Joshua 15

KingComments

‹ Chapter 14 Joshua — All Chapters Chapter 16 ›

Joshua 15:1

Achan Judged

All of Israel is defiled and must now purify itself. That can only happen when all exercise judgment. In the same way, the removal of the evil from the midst of the church is a matter for the whole church (2 Corinthians 2:6; 2 Corinthians 7:11b). All are responsible for it; each must act accordingly after personal exercise before God and ask Him how to do things as to their own mind and their own life.

It is good to keep in mind the difference between discipline in Israel and Christian discipline. Christian discipline always has the recovery of the soul in mind. Even if the evil person is to be delivered to satan by Paul, it is “for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus“ (1 Corinthians 5:5). This is a powerful reason to exercise discipline according to the measure of our spiritual strength because we cannot go beyond that. We always have to humble ourselves before God, before and so that evil is removed.

Achan has the stolen stuff concealed in his tent. Because all his family members have to die with him, they will have known about it and therefore become co-responsible. Everything that is connected with Achan is judged. The execution of judgment takes place in the valley of Achor, which is named after this event. Achor means ‘misery’. This is what Achan brought among the people. Achan means ‘he who brings confusion, restlessness’. He was “the troubler of Israel” and brought misery upon the people (1 Chronicles 2:7).

But in Hosea the LORD speaks about how He will give “the valley of Achor as a door of hope” where the people will sing “as in the days of her youth, as in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt” (Hosea 2:15). Where judgment has been exercised, the door is opened to a hopeful future. In the future God will spiritually bring His people back to that valley. The people will judge themselves, acknowledge their sins and be accepted again by God as His people. Hope is always present where people are aware of their misery and take refuge in the Lord Jesus.

We must fear sin, but let us never fear the bitterness of its discovery, nor the discipline, for from that moment on, God wants to make His blessing flow to us again. If there is faithfulness and obedience, God will never fail to reveal and take away what prevents the blessing of His people.

Joshua 15:2

Achan Judged

Joshua 15:4

Introduction

After the evil has been removed from Israel, the people get a new opportunity to conquer Ai. God prescribes exactly how they should proceed. Only if they listen to Him they will overcome. An ambush must be laid. The enemy does not count on that. From this ambush the city is taken.

So also now every believer has a source of power that is invisible to the world. This source of power is the Holy Spirit. The world does not see Him or know Him, as the Lord Jesus says: “The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, [but] you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you” (John 14:17).

When victory is achieved, Joshua builds an altar. The offerings that are brought thereon speak of the Lord Jesus (Hebrews 10:5-10). Every victory we achieve is only due to what the Lord Jesus did on the cross.

The reading of the law at the end of this chapter indicates that obedience to the Word of God is the only guarantee for every victory and every altar.

Joshua 7-8 teach us an important spiritual lesson: the judgment of ourselves precedes the judgment of our enemies. “The sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17b) must first do its sanctifying work in our lives before we can apply it to the lives of others.

Joshua 8 teaches us the return of Israel to the power of God. For their restoration they have to perform a lot of actions. All this would not have been necessary if they had acted in simplicity and sincerity of faith. But God uses these things to teach us who we are and Who He is. Pride and false confidence receive a serious lesson here. It takes more effort to return in the way of blessing than it would have cost to avoid evil.

From Joshua 10:28 and onward the cities are conquered in mass. The conquests of Jericho (Joshua 6), Ai (Joshua 8) and Gibeon (Joshua 10) give the necessary principles of conquest that apply to all cities that they have to conquer afterward. We must see what these cities represent in our lives and how we can overcome them. If we gain a victory in the power of God, then there is a danger that we will trust in our own strength. Ai teaches us how weak we are. In the picture of the chain that is as strong as the weakest link, we are as strong as the weakest Christian among us (Achan). Gibeon (Joshua 9) teaches us that the enemy is cunning.

Command to Go Up Against Ai

The people get a new chance to take Ai. But they must learn to listen to God. Now a complicated tactic is needed and ten times as many men as they thought they needed first (Joshua 7:3). One of the lessons they must learn (and so do we!) is that sins can be forgiven, but that the consequences of sins must be borne.

Joshua 15:5

Introduction

The reading of the law at the end of this chapter indicates that obedience to the Word of God is the only guarantee for every victory and every altar.

