Let’s see.

I want to name the battles Israel has fought thus far, in the Book of Joshua I mean.

Jericho!

Then little Ai fell next, but only after a second attack!

But now, in chapter 10 of Joshua, it’s almost as if God “spurs” Israel further into war by causing (allowing) a coalition (confederacy) of five nations to attack Gibeon, a city “next door” to the Jewish encampment!

Maybe Israel “needed” such an attack at this point, to “provoke” her to further incursions into the land of Canaan. (It is so easy to become lethargic!)

So the Gibeonites (who had slyly become allies of Israel, thus under Joshua’s protection) called for help, when besieged by a five-nation army! “And the men of Gibeon sent unto Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slack not thy hand from thy servants; come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us: for all the kings of the Amorites that dwell in the mountains are gathered together against us.” Joshua 10:6

Help!

So, camping about 20 miles away in Gilgal, the Israeli army responded. “So Joshua ascended from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valour. And the LORD said unto Joshua, Fear them not: for I have delivered them into thine hand; there shall not a man of them stand before thee. Joshua therefore came unto them suddenly, and went up from Gilgal all night.” Verses 7-9

They marched all night, it appears!

And they arrived, confidently so, based on the Promise just given to Joshua … from Almighty God! Did you notice that? “Fear them not: for I have delivered them into thine hand; there shall not a man of them stand before thee.”

So the battle ensues … “And the LORD discomfited (destroyed, crushed) them before Israel, and slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, and chased them along the way that goeth up to Bethhoron, and smote them to Azekah, and unto Makkedah.” Verse 10, geographically accurate descriptions, I might add. (Remember: “The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.” Exodus 15:3)

Then, the “point” of today’s Lesson, a fact to be learned … Verse 11: “And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, and were in the going down to Bethhoron, that the LORD cast down GREAT STONES from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died: they were more which died with HAILSTONES than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword.” Wow!

God used the “weather” to help conquer these heathen aggressors!

Hailstones, in this case!

Deadly hailstones at that!

And He (the Lord) is going to do it again! In the coming days of world-wide Tribulation … during the pouring out of the seventh bowl (vial) of Judgment upon an ultra-wicked earth! “And there fell upon men a GREAT HAIL out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a TALENT: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.” Revelation 16:21, with a “talent” weighing (at least) a hundred (100) pounds!

Wow!

Plus, God used “hail” in Egypt against the unbelieving, stubborn Egyptians! (Exodus 9:23-24 … “And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and HAIL, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained HAIL upon the land of Egypt. So there was HAIL, and fire mingled with the HAIL, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.” What power!)

And I have given you just a sampling of the Bible times when God used hail to judge!

A God Who controls, directs the weather!

The storms!

Who in fact created the “weather!”

May I say …

HE IS WORTHY TO BE WORSHIPPED!

He is also the Author of the gentle soft breezes that refresh mankind!

One more time, Wow!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

Get alone somewhere today and … WORSHIP HIM a while.

What a great God He is.

 

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War!

That’s the only way to describe the event portrayed in today’s Text, Joshua 10:1-5.

“Now it came to pass, when Adonizedek king of Jerusalem had heard how Joshua had taken Ai, and had utterly destroyed it; as he had done to Jericho and her king, so he had done to Ai and her king; and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel, and were among them; that they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, as one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty.” Let me interject a quick comment. Clearly the heathen “hear” what God has been doing, and in this particular situation they acknowledge the Source of these miracles/victories! (Today the “lost” hear of God’s mighty “doings,” and deny that the Hand of the  Lord is behind them! They “see” the beauties of Creation … but attribute such to “fate,” blind “evolution.”)

Now, let’s continue: “Wherefore Adonizedek king of Jerusalem sent unto Hoham king of Hebron, and unto Piram king of Jarmuth, and unto Japhia king of Lachish, and unto Debir king of Eglon, saying, Come up unto me, and help me, that we may smite Gibeon: for it hath made peace with Joshua and with the children of Israel.” Count the Kings, please. a total of five! All preparing to attack the City of Gibeon, a people with whom Joshua had entered into a peace treaty!

