Joshua: Promised Fulfilled

Big Picture Pt. 26 Joshua: A Promise Fulfilled 8/6/25

Background/Recap:

FINISHED PENTATEUCH

GOD HAS a PLAN

GOD HAS a PEOPLE

Deuteronomy:

BORDER of PROMISED LAND (MOAB)

MOSES DIES

JOSHUA TAKES CHARGE

Background: MOSES ASSISTANT// 1 of 12 SPIES

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Transition: We’re going to begin by LOOKING @ 1:1-4

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Text: Joshua

Joshua 1: Setting, Joshua Assumes Command & God’s Promise

1 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory.

ESSENTIAL PRINCIPLE— FOUND In v2

(Q) WHAT DOES GOD SAY CONCERNING the LAND?? HE’S GIVING it to THEM!

Background: Numbers 13:2 (ESV)

2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.”

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PROMISED LAND = LAND PROMISED BY GOD!

(Q) HE SAYS SOMETHING EVEN FURTHER (V3)… “I HAVE GIVEN”

QAL PERFECT—COMPLETE/HOLISTIC… A DONE DEAL!

**SEE P.P. PIC for EXTENT of PROMISED LAND**

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Transition: After INTRODUCTION… GOD WILL ENCOURAGE HIM…

READ: V5-9

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An Encouragement (v5-9)

5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

LAND = GIFT from GOD— NO OPPOSITION STANDS a CHANCE...

“BE STRONG & COURAGEOUS” GOD = WITH YOU.

YAHWEH DOING the WORK— JOSHUA = HIS AGENT.

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(v8) CONDITIONED UPON OBEDIENCE to LAW

Background: BLESSINGS & CURSES of DEUT. CH. 28...

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Transition: JOSHUA COMMISSIONED— HE’LL TAKE CHARGE…

READ: V10-11

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Joshua Assumes Command (v10-11)

10 And Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11 “Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare your provisions, for within three days you are to pass over this Jordan to go in to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’ ”

GET READY!

3 DAYS WE’RE GOING...

(Q) Do YOU SEE HOW HE DESCRIBES the LAND (V11)?? GOD is GIVING YOU...

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Transition: WHILE PREPARING— ONE FINAL SPY of LAND...

READ: 2:1-7

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Joshua 2:1-7—Rahab Hides the Spies

2:1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. 2 And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.” 3 Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, “True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. 5 And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.” 6 But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof. 7 So the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan as far as the fords. And the gate was shut as soon as the pursuers had gone out.

SPIES HIDDEN BY RAHAB

**NO SEXUAL CONNOTATIONS**

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Transition: REASON SHE HID THEM...

READ V8-14

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Rahab’s Faith & Spies’ Promise (v8-14)

8 Before the men lay down, she came up to them on the roof 9 and said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. 10 For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. 11 And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. 12 Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father’s house, and give me a sure sign 13 that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.” 14 And the men said to her, “Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.”

(Q) DID YOU SEE WHAT RAHAB SAID in V9?? YAHWEH HAS GIVEN the LAND...

GOD’S REPUTATION PRECEDED HIM—CANAANITES HEARD of HIM...

(Q) DID YOU SEE RAHAB’S CONFESSION (V11)?? YAHWEH, YOUR GOD... HE is GOD.

Background: REMEMBER, LORD = YHWH — GOD’S PERSONAL NAME

· Hebrews 11:31 By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.

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SPIES PROMISE SAFETY

**NOTE FAITH** (V14)— WHEN YAHWEH GIVES US the LAND. — CONTRAST W/ FORMER SPIES!

**Summarize** RAHAB LETS THEM DOWN,, SCARLET CORD— HIDE in HILL COUNTRY

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Spies Return to Joshua (v23-24)

(READ: V23-24) 23 Then the two men returned. They came down from the hills and passed over and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and they told him all that had happened to them. 24 And they said to Joshua, “Truly the Lord has given all the land into our hands. And also, all the inhabitants of the land melt away because of us.”

SPIES SHARE NEWS: YAHWEH HAS GIVEN the LAND INTO our HANDS & PEOPLE = SCARED...

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Transition: GOD WILL VERIFY JOSHUA’S LEADERSHIP & HIS PROMISE W/ MIRACLE

READ: JOSHUA 3:7-13...

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God’s Promise to Stop the Jordan (3:7-13)

Joshua 3:7 The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 And as for you, command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’ ” 9 And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is passing over before you into the Jordan. 12 Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man. 13 And when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap.”

