SS~#17-JOSHUA - pt. #1 FACTS ABOUT JOSHUA 10-5-14
Today we'll continue with our study of Heb.11: -- the "hall of faith" chapter.
Listen as I read our text from;
¡¡¡¡Heb.11: 30 -31 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days. --- 31By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.
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¡¡¡¡~ Today I want to lay a little foundation to do with Joshua; he is now God's appointed leader of the Israeli people.
¡¡¡¡Joshua was born while the people were slaves in Egypt. --- He went through the great events of the Passover in Ex. 12: -- and the Exodus with Moses and all the Hebrew people who escaped from slavery in Egypt at the hand of their Redeemer God.
In the Wilderness of Sinai, Moses took his assistant Joshua with him when he went into the mountains to talk with God.
¡¡¡¡>Ex. 24:12-13 And the LORD said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them.
¡¡¡¡ 13And Moses rose up, and his minister Joshua: (his assistant) and Moses went up into the mount of God.
~ Moses went up higher while Joshua waited. -- Though Moses tarried with God on the mountain for forty days and forty nights, Joshua waited patiently for his return. -- God was training Joshua for the great task ahead.
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Joshua was of the tribe of Ephraim.
> Numbers 13:8 Of the tribe of Ephraim, Oshea (Joshua) the son of Nun.
Joshua¡¯s name, an Old Testament form of Jesus, means ¡°the Lord is salvation.¡± By his name and by his life, he demonstrated the salvation that comes from God. ~At Moses¡¯ death, Joshua was chosen as his successor (Josh. 1:1¨C2).
¡¡¡¡ ~ He led the Israelites to conquer the land (Joshua 1¨C2) he supervised the division of the territory among the 12 tribes, and led the people to renew their covenant with God later in (Joshua 13¨C22).
¡¡¡¡~ When Joshua died at the age of 110, he was buried in the land of his inheritance at Timnath Serah (Josh. 24:30).
¡¡¡¡~ As Moses¡¯ successor, Joshua completed the work that this great leader "Moses" had begun. Moses led Israel out of Egypt; Joshua led Israel into Canaan. ----------
Joshua typifies Jesus in several ways;
*Joshua led Israel in a limited and partial way into God¡¯s ¡°rest¡±
¡¡¡¡ *Jesus Christ would do the same in a perfect and final way. --
¡¡¡¡Heb. 4:8 For if Jesus (Joshua) had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. --
¡¡¡¡~ The reference to Jesus in verse 8 involves Joshua of the Old Testament. The two names are identical, both in Hebrew and Greek.
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Joshua provided Israel with their inheritance.
¡¡¡¡>Joshua 11:23 So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the LORD said unto Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. And the land rested from war.
The inheritance of the church is from Jesus Christ.
¡¡¡¡>Eph. 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance --
¡¡¡¡> Rom. 8:17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; -
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¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡As Joshua followed Moses, so also did Jesus Christ, but in a different way.
>John 1:17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
> Gal. 3:24-26 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
- 25But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. -- 26For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
~ What that means is the law convicts of sin, restrains from sin, and condemns for sin; but the law cannot save from sin. -- The law reveals what sin is.
>1 John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
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Joshua interceded for Israel when they sinned.
>Joshua 7:6¨C9 And Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of the LORD until the eventide, he and the elders of Israel, and put dust upon their heads.
7And Joshua said, Alas, O Lord GOD, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side Jordan!
8 O Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies! 9For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land shall hear of it, and shall environ us round, (encircle-surround) and cut off our name from the earth: and what wilt thou do unto thy great name?
Jesus intercedes for us when we sin.
>1 John 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate (intercessor) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
> Heb. 7:25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.
~ He is able to save us completely and perfectly.
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Let¡¯s read Joshua chapter 1:
¡¡¡¡1Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses¡¯ minister, saying,
¡¡¡¡2Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.
¡¡¡¡3Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.
¡¡¡¡ 4From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea (the Mediterranean) toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.
¡¡¡¡(According to what I have read, that takes in the northern part of Syria, which had been the southern-most part of the Hittite empire.)
