Scripture Reading: Joshua 9
We'll just begin reading in Joshua 9 at verse 1 as we continue to work our way through this particular book. When we get to the division of the land, we're probably not going to go chapter by chapter because a lot of it says the same thing. put the particular tribe in and the allotment of the place that they inherit. So we'll probably move quicker when we get there. But we're still in that portion dealing with the actual conquest.
They've entered the land, they're conquering the land, and then they will divide the land. And the book ends with an exhortation to retain the land. So that's predominantly how the book goes. So beginning in chapter 9 at verse 1, And it came to pass when all the kings who were on this side of the Jordan, in the hills and in the lowland and in all the coasts of the great sea toward Lebanon, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite heard about it, that they gathered together to fight with Joshua in Israel with one accord.
But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they worked craftily and went and pretended to be ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and mended, old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves. And all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy. And they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, we have come from a far country, now therefore make a covenant with us.
Then the men of Israel said to the Hivites, perhaps you dwell among us, so how can we make a covenant with you? But they said to Joshua, we are your servants. And Joshua said to them, who are you and where do you come from? So they said to him, from a very far country your servants have come because of the name of the Lord your God, for we have heard of his fame and all that he did in Egypt, and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon, king of Heshbon, and Og, king of Bashan, who was at Ashteroth.
Therefore, our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us saying, take provisions with you for the journey. and go to meet them and say to them, we are your servants. Now therefore, make a covenant with us. This bread of ours we took hot for our provision from our houses on the day we departed to come to you. But now look, it is dry and moldy.
And these wineskins which we filled were new. And see, they are torn. And these, our garments and our sandals, have become old because of the very long journey. And the men of Israel took some of their provisions, but they did not ask counsel of the Lord.
So Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them to let them live. And the rulers of the congregation swore to them. And it happened at the end of three days, after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors who dwelt near them. Then the children of Israel journeyed and came to their cities on the third day.
Now their cities were Gibeon, Jephra, Beroth, and Kiriath-Jerom. But the children of Israel did not attack them, because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord God of Israel. And all the congregation complained against the rulers. Then all the rulers said to all the congregation, We have sworn to them by the Lord God of Israel.
Now, therefore, we may not touch them. This we will do to them. We will let them live, lest wrath be upon us because of the oath which we swore to them. And the rulers said to them, let them live, but let them be woodcutters and water carriers for all the congregation, as the rulers had promised them.
Then Joshua called for them, and he spoke to them, saying, why have you deceived us, saying, we are very far from you when you dwell near us? Now therefore, you are cursed, and none of you shall be freed from being slaves, woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God. So they answered Joshua and said, because your servants were clearly told that the Lord your 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 very much afraid for our lives because of you and have done this thing.
And now, here we are in your hands. Do with us as it seems good and right to do to us." So he did to them and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel so that they did not kill them. And that day Joshua made them woodcutters and water carriers for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord in the place which he would choose, even to this day. Amen.
Introduction
Well, a pretty straightforward story there. Basically, what we have is a treaty with the Gibeonites. And as we look at this particular narrative, at least as I understand it, we have four major sections. The first is the coalition of kings in verses 1 and 2, the deception of the Gibeonites in verses 3 to 13, the indiscretion of Israel in verses 14 to 21, and then the investigation of the Gibeonites in verses 22 to 27.
So basically what we have, the key verse obviously is in chapter 9, verse 14b, they did not seek counsel of the Lord, the Lord God when he is with them. blesses when the Lord God is present in battle. They are victorious when God withdraws his presence. They are defeated at Ai. And here specifically, when these Gibeonites come along and try and make a treaty with them, the people of Israel succumb.
They engage in this particular treaty. And the reason for it is that they did not inquire of, they did not seek counsel from the Lord God Almighty.
The Coalition of Kings
Well let's look first at this coalition of kings as it sets the stage or foundation or background for what we find with reference to the Gibeonites. We notice the identification. It came to pass when all the kings were on this side of the Jordan. Now this side of the Jordan is the west side.
