Studies in the Life of Joshua

#6 Preparing to Possess the Land Joshua 5

Before Israel was ready to face the enemy, they  needed a preparation of heart and

willingness to submit to God’s directions that they might experience His power. To ensure victory,

God took them through several events to instruct and prepare them for battle

The nation of Israel arrived safely on the other side of the Jordan River. Their crossing was a great miracle, and it sent a great message to the people of the land (5:1). The Canaanites were already afraid (2:9-11), and now their fears totally demoralized them.

You would have expected Joshua to mobilize the army immediately and attack Jericho. After all, the people of Israel were united in following the Lord; and the people of the land were paralyzed by fear. From the human point of view, it was the perfect time for Joshua to act.

But God’s thoughts and ways are higher than ours (Isa. 55:8-9); and Joshua was getting his orders from the Lord, not from the military experts. The nation crossed the river on the tenth day of the first month (Josh. 4:19). The events described in Joshua 5 took at least ten days, and then the people marched around Jericho for six more days. God waited over two weeks before giving His people their first victory in the land.

God’s people must be prepared before they can be trusted with victory. The triumphant conquest of the land was to be the victory of God, not the victory of Israel or of Joshua. It was neither the expertise of the Jewish army nor the emotions of the enemy that would give Israel the victory, but the presence and blessing of the Lord.

Chapter 5 describes the consecration of the people of Israel in preparation for the great task that lay before them. As such, it stands as a bridge between the crossing of the Jordan and the beginning of the military campaigns to subju­gate the inhabitants of the land. For many, however, especially to those trained in military tactics, this chapter may seem like an enigma, at least from man’s point of view. And of course, that’s precisely the issue here.

God’s ways are infinitely higher than ours. From all appearances, now was the time to attack the enemy. The people of Israel were filled with the excitement and motivation of having miraculously crossed the Jordan. They apparently knew the enemy was in disarray from the standpoint of their morale (5:1); so surely, it was time to strike. Many of the military leaders under Joshua’s command may have been thinking, “Let’s not wait! Let’s go! Now is the logical time and the enemy is ripe for the taking!”

But in God’s economy and plan there are spiritual values, priorities, and principles that are far more vital and fundamental to victory or our capacity to attack and demolish the fortresses that the world has raised up against the knowledge and plan of God (2 Cor. 10:4-5). Looking at conditions from our perspective of deadlines, feeling the pressure to perform and accomplish things in order to please people and sometimes our own egos, we are too often in a hurry to ‘get the show on the road.’

But to be successful from God’s standpoint, certain things are essential if we are going to attack the various fortresses of life in His strength and according to His principles.

Before Israel was ready to face the enemy, they too needed a similar preparation of heart and willingness to submit to God’s directions that they might experience His power. To ensure victory, God took them through several events to instruct and prepare them for battle. Chapter five falls into five instructive sections, each one fundamental to victory. These include:

(1) A statement regarding the morale of the inhabitants of the land (5:1).

(Joshua 5:1 NIV)  Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard how the LORD had dried up the Jordan before the Israelites until we had crossed over, their hearts melted and they no longer had the courage to face the Israelites.

Essential to spiritual victory is our understanding that in Christ, all the enemies we face are, in essence, defeated foes (cf. Rom. 6; Col. 2:1-15; Heb. 2:14).

(2) The renewal of the rite of circumcision (5:2-9).

(Joshua 5:2-9 NIV)  At that time the LORD said to Joshua, "Make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites again." {3} So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath Haaraloth. {4} Now this is why he did so: All those who came out of Egypt--all the men of military age--died in the desert on the way after leaving Egypt. {5} All the people that came out had been circumcised, but all the people born in the desert during the journey from Egypt had not. {6} The Israelites had moved about in the desert forty years until all the men who were of military age when they left Egypt had died, since they had not obeyed the LORD. For the LORD had sworn to them that they would not see the land that he had solemnly promised their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. {7} So he raised up their sons in their place, and these were the ones Joshua circumcised. They were still uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way. {8} And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed. {9} Then the LORD said to Joshua, "Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you." So the place has been called Gilgal to this day.

As a sign of God’s covenant with Abraham, circumcision stood for Israel’s faith in God’s promises which included the possession of the land as their inheritance. It was an act of faith and spiritual preparation.

(3) The observance of the Passover (5:10).

(Joshua 5:10 NIV)  On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover.

By partaking of the Passover, Israel was to relive their deliver­ance out of Egypt by the blood of the Lamb, but as with circumcision, this too was related to the land. As observing the Passover in Egypt protected them from the destroying angel, it also assured them of two more things: (a) that just as the Red Sea crossing would be followed by the destruc­tion of the Egyptians (b) so likewise the crossing of the Jordan would be followed by the defeat of the Canaanites. Remembering the past became an excellent preparation of faith for the tests of the future.

(4) Eating of the produce of the land with the ceasing of the manna (5:11-12).

(Joshua 5:11-12 NIV)  The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. {12} The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate of the produce of Canaan.

As just seen, observing the Passover stood for God’s deliverance out of Egypt and from judgment of the destroying angel, but for God’s covenant people, deliverance from Egypt included the promise they would inherit the land, a land of abun­dance, a land of wheat, barley, fig trees, olive oil and honey (cf. Deut. 8:8-9).