Command to Go Up Against Ai

Joshua 15:6

Going to Ambush

They have to take the whole army to capture this small town. That is a deep humiliation. Half of the people also have to flee. This time it has to because it fits into God’s plan, but at the same time it is a shameful performance. They must learn never to underestimate the enemy. Every step is pre-written by the LORD (Joshua 8:8).

Here we find in the different actions the different attitudes that the people of God must adopt toward the enemy. In the New Testament we find its spiritual counterparts: 1. Stand against the enemy to resist him (Joshua 8:11; Ephesians 6:13). 2. Watch the enemy from an ambush (Joshua 8:12; 1 Corinthians 16:13). 3. Show themselves to the enemy, that he may reveal himself (Joshua 8:14; Ephesians 5:11). 4. Flee before the enemy (Joshua 8:15; 2 Timothy 2:22a). 5. Destroy the enemy (Joshua 8:26; Colossians 3:5).

Joshua 15:7

Going to Ambush

Joshua 15:8

Going to Ambush

Joshua 15:9

Going to Ambush

Joshua 15:10

Going to Ambush

Joshua 15:11

Going to Ambush

Joshua 15:12

Going to Ambush

Joshua 15:13

Ai Walks Into the Ambush

Again Joshua gets up early and goes with the people of war to Ai. He lets himself be defeated with the people and flees with them. These shameful experiences are made up for by the fact that God is on their side. The power of God is with them and everything succeeds.

Yet the revelation of this power is not as at Jericho. At Ai there is a lot of human input, a lot happens. That will appeal to all who love action. In comparison to this, marching around Jericho is a boring display. But at Jericho, the power of God is revealed in the exercise of faith and all honor goes to God. The way Ai is conquered doesn’t show the strength of the faith but the weakness of the human being.

We can apply this to our victories of faith. Our greatest victories are won in our inner room, on our knees, without any noteworthy characteristics. We can also apply it to the many forms of meetings offered by Christianity. There are places where there are impressive, often so-called, manifestations of the Spirit. In contrast, we read of the church in Philadelphia: “You have a little power, and have kept My word, and have not denied My name” (Revelation 3:8b). The question is what we choose.

To conquer the city, a lot of actions have to be done. Joshua and the part of the people who are with him are approaching the city from the north (Joshua 8:11). This happens at night, while the Jordan has been crossed during the day and everything related to Jericho has taken place during the day. Then a part of the people west of Ai are ambushed (Joshua 8:13). When the king of Ai has observed them, they pretend to flee (Joshua 8:14-16). All this is necessary to judge all self-confidence.

Joshua 15:14

Ai Walks Into the Ambush

Joshua 15:15

Ai Walks Into the Ambush

Joshua 15:16

Ai Walks Into the Ambush

Joshua 15:17

Ai Walks Into the Ambush

Joshua 15:18

Ai Walks Into the Ambush

Joshua 15:19

Ai Walks Into the Ambush

Joshua 15:20

Ai Walks Into the Ambush

Joshua 15:21

Ai Captured and Burned

When the city is empty, God shows that He is in charge. He tells Joshua what to do. How important it is always to listen to the voice of the Lord. Joshua has to stretch out his javelin. That is not a sign for the ambush to get out, at least we don’t read that. He keeps the javelin stretched out until the full victory is achieved. It recalls the raised hands of Moses, when he is on the mountain, while Joshua is fighting the Amalekites (Exodus 17:11-13).

The javelin is the symbol of judgment and the sign for victory. In Joshua we see here the picture of the Spirit of Christ Who is powerfully present among God’s people and works for them in power in the judgment on their enemies. Thus we may look upon Christ in glory and know that we have victory in Him.

The men stand up from the ambush, possibly on the exhortation of what God gives in their hearts. We see Him here as the hidden origin of all actions. They know what to do because He is in charge. We will always be dependent on this leadership. Then those who have fled turn around and take part in the conquest.

After the lesson of Ai God is again with His people. Israel eradicates Ai in obedience to what God has said. Attached to this obedience is Joshua’s attitude, who holds his hand with the javelin stretched out as a sign of confidence in complete victory. That the hand with the javelin is not withdrawn until the enemy has been completely defeated demonstrates perseverance.

