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 Three days after they made the treaty with the Gibeonites, the Israelites heard that they were neighbors, living near them. ¹⁷ So the Israelites set out and on the third day came to their cities: Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth and Kiriath Jearim. ¹⁸ But the Israelites did not attack them, because the leaders of the assembly had sworn an oath to them by the Lord, the God of Israel.

The whole assembly grumbled against the leaders, ¹⁹ but all the leaders answered, “We have given them our oath by the Lord, the God of Israel, and we cannot touch them now. ²⁰ This is what we will do to them: We will let them live, so that God’s wrath will not fall on us for breaking the oath we swore to them.” ²¹ They continued, “Let them live, but let them be woodcutters and water carriers in the service of the whole assembly.” So the leaders’ promise to them was kept.

²² Then Joshua summoned the Gibeonites and said, “Why did you deceive us by saying, ‘We live a long way from you,’ while actually you live near us? ²³ You are now under a curse: You will never be released from service as woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.”

²⁴ They answered Joshua, “Your servants were clearly told how the Lord your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you the whole land and to wipe out all its inhabitants from before you. So we feared for our lives because of you, and that is why we did this. ²⁵ We are now in your hands. Do to us whatever seems good and right to you.”

²⁶ So Joshua saved them from the Israelites, and they did not kill them. ²⁷ That day he made the Gibeonites woodcutters and water carriers for the assembly, to provide for the needs of the altar of the Lord at the place the Lord would choose. And that is what they are to this day. (NIV)

I have long thought (and some of my own past experience comes into this) that when you see an obvious warning light on the ‘control panel’, as it were, and you ignore it, you will end up paying for it. I believe this speaks to the experience of the Israelites at that time. There was evidence that something was amiss, but they pressed on with their treaty with the Gibeonites regardless. They were deceived. We must ‘test the spirits’ to see whether they are from God.

Our sins may be forgiven, but we may have to live with the consequences. William Culbertson said, ‘How sad it is to have to live with the consequences of forgiven sin.’ Nevertheless, it’s been pointed out that the Israelites made their mistakes work for them. This, by the grace of God, is something for all of us to hold on to.

For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.

¹ Have mercy on me, O God,
    according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
    blot out my transgressions.
² Wash away all my iniquity
    and cleanse me from my sin.

³ For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is always before me.
⁴ Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
    and justified when you judge.
⁵ Surely I was sinful at birth,
    sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
⁶ Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
    you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

⁷ Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
    wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
⁸ Let me hear joy and gladness;
    let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
⁹ Hide your face from my sins
    and blot out all my iniquity. (NIV)

Who of us has not sat here in the dust with David? Who among us does not need to? David had been like a rabbit, caught in Nathan’s prophetic headlights. He knew he was the ”the man” (2 Sam 12:7). This psalm is David’s ‘Mea Culpa’. He doesn’t try to divert attention elsewhere, or argue someone else’s responsibility for his circumstances. He doesn’t blame it on his genes. No, he keeps on saying ”my”: ”…my transgressions…my iniquity…my sin…” His sincere prayer is ”Cleanse me…wash me…” He knew that although his sin had affected others terribly and tragically, ultimately, and above all, it was against God. Only God could forgive. He felt dirty – besmirched by sin. He was dirty. But he knew God could make him clean.

‘However much God longs to forgive, He cannot, until confession is made. We must acknowledge our lapse from virtue! Blot out, as from a record; wash, as foul stains from linen; cleanse, as a leper by the touch of Christ. Our only plea is the multitude of God’s tender mercies.’ F.B.Meyer

Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”

⁵ But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.”

⁶ On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. ⁷ When he learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.

