Reading notes - week 18

In these final chapters of Joshua, there is a great story with a message that seems especially relevant at this time. Actually, it’s a timeless and powerful truth but it surely seems especially appropriate right now!

It’s found in chapter 22. It deserves to be read straight from God’s Word so I urge you to go read the chapter on your own. But for the sake of blog space, I will summarize the story and then focus on specific verses.

God had shown Himself faithful to His people (as always!) as they continued in the possession of the land God had promised them. They conquered all that He had told them to and chapter 21 ends with such great words in v. 45 - “Not one of the good promises which the Lord had made to the house of Israel failed; all came to pass. “ Hallelujah!

So the people were proceeding to live in the land and all seemed well. Joshua knew he would not be with them much longer and he continued to bless them and exhort them to remain faithful (vs. 2-6). It was in this context of peace and blessing that we take up our story….

The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh occupied lands across the Jordan from the rest of the tribes. They had requested these locations and Moses agreed with the stipulation that they would still help the rest of the nation conquer their allotments on the other side. They did just that. Vs 3,4 affirm them for keeping the commandment of the Lord and not forsaking their brothers.

As they completed this task and were returning home, they built a large altar by the Jordan as a memorial, witnessing the fact that they, too, shared in the inheritance of the Lord.

Sounds good so far, right?

Uh, no.

The other tribes reacted with such anger that v. 12 tells us they gathered themselves “to go up against them in war”.

From this side of history, we say “Whaaaaaaaaat???” Why such a reaction to an altar? Why not a rejoicing and celebration instead? Good grief, right??

Well, before we unpack this, let’s skip ahead to the end of the chapter so we can know that it all ended well. V. 33 “and the word pleased the sons of Israel blessed God; and they did not speak of going up against them in war, to destroy the land in which the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad were living”

Whew. Amen.

Now, what is the rest of the story?

In summary, there are two things we can learn from this. Two separate things that we must strive to avoid in order to avoid conflict and to live in peace. Two things, which if we are not purposeful and intentional in staying away from, will result in chaos. Ruin relationships. Break marriages. Divide nations. Hurt and pain and irreparable consequences will follow.

Those two things?

Presumption and assumption.

Presumption is taking for granted, or acting with unwarranted boldness.

Assumption is supposing a thing is true without proof.

The tribes of Israel were guilty of both.

Nine and a half tribes assumed that their brothers had acted against the unity of the nation, that the altar they built was to be a substitute for the sanctuary in Jerusalem. The assumption was that they wanted to separate from what God had ordained and establish themselves as independent. And thus they believed their reaction was noble. In acting on this assumption, they were trying to preserve the unity of the nation. They believed they were reacting to a grievous sin. And they failed to remember the loyal faithfulness of their brothers in helping them conquer their own lands.

But they were wrong.

The Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manaesseh built their altar in presumption. They did not consider how their actions might be interpreted and they failed to communicate what they were doing and why. They presumed that the building of this altar would be automatically understood not as a place for burnt offerings (and thus supplanting the need for them to travel to the sanctuary three times a year as God had commanded in Exodus 23:14) but rather as a witness to the fact that they, too, were God’s people even though they lived across the Jordan apart from their fellow Israelites. In this presumption , they gave rise to the misunderstanding from their brothers.

And civil war very nearly ensued.

Oh, how much we have to learn from this! How many times do our actions(including a lack of communication) fail to consider another’s perspective and thus cause pain and anger and harsh reactions? How many times do we jump to conclusions about another’s behavior, assuming we know the motive behind their actions?

And then we are surprised at what follows. Reaction begats more reaction and division results. Each side fails to take into account the other’s side and persists in justifying their action. Each side fully convinced that they are right and the other is wrong.

Wow. Sounds like the world. Our nation. Churches. And, sadly, homes. Wow.

What are we to do?

The best thing is to avoid this heartbreak by not acting in presumption or assumption. May we move forward armed with this wisdom and act accordingly.

But what if we find ourselves in the midst of a conflict right now? One where we are hurt and angry…and convinced we are right and “they” are wrong.

If that is where you are right now, in your home or your church or your social position, you can get help from this passage, Not only in what to avoid in the future but also what to do right now. Here are some things that can restore the relationship to harmony:

  1. Examine yourself. Appeal to God for His light to reveal truth. Be sure that what you are defending is God’s holiness, not your own desires. See what each group did in vs. 13-34. They paused in their reaction and considered the other side.

  2. Communicate face to face. Do not slander or spread your assumptions behind the other’s back. Be loving enough to confront and pursue reconciliation rather than division. In this passage, Phineas went to the other tribes and addressed them in person, explaining their objections to the altar. (vs. 13-19)

  3. Be willing to explain your position and to listen to the other side with a desire to understand. Humility! Listening must involve hearing the message, not just the words. Vs 21-32 show us this response. The altar-builders listened to their brothers and realized their perspective. Then they appealed to the Lord and carefully explained their position. They realized they had failed to take into account how their brothers would perceive this. And the 9 1/2 tribes realized they had not believed the best of those who had just fought on their behalf.