It spoke of their new beginning, of their new life as the people of God delivered from judgment and rock solid in the place of blessing. May I repeat the principle: the Passover not only looked back, but it looked forward to their new life in the land enjoying its abundant blessings by the power of God. Thus, eating of the produce was an act of confirmation of God’s abundant blessing.

(5) Joshua’s encounter with the Captain of the hosts of the Lord (5:13-15) becomes the last key event of preparation, which we shall look at later in this series:

(Joshua 5:13-15 NIV)  Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?" {14} "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, "What message does my Lord have for his servant?" {15} The commander of the Lord's army replied, "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so.

The Condition of Canaanites  (5:1)

Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard how the LORD had dried up the Jordan before the Israelites until we had crossed over, their hearts melted and they no longer had the courage to face the Israelites (NIV).

God’s drying up the waters of the Jordan caused the inhabitants of Canaan to fear Israel greatly. Such reactions of fear or opposition were common as Israel entered the land (9:1–4; 10:1, 2; 11:1–5). The language here especially recalls the same thought expressed earlier by Rahab (2:10, 11). This verse forms a transition between the Jordan crossing in chs. 3 and 4 and the adversaries to be encountered later in chs. 6—12. we: Most early translations and editions of the text read “they” here, including the earliest extant Hebrew manuscripts of Joshua (from Qumran), the earliest translations into Aramaic and Greek, and the marginal notations of the early Jewish scribes, the Masoretes.^[1]

This first important statement shows the demoralized condition of the inhabitants of the land. They were, in essence, an already defeated foe. They were fearful of the nation of Israel because of the mighty works of God described in verse 1. However, this truth needs to be seen in light of the twofold purpose of 4:24, one for the nations, “that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty,” and the other for Israel, “so that you may fear the Lord your God.”

Before moving on to the renewal of circumcision, it would be well to reflect briefly on the statements of verse one regarding the morale of the inhabitants in view of the mighty works of God. There are some significant and instructive New Testament parallels here.

It is vital that God’s people recognize and understand that the Lord is not only mightier than all our enemies, whether the world, the flesh, or the devil, but He has defeated them for us in the person and work of Christ, the Victorious One.

In John 16:33, Jesus encouraged His disciples with these words: “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”

Because Christ is truly the Overcomer, we too can be overcomers, indeed, we are super conquerors in Him. Our capacity, however,  to overcome and tear down the fortresses raised up against the knowledge of God and their impact on us and others is always dependent on our new life in the Savior. For this reason, Paul prayed, “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in His triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place” (2 Cor. 2:14, emphasis mine).

But being triumphant in Christ is not automatic. Overcoming through the Savior requires that we be rightly related to Him as well as focused and dependent on Him as the source of our daily walk, step by step. Our need is to be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might (Eph. 6:10f).

For this reason, Israel not only needed to know they faced a defeated and demoralized foe, but they needed spiritual preparation. Thus, the Lord led them through a number of important experiences to spiritually fortify and prepare them to enter into the battle that lay before them.

The Circumcision of the People Renewed  (5:2-9)

In verse 2, the Lord instructs Joshua to circumcise the sons of Israel a second time. Obviously, “a second time” does not mean the men who had already been circumcised were to be circumcised again. Rather, as a nation this was the second time all the men were circumcised, the first being while the old generation was still in Egypt.

During the time the children of Israel were slaves in Egypt they had not practiced circumcision, not until they were about to leave. Circumcision was an Egyptian practice with religious connotations, being reserved for the priests and upper-class citizens. Because of this, it would most likely have been prohibited as a practice for the Israelites. At any rate, every male who partook of the Passover in Egypt, native Israelite or stranger, was then circumcised (cf. Josh. 5:5 with Ex. 12:43-49). The comment concerning this circumcision in Exodus 12:50 is, “… then all the sons of Israel did so.”

But why the renewal of the rite of circumcision and especially at this time for it would certainly leave the men of war more vulnerable to attack because it totally disabled the men for a period of time. For an illustration of the effects of circumcision on adult men, compare the story in Genesis 34 regarding the Shechemites and the sons of Jacob.

The Shechemite men, who wanted to intermarry with the Israelites women, agreed to be circumcised, but this was only a ruse to incapacitate them for battle. Genesis 34:25 reads, “Now it came about on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came upon the city unawares, and killed every male.”

Man’s wisdom would have called for an immediate attack, but instead, God called for a delay for the purpose of spiritual preparation. Verses 4-9 explain the specific reasons:

(1) It was because none of the men born after they came out of the wilderness during the stay in the wilderness had been circumcised. They had failed to practice the right of circumcision while in the wilderness (vss. 4-7). This may have been a further evidence of their disobedience and lack of faith and confidence in God’s covenant with the nation through Abraham. But more than anything else, because of what circumcision stood for, it was unfit­ting for them to practice circumcision in the wilderness as a judged people who would die there. Circumcision was a sign of God’s covenant promises to Abraham which included the possession of the  land (cf. Gen. 17:8f). The old generation would never possess the land because of their unbelief.

