A Journey Through Joshua

             Following the death of Moses, God is ready to lead His people into the Promised Land.  The book of Joshua records the fulfillment of God’s promise to give Israel the land of Canaan.  The theme of the book is Conquering Canaan.  The book may be divided into two sections.            In the first section (Joshua 1-12) the emphasis is upon Conquering the Land.  In the first 5 chapters preparations for the conquest are made.  The Lord commissions Joshua to lead the conquest and emphasizes that victory will depend upon Israel’s obedience to God’s Word (ch. 1).  As the spies found out in Jericho, the inhabitants of the land had been smitten with a fear of the Lord (2:9-11).  This fear must have increased greatly when God miraculously stopped the Jordan River to allow Israel to enter the land (ch. 3-4).  Now in the Promised Land, Israel made spiritual preparations by observing the Passover and receiving the covenant sign of circumcision (ch. 5).  With preparations made, the Captain of the Lord’s Host appeared to Joshua and gave him the battle plan for Jericho (5:13f.).  In chapters 6 to 12 we see the people engaging in the battle.  Three military campaigns are covered:  the central campaign (6-8), the southern campaign (9-10), and the northern campaign (11).            In the second section of the book (Joshua 13-24) the emphasis is upon Inheriting the Land.  With the major military battles now won, the tribal inheritances are distributed (ch. 13-19).  The cities of refuge (ch. 20) and the cities of the Levites (ch. 21) are chosen and distributed.  The book ends with Joshua’s farewell messages to prepare the people to finish taking the land in their tribal allotments (ch. 22-24).            The OT was written for our learning (Rom. 15:4).  We can glean insights from the book of Joshua on how to fight our spiritual battles and how to claim our spiritual inheritance.  Victory and blessing come when by faith we walk in obedience to the Word of God (Josh. 1:7-8).  Every time Israel waited for God’s direction and then by faith obeyed it, she was victorious.  However, when Israel failed to seek God’s direction, she was defeated at Ai (ch. 7) and deceived by the Gibeonites (ch. 9, esp. v. 14).  We will be victorious as we faithfully walk in obedience to God’s Word.  It is also interesting that when Israel entered the land there were still giants and fortified cities.  Forty years earlier Israel responded to these problems in unbelief and disobedience (Num. 13-14).  Now, she would overcome them by faith in God and obedience to His Word.  The problems had not disappeared, but Israel’s attitude had changed.  Likewise, we can overcome our problems by trusting in God and obeying His Word. Written by Dr. Kerry M. Johnson, the pastor of West Overland Bible Church