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More Joshua commentaries
Joshua 7:16-26
The destruction of the stolen goods
Joshua 8:1-29
Israel Destroys the Town of Ai
Joshua 8:30-35
Joshua leads the people to Shechem
Joshua 9:1-15
Tricked into believing the enemy
Joshua 9:16-27
Making your mistakes work for you
Joshua 10:1-15
The Lord wants to fight our battles
Joshua 10:16-28
Divide and conquer was Joshua’s strategy
Joshua 10:29-43
The Lord gives the victory
Joshua 11:1-15
Joshua Captures Towns in the North
Joshua 11:16-23
A summary of Joshua’s battles
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The Lord gives the victory
Joshua 10:29–43
» View this passage in NIV (Bible Gateway)
In the spring of 1894, the Baltimore Orioles came to Boston to play a routine baseball game. But what happened that day was anything but routine. The Orioles’ John McGraw got into a fight with the Boston third baseman. Within minutes all the players from both teams had joined in … More
In a series of quick raids Joshua attacked and conquered the key cities of southern Canaan. These included; Makkedah, Libnah, Lachish, Eglon, Hebron and Debir (vv. 29-39). Joshua and his army went from city to city, utterly destroying each one and slaying its king and inhabitants “as the Lord God of Israel commanded” (v. 40). However, all of the towns of the land were not taken during the campaign. Apparently it was not a military necessity that every town be destroyed. Jerusalem, one of the five in the alliance was also bypassed. A geographical summary of the land conquered in this southern campaign is given in verses 40-43. It included all of the hill country south of Jerusalem between the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean and from Kadesh-Barnea to Gaza. Now Joshua could look with confidence to the unfinished task of conquering the north land. “The Lord God of Israel fought for Israel” (v.42). And praise God He is still fighting battles for His own today.
The very last verse in this chapter (v. 43) states “And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, unto the camp of Gilgal." This is the fifth time Gilgal is mentioned. It’s the place Israel started the attack from and the place they return to. Throughout the conquest of Canaan, Israel returns over and over to this very significant place. There they find encouragement, rest, motivation, and strategy for continued warfare. We as Christians need a Gilgal that we can return to, a place of rest and renewal. Gilgal has great community significance. It’s a place where God’s people gather to hear His Word. We need to remember that our warfare is not fought in isolation. Like Gilgal, our getting together at church, in homes and wherever we gather as the body of Christ ought to be times of rest, worship, spiritual encouragement and empowerment for a life of warfare.
Application
In every Israelite victory, the text gives the credit to the Lord. When I am successful, the temptation is to take all the credit as if I did it by myself. It is God and God alone who gives me any victories I may achieve and I must be careful to give Him the praise.
Joshua 10:29-43 (English Standard Version)
Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Makkedah to Libnah and fought against Libnah. And the LORD gave it also and its king into the hand of Israel. And he struck it with the edge of the sword, and every person in it; he left none remaining in it. And he did to its king as he had done to the king of Jericho. Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Libnah to Lachish and laid siege to it and fought against it. And the LORD gave Lachish into the hand of Israel, and he captured it on the second day and struck it with the edge of the sword, and every person in it, as he had done to Libnah. Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish. And Joshua struck him and his people, until he left none remaining. Then Joshua and all Israel with him passed on from Lachish to Eglon. And they laid siege to it and fought against it. And they captured it on that day, and struck it with the edge of the sword. And he devoted every person in it to destruction that day, as he had done to Lachish. Then Joshua and all Israel with him went up from Eglon to Hebron. And they fought against it and captured it and struck it with the edge of the sword, and its king and its towns, and every person in it. He left none remaining, as he had done to Eglon, and devoted it to destruction and every person in it. Then Joshua and all Israel with him turned back to Debir and fought against it and he captured it with its king and all its towns. And they struck them with the edge of the sword and devoted to destruction every person in it; he left none remaining. Just as he had done to Hebron and to Libnah and its king, so he did to Debir and to its king. So Joshua struck the whole land, the hill country and the Negeb and the lowland and the slopes, and all their kings. He left none remaining, but devoted to destruction all that breathed, just as the LORD God of Israel commanded. And Joshua struck them from Kadesh-barnea as far as Gaza, and all the country of Goshen, as far as Gibeon. And Joshua captured all these kings and their land at one time, because the LORD God of Israel fought for Israel. Then Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to the camp at Gilgal.
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