Joshusa 1-13; 14

I. Introduction (3 minutes)

Who is Joshua?

Joshua fights the Amalekites

Exodus 17:8–10 “8 Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim. 9 And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: to morrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in mine hand. 10 So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek: and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.”

Moses raises his hands Israel is winning, lowers them Amalek is winning. Aaron and Hur hold up Moses’ hands so they’re steady until sun set.

Exodus 17:13 “13 And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.”

Joshua the spy

Numbers 13:1–2 “1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them.”

Numbers 13:8 “8 Of the tribe of Ephraim, Oshea the son of Nun.”

Numbers 13:16 “16 These are the names of the men which Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Oshea the son of Nun Jehoshua.”

Oshea, the name Nun gave him, means “deliverance, salvation”

Joshua means “Yahweh or the Lord delivers.”

Joshua’s appointment to lead Israel

Numbers 27:12–14 “12 And the LORD said unto Moses, Get thee up into this mount Abarim (Mt. Nebo), and see the land which I have given unto the children of Israel. 13 And when thou hast seen it, thou also shalt be gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was gathered. 14 For ye rebelled against my commandment in the desert of Zin, in the strife of the congregation, to sanctify me at the water before their eyes: that is the water of Meribah in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.”

Moses disobeyed and got to see the promised land but not go into it.

Numbers 27:15–17 “15 And Moses spake unto the LORD, saying, 16 Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, 17 Which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.”

Moses speaks to Yahweh and in a nutshell asks Him to appoint a man that will lead them from the front and not the back. A man that will take care of them not only in war but at home when they get there.

Numbers 27:18–21 “18 And the LORD said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; 19 And set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight. 20 And thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient. 21 And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of Urim before the LORD: at his word shall they go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he, and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation.”

Yahweh answers Moses and tells Him Joshua is that man.

Key Events (7 minutes)

1. God's commission to Joshua (Ch 1)

Joshua 1:1–5 “1 Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, 2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. 5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”

2. Rahab and the spies (Ch 2)

Rehab's faith (in the genealogy of Jesus) and Israel begins to conquer

3. Crossing the Jordan River (Ch 3-4)

The priests carry the ark into the river, and the waters part, allowing the Israelites to cross on dry ground. Show’s God's presence and power among the people.

Yahweh tells Joshua to build an altar of 12 stones to remind the people and they tell their children how the LORD dried up the Jordan for them to pass through, similar to what happened at the Red Sea. We should have a reverential fear for the LORD as His people and pass that on to our kids and our kids’ kids. Joshua 4:24 “24 That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the LORD your God for ever.”

4. Fall of Jericho (Ch 5-6)

Joshua circumcises the Israelites as commanded by the LORD to remove the reproach of Egypt. The Israelites camp in Gilgal, celebrate Passover, and start eating the produce of the land instead of manna. Joshua sees a man with a drawn sword who identifies himself as the captain of the LORD's host.

The Israelites were instructed to march around the Jericho once a day for six days, with priests carrying trumpets. On the seventh day, they circled the city seven times, blew the trumpets, and shouted, causing the walls to collapse. The city was then conquered, and all inhabitants were destroyed except Rahab and her family, who had helped the Israelite spies.

Joshua warned against taking any spoils except for precious metals, which were dedicated to the Lord.

5. Ai's defeat and consequences of sin (Ch 7-8)

The Israelites do just that! Achan takes a gold bar, Yahweh is angry and judges them by using the defeat of the Army at Ai. Joshua and Israel punished Achan and his family by stoning them and burning their possessions. This act turned away the Lord's anger, and the place was named the Valley of Achor. There is consequence to our sin!

6. Gibeonite deception (Ch 9)

Kings of Gibeon deceive Joshua into thinking they lived far away and Joshua swears to defend Gibeon. This has immediate consequence

Military Campaigns (5 minutes)

1. Southern campaign (Ch 10)

The five kings of the Amorites attack Gibeon, and the people of Gibeon reach out to Joshua. Joshua asks God and God says go, Joshua leads his forces to defeat the Amorite kings in a great battle. Joshua prays and Yahweh answers so the sun stands still giving more daylight to avenge the people of God in killing the Amorites.