  4. Establish unity based on truth - let the misunderstanding serve as a witness of mutual desire for God’s holiness to be honored and for the relationship to be preserved. Vs. 33-34 leave us with a feeling of relief and gratitude - “And the word pleased the sons of Israel and the sons of Israel blessed God and they did not speak of going up against them in war, to destroy the land in which the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad were living. And the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad called the altar ‘Witness” for they said it is a witness between us that the Lord is God.” No more presumption. No more assumption. Understanding and responses based on TRUTH.

Somewhere in your life there is a conflict. Somewhere there is hurt and division as a result of presumption or assumption. Are you willing to follow this example God gave us and pursue truth for the sake of unity?

Reading notes - week 17

This week’s reading was rich! Parts of it give us pause, don’t they? Seeing how seriously God takes sin - gulp. The destruction - complete destruction - of the lands (the peoples!!) Israel conquered. I fear I would have balked at some of that. How I praise Him that He appointed me to live on THIS side of Calvary, where I have the privilege of His complete Word to guide me!

Included in the passages we read this week is one of my most favorite parts of Scripture. It reminded me of a post from several years ago…”And the sun stood still”. I’ve included that for us today.

I've had this post on my heart for quite some time but I've been hesitant to share it. Not because I don't completely believe every word. Not at all. But I fear that some extrapolations of it might cause someone to feel condemnation or defeat. Where there is none. So, if you've made a different decision than the one urged in this post, please don't think I am judging you or denouncing you. This post is meant to encourage those still in the fight. To give hope and strength. Please know that.

Sometimes marriage doesn't turn out like the fairytales promise. (Make that "never" instead of "sometimes"...) Sometimes things get really bad and feelings of desperation set in. I've seen it happen hundreds of times. Then feelings of regretted decisions follow. As in "I never should have married him" etc. There may be times where those regrets are legitimate. But don't let the wrong action make it worse. The consequential decisions have critical repercussions and the fallout is forever. Good and bad. Forever.

If you're in a marriage that you think never should have happened, and if you are thinking about calling it quits, I ask that you wait. And read this passage from Joshua 10 -


But first a little background.....

The Israelites were under the leadership of Joshua. Moses was gone and Joshua was in charge. He was doing a great job, except for one mistake. He made a decision without asking God for input. The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord. Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath. (Joshua 9:14,15)

Maybe that doesn't sound like a big deal - Joshua making peace with these folks. In fact, it sounds like a good thing, doesn't it? Except that God had said not to. He repeatedly told Joshua to be careful to observe all that He had commanded Moses to do. And His instructions to Moses included making no covenant with the inhabitants of the land He was giving them (Exodus 23:31-33).
But Joshua was deceived by the group of Gibeonites that came asking for a covenant of peace. They said they were from far away when in fact, they were inhabitants of the land that God had promised to Israel. Making a peace treaty with them would be a direct violation of God's command.

Shouldn't we let Josh off the hook? I mean, seriously, he was a great leader and this error wasn't his fault. These Gibeonites lied to him! Not his fault at all!

Except that it was his fault. He acted without asking God what to do. Big mistake. Costly one.

OK, so we'll go with that. But then, once he found out the truth and realized his error, he could be released from this covenant, right?

In a word, NO. We see in this passage (and over and over throughout Scripture) how seriously God takes covenants. The covenant of marriage is His picture to the world of His commitment to us. Once God enters into a covenant, HE DOES NOT LEAVE. He commits Himself to us forever.
And when God's people made a covenant - even one with the deceitful Gibeonites - He would not allow them to leave. He required that His people live up to the promises made and not only live in peace with these people but also protect them from harm.

Wow. God expected a lot of His people, didn't He?

But look what He did on their behalf!!!! Let me warn you - this is so exciting you might need to sit down. This is positively awesome. And true.

The Gibeonites were being attacked by five other nations. It looked hopeless. They sent word to Joshua, informing him of their plight and reminding him that their covenant relationship bound him to fight for them, to protect them, to come to their aid.
I can't help but wonder if Cap'n Josh had a moment where he thought, "They deserve to be defeated after what they did to me". But Scripture doesn't tell us that. What it does say is that Joshua went to their aid.

More importantly, God came to Joshua's aid.

7So Joshua marched up from Gilgal with his entire army, including all the best fighting men. 8The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them; I have given them into your hand. Not one of them will be able to withstand you.”9After an all-night march from Gilgal, Joshua took them by surprise. 10The Lord threw them into confusion before Israel, so Joshua and the Israelites defeated them completely at Gibeon. Israel pursued them along the road going up to Beth Horon and cut them down all the way to Azekah and Makkedah. 11As they fled before Israel on the road down from Beth Horon to Azekah, the Lord hurled large hailstones down on them, and more of them died from the hail than were killed by the swords of the Israelites.12On the day the Lord gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the Lord in the presence of Israel:“Sun, stand still over Gibeon,and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.”13So the sun stood still,and the moon stopped,till the nation avenged itself onb its enemies,as it is written in the Book of Jashar.The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. 14There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a human being. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel Notice that not only did the Israelites prevail, the Gibeonites were preserved and the true enemy was annihilated. If you are in a covenant that's being attacked, even a covenant that you never should have made, I am praying that you will follow Joshua's example and ask God to rain down hailstones on the enemy and even to make the sun stand still while He defeats the one who desires your destruction. That enemy is not your covenant partner.