¡¡¡¡ 5There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
¡¡¡¡(The God of Moses and Joshua is also our Great God, and He has not changed at all.)
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¡¡¡¡ 6Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.
¡¡¡¡(Their fathers, Abraham- Isaac- Jacob)
¡¡¡¡ 7Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.
¡¡¡¡ 8This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
¡¡¡¡9Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: (discourage) for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
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¡¡¡¡ 10Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,
¡¡¡¡ 11Pass through the host, and command the people,
¡¡¡¡(Joshua ordered the tribal leaders to go throughout the camp of the people and pass the word-)
¡¡¡¡ -- saying, Prepare you victuals; (prepare enough food for the up-coming 3 day journey) for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the LORD your God giveth you to possess it.
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¡¡¡¡ 12And to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, spake Joshua, saying,
¡¡¡¡ 13Remember the word which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, The LORD your God hath given you rest, and hath given you this land.
¡¡¡¡14Your wives, your little ones, and your cattle, shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side Jordan; but ye shall pass before your brethren armed, all the mighty men of valour, and help them; -- 15Until the LORD have given your brethren rest, as he hath 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 LORD¡¯S servant gave you on this side Jordan toward the sunrising.
¡¡¡¡ (This is a reference to the half tribe of Manasseh, along with the tribe of the Reubenites and the tribe of the Gadites; they wanted their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan River.)
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¡¡¡¡16And they answered Joshua, saying, All that thou commandest us we will do, and whithersoever thou sendest us, we will go.
¡¡¡¡17According as we hearkened unto Moses in all things, so will we hearken unto thee: only the LORD thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses.
¡¡¡¡ 18Whosoever he be that doth rebel against thy commandment, and will not hearken unto thy words in all that thou commandest him, he shall be put to death: only be strong and of a good courage.
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Now let's read from Joshua 2: and we'll see how that Rehab and her Family is saved alive when Joshua leads Israel around the city walls of Jericho.
Chapter 2: 1And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot¡¯s house, named Rahab, and lodged there.
~ Rahab was possibly an inn keeper.
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¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡It seems that someone had found out about the two men and told the king of Jericho for we read --
¡¡2And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country.
¡¡3And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country.
~~ But Rahab had already taken the two men up to the flat roof of her house and had hidden them under some piles of flax plants that she had put there to dry. ~~
4And the woman (Rahab) took the two men, (the Israeli spies) and hid them, and said thus, ---
"There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were:
5And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them."
~~ Back during those days some cities had walls with heavy gates that would be shut at sun down for protection, and such was Jericho.
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6But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.
-- flax plants were gathered, then soaked in water and dried, then their fibers were separated & spun into the threads of linen cloth.
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7And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords (a crossing-place) and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate.
~ The guards at the town gate let the soldiers leave Jericho, but they closed the gate again as soon as the soldiers went through. ~
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8And before they were laid down, (the 2 men) she came up unto them upon the roof; -- 9And she said unto the men,
"I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.
10For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed.
11And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.
12Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father¡¯s house, and give me a true token:
13And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death."
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14And the men answered her, "Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee."
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15Then she let them down by a cord through the window: for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall.
~ Some time the houses were built against the city wall, the city wall formed one wall of the house, this also strengthen the city wall.
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16And she said unto them, Get you to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you; and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers be returned: and afterward may ye go your way.
17And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear.
18Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father¡¯s household, home unto thee.
~~ Listen, The scarlet thread, which actually was more of a rope, has from the start of Christendom been interpreted as symbolic of the blood of Christ.
This rope clearly marked Rahab¡¯s house, -- there is a parallel here to the Passover in ancient Egypt, death came to everyone but those whose houses were marked by the blood. --- Death came to every person of Jericho but the one house marked by the crimson cord.
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19And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him.
20And if thou utter this our business, then we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear.
21And she said, According unto your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the window.
22And they went, and came unto the mountain, and abode there three days, until the pursuers were returned: and the pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but found them not.
23 So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things that befell them:
24And they said unto Joshua, Truly the LORD hath delivered into our hands all the land; for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us.
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