Day 62. Joshua 1-4

In our journey together we have at last reached the historical books, and these should be an easier read, as a novel makes lighter reading than a book of philosophy or theology. The narrative carries you forward. But these books are not novels or works of history in the modern sense. They are "holy history"—history put to a special purpose. They are devoted to revealing what kind of God is who works through history to save his people.
The name "Joshua" or "Yeshua" in Hebrew means "the Lord saves." According to the Gospel of Matthew, that is the name the angel instructs Joseph to give to the miracle child whom Mary is about to bear (1:21). We know the name in its Greek form as "Jesus." Both Joshuas are indeed "saviors"-but of quite different kinds. Both are filled with the spirit—the charisma that comes from God. But their differences are worth contemplating as we read the story of the first Joshua's leadership and anticipate the coming of the second Joshua.
In chapter 1 the LORD tells Joshua three separate times to be "strong and courageous" (1:6, 7, and 18). Courage will be his special gift—courage combined with absolute obedience. The Book of Deuteronomy said that the ideal ruler will have the Law of Moses always beside him, and here Joshua is called upon to meditate constantly upon the Law (1:8) so that his conquest of the Promised Land will be in line with the commands of the LORD and successful.
In chapter 2 we hear the adventure of the Israelite spies in Jericho and meet the plucky prostitute named Rahab who saved them from discovery by hiding them under the flax on her roof. Rahab is a good example of the openness of early Israelite religion. She obviously did not have a very respectable start in life, but she was a woman of character and resourcefulness. After the fall of Jericho she will marry an Israelite husband and become one of the ancestors of King David, and through him of our Lord.
(By the way, the "crimson cord" Rahab ties in her window (2:21), the sign that will save herself and her household from destruction, is the source of the "red light" symbol that marks houses of prostitution in later times.)
In chapter 3 the invasion begins. This is a true "holy war"--the host of Israel is led into battle by the Ark of the Covenant, the visible symbol of the presence of the LORD, the Divine Champion who fights with and for his people. As the waters of the Red Sea parted for Moses (Exodus 14), so here, in an echo of that earlier story, the waters of the Jordan stand still," rising up in a single heap" (3:16). Again the people of Israel cross over with unmoistened feet. (The dividing of the waters harkens back to the Creation story in Genesis 1:6ff. where on the second day of creation the Lord divides the waters to create dry land. Here again a new creation is taking place. God is creating a new people for himself.)
In our reading, the miracle of the divided Jordan serves to validate the leadership of Joshua, who has received from the Lord the charisma, the spirit or courage and strength he needs to do the work of conquest with which he has been entrusted. Again the divine stagehands are moving the sets. A new generation is taking charge and new act is beginning with Joshua in the title role. As our text says-- "On that day the LORD exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they stood in awe of him, as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life" (4:14).