GOD WILL ENDORSE JOSHUA & GIVE HOPE W/ MIRACLE

Background: THIS HAPPENS WHEN JORDAN OVERFLOWS its BANKS!

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(V10) PROMISE: LIVING GOD WILL FOR SURE “DRIVE OUT” the NATIONS

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Word Study (Yrs):

· Yrs frequently translated: “drive out” or “possess” in ESV

TAKE POSSESSION/

DISPOSSESS

Illustration: SOMETHING PLACED INTO WATER DISPLACES the WATER...

SO ISRAEL WOULD DISPLACE NATIONS—COULDN’T REMAIN in SAME PLACE

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Important Note: VAST MAJORITY of CONQUEST = GRADUAL

FEW UPHEAVALS

MORE GRADUAL— NOT BURNING CITIES—TAKING POSSESSION of THINGS THEY DIDN’T BUILD.

Deuteronomy 7:22 (ESV)

22 The Lord your God will clear away these nations before you little by little. You may not make an end of them at once, lest the wild beasts grow too numerous for you.

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Transition: They’re on the WEST SIDE of JORDAN— READY for CONQUEST...

**Summarize Ch. 4-5A** TAKE STONES for MEMORIAL,,

NEW GENERATION CIRCUMCIZED,

KEEP PASSOVER...

then JOSHUA HAS DIVINE ENCOUNTER…

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Joshua 5:13-15 the Commander of Yahweh’s Host

13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” 14 And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15 And the commander of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

HERE—JOSHUA ENCOUNTERS GOD— PROBABLY “ANGEL of the LORD” —

— COMMANDER of YAHWEH’S HOST

Focus: SPIRITUAL BATTLE

YAHWEH of HOSTS— GOD of ANGEL-ARMIES

ULTIMATELY CONQUEST of CANAAN was GREATER SPIRITUAL REALITY...

=> SIMILAR to HUMILIATION of EGYPT’S gods...

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Transition: THIS YAHWEH-FIGURE HAS a BATTLE PLAN for JOSHUA

READ: CH. 6:1-5

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Joshua 6: The Battle of Jericho

Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in. 2 And the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty men of valor. 3 You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. 4 Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 And when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, everyone straight before him.”

Exhort:: (V2) — YAHWEH HAD GIVEN the CITY!

HB: Qal pfct… A DONE DEAL!

Instruction:

6 DAYS— CIRCLING the CITY 1X

7TH DAY— CIRCLING CITY 7X

Ark of Covenant NEAR FRONT — SYMBOL of GOD’S PRESENCE— GOD W/ THEM

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NATURALLY— NONSENSICAL APPROACH

Focus: WILL THEY TRUST HIM WHEN HIS COMMANDS DON’T MAKE SENSE…???

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Transition: JOSHUA SHARE STRATEGY W/ PEOPLE…

WILL THEY FOLLOW THROUGH??

Read: v6-21

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The Capture of Jericho (v6-21)

6 So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord.” 7 And he said to the people, “Go forward. March around the city and let the armed men pass on before the ark of the Lord.”

8 And just as Joshua had commanded the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the Lord went forward, blowing the trumpets, with the ark of the covenant of the Lord following them. 9 The armed men were walking before the priests who were blowing the trumpets, and the rear guard was walking after the ark, while the trumpets blew continually. 10 But Joshua commanded the people, “You shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout.” 11 So he caused the ark of the Lord to circle the city, going about it once. And they came into the camp and spent the night in the camp.

12 Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord. 13 And the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the Lord walked on, and they blew the trumpets continually. And the armed men were walking before them, and the rear guard was walking after the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets blew continually. 14 And the second day they marched around the city once, and returned into the camp. So they did for six days.

15 On the seventh day they rose early, at the dawn of day, and marched around the city in the same manner seven times. It was only on that day that they marched around the city seven times. 16 And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city.

17 And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent. 18 But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it. 19 But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord.” 20 So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city. 21 Then they devoted all in the city to destruction, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys, with the edge of the sword.

FOCUS: OBEYING GOD’S WORD BY FAITH...

Hebrews 11:30 (ESV)

30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.

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Word Study/Cherem:

CAPTURE CITY— DEVOTED to DESTRUCTION/ OFFERING to the LORD

HIS VICTORY—HIS SPOILS.

