_JOSHUA'S ANTECEDENTS._
Four hundred years is a long way to go back in tracing a pedigree.
Joshua's might have been traced much farther back than that--back to
Noah, or for that matter to Adam; but Israelites usually counted it
enough to begin with that son of Jacob who was the head of their
tribe. It could be no small gratification to Joshua that he had Joseph
for his ancestor, and that of the two sons of Joseph he was sprung
from the one whom the dying Jacob so expressly placed before the other
as the heir of the richer blessing (1 Chron. vii. 20-27). It is
remarkable that the descendants of Joseph attached no consequence to
the fact that on the side of Joseph's wife they were sprung from one
of the highest functionaries of Egypt (Gen. xli. 45), any more than
the children of Mered, of the tribe of Judah, whose wife, Bithiah, was
a daughter of Pharaoh (1 Chron. iv. 18), gained rank in Israel from
the royal blood of their mother. The glory of high connections with
the heathen counted for nothing; it was entirely eclipsed by the glory
of the chosen seed. To be of the household of God was higher than to
be born of kings.
Joshua appears to have come of the principal family of the tribe, for
his grandfather, Elishama (1 Chron. vii. 26), was captain and head of
his tribe (Num. i. 10, ii. 18), and in the order of march through the
wilderness marched at the head of the forty thousand five hundred men
that constituted the great tribe of Ephraim; while his son, Nun, and
his grandson, Joshua, would of course march beside him. Not only was
Elishama at the head of the tribe, but apparently also of the whole
"camp of Ephraim," which, besides his own tribe, embraced Manasseh and
Benjamin, being the whole descendants of Rachel (Num. ii. 24). Under
their charge in all likelihood was a remarkable relic that had been
brought very carefully from Egypt--the bones of Joseph (Exod. xiii.
19). Great must have been the respect paid to the coffin which
contained the embalmed body of the Governor of Egypt, and which was
never lost sight of during all the period of the wanderings, till at
length it was solemnly deposited in its resting-place at Shechem
(Josh. xxiv. 32). Young Joshua, grandson of the prince of the tribe,
must have known it well. For Joshua was himself cast in the mould of
Joseph, an ardent, courageous, God-fearing, patriotic youth. Very
interesting to him it must have been to recall the romance of Joseph's
life, his grievous wrongs and trials, his gentle spirit under them
all, his patient and invincible faith, his lofty purity and
self-control, his intense devotion to duty, and finally his marvellous
exaltation and blessed experience as the saviour of his brethren! And
that coffin must have seemed to Joshua ever to preach this
sermon,--"God will surely visit you." With Joseph, young Joshua
believed profoundly in his nation, because he believed profoundly in
his nation's God; he felt that no other people in the world could have
such a destiny, or could be so worthy of the service of his life.
This sense of Israel's relation to God raised in him an enthusiastic
patriotism, and soon brought him under the notice of Moses, who
quickly discerned in the grandson a spirit more congenial to his own
than that of either the father or the grandfather. Not even Moses
himself had a warmer love than Joshua for Israel, or a more ardent
desire to serve the people that had such a blessed destiny. In all
likelihood the first impression Joshua made on Moses might have been
described in the words--"It came to pass that the soul of Moses was
knit with the soul of Joshua, and Moses loved him as his own soul."
In no other way can we account for the extraordinary mark of
confidence with which Joshua was honoured when he was selected in the
early days of the wilderness sojourn, not only to repel the attack
which the Amalekites had made upon Israel, but to choose the men by
whom this was to be done. Why pass over father and grandfather, if
this youth, Joshua, had not already displayed qualities that fitted
him for this difficult task better than either of them? We cannot but
note, in passing, the proof we have of the contemporaneousness of the
history, that no mention is made of the reasons why Joshua of all men
was appointed to this command. If the history was written near the
time, with Joshua's splendid career fresh in the minds of the people,
the reasons would be notorious and did not need to be given; if it was
written long afterwards, what more natural than that something should
be said to explain the remarkable choice?
