Joshua
A. Historical Context
The book of Joshua forms a transition between the Pent. and the remaining books of the OT. Under the leadership of Moses Israel had been brought out of Egypt (Exod 1-15) and had entered into covenant with Yahweh at Mount Sinai (Exod 19-24). They had been sustained during thirty-eight years of wilderness wandering (Num 14-36) and brought to the Plains of Moab, where Moses challenged the people to remain faithful to the covenant when they crossed the Jordan and entered the land of Canaan (Deut 1-34). Moses would not be accompanying the people into Canaan (Num 20:1-13; Deut 1:37; 3:21-27), but he appointed his associate, Joshua the son of Nun, as the leader who would bring Israel into the land promised to their fathers (Num 27:12-23; Deut 31:1-8). The narratives of the book of Joshua describe the establishment of Israel in the Promised Land under the leadership of Joshua. The book's major sections are narratives concerning the entrance into Canaan (Josh 1-5), and the conquest (ch. 6-12) and division of the land (ch. 3-22), followed by Joshua's challenge to Israel to remain faithful to the covenant after his death (ch. 23-24).
For the most part Joshua is a book of optimism and success. Israel has arrived at a high point in its history. Divine promises given to the patriarchs concerning their descendants’ occupation of the land of Canaan (Abraham: Gen 12:7; 15:18-19; 17:7-8; Isaac: 26:1-5; Jacob: 28:10-15; 35:12) have now been fulfilled. Yahweh has demonstrated his faithfulness to his people. The book describes the beginning of Israel's life in Canaan and provides a detailed description of the borders of the various tribal possessions, which for the most part remained intact throughout the remainder of the OT period. In some ways the book of Joshua parallels the position of Acts in the NT, which portrays the early church at a high point of spiritual life and vitality. But just as Acts contains examples of sin and disobedience (e.g., Ananias and Sapphira, Acts 5:1-11), so in Joshua there was the disastrous incident of Achan taking from the “devoted” thing (Josh 7), as well as hints that Israel would fall short of completing the conquest as Yahweh had commanded (18:3 and the warning of ch. 23). So Israel is not only at a high point, but also at a crossroads. The challenge is clear. Both Joshua and Moses before him urged the people to remain faithful to the covenant. The unanswered question is how Israel would respond to their appeal.
B. Literary Structure
The theology of the book of Joshua can best be formulated by attempting to discover what theological emphases emerge from an examination of the organizing literary and structural features of the book. Giving attention to literary structure helps the reader discern the ideas that governed the writer's selection and arrangement of material. This, in turn, illuminates the theological concepts that both shape and come to expression in the author's work. This is not to say that theological significance is limited to topics directly embedded in structural components, but certainly the framework in which its narratives are set provides the context for reflection on the theological themes of Joshua.
Based on these considerations, reflection on the theology of the book of Joshua should begin with an analysis of its structure. A review of commentaries shows that commentators generally agree that the major blocks of material in the book of Joshua concern the entry, conquest, and division of the land, followed by challenges to be faithful to the covenant. Despite this broad agreement, differences remain concerning the precise scope of these major blocks, their subdivisions, and how the various segments of the book relate to the whole. The most thorough look at these types of questions has been done in the dissertation of H. J. Koorevaar (De Opbouw van het Boek Jozua, 1990).
Koorevaar used two literary and theological criteria for specifying the major blocks of material in the book: “the initiatives of God for taking possession of Canaan,” and “the closure after the carrying out of God's initiatives.” By “initiative of God” Koorevaar means a new act of God in which a specific task given to Joshua has a direct connection with the conquest of Canaan (—> ); he finds four such initiatives (1:1-9; 5:13- 6:5; 13:1-7; 20:16). The distinguishing characteristic of the “closures” is that they distinguish themselves from the preceding material introduced by the divine initiatives and bring the substance of that particular divine initiative to a conclusion; Koorevaar finds five of these closures (5:1-12; 11:16- 12:24; 19:49-51; 21:43-45; 24:29-33).