Few Notes:

INDISCRIMINATE KILLING of ALL SEEMS WRONG

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GOD’S MERCY, Background: HUNDREDS of YEARS to TURN from WICKEDNESS…((WE’LL SEE MORE LATER))

BACK in ABRAHAM’S TIME:

Genesis 15:16 (ESV)

16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”

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Paul Copan:

“It [JERICHO] was primarily a military compound designed to guard strategic passes east and west, as well as the north-south road, and to do so on behalf of towns in the hill country, such as Bethel and Jerusalem.”[2]

NOT REALLY a MASSIVE CIVILIAN CENTER...

FURTHERMORE:

“The description of “men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys” as “devoted to the Lord” when they were killed by Israel may be stereotypical and synonymous with “all, everyone,” rather than an indication of the killing of noncombatants.”[1]

STILL BLOODY & TERRIBLE—BUT PROBABLY NOT QUITE as BAD as it SOUNDS —

— AND GOD GAVE THEM PLENTY of TIME to REPENT

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Transition: IN MIDST of DESTRUCTION— THERE’S SALVATION

READ: V22-27

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Salvation of Rahab’s Household (v22-27)

22 But to the two men who had spied out the land, Joshua said, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring out from there the woman and all who belong to her, as you swore to her.” 23 So the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab and her father and mother and brothers and all who belonged to her. And they brought all her relatives and put them outside the camp of Israel. 24 And they burned the city with fire, and everything in it. Only the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord. 25 But Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive. And she has lived in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

26 Joshua laid an oath on them at that time, saying, “Cursed before the Lord be the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho.

“At the cost of his firstborn shall he lay its foundation, and at the cost of his youngest son shall he set up its gates.” 27 So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame was in all the land.

COMPLETE DESTRUCTION— ACCOMPANIED W/ SALVATION

(Q) WHY HER?? FAITH--SHE PUT HER TRUST in YAHWEH & RESPONDED W/ FAITH...

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7 DAYS— JERICHO DIDN’T RELENT from WICKED WAYS— ASK for MERCY— THEY KNEW WHO GOD WAS...

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GOD DELIVERS JERICHO INTO THEIR HANDS...

Summary: MUCH of JOSHUA RECOUNTS GOD’S DELIVERANCE

AI = DESTROYED, RAZED.

AMMONITES = DESTROYED— GOD PARKED SUN & MOON!!

HAZOR, MAJOR CITY = DESTROYED, RAZED.

Summary: Yahweh Fighting for Israel

JOSHUA = STORY of GOD as DIVINE WARRIOR SECURING LAND for HIS COVENANT PEOPLE.

(Q) WHAT MIRACLES DO WE SEE??

JORDAN RIVER STOPPED UP—DRY GROUND

JERICHO WALLS FALLING DOWN

Ai ONLY DEFEATED WHEN ISRAEL RIGHT W/ GOD

GOD PARKS SUN & MOON

CREDIT = to YAHWEH of HOSTS....

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Ch. 11 = further conquest

Ch. 12: Recounting

Ch. 13a = forward looking, land still to be conquered

Ch. 13b-21 = all allotments of the land…

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Transition: IMPORTANT SUMMARY

SKIP to CHAPTER 21—READ 43-45

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Joshua 21—God’s Faithfulness

Josh. 21:43 Thus the Lord gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers. And they took possession of it, and they settled there. 44 And the Lord gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers. Not one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands. 45 Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.

LORD GAVE LAND— AS HE PROMISED.

GOD = PROMISE KEEPING GOD— TESTIMONY of JOSHUA!

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Transition: SKIP DOWN to CH. 23—

JOSHUA GIVING PARTING CHARGE

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Joshua 23: Joshua’s Recounting & Charge

23:1 A long time afterward, when the Lord had given rest to Israel from all their surrounding enemies, and Joshua was old and well advanced in years, 2 Joshua summoned all Israel, its elders and heads, its judges and officers, and said to them, “I am now old and well advanced in years. 3 And you have seen all that the Lord your God has done to all these nations for your sake, for it is the Lord your God who has fought for you.

LOOK @ WHAT GOD HAS DONE!

End of V3 HB. EMPHASIS...— YAHWEH, YOUR GOD, HE FOUGHT for YOU ·

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Transition: JOSHUA CONTINUES

READ: V4-5

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4 Behold, I have allotted to you as an inheritance for your tribes those nations that remain, along with all the nations that I have already cut off, from the Jordan to the Great Sea in the west. 5 The Lord your God will push them back before you and drive them out of your sight. And you shall possess their land, just as the Lord your God promised you.

**WORK STILL to BE DONE…**

**SEE P.P. PIC!!** “EXTENT of the CONQUEST”

(V5) HB. EMPHASIS— JOSHUA SAYS:

LORD, YOUR GOD, HE HIMSELF WILL PUSH THEM BACK & DRIVE THEM OUT!