On whatever grounds Joshua was appointed, the result amply vindicated
the selection. On Joshua's part there is none of that hesitation in
accepting his work which was shown even by Moses himself when he got
his commission at the burning bush. He seems to have accepted the
appointment with humble faith and spirited enthusiasm, and prepared
at once for the perilous enterprise.
And he had little enough time to prepare, for a new attack of the
Amalekites was to be made next day. We may conceive him, after prayer
to his Lord, setting out with a few chosen comrades to invite
volunteers to join his corps, rousing their enthusiasm by picturing
the dastardly attack that the Amalekites had made on the sick and
infirm (Deut. xxv. 17, 18), and scattering their fears by recalling
the promise to Abraham, "I will bless them that bless thee, and curse
him that curseth thee." That Moses knew him to be a man of faith whose
trust was in the living God was shown by his promise to stand next
morning on the hill top with the rod of God in his hand. Yes, the rod
of God! Had not Joshua seen it stretched out over the Red Sea, first
to make a passage for Israel, and thereafter to bring back the waters
on Pharaoh's host? Was he not just the man to value aright that symbol
of Divine power? The troop selected by Joshua may have been small as
the band of Gideon, but if it was as full of faith and courage it was
abundantly able for its work!
The Amalekites are sometimes supposed to have been descendants of an
Amalek who was the grandson of Esau (Gen. xxxvi. 12), but the name is
much older (Gen. xiv. 7), and was applied at an early period to the
inhabitants of the tract of country stretching southwards from the
Dead Sea to the peninsula of Sinai. Whatever may have been their
origin, they were old inhabitants of the wilderness, well acquainted
probably with every mountain and valley, and well skilled in that
Bedouin style of warfare which even practised troops are little able
to meet. They were therefore very formidable opponents to the raw levy
of Israelites, who could be but little acquainted with weapons of
war, and were wholly unaccustomed to battle.
The Amalekites could not have been ignorant of the advantage of a good
position, and they probably occupied a post not easy to attack and
carry. Evidently the battle was a serious one. The practised and
skilful tactics of the Amalekites were more than a match for the
youthful valour of Joshua and his comrades; but as often as the
uplifted rod of Moses was seen on the top of the neighbouring hill,
new life and courage rushed into the souls of the Israelites, and for
the time the Amalekites retreated before them. Hour after hour the
battle raged, till the arm of Moses became too weary to hold up the
rod. A stone had to be found for him to sit on, and his comrades,
Aaron and Hur, had to hold up his hands. But even then, though the
advantage was on the side of Joshua, it was sunset before Amalek was
thoroughly defeated. The issue of the battle was no longer
doubtful--"Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of
the sword" (Exod. xvii. 13).
It was a memorable victory, due in effect to the hand of God as really
as the destruction of the Egyptians had been, but due instrumentally
to the faith and fortitude of Joshua and his troop, whose ardour could
not be quenched by the ever-resumed onslaughts of Amalek. And when the
fight was over, Joshua could not but be the hero of the camp and the
nation, as really as David after the combat with Goliath.
Congratulations must have poured on him from every quarter, and not
only on him, but on his father and grandfather as well. To Joshua
these would come with mingled feelings; gratification at having been
able to do such a service for his people, and gratitude for the
presence of Him by whom alone he had prevailed. "Not unto us, Lord,
not unto us, but to Thy name be the glory." It was a splendid
beginning for Israel's wilderness history, if only it had been
followed up by the people in a kindred spirit. But there were not many
Joshuas in the camp, and the spirit did not spread.
It is remarkable what a hold that incident at Rephidim has taken on
the Christian imagination. Age after age, for more than three thousand
years, its influence has been felt. Nor can it ever cease to impress
believing men that, so long as Moses holds out his rod, so long as
active trust is placed in the power and presence of the Most High in
the great battle with sin and evil, Israel must prevail; but if this
trust should fail, if Moses should let down his rod, Amalek will
conquer. It was well that Moses was instructed to write the
transaction in a book and rehearse it before Joshua. Well also that it
should be commemorated by another memorial, an altar to the Lord with
the name of "Jehovah-nissi," the Lord my banner. How often has faith
looked out towards that unknown mountain where Aaron and Hur held up
the weary arms of Moses, and what a new thrill of courage and hope has
the spectacle sent through hearts often "faint yet pursuing"! Happily
on Joshua the effect was wholesome; a less spiritual man would have
been puffed up by his remarkable victory; but in him its only effect,
as was shown by the whole tenor of his future life, was a firmer trust
in God, and a deeper determination to wait only on Him.
