We shall continue with
the study of the Book of Joshua this week.
The designating of cities of refuge had been described in Exodus 21:12-14, Numbers 35:6-34, Deuteronomy 4:41-43 and 19:1-13. If you do not have time to read all the passages, at least scan through Numbers 35 which is the most exhaustive of them all.
The contents of these passages may be summarized as follows:
- The cities of refuge should be centrally located. (Deut. 19:2)
- They would be cities where Levites were present. (Num. 35:6)
- They were there to allow those who had killed someone accidentally, unintentionally or without hostility (Num. 35:22-23) to seek refuge so that their case may be tried (Jos. 20:9; probably they would be escorted back to their own town for trial — Num. 35:12)
- If proven innocent, they may return to the city of refuge and stay there till the death of the high priest. (Num. 35:32)
- But if they strayed out of the city of refuge, their protection would be voided. (Num. 35:26-28)
- If proven guilty, they would be punished accordingly. (Deut. 19:12)
- This protection was granted even to aliens and anyone living among them. (Num. 35:15)
(1) How does this law reveal the character of God?
(2) How does this law compare to similar laws of your land today?
(3) We understand why these cities should be centrally located, but why should they be located within the cities of the Levites?
(4) Why would the guilt of the one who fled be totally absorbed upon the death of the high priest? What function then did the death of the high priest play in absorbing the guilt of the person concerned?
(5) How significant was the provision that the law would apply to aliens and anyone living among them?
(6) Do you think the Israelites had actually enforced this law? What might be the difficulties in enforcing it?
(Note: According to the opinion of two scholars, Boling and Wright, “For a couple of hundred years, in any case, the ideology and system of asylum-towns must have been highly effective…”.)
(7) What is the main message to you today that you can apply to your life?
After all the tribes received their allotment of land as their inheritance, the family heads of the Levites now came forward based on what was commanded by the Lord to Moses back in Numbers 35:1-8. Please read the passage in Numbers in conjunction with the passage in Joshua today:
(1) Timothy Ashley points out that the passage in Numbers 35 purposely uses the verb, to dwell in, and not the verb, “to inherit” which is used for all the other tribes. Why is that? (See Num. 18:24; Jos. 13:14; Deut. 10:9, 18:2 and Jos. 13:33)
(2) How does the gifting of the land to the Levites set the example of how those who devote their life to serving the Lord entirely should be taken care of? (See 1 Co. 9:4-14; 1 Tim. 5:17-18)
(3) All the cities of refuge are also cities in which the Levites dwell and Richard Hess adds that, “Many of the Levitical towns were previously Canaanite and lay on the borders of the tribal lands”. How does this speak to the responsibilities of the Levites?
(4) How might you reconcile the statement in vv. 43-44 with the repeated comments that some tribes failed to drive out the Canaanites (e.g. Jos. 16:10 and 13:13)?
(5) V. 45 affirms that “Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to the house of Israel failed; everyone was fulfilled”. Can you recall when the promise of land first given by God was? (See Gen. 12:7) Can you count how many generations had passed before the promise was fulfilled? Can you remember some of the crises that might have threatened the fulfillment of this promise?
(6) Can you say in your life that “Not one of the Lord’s good promises” to you failed but that every one was fulfilled? Why or why not?
(7) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Additional Note:
1. The Levites were not sole possessors of these towns, but they simply received dwelling-houses, with meadow land for their cattle in the suburbs of the towns, whilst the rest of the space still belonged to the different tribes. (see Keil & Delitzch, 154)
2. Four groups of Levites were to receive their dwelling place among the tribes. The descendants of Aaron had a special role among the Levites (Num. 18:1-6) which necessitated placing them near the temple of Jerusalem. (Hess, 282)
3. While the actual size of the pastures allocated for the Levites was variously interpreted, even with the most generous interpretation (i.e. 3000 x 3000 ft. x 48 cities), each male Levite who would become a family unit (according to the 2nd census in Num. 26:62) would only be able to farm or pasture less than half an acre of land.
(1) This passage begins with “then”. What has transpired leading up to this moment of the passage?
(2) Joshua pointed out that it had been a long time. How long had it been in your estimation?
(3) What was their mission according to Joshua?
(4) How did Joshua describe God’s promise in v. 4? How does it reflect the heart of God?
(5) What had the two and half tribes sacrificed in obeying the mission commanded by God?
(6) What did they get now in return?
(7) How did Joshua sum up the commands of Moses? What is meant by “be very careful to keep”? What does it mean to you?
(8) How special were these two and half tribes and how may you emulate them?
(9) Without reading further, what do you think was the intention of their erection of an imposing altar?
