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The Book of Joshua: A Study in Prophetic History
The Book of Joshua: A Study in Prophetic History
The Book of Joshua: A Study in Prophetic History
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The Book of Joshua: A Study in Prophetic History

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The subject of this study is the prophetic history of Joshua and the first stages of the conquest of the Promised Land, as presented in the Masoretic text of the biblical Book of Joshua. The term prophetic history is employed to describe the subject because prophecy in biblical thought is not fatalistic and does not predict future events. What it does do is assert that the moral course that a society chooses to follow in the present can determine its probable but not inevitable future. The purpose of the biblical book is to inform the reader of the historical consequences of the failure to observe the terms of the divine covenant entered into between God and the children of Israel at Mount Sinai following the exodus from Egypt. Although the narrative is based on events that were believed to have taken place, the primary focus of prophetic history is on the moral implications of the decisions taken by men rather than the factual accuracy of the details of the events described which have been studied exhaustively by archaeologists and historians of the ancient world.
This study is concerned primarily with what the biblical narrative purports to tell us in its own special way, and only peripherally with the issues of primary concern to the modern academic studies of biblical texts such as when the text was finalized and by whom, literary analysis of the language employed, comparative analysis of the text and other ancient literature, and other such topics, all of which are of valid intellectual interest but, with some notable exceptions, contribute little to understanding what the authors and editors of the Hebrew text as we have it are trying to convey to the reader.
LanguageEnglish
PublisherAuthorHouse
Release dateSep 16, 2015
ISBN9781504950060
The Book of Joshua: A Study in Prophetic History
Author

Martin Sicker

Dr. Martin Sicker is a writer and lecturer on the Middle East and Jewish history and religion. His is the author of 42 previous books including Reading Genesis Politically; The Trials of Abraham; The Ordeals of Isaac and Jacob; Aspects of Jewish Metarational Thought; The Exodus and the Reluctant Prophet; The Convocation at Sinai; The Theopolitical Discourses of Moses; and Pondering the Imponderable.

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    The Book of Joshua - Martin Sicker

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    Published by AuthorHouse  09/16/2015

    ISBN: 978-1-5049-4948-4 (sc)

    ISBN: 978-1-5049-5006-0 (e)

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    Contents

    Introduction

    1    Joshua Takes Command

    2    The Reconnaissance Mission

    3    The Parting Of The Jordan

    4    The Crossing Of The Jordan Completed

    5    First Passover In Land Of Israel

    6    Conquest Of Jericho

    7    The Sin Of Achan

    8    Capture Of Ai

    9    Joshua And The Gibeonites

    10    Conquest Of The South

    11    Conquest Of The North

    12    Summary Of Israelite Conquests

    13    Territorial Disposition In Transjordan

    14    Territorial Disposition In Cisjordan

    15    The Allotment To Judah

    16    Allotment To The Joseph Tribes (1)

    17    Allotment To The Joseph Tribes (2)

    18    Allotments To Remaining Tribes (1)

    19    Allotments To Remaining Tribes (2)

    20    Establishing Cities Of Refuge

    21    Designating Levitical Cities

    22    Joshua Releases The Men Of The Two And A Half Tribes

    23    Joshua’s First Farewell Sermon

    24    Joshua’s Final Message

    References

    Notes

    About The Author

    Introduction

    The subject of this study is the story of Joshua and the first stages of the conquest of the Promised Land, as presented in the Masoretic text of the biblical Book of Joshua. The term story rather than history of Joshua and the conquest is employed to describe the subject because the biblical book is a history only in the very special sense of prophetic history, which bears little relationship to history in the modern sense of the term.

