I have to say that I’m sad this study is coming to an end. I have wanted to do a study on the book of Joshua for the last few years. I’m so glad that we got to do this one at this time in world history. Oh what an important and timely book to study with all that is going on in the Middle East and the contention over the land of Israel. The things I learned from studying this book will remain with me forever and I pray that you also have tucked away some of the great lessons from this book deep into your heart.

Last week, we finished up our lesson with Joshua casting lots for the division of the land for the last 7 tribes. If you remember, Joshua had 3 men from each of the last 7 tribes to survey the land and bring back a report describing the land. So, 21 men went out and came back with a detailed description of the layout of the land. Joshua kinda had to light a fire under some of their butts because they were delaying the possession of each of their territories! I think God sometimes lights a fire under our butts when we become complacent and do not seize all that He has for us. The picture above will make sense to you when you get to …

The next few chapters are all about boundaries and the division of the land. In a few short weeks, a new president will be elected. One of the hot topics of this election is on the issue of boundaries, specifically the southern border of the U.S. and all the borders of Israel. So what is a boundary anyway? A boundary is a line (sometimes invisible) where something stops and something else begins.

Sometimes when I’m studying this book and thinking about all these people that Joshua was in charge of, I think to myself that it must have been kind of like herding cats! I’ve never herded cats, but in my mind, I think it would be a daunting task! With all those people, all those animals, all this responsibility, I cannot imagine a common fella managing all that! And yet, he did because the Lord was with him and gave him strength. The Lord was his strength.

This week, we’re going to take a little bit of a different turn in our study. Beginning in Joshua 13 and going through Joshua 22, we see the settling and division of the land of Israel. We will combine several of these chapters as most of them are concerned with boundaries for the 12 tribes of Israel. We’ll begin covering that next week. But this week, I thought it would be important to look into the ancient gods of the Canaanites, specifically their primary god, Baal.

It is truly difficult to keep up with all the kings and kingdoms slaughtered in this book! So far, we’ve seen Joshua and Israel make a few mistakes and fail and we’ve seen them obey God and win! I’ll take winning over losing any day! The goal is to conquer the entire land and settle in it. We need to remember as we move into these next 2 chapters that the God who created the wilderness is the same God who created the land flowing with milk and honey.

Last week, we learned about how Israel royally screwed up the first time they encountered Ai in battle. There were a lot of lessons we learned from their mistakes. We generally learn more from our mess-ups than we do our victories in life. Israel was no different. They learned that they couldn’t just march into battle without consulting God. Doing so cost them the lives of 36 fighting men and a battle that they should have won. But when they did it right, the victory was

theirs for the taking.

You may not understand the significance of this picture now, but you will. This week, we’re coming off of a great victory at Jericho, but the joy of that victory doesn’t last long before trouble comes into the camp.

Now that 12 stones are stacked up at the basin of the Jordan River and 12 stones are stacked up beside the Jordan River, all the people can cross over. Once they cross the Jordan River into the land of Palestine, they become residents of Palestine. This is the moment in history that the Jewish people begin taking ownership of the land of Israel. From this moment, regardless of whether the Jewish people are in the land or not, the land still belongs to them because God gave it to them as a perpetual inheritance.

We’re going to be learning about a woman who figures into Scripture in a prominent way. Chapter 2 is the beginning of the story of Rehab, but it is not the end of her story. Go ahead and read Joshua 2:1-14. Jericho was the capital of the Amorites. Jericho means “the house of the moon god”. When we get to Chapter 2, Israel is still camped out on the east side of the Jordan River....

The book of Joshua is a continuation of the book of Deuteronomy. This book is crucially relevant to what is currently going on in the Middle East, specifically in Israel. Ever since Oct. 7, 2023, the world news has been filled daily with issues and propaganda regarding “who owns the land”. On our college campuses across the U.S., students are protesting by chanting, “From the River to the Sea”. For the most part, they have no idea what river they are speaking of, nor what sea. Between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea lies a tiny piece of land called Israel. It is and has always been the most contested piece of property on planet Earth.

Fall 2024