Joshua divided Canaan among the tribes of Israel (Joshua 11:23) just as God had commanded him (Joshua 1:3, 6); and then some time later, the Lord approached him again, and in Joshua chapter 13, verses 1 and 7, the Bible shares the account of what He instructed Joshua to do. We read, “Now Joshua was old, advanced in years. And the LORD said to him: ‘You are old, advanced in years, and there remains very much land yet to be possessed . . . Now therefore, divide this land as an inheritance to the nine tribes and half the tribe of Manasseh’” (Joshua 13:1, 7).
The Promised Land was so vast that there were many regions left unconquered; and after having a period of rest, it was time for the people to pick up where they had left off in purging the land of the dreaded Canaanites. Only nine tribes were assigned this task, and allowed to take possession of the land once they drove out the inhabitants. The tribes of Rueben and Gad had settled for a lesser inheritance on the east side of the Jordan River (Joshua 13:8), and had therefore forfeited their right to the Promised Land; and the tribe of Levi was set aside as the priests, and the Levites were not allowed to own any land (13:14); thus, explaining why only nine tribes could take possession.
A Possible Cause for Discouragement
There is one thing that could have posed a problem for the Israelites in further conquest of the land, and that was their age. The Lord candidly informed Joshua, “You are old, advanced in years” (Joshua 13:1). Just before he entered the wilderness wanderings he was forty-years-old (Joshua 14:7); therefore, he was probably around eighty-five-years-old at the time of this conversation.
The youngest of the Israelites would have been around age sixty-five (cf. Numbers 14:29). Judah is portrayed as one of the nine tribes afforded the great privilege of obtaining more land; and Caleb, the leader of Judah, declared himself to be eighty-five-years-old (Joshua 14:10), the same age as Joshua.
In application, perhaps the Lord will ask you to follow a calling later on in life, and you might become concerned because of your age. This, however, is only one of many reasons why you might find yourself discouraged when following God’s calling, and feel hindered in trying to possess the Promised Land of His best. Battle fatigue can set in as well, leading to the temptation of settling down just short of the real prize, like Rueben and Gad. Whatever the problem might be, we find in Caleb some insight into overcoming discouragement to continue pressing ahead in conquest of His best.
Recounting the Promise and Journey (vv. 6-10)
6 Then the children of Judah came to Joshua in Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him: “You know the word which the LORD said to Moses the man of God concerning you and me in Kadesh Barnea.”
7 “I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh Barnea to spy out the land, and I brought back word to him as it was in my heart. 8 Nevertheless my brethren who went up with me made the heart of the people melt, but I wholly followed the LORD my God. 9 So Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land where your foot has trodden shall be your inheritance and your children's forever, because you have wholly followed the LORD my God’.”
10 “And now, behold, the LORD has kept me alive, as He said, these forty-five years, ever since the LORD spoke this word to Moses while Israel wandered in the wilderness; and now, here I am this day, eighty-five years old.”
Joshua was probably having feelings of inadequacy. Caleb, who was the same in age, approached him with a word of encouragement. He reminded Joshua of what the Lord had earlier told Moses concerning them both some forty-five years prior. God had informed Moses, “But My servant Caleb . . . I will bring into the land where he went, and his descendants shall inherit it” (Numbers 14:24).
The Lord did not just mention Caleb; for when He pronounced judgment on the Israelites through his servant Moses, he told them, “Except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun, you shall by no means enter the land which I swore I would make you dwell in” (Numbers 14:30). The Lord mentioned Caleb and Joshua together as being allowed to one day enter and inherit the land.
Caleb was quick to remind Joshua of this promise. In fact, Caleb was always quick in speaking words of encouragement and faith. For example, when the Israelites were complaining of the giants in the land, he immediately declared, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it!” (Numbers 13:30).
Caleb remembered God’s promise, put his hope in it, and allowed it to become the fuel that fanned the flame of faith. Hebrews says, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Hope is the very thing that produces and strengthens faith; and hope is founded on the promises of God’s Word – both oral and written. Caleb never forgot the Lord’s spoken promise; and therefore, he clung to the dream of the Promised Land, like a bulldog refusing to loosen its bite.