⁸ When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. ⁹ He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰ The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. ¹¹ Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. ¹² That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies. (NIV)

I want to return to this little cameo; a story within a story we might say. I didn’t comment on it yesterday, but I want to highlight two things:

• It is possible to have an interest in Jesus – to be fascinated by Him even – yet not really want HIM. I have witnessed this and no doubt you have too. I have seen excitement about Jesus, but at the end of the day hearts unchanged. I am reminded of Kyle Idleman’s book title, ‘Not a fan’. Jesus wants followers, not fans. Not that I’m suggesting that Herod was even a fan, but maybe you can see why this came to mind? ‘Herod’s moral nature had become almost extinguished by a long course of immorality and cruelty. While the Baptist lived, he had “done many things” and heard John gladly; but when the beheading of this faithful witness on his own orders had taken place, the royal sinner went headlong to ruin. He treated this incident with flippant levity. The gorgeous raiment, being an imitation of the royal apparel of the Jewish kings, may have suggested the inscription affixed to the cross.’ F.B.Meyer;
• In verse 12 there is a kind of prophetic foreshadowing of the achievement of the Cross. As Paul outlines in a majestic passage (Eph.2:11-22), God in Christ, through Calvary, reconciles people to Himself, and to each other, in the ”one new humanity” that is the church. I am not suggesting that Herod and Pilate were converted. They clearly were not. But this is surely significant: a foreshadowing of Christ’s reconciling ministry

Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. ² And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.”

³ So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“You have said so,” Jesus replied.

⁴ Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”

⁵ But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.”

⁶ On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. ⁷ When he learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.

⁸ When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. ⁹ He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰ The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. ¹¹ Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. ¹² That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies.

¹³ Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, ¹⁴ and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him. ¹⁵ Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. ¹⁶ Therefore, I will punish him and then release him.” 

¹⁸ But the whole crowd shouted, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!” ¹⁹ (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)

²⁰ Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. ²¹ But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

²² For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.”

²³ But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. ²⁴ So Pilate decided to grant their demand. ²⁵ He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will. (NIV)

This whole account underlines what a great miscarriage of justice this was. Three times Pilate declared Jesus innocent. He also recognised that Herod shared his view (15). But he was fundamentally a weak man, and a political compromiser, so he was willing to have Jesus severely beaten. (I find the word ”Therefore” in verses 16,22 to be tragically ironic. Jesus was innocent so he would punish Him. The greater irony, of course, is that only an innocent Jesus could be punished for the sins of all). In the end, Pilate gave way to public pressure. His career, and his own skin, mattered more to him than matters of justice. In fact, Pilate and the Jewish leaders had this in common: they wanted to protect their own power and positions.

But there is also the underlining of Jesus’ identity. He died because of His claim to be God’s Son (see 22:66-71), which the Jewish leaders regarded as blasphemy. But throughout the account we see Jesus as Kingly, calm and in control. He is the only truly Regal and Magisterial person in this story.

The wording at the end of verse 25 is fascinating, because it was actually the will of God that prevailed. As Jesus had repeatedly said, He had to die.

‘Pilate was accustomed to deal with men, and after careful examination, was satisfied that there was no ground for the death sentence. I find no fault. As God’s Paschal Lamb, the Saviour was searched to discover if there were spot, or blemish, or anything that could invalidate His claim to sinlessness. Only the sinless could save sinners. In his heart Pilate knew that our Lord should be acquitted, but his fear of the Jews deflected the verdict of his conscience. By sending the case to Herod, he hoped to get the right thing done, without incurring the odium incident to doing it.’ F.B.Meyer

The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. ⁶⁴ They blindfolded him and demanded, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” ⁶⁵ And they said many other insulting things to him.

⁶⁶ At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them. ⁶⁷ “If you are the Messiah,” they said, “tell us.”

Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me, ⁶⁸ and if I asked you, you would not answer. ⁶⁹ But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”

⁷⁰ They all asked, “Are you then the Son of God?”

He replied, “You say that I am.”

⁷¹ Then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.” (NIV)

Have you ever been insulted in some way for being a Christian? You are in good company. In fact the best. Jesus went through this, and far worse. He understands. Can you imagine the restraint it must have taken for Him to not smite His enemies there and then? But He kept in time with the Father’s plans, and was prepared to walk the pathway of suffering obedience all the way to the Cross. (Meyer suggests it must have been hard for the twelve legions of angels to restrain themselves!!)

Jesus knew that He was the Messiah, and He answered them in Messianic terms that would be familiar to them (69).