“Therefore the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon, gathered themselves together, and went up, they and all their hosts, and encamped before Gibeon, and made war against it.” This is called “ganging up” on someone! Five against one! Five warring enemies against one peaceful City!

And herein lies our Lesson today.

Has the devil (symbolized by this confederacy of wicked, murderous kings) every “piled on” on you, he and his hordes of Hell? That’s one of his tactics, I believe.

Grandmother Green used to say, “When it rains it pours!”

The devil hits with one issue, one temptation … and soon there are two, three, even more at times!

Satan literally hates anyone in league with God or God’s people! Anyone with (even weak) believing faith, as apparently had the Gibeonites!

But do I have Scripture to validate my claim, that the devil “gang attacks?”

Well, the evil one (devil) certainly tried that “multiple temptation” approach on godly Job (meaning the Old Testament character named Job) … didn’t he? Loss of all his livestock, loss (deaths) of 10 children, broken health, (maybe even) loss of his Wife’s support!

Yes, that’s “overkill” I would say.

And Paul seems to agree. Look at his list of our enemies, as Christians I mean. “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against PRINCIPALITIES, against POWERS, against the RULERS OF THE DARKNESS of this world, against SPIRITUAL WICKEDNESS in high places.” Wow, Ephesians 6:12, what a “list” of attackers!

Enemies (spiritual as well as physical) both on earth and in the “heavenlies!” That’s exactly what “high places” means in Greek. A plethora of warring devils, demons, headed by Lucifer himself!

Yet too, Christian friend, we have this promise. “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” 1 John 4:4

When the devil next “hits” you … watch your back and sides too … he is liable to double (or triple) attack.

Just be ready!

And do what?

What the Gibeonites did, I suggest. (Tomorrow’s Lesson)

CRY OUT to your Ally! (Joshua with his fierce army!)

To God!

And His people!

Wow!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

 

Israel has a problem.

There is a “enemy” in the Camp!

The “Gibeonites,” as we have studied for several days, had “tricked” the Jews into a peace treaty!

One could almost observe and be right: “SIN in the CAMP!”

And there’s little that could have been done about it, about them, those lying Gibeonites!

So, one must MAKE THE BEST of an ugly situation.

And here’s the solution the “Princes” (as in “Wise Men”) of Israel reached.

“And the princes said unto them, Let them live; but LET THEM BE HEWERS OF WOOD AND DRAWERS OF WATER unto all the congregation; as the princes had promised them. And Joshua called for them, and he spake unto them, saying, Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying, We are very far from you; when ye dwell among us? Now therefore YE ARE CURSED, and there shall none of you be freed from being BONDMEN, and hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God. And they answered Joshua, and said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the LORD thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you, therefore we were sore afraid of our lives because of you, and have done this thing. And now, behold, we are in thine hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do. And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not. And Joshua made them that day HEWERS OF WOOD AND DRAWERS OF WATER for the congregation, and for the altar of the LORD, even unto this day, in the place which he should choose.” Joshua 9:21-27

Wow!

They (the Jews) just turned their “weaknesses” (the Gibeonites were an exceedingly “sinful” people) into “salves!”

These reminders of Joshua’s “mistakes” will now “serve” the Jewish people all their days! Chopping wood and carrying water, menial labor!

What’s the point here?

In Christian terminology … TURN YOUR SINS INTO SLAVES, RATHER THAN LETTING THOSE SINS “RULE” OVER YOU!

That temptation to gossip, for example … instead of letting it boss you around, whipping you into those “loose tongue” syndromes known as “slander” or “lying” or “grumbling” …

Instead … overcome that temptation to gossip … and rather than hurting someone with your words … ENCOURAGE SOMEONE, PRAISE SOMEONE, PRAY FOR SOMEONE!

 … FROM TYRANTS INTO SERVANTS …

That’s what Joshua did to the Gibeonites.

That’s what we should do to our sinful weaknesses, too!