2. Northern campaign (Ch 11)

Jabin gathers other kings to fight against Israel but God give Joshua the victory. Joshua takes all the land, defeating all the kings in the region except the Hivites of Gibeon who make peace with Israel. The LORD hardens the hearts of other cities to fight against Israel, leading to their destruction. Joshua defeats all but a few of the Anakim.

3. Summary of conquered lands (Ch 12)

Lists the kings defeated by the children of Israel on both sides of the Jordan River. It mentions the territories conquered, including the lands of Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan. In total, the chapter mentions thirty-one kings who were defeated by the children of Israel.

4. Initial tribal allotments (Ch 13)

Joshua is old but there’s much more land to take. The chapter gives the specific regions and cities that are yet to be conquered and divided among the tribes of Israel. It mentions the inheritance given to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, as well as the tribe of Levi, who received no land but were to rely on the sacrifices to the Lord as their inheritance. Concludes with the distribution of land to the people.

Caleb

Joshua 14:1–5 “1 And these are the countries which the children of Israel inherited in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, distributed for inheritance to them. 2 By lot was their inheritance, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses, for the nine tribes, and for the half tribe. 3 For Moses had given the inheritance of two tribes and an half tribe on the other side Jordan: but unto the Levites he gave none inheritance among them. 4 For the children of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim: therefore they gave no part unto the Levites in the land, save cities to dwell in, with their suburbs for their cattle and for their substance. 5 As the LORD commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did, and they divided the land.”

They drew lots. No such thing as luck and God’s will for us is given to us in His Word, regular approach towards him in prayer, and consideration of the advice of Christians who are more mature than us. (Heb 1:1-3)

Joshua 14:6–9 “6 Then the children of Judah came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, Thou knowest the thing that the LORD said unto Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadeshbarnea. 7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadeshbarnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart. 8 Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the LORD my God. 9 And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children’s for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the LORD my God.”

Caleb and Joshua were the only two spies to come back and say “God said, so let’s go!”. God rewarded that faithfulness by promising Caleb a place in the Promised Land of Canaan. Now Caleb reminds Joshua of that reward and promise from Yahweh.

Joshua 14:10–12 “10 And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the LORD spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. 11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. 12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the LORD spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said.”

Caleb brags on God for keeping him alive for 45 years through the wandering. He tells Joshua he’s as strong now as when moses sent him, so he asks for a mountain full of giants to conquer for that reward. I don’t know about physical stregnth but his faith was stronger.

Joshua 14:13–14 “13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance. 14 Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the LORD God of Israel.”

Joshua 14:15 “15 And the name of Hebron before was Kirjatharba; which Arba was a great man among the Anakims. And the land had rest from war.”

Conclusion

God was faithful to his people from His call to Abraham all the way through His judgement for them to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. Then He shows that faithfulness by not only appointing a man to take over after Moses but going to war before them so the battles were decided before Israel even got to them.

But Israel still had to fight! We learn this in the NT about the fight with our sin:

Romans 7:18–20 “18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.”

Romans 7:24 “24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”

But we don’t fight alone!

Joshua means “Yahweh or the Lord delivers.”

The Greek for Joshua is “lesous”. The same word Jesus is translated from in the NT

Romans 7:24 “24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”

Romans 7:25a “25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” It’s Jesus that delivers us from sin and death!

John 16:33 “33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

Every person on earth old enough to know better, knows Jesus is king. Many are in denial or in rebellion. And some of us know it and say it but have plenty of moments we don’t live like it.

But a day will come when there’s no way around it!

Paul wrote to the Philippian church:

Philippians 2:1–4 “1 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, 2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.”

Then he wrote this, telling them to be more like Jesus:

Philippians 2:5–10 “5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;”

(ee-ay-SOOS) Philippians 2:11 “11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Iesous Christos Kyrios), to the glory of God the Father.”