Joshua 10:28-43. At the end of yesterdays reading the five kings that started the fight with Israel were all dead.  Most of their people were dead with a few hiding in the cities.  It had been a long day (Whether you think the earth stopped rotating and it actually was a longer day or you think it was some sort of poetic statement it was still a long day.).  The Israelites had marched and fought for 50 miles or more.  God had fought for them but their swords were still bloody, they did not just stand by and watch.   You would think the next day would be time to rest, sharpen the swords, bandage the blisters, but in today’s reading they get right back at it.

In this next part of the story they first attack Makkedah and destroy all of the people there.  Remember in Deuteronomy 7 that the Israelites were commanded to destroy all of the people living within the land promised to them, the people in the land were strongly involved in the worship of false gods and if they remained they would eventually tempt the Israelites to compromise in their relationship to God.  From a strategic point of view you also have to see that Makkedah had not come out and destroyed the enemy kings but had given them shelter.  If the Israelites knew where the kings had hidden it is very likely that the people of Makkedah did too.  Unlike Jael who killed the ally of her husband with a tent peg (Judges 4) because he was an enemy of Israel theses people did nothing.  But the bottom like is that they were to be destroyed and that is what Joshua did.  He then destroyed the rest of the Canaanite cities in the southern part of the promised land west of the Dead Sea.  If you read closely you might have noticed that three of the cities that belonged to the five kings were mentioned.   Jerusalem and Jarmuth are not mentioned.  Their kings are dead but the cities are not.  It is likely that the people of Jarmuth were also killed since the oly other mention of the city in the Bible involves the borders of the tribes when the land is divided up between the Israelites.  Maybe all of the people had died in battle.  The description of the land that was conquered (Joshua 10:40-41) basically covers all of the land west of the Dead Sea from it’s northern tip all the way down to the border of Egypt except for most of the caastland which would have been Philistine territory.  And verse 40 he killed everyone who breathed just s God had said (Deuteronomy 7:1-2).  The southern half of the kingdom was basically conquered (except for part of the coastland maybe) so Joshua and the Israelites returned to the camp at Gilgal.

I think it is important to remember that the Tabernacle (the sort of portable church where the Israelites had worshipped God during the wandering in the wilderness.) and the Ark of the Promise (A wooden and gold box that contained the stone tablets that Moses had written the first ten rules of God on and which was a symbol of God’s contract and presence with the Israelites.)  were in Gilgal.  God had given the victory to Joshua and the troops (Joshua 10:42) and they were returning to Him (and their families).  What strikes me about this story is the fact that God fought for them and they also had to fight.  And the fight went on and on, several days of it, perhaps week or months.  We are not told how long the rest of the campaign took.  And there was more to come.  In fact when Joshua died there was still more to come (Joshua 23:2,5). But God was there the whole time.  Later on Joshua will tell the Israelites to keep it up and hold on tight to God.  We need to do that, we need to keep on doing “just as the Lord, …. Commanded” (Joshua 10:40).

We need to trust His commands.  God knows what is going on.  He alone knows the future and the hearts of people (As we will see tomorrow or the next day).  We must remember that God loves people and doesn’t want them to perish (2 Peter 3:9).  Physical death is tragic but in the end physical death is conquered and physical life is restored (1 Corinthians 15:51-57; Revelation 20:4-6).  But only to those who have put their eternity into Jesus hands (Revelation 20:15; John 3:16-18).  God loves people but people will still perish.  Men will go their own way, try to get to God on their own and they will fail (Revelation 20:12-15).  As ugly as physical death is here and now an eternity without God is far more serious.  So we need to trust and fight on.  In 1 Corinthians 15:58, right after the part about God restoring our physical lives we are told to be  steady, like a rock, in living for God.  That is the response, god is loving and giving and faithful and we need to be faithful back.  We need to do just as the Lord commands us.  Lord help me be faithful.  Help me understand clearly what you want be to do, each day, in each battle.  Sometimes there is spoil, reward, sometimes the stuff needs to be left behind.  It’s not one way or the other so I need to keep listening to you.  Help me hear and help me be faithful.  Thank you for fighting for me and thank you for your presence.  Help me return to You often.