But, is there a verse to help me here?

Paul’s command in Romans 6:12 might work well. “Let not SIN therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.”

Wow!

Then, who should “reign” in my body?

That’s easy … GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

One more verse to ponder … “For as ye have yielded your members (body parts) servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.” Romans 6:19

Something to think about!

 

The Jews, under Joshua’s leadership, have just made an unwise peace treaty with the Gibeonites. A heathen people who lied to Joshua about their identity, in order to be spared the edge of Israel’s (very sharp) sword.

But soon the Israeli army learned that they had promised safety to a group of cursed Canaanites!

Should they absolve their agreement, kill them anyway?

After all, THEY lied!

Verse 10 resolves the issue, properly. “This we will do to them; we will even let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we sware unto them.” Joshua 9:20

In essence, “We will keep our word.”

Why?

It goes all the way back to Moses, to the Ten Commandments, and (really) well before that! “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.” Exodus 20:16

Later David will illustrate this principle in action, when he commends the man who … “sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not.” Psalm 15:4, who does what he says, even if it hurts!

But … there’s more in our Joshua verse than what we’ve discussed thus far.

See if you can find what I mean. “This we will do to them; we will even let them live, LEST WRATH BE UPON US, because of the oath which we sware unto them.”

“LEST WRATH BE UPON US?”

Whose “Wrath?”

I can answer that question.

Not the wrath of the poor, weak Gibeonites!

Not the wrath of other Canaanite Tribes surrounding the Jewish encampment!

Not the wrath of the gods and goddesses of the gentiles!

BUT THE WRATH OF AN ALMIGHTY GOD!

Who has taught us to be people of Truth.

Who enforces His Commandments!

Who also opined (through Solomon) in Ecclesiastes 5:5-6. “Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay. Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel (witness), that it was an error: WHEREFORE SHOULD GOD BE ANGRY AT THY VOICE, and destroy the work of thine hands?”

God becomes ANGRY at the person who does not keep his vows, promises, commitments!

That’s enough!

For today.

Is ANYONE reading here this morning … who can already think of a promise (or two or three) you’ve made … and not kept?

Had maybe even forgotten?

Be careful.

“Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin … WHEREFORE SHOULD GOD BE ANGRY AT THY VOICE, and destroy the work of thine hands?”

Wow!

How mad?

To destroy the work of thy hands!

What a lesson.

What a thought.

If I were preaching in a Church setting, I’d give the invitation now.

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

But here online … the Holy Spirit can give that invitation, far better than me in fact.

 

Seems like there have been a lot of them lately, travel days.

But I am excited!

I’ll leave the motel room here in Jacksonville (Florida) in an hour or so, return the rental car at the airport, and look for my American Airlines gate! This morning I have to connect in Charlotte … in route to Chattanooga.

There Debbie will pick me up, with the car already loaded to go again … and we head to Clermont, Georgia for three nights of preaching! Christian Hill Baptist Church there, with Pastor Jim Ellis and his people.

Still … I wanted to write you all and remind you that tomorrow morning, the Lord willing, another Joshua Lesson will be written and posted.

Yesterday was a day of double-duty, really I should say DOUBLE-PLEASURE! I was honored to preach for two of my friends, godly and faithful Pastors who have stood for the Truth many years. One yesterday morning, the other last night, of course!

This portrait hangs in the Church Vestibule, Pastor Bumpers as a young man, what a soul-winner he is!

Pastor Harper Bumpers, who missed the Meeting due to sickness, he being 83 years old I might add. Saint Augustine Road Baptist Church south of Jacksonville.

This is Pastor Jowers in his study, photo made last night after the Service. The man dearly loves the Word of God!

And … Pastor Dewayne Jowers, capable leader (under-shepherd we used to say) of the Grace Baptist Church in the little City of Baldwin, Florida.

I love these men of God.

And to you, our regular readers, thanks for visiting the Website once again.

God’s Word, the Bible, a perfect Masterpiece!!!

Until tomorrow, the Lord willing,

Dr. Mike Bagwell