they lived in the forest land.
Therefore they may have lived in rural areas rather than in city-states.
Girgashites

Gen. 10:16 says these people were descendants of Canaan. Jos. 24:11 locates them
west of the Jordan.
Amorites
They also descended from Canaan, the son of Ham (Gen. 10:15-16). Sometimes
Amorites is used in a broad sense like the Canaanites. In a narrow sense it refers
to those who live in the mountain regions of Canaan. The Israelites had already
defeated two Amorite kings before they crossed the Jordan (see Num. 21:21-35).
Jebusites
They lived in the mountains. Jerusalem was formerly called Jebus (Judg. 19:10).
This was their city (Jos. 15:63). They managed to hold on to their city until the time
of David (Jos. 15:63; 2 Sam. 5:6-9).

2.7.2.3 (3:14-17) Israel Carries Out Yahwehs Command;

Completely Cut-off Current
Yahweh has given Joshua his command. Joshua passed it on to Israel. Now the
command is carried out in Jos. 3:14-17. The action begun in 3:6 continues here in
3:14-17. The priests carried the ark and went before the people as commanded. The
ark at the head symbolizes Yahweh leading his people. The ark is the vehicle of
Yahwehs gracious presence with his people.
The Jordan had overflowed its banks. This was typical for this time of the year
(March/April, see 4:18). When the Israelites arrived they might have thought that
this was the worst time to safely cross the Jordan. But the timing was just right for
Yahweh to perform this miracle. He will do it to show his power.
When the feet of the priests touched the waters, the water upstream stopped
flowing and stood up in a heap. This is an exact fulfillment of Joshuas prophecy. The
word heap or wall of water is the same word used for the water of the Red Sea.
This shows that Yahweh is with Joshua as he was with Moses. He performed a similar
miracle for both leaders.
The location of the city of Adam is unsure. Some believe it to be 22 miles north of
the Dead Sea and 17 miles from Jericho. 17 miles would be very far off.
In ancient times, the Dead Sea was known as the Sea of Arabah or the Salt Sea.
From the point where they crossed to the Dead Sea was 5 to 8 miles.
Jos. 3:17 stresses several aspects of the crossing.
1) Yahweh himself is present and leads his people into the promised land where
he will dwell with them.
2) Through the ministry of the priests, the Israelites enter the promised land
safely.
3) All Israel participated in the miracle and entered the promised land.

Gods word says that this miracle happened and so Christians by faith believe his
word. If God created the universe and raised Jesus from the dead, he could perform
this miracle.
1) Miracles were predicted (3:5).
2) The timing of the events occurred as predicted (3:13, 15; 4:18).
3) They crossed on dry ground (3:17). If the water was stopped by a landslide as
some people say, it would have left the ground soggy for many days.
For Christians the Jordan that they pass through is the waters of Baptism and the
promised land they enter through Baptism is heaven.

2.7.3 (4:1-14) Continuing the Crossing

2.7.3.1 (4:1-3) Yahwehs Command to Joshua: 12 Men are to Carry
12 Stones
Chapters 3 and 4 are a unit, but chapter 4 has its own emphasis: the memorial
stones. Jos. 4:1 begins the next 3 part sequence of commands and actions.
1) 4:1-3 Yahweh gave Joshua a command.
2) 4:4-7 Joshua relayed the order to Israel.
3) 4:8-13 The Israelites carried out the command.
In this sequence:
1) Yahweh initiates the action.
2) Joshua faithfully relays Gods word.
3) In faith the people obey God and his leader.
Yahwehs command is to build a 12 stone memorial. Jos. 4:1 begins with the whole
nation having finished crossing the Jordan, but the priests carrying the ark are still
standing in the middle of the dry river bed. A man from each tribe is to pick up a
stone from where the priests are standing and carry it to the place where Israel will
stay that night. All 12 men together represent the whole nation of Israel.
The stones are to come from the place where the ark is. That is, from before Yahweh
where he hold back the waters protecting the people. [Later Yahweh would be
present not in an ark, but in his Son. Through Jesus he is present leading and
protecting his people.]
By this miracle, the people can see that the living Mighty One is in your midst.
And by the memorial stones, future generations will see that this is the place where
Yahweh was present leading and protecting his people. Gods people are often
forgetful and need reminders of Gods commands, promises, and acts.

2.7.3.2 (4:4-7) Joshua Communicates Gods Command to Israel

The stones that the 12 men retrieve are associated with Yahwehs presence, the
place where the ark is. It is Yahweh that performed the miracle. The purpose of the
stones is so that they would serve as a sign (4:6) and a memorial (4:7) to call
attention to what happened here. They can be used as an object lesson to teach

their children about the mighty deeds done by Yahweh for Israel. This will be like the
Passover where along with the meal, the children asked questions and the adults
answered, telling of Gods grace in his mighty acts of redemption (Ex. 12:26; 13:14).
So the stones will not be a memorial by just standing there but in conjunction with
the teaching of the parents. They are to be used as a tool to catechize their
children.
Miracles can be misused as was shown when they wanted to make Jesus their
bread-king (Jn. 6:26-59) and when Herod Antipas hoped to see some as
entertainment (Lk. 23:8). The intended purposes for this miracle were:
(3:7; 4:14) to exalt Joshua as the leader of Israel.
(3:7) to show Israel that he was present with them.
(3:10) to demonstrate his power and resolve to drive out the Canaanites.
(4:6, 21) to provide a teaching tool to strengthen faith.
(4:24) to lead the peoples of the earth to know Yahwehs strength to save.
(4:24) to lead people to fear and worship Yahweh.
So when studying miracles, Christians will want to look for Gods intended purposes.
The mighty deeds of Yahweh will be attested to, if not by man, then by the stones
(Lk. 19:40). Like Peter (which means rock), we too can make a rock-solid confession
(Mt. 16:13-20).
For Christians it the Word and Sacraments, the Divine Service, that memorialize the
mighty deeds done by Christ for us. Every Sunday through Word and Sacrament we
are catechized in the faith. Parents are to teach their children from infancy (2 Tim.
3:15) Gods gracious works. The primary way to do this is to take them to the Divine
Service each Sunday. Whenever a baptism is performed or the Lords Supper is
served, they serve as a memorial and sign of Gods powerful acts for us. In
particular Christ said of the Lords Supper, This do in remembrance of me (Lk.
22:19). When we participate in the Lords Supper, we proclaim the Lords death
until he comes (1 Cor. 11:26). And in it we receive the true body and blood of Jesus
Christ, the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation.

2.7.3.3 (4:8-13) Israel Carries Out Yahwehs Command

The people of Israel do exactly as God commanded through Joshua. So we see the
same chain of command and obedience we saw in chapter 3. Each of the 12 men
picked up a stone from the middle of the Jordan and deposited the stone at the site
they would camp at that night. The memorial was not created yet, that would be
described later (4:20).
Jos. 4:9 tells us that Joshua set up a second memorial in the middle of the riverbed
where the priests stood with the ark. Joshua may have decided to do this himself or
he may have received a command from Yahweh which is unrecorded. A stone
memorial in the middle of the river with the top stones visible would have caught
the eye and been a good reminder. Either Joshua did it himself or he could have
supervised others who did the work.

The author says that the stones are there to this day (4:9). This attests that the
book of Joshua was written later after the event and that the stones were still visible
at that time. The events recorded were actual historical facts.
It is good to commemorate Gods gracious acts. For Christians this especially takes
place in worship through Word and Sacrament. Therefore when commemorative
objects are used properly, they can serve a God-honoring purpose. Christians
themselves are a kind of commemorative object. Their lives call attention to Gods
grace and power. When people ask, What are these stones for you? (4:6),
Christians must be ready to give a reason for their hope (1 Pet. 3:15-16).
In 4:10 Joshua repeats that the ark is in the middle of the riverbed. This reiterates
that Yahweh was causing all of this to happen. The ark stood there until all the
word of Yahweh was completed. The people obeyed all of Joshuas instructions to
them. This indicates obedience of faith.
All that Moses had ordered Joshua (4:10) may anticipate 4:12 where the eastern
tribes crossed with their brothers as they promised. They will not return east of the
Jordan until Canaan is taken. This was Moses command to Joshua (see 1:13-15).
This may also refer to a general command from Moses to Joshua or an unrecorded
command.
The people hurried across (4:10) the river. They had no obstacles in their way. There
was a large number of people, so it would take quite a while anyway. They promptly
obeyed Yahwehs command.
After the people crossed over, the ark crossed over (4:11). The mention of the ark
and the role it plays puts the spot light on it. Yahweh was the first into the river,
caused the river to stop flowing, held the river back as the people crossed, and then
finished crossing over and returned to the front to lead the people.
We see in 4:12-13 that the fighting men of the eastern tribes went on before their
brothers in military formation. They are keeping their word. What Yahweh
commanded Moses (Num. 32:20-22; Deut. 3:18-20; 1:13) they are doing.
The miracle God performed here was for all his people, including the eastern tribes.
Israel is one body of believers.
The number 40,000 is much less than the total number of fighting men (see Num.
26) of 110, 580. Perhaps the rest remained in the Transjordan to defend the Israelite
families there. The military formations, armed for battle, and for the war
(4:12-13) anticipate the conquest , as does Jericho.
The eastern tribes crossed over before Yahweh (4:13). Yahweh was present at the
ark. Therefore the troops passed by their Commander-in-Chief. They were under his
protection and were obedient to his command.

2.7.3.4 (4:14) Aim Fulfilled: Joshua Exalted through Yahwehs

Miracles

The people could see that Yahweh was with Joshua as he had been with Moses.
Yahweh had performed a great and similar miracle through both (Red Sea crossing
and Jordan River crossing). The people responded in similar ways to both miracles.
They feared Moses and Joshua, the leaders Yahweh chose to work through.

2.7.4 (4:15-24) Closing the Crossing

2.7.4.1 (4:15-16) Yahwehs Command to Joshua: Priests Carrying
the Ark of the Covenant Are to Come Out of the Jordans Bed
Jos. 4:15 opens the third round of the 3-part pattern in chapters 3 and 4. In it God
gives the command to Joshua concerning the priests who are carrying the ark of
the testimony (4:16). The 2 stone tables inside the ark give testimony to Yahwehs
covenant with Israel. The testimony of the new covenant is not stone tablets, but
the shed blood of Christ. It testifies to Christ who atoned for our sins that we might
receive forgiveness. The Scriptures themselves also give testimony to Christs
accomplished work of salvation. Through the Scriptures the Holy Spirit testifies in
our hearts through faith.

2.7.4.2 (4:17) Joshua Communicates Yahwehs Command to Israel

In following the established pattern, Joshua repeats to Israel what God commanded
him.

2.7.4.3 (4:18-19) Israel Carries Out Yahwehs Command; Crossing

Accomplished
As the people carry out Yahwehs command, the action from the great miracle
comes to a close. Precisely when the soles of the feet of the priests had touched the
other side, the waters of the Jordan returned to their normal flow flood stage. This
shows that it was no mere coincidence. As soon as their feet touched the water, the
river piled up in a heap. As soon as their feet reached the other side, the water
returned to its normal place. Yahweh alone gets full credit for the miracle. He used
the soles of the priests feet to precisely time the miracle.
The people crossed on the tenth day of the first month. The first month was in the
spring. This is significant for several reasons:
Yahweh stopped the waters in the spring when the waters typically surge to
flood stage.
The miracle at the Red Sea also took place in the first month. This links Moses
and Joshua.
The first Passover in the promised land will take place 4 days later. This links
the crossing with the Passover.
The Passover lamb was selected on the tenth day of the first month. The day
they were selected would be reminder of the day that Israel crossed the
Jordan.

The mention of Jericho anticipates the events of chapter 6 and recalls the events of
chapter 2 (Rahab and the spies).

2.7.4.4 (4:20-24) Causing Crossing Memories

In 4:8 the 12 Israelites brought the 12 stones to their lodging place. In 4:20 Joshua
set up the stones as a memorial. The place where they lodged is called Gilgal.
Jos. 4:21 reiterates Joshuas command to teach the children the meaning of the
memorial. This underscores the critical need for continued catechesis of Gods
saving and gracious acts. The memorial will stand for many years, but it is the job of
the parents to use it as a teaching tool.
Like the Passover, the children are to ask a catechetical question What are these
stones? (4:21). The answer is that this is the place where Israel crossed the Jordan.
This miracle is important because through it all the peoples of the earth might
know the hand of Yahweh that it is strong (4:24). Through it all people should
know that Yahweh makes promises and has the power to keep them. Therefore all
people should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.
Chapters 3 and 4 have shown Yahweh leading his covenant people from Shittim to
Gilgal. This is less than 15 miles and took less than 2 weeks. But in this short
distance and time, Israel has been a great distance spiritually. They have seen a
great miracle of power and grace. They have been given spiritual training and
instruction.
This land was promised to Abraham and his descendants. Now the people of Israel
stand in the promised land by a miracle of grace. Ultimately this is the land that the
Seed of Abraham would stand on. As Israel crossed into and then celebrated the
Passover in the land for the first time, so the Seed would celebrate it with his
disciples and would become the Passover Lamb.
The story of salvation can be followed by following the milestones of the trees:
1) The tree in Eden played a part in the fall of mankind.
2) The journey back to paradise started with the acacias of Shittim.
3) The journey will lead to Jerusalem, just 18 miles from the City of Palms
(Jericho).
4) On palm Sunday the people welcomed their king with palm branches.
5) There the Savior will die on the tree of the cross.
6) The destination is the tree of life in the new heaven and new earth.

2.8 (5:1-12) Interlude between Crossing and

Conquering
Taken together chapters 3 5 find their fulfillment in the Sacraments of Holy
Baptism and the Lords Supper, which are the tangible ways that NT believers
encounter Jesus Christ, the Commander of the church militant. These chapters
provide a basic pattern of redemption in the NT.
Salvation though water (Jos. 3 4)

Circumcision (Jos. 5:2-9) (prefigures Baptism, Col. 2:9-11)

Sacred meal (5:10-12)
Encounter with the pre-incarnate Christ (5:13-15)

The basic pattern was first established in the Exodus:

Baptism through the Red Sea
Eating and drinking spiritual food water from the rock and bread from
heaven
Passover meal before leaving Egypt
Jos. 5 presents 4 topics, the first of which provides the setting of the interlude.
1) No threat from melted enemies (5:1).
2) Circumcision reinstated, anticipating Baptism (5:2-9).
3) Passover, produce, end of manna, anticipates the Lords Supper (5:10-12).
4) Encounter with the divine commander (5:13-15).
The encounter with the divine commander is treated as the beginning of the
conquest in the commentary.

2.8.1 (5:1) No Threat from Melted Enemies

One point of the miraculous crossing was to show the nations on earth that Yahweh
was strong (4:24). This purpose was fulfilled quickly. When the kings of the Amorites
and Canaanites heard how Yahweh dried up the waters, their hearts melted. Those
who lived in dread now were not just the people of Jericho and the land of Canaan,
but all their kings. The Israelites are now camped on their territory.
If the kings of the enemies of Israel melted with fear, what about the enemies of
Jesus after he rose from the dead. If Satan and all the powers of death and hell
could not stop him, who could? No one of course. What great comfort this is to
believers. If God is for us who can be against us?
The war for Canaan has begun. Whether Israels enemies cower in fear or muster
the courage to fight, eventually they will be destroyed by Yahweh and his hosts (9:2;
11:20).
The author of Joshua writes that we crossed over (5:1). He participated in the
salvation event. This implies that the writing of the book was very early.

2.8.2 (5:2-12) Covenant Priorities Exercised

2.8.2.1 (5:2-9) Circumcision Reinstated; Anticipating Baptism
2.8.2.1.1 (5:2-3) Circumcision Commanded and Carried Out
During their years of wandering in the desert, Israel lived in a state of suspension.
They did not circumcise and they did not celebrate the Passover. Circumcision was a
sign of Gods covenant promises to Abraham. These promises included a nation, a
land, and the blessing of the whole world. It is obvious that Yahweh was keeping his

promises. They were a nation and they had now entered the land promised to them.
The blessing of the world would happen when the Seed of Abraham came and lived,
died, and rose again in this very land.
In 5:2 Yahweh gives the command to start the practice of circumcision again. It had
not been done in the desert. It is to start again with this generation.
Yahweh commands them to use knives of flint. This same tool was used 500+ years
earlier in the time of Abraham. This would connect the current command with the
ancient one. Plus it has been shown that flint knives were better surgical tools than
the metal ones available at that time.
Many ancient people practiced circumcision. Israel was unique because it was a sign
of Gods covenant promises. Abraham was declared righteous by faith and then
later circumcision was instituted by God for Abraham and his descendants.
In 5:2-3 God is reaffirming his unconditional promises. In circumcision he is placing
on them the seal of righteousness that he has credited to them through faith. The
Abrahamic covenant was a refuge of grace for all who could not keep the Sinai
covenant.
Normally for Israel 8 day old boys were circumcised (Gen. 17:12). Obviously these
infant boys did not choose Yahweh. Rather Yahweh was choosing them to be a part
of his covenant family. It seems as if the circumcision of infants was unique to Israel.
Circumcision was symbolic of the circumcision of the heart done by God (see Rom.
2:29 which references Deut. 30:6). It was done on the 8 th day, the first day of the
new week. God created the world in 1 week, 7 days. The first day of a new week
was a sign of the new creation in which God would redeem his fallen people and
make them heirs of a new heaven and new earth. Similarly the eight souls saved
during the flood became a type of Christian Baptism (1 Pet. 3:18-21). As the human
race perished God began a new creation through those 8 souls.
Likewise, Jesus resurrection took place on the first day of the week (Mt. 28:1; Mk.
16:2; Lk. 24:1; Jn. 20:1), the 8th day. This new week marked the beginning of a new
creation. On this day Christ rose as the first fruits from the dead never to die again.
Holy Baptism incorporates one into Christs death and resurrection. It is the
fulfillment of the OT rite of circumcision (see Col. 2:11-13).

2.8.2.1.2 (5:4-7) Sermon on the Background of the Circumcision

Here the narrative style gives way to a sermonic style. In 5:4-6 the author makes
clear that Yahweh keeps his threats just as he does his promises. He had sworn that
not one of the faithless generation who rebelled against him would enter the
promised land. And here we see that he kept that word; all of them died in the
desert.
But their rebellion did not negate Gods unconditional promises. The 2 spies who did
have faith (Joshua and Caleb) have now entered the promised land. And over the 40
years God raised up sons to replace the unfaithful. Throughout Israels history God

would continue to raise up a remnant of faithful believers. And from them God
would keep his vow to bless the world through a Savior.
The author explains that Israel did not practice circumcision during their desertwandering years and that is why this mass circumcision was necessary. Apparently
they did not circumcise because they did not listen to the voice of Yahweh (5:6).
This seems to be the perfect time to reinstate the covenant sign. Yahweh had
defeated the kings of Sihon and Og; He had performed the miracle at the Jordan;
and he had brought Israel into the promised land. This generation had seen
Yahwehs faithfulness, therefore they have every reason to receive the sign of Gods
covenant faithfulness in their flesh.

2.8.2.1.3 (5:8) Recuperation after Circumcision

Probably in excess of 700,000 men were circumcised. All the males between 0 and
38 years needed to be circumcised. Any men between 39 and 58 had been
circumcised in Egypt. All the men over 58 had died, except for Joshua and Caleb
(Num. 14:29; cf. Num. 14:22-24). When done, all males in Israel would have been
circumcised (the whole nation).
With most of Israelite males recovering from surgery, one would think Israel was
vulnerable to attack. But since Yahweh melted the hearts of the Canaanite kings,
the Israelites could safely recuperate at camp Gilgal. Yahweh is with them
protecting them.

2.8.2.1.4 (5:9) Reproach Gilgaled by the Circumcision

The name Gilgal derives from the verb that means I have rolled away. Israels
camp is given the name Gilgal here. What is the reproach of Egypt that Yahweh
gilgals or rolls away? It does not refer to slavery. That had been rolled away at the
exodus. It refers to the cessation of the practice of circumcision since they had left
Egypt. It was a reproach for Gods chosen people to be uncircumcised. By doing so
they violated the covenant (Gen. 17:14).
The reproach of Egypt could also refer to what the Egyptians would have said had
they all died in the desert and not entered the promised land. They would have
laughed at the fact that Israels God had brought them out only to allow them to die
in the desert (see Deut. 9:28). The Egyptians could not level such a reproach now.
The rolling away of the reproach of Egypt anticipates the rolling away the reproach
of humanitys sin at Golgotha. There all the charges accrued against sinful mankind
were cancelled and forgiven. Christians still suffer the reproach and derision of
unbelievers, but they look forward to being vindicated when Christ returns at the
resurrection of the dead.
According to Ex. 12:48, no uncircumcised male could eat the Passover. Since they
have now been circumcised, that reproach has been removed. The Passover that
they are about to celebrate (5:10) would be the first celebration of Yahwehs
deliverance of Israel for this younger generation of Israel. And it will be the first

Passover in the promised land, anticipating the eternal banquet which celebrates
the eternal redemption wrought by the Passover Lamb, Christ.

2.8.2.2 (5:10-12) Passover, Produce, End of Manna, and Prospect

of the Lords Supper
The Passover celebrated Israels redemption from bondage in Egypt by Yahweh. The
last time Israel celebrated it was one year after the exodus (Num. 9:1-5). Those
younger than 39 had never participated in a Passover. The meal was set up by God
as a time for teaching and catechesis about Gods salvation. Therefore it anticipated
the earthly ministry of Jesus where he often used meals to teach about the Kingdom
of God (see the book of Luke).
When the traditional question was asked at this Passover, there were those who
were still alive (in their 40s and 50s) who had experienced the exodus firsthand.
They could tell how the destroyer passed over their houses because of the blood of
the Passover lamb, how Yahweh, in the form of a pillar of cloud, had parted the Red
Sea and had them cross on dry ground, and how Yahweh provided manna (which
had just stopped) for them for 40 years.
They ate the Passover on the plains of Jericho. Not far away in Jericho are Israels
enemies. Yet Israel eats the covenant meal in peace. Ps. 23 applies here: You
prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies (Ps. 23:5). After the
Passover, from the produce of the land, they ate unleavened bread and roasted
grain (5:11). This would be the grain of their enemies who have apparently
abandoned their fields for the security of the walled city of Jericho. They eat from
fields they did not plant in fulfillment of Deut. 6:11.
For the first time in 40 years, God did not provide manna for Israel. Instead he
provided the produce for them that grew on the land of Canaan. This officially ended
the time of punishment and death in the desert. Paul used that time as an example
for NT Christians (1 Cor. 10:3-11) warning them not to follow Israels actions, lest
they too perish.
Great military battles will soon take place, but there is no indication of that now.
Instead, a whole week (Feast of Unleavened Bread) is devoted to Yahweh and
spiritual matters. They did as Jesus said, Seek first the Kingdom of God (Mt. 6:33).
Circumcision and the Passover anticipate Baptism and the Lords Supper. Baptism
establishes the covenant bond as circumcision did and the Lords Supper nourishes
it as the Passover and Feast also did.
Baptism is a spiritual circumcision in which the sinful flesh is cut off. In Baptism we
are also clothed with Christs perfect righteousness and made sons of Abraham by
faith.
The Passover is a type of the Lords Supper. The Lords Supper was instituted by
Christ at the Passover. Both are memorial feasts where Gods great acts of
deliverance are remembered. Both establish and maintain fellowship among
qualified participants. Christ is our Passover Lamb (1 Cor. 5:7).

The hymn At the Lambs High Feast We Sing (LW 126) expresses the NT theology
that relates the Passover, the exodus through the Red Sea, and manna to the
salvation of Jesus Christ.

2.9 (5:1-12) Summary of Joshua 1 5

Yahweh encourages Joshua in his new role as leader of Israel (Jos. 1).

Joshua sends spies to Jericho (Jos. 2).

Israel traveled from Shittim to the banks of the Jordan and camped for 4 days
(Jos. 3:1-6).

Israel crossed the Jordan, set up 2 memorials, and camped at Gilgal (Jos. 3:7
4:24).

Circumcision is renewed (Jos. 5:1-9).

The first Passover in 39 years is celebrated (Jos. 5:10).

Israel eats the produce of the land for the first time, beginning the Feast of
Unleavened Bread (5:11).

The manna stopped (5:12).

Yahweh has prepared Israel to inherit the land. Next in the second major part of the
book (5:13 12:24), Israel will receive it inheritance.

3. (5:13 12:24) Yahweh Causes Israel to

Capture the Land Inheritance
An Outline of Jos. 5:13 12:24
A. Encounter with the Divine Commander (Jos. 5:13-15)
B. The Central Campaign (Jos. 6:1 8:35)
... B1. Excursus: Divine Warfare
... B2. Yahwehs Victory at Jericho (Jos. 6)
... B3 Israel Deals with Disobedience and Defeat (Jos. 7)
... B4 Yahwehs Victory at Ai (Jos. 8:1-29)
... B5 Interlude for Worship in Word and Sacrament: Altar, Sacrifices, Copy of
Torah, Blessing and Cursing (Jos. 8:30-35)
C. The Southern Campaign (Jos. 9 10)
... C1 Israel spares the Crafty Gibeonites for Divine Service (Jos. 9)
... C2 The Battle for Gibeon (Jos. 10:1-27)
... C3 Israels Sweep to the South (Jos. 10:28-39)

... C4 Summary of Israelites Victories (Jos. 10:40-43)

... C5 Excursus: Jerusalem
D. The Northern Campaign: The Defeat of Jabin and the Kings of the North (Jos.
11:1-15)
... D1 The Confederacy of Northern Kings Against Israel (Jos. 11:1-5)
... D2 Yahweh Gives Encouragement and Victory (Jos. 11:6-9)
... D3 Mighty Hazor and other Northern Cities Fall to Joshua (Jos. 11:10-15)
E. A Review of Israels Victories (Jos. 11:16 12:24)
... E1 Summary of Conquered Land (Jos. 11:16-23)
... E2 The Conquered Kings of Canaan (Jos. 12:1-24)

3.1 (5:13-15) Encounter with the Divine

Commander
Joshua is apparently by himself in the vicinity of Jericho when suddenly he meets a
sword-carrying man. Several questions quickly come to mind. Why is his sword
drawn? Does he want to fight Joshua? Is he a friend or foe? So Joshua asked him,
Are you for us or for our enemies? (Jos. 5:13). His answer was a sharp No! or
Neither! He continued by identifying himself as the Commander of the host of
Yahweh (Jos. 5:14).
Joshua was the earthly commander of Yahwehs army. But this Commander outranks
Joshua. He is over Yahwehs armies on earth and in heaven. The focus is completely
on this mysterious visitor. First he is called a man. Then he is called the
Commander. In response Joshua fell down and worshipped him. Finally the
Commander tells Joshua to do the same that Yahweh told Moses to do at the
burning bush: to take his sandals off because he is standing on holy ground.
So who is this commander? Since he spoke the same words that Yahweh spoke to
Moses, and because he allowed himself to be worshipped (only Yahweh is to be
worshipped), and since the ground became holy by virtue of his presence, the
Commander is none other than Yahweh himself. Most Christians believe him to be
the Son of God before his incarnation. [It is through the Son that God the Father
always makes himself visible and known.] Verse 2 of A Mighty Fortress is Our God
expresses this and could very well be sung by Joshua and Israel. It expresses that
the church militant battles here on earth, the angelic hosts fight a spiritual war
against the forces of evil. Occasionally Gods people get a glimpse of those forces
(an angel killed 185,000 in 2 Kings 19:35; Elisha and his servant were allowed to
see the hosts that surrounded them to protect them (2 Kings 6:15-17)).
This is an encouragement to Joshua before he goes into battle. By speaking the
same words to Joshua that he spoke to Moses (Jos. 5:15), Yahweh indicates that he
is with Joshua just as he was with Moses. And if Yahweh is for Joshua and Israel who
can be against them? This is an echo of Yahwehs assurance to Joshua in Jos. 1:5.

