Good morning, everyone!
Today I read Joshua 9-11.
The Israelites are winning victories right and left. No one can stand against them.
Because of this, the Gibeonites disguised themselves as weary travelers in order to deceive the Israelites. They said they had heard of the Lord God and wanted to make a covenant with them.
Now, something interesting happens.
Joshua 9:14-15 - So the men of Israel took some of their provisions, and did not ask for the counsel of the Lord. Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them to let them live; and the leaders of the congregation swore an oath to them.
This is where they got into trouble.
Joshua and the leaders acted without God's counsel, and thus were deceived. Now, they can't kill the Gibeonites.
When the deception is found out, they still take the city, but the Gibeonites become their slaves. Their lives are spared, and this allows outside influences, and outside gods to become a part of Israel's culture.
This is something God warned them against.
We must always seek God's counsel, especially during warfare.
Now, of course, for us, I'm speaking of spiritual warfare here. But the Israelites often went into battle. From Joshua to David, there were many warriors among God's people. And the best ones always sought God.
So they've made a pact with the Gibeonites. And while the Israelites are away from their city, five kings join together to attack Gibeon.
The Gibeonites send word to Joshua, who turns back to fight. He seeks God's counsel, and the Lord tells Joshua not to be afraid, because He has given the kings into the hands of the Israelites.
And boy does He ever!
The Israelites are winning. The kings' men are fleeing. And God rains down giant hailstones from Heaven.
No joke. Check this out.
Joshua 10:11-14 - As they fled from before Israel, while they were at the descent of Beth-horon, the LORD threw large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died; there were more who died from the hailstones than those whom the sons of Israel killed with the sword. Then Joshua spoke to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, "O sun, stand still at Gibeon, And O moon in the valley of Aijalon." So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, Until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies. Is it not written in the book of Jashar? And the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day. There was no day like that before it or after it, when the LORD listened to the voice of a man; for the LORD fought for Israel.
This entire passage amazes me.
God threw hailstones on Israel's enemies. And then He stopped the sun, so that the Israelites could fight in daylight until their enemies were defeated.
Because Joshua asked.
That's amazing. God helped His people to take back the land that He had promised them.
And chapter 11 ends like this:
Joshua 11:23 - So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the LORD had spoken to Moses, and Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. Thus the land had rest from war.
God's people did as He commanded. They obeyed Him and Joshua. They took back the land of their inheritance.
And now they have rest from war.
When we've been fighting for a while, it often seems like it will never end.
But God wants to help us. He wants us to cry out to Him, to ask for help.
And He will help us. We just have to listen to His counsel and obey Him. And He will fight for us, and deliver us.
And then we, too, will have rest.
I hope you'll join me tomorrow when I read Joshua 12-15.
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