    It should be noted that prophecy in biblical thought is not fatalistic and does not predict future events. What it does do is assert that the moral course that a society chooses to follow in the present can determine its probable but not inevitable future. In the biblical view, man is divinely endowed with free will and will individually be held accountable by both God and society for his choices. However, the fate of a society is a rather different matter, its future is entirely dependent on whether it is divinely considered morally eufunctional or dysfunctional, and if the latter whether there are sufficient numbers of righteous people in it to constitute a critical mass capable of arresting its moral decline. Thus the biblical narrative tells us that God promises Abraham that He ultimately will give the land of Canaan to his descendants, but only after four centuries because the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet full (Gen. 15:16). That is, the Amorites are proceeding slowly downward on the moral slope, without sufficient numbers of righteous people to arrest the moral decline that will make their society irredeemably dysfunctional and unworthy of perpetuation. The prophet’s task is to alert the members of the society that it is on the slippery downward moral slope to oblivion that can be aborted if they so choose.

    The distinguishing feature of prophetic history is that it is history written from a prophetic perspective with a particular purpose in mind, namely, to illustrate to later generations of the children of Israel the historical consequences of failure by its political and religious leaders to observe and comply with the terms of the divine covenant entered into between God and the children of Israel at Mount Sinai, following the exodus from Egypt. Understood in this manner, the story related in the Book of Joshua depicts the entry of the children of Israel into the Promised Land, the land of Canaan, and the struggles in which they engaged to conquer and settle in the country.

    This story as well as the later narratives in the other biblical works commonly but misleadingly designated as the historical books of the Bible are based on historical events that clearly were believed to have taken place. However, the story of those events is presented as viewed through a prophetic prism. It is noteworthy in this regard that the so-called historical books of the Bible are referred to in Judaic tradition as the books of the early prophets. Accordingly, the primary focus of these prophetic narratives is on the moral implications of the decisions and actions taken by men rather than the factual historical accuracy of the details of the events described.

    The focus in this study is primarily on what the authors and editors of the Hebrew text of the Book of Joshua are purporting to teach us in their own special way. It is only peripherally concerned with many of the issues of primary interest to the modern academic studies of biblical texts such as when the text was finalized and by whom, literary analysis of the language employed, comparative analysis of the text and other ancient literature, and other such topics. All of these issues are of valid intellectual concern but, with some notable exceptions contribute little to understanding what the authors and editors of the Hebrew text are trying to convey to us, which, as indicated, is the principal concern of this study.

    The translation of the Hebrew text employed in this study, with some minor modifications for further clarity, is that of the old Jewish Publication Society version of the Scriptures. Although there are many modern translations available, I have demurred from using them because every translation is also an interpretation and, unfortunately, some translations take a bit too much liberty with the ancient Hebrew text. I have found the old JPS version, with all its archaisms and other difficulties, many of which will be discussed in the body of this work, to best reflect the language of the Masoretic Hebrew version, making it easier to analyze and hopefully to comprehend some of the subtleties of the ancient text.

    In this preamble to the book that follows the anonymous author clearly links the narrative to the end of Deuteronomy, which speaks of the death of Moses and the succession of Joshua to his central national leadership role, leading to the suggestion, taking into consideration other literary factors, that both works are the product of the same hand. However, as has been argued by others, the linkage itself is not so closely connected as to warrant the conclusion that the two works have been written by the same author.¹ In any case, the issue is of little relevance to the thrust of this study and will not be pursued farther in it. Suffice it to note for present purposes that, since the twelfth century at the latest, the formal linkage of the opening verses of the book of Joshua to the conclusion of Deuteronomy may be seen reflected in the synagogue practice of reading these verses as the additional Scriptural lesson, the Haftarah, upon the conclusion of the reading of the final chapter of the book of Deuteronomy at the end of the annual festival of Sukkot or Tabernacles.²

    1

    JOSHUA TAKES COMMAND

    Joshua’s Commission

    ¹.¹ Now it came to pass after the death of Moses the servant of YHVH, that YHVH spoke unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying: ¹.² ‘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. ¹.³ Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, to you have I given it, as I spoke unto Moses. ¹.⁴ 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 border.’

