The Book of Joshua
Joshua 1
Chapter I · Vol. I, pp. 538–540
1 The Lord appointeth Joshua to succeed Moses. 3 The extent of the promised land. 5, 9 God promiseth to assist Joshua. 8 He giveth him instructions. 10 He prepareth the people to pass over Jordan. 12 Joshua putteth the two tribes and half in mind of their engagement to Moses. 16 They promise him obedience.
1 Now, after the death of Moses, the aservant of the LORD, it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' bminister, saying,
2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore carise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.
c Nu.27.16-21. De.3.28; 31.7.
3 Everyd place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.
d De.11.24. ch.14.9.
4 Frome the wilderness and this Lebanon, even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites,1 and unto the great sea, toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.1
e Ge.15.18-21. Ex.23.31; 34.11,12. Nu.34.2-12. 1 Ki.4.21,24. 2 Ch.9.24.
A.M. 2553. B.C. 1451.
1 In the days of Abram, the children of Heth, that is, the Hittites, were evidently a great and civilized people, Ge. 23. 3. The other Canaanitish tribes, though retaining their local distinctions, seem, in the days of Joshua, to have been nationally absorbed into that of Heth. Every nation of Europe could furnish similar examples of absorption or amalgamation within as brief a period.—C.
A.M. 2553. B.C. 1451.
1 The boundaries of the 'land of promise' are here defined generally. 'The wilderness,' Midbar, of Tîh, on the south, 'this Lebanon,' i.e. the Lebanon visible from Shittim, which must have been Hermon; the Euphrates away on the extreme north; and the Great Sea, or Mediterranean, on the west.—P.
5 Theref shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life. gAs I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
f De.31.7,23.
g Ex.3.12. De.31.6,8. He.13.5,6. Ro.8.31. Is.43.1,2; 41.10,15,16.
6 Beh strong, and of a good courage; for unto this people shalt thou idivide for an inheritance2 the land which I sware unto their fathers to give them.
h De.31.6,7,23. ver.7,9. ch.10.25. 1 Ch.22.13; 28.20. 2 Ch.32.7.
i Nu.34.17-29. ch.xv.-xxi.
2 Or, thou shalt cause this people to inherit the land, &c.
7 Only be thou strong,3 and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: kturn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest lprosper whithersoever thou goest.
8 Thism book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.4
9 Haven not I commanded thee? Be strong, and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for othe LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,
11 Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals;5 for pwithin three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which qthe LORD your God giveth you to possess it.
5 Manna was still the food of the people. It was ordinarily gathered every morning. It would seem, however, that a special store was now to be laid in to prevent the necessity of gathering it when marching toward Jericho, and crossing the Jordan.—P.
p ch.2.1; 3.2. Ex.19.11. Ge.22.4,14. 2 Ki.20.5. Ho.6.2. Jonah 1.17. Mat.12.40. 1 Co.15.4.
12 And to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, spake Joshua, saying,
13 Remember rthe word which Moses, the servant of the LORD, commanded you, saying, The LORD your God hath given you rest, and hath given you this land.
r Nu.32.6-32. ch.22.4.
14 Your wives, your little ones, and your cattle, shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side Jordan;6 but ye shall pass before your brethren sarmed, all tthe mighty men of valour, and help them,
6 The Israelites had taken and rebuilt or fortified a number of cities on the east of the Jordan, and in these they placed their wives, children, and cattle. It must not be supposed that all the full-grown men of the two tribes and half marched across Jordan in the van of the Israelites. Only those between the ages of twenty and fifty were required to go to war.—P.
s Heb. marshalled by five, Ex.13.18.
15 Untilu the LORD have given your brethren rest, as he hath given you, and they also have possessed xthe land which the LORD your God giveth them: then ye shall return unto the land of your possession, and enjoy it, which Moses, the LORD's servant, gave you on this side Jordan, toward the sun-rising.
16 And they answered Joshua, saying, yAll that thou commandest us we will do, and whithersoever thou sendest us we will go.
17 According as we hearkened unto Moses in all things, so will we hearken unto thee: zonly the LORD thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses.7
z ver.5. Ps.xx. Ro.8.31. 1 Ti.2.1,2.
7 Not a condition of obedience—for they never doubted that the Lord was with him—but a prayer for the divine presence with him and blessing upon him; even as Paul entreats, 'Brethren, pray for us,' 1 Th.5.25.—Note, The great duty of praying for those who are engaged in offices of responsibility and difficulty, whether temporal or spiritual.—C.
Notes
[Ver. 7. Be thou strong and very courageous. The greatest instance of courage, is moral courage in reproving what is wrong and teaching and enforcing what is right. Therefore the Lord admonishes Joshua to be very courageous, not against enemies, but to observe all the law which Moses had commanded. Many who would dare to hazard death, would not dare to encounter the coldness or alienation of friends, the laugh of ridicule, the brow of scorn, the voice of reproach, the turmoil of argument, the jealousy of opposition, or the obloquy of detraction. Sensitive minds shrink from these petty annoyances as unworthy of their energies, and consequently suffer the imputation and the evils of the worst species of cowardice. In this moral courage Moses, Joshua, Jeremiah, and Paul are pre-eminent—Christ perfect. C.——Joshua's strength and courage would be tested in attempting, in the face of the opposition and rebellion of the Israelites to keep all the requirements of the law. The keeping of the law also was the condition on which God was to enable the Israelites to conquer and retain Canaan. P.]
Reflections.—God keeps up an honourable remembrance of his faithful servants. And it is a comfort to the church that, although her ministers die, Jesus her Redeemer lives to provide others in their room. But those who have behaved well in an inferior station, will, in general, and ought to be advanced to a higher. Certainly and seasonably, however slowly, the promises of God are fulfilled at last, with respect to everything temporal or eternal: nor need we fear to proceed in the most difficult work if God promise to us his presence and assistance. When he is pleased to work, none can let it. But as we must live by the word of God, so we must work and war by it; and, being once called and encouraged of God, we ought with the utmost readiness to set about our work. God can quickly bow the hearts of all such as are necessary to assist us therein. And it is delightful when magistrates, ministers, and people concur in their regard to and dependence on God, and when subjects are no less cheerful in their obedience, and doing their duty as good citizens, to themselves and one another, than rulers are exact in commanding what is lawful.