Introduction: Change happens. There’s no doubt about that. Way back in 1964, Bob Dylan recorded a song called “The Times They Are A-Changing (which I’ve never heard)”, talking about various things. In the text, we see that in just 40 years, Israel had seen any number of changes. They had experienced the miracle of crossing the bed of the Red Sea on dry land, and the daily miracles of food and water as they wandered in the wilderness.
But now they’re almost to the end of those 40 years and they had just experienced a very drastic change. Moses had died and now Joshua was selected to be the nation’s leader. How was Israel going to react to all of this?
1 The Words of the LORD to Joshua
Text, Joshua 1:1-9, KJV: 1 Now 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, 2 Moses 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. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. 5 There 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. 6 Be 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. 7 Only 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. 8 This 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. 9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
The first words—reality happened
“Moses My servant is dead.” The LORD’s first words to Joshua speak to a significant change. Moses had led Israel from Egypt and slavery through the desert wilderness to striking distance of the Promised Land. In fact, just a few days later, he—Joshua—would lead Israel to that land.
But I’m sure he and all Israel still remembered Moses, and, many at least would still be grieving over his death. Most of Israel at this time would remember the last speeches of Moses before he made his last trip to Mount Nebo (Deut. 34:1). Moses told the people in one of these speeches how he committed the sin that kept him out of Canaan. That story begins in Numbers 20, where God told Moses to _speak_ to the rock so that Israel could get fresh water. Moses took his rod, then _struck_ the rock twice, and that was that. God basically told him, “You are not going to lead the people into the Promised Land (Num. 20:12, paraphrased).”
Even though Moses begged the Lord to let him lead Israel into Canaan, God repeatedly said No and at one time, told Moses. “No more of this! Don’t talk to Me about this anymore (Deut.3:26-27, paraphrased)!” Moses, soon after this, did take that final journey and died “in the land of Moab (Deut. 34:5)”. His burial place was never known, but even so, Israel mourned for him for 30 days (Deut. 34:8).
Moses was dead. That was a reality and there was no changing this. But God had a lot more to say to Joshua as He completed that first sentence.
The second words—promises made
“Now therefore arise”. Sure, there was a time to mourn; Israel should have done plenty of this because of all the grief they had caused Moses, starting soon after Moses came back to Egypt (Exodus 5:15-21, e.g.)! But now the time for mourning was over.
It was time to arise. The next several verses have God’s promises to Joshua and, by extension, to all Israel. It was time to cross the Jordan River, the natural border between Israel’s Promised Land to the west and the land of Ammon, Moab, and others to the east. Verses 3 and 4 give the broad outline of the land which was Israel’s for the taking.
But they wouldn’t get anywhere while they were still mourning, so the LORD had to instruct Joshua it was time to arise—to get moving. Israel was still in the land of Moab (Deut. 34:8) but that wasn’t intended to be their land. To claim it, they would have to arise and go!
And the LORD gave Joshua a promise; “I will not fail you nor forsake you.” Joshua had seen Israel fail the LORD any number of times, from building the golden calf while Moses was on the mountain with God, receiving the Ten Commandments; the grumblings about food, water, and who knows what else; the outright rebellion at Kadesh 38 years before (Numbers 13-14), and the horrifying incident at Shittim, where 24.000 Israelites forsook God and “bowed down to” the gods of Moab, specifically Baal-Peor (Numbers 25) Joshua must have been grateful indeed when the LORD gave him this specific promise—but the LORD wasn’t done yet!
The third words—be strong and courageous
“Be strong and very courageous”. The LORD gave Joshua this command three times, with a slight variation, in verses 6-9. Joshua had been courageous before, as he was given command of some soldiers and fought against Amalek (Exodus 17:8-13). These words from the LORD end with a restatement that “. . .the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” Joshua knew, then, for certain that wherever he went, he knew the LORD was already there.
The Words of Joshua to Israel
The first charge—to the officers
Text, Joshua 1:10-11, KJV: 10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, 11 Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals; 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.
Joshua heard and heeded the words of the LORD and, at an unspecified time, commanded the officers of the people. These could be the heads of the tribes, or the military commanders, or some of each. Whoever these men were, some of whom named in Numbers 1 and 7 as the princes of the people, took these words of Joshua to heart.
Now imagine the excitement as word filtered down from the officers to each household. Finally, they were leaving the years of wilderness and wandering; finally, they were they were going to reach the land which the LORD had promised them; and finally, they were about to encounter and enjoy the very best the LORD had to offer them! And all within a few days!
This was probably the happiest message these officers ever gave to anyone. But Joshua wasn’t quite finished. He had another charge to deliver, this time to a specific group of people.
The second charge—to the two and a half tribes
Text, Joshua 1:12-15, KJV: 12 And to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, spake Joshua, saying, 13 Remember 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. 14 Your 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; 15 Until 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.
The tribes of Reuben and Gad, plus one-half the tribe of Manasseh, requested that they be allowed to live on the eastern side of the Jordan River (Numbers 32). Later, Moses gave the land of Gilead to the Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh. I’ve sometimes wondered why they chose to live there, but apparently in those days the land was good for raising cattle. Their cattle must have been something noteworthy, as even hundreds of years later Amos compared some of the women of Bethel to “kine (cows) of Bashan (part of this eastern land, Amos 4:1)!”
Joshua didn’t come out and say this, but he knew the temptation of some to let others fight their own battles, especially if it was no real concern of other groups. In other words, he might have been afraid that these 2.5 tribes might say, “Good luck to you!” but make no real effort to provide support and assistance.
So, Joshua simply reminded them of the command by Moses that these fighting men would help the other tribes in reclaiming the Promised Land (Numbers 32:16ff). He was wise enough, also, to remind them that once the land was under Israel’s control, they could go back home to their own possessions and “enjoy it!”
The Words of the Two and one-half Tribes to Joshua
Text, Joshua 1:16-18, KJV: 16 And they answered Joshua, saying, All that thou commandest us we will do, and whithersoever thou sendest us, we will go. 17 According 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. 18 Whosoever 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.
These words of commitment from the two-and-a-half tribesmen had to be music in Joshua’s ears. He had found himself in the position of command after the death of Moses, and had heard the voice of the LORD just before he spoke to and listened to these men.
These soldiers gave no hint of trying to get out of their duty. They were ready to go: even as they had served Moses, they would serve Joshua. There was no hint at this time of any jealousy or ill-feeling among the various tribes, just recognizing that it was almost time for victory.
They also closed their commitment speech by echoing the words of the LORD: “Only be strong and of a good courage!”
Conclusion: Only those who have been placed in a command position can fully appreciate the situation of Joshua here. Oh, sure, he had had some military experience and had been selected for this position but like many good leaders, he may have felt inadequate for the task.
He received confirmation from the LORD, and that was plenty, but then he got a second helping of this when the soldiers of the two and a half eastern tribes agreed to follow him as they had followed Moses. To seal it, they even repeated to Joshua the very words of the LORD: “Be strong and of a good courage!’
Those are the best leaders who seek God first and explain the situation to those whom they lead. Joshua, as we’ll see in these studies, made his share of mistakes, but he’ll go down in history as one of Israel’s greatest leaders.
We may never be a Moses or Joshua, but we can still be faithful to the Lord just like Joshua. Like him, we can “be strong and of a good courage!”
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV)