They've already conquered The Transjordan area, the tribes have settled there. They've crossed the River Jordan. Now they've battled in Jericho and Ai. They're on the west side of the Jordan where they are going to engage in the wars in Canaan.
And here it says that the kings in the hills and in the lowland and in all the coast of the great sea toward Lebanon." And then it names the specific nations, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. They heard about what God had done or what Israel had done with reference to Ai and with reference to Jericho. Already the fame of Yahweh is spreading throughout the nations. The people of the land are starting to hear and understand what Israel is all about.
And so they gather together, verse 2, to fight with Joshua and Israel with one accord. So they form this coalition. We'll see that later in chapter 10 in the Southern Campaign. We'll see it in chapter 11 in the Northern Campaign.
The kings of the land gather together, they engage in this confederacy so that they can collectively seek to stop and thwart and destroy Israel as they continue to spread through the nations of Canaan. And when we look at this particular instance, we remember that the nations had heard according to chapter 2 and verse 10. Remember Rahab says we have heard and we were faint hearted as a result of this. In chapter 5 verse 1 there's a similar sort of a statement.
The peoples have heard and they're growing fainthearted. But notice here the peoples have heard and they're not growing fainthearted, but rather they're banding together in order to fight and stop Israel on their movement through Canaan. Remember back in chapter 7 when they are defeated at Ai, when Joshua goes to prayer, one of the things he mentions in verse 9 of chapter 7 He says, for the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear it and surround us and cut off our name from the earth, then what will you do for your great name? So the implication is that what we have here in chapter 9 in this coalition of kings is because of Israel's sin in Jericho, because of their subsequent defeat in Ai, the nations now have learned that Israel can't be defeated.
If Israel is unfaithful to her God, if Israel is defecting from her God, when she goes out to battle, she may be bested on the battlefield. So the nations now are emboldened because of, or as a result, or as a consequent, consequence of that past sin. And so what we have here is this conspiracy and it makes one think of Psalm 2. At verse 2 it says, they gather together to fight with Joshua and Israel with one accord.
That's precisely what we find in Psalm 2. The nations of the earth, the kings, they set themselves together, they take counsel together against the Lord and against his Christ. It's amazing. I would imagine that these Hittites and Amorites and Canaanites and Perizzites and Hivites and Jebusites were not the most peaceable peoples with one another.
But when the target is the living and the true God, the people that oppose will join themselves together in this conspiracy or confederacy to stop and oppose the Lord God Almighty. You see that in the gospel accounts. Remember that Pilate and Herod were not friendly. In fact, they did not like each other.
But when it came time to deal with the Lord Jesus Christ, Pilate and Herod work in concert together to try and appease the bloodthirsty mob and to try and get rid of the Lord Jesus Christ. So here we have this confederacy or this coalition of kings banding together to try and stop Joshua and Israel. which does indicate the nature of the success of their mission. In other words, the peoples are afraid. The peoples rally together.
The peoples see them and perceive them as a threat. I often think about that when we read these prayer letters from various countries, especially Voice of the Martyrs, the way these Muslim-dominated societies are so anti-Christianity. Well, if Christianity is so false and it's so untrue and it's such a non-threat, why do we put all of this concerted effort in to trying to stop it? Because deep down inside they know it is a threat, they know that it will continue to march forward, and maybe they don't know Matthew 16, but we do.
Jesus says, I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. So the fact that these kings formed this coalition tell us that Israel, as small as they may have been, was a formidable force and someone or something to be reckoned with. So that sets the backdrop for what we now find with reference to the Gibeonites. So we have this coalition of kings.
The Deception of the Gibeonites
Secondly, the deception of the Gibeonites. Verses 3 to 13.
The Gibeonites' Motivation
Notice their motivation. Verse 3, but when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai. They too heard of the invasion and they too implemented a plan to avoid destruction at the hand of Israel. Now this coalition of kings, they band together to form a policy of war.