(2) Circumcision, as a sign of the covenant, was the means of becoming identified with the covenant promises of God to Abraham and to his descendants, the nation of Israel. As such, it was to be a sign of faith in what God would do through and for His people. Undoubtedly, for this reason no male could legitimately partake of the Passover if he was uncircumcised (Ex. 12:43f). The Passover reminded Israel of their deliverance from Egypt, but it was a deliverance that had as its goal the possession of the land.

(3) The Lord acknowl­edged the completion of circumcision with the words, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you. So the name of that place is called Gilgal to this day” (vs. 9). As previously seen, Gilgal means a circle and referred to the circle of stones placed at Gilgal when they were crossing the Jordan as a memorial of God’s deliver­ance. But as also pointed out, Gilgal comes from the Hebrew term, galal, “to roll, or roll away.” The word for a wheel (a circle which rolls as used in a chariot) comes from this word. So there is a play on words here for the sake of teaching an important truth.

It’s also been suggested that “the reproach of Egypt” refers to the nation’s shame because they had worshiped idols in Egypt (Ezek. 20:7-8; 23:3) and even during their wilderness wanderings (Amos 5:25-26; Acts 7:42-43). But that older generation was now dead, and the younger Israelites certainly shouldn’t be blamed for the sins of their fathers. Furthermore, it’s difficult for me to see the relationship between crossing the river, circumcision, and the Jews’ idolatry in Egypt.

Based on Genesis 34:14, Unger thinks the “reproach was the shame and disgrace of uncircumc­ision.”[2] But Ryrie, probably because of Exodus 32:12, believes it refers to “the taunts leveled by the Egyptians at the Israelites for their failure to gain their promised land.”[3]

I think that “the reproach of Egypt” refers to the ridicule of the enemy when Israel failed to trust God at Kadesh Barnea and enter the Promised Land. When Aaron made the golden calf at Mt. Sinai and the people broke God’s law, God threatened to destroy them and make a new nation from Moses. But Moses argued that God would lose glory if He did that, because the Egyptians would only say that God delivered them in order to kill them (Ex. 32:1-12). At Kadesh Barnea Moses used the same appeal when God said He would destroy Israel (Num. 14:11-14). Moses didn’t want the Egyptians to spread the word that the God of Israel couldn’t finish what He had started.

Israel’s sin at Kadesh Barnea was a reproach to them, but now that was all in the past. The nation was actually in the Promised Land! They had captured the territory east of the Jordan, and their people were already occupying it (Num. 32). They had crossed the Jordan River and were ready for conquest. No matter what the Egyptians and the other nations had said about Israel because of their sin at Kadesh Barnea, that reproach was now completely gone. Each man bore on his body the mark that reminded him that he belonged to God, he was a son of the covenant, and the land was his to conquer and possess.

A new significance was thus attached to the name Gilgal. First, Gilgal would stand for what God had done in rolling back the waters of Jordan that they might cross on dry land. But, second, it would also remind Israel of what they had done as an act of faith and obedience through the rite of circumci­sion.

Circumcision symbolized their faith in what God would do to enable them to posses the land. Included in this was their separat­ed commitment to Him and to His purposes for them as His people.[4]

It was these two things, the mighty works of God and their act of faith, that had rolled away the reproach of Egypt. At Gilgal the people were to remember God’s covenant promis­es and past deliverance in order that they might live as His people and possess their possession in the days that lay ahead.

In essence, then, God was saying at Gilgal that to be victorious against the enemies of the land, you must be a holy people and trust Me to fight your battles; you must trust in My covenant promises and be committed to me as My people, ever keeping in mind your purpose as a nations of priests, My own possession among all the peoples of the earth (Ex. 19:5-6).

Through this ritual the Jews became a “marked people” because they belonged to the true and living God. This meant that they were under obligation to obey Him. The mark of the covenant reminded them that their bodies belonged to the Lord and were not to be used for sinful purposes. Israel was surrounded by nations that worshiped idols and included in their worship rituals that were sensual and degrading. The mark of the covenant reminded the Jews that they were a special people, a separated people, a holy nation (Ex. 19:5-6), and that they were to maintain purity in their marriages, their society, and their worship of God.

This physical operation on the body was meant to be a symbol of a spiritual operation on the heart. “Therefore circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and be stiff-necked no longer” (Deut. 10:16, nkjv). No amount of external surgery can change the inner person. It’s when we repent and turn to God for help that He can change our hearts and make us love and obey Him more. (See Rom. 2:25-29.)

But over the years, the Jews came to trust in the external mark of the covenant and not in the God of the covenant who wanted to make them a holy people. They thought that as long as they were God’s covenant people, they could live just as they pleased! Moses warned them about this sin (Deut. 30:6), and so did the prophets (Jer. 4:4). When John the Baptist called them to repent, the Jewish spiritual leaders said, “We have Abraham as our father” (Matt. 3:9, nkjv).

Flint is a rock found in abundance in biblical lands, and its use is known from almost all periods of ancient history; many flint knives have been found in excavations. Flint was gradually replaced by metals, such as copper, bronze, and iron. Only in two places in the OT is the Hebrew word flint found, here and in Ex. 4:26, both in connection with circumcision.^[5]

This also was an opportunity to test their faith! Israel was camped in enemy territory, just a few miles from Jericho. Now they were going to temporarily disable every male in the nation, including every soldier in the army! What a golden opportunity for the enemy to attack and wipe them out. (See Gen. 34.) It took faith for Joshua and the people to obey the Lord, but their obedience to the Law was the secret of their success (Josh. 1:7-8). In their weakness they were made strong; and through faith and patience they inherited the promises (Heb. 6:12).

