The 40 years of wandering has ended. The unbelieving generation has passed away. Aaron has died. Moses has died. And now, Joshua is leading the nation of Israel into the Promised Land.
Joshua takes hold of his responsibility.
Joshua 1:10-18, begins, “Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people saying…”
The nation is finally no longer ‘lapping the mountain’ in the wilderness, they are moving forward.
Joshua is giving instructions to be obeyed and done orderly. (Joshua 1:10-5-12)
He reminds two and one half tribes of what Moses had commanded them regarding their responsibility to the whole nation in spite of the fact that they had chosen not to settle in the Promised Land. (See Numbers 32)
The two and one half tribes answered Joshua saying, “All that you command us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. Just as we heeded Moses in all things, so we will heed you. Only the Lord your God be with you, as He was with Moses.” (Joshua 1:16-17, NKJV)
(Q: I wonder if that last sentence is a statement of confidence or concern?)
They followed this declaration of allegiance with this warning.
“Whoever rebels against your command and does not heed your words, in all that you command him, shall be put to death. Only be strong and of good courage.” (Joshua 1:18, NKJV)
(This ‘next’ generation had grown up seeing the previous generation put to death for their disobedience to God in the wilderness.)
The scene is set; it’s time to move forward.
Joshua sends out two spies, ‘to spy secretly‘, saying, “Go view the land, especially Jericho.”
(I recommend that you read the ‘spy’ story as told in Jericho 2.)
Chapters 3-5:12 recount the crossing of the Jordan River and the details God required in order for the nation of Israel to enter the land in an ‘orderly’ and ‘obedient’ manner.
In a previous post, dated, January 27, 2025, entitled ‘Heaven is Coming Part I’, I shared that a Person, Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity came on the Day of Pentecost.
What took place?
The followers of Christ experienced Him as He appeared to them as ‘tongues of fire’ and they experienced His infilling “and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” (Acts 2:4 NKJV)
(My emphasis was to focus on the Third Person of the Trinity, not our doctrinal understandings of the event.)
Holy Spirit is a Person.
Holy Spirit’s arrival was a ‘Heavenly Coming’.
Peter preached his first sermon anointed with the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:14-36)
Many people were convicted in their hearts of their sin; they repented; were water baptized; and received the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:37-41)
The Church is recognized as being ‘born’ on the Day of Pentecost.
The Day of Pentecost is said to be the day of transition from the ministry of Christ personally on earth to the beginning of the Church age.
The Church, is now the Body of Christ, comprised of all those born by the Spirit of God.
The Church is to be faithful to the Lord; obedient to the Word of God; in fellowship with the Body of Christ; governed by the Holy Spirit; and submitted to the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Head of the Church. (Acts 2:42-46)
Jesus is no longer in just one human body in the flesh.
His Body is a ‘many membered‘ Body of all believers in Christ. (I Corinthians 12:12-31)
(As this post proceeds, please note that in the Word of God, it is not stated nor said, that the Holy Spirit ever took on the form of a human likeness, as Jesus did. [Philippians 2:5-11; Hebrews 10:5-10] )
[In the Word of God, there are symbols of the Holy Spirit.At Got questions.org, in their article, ‘What are some of the symbols of the Holy Spirit in the Bible?’, it lists the following symbols: dove; seal [or pledge]; oil; fire; wind [or breath]; water[rain, rivers, dew]; wine; clothing (Luke 24:49).I recommend this article to you to read, along with other articles of theirs about the Person and Word of the Holy Spirit.]
Returning to Joshua 3-5:12.
The Lord God was very specific regarding preparations that needed to be carried out in order for His people to enter the land of promise.
Why is this important?
Because God is a God of order and obedience. (Genesis 1)
One thing that stands out reading the history of the nation of Israel, as they journeyed in the wilderness, is God’s ‘meticulous order’ and ‘obedience’ regarding what He wanted to be constructed; where it was to be placed; how it was to be handled; and when it was to be done. (Genesis – Deuteronomy)
[‘order and obedience’ is a separate study in itself; I am so grateful for Jesus’s words found in Matthew 11:28-30. His words do not minimize’order and obedience’; but they do reveal God’s heart toward us as a God of ‘order and obedience’; Our God is a God of rest. After six days of creation, that is replete with ‘order and obedience’. God’s seventh day, was a day of rest.] (Genesis 2:1-3)
{Question: What is our nation wrestling with in 2025? We are wrestling with ‘order and obedience’. Is our nation in disorder and disobedience? Is our nation wrestling with ‘who is in charge?’ ‘Who gave you the authority to do what you are doing? The answers to these questions are not trivial. Our nation is not at rest. What will rest look like in our nation after the ‘political earthquake’ we are now experiencing? The One who is Sovereign knows; and I choose to ‘rest’ in His Sovereignty. (Romans 13, Psalms 2)}
Joshua 5:13,NKJV, [pictures for us, the new leader of the nation of Israel in a ‘thoughtful’ place, pondering what lies ahead for himself and Israel] , “And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho…”.
Jericho is a very large, formidable, walled city.
In the eyes of man,it is a city that is impenetrable.
This city is Israel’s first obstacle in the land of promise that needs to be conquered.
This city will test Joshua’s resolve to believe the word of the Lord spoken to him in Joshua 1:3-6.
This ‘giant’ obstacle is ’emblematic’ of the ‘giants’, that he, Caleb, and the 10 spies saw when they were sent by Moses to ‘spy out’ the land of promise. Not only were they ‘giants’ but the promised land was a land of abundance. (Numbers 13-14)
Jericho is a type of ‘giant’ that the 10 spies said ‘could not be overcome’.
Joshua, standing here alone, looking out at his ‘obstacle’, his real ‘giant’, as the leader of God’s people, might be having a personal flashback, reflecting upon the incident, when, as one 12 spies, he stood with Caleb before Moses affirming that the ‘giants’ in the land ‘could be overcome’ because God was with them. (Numbers 14:6-9)
There are no naysayers standing next to him at this time.
He is alone, or is he?
Joshua 5:13, continues, “… he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, (suddenly from heaven), a Man stood opposite him with his sword drawn.” (insert mine)
Does this remind you of any other incident or similar incidents in the Bible?
I am reminded of Moses’, Joshua’s mentor, personal experience in the wilderness while tending sheep,(Exodus 3:1-10) “And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of the bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was not consumed.” (Exodus 3:2, NKJV)
[The Hebrew word, behold, is ‘hinneh’, Strong’s Concordance, # 2009, it means behold, lo, see; it is used to draw attention to something. The first time it is used is in Genesis 1:29, when God is speaking to Adam and He tells Him, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding see that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed, it shall be food for you; …” (NASA 2000). The second time the word, behold, is used is in Genesis 1:31. “And God saw that all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.”]
In Joshua 5:13, the same word used in Genesis, is being used in this passage to draw our attention to the appearance of a Man “…that he(Joshua) lifted his eyes and looked, and behold…” that suddenly appeared in Joshua’s presence. (insert mine)
In Genesis 3, the voice that spoke to Moses out of the burning bush, identified Himself, as “I AM THAT I AM”. (Exodus 3:14)
In Joshua 5:13, we are told, “And Joshua went up to Him, and said unto Him, Are You for us or for our adversaries?” (NKJV)
[Interesting question! What is the implication of the person’s response?]
There has been a Heavenly Coming.
Joshua 5:14 NKJV, “So He said, No, but as the Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.”
A previous pastor of mine, Robert Goree, commenting on this Man’s response, paraphrased it as, “I AM in Charge”.
TBC,
your brother in Christ, deo
Living Words of Encouragement 