This contains an important lesson for us. Only through persevering confidence victory can be achieved. This is missing with Joash, the king of Israel in the days of Elisha. When Elisha tells him to strike the ground with his arrows, he does so only three times. Joash should have struck much more often, but because he stops too early, his victory is not total (2 Kings 13:17-19). It is about persevering until the end, until the last enemy is defeated.

Joshua perseveres, as do the believers of the church in Philadelphia, who are praised by the Lord Jesus for having kept “the word of My perseverance” (Revelation 3:10). The “word of My perseverance” also means that this perseverance is found in Himself: “May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ” (2 Thessalonians 3:5). We can only take possession of spiritual blessings by persevering in confidence on the Lord.

At Jericho everything is for the Lord, at Ai everything is for the people. First all for the Lord, then we receive our share, as the Lord may determine. Furthermore, Ai becomes a desolation. As said, Ai means ‘ruin’ and that is what God’s people make of it.

The command given by Joshua regarding the dead body of the king of Ai (Joshua 8:29), shows that he knows the Word of God. He acts according to what God has said about it in the law: “If a man has committed a sin worthy of death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day (for he who is hanged is accursed of God), so that you do not defile your land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance” (Deuteronomy 21:22-23).

The territory of Ai is part of the inheritance. It must not be defiled. A hanged man is a curse to God. There is curse for him who hangs on a tree and for those who do not abide in the works of the law. That is the teaching of Galatians 3. The hanged king of Ai shows that the Lord Jesus has taken that place for everyone who believes in Him and has become the cursed One on the tree. The consequence for us is that we have been redeemed: “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”” (Galatians 3:13). The law does not apply literally to us. The curse of the law no longer strikes us because the Lord Jesus bore it. Whoever believes will never again come under the curse of the law.

Joshua 15:22

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:23

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:24

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:25

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:26

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:27

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:28

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:29

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:30

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:31

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:32

Ai Captured and Burned

Joshua 15:33

The Altar in Mount Ebal

Joshua does what God has commanded him to do when they would have entered the land: “You shall write on the stones all the words of this law very distinctly” (Deuteronomy 27:8). By building the altar Joshua claims the land for the LORD. He has already shown that the land belongs to the LORD by acting according to the precept in view of the dead body of the king of Ai (Joshua 8:29).

The altar is also a picture of the Lord Jesus, it is not worked, it is all perfect. As He is, He has become the altar on which offerings are brought. No sin offerings are brought at this altar, but burnt offerings and peace offerings. It speaks of the fact that the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus is pleasing to God (burnt offering) and that for God’s people it is the basis for fellowship with Him and with each other (peace offering).

Joshua builds the altar in Mount Ebal, the mountain of the curse (Deuteronomy 11:29; Deuteronomy 27:4; 13). We must learn to say ‘amen’ to the curses. Then we will experience the blessings of Mount Gerizim. Sacrifices are made on the mountain of the curse. For us, through the offering of Christ, the curses have been removed and the blessings have become our part.

Joshua 15:34

The Altar in Mount Ebal

Joshua 15:35

The Altar in Mount Ebal

Joshua 15:36

Read All the Words of the Law

The ark takes the central place. Then the law is read. God gives His Word in connection with the ark, the altar and the blessings. In Deuteronomy 27 the people must write the law on the altar. Whosoever abides by the Word of God will abide, and will gain victories in the land. Whosoever does not observe the Word of God will suffer, and will not enjoy the blessings of God’s good land and His good blessings.

What is the law in Deuteronomy 27? There the people are given the task to make an altar on Mount Ebal and to sacrifice on it and to write the law on it (Deuteronomy 27:4-8). But what is the law? It is the whole content of the book of Deuteronomy. In it we see first the blessings of the land and then the place where the LORD makes his Name dwell. We also see the conditions to enjoy the blessings in that place. Although we are not under the law, obedience is also the condition for us to enjoy the blessings. If not, we will bear the curse.

Joshua 15:37

Read All the Words of the Law

Joshua 15:38

Read All the Words of the Law

Joshua 15:40

Introduction

After we have seen in Joshua 7-8 at Ai what is the result of relying on our own strength, we see in Joshua 9 at Gibeon what is the result of relying on our own wisdom. The lesson for us is not to trust in our own strength and wisdom, but in “Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24b).

