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Joshua’s Divine Call
(ESV)
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.
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.”
THE NEW LEADER
From to , the Bible focuses attention on the ministry of Moses, God’s chosen servant to lead the nation of Israel.
But Moses died; and though he would not be forgotten (he’s named over fifty times in the Book of Joshua), a new “servant of the Lord” () would take his place.
“God buries His workers, but His work goes on.”
God spent many years preparing Joshua for his calling.
1. Joshua the slave.
Joshua was born into slavery in Egypt.
He was given the name Hoshea (), which means “salvation.”
Moses later changed it to Joshua (), “Jehovah is salvation,” which is the Hebrew form of “Jesus” (; see and ).
📷When his parents (Nun and Mrs. Nun) gave the baby the name “salvation,” they were bearing witness to their faith in God’s promise of redemption for His people 6;6).
Joshua belonged to the tribe of Ephraim and was the firstborn son of Nun ().
This meant that his life was in danger the night of Passover, but he had faith in the Lord and was protected by the blood of the lamb ().
While in Egypt, Joshua saw all the signs and wonders that God performed (); and he knew that Jehovah was a God of power who would care for His people.
The Lord had humiliated the gods of Egypt and demonstrated that He alone was the true God (; ).
Joshua saw the Lord open the Red Sea and then close the waters and drown the pursuing Egyptian army ().
Joshua was a man of faith who knew the Lord and trusted Him to do wonders for His people.
2. Joshua the soldier.
The first official recorded act of Joshua in Scripture is his defeat of the Amalekites when they attacked Israel about two months after Israel’s exodus from Egypt ().
(NLT)
8 While the people of Israel were still at Rephidim, the warriors of Amalek attacked them.
9 Moses commanded Joshua, “Choose some men to go out and fight the army of Amalek for us.
Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill, holding the staff of God in my hand.” 10 So Joshua did what Moses had commanded and fought the army of Amalek.
Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron, and Hur climbed to the top of a nearby hill.
11 As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand, the Israelites had the advantage.
But whenever he dropped his hand, the Amalekites gained the advantage.
12 Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up.
So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on.
Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands.
So his hands held steady until sunset.
Moses was a prophet and legislator, but Joshua was a general with exceptional military skills.
Joshua was also a man of great courage, who wasn’t afraid to confront the enemy and trust the Lord for victory.
Where did Joshua learn to use a sword and to command an army?
We know Joshua was especially gifted by the Lord.
Had Joshua in some way been involved with the Egyptian army and received his early training in its ranks?
This is possible, though the Scriptures are silent in this area.
We know Moses refused a high position in Pharaoh’s palace but received his education there (; ).
Joshua may have received some military training in Egypt.
Like the Egyptian ROTC or something.
According to , the writer suggests that God had chosen Joshua for a special work in the future.
(ESV)
14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”
Unknown to Joshua, the battle with Amalek was a testing time when God was examining his faith and courage.
(Two key character traits of Joshua we will expound on later).
Joshua’s conflict with Amalek was the preparation for many battles he would fight in the Promised Land.
3. Joshua the servant.
In , Joshua is called Moses’ servant (“minister”), which indicates that Joshua was now an official assistant to the leader of Israel.
He accompanied Moses to the mount and went with him when he judged the people for making the golden calf (32:17).
It wasn’t enough that Joshua be a good warrior; he also had to know the God of Israel and the holy laws God gave His people to obey.
We will discover that the secret of Joshua’s victories was not his skill with the sword but his submission to the Word of God () and to the God of the Word (5:13–15).
During Israel’s wilderness journey, Moses had a special tent set up outside the camp where he could meet with God ().
It was Joshua’s responsibility to stay at the tent and guard it.
Not only was Joshua a warrior, but he was also a worshiper and knew how to live in the presence of God.
Joshua was jealous not only for the glory of God but also for the honor and authority of Moses.
This is a good characteristic for a servant to have, and it showed up when God sent His Spirit upon the seventy elders Moses had chosen to assist him in his work ().
When the Spirit came upon Eldad and Medad in the camp, two men who had not assembled with the other elders at the tabernacle, Joshua protested and asked Moses to stop them from prophesying.
Moses responded by saying, “I wish that all of God’s people were prophets”.
(For a New Testament parallel, see .)
49 John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.”
50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”
4. Joshua the spy.
When Israel arrived at Kadesh Barnea, on the border of the Promised Land, God commanded Moses to appoint twelve men to spy out the land of Canaan—Joshua was among them ().
After forty days of investigating the land, the spies returned to Moses and reported that the land was indeed a good one.
But ten of the spies discouraged the people by saying that Israel wasn’t strong enough to overcome the enemy, while two of the spies—Caleb and Joshua—encouraged the people to trust God and move into the land.
Sadly, the people listened to the faithless ten spies.
It was this act of unbelief and rebellion that delayed the conquest of the land for forty years.
This crisis revealed some fine leadership qualities in Joshua.
He was not blind to the realities of the situation, but he didn’t allow the problems and difficulties to rob him of his faith in God.
The ten spies looked at God through the difficulties, while Joshua and Caleb looked at the difficulties through what they knew about God.
Their God was big enough for the battles that lay ahead!
Knowing he was right, Joshua wasn’t afraid to stand up against the majority.
He, Moses, and Caleb stood alone and risked their lives in so doing; but God stood with them.
It would take that kind of courage for Joshua to lead Israel into their land so they could defeat their enemies and claim their inheritance.
Think of the years of blessing in the Promised Land that Joshua forfeited because the people had no faith in God!
But Joshua patiently stayed with Moses and did his job, knowing that one day he and Caleb would get their promised inheritance ().
Leaders must know not only how to win victories but also how to accept defeats.
Day after day, for forty years, they saw the older generation die off, but each day brought them closer to Canaan.
5. Joshua the successor.
Throughout that wilderness journey, God was preparing Joshua for his ministry as successor to Moses.
When Israel defeated Og, king of Bashan, Moses used that victory to encourage Joshua not to be afraid of his enemies (; ).
When Moses was preparing to die, he asked God to give the people a leader; and God appointed Joshua (27:12–23; ).
In his final message to Israel, Moses told the people that God would use Joshua to defeat their enemies and help them claim their promised inheritance; and he also encouraged Joshua to trust God and not be afraid (31:1–8).
Moses laid hands on Joshua and God imparted to Joshua the spiritual power he needed for his task (34:9).
Like Moses, Joshua was human and made his share of mistakes; but he was still God’s chosen and anointed leader, and the people knew this.
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