In analyzing the book's literary structure by these initiatives and closures, Koorevaar found one of the initiatives and one of the closures to be subordinate to a broader and more general initiative. He also found that there was one more closure than divine initiative because the final section of the book is introduced not by a divine initiative but by three human initiatives (see details below). After delineating the material in the book in this way, Koorevaar further divided the book into twenty-eight individual narrative units on the basis of content and literary features: (1) 1:1-9; (2) 1:10-18; (3) 2:1-24; (4) 3:1- 4:24; (5) 5:1-12; (6) 5:13- 6:5; (7) 6:6-26; (8) 7:1- 8:29; (9) 8:30-35; (10) 9:1-27; (11) 10:1-43; (12) 11:1-15; (13) 11:16- 12:24; (14) 13:1-7; (15) 13:8-33; (16) 14:1-5; (17) 14:6-15; (18) 15:1- 17:18; (19) 18:1-10; (20) 18:11- 19:48; (21) 19:49-51; (22) 20:1-6; (23) 20:7- 21:42; (24) 21:43-45; (25) 22:1-34; (26) 23:1-16; (27) 24:1-28; (28) 24:29-33. According to Koorevaar's delineation of these units, the following literary and theological structure emerges.
In 1:1-9 (the first divine initiative) God gave Joshua the task of leading Israel across the Jordan. This task has important theological significance (see below) and is paired with a number of promises. The following narratives (through ch. 4) are all related to crossing the Jordan. This block of material is brought to closure with 5:1-12, where we are told that immediately after entering Canaan, Joshua circumcised the new generation of Israelites that had been born in the wilderness and then led them in celebrating the Passover. Joshua told the people at Gilgal that by their circumcision “the reproach of Egypt” had been “rolled away” (ll'G:) from them (v. 9). In this play on words with the name Gilgal (lG:l]GI), Joshua signified that an important issue had been resolved and brought to closure there. Covenant fellowship between God and his people had been restored. With Israel's entrance into Canaan, the Egyptians could no longer claim that Yahweh was unable to bring his people into the land he had promised to give them (cf. Exod 32:12; Deut 9:28). The events at Gilgal thus provide the closure for the first initiative of God.
The second initiative of God is found in Josh 5:13- 6:5. Here Joshua encountered “the commander of the LORD's army” (5:14). When Joshua asked, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” (5:14), the answer was given in two parts. First, he was told to take off his sandals, for the place where he was standing was “holy” (5:15). Second, he was told how to take Jericho (6:2-4). This incident is strongly reminiscent of the experience of Moses, when Yahweh appeared to him in the burning bush and told him first to take off his sandals for he was standing on holy ground, and he then gave Moses the task of delivering Israel out of Egypt in order to bring them to the land of Canaan (Exod 3:7-10). Joshua thus appears in this passage as a second Moses. Jericho was the first city that Israel captured upon entering Canaan, and as such it in principle represented the conquest of the entire land. When Joshua summarizes the conquest in Josh 24:11, Jericho is the only city he names, even though he mentions seven nations that were defeated when Israel occupied the land. Elsewhere in the book the conquest of other cities and kings is compared to the conquest of Jericho—it served as the standard (8:1-2; 10:28; 10:30). It is only in connection with the taking of Jericho that the “commander of the LORD's army” is mentioned, even though elsewhere the conquest is consistently ascribed to the actions of Yahweh as the one who fought for his people (cf. e.g., 10:42; 23:3, 9, 10; 24:18). The commander has arrived (5:14), so the conquest can begin. This section, then, concerns the conquest of the entire land of Canaan as represented in the conquest of its first city, Jericho.
The closure to the second major block of material in the book is found in 11:16- 12:24. This section begins with the statement: “So Joshua took this entire land.” This is followed by a description of the territory and the people that were conquered. Particular emphasis is given to the destruction of the Anakites (11:21-22), the very people whom the Israelites had feared a generation earlier (Num 13:28, 33). This is followed by another statement that “Joshua took the entire land” (Josh 11:23). Chapter 12 then lists the conquered kings in both Transjordan and Canaan. Here it may be questioned whether 12:1-24 belongs with 11:16-23 or should be regarded as a separate unit. Careful inspection reveals that the two sections are closely interrelated: 12:7-24 details the territory and kings that were taken in Canaan and that were mentioned in a general way in 11:16-18; 12:1-6 describes the kings and territory conquered in Transjordan and stands in the middle of the larger unit, being chiastically enclosed by two summations of the conquest of Canaan. The structure thus emphasizes the unity of the tribes by signaling that the writer viewed the 2 1/2 tribes living in Transjordan as an integrated and important part of the nation Israel.