Not Gibeon. They band together to form a policy of peace. They don't want to battle Israel. They don't want to go toe-to-toe with the living and true God.
Rather, they cook up this idea, casting themselves on the mercy of Israel, at least by all intents and appearances, so that they can be spared from falling prey to their sword. Woodstra says, contrasted with the activities of most of Canaan's kings who prepare for war is the conduct of Gibeon, which prepares for peace. Now
The Gibeonites' Plan and Props
notice their plan, verses 4 to 13. Their preparation, they worked craftily. Remember back in AI, they worked by a ruse. Joshua worked craftily.
Remember, they put the ambush at the rear of the city. And then the larger force, I'm convinced it was the larger force, that went to the front because it would be very hard to hide 30,000 people at the rear of AI. So what they do is they go, they retreat, they get the people to follow them, then the ambush takes place and then they're caught in a crossfire. So they work by this particular ruse.
Now the Gibeonites are doing such a thing to Israel. They take old sacks, old wineskins, old sandals, old garments, and moldy bread for the ruse. This is masterful storytelling. The details, the way it flows, the way it moves, it truly is an amazing picture. of God's dealings with his people.
It's just wonderful to read. The author puts things in certain places and gets our appetites whetted and just brings us into the very story itself. So they prepare. Notice, they've got all this stuff.
They work craftily. Verse 4, they pretend to be ambassadors. They took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and mended, old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves, and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy." That's all you need to do to fool the Israelites is just bring the right props. If they don't seek counsel of the Lord, moldy bread will work in your favor.
I mean, it really does show the ignorance or just how foolish we can be. We don't seek after God, and we're prey to such a simple ruse. I mean, this is not mastermind. This is just, hey, we'll take this stuff, we'll tell them we're from a far country, we'll produce these props, and they'll believe us, and we can cast ourselves on their mercy.
So verse 6, they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, we have come from a far country. Now therefore make a covenant with us. If you look at your map, Gibeon is not a far country. Gibeon is about a stone's throw from Jericho and Ai, just north of Jerusalem.
It is not a far country. Now, they didn't have maps in the back of their Bible, so we'll grant them that. They didn't have Google Maps on their phone. They couldn't take their GPS out and say, oh, Gibeon is right here, right there.
And when they mention far country, it helps us as the reader to understand why Israel would even entertain the thought of entering into a treaty with them. Remember, God the Lord commands in Deuteronomy 7, when you go into Canaan, and he names these specific nations, this coalition in chapter 9, verses 1 and 2. When you go there, you utterly destroy them. You destroy their places of worship, you destroy their idols, you destroy everything.
You make no political alliance, you make no social alliance, you don't have wives or you don't take their women as wives, you don't want to do that, and you certainly don't have any religious alliance. You utterly destroy, you utterly dispossess, you rid them from the land. Why? Because God knows your heart.
The moment that you take lightly those particular people, you will be bowing with them at their altars to Baal. Because you have this sin issue, you need to rid yourselves of these temptations. So when we read here that the Gibeonites say they are from a far country, we ought to think Deuteronomy 20. In fact, you can go to Deuteronomy chapter 20.
These are particular rules, particular ordinances, statutes, commandments, judgments for when they go into the land, specifically when they engage in holy war. In Deuteronomy 20, verses 10 to 15 envision peace treaties with nations that are afar off. Verses 16 to 20 is the specification that you take no prisoner, that you have no truck whatsoever with those particular cities that are mentioned. So notice in chapter 20 at verse 10, when you go near a city to fight against it, then proclaim an offer of peace to it.
And it shall be that if they accept your offer of peace and open to you, then all the people who are found in it shall be placed under tribute to you and serve you. Now if the city will not make peace with you, but war against you, then you shall besiege it. And when the Lord your God delivers it into your hands, you shall strike every male in it with the edge of the sword. But the women, the little ones, the livestock, and all that is in the city, all its spoil you shall plunder for yourself.
