THE BOOK OF JOSHUA,
Chapters 1-24
CHAPTER ONE
Chapter One, ALL: Moses still dominates, for Joshua is mentioned only Four times; whereas Moses is mentioned Ten times.
1:1: “Joshua” = The Name literally means, “Yahweh is deliverance,” or “Yahweh is Salvation.” The Greek form of the name is “Jesus” (see Acts 7:45; Heb. 4:8).
1:4: “wilderness” = The wilderness of Kadesh and Sin, on the border of Edom.
“and this Lebanon” = What is interesting to note here is that this was on the other side of the Jordan river, not belonging to the original portion promised to Israel, as is the following:
“even unto the great river, the river Euphrates” = Though their possessions extended not to Euphrates, -- that being from their own sloth and cowardice, and disobedience to God, and the breaching of those conditions upon which this promise was suspended -- yet their dominion did, and all those lands were tributary to them in David’s and Solomon’s time.
Thus, the utmost of their limits should be from the desert of “Arabia Petraea,” on the South, to Lebanon on the North, from the Euphrates on the East, to the Mediterranean Sea on the West.
1:5: “There shall not any man be able to stand before thee” = See Deuteronomy 11:25.
1:9: “be not afraid” = “He was anxious as to how he should execute his commission in leading the people to the land of Canaan; but this encouragement removed his fears.” 1SP:345.
CHAPTER TWO
2:1: “Jericho” = “Jericho was a city devoted to the most extravagant idolatry. The inhabitants were very wealthy. All the riches that God had given them they accredited to the gifts of their gods. Gold and silver were in abundance. Like the people before the flood, they were corrupt and blasphemous. They insulted and provoked the God of Heaven by their wicked works. God’s judgments awakened against Jericho.” RH, September 16,1873.
“Rahab” = According to Matthew 1:5, the husband of “Rachab,” Greek, “G4477; Rachab,” Canaanite translation (see Heb. 11:31 where “Rahab” in G4460), was “Salmon.” And according to First Chronicles 2:50-51, “Salma” is one of the sons of Caleb. And in Verse 55 we learn this personage to be “of the house of Rechab. Continuing on, we learn from Ruth 4:21 that “Salmon begat Boaz,” who married Ruth, and they “begat Obed,” who fathered “Jesse,” Ruth 4:22, who “begat David.”
Jewish tradition teaches that Salmon was one of the spies that Rahab hid.
2:4: “I wist not whence they were” = Many use this verse to justify their lying, or to have a problem with God and His instructions and hate of liars. By contrast, what we should take from this passage is that our God does hate liars (there are 63 verses that specifically address that; here is a few, Pro. 6:16-19; 12:22; 21:8), but allows it in order to preserve life.
2:8: “And before they were laid down” = This is interesting, for they obviously intended to go to sleep at this point.
CHAPTER THREE
3:5: “sanctify yourselves” = In a ceremonial sense, by the washing of their bodies and their clothes (see Exo. 19:10), and abstaining from their wives. In a moral sense, by acts of religion and devotion, by prayer and meditation, and the exercise of repentance and good works. What is denoted here is that sanctification is necessary to our passage (over Jordan) to the Heavenly Canaan, for without holiness no man shall see the Lord.
3:8: “ye shall stand still in Jordan” = “Jesus the Son of God, followed by Heavenly angels, went before the Ark as it came to Jordan, and the waters were cut off before His presence. Christ and angels stood by the Ark and the priests in the bed of the river until all Israel had passed over Jordan.” 4aSG:102.
3:13: “they shall stand upon an heap” = The “they” being the waters, standing still as a heap, or being heaped up at some distance above the standing-place of the Ark. What is interesting to note is that the peoples above “the city Adam,” verse 16, would have noticed their river Jordan begin to overflow its banks, while those below “the city Adam,” verse 16, would notice it drying up. In both cases a certain type of panic would have taken place, especially when they learned the true cause of such a change in their river.
“When all the kings of the Amorites and the kings of the Canaanites heard that the Lord had [347] stayed the waters of Jordan before the children of Israel, their hearts melted with fear. The Israelites had slain two of the kings of Moab; and their miraculous passage over the swollen and impetuous Jordan, filled them with the greatest terror.” 1SP:346-347.