Shortly after Israel departed from Egypt, God tested them at Meribah; and they failed the test (Ex. 17:1-7; Ps. 81:7). Shortly after Israel entered the Promised Land, God tested them by commanding the men to be circumcised; and they passed the test. The people had faith to obey God, and this act gave evidence that they would obey His orders as they marched through the land.

After we’ve experienced an exciting victory of faith, God often permits us to be tested. Abraham arrived in the land of promise and was confronted with a famine (Gen. 12). Elijah triumphed over Baal and was threatened with death (1 Kings 18-19). After His baptism in the Jordan, the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan (Matt. 3:13-4:11).

Since great victories can lead to great pride, God allows us to be tested in order to remind us to depend on Him.

Andrew Bonar (1810-92) used to say, “Let us be as watchful after the victory as before the battle.”

The Passover Celebrated (5:10)  Forgetting those things which are behind” (Phil. 3:13) is wise counsel for most areas of life, but there are some things we must never forget. In his farewell address to the nation, Moses repeatedly commanded the Jews to remember that they were once slaves in Egypt and that the Lord had delivered them and made them His own people (Deut. 6:15; 15:15; 16:12; 24:18, 22). This great truth was embodied in their annual Passover feast. They were never to forget that they were a redeemed people, set free by the blood of the lamb.

The Israelites celebrated the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month, four days after they crossed the Jordan River (4:19), at twilight. The Israelites scrupulously kept the instructions concerning the Passover (Ex. 12:6).^[6]

Forty years before, Israel had celebrated the Passover on the night of their deliverance from Egypt (Ex. 11-14). They also celebrated Passover at Mt. Sinai, before leaving for Kadesh Barnea (Num. 9:1-14); but there is no evidence that they commemorated the Passover at any time during their years of wilderness wandering. The fact that the new generation wasn’t circumcised prevented them from participating, and God had temporarily suspended His covenant with His people because of their rebellion at Kadesh Barnea. That one act of unbelief had cost Israel dearly.

With circumcision accomplished, the people were spiritually ready and qualified to observe the Passover. It is also significant that they crossed just in time to observe it on the fourteenth day of the month.

The death of Jesus Christ is typified in the slaying of the Passover lamb (1 Cor. 5:7), and His resurrection is typified in the “wave offering” that was presented on the day after the Sabbath that followed Passover (Lev. 23:10-14; 1 Cor. 15:23). The day after the Sabbath would be the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day, the day of Christ’s resurrection (Matt. 28:1). Again, we see the picture of death and resurrection, which is our only means of life and victory (Rom. 6:4).

The Passover was followed by the Feast of Unleavened Bread when for a week the Jews avoided leaven (yeast) and ate unleavened bread (Ex. 12:15, 18-20). When Israel entered Canaan, it was time for the barley harvest; thus grain was available. No doubt the inhabitants of the area had left grain behind when they fled to Jericho for safety; thus that grain was also available. The Lord prepared a table for His people in the presence of their enemies, and Israel didn’t have to be afraid (Ps. 23:5).

On the day after Passover, the manna ceased; and thus ended a forty-year miracle (Ex. 16). If the Passover reminded the Jews of their redemption from Egypt, the manna reminded them of their desire to go back to Egypt! “Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full” (Ex. 16:3).

God fed His people the bread of heaven, the food of the angels (Ps. 78:23-25); and yet they still lusted for the food of Egypt (Num. 11:4-9). God easily took His people out of Egypt, but it was difficult for Him to take Egypt out of His people.

Too many professed Christians contradict their profession by exhibiting an appetite for what belongs to their past life. “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth” (Col. 3:1-2, nkjv).

Using the imagery from Joshua, this means, “You’ve crossed the river and are now in your inheritance. Don’t look back and desire the things of Egypt or the wilderness. Let God feed you and satisfy you with the harvest in the inheritance.”

The harvest is another image of death and resurrection. The seed is buried in the ground and dies, but from that death comes forth beauty and fruitfulness. Jesus applied to Himself both the image of the manna (John 6:26-59) and the harvest (12:20-28), for He is the nourishment upon which we must feed.

Note God’s precise timing here.

This was only the third Passover the people had kept. The first was in Egypt (Ex. 12:1-28), the second was at Mt. Sinai just before they broke camp (Num. 9:1-5), and the third was here at Gilgal. But why the Passover? By partaking of the Passover, they were to relive their deliver­ance out of Egypt by the blood of the Lamb sprinkled on the doorposts and on the lintel of their houses in Egypt.

Campbell writes: As the lambs were slain they were assured that as the Red Sea crossing was followed by the destruc­tion of the Egyptians, so the crossing of the Jordan would be followed by the defeat of the Canaanites. So remembering the past was an excellent preparation for the tests of the future.[7]

The Passover not only reminded them of their deliverance and redemption out of Egypt, but it looked forward to other victories—to the defeat of the Canaanites, but also to a victory accomplished in Jerusalem on Calvary. It naturally pointed to the cross where Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.: Clean out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed (1 Cor. 5:7).