It was no wonder that after this Joshua was selected by Moses to be
his personal comrade and attendant in connection with that most solemn
of all his duties--the receiving of the law on the top of the mount.
Here again was a most distinguished honour for so young a man. Aaron,
Nadab, and Abihu, with seventy of the elders, were summoned to ascend
to a certain height and worship afar off; while Moses, accompanied by
Joshua, went up into the mount of God (Exod. xxiv. 13). What became of
Joshua while Moses was in immediate fellowship with God is not very
apparent. The first impression we derive from the narrative is that he
was with Moses all the time, for when Moses begins his descent Joshua
is at his side (Exod. xxxii. 17). Yet we cannot suppose that in that
most solemn transaction of Moses with Jehovah when the law was given
any third party was present. On a careful study of the narrative
throughout it will probably be seen that when, after going up a
certain distance in company with Aaron and his sons and the seventy
elders, Moses was called to a higher part of the mount, Joshua
accompanied Moses (Exod. xxiv. 13), and that he was with Moses during
the six days when the glory of God abode on Mount Sinai and a cloud
covered the mount (ver. 15); but that when God again, after these six
days, called to Moses to ascend still higher, and Moses "went into the
midst of the cloud, and gat him up to the mount" (ver. 18), Joshua
remained behind. His place of rest would thus be half-way between the
spot where the elders saw God's glory and the summit where God talked
with Moses. But the remarkable thing is, that from that place Joshua
would seem never to have moved all the forty days and forty nights
when Moses was with God. We can hardly conceive a case of more
remarkable obedience, a more striking instance of the quiet waiting of
faith. To a youth of his spirit and habits the restraint must have
been somewhat trying. We know that Aaron did not remain long on the
hill, for he was at hand when the people cried for "gods to go before
them" (Exod. xxxii. 1). Impatience of God's slow methods had been a
snare to the fathers--to Abraham and Sarah in the matter of Hagar; to
Rachel when she raised the petulant cry, "Give me children, or else I
die"; to Jacob when the promises seemed broken to atoms, and "all
things" seemed "against him." Joseph alone had stood the trial of
patience, and now Joshua showed himself of the like spirit. The word
of Moses to him was like an anchor holding the ship firmly against the
force of wind and tide. What a solemn time it must have been, and what
a precious lesson it must have taught him for the whole future of his
life!
More than three thousand years have sped away, but have the servants
of God on an average reached the measure of Joshua's patience? Prayers
unanswered, promises unfulfilled, sickness protracted during weary
years of pain, disappointments and trials coming in troops as if all
God's waves and billows were passing over them, active persecution
bringing all the devices of torture to bear upon them,--how have such
things tried the patience, the waiting power of the servants of God!
But let them remember that if the trial be severe the recompense is
great, and that in the end nothing will grieve them more than to have
distrusted their master and thought it possible that His promises
would fail. "God is not unrighteous to forget." Richard Cecil tells
that once, when walking with his little son, he bade him wait for him
at a certain gate till he should return. He thought he would be back
in a few minutes, but meanwhile an unexpected occurrence constrained
him to go into the city, where, under an engrossing piece of
business, he remained all day utterly forgetful of his charge to the
boy. On his return at night to his suburban home, the boy was nowhere
to be found. In a moment the order to remain at the gate flashed on
his father's memory. Was it possible he should still be there? He
hurried back and found him--he had been told to wait till his father
returned, and he had done as he had been told. The boy that could act
thus must have been made of no common stuff. So are they who can say,
"I waited patiently for the Lord, and He inclined unto me, and heard
my cry."
At last Joshua rejoins his master, and they proceed towards the foot
of the mount. As they approach the camp, a noise is heard from afar.
