Joshua 22-24    Listen

War's over; eastern tribes go home (Joshua 22:1-9)

1 Then Joshua called the Reubenites, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh,
2 and said to them: “You have kept all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, and have obeyed my voice in all that I commanded you.
3 You have not left your brethren these many days, up to this day, but have kept the charge of the commandment of the LORD your God.
4 And now the LORD your God has given rest to your brethren, as He promised them; now therefore, return and go to your tents and to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave you on the other side of the Jordan.
5 But take careful heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
6 So Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went to their tents.
7 ¶ Now to half the tribe of Manasseh Moses had given a possession in Bashan, but to the other half of it Joshua gave a possession among their brethren on this side of the Jordan, westward. And indeed, when Joshua sent them away to their tents, he blessed them,
8 and spoke to them, saying, “Return with much riches to your tents, with very much livestock, with silver, with gold, with bronze, with iron, and with very much clothing. Divide the spoil of your enemies with your brethren.”
9 ¶ So the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the country of Gilead, to the land of their possession, which they had obtained according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses.

Gad, Reuben and half of Manasseh chose land east of the Jordan. They had promised Moses to fight with the remaining tribes to secure their land west of the Jordan back in Numbers 32 (see notes). Now that the fighting is over, Joshua releases them from their obligation, and they head home to the east side of Jordan River. So, how long has it been since they've been away from home fighting on behalf of the other tribes? Well, we don't know exactly, but we did get an estimate back in Joshua 14:6-15 (see notes) where we see that the conquest had taken around seven years up to that point.

Incidentally, verse 9 says of these tribes that they, "departed from the children of Israel at Shiloh." The Tabernacle was set up at Shiloh (Joshua 18:1, see notes) and it appears that the Ark of the Covenant remained there during the entire period of the judges until it was captured by the Philistines in I Samuel 4:3-11 (see notes).

It has been suggested that the ark was originally intended to be transported from tribe to tribe throughout Canaan after they moved into their new territorial homes. That theory is strengthened by the fact that Levites were sprinkled throughout the tribes in 48 cities (Joshua 21, see notes). According to the theory, when the ark arrived there on its circuit through the tribes, there would be a contingency of Levites to assist the traveling priests. If that had been the original intent, there is no scriptural indication that this ever took place.

Dueling altars? I don't think so! (Joshua 22:10-34)

10 ¶ And when they came to the region of the Jordan which is in the land of Canaan, the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh built an altar there by the Jordan—a great, impressive altar.
11 Now the children of Israel heard someone say, “Behold, the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh have built an altar on the frontier of the land of Canaan, in the region of the Jordan—on the children of Israel’s side.”
12 And when the children of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the children of Israel gathered together at Shiloh to go to war against them.
13 ¶ Then the children of Israel sent Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest to the children of Reuben, to the children of Gad, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead,
14 and with him ten rulers, one ruler each from the chief house of every tribe of Israel; and each one was the head of the house of his father among the divisions of Israel.
15 Then they came to the children of Reuben, to the children of Gad, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, to the land of Gilead, and they spoke with them, saying,
16 “Thus says the whole congregation of the LORD: ‘What treachery is this that you have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following the LORD, in that you have built for yourselves an altar, that you might rebel this day against the LORD?
17 Is the iniquity of Peor not enough for us, from which we are not cleansed till this day, although there was a plague in the congregation of the LORD,
18 but that you must turn away this day from following the LORD? And it shall be, if you rebel today against the LORD, that tomorrow He will be angry with the whole congregation of Israel.
19 Nevertheless, if the land of your possession is unclean, then cross over to the land of the possession of the LORD, where the LORD’S tabernacle stands, and take possession among us; but do not rebel against the LORD, nor rebel against us, by building yourselves an altar besides the altar of the LORD our God.
20 Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing, and wrath fell on all the congregation of Israel? And that man did not perish alone in his iniquity.’ ”
21 ¶ Then the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh answered and said to the heads of the divisions of Israel:
22 “The LORD God of gods, the LORD God of gods, He knows, and let Israel itself know—if it is in rebellion, or if in treachery against the LORD, do not save us this day.
23 If we have built ourselves an altar to turn from following the LORD, or if to offer on it burnt offerings or grain offerings, or if to offer peace offerings on it, let the LORD Himself require an account.
24 But in fact we have done it for fear, for a reason, saying, “In time to come your descendants may speak to our descendants, saying, ‘What have you to do with the LORD God of Israel?
25 For the LORD has made the Jordan a border between you and us, you children of Reuben and children of Gad. You have no part in the LORD.” So your descendants would make our descendants cease fearing the LORD.’
26 Therefore we said, “Let us now prepare to build ourselves an altar, not for burnt offering nor for sacrifice,
27 but that it may be a witness between you and us and our generations after us, that we may perform the service of the LORD before Him with our burnt offerings, with our sacrifices, and with our peace offerings; that your descendants may not say to our descendants in time to come, “You have no part in the LORD.” ’
28 Therefore we said that it will be, when they say this to us or to our generations in time to come, that we may say, “Here is the replica of the altar of the LORD which our fathers made, though not for burnt offerings nor for sacrifices; but it is a witness between you and us.’
29 Far be it from us that we should rebel against the LORD, and turn from following the LORD this day, to build an altar for burnt offerings, for grain offerings, or for sacrifices, besides the altar of the LORD our God which is before His tabernacle.”
30 ¶ Now when Phinehas the priest and the rulers of the congregation, the heads of the divisions of Israel who were with him, heard the words that the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and the children of Manasseh spoke, it pleased them.
31 Then Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said to the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and the children of Manasseh, “This day we perceive that the LORD is among us, because you have not committed this treachery against the LORD. Now you have delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of the LORD.”
32 ¶ And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and the rulers, returned from the children of Reuben and the children of Gad, from the land of Gilead to the land of Canaan, to the children of Israel, and brought back word to them.
33 So the thing pleased the children of Israel, and the children of Israel blessed God; they spoke no more of going against them in battle, to destroy the land where the children of Reuben and Gad dwelt.
34 ¶ The children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar, Witness, “For it is a witness between us that the LORD is God.”