If you wish to overcome discouragement or obstacles that stand in the way of your calling, then you must never forget God’s promises of the past. You must never forget the long journey either, and of how the Lord was there for you time and again revealing one breakthrough after another. You need to be able to look back and say, “There’s where I used to be, but thank God it’s not where I am now!” The past is important in shaping who you are today, and you must never forget where you came from.
The Past Can Clarify the Future
George Santayana stated, “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it,”(1) meaning that if we are not careful we will keep repeating the same mistakes. We can learn from the negative things of the past for certain; however, we can also learn from the positive things of the past. Sometimes we think of the past, and even tradition, as being negative, and as being old and unusable; however, the past can actually be beneficial in refocusing our faith and spurring us onward. George Barna says,
Tradition is generally a reflection of the past. Vision is always a reflection of the future. Is there any room for a marriage between the two? Absolutely! Because He is the God who created and reigned over the past, He can use history to His advantage in your life and ministry . . . He will use your past to enhance your future.(2)
Tradition may be something from the past, but it can actually become the thing that propels you into the future. (Allow me to remind you of some concepts we learned a few weeks ago). In Hebrews we are told, “We . . . have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul” (Hebrews 6:18b-19a). These verses can be summarized in a few slogans I have heard from some church homecomings. One slogan declared, “Facing the future with strength from the past,” and another proclaimed, “Strength from the past, hope for the future.”
Our hope in the Promised Land is laid out right in front of us, and our hope brings us “strong consolation” (Hebrews 6:18b), meaning that it is a huge faith-booster. For example, the land of Canaan that was spread out before Caleb served to strengthen his faith to go out and claim it. Not many people would dispute the fact that our hope in God’s future promises can bring about great faith; but what happens when we lose sight of the future?
We are also told that our hope which is set out before us will become as an anchor of the soul (6:19a). Doesn’t an anchor keep a ship floating in one spot, so that it will not go adrift? Isn’t tradition like an anchor that keeps people grounded in one location, never to press ahead? Author Leonard Sweet helps us understand the concept found in these verses (and I’m sure you will recall this illustration). He says,
The biblical image is clearly one of casting an anchor ahead, not behind, and then pulling oneself forward . . . A naval officer from the Second World War helped me . . . exegete this image when he told how the battleships he was on survived terrible hurricanes in Chesapeake Bay. It was in similar fashion sailors in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries wormed their ships through tight places or dangerous spots.
It seems that when storms or turbulent seas threatened a ship that was docked in harbor, a crew of some eight or nine sailors would be sent out in a motor launch or “whale boat.” Their mission was to haul the ship’s anchor onto planks set across the stern of the launch. Motoring out to sea in the midst of the storm as far as the chain would take them, the anchor would then be let down and the ship winched forward into deeper water on the anchor chain.(3)
When we lose sight of the future, we are supposed to draw strength from the past. We need to look back to the initial reason why we set out on our present heading. If we find ourselves in stagnant water, becoming discouraged, it can lead to becoming stranded and failing to move forward into God’s promises. Our future hope is founded on a promise made in the past; and we gain a renewed purpose and enthusiasm when we recall our initial vision, and it can become as an anchor that is cast ahead to pull us forward into open waters.
When you take time to recall the past, what has the Lord accomplished in your life and ministry efforts? What has He accomplished within this church, or within the group you are trying to reach? The Lord’s faithfulness in your past should bring you great hope to keep you moving forward.
Declaration of Strength and Victory (vv. 11-12)
11 “As yet I am as strong this day as on the day that Moses sent me; just as my strength was then, so now is my strength for war, both for going out and for coming in. 12 Now therefore, give me this mountain of which the LORD spoke in that day; for you heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and that the cities were great and fortified. It may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall be able to drive them out as the LORD said.”
Caleb allowed the promises of the past to encourage him to continue moving ahead. As he looked back on what the Lord had already accomplished in his life he was able to declare, “I am not only still here, but I am still strong.” Caleb did not give in to setbacks, or surrender to challenges. He kept looking all around to see God’s hand on his life, in order to draw strength to overcome.