The Gibeonites succeed with a trick to escape the judgment under which they fall. Why did the Israelites not discover this trick? The trick succeeds because they “did not ask for the counsel of the LORD” (Joshua 9:14). There is only one way for us to escape the tricks of the devil and that is by obedience to the command: “Put on the full armor of God” (Ephesians 6:11a).

The enemy uses two means to harm and cause damage to the people of God. One means is violence and the other is craftiness. In the first case, we read about the devil as someone who “prowls around like a roaring lion” (1 Peter 5:8). In the other case he is called “an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14).

The Enemies Gathers Themselves Together

The enemies join forces. It is possible that the defeat suffered by Israel at Ai has encouraged them and given them an opportunity to resist this people.

These nations, who are always at war with each other, gather together “with one accord to fight with Joshua and with Israel”. This is always so with regard to what is of God. Hate against God and His truth is a means that unites all the enemies of God and makes them forget their disagreements and quarrels (Luke 23:12; Acts 4:27). We must always remember that the kings of Canaan are a picture of the rulers of the spiritual world. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual [forces] of wickedness in the heavenly [places]” (Ephesians 6:12).

Heathen nations may conflict with each other on earth, but the demonic powers behind them are in full agreement. They are controlled by satan, who always aims to kill as many people as possible. He is the murderer from the beginning (John 8:44). He wants to kill all people, while his main goal is to harm God’s people as much as possible.

Joshua 15:41

Introduction

The Enemies Gathers Themselves Together

The enemies join forces. It is possible that the defeat suffered by Israel at Ai has encouraged them and given them an opportunity to resist this people.

Joshua 15:42

The Trick of the Gibeonites

In the spiritual struggle we are particularly concerned with “the schemes of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11). The struggle in Ephesians 6 is not a struggle to conquer the land, but to defend it. That’s why the description of the armor is at the end of the letter, after all blessings have been described. It is about staying standing after the victory, which is only possible if we have put on the full armor of God. Only then we “will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11).

We also need the armor of God to “be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm” (Ephesians 6:13). With his schemes, the enemy often has results in territories where his power is broken. His schemes are more to fear than his strength. With his schemes he seduces the people, but with his strength he meets the Lord.

The people of Gibeon have heard what Joshua did to Jericho and Ai. Therefore they do not seek a battle, but resort to deceit. They work with consideration to save their lives, which they know are in danger. To a certain extent, that is sensible. But there is a better method to save their lives than by trickery. Rahab saved her life and that of her family by faith. This we also see later with a Canaanite woman, so a woman originally belonging to this people under the curse, who asks for mercy (Matthew 15:22-28).

With these Gibeonites, however, there is no question of faith. They prefer their own method. They proceed with human caution and use beautiful, impressive language. They speak of the LORD and what He has done. They present themselves as religious people. Thus they mislead the people of God and gain access to them, which is possible by the unfaithfulness of the people.

Their whole appearance is worn out; everything they have is old. The older something is, the better it is, according to the traditionalists. The old church, the old way of doing things. But the old is not simply better because it is old. The old is only better when it comes from the Lord, He Himself is “what was from the beginning” (1 John 1:1a). Thus, the old ‘speaking in tongues’ is something that comes to the fore again in professing Christianity. It is not only old, but also worn out, it has had its time (1 Corinthians 13:8). These are things that impress the people. But what is worn out must be removed.

Joshua 15:43

The Trick of the Gibeonites

Joshua 15:44

The Trick of the Gibeonites

Joshua 15:45

The Gibeonites Come in Gilgal

Joshua is back in Gilgal, the right place. But he is not in the good mind to recognize the stratagem. These people come from a city in the land that needs to be destroyed, but they pretend they come from a far country. Unlike Joshua, the people express the assumption that they may not come from so far after all. There is suspicion in them. But why don’t they ask further? They fall into the trap of their own wisdom.

The request to make a covenant with these people sounds attractive. Israel is surrounded by enemies, who are united against them to fight them. A covenant with the Gibeonites will make them stronger, they think. Such a submission may seem sensible, but it leaves the LORD out of consideration. If God is their strength alone, allies can only set aside the necessary dependence on God. Israel does not need allies!

Joshua 15:46

The Gibeonites Come in Gilgal