Joshua 23:9-16
Jos 23:9
For the LORD hath driven out from before you great
nations and strong: but as for you, no man hath been able to stand before
you unto this day.
The LORD had shown his faithfulness in driving out some
of the strongest enemies before them such as Jericho which was a walled fortress
and the five nation alliance of Joshua 10.
Since the LORD was fighting for them, the enemies they faced were unable
to stand before them which means they were no match for Israel.
This was also a promise of God.
There shall no man be able to
stand before you: for the LORD
your God shall lay the fear of you and the dread of you upon all the land that
ye shall tread upon, as he hath said unto you. (Deuteronomy 11:25)
At this point there was still some portions of the land which were not
yet conquered but Joshua was telling them that if they remain obedient to the
LORD, then they could expect the same type of victories.
Jos 23:10
One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the LORD your
God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you.
Joshua was encouraging them that they need not concern
themselves with numbers, even if they seemed overwhelming.
That was because the LORD was fighting for them and no large numbers
could ever defeat the LORD.
How should one chase a thousand, and two
put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had
shut them up? (Deuteronomy 32:30)
In 2 Chronicles 14, Ethiopia had come against Judah with one million men
and King Asa cried out unto the LORD and the LORD defeated them.
So large numbers in an army is no threat for the LORD or his people if
they be living in obedience.
The LORD your God which goeth before you,
he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before
your eyes; (Deuteronomy 1:30)
Jos 23:11
Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love
the LORD your God.
Joshua warns them that they need to carefully watch
themselves to makes sure there is not the slightest bit of drifting in their
spiritual walk. They were to
be on their guard to make sure no bit of idolatry or false religion creeps into
their lives. They are to love the
LORD their God fully and not just partially.
99% love means there is 1% infection by false religion and the 1% can
grow without anyone noticing it if they do not remain vigilant.
One of the greatest snares of ancient false religions was free sex.
Jos 23:12
Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the
remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and shall
make marriages with them, and go in unto them, and they to you:
If they ever go back, that is, to leave the LORD and
begin to mingle with the pagan nations, even those nations which were not yet
conquered because they may make an attempt to form a treaty with Israel to allow
them to stay in the land if they become servants, like the Gibeonites proposed
to Joshua. They were not to marry
their women nor were the women of Israel allowed to marry their men.
They did not keep that law as in the time of Ezra, here were many who had
married strange wives and they had to be divorced to maintain the purity of the
nation of Israel. They were not to
go in unto them because if they had offspring, they would be grown up in the
heathen religions. The people of
these false religions were not to come to the house of Israel and look for
spouses. A similar situation
happened in modern times. In the
past generations, if a Protestant man and a Roman Catholic woman were married,
if they had any girls they would be brought up in the mother’s religion which
was Catholicism and if they were boys they would be brought up in the father’s
religion which was Protestant.
Jos 23:13
Know for a certainty that the LORD your God will no more
drive out any of these nations from before you; but they shall be snares
and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until
ye perish from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you.
If they decided to follow after the false religions, then
the extent of their conquests stopped right where they were.
The LORD would guarantee that he would not drive out any more of the
nations from before them and if they tried to attack, then they would suffer
massive defeat. They would be
snared into the false religions along with all their debauchery, immorality,
profaneness which would open them to the judgments of God coming down on them.
Unfortunately, they did not heed Joshua’s warning and played the harlot
with the false religions. But were
mingled among the heathen, and learned their works. (Psalm 106:35)
Then once the pagans had them involved with their false religions they
would have advantage over them and would be able to rule them. The scourges
would be the actual devices the pagans would use to keep them under control.
The pagans would use whips to the sides of the men and they would also
goad wild beasts to attack them and kill them if they did not fall into line.
This was also a promise of the LORD if they were disobedient.
But if ye will not drive out the
inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those
which ye let remain of them shall be
pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land
wherein ye dwell. (Numbers 33:55)
Then they would be thorns in their eyes in which they
would see these things happening and would then be so sad by what they were
seeing being done to their fellow Israelites.
And lest I should be exalted above
measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn
in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted
above measure. (2 Corinthians 12:7)
The apostle Paul was given a thorn in the flesh and it was not a physical
thorn but his thorn were the Judaizers who wanted to bring the church back under
the law. The thorn represented the
fact that he was being pursued in every city by those of false religions.
These Israelites would see nothing but false religions with their idols
if they did not heed the warning of Joshua, which of course they did not.
Then their rebellion was so severe that the northern ten tribes were
removed from the land by Assyria in 721 B.C. and the final destruction of
Jerusalem which signaled the complete end of the Mosaic system took place in 70
A.D. when one million Israelites were killed and the rest taken off the land to
Rome to be dispersed throughput the empire.
Jos 23:14
And, behold, this day I am going the way of all
the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one
thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spake
concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath
failed thereof.
Then Joshua tells them that he goes the way of all the
earth, that is, he is approaching the day of his physical death and that all
Israel knows that not one promise of God has ever failed them or failed to come
to pass especially the promises that they would receive a homeland.
The promise that God gave to Abraham was now a reality.
It is the same with the Christian, every promise that God ever made has
come to pass or will, it is just a matter of God’s timing when things are
fulfilled. Israel can even take
what Joshua is saying concerning the promises of God and think on the fact that
if they become disobedient, then God promises to deal harshly with them and
those promises will also come to pass.
Jos 23:15
Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all good
things are come upon you, which the LORD your God promised you; so shall the
LORD bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this
good land which the LORD your God hath given you.
Here is the straight truth about the difference between
being obedient and being disobedient.
If they remain obedient like they are now, then all the good things the
LORD promised them would come to pass.
If they become disobedient then they can expect the judgment of God to
fall upon them and they will be destroyed or removed from off the land which
happened to them in 721 B.C. for the ten northern tribes, 605 B.C., 597 B.C, and
586 B.C for Judah and then the final destruction in 70 A.D.
Jos 23:16
When ye have transgressed the covenant of the LORD your
God, which he commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed
yourselves to them; then shall the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and
ye shall perish quickly from off the good land which he hath given unto you.