Joshua 1

NOW after the death of Moses Either immediately after it, or when the days of mourning for Moses were expired. Ioshua was appointed and declared Moses his Successor in the Government before this time; and therefore doubtless entred upon the Government instantly after his death; and here he receives confirmation from God therein., the servant of the LORD This title is given to Moses here and v. 2. as also Deut. 34. 5. and is oft repeated not without cause, partly to reflect Honour upon him, partly to give Authority to his Laws and Writings, in publishing whereof he only acted as Gods Servant in his name and stead: and partly that the Israelites might not think of Moses above what was meet, remembring that he was not the Lord himself, but only the Lords Servant; and therefore not to be worshipped, nor yet to be too pertinaceously followed in all his Institutions, when the Lord himself should come and abolish part of the Mosaical Dispensation; it being but reasonable that he who was only a Servant in Gods house, should give place to him who was the Son, and Heir, and Lord of it, as Christ was. See Heb. 3. 3, 5, 6., it came to pass, that the LORD spake Either in a Dream or Vision, or by Urim, Numb. 27. 21. unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses minister i. e. Who had waited upon Moses in his great Employments, and thereby been privy to his Managery of the Government, and so fitted and prepared for it., saying,

Moses my servant is dead: now therefore arise, go over this Jordan This which is now near thee, which is the only obstacle in thy way to Canaan., thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give i. e. Am now about to give the actual Possession of it, as I formerly gave a right to it by promise. to them, even to the children of Israel.

Every place To wit, Within the following bounds. that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.

From the wilderness, and this Lebanon This emphatically, as being the most eminent Mountain in Syria, and the Northern border of the Land: or this which is within thy view; as if the Lord appeared to him in the form of a man, and pointed to it., even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites i. e. Of the Canaanites, who elsewhere are called Amorites; as Gen. 15. 16. and here Hittites by a Synecdoche: the Hittites being the most considerable and formidable of all, as may appear from Numb. 13. 33. and 14. 1. 2 King. 7. 6. and many of them being of the race of the Giants, dwelling about Hebron: See Gen. 25. 9, 10. and 26. 34. and 27. 46., and unto the great sea The Midland Sea, great in it self, and especially with those lesser Collections of waters, which the Iews called Seas., toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast Obj. The Israelites never possessed all this Land. Ans. 1. That was from their own sloth and cowardize, and disobedience to God, and breach of those Conditions upon which this Promise was suspended: See Iudg. 2. 20. 2. This Land was not all to be possessed by them at once, but by degrees, as their numbers and necessities increased; but Canaan being fully sufficient for them, and many of the Israelites being from time to time either cut off, or carried captive for their sins, there was never any need of enlarging their Possessions. 3. Though their Possessions extended not to Euphrates, yet their Dominion did, and all those Lands were tributary to them in David's and Solomon's time..

There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, To assist him against all his enemies, and in all the difficulties of governing this stiff-necked people, which Ioshua might justly fear no less than the Canaanites. so I will be with thee; I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. I will not leave thee destitute neither of inward support or of outward assistance.

Be strong, and of a good courage Ioshua, though a person of great Courage and Resolution, whereof he had given sufficient Proof, yet needs these Exhortations, partly because his work was great, and difficult, and long, and in a great measure new; partly because he had a very mean opinion of himself, especially if compared with Moses; and remembring how perverse and ungovernable that people were, even under Moses, he might very well suspect the burden of ruling them would be too heavy for his shoulders.: for † unto this people shalt thou divide for an Inheritance, the land Which supposeth the full Conquest of the land. That Honour and Assistance which I deriv... to Moses, I will give to thee. which I sware unto their fathers to give them.

Only be thou strong, and very couragious, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the Law which Moses my servant commanded thee Remember, that though thou art the Captain and Commander of my people, yet thou art my Subject, and obliged to observe all my commands.: turn not from it to the right hand or to the less that thou mayest † prosper Which plainly shows, That Gods assistance promised to him and to the Israelites, was conditional, and might justly be withdrawn upon their breach of the Conditions. whithersoever thou goest Or, That thou mayest do wisely. Whereby he instructs him in the true Art of Government; and that his greatest Wisdom will lie in the observation of all Gods Commands, and not in that pretended reason of State which other Princes govern all their Affairs by.. i. e. Whithersoever thou goest Mens actions are oft compared to ways, or journeys, or steps by which they come to the end they aim at. r i. e. In any kind, or upon any pretence.

This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth i. e. Thou shalt constantly read it, and upon occasion discourse of it, and the sentence which shall come out of thy mouth, shall in all things be given according to this Rule., but thou shalt † meditate therein day and night i. e. Diligently study, and frequently and upon all occasions consider what is Gods Will and thy Duty. The greatness of thy place and employments shall not hinder thee from this Work, because this is the only Rule of all thy private Actions, and publick Administrations., that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein Whereby he teacheth him, that it is his Duty to with his own eyes, and to understand the Mind and Law of God himself, and not blindly to follow what any other should advise him to.: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt † have good success.