The third initiative of God is found in 13:1-7. Here God gives Joshua the task of dividing the land among the Israelites. The closure for this block of material is found in 19:49-51, which begins with the phrase, “When they had finished dividing the land into its allotted portions,” and ends with the statement, “And so they finished dividing the land.” Between these two parallel expressions are two sentences. In the first we are told that the Israelites gave Timnath Serah to Joshua as his personal inheritance (19:49-50), and in the second, that all this territory had been assigned under the leadership of Joshua and Eleazar the priest “at Shiloh in the presence of the LORD” (19:51).
The forth initiative of God is found in 20:1-6. Here Yahweh commands Joshua to tell the Israelites to designate cities of refuge. These cities would provide protection from the avenger of blood for someone who accidentally killed another person. Josh 20:7-9 names six cities of refuge, three on each side of the Jordan. Chapter 21 then designates forty-eight levitical cities. The previously named cities of refuge were included among these cities given to the Levites (cf. Num 35:1-34). The material introduced by God's fourth initiative is subordinate to the previous initiative (beginning at Josh 13:1-7), which concerned the division of the land among the Israelites, so that the land was divided in two phases, which might be termed the “profane” (tribal allotments) and the “sacred” (cities of refuge and levitical cities). Josh 21:43-45 provides the final conclusion to the division of the land: “So the LORD gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their forefathers, and they took possession of it and settled there.... Not one of all the LORD's good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.” This summation leaves ch. 22-24 as the final major block of material in the book.
This final block of material does not begin with a divine initiative, even though it does have a clear conclusion with the death of Joshua (Josh 24:29-33). No new initiative of God introduces this final section because God's promises concerning the occupation of the land have all been fulfilled (21:43-45). Now the responsibility rests not with God but with his people. So the final section of the book records three initiatives of Joshua introduced in 22:1 (the return of the 2 1/2 tribes); 23:1-2 (the farewell address of Joshua); 24:1 (the covenant renewal at Shechem). This material all revolves around the theme of serving Yahweh, which is the ultimate purpose for which Israel had received Canaan. This section closes with a description of the death and burial of Joshua (Josh 24:29-33).
Koorevaar points out that this formulation of the structure of Joshua reveals a pattern that in turn conveys the theological message of the book. The four initiatives of God and the five closings provide the structure for four major blocks of material (understanding the fourth initiative and closing as subordinate to the third initiative, see above). The fourth block of material is not introduced by an initiative of God, but is characterized by three initiatives of Joshua. Each major block of material can be characterized by a key word. This means that the four major blocks of material in the book are:
Table of Joshua
Josh. 1:1-5:12 CROSS (`br)
Josh. 1:1-9 God's first initiative: Cross the Jordan
Josh. 5:1-12 First closing: Circumcision and Passover at Gilgal
Josh. 5:13-12:24 TAKE (lqh)
Josh. 5:13-6:5 God's second initiative: Capture Jericho
Josh. 11:16-12:24 Second closing: Review of the victories
Josh. 13-21 DIVIDE (hlq)
Josh. 13:1-7 God's third initiative: Divide Canaan
Josh. 19:49-51 Third closing: Conclusion of the division of
Canaan and the inheritance of Joshua
Josh. 20:1-6 God's fourth initiative: Designate cities of
refuge
Josh. 21:43-45 Fourth closing: final conslusion
Josh. 22-24 SERVE (`bd)
Josh. 22:1; 23:1-2; 24:1 Three initiatives of Joshua
Josh. 24:29-33 Fifth closing: Death and burial of Joshua
Koorevaar then argues that the structurally revealed theological purpose of the entire book of Joshua is found in the third main section: cross + take = divide. Within this section Koorevaar finds the following concentric-chiastic structure:
A. 13:8-33 Transjordan for 2 1/2 tribes
B. 14:1-5 The principles of the division
C. 14:6-15 Beginning: Caleb's inheritance
D. 15:1- 17:18 The lot for Judah and Joseph
E. 18:1-10 The Tent of Meeting taken to Shiloh and the apportioning of the land
D’. 18:11- 19:48 The lot for the seven remaining tribes
C’. 19:49-51 Ending: Joshua's inheritance
B’. 20:1-6 God's fourth initiative: designating cities of refuge
A’. 20:7- 21:42 Cities of refuge and levitical cities
At the center of this structure is the erection of the Tent of Meeting at Shiloh. Koorevaar sees this as the fulfillment of the significant pentateuchal promise: “I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you. I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people” (Lev 26:11-12). This was the last promise in the list of blessings given by Moses in Lev 26.