3.2 (6:1 8:35) The Central Campaign

Excursus: Divine Warfare

Satan and Mans Sin Started Warfare

In the beginning there was peace. But that peace was ruined by Satans rebellion
and the fall of man into sin. Satan took with him one-third of the angels in an
attempt to usurp power from God. War resulted from this and will continue to
happen until the end of the world.
Christs Divine Warfare Achieves Victory and Salvation
Divine warfare is Gods means for saving those people he has chosen. God had to
fight against and defeat his enemies in order to secure eternal life for his people.
Immediately after the Fall, God established open hostility (enmity) between his
people and Satan. The war began then and culminated at the cross where the Seed
crushed Satans head. The Seed became a Warrior who willingly gave his life and
took it back up again to defeat Satan and rescue Gods people.
Gods battle plan was to create a nation, give that nation the land of Canaan, send
his Son to that land to once and for all defeat Satan. The nation God created was
Israel. God fought for the chosen nation in order to establish it in the land in order to
bring mankinds Savior from it. In Joshua there are many examples of God fighting
for his people.
Divine Warfare as Gods Just Punishment on Human Sin
Through warfare God punishes evildoers and such punishment is necessary to curb
sin and maintain order. While reading about the military campaigns in Joshua, we
must remember that Yahweh is a God of Law and Gospel, judgment and salvation.
God had given the Canaanites centuries to repent. At the time of Joshua their sin
had reached its full measure. They were rife for judgment.
God warns his people not to live immorally as the Canaanites did. He threatened to
punish them as he did the Canaanites (Lev. 18:24-25). He shows no partiality.
Because of the detestable sins of the Canaanites, God waged a holy war against
them using Israel as his soldiers to carry out his judgment. In using Israel, God
commanded them to carry out cherem devotion to God by total destruction. Some
believe this to be unfair and cruel.
In a similar way, God is patient and is giving people a chance to repent, as evil and
unbelief run rampant. But one day Gods patience will run out and he will bring
sudden judgment. The destruction of the Canaanites prefigures the destruction of
unbelievers at the end of the world.
The Churchs Warfare is Spiritual
Christ displayed his victory when he rose from the dead. Knowing that he only has a
short time, Satan wages a fierce war against the womens seed (the church). The

church wages war by its proclamation of the Gospel, which drives out Satan and
subjugates demons to Jesus name.
Through the churchs proclamation of the Gospel and administration of the
Sacraments, lost sinners are transferred from the kingdom of Satan into the
Kingdom of God. The Gospel not only rescues but it also fortifies Christians to do
battle against Satan and the forces of evil.
The church practice which most closely corresponds to the cherem ban is church
discipline and excommunication, the Office of the Keys. It is a declaration of
salvation for the penitent and damnation for the impenitent.
God commanded OT Israel to destroy and kill physically. God does not give this
command to the NT church. Instead it conducts warfare via Gods Word of judgment
and grace.
The war language of the NT is used in a spiritual sense. It speaks of armor,
conquerors, and victory. This warfare is carried out with the sword of the Spirit
(Eph. 6:17). Our battle is not against flesh and blood rather it is against the
spiritual forces of evil (Eph. 6:12).
Christians May Participate in Earthly Warfare
As members of the church militant, we fight spiritual battles in the powerful name of
Jesus. But we are also a part of the civil realm, which is ruled by the Law. In a fallen
world war is inevitable. War is sometimes necessary for the common good. The
office of a soldier when carried out justly is an honorable one.
A Christian View of Warfare Must Distinguish Law from Gospel
God uses nations, armies, and societys laws to punish evil and protect common
welfare. However, warfare does not bring about Gods Kingdom. This is done only
through the Gospel. We should not confuse politics with salvation or the state and
the church. The modern state of Israel is not equivalent to OT Israel (which was
church and state). Those Jewish people who do not believe in Jesus are not part of
the true Israel, that is, those who fully trust Jesus for salvation. Christians also reject
Islam. It is a false religion with a false god and a false prophet. It offers no way of
salvation.
Conclusion
Christ waged war against Satan and secured eternal peace for all believers. Israels
war against the Canaanites was waged so that the Prince of Peace could come from
Israel in the promised land and earn peace.
Israels battles for the promised land look forward to the battles waged by God on
behalf of his people as he brings them into the heavenly promised land. Christ
promises in Rev. 2 3 that each member of the church militant who conquers will
have a share in the eternal inheritance.

3.2.1 (6:1-27) Yahwehs Victory at Jericho

The account of the fall of Jericho illustrates a repeated theme of the book: Yahweh is
the sole cause of the victories of Israel. He uses the nation as his agent. And he
accomplishes his purposes when they obey his word in faith. Through them he
brings judgment to unbelievers and the promised inheritance to his faithful people.
The same pattern is followed as in chapters 3 and 4: (1) Yahweh commands Joshua
(6:1-5); (2) Joshua commands the people (6:6-7); and (3) the people carry out
Yahwehs commands (6:8-27).

3.2.1.1 (6:1-5) Yahweh Commands Joshua How to Capture Jericho

As we read chapter 6, we will see that Jericho is an outright gift from Yahweh. Thus,
this chapter dramatizes the Gospel of justification by grace alone through faith
alone.
The people of Jericho are locked up afraid of the Israelites. Yahweh has produced
dread in the Canaanites (2:9-11; 5:1). Despite Jericho being a fortified city, with a
king, and with strong warriors, the victory is as good as won. Yahweh has given
them into Israels hands (6:2).
Yahwehs strategy includes a 7-day ritual. Why was it a week? Why not make the
walls fall now? He wants Israel to have complete faith in him. From this exercise it
will be clear to the Israelites that it is all Yahwehs doing. Their obedience will show
their faith in Gods promise of victory.
All the details of Yahwehs commands to Joshua are not given in 6:3-5. It mainly
shows that God is giving the orders and is in control. Further details will be given as
Joshua conveys the commands and the people carry them out.
The symbolic number 7 is repeated several times: 7 priests, 7 trumpets, 7 days of
marching, 7 circuits around the city on the 7 th day. 7 is the number of completeness.
7 is also the number of holiness. God sanctified the 7 th day of creation. Therefore it
was a holy day to him. All of the 7s used here then emphasize that what is about to
happen will come from God. It will be his judgment on the city of Jericho and it will
be his victory and his gift to Israel.
The Ark of the Covenant is the place of Yahwehs presence. And once again the ark
is at the center of a miracle of salvation.
Some try and remove the miracle by saying it was an earthquake that made the
wall fall. Even if Yahweh did use an earthquake, it is no less a miracle, since he
caused it to happen 7 days later exact timing. But there is no mention of an
earthquake, only that the wall will fall under itself.

3.2.1.2 (6:6-14) Joshua Commands the People and They Process

for Six Days

The order of the march becomes clear as Joshua relays the commands of Yahweh to
Israel.
First, there was an armed contingent (6:7).
Second were the seven priests (6:6, 8) with 7 trumpets, which they sound
continually as they march.
Third came the ark of the covenant of Yahweh (6:8; cf. 6:4, 6, 7). It is
central because it is the vehicle of Yahwehs presence.
Fourth came the rear guard (6:9).
The city of Jericho was really not very large. Therefore it is doubtful that all of Israel
would march around the city. Even at a slow pace the process could be made in less
than an hour.
As they march around, all are silent (6:10) for each of the 7 days. Finally on the 7 th
day when Joshua gave the signal, all the people shouted.
We are not told how many people were involved in the procession. If there were
many, it is possible that the procession could have encircled the whole city.
A description of the process is given for the second day. This same procedure was
used all 7 days.

3.2.1.3 (6:15-21) The Seventh Day: Commands, Falling Walls, the

Capture of Jericho
The series of events described are probably not in chronological order. The
instructions given to the people probably occurred before the command to shout.
The most important command was that the whole city was to be devoted to Yahweh
as cherem. From Joshuas explanation in 6:17-19, we can see that all of the
Canaanites and their animals were to be devoted to Yahweh as cherem by
extermination. But their silver, gold, bronze, and iron were to be devoted to Yahweh
by going into Yahwehs treasury instead of being destroyed. The Israelites were not
allowed to claim as spoils of war any person, animal, or valuable thing. Rather, they
all belonged to Yahweh. None of these things could be used for secular purposes, for
cherem was sacred to Yahweh (6:19).
Yahwehs treasury is first mentioned in the Scriptures here in 6:19. The churchs
military victories come when the Gospel advances and wins victories expanding
Gods Kingdom. The people and things acquired in these victories do not belong to
the church, but to Yahweh. He purchased and rescued them. These people are
sacred to Yahweh (6:19).
If an Israelite took some of the cherem, the things devoted exclusively to Yahweh,
the person contaminated himself and the camp and they became cherem, a thing
devoted to Yahweh by destruction (6:18). This will occur in chapter 7.
Why was the destruction of the Canaanites necessary? Besides their sins reaching
their peak, Yahweh commanded it to prevent them from teaching the Israelites to do

all the same abominations (incest, cultic prostitution, homosexuality, child sacrifice)
and worship all their false gods (see Deut. 20:17-18).
Early Christians (like Origen) saw Jericho as a representative of unbelieving world
and its destruction as a picture of the final judgment.
As opposed to the rest of the city, Rahab and her family will live. Her faith in Yahweh
will have saved her (Heb. 11:31; James 2:25). Yahweh brought Rahab, a Gentile, into
the people of God. She like all believers is an heir of the promise (Gal. 3:26-29). God
loves the alien and does not show partiality. God gave his only Son for the
world and Jesus gave the command to make disciples of all nations.
With Joshuas instructions everyone knows what to do and what Yahweh will do. Jos.
6:20 emphasizes that everything happened exactly as Yahweh promised in Jos. 6:5.
The city once closed up and protected was now laid bare and defenseless. It was
just as Yahweh said in Jos. 6:2, he had given Jericho into Israels hands.
The destruction of Jericho is complete. All living things were killed. Many cringe at
the thought of it. Yahweh would have preferred that they turn from their evil ways
and live (Eze. 33:11). Israels soldiers acted under Gods orders and were agents of
his judgment. Ultimately all are sinful and deserve death. But God has provided a
time of grace. God has the perfect right to end the time of grace at any time for
those who mock his love and choose their own false gods.

3.2.1.4 (6:22-25) Rahab and Her Family Are Spared

Notice the contrast of the rescue of Rahab in the midst of judgment and destruction
(especially 6:21 and 6:23). The one who was a prostitute was saved from
destruction by her faith in Yahweh and by her agreement sworn to her by the spies.
The spies came and got Rahab and her family and settled them outside the camp
of Israel. The reason they were settled outside the camp is not given. It may be
that they were considered unclean. Many stipulations in Leviticus prescribed that
unclean persons reside outside the camp until they are pronounced clean. This
arrangement was temporary because the author says that she has resided within
Israel to this day (Jos. 6:25).
To this day says several things.
1. It says that Jerichos destruction and Rahabs rescue are historical realities.
2. It emphasizes Gods grace. To this former prostitute God gave saving faith.
She is listed in the heroes of faith along with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Heb.
11:31; James 2:25).
3. God graciously calls other people and incorporates them into Israel. Both
Rahab and later Ruth became part of Israel and are in the direct line of the
Savior (Mt. 1:5).

3.2.1.5 (6:26-27) Joshuas Oath and Fame

Joshua had caused Rahab and her family to live (6:25) and now he pronounces a
curse on anyone who would rebuild Jericho. It is a sin to attempt to rebuild what God
himself had condemned and destroyed. The Hebrew verb for to swear an oath

(6:22, 26) has the same consonants as the number 7. Earlier the number 7 played
an important part in the destruction of Jericho. Therefore the number 7, the
swearing of an oath, here may refer to Gods final act of judgment against the city.
The laying of the foundation would be the first step in the rebuilding of the city. That
first step would cost the offender his firstborn, the heir. The last rebuilding step
would be setting up the city gates. This last step would cost the offender his
youngest child.
This curse uttered by Joshua was the word of Yahweh (1 Ki. 16:34). The word of
Yahweh always accomplishes its purpose. During the reign of wicked king Ahab (874
853 BC), a man named Hul rebuilt Jericho. True to Gods word, he lost his firstborn
son and his youngest son.
Evidently Yahweh wanted the collapsed site to be like the stone monuments
constructed earlier. It was to be a reminder of Gods judgment against sin and his
free gift of salvation to Israel.
God destroyed Jericho and left it desolate because of her sin. Jesus warned
Jerusalem that the same would happen to her because she was unwilling to repent
(Mt. 23:37-39). Jesus warning came true in AD 70.
The chapter ends by saying that Joshua is now famous. The reason why was
because Yahweh was with him as he was with Moses. This was first demonstrated
when they crossed the Jordan and now with Jerichos defeat. This was a fulfillment of
Gods promises (Jos. 1:5; 3:7; cf. 1:9). Yahweh gave Joshua success and exalted him.
Yahweh was with Joshua and his fame spread across the land (Jos. 6:27). In an even
greater way, God was with his Son, the new and greater Joshua. God was with him,
but his fame led to his death. Yet he rose in triumph, declaring victory over all his
foes.

3.2.2 (7:1-26) Israel Deals with Disobedience and Defeat

In chapter 7 one of the Israelites blatantly disobey Yahweh and the consequences
for it was defeat at the hands of the Canaanites. When Achan confessed his sin
before God and the people, Gods anger was appeased.

3.2.2.1 (7:1-5) Achans Sin and Israels Defeat

The chapter opens with an ominous report that explains the reason for the disaster
that will soon be described (7:2-5). What he says in verse 1 is unknown to Joshua
and Israel. Achan took some of the cherem that belonged to Yahweh. Even though
only 1 member of Israel was unfaithful, Yahweh held the whole nation responsible.
The sin of one often affects not only the perpetrator but also others. Sin incurs
Gods wrath and has consequences. The supreme example of collective retribution
for the sin of one is Adam. Sin entered the world and brought with it death and
death spread to all people (Rom. 5:12). Adams sin affected the entire human race.

But the Gospel is that God sent a new, second Adam Jesus Christ who brought
righteousness and life. Like Israel, Christians are one body whose actions or
inactions affect others (Rom. 12:4-8; 1 Cor. 12:12-31; Eph. 4:25).
Joshua is unaware of what Achan did as he prepares for the next conquest by
sending spies to Ai. The spies travel about 12 miles uphill west and slightly north
from Jericho to Ai. Ai is located on the central ridge of mountains that is the
backbone of Canaan. The spies recommend to Joshua that he send only a minimal
force.
Israels defeat is overwhelming. Because Achan robbed God of the spoils, God
opposed Israel. The number of Israelites killed was 36. This was not a lot but they
were expecting an easy victory. Their loss was shocking. Now it is not Canaanite
hearts that melt but Israels. The Israelites and their leaders must have wondered
why Yahweh allowed this to happen and why he had not fulfilled his promise.

3.2.2.2 (7:6-15) Joshuas Repentant Prayer and Yahwehs Answer

Joshua reacts by prostrating himself before Yahweh at the ark of the covenant.
Joshuas prayer asks the searching question of why? He goes on to say that Israel
would have been better to have not crossed the river and just lived on the other
side. This is a slap in Gods face, for it was Yahweh who commanded that they cross
and who made it possible by a miracle. Joshua closes the prayer with an appeal to
Gods reputation among the nations. He does not appeal to any goodness in himself
or in the Israelites. Instead he bases his appeal on the character of Gods sacred
and saving name. God has tied his name to the success of his people carrying out
his covenant promises. Joshua believes God must rescue his people for the sake of
his own reputation.
In his high priestly prayer Jesus appealed to Gods name to preserve the disciples
through the power of that name (Jn. 17:11-12). Christians call upon God in the name
of Jesus Christ, since God has promised to hear all prayers in his name (Jn. 14:13-14;
16:23-24).
The Bible is not shy about revealing the flaws of the giants of the faith like Joshua.
One purpose was to show that all people are saved solely by grace.
Yahweh admonishes Joshua for his wavering faith. Yahwehs rebuke is sharp and
cutting. He implies that Joshua should have figured out that Israel sinned. He should
not be questioning God. Yahweh reveals to Joshua that someone had broken the
covenant and taken some of the cherem. Even though only 1 person did it, God
holds all of Israel responsible.
God says he will no longer be with Israel unless the cherem is destroyed. If Yahweh
is not with them, they would be on their own against the Canaanites, whom they
could not defeat. Yahweh then describes the procedure they must follow to discover
who the transgressor is. Tribes, clans, households, and individuals must appear
before Yahweh. As they do, Yahweh will narrow it down until he exposes the guilty

one. The one who is caught must be burned because he has broken the covenant
and committed sacrilege.

3.2.2.3 (7:16-18) Achan is Caught

As Jesus caught Judas as his betrayer, so Yahweh catches Achan as the one taking
the cherem. Achan was from the tribe of Judah, the same tribe that David, the kings,
and the King of kings would come from. Yahweh has no trouble burrowing down
through the tribes, clans, families, and individuals to find the guilty person. Achan
will be known as the bringer of disaster on Israel (1 Chron. 2:7).
Adam and Eve tried to hide from God. Achan never stepped forward and confessed
his sin. Instead he tried to hide amongst the thousands of Israelites. But God
searches the heart and knows the inner self; he knows our sins. They cannot be
hidden from him. All people are guilty of sin and our only hope is to repent, confess,
and beg for absolution for Christs sake.

3.2.2.4 (7:16-18) Achan Confesses and Is Executed, and Yahwehs

Anger is Appeased.
Joshua could have ranted and raved against Achan. Instead he begins by calling him
my son. He told him, Give now glory to Yahweh. This is comparable to the
modern expression to tell the whole truth, so help me God. God is always glorified
by the truth because the truth shows his ways to be right and the ways of sinful
men to be wrong.
Gods law tells us we are sinful. When we confess our sin, we say the same thing
(thats what confess means) that Gods law says. The confession of a penitent
sinner leads to forgiveness offered in absolution (1 Jn. 1:9).
After Achan was caught, he confessed his sin (7:20-21). His confession is complete.
He does not try to excuse it, shift the blame for it, or minimize it. He admits
everything. He gave all the details about what he took and where it was.
Joshua sent messengers to look for the stolen cherem and they found it exactly
where Achan said. They found that Achan was using the very land that God was
giving Israel as a gift to hide the forbidden items. How ironic that Achan used the
blessings of Yahweh against him instead of for his glory.
The messengers brought the stolen cherem back and displayed it before Yahweh,
which means they probably placed it before the ark of the covenant. The items
belong to him and it was his covenant that was broken.
What were they to do with Achan? Yahweh had already given the command of what
to do in Jos. 7:15. Gods judgment is similar to the punishment incurred by Anannias
and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11) where they held back money from God and lied to the
Holy Spirit. In both cases a new era in salvation history was beginning for Gods
people (life in the promised land and life in the infant church). In both cases the
punishment dished out served as a severe warning for Gods people.

Were Achans children executed too? The text is not clear. Either they were taken to
the Valley of Destruction with him to be executed or they were taken as witnesses
with all Israel. The Law of Moses says that children are not to be put to death for
the sins of their fathers (Deut. 24:16). If they were stoned, it was because of their
own personal involvement.
The carrying out of the sentence in7:25-26 focuses on Achan and is ambiguous
about others. Joshua addresses Achan alone (7:25 you singular). They stoned
him and the rock monument was erected over him. Yet they burned them and
pelted them with rocks. Them may refer to Achan and his livestock or Achan
and his family.
The commands and threats made by Yahweh in Jos. 7:15 describe exactly what
happened. By taking the cherem, he made himself cherem and he made the camp
cherem.
The first two stone monuments set up in Joshua shouted praise to Yahweh for his
miracle at the Jordan. This monument however has a different message. It voices a
stern warning about disobedience. Even though monuments are soundless, they
provide effective sermons that proclaim Yahwehs Law and Gospel.
The author says that the monument remains to this day. Once again this speaks
to the historical reality of the Achan episode and to the book of Joshua. The first
readers of Joshua could walk through the valley and see the monument themselves.
And the name of the valley is also a reminder of the disaster that disobedience
brings.
Yahwehs anger burned until his judgment was meted out against the perpetrator.
Likewise, Jesus swapped places with sinners and became the Perpetrator who
received the brunt of Gods wrath. Because of Christ, Gods anger has cooled on
sinners. God and his people have been restored.

3.2.3 (8:1-29) Yahwehs Victory at Ai

This chapter shows that it is Yahweh alone who saves his people and leads them to
victory. Again Yahweh speaks to Joshua and Joshua relays Gods word to Israel. The
Israelites follow Gods word and he granted them success according to his promises.

3.2.3.1 (8:1-2) Yahweh Encourages Joshua and Commands Him to

Take Ai by Ambush
Down because of the defeat at Ai, Yahweh encourages Joshua and gives him the
new battle plans for Ai. The conquest of Ai is all but done because Yahweh has
given them into Joshuas hand as he had Jericho. Joshua will do to Ai and its king
what he did to Jericho and its king.
What is different from Jericho is that Israel may take the booty for themselves
instead of dedicating it to Yahweh. The orders concerning cherem varied. Yahweh

treated Jericho like the firstborn; it completely belonged to Yahweh. Yahweh was
more lenient concerning Ai, the second city.
Yahweh himself ordered an ambush as a military tactic against Ai. In doing so he
captures the wise by their craftiness (Jos. 5:13a).

3.2.3.2 (8:3-13) Joshua Organizes Israel for Battle as Yahweh

Commanded
If chapter 7 showed the results of the disobedience of Gods word, chapter 8 shows
the results of the obedience of Gods word. This section records how Israel carried
out what God commanded.
Israel carries out Gods carefully conceived plan. Likewise, God has a carefully
conceived plan for his church. His plan is to make disciples by baptizing and
teaching. The church carries out its mission when it follows God word. Some do not
believe that Gods Word and Sacraments are enough. Instead they resort to
gimmicks and entertainment. This chapter shows that victory is assured when Gods
people follow Gods Word.
Joshua sends an ambush force west of Ai under the cover of darkness. The next day
Joshua and the main army march toward Ai and set up camp north of the city, in
plain sight of the enemy. Joshua and the army enter the valley near Ai. As Ais army
comes out to attack, Joshuas men will flee, feigning defeat. As the army of Ai
pursues, the ambush force will move in from the west and take the city.
The tray is set. Joshua now sets the plan in motion by entering the valley next to Ai.

3.2.3.3 (8:14-17) Israel Carries Out Yahwehs Tactics

They followed Yahwehs plan and the ploy worked flawlessly. Because the author
mentions some precise details, we may assume that he was an eye witness or he
was using the report of an eye witness. Israel made a mock retreat in the direction
of the wilderness.
Jos. 8:17 reveals that Bethel joined Ai to repulse Israel. In Gen. 12:8 we read that
Abraham pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. That comes
soon after Yahweh first promised Abraham the land and the blessing of all nations
through his Offspring (Gen. 12:1-7). Later Jacob camped at Bethel and had his
famous dream of a stairway to heaven in which Yahweh renewed his covenant
promises (Gen. 28:10-22).
The reference to Bethel would remind the Israelites of Yahwehs promises to the
patriarchs at Bethel. The promises that Yahweh made at Bethel he is now fulfilling at
the exact same spot! Yahweh is keeping his promises. He is giving Israel the land.
Later in the fullness of time, Yahweh would keep his promise to bless the world
through Abrahams Offspring.

In Jos. 12:16 the king of Bethel is listed as one of the defeated kings. Nowhere is the
defeat of Bethel listed in Joshua, so we might conclude that the city of Bethel was
taken in the battle for Ai in Jos. 8.

3.2.3.4 (8:18-23) Yahweh Directs Israel to Victory through Joshua

Yahweh commanded Joshua to reach out with his javelin toward Ai. Yahweh is in
control and the victory will be his. Yahweh was giving Ai into Joshuas hand. When
Joshua reached out his hand, God stretched out his mighty hand in judgment. When
Joshua reached out his hand, it triggered the ambush force into action. Either they
could see Joshua or a series of signals were sent to them.
Joshuas action is similar to when Moses raised his hands in Israels victory over the
Amalekites. Joshua holds the position once held by Moses. He deserves the same
respect and obedience once given to Moses.
The ambush force captured the vulnerable city and set it ablaze. The smoke not
only stopped the troops from Ai, but it also triggered Joshuas main force to turn
from its mock retreat. The army from Ai and Bethel was trapped in the middle.
Israels victory was total. Only the king of Ai was taken alive.

3.2.3.5 (8:24-29) The Report of Victory

Israel carries out cherem against Ai. They gave over the city and its people to
Yahweh. Those who oppose Yahweh are totally destroyed. It is a dreadful thing to fall
into the hands of God.
The human population of Ai was destroyed but this time Yahweh gave permission to
Israel to take as booty the livestock and plunder of Ai.
For a second time we hear that all Ai was burned. The ambush force ignited the city
as a signal to Joshua and the troops. Now Joshua burns Ai in order to give it over to
Yahweh by destruction.
Ai means the ruin. Joshua make Ai a ruin as apparently it had been in the past
(hence its name). The author says that Ai remains a place of devastation to this
day (Jos. 8:28). The early readers of Joshua could still see the desolate mound.
Again the use of to this day shows that it is a historical reality.
The king of Ai was taken alive but was killed later and put on public display. But
according to the Law of Moses (see Deut. 21:22-23), the body could not remain
hanging overnight. Therefore Joshua removed the body at sunset (8:29). The reason
for this was because the land belonged to Yahweh and was holy. If the body of the
one under the curse of God was not buried the same day, it would defile the holy
land.
The king of Ai justly suffered the curse of God. Later the King of the universe, who
was sinless, also suffered the curse of God. He took our place under the Law and
became accursed for us. Therefore he was killed upon a tree. The same Law was
followed when his body was taken down and buried on the same day as his death.

Christ suffered the curse in order to redeem all mankind from sin and the divine
curse that lead to temporal and eternal death (see Gal. 3:13).
Another stone memorial was erected as stones were piled up on top of the body of
the king. The rocks were there for all to see. It served as a warning to all those who
would oppose Yahweh. It also announces the victory Yahweh gave to Israel.

