Pastor Matt Schoolfield

Holy War & Hard Sayings in Joshua

There are a high number of verses in Joshua that makes readers cringe. It’s not just because there is violence and blood (to be expected in war), rather it is because God is directly involved with it and it even seems very extreme in some cases. How are we to understand all this? Below are some categories and observations that I believe can help.

Ultimate Injustice & The Cross

  • Most people define “injustice” as when bad things happen to good people. If this is the case, then the greatest injustice to ever take place was the death of the Son of God on the cross for our sins.

    According to the Bible…

    • Jesus was the Creator God deserving of total honor and respect within His creation (Col 1, Phil 2) but he was ignored, defied, disrespected, and killed by men He created.
    • Jesus was totally sinless (Heb. 4:15) but he was falsely accused, arrested, and sentenced to a painful and torturous criminal’s death on the cross.
    • Jesus was eternally in fellowship with the Father and Spirit (John 17:5) but when he bore the wrath of God on his shoulders at the cross he was forsaken by the Father (Mt. 27:46).

      Before point a finger at injustice in Joshua we should pause to consider the injustice Jesus endured on the cross because of our sin.

God, Life, Death, Holy War, and Loving Our Enemies  (Quick Points)

  • The Bible teaches that God, as our Creator, is sovereign over all life. He allows it to be given and taken (or allowed to be taken) as He sees fit whether by cancer at 59 or sword at age 2 or 21 (Job 14 and Acts 17).
  • The Bible teaches that the reality of death is a judgment upon all mankind (Rom 6:23) stemming from the fall of mankind. God has every right to bring this judgment of death upon people “later” or “early” in life as He sees fit.
  • God offers eternal life to any and all sinners (John 3:16).
  • The Bible strictly prohibits murder. This commandment is not suspended during Joshua’s conquest.
    • You shall not murder (Ex 20:13)
  • The Bible teaches that punishment by death is appropriate for certain grievous offenses (Gen. 9:5). Such cases would not be considered murder.
  • Every war in the OT times, whether it involved Israel or not, was a Holy War. Religion was an inescapable part of national identity. Who your nations god is… that’s who you are fighting for.
  • *** Very Important *** At a certain time in Bible History God’s people were one and the same with the geo-political nation of Israel (Ex. 19:5-6). This explains why at certain unique times the nation of Israel could be used as an instrument to carry out God’s judgment upon evil in the world (i.e. Joshua’s conquest).
  • Things are fundamentally different in the Christian era! The New Testament people of God are NOT one and the same with any one particular nation, rather the church is very international and united by one common faith in Jesus Christ. The call in the NT to every Christian is to love our enemies (Luke 6:27).

The Conquest of Joshua

  • The conquest in Joshua (i.e. Jericho) was one of the unique times in Bible History where God specifically instructed Joshua and Israel to be His instrument of judgment and deliver his judgment of death to the wicked nations of Canaan.
  • Back Story on the Judgment of the Canaanite Nations:
    • The Canaanites were very wicked!
      • Egyptian and Canaanite Kinds of Sin (see Lev. 18)
        • Adultery & Incest (Lev. 18:6-20)
        • Child sacrifice to Molech (Lev. 18:21)
        • Homosexuality (Lev. 18:22)
        • Beastiality (Lev. 18:23)
    • The Canaanite Sin must be dealt with for 2 reasons:
      1. Because, after 400 years, their time was up!

        400 years earlier God told Abraham that Israel would be exiled from their land (Canaan) to later return… when it was time to judge the Amorites: “for their sin had not yet reached its full measure” (Genesis 15:16).

      2. To keep Israel pure from it

        20:17-18- The command was to totally destroy the nations occupying Canaan with the additional motivation of keeping Israel pure from the Canaanite kind of sin.

  • VERY IMPORTANT Facts about the Conquest:
    • The conquest was NOT Israel’s idea. It was obedience to direct revelation from God in Scripture to do so (Deuteronomy, Josh 1:1-9). If the conquest had been Moses or Joshua’s personal idea it would have been totally wrong.
    • The conquest was NOT on the basis of race. The example of Rahab (ch. 2) being saved shows this. Furthermore, Rahab becomes part of the ancestry line of Jesus Christ.
    • The conquest was NOT imperialistic expansion The example of Achan (ch. 7) shows how God was against Israel making it about personal material gain apart from God’s express direction and permission.
    • Every Canaanite killed in the conquest did not go to hell. My personal understanding of God’s mercy, salvation, and age of accountability would lead me to believe that Christians will meet Canaanite children who died at Jericho when they go to heaven.

Summary Perspectives:

Five perspectives for us to hold onto as Joshua and Israel attack Jericho and kill everything… and continue in this manner against other kings, cities, and Canaanite nations:

  1. Let’s not panic and think that God has given His people a blank check to inflict holy war anytime they want.
  2. Let’s not draw false parallels to ethnic cleansing and imperialistic expansion.
  3. Let’s not make morally outraged overstatements about the “innocence” of people whom we know, like us, are sinners deserving judgment.
  4. Let’s do grieve greatly as this reminds us of the consequences of sin.
  5. Let’s also remember hope. That the Just also became the Justifier. Jesus the innocent Son of God became sin so that we might become the righteousness of God through faith in Him (2 Cor. 5:21).


Helpful Resources:

Not endorsing all the views shared in any of these! Helpful to look through.

 

 

 

 

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