‘Our Lord answered not a word to all the false accusations that were leveled against Him. He left the false witnesses to refute each other. But as soon as His divine claims were challenged, He could not keep silence. It is very noticeable that, in this Gospel, which lays such stress on Christ’s pure humanity, Luke makes it so clear that the unwavering affirmation of His equality with God was the cause of His death, John 5:18 . Is there not a sense in which the eye of faith always beholds Him seated at the right hand of God’s power?’ F.B.Meyer

Now when all the kings west of the Jordan heard about these things—the kings in the hill country, in the western foothills, and along the entire coast of the Mediterranean Sea as far as Lebanon (the kings of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites,Hivites and Jebusites)— ² they came together to wage war against Joshua and Israel.

³ However, when the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, ⁴ they resorted to a ruse: They went as a delegation whose donkeys were loaded with worn-out sacks and old wineskins, cracked and mended. ⁵ They put worn and patched sandals on their feet and wore old clothes. All the bread of their food supply was dry and mouldy. ⁶ Then they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the Israelites, “We have come from a distant country; make a treaty with us.”

⁷ The Israelites said to the Hivites, “But perhaps you live near us, so how can we make a treaty with you?”

⁸ “We are your servants,” they said to Joshua.

But Joshua asked, “Who are you and where do you come from?”

⁹ They answered: “Your servants have come from a very distant country because of the fame of the Lord your God. For we have heard reports of him: all that he did in Egypt, ¹⁰ and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan—Sihon king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth. ¹¹ And our elders and all those living in our country said to us, ‘Take provisions for your journey; go and meet them and say to them, “We are your servants; make a treaty with us.”’¹² This bread of ours was warm when we packed it at home on the day we left to come to you. But now see how dry and mouldy it is. ¹³ And these wineskins that we filled were new, but see how cracked they are. And our clothes and sandals are worn out by the very long journey.”

¹⁴ The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord. ¹⁵ Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath. (NIV)

‘The Church has suffered more from the wiles of the devil than from his attacks. The deceitfulness of sin is most to be dreaded.’ F.B.Meyer

Once more, the people of God failed to seek the Lord, and they paid a price. There is always danger in the air when the devil offers ‘provisions’, and they distract us from prayer and desiring God’s will.

What is perhaps most sad, and salutary, in this story, is that the Israelites pressed on with making the treaty, in spite of their suspicions. In one episode of the television drama, ‘A touch of Frost’, Inspector Jack Frost just knows something. One of his colleagues asks him, ‘How do you know that?’ He tapped his finger on the side of a nostril and said, ‘Your nose!’ I believe there is an equivalent spiritually. Sometimes something just smells ‘off’, and we are unwise to suppress these God-given instincts.

 Then Joshua built on Mount Ebal an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, ³¹ as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded the Israelites. He built it according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses—an altar of uncut stones, on which no iron tool had been used. On it they offered to the Lord burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings. ³² There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua wrote on stones a copy of the law of Moses. ³³ All the Israelites, with their elders, officials and judges, were standing on both sides of the ark of the covenant of the Lord, facing the Levitical priests who carried it. Both the foreigners living among them and the native-born were there. Half of the people stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of the Lord had formerly commanded when he gave instructions to bless the people of Israel.

³⁴ Afterward, Joshua read all the words of the law—the blessings and the curses—just as it is written in the Book of the Law. ³⁵ There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children, and the foreigners who lived among them. (NIV)

Years ago a friend told me about a successful minister who described himself as a ‘serious reader of the Bible.’ Where God’s Book is concerned, is there any other way to be, I ask myself? In order to take God’s Word seriously, we must be serious students of ”all” of it, and not just the parts we especially like, or prefer.

In this act of re-dedication – renewal of the covenant – ”all’ the Word of God was central. For Joshua and the Israelites this was the ‘Torah’: the first five books of Moses. But Joshua knew that all of it mattered. In his commissioning to leadership he had been told:

”“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. ⁸ Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. ⁹ Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:7-9)

If they took the Bible they had so seriously, how can we who have the full revelation of Scripture do less? Taking it seriously means seeking to live it (obey it), not just amass knowledge about it.