So now in the book of Joshua an important goal has been reached. Israel has not only received Canaan, but now Yahweh has taken up residence among his people in the land. Koorevaar sums up the message of Joshua by saying: “Because God took initiatives for the possession of the land of Canaan, the people of Israel were able to cross the Jordan and capture the land. As a result of these two initiatives Joshua was able to divide the land among the tribes of Israel on the basis of a third initiative from God. With the erection of the Tent of Meeting in Shiloh God fulfilled his last promise, and Israel now has the task to serve Yahweh in the land and to stand fast in that service” (291).
C. Theological Themes
1. Primary themes: Divine initiative and divine presence. The above understanding of the structure of the book of Joshua highlights two distinct theological themes. The first is divine initiative. It is immediately apparent that the writer recognizes that a sovereign God is at work in the events of the Conquest to bring patriarchal and Mosaic promises to fulfillment. God had chosen Abraham and promised him and his descendants that they would possess the land of Canaan. God had taken the initiative to lead Israel out of Egypt under the leadership of Moses and to enter into covenant with Abraham's descendants at Mount Sinai. And God took the initiative to bring Israel into the Promised Land. Canaan was not to be conquered because of Israel's nationalistic aspirations or superior military strength, but was to be received as a gift of God's grace, when Israel acted in faith and obedience to divinely given instructions.
The second theme is divine presence. God not only chose Israel as his covenant people, but he lived in their midst. God's presence with his people was a great privilege. It set Israel apart from every other nation on earth. But the divine presence brought enormous responsibility. Yahweh's presence was not just a blessing; it was also a threat. Yahweh was a holy God, who required strict obedience to the terms of his covenant. Joshua recognized the seriousness of these requirements when he told Israel, “You are not able to serve the LORD. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you” (Josh 24:19-20). These two themes, divine initiative and divine presence, arising out of the structure of the book, are the integrating theological concepts for the entire book. In some sections of the book one theme is more prominent than the other. In other sections both themes work together in ways that may be distinguished but are difficult to separate.
2. Subordinate themes.
(a) The divine warrior theme. Closely related to the clear expressions of divine initiative for the Conquest is what is often termed the divine warrior theme. Consistent with earlier pronouncements in Exod (cf., e.g., Exod 15) and Deuteronomy (cf., e.g., Deut 20), Yahweh is depicted in the book of Joshua as the one who leads Israel in battle and gains her victories for her (see Cross, 91-111, 155-77; Miller, The Divine Warrior; Longman, 290-307). So it is Yahweh who takes the initiative for the Conquest. In the person of the divine warrior, divine initiative and divine presence are closely linked. It is Yahweh who will lead his people into Canaan (“The LORD your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land,” Deut 31:3). The divine warrior idea pervades the book of Joshua, being expressed in a wide variety of ways: in the words of the narrator (Josh 10:10-11, 14, 30, 42; 11:20; 21:44), in Yahweh's own words (6:2; 8:1; 10:8; 11:6), by Joshua (4:23-24; 8:7; 10:19, 25; 23:3, 5, 9-10), and by others (e.g., Rahab [2:10], the spies [2:24], and the people [24:18]). The pervasiveness of this theme indicates that it is central to the author's theological perspective. The cumulative force of these statements strongly emphasizes that God's sovereign intervention on behalf of his people enabled them to enter, conquer, and settle in the land.