    It is noteworthy that Moses is referred to in this text as eved YHVH, translated as the servant of YHVH, a title of highest honor bestowed on him several times in the Pentateuch, whereas Joshua is identified by the lesser dignity of mesharet moshe or Moses’ minister. Although Joshua would also be accorded that honorific title at the end of his life (Josh. 24:29), the narrator may implicitly be indicating that he had not yet earned that distinction at this point in his life and career. It has been suggested that this distinction in terminology is significant because of its implications. For one thing, mesharet carries the connotation of ‘servant’ in a strictly secular sense, whereas although eved is often understood in that sense as well, it also has a specific theological meaning.³ Although the two terms overlap in their meaning and usage, the concern here is to preserve the distinctive relationship of Moses and the Lord and to affirm that the relationship between Joshua and Moses was different from this.⁴ Another approach to the matter is suggested by one of the early rabbis who agreed that a minister is a higher designation than a servant, except with regard to one’s relationship to God.⁵ The meaning of this assertion, it has been suggested, is that in order to meet with the king a minister must schedule an appointment, whereas the servant of the king has virtually complete freedom of access.⁶ As minister to Moses, Joshua did not have the sort of access that Moses as His servant had to his Master.

    The term eved is often translated as ‘slave.’ Thus Moses may be understood as the slave of YHVH, bearing in mind what characterizes a slave, namely, that a slave is a person with no possessions, no will, no legal status, no authority of his own. He is totally subservient to his master.⁷ It has been suggested in this regard that the title of eved YHVH is accorded to one who dedicates all his activity, including that of a mundane character, to the service of God.⁸ Moses was thus totally devoted to God and his mission, which became his sole purpose in life, enabling him to endure endless frustration with his stiffnecked people. Although Joshua assumed Moses’ role by divine appointment (Num. 27:18-23), he had yet to prove that he could be his true successor. However, it has been pointed out, the distinction in title between Moses and Joshua does not diminish the esteem divinely accorded to the latter as reflected in the following verse where it speaks of thou, and all this people, effectively placing Joshua on a par with the entire body of the children of Israel.⁹

    The notation that Joshua had been Moses’ minister, the Hebrew term mesharet perhaps better rendered as attendant, understates their relationship over a forty-year period. Thus an earlier text notes that Moses rose up, and Joshua his minister; and Moses went up into the mount of Elohim (Ex. 24:13) to receive the Decalogue, remaining there for forty days. Although no mention is made of what Joshua did, it seems clear that he accompanied Moses part way up the mountain where he remained awaiting the descent of Moses during the entire forty-day period, as evidenced by the subsequent text that indicates that Moses encountered Joshua as he descended, who was unaware of what was taking place below in the Israelite camp (Ex. 32:15-17), where the affair of the Golden Calf was occurring. Joshua was Moses’ closest and most trusted much younger associate who was completely devoted to him, the only one to whom he could entrust his role as leader of the people, whom he publicly designated as his successor before his death, a role that Joshua could not conceivably accept without great trepidation.

    It is noteworthy that Joshua was one hundred and ten years old when he died (24:29), but we have no idea of his age at the time when he took Moses’ place as leader of the people. There are various traditions that suggest that he was at that time seventy-two, eighty-two, eighty-eight, or ninety-six.¹⁰ Moses had experienced numerous challenges to his authority and had overcome them, but Joshua was well aware that he was no Moses, and could not but be concerned that he might fail as a leader without the aura of Moses’ oversight to give him the moral fortitude to succeed in carrying out the mission and responsibilities being entrusted to him.

    It seems reasonable to assume that when the text states that God communicated to Joshua after the death of Moses it means not immediately upon Moses’ death but rather following the thirty days of mourning for him (Deut. 34:8), during which his most faithful disciple Joshua would not have been in the frame of mind to deal with a divine communication of the kind described in the following verses. Indeed, the sages would later assert that the Divine Presence does not rest upon a person plunged in gloom but only in a state of elation.¹¹

    Upon reflection, it seems rather odd that, following the narrator’s introduction which made it clear that what was about to occur was after Moses’ death, the divine communication to Joshua should begin with the statement, Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan. It has been suggested that what Joshua is being told is to accept the reality that the master he served so faithfully for four decades was gone, never to return, and given that the month-long period of mourning had been completed, it was essential that as Moses’ divinely designated successor he must arise from his state of dejection and assume the role for which he was chosen. Moreover, public awareness of excessive mourning is unseemly for a leader, making him appear immobilized at a time when the people are wondering about what will happen next.¹²

