Joshua 5:13-15
13 Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, "Are you for us or for our adversaries?" 14 And he said, "No, rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said to him, "What has my lord to say to his servant?" 15 And the captain of the Lord's host said to Joshua, "Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so.NAS
Joshua 5:13-15 is a pivotal passage in the book since it marks the conclusion of the preparation section and it signals the beginning of the invasion section. Let’s take a few minutes to take stock of where we have come from so far.
Remember in our introduction we suggested the following outlines:
Chapters 1-5 – Preparing the nation for conquest or entering the land
Chapters 6-12 – Defeating the enemies or fighting for the land
Chapters 13-22 – Claiming the inheritance or dividing the land
Chapters 23-24 – Renewing the covenant or living in the land
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Friday, July 14, 2006
THE CAPTAIN OF THE LORD'S HOST Pt. 1 - JOSHUA 5:13-15
From time to time in our verse by verse journey through God’s Word, we come to a passage of Scripture that requires us to take a side path in order to gain additional insight into God’s revelation of Himself. Such is the case with the passage before us now. This side path has to do with a character we are introduced to through an encounter with Joshua.
Joshua 5:13-15
13 Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, "Are you for us or for our adversaries?" 14 And he said, "No, rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said to him, "What has my lord to say to his servant?" 15 And the captain of the Lord's host said to Joshua, "Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so.
This individual is introduced to us as “the captain of the Lord’s host” or “the captain of the host of the Lord.” Who is this individual? Well through some Bible investigation I think we can say that this is a preincarnate appearance of Christ – the second person of the Trinity. These preincarnate appearances of Christ in the Old Testament are some times referred to as Theophanies. The word comes from two Greek words theos which means God and phaino which means to appear. According to Ron Rhodes,
Joshua 5:13-15
13 Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, "Are you for us or for our adversaries?" 14 And he said, "No, rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said to him, "What has my lord to say to his servant?" 15 And the captain of the Lord's host said to Joshua, "Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so.
This individual is introduced to us as “the captain of the Lord’s host” or “the captain of the host of the Lord.” Who is this individual? Well through some Bible investigation I think we can say that this is a preincarnate appearance of Christ – the second person of the Trinity. These preincarnate appearances of Christ in the Old Testament are some times referred to as Theophanies. The word comes from two Greek words theos which means God and phaino which means to appear. According to Ron Rhodes,
Monday, July 10, 2006
OLD TESTAMENT ORDINANCES - JOSHUA 5:1-12
God knows how easily people forget. He also knows that one of the greatest enemies of faith is forgetfulness. That is why He gave Israel certain ceremonies, rites, feasts and memorials to observe. He did not want them to lose sight of what He had done for them.
Last time we noted that He had required Israel to establish a 12 stone memorial to remind them and the generations to come of His mighty power displayed in parting the waters of the Jordan River (Josh. 4:19-24). Now as we come to chapter 5 we see the Lord reinstating two important rites or ceremonies, circumcision and Passover.
The rite of circumcision would serve to remind Israel that they were His covenant people and heirs of the unconditional promise God made to Abraham. The Passover ceremony would serve to remind them of His love and grace in delivering them out of the bondage in Egypt.
In reinstating these two important Old Testament ordinances the Lord was also spiritually preparing Israel for the battles that lie ahead.
1 Now it came about when all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea, heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel until they had crossed, that their hearts melted, and there was no spirit in them any longer, because of the sons of Israel.
Last time we noted that He had required Israel to establish a 12 stone memorial to remind them and the generations to come of His mighty power displayed in parting the waters of the Jordan River (Josh. 4:19-24). Now as we come to chapter 5 we see the Lord reinstating two important rites or ceremonies, circumcision and Passover.
The rite of circumcision would serve to remind Israel that they were His covenant people and heirs of the unconditional promise God made to Abraham. The Passover ceremony would serve to remind them of His love and grace in delivering them out of the bondage in Egypt.
In reinstating these two important Old Testament ordinances the Lord was also spiritually preparing Israel for the battles that lie ahead.
1 Now it came about when all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea, heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel until they had crossed, that their hearts melted, and there was no spirit in them any longer, because of the sons of Israel.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
OBSTACLE ILLUSIONS PT. 3 - JOSHUA 4:1-24
Joshua 3-4 is all about how God moved Israel passed the obstacle of the Jordan River and forward by faith. Along with our two previous studies we are establishing that God did three things to accomplish this.
He Gave Israel a Clear Message – v.3:1-13
He Gave Israel a Confirming Miracle – v.3:14-17
He Gave Israel a Continuing Memorial – v.4:1-24
It is this last point that we want to focus on this time.
The greatest enemy of faith may be forgetfulness. How often have we been delivered by God passed an obstacle in our life, only to struggle passed a new obstacle because we forgot about how God had delivered us before?
The Lord did not want Israel to forget about how He delivered them through the obstacle of the Jordan River, because they would face many more obstacles to come (Jericho being the next one). Because He did not want them to forget He commanded them to establish a memorial to remind them and future generations of His great work on their behalf.
He Gave Israel a Clear Message – v.3:1-13
He Gave Israel a Confirming Miracle – v.3:14-17
He Gave Israel a Continuing Memorial – v.4:1-24
It is this last point that we want to focus on this time.
The greatest enemy of faith may be forgetfulness. How often have we been delivered by God passed an obstacle in our life, only to struggle passed a new obstacle because we forgot about how God had delivered us before?
The Lord did not want Israel to forget about how He delivered them through the obstacle of the Jordan River, because they would face many more obstacles to come (Jericho being the next one). Because He did not want them to forget He commanded them to establish a memorial to remind them and future generations of His great work on their behalf.
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