3:15: “they that bare the Ark” = “Four Heavenly angels always accompanied the Ark of God in all Its journeyings, to guard it from all danger, and to fulfill any mission required of them in connection with the Ark. Jesus the Son of God, followed by Heavenly angels, went before the Ark as it came to Jordan; and the waters were cut off before His presence. Christ and angels stood by the Ark and the priests in the bed of the river, until all Israel had passed over Jordan.” 1SP:399.
“the time of harvest” = That would be the barley harvest, for this was in the springtime.
3:16: “the city Adam, that is beside Zaretan” = From “Gill’s Bible Commentary,” we learn: “. . . this city was in Perea, on the other side Jordan, that side on which the Israelites were before their passage; and Zaretan, which is supposed to be the same with Zartanah, and Zarthan, 1Ki. 4:12 [Zartanah was below Jezreel near Bethshean, or Scythopolis, and not far from Succoth, see 1Ki. 7:46], was on this side, in the tribe of Manasseh; and the sense is, not that Adam was on the side of Zaretan, or near it, for it was on the other side of the river.”
Also, from “Adam Clark’s Bible Commentary,” we learn: “And it appears from Gen. 33:17, Jos. 13:27, that Succoth lay on the east side of Jordan, not far from the lake of Gennesareth; and probably Adam was on the same side to the north of Succoth. It is probable that the Israelites crossed the Jordan near Bethabara, where John baptized, John 1:28.”
3:16: “sea of the plain, even the salt sea” = This would be the “Dead Sea,” not the Mediterranean Sea as some say.
3:17: “dry ground” = It is interesting to note the “dry ground,” for in the passing through the Red Sea the wind had to dry the ground, yet here God has the ground dry right away.
CHAPTER FOUR
4:19: “Gilgal” = That is, in the place that was afterwards called Gilgal (see Jos. 5:9); for here the name is given it by anticipation. In Hebrew, “gal” signifies to roll; and the doubling of the root “galgal,” or “gilgal,” signifies rolling round and round, or rolling off or away, because, in circumcising the children that had been born in the wilderness, Joshua rolled away, better, rolled off completely the reproach of the people. See my Joshua 5:8 & 10 Note.
4:20: “twelve stones” = It appears from this verse that there were two sets of stones erected as a memorial of this great event; twelve at Gilgal (this verse), and twelve in the bed of Jordan (verse 9).
CHAPTER FIVE
5:5: “not circumcised” = According to this verse the Israelites had not been circumcising their children for forty years [38 years actually] in the wilderness, neither had they given any offerings, according to Amos 5:25. The reason can be found in my Deuteronomy 2:14-15 Note.
5:8 & 9: “[8] done circumcising. . . [9] the reproach of Egypt” = Here is my Deuteronomy 2:14-15 Note: “For nearly forty years the children of Israel are lost to view in the obscurity of the desert. [Deuteronomy 2:14-15 quoted]. During these years the people were constantly reminded that they were under the Divine rebuke. In the rebellion at Kadesh they had rejected God; and God had, for the time, rejected them. Since they had proved unfaithful to His Covenant, they were not to receive the sign of the Covenant, the rite of circumcision. Their desire to return to the land of slavery had shown them to be unworthy of freedom, and the ordinance of the Passover, instituted to commemorate the deliverance from bondage, was not to be observed. Yet the continuance of the Tabernacle service testified that God had not utterly forsaken His people.” PP:406.
“Heathen nations had reproached the Lord and His people because the Hebrews had not possessed the land of Canaan, which they expected to inherit soon after leaving Egypt. Their enemies had triumphed because they had so long wandered in the wilderness; and they proudly lifted themselves up against God, declaring that He was not able to lead them into the land of Canaan. They had now passed over Jordan on dry land, and their enemies could no longer reproach them.” 1SP:347.1.
5:11: “old corn” = Although the Hebrew word used here for “old” is “abur,” which generally means, “[that which is] kept over; stored.” But if you check your “Strong’s Concordance,” that is because the translators are using “H5668,” and our word here “H5669,” both being “abur,” in order to translate “abur” as “old corn” here. However, this was not “old corn.” It should have been translated as, “[the] produce [of the land].” Why? Because we are talking about the new produce, or crops of the land.