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Transition: JOSHUA ADMONISH THEM to FAITHFULNESS to YAHWEH

READ: V6-13

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Joshua’s Admonition to Keep Covenant (v6-13)

6 Therefore, be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left, 7 that you may not mix with these nations remaining among you or make mention of the names of their gods or swear by them or serve them or bow down to them, 8 but you shall cling to the Lord your God just as you have done to this day. 9 For the Lord has driven out before you great and strong nations. And as for you, no man has been able to stand before you to this day. 10 One man of you puts to flight a thousand, since it is the Lord your God who fights for you, just as he promised you. 11 Be very careful, therefore, to love the Lord your God. 12 For if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you and make marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, 13 know for certain that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground that the Lord your God has given you.

STRONG WARNING ISSUED ABOUT INTERMINGLING

**NATIONS NOT IMMEDIATELY DISPLACED**

ISRAEL to BE—HOLY NATION—KINGDOM of PRIESTS…

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STAY FAITHFUL to YAHWEH & HIS LAW— LOVE HIM ALONE (V11)

(Q) 1ST COMMANDMENT? NO OTHER GODS BEFORE HIM

(Q) 2ND COMMANDMENT? NO IDOLS.

Shema: Deuteronomy 6:4–5 (ESV)

4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

ALL ABOUT ALLEGIANCE to YAHWEH—TRUE & LIVING GOD ALONE.

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Transition:

AS JOSHUA DEPARTS—HE’LL REMIND THEM of GOD’S FAITHFULNESS...

READ: V14-16

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God’s Faithfulness (v14-16)

14 “And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed. 15 But just as all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you have been fulfilled for you, so the Lord will bring upon you all the evil things, until he has destroyed you from off this good land that the Lord your God has given you, 16 if you transgress the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them. Then the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land that he has given to you.”

GOD = PROMISE-KEEPING GOD

TO BOTH GOOD

& BAD

FAITHFUL to BLESS & FAITHFUL to JUDGE.

(DEUT. CH. 28)..

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Transition:Joshua’s departing words from Yahweh:

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***Summarize Joshua 24:1-13***

YAHWEH—THROUGH JOSHUA RECOUNTS STORY of ISRAEL

ANCESTORS WORSHIPPED OTHER gods

ABRAHAM CALLED OUT

BROUGHT BACK from EGYPT...

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Transition: WE’LL SEE JOSHUA’S FINAL ADDRESS & CALL:

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Joshua 24: Joshua’s Final Call to Faithfulness & Conclusion

14 “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” [3]

ANCESTORS SERVED OTHER gods BEYOND EUPHRATES

EGYPTIAN gods WERE TEMPTATION

PRESENT AMORITE gods = TEMPTATION

“CHOOSE YOU THIS DAY”

ME & MY HOUSE—WE’LL SERVE YAHWEH.

IMPORTANCE—LORD = YAHWEH

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PEOPLE VOW to FOLLOW— JOSHUA DOUBTS— BUT THEIR WORDS STAND as WITNESS—

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Transition: & JOSHUA’S LIFE & STORY WILL END:

READ: V29-33

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Conclusion & Death of Joshua

29 After these things Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being 110 years old. 30 And they buried him in his own inheritance at Timnath-serah, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, north of the mountain of Gaash.

31 Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua and had known all the work that the Lord did for Israel.

32 As for the bones of Joseph, which the people of Israel brought up from Egypt, they buried them at Shechem, in the piece of land that Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred pieces of money. It became an inheritance of the descendants of Joseph.

33 And Eleazar the son of Aaron died, and they buried him at Gibeah, the town of Phinehas his son, which had been given him in the hill country of Ephraim. [4]

MOST of PROMISED LAND = CONQUERED— BUT NOT DONE YET.

Conclusion: => NOW SETTING of JUDGES,, 1&2 SAMUEL… ETC.

THIS = PROMISED LAND— THROUGH to CAPTIVITY

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Takeaways from Joshua:

1. GOD is PATIENT— GIVING HUMANITY TIME to REPENT....

2. GOD is HOLY— EVENTUALLY HE WILL PUNISH SIN.

3. GOD WILL KEEP HIS PROMISES— BOTH GOOD & BAD— TO BLESS & to CURSE...

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Transition: HOW DOES JOSHUA RELATE to N.T. BELIEVERS & NEW COVENANT??

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New Testament Connections

MANY PEOPLE STRUGGLE—INDISCRIMINATE MASSACRE of CANAANITES...

