JOSHUA
One More Thing Before I Go
Joshua 23:1-2a
October 18, 2025
The Reubenites and Gadites had very large flocks and herds. After the lands of kings Sihon and Og had been conquered, these tribes, along with ½ the tribe of Manasseh, saw that the land on the east side of the Jordan was great for grazing livestock, so, they went to Moses and requested the land be given to them as their inheritance. “Do not make us cross the Jordan," they said.
In return, they promised to join the rest of Israel in the conquest of Canaan: “…. We will not return home until they have received their inheritance.”
So, when Israel finally crossed the Jordan river, the fighting men of Reuben, Gad and ½ Manasseh joined them. For 7 years they fought alongside their brothers. Now that the conquest was over, these men wanted to go home:
Joshua called them to him and congratulated them on a job well done. “You have done everything you were told to do. You did not desert your brothers, but have carried out the mission Yahweh gave you. Now it is time for you to return home. Be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of Yahweh gave you: to love Yahweh, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul."
Joshua blessed them and sent them on their way.
When theses “east-siders” reached Geliloth, located near the Jordan river (but still on Israel’s side), they built an imposing altar.
Having done so, they crossed the Jordan and went home.
Initially, the story does not tell us why the “east-siders” built the altar just that they did. Was it to be used for sacrifices or simply as a memorial – like the memorial built after Israel crossed the Jordan into Canaan? No one knew…
Joshua 22:11-34 - When the Israelites heard that they had built the altar on the border of Canaan at Geliloth near the Jordan on the Israelite side, the whole assembly of Israel gathered at Shiloh to go to war against them.
In Deuteronomy 12, Moses had instructed the people to build an altar only in the place God would choose. The construction of an altar at any other location – even if done so in God’s name – should be seen as high treason.
However, it is important to note that Yahweh did not tell the “west-siders” to go to war against the “east-siders.” They made that decision all on their own. They jumped to conclusions all on their own. They assumed the worst all on their own….
Luckily, cooler heads prevailed and Phinehas, the priest (son of Eleazar) along with ten representatives from the tribes were sent to Gilead to confront the men of Reuben, Gad and ½ Manasseh:
This is what the community of Yahweh says, “How could you break faith with the God of Israel like this? “How could you turn away from him and build yourselves an altar in rebellion against him?”
Without asking for an explanation, the delegation assumed that the altar had been built for sacrifices and accused the “east-siders” of rebellion. Based on their assumptions, they reminded the “east-siders” of Israel’s rebellion at Baal Peor and Achan’s sin at Jericho, both of which had brought God’s wrath against the whole community.
For the “west-siders” the underpinning emotion was fear. The rationale for their fear was based on the fact that they believed that God had not fully forgiven the sins of Baal Peor and Achan. They felt that God still held these rebellions against them and that belief was fueling talk of war.
Is that true? Does God only sort of forgive? Does he extend forgiveness through gritted teeth, prepared at a moment’s notice to remind us of our past failings?
NO!!! That might be how humans treat each other and it is certainly something Satan does, but that is not how God operates:
• Psalm 103:11-12 - For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
• Isaiah 43:25 - I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.
• Isaiah 44:22 - I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like mist; return to me, for I have redeemed you.
• Isaiah 55:7 - Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
• Micah 7:19 - He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.
• Ephesians 1:7 - In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,
• Colossians 1:13-14 - He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
• Hebrews 8:12 - For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.
• 1 John 1:9 - If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
From God’s perspective, when the people repented of their sin, they were forgiven.
But somehow, even though God continued to go before them in the conquest of Canaan and had blessed them abundantly, they had come to believe the lie that God’s forgiveness wasn’t real. The guilt they felt was not “godly sorrow, which leads to repentance” but “worldly sorrow (which originates with Satan) which leads to death.” And in this case, they were prepared to kill their countrymen over a perceived sin.
You can almost see the astonishment and fear in the eyes of the “east-siders” as they slowly backed up…
“Wait, what??!! Yahweh knows the truth! If we are in rebellion don’t spare us and if we have built an altar to turn away from Yahweh, may he himself, call us to account. But this is not why we built the altar. We built it because we were afraid that your descendants would say to our descendants, ‘What do you have to do with Yahweh, the God of Israel? Yahweh made the Jordan a boundary between us and you have no share in the LORD.' So, we built the altar to be a witness between us and the generations that follow, that we will worship Yahweh at his sanctuary with our burnt offerings, sacrifices and fellowship offerings. We would not rebel against Yahweh by building another altar for offerings and sacrifices.’”