Warren Wiersbe points out that the ceremony described in Deut.27 ‘…was observed only once, after Israel entered the land and began to conquer it (Josh.8:30-35). It was a solemn reminder to them that obedience to God was the secret of success (Josh.!:8)…The ceremony was a renewal of the nation’s covenant with God, for new beginnings deserve new acts of dedication. The burnt offering spoke of total dedication to God. The peace offerings, and the meal that followed, spoke of joyful fellowship with God…Israel’s obeying the Law did not deliver them from Egypt or take them into Canaan, but it did enable them to live together and enjoy the blessings of God.’

Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai. For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. ² You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the city.”

³ So Joshua and the whole army moved out to attack Ai. He chose thirty thousand of his best fighting men and sent them out at night ⁴ with these orders: “Listen carefully. You are to set an ambush behind the city. Don’t go very far from it. All of you be on the alert. ⁵ I and all those with me will advance on the city, and when the men come out against us, as they did before, we will flee from them. ⁶ They will pursue us until we have lured them away from the city, for they will say, ‘They are running away from us as they did before.’ So when we flee from them, ⁷ you are to rise up from ambush and take the city. The Lord your God will give it into your hand. ⁸ When you have taken the city, set it on fire. Do what the Lord has commanded. See to it; you have my orders.” (NIV)

‘Never permit one failure to rob you of future victory. When God sees that we have obeyed His Word and sincerely dealt with sin, He comes with encouragement and guidance for the next step. It has been well said that the victorious Christian life is a series of new beginnings. (See Ps.37:23-24.)

Had Achan waited, he could have taken all the spoils he desired, but he ran ahead of God and lost everything. (See Mt.6:33).’ Warren W. Wiersbe

As you will see, today’s reading takes in the first 29 verses, but I have printed only the first eight. But these give us the outline which will be ‘coloured in’ later in the chapter.

We see the mercy and goodness of God in that, once the people have truly repented, and put away the sin from the camp, they experience again the abundant blessing of God. Freshly chastened, they are spiritually sensitive to the Lord’s instructions, and as they obey Him they are again ‘winners’. Wiersbe points out that in this case it is the people of Ai who are presumptuous, to their own cost.

God’s strategy is not always identical. We need to hear His voice in each ‘fight’ we come to. But may we again recognise the futility of thinking we know best and of pursuing our own course.

‘The restrictions as to the spoil which had been in force and which had led to Achan’s undoing were now removed. God often tests us before allowing us to enjoy. Certain injunctions or prohibitions may be given to prove us; but are removed when our lesson is learned, Deuteronomy 8:2.’ F.B. Meyer

 But to the wicked person, God says:

“What right have you to recite my laws
    or take my covenant on your lips?
¹⁷ You hate my instruction
    and cast my words behind you.
¹⁸ When you see a thief, you join with him;
    you throw in your lot with adulterers.
¹⁹ You use your mouth for evil
    and harness your tongue to deceit.
²⁰ You sit and testify against your brother
    and slander your own mother’s son.
²¹ When you did these things and I kept silent,
    you thought I was exactly like you.
But I now arraign you
    and set my accusations before you.

²² “Consider this, you who forget God,
    or I will tear you to pieces, with no one to rescue you:
²³ Those who sacrifice thank offerings honour me,
    and to the blameless I will show my salvation.” (NIV)

If you remember, when we last looked at Psalm 50, I made the observation that it splits straight down the middle (as does the whole world). We either belong to the people of God or we don’t. However, I need to correct that. It is true that the world divides in this way, but further study has caused me to see that the whole of Psalm 50 is addressed to God’s people, but the second half speaks in particular to those who believe all the correct stuff, but who don’t live it. It is possible to have ‘profession without possession.’

To my mind, verse 17 depicts many people in our society (and even in the professing church). But we must all, ultimately, appear before the Lord our Judge. ‘God’s silence must not be taken as indifference, for he is carefully watching each word and act…’ F.B. Meyer.

There will only be ”salvation” (23) for those who seek to come to God through His appointed sacrifices (23, see also 16) which, of course, find their fulfilment in the final sacrifice of Christ.

Jesus is the only way to the only God there is. Salvation is to be found in Him alone.

‘Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to thy Cross I cling.’ Augustus Toplady.