Remember, the people “of the land” are locked up in the city of Jericho, afraid to come out and protect their crops. And just as the spies took large grapes back to the encampment of Israel in the wilderness, so the people took from the fields around Jericho.
This makes more sense when we go to verse 12 and see that since they could now eat the “produce” of the land, “the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the [produce].” In other words, now that they had access to the lands produce, the “manna” was no longer needed.
By contrast, I have it on good Jewish customs (authority), that verse 12 is translated correctly as “old corn.” Why? Because there was to be no preparation of food on the Sabbath Day, i.e., “Passover.” Therefore, they ate of the “old corn,” or the leftover from the preparation days manna on the Sabbath Day, i.e., “Passover,” and then they are of the lands “produce,” as verse 11 states, “on the morrow after the Passover.”
5:14: “Nay” = The Hebrew is “H3808; lo/loh,” meaning, “neither; no; none; nothing.” Although God has “no pleasure in the death of the wicked,” Ezekiel 33:11, See also Ezekiel 18:32, “but as Captain of the host of the LORD,” Christ has come to execute judgement upon those who have closed their probation period.
“Captain” = This Captain “was no less a personage than the Son of God.” ST, June 2, 1881; 1SP:348; ST, April 15, 1897; TA:113; BEcho, March 8, 1897.
“This was no common angel. It was the Lord Jesus Christ, He Who had conducted the Hebrews through the wilderness, enshrouded in the pillar of fire by night, and a pillar of cloud by day. The place was made sacred by His presence, therefore Joshua was commanded to put off his shoes.
“The burning bush seen by Moses was also a token of the Divine presence, and as he drew nigh to behold the wonderful sight, the same voice which here speaks to Joshua,” 4aSG:61; 1SP:348.
“If the eyes of Joshua had been opened as were the eyes of the servant of Elisha at Dothan, and he could have endured the sight, he would have seen the angels of the Lord encamped about the children of Israel; for the trained army of Heaven had come to fight for the people of God, and the Captain of the Lord’s host was there to command.” 2BC:994; 1ST:231; CC:117; RH, July 19, 1892.
CHAPTER SIX
6:2: “I have given into thine hand Jericho” = “Christ and angels attended the circuit of the Ark around Jericho, and finally cast down the massive walls of the city, and delivered Jericho into the hands of Israel.” 4aSG:102.
6:9: “and the rereward came after the Ark” = “The Hebrew host marched in perfect order. First went a select body of armed men, clad in their warlike dress, but not now to exercise their skill in arms, but only to believe, and obey the directions given them. Next followed seven priests with trumpets. Then came the Ark of God, glittering with gold, a halo of glory hovering over it, borne by priests in their rich and peculiar dress, denoting their sacred office. The vast army of Israel followed in perfect order, each tribe under its respective standard. Thus they compassed the city with the Ark of God.” 4aSG:63; 1SP:349-350.
6:15: “compassed the city after the same manner” = Jewish tradition teaches that they traveled in a counter-clockwise direction around the city. Muslims march around the “Kaaba” seven times in a counter-clockwise direction. Where do you think they adopted that from? See my Bible Study: “MUSLIMS, QUESTIONS FOR.”
“With wonder and alarm the watchmen of that doomed city mark every move, and report to those in authority. They cannot tell what all this display means. Some ridicule the idea of that city’s being taken in this manner, while others are awed, as they behold the splendor of the Ark, and the solemn and dignified appearance of the priests, and the host of Israel following, with Joshua at their head. They remember that the Red Sea, forty years before, parted before them, and that a passage had just been prepared for them through the river Jordan. They are too much terrified to sport. They are strict to keep the gates of the city closely shut, and mighty warriors to guard each gate.” 4SG:63; 1SP:350.
6:20: “they took the city” = “Jericho had defied the armies of Israel and the God of Heaven. And as they beheld the host of Israel marching around their city once each day, they were alarmed; but they looked at their strong defenses, their firm and high walls, and felt sure that they could resist any attack. But when their firm walls suddenly tottered and fell, with a stunning crash, like peals of loudest thunder, they were paralyzed with terror, and could offer no resistance.” 1SP:351.2.