It should be noted that the divine warrior (—> ) idea is not only conveyed by direct affirmations of Yahweh's role in Israel's victories, but is sometimes implicit in the narrative. An example of this is found in the description of the appearance of “the commander of the LORD's army” to Joshua immediately prior to Israel's march on Jericho (5:13-14). The unfortunate chapter division in modern translations obscures the unity of this passage (5:13- 6:5). In 6:2-5 Joshua is instructed by this “commander” about how Israel is to take Jericho. These instructions are introduced by the statement, “Then the LORD said to Joshua.” The context clearly indicates that “the man ... with a drawn sword” (5:13), who refers to himself as the “commander of the LORD's army,” is Yahweh himself. He is the one who has taken the initiative to lead Israel in the conquest of Jericho, and by extension in the conquest of the entire land of Canaan, and he is the one whose presence guarantees them victory.
Another such incident is included in the account of the taking of Ai (Josh 8), when Yahweh told Joshua: “‘Hold out toward Ai the javelin that is in your hand, for into your hand I will deliver the city.’ So Joshua held out his javelin toward Ai. As soon as he did this, the men in the ambush rose quickly from their position and rushed forward. They entered the city and captured it and quickly set it on fire” (8:18-19). The purpose of this instruction to Joshua and the purpose of including it in the book are to make it clear that victory comes from Yahweh, not from military strategy or military strength alone. The incident is strikingly similar to the incident in which Moses held the staff of God in his hand when the Israelites were engaged in battle with the Amalekites (Exod 17:8-15). When Moses’ hands were lifted, the Israelite forces advanced, but when he lowered his hands, the Amalekites advanced. As then under the leadership of Moses, so here under the leadership of Joshua, the Israelites were shown that victory was won only when battles were fought in conscious dependence on divine enablement.
(b) Land as a gift or inheritance. Divine initiative for Israel's settlement in the land of Canaan is also to be seen in the repeated statements that Israel was to be “given” the land as an “inheritance” from Yahweh. This concept is rooted in Exod (see, e.g., give [ˆt'n:]: Exod 6:4, 8; inherit [vr"y:], inheritance [hl;j}n"]: Exod 15:17; 23:30; 32:13) and Deut (see, e.g., give: Deut 1:6-8; 4:38, 40; 5:31; 7:13; 8:1-10; 9:4-6; 11:8-12, 17; 26:1, 9; 32:49, 52; 34:4; inherit, inheritance: 2:31; 4:21, 38; 12:9; 15:4; 19:10; 20:16; 21:23), but it receives particular emphasis in the book of Joshua (see, e.g., give: Josh 1:2, 3, 6, 11, 13, 15; 2:8, 24; 11:23; 18:3; 21:43; 23:13; 24:13; inherit, inheritance: 11:23; 13:6, 7, 8, 23, 28; 14:1, 2, 3, 9, 13; 15:20; 16:5, 8, 9; 17:4; 18:2, 4, 7, 20, 28; 19:1, 2, 8, 9, 10, 16, 23, 31, 39, 48, 49, 51; 23:4). Israel had no inherent right or claim to the land (Deut 9:4-6). The land was to be received as a gift from Yahweh, based on his love for his people (7:7-10), and on the divine promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (9:5; Josh 1:6; 5:6; 21:43, 44). Since the land belonged to Yahweh (Lev 25:23) and Israel entered and occupied it purely as a gift of God's grace, Israel's retention of the land was linked with remaining faithful to the covenant with Yahweh (Josh 23:12-16).