Do we see what fear (which is not of God) does? The “west-siders” were afraid that their sins weren’t really forgiven and the “east-siders” were afraid that because they lived outside the borders of Canaan, their descendants would be denied the right to worship at the Tabernacle.
This story demonstrates 2 things:
• What we believe matters because what we believe to be true will dictate our response even if what we believe is actually wrong.
• How quickly misunderstandings can turn into conflict.
Phinehas and the rest of the “west-siders” were pleased with the “east-siders” response and returned to Canaan.
The rest of the people were glad to hear the report and praised God. All talk of war ceased.
For their part, the Reubenites and Gadites gave the altar this name: A Witness Between Us that Yahweh is God.
After many days Yahweh gave rest to Israel. By this time Joshua was very old. He called all the people together:
He reminded them that God would go before them to drive out the remaining nations.
He reminded them to be strong and to obey everything written in the law – turning neither to the right nor to the left.
He reminded them not to associate with the nations – “Do not invoke the names of their gods or bow down to them. But hold fast to Yahweh your God.”
He reminded them of the consequences should they choose to ally themselves with the nations: “then you may be sure that Yahweh your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land, which Yahweh your God has given you. Now I am about to go the way of all the earth. You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises Yahweh your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed. But just as every good promise of Yahweh your God has come true, so Yahweh will bring on you all the evil he has threatened, until he has destroyed you from this good land he has given you. If you violate the covenant of Yahweh your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, Yahweh's anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you."
In light of the fact that Israel had just been the instrument of God’s judgment against the nations of Canaan, it should have come as no surprise to them when Joshua reflected on the covenant blessings and curses found in Deuteronomy.
Yahweh declares war on sin regardless of where it is found. Israel’s continued prosperity was found only in their continued commitment to the covenant.
Once again and for the final time, Joshua gathered all the people at Shechem:
"This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your forefathers, including Terah, the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the River and served other gods.
I called Abraham from the land beyond the River, led him throughout Canaan and gave him many descendants.
I sent Moses and Aaron, but I was the one who afflicted the Egyptians and brought you out.
You saw with your own eyes what I did to the Egyptians. Then you lived in the desert for a long time.
I brought you to the land of the Amorites and gave them into your hands.
When Balak, king of Moab, sent for Balaam to put a curse on you, I would not listen to Balaam. He blessed you again and again, and I delivered you out of his hand.
When you crossed the Jordan I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.’”
At the close of his speech Joshua issued his famous challenge: Now fear Yahweh and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods of your forefathers and serve Yahweh. But if serving Yahweh seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves whom you will serve -- the gods of your forefathers, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve Yahweh.
The People: Far be it from us to forsake Yahweh to serve other gods! God himself brought us out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed great signs before our eyes. He protected us the entire journey and He drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve Yahweh, because he is our God.
To test the genuineness of their commitment and remind them that despite Yahweh’s goodness, he would not let idolatry go unpunished, Joshua responded: But you are not able to serve Yahweh. He is a holy and jealous God. If you forsake him and serve other gods, he will not forgive your rebellion and sins. He will bring disaster on you and make an end of you…..
The People: No! We will serve Yahweh.
Joshua: You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to serve Yahweh.
The People: Yes, we are witnesses!
Joshua: Throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to Yahweh, the God of Israel.
The People: We will serve Yahweh our God and obey him.
Joshua made a covenant with the people and recorded all these things in the Book of the Law of God. He took a large stone and set it up under an oak tree near the Tabernacle:
"See!" he said to all the people. "This stone will be a witness against us. It has heard all the words Yahweh has said to us. It will be a witness against you if you are untrue to your God."
Then Joshua sent the people away, each to his own inheritance.
After these things…..
• Joshua died - at 110 years old - and was buried at Timnath.
Joshua 24:31 - Israel served Yahweh throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced everything Yahweh had done for Israel.
• Joseph bones were buried at Shechem on the land Jacob had purchased.
• Eleazar, the High Priest died and was buried at Gibeah in the hill country of Ephraim. Phinehas was now High Priest.
With the passing of Joshua and Eleazar the last immediate link to Moses and Aaron was severed. A new era in Israel was about to begin.
Until Next Time…………..