3.2.4 (8:30-35) Interlude for Worship in Word and

Sacrament: Altar, Sacrifices, Copy of Torah, Blessing and
Cursing
Interlude in War for Worship
The background for this passage is Deut. 11:26-30 and Deut. 27-28. Moses
commanded that after Yahweh brought the people into the land they do 3 things:
1. Copy the words of the Torah on large stones and set them on Mt. Ebal.
2. Build an altar on Mt. Ebal and offer burnt offerings and peace offerings to
Yahweh.
3. Proclaim the covenant blessings from Mt. Gerizim and the covenant curses
from Mt. Ebal.
Success for Gods people is always contingent on their relationship with Yahweh,
which he maintains in the divine service. Therefore the highest priority for the
church militant is always the Divine Service. Gods Word and Sacrament sustain the
church giving it the strength to persevere in its fight of faith. The people of God
always seek first the kingdom of God.
It was a 20 mile walk north up the backbone of Canaan to the 2 mountains.
A fragment of Joshua was found among the documents at Qumran. It places this
episode right after the crossing of the Jordan. If this were true how striking it would
be that God provided for Israels worship the first thing even before they had taken
any Canaanite city.
The site for Jos. 8:30-35 is historically significant. At this same place God first
promised Abraham: To your seed I will give this land (Gen. 12:7). That promise
was made at Shechem, which sits between the 2 mountains. Abraham immediately
built an altar at this spot.
Joshua now built an altar on Mt. Ebal near Abrahams historical site as Moses
commanded (Deut. 27:5-6). This act of worship then links Israel with Abrahams
covenant, which promised the land and also unconditional blessing, which would be
fulfilled by Abrahams Seed, Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:14-16). The reading of the Torah
and blessings and curses also tied them to the Mosaic covenant which guaranteed
the nation a prosperous life in the land of promise if its stipulations were kept.
The covenant in Christ fulfills all of Gods OT promises. The new covenant in Christ
is actually older than the old covenant of Moses. Paul says the promises of the new
covenant were made before the creation of the world (Titus 1:2) and were fulfilled in

Christ. The new covenant is founded solely on Gods promises, but the old covenant
was founded also on works. The NT began before the ages and will endure beyond
the ages. The OT began in time and after a time came to an end (Luther AE 9:63). It
began at Sinai and ended at Golgotha.
(8:30-31) Altar, Sacrifice, and Sacrament
Joshua built an altar exactly as Moses commanded. It was made of uncut stones.
Why could not tools be used? Probably because such tools were used to make
idolatrous images, which violated the first commandment.
In 1980 archaeologists found an altar on the northeast side of Mt. Ebal. It was made
of uncut stones. Could this be the altar that Joshua built? It is dated two centuries
later but those dates often change.
The burnt offerings and peace offerings made on the altar follow Moses
prescription. For burnt offerings, the entire animal was burned on the altar.
Atonement was made through a burnt offering. It also signified total devotion to
Yahweh, as none of the animal was withheld for human use. For a peace offering, all
of the fat was offered to Yahweh on the altar, but the meat was eaten by the
offerers as a holy communal meal. This offering expressed thanksgiving for Gods
mercy and peace between God and his people by his grace.
The altar and sacrifices on Mt. Ebal point forward to the altar of the cross and the
sacrifice of Christ. 25 miles south of Ebal Christ was sacrificed. All of the OT animal
sacrifices anticipated the perfect one-time sacrifice Christ made on the cross. The
benefits of his sacrifice are given in the Sacrament of the Altar. Likewise, the
communal meal of the peace offering looked forward to the Meal eaten regularly at
the Lords table.
(8:32-35) Worship in Word: Copy of Torah, Blessing, and Cursing
After the sacrifices were made, Joshua wrote the Torah of Moses on stones as
commanded in Deut. 27:1-4, 8. To do this a wet plaster on top of the stones would
have been used. But what exactly did Joshua copy on the stones?
1. Some say the entire Pentateuch.
2. Some say the book of Deuteronomy.
3. Some say the Decalogue (Ex. 20; Deut. 5).
4. Or the blessings and curses from Deut. 27 28.
The author of Joshua does not elaborate, but he does say that Joshua did as Moses
commanded. The Torah originally given outside the land is reiterated inside the land
and would stand for centuries. In a similar way, Jesus who is Gods Word, came from
heaven outside the land, to live inside the promised land as the Word made flesh.
The ark takes center stage for the reading of the Torah. In a similar way it played a
central role in the crossing of the Jordan. It represents Gods gracious and saving
presence with his people. Now as all the people face the ark, Joshua reads Gods
word aloud for all to hear. Similarly today Gods word is read and preached in the
Divine Service near the altar.

This is a covenant renewal ceremony in which Gods word was read from the Torah
of Moses.
The view from both mountains is magnificent. From them one can see a large part
of the land Yahweh was giving them, the land he promised to Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob.
In this land, Jesus would make a new covenant by his shed blood. All that Israel and
Joshua were doing the taking of the land, the sacrifices, the copying and reading of
the Torah was a prelude to the arrival of Christ. The Savior would live in this land;
he would offer himself as a sacrifice of atonement; and he would fulfill the entire
Torah.
(8:33-35) Worship in Word: Proclaiming Blessing and Cursing
The altar had been built and the sacrifices had been offered on it. The Torah had
been copied and the people were in place for the reading of Gods word the
blessings and the curses. Moses had commanded this part of the ceremony twice in
Deuteronomy, in Deut. 11:29-30 and 27:11-14. The valley provided excellent
acoustics for the hearing of Gods word.
Deut. 27:12-24 says that the Levites were to have a leading role in the reading.
Perhaps Joshua gave the command to read and the Levites then read the Torah out
loud.
The Aaronic Benediction in Num. 6:23-27 reveals the theology implicit in the
blessings spoken by Joshua. The blessing was Gods word of grace to his people. In
it the name of Yahweh was placed on the people (3 times) bestowing on them the
blessings God promised. God promised to preserve them (keep you), to give them
his attention, favor, and grace (the Lord make his face shine on you and be
gracious to you), and to give them his peace.
The Samaritans claimed Mt. Gerizim as the center of worship. However, Jesus
himself declared that he had brought an end to the time that Gods blessings were
tied to a specific geographical location. Gods blessing is given in Christ who is
present wherever his word read and proclaimed and the Sacraments are
administered. They are vehicles of the Holy Spirit and convey the truth of Gods
salvation in Christ.
After pronouncing the blessings, Joshua read aloud the curses. With Joshua facing
east, the 6 tribes on the right responded to the blessings and the 6 tribes on the left
responded to the curses. This matches what Jesus said concerning the final
judgment (Mt. 25:41).
In a similar way in the office of the keys the pastor withholds forgiveness for the
impenitent, seeking to bring them to repentance. The extreme case of this is
excommunication, which also seeks repentance. To the repentant the pastor offers
forgiveness.

All people are sinful by nature and therefore are under a curse. But Christ
redeemed us from the curse of the law (Gal. 3:13). Those who are repentant and
accept Christ receive blessings instead of curses.
The blessings and curses are vehicles for the Holy Spirit to accomplish repentance
under the Laws curse and to instill faith in Gods promise of blessing. In Deut. 30:116 Moses explains the goal of the curses and blessings in terms of Law and Gospel,
repentance and faith. It is a commentary on what Joshua performs here.
Joshua read all the words of the Torah to all of Israel, including to women, children,
and alien. All are part of Gods people. All people can have faith in the one true God.
It was in this same location that the Samaritans proclaimed that this man is truly
the Savior of the world (Jn. 4:42).
The aliens who lived among the Israelites would have included aliens who came out
of Egypt with the Israelites, Rahab and her family, and in the next chapter it will
include the Gibeonites.
The ceremony at Ebal and Gerizim served several purposes:
1. To sustain faith
2. To offer sacrifices that point to The Sacrifice
3. To copy Gods word to stone in the promised land where one day the Word
will become flesh
4. To proclaim Law and Gospel to the people
5. To witness to the living God of Israel
6. To display Gods protection for his people
7. To show how Gods blessings come to his people in the land

3.3 (9:1 10:43) The Southern Campaign

The southern campaign has 4 main parts:
1. Israel spares the crafty Gibeonites for divine service (9:1-27).
2. The battle at Gibeon (10:1-27).
3. Israels sweep to the south (10:28-39).
4. Summary of Israels Victories (10:40-43).

3.3.1 (9:1-27) Israel Spares the Crafty Gibeonites for

Divine Service
There are some parallels between chapter 9 and chapters 2 and 6. Both cases
ended with Canaanites being included in Gods people. Chapter 9 records Israels
dealings with the deceptive Gibeonites as follows:
1. The alliance of Canaanite kings (9:1-2).
2. The Gibeonites use a ruse instead of the sword (9:3-13).
3. Israels negligence and oath-bound treaty (9:14-15)
4. Israels theological crisis (9:16-21).
5. The Gibeionites will serve Israels worship (9:22-27).

3.3.1.1 (9:1-2) The Alliance of Canaanite Kings

Jos. 9:1-2 serves as an introduction Jos. 9 11. The kings west of the Jordan unite to
repel Israel after hearing about the defeat of Jericho and Ai. Their plot might be
viewed in terms of Ps. 2. They take their stand and Yahweh laughs and scoffs at
them.
Canaan consisted of a series of city-states. To resist the invading nation, the
individual kings had to band together. Here 5 kings unite.
The 5 five groups that band together are named from east to west. The author gives
a short course in Canaans geography, the land the kings control.
1. The hill country, the central mountain region upon which Jerusalem rests,
which is the backbone of the land.
2. The Shephelah, the lower hills between the hill country and the
Mediterranean coast.
3. The coast, the stretch of plain along the Mediterranean shore.
Giving such geographical information emphasizes the historicity of the account.
These events took place in history in real places. Modern historical criticism denies
this.
The 6 nations mentioned here plotted together, but subsequent accounts in Joshua
show that they never actually joined as a combined force. Instead they would fall
one by one.

3.3.1.2 (9:3-13) The Gibeonites Use a Ruse instead of the Sword

The passage contrasts the strategy of the Gibeonites with that of the 6 nations who
formed a military alliance. The men of Gibeon seek peace. Their speech to the
Israelites was half true. They had heard of Yahweh and what he did in Egypt and to
the Amorite kings. And they believed that it was true. It was a confession of faith.
But the other part of their speech was false, a deceptive ruse. They claimed to be
from a far away country but they are really from Gibeon only 6 miles northwest of
Jerusalem. They also lived about 6 miles from Ai. Their ruse was elaborate with
several convincing props and some well-rehearsed actors.
The people who live in Gibeon are Hivites. Moses names them specifically as a
people to be destroyed (Deut. 20:17). The Israelites know the regulations given in
Deuteronomy since Joshua just copied them and Israel had just confirmed them. So
when the Gibeonites make their request for a covenant, the Israelites proceed with
suspicion and reservations.
When questioned the Gibeonites response is rather vague. They come from a far
away land. If it is far away, why are they afraid of Israel? They also present
themselves as Israels servants. Why are they content to live under Israel? They
reveal that they heard about Yahwehs destruction of the Egyptians and Amorites,
but they dont reveal that they had heard about Jericho and Ai.

The story of the Gibeonites was convincing to the Israelites and it was backed up by
their ragged appearance and their dry, moldy bread and their wineskins that had
burst.

3.3.1.3 (9:14-15) Israels Negligence and Oath-Bound Treaty

The ruse worked as Israel inspected the Gibeonite food. They trusted what they saw
rather than inquiring of Yahweh. What they did was wrong. They should have sought
Yahwehs will through the high priest by means of the Urim and Thummim (see
Num. 27:21). In this Joshua showed a lack of spiritual discernment.
The decision made by Joshua and the Israelites may have been wise by human
standards, but it was at the same time foolish because Gods word was ignored.
Ultimately it is Gods will that determines if a decision is wise or foolish.
Joshua should have consulted with the high priest. So too Christians should seek the
counsel of their pastor. In all cases Christians should pray and seek Gods will.
Joshua made a covenant with the Gibeonites. It was a covenant of peace. From
chapter 10 it is clear that the terms were more than agreeing to non-aggression.
Joshua guaranteed the safety of the Gibeonites and obligated Israel to provide
military support for them if they were threatened. Joshua and the leaders of Israel
swore an oath in the name of Yahweh to ratify the pact.
Because of Israels failure to comply with Gods word, the Gibeonites had peace and
life. They would continue to live in the promised land and become heirs of Gods
promises. It was a similar situation in the NT when ethnic Israel disregarded Gods
word which resulted in peace and life coming to the Gentiles.
Israel will soon repent and return to faith-filled obedience to Yahweh.

3.3.1.4 (9:16-21) Israels Theological Crisis

It seems as if Israel heard of the trickery of the Gibeonites 3 days later when the
army advanced toward Gibeon. When they came to Gibeon they found out that the
inhabitants of the city were the same people who they had made a covenant with.
In 9:17 we find out that they were part of a federation of 4 cities. Now what does
Israel do? They made a treaty with the Gibeonites not to harm them and earlier God
had given them the command through Moses to exterminate the Canaanites (Deut.
20:16-18). Also Yahweh had commanded Joshua through Moses to consult with
Yahweh if he was uncertain about Gods will via the high priest and Urim and
Thummim (Num. 27:18-23).
The high priest was the divinely appointed mediator between God and his people. In
the NT Jesus is revealed as the eternal High Priest who is the only mediator between
God and men (1 Tim. 2:5). Just as Jesus was the only High Priest in the NT, so it was
with the OT high priest. God can only be accessed through the divinely appointed
people and things.

Since Israel has made a covenant of peace with the Gibeonites, which was sworn in
Yahwehs holy name, they had to honor it. The fact that they were duped does not
matter.
The whole congregation of Israel murmured against the leaders because they knew
God had commanded them to exterminate the Canaanites and they had made a
treaty not to. The course of action they chose in dealing with this situation erred on
the side of grace and mercy. Many situations in life are not clear cult. In these cases
our churches should also err on the side of mercy.
Gods intention in giving the command in Deut. 20:16-18 was to prevent the
Canaanites from tempting the Israelites with idolatry. But in assigning the
Gibeonites jobs at the tabernacle and temple, they minimized the possible
temptations. Perhaps too some of the Gibeonites might come to believe in Yahweh.
The Gibeonites were required to cut wood and draw water for the daily sacrifices at
the tabernacle. The meaning of the name of the towns aligned with Gibeon imply
that the jobs may have taken advantage of their previous skills.

3.3.1.5 (9:22-27) The Gibeonites Will Serve Israels Worship

The curse that Joshua pronounces on the Gibeonites is a blessing in disguise. They
will be consigned to be slaves doing menial manual labor, but they will be serving
Yahweh by providing wood and water for the divine service. They would facilitate
the worship of the one, true God.
Because they will live and work near the OT means of grace, they will have the
opportunity to receive the forgiveness and salvation that Yahweh offers.
The Gibeonites accept Joshuas curse. They confess their trickery and explain that
they did it out fear of being exterminated. This shows that they knew and believed
the word of God. After explaining, they did not fight or protest, but threw
themselves on Joshuas mercy. This is rather remarkable, as we learn in the next
chapter that Gibeon was a great city and all her men were warriors. Because
they gave themselves up without a fight, we know that Gods Law has done its job.
The fact that it states that the Gibeonites were still cutters of wood and drawers of
water to this day shows that some time has passed between the event and the
writing of the book. But because it says they would work at the place that he would
choose, it must have been written before the temple was built.
Yahweh honored the treaty with Gibeon. Later when Saul tried to annihilate them,
Yahweh punished him (2 Sam. 21).
The curse of the Gibeonites to work at Yahwehs altar looks forward to Christ. He too
was cursed and offered up himself on the altar of the cross. He took the form of a
slave even unto death.

Soon Israel will show whether they will honor the treaty. When the Gibeonites are
attacked, will Israel come to help them and fight their enemies as promised (Jos.
10)?

3.3.2 (10:1-27) The Battle of Gibeon

3.3.2.1 (10:1-5) The Five-King Confederacy against Gibeon
The kings of the land fear Israel. They have destroyed Jericho and Ai and now they
have made a covenant with Gibeon which was a formidable city of fighters.
This is the first time Jerusalem is mentioned in the scriptures (in Gen. 14:18 it was
referred to as Salem). Jerusalem has good reason to fear since Gibeon is only 8
miles away and Gilgal, Israels camp, is only 20 miles away. They could team up
against Jerusalem.
The king of Jerusalem appeals for help from four other cities southwest of Jerusalem.
They are called the kings of the Amorites in 10:5. Amorite means the high
one. They may be referred to in this way because they inhabit the mountain
heights. By listing the kings twice, the author emphasizes the military alliance that
will go up against Gibeon.

3.3.2.2 (10:6-11) Yahwehs Mighty Strike at Gibeon

Joshua may have thought that the attack on Gibeon was divine retribution for the
trickery of the Gibeonites. He may have been tempted to stand by and watch the
five kings destroy Gibeon. But the treaty was made in the name of Yahweh, so he
could not do this.
The Gibeonites begged Joshua, Save us! This is similar to the cry of Hosanna
made to Jesus on Palm Sunday, which means Save [us], please. Both Joshua and
Jesus respond positively to the cry for help and do save.
Yahweh assures Joshua that honoring the covenant was the right thing to do by
encouraging him and speaking of the defeat of the five kings in the past tense, I
have given them.
Joshua and his troops marched all night from Gilgal to Gibeon, an 8 to 10 hour trek
and a 3000 foot rise to the high country. The Israelites caught the Amorites by
surprise with their quick response and conquered them. The author makes clear
that Yahweh was the sole cause of the victory (10:10-11).
The Israelites chased the enemy and as they fled Yahweh finished them off by
reigning hail on them. The fact that Yahweh fought for and saved the Gibeonites
shows that he is not all talk and no action. He honors the covenant made in his
name by taking action to rescue the Gibeonites as he had for Israel. Yahweh has at
his disposal all the forces of nature. They respond at his beckon call.

3.3.2.3 (10:12-14) The Unique Day when the Sun Stands Still

The author saves a striking detail about the battle for last as part of Joshuas prayer
to Yahweh. Joshua asked that the sun and moon stand still, giving them more
daylight hours to defeat their enemy. Yahweh heard Joshuas prayer and caused the
sun to stand still for about a day! The phenomenon is told from mans point of view
on earth, similar to us when we talk about the sun rising and setting.
Some do not believe the sun and moon stood still, but Gods word speaks of it as a
supernatural event. In stopping the sun at midday, God intervened to war for Israel.
As OT Joshua interceded for Israel in prayer and God heard and acted, so the NT
Joshua (Jesus) intercedes for his followers and the Father hears and acts. Joshua
shows us that we should be bold in our intercession to God. God created the
universe and has complete control over it.

3.3.2.4 (10:15-27) The Fate of the Five Kings

This passage concludes the account of the defeat of the five kings who formed an
alliance against Israel and the Gibeonites. The five defeated kings fled to a cave at
Makkedah. While the kings were trapped in the cave, the Israelites pursued their
retreating armies and destroyed all but a few. All opposition against Israel was
completely silenced. No one dare say or do anything against Israel.
The five kings were then brought out of the cave. Joshua had the commanders put
their feet on the necks of the defeated kings, symbolizing the position of power they
now hold over the kings and their armies. If Yahweh fights for you, this is how the
battle will end (10:25). This scene is similar to and anticipates the Messiahs victory
over all enemies. They will become his footstool (Ps. 110:1; Mt. 22:44). This scene
also reminds us of the Garden of Eden where God said the Seed would crush the
head of the serpent. On the cross Christ won the victory and crushed the Serpent.
The curse of God rests on a man who is hung or impaled on a tree. So after
executing the kings and hanging them on a tree, Joshua has the bodies removed
and buried in the same cave where the kings hid. To leave their bodies up overnight
would desecrate the holy land. Jesus, the King of the universe, was crucified and
died while hanging on a tree. He became a curse for us, taking the punishment that
we deserved.
They covered the mouth of the cave where the kings were buried with large rocks,
which at the time that the book of Joshua was written could still be seen.

3.3.3 (10:28-39) Israels Sweep to the South

This gives 7 short accounts of a series of victories to the south. The quick pace of
victory with a lack of details helps emphasize the swiftness of the victories. The fact
that 7 cities are mentioned is significant. The number 7 is the number of
completeness. Therefore it is saying that Joshua swung through the south and the
campaign was completely successful. It mentions four times that cherem was

applied. This is what Yahweh commanded through Moses. Joshua and Israel were
careful to follow Gods word.

3.3.4 (10:40-43) Summary of Israels Victories

These verses provide a summary of the victorious southern campaign. The author
describes the conquered territory twice. First in 10:40 he refers to it by 4
geographical regions: the hill country, the Negev, the Shephelah (lowland),
and the slopes. Second in 10:41, he refers to its 4 farthest points: Kadesh-barnea
to Gaza (southwest to northwest) and the whole land of Goshen to Gibeon
(southeast to northeast).
All of this land was captured at one time (10:42). This means that it was captured
in a continuous sweep of successive victories by Israel. Apparently no occupation
force was left behind to control the conquered territory. And not every section of the
southern territory was conquered. Later individual tribes will have to conquer and
re-conquer some pockets of territory.
Excursus: Jerusalem
The Name
The name Jerusalem appears for the first time in the Bible at Jos. 10:1. During the
time of Abraham it was called Shalem or Salem (Gen. 14:18; see also Ps. 76:2).
The name is made up of two parts: Jeru (foundation) and Shalem (peace or wellbeing). Others believe it means possession of peace. A later name for Jerusalem is
Zion.
The Site
Jerusalem rests on the central mountain ridge that is the backbone of the land of
Canaan. The city is 15 miles west of the northern portion of the Dead Sea and 35
miles east of the Mediterranean Sea. Jerusalem is at the intersection of a northsouth mountain road and an east-west road.
It was settled early because it had:
Natural security
An ample water supply
A location at the intersection of main roads
The site has been occupied since the end of the 4 th millennium BC.
Early Israelite Period
Even though the king of Jerusalem was killed by Joshua (10:1), the Israelites did not
take possession of the city or settle it. Israel did not take the city until the time of
David (2 Sam. 5:6-9; 1 Chr. 11:4-9). David then chose Jerusalem as his capital (2
Sam. 6:6-10).
Theological Significance

The Israelites did not build Jerusalem. They came to occupy it later when they
received it from God by grace as their inheritance. In a similar way, Christians
receive from God by grace and inhabit the eternal Jerusalem.
David wanted to build the temple and Solomon his son did build the temple in
Jerusalem. Later Jesus fulfilled the purpose of the temple and became the new
temple. As Solomons temple was destroyed and then rebuilt, so the temple of
Jesus body was destroyed on the cross and then raised on the third day.
Lamentations laments the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. In Christian
churches, Lamentations is read on Good Friday as the destruction of Jesus body
parallels the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple.
OT Joshua would never set foot in Jerusalem. But the NT Joshua (Jesus) would
purposely go to Jerusalem to die on a cross and be raised in glory on the third day.
At Jerusalem (which means foundation of peace), Christ would reconcile and bring
peace between us sinners and God. Through his work at the earthly Jerusalem,
Christians now have eternal citizenship in the New Jerusalem.
The temple at Jerusalem was destroyed in AD 70. The new temple is not only Jesus
physical body but also his body, the church. In this body Jesus Spirit lives and Jesus
true body and blood are consumed by his body, the church. Through Word and
Sacrament he makes citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem.
The old temple at Jerusalem was destroyed because of idolatry and immorality. The
rebuilt temple was destroyed in AD 70 because they rejected Christ. We as the new
temple should take heed. If we follow the way of idolatry and immorality, we too will
be destroyed and be excluded from the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem will not
only be a place where the redeemed live forever, it is also an eternal state where
the redeemed are the New Jerusalem, the city that is forever at peace with God.

3.4 (11:1-15) The Northern Campaign: The Defeat

of Jabin and the Kings of the North
As Jos. 10 was a record of the southern campaign, so Jos. 11:1-15 records the
northern campaign. It follows the same pattern:
A leading Canaanite king hears of Israels victories.
He seeks to build an alliance with other Canaanite kings.
Israel overpowers the kings in the north because God fights for them.
The northern campaign is divided into 3 parts:
1. The Confederacy of the Northern Kings against Israel (11:1-5).
2. Yahweh gives Encouragement and Victory (11:6-9).
3. Mighty Hazor and Other Northern Cities Fall to Joshua (11:10-15).

3.4.1 (11:1-5) The Confederacy of the Northern Kings

against Israel

Chapter 11 begins like chapter 10 with a king hearing of Israels victories and
gathering a coalition. King Jabin of Hazor perceives that Israel will soon invade his
territory and comes up with a plan of defense. His plan is to combine the forces of
all the kings of the area. The force that Israel will face is very significant. They even
have chariots. Under Moses, Israel faced a similar situation. As Israel left Egypt, they
were pursued by pharaohs horsemen and chariots. The outcome will be the same.

3.4.2 (11:6-9) Yahweh gives Encouragement and Victory

Yahweh encouraged Joshua no to be afraid by telling him that by this time tomorrow
he would give Israels enemies into their hands. Victory will be swift. When they win
they are to hamstring their enemys horses, rendering them useless for war. And
they are to burn the enemys chariots.
Joshua and Israels army had started north even before the enemy gathered. He
surprised the enemy by coming upon them suddenly. The victory was total because
the Lord gave them into the hand of Israel (11:8). Israel pursued them to the
northwest and to the northeast and finished them off.

3.4.3 (11:10-15) Mighty Hazor and Other Northern Cities

Fall to Joshua
After pursuing the fleeing armies, Joshua turned back and took the important city of
Hazor. It was a large and impressive city-state. Hazor was the head of the coalition
of kingdoms. Joshua applied cherem to it, totally destroying it by burning it.
They applied cherem to the other cities as well but they did not burn these cities.
This meant that Israel could inhabit these cities. Yahweh was keeping his promise
that they would live in cities and houses that they had not built (Deut. 6:10-11). The
only cities burned were Jericho, Ai, and Hazor.
Joshua was completely obedient to the command of Moses. The 3-part chain of
command was followed once again. Yahweh commanded Moses; Moses commanded
Joshua; and Joshua carried out the command. This pattern is important for pastoral
ministry and the church. Yahweh commands the church; the church commands each
pastor; and each pastor carries out the command.

3.5 (11:16 12:24) A Review of Israels Victories

Next comes a review of Israels victories. The review sets the stage for the allotment
of the land (Jos. 13 21). The review first focuses on the land and then on the
defeated kings of the land. It is structured as follows:
1. Summary of Conquered Land (11:16-23).
2. The Conquered Kings of Canaan (12:1-24).
a. Conquered Kings East of Jordan (12:1-6).
b. Conquered Kings West of Jordan (12:7-24).

3.5.1 (11:16-23) Summary of Conquered Land

These verses, as well as chapter 12, close out the conquest portion of the book of
Joshua. The author has not related all the battles. He gives a summary here of the
land where they won their victories.
Jos. 11:17 gives a sweeping summary south to north. Mt. Halak and Seir mark the
southern boundary. Baal-gad and Mt. Hermon mark the northern boundary.
The conquest under Joshua had continued many days (11:18). Based on Calebs
age, it was probably around 7 years. Caleb was 40 when the 38 years of wandering
in the desert began (Deut. 2:14). So he was 78 when Israel crossed the Jordan.
According to Jos. 14:10, he was 85 when the intensive conquest was over. This is
how the 7 years of conquest is calculated.
As once under Moses, God hardened the heart of pharaoh and Egypt, so now God
hardened the hearts of the Canaanites (11:20). He did so in order to bring judgment
on the Canaanites and to graciously provide land for his people to dwell in.
God does not want anyone to perish. He had given the Canaanites ample time and
reason to repent. They had heard about what God had done for his people in Egypt
and in the Transjordan. Therefore they could have repented but they didnt.
Because they didnt repent, God hardened their hearts and then destroyed them
(11:20). Their punishment for their sin was just and fair. And it also served Gods
redemptive purposes by providing the land for the Israelites to inherit (11:23).
What God did to the Canaanites is shown in a much broader way in Rom. 1:18-32
and in the book of Revelation. God sends plagues and affliction in order to move
people to repentance. But like the Canaanites, most people refuse to repent and
serve God. God has delayed his judgment on them until Christs second coming. At
that time Gods wrath will be unleashed.
In a similar way God had restrained his wrath on the Amorites for 700 years (from
Gen. 15:16 until Joshuas conquest). During this time they could have turned from
their idolatry and wickedness. The hardening of their hearts was the beginning of
Gods judgment on them for their refusal to repent. God used their hostility toward
him for the good of his chosen people.
The 700 years God gave the Canaanites is a type of the whole NT era. And the NT
era is like a Jubilee year in which slaves are set free and debts are cancelled. The
Gospel of the forgiveness of sins, which is proclaimed during the NT era, sets people
free for a new life in Christ.
Yet the period of Gods grace does not last forever. Gods call to repentance should
be heeded today (Heb. 3:7, 13, 15; 4:7). When Christ comes again, it will be too
late.

The Canaanites destruction was by Gods design. It was not caused by social
upheaval or a bloodthirsty or land hungry Israel. Credit for their destruction goes to
Yahweh (11:20).
In destroying the Canaanites, God is preserving Israel for the sake of his promise to
bless the nations through the Seed of Abraham as he promised in Gen. 12:3. This
conquest then is related to Gods love and faithfulness toward the nations as
displayed in Jesus Christ.
The conquest then was an act of both Law and Gospel. In it God brought justice to
the Canaanites and grace to Israel. In a similar way God worked through Law and
Gospel in the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus. He took his wrath out on
Jesus and at the same time made forgiveness available to all humanity. Without
punishment there would have been no salvation. The mission of the church is to
make this known by proclaiming both Gods Law and Gospel.
This time God used his people to destroy the Canaanites. At other times he uses
one nation to punish another nation [such as the Assyrians and Babylonians]. This
was not a lasting ordinance that Gods people should destroy all unbelievers.
In verses 21 and 22 the destruction of the Anakim is underscored. These were
people of great size that the Israelites had feared, which in turn caused the 38 years
of wandering. This underscore shows that those earlier fears were groundless in
light of Gods promise to fight for Israel.
Some Anakin survived in 3 Philistine cities. Apparently they filtered back in later as
Caleb and Othneil had to drive them out (see Jos. 15:14-16).
Jos. 11:23 is a summary of the entire book of Joshua. It looks back at the first 11
chapters by speaking of Joshua taking the land by following Yahwehs instructions. It
looks ahead to the rest of the book by speaking of the allotment of the land to the
tribes.
That the land rested from war does not mean that Israel had absolute control over
all of the land. Joshua had figuratively hamstrung the Canaanites as he had
hamstrung their horses. At the present time the Canaanites do not have the might
or will to resist. The land is at rest while the tribal allotments are made.
The land is given to Israel to serve Gods divine purposes.
1. It is given freely and in grace to Israel by God.
2. It is a fulfillment of Gods promise to the patriarchs and Moses.
3. God will use the land to bless the nations. In this land his Son will suffer, die,
and rise to grant to believers an inheritance in the eternal promised land.
4. The rest in the land looked forward to an eternal rest. As God fought for Israel
and gave them rest, so he fights for the NT church and gives them an eternal
Sabbath rest.
These verses summarized the conquest in terms of the land. Chapter 12
summarizes it again in terms of the conquered Canaanite kings. It also impresses on
us how sweeping of a victory it was that Yahweh gave.