To say that the land was a gift or an inheritance and to say that Yahweh was the divine warrior who would fight for Israel in her battles of conquest do not mean that Israel had no responsibility in this conquest (Josh 1:3; 10:7-9; Miller, 455, 456). Israel was commanded “to take possession” of the land that Yahweh was giving (see, e.g., Josh 1:11, 15; 18:3). Human effort is not excluded by divine initiative, but rather it is used by Yahweh to accomplish his purposes, when it is exerted in conformity with divine directives. This explains some aspects of the Conquest that have often troubled readers of the book of Joshua. When Israel was commanded to take possession of the land of Canaan, they were also commanded to exterminate (µr"j;, cf. N. Lohfink, TDOT 5:180-99) its inhabitants (Deut 7:2-6; 13:15-16; 20:10-18; Josh 2:10; 6:15-19, 21; 8:26; 10:28; 11:11, 18-20). The practice of µr
The term holy war as commonly used today (an aggressive war rooted in religious fanaticism) has distinctly negative connotations, so that when it is used indiscriminately to characterize Israel's conquest of Canaan, it may cast a shadow over the ethics of the entire affair. Many modern discussions of holy war in the OT view the narratives in Joshua not as a description of what actually happened, but rather as the product of late theological reflection on Israel's origins, rooted in the cult (see von Rad, Holy War). The purpose of this alleged recasting of Israel's historical traditions was an attempt to recover something of Israel's ancient faith for those people who lived much later in the OT period. Usually this view is linked with an “infiltration” or “peasant revolt” model of the Conquest, so that the entire picture of the Conquest as presented in the book of Joshua is regarded as theological fiction. This sort of approach to the book of Joshua does not do justice to the seriousness and reality of the theological message of the Conquest narratives. It should be noted that the term holy war is nowhere used in the OT to describe the Conquest. A more appropriate term is Yahweh war (Num 21:14; 1 Sam 18:17; 25:28; cf. Smend, Yahweh War). The reality of divine wrath and divine judgment on sin as reflected in the narratives of Israel's conquest of Canaan, which was undertaken by divine initiative and carried out with divine presence, is a theme that runs through the entire Bible. It is a theme that both OT and NT envision as ultimately climaxing in the eschatological Day of the Lord (Isa 13; Joel 2-3; Amos 5:8-20; Zech 14:1-11; 1 Thess 5:1-10; 2 Peter 3:10). This perspective indicates that the conquest of Canaan should not be viewed as an example of “arrested evolution” in the ethical sphere, but rather as an example of “anticipated eschatology” (Kline, 162-64).
3. Covenantal themes. The themes of the “divine warrior” and the “land as a gift” in Joshua do not appear in isolation, but are closely associated with a variety of other emphases in the book, all of which find their roots in the covenantal promises to the patriarchs, as well as in the terms of the covenant at Sinai. Divine initiative and divine presence are brought together in the establishment and provisions of both of these covenants.
(a) The tabernacle, the ark, and Shiloh. Included among the covenantal stipulations in Exod are detailed instructions concerning the construction of the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant, which was to be placed in the tabernacle behind a curtain in the Most Holy Place (Exod 26:33-34). It was here in the tabernacle above this ark, between the two cherubim, that Yahweh would take up residence among his people and meet with them (25:22). The climax of the book of Exod is not the deliverance from Egypt, as important as that was, but the coming of Yahweh to the tabernacle to dwell among his people (40:34-36). The Exodus was the means to this end (3:12; 5:1; 29:44-46). It is this background that explains the prominence of the ark of the covenant in the narratives of Joshua, including repeated references to it in the descriptions of the crossing of the Jordan (Josh 3:3, 6, 8, 11, 13, 14, 15; 4:5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 16, 18), the taking of Jericho (6:4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13), the sin of Achan (7:6; Joshua “fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the LORD”), and the renewal of the covenant at Mount Ebal (8:33). It is Yahweh's presence with his people that is symbolized by the ark (cf. Num 10:35-36), and this determining and dynamic presence is the prime mover in the events of the book of Joshua. It is the importance of the divine presence for Israel's life in the land that also explains the structural prominence in the book of Joshua, which is given to the announcement of the location of the tabernacle at Shiloh (Josh 18:1, see above). It was at Shiloh “in the presence of the LORD” that Joshua divided the land among the seven tribes that had not yet received their inheritance (18:1; 19:51). It was also the presence of Yahweh living in the midst of his people that required an appropriate response in worship and service to the Great King (ch. 22-24).