Dr. Winfred Overholser, Superintendent of St. Elizabeth’s Hospital, has said that recalling brave moments is a very sound way to restore belief in yourself, [and] that too many people are prone to let one or two failures blot out all good memories.
If we will systematically relive our brave moments in history, he says, we will be surprised to see we had more courage than we thought. Dr. Overholser recommends the practice of vividly remembering our past successes and brave moments as an invaluable aid whenever self-confidence is shaken.(4)
Caleb was one who relived his brave moments in the Lord, which kept him motivated in his old age. Instead of showing signs of defeat, time had only increased his faith in the Lord. And as he came to his final years, he gave us what should be the grand watchword for every Christian: “Give me this mountain!” We must seek to be like Caleb, to remain strong in our faith and strive for those mountains that God has called us to claim in His name.
Caleb may have been an old man; however, he was prepared to fight in order to possess his spiritual victory. He was not ready to give up and think, “Oh well, I have lived with this obstacle for so long, I might as well not bother.” No, he said, “Give me this mountain of which the LORD spoke in that day!” In other words: The Lord told me it is mine, I believe that it is mine, and nothing is going to stop me from receiving it!
Caleb “claimed” victory over his mountain. The word “claim” means, “to call for; to ask or seek to obtain, by virtue of authority,” or “a demand of right.”(5) Whatever promise the Lord has made to you in His Word, you can lay claim to it by the Lord’s power and His authority. If the Lord has made you a promise, then you had better believe He can keep it.
Therefore, you need to be as Caleb, and look directly at that huge mountain of opposition that stands between you and God’s best, and declare, “Give me this mountain!” If you have been given an assignment by the Lord then do not give up, but instead fight to remain faithful! And your strength to fight is derived from recalling the Lord’s enduring mercy and faithfulness.
Laying Hold of Your Inheritance (vv. 13-14)
13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh as an inheritance. 14 Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD God of Israel.
Why did Caleb receive his inheritance? We read, “Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb . . . because he wholly followed the Lord God of Israel.” The name “Caleb” is derived from a Hebrew word which literally means, “dog” or “devotion.” It is thought to refer to the loyalty and faithfulness shown to a master by his dog. This name also means “wholehearted.”(6)
The Lord said of him elsewhere, “My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit in him and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land where he went” (Nm 14:24); and back in verse 8, Caleb stated of himself, “Nevertheless my brethren who went up with me made the heart of the people melt, but I wholly followed the Lord my God” (Jo 14:8). Caleb served the Lord “fully” or “wholly,” and for this reason he was able to lay hold of his inheritance.
Caleb had a different spirit in him – a spirit of faithfulness and endurance – and you too need to develop this same kind of spirit in order to possess the land. It is a spirit of following God with reckless abandonment and childlike faith that will empower you to fight and take what God has promised you.
Time of Reflection
In Lamentations we read, “This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. Through the LORD’S mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:21-23). When you recall how the Lord has worked in your life in the past, can you identify His mercies and compassions? Can you truly declare, “Great is Your faithfulness?” Hebrews says that if you will “recall the former days” (10:32), of how the Lord had compassion on you (10:34), that it will provide you with the necessary confidence and endurance to receive the promise (10:35-36).
NOTES
(1) George Santayana, Thinkexist.com, http://thinkexist.com/quotation/those_who_don-t_know_history_are_destined_to/346796.html
(2) George Barna, The Power of Vision (Ventura, CA: Regal, 1999), p. 122.
(3) Leonard Sweet, Aquachurch (Loveland, CO: Group Publishing, 1999), p. 73.
(4) Maxwell Maltz, Psycho-Cybernetics (New York, NY: Simon and Schuster, 1960), p. 124.
(5) Noah Webster, 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language (San Francisco: Foundation for American Christian Education, 2002).
(6) “Behind the Name: Caleb,” Helium, http://www.helium.com/items/804408-behind-the-name-caleb.