Just as they get settled in, they perceive a BIG problem. Those two and one-half tribes on the east side of the Jordan have built a huge replica of the altar to God like the one commanded to be placed on the tabernacle grounds. God hasn't been particularly tolerant of deviant worship in the past. Do you suppose we can just let it go this time or do we engage in a CIVIL WAR with them? After all, they are on the other side of the Jordan. Maybe God will just judge them and not us. NO, NO, NO! The representatives of the ten tribes west of the Jordan, headed up by the son of the High Priest, Phinehas, cross over to the east to get to the bottom of this situation. In verse 17, Phinehas makes reference to the incident back at Peor when a plague swept through Israel and killed 25,000 because of idolatry in Numbers 25:1-18 (see notes). As a matter of fact, it was Phinehas who was credited back then for taking decisive action to put a stop to that idolatry when he ran his javelin through one of those dating couples.

In verse 20, these representatives refer to Joshua 7 (see notes) and their defeat at Ai because of one man's sin, Achan. They feel completely responsible for keeping everyone in all 12 tribes serving the one true God.

GOOD NEWS! It's just a memorial - a testimony to Jehovah (verse 27) - NO intentions of actually making sacrifices there. Satisfied, everybody goes home - NO WAR NECESSARY. Interesting note: In the KJV it says that they "called the altar Ed:" That's an interesting name for an altar! "Ed" is actually an exact transliteration of the Hebrew word meaning "witness." I do wonder why an altar named "Ed" only seems humorous to me. It is very good news to see how conscientious Israel was at this point in time about keeping their worship of Jehovah pure. It's just too bad that they fell away from this resolve in the years to follow.

Joshua to Israel: Do good, prosper; do bad, fall (Joshua 23)

1 Now it came to pass, a long time after the LORD had given rest to Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua was old, advanced in age.
2 And Joshua called for all Israel, for their elders, for their heads, for their judges, and for their officers, and said to them: ¶ “I am old, advanced in age.
3 You have seen all that the LORD your God has done to all these nations because of you, for the LORD your God is He who has fought for you.
4 See, I have divided to you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from the Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, as far as the Great Sea westward.
5 And the LORD your God will expel them from before you and drive them out of your sight. So you shall possess their land, as the LORD your God promised you.
6 Therefore be very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, lest you turn aside from it to the right hand or to the left,
7 and lest you go among these nations, these who remain among you. You shall not make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause anyone to swear by them; you shall not serve them nor bow down to them,
8 but you shall hold fast to the LORD your God, as you have done to this day.
9 For the LORD has driven out from before you great and strong nations; but as for you, no one has been able to stand against you to this day.
10 One man of you shall chase a thousand, for the LORD your God is He who fights for you, as He promised you.
11 Therefore take careful heed to yourselves, that you love the LORD your God.
12 Or else, if indeed you do go back, and cling to the remnant of these nations—these that remain among you—and make marriages with them, and go in to them and they to you,
13 know for certain that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations from before you. But they shall be snares and traps to you, and scourges on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land which the LORD your God has given you.
14 ¶ “Behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth. And you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing has failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed.
15 Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all the good things have come upon you which the LORD your God promised you, so the LORD will bring upon you all harmful things, until He has destroyed you from this good land which the LORD your God has given you.
16 When you have transgressed the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed down to them, then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and you shall perish quickly from the good land which He has given you.”

