We shall continue with
the study of the Book of Joshua this week.
The capture of the five kings and their cities enabled Joshua and his people to possess the southern part of the land promised by God. It has come about as a result of the attack on the Gibeonites because of their peace treaty with Israel. The rout was greatly aided by the miracles of hailstones and the standing still of the sun.
(1) In the description of the capture of Libnah, Lachish, Gezer, Eglon, Hebron and Debir, are quite a bit of repetitions. Try to highlight these repetitions. (Repetition is a literary style that often signifies emphasis.)
(2) What are the repetitions that give a sense of totality and completeness? What is the message behind these emphases?
(3) What are the repetitions that point to the reason(s) for their victory?
(4) What are the repetitions that point to the time taken for achieving their victory? What might be the message behind such an emphasis?
(5) While the Israelites appear to have successfully defeated their enemies, they did not actually possess these cities, but retreated back to camp at Gilgal. What might the reason(s) be? What was the significance of Gilgal at the time?
(6) What is the main message to you today that you can apply to your life?
As huge as the battle with the five kings was, compared to the next campaign, it was really nothing.
(1) How wide a territory was covered by this coalition of these enemies?
(2) Apart from their size, in what way(s) were they far superior to the army of Israel? (See v. 4)
(3) Put yourself in the shoes of Joshua and his people. What would you have felt as you saw their “large number of horses and chariots (of which you have none) — a huge army, as numerous as the sand on the seashore”?
(4) In what ways might our Christian experience be similar to the challenge faced by the Israelites?
(5) How did God’s message speak to Joshua and his situation?
(6) In encouraging Joshua, why did God specifically tell him to “hamstring their horses and burn the chariots”?
(7) How great was this victory, compared to the last one?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) In the description of Joshua’s victory in vv. 12-15, there is an obvious repetition. What is it? What is the message behind such an emphasis?
(2) Why does the Bible highlight that of all the cities conquered, only Hazor was burnt by the Israelites?
(3) How does the Bible contrast the Hivites living in Gibeon with the rest of the kings in Canaan?
(4) How does such a contrast reveal the heart of God?
(5) The Bible describes the hearts of these kings being hardened by God (just as the heart of Pharaoh in Exod. 4:21 was hardened). How does the comment of Tom Rees that “The same sun that hardens the clay, melts the wax” help us understand this difficult issue?
(6) Although not described in any of the battles in this or earlier chapters, the Bible specifically mentions the destruction of the Anakites. Do you remember who they were and what might be the significance of highlighting their destruction? (See Num. 13:22)
(7) So, after “a long time”, Joshua took the entire land and God’s promise of giving it to them as an inheritance was fulfilled. Is there any promise that God has given you which remains unfulfilled at this time? What does the conclusion of this chapter teach you in this respect?
(8) “Then the land had rest from war” (11:23). What can you learn from this statement about God’s view on warfare?
(9) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?
Chapter 12 serves as a recap of the conquest of the Promised Land:
(1) You may have noticed that the list of 31 conquered kings contains names and cities not covered in the previous 11 chapters, nor in the book of Numbers. How do such omissions show us the difference between the purpose of Biblical history and that of secular history?
(2) Extensive diggings have taken place in many of these sites covered in this chapter with these results:
a. Some sites like Aroer, Ashtaroth and Edrei bear extrabiblical archaeological or textual evidence of the “Late Bronze Age” (1550-1220 B.C.), which coincides with the historical period of Joshua.
b. Some sites like Beth Jeshimoth and Salecah have no evidence of their destruction in this period.
Skeptics have been using the latter to discredit the validity of Joshua’s account. What is your answer to these critics?
(3) Careful readers will notice that some regions within the Promised Land are not mentioned, indicating that there were lands yet to be conquered or enemies yet to be driven out (see 13:1).
a. Was it a reflection of God’s unfaithfulness?
b. Was it a reflection of the lack of faith or obedience of the Israelites?
c. Was it a reflection of some spiritual truth, normal even in our Christian life?
(4) What purpose might the listing of the 31 kings serve?
(5) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?
(1) Are you surprised by what the Lord said to Joshua? Why?
(2) If this is what God says to you, “You are very old and there are still very large areas of land to be taken over”, what does it mean? How would you feel?
(3) If the Lord is to talk to you about your age and what He has delegated to you, what might He be saying?
(4) After all these years, it appears that because a good part of Canaan had yet to be taken over, Joshua did not bother to go through the hypothetical exercise of partitioning these areas of land. What was the admonishment from the Lord in v. 6?
(5) In this passage, we learn that even in the Transjordan, land allotted and possessed by the 2½ tribes in Moses’ time included people that the Israelites failed to drive out, and thus “they continue to live among the Israelites to this day.” (Jos. 13:13). In what way does it depict our Christian life today?
(6) Consider the people of Levi, compared to the rest of the tribes of Israel:
a. Think of all the practical things that they had given up because of being chosen by God.
b. While they could not share in the inheritance of land, what “practical” things would they have gained at the same time?
c. How special was it that their inheritance was “the offerings made by fire to the Lord”?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?
Here, the territories of the 2½ tribes east of Jordan were mentioned in detail.
(1) What purpose might the precise details of their territories serve at this juncture of partitioning of the Promised Land?
(2) What sins did Balaam commit? (See Num. 22-25; in particular, Num. 31:16)
(3) How does the incident of Balaam offer a glimpse of the wickedness of the slain people of the land?
(4) And, how does it also show the spiritual danger these people might have on the Israelites?
(5) The tribe of Levi is mentioned again, and this time, the emphasis is on the Lord being their inheritance. What does it mean? How significant is such a blessing?
(6) What does the Lord being your inheritance mean to you?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?
“Vv. 1-5 form the heading and introduction to the account of the division of the land among the nine tribes and a half, which reaches to ch. 19 and is brought to a close by the concluding formula in ch. 19:51.” (Kiel & Delitzsch, 105)
(1) What was the significance in mentioning that the allotment of land to each tribe was made not only by Joshua, but also by Eleazer the priest and the heads of the tribal clans?
(2) Now, before the rest of the land was partitioned by lot to the 9½ tribes, Caleb came forward to claim his portion based on the promise sworn by Moses (though not explicitly recorded in Num. 14:20ff, nor in Deut. 1:35-36). Let’s reflect on the following:
a. How old was Caleb now? (Remember that his other companion of spying, Joshua, is described as “very old” now in 13:1.)
b. Since he could claim that he was still strong and vigorous after 45 years, what can we learn from him?
c. He was claiming Mount Hebron which was still inhabited by the gigantic Anakites (with their large and fortified cities) that the people once feared. Hebron was also a city that he and his family would have to share with the Levites (21:11). Since he was so respected and honored among the people (obviously), why did he not claim another place?
d. Caleb and the other spies basically saw the same land and the same people. What was their difference according to Caleb’s own account? How may you learn from him?
(3) In allotting land to the tribes, this was the only time Joshua “blessed” the recipient of land (ch. 22 was the other occasion but it did not concern actual allotment). Do you think Joshua gave Caleb special treatment? Should he deserve special treatment?
(Note: As this chapter ends with the same statement as in 11:23 — “Then the land had rest from war”, which was mentioned also after the Anakites were dealt with completely, Hess believes that, “The account of Caleb is intended as a detailed development of the campaign in chapter 11".)
(4) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?