“Christ and angels attended the circuit of the Ark around Jericho, and finally cast down the massive walls of the city, and delivered Jericho into the hands of Israel.” 1SP:399.2.
“The victory obtained in taking Jericho was not through warfare, or the exposure of the people. The Captain of the Lord’s host had led the armies of Heaven. The battle was the Lord’s. The children of Israel did not strike a blow. It was the Lord who fought the battle.” RH, September 23, 1873.
6:26: “in his firstborn, and in his youngest son” = The implication is that all the sons in-between would die also. Jericho was Gods, in that it was the “first fruits” of the country He was giving to Israel and was to be treated as we should treat our tithes. The author of 1Ki. 16:34 (see my astounding Note there) tells us that this was accomplished in Hiel the Beth-elite, who rebuilt Jericho under the reign of Ahab, and laid the foundation of it in Abiram, his first-born, and set up its gates in his youngest son Segub. This was approximately 550 years after Joshua pronounced the curse.
CHAPTER SEVEN
7:2: “Go up and view the country” = “Joshua laid his plans for the conquest of Ai, without seeking by earnest prayer to obtain counsel from God.” ST, April 21, 1881; PP:493.
7:11: “sinned” = The most common Hebrew word used for “sin” is “H2398; chata.” What is interesting about God’s statement here in this verse is He uses 5 words to emphasize the severity of Israel’s sin.
The first is “H5674; transgressed,” meaning, “to pass over or by or through, alienate, bring, carry, do away, take, take away, transgress.”
The second is “H3947; taken,” meaning, “to take, get, fetch, lay hold of, seize, receive, acquire, buy, bring, marry, take a wife, snatch, take away.
The third is “H1589; stolen,” meaning, “to steal, steal away, carry away.
The fourth is “H3584; dissembled,” meaning, “to deceive, lie, fail, grow lean, be disappointing, be untrue, be insufficient, be found liars, belie, deny, dissemble, deal falsely.”
The fifth is “put[ting] it even among their own stuff.” In other words, stealing what was not theirs to take.
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7:19: “make confession unto Him” = Did you notice that Achan was to “make confession unto” God, not necessarily man? The only reason it was made public is for the following reason: we are to “Confess your sins to God, Who only can forgive them, and your faults to one another.” ST, March 16, 1888; FLB:128; SC:37; 5T:639.
“Had Achan been punished without making a confession of his guilt, the people, ever ready to rebel, would have charged God with being unmerciful and severe. They would have reproached Joshua with harshness and severity.” 18MR:143.
7:20: “Achan answered” = “He would not have confessed, had he not hoped by so doing to avert the consequences of his crime. It was this hope that led to his apparent frankness in acknowledging his guilt and relating the particulars of the sin. In this manner will confessions be made by the guilty when they stand condemned and hopeless before the bar of God, when every case has been decided for life or for death.” ST, May 5, 1881; TDG:134.
CHAPTER EIGHT
8:26: “drew not his hand back” = See Exodus 17:11-12.
8:29: “tree” = The Proper translation would be, “stake;” an impaling “stake.”
8:30: “in mount Ebal” = Here is my Deuteronomy 11:29 Note: This is better explained in conjunction with Deuteronomy 27:12-13. These mountains were located in the territory of the tribe of Ephraim; mount Gerizim being on the south and mount Ebal on the north. What is interesting is that the 12 tribes listed do not include Ephraim, which is replaced by Levi, which normally is not listed, being the priestly tribe. They are on mount Gerizim, which is the blessed mount, included with five others. The other group of six on mount Ebal for cursing. What is interesting is that a portion of the tribe of Levi were to be in the middle of these tribes harboring the Ark of the Covenant according to Joshua 8:33. These must be the priestly portion (Jos 8:33) of that tribe, while the workers of the tribe were to stand on mount Gerizim.
The tribes to receive blessings on mount Gerizim sprang from the two wives of Jacob -- Leah and Rachel. While four of the tribes which were to stand on mount Ebal came from the handmaids -- Zilpah and Bilhah. The two tribes of Reuben and Zebulun, which came from Leah, are included with the cursed mount Ebal.
To speculate why and which tribe is to stand where needs more study. Reuben forfeited his primogeniture (the state of being the firstborn) in Genesis 49:4. The only thing that may stand out about Zebulun is that he is the youngest son of Leah; which doesn’t help.