The Lord’s Supper or Communion is that act of worship where we too are to remember the person and work of the Savior as the Lamb of God who died in our place, bearing our sin that we might have life and life abundantly.

The first Lord’s Supper was also the last Passover, at least biblically speaking, for it instituted the New Covenant of God’s relationship with men through the Cross and closed out the Old Covenant which consisted in types and shadows (cf. Heb. 8:6-13). As one studies the Passover and how it was to be observed according to Scripture, this becomes even more evident and significant when you consider how the Passover is celebrated today by the Jewish community. When Jews today celebrate the Passover they do not sacrifice a lamb. They have only a dry bone of a lamb. They have not celebrated the Passover by sacrificing a lamb for over nineteen hundred years. Why? In Exodus 12:14 God said to Israel, “you are to cele­brate it (the Passover) as a permanent ordi­nance.” Why do Jews fail to obey this com­mand?

First, the orthodox Jews say, “Leviticus 17:8, 9 forbids the Israelite from sacri­ficing outside the temple, the prescribed place for sacri­fice. Consequently, since the temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. and they still have no temple, we cannot carry out God’s com­mand to kill a lamb for the Passover.” Jewish people are faced with a dilemma. On the one hand God demands that they kill a lamb as a permanent ordinance. On the other hand, God makes it impossi­ble for Jews to do this very thing. Why?

Because Jesus Christ is the Lamb and the answer. Paul, himself, a Jew, but one who came to faith in Christ, tells us that “Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed” (1 Cor. 5:7). Christ is the Passover Lamb and the fulfillment of the Old Testament Pass­over. Since His death, the observance of the Pass­over in the typical Jewish fashion is illegitimate. In place of the Passover we are to keep the Lord’s Supper, a memorial that the Lamb has come and will come again.

Let’s note Paul’s words 1 Corinthians 5:7-8: “Clean out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleav­ened bread of sincerity and truth.”

He did not say “let us keep the Passover” because it has been sacrificed for us once and for all. Instead, our responsibility lies with the feast of unleavened bread which speaks of purity of life. Thus Paul spoke figuratively saying, “let us keep the feast … with sincerity and truth.”

Application: As it was with Israel, so today the Lord wants Christians to dispossess their enemies. Our enemies are those things that stand against our fellowship with the Lord and our fruitfulness. We too must remember that our deliverance comes from one source—the work of God for us in Christ. But this is so hard for us to grasp regardless of what we know doctrinally because of our natural penchant to lean on our own strategies and effort to live our lives by our own means, even in spiritual matters.

Further, as Israel was to keep the Passover in remembrance of the past and with a hope for the future fulfillment of its shadows and types, so we are to keep the Lord’s Supper remembering not only the victory of the cross, but in anticipation of the return of Christ: “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26).

The Crops of the Land -- Enjoyed and the Manna Ceases (5:11-12)

Enjoyment of the Produce (vs. 11)

With verse eleven, our attention is focused on the fact they ate of the crops of the land on the very next day after celebrating the Pass­over. The text says, “And on the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate …” But why? The explanation that follows answers this question.

Again, the Passover stood for God’s deliverance out of Egypt and from judgment of the destroying angel. But for God’s covenant people, deliverance from Egypt included the promise they would inherit the land, a land of abun­dance, a land of wheat, barley, fig trees, olive oil and honey (cf. Deut. 8:8-9). It spoke of the their new beginning, of their new life as the people of God delivered from judgment and rock solid in the place of blessing. May I repeat the principle: the Passover not only looked back, but it looked forward to their new life in the land enjoying its abundant blessings by the power of God.

23 “For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to come in to your houses to smite you. 24 And you shall observe this event as an ordinance for you and your children forever. 25 And it will come about when you enter the land which the Lord will give you, as He has promised, that you shall observe this rite (cf. Ex. 12:25, emphasis mine; see also Ex. 13:8-9).

As mentioned, the Passover had not been observed since Mount Sinai (Numbers 9) after which they broke camp and began their march toward the land. But at Kadesh-Barnea they rebelled and failed to believe God’s promises. They became a people under the judgment of God’s discipline; the old generation could no longer go into the land and so there were no Passover observances. But now the new generation had crossed over by faith in the power of God. Now that they are in the land and have celebrated the Passover in faith, they are able to appropriate the blessings of the land and taste of the goodness of the Lord.

Further, we should note they ate what is defined as “unleavened cakes and parched grain.” The Passover was to be followed by the feast of unleav­ened bread which lasted for seven days (Ex. 12:15). Leaven is a symbol of corruption and evil in Scripture. The unleavened bread spoke of Christ who is without sin, and eating the bread spoke of fellowship with the Lord following self-examination and confession of sin so there is no known sin in the life; only then can one properly feed and draw sustenance from the Savior’s life (cf. 1 Cor. 11:28f).

So, the nation ate of the produce, which was surely to be a demonstration of faith and a lesson from the Lord of the saving life of God through fellowship with Him.

The Cessation of the Manna (vs. 12)

After eating the produce of the land, our attention is immediately focused on the fact the manna ceased. There is an obvious connection here. But what is it?

For forty years, the children of Israel had eaten of the manna as God’s special supply for them in the wilderness, even after their acts of rebellion and unbelief and God’s refusal to allow them to enter the land. But they were still His people; they were the objects of His love, and because of that and for the sake of the younger generation who would cross over, the manna contin­ued to be supplied.