Have not I commanded thee I whom thou art obliged to obey: I who can carry thee through every thing I put thee upon: I of whose Faithfulness and Almightiness thou hast had large experience?? Be strong, and of a good courage, be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,

Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals For although Manna was given them to supply their want of ordinary Provisions in the Wilderness; yet they were allowed, when they had opportunity, to purchase other Provisions, and did so, Deut. 2. 6, 28. And now having been some time in the land of the Amorites, and together with Manna used themselves to other food which that Country plentifully supplied them with; they are warned to furnish themselves therewith for their approaching march.: for within three days Qu. How can this be, when the Spies, who were not yet sent away, continued three days hid in the Mountains, Iosh. 2. 22. and the people passed not over till three days after the Spies returned? Iosh. 3. 2. Ans. These words, though placed here, seem not to have been delivered by Ioshua till after the return of the Spies; such Transpositions being so frequent in Scripture, that Interpreters have formed this general Rule, That there is no certain Order, no former nor latter in the Histories of the Scripture. And hence it comes, that these three days mentioned here, after the History of the Spies, are again repeated, Iosh. 3. 2. Besides, the Septuagint render the words, Yet three days; and the Chaldee, In the end of three days; others, After three days, as it is, Iosh. 3. 2. Or, these three days may be the same with those, Iosh. 2. 22. and the matter may be conceived thus, Ioshua gives the people notice of their passage over Iordan within three days, here, and at the same time sends away the Spies, who return ere those three days be ended. For the three days, Josh. 2. 22. may be understood of one whole day, and part of two other days, as it is in that famous instance, Matth. 27. 63, of which see more on that place, and on Matth. 12. 40. The Spies came to Iericho in the Evening of the first day, and intended to lye there, Iosh. 2. 8. but being disturbed and affrighted by the search made after them, they go away that night into the Mountains, and there abide the time mentioned. Ioshua having delivered this message from God to the Israelites, and sent away the Spies, removes from Shittim to Iordan, Iosh. 3. 1. being sufficiently assured of his safe passage over Iordan, whatsoever became of the Spies; and after those three days mentioned here were past, Iosh. 3. 2. he sends the Officers to the people with a second message about the manner of their actual passing over. ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land which the LORD your God giveth you to possess it.

And to the Reubenite, and to the Gadite, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, spake Joshua, saying,

Remember the words which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you His charge to you, and your promise to him, which they were obliged to keep; and Ioshua was to see that they did so., saying, The LORD your God has given you rest i. e. A place of rest, as that word signifies; See on Gen. 49. 15., and has given you this land.

Your wives, your little ones, and your cattel shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side Jordan: but ye shall pass To wit, over Iordan. before your brethren Either, 1. in their presence. Or, 2. In the front of all of them; which was but reasonable; partly, because they had the advantage of their brethren, having actually received their Portion, which their Brethren had only in hope, and therefore were obliged to more service, the rather to prevent the envy of the other Tribes; partly because they were freed from those Impediments which the rest were exposed to, their Wives, and Children, and Estates being safely lodged; and partly to prevent their retreat and withdrawing themselves from the present service, which they otherwise should have had opportunity and temptation to do, because of the nearness of their Habitations. armed For by this time they were well furnished with Arms, which they had either from the Egyptians, or Amalekites, or Amorites, from whom they had taken them; or by purchase from those people by whose borders they passed. Or, in military order: See on Exod. 13. 18., all the mighty men of valour All such were obliged to go over if occasion required it, but Ioshua took only some of them, partly because they were sufficient for his purpose, and partly because some were fit to be left, both to secure their own Wives, Children, and Possessions, and to prevent their enemies on that side from giving them disturbance or hinderance in their enterprize upon Canaan., and help them:

Until the LORD have given your brethren rest, as he has given you, and they also have possessed the land which the LORD your God giveth them: then ye shall return unto the land of your possession, and enjoy it, which Moses the LORDs servant gave you on this side Jordan, toward the sun-rising.

And they answered i. e. The Reubenites, &c. mentioned v. 12. to whom Ioshua's Discourse is confined v. 13, 14, 15. No doubt the other Tribes expressed the same thing; but this is only recorded concerning these, because that might seem most doubtful, and the obedience of the rest was unquestionable. Joshua, saying, All that thou commandest us, we will do, and whithersoever thou sendest us, we will go.

According as we hearkned unto Moses in all things, so will we hearken unto thee The same obedience which we owed, and those of us who are now alive generally performed to Moses, we promise unto thee.: only the LORD thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses This is not a limitation of their obedience, as if they would not obey him any further or longer than he was prosperous or successful; but an additional Prayer for him As we have hereby promised thee our obedience, so our Prayer shall be, That God would bless and prosper thee, as he did Moses..

Whosoever he be that does rebel against thy commandment, and will not hearken unto thy words in all that thou commandest him Not repugnant to Gods commands; for none can be so foolish to think, that if he had commanded the people to blaspheme God, or worship Idols, the people were obliged to obey him therein., he shall be put to death: only be strong, and of a good courage.