Learning from the distribution of the land under Joshua 1

Text Joshua 13 Time 27 09 20 Place Childs Hill Baptist Church (Zoom)

Unlike myself, my father was a big football fan all his life. Sometimes he would say things to me that at first would seem strange. "Grimsby lost on Saturday" he would say or "I notice that Halifax Town beat Lincoln midweek". At first I would wonder why he was telling me about teams hundreds of miles away. Sometimes I would ask why he was giving me this information and sometimes it would slowly dawn on me - Grimsby losing or Halifax winning was important because of the way it affected Newport County's position in the table.

A lot of things are like that - they can seem wholly irrelevant but then once you spot the connection, it suddenly becomes relevant. I'm interested in Grimsby and Halifax because I'm interested in Newport County.

Eleri's sister was never much interested in cricket growing up but then she married a man who loves cricket and soon she was a minor expert on the game.

Now I'm saying this because I want us to back to back to our studies in Joshua and we have come to a section of the book that is potentially uninteresting to us.

Joshua can be divided into three or four parts.

1 (1-4) Entering the land 2 (5-12) Taking the land and then 3 (13-21) Possessing the land

As D Ralph Davies observes a war film is always going to be more interesting than watching land surveyors at work. For that is what we have in this section - a description of the land that the Israelites took.

However, our only real problem is that we don't see its relevance. If we could put ourselves in the sandals of an Israelite of the time we would have no problem - what part of the land is going to come to my tribe? Where am I going to be living? If I said I'd bought the houses in this street and I wanted to give one to each of you and to listen as I describe who's getting what, you'd be eager to listen. So let's try and see how this would have sounded to the first people who heard it.

The chapter divides into three or more parts - first there is verses 1-7 which acts as an introduction to the whole section from here to Chapter 21 and then there is the part that deals with the two and half tribes east of the Jordan and also Levi - first more generally (8-13) and then individually (14-33). So three things

1. Hear this promise in the midst of some potentially discouraging facts

The first two sections are like opposites. The first section reminds me of my mother's stew and the second section of my mother's trifle. I remember as a child my mother used to make stew in the winter months. I was not a big fan of stew. The meat was okay but I hated onions and swede and wasn't that keen on potatoes. However, what saved it for me was that in the midst of all that there were usually lovely dumplings. The opening verses of the chapter are a bit like that - lots of swede and onions but with a nice fat dumpling in the middle of it.

The chapter begins with the writer saying When Joshua had grown old, the LORD said to him, You are now very old, and there are still very large areas of land to be taken over. So Joshua is now old. Apart from Caleb, no-one was as old in Israel as he. No doubt he would die soon, as Moses had before him. However, there are still large areas yet to be taken. So two bits of bad news in one there.

From verse 2 we learn what land remains. This is the land that remains: on the west all the regions of the Philistines and Geshurites, from the Shihor River on the east of Egypt to the territory of Ekron on the north, all of it counted as Canaanite though held by the five Philistine rulers in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron; then the territory of the Avvites on the south; and then to the north all the land of the Canaanites, from Arah of the Sidonians as far as Aphek and the border of the Amorites (to the east) the area of Byblos; and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal Gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo Hamath about 50 miles north of Damascus! So, although there is plenty of land already won there is still plenty to go if they are going to occupy all the land that they have been promised. Joshua was to let them know this just as it is part of my job as a preacher to let you know how much more there is to know and to experience as Christians.

With this rather downbeat assessment comes a wonderful promise (6, 7) As for all the inhabitants of the mountain regions from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim, that is, all the Sidonians, I myself will drive them out before the Israelites. Be sure to allocate this land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have instructed you, and divide it as an inheritance among the nine tribes and half of the tribe of Manasseh. It is all going to be taken, God promises and so it must be divided up and allocated. I myself will do it, he says. Joshua will not complete the taking of the land (that would be completed only in the time of David) but he is to divide and distribute the land. It does point us to Jesus in that Joshua conquers the land and distributes it to the people - just as Christ won the victory on the cross and grants salvation to his own.

Yes, in Joshua's time, this meant that some tribes received land already conquered and others land that still needed to be fought for but they are still a united nation and they can all fight for each other.

All this reminds us of how it often is for those who have been Christians for some time. Yes, much progress has been made but there is still room for improvement. Onward and upward must be our motto. We have God's promise of future victories.

Further, we must be concerned not only that we will grow but that others will also. Some of us have had great advantages and making progress is relatively easy. For others they need our help.

2. Note this qualifying statement in the midst of some potentially encouraging facts

As I said to you, the first two sections are like opposites. I told you how the first section reminds me of my mother's stew - swede and onions with a fat dumpling in the middle. Well, the second section reminds me of my mother's trifle. I used to love my mother's trifle - sponge soaked in jelly at the bottom then red jelly in the middle and then set custard on top - although with the custard there would sometimes be a bit of skin on top that I had to gulp down. This section is like that - all good stuff but then at the end a little bit of skin that is not as nice.

