Just Joshua

I'm reading the book of Joshua right now and thought to post my own thoughts only, as a measure of accountability and pushing myself. 

I love commentary--it opens my mind and heart to new ideas and angles of understanding.  But sometimes, the voices from my past--overly chirpy and loud southern radio preachers, often well-meaning--obstruct instead of help. I can also get lost in hazy lazy thinking, letting commentators do the medium lifting instead of reading closely.

Reading closely, as I encourage my students, has irreplaceable benefits.

So, what did I notice today?

The first chapters of Joshua read like an epic or a fairy tale, which is not to suggest they are not true--but that they are a certain style.  The true part is separate from the style. God does what He wants, how He wants.  We either believe Him in that and allow Him latitude and greatness, or we can pursue the nitty gritty of a naturalistic perspective, holding Him to the laws of nature He created.  It's not that simple.  It's also not that complicated.  But, a person can spend a lot of spiritual energy spinning their wheels over this kind of thing--I know this.

Things I noticed...

Joshua 6----they burned the city with fire--wow.  Rahab and her family were saved, but otherwise, complete destruction besides the ironware.  It seems drastic, draconian--especially to a person who has to steel herself to thin her turnip patch soon.  I know the rational, the reasons--I just wince at the reality and prefer mercy mercy mercy.

This destruction---annihilation--ethnic cleansing--genocide--is the heart of what non Christians object to.

What do I know from my garden?  That the weeds will take over when you turn your back.  That if I don't thin the turnips, all of them will not yield any worthwhile turnips.  I remember the crabgrass in my yard--it's relentless march across my lawn, the way it seeped under the fencing and into my garden, leaping from bed to bed to bed.  Now, I have so very much work to do which could have been prevented. "Nipped in the bud" is a real thing.

What else do I know?  The Canaanites were evil, barbaric, more immoral  than the Israelites.  They sacrificed their children to false gods, practiced religion and life in ways that were abhorrent. They were not God's plan but were allowed to go on to this point. 

Does this "knot" of difficulty melt away the broader issue of inhumanity---of the timeless "chosen" and "not chosen" nature of Jacob and Esau, Cain and Abel, Saul and David--no.  And we can split hairs over all of those passages. 

Or, I can accept the perspective of Job---at the end of Job, not the beginning.  God is God and I am not. 

Commander of the Army of the Lord--Joshua 5

Here are some thoughtful parallels between the incident of the "Commander of the Army of the Lord" and other references to an angelic army from the BKC:


"What kind of a military force did this divine Commander lead? The “army of the Lord” was surely not limited to the army of Israel though it may have been included. More specifically, it referred to the angelic host, the same “army” of heaven that later surrounded Dothan when Elisha and his servant appeared to be greatly outnumbered by the Aramean army (2Ki_6:8-17). In the Garden of Gethsemane at the time of His arrest, Jesus referred to this heavenly army when He said that 12 legions of angels were ready to defend Him (Mat_26:53). In Heb_1:14 they are described as “ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation.” Though invisible, they serve and care for God’s children in times of great need." -BKC

This idea of the unseen world interacting with the seen is worth pondering.

More Joshua...

"So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever."   Joshua 4:7

Interesting that the Lord has objects (the law in an earlier passage from Deuteronomy when the Lord tells Moses to write down the words, and now--- these stones) as tools to remind the Israelites of His faithfulness and to teach their children about Him.

Thinking about "tools"---physical reminders of spiritual things--it seems the "high church" (Catholics, Episcopals, Methodists) are more apt to incorporate such touchstones.  Is the Reformed Church (Protestants) unnecessarily leery of such potential "idols" as they often view them? Or are they adding to the law unnecessarily?

Joshua 1

"Joshua may have felt a sense of loneliness, and waited expectantly near the Jordan River to hear the voice of God. He was not disappointed. When God’s servants take time to listen, He always communicates. In the present Age He usually speaks through His written Word. But in the Old Testament He spoke in dreams by night, in visions by day, through the high priest, and occasionally in an audible voice."  -BKC

Interesting to think about the ways that God communicates---differently at different times.  I never have quite understood this.  He is the same yesterday, today and forever, yet his communication is different.  Why?