IMPORTANT NOTE: NOT GENOCIDAL BECAUSE of RACE— NOT “ETHNIC CLEANSING”

BEING CANAANITE WASN’T WRONG

CANAANITES HAD HORRIBLE PATTERNS of SIN:

Ted Cabal writes, “The sacrificing of firstborn children by immolating them before an idol was a persistent trait of Canaanite religion.

The Phoenicians were Canaanites, and as late as the second century BC the people of Carthage, a Phoenician colony, were sacrificing children to their goddess Tanit.

Archaeologists have found charred remains of tens of thousands of newborn infants and fetuses buried in Carthage. The practice of child sacrifice made the Romans despise the Carthaginians”[5]

Paul Copan: CONQUEST of CANAAN = MORE ABOUT DESTROYING CANAANITE RELIGION than CANAANITES (p. 173).

Deuteronomy 12:2–3 (ESV)

2 You shall surely destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree.

3 You shall tear down their altars and dash in pieces their pillars and burn their Asherim with fire. You shall chop down the carved images of their gods and destroy their name out of that place.

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SOME PEOPLE STILL CAN’T COME to TERMS W/ IT...

some CONCLUDE: MOSES & JOSHUA “THOUGHT” THIS WAS WHAT GOD WANTED—BUT IT WASN’T.

IF THEY MISUNDERSTOOD GOD’S INSTRUCTION—HOW MUCH DID THEY GET WRONG?

HOW MUCH BIBLE to THROW OUT??

O.T. = BIBLE JESUS READ—APOSTLES BUILT FAITH ON...

Warning: WE HAVE to BE INCREDIBLY CAREFUL NOT to REMAKE GOD IN OUR IMAGE

WE DON’T GET to PICK & CHOOSE ASPECTS of GOD WE LIKE/DON’T LIKE...

=> WE NEVER HAVE the MORAL HIGH GROUND. <=

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2. OTHERS CONCLUDE: O.T. GOD = DIFFERENT THAN N.T./GOD HAS CHANGED.

BELIEVING— YAHWEH is NOT “FATHER of OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST”

=> I DON’T BELIEVE YOU CAN BE a CHRISTIAN & BELIEVE THIS.

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GOD is STILL a WARRIOR GOD...

LOVE— —BUT HE is ALSO HOLY, JUST, AWESOME.

**CANAANITE DESTRUCTION = FOR SPECIFIC TIME**

BUT LARGER PRINCIPLE of SPIRITUAL WARFARE = STILL EXISTENT…

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WAR of YAHWEH AGAINST REBEL SPIRITS

IDOL WORSHIP = WORSHIP of DEMONS.

CHRISTIANS STILL HAVE SPIRITUAL ENEMIES.

Ephesians 6:10–13 (ESV)

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.

WE DO OURSELVES a DISSERVICE WHEN WE FORGET THIS.

**THERE’S a REAL SPIRITUAL WAR—HAPPENING ALL AROUND**

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GOD is PRESENTLY PATIENT W/ HUMANKIND

2 Peter 3:9 (ESV)

9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

BUT ONE DAY—DESTRUCTION WILL BE FINAL of ALL ENEMIES of the CROSS

Copan: “As a last resort, God says to them, ‘Thy will be done’” (Copan, 161)… “Ultimately, God’s judgment will come to all who refuse to submit to God’s kingdom agenda and instead seek to set up their own little fiefdoms” (Copan, 161).

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IF WE SUBMIT to CHRIST in FAITH—WE’LL BE SPARED,, as RAHAB WAS...

DANIEL BARD: “On the Judgment Day, however, that invitation ends, and destruction unlike anything the universe has ever seen will occur.” – p. 60 (DANIEL BARD)

Tremper Longman III: “The war against the Canaanites was simply an earlier phase of the battle that comes to its climax on the cross and its completion at the final judgment. The object of warfare moves from the Canaanites, who are the object of God’s wrath for their sin, to the spiritual powers and principalities, and then finally to the utter destruction of all evil, human and spiritual” (p. 211-212, Kindle).

Revelation 19:11–21 (ESV)

11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.

12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself.

13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.

14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses.

15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.

16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, “Come, gather for the great supper of God,

18 to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great.”

19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army.

20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.

21 And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

ONE SCHOLAR— END-TIME JUDGMENT MAKES BLOODY WARFARE LOOK LIKE BEDTIME STORY…

THERE is NO REFUGE FROM HIM… ONLY in HIM.

Closing Thoughts/Questions??

Close in Prayer