3.5.2 (12:1-24) The Conquered Kings of Canaan

3.5.2.1 (12:1-6) Conquered Kings East of Jordan
These verses give us a list of the conquered kings east of the Jordan. It can be
outlined as follows:
I.
Jos. 12:1a The heading for chapter 12. The chapter will list the kings that
Israel struck down.
II.
Jos. 12:1b The heading for 12:2-6. The kings defeated in the land east of
the Jordan.
... A. Jos. 12:2-3 The conquered territory of the king Sihon.
... B. Jos. 12:4-5 The conquered territory of the king Og.
... C. Jos. 12:6 A summary review of the history of the land east of the
Jordan.
The combined territory of kings Sihon and Og ran from the Dead Sea in the south to
Mt. Hermon in the north and from the Jordan River in the west to the Arabian desert
in the east. Num. 21:21-31 tells of Moses defeat of Sihon and Og. Num. 32 relates
how their land came to be possessed by the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half tribe
of Manasseh.

3.5.2.2 (12:7-24) Conquered Kings West of Jordan

This passage can be broken into 2 parts.
1. Jos. 12:7-8 is an introduction to the defeated Canaanite kings west of the
Jordan.
2. Jos. 12:9-14 is a list of each of the vanquished kings, for a total of 31.
We have seen most of these cities before, but there are a few that are mentioned
here for the first time. This implies that the conquest narrative in Jos. 1 11 was not
a complete record.
Why is this long list of names given? With one sweep of the eye, one can see that
Yahweh has toppled a long list of Israelite foes to fulfill his promises. Nothing will
stop the King of kings from coming to this land to establish his reign and bringing
the Gospel to the world.
Israel of the OT equates to the church of the NT. But the progress of Gods NT
kingdom is not measured by defeated kings or possessed cities. In the NT God used
earthly rulers to accomplish his purposes. He used people like Herod, Caesar
Augustus, and Quirinius, Annas and Caiaphas, and Felix to bring about salvation
through Christ.
In the NT God conquered many powerful entities and authorities who opposed Christ
and then were deposed by Christs death and resurrection. He defeated persecution,
death, demons, powers, and all created things that try and separate us from the
love of God in Christ (Rom. 8:35-39).

With chapter 12 the conquest part of Joshua comes to a close. Next comes the
allotment and the challenge to inhabit and hold the land. They must be firm in
covenant loyalty to fully possess, hold, and inhabit the land as their inheritance
from Yahweh.

4. (13:1 21:45) Yahweh Allots the Land

Inheritance to Israel
A. 13:1-7 Yahweh Commands Joshua to Allot the Land
B. 13:8 21:42 The Allotment Carried Out
... B1. 13:8-33 A Review of the Transjordan Allotment through Moses
... B2. 14:1-15 Land for Faithful Caleb
... B3. 15:1 19:48 The Nine and One-Half Tribes Receive Land West of the Jordan
... B4. 19:49-50 The Special Inheritance for Joshua
... B5. 19:51 The Completion of the Allotment
... B6. 20:1-9 Cities of Refuge Set Apart
... B7. 21:1-42 Cities for the Levites
C. 21:43-45 Summary Statements: God Has Now Given the Land He Promised by
Oath Long Ago
Introduction to Joshua 13
Chapter 13 begins a detailed description of the allotment of the land to the twelve
tribes of Israel (Jos. 13 21). This nine-chapter section is like a testament that
bequeaths the promised inheritance to the heirs. While sounding tedious to us, the
Israelites would have rejoiced in it because it is the fulfillment of one of the major
promises God made to the patriarchs.
Excursus: Geography and Theology of the Holy Land
We take a look at the geography of the land here because the next nine chapters
have detailed descriptions of the boundaries of the land allotted to the twelve
tribes. The promised land is comparable in size to the state of New Hampshire. The
distance north to south is about 125 miles and west to east is about 95 miles. The
land is small but it is the land in which God chose to settle his people and in which
he chose to become human flesh and live among us.
The following are the natural geographical units that comprise the land. Each units
runs the length of the land, covering north to south. And the units listed go from
west to east.
1. The coastal plains near the Mediterranean.
2. Next going east is the central mountain range.
3. Next comes the Rift Valley. This includes the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan Valley,
the Dead Sea, and the Arabah south of the Dead Sea.
4. The plateau of Transjordan is east of the Rift Valley. Four rivers divide this
land into five regions. From north to south they are: Bashan, Gilead, Ammon,
Moab, and Edom.
5. The farthest to the east are the deserts.

One neat thing to do is to visit the Holy Land and read the portions of the sacred
Scriptures that occurred in each of the geographical regions. This is an eye-opening
experience, which gives one a fresh understanding of many texts. The mind as well
as the heart can become more sensitive to the rich meaning of words of the Bible
through contact with the land of the Bible.
For the book of Joshua, as well as other books of the Bible, geography plays an
important role and helps to emphasize that the events occurred in real history.
Some examples are: the flood-swollen Jordan was crossed; selected tribes were to
stand on Mt. Gerizim and Mt. Ebal in the account of blessings and curses; the sun
stood still over Gibeon and the moon stayed over the Valley of Aijalon during the
battle; later Jesus was tempted in the dry and desolate Judean wilderness; and most
Jews avoided the land of Samaria, but Jesus went through it.
The allotment chapters of Joshua (Jos. 13 21) are filled with boundary descriptions
that are tied to geographical terms and city names. The more we understand these
terms the more we will learn from the text. Into this land allotted to his ancestors,
Jesus would come as God incarnate. Into this geographical setting Jesus would
actively and perfectly obey his Father. Jesus sandals walked across this land. Jesus
was baptized in the waters of the Jordan River and sailed across the Sea of Galilee.
In this land at the place called Golgotha, Jesus gave himself unto death for the
salvation of the world. Out of the rock tomb Jesus rose for our justification. From the
Mt. of Olives he ascended into heaven. On this land Jesus accomplished salvation
history.
The Holy Land is obviously important and of great significance. But there are also
some unscriptural ideas and mistaken views about it.
1. The Scriptures do not promise an ultimate return of the Jews to the physical
land of Israel after their universal conversion as some claim. The Jews did
return after the Babylonian Captivity and God did preserve the nation until
the Offspring of Abraham came. When Paul speaks of all Israel being saved
(Rom. 11:26), he is speaking of all the elect in Christ, both Jews and Gentiles.
2. The promised land does not belong to the Jews forever and the return of the
Jews to Palestine does not fulfill Gods promise to Abraham to give the land to
Israel forever. The Hebrew word translated as forever actually means an
indefinite period of time. The earth will not last forever. It will be destroyed at
Jesus second coming. God preserved his chosen people until the completion
of the Saviors work of redemption. Now the Gospel of Christ goes out to the
world, making many a part of the Israel of God. In Christ Gods kingdom has
come and is made up of all believers in him, regardless of what land they live
in.
3. Earthly Jerusalem does not continue to hold significance as a holy city where
God dwells. The Law of Moses with its prescription for worship has been
fulfilled in Christ. Worship of God is now centered on the person of Christ
instead of the physical location of the temple at Jerusalem. God dwells with
his people wherever the Gospel is preached and the Sacraments
administered as Christ instituted them.
4. There will not be a great military clash at the end of the world at the
geographical site of Megiddo in Israel. Megiddo has been the site of many

important battles over the centuries. Armageddon then is a fitting symbol of

the final defeat of all evil by God at Christs second coming. That is the final
battle depicted in Rev. 20:7-9. There will be no preliminary rapture and
there will not be a thousand-year reign of Christ from the earthly Jerusalem or
Israel. The millennium is a symbolic period for the church age, the time from
Christs first coming to his second coming at the end of the world. The
context of Rev. 16 shows that Armageddon is a symbolic implementation of
Christ victory over sin, death, and evil. During the millennium, evil still
exists, but Satan has been chained up; he is restricted by God. On the Last
Day, God will completely do away with Satan and his minions.
If we let Scripture interpret Scripture, all of these fanatical claims concerning the
physical Holy Land are eliminated. The land was a temporary, physical down
payment on the promises to Israel as the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is to our
eternal inheritance.

4.1 (13:1-7) Yahweh Commands Joshua to Allot the

Land
This text may be outlined as follows:
1. (13:1) The Setting of the Command.
2. (13:2-6a) Land Still to Be Possessed.
3. (13:6b) A Promise and Command concerning the Land Still to Be Possessed.
4. (13:7) The General Command to Allot All the Land.
We dont exactly know how old Joshua is, but it says that he was old and advanced
in years (13:1). It is possible that he as in his upper eighties or nineties. Much of
the land has not yet been taken by Israel to possess. But to encourage Israel, God
attaches his continuing promise to drive out the Canaanites (13:6).
The unconquered areas described are in the southwest, northeast, and far north.
(13:2-6a). While apportioning the land, Joshua is told to also apportion these
unconquered lands. Judges 3:1-3 contains the same basic information about these
unconquered lands as Jos. 13:2-6. The passage in Judges spells out Yahwehs
reasons for allowing these nations to remain: (1) to teach later Israelites battle
experience and (2) to test if the Israelites would follow Yahwehs commands given
by Moses.
Jos. 13:2-3 outlines the southern land that remains unconquered. It mentions the
Philistines. Philistine power in Canaan centered on five city-states in the southwest
corner. The Philistines were a menace to the Israelites for many years and were not
subdued until the time of David.
After the Philistines the Avvim are mentioned (13:3b). They lived near Gaza (Deut.
2:23) south of Philistia (13:4a).
The Geshurites (13:2) inhabited two areas of Canaan, one in the south and one in
the north. One group lived southeast of Philistia (13:2). The other group lived in the
area of Bashan, northeast of the Sea of Gallilee. Its capital was probably Bethsaida.

Jos. 13:4-5 relates the unconquered northern territories.

The two and a half tribes east of the Jordan have already received their allotted
inheritance. Therefore this new allotment will be for the remaining nine and a half
tribes (13:7). But before their allotment comes a review of the previous Transjordan
allotment (13:8-33).

4.2 (13:8 21:42) The Allotment Carried Out

4.2.1 (13:8-33) A Review of the Transjordan Allotment
through Moses
This section provides a review of the allotment of land east of the Jordan by Moses.
It first covers the eastern territory as a whole (13:8-13). The area allotted to these
tribes includes all the land from the Arnon River in the south to Mt. Hermon in the
north. [Yahweh gave all the land of kings Sihon and Og to the Israelites.]
Before providing information about the area of each of the individual tribes, a
statement is made about the tribe of Levi not receiving a land inheritance like the
other tribes (13:14). Four times in the book of Joshua it is mentioned that the
Levites received no land (13:14, 33; 14:3-4; 18:7). In these four cases the
inheritance given to the Levites instead of land is described as: the offerings to
Yahweh, Yahweh himself, cities and pasturelands, and the priesthood to Yahweh.
Because they have no land, the Levites are dependent upon Yahweh and the other
tribes to provide for them. The fact that they receive no land inheritance does not
mean that their tribe is more worthless than the other tribes. They too belong to
Israel.
The mention about the Levites not receiving a land inheritance brackets the review
of the allotment of land east of the Jordan. Instead of land, the Levites will receive
the offerings to Yahweh as their inheritance. Various grain and meat that was
offered to Yahweh were in turn reassigned by Yahweh to the Levites. [Because it was
offered to Yahweh, it became holy food. And so Yahweh provided holy food for the
Levites. (See Leviticus.)]
In some ways the situation of the Levites inheritance foreshadows the situation of
all Christians. Like the Levites, Christians receive no land inheritance here on earth.
Christians have the promise from God of an eternal inheritance in heaven. As the
Levites were completely dependent on Yahweh and receive him as their inheritance,
so too Christians are completely dependent on Yahweh for salvation and receive him
as their eternal inheritance. As the Levites received their inheritance completely in
grace, so too do Christians receive everything from the Lord as a gift of grace
through Gods Word and Sacraments.
There are also parallels between the Levites and pastors. As the Levites were
landless, so many pastors are landless, in that they live in a parsonage provided
by the congregation. And as the Levites received food from the sacrifices provided
by the congregation of Israel, so pastors receive their wages from the congregation

of the church they serve. God provided for the Levites through the congregation and
God provides for pastors through the congregation. Being a Levite was a high and
holy privilege and so is being a pastor. The sole purpose of the Levites was to serve
God and that is also the sole purpose for pastors.
After referencing the Levites in Jos. 13:14, the passage next refers to the inheritance
of the tribe of Reuben (13:15-23). Reuben holds the southern portion of the land
east of the Jordan, from Aroer to Heshbon, the former capital of King Sihon.
The middle section of land east of the Jordan belonged to Gad (13:24-28). Its
southern border is with the tribe of Reuben and its northern border is with the half
tribe of Manasseh.
The northern section of the land east of the Jordan belonged to the half tribe of
Manasseh (13:29-31).
The chapter ends with a summary (13:32-33). It makes the point that the eastern
tribes received their inheritance from Yahweh through Moses. They have a
legitimate claim to the Transjordan lands and they are by no means to be
considered second-class citizens just because their land was east of the Jordan and
not in Canaan proper.

4.2.2 (14:1-15) Land for Faithful Caleb

Introduction to Joshua 14
Jos. 14 records the fulfillment of Gods promise to Caleb that he would inherit a
portion of the land of Canaan because of his faith and faithfulness (see Num. 14:24).

4.2.2.1 (14:1-5) Introduction [to the Allotment of the Nine and a

Half Tribes]
In this introduction the word inherit or inheritance is used several times giving
emphasis to the fact that the land that the tribes were receiving was a gift from
Yahweh, given purely out of grace in fulfillment of his promise to the patriarchs.
The distribution was made by lot (14:2), which ensured that Israels leaders
showed no favoritism and showed that Yahweh was guiding the whole procedure.
Eleazar is mentioned first. He is the high priest who succeeded Aaron. He was in
charge of casting lots. Perhaps the lots he used were the Urim and Thummim in his
priestly breastplate. No description is given of the actual procedure used in casting
lots, [but it does say that it was done exactly as Moses had commanded(14:2).]
Amongst the nine and a half tribes were Manasseh and Ephraim (14:4). The
founders of these tribes were the sons of Joseph whom Jacob had adopted. Since
each of them would receive an inheritance, in this way Joseph received a double
portion. In that culture, usually the firstborn son received the double inheritance,
but God works in his own way. And in this case, he gave the double portion to
Joseph, the eleventh son.

Because the Levites received cities and pasturelands instead of land (14:4), the land
would be divided amongst twelve tribes instead of thirteen.
[And once again the pattern was followed. God gave the command for the allotment
of the land to Moses. Moses passed on the command to Joshua and the Israelites.
And the Israelites carried out Gods command (14:5).]
Next will come the allotment of the land. The account (Jos. 15 19) begins and ends
with special grants of land to the two men who as spies had been faithful to Yahweh
45 years earlier. The first special grant will go to Caleb (14:6-15) and the other
special grant will go to Joshua (19:49-50). These two special allotments frame the
allotment for the nine and a half tribes.

4.2.2.2 (14:6-15) Faithful and Fit Then and Now, Caleb Receives
Hebron
Note that the first part of the distribution of the land (Jos. 14 17) takes place in
Gilgal. Later the second part of the distribution will be made from Shiloh (Jos. 18:1).
Scattered throughout the distribution are special requests for land.
1. Caleb (Jos. 14:6-15).
2. Achsah, Calebs daughter (Jos. 15:16-19).
3. The daughters of Zelophehad (Jos. 17:3-6).
4. Joshua (Jos. 19:49-50).
5. The Levites (Jos. 21:1-2).
In most cases these requests are made on the basis of particular promises of
Yahweh.
The men of Judah came with Caleb to make this special request for Caleb. Caleb
belonged to the tribe of Judah. Twice he is called the Kenizzite. Some interpreters
believe the Kenizzites were a clan within the tribe of Judah, but the Scriptures never
identify a clan in this way.
Caleb is a man of faith. This faith was displayed when, 45 years earlier, at the age
of 40, as one of the 12 spies, Caleb trusted Gods word of promise and urged along
with Joshua that the Israelites capture the promised land (Num. 13:30; 14:6-9).
Caleb followed Yahweh whole-heartedly (14:8-9). Now once again, trusting in Gods
word of promise given through Moses (14:9), Caleb asks for the land that God
promised to him (14:12). He asked for land in the hill country where the Anakim
lived in fortified cities. These were the giants that caused Israels faith to falter 45
years earlier. He showed faith once again believing that Yahweh would be with him
and drive them out. As Caleb trusted God and his word of promise, so every
Christian can do the same. Christians have the promise that they will win the victory
through the perfect life, vicarious death, and victorious resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Because of this victory, Christians will bodily rise from the dead and live forever in
the new heaven and new earth.

The references to Calebs age help provide a chronology of his life and the
conquest. We can start at his current age and work backwards, assuming the early
date of the exodus.
He was 85 years old when he requests the land promised to him (14:10b).
The end of the conquest, when he makes this request, was in 1399 BC.
The conquest took 7 years. Therefore Caleb was 78 years old when he
entered the land. Therefore the entry into the land was in 1406 BC.
It has been 45 years since Caleb had been sent out as a spy (14:10a).
Therefore he was 40 years old when he was a spy (14:7).
The spies were sent on their mission about 2 years after the exodus. This
would have been in 1444 BC.
Therefore Caleb was 38 years old when he and Israel left Egypt. The exodus
occurred in 1446 BC.
Based on the early date of the exodus, Caleb would have been born in Egypt
in 1484 BC.
Based on Gods promise, Joshua gave Hebron to Caleb as his inheritance. Later we
find that Hebron was a city for the priests (21:11) and a city of refuge (21:13). In
Jos. 21:12 it says the fields of the city and its villages had been given to Caleb the
son of Jephunneh as his possession. So he did not receive the city proper, but the
land all around the city.
Hebron was about 25 miles south of Jerusalem. Hebron was the place that Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob, and their wives were buried in the cave of Machpelah. The prior name
for Hebron was Kiriah-arba. It was named after a man named Arba who was the
greatest man among the Anakim.
It says once again that the land rested from war. This provides the setting for the
main distribution of the land (Jos. 15 20).

4.2.3 (15:1 19:48) The Nine and a Half Tribes Receive

Land West of the Jordan
Introduction to Joshua 15
Chapters 15 19 give the allotment of the land west of the Jordan to the nine and a
half tribes. It begins in chapter 15 with the allotment of land to the tribe of Judah.
The importance of the tribe of Judah is obvious by the volume of verses devoted to
it (all of chapter 15). The tribe of Judah is the largest (see the census in Num. 26)
and therefore received the largest territory west of the Jordan. This was the tribe
from which God promised the Savior would come from (see Jacobs blessing of Judah
in Gen. 49:10). It is in this land that the Son of God would become incarnate, live,
die, and rise again to procure the eternal inheritance of the new heavens and new
earth for all believers.
Joshua 15 can be outlined as follows:
1. Judahs Borders on Four Sides (15:1-12).
2. Blessing and Springs for Calebs Daughter (15:13-19).

3. The Cities of Judah (15:20-63).

4.2.3.1 (15:1-63) Judahs Allotment

4.2.3.1.1 (15:1-12) Judahs Borders on Four Sides
Jos. 15:1-12 lays out Judahs boundaries on its four sides:
The south (15:1-4)
The east (15:5a)
The north (15:5b-11)
The west (15:12a)
Jos. 15:1-4 details the southern border of the tribe of Judah. It is parallel to Num.
34:3-6, which defines the southern border for all the land of Israel. Both of these
passages are intended as literal demarcations for the tribal lands of Israel in the OT
era.
Also parallel to these two passages is Eze. 47:19 and 48:28. However there is one
big difference. Eze. 40 -48 is a prophetic vision of a future era after the advent of
the Messiah. Ezekiels vision looks forward to the eternal state of Gods people and
therefore is similar to Rev. 21 22, except that it is expressed with OT language and
concepts. For instance, Ezekiel still pictures a temple with sacrifices, whereas Rev.
21 says that there will not be a temple or sacrifices since the Lamb has already
offered the perfect, all-availing sacrifice.
In broad terms, Judah receives the land west of the Dead Sea all the way to the
Mediterranean and south to Kadesh-barnea. The allotment for Judah has a great
variety of terrain. From east to west the geographical regions of Judah are as
follows:
The Arabah
The wilderness
The hill country
The Negev
The Shephelah
The Plain of Philistia
The coastal plain (the plain of Philistia) is assigned to Judah even though it has not
been conquered yet. Tribes receiving unconquered land are expected to finish the
job by driving the Canaanites out of those areas.
The border description of Judah is one of the easiest to follow of the twelve tribes.
As we said, the southern border is the same as in Num. 34:3-5. The eastern border
is the Dead Sea. The western border is the Mediterranean Sea. And the northern
border corresponds to Benjamins southern border and is given with special detail in
order to eliminate any potential dispute between the two tribes.
Excursus: The Hebrew Verbs in the Border Descriptions

Here in this excursus the author provides a technical discussion, as to why the verbs
in the border descriptions are translated in the past, present, or future tense.

4.2.3.1.2 (15:13-19) Blessing and Springs for Calebs Daughter

In Jos. 11:21-22 it says that Joshua had taken Hebron and wiped out all of the
Anakim in the land. The only Anakim left were in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod. Israel did
not leave an occupation force to retain complete control of the area. So apparently
from the time of the Israels victory until the time of chapter 15, some of the Anakim
had filtered back in. There are two phases to the operation. First there was the
conquest phase, which took seven years (Jos. 1 12). Second is the settlement
phase, which will take much longer. The Israelites will struggle to take full
possession of the land throughout the period of the judges and into monarchy (four
centuries).
Earlier (Jos. 14:6-15) we learned that Caleb had been allotted Hebron. From that
account we knew that retaking Hebron would take military action by Caleb, but no
details were given. This account gives us some of the details. Caleb, who was from
the tribe of Judah, was given an inheritance within Judahs allotment. The three sons
of Anak that Caleb drove out were Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. These names were
mentioned before in Num. 13:22 in the account of the spies. (They are also
mentioned in Judg. 1:10.) The quivering spies pointed to these formidable enemies
as a reason not to try and conquer the land. The spies pictured themselves as
grasshoppers in comparison to the sons of Anak (Num. 13:33). Earlier as one of
the spies Caleb was not afraid of them and he was not afraid of them now either. He
was able to drive them out. By doing so he showed that their earlier fears were
groundless. They need only have faith and trust in Yahwehs sure promises.
Next Caleb came up against the city of Debir. He offered a challenge and prize for
whoever could take the city. Othniel (probably Calebs nephew) took up the
challenge and defeated the city. The prize he won was the hand of Calebs
daughter, Achsah, in marriage. At Achsahs urging, they requested a field and Caleb
gave them some of the dry ground of the Negev. Since it was an arid land, Achsah
requested from her father the blessing of some springs of water and he gave her
the Upper and Lower Springs. Joshua had blessed Caleb and now Caleb passed on
that blessing to his daughter. The word blessing acknowledges that the entire land
was a gift from God that was given entirely out of Gods grace. The word blessing
also reminds us of when God originally conferred his blessing on Abraham (Gen.
12:1-3) and how each of the patriarchs passed on the blessing to his sons. Here
Caleb did the same.
Achsah was bold in laying claim to Gods blessing and her inheritance. She provides
an example that NT Christians should follow. With faith in Jesus, we should be bold
in claiming the blessing and inheritance that God has promised us in Christ.
Achsah and Othniel requested springs of water because water was essential for life.
Throughout the Scriptures water is associated with the new life Jesus provides
through the Holy Spirit. In the waters of Baptism through the Holy Spirit working
through the Word new life begins. In it Jesus not only quenches spiritual thirst, but

the water he blesses us with becomes a spring of water that wells up to eternal life
(Jn. 4:14-15).

4.2.3.1.3 (15:20-63) The Cities of Judah

Jos. 15:20 is a summary statement that provides a transition to the listing of cities
that follows in the rest of the chapter. The cities are grouped by region.
Jos. 15:21-32 gives the cities of Judah in the Negev.
Jos. 15:33-47 gives the cities of Judah in the Shephelah.
Jos. 15:48-60 gives the cities of Judah in the hill country.
Jos. 15:61-62 gives the cities of Judah in the wilderness.
The chapter about Judah ends with an acknowledgment that it was not able to drive
out all of the Canaanites (15:63). (For similar statements in Joshua, see Jos. 13:13
and 16:10.) According to Judg. 1:8-21, Judah attacked Jerusalem and had success,
but it did not lead to firm control as they moved on to fight other battles.
Jerusalem was not part of Judahs allotment (see Jos. 15:5b-11 where the city
belonged to the tribe of Benjamin and the fields south of it belonged to Judah) so
why does it mention that Judah failed to drive out the inhabitants of Jerusalem?
There are at least two explanations.
1. It may be that Jerusalem here is used in a wide sense to include environs
around the city. This would be similar to the way Hebron was referred to
earlier. It said that Hebron was given to Caleb, but in reality the city itself was
given to the priests. Caleb received the area all around Hebron.
2. It may be that Judah teamed up with Benjamin to drive out the Jebusites.
Judg. 1:21 is similar to Jos. 15:63, except it states that the Benjamites failed
to drive out the Jebusites. Since that was the border area of these two tribes,
both would have incentive to eradicate their enemies.
Complete victory over Jebusites would not come until King David won victory over
the city around 1000 BC, some 400 years after the time of Joshua. It is in Jerusalem
where the Son of David would win an even bigger victory over the enemies of sin,
death, and the devil.
The chapter ends with the phrase to this day (Jos. 15:63). This phrase means that
the book of Joshua had to be written prior to Davids conquest of Jerusalem. This
phrase also seems to imply that a span of time has occurred between the events
recorded and the composition of the book. We also know that the book could not
have been written before the conquest and allotment. So a reasonable assumption
for the date of authorship of the book of Joshua would be during the time of Judges.