    It also has been suggested that the statement, Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, contains an implicit message that is not obvious at a first glance. In effect God is telling Joshua that, had the people merited it, Moses would have led them across the Jordan and the conquest would have gone as smoothly and efficiently as the conquest of the two Amorite kingdoms of Sihon and Og in Transjordan. Since they did not merit it, Moses was not allowed to lead the children of Israel into the promised land, as he told them in his final discourses, YHVH was angry with me on your account (Deut. 1:37). Now that Moses was dead, God would allow the children of Israel to cross the Jordan under the leadership of Joshua. However, without the leadership of Moses the conquest would be much slower and costlier because Joshua is not another Moses, and the people have not earned the sort of divine intervention that would have assured them a quick victory.¹³

    Expanding on this theme it has been suggested that there was another reason why the crossing of the Jordan could not take place until after the death of Moses, and it related to the unique status of Moses among the children of Israel that no other could rival. It was virtually inconceivable that Joshua could replace Moses as supreme commander of the army while Moses’ eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated (Deut. 34:7), his vitality remaining intact until the moment of his demise.¹⁴ Although Moses was punished severely for an instance of leadership failure by being denied entry into the Promised Land, allowing the Israelites to cross the Jordan as he watched would have been an even greater punishment than God had intended. Moreover, seeing his status degraded in such a public manner, as the Israelites were about to undertake a campaign of conquest, could have had a serious demoralizing effect on the generation that knew only him as their prophet, lawgiver, and commander.

    Alternatively, it has been suggested that the words Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise are directed to Joshua’s state of mind following the end of the period of mourning for Moses. As his attendant, Joshua had long lived and thrived in his master’s shadow. Now he was faced by the reality that he was to replace Moses and he was unsure that he would be accorded the respect and obedience needed to adequately fulfill that role. Knowing at first hand the querulousness of the tribal leaders, he was worried about what he would do if his orders were challenged or simply ignored. In response to these unarticulated concerns God tells him to arise and assert his divinely granted authority, and to do so immediately by initiating the crossing of the Jordan. In effect, he is told to be bold and take command!¹⁵

    Joshua is to lead the people unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. This is a reaffirmation that their right to the land has been established by divine decree notwithstanding that they will have to struggle for control of it. Originally, Abraham had been promised: Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates (Gen. 15:18), the river of Egypt generally understood to refer to the Wadi al-Arish, which is located south of Gaza at the edge of the wildernesses of Sinai. In this regard, Moses had been told, with greater specificity: Every place whereon the sole of your foot shall tread shall be yours: from the wilderness, and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates, even unto the hinder sea shall be your border (Deut. 11:24).

    Now, God reiterates that pledge to Joshua, albeit with somewhat different wording: Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, to you have I given it, as I spoke unto Moses. Note the change from the prospective shall be yours to the declarative to you have I given it. It has been suggested that what the latter wording asserts is that Israel’s successful domination of the entire land has been divinely predetermined; Israel’s task is merely to take possession of it, by force of conquest if necessary.¹⁶ It is noteworthy that the text uses the word ‘tread’ not ‘conquer.’ In God’s words, no allusion is made to war, for the Israelites had no possibility of conquering the Land by means of military might.¹⁷

    In other words, Joshua is being told that the whole of the Promised Land, its borders set forth below, is now ready to be occupied by the children of Israel, but it is not vacant and if the children of Israel truly want it they must actively take steps to dispossess the present occupants, bearing in mind that every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, to you have I given it. Moreover, it has been suggested that this text is asserting that the pace and scope of their penetration of the Promised Land is entirely up to Joshua and the Israelites; wherever they plant their feet will be theirs, the divine plan taking immediate effect; where they do not will remain unclaimed.¹⁸ That is, their ‘conquest’ of the land, incremental or total, will be a joint divine-human effort, something that the Israelites could not achieve without divine involvement in the process.

