God Has Power In Heaven and Earth

Joshua 10, 11, 12 - Episode 124

God is sovereign over everything in heaven and earth. He has power that we cannot comprehend. When the Israelites fought the Amorites at Gibeon God demonstrated His power over the enemy, the sun, the moon, and even the water in the sky. But He also demonstrated His power through us. He can enable us to do things that we could never do without Him. He has power over the whole universe including the people living within it.

The Southern Campaign for the Land - Joshua 10:1-39

Gibeon was a big, important city with its own king, who also ruled over the surrounding districts. That is why Israel’s peace treaty was not just with Gibeon but also with the other 3 towns around it. When the king of Jerusalem heard that such a great city, with such mighty warriors, was not even willing to fight Israel, he was even more concerned than he was after the defeat of Jericho and Ai. This presumably also meant that if they went to war with Israel, the Hivites would also be fighting against them, too, and they would have no defensive chance against them all. Their best shot would be to band together and go up against the Hivites alone, then hit Israel afterward. So, Adoni (ruler) Zedek (Jerusalem) convinced the other Amorite kings of Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon to join him offensively against Gibeon.

When the Hivites saw the Amorites camped at their border, ready to attack, they sent word to the Israelite’s camp in Gilgal, asking for help. Joshua quickly gathered his men, and with reassurance from the Lord that they would be victorious, they marched to Gibeon. This would have been a 17 to 20-mile hike for the Israelite soldiers up steep terrain with their battle gear on. Yet, they traveled all night and still had enough strength to fight until the sun went down. Even more extraordinary was that the sun did not go down at the standard time that day. Joshua had asked God to make the sun stand still until they defeated their enemy, and the Lord demonstrated His supremacy over the universe that day.

When the Amorites saw the Israelites, they panicked and dispersed in many different directions, expanding the battlefield to over 30 miles. As the enemy was descending downhill and seemingly getting away from the Israelites, the Lord sent hailstones to pelt them to death. Those who didn’t die were slowed enough that the Israelites were able to catch them and kill them with their swords. But God killed more that day than the Israelites, proving yet again that their victory was in His hands. He had power over the enemy, with the sun, the moon, and the water in the sky. He is Lord of all! Job 5:9-10

But, while the men were fighting, it was discovered that the kings had hidden themselves in a cave in Makkedah. So, they rolled a large stone over the mouth of the cave and killed those who were in the area surrounding it. After everyone who had not fled to the nearby walled cities had been killed, they all went to Joshua, who was still in Makkedah. With no one left to help them, the Israelites brought the kings out of the cave. Then Joshua told the chief soldiers to put their feet on the necks of the kings in a show of victory and an encouragement of what God could do through them to their enemies. Then, they killed the kings and hung them each on a tree until evening. When they were taken down, their bodies were thrown into the cave where they had hidden, and they rolled the stone back over its mouth. Where they had hidden for safety in life, they would remain forever in death. 

After defeating the Amorites, the Israelites turned their sword to Makkedah and its king, who had harbored the Amorites. When that town had been completely obliterated, and since the kings and soldiers of the five Amorite cities had been killed, the Israelites went back to each of their cities and took them over. First, they killed everyone in Libnah. Then, after 2 more days, they captured Lachish. But, because the king of Gezer came to help Lachish, the Israelites killed all their soldiers, too. However, the passage does not indicate that they ever traveled into the city to capture it. Next, they captured Eglon, then Hebron, and Debir. They killed all the people in the towns they captured, according to the word of the Lord. 

The Northern Campaign for the Land- Joshua 10:40-12:23

When they had finished their southern campaign, the Israelites returned to their camp at Gilgal. But, when the king of Hazor heard how Israel had swept the southern land, he joined the other kings in the northern Galilean area in a coalition against the Israelites. These were the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the rest of the Amorites, the Jebusites who fled north from Jerusalem, and the Hivites who lived in the land of Mizpah. This was obviously a massive army with many horses and chariots. The Lord encouraged Joshua again that He would bring victory. As for their numbers, they were no match for the Lord. He would give them all over to the Israelites the very next day. Their horses would be hobbled, and their chariots would be burned. They were nothing to be feared. So, Joshua came out against them as they were camped near the waters of Merom. They hamstrung their horses, burned their chariots, and scattered them, chasing and killing them all. 

After they defeated all the soldiers who had come out against them, just as with the Southern campaign, they turned back and began taking their cities. They started first with Hazor since they had led the fight. They must have felt more rage against them for this because after they killed everyone, they burned the city. This was the only city they burned other than the first two of Jericho and Ai. After capturing all the cities that had come against them, they plundered them by taking their possessions and animals. 

Even though these battles took place over only a few chapters, they had been fighting for many years. Because Caleb was 78 years old when they entered the Promised Land, and he inherited the land when he was 85, scholars assume this initial battle for the land lasted for 7 years. During this time, they had not conquered all the land or killed all the people living there, but they had taken control of most of the land God had promised them. Only Gibeon made peace with them. They had killed everyone else, even many of the giants who had frightened their fathers so badly that they refused to enter the land. 

On the eastern side of the Jordan River, Moses defeated the kings of Og and Sihon and over half of Gilead. This land would be inherited by Reuben, Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh. Then Joshua defeated 31 kings on the eastern side of the Jordan River, and their land would soon be divided by the other 9 ½ tribes of Israel. 

Since these people were already against God and His people, the Lord ensured no one else would try to make peace with them by hardening their hearts further against Israel. Every nation attacked them first except for the first two cities of Jericho and Ai. Notice that God did not plant the hardness in their hearts from the beginning. He just strengthened what was already there to protect His people from being tempted to have mercy on them. They didn’t deserve mercy because they’d refused to worship God, and their ways were evil. If His people were going to remain faithful, these people could not live among them. So, He increased their hatred for His people, and they attacked first. This left no time or room for pity on Israel’s part. 

God Equipped Them – Joshua 10:9-10

The Israelites traveled all night with their battle gear up steep terrain, fought a battle all day without any sleep, and won. It is easy to see the obvious miracle of the sun standing still and even realize that the hailstones were not coincidental. Still, we may not immediately recognize God’s hand in equipping the soldiers with everything they needed to win the battle.