Next in verses 8-13 we have mostly encouraging statements. We are told about tribes to whom land has already been allocated. The other half of Manasseh, the Reubenites and the Gadites had received the inheritance that Moses had given them east of the Jordan, as he, the servant of the LORD, had assigned it to them. The territory is described It extended from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Gorge, and from the town in the middle of the gorge, and included the whole plateau of Medeba as far as Dibon, and all the towns of Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, out to the border of the Ammonites. It also included Gilead, the territory of the people of Geshur and Maakah, all of Mount Hermon and all Bashan as far as Salekah - that is, the whole kingdom of Og in Bashan, who had reigned in Ashtaroth and Edrei. (He was the last of the Rephaites.) Moses had defeated them and taken over their land.

But then in verse 13 comes the fly in the ointment But the Israelites did not drive out the people of Geshur and Maakah, so they continue to live among the Israelites to this day. Geshur was north east of the Sea of Galilee and Maakah further north again. For all their great successes these people fell down at certain points and here some of the detail is recorded.

It again reminds us of how for all their godliness some who have been Christians many years nevertheless fall down sometimes on certain things. D Ralph Davis puts it like this

"We frequently and strangely prove faithful in the great crisis of faith, remain steadfast in severe storms, perhaps even relish the excitement of the heaviest assaults, yet lack the tenacity, the dogged endurance, the patient plodding often required in the prosaic affairs of believing life; we are often loath to be faithful (in what we regard as) little."

Let's not be like these Israelites. Let's keep fighting so that all the ground is won.

3. Consider the references to Levi bookending what's said of the Transjordan land inheritance

You will notice that the verses 14-33 which are mainly about the three and a half tribes that settled east of the Jordan are bookended by references to the tribe of Levi.

First, in verse 14, it says But to the tribe of Levi he gave no inheritance, since the food offerings presented to the LORD, the God of Israel, are their inheritance, as he promised them. Then in verses 32, 33 we read This is the inheritance Moses had given when he was in the plains of Moab across the Jordan east of Jericho. But to the tribe of Levi, Moses had given no inheritance; the LORD, the God of Israel, is their inheritance, as he promised them.

So first in verses 15-31 you have a description of the land inherited by Reuben, Gad and half of Manasseh. If you picture it in your mind it is a little bit like the way in England you have the north, the midlands and the south, although it's on a smaller scale so more like North Wales, Mid-Wales and South Wales. In London terms it would be north of the north circular (Finchley, Edgware, Enfield, etc), within the area bounded by the north and south circular (Central London, Camden, Brixton, etc) and south of the south circular (Tooting, Balham, etc). Here it is Manasseh, Gad and Reuben with two sort of tongues extending north from Gad either side of Manasseh.

So first Reuben to the south (15-23) This is what Moses had given to the tribe of Reuben, according to its clans: The territory from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Gorge, a tributary of the Dead Sea, the southern border and from the town in the middle of the gorge, and the whole plateau past Medeba to Heshbon and all its towns on the plateau, including Dibon, Bamoth Baal, Beth Baal Meon, Jahaz, Kedemoth, Mephaath, Kiriathaim, Sibmah, Zereth Shahar on the hill in the valley, Beth Peor, the slopes of Pisgah, and Beth Jeshimoth - all the towns on the plateau and the entire realm of Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled at Heshbon. Moses had defeated him and the Midianite chiefs, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur and Reba - princes allied with Sihon - who lived in that country. In addition to those slain in battle, the Israelites had put to the sword Balaam son of Beor, who practiced divination. The western boundary of the Reubenites was the Dead Sea then the bank of the Jordan. These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the Reubenites, according to their clans.

Then Y shaped Gad in the middle (24-28) This is what Moses had given to the tribe of Gad, according to its clans: The territory of Jazer, all the towns of Gilead and half the Ammonite country as far as Aroer, near Rabbah; and from Heshbon to Ramath Mizpah and Betonim, and from Mahanaim to the territory of Debir; and in the valley, Beth Haram, Beth Nimrah, Sukkoth and Zaphon with the rest of the realm of Sihon king of Heshbon (the east side of the Jordan, the territory up to the end of the Sea of Galilee). These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the Gadites, according to their clans.

And finally the most northerly eastern half of Manasseh (29-31) This is what Moses had given to the half-tribe of Manasseh, that is, to half the family of the descendants of Manasseh, according to its clans: The territory extending from Mahanaim and including all of Bashan, the entire realm of Og king of Bashan - all the settlements of Jair in Bashan, sixty towns, half of Gilead, and Ashtaroth and Edrei (the royal cities of Og in Bashan). This was for the descendants of Makir son of Manasseh - for half of the sons of Makir, according to their clans

Of course, these tribes should have been thankful to God for their territory but by placing them as he does with references to Levi either side there is a quiet reminder that there are things that are more important to inherit than land. Levi's inheritance was not land but the food offerings presented to the LORD, the God of Israel and ultimately the LORD, the God of Israel, himself. In the end, that is the only inheritance worth having. Yes, we need land to live on, a house to live in, food to eat but far more important is to know the LORD and to know he is at work in our lives. What a matchless inheritance that is.