His military instinct finds an explanation,--"There is a noise of war
in the camp." No, says the more experienced Moses; it is neither the
shout of victors nor of vanquished, it is the noise of singing I hear;
and so it was. For when they reached the camp, the people were at the
very height of the idolatrous revelling that followed the construction
and worship of the golden calf, and the sounds that fell on the ears
of Moses and Joshua were the bacchanalian shouts of unholy and
shameful riot. What a contrast to the solemn and holy scene on the
top! What a gulf lies between the holy will of God and the polluted
passions of men!
During the painful scenes that ensued, Joshua continued in faithful
attendance on Moses; and when Moses removed the tabernacle (the
temporary structure hitherto used for sacred services) and placed it
outside the camp, Joshua was with him, and departed not out of the
tabernacle (Exod. xxxiii. 11). We are not told whether he ascended the
mount the second time with Moses, but it is likely that he did. At
all events he was much with Moses at this early and susceptible period
of his life. The young man did not recoil from the company of the old,
nor did he who had been commander in the battle of Rephidim shrink
from the duty of a servant. Deeper and deeper, as he kept company with
Moses, must have been his impression of his wisdom, his faith, his
loyalty to God, and his entire devotion to the welfare of his people;
and stronger and stronger must have waxed his own desire that if ever
he should be called to a similar service he might show the same spirit
and fulfil the same high end!
The next time that Joshua comes into notice is not so flattering to
himself. It is on that occasion when the Spirit descended on the
seventy elders that had been appointed to assist Moses, and they
prophesied round about the tabernacle. Two of the seventy were not
with the rest, but nevertheless they got the spirit and were
prophesying in the camp. The military instinct of Joshua was hurt at
the irregularity, and his concern for the honour of Moses was roused
by their apparent indifference to the presence of their head. He
hurried to inform Moses, not doubting but he would interfere to
correct the irregularity. But the narrow spirit of youth met with a
memorable rebuke from the larger and more noble spirit of the
leader,--"Enviest thou for my sake? Would God that all the Lord's
people were prophets, and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon
them!"
Not long after this Joshua was appointed to another memorable service.
After the law-giving had been brought to an end, and the host of
Israel had removed from the mountain to the borders of the promised
land, he was appointed one of the twelve spies that were sent forward
to explore the country. Formerly his name had been Oshea; it was now
changed to Jehoshua or Joshua. The changing of the name was in itself
significant, and still more the character of the change, by which a
syllable of the Divine name was inserted in it. For, by the practice
of the nation, the changing of a name denoted a man's entrance on a
new chapter of his history, or his coming out before the world in a
new character. So it was when Abram's name was changed to Abraham,
Sarai's to Sarah, and Jacob's to Israel; so also when Simon became
Cephas, and Saul Paul. But the new name given to Joshua was in itself
more remarkable--Joshua, that is, Jehovah saves: in the New Testament,
Jesus. No doubt it looked back on the victory of Rephidim when the
Lord wrought such a deliverance in Israel through Joshua. But it
indicated that the feature that had appeared at Rephidim would
continue to characterise him during his life. It was a testimony from
Moses, and from Him who inspired Moses, to the character of Joshua, as
it had come out during all the close intercourse of Moses with him.
And it invested Joshua with a dignity that ought to have raised him
very highly in the eyes of the other spies, and of all the
congregation of Israel. Who could be more worthy of their respect than
the young man who had shown himself so faithful in all his previous
history, and who had now received a name that indicated that it would
be the distinction of his life, like Him whom he prefigured, to lead
his people to the enjoyment of God's salvation?
The forty days spent by the twelve men in exploring the land were a
great contrast to the forty days spent by Joshua on the mount. All was
inactivity and patient waiting in the one case; all was activity and
bustle in the other. For there is a time to work and a time to rest.
If at the one period Joshua had to put a restraint on his natural
activity, at the other he could give it full swing.
Apart from its more immediate object, this early tour through
Palestine must have been one of surpassing interest. To witness each
spot that had been made memorable and classical by the lives of his
forefathers; to sit by the well of Beersheba, and recall all that had
happened there; to repose under Abraham's oak at Mamre; to bow at the
cave of Machpelah; to recall the visits of angels at Bethel, and the
ladder which had been seen going up to heaven,--was not only most
thrilling, but to a man of Joshua's faith most inspiring; because
every spot that had such associations was a witness that God had given
them the land, and a proof that even though the sons of Anak were
there, and their cities were walled up to heaven, the God of Abraham
and Isaac and Jacob would be faithful to His promise, and, if the
people would only trust Him, would right speedily place them in full
possession.