But what was the manna? It was a supernatural gift for the desert journey, but it was not food for the land of promise. From now on, in keeping with their possession of their land, God would supply food through natural means, which is God’s normal means of supply. When we walk with the Lord, when we focus on Him and live obediently, we are able to appropriate and taste of His goodness. Miracles like the manna are exceptions to the rule, special provisions for special purposes. While the Lord is always able to work supernatural miracles at will, we should not expect them nor should we be disappointed or think something is wrong with our walk when we do not experience them.

Finally, we need to note that tasting of the blessings of the Promised Land was only a foretaste of what was to come. Experiencing our blessings in Christ should lead to a two-fold expectation: through fellowship and faith, there is always more for us to taste of the goodness and mercy of God in this life (1 Pet. 2:1-3), but this is only a taste of richer and more abundant blessings to experience in eternity as the people of God. How exactly is the Holy Spirit defined for us in the New Testament? He is called “the earnest of the Spirit.” His blessed indwelling is a promise of much more to come.

Thankfully, the Lord continues to love and care for us even when we are in the wilderness, but manna can’t compare to the abundance of fellowship with the Lord.

The Captain of the Lord’s Army (5:13-15)

Joshua had read in the Book of the Law what Moses had said to the Lord after Israel had made the golden calf: “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here” (Ex. 33:15, nkjv). The Lord had promised to be with Joshua just as He had been with Moses (Josh. 1:5), and now He reaffirmed that promise in a personal way. Like his predecessor, Joshua refused to move until he was sure the Lord’s presence was with him.

With everything apparently prepared for the conquest of the land, the next scene opens with Joshua, God’s appointed commander of Israel, not in the camp of Israel at Gilgal, but out by the city of Jericho. What do you suppose he was doing there? He was surely about the Lord’s work gathering information about the city and its fortifications in preparation to launch his attack.

Joshua was naturally concerned about several things. First of all, he needed a plan of action. Just how would they go about attacking Jericho, probably the best fortified city in Canaan. They had little or no experience for besieging a city like Jericho. Further, they undoubtedly lacked equipment such as battering rams, catapults, scaling ladders or moving towers. All they had were swords, arrows, slings, and spears which naturally would seem totally inadequate for the task before them.

So how would Joshua prepare his army and how should they go about taking the city? He must have felt like the weight of the world was pressing down on his shoulders.

Can we fault Joshua for being at Jericho and surveying the situation? Absolutely not. In fact, another great leader, Nehemiah, did the same when faced with the condition of the walls of Jerusalem. Nevertheless, Joshua needed an encounter with the God whom he served that he might grasp afresh an important truth, one that was equally vital as part of his preparation for victory by the power of God. As all of God’s saints tend to get their eyes on the enormous task facing them at times, something was missing in Joshua’s perspective as he looked over the city of Jericho. Perhaps he simply needed to be reminded of some very important truth for both clarification and encouragement.

The Man’s Position

With Joshua’s mind engrossed in his concerns about the task before him and feeling the weight of the responsibility on his shoulders, he looks up and there stands a man with sword drawn. What kind of picture does this bring to mind and what does it mean? Standing with any weapon drawn is a military position of one who either stands guard defensively or stands ready to go against a foe offensively. Standing with sword drawn suggested he was there to fight either for or against Israel.

The Man’s Identity

The capitalization of Man, here, indicates the translators’ judgment that this was God Himself, or perhaps Christ. Hebrew has no capitalization scheme, so such decisions are left to scholars to make on other grounds. Many scholars connect the appearance here of this man, the commander of the Yahweh’s army, with the Angel of the Lord spoken of elsewhere. Joshua’s question Are you for us reflects a natural human concern with the immediate battles ahead and whether he could count on this man.^[8]

Verse 14 tells us this man came as the “captain of the hosts of the Lord,” the commander of the Lord’s army. Joshua’s response in verse 14b and the statement of the captain in verse 15 shows this was a theophany, or better, based on the truth of John 1:1-18, it was a Christophany, a manifestation of the preincarnate Christ, who, as the Logos, is the one who reveals God. If this was only a man or an angel, he would certainly have repelled Joshua’s worshipful response (vs. 14). Compare the response of Paul in Acts 14:8-20 to those who wanted to make them into gods and the response of the angel to John in Revelation 19:10.

Here then, the preincarnate Christ appears to Joshua to teach and reinforce certain vital truths for God’s people, especially for those in positions of leadership, which really includes all believers to some degree.

This paragraph records one of the pre-incarnation appearances of the Lord Jesus Christ recorded in the Old Testament. To Abraham the pilgrim, the Lord came as a traveler to share in a friendly meal (Gen. 18:1-8). To Jacob the schemer, He came as a wrestler to bring him to the place of submission (32:24-32). The three Hebrew men met Him as their companion in the furnace of fire (Dan. 3:25), and Joshua met Him as the Captain of the Lord’s armies. Our Lord always comes to us when we need Him and in the way we need Him.

It must have been a great encouragement to Joshua to realize that he was not alone. There is a loneliness to leadership that can be disturbing and even depressing as you realize how much your decisions affect the lives of others. “To be President of the United States is to be lonely,” said Harry Truman, “very lonely at times of great decisions.” Joshua must have been feeling some of that loneliness.