8:32: “a copy of the Law of Moses” = That is, a repetition of the Law; a copy of the blessings and curses, as Commanded by God through His servant Moses (see Deu. 27:3). This was not a copy of the Decalogue, but merely of that part which contained the blessings and curses (see verse 34), and which was to be read on this solemn occasion.
8:33: “half of them” = According to Deuteronomy 27:12 & 13, This was previously instructed by Moses. Half were to bless the land and half were to curse the sin of the land. See Hebrews 6:8.
“over against” = Better, “on top of,” as we learn from PP:499-500:
“[499] Before taking possession of their inheritance, they must renew their covenant of loyalty to God. In the last instructions of Moses, direction had been twice given for a convocation of the tribes upon Mounts Ebal and Gerizim, at Shechem, for the solemn recognition of the Law of God. In obedience to these injunctions the whole people, not only men, but ‘the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that were conversant among them,’ [Jos. 8:35] left their camp at Gilgal, and marched through the country of their enemies, to the vale of Shechem, near the center of the land. Though surrounded by unconquered foes, they were safe under the protection of God as long as they were faithful to Him. Now, as in the days of Jacob, ‘the terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them’ (Genesis 35:5), and the Hebrews were unmolested.
“The place appointed for this solemn service was one already sacred from its association with the history of their fathers. It was here that Abraham raised his first altar to Jehovah in the land of Canaan. Here both Abraham and Jacob had pitched their tents. Here the latter bought the field in which the tribes were to bury the body of Joseph. Here also was the well that Jacob [500] had dug, and the oak under which he had buried the idolatrous images of his household.
“The spot chosen was one of the most beautiful in all Palestine, and worthy to be the theater where this grand and impressive scene was to be enacted. The lovely valley, its green fields dotted with olive groves, watered with brooks from living fountains, and gemmed with wild flowers, spread out invitingly between the barren hills. Ebal and Gerizim, upon opposite sides of the valley, nearly approach each other, their lower spurs seeming to form a natural pulpit, every word spoken on one being distinctly audible on the other, while the mountainsides, receding, afford space for a vast assemblage.
“According to the directions given by Moses, a monument of great stones was erected upon Mount Ebal. Upon these stones, previously prepared by a covering of plaster, the Law was inscribed -- not only the Ten Precepts spoken from Sinai and engraved on the tables of stone, but the Laws communicated to Moses, and by him written in a Book. Beside this monument was built an altar of unhewn stone, upon which sacrifices were offered unto the Lord. The fact that the altar was set up on Mount Ebal, the mountain upon which the curse was put, was significant, denoting that because of their transgressions of God’s Law, Israel had justly incurred His wrath, and that it would be at once visited, but for the atonement of Christ, represented by the altar of sacrifice.
“Six of the tribes -- all descended from Leah and Rachel -- were stationed upon Mount Gerizim; while those that descended from the handmaids, together with Reuben and Zebulun, took their position on Ebal, the priests with the Ark occupying the valley between them. Silence was proclaimed by the sound of the signal trumpet; and then in the deep stillness, and in the presence of this vast assembly, Joshua, standing beside the sacred Ark, read the blessings that were to follow obedience to God’s Law. All the tribes on Gerizim responded by an Amen. He then read the curses, and the tribes on Ebal in like manner gave their assent, thousands upon thousands of voices uniting as the voice of one man in the solemn response. Following this came the reading of the Law of God, together with the statutes and judgments that had been delivered to them by Moses.”
8:35: “Joshua read” = See Deuteronomy 31:10-13.
“This was in harmony with the express Command of Jehovah providing for a public rehearsal of the Words of the Book of the Law every seven years, during the Feast of Tabernacles.” PK:465.
CHAPTER NINE
9:3: “Gibeon” = Gibeon means, “A hill city.” The literal meaning would be, “A city set on a hill that cannot be hid.” It is about 5 miles from Jerusalem (see Jos. 10:1).