4.2.3.2 (16:1 17:18) Josephs Double Allotment

Two tribes descended from Joseph: Ephraim and Manasseh. Jos. 16 describes
Ephraims allotment and Jos. 17 describes Manassehs allotment.
Traditionally in the ancient Near East the firstborn son received a double portion of
inheritance. This inheritance is an important part of the story of Abraham, Isaac,

and Jacob. In these stories God shows that he does things in his own way. He did not
always give the blessing to the firstborn son. Jacob received the blessing from Isaac
as a result of trickery. Jacobs blessing of his sons in Gen. 49 also involves
inheritance. Towards the end of Jacobs life, he adopted Josephs two sons as his
own. They therefore became eligible for an inheritance just like Jacobs real sons.
Because they both received an inheritance, in a sense Joseph, the eleventh son,
received a double portion that the firstborn son usually received.
The reader will notice that sometimes the author presents Ephraim and Manasseh
together and sometimes apart. It would be natural to include them together since
they are both sons of Joseph and grandsons of Jacob. Yet it would also be natural to
treat them separately since they both received a separate inheritance like the other
tribes.
One can outline these two chapters as follows:
1. The Borders in General (16:1-4)
2. The Inheritance of the Two Tribes (16:5 17:13)
.. 2a. Ephraims Inheritance (16:5-9)
.. 2b. Ephraims Shortcoming (16:10)
.. 2c. Manassehs Inheritance (17:1-11)
.. 2d. Manassehs Shortcoming (17:12-13)
3. A Special Allotment for the Sons of Joseph (17:14-18)

4.2.3.2.1 (16:1-10) General Borders and Ephraims Inheritance and

Shortcoming
Chapter 16 begins by giving the southern border of the tribes of Ephraim and
Manasseh on the west side of the Jordan (Jos. 16:1-4). The boundary ran from
Jericho westward to the Mediterranean Sea. Between the two tribes of Joseph and
the tribe of Judah was what is sometimes called the Dan-Benjamin corridor.
Jos. 16:5-9 defines Ephraims inheritance. Ephraim was Josephs younger son. He
may be listed first before his older brother Manasseh to show once again that things
work differently in Gods kingdom. Jacobs words of blessing to Ephraim prophesy its
military prowess (Gen. 49:24). Ephraim became a dominant tribe in the north and
sometimes when the prophets spoke of Ephraim, they were referring to all ten
northern tribes.
The territory of Ephraim is generally rugged hill country in the heart of the promised
land. The boundary description is less detailed than that of the Judah and Benjamin.
And we are unsure about some of the places named.
Jos. 16:5b-6a is an abbreviated version of 16:1-3, the southern border of Ephraim,
which is also the northern border of the tribe of Benjamin.
The northern border of Ephraim is given in Jos. 16:6b-7. It starts at Michmethath,
which is at the center of the northern border and then moves east to the Jordan.
Then at 16:8 the description goes back to the center of the northern border
(Tappauh) and moves west to the Mediterranean Sea. Jos. 17:7b-10, a description of
Manassehs southern border, gives a more detailed description of this same border.

The western boundary is not given, but it is probably the Mediterranean Sea since
both the northern and southern borders end at the sea (Jos. 6, 8). Now originally
Dan inherited this coastal land, but subsequently Dan migrated northeast (Jos.
19:47). So the description here may depict the borders after Dan migrated. If it
depicts the situation before they migrated, then the western boundary of Ephraim
would have been the eastern boundary of Dan.
The final verse of the chapter (Jos. 16:10) relays Ephraims shortcoming (Jos. 16:10).
They failed to drive out the Canaanites at Gezer, which is the most strategic and
powerful city in the area. God had promised that they would have success against
their enemies if they trusted in him. The failure of Judah and Ephraim and the other
tribes to drive out the Canaanites showed that their faith was weak.
In Deut. 7:4 and 20:16-18 Moses laid out the dire consequences if they failed to
remove the Canaanites. They practiced idolatry and gross immorality. Their
continuing presence would be a source of temptation. The subsequent history of
Israel showed that they succumbed to it time and time again.
The complete victory over all of Gods enemies would only be achieved by Jesus
Christ. The failure of the tribes of Israel helps to show the surpassing greatness of
the triumph of the Son of God. Because of his victory, all baptized believers receive
an allotment in the eternal promised land where there will be no more temptations
to worship other gods, as only true believers will remain. Thanks be to God, who
gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! (1 Cor. 15:57; cf. Rom. 7:25; 2 Cor.
2:14).

4.2.3.2.2 (17:1-13) Manassehs Inheritance and Shortcoming

Jos. 17:1-13 presents the inheritance of the western half of the tribe of Manasseh
and also its shortcoming. The following is an outline of the text.
1. Manassehs Inheritance (17:1-11)
.. 1a. Background information (1-2)
.. 1b. Zelophehads Five Daughters Receive an Inheritance (17:3-6)
.. 1c. The Borders of the Half-Tribe of Manasseh West of the Jordan (17:7-11)
2. Manassehs Shortcoming (17:12-13)
Jos. 17:1-2 provides background information for what follows. These verses remind
the reader that part of the tribe of Manasseh has received its allotment of land east
of the Jordan. They have Gilead and Bashan in the Transjordan. This assignment was
made Num. 32:39-42. So the inheritance that follows is for the rest of the tribe.
Yahweh controls the distribution of land by means of the lot as we saw in Jos. 14:1-2
and through his agents Joshua and Eleazar, the high priest. In addition special
requests were made by individuals. The case of the special request of Zelophehads
daughters is given in Jos. 17:3-6. This is the third of five special requests for land.
Zelophehad had no sons. Inheritance normally passed from a father to his sons.
Because of this, the family name continued from father to son. With no sons, the

Zelophehads name would disappear from the clans of Manasseh. In Num. 27:1-11,
Yahweh and Moses set a legal precedent from the case of these five sisters. When a
father had only daughters, the daughters were to receive the family inheritance.
As these women were heirs according to Gods promise, so in the NT all of Gods
sons and daughters by faith are promised and receive forgiveness of sins and
citizenship in the heavenly promised land.
The borders of Manasseh on the western side of the Jordan are given in Jos. 17:7-11.
Only Judahs territory west of the Jordan was larger than Manassehs. The
description of the border is brief. There is no extensive city list to help with details.
It is difficult to know exactly where the border was. Jos. 17:7a gives a general
description of the allotment from the northwest to the southeast. Its territory ran
from its border with the tribe of Asher to its border with the tribe of Ephraim.
In Jos. 17:7b-10a the author lays out the southern border of Manasseh. A parallel
account was given in Jos. 16:8 in the account of Ephraims northern border. The
border on the west was the Mediterranean Sea going north up to Asher (Jos.
17:10b). The northern border is given in Jos. 17:10c-11. The northern border, going
from west to east, went from Asher to Issachar. Its border with Zebulon, which was
in between Asher and Issachar is not mentioned but is assumed. The eastern border
is not mentioned because it was obviously the Jordan River.
Some people think there is a discrepancy in the Bible because on the one hand it
says that the whole land was taken by Israel and apportioned to the tribes and on
the other hand parts of the land remained in Canaanite hands and were not
possessed. Jos. 17:12 helps us understand what is going on. In a general sense the
whole land was conquered and apportioned. It was up to the individual tribes to
drive out whatever Canaanites remained. Manasseh, like some of the other tribes,
was not able to inhabit some of the cities. This shows a lack of faith on the part of
Israel. Yahweh had promised to defeat their enemies but they failed to lay hold of
that promise by faith.
Jos. 17:13 tells us that some of the Canaanites were not driven out, but instead
became slave laborers. This arrangement was somewhat like the arrangement that
the Israelites had with the Gibeonites except in that case Israel had made a
covenant and sworn an oath in Yahwehs name. The command from God through
Moses was to completely destroy the Canaanites. The Israelites in general failed to
carry out Gods command. And in particular, the tribe of Manasseh failed to do it
here.

4.2.3.2.3 (17:14-18) A Special Allotment for the Sons of Joseph

Jos. 17:14-18 concludes the narrative of the allotment of land to the two tribes of
Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh. These two tribes had become very numerous in
people and they complain that they do not have enough land for so many people. In
making a request for more land, the descendants of Joseph point to the fact that
Yahweh has blessed them, that is, he has increased their numbers. As God blessed
Adam and Eve to multiply and fill the earth, as God blessed Noah to multiply and fill
the earth, as God promised Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob numerous descendants, so
God has blessed the descendants of Joseph by increasing their numbers. Joshua

turns their argument back on them. Joshua acknowledges that God has blessed
them with large numbers of people and he tells them to use that blessing to clear
the forest and to drive out the Canaanites.
Archaeology has shown that history is in line with Jos. 17:14-18. Before the Israelites
came, the valleys and coastal plains were densely settled. In contrast most of the
hilly regions were thinly settled. These regions were forested with thick scrub that
discouraged settlement and agriculture. Archaeology has shown that this all
changed when the Israelites came. The sparsely settled regions became the most
intensely settled areas by the tribes of Israel. The tribes of Joseph had to clear out
forest land in order to have a place to live.
We learn something about Joshua here. Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim. When
the Ephramites came to Joshua complaining that they did not have enough land, he
could have shown favor to his brothers and taken land from another tribe. But
instead he remained impartial and did not show favoritism. His response was to
urge his brothers to put their faith into action.
Some time elapses between chapters 17 and 18. The scene shifts from Gilgal, where
these allotments were made, to Shiloh, where the allotment of the rest of the land
was made for the remaining seven tribes.

4.2.3.3 (18:1 19:48) Allotment at Shiloh for the Seven

Remaining Tribes
So far five tribes have received their allotment. In the next two chapters, the
remaining seven tribes will receive their allotment. The order of the allotment for
the seven tribes is based on the mothers from which the tribes came from. Here is
the birth order of the sons of Jacob along with their mothers:
(1) Reuben, (2) Simeon, (3) Levi, and (4) Judah were all born to Leah.
(5) Dan and (6) Naphtali were born to Bilhah, the maidservant of Rachel.
(7) Gad and (8) Asher were born to Zilpah, the maidservant of Leah.
(9) Issachar and (10) Zebulun were born to Leah.
(11) Joseph and (12) Benjamin were born to Rachel.
The order of the allotments to the remaining tribes by mother was:
Rachels son Benjamin was first. Her other son was Joseph. The two tribes of
Ephraim and Manasseh, which came from Joseph, had already received their
allotments.
Next three of Leahs sons received their allotment: Simeon, Zebulun, and
Issachar. Her other sons Reuben and Judah had already received their
allotments. Her other son Levi would not receive a land allotment. Instead the
tribe of Levi would receive cities scattered throughout Israel and they would
have the privilege of serving as priests in the tabernacle and temple.
Next Zilpahs son Asher received its allotment. Zilpahs other son, Gad, had
already received its allotment east of the Jordan.
Finally, Bilhahs sons Naphtali and Dan received their allotments.

These tribes received the land inheritance that God had promised. This inheritance
looked forward to an inheritance that is imperishable and undefiled and unfading,
preserved in heaven (1 Pet. 1:4). This is the inheritance that awaits both OT and NT
believers. The land inheritance was a down payment towards their eternal
inheritance. NT believers also receive a down payment. Their down payment is the
Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13-14), who brings people to faith through the Gospel.
The allotment to the remaining seven tribes takes place at Shiloh. The tabernacle,
the place where God dwells among his people and the people worship God, was
moved from Gilgal to Shiloh. This anticipates the incarnation of Jesus Christ, the
Word made flesh who tabernacled among us and revealed his glory (Jn. 1:14). The
tabernacles location at Shiloh recalls the promise that from the tribe of Judah the
Messiah will come and he will be called Shiloh (Gen. 49:10).
Jos. 18 19 is outlined as follows:
(1) Jos. 18:1 19:48 Allotment at Shiloh for the Seven Remaining Tribes
.. (1a) Jos. 18:1-10 Background to the Allotment at Shiloh
.. (1b) Jos. 18:11-29 Benjamins Allotment
.. (1c) Jos. 19:1-9 Simeons Allotment
.. (1d) Jos. 19:10-16 Zebuluns Allotment
.. (1e) Jos. 19:17-23 Issachars Allotment
.. (1f) Jos. 19:24-31 Ashers Allotment
.. (1g) Jos. 19:32-39 Naphtalis Allotment
.. (1h) Jos. 19:40-48 Dans Allotment
(2) Jos. 19:49-50 The Special Inheritance for Joshua
(3) Jos. 19:51 The Completion of the Allotment

4.2.3.3.1 (18:1 -10) Background to the Allotment at Shiloh

Shiloh is the site for the allotment of the rest of the land to the remaining seven
tribes. The tent of meeting (the tabernacle) was moved to Shiloh from Gilgal. Shiloh
was located within Ephraim, so it was centrally located among the tribes. It would
be the center of Israels worship for the next three hundred years. The tabernacle
housed the ark of the covenant, which was the vehicle of Yahwehs presence with
Israel. By means of the ark, Yahweh led them through the Jordan River on dry
ground and caused the walls of Jericho to fall down. The ark remained at Shiloh until
the Philistines captured it in the days of Samuel (1 Sam. 4:1-11).
Gods presence with Israel at his tent of meeting anticipated the incarnation of Jesus
Christ. In Christ God came to earth to meet man in the tent of a human body. In
the flesh Christ lived a perfect life, suffered and died the death that we deserved,
and then rose victorious procuring forgiveness of sins for all people. He conducts his
ministry even today as our perfect High Priest, interceding for us in the heavenly
Tent of Meeting (Heb. 8 10).
Joshua begins the apportionment with a reprimand. It has been a while since the
Canaanites have been conquered and Yahweh had given them the land. But the
tribes seem to be stalling in moving in and inhabiting the land. Joshuas message is
clear. You have been blessed by God. He has given you the land he promised to
your forefathers. So get moving in faith and take hold of the gift God is offering

you. God has given them the land in conquest. Now Israel needs to go take
possession of it.
The two phases of Israel taking the land conquest and possession are analogous
to the Christian life. As God brought Israel into the land through the waters of the
Jordan and gave them victory over all their enemies, so God brings Christians into
his kingdom through the waters of baptism and gives them victory over all their
enemies through the work of Christ. And as Israel needed faith in God and his
promises to take possession of the land given to them, so Christians need faith to
receive the life and strength Jesus offers in his Word and Sacraments.
Israel was to take possession of the land and rid it of all vestiges of idolatry and
immorality. In place of them, the Israelites were to worship Yahweh in truth and
purity according to the true religion he had prescribed for them. That religion
centered around the tent of meeting with the priesthood and sacrifices for sin
prescribed in the Torah. In the same way the Christian is to put to death the sinful
nature and its evil desires and actions and instead put on Christ and let his light
might shine through them.
Joshua then activated a new procedure for allotting the rest of the land to the last
seven tribes. He commissioned a survey team to walk through the land and write up
a description of it. The survey team was made up of three men from each tribe
(probably the seven remaining tribes). In the description of the twenty-one they are
to divide the land into seven parts. Then Joshua was to cast lots to distribute the
land. The lots were to be cast before Yahweh. This was the same location that lots
were cast in Jos. 7:6-18. This implies that the lots were cast in the tabernacle before
the ark of the covenant. By casting lots before Yahweh, it shows that the land is
being given to each tribe by Yahweh as a gift. Yahweh is in control of the distribution
just as he was in control of the conquest. Through the lots he communicated his will.
The description of the land included the major cities and towns in each of the seven
portions. Having received the description, Joshua administered the distribution. This
may mean that Joshua actually cast the lots or it may mean that Eleazar the high
priest cast the lots under Joshuas watch.

4.2.3.3.2 (18:11 -28) Benjamins Allotment

The lot fell on the tribe of Benjamin first. Benjamin was the youngest of Jacobs 12
sons. Jacobs mother was Rachel, who died shortly after giving birth to him.
Benjamins allotment is a corridor between Judah to the south and Ephraim and
Manasseh in the north. Benjamins area was small but it was strategic for military
and commercial reasons. Roads passed through Benjamin that attracted merchants
and armies.
The author delineates Benjamins inheritance in two ways: first by laying out its
borders (Jos. 18:12-20) and then by listing its cities (Jos. 18:21-28).
The northern border of Benjamin corresponds primarily with Ephraims southern
border (compare Jos. 18:12-13 to Jos. 16:1-3) and also Manassehs southern most

border. Some of the northern border information is missing for Benjamin but that is
probably because it is included in the description of Ephraims southern border.
The western border is briefly described in Jos. 18:14, going from north to south.
West of Benjamin will be the original territory of Dan. The inheritance of these two
tribes together formed what is called the Dan-Benjamin corridor, which ran from the
Mediterranean Sea to the Jordan River.
The southern border of Benjamin corresponds to the northern border of Judah.
Compare Jos. 18:15-19 to Jos. 15:5-9, noting that the descriptions proceed in
opposite directions.
The eastern boundary is the Jordan River just before it empties into the Dead Sea.
The description of Benjamins territory ends by saying that it was their
inheritance. Who is the owner of the land that is bequeathing it to them? It is
Yahweh. He is giving the land to them purely out of grace. The land will be divided
up to each clan. Each of the extended families will share in the inheritance.
After the border description is a list of cities in Benjamins territory (Jos. 18:21-28).
The cities too, like the land, will be shared by the clans of Benjamin. The author lists
the cities in two groups. First he lists 12 cities in the eastern region (Jos. 18:21-24).
Second he lists 14 cities in the western region (Jos. 18:25-28).
Several of the cities have been mentioned in the book before: Jericho, Gibeon, and
Jerusalem.

4.2.3.3.3 (19:1-9) Simeons Allotment

The second of the seven tribes receiving their inheritance at Shiloh is Simeon.
Simeons land is wholly contained within the territory given to Judah. Later the tribe
of Simeon would be swallowed up and lose much of its identity in fulfillment of Gen.
49:5-7. It is interesting to note that Simeons population sharply declined between
the first census under Moses in Num. 1 and the second census in Num. 26. It went
from 59,300 to 22,200. But it would be a long time before Simeon was absorbed
into Judah. 600 years later, during the time of Hezekiah, we hear about the men of
Simeon taking land from the Amalekites (1 Chron. 4:41-43).
In describing the allotment of Simeon, only a list of cities is given. No borders are
given. Note that some of the cities listed here (Jos. 19:2-8) were listed earlier in
Judahs inheritance in Jos. 15:21-62. The most important city in Simeon is Beersheba. The term from Dan to Beer-sheba is a common way in the OT to refer to
the whole promised land, from north to south. Beer-sheba is about 50 south of
Jerusalem. It is the only city of Simeon in Jos. 19:2-8 whose identification is certain.

4.2.3.3.4 (19:10-16) Zebuluns Allotment

Zebulun receives the third lot. Zebulun was the sixth and last son of Leah. Zebulun
was younger than Issachar, but Zebulun received his inheritance before Issachar,
showing that God does not work based on human standards.

In general Zebuluns inheritance is a portion of Lower Galilee. West of Zebulun was

Asher. East of Zebulun were Naphtali and Issachar. And south of Zebulun was
Manasseh. Since Zebuluns boundaries touched four other tribes, they are a key in
establishing the boundaries with the other tribes. Zebuluns boundaries are some of
the most detailed and explicit of the tribal territories in Galilee.
Nazareth is not named at all in the OT but lies within Zebulun. While Jesus was from
the tribe of Judah, he grew up in Nazareth and carried out some of his ministry in
Zebulun.
The account of Zebuluns borders starts at Sarid and goes west until it reaches
Jokneam. Then he returns to Sarid and goes east until he reaches Jokneam again.
The shape of the territory is a circle. The author then lists 5 out of the 12 allotted
cities (Jos. 19:15a). Some of the other 7 cities may be found in the boundary
descriptions in Jos. 19:11-14. Note that the Bethlehem mentioned in 19:15 is not the
same Bethlehem where Jesus was born in Judah. The Bethlehem of Zebulun is about
80 miles from the Bethlehem of Jesus birth.
The author ends by impressing that this is Zebuluns inheritance from Yahweh.
Yahweh redeemed his people from slavery in Egypt in order to bring them to their
inheritance in the promised land. And so it is that Christ brings the Israel of God (all
believers in Jesus, OT and NT) to their eternal inheritance.

4.2.3.3.5 (19:17-23) Issachars Allotment

The inheritance of Issachar is a square chunk of land that lies in Lower Galilee to the
southwest of the Sea of Galilee. Mt. Tabor, while apparently belonging to Zebulun,
marks its northern border. On the south, its portion includes the eastern part of the
Jezreel Valley. The Jordan River is its eastern boundary. Its western border is with the
tribe of Zebulun.
Parts of Issachar could not be heavily settled because of its rocky heights and lack
of water. But the prize of Issachars inheritance was the fertile Jezreel Valley. The
valley was also a junction of major international trade routes.
The bulk of Issachars account consists of a list of cities in Issachars territory (Jos.
19:18-21). The description of the border is scant (Jos. 19:22). In it he lays out only
the northern border, which runs west to east from Mt. Tabor to the Jordan River.
The summary statement that ends Issachars account (Jos. 19:23) is like that of
other tribes and stresses that their land is their inheritance, which is a gracious gift
from Yahweh.

4.2.3.3.6 (19:24-31) Ashers Allotment

The Mediterranean Sea and Mt. Carmel set the limits of Asher on the west and
south. The city of Sidon and the lands of Naphtali and Zebulun mark the boundaries
on the north and east.

The coastal plains of Asher have some of Israels richest soil. It had a natural harbor
just north of Mt. Carmel. It had significant highways running north and south and
east and west, giving Asher importance for international commerce.
Asher received twenty-two cities (Jos. 19:30). Twenty-eight places are named in Jos.
19:24-31. Most of them are cities, but some are geographical features.
The book of Judges reveals that Asher failed to drive out the Canaanites from its
allotment and began to live among them (Judg. 1:31-32).
The author begins with the southern boundary in Jos. 19: 25-26. Then comes the
eastern boundary in Jos. 19:27-28. The author presents the northern boundary last
in Jos. 19:29. The western boundary was the Mediterranean Sea.
So the allotment of Asher is a long coastal strip from Mt. Carmel on the south to the
vicinity of Sidon on the north. As with the others, it was Ashers inheritance, a gift of
grace from Yahweh.

4.2.3.3.7 (19:32-39) Naphtalis Allotment

Naphtali is the sixth to receive its inheritance. Its inheritance is long (north-to-south)
and narrow (east-to-west). This tract of land falls between Lebanon on the north, the
territory of Zebulun and Issachar on the south, the Jordan River and Sea of Galilee
on the east, and the territory of Asher on the west.
This land has some of the most fertile land in the promised land. Strategic trade
routes pass through it. And it had the large and strategic fortress city of Hazor (see
Jos. 11:10).
The Galilean ministry of Jesus often brought him to the area of Naphtali and its
cities, which in the NT era included Capernaum, Korazin, Bethsaida, and Tiberias.
Isaiah prophesied Jesus presence and preaching in this area (Is. 8:23 9:1).
Jos. 19:33-34 provides the actual border description of Naphtali. Jos. 19:35-37 is a
partial list of Naphtalis cities. The border description begins in the south near Mt.
Tabor and moves east to the Jordan River (Jos. 19:33). Mt. Tabor was in the middle of
the Jezreel Valley where the borders of three tribes meet (Zebulun, Issachar,
Naphtali). Jos. 19:34 then continues the western boundary. It also starts near Mt.
Tabor and shares the boundaries of Zebulun and Asher on the southwest and west.
The Jordan River is the boundary on the east. There is no formal definition of the
north boundary, but the city list helps provide some definition. The description of
conquered regions earlier in Jos. 11:17 and 12:7, as well as, the land still to be
conquered in Jos. 13:5, also help the reader define the northern border.
The account of Naphtali started with the usual formula of introduction in Jos. 19:32
and it concludes with the customary summary of tribal inheritance in Jos. 19:39.
This land was Yahwehs gift to them.

4.2.3.3.8 (19:40-48) Dans Allotment

Dan is the last to receive its allotment. The author offers no description for the
borders of Dan since its territory touches on the already designated borders of
Ephraim, Benjamin, and Judah. The area is defined by a list of cities within Dan. The
city list seems to consist of five groups, with each group based on geography and
having three cities. Each verse from 19:41 to 19:45 gives a different group.
19:41 gives the southeast group.
19:42 gives the northeast group.
19:43 gives the south-central group.
19:44 gives the southwest group.
19:45 gives the northwest group.
If these groups are true, then the two names in Jos. 19:46 are probably two rivers
that mark Dans northwest extremities.
Dans original allotment was a small elbow of land. It shared its southern border
with Judah. It shared its northern border with Ephraim and Manasseh. Its western
border was the Mediterranean Sea. Its territory was small but fertile and provided a
strategic passage into the interior of the land, including Jerusalem.
The people of Dan lost their territory (Jos. 19:47). The reason why they lost the land
is not given, but it is assumed that they could not drive out the pagan inhabitants
(see also Judg. 1:34-35). This would indicate a lack of faith and a failure to trust
Gods Word.
Judges 18 gives the account of the migration of Dan and the capture of the city of
Leshem (Jos. 19:47; the city is called Laish in Judges 18) in Dans new northern
territory. The city was renamed Dan in honor of the tribal patriarch. It sits at the foot
of Mt. Hermon. It was a lush well-watered land. It was the northernmost city of
Israel. Its name became part of phrase that describes the north to south limits of
the land: from Dan to Beer-sheba.
Dans allotment ends like the others with a statement that this land was their
inheritance, their gift from Yahweh (Jos. 19:48).

4.2.4 (19:49-50) The Special Inheritance for Joshua

The allotment of land to the nine and a half tribes (Jos. 15:1 19:48) is framed by
two special allotments, the special allotment to Caleb (Jos. 14:6-15) and the special
allotment to Joshua (Jos. 19:49-50). This fulfills Gods promise in Num. 13 14.
There God said that of the original 12 spies, only these two would enter the land
and settle there. These two men based their lives on the sure promises of Yahweh.
Selfish leaders take care of themselves first by taking the first cut. But Joshuas
allotment came after all of the tribes had received their allotments. Joshuas
allotment came by divine mandate. He requested the city of Timnath-serah which
was in the hill country of Ephraim, his home tribe.
Joshua and Israel had been given victory over their enemies by Yahweh. They had
been given the land God had promised them. And now Joshua was receiving the
inheritance God had promised him. Baptized believers in Jesus are like Joshua.

Through Christ they have been given victory over their enemies. Through Christ,
even now while on earth, the Father has given them the kingdom (Lk. 12:32). And
they have been promised an eternal inheritance in heaven (1 Pet. 1:3-4), which they
will take possession of one day as Joshua did.
After receiving the city, Joshua rebuilt it and lived in it. He apparently lived in
Timnath-serah the rest of his life. When he died he was buried there (Jos. 24:30).

4.2.5 (19:51) The Completion of the Allotment

The allotment chapters conclude with a summary statement. This verse reviews (1)
the distributors of the allotment, (2) the method of the allotment, and (3) the sacred
location where the allotment took place.
(1) The human agents who were the distributors were Eleazar the high priest,
Joshua, and the heads of Israels tribes. They were Gods appointed ministers.
(2) Gods appointed means to make the allotment was by lot. Doing it by this
method ensured that none of the human agents showed any partiality for or against
any of Gods people.
(3) The sacred location was at Shiloh before Yahweh at the entrance of the tent of
meeting. By performing the allotment at this location, it showed that it was Yahweh
who was deciding which tribes received which land.
God follows the same pattern in the NT. Through the work of Christ, he makes an
inheritance available for his people.
(1) God works through his chosen ministers who distribute Gods gifts to his people.
(2) The means by which God makes the inheritance available to his people is the
Means of Grace. He has his ministers preach the Word and administer the
Sacraments. Through theses means he offers an eternal inheritance to all believers.
(3) The sacred place where Gods ministers use these means is like that of the OT
before the Lord. Christ is present with his people wherever the Word is preached
and the Sacraments are administered. The heavenly allotment is made each time
Gods people gather in Christs holy presence.
Introduction to Joshua 20
The allotment of the land is complete. Chapters 20 and 21 are about cities rather
than territories. In chapter 20 God provides cities of refuge that will serve as safe
havens for people who kill someone unintentionally or unknowingly. By providing
such cities, God displays extraordinary grace. This grace looks forward to the grace
shone in Christs atoning sacrifice which won forgiveness of sin for all people,
including murderers.
The legislation for the cities of refuge provides that a person who commits a
homicide reside in the city until the death of the incumbent high priest. After his
death he is free to leave and go home (Num. 35:25-28; Jos. 20:6). Because of
Christs death and resurrection, God grants pardon to the guilty and enables them
to reside in the city of God in the new Israel. This city of refuge is the church. All
who flee to it find mercy and forgiveness in her Great High Priest. The present
residents of this city of refuge will one day be set free to reside in the eternal city of
refuge, the new heavenly Jerusalem (Gal. 4:25-26; Heb. 12:22; Rev. 3:12; Rev. 21).

Here is an outline of chapter 20:

1. (Jos. 20:1-6) Commands concerning Cities of Refuge.
2. (Jos. 20:7) Cities of Refuge West of the Jordan.
3. (Jos. 20:8) Cities of Refuge East of the Jordan.
4. (Jos. 20:9) General Statement.

