Category: Joshua

Read Joshua 21:1-45

God’s promise to the Israelite people is finally realized. The selection of refuge cities had to happen first, followed by assigning cities and pastureland to the Levites. The Lord had commanded Moses in Numbers 35:6 to give the Levities six cities of refuge and 42 other cities. We see that played out perfectly here.

I thought it would be helpful to take a little historical break to consider the back story here. We’ve been reading about Eleazer, the priest. In case you missed it, like I did, he was Aaron’s son. Aaron was brother to Moses and was the priest being used by God in the wilderness. The tribe of Levi was made up of three branches: The Gersonites, the Kohathites, and the Merarites. Aaron and his descendants (the priests) were from the Kohath branch.

Continue reading “Joshua 21:1-45 – God Remembers the Levites”

Read Joshua 20:1-9

If you’ve spent any time watching crime dramas on television, the idea of a “safe house” is familiar. A step even greater than this would be witness protection. These are the images that came to mind for me. However, a city of refuge is quite different. A city of refuge is the designated location intended protect the guilty not the innocent.

The extent of guilt is what comes into question. And this is not the simply the internal emotion of guilt but the “I’m in trouble for doing something wrong” kind of guilt. You might ask, would a court of law find me guilty? There again, the city of refuge is meant to protect the one who killed another “by accident.”

Continue reading “Joshua 20:1-9 – Cities of Refuge”

Joshua 19:1-51

Think of a time when you completed a HUGE task that may have taken you days, months, or even years to accomplish. Got something in mind? Remember the feeling of exhilaration when you had completed something marvelous? Do you think that Joshua was feeling a little bit of this as the distribution of land was now complete?

Perhaps Joshua was wondering, “what’s next for me?” Up to now, he had had a clear purpose. First of all, he was called to bring the Israelites into the Promised Land. Then he was to lead the charge in “cleaning house” and eliminating the competition for the land, those who were living there. Next, he was to make sure all the tribes were accounted for and received the land blessed by God’s hand. Now, Joshua’s “next steps” were a bit unclear.

Continue reading “Joshua 19:1-51 – Distribution Complete!”

Read Joshua 18:11-28

Benjamin was the baby of Jacob’s family and full brother to Joseph. I always remember that those boys were both born of Jacob’s favorite wife, Rachel. Jacob’s love and devotion to her was always a precious part of that story for me. It was a sad day when Rachel died young, leaving her young sons to be brought up by another.

While Joseph was Jacob’s favorite, it was Benjamin that Joseph thought of when he reunited with his brothers in Egypt all those years later. While Benjamin’s portion is smaller than some of the other brothers, it has Jerusalem which has such a rich history of faith.

Continue reading “Joshua 18:11-28 – Benjamin’s Turn”

Read Joshua 18:1-10

What kind of emotions do you think these seven tribes were feeling still being “homeless?” Anxious? Bored? Curious? Impatient? Certainly, life was way different for the Israelites than for us today. We can only apply our own “filters” on their situation. I always like to put myself in the moment the best I can.

I can just imagine the hush, or collective gasp, that occurred over the masses of people at Shiloh when they were told to go pick their land and God would bless it. Joshua seemed a little surprised that he had to bring up the subject of land division as if he was wondering, “what are they waiting for?” Joshua said to them, “Select three men from each tribe, and I will send them out to explore the land and map it out. They will then return to me with a written report of their proposed divisions of their new homeland.”

Continue reading “Joshua 18:1-10 – God Will Bless It”