9:10: “Ashtaroth” = Ashtaroth is the Moon goddess of the Phoenicians; Ashtoreth of the Zidonians; Ishtar of the Accadians and Assyrians; Astarte of the Greeks (1Ki. 11:5 & 33; 2Ki. 23:13; Jer. 44:17); Easter of Rome, the goddess of fertility, the “Queen of Heaven,” Jeremiah 44:25.
9:17: “Kirjathjearim” = The Ark was later brought to this place (see 1Sa. 7:1-2) from Beth-shemesh and put in charge of Abinadab, a Levite.
CHAPTER TEN
10:12: “he said in the sight of Israel” = “The Spirit of God inspired Joshua’s prayer, that evidence might again be given of the power of Israel’s God. Hence the request did not show presumption on the part of the great leader. Joshua had received the promise that God would surely overthrow these enemies of Israel, yet he put forth as earnest effort as though success depended upon the armies of Israel alone. He did all that human energy could do, and then he cried in faith for Divine aid. The secret of success is the union of Divine power with human effort.” PP:509; CM:106.
10:12 & 13: “[12] sun, stand thou still [13] the sun stood still, and the moon stayed. . . about a whole day” = See Second Kings 20:9-11 & Isaiah 38:8. With the addition of these 10 degrees, the earth has probably been given almost one full extra day (24 hours). Since the Amorites were sun and moon worshippers, for these “deities” of theirs to be controlled by the Israelite God must have been devastating to them.
Atheists will point to these verses to “prove” that the Bible has an error (the earth stands still not the sun) and therefore cannot be trusted. However, if we understand how to interpret any form of literature, one of the rules is “Time, Place, and Circumstances.” During those days, the way one knew where the sun was in the sky and what time it was, was the “sun dial,” Isaiah 38:8. Therefore, when the Bible states here that “the sun stood still,” it is clearly pointing to the FACT that the shadow of the sun did not move upon the “sun dial.”
What is interesting, is that secular history and beliefs point to this Biblical fact. This tale appears to come from “Toltec” mythology, related to us by the Aztec and preserved in later Mexican source. The Ixtlilxochitl source cites is almost certainly Fernando de Alva Cortés Ixtlilxochitl, an early modern native historian from New Spain. He wrote that:
“In the year 8 Tochtli, which was 1,347 years after the second calamity and 4,779 years since the creation of the world, it is recorded in their history that the sun stood still one natural day without moving, and a myth evolved wherein a mosquito saw the sun suspended in the air in a pensive mood and said, ‘Lord of the world, why are you standing still and why are you in such deep thought? Why are you not doing the work you are supposed to do? Do you want to destroy the world as before?’ And the mosquito said many other things to the sun, but the sun still did not move. The mosquito then stung the sun on the leg, and seeing that his leg had been stung, the sun began again to move along its course as before.”
The mythical Greek god of Apollo’s son, Phaethon, is said to have disrupted the sun’s course for a day. The Maoripeople of New Zealand, have a mythn about how their hero Maui slowed down the sun before it rose. In the Mexican “Annals of Cuauhtitlan,” (The history of the empire of Culhuacan and Mexico), records a night that continued for an extended time.
Herodotus records that while he was in Egypt, a priest showed him their temple records and that he read of a day which was twice the natural length of any day that had ever been recorded. Robert Boyd, “Boyds Bible Handbook,” pages 122-123. See “egocentricity.com/astronomy_of_bible/jld/index.html” for many more accounts.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
11:20: “it was of the Lord to harden their hearts” = Here is my Exodus 4:21 Note: See my Bible Study: “Harden His Heart, Did God.”
“[174] That is, the display of almighty power before Pharaoh, being rejected by him, would make him harder and more [175] firm in his rebellion. His hardness of heart would increase by a continual resistance of the power of God.” 1SP:174-175.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
14:4: “For the children of Joseph were two tribes” = Is this the real reason that “they gave no part unto the Levites in the land,” because “the children of Joseph were two tribes,” instead of “the LORD God of Israel was their inheritance,” Joshua 13:33, or both? Rather, the real reason is “for the priesthood of the LORD is their [the Levites] inheritance,” Joshua 18:7.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
15:9: “the fountain of the water of Nephtoah” = According to “John Gill’s Bible Commentary,” “. . . which lay at the bottom of it; which, according to the Jewish writers, is the same with the fountain of Etam, from whence a stream flowed to the dipping room in the water gate of the temple, where the high priest for the first time dipped himself on the day of atonement.”