Here he is, a young man when compared to Aaron and Moses at their deaths - only 110 years old according to 24:29 (see below). He's gotta speak to Israel before his death and warn them. Israel's occupation of Canaan is 25 to 30 years behind them now, and the Canaanites still live among them. Joshua emphasizes some points here. First of all, the promised land is rendered from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea (verse 4). That does not include what Gad, Reuben and Manasseh took east of the Jordan. Secondly, the Lord will continue to drive out the Canaanites (Exodus 23:30-see notes, "Little by little...") as long as they serve God and don't get mixed up with those false Gods. Go after those gods, and you will perish - seems simple to me. He commends their faithfulness in verse 8 and points out that God honored that by giving them supernatural abilities in verses 9-10. Notice that Joshua tells them in verses 12-13 that they are not even to intermarry with the non-Israel inhabitants of the land. If they do, God won't continue to drive those heathen folks out.

Joshua has an interesting idiom for death in verse 14 when he says, "Behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth. And you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing has failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed." In other words, everyone dies. Notice the solemn warning from Joshua in verse 16, "When you have transgressed the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed down to them, then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and you shall perish quickly from the good land which He has given you." How many times did they hear that very warning from Moses? Yet, in the end, that's exactly what led to their final downfall in 586 B.C.

Time for another history lesson (Joshua 24:1-13)

1 Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and called for the elders of Israel, for their heads, for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.
2 And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘Your fathers, including Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, dwelt on the other side of the River in old times; and they served other gods.
3 Then I took your father Abraham from the other side of the River, led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants and gave him Isaac.
4 To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. To Esau I gave the mountains of Seir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.
5 Also I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to what I did among them. Afterward I brought you out.
6 ¶ “Then I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea; and the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea.
7 So they cried out to the LORD; and He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, brought the sea upon them, and covered them. And your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. Then you dwelt in the wilderness a long time.
8 And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, who dwelt on the other side of the Jordan, and they fought with you. But I gave them into your hand, that you might possess their land, and I destroyed them from before you.
9 Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose to make war against Israel, and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you.
10 But I would not listen to Balaam; therefore he continued to bless you. So I delivered you out of his hand.
11 Then you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho. And the men of Jericho fought against you—also the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. But I delivered them into your hand.
12 I sent the hornet before you which drove them out from before you, also the two kings of the Amorites, but not with your sword or with your bow.
13 I have given you a land for which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.’

Joshua gathers all the people to Shechem. Why ten miles north of Shiloh where the tabernacle was? We're not told, but I'm guessing it's to fulfill the promise made to Joseph a few centuries ago regarding his bones (see below in 24:32). We get another hint from John 4:5 (see notes), "So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph." Joseph was buried here because this is the parcel of land awarded him by Jacob. Perhaps another reason for this meeting place is that Shechem's location (between two mountains) was great for addressing all of Israel; it was the place chosen to issue the blessings and curses in Joshua 8:30-35 (see photo) - acoustics must have been fantastic. There's nothing like reminding people of how they achieved success. Notice the comment he makes about Abraham's ancestors in Joshua 24:2, "And Joshua said to all the people, 'Thus says the LORD God of Israel: "Your fathers, including Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, dwelt on the other side of the River in old times; and they served other gods."'" Abraham's relatives were all polytheists. THE LESSON: Jehovah gave you this land because you followed him, the one true God. And...how much better does it get than verse 13, "I have given you a land for which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant."

By the way, the "River" of verse 2 is a reference to the Euphrates River. Ur was Abraham's home town on the other side of the Euphrates.

Verse 12 is curious, "I sent the hornet before you which drove them out from before you, also the two kings of the Amorites, but not with your sword or with your bow." Those "two kings of the Amorites" are a reference to Sihon and Og over on the east side of the Jordan (Numbers 21, see notes). Who was "the hornet?" Was he some sort of a super hero? Come to think of it, the Israelites certainly did conquer that land with ease back then.