God had promised to be with Joshua (Josh. 1:5, 9), and the people had prayed that the Lord would be with him (vv. 16-17). The enemy knew that God was with Israel (2:8ff), and Joshua had encouraged his people with this promise (3:9ff). Joshua was now experiencing the reality of that promise! The Lord met him as Captain of the Lord’s armies, whether in heaven or on earth. “The Lord of hosts [armies] is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge” (Ps. 46:7, 11). Joshua would recall the song Israel had sung at the Red Sea: “The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is His name” (Ex. 15:3).

Joshua’s Question

 … and Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us or for our adversaries?” (vs. 13b).

This was a natural response to a man with his sword drawn and expressed Joshua’s concern as well as his courage. No one from the army of Israel should have been there for evidently no orders had been given for anyone to leave the camp. So who was this stranger who suddenly appeared out of nowhere? Surely, Joshua thought, “Since he is not one of us, could he be the enemy or perhaps someone who has come to help us?”

But in view of the answer given to Joshua, Joshua’s question reveals a typical mindset that poses a threat and a hindrance to our effectiveness in the service of the Savior. What then is that mindset? We tend to see the battles we face as our battles and the forces we face as forces marshaled against us and our individual causes, concerns, agendas, and even our theological beliefs or positions on doctrine. And in a sense, that is true, if we are truly standing in the cause of Christ. But there is another sense in which that is simply not true, and that is the issue here.

The Answer Given to Joshua

And he said, “No, rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD” (vs. 14a).

The stranger did not respond to Joshua’s question, but instead identified Himself. He was the Commander of the army of the Lord. This elicited a response of humble worship from Joshua. Rather than any further questions about this Man’s loyalties, Joshua asked how he could serve this One greater than him: What does my Lord say to His servant? The Book of Job ends in a similar manner. God did not answer Job’s questions either. There as here it was the encounter with God that mattered most (Job 42:5, 6). Questions were silenced, and humble worship was evoked.^[9]

The answer comes in two parts. The first part of the answer is seen in a flat negation of either one of Joshua’s options. The first answer is simply a flat “neither.” Why didn’t he reply, “I am here for you and for Israel”? Instead, the man with his sword drawn said, “Neither; I am not here to take sides, yours or that of anyone else.”

The second part of the answer gives the reason. “And he said, ‘No, rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD.’” In other words, “I am here, not to take sides, but to take over as Commander of the Lord’s Army.” This is vitally important and lays down two principles that are foundational for all of life and our warfare against the forces of the world and Satan. There is no question that the Lord was there with the armies of heaven to secure Jericho so God’s people could possess their inheritance (the Promised Land) and yet a certain perspective was vital for true success.

The first principle: It was not for Joshua to claim God’s allegiance for his cause no matter how right and holy it might be. Rather, the need was for Joshua to acknowledge God’s claim over him for God’s purposes. We tend to approach our battles and causes backwards; we turn things around and try to marshal God to support us rather than to submit and follow Him. Certainly, the battle was a joint venture, God and the people of Israel under Joshua’s leadership as appointed by the Lord (1:1-9), but Joshua, as with all of us in the army of the King, must be following the Lord, submitting to His authority, taking our orders from Him, and resting the battle in His hands because we realize it is really His battle as the Supreme Commander. There seems to be no question that Joshua understood this as evidenced by his question, “What has my Lord to say to his servant?” Here he was asking the Lord for orders and it was surely then that he received the directions for taking Jericho.

The second principle: As the One who had come to take charge, the Lord was also reminding Joshua (and us) of both God’s personal presence and His powerful provision, the provision of His vast hosts. The promise of God’s personal presence always carries with it the assurance of God’s personal care. Likewise, the promise of His powerful provision always carries with it the promise of His infinite supply and power no matter how impossible the problem may appear to us. So there was more, infinitely more, than Joshua’s army. There was Joshua and his army, but there was also the myriads of God’s angelic forces who always stand ready to do God’s bidding and to serve the saints. Three other passages can serve as helpful examples that we might grasp the issue here and its significance to our daily walk.

First, compare 2 Kings 6:8-17. When Elisha was at Dothan with his young servant, he found himself surrounded by the army of Ben-Hadad, who, during the night had marched out and surrounded the city of Dothan. The next morning, when Elisha’s servant went out to draw water, he saw the vast army surrounding the city. Being fearful and greatly distressed, he cried out to Elisha, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” Elisha responded, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Elisha then prayed a very interesting prayer. He said, “O Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” We then read that “the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” They were not alone. With them to fight for them was a host of God’s angelic forces who soon struck the armies of the king of Syria with blindness.

A second example is found for us in Matthew 26:53. With the disciples still reluctant and perplexed over the fact Christ must go to the cross, Peter drew his sword and struck the slave of the high priest cutting off his ear. Jesus replied, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?”

A final example of God’s angelic army and their ministry to God’s people is seen in Hebrews 1:14, “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?” In this, we see the second reason for the commander’s description of himself as “the Captain of the Lord’s hosts.” He was assuring Joshua of God’s provision through His mighty angelic army.

Joshua’s Response

… 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?” (vs. 14b).