    It is noteworthy that these texts have been interpreted by some in what may be considered a rather more expansionist sense. Thus it has been pointed out that once the scope of the Promised Land has been specified, the statement that every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, to you have I given it seems superfluous, unless it is conveying some thought not previously mentioned. It is therefore suggested that the statement refers to the conquest of territories outside the projected borders of the Promised Land. That is, "Scripture says first, Ye shall dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourselves (Deut. 11:23), and afterwards, Every place whereon the sole of your foot shall tread, thus indicating that the Land of Israel must not remain contaminated by idols while you turn back and conquer other lands; rather, only after you have conquered the Land of Israel will you be permitted to conquer places outside of it."¹⁹ This interpretation should not be construed as an imperialist inclination but rather as awareness of the geopolitical reality that actual national boundaries must be defensible, which may require extension of control beyond the indicated borders.

    It is noteworthy that it is only in the present text that Canaan is referred to as the land of the Hittites. The question this raises is why the Hittites are singled out here, since they are but one of the several nations that Israel would have to confront in the conquest of the land. It has been suggested that the term Hittites is employed here in the broader sense of a general name for Canaanites,²⁰ presumably because they were found throughout the country,²¹ which does not explain why it was chosen instead of Canaanites or Amorites, the more common general name in the Pentateuch for the diverse populations of the land. Alternatively, it has been suggested that particular mention is made of the Hittites because they alone might have been associated with powerful potential external allies, the Hittite kingdoms that existed in northern Syria, in the vicinity of the Euphrates, at the time of the Israelite conquest.²² It also has been proposed that the expression all the land of the Hittites may reflect the fact that Canaan, constituting the land bridge between Egypt and Mesopotamia, was occasionally referred to in antiquity, in non-biblical sources, as the land of Hatti.²³ This is in accord with the assertion that the reference to the land of the Hittites here is to note that the borders of the Promised Land incorporated parts of northern Syria, which was once part of the Hittite empire.²⁴ In this regard it has been observed that in the seventeenth century b.c.e. Canaan also was part of the Hittite empire, and that after its subsequent effective dissolution, a number of Hittite principalities remained in Canaan, which was still called the land of the Hittites.²⁵

    Joshua is told that the ultimate borders of the Promised Land will encompass all of Canaan from the southern wildernesses to the mountains of Lebanon and beyond as far north as the Euphrates, and from the Jordan in the east to the Great Sea in the west. The Great Sea, of course, refers to the Mediterranean, and since no parameters are given with regard to the length of the maritime border of the promised land, the text may be understood as saying, in effect that the maritime border is the entire eastern littoral of the Mediterranean from Wadi al-Arish at the frontier of Egypt in the south to the Bay of Alexandretta in the north.²⁶ According to some of the early rabbis, the border of the land is the Mediterranean and not only the concave coastline, and therefore includes everything within a line drawn from the Mountains of Ammanon [Mount Amanus in northwest Syria] to the Brook of Egypt.²⁷ In effect, this would establish an ancient maritime boundary for the country’s territorial waters, and would include any small islands within the line of demarcation.

    The delineation of the borders of the Promised Land is important because the Israelites were admonished earlier that when ye pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their figured stones, and destroy all their molten images, and demolish all their high places. And ye shall drive out the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein; for unto you have I given the land to possess it (Num. 33:51-53). It seems reasonable to assume that the admonition to destroy all their figured stones, and destroy all their molten images, and demolish all their high places applied only to the land designated as the homeland of the children of Israel, and to nowhere else. Thus, despite the horrendous calamity that struck the children of Israel as they rested in the plain of Moab because of the indigenous worship of Baal Peor (Num. 25:1-9), there is no mention of any move by Moses to prohibit such worship or destroy its idolatrous paraphernalia there. The simple reason for this is that the plain of Moab was outside the borders of Canaan for sacramental purposes. By delineating the boundaries of the land given to them, the text implicitly sets the outer limits of the area in which the covenant is to be considered sovereign, even though circumstances might require Israelite control of areas beyond the stipulated boundaries. Put in modern terms, the monotheistic religion of Israel or Judaism was never intended to be a missionary faith other than in the sense of serving as a God-centered framework for a moral and just society that other peoples and nations might choose to emulate.