4.2.6 (20:1-9) Cities of Refuge Set Apart

Jos. 20 is a fulfillment of the stipulations God made through Moses in Num. 35:9-34
and Deut. 4:41-43; 19:1-10. The cities of refuge were a divine institution that
granted to those who accidentally killed someone clemency and forgiveness. Even
though it was unintentional, the fifth commandment was violated. The normal
punishment for someone who took a life was to give up ones life. Capital
punishment was and is practiced to show the value each human life has. God
created man in his own image. Therefore human life should be cherished and
preserved from conception to natural death. The taking of life in any way, including
by abortion and euthanasia, is a crime against the God who created that person.
The normal punishment for murder was laid out in Num. 36:16-21. What the ESV
translates as avenger of blood, Dr. Harstad translates as kinsman-redeemer of
blood. The kinsman-redeemer was a tribal relative of the victim. He stood up for
the victim and sought justice for him. He carried out justice by slaying the murderer
on behalf of God. The kinsman-redeemer was an agent of Gods wrath for the good
of the people and society as a whole.
When a murder was committed, it defiled the whole land, the land in which the holy
God himself dwells with his people. The defilement was removed when the
murderer was put to death. The defilement must be taken care of because the holy
God cannot dwell in the midst of a defiled people. When the murderer is executed,
Gods wrath is averted. Although innocent, Jesus shed his blood and died on a cross.
He did this willingly on behalf of all sinful people in order that Gods wrath on
humankind might be averted.
Gods intention for cities of refuge is further understood by looking at passages that
describe when the murder is intentional (Num. 35:16-21; Deut. 19:11-13). If a
person hates his neighbor, kills him, and then flees to a city of refuge, he will not
escape justice. The elders of the city will hand him over to the kinsman-redeemer
who will execute him.
Moses had already established 3 cities of refuge east of the Jordan (Deut. 4:43).
Now since God has kept his word and given them the land west of the Jordan, they
are to establish 3 more cities of refuge in keeping with Moses word in Deut. 19:8-9.
A person who accidentally and unintentionally kills someone may seek refuge in one
of the cities of refuge. The procedure to follow is outlined by God in Jos. 20:4-6.
The person seeking refuge must come to the entrance of the city and present
his case to the elders of the city.
The elders are to immediately conduct a preliminary hearing.

If the person pleads that the killing was unintentional, the elders are to admit
the refuge-seeker to the city and provide the person living quarters.
When the kinsman-redeemer follows the person who killed his relative to the
city of refuge, the residents are not to hand him over to the kinsman until
there is a full trial to determine if was indeed unintentional.

There are two conditions given in verse 6 as to when the unintentional killer can
return home ((1) full trial before the people and (2) the high priest dies). There is
some debate about these conditions. The basic question is: Can a person who has
had a formal trial and is found not guilty of intentional murder go home right away
or must he live in the city until the high priest dies? Num. 35-24-25 answers the
question. Both conditions must be fulfilled before he can return home. If he is guilty
of intentional murder, he will be handed over to the kinsman-redeemer and
executed (Num. 35:21). If he is not guilty, he will be required to live in the city of
refuge until the high priest dies and then he can return home.
When blood was shed in the land, the land was defiled. That defilement had to
remove from the land for holy God to continue to dwell there. If the person was
guilty of intentional murder, the defilement was removed when his blood was shed.
If the person was not guilty of intentional murder, its as if the high priest carried
that defilement and when he died the defilement was removed. In this, the death of
the OT high priest looked forward to the death of The High Priest, Jesus Christ,
whose blood atones for all defilement.
What Yahweh had commanded in Jos. 20:1-2, Israel did (Jos. 20:7-8). They
sanctified (ESV-set apart) the 6 cities. God is the Sanctifier of Israel as he shares
his holiness with them as he lives among them. He therefore provides the means by
which his justice, his mercy, and the practical concerns of his people can be carried
out. The cities of refuge are one of those means for his people who live in a sinpolluted world.
The 6 cities named here will later be given to the Levites (Jos. 21:11, 13, 21, 27, 32,
36, 38). They are to make roads to these cities so that they are easily accessible
(Deut. 19:3).
The cities are named in a horse-shoe pattern in Jos. 20:7-8. They start west of the
Jordan in the north with Kedesh and move south to Shechem in the center and to
Hebron in the south. All 3 of these cities are centrally located in the hill country. East
of the Jordan are Bezer in the south, Ramoth in the center, and Golan in the north.
We are never told in the Bible if these cities ever functioned as God had designed
them.
The Psalms describe God as our Refuge (Ps. 46:2). We even see God pardoning
intentional murderers who had thereby forfeited the benefit of the city of refuge. For
instance, king David committed premeditated murder. But when David confessed
his sin, Yahweh absolved him of his sin and guilt through his prophet. David then
composed a psalm extolling God as his Refuge (2 Sam. 22:2-3, 33). God is also our
Refuge. We acknowledge this in the liturgy when we say: Therefore we flee for
refuge to your boundless mercy, seeking and imploring your grace for the sake of
our Lord Jesus Christ.

Introduction to Joshua 21
Jos. 21 will conclude the section on Gods allotment to the tribes of Israel (Jos. 13
21). This chapter also fulfills Gods command through Moses to appoint Levitical
cities. The cities are scattered throughout the territory of all of the other 12 tribes.
So 12 tribes received land as an inheritance and 1 tribe received cities scattered
throughout the land.
Here is an outline of chapter 21:
1. (Jos. 21:1-42) Cities for the Levites
... (1a) (Jos. 21:1-3) The Levites Claim their Inheritance at Shiloh
... (1b) (Jos. 21:4-8) General Enumeration of the Allotted Cities for the Levites
... (1c) (Jos. 21:9-40) A Detailed List of the Cities for the Levites
... ... (1c1) (Jos. 21:9-19) For the Aaronite Branch of the Kohathites: Thirteen Cities
... ... (1c2) (Jos. 21:20-26) For the Remaining Kohathites: Ten Cities
... ... (1c3) (Jos. 21:27-33) For the Gershonites: Thirteen Cities
... ... (1c4) (Jos. 21:34-40) For the Merarites: Twelve Cities
... (1d) (Jos. 21:41-42) Summary Statement concerning Levitical Cities
2. (Jos. 21:43-45) Summary Statements: God Has Now Given the Land He Promised
by Oath Long Ago

4.2.7 (21:1-42) Cities for the Levites

At Shiloh, where Yahweh resided at the tent of meeting, the rest of the land had
been given to nine and a half tribes by lot. That left only the tribe of Levi without
land. The heads of the tribe of Levi came forward and addressed Eleazar, Joshua,
and the heads of the other tribes of Israel at Shiloh. Levis leaders requested that
they put in place what God had commanded through Moses in Num. 35:1-8. There
Yahweh arranged that 48 cities be given to the Levites from the other 12 tribes.
Included in the 48 are the 6 cities of refuge. Along with the cities, they were to
receive pasturelands around the cities for their animals. The number of cities given
to the Levites from each tribe were to be in proportion to the size of the tribe.
The 48 cities were assigned by lot just as the land inheritance of each tribe had
been decided by lot. Choosing the cities in this way ensured that there was no
human partiality and that Yahweh himself was directing the process. Unlike the
other tribes, the Levites did not receive a land inheritance. Instead, Yahweh, the
offerings, and the priesthood were their inheritance (Jos. 13:14, 33; 14:3; 18:7). The
cities are taken from the inheritance of the other tribes and the Levites will possess
them within their midst. In his blessing of his sons, Jacob had said that Levi would
be scattered and dispersed in Israel (Gen. 49:5-7). That prophecy is coming true in
the assignment of these cities. The Levites were to be the teachers of Gods word to
Gods people. Being scattered around Israel would allow them to teach Gods word
in all areas of Israel. The Levites were privileged to teach the Word and administer
the sacrifices. In a similar way, God has been gracious to pastors who are privileged
to teach Gods Word and administer Gods Sacraments.
Levi had three sons: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari (Ex. 6:16). Here is a partial family
tree that concentrates on Kohath, the line to which Moses and Aaron came from:

Levi
Gershon
Kohath
. . . . Amram (1 of 4 sons of Kohath)
. . . . . . . . . Moses
. . . . . . . . . Aaron
. . . . . . . . . . . . . The priests of Israel
. . . . Izhar
. . . . Hebron
. . . . Uzziel
Merari
It starts out giving a summary of the allotment of cities to the Levites (Jos. 21: 4-8).
The first lot fell on the descendants of Kohath (Jos. 21:4). Their allotment came in
two groups. The first group to receive their allotment was the descendants of Aaron.
That means that the first group of cities allotted went to the priests (the priests
came from the line of Aaron) who offered sacrifices at the tabernacle and later at
the temple. The 13 cities they received were from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and
Benjamin. Because of this, the priests would live in cities that were close to
Jerusalem and the temple where they would serve. Yahweh was looking hundreds of
years ahead to when the temple would be built in Jerusalem.
Next the rest of the descendants of Kohath, the non-priests, received 10 cities by lot
in three tribes farther north (Jos. 21:5). After that, the sons of Gershon received by
lot 13 cities in Galilee and east of the Jordan (Jos. 21:6). Lastly, the sons of Merari
received by lot 12 cities, 4 west of the Jordan and 8 east of the Jordan (Jos. 21:7).
After the introductory summary comes the detailed list of the 48 cities (Jos. 21:940). This list follows the same four-part division used in Jos. 21:4-7 (see the outline
above of chapter 21). According to the census in Num. 26:52, the number of male
Levites was 23,000. These 48 cities should provide adequately for them.
As some of the land allotted to the tribes was not firmly under Israels control, so
the same could be said for the cities allotted to the Levites. Nevertheless, the cities
were assigned by God to them and with faith in God the cities could be conquered.
The same could be said for the eternal inheritance of Christians. It is ours now by
way of divine promise, but we have not entered into its fullness in the new heavens
and new earth. The kingdom is prepared and is now ours by Gods grace, but we
have not yet received possession of it. This is the now/not yet tension of biblical
eschatology.
1 Chron. 6:39-66 also gives a list of the Levitical cities. There are some differences
between 1 Chron. 6 and Jos. 21. Scholars offer different explanations of the
differences. It is not likely that the issue will be fully resolved.
The list of cities shows several things.
Yahweh keeps his promises.

Yahweh provides teachers for his people. Whether they live in the plains,
valleys, mountains, or deserts, Levites are nearby to teach the Israelites
about the covenant of Yahweh.
Yahweh provides physically for his teachers. The same is true today as
congregations instructed in Gods Word share their earthly blessings with
their teachers/pastors (Gal. 6:6).

The Levites of the OT were Gods church workers. In the NT all Christians, as
members of the royal priesthood of believers in Christ, are levitical church
workers. As God provided cities for OT Levites, so he promises an eternal city for his
NT Levites. On this earth Christians are aliens who are journeying toward their
eternally allotted city. As the inheritance of the Levites was Yahweh himself, the
sacrifices, and the priesthood, so the eternal inheritance of Christians is God himself
and eternal worship of him in the new heavens. Therefore Christians do not get
caught up in the things of this world which is passing away, but look forward to
possessing that which lasts throughout eternity.

4.3 (21:43-45) Summary Statement: God Has Now

Given the Land He Promised by Oath Long Ago
These verses, along with Jos. 23:14, give the main theme of the book: Yahweh keeps
his promises; all that he promised came to pass.
The Lords personal, proper name Yahweh/the LORD appears 4 times in these 3
verses. It pictures Yahweh as the sole cause of the success of Israel.
the LORD gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers.
the LORD gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers.
the LORD had given all their enemies into their hands.
This reinforces that in salvation history God is the only player. The triune God alone
originates and brings his plan of salvation to completion. He conceived his plan
before the creation of the world. He accomplishes his plan in human history, starting
with OT Israel and culminating in the first advent of Jesus Christ. God alone calls
people to faith by the power of the Holy Spirit, working through the means of grace
and preserves them in the true faith. And he alone will consummate his plan when
Jesus Christ returns, ushering in a new heaven and new earth in which his people
will dwell forever. He has promised it, therefore it will come true.
Centuries earlier Yahweh had sworn to give this land to their fathers. God is faithful
and always keeps his word. In giving them the land, Yahweh defeated the enemies
of Israel. Victory came to Israel because God gave Israels enemies into their hands.
He gave them rest from their enemies. The rest he gave them prefigures the eternal
rest provided by Jesus for Christians, a rest made possible because of his defeat of
all of their enemies. As Israel received the land only because God was with them
and fought for them, so the same is true for Christians. Eternal salvation is
completely and only Gods work. Man contributes nothing.

The author ends chapter 21 by saying: Not one word of all the good promises that
the LORD had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass (ESV). The
reader here naturally thinks back upon the promises made thus far by Yahweh in the
Scriptures. The original promise made by Yahweh was to provide a Seed from Eve
who would crush the head of the serpent (Gen. 3:15). After that one remembers
Gods unconditional promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to bless the world
through Abraham and his Seed. In the allotment of the land (Jos. 13 21), we have
just read how Yahweh kept his promise to give them the land. Even as he kept this
promise, so he will keep all of his promises. Not one of Gods words will fail. All will
come to pass as he promised. The promised Seed will bring blessings to the world.
In Israels subsequent history, Israel will vacillate between faithfulness and
unfaithfulness. But whether they are faithful or faithless, there is one constant:
Yahweh always remains faithful (see 2 Tim. 2:11-13).
The statements made in Jos. 21:44-45 are sweeping. Some people think there is a
discrepancy between the degree of completeness stated here and the actual
circumstances at that time. Here are some things to think about when considering
this.
1. This is the situation at this point in history after the conquest and distribution.
At this point their enemies were helpless, but later when Israel strayed from
the faith, God allowed their enemies to oppress them (see the book of
Judges).
2. These verses primarily focus on Yahwehs faithfulness and only secondarily
on Israels success.
3. In the Pentateuch God had promised a gradual settlement. We must consider
Gods actual promises and their details.
4. These verses must be read together with sections such as Jos. 13:1-7 and
15:63, which describe the fact that areas of pagan resistance still exist.
5. Like many books of the Bible, Joshua contains some contrasts which might
seem like contradictions. To resolve these issues, we must read the text
carefully to see what the author is actually saying and harmonize this with
the rest of the book and with the rest of Scripture.
6. The seeming contradictions provide a purposeful tensions between the now
and the not yet. This is similar to the life of a Christian. A Christian is at the
same time a saint and a sinner. In Baptism, the Christian has died to sin, has
been buried with Christ, and has been raised with Christ to a new life of faith.
Yet throughout the Christians earthly life, sin reasserts itself, requiring Gods
ongoing work through the Word and Sacraments to continue to put to death
the sinful flesh and raise up the Christian to newness of life (Rom. 6 7). Thus
the Christian has victory but still struggles just as the Israelites have victory
but will struggle to fully occupy the whole land. The Christian is fully justified
before God, yet his sanctification is a work in progress. A full resolution to this
tension will only come in the eternal kingdom.
In the last three chapters, Joshua will deal with Israel living in the land they have
inherited. It is only because of Yahweh alone that they have inherited the land. And
in order for them to remain in the land they will need grace to cling to Yahweh their
covenant Lord.

5. (22:1 24:33) Yahwehs War Victory

Enables Israel to Live in the Land Inheritance
as Heirs of All His Covenant Promises
A high level outline of the last major section of Joshua.
A. (Jos. 22:1-9) Joshuas First Farewell Sermon, Blessing, and Dismissal of the
Transjordan Tribes from Shiloh
B. (Jos. 22:10-34) Israel Remains One Covenant Nation under Yahweh
C. (Jos. 23:1-16) Joshuas Second Farewell Sermon: Before Israels Leaders at an
Unnamed Site
D. (Jos. 24:1-28) Covenant Renewal at Shechem
E. (Jos. 24:29-33) Three Graves of Saints Awaiting Resurrection in the Promised
Land: Memorials to Yahwehs Fulfilled Promises
In the book of Joshua we have seen the conquest of the land by Gods grace and
power (Jos. 1 12) and the allotment of the land as an inheritance to the tribes of
Israel (Jos. 13 21) in fulfillment of Gods promises (Jos. 19:51; 21:43-45). Now in
Jos. 22 24 Joshua exhorts Gods people with Law warnings and Gospel promises to
live in the land as faithful heirs. In this way, Jos. 22 24 is like the concluding
chapters in Pauls epistles. Paul usually ends with several chapters that describe the
shape of Christian life.
Each of the last three chapters contains a sermon by Joshua. In all three, Joshua
aims to preserve the unique covenant relationship that Israel has with Yahweh by
grace in the newly given land inheritance. His speeches and their content give unity
to Jos. 22 24. They center on how Israel is to live in the land inheritance as heirs of
Yahwehs covenant grace. The sermons will also have a long range effect of
preparing the land and the people for the Messiah. The chief topics addressed in
these three chapters are:
Yahweh is faithful in fulfilling all his promises
Yahweh conquers his and Israels enemies for the salvation of his people
That Gospel creates the unity of the covenant nation
That Gospel is the basis for divine worship in the covenant nation
That Gospel is the motivation for Israels covenant faithfulness
Yahweh will destroy his people, just as he did the Canaanites, if they are
unfaithful to his covenant
Yahweh provides covenant renewal through his means of grace to keep his
people faithful and bring them to everlasting life
A summary of the theme of chapters 22 24 is the title of this section: Yahwehs
war victory enables the Israelites to live in the land inheritance as heirs of all his
covenant promises. This theme points to the climax of divine warfare the cross
and the empty tomb. In his death and resurrection Christ won the victory over all of
mans enemies, over sin, the devil, and death. Christs victory makes all believers in
him heirs of all of Gods promises, which find their yes in Jesus (2 Cor. 1:20). His
victory will be shown clearly to all when he comes again. Then he will totally

subjugate forever all of Gods and his peoples enemies and bring his new Israel into
its everlasting inheritance. Until then the church continues spiritual warfare in order
to rescue sinners from the devils dominion and bring them into the kingdom of God
through his appointed means his Word and Sacraments.

5.1 (22:1-9) Joshuas First Farewell Sermon,

Blessing, and Dismissal of the Transjordan Tribes
from Shiloh
The first of Joshuas three farewell sermons is to the armies of Reuben, Gad, and
half of Manasseh, the tribes who had received land east of the Jordan. In the
sermon, Joshua blessed them and dismissed them so that they could go to their
homes east of the Jordan. They had helped their brothers in the conquest for 7
years. Joshuas sermon to them includes words of kind compliment (Jos. 22:2-4),
exhortation (Jos. 22:5), and blessing (Jos. 22:6-8).
Joshua says here (Jos. 22:2-4) that the eastern tribes have done everything that
Yahweh commanded and that they committed themselves to in Jos. 1:12-18. He
commends them for their faithfulness. In a similar way, we should commend our
fellow Christians for their God-given faithfulness to Gods Word and to each other.
After commending them for their obedient service, Joshua exhorts them to observe
the Law of Moses (Jos. 22:5). He summarizes the observance of the Law as follows:
Love Yahweh your God
Walk in all his ways
Keep his commandments
Cling to him
And serve him with all your heart and with all your soul
They already had livestock and now they take more home as the spoils of war, but
that is not their real treasure. Yahweh and his covenant with them is their real
treasure.
Notice that the verb cling is the same as verb used in Gen. 2:24, where God says
that a man will cling to his wife and the two will become one flesh. Both the OT
and NT depict Yahwehs relationship with his people as a marriage. In his covenant
with Israel, Yahweh is a husband who requires his spouse to be totally devoted to
him (as he is to her). This spiritual marriage encompasses every aspect of his
peoples life heart, soul, mind, body, and strength. That is why it states in Jos.
23:12 that the intermarriage between Israelites and Canaanites would ruin their
spiritual marriage with Yahweh. If they become yoked to pagan gods through their
pagan spouses, then they commit spiritual adultery against their Husband and are
divorced from him. Therefore Joshua urges the eastern tribes who will most
assuredly face temptations to remain faithful to Yahweh.
As he sends them on their way, Joshua blesses the two and a half tribes. In doing so,
he takes on the role of a patriarchal father blessing his children as they leave home
(Jos. 22:7-8). The command to return to your tents is similar to our liturgical

expression, Depart in peace. It serves as an absolution and farewell blessing. The

second command in the blessing is, Divide the spoil of your enemies with your
brothers. It will be a joy for them to return and divide their wealth with their
brothers who stayed home on the east side of the Jordan. (Based on Jos. 4:13 and
the census in Num. 26, only half or a third of the men crossed the Jordan to fight.)
The spoils of Jericho were destroyed but starting with Ai, Yahweh allowed Israel to
keep the booty. From their victories, they amassed great quantities of plunder and
livestock (e.g., Jos. 11:14). The Israelites who stayed behind in the Transjordan to
protect their families were to receive their fair share. This dividing of the spoils of
war with those who did not endure the suffering and toll of battle anticipates how
the Suffering Servant would achieve victory and then divide the spoils with those
who did not fight the war. In fact they were still his enemies when he died for them.
Some of the same language used here in the second blessing command is used in
the Suffering Servant Psalm in Is. 53:12.

5.2 (22:10-34) Israel Remains One Covenant Nation

under Yahweh
Jos. 22:10-34 is laid out in a chiastic form as follows:
Transjordanians build an altar (22:10)
... Cisjordanians threaten war (22:11-12)
... ... Cisjordanians send an embassy (22:13-15a)
... ... ... Embassy accuses Transjordanians (22:15b-20)
... ... ... ... Transjordanians swear innocence (22:21-23)
... ... ... ... ... Transjordanians explain the altar (22:24-28)
... ... ... ... Transjordanians swear innocence (22:29)
... ... ... Embassy accepts Transjordanian explanation (22:30-31)
... ... Cisjordanian embassy returns home (22:32)
... Cisjordanians withdraw their threat (22:33)
Transjordanians name the altar (22:34)

5.2.1 (22:10-12) A Different Altar Threatens Unity

The brotherly spirit of the blessing and dismissal suddenly turns to a preparation for
war. The cause of this change is a large altar built by the two and a half eastern
tribes. They built this altar without consulting Joshua, Eleazar, or the tribal leaders.
What was the purpose of this altar? Was it intended to be a new place of worship?
Was it an altar to pagan gods? Are they cutting themselves off from the rest of the
covenant nation?
Note that the ten and a half tribes are called the sons of Israel (the people of
Israel ESV). It is as if the two and a half tribes are not part of Israel. A rift has
developed. It may also indicate the importance of the Jordan River as the formal
dividing line for the boundary of the promised land. The crossing of the Jordan had
been a very important event. It portends Gods people crossing over from this fallen
world into life with God in the new creation. So in a spiritual sense, as well as a

geographical sense, when they cross back over, they are separating themselves
from the whole assembly of the people of Israel. The Cisjordan tribes take the
building of the altar by the Transjordan tribes as an act of apostasy from Yahweh.
What do we know about the altar? It was a very large altar. And it was built on the
western side of the Jordan River. They were not trying to hide the fact that they had
built this altar. Was this a hopeful sign or was it brazen idolatry? The western tribes
assumed the worst, that the eastern tribes had committed apostasy and were
acting just like the Canaanites. Deut. 13:13-19 gives instructions about what Israel
is to do if their fellow Israelites start to worship other gods. They are to apply the
cherem to them, totally destroying them. This is the reason that the western tribes
prepared for war. The unity of Israel appears to be completely broken. This fracture
in unity involves worship. The early church experienced fractures caused by worship
too. The book of 1 Corinthians speaks of many of them.
There are several practical lessons that the church can learn from Jos. 22.
1. Open, advanced communication, especially with church leaders, can prevent
divisions in the first place.
2. Worship practices must be in concert with the Word of God and divine
institution. The western tribes saw the altar by the Jordan as an alternative to
the divine sanctuary at Shiloh. For the Christian church, the Divine Service
conveys the Gospel through the Word and Sacraments according to Christs
institution. These cannot be compromised.
3. When suspicions arise, one needs to investigate and discuss the issues before
engaging in all-out war. The western tribes assumed the worst, but they did
send a delegation to the eastern tribes. In Mt. 18:15-20 Jesus outlined a
procedure to use when Christians are in conflict. First it involves private
discussion. Then if that fails take one or two others to discuss the matter. If
that fails bring up the matter before the whole congregation. And as a last
resort, there is excommunication. All of these are attempts to bring about
reconciliation.

5.2.2 (22:13-20) An Altar Delegation Accuses the

Transjordan Tribes
Deut. 13:13-19 gives instructions for what to do if a city in Israel is believed to be
apostate and worshipping other gods. The matter is to be thoroughly investigated,
and if found true, the city and all in it are to be treated as cherem. Everything is to
be devoted to Yahweh by destruction.
Following these instructions, the western tribes sent a delegation to investigate. The
delegation consisted of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar the high priest, and one leader
from each of the 10 tribes. Phinehas had shown his faithfulness to Yahweh when
Israel worshipped the Baal of Peor (see Num. 25). Through his action Gods wrath
was appeased. His action was commemorated in Ps. 106:28-31. Through their
leaders, the western tribes accused their brothers in the eastern tribes of turning
away from Yahweh to another god. Since God deals with his people collectively as
one body of believers, if this was true, the whole community of Israel would have to
deal with Gods wrath. Israel had experienced this principle of collective retribution

recently when Achan took some of the spoils which belonged to Yahweh (Jos. 7). If
the infidelity of one man brought the death of 36 men, how much worse will it be if
whole tribes abandon Yahweh? (This is an argument from the lesser to the greater.)
Another possibility mentioned by the delegation is that the eastern tribes might
have thought that their land was unclean. They could have thought this because of
the idolatry of the former inhabitants or because it was separated from the
tabernacle. If this was the case, they offered to let them take some of their land and
settle west of the Jordan. By such an offer, they show that the tribes can be reunited
in worship of the one true God at his appointed altar at the tabernacle. This was the
location where God promised to be present with his people and where divine service
was to be carried out. This is in harmony with other passages in the Scriptures
where God says he will choose one place to make his name dwell. Later in Israels
history, the temple built by Solomon in Jerusalem would be that place.
Jesus had declared himself to be the new temple, the temple he would rebuild in 3
days. His cross became the new altar, the place where he made the all-availing
sacrifice for the sins of the world. His perfect sacrifice rendered the temple altar
obsolete and even an offense to God. In the NT era, Jesus is present in his Word and
Sacraments. Therefore wherever the Word and Sacraments are properly
administered, that is the location of worship of God. That is the place where the
forgiveness of sins procured by Jesus is made available. Any type of worship without
these elements is not worship of the one true God.

5.2.3 (22:21-29) The Transjordan Tribes Explain Their Altar

If the western tribes were passionate in their accusation against the eastern tribes,
the response of the eastern tribes was even more emotional. They utterly reject the
accusations against them. In their denial, they use 3 names for God: El Elohim is
Yahweh or The Mighty One, God, the LORD (ESV). The one true God knows why
they built this altar. If they built it to worship some other god, then God and Israel
should strike them dead.
In their defense they strongly proclaim that they did not build the altar out of
rebellion or unfaithfulness to Yahweh. They also repeatedly say that they did not
build it to offer sacrifices on. They built it as a witness between the eastern and
western tribes. When one saw the large altar, which was built on the western side of
the Jordan, one would be reminded that the only altar on which sacrifices could be
offered to Yahweh was the altar at the tabernacle, which was located before him in
his presence. This altar was a replica and pointed to the altar at the tabernacle. The
replica was to testify that there is only one true altar of Yahweh where the divinely
mandated sacrifices could be made.
The altar at the tabernacle was exclusively the only place where sacrifices could be
made to Yahweh. At that altar God was present and was gracious towards his
people. This fact pointed ahead to Jesus Christ. From the altar of the cross, Jesus
made the one and only all-availing sacrifice to atone for the sins of the world. Since
God is present in the person of Christ and is gracious towards his people in Christ,
the only place where the church can gather for true worship of the one true God is

where Jesus is present graciously distributing forgiveness through his Word and
Sacraments. Divine Service only takes place at the location of Jesus.
In Jos. 22:24-25, the eastern tribes give the reason why they built the altar. It was
built out of fear that future generations might exclude the eastern tribes from
worshipping Yahweh. They might do this because they might claim that the
promised land is only the land west of the Jordan. They built this altar as a reminder
and witness that they too have been given an inheritance by Yahweh and they too
have the rights and privileges of worshipping Yahweh at his altar. Therefore the
intention behind the altar was the exact opposite of the suspicions. The altar stood
for covenant unity, not division; for firm devotion and rightful worship of Yahweh,
not backsliding or idolatry. Now the question is, will the delegation accept the
explanation?