(10) Why do you think the whole assembly of Israel was so upset to the point of waging war to them, their own brothers, who had just sacrificially helped them?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?
Additional Note:
The length of the conquest is not certain. Wilmington’s Guide to the Bible estimates that “It covers a period about twenty-five years” (p. 86).
(1) Look up the following two passages to see what might the two and half tribes have violated in their erection of an altar in Geliloth: (Lev. 17:8-9; Deut. 12:4-14)
(2) What was God’s purpose in restricting the place of worship to one location?
(3) Were the ten tribes then justified in taking action against the two and half tribes?
(4) Even though they had already gathered their troops to wage war against the offenders of the law, what did they choose to do first in vv. 13-14? How did their action echo that prescribed by our Lord Jesus in the resolution of dispute among God’s people in Matthew 18:15-17?
(5) What was their sin in Peor according to the account of Numbers 25:1-9? Why did the erection of an altar besides the designated one remind them of this sin?
(6) What did the ten tribes perceive as the intention of the two and half tribes in their action according to v. 19? If such was the intention what did they propose to them?
(7) How special were these ten tribes in their response to the perceived sins of their brothers? How may you emulate them?
(8) What was the real intention of the two and half tribes in erecting the altar then? How special were they and how may you emulate them?
(9) As much as their intention was admirable, do you think they did violate the law of worship as prescribed by the Lord in terms of the following?
a. The letter of the law
b. The spirit of the law
(10) What can you learn from this incident about resolving problems and keeping unity in God’s household?
(11) Reflect on this long name given to the altar:
a. What is meant by “a witness between us”?
b. And what does it witness?
(12) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?
Here are Joshua final words to the leaders:
(1) What do you think prompted Joshua to gather the leaders at this time of his life? What did he hope to accomplish with his speech?
(2) What was his emphasis in his introductory words in v. 4?
(3) What have you seen with your eyes concerning what the Lord has “fought for you”? Give three examples.
(4) As much as Joshua had conquered the nations, what had remained?
(5) In reiterating that the Lord will honor His promise in pushing the nations out before them, Joshua set out the conditions in vv. 6-11:
a. List the positive instructions in vv. 6-11.
b. List the negative instructions in vv. 6-10.
(6) What might be the key to their ability to listen to what Joshua instructed them?
(7) Why was it so essential that they would not ally, intermarry and associate with the nations according to vv. 12-13?
(8) How may you apply the same principle to your life?
(9) Were Joshua’s words simply empty words? Read II Chronicles 36:14-20 for the sad fulfillment of his warning.
(10) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?
After admonishing the leaders, now Joshua assembled all the people for his final words:
(1) In contrast to the message to the leaders, where according to Joshua did this message come from?
(2) V. 2: Here the Lord opened the message with re-tracing their history beginning with Terah, the father of Abraham and Nahor. Was Terah any different from the people beyond the River (Euphrates)? What might God’s message be here?
(3) Vv. 3-4: In re-tracing the migration of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, what was the pronoun being repeated many times? What was God’s message?
(4) Vv. 5-7: In re-tracing the journey out of Egypt, what was being highlighted? What was God’s message?
(5) Vv. 8-10: In re-tracing their wilderness journey, what was being highlighted? What was God’s message?
(6) Vv. 11-12: In re-tracing their journey into Canaan, what was being highlighted? What was the message?
(7) V. 13: Referring to the land they now possessed, what was being highlighted? What was the message?
(8) Summing up the above, what was the central message to the people?
(9) V. 14: What would be the relationship between this command and the foregoing history of Israel? Was it the most reasonable command to Israel? Why or why not?
(10) In what way is your personal history similar to that of Israel?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?
The church as an “ecclesia” follows the OT tradition of the assembly of God’s people, and it is within this context that Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel as they now became a nation and a people, to make a covenant with them:
(1) As a preamble to this covenant, Joshua mentioned their past and their present, and offered them a choice. In what ways does it resemble the people of the church of Jesus Christ?
(2) What was the covenant that Joshua challenged them to make? And what was his decision? How significant were the words of his own commitment?
(3) In what way should our covenant be like Joshua’s?
(4) What reasons did the people give in pledging their allegiance to God?
(5) What reason(s) would you give in pledging your allegiance to the Lord?
(6) Why did Joshua say that they “are not able to serve the Lord”? What does history prove and why?
(7) Will you be able to “serve the Lord” on your own? How can you honor your words?
(8) Name the factors that will help you be able to serve the Lord till the end?
(9) Do any of your factors include being committed to one another within the family of the church? (Refer to 2 Tim. 2:22.)
(10) What is the main message to you today and how might you apply it to your life?