The Book of Joshua: Conquest and the Sin of Self-Reliance

The River Jordan

The first part of the book of Joshua deals with the conquest of Canaan.  It is a brutal saga of war and destruction. Then they utterly destroyed all in the city, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, asses, with the edge of the sword.  Josh 6:22. God instructs Joshua to destroy everything except what can be devoted to Him.  Many first time readers of the Old Testament wonder why so much collateral shedding of blood.  What kind of God would instruct his armies to leave no one alive?  It helps to look at the story in its historical context.

God  promised His people the land. To give it to them He must get them there.  He sent Moses to liberate them from slavery in Egypt so that they might go to Canaan.  But the Israelites were in Egypt for four hundred years, more than enough time to take on some very bad habits and sinful ways. They had not learned to trust God, and they fell into sin so much along the way that it took them forty years to go a distance that should have taken a few days. We can only imagine the patience of God as He dealt with His people, then and now!  Ever the good Father, God took them to their destination, but He did not give freely. There were contingencies.  Chief among them were fidelity and obedience.

 The consequences of disobedience were dire. Because of their many transgressions, most of the early generations did not live to see the promised land, including Moses.  The privilege fell to Joshua, Moses' successor.  Joshua proved to be a faithful leader who followed God's word to the letter.  One important theme of the book of Joshua is that Faith is the key to the success of any endeavor and disobedience results in death.

After the conquest of Jericho, the Israelites move toward Ai. All appears to be in order until we learn that Achan, of the tribe of Judah,  disobeys God's command, keeping for himself some of the booty that should be designated for God. This act ignites God's ire. Later, when Joshua sends men to spy out the land of Ai, they are filled with over confidence and report that taking the land will be an easy task.  They do not count on God's help, relying instead on their own abilities. This further angers the Lord. As a consequence, they fail to take Ai, and lose thirty-six men in the battle.  Thus, the battle of Ai is a recipe for how NOT to fight a battle, and the point God makes once more is that obedience brings victory and disobedience brings defeat.  The over-confident strategy failed to work because the Lord was not brought into the plans for battle.

The great lesson of the book of Joshua is that fidelity and obedience are key. God Himself is the model of fidelity. Fidelity for His children demands obedience. He keeps his promise to deliver the Promised Land into their hands. To keep it, they must obey.  Furthermore, the message of Joshua is that God wants to maintain the covenant relationship with his children. In the story of war and conquest we learn that the key ingredient, faith, supersedes military might.  God calmly tells Joshua not to fear.  He will deliver on His promise. Joshua believes Him and does as God commands. God delivers.

Another powerful example of faith in Joshua is Rahab, the prostitute who is made a member of Israel for her kindness to the Israelite spies and for her great faith in the God of Israel.  St. Paul recognizes her faith, supported by good works in the book of Hebrews 11:31.  According to Church Fathers, Rahab foreshadows the Gentiles who will later win salvation when they accept the Christian faith.

The Ark of the Covenant is a representation of God for the Israelites.  God instructs them to carry the Ark before them as they cross the Jordan and go into battle.  As long as the Ark is before them, they will be successful.  This is the relationship that God wants with His people to this day.  As long as we place God before all our needs, we will receive what we desire.  The requirements are fidelity, obedience and placing God in the forefront of all our endeavors.