A month or so back, I stumbled upon Joshua Chapter 9  while looking for some scriptures about leadership.  Since then, I have revisited that chapter over and over again, and with each visit came another layer of revelation.  What I am about to share with you, is a rather unsettling perspective about this biblical hero, that demands we stop and examine our motives prior to making any decision of consequence in our lives.

To understand the full impact of Joshua 9, we need to go back to the instructions given to Moses by God, that Moses passed on to the children of Israel prior to his death regarding exactly how they were to possess this promised land.

Numbers 33:50-56 (NKJV)
“Now the LORD spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you have crossed the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, destroy all their engraved stones, destroy all their molded images, and demolish all their high places; you shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land and dwell in it, for I have given you the land to possess.  And you shall divide the land by lot as an inheritance among your families; to the larger you shall give a larger inheritance, and to the smaller you shall give a smaller inheritance; there everyone’s inheritance shall be whatever falls to him by lot. You shall inherit according to the tribes of your fathers.  But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then it shall be that those whom you let remain shall be irritants in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they shall harass you in the land where you dwell.  Moreover it shall be that I will do to you as I thought to do to them.'”

Notice how God uses simple logic statements.

When you drive them out, then you will possess the land.  If you do not drive them out, then you will get the fate God had planned for them.  The instruction is clear, drive them out, every last one of them!

So back to Joshua… In chapter 6 we see the infamous battle of Jericho.  Miraculously the walls fall down as the Israelites follow Gods instructions to the letter… well almost. 

Joshua 6:25 (NKJV)
“And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father’s household, and all that she had. So she dwells in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.”

and

Joshua 7:1 (NKJV)
“But the children of Israel committed a trespass regarding the accursed things, for Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed things; so the anger of the LORD burned against the children of Israel.”

The taking of the accursed things is dealt with by God in Joshua 7,  but we hear nothing further about Joshua sparing Rahab and her family.  Perhaps God was willing to stretch the rules on that one because Rahab had been of assistance prior to the battle, and Joshua’s men had sworn an oath to her.  Perhaps God was counting to 3 before letting the consequences happen, and this was just 1.  Anyway…

In chapter 8 God again gives the Israelites victory, this time over the city of Ai, and word is spreading fast among the inhabitants who are yet to be dispossessed.  And so chapter 9 begins…

Joshua 9:1-4 (NKJV)
 “And it came to pass when all the kings who were on this side of the Jordan, in the hills and in the lowland and in all the coasts of the Great Sea toward Lebanon–the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite–heard about it,that they gathered together to fight with Joshua and Israel with one accord. But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they worked craftily, and went and pretended to be ambassadors.”

They convinced Joshua and the elders of Israel that they had come from a far off land because they had heard of the Lord God that the Israelites served, and all that He had done to free them from Egypt and give them victory over their enemies.

Joshua 9:14-15 (NKJV)
“Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions; but they did not ask counsel of the LORD. So Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them to let them live; and the rulers of the congregation swore to them.”

OMG!  What was Joshua thinking?

Why did the men of Israel agree to this without consulting God? I can almost hear them saying “We don’t need to trouble the Lord about this, we will just make a little covenant to let them live.”

Joshua 9:16-18 (NKJV)
“And it happened at the end of three days, after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors who dwelt near them.  Then the children of Israel journeyed and came to their cities on the third day.  Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kirjath Jearim.  But the children of Israel did not attack them, because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD God of Israel. And all the congregation complained against the rulers.”

Look at the mess they have gotten themselves into now! Whose side are they on?  They had been tricked into swearing an oath on the Lord God of Israel to do exactly the opposite of what the Lord God of Israel had told them to do.  One poor decision without consulting God, and now they would never fully possess the promised land.   Remember those logic statements?  If you do not drive them out…

Numbers 33:56 (NKJV)
“Moreover it shall be that I will do to you as I thought to do to them.”

After all of the things God did for them to assure their freedom, they unwittingly exchanged it for the promise of destruction, captivity, dispersion, and much worse.  Throughout history much more than hardship would befall God’s chosen people.

OK, so who does that remind you of?  They did not speak much about the enemy back then, but he was there, confusing the issues and twisting the truth just like the serpent in the Garden of Eden and just like the enemy among us today.  The mission of Satan, is to keep the children of God from their inheritance.  His most useful tool is deception, and we have always been easily deceived.

What can we learn from all of this?  At every pivitol moment in our lives we need to stop and ask ourselves a few clarifying questions.  This is contrary to our nature because of two truths.  First, things aren’t always what they appear to be, and second, we will try to justify our position simply because we want to be right.  With that in mind, if we neglect to pray and seek God’s counsel, whose side are we on?

This is a lesson we would do well to learn well. Always seek counsel with God before making an important decision. Always examine our motives before God, and always seek out others to hold us accountable.  Joshua teaches us that what appear to be little mistakes, can have devastating outcomes, so we must prayerfully consider matters even when we feel we already have the answers.

Finally, though we may fall down and get up, time and again, never forget the hope we have in Jesus.

John 10:10 (NKJV)
“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I (Jesus) have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

Blessings & Adventure,

Lynn “lynnibug” Rios