5.2.4 (22:30-34) End of Altercation: Reconciliation and

Unity around the One Altar of Yahweh
Earlier Phinehas had shown great zeal for Yahweh when Israel worshipped the Baal
of Peor. The explanation of the eastern tribes completely satisfies even him. The
suspicions of the western tribes were completely wrong. Even more striking is the
fact that the altar was a replica of Yahwehs altar; it was a sign of their genuine
faith. The replicated altar became another memorial in the land that pointed the
people to Yahweh, the only true God. For this reason, they gave the altar the name
of Witness.
Phinehas knows by the outcome of this controversy that Yahweh is in our midst
(Jos. 22:31). God has chosen to be present with his people through certain means of
grace: his ark, his tabernacle, his altar, and his sacred institutions, for instance
circumcision and Passover.
This passage reaffirms that there is only one sacred altar for sacrifice and it is
located at the tabernacle in Gods holy presence. The altar built by the Transjordan
tribes is simply a replica of it and is not meant to be used for sacrifices. It is a
witness that reminds the people to go to the one sacred altar and participate in the
divine service there.
The altar at the tabernacle was the only divinely authorized place where atonement
could be made, sacrifices made, most holy meals eaten, and Gods favor shown to
his people. This altar pointed forward to the altar of the cross. On that altar, Christs
blood atoned for the sins of the world. On that altar, Christ, who was the Lamb of
God, sacrificed himself for us. Because of what Christ did and through Christ, God
shows grace to sinful people. Through the Word and Sacraments, the Lord is in our
midst in Christ. Through these means God offers the forgiveness of sins that Jesus
won on the cross. Therefore as OT Israel was united around the one true altar, so
the NT church is united in the Divine Service where Gods Word is preached and the
Sacraments are administered in order that forgiveness be made available.
The delegation and the western tribes accepted the explanation of the Transjordan
tribes. They said it was good in their eyes. As a result, they blessed and praised

God for restoring the unity of Israel. It was God who was present in their midst, who
settled the conflict, and who preserved the unity.
Even if one believes in Jesus, one still has a sinful nature. Because of this there are
always going to be misunderstandings, hostilities, accusations, and suspicions. This
chapter helps point the way in resolving such clashes:
Love of God must be our motivation.
Gods desire for the unity of his people must guide us.
There must be open dialogue along with fidelity to Gods Word.
We must deal with present issues by looking forward to our heavenward
calling.
Christians need to listen to sincere explanations without letting suspicion run
wild.
If our suspicions are wrong, we must humbly admit we are wrong and not
stubbornly hold on to our pride.
We should celebrate our God-given unity in Christ and praise him for it.
Acts 15 provides an example of how a dispute between Jewish and Gentile
Christians was settled. It has a number of similarities to Jos. 22:
The issue was confronted and not ignored.
Respected spiritual leaders were appointed to discuss the issue and
communicate openly.
People truly listened in silence as others spoke.
The final decision was based on Gods Word.
The result was joy and unity among believers.

5.3 (23:1-16) Joshuas Second Farewell Sermon:

Before Israels Leaders at an Unnamed Site
5.3.1 (23:1-8) Yahwehs Faithfulness Creates Israels
Motivation to Be Faithful
Joshua now delivers his second farewell sermon (Jos. 23:1-16). Joshua is now old,
nearing the end of his 110 years (23:14; 24:29). Like Moses, Joshua urges Israel to
remain faithful to the covenant of Yahweh. The leaders of Israel can gather in safety
because God has given them rest from all their enemies. The theme of rest was first
introduced in Jos. 1:12-15. Now towards the end of the book there are 3 statements
that confirm that Yahweh has given them rest (Jos. 21:44; 22:4; 23:1). This rest
anticipates the eternal Sabbath rest to be provided by Jesus Christ.
The location of the sermon is not given. Three possibilities are: (1) Shiloh, the
location of the tabernacle, (2) Timnath-serah, the location of Joshuas inheritance,
and (3) Shechem, which is the site of the next gathering (Jos. 24:1).
Joshua summoned all Israel, its:
Elders a general term for all of Israels representatives.

Heads leaders of the tribes.

Judges mentioned at the covenant renewal ceremony.
Officers they mustered the people for the Jordan River crossing.

Joshuas second sermon consists of three parts: Jos. 23:2b-8, 9-13, 14-16. Each of
the three parts begins with a reminder of the faithful acts of Yahweh for his
covenant nation, which is then followed by an appeal to remain faithful to him. Parts
2 and 3 build in power as Joshua spells out the tragic consequences of violating the
covenant.
By starting out saying, I have grown old, Joshua presents this as his last will and
testament.
Joshua begins by giving all credit for Israels victories to Yahweh. Weve seen how
Yahweh fought for and gave his people victory throughout the book of Joshua.
Joshua impressed this on the hearts of the people in order to elicit covenant
faithfulness from them. This is how it always works. God first loves us and fills us
with his love and moves us to faith and only then can we respond in love and
faithfulness towards him. In Christ God has shown his love for us and through the
Holy Spirit working through Gods Word he creates faith in order that we might
receive forgiveness and respond to his grace.
The fact that Joshua speaks in the first person in verse 4 about cutting off the
nations and allotting the land inheritance speaks to the unique role that Joshua had.
God worked through Joshua and used him as his representative to bring his
promises to fruition.
Joshua tells them that Yahweh has fought for them and given them victory and he
will continue to push back and drive out their enemies and they will possess the
land of the Canaanites. Knowing that God will continue to be with them and fight for
them should instill love and loyalty toward him.
In this, his last will and testament, Joshua exhorts the people with the same words
that Yahweh gave to him in Jos. 1:7-8 as he took over for Moses. The people must
meditate on and remain faithful to the Book of the Law of Moses. Why is this
essential? Its essential because of the Canaanite people that remain. Gods people
must not intermingle with them because they are pagans who worship false gods.
Gods people must worship Yahweh alone. Here and in the next two parts of the
sermon Joshua warns about the danger of theological compromise. Worship of false
gods is actually worship of demons (1 Cor. 10:20).
Jos. 23:7 mentions 4 outward forms of worship of false gods that Israel is to avoid.
1. They are not to invoke, call on, or make mention of the names of any of the
false gods.
2. They are not to swear by any false gods as if they can enforce and punish the
violation of an oath in their name.
3. They are not to serve other gods, which includes liturgical service and the
sacrifices associated with it.
4. They are not to bow down to false gods or show any kind of obedience to
them.

In Jos. 23:7 Joshua spoke of negative prohibitions but in Jos. 23:8 he speaks
positively of what they should do. They are to cling to or cleave to Yahweh. This
is the same language God uses to describe marriage of a man and woman in Gen.
2:24. In the covenant Yahweh took Israel as his bride and he requires exclusive
devotion from her even just as he is completely devoted to her.
Joshua commends Israel for her faithfulness to Yahweh to this day. In general in
the book of Joshua the Israelites have remained faithful. They have not had any
cases of mass spiritual adultery against Yahweh as in the golden calf incident or the
Baal of Peor seduction.

5.3.2 (23:9-13) Love Faithful Yahweh and Do Not Unite

with Pagans, Lest You Perish
The second part of Joshuas second farewell sermon begins with Joshua reminding
Israel of Yahwehs extraordinary acts on their behalf. He drove out the nations as he
had promised in Deut. 4:38; 7:1; 9:1; 11:23). The Israelites had experienced for
themselves how no one could stand up to them (Deut. 7:24; 11:25; Jos. 1:5)
because Yahweh was fighting for them. How else could one man put to flight a
thousand (Lev. 26:7-8; Deut. 32:30), except if Yahweh was fighting for him.
Joshua first accents what Yahweh has done for his people in order that Israel would
be very careful ... to love the LORD your God (Jos. 23:11). In Deut. 4:37; 7:8; and
10:15 Moses did the same by impressing upon Israel Gods constant love for them
as the basis for their love of him in return. In the NT it is no different as we love,
because he himself first loved us (1 Jn. 4:19).
The sweet gospel of Jos. 23:9-11 is followed by strong law warnings in Jos. 23:12-13.
Joshua knows that the evil alliance of our sinful nature, the unbelieving world, and
the ancient foe will continue to assail Gods people even as they now reside in the
promised land. Believers of every age still need the Law to expose sin and warn of
its consequences, to curb their sinful nature and guide their Christian life to Godpleasing behavior.
Joshua uses a number of metaphors in order to draw a picture of what will happen if
the Israelites do not drive out and instead intermarry with the pagan Canaanites.
They will become like a snare, a trap, a whip, and thorns to the Israelites. Marriage
to unbelievers is perilous because they seduce the believer away from the Lord. For
the church, believers are the bride of Christ and he is always faithful and he requires
that she too be faithful.
If they turn away from Yahweh, he will no longer drive out the nations and they will
lose the land they just inherited. The land is described as being good. This recalls
the beginning when God pronounced all of his creation as good. The promised land
will be like a partially restored Eden. What will ultimately make it good is the Good
One who will be born, live, die, and resurrected there.

Lev. 18:28 describes what perishing from the good land means. It means being
vomited out of the land just as the Canaanite nations were expelled from the land.
Yahweh can expel Israel just as he expelled the Canaanites. Israels later history
shows that Joshuas warning was right on target. Israel was expelled from the land
first by the Assyrians and then Judah was expelled by the Babylonians. NT believers
too must realize that they too can be enticed away from the faith and forfeit their
inheritance and salvation. The Law warns believers not to surrender to the sinful
nature, lose faith, and be assimilated into the unbelieving world.

5.3.3 (23:14-16) Yahweh Has Fulfilled All His Promises and

Will Fulfill All His Threats to Destroy Those Who Serve
Other Gods
In the third part of his second farewell sermon, Joshua reiterates his main thoughts
from the first two parts with special emphasis on the disaster that will erupt if the
covenant is violated. Repetition in the Hebrew language is used to provide
emphasis.
He begins this last part by saying, And now I am about to go the way of all the
earth. This again shows that it is his last will and testament. It gives greater
urgency to his words of Law and Gospel. He starts out with pure Gospel. God is
totally trustworthy and keeps every single one of his good promises. Jos. 23:14
states emphatically the main theme of the book. The fact that God keeps his
promises is the basis for Israel to respond in covenant loyalty.
Israel needs to know that God not only keeps his promises of good, but that he will
also keep his promises of disaster if they reject him. Joshua uses both Law and
Gospel on Gods people. He knows that within them are two opposing natures: the
old sinful nature and the new, Yahweh-loving and covenant-keeping nature. [He
uses the Law to kill off the old and the Gospel to raise up the new.]
Apart from the Ark of the Covenant, the word covenant has only appeared twice in
Joshua to this point. While the word covenant has only appeared twice, the
concept is evident throughout the book. [The covenant refers to Sinai where God
took his people and made them his holy and priestly people.] The covenant with
God is what makes Israel different from all the other nations. [The primary concern
of the covenant is that Israel serve Yahweh, the one true God.] Here Joshua speaks
of transgressing the covenant [by serving other gods and bowing down to them.]
What the ESV translates as if you transgress, Dr. Harstad translates as when you
transgress. Joshua knows that Israel will transgress the covenant and will incur the
threatened punishment that Yahweh warned them about. This statement then is
prophetic and was first fulfilled in 722 BC for northern Israel and in 587 BC for
southern Judah. It was fulfilled again in AD 70 when Israel rejected Jesus as the
Savior and Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans. These occurrences of Gods
wrath against unbelief portend his wrath against unbelievers on the Last Day.
When Gods wrath comes against them, God says they shall perish quickly from off
the good land that he has given to you. God has been gracious to Israel by giving
them this good land [as he had promised in his covenant with Abraham.] Out of all

the nations, God had chosen Israel to covenant with and to carry out his saving
purposes through. His saving purpose was to bring salvation to Israel. God chose
OT Israel from which to bring forth the Savior who would come and create a new
Israel. The true Israel of God is people from all nations that believe in Jesus.

5.4 (24:1-28) Covenant Renewal at Shechem

Excursus: Covenant
The OT Covenants Are Fulfilled in Christ
Covenants did not come into being until after the Fall. The sin of Adam and Eve
plunged the world into discord and enmity between God and his creatures. A
covenant presupposes hostility between God and sinful humanity. A covenant seeks
reconciliation of the estranged parities. No amount of human effort could
accomplish this reconciliation. Only God, by his own action, could restore his hostile
creatures to himself. This he does through the covenant of grace (Rom. 11:27).
Jesus established this everlasting covenant in his shed blood when he instituted the
Sacrament of the Altar. It is Jesus alone who reconciles reprobate humanity to God
through his shed blood. He is the fulfillment of Gods prophecy to his Suffering
Servant: I will make you a covenant of people (Is. 42:6; 49:8). Jesus is the
covenant of grace.
In the OT God established several covenants, all of which anticipated the new and
everlasting covenant in Christ. The covenants to the patriarchs, to Israel, and to
David are in a sense all part of a single covenant of grace which is fulfilled in Christ
and continues in Christ. The covenant of grace confers forgiveness of sins by grace
alone through faith alone. In this covenant human obedience never helped initiate
the covenant, merit reception of the promised covenant blessings, or maintain ones
standing within the covenant. Salvation is accomplished completely by God alone.
Humans can only receive this salvation through God-given faith.
Gods Covenants with Noah, Abraham, and Moses
Noah
The first covenant in the OT was the covenant God established with Noah for the
benefit of all humanity. Because of its evil, God blotted out all humanity with a flood
except for Noah and his family who God saved by grace. The covenant God
established with Noah was unconditional and universal. In it God promised to never
again strike down every living creature. This promise is not dependent on the
obedience of people. It extends to all people for as long as the earth exists. When
Christ returns, the present earth will pass away and God will create a new heavens
and new earth, which will be the inheritance of all believers in Christ. (Inheritance is
an important theme in Joshua and it points forward to the eternal inheritance in
Christ.)
In the context of the exile, Isaiah connects the waters of Noah to his promise to
extend eternal mercy to Israel as her Redeemer (Is. 54:8-9). Gods mercy in the

covenant with Noah provided assurance that as God had mercy and saved Noah, so
he would have mercy on Israel and as her Redeemer save her from her sins. God
puts his mercy into action through the waters of Baptism of which Gods act of
saving Noah was a type. In Baptism God saves Israel (all believers) through water
by virtue of its connection to Christs death and resurrection [Rom. 6]. This is a
matter of pure grace.
Abraham
Gods covenant with Abraham was also pure Gospel. There are no conditions in this
covenant. God promised Abraham 7 blessings (Gen.12:2-3). The greatest of the
blessings was Gods promise to bless the whole world through Abraham. To Gods 7
promises, God added the promise of the land of Canaan. It would be within this land
that the other covenant promises would be fulfilled. The fulfillment of the promise to
bless the whole world was fulfilled through Abrahams Seed Jesus Christ.
This is a covenant of pure grace. God places no conditions on Abraham or his
descendants. This covenant is an everlasting covenant. It was not set aside when
God made a covenant with Israel through Moses. It is still in effect and applies to all
baptized believers in Jesus. Those who believe in Jesus are Abrahams true offspring
and are beneficiaries of Abrahamic covenant promise of grace (Gal. 3:29).
Moses
The impetus of the exodus redemption and establishment of the Mosaic covenant
was that God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob
(Ex. 2:24; cf. 6:4-5). God called Moses to lead his people out of Egypt into the land
he promised to Abraham. [Once there, in time, he would fulfill his 7-fold covenant
promises that he made to Abraham.]
The Mosaic covenant elaborated on the Abrahamic covenant by showing how God
would keep his promise to the bless the whole world. The culmination of the
Abrahamic covenant would be when the promised Seed would bless all people. The
exodus deliverance, Passover lamb, Sabbath rest, tabernacle, ark of the covenant,
and Day of Atonement are aspects of the Mosaic covenant that prefigured Christ
and his accomplishment of salvation Gods blessing of the world.
While the Mosaic covenant was built on the Abrahamic covenant [and moved
history toward its fulfillment and foreshadowed how it would be fulfilled], it differed
from it in several ways.
1. It came 430 years after Gods covenant with Abraham (Gal. 3:17). [It did not
do away with the Abrahamic covenant. The Abrahamic covenant was not only
made before the Mosaic covenant, but it continued on after it.]
2. While the Abrahamic covenant was completely unconditional and promised
only blessing, there were many aspects of the Mosaic covenant that were
conditional. Many of the promises in the Mosaic covenant were contingent on
the obedience of Israel. And disobedience to the Mosaic covenant brought
divine curses.
3. The Mosaic covenant was in force for only a limited time: from the time of
Moses (mid-fifteenth century BC) to the death and resurrection of Jesus (ca

AD 30). The Abrahamic promises continue unconditionally in the new

covenant in Christ. The Mosaic covenant did not annul the Abrahamic
covenant (Gal. 3:17). The Mosaic covenant did not exist from the creation of
the world up to Moses. And it is not in effect from the time of Jesus fulfillment
of the Torah through the end of the world and into eternity.
For fifteen hundred years God used the Mosaic covenant to serve his good
purposes. What were those purposes?
1. The covenant served as a mirror that impressed on the hearts of Gods
covenant people their sinfulness so that they saw their need for the promised
Savior of the Abrahamic covenant.
2. It served as a sanctifying hedge, surrounding the covenant nation with
holiness and setting Israel apart from all other nations by it many righteous
ordinances.
3. In many ways it served as a prefiguration that anticipated the new and better
covenant in Christ.
Covenants in General
The most important covenants in the OT are those that Yahweh establishes with his
chosen people. In sheer mercy he initiates and maintains them. Even the obedience
of his chosen people is a result of his gracious establishment of faith.
There are many other covenants in the OT between individuals, states, and
husbands and wives. A covenant is a legally binding agreement that establishes and
governs the relationship between two or more parties. When a covenant was made
or renewed, it was normally done through a liturgical ceremony, which could include
a bloody animal sacrifice, a sworn oath, a covenant meal, and a written document.
Covenants in Joshua
The word covenant is not used often in Joshua. Yet it is implied throughout the
book in the following ways:
1. At the beginning of Joshua Moses is mentioned often, which emphasizes the
continuity between the Mosaic covenant and the events in the book.
2. The word covenant is part of the ark of the covenant. It is mentioned 13
times in Joshua. The instructions for the materials, building, and use of the
ark were given in the covenant at Mt. Sinai. In the ark God was present with,
led, and fought for his people through the desert and in the promised land.
3. The redemptive act that was the basis for the Mosaic covenant was the
crossing of the Red Sea on dry ground. Similarly in Joshua, Israel entered the
promised land by going through the waters of the Jordan River on dry ground.
4. Other features of the Mosaic covenant are present throughout Joshua.
Besides the ark of the covenant there are references to the tabernacle,
priests, high priest, and Levitical cities. All of these things signify that Israel
still lives under the Mosaic covenant.
5. The resumption of the rite of circumcision in Jos. 5 relates back to the
Abrahamic covenant. Gods promises to Abraham are valid for them.

6. Any time the inheritance of the land is spoken of, that is a fulfillment of Gods
covenant with Abraham. The book of Joshua centers on Israel inheriting the
land.
7. The Passover meal commemorated the exodus deliverance of Israel. Israel
benefitted from Gods mighty acts for them, accepted Yahweh as their God,
and promised to abide by the conditions of the Mosaic covenant. When they
celebrated the first Passover in the land, the Israelites showed that they too
were beneficiaries o Gods acts and that they too would live by the covenant.
8. The Torah of Moses stipulated that Israel apply cherem (devotion to Yahweh
by total destruction) to the Canaanites. For the most part Israel adhered to
the command of God through Moses.
9. The word covenant is not used in Jos. 8, yet what happens in that chapter is
a renewal of the Mosaic covenant as Yahweh instructed in the Torah of Moses.
10.The covenant renewal ceremony is also linked to Abraham as it takes place at
Shechem, the place where God first promised Abraham, To your seed I will
give this land, and where Abraham built an altar to Yahweh.
11.The latter chapters of Joshua are clearly based on the Mosaic covenant. In
chapter 20 the cities of refuge are designated and in chapters 22-24 Joshua
encourages covenant faithfulness in his farewell sermons.
12.In the last three chapters, the language used depicts Yahwehs covenant with
Israel in terms of a marriage. They are to love Yahweh their God and cling
to him. In Gen. 2 it says that a husband shall cling to his wife. Likewise,
Joshua asserts that God is a jealous God. Joshua also warns the Israelites
not to cling to the pagan Canaanites in marriage.
13.In Jos. 24 Joshua cut a covenant. This was not a new covenant, but a
reaffirmation of the Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants.
14.Israel also formed a covenant with the Gibeonites (Jos. 9). The Gibeonites
were conscripted to help prepare for the divine services at the tabernacle and
altar of God.
15.Israel also made an oath with Rahab and her family. This was a binding
agreement between Israel and Rahab.

5.4.1 (24:1-15) Joshuas Third Farewell Sermon: At the

Covenant Renewal Ceremony at Shechem
5.4.1.1 (24:1-13) Joshuas Review of Covenant History
(Jos. 24:1-2a) The Sacred Setting
Joshuas final sermon took place at Shechem where he gathered all the tribes of
Israel. It was at Shechem that several important events happened in salvation
history. God first promised the land to Abraham at Shechem. Jacob settled at
Shechem and bought a plot of ground there. Jacob purified his household by burying
all their foreign gods under the oak at Shechem. Jacobs sons were grazing their
flocks at Shechem when Joseph was sent to check on them and that eventually led
Israel to Egypt. Earlier in Jos. 8:30-35 covenant renewal took place at Shechem.
It says that the Israelites presented themselves before God at Shechem (Jos.
24:1). That clause indicates that the ark of the covenant and probably the whole

tabernacle had been brought to Shechem from Shiloh for this special ceremony. Or
it could mean that the Israelites gathered at the same site where covenant renewal
was made in Jos. 8. In which case, they would have come before the stone altar and
copy of the Torah of Moses that was written on stone by Joshua. Or they may have
come before God via Joshuas first words, Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel.
God is present in his grace and power when his servants invoke his name.
The Covenant Form
In chapter 24, Joshua follows the basic structure of an ancient Hittite suzerain
treaty, one of which his audience would be familiar with. The format for such at
treaty was as follows:
1. Preamble or title that identified the chief partner making the treaty.
2. Historical prologue that showed how past benefits from the chief partner
should motivate the vassal to grateful obedience of the covenant.
3. Stipulations or laws that governed the covenant relationship.
4. Deposition of the text in the vassals chief temple.
5. Reading of the text: provision was made for regular reading as a reminder of
the covenant terms.
6. Witnesses: the gods of both partners witnessed and guaranteed the
agreement.
7. Blessings were invoked on those who obeyed and curses on those who
disobeyed the terms of the covenant.
8. Oath, ceremony, and sanctions. The sanctions involved the mention of
coercive action against a treaty-breaker.
The first element of the covenant is the preamble and in this case it corresponds to
Yahweh, the God of Israel in Jos. 24:2a. Yahweh is the one who established the
covenant with his people out of his enduring love and mercy. The second element
was the historical prologue in which the relationship between the king and his
subjects was reviewed. This section was to inspire grateful obedience from the
subjects. Joshua reviews the relationship between Yahweh and his chosen nation in
Jos. 24:2b-13.
Joshua Reviews Covenant History (Jos. 24:2b-13)
Joshua does not just randomly pick snippets of Israels history in his sermon. Instead
he selects portions of salvation history that punctuate Gods love for his
undeserving people and his powerful acts for their salvation. His aim is to instill faith
in Israel which is based on Yahwehs unswerving faithfulness. This continues to hold
true for subsequent generations or readers and hearers, including us today.
The historical review can be broken down into a four-part outline.
1. Jos. 24:2b-4: Yahwehs call and care of Abraham and his early seed.
2. Jos. 24:5-7: Israels deliverance from bondage in Egypt and preservation in
the desert.
3. Jos. 24:8-10: The victories and blessings that Yahweh gave Israel east of the
Jordan.
4. Jos. 24:11-13: Yahwehs victories and allotments given Israel after crossing
the Jordan.

The theme of the historical review is: the practical proofs of Yahwehs grace toward
Israel.
Joshua begins his sweep of history over 600 years earlier by going back to Gods
selection of Abram who lived beyond the Euphrates River. The call of Abraham, the
father of the chosen nation, was obviously by grace, as Abraham and his family
served other gods (Jos. 24:2). Abraham and his family (Terah, Nahor, Laban,
Rachel, Jacobs family) were pagans, worshipping some of the thousands of gods
invented by the people of Ur. Despite Abrahams worship of false gods and in pure
grace, God called him and brought him to Canaan. It was as Jesus said, You did not
choose me, but I myself chose you. Salvation is purely mongeristic, that is, Gods
work alone. We contribute nothing towards it. We can only passively receive it by
faith (see Eph. 2:8-9). God calls sinners who are dead in their sin and resurrects
them to new life. Only God can do that.
God gave Abraham faith and made him to be the father of all the faithful. All those
who have faith are the true descendants of Abraham, the seed of Abraham and
heirs of all of Gods covenant promises (Gal. 3:26-29). In the book of Joshua, Rahab
and her family and possibly the Gibeonites were incorporated into the Israel of God.
What Yahweh said of Abraham holds true for all believers: Abram believed in
Yahweh, and he credited it to him as righteousness (Gen. 15:6).
God kept his promise to Abraham (Gen. 15:5) and made his descendants like the
stars in the sky. To do this he gave the very old barren couple a son Isaac. And
Isaac had Esau and Jacob. The descendants of Jacob went down to Egypt where
after a while they were enslaved. God heard their cries for help and brought plagues
upon Egypt and eventually brought the Israelites up out of Egypt and to the
promised land. The great throng of people, now gathered at Shechem to hear
Joshua, is the fulfillment of Gods promise to multiply Abrahams descendants.
Gods grace for Israel is plainly seen in each of the episodes of Israels story laid out
in Jos. 24:5-11.
Jos. 24:5a: God sent Moses and Aaron to prepare for Israels release from
Egypt.
Jos. 24:5b: God sent plagues on the Egyptians in order to cause the Egyptians
to release the Israelites.
Jos. 24:5c-6: God led Israel out of Egypt on the day of the exodus redemption.
Jos. 24:7a: God made it possible for Israel to walk through the Red Sea and
drowned the Egyptians when they followed.
Jos. 24:7b: God provided for Israel in the desert even as they often grumbled
against him for 40 year.
Jos. 24:8, 12a: God defeated Sihon and Og, the Amorite kings east of the
Jordan.
Jos. 24:9-10: God delivered Israel from the hand of Balaam, who God caused
to bless Israel instead of curse her.
Jos. 24:11: God led Israel through the Jordan River and gave them victory
over all the Canaanites.
Jos. 24:12b-13: God gave them the land, cities, vineyards, and orchards of
Canaan as a gift.

How could any believer, OT or NT, have anything but gratitude, love and loyalty for
a merciful God who miraculously delivers, cares for, and blesses his people? All that
God did in the OT prepared for what he would do in the NT. What he did for the OT
people of God was a prelude of what he would do in the NT through the cross of
Christ. Even as God acted for his people through Joshua, so he now works for us as
he offers us the benefits of what the new Joshua accomplished and gives us faith to
receive them.
A question that might arise is, what is the hornet that it speaks of in Jos. 24:12?
God had promised to send the hornet before Israel in Ex. 23:28 and Deut. 7:20. Here
are three possible explanations.
1. It may be a colorful metaphor that describes the dread that gripped the
Canaanites. After Yahweh had stung Israels enemies with defeat, word
spread and the hearts of the Canaanites melted with fear. The commentary
favors this interpretation.
2. Lower Egypt was symbolized by the hornet. Some suggest that prior to
Israels conquest, excursions by Egypts army into Canaan weakened the
Canaanites. But the Bible never identifies the hornet with Egypt. Egypt is
not pictured as an aide to Israel, but as an enemy.
3. One might understand the hornet literally. Yahweh could have terrorized the
Canaanites by sending actual swarms of hornets.
By reviewing salvation history, Joshua has provided a historical prologue. In the next
two verses he will spell out what his aim is for Israel and his readers. For a NT
example of a review of salvation history, see Pauls sermon in Pisidian Antioch in
Acts 13:16-41.