How we each need this response—the response of worship and submission. He quickly got the picture. Joshua had been thinking of a conflict between the Israelite and the Canaanite armies. Perhaps he had been thinking of this as his battle. Certainly he felt the weight of responsibility on his shoulders. But after being confronted by the divine Commander, he was reminded of a truth he heard Moses declare many years earlier when they stood on the banks of the Red Sea. There Moses said, “The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still” (Ex. 14:14). Joshua learned afresh the truth that David would learn and declare when facing Goliath, “the battle is the Lord’s” (cf. 1 Sam. 17:47).

But that’s not all. As an outworking of his worship and submission, we see Joshua’s inquiry, the inquiry of a servant looking to his Commander for direction, “What has my lord to say to his servant?” Do you remember Paul’s response on the Damascus road, when he came to realize it was the glorified Lord who was speaking to him? He quickly answered, “What shall I do, Lord?” (Acts. 22:10).

What a comfort and how encouraging to know that we never have to bear our burdens or face our enemies alone. Joshua was to know that the battles ahead and the entire conquest of Canaan was really God’s conflict. What is our part? We are soldiers in His army, His servants for whom He abundantly supplies the armor of God (Eph. 6:10-18).

Surely, these verses drive home the truth of Christ’s preeminence and lordship. He is the head of the church, indeed, the King of kings and Lord of lords.

The passage also reminds us that God is not present to fight our battles or help in our causes or jump to our rescue when we get in trouble as though He were a genie in a bottle. Instead, it reminds us that the battle is His and that our role is that of soldier-servants: we are here to serve Him, to do His will, to follow Him and depend on Him completely.

The Commander’s Final Revelation

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 (vs. 15).

The command given to Joshua to take your sandal off your foot is virtually identical with the one given to Moses at the burning bush (Ex. 3:5). This reinforces the theme developed in the Book of Joshua about Joshua’s filling of Moses’ role as leader of Israel. Joshua was confronted with the living God, just as Moses had been (Ex. 33:9–11). John 1:18 strongly implies that appearances such as this were preincarnate appearances of the Savior Jesus, and not of God the Father, who cannot be seen (John 6:46).^[10]

In these last words of the Captain, there is a command, “Remove your sandals,” along with an explanation, “for the place where you are standing is holy.” Removing the sandals was a sign of a servant and a sign of respect and submission. The declaration of this place of encounter and revelation as “holy ground” calls attention to the special import of what Joshua had just learned and experienced. God is not only the Holy One in our redemption through the provision of the Suffering Savior, but He is the Holy One in our warfare through the Victorious Savior. We can only enter into the battle so that we experience God’s deliverance when we remove our sandals and submit to His authority and His presence and power.

Here we see that the warfare of the Christian is a holy calling, but also a divine undertaking accomplished in those who humble themselves under the mighty hand of God. “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7).

I appreciate the courage of Joshua as he confronted this stranger; for he wanted to know whose side he was on. With Joshua, there was no compromise: You were either for the Lord and His people or against them (Matt. 12:30; Luke 11:23). When Joshua discovered the visitor was the Lord, he fell at His feet in worship and waited for His orders.

In Christian ministry great public victories are won in private as leaders submit to the Lord and receive their directions from Him. It’s doubtful that anybody in the camp of Israel knew about their leader’s meeting with the Lord, but that meeting made the difference between success and failure on the battlefield.

Watchman Nee wrote, “Not until we take the place of a servant can He take His place as Lord.” Joshua was reminded that he was second in command. Every father and mother, minister, and Christian leader is second in command to the Lord Jesus Christ; and when we forget this fact, we start to move toward defeat and failure.

The Lord came to Joshua that day, not just to help but to lead. “Without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5, nkjv). Joshua was an experienced soldier, whom Moses had trained for leadership. Yet that was no guarantee of success. He needed the presence of the Lord God.

The Lord’s first order to Joshua revealed to him that he was standing on holy ground. This reminds us of God’s words to Moses at the burning bush (Ex. 3:5). Joshua was standing in “heathen territory”; yet because God was with him, he was standing on holy ground.

If we are obeying the will of God, no matter where He leads us, we are on holy ground; and we had better behave accordingly. There’s no such thing as “secular” and “sacred,” “common” and “consecrated,” when you are in the Lord’s service. “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31, nkjv).

The sequence here is significant: first humble worship, then holy walk, then heavenly warfare. This parallels the “spiritual postures” found in the Epistle to the Ephesians. Joshua first bowed the knee (Eph. 3:14); then he submitted to a holy walk (4:1, 17; 5:2, 8, 15); and then he went out to battle the enemy in the power of the Lord (6:10ff). Like Joshua, we have already been given our inheritance (described in Eph. 1-2) and we must overcome the enemy in order to claim it for ourselves and enjoy it.

When Joshua met the Lord, he discovered that the battle was the Lord’s and He had already overcome the enemy. All Joshua had to do was listen to God’s Word and obey orders, and God would do the rest. God had already given Jericho to Israel (Josh. 6:2); all they had to do was step out by faith and claim the victory by obeying the Lord.

Joshua followed the third plan, and that’s why the Lord blessed him. The main lesson of Joshua 5 is that we must be a spiritually prepared people if we are going to do the Lord’s work successfully and glorify His name. Instead of rushing into the battle, we must “take time to be holy.”