Day 364 - Joshua 9

 •  2 min. read  •  grade level: 7
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V.1-2 Does the happy ending of chapter 8 lead to a comfortable, easy life? Quite the opposite, for Satan only gets more angry and even gets enemies to join together against God’s people. Satan changes his tactics. Chapter 7 was an attack of Satan from within the congregation, their desires; today his trickery from without. No wonder we have to be on guard night and day against Satan.
V.3-15 Gibeon was only a few miles from Ai and less than a day’s journey (33 miles) from Gilgal. These people were sneaky and trying to protect themselves. They had no care for the Lord, only using His Name in verse 9 to make things sound good. Joshua and the other leaders of Israel were uneasy (vvs. 7-8), but wrongly influenced by the made-up story. The decision of verse 15 is a wrong one because of verse 14. This is the cause of so many mistakes we believers make. Self-confidence and no praying.
V.16 A little waiting in the presence of the Lord would have shown them this.
V.17-21 The leaders certainly had made a mistake, but the rest of the people now add to the problem by finding fault with their leaders instead of realizing that they (the congregation) would have done just as badly if they had been the leaders.
V.27 Notice the last 18 words. Now read Deuteronomy 12:5-135But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come: 6And thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks: 7And there ye shall eat before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the Lord thy God hath blessed thee. 8Ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day, every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes. 9For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which the Lord your God giveth you. 10But when ye go over Jordan, and dwell in the land which the Lord your God giveth you to inherit, and when he giveth you rest from all your enemies round about, so that ye dwell in safety; 11Then there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the Lord: 12And ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates; forasmuch as he hath no part nor inheritance with you. 13Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou seest: (Deuteronomy 12:5‑13). Neither Moses nor Joshua knew where this place was or what it was going to be — Jerusalem, God’s one permanent (in the Old Testament) place where He would put His name. God always has one Center only! (Read 1 Kings 11:36). We’re still directed to God’s one Center — Christ. Remember this verse, because the first verse we’ll read tomorrow, Lord willing, has the very name of that place, which wouldn’t be taken by Israel for another 400 years!