Consider these verses from Exodus 23:20-33 (see notes):

Exodus 23:20 Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.
Exodus 23:27 I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.
Exodus 23:28 And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before you.

It would appear that, in fact, God did send a super hero to assist the Israelites against Sihon and Og, an Angel. And what was the substance of the army used by this "Angel" to precede Israel into the land? Looks like a swarm of hornets to me. Warfare is easy when the hornets are with you instead of against you.

Joshua's famous words to Israel (Joshua 24:14-33)

14 ¶ “Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD!
15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of 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.”
16 ¶ So the people answered and said: “Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods;
17 for the LORD our God is He who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we went and among all the people through whom we passed.
18 And the LORD drove out from before us all the people, including the Amorites who dwelt in the land. We also will serve the LORD, for He is our God.”
19 ¶ But Joshua said to the people, “You cannot serve the LORD, for He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.
20 If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then He will turn and do you harm and consume you, after He has done you good.”
21 ¶ And the people said to Joshua, “No, but we will serve the LORD!”
22 ¶ So Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the LORD for yourselves, to serve Him.” ¶ And they said, “We are witnesses!”
23 ¶ “Now therefore,” he said, “put away the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD God of Israel.”
24 ¶ And the people said to Joshua, “The LORD our God we will serve, and His voice we will obey!”
25 ¶ So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made for them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.
26 ¶ Then Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God. And he took a large stone, and set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the LORD.
27 And Joshua said to all the people, “Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us, for it has heard all the words of the LORD which He spoke to us. It shall therefore be a witness to you, lest you deny your God.”
28 So Joshua let the people depart, each to his own inheritance.
29 ¶ Now it came to pass after these things that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being one hundred and ten years old.
30 And they buried him within the border of his inheritance at Timnath Serah, which is in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaash.
31 ¶ Israel served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had known all the works of the LORD which He had done for Israel.
32 ¶ The bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel had brought up out of Egypt, they buried at Shechem, in the plot of ground which Jacob had bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for one hundred pieces of silver, and which had become an inheritance of the children of Joseph.
33 ¶ And Eleazar the son of Aaron died. They buried him in a hill belonging to Phinehas his son, which was given to him in the mountains of Ephraim.

As stated in the preceding section, the "River" of verse 14 is a reference to the Euphrates River. Ur was Abraham's home town on the other side of the Euphrates.

Here are those oft-quoted words from Joshua to Israel in verse 15, "...choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve..." Then Joshua issues a very provocative statement to them in verse 19 when he says, "You cannot serve the LORD, for He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins." Whoa! What did he mean by that? I think he's probably addressing human frailty here - that they aren't strong enough to do so without supernatural strength from God. Look at his clear warning in Joshua 24:20, "If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then He will turn and do you harm and consume you, after He has done you good." From that, it is obvious that these Israelites are being warned of the consequences of not serving Jehovah.

Now notice verse 23, "'Now therefore,' he said, 'put away the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD God of Israel.'" Is Joshua implying that the Israelites had, in fact, kept some of those heathen idols they had captured in war?

Joshua decides to memorialize his warnings to Israel with a big rock. He tells them the rock is a witness of their promise to serve God. While Joshua will disappear, the rock will remain as a constant reminder of the promise Israel made. They seemed really motivated to do the right thing that day. And then...Joshua dies at the ripe old age of 110 (also seen in Judges 2:6-9, see notes). Now we have two big ol' rocks as memorials - one east of the Jordan named "Ed" (aka "witness" - Joshua 22:34, see above) and now this special "hearing" rock west of the Jordan. Actually, the hearing rock simply meant, "every time you look at the rock, remember your promises." Also note that Aaron's son, Eleazar the High Priest, dies in verse 33.

Incidentally, Israel fulfills a promise made to Joseph several centuries ago here in verse 32, "The bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel had brought up out of Egypt, they buried at Shechem, in the plot of ground which Jacob had bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for one hundred pieces of silver, and which had become an inheritance of the children of Joseph." Shechem is located within the boundaries of the Tribe of Manasseh, Joseph's descendants. Take a look at these other verses concerning Joseph's bones:

Genesis 50:25 (see notes) Then Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, "God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here."
Exodus 13:19 (see notes) And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had placed the children of Israel under solemn oath, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here with you.
Hebrews 11:22 (see notes) By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones.

It was important to the Hebrews where their remains were left after death. We see this emphasis upon form and place of burial all through the Old Testament.