5.4.1.2 (24:14-15) Joshuas Exhortation and Witness concerning

Covenant Loyalty
Jos. 24:15 is probably the most famous verse in Joshua. It is often taken out of
context and used to make biblical faith into a human decision rather than a gift from
God. We will consider it carefully. Jos. 24:14-15 concludes Joshuas third and final
farewell sermon (Jos. 24:1-15).
Fear and Serve Yahweh
By starting Jos. 24:14 with Now, therefore ..., Joshua comes to the heart of what
he wants to say. Because Yahweh has done all of these things for them (Jos. 24:213), Israel is to fear the LORD and serve him with integrity and with faithfulness
(Jos. 24:14a). But one might ask, how can Israel or anyone else fulfill this command?
Like us, Israel has no power to do them. The answer lies in the power of Gods Word.
In giving a list of what God has done for them, Joshua has just spoken Gods Word. It
has the power to bring unbelievers to faith and to preserve believers in the one true
faith unto life everlasting. Joshua had just shared how God had done this for the last
7 centuries. Joshua had just preached the Gospel. The Gospel creates saving faith
and enables people to serve Yahweh faithfully.

The Hebrew word for fear involves both Law and Gospel. In the Law sense, we
fear Gods just judgment on human sin. In the Gospel sense, we have reverence and
faith in Gods promise of salvation by grace alone. When Gods people fear him,
they love, trust, and worship him. The fear of Yahweh is faith that flees to him to
receive forgiveness. On the other hand, unbelief causes a person to flee from God in
terror and hopelessness.
Joshua also calls on Gods people to serve him (Jos. 24:14a). He uses that verb 7
times in Jos. 24:14-15. Divine Service is at the heart of Gods covenant with Israel.
[Gods people perform the service God has given them in order that God will be with
them to offer them his good gifts. He has promised to be present and active through
those means.] The whole relationship between God and his people can be
summarized with these two words: fear and serve.
Israel is to fear and serve Yahweh with integrity and with faithfulness (Jos. 24:14).
Israels reverent serving is to be done wholeheartedly and constantly for Yahweh
alone. He will not share the affection of his people with other gods. They are not to
have a divided allegiance. Yet, no one can do this perfectly. Only the Servant of
Yahweh (Jesus) is able to do it and has done it (see the Suffering Servant psalms of
Isaiah). His righteousness and perfect faithfulness is credited to all servants of
Yahweh by faith alone. The life of faith is really the life of Christ, who lives in each
believer (Gal. 2:20). This is true for the OT as well as the NT people of God.
Remove Other Gods
The Israelites cannot fear Yahweh and serve him with integrity and faithfulness if
they have any other gods. Therefore they are told to remove all idols (Jos. 24:14).
The same holds true for Christians. They are to get rid of all idols. An idol does not
have to be a tangible object. It can also be an attitude of the heart. Anything that
becomes our treasure other than Jesus is a god to us (hymn Jesus, Priceless
Treasure). The Israelite forefathers had worshipped false gods beyond the
Euphrates River and the Israelites had worshipped the false gods of Egypt during
the 400 years they lived in Egypt (see Lev. 17:7 and Deut. 32:16-17). They are to
serve Yahweh only.
Were the Israelites now worshipping false gods? It would appear not.
1. Passages such as Jos. 23:8 and Jos. 24:31 emphasize Israels faithfulness.
2. When Achan took some of the cherem booty, disaster came upon Israel
quickly. If they as a whole had begun to worship other gods, it stands to
reason that Gods fierce anger would blaze against them had they become
involved in the outright worship of idols.
3. When Jacob made a similar statement in Gen. 35:2, his family buried their
false idols. There is no such record of something like that happening here.
The gods of the Canaanites were like those of Babylon and Egypt and they were all
around the Israelites. Joshua seeks to hardened their hearts against such false
deities, which cannot speak, see, hear, smell, feel, walk, or make sounds (Ps. 115:59). There is but one true God and he will tolerate no imaginary rivals.
If It Is Evil to Serve Yahweh, Then Choose False Gods

Because of Joshuas preaching of Gods Word, the Holy Spirit had been working to
create faith in Israel (see Jos. 24:22). Therefore Israels resolve to serve Yahweh was
not a product of human reasoning, decision-making, or willpower. It is 100 percent
Gods doing. We are by nature sinful and unclean. We are dead in our sins and
therefore unable to choose God. If we choose God, it is only because he has first
brought us back to life in Christ and given us faith. Any desire to choose God and
serve him is a result of Gods work in us.
Notice the choice that Joshua actually offers. He gives Israel 2 choices and both are
utterly contemptible. If Israel refuses to fear and serve the true God, Yahweh, then
they must choose between two groups of worthless gods the gods of Mesopotamia
or the gods of the Canaanites. In terms of the worldly matters of everyday life
people are free to choose, but in terms of spiritual matters they are only free to
choose to disbelieve and disobey God and his Word. People are free to choose
between different forms of idolatry because in reality those are only worldly things.
I and My House We Shall Serve Yahweh!
Joshua then makes a bold and unashamed confession of faith in Yahweh and
commitment to him and his covenant. Even if Israel and all the surrounding pagan
nations serve false gods, he and his house will serve Yahweh. The Scriptures provide
many examples of a man in his role as the spiritual head of his house leading his
house in serving Yahweh (Cornelius in Acts 10-11, Lydia in Acts 16:11-15, the
Philippian jailer in Acts 16:25-34, and Crispus in Acts 18:8).
In confessing Yahweh (I AM), Joshua is at the same time confessing Jesus, who is I
AM (Jn. 8:58). And those who confess Jesus with their mouth and believe in their
heart that God raised him from the dead will be saved (Rom. 10:9-10). Joshuas
confession may also remind you of other great confessions by individuals. For
instance, Peter confessed, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Mt. 16:16)
and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God
(Jn. 6:69). All true Christians confess Christ and some even die for their confession.
What led Joshua to his bold confession?
Yahweh himself. His grace, powerful acts, fulfilled promises, and covenant
faithfulness all those things just reviewed by Joshua in Jos. 24:2-13.
The Word of Yahweh. Yahweh promised Joshua in Jos. 1:8 that when he
meditated on the Book of the Law (Gods Word), he would act faithfully. Gods
Word is efficacious. As it presents the Good News, it creates faith that
believes it, and sustains that faith, and causes a life of faithfulness. Joshuas
confession is evidence of the power of Gods Word.
The Spirit, who has worked in his heart. Joshua was a Spirit-filled man (Num.
27:18). The Spirit working through the Word makes Gods people bold to
confess (1 Cor. 12:3). By the same Spirit Christians confess: We shall serve
Yahweh.

5.4.2 (24:16-24) The Covenant Peoples Response

This passage is the response of Yahwehs covenant people, who have been the
recipients of Gods many acts of salvation (Jos. 24:2-13), to Joshuas final farewell
sermon (Jos. 24:1-15). Their response is that they will not forsake Yahweh, but will
serve him. A response like this can only come from people who are already
believers. [Those who do not believe Gods word that God has done literally
everything for their salvation are dead in their trespasses and sins. And it is
impossible for someone who is dead in their sins to make themselves alive and then
choose God over idols (see Eph. 2:1-6).] The people of Israel, who are already
believers, are horrified at the thought of choosing to serve any kind of idols,
whether they be Mesopotamian or Amorite. They expressed their revulsion at the
thought by saying, God forbid for us to forsake Yahweh to serve other gods! (Jos.
24:16).
Jos. 24:14-24 is not a model for evangelism of unbelievers as some make it out to
be. Jesus and his apostles never asked people to choose what gods they would
worship or to decide if they would serve Yahweh. Instead, they preached the Good
News. They preached what God had done and was still doing to redeem sinners.
This coincides with what Joshua spoke in Jos. 24:2-13, where he gave an account of
all that God had done for Israel. Jos. 24:2-13 then is the model that Christians
should follow for evangelism.
Jos. 24 is like Rom. 6 and 1 Cor. 8-10. In all three cases believers in God are being
addressed. In all three cases believers are urged to have nothing to do with sin and
idolatry. Following false gods leads to nothing but hopelessness and damnation.
Idolatry provokes God to jealousy and incurs his wrath. Therefore Joshua is not
evangelizing unbelievers, but exhorting Gods people to repent of sin and idolatry
and to remain faithful to Yahweh.
The covenant peoples response is a compressed reiteration of what Joshua said in
Jos. 24:2-13. They will serve Yahweh because of all that he has graciously done for
them (Jos. 24:17-18). They pledge absolute loyalty. The words of the people in Jos.
24:18: Also we ourselves shall serve Yahweh, mimic Joshuas personal pledge, I
and my house we shall serve Yahweh (Jos. 24:15).
When John 6:65-71 is read, in the context of the rest of chapter 6, alongside Jos.
24:14-18, we see some points of similarity and comparison.
Earlier in John 6, it lists some actions that Jesus took for the people. Jesus
miraculously fed bread to more than 5000 people; Jesus walked on the water;
and Jesus claimed to be the Bread of Life. In Jos. 24:2-13, Joshua lists the
major actions God took for his people Israel. He called Abraham, gave him
many descendants, rescued the Israelites and brought them out of Egypt. He
led them to the Red Sea, protected them from the Egyptian army, and then
destroyed their army. He cared for them in the desert and brought them to
the promised land. He defeated the Amorite kings. He led them through the
Jordan into the promised land and fought against and defeated Israels
Canaanite enemies. He gave them the land of Canaan to live in.
In listing all these things that Jesus and Yahweh did, we see that God alone is
the source of salvation, faith, and service (Jesus is God who took on human
flesh). All that God has done is the basis for peoples faith.

John 6:65 as well as John 6:44 makes the point that we just made above: No
one has the ability to choose God. It is the Father who is doing the choosing.
Therefore to be a child of God is pure grace and is not a decision.
Both passages show that people do have the ability and can choose to reject
God and the salvation he offers. (While an unbeliever cannot choose God,
believers and unbelievers can choose to reject God.)
The Israelites and the disciples recognize that if they choose to reject God,
they are rejecting life because life is found only in the Holy One. In Jos. 24:19
Yahweh is Holy God and in John 6:69 Jesus is the Holy One of God.
The sermons by Joshua and Jesus elicit a strong confession of faith (Jos.
24:16-18; Jn. 6:68-69).
Following that confession is a surprising response from Joshua and Jesus that
prophesies apostasy and damnation for those who are unfaithful (Jos. 24:1920; Jn. 6:70).

Joshuas response to Israels confession of total commitment to Yahweh is surprising

(Jos. 24:19-20). Joshua seems to be rejecting their bold confession even though they
have made the same commitment that he has. Why does Joshua make this
bewildering response? One or a combination of the following 6 explanations may
apply:
1. Words are cheap. Joshua is testing the sincerity of Israels response. Joshua
wants to strengthen their commitment. He want s them to count the cost
(see what Jesus says about the cost of following him in Mt. 8:18-22; Lk. 9:5762; 14:25-35). Yahweh will settle for nothing less than total allegiance. In a
similar way, Jesus response to a Canaanite woman deepened her faith (see
Mt. 15:26).
2. Joshua wants them to know that by their own power they are not able to
remain loyal to Yahweh. An example of this is Peter. He boasted that he would
never all away from Christ (Mt. 26:33-34), but a short time later he denied
Christ as Jesus predicted (Mt. 26:69-75).
3. Joshua wants to stress again that the peoples only hope is the grace of God.
Israel must cling to his grace and promises. Moses made similar statements
about the severe judgment of the holy and jealous God for infidelity, but he
also balanced those statements with the promise of forgiveness and grace
(see Ex. 20:5-6; 34:6-7; Deut. 5:9-10).
4. Joshua is a given a revelation by Yahweh and is speaking prophetically. Future
generations of Israelites will abandon Yahweh for foreign gods. God will try to
show them the error of their ways by implementing the covenant curses,
allowing them to be defeated and exiling them from the land. He will bring
disaster upon them in hopes that they will repent. Those who refuse to repent
will be exterminated. This is what Joshua and Moses have consistently said
(see Jos. 23:16; Deut. 29:21-28; 31:27-29).
5. Joshua may believe that some of the Israelites who are making this promise
of faithfulness even now do not believe in Yahweh. So he may be addressing
those Israelites who lack faith, which may explain why he mentions foreign
gods. Like the NT visible church, OT Israel was mixture of believers and
unbelievers.
6. While the church is a mixture of believers and unbelievers, the same can be
said for each individual believer. Each believer is at the same time a saint and
sinner. Each person consists of both the old sinful nature and the new holy

and righteous nature. So Joshua may be addressing both sides of each

believing Israelite. In Jos. 24:14, when he urges them to fear and serve
Yahweh, he addresses the new and holy person. In Jos. 24:19, when he says
they are not able to serve Yahweh and when he mentions foreign gods, he
addresses the old ungodly nature.
In Jos. 24:21 the people respond with an emphatic, no! They stick to their resolve
first voiced in Jos. 24:18: We also will serve Yahweh. And they repeat it again in
Jos. 24:24.
While the choice Joshua gave them earlier was between two sets of idols, the
broader option was between Yahweh and idols. But this choice is not made by
unbelievers (as we said above, unbelievers are not able to choose God), rather it is
made by people who are already believers in God. They have just given their
emphatic answer to Joshua that they will serve Yahweh. So the choice a believer is
faced with is to either stay with the one true God that you currently confess or
abandon him for some false gods. So by affirming their faith, they show that Gods
grace and the Holy Spirit are at work in them to lead them to make God-pleasing
choices.
Previous generations rebelled against God and died in the desert. Future
generations abandoned Yahweh for the false Canaanite gods (see Judges). This
generation, solely out of Gods grace, is faithful and committed to Yahweh. Gods
faithfulness is constant, while the faithfulness of Israel is not.
Joshua tells them a second time to remove all foreign gods that they have. It would
not have been uncommon then as it is now for some to confess the one true God
and yet have various idols to cover all the bases just in case. Since all believers
are sinners, they must be warned about idolatry, whether it be physical idols or
idols in the heart.
Ultimately idolatry is not a matter of external things but of the heart. God wants our
hearts to be solely devoted to him. The Israelites were not to be like the Canaanites,
attempting to satisfy their gods by feeding, clothing, and housing them. They did
these things because they were taught that their gods needed these things. In
contrast the true God does not need anything. But the God of grace does want the
full affections of his people; he wants their hearts. God does not want empty rituals.
This is important given the covenant renewal ceremony that is soon to take place
(Jos. 24:25-27). Their commitment to him is to be by faith that proceeds from a
devoted heart.

5.4.3 (24:25-28) The Covenant Formally Renewed

All of chapter 24 has centered on covenant renewal. In Jos. 24:25 it says Joshua cut
a covenant with Israel. This is not a new covenant, but a renewal of the Mosaic
covenant.
Instead of cutting a covenant with the people as the ESV has, Dr. Harstad
translates it as for the people. This suggests that the covenant is for the benefit of
the covenant nation under their gracious King. As the people follow the covenant

ordinances living in the land they will be blessed. These blessings will come out of
Gods grace and are not earned.
The covenant God made with Abraham came first and was a condition-less
covenant. In it God promised to bless the whole world through the promised Seed.
The covenant at Sinai came along 430 years later. It did not negate the Abrahamic
covenant. For about a millennium and a half the chosen nation of Israel was to live
under the temporary Mosaic covenant with its conditions. What was the purpose of
the Mosaic covenant that is renewed here at Shechem?
1. First, the Mosaic covenant served as a mirror. It impressed upon the hearts of
Gods covenant people that they were sinful. It would cause them to despair
of their own righteousness and direct them to the Abrahamic covenant of
pure grace (Rom. 3:20; 5:20).
2. Second, the Mosaic covenant served as a sanctifying hedge. It set Israel apart
from the pagan nations and kept the people from commingling with pagan
idolaters. Israel was to listen to God and keep his covenant so that they
would be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation to God (Ex. 19:5-6).
3. Third, the Mosaic covenant served as a shadow or prefiguration that
anticipated the new and better covenant in Christ. The Passover, the
sacrifices, and the Day of Atonement provided a preview of how Jesus, our
Passover Lamb, would atone for our sins (1 Jn. 2:2; 4:10) and redeem the
world.
In making this covenant, Joshua made a statute and ordinance for Israel and
recorded those words in the Book of the Torah of God (Jos. 24:26). The author does
not tell us what these words are, but Jos. 24:14 may be a summary of what was
expected of the people: Fear Yahweh and serve him with integrity and
faithfulness.
Writing these words in the Torah of God may indicate that the bulk of the book of
Joshua was complete and that it was added to and deposited with the Pentateuch
beside the ark of the covenant. This would imply that it received canonical status as
the inspired, authoritative Word of God like the Pentateuch.
Then Joshua created another stone memorial. He took a large stone and placed it
under an oak tree near the tabernacle. This stone, as a covenant witness, would
stand there as a reminder of their commitment to Yahweh. If they had thoughts of
abandoning Yahweh, this stone would bear silent testimony to the covenant statute
and ordinance that they were bound by.
Joshua set up the stone under the oak that was by the tabernacle of Yahweh (Jos.
24:26). Because it uses the definite article (the), it means that this is a well-known
tree. Evidently this is the great tree of Moreh at Shechem, where Yahweh
appeared to Abraham and where Abraham built an altar (Gen. 12:6-7). It might also
be the tree where Jacob buried Israels foreign gods (Gen. 35:1-4). Since the
tabernacle was next to the tree, it seems that the tabernacle was moved twelve
miles north from Shiloh to Shechem for this ceremony and then returned to Shiloh.

These verses (Jos. 24:25-28) relate indirectly to the ancient Hittite treaty form used
in the Near East. The relevant elements of this form are:
Stipulations that governed the covenant relationship
Deposition of the text in the temple
Reading of the covenant terms
Witnesses of the covenant
Covenant oath, ceremony, and sanctions
Then Joshua dismissed the people, each to his own inheritance (Jos. 24:28).
Inheritance stresses two central truths.
1. In the beginning of Joshua God said that Joshua would cause this people to
inherit the land (Jos. 1:6). Now as a bookend, Joshua sends them off to their
inheritance. Yahweh has kept his word and promise.
2. An inheritance is given. It is not earned, purchased, or deserved. The land is a
gift of grace from Yahweh to his people. Yahweh won the victory over the
Canaanites, took the land from them, and gave it to Israel.
The ultimate purpose for the land inheritance of Israel is to:
1. [Provide a place for the Christ to come and live a perfect life for us.]
2. Provide a place where the Christ would die and be buried.
3. The land inheritance that each Israelite family receives concretely prefigures
the eternal inheritance that God promises by grace to all OT and NT
believers. All believers will rise bodily from the dead unto the eternal
inheritance of life in the new heavens and earth.
Into this land the Seed of Abraham will come. And like a seed, he will die and be
planted in the ground where he will germinate [spring to life] and produce many
seeds (Gen. 12:7; Jn. 12:23-24; Gal. 3:16).

5.5 (24:29-33) Three Graves of Saints Awaiting

Resurrection in the Promised Land: Memorials to
Yahwehs Fulfilled Promises
Saints Graves Attest the Hope of the Resurrection
The graves of Joshua, Joseph, and Eleazar will serve as reminders that Yahweh has
brought to completion his sworn oath to the patriarchs that he would give them the
land as their inheritance by grace. In the first few verses of Joshua, God had
promised to give Israel the land. Now at the end of the book the burial of these
three men in the land that God promised brings closure to the whole book.
Even in the OT there was the promise of resurrection of the body (see Job 19:25-27;
Ps. 73:24; Is. 25:6-9; 26:19; Dan. 12:1-3). And these three graves [and every grave]
are silent witnesses to the promised resurrection. Christ himself is the firstborn of
the dead (Col. 1:18; Rev. 1:5; Rom. 8:29). He was the first to be raised from the
dead and receive a glorified body. When Christ returns, all of the OT and NT saints
will follow Christ and have their bodies raised and glorified like his. And then they

shall inherit the new heavens and earth, which is their inheritance and promised
land forever (Is. 65:17-25; Eze. 40 48; Rev. 21 22).

5.5.1 (24:29-31) Joshuas Death, Burial, Title, and Ministry

to Israel
Sometime later Joshua died. At the beginning of the book Joshua was called the
minister of Moses. Now at the end he is called the servant of Yahweh (Jos. 24:29).
Moses held the same title (Jos. 1:1-2). God had promised to exalt Joshua like he did
Moses. This he did when Israel passed through the Jordan (Jos. 4:14). Now in these
verses Joshua is elevated from the servant of Moses to the servant of Yahweh. So
Joshua continues to be exalted today, as all believers in Christ (spiritual Israel) read
about faithful Joshua, the minister of Yahweh.
Joshua lived to be 110 years old, a good long life. His life can roughly be divided in
the following way:
40 years in Egypt.
40 years in the desert.
30 years in the promised land, including 7 years of conquest and 23 years of
peaceful life at Timnath-serah, his inheritance.
Joshua was buried in the land he had inherited in the hill country of Ephraim. After
all the tribes received their inheritance, Joshua received his. He will rest there until
the resurrection of the righteous (Lk. 14:14). The fact that he was buried in the
promised land is a reminder that Yahweh keeps his promises.
The service of Joshua to Yahweh related primarily to the land.
He boldly conquered and allotted the land.
He proclaimed the gracious acts of Yahweh in the land.
He warned of the dangers to come in the land.
He renewed the covenant in the heart of the land.
It was into this land that the Savior would come and carry out his saving purposes.
Joshua followed Yahwehs command to meditate on and do the Torah of Moses. As a
result Israel served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders
who outlived Joshua (Jos. 24:31a). God works effectively through his faithful
ministers who preach Gods Word. Sometimes there are not visible results, but their
labors are not in vain. Gods Word is effective and will not return to him void (Is.
55:10-11). The work of faithful pastors will bear fruit and even continue in future
generations as long as they stay firmly rooted in Gods Word, for it is Gods Word
that tells of Yahwehs works for his people. It is through this Gospel of grace that
God works saving faith.
This generation of Israelites remained faithful to Yahweh because they knew every
deed of Yahweh that he did for Israel (Jos. 24:31). The Hebrew verb is translated as
do or did. The same verb is used in the following passages:
Jos. 3:5 Yahweh will do miracles in Israels midst.

Jos. 4:23-24 Yahweh dried up the waters of the Jordan as he did the waters
of the Red Sea.
Jos. 9:9-10 The Gibeonites said they had heard of what Yahweh did in Egypt
and what he did to the two Amorite kings beyond the Jordan.
Jos. 10:25-26 Joshua promised that what Yahweh did to defeat the 5 kings
(caused them to panic, sent large hail stones, caused the sun to stand still,
gave the Amorites into the hands of the Israelites), he would do to all of
Israels enemies.
Jos. 23:3 What Yahweh did for Israel was war against the nations.
Jos. 24:5-7 What Yahweh did for Israel in Egypt was send plagues, brought
the people out, protected Israel by putting darkness between them and the
Egyptian army, and drowned the Egyptian army in the Red Sea.
Jos. 24:17 Yahweh brought them out of Egypt with great signs and protected
them on their journey through the desert and through the nations that they
passed through.
Israels faithfulness is based upon the mighty deeds that Yahweh has done for them.
To him alone belongs all glory and praise.
Joshua is a type of Christ. He led Israel into the promised land and parceled out the
inheritance. Jesus shares the same name as Joshua. And in a similar way he leads
Gods people into the heavenly promised land and graciously gives them their
eternal inheritance.
After Joshua died, Israel did not have a single leader. Yahweh set in place a system
of Israels elders, tribal heads, judges, and officers. These are the ones
whom Joshua summoned and exhorted at the end of the book (Jos. 23:2; 24:1). The
office that Joshua held, which involved conquest and allotment, was unique.

5.5.2 (24:32) Josephs Burial: Out from Egypt and Back in

Shechem
Next Israel buried Joseph. He had died 4 centuries earlier in Egypt. Israel had carried
his bones with them in the exodus and now they brought them to Shechem, the
place where Josephs brothers had sold him into slavery, and buried them there.
Joseph, who was given up as dead after his brothers sold him, was sent to Egypt by
God in order to preserve life. Through his figurative death God saved many lives. He
prefigured Christ whose actual death brings eternal life to all who believe in him.
Even though he was betrayed, falsely accused, and imprisoned, Joseph did not live
in bitterness but freely forgave his brothers. [Jesus too was betrayed, falsely
accused, and imprisoned in the tomb. He willingly went through all of this in order to
provide forgiveness for all people.] The life of Joseph is a historical illustration of
Yahwehs way of using human sin, evil intent, and injustice for good in order to bring
about life for all of his servants. This God did supremely through the suffering,
death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Before his death, Joseph made the descendants of Israel promise on oath that they
would not bury him in Egypt but instead bury him in the promised land (Gen. 50:25-

26; cf. Ex. 13:19). Those parting instructions of Joseph show his trust in Gods
promises, specifically his promise of redemption from Egypt and the gift of the land
of Canaan. And the fact that Israel did not bury him in Egypt but carried his bones
through the desert for 40 years and into the promised land shows that they too
believed Gods promises. The burial of the bones of Joseph at Shechem stresses that
faith in Gods promises is never misplaced. God did come to the aid of his people in
Egypt, as Joseph said he would. God did give his people the land as he swore. You
can always count on Gods promises.
The bones of Joseph were buried at Shechem on the plot of ground that Jacob had
bought long ago. He was buried in the center of the land allotted to the tribes
descended from his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. The burial itself may have
taken place earlier, but the story is included here to punctuate the fact that God
always keeps his promises.
Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim. So he was a descendant of Joseph. But more
important than his physical descent is his spiritual descent. As Joseph believed
Gods promises, so did Joshua. In that sense then all believers in Jesus, who fulfills
all of Gods promises, are spiritual descendants of Joseph because all believe Jesus
is the Savior God promised.

5.5.3 (24:33) Eleazars Death and Burial on a Hill in the

Promised Land
The final verse reports the death and burial of the high priest Eleazar. Aaron, his
father, was the first high priest. When Aaron died, Eleazar became the high priest.
God instituted the office of high priest and all of the high priests from Aaron and
Eleazar to the time of Jesus served God. Jesus assumed the office of high priest
during his earthly ministry (see his high priestly prayer in John 17) and after his
ascension into heaven entered his high priestly service in the heavenly sanctuary
(Heb. 4:14 5:10; 7:11-28). After the destruction of the earthly temple in AD 70, the
earthly office ceased. The priesthood of Jesus will last forever (Heb. 7:24). So the
death of Eleazar points forward to Jesus, who offered himself in death once for all
and now lives forever as High Priest (Heb. 7:27-28).
Eleazar played an important role in the book of Joshua in the allotment of the land
(Jos. 14:1; 17:4; 19:51; 21:1). The mention of Eleazar at the end of the book helps
emphasize Gods faithfulness. The land God promised was allotted through Eleazar.
Israel now possesses the land God promised them. The land allotted to Israel was
the temporary home of Gods OT people. The eternal High Priest, Jesus Christ,
secured an eternal inheritance through his suffering, death, and resurrection. [He
allots this inheritance to all who die in faith.]
Yahweh did not need Joseph to preserve his people in Egypt. He did not need Joshua
to conquer the land. He did not need Eleazar to allot the land. He does not need
pastors and lay servants to grow his kingdom. Yet he was pleased to use the service
of Joseph, Joshua, and Eleazar. And he is please to use the service of pastors and lay
people. God has chosen to establish and expand his kingdom through his chosen
servants. God receives the credit for everything they accomplished.

Owning their inheritance in the promised land was not the greatest gift God would
give his people. Rather, owning an inheritance in the eternal city, the new Jerusalem
is the greatest gift and that was only made possible by their eventual Heir who won
their lasting inheritance. Praise be to the greater Joshua Jesus!