Joshua 10 Commentary
“Mission accomplished” or “Israel saves Gibeon”, which title best fits chapter 10?
We go for the first one, Mission accomplished. But the second option is real, though our spirits detest it.
Israel shouldn’t have made a treaty with Gibeon in the first place. Now, Israel must protect an illegal ally, an ally glued to Israel by deception.
It’s a cold fact that humans seek to protect their allies, bad or good. Don’t shock yourself when you find it hard to denounce a sin that you have sheltered. You are at zero moral authority when you have sheltered wrongdoing.
Yes, Israel’s victory over the rest is sweet and clearly a miracle, but Gibeon is an enemy within that will negate all the important gains. The enemy will have infiltrated Israel’s defenses, and it’s a matter of time before idolatry attacks from within.
Let’s look at Israel’s “peace” transaction with Gibeon. Yes, there was an oath but it was illegal. Logic informs us that it was going to be better for Israel to deal with the sin of breaking an oath than dealing with multiple sins by keeping the oath.
Break the oath, and you commit one sin in addition to the sin of failing to consult the LORD God. That makes it two sins in a row.
Keep the oath, and the sin of a Treaty with the enemy remains intact. The sin of failure to destroy the enemy also remains, in addition to the sin of failure to consult the LORD God. That makes it three sins in a row. Of course, we haven’t even talked about the real and present danger of intermarriages and idolatry. Israel will also have subtracted from their destiny in terms of land!
This failure and many like it eventually bring down the nation. Jerusalem is captured and fully in the hands of Israel. But we wonder why this city must be captured several more times down the ages!
Yes, we must enjoy this chapter and focus on the victories, but we shouldn’t forget about sections of our lives that need deliverance. The saint has this kind of life. Look out for areas where the enemy has comfortably settled, albeit in slavery! The word is expulsion, not truce.
Truce with the deceiver is foolishness! God forbid it!
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