Caleb and Joshua were the only two men whose faith stood the test of
this survey; the rest were thoroughly cowed by the greatness of the
difficulties. And Caleb seems to have been the foremost of the two,
for in some places he is named as if he stood alone. Probably he was
the one who came forward and spoke; but even if Joshua's faith was not
so strong at first, it was no dishonour to be indebted to the greater
courage and confidence of his brother.
We can hardly doubt that in their long marches and quiet encampments
the twelve men had many a discussion as to what they would advise, and
that the ten felt themselves beaten both in argument and in faith by
the two. Long before they returned to the camp of Israel they had
taken their sides, and by the sides they had taken they were
determined to abide.
When they come back, the ten open the business and give their decided
judgment against any attempt to take possession of the land. Impatient
of their misrepresentations, Caleb perhaps strikes in, repudiates the
notion that the people are not able to take possession, and urges them
in God's name to go up at once. But it is easier far to stir up
discontent and fear than to stimulate faith. The cry of the
congregation, "Up, make us a captain, and let us return to Egypt,"
shows how strongly the tide of unbelief is flowing. Moses and Aaron
are overwhelmed. The two leaders fall on their faces before the
congregation. But neither the cry of the congregation nor the attitude
of Moses and Aaron daunts the two faithful spies. With clothes rent
they rush in, renewing their commendations of the land, laying hold of
the Almighty Protector, and scorning the opposition of the
inhabitants, whose hearts were cowed with terror and whose defence was
departed from them. It was a fine spectacle,--the two against the
million--the little remnant "faithful found among the faithless." But
it was all in vain. "All the congregation bade stone them with
stones." And in their impulsive and excitable temper the horrible cry
would have been obeyed had not the glory of the Lord shone out and
arrested the infatuated people (Num. xiv. 10).
For this shameless sin the penalty was very heavy. The congregation
were to wander in the wilderness for forty years till all that
generation should die off; the ten unfaithful spies were to die at
once of a plague before the Lord; and not one of the generation that
left Egypt was to enter the promised land. How easily can God defeat
the purposes of man! Where is now the proposal to make a captain and
return to Egypt? "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of
the morning!"
Joshua and Caleb are doubly honoured; their lives are preserved when
the other ten die of the plague; and they alone, of all the grown men
of that generation, are to be allowed to enter and obtain homes in the
land of promise.
* * * * *
For eight-and-thirty years we hear nothing more of Joshua. Like Moses,
he has an interesting youth, then a long burial in the wilderness, and
then he emerges from his obscurity and does a great work, second only
to that of Moses himself. The first mention of him after his long
eclipse is immediately before the death of Moses. God virtually
appoints him to be his successor, and directs both of them to present
themselves in the tabernacle of the congregation (Deut. xxxi. 14). And
Moses calls him to his office, gives him a charge and says, "Be strong
and of a good courage: for thou shalt bring the children of Israel
into the land which I sware unto them: and I will be with thee" (Deut.
xxxi. 23).
We might earnestly desire, in entering on the study of Joshua's life,
to draw aside the veil that covers the eight-and-thirty years, and see
how he was further prepared for his great work. We might like to look
into his heart, and see after what fashion this man was made to whom
the destruction of the Canaanites was entrusted. A religious warrior
is a peculiar character; a Gustavus Adolphus, an Oliver Cromwell, a
Henry Havelock, a General Gordon; Joshua was of the same mould, and we
should have liked to know him more intimately; but this is denied to
us. He stands out to us simply as one of the military heroes of the
faith. In depth, in steadiness, in endurance, his faith was not
excelled by that of Abraham or of Moses himself. The one conviction
that dominated all in him was, that he was called by God to his work.
If that work was often repulsive, let us not on that account withhold
our admiration from the man who never conferred with flesh and blood,
and who was never appalled either by danger or difficulty, for he "saw
Him who is invisible."