(b) Israel must not fear, but must believe. One of the important commitments that Yahweh made to his people in the Sinai covenant was the promise that if the Israelites would be faithful to the covenant, Yahweh would “be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you” (Exod 23:22). This has sometimes been termed the “protection clause” of the Sinai covenant. Even though Israel had been promised victory over the Canaanites (23:20-31) and were reminded of this promise by Joshua and Caleb at Kadesh (Num 14:8-9), the people were fearful of the inhabitants of the land of Canaan and rebelled against the leadership of Moses and Aaron (Num 13-14). For this lack of trust in Yahweh's promises they were condemned to forty years of wandering in the wilderness, until a new generation would arise to possess the Promise Land. At the end of Moses’ life, when the new generation had arrived in the plains of Moab and were about to cross the Jordan to enter the land of Canaan, Moses reminded them again of Yahweh's promise to be with them in battle, to protect them from their enemies, and to bring them into the Land of promise (Deut 6:17-19). Because of these promises they were not to fear (20:1-3), but rather believe, “for the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory” (20:4). This theme is picked up and carried forward in the book of Joshua. At the conclusion of the first divine initiative (Josh 1:1-9), which commissioned Joshua to cross the Jordan, Yahweh said: “Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go” (1:9). Similar exhortations are found scattered throughout the book (8:1; 10:8; 11:6).
(c) Covenant fidelity. Because Yahweh had set his love on his people, delivered them from Egypt, and brought them into the land of Canaan, they in turn were to respond by a love for him that would be expressed in obedience to the stipulations of the covenant (Deut 6:1-12; 11:1-32). Obedience would bring blessing, but disobedience would bring cursing (Lev 26; Deut 27-28). Israel's obligation to practice covenant fidelity and the implications of their success or failure in this duty are highlighted in Josh 22-24. In ch. 22 Joshua challenged the eastern tribes “to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul” (22:5 b) as they returned to their tribal possession across the Jordan. This exhortation summarizes Israel's basic obligation of covenant fidelity. In ch. 23 Joshua reminded the leaders of the people that it was Yahweh who had fought for them and brought them into the land (23:3, 9). He then told them that if they remained faithful to Yahweh, he would enable them to complete the conquest (23:4-11). But if they turned away from Yahweh, the remnants of the Canaanites would become snares to them and Yahweh would no longer enable them to finish their task. He concluded by warning: “If you violate the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the LORD's anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you” (23:16). In ch. 24 Joshua assembled the people at Shechem to challenge them to renew their allegiance to Yahweh as they moved into that new period of their history that would follow his death. From these passages, rooted in the Sinaitic covenant, it becomes clear that covenant fidelity or infidelity would determine the future course of Israel's history. The blessings and curses of Lev 26 and Deut 27-28, which depended on either obedience or disobedience to the covenant, assured either victory over or defeat by Israel's enemies. In addition, if Israel persisted in disobedience, it would ultimately result in her being driven from the land of Canaan and being scattered among the nations (Lev 26:27-35; Deut 28:58-68).
See Inheritance
Bibliography TDOT 5:180-99; R. G. Boling, Joshua, AB, 1982; J. Bright, The Authority of the Old Testament, 1967; T. C. Butler, Joshua, WBC, 1983; F. M. Cross, Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic, 1973; M. Kline, The Structure of Biblical Authority, 1972; T. Longman, III, “The Divine Warrior: The New Testament Use of an Old Testament Motif,” WTJ 44, 1982, 290-307; P. D. Miller, Jr., “The Gift of God: The Deuteronomic Theology of the Land,” Int 23, 1969, 451-65; idem, The Divine Warrior in Early Israel, 1973; G. von Rad, Der heilige Krieg im alten Israel, 19583, ET, Holy War in Ancient Israel, 1991; R. Smend, Yahweh War and Tribal Confederation: Reflections Upon Israel's Earliest History, 1970; G. J. Wenham, “The Deuteronomic Theology of the Book of Joshua,” JBL 90, 1971, 140-48; M. H. Woudstra, The Book of Joshua, NICOT, 1981.
J. Robert Vannoy
Sumber: NIDOTE
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