    Assurance of Divine Support

    ¹.⁵ ‘There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life; as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee; I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. ¹.⁶ Be strong and of good courage; for thou shalt cause this people to inherit the land which I swore unto their fathers to give them.

    Acknowledging the trepidation Joshua must have experienced with the recognition that he was going to assume the burdens of leadership of the children of Israel, burdens that repeatedly drove Moses to distraction; God reassures him that He will be with him as He had previously been with Moses. Moreover, Joshua is assured that there shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life, that is, by contrast with Moses’ experience in this regard, no serious challenge to his authority and power will emerge from the children of Israel for as long as he lives. In effect, he is being told that, relatively speaking, his tenure as leader of the people will be less troubled than it was for his predecessor and master. These assurances were critical because, in a sense, the challenges that will confront Joshua will be greater than those experienced by Moses. Despite the host of issues that confronted Moses in the forty years of his tenure, he was faced by the problem of assimilation only at the very end of his career as leader of the people when they were exposed to other cultures, something that did not happen in the wilderness. However, when Joshua leads the people across the Jordan, assimilation will be a continuing problem because contact with other cultures will be virtually unavoidable.

    God further assures him, I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, words that recall Moses’ assurance to the children of Israel as they prepared to cross the Jordan that God doth go with thee; He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee (Deut. 31:6). It has been suggested that the assertions I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee reflect two assurances, that he would succeed in battle and that he would allocate the land to the people. That is, I will not fail thee means I will not let you falter in the struggle, and nor forsake thee after you succeed and have to deal with the problems of equitable land allocations.²⁸ In this regard, the text has been understood as a reassurance to Joshua that I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, as what happened to Moses will not happen to him, when after forty years of struggle to bring the people to the point of crossing into the Promised Land, Moses was denied entry. Therefore, Joshua should be strong and of good courage because he is given a divine commitment that he will not be forsaken once he fulfills the mission of conquering the land, but that he will also be the one to cause this people to inherit the land which I swore unto their fathers to give them.²⁹

    Alternatively, as observed above, Joshua will need to struggle hard for the land and it is therefore imperative that he be strong and of good courage, that is, be strong physically to endure and persevere in the struggle, and be courageous, that is be resolute and determined to succeed no matter the apparent odds against him. The text also has been understood as suggesting that if you be strong, in the sense of being determined to succeed in his mission, good courage to carry it out against all odds will come to him as a divine gift.³⁰ If Joshua can show such resolve, then he shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore unto their fathers to give them.

    The Covenantal Aspect of His Commission

    ¹.⁷ Only be strong and very courageous, to 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 have good success whithersoever thou goest. ¹.⁸ This book of the Torah 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 ways prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. ¹.⁹ Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not affrighted, neither be thou dismayed; for YHVH thy Elohim is with thee whithersoever thou goest.’

    Joshua is told that, while the military conquest of the land, which will be difficult, will tax his resolve, it will be only part of the task for which he was chosen. The more far-reaching challenge will be to transform the conquered territories into a base for the emergence of the moral and just society envisioned by the covenant. This will be essential to the durability and viability of the Israelite presence in the country as the dominant nation. To succeed in this regard, he will have to be strong and very courageous, even more so than in his role as military commander, because in this struggle he will have to battle the ‘evil inclination’ within the human psyche, the implacable foe of morality that will seek to derail the inclination to observe to do according to all the law, which Moses My servant commanded thee.³¹ It has been suggested that the point being made is for Joshua to realize that his mundane strength will be contingent on the extent of his spiritual strength.³²

    Creating a decentralized covenantal society will prove even more difficult in some respects than overcoming the enemy on the battlefield, and this will require that Joshua be unyielding with regard to carrying out the stipulations of the covenant, as set forth by Moses. Implicit in this exhortation is a reminder that God will facilitate the conquest of the land because of the moral corruption of the resident pagan nations that, as pointed out in an earlier text, are considered as having defiled the very land itself. Should Israel fail to live up to the higher standards expected of it, it too would face a similar fate. Thus Israel was told, after being given a list of prohibited behaviors, in all these the nations are defiled, which I cast out before you. And the land was defiled, therefore I did visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land vomited out her inhabitants. Ye therefore shall keep My statutes and Mine ordinances, and shall not do any of these abominations; neither the home-born, nor the stranger that sojourneth among you—for all these abominations have the men of the land done, that were before you, and the land is defiled—that the land vomit not you out also, when ye defile it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you (Lev. 18:24-28).