15:17: “Achsah” = This is also recorded in Joshua 15:17-19. What is interesting, is that at this point in the Book of Judges, Joshua is already dead. Therefore, the importance of this event cannot be overlooked, else God would not have had it recorded here again. What we are not told specifically in the Book of Joshua is all the land that Judah inherited. Whereas here, in the Book of Judges, we are given the exact territory that the tribe of Judah inherited. The bottom line is, that because of Caleb’s faithfulness when spying out the land of Israel, he is given the best of the land of Israel. And if we are faithful, as was Caleb (and Joshua), we will inherit Heaven.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
18:15: “well of waters of Nephtoah” = See my Joshua 15:9 Note.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
19:50: “Timnathserah” = This name is composed of two words. The first, “Timnath,” derives from a verb “manah,” whose meaning is, “to count,” or, “to assign,” and it means “portion” or “territory.” The second word “Serah,” can be derived from a Hebrew verb “seracḥ”, and it means “excess” or “leftover” (compare with Exo. 26:12). Thus the name of Joshua’s city can be translated as the leftover portion of the land, or, “the remaining territory.”
What is interesting to note here is that Joshua unselfishly waited until all the tribes had selected what they wanted or been assigned before he was given what was left. Here Joshua shows the same spirit as Abraham did with his nephew Lot, by letting Lot choose first. However, I’m certain our Lord worked out Joshua’s portion that remained of the land. However, the city he chose was near “Shiloh,” where the Ark of the Testament was located. He wanted to be as close to God as possible.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
21:41: “Levites” = The Levitical inheritance, along with these 48 cities, is also listed in Numbers 35:2. Once the Hebrews reached the Promised Land, the Levites continued to be attached to the Sanctuary in a variety of tasks (see 1Ch. 23:27-32). Scattered through the tribal areas, some became teaching Levites (see 2Ch. 17:7-9); others became judges (see 2Ch. 19:8-11), instructing the people in the ways of God.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
22:34: “Called the altar Ed” = Notice that the word “Ed” is a supplied word. What they really called the alter is, “witness,” as explained in their explanation for erecting the alter.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
23:7: “neither make mention of the name of their gods” = Take notice that we are not even to “neither make mention of the name of their gods.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
24:2 & 3 & 14 & 15: “on the other side of the flood” = On the other side of the river Euphrates; so the “Targum” has it, “beyond Perat,” i.e., the Euphrates; in Mesopotamia and Chaldea. The Hebrew is “nahar,” meaning, “a stream; a river;” figuratively, “a flooded river.”
24:12: “hornet” = Notice how this could have been the method in which our Lord would have removed the entire inhabitants of the land (see Exo. 23:28; Deu. 7:20; Jud. 2:20-22).
24:15: “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve. . . but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD” = Joshua asks those whom are undecided to “choose” who or what they will “serve [worship],” But he then tells them that there will no longer be any “choosing” in his household -- for they will worship the LORD. The message for us is to stop “choosing,” stop “repenting,” and “overcome” repenting.
24:19: “Ye cannot serve the LORD: for He is an holy God” = The Israelites and us are to observe that it is because of our own inability and insufficiency of ourselves to perform service acceptable to our God; and therefore it becomes us to implore grace and strength from the Lord to assist us in the doing of it. We must depend upon, and lean upon our Lord for His strength and direction and not trust in our own selves. For we cannot serve Him perfectly without any defect and failure in our service; unless we submit wholly to Him and His help. Thus, it should be expressed that He speaks not of an absolute impossibility. For then both His resolution to serve Him, and His exhortation to keep His Commandments, would be in vain.
In the Hebrew it literally states, “He is the Holy Gods,” i.e., “The Holy Father, The Holy Son, and The Holy Spirit; The God of gods.” He will not endure a partner in His worship; you cannot serve Him and idols together. Thus, the reading and understanding could be, “Ye cannot serve the Lord, for He is Holy and jealous, unless ye put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the river.”
24:26: “Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God” = “Joshua wrote the Words of their covenant in the Book {see Deu. 31:26} containing the Laws and Statutes given to Moses.” 1SP:352; 4aSG:65.