    Accordingly, Joshua is admonished to observe to do according to all the law, which Moses My servant commanded thee. It has been suggested that the term lishmor, translated as to observe in this text, means to study the teachings of the Torah, which provides guidance on how to perform, for study is the prerequisite for proper performance.³³ The Hebrew text also states kekhol hatorah asher tzivkha moshe, translated as according to all the law, which Moses … commanded thee. It is noteworthy that God does not speak of the law that He commanded but rather of that which was commanded by Moses. The implication of this, according to some traditionalists, is that proper conformity with the covenant must be based on the revelation to Moses and the manner in which he promulgated it to posterity, and not on one’s independent reasoning.³⁴ It is also possible that according to all the law, which Moses … commanded thee refers to the precepts and laws strewn throughout the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers that Moses compiled into a single handbook, the book of Deuteronomy, for the edification of the people.

    The question that has long troubled commentators is the intent of the reference in this text to torah, translated as law. As maintained by rabbinic tradition, in the text I will give thee tablets of stone, and the law and the commandment (Ex. 24:12), the law or Torah refers to the written law, whereas the commandment or mitzvah refers to the oral law, that is, how the written law is to be understood and applied in practice. Copies of the written law, the Torah, were given to the priests and tribal elders (Deut. 31:9), and the master copy was deposited in the sanctuary along with the Ark of the Covenant. It was not intended that the oral law be published, presumably because it was expected to vary in accordance with the circumstances of place and time, but was conveyed by Moses to Joshua and the elders as guidance for implementation of the covenant.³⁵ Accordingly, the present text, which speaks of the law commanded by Moses, is considered to refer to the oral teaching that was entrusted to Joshua, and not to the written law contained in the Torah scrolls that were entrusted to the tribal leaders and the priests.

    The command to observe to do, which may appear tautological, has long been understood in rabbinic literature as asserting that to observe means to desist from those acts that are prohibited, the negative commandments, and that to do refers to those acts that are to be performed, the positive commandments. Moreover, he is admonished, turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that is, do not embellish a positive commandment to do more than is asked of you, and do not detract from a negative commandment to do that which is forbidden.³⁶ Compliance with the law as given is both prerequisite and assurance that thou mayest have good success whithersoever thou goest, an adjuration that was previously issued by Moses to the people as a whole: Observe therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may make all that ye do to prosper (Deut. 29:8).

    At first glance, the statement, this book of the Torah shall not depart out of thy mouth, would appear to be a command to Joshua to stay always engaged with the written Torah, the unalterable core text of the covenant, presumably to assure that the pressures of leadership not cause him to neglect it to his detriment. However, one of the early rabbis is cited as reading this passage as neither duty nor command but a blessing. As the preeminent disciple of Moses, Joshua always showed unrelenting devotion to Moses and his teaching, such that when he accompanied Moses to the Tent of Meeting where the latter interacted with God and then returned to the Israelite camp, his minister Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the Tent (Ex. 33:11). Thus, it was suggested, when God saw that Joshua held the covenant in such high esteem, "He said to him, ‘Joshua, since the words of the Torah are so precious to thee, [I assure thee,] this book of the Torah shall not depart out of thy mouth.’"³⁷ That is, he would be blessed by the constant awareness of what the covenant demands of him, no matter the circumstances in which he might find himself or the pressures on him that he might experience.

    It is noteworthy that the term torah actually has a wider meaning than law and, depending on context, might be better understood as ‘teaching,’ ‘guidance,’ or ‘instruction.’ It has been suggested that when the text states that this book of the Torah shall not depart out of thy mouth, "the meaning of God’s Teaching in Joshua’s mouth is twofold.

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