And you shall eat the enemy's plunder, which the Lord your God gives you. Thus you shall do to all the cities which are very far from you, which are not the cities of these nations." So you see, provided you have that in your mind, you won't stumble at the thought that Israel's actually looking favorably on making this peace treaty with the Gibeonites. This was not unheard of. This was dealt with in the law.
They could not make peace treaties with this coalition. of kings listed in chapter 9 verses 1 and 2, but in terms of this group that came from a very far country, it shouldn't surprise us that they entertain the notion of making a treaty or covenant with them. So back to 9.6, they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, we have come from a far country, now therefore make a covenant with us. Verse 7 indicates that they were rightly suspicious. Verse 7 indicates that they were rightly cautious.
Verse 7 says, then the men of Israel said to the Hivites, perhaps you dwell among us, so how can we make a covenant with you? You see, they don't just jump in. They want to vet these people. They want to make sure these people are telling the truth that they have in fact come from a very far country.
If it is the case that they are neighbors, if it is the case that they are Hivites, if it is the case that they are close associates in terms of their place in the land, well then Israel cannot for a moment entertain any thought whatsoever of a treaty or covenant with that. They must engage the enemy and dispossess them from the land. Again, it's all building here for us. Verse 8, they said to Joshua, we are your servants.
And Joshua said to them, who are you and where do you come from? And here's the ruse, verses 9 to 13. The Gibeonites stick to the story. They say they're from a very far country.
Whether they knew about Deuteronomy 20, 15 and following or not, it certainly indicates it. They knew certain things. They knew the power and the formidableness of Israel. They knew that God had commanded Moses that Israel was to go in and dispossess the land.
They knew certain things. They had done their research in terms of intel and gathering information concerning Israel. So the Gibeon stick to the story. From a very far country your servants have come.
Notice the Gibeonites then refer to the God of Israel. Verse 9. So they said to him from a very far country, your servants have come because of the name of the Lord your God, for we have heard of his fame, and all that he did in Egypt, and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon, king of Heshbon, and Og, king of Bashan, who was at Ashteroth. So they refer to the mighty acts of the God of Israel.
Rahab does this too, doesn't she? Rahab does it in Joshua chapter 2 and verse 10. In Rahab's case though, it's a confession of faith. Here, it doesn't seem that way.
They are seeking to employ this data to try and get their way. That seems to be more of the way that this narrative flows. Isn't it interesting as well? When they rehearse the mighty acts of God, they rehearse some of the mighty acts of God.
Don't miss this, OK? They knew all too well that Israel had conquered Jericho and Ahab. Right? But when they speak to Joshua, they don't mention Jericho and Ai.
They mention Egypt and Sihon and On. Why is that? To help the Roos. You see, if they're from a very far country, and they don't have internet access, or they don't have Google News, they shouldn't know about Jericho and Ai.
If they're coming from a far country having all of this difficulty with all their moldy bread and their shoes with holes in them and their garments wearing out, they wouldn't have heard about Jericho and AI. They conveniently leave that bit of the pie out. They are manipulating. This is a ruse.
This is deception. Davis makes this comment. He says, perhaps the most deceptive of all was the spiritual testimony they offered. Verses 9 to 11 sound good.
We have heard of your God. We have heard of his fame. We have heard of his mighty power. We have heard of his conquering arm.
He says, it was the reputation of Yahweh earned in his mighty acts that drew them to come, so they say. One might compare their words with Rahab's confession of faith in 2.10 to 13. He then makes this very perceptive statement, how difficult to tell the difference between faith, like Rahab's, and flattery, like Gibeon's, especially when that flattery is so spiritual and pious. It is all very subtle because there is always something heartwarming for most of us when we hear that God's dealings with us are being spoken of by people at a distance.
Please read that again. You need to get this.
Faith Versus Flattery
How difficult to tell the difference between faith like Rahab's and flattery like Gibeon's, especially when that flattery is so spiritual and pious. It is all very subtle because there is always something heartwarming for most of us when we hear that God's dealings with us are being spoken of by people at a distance. In other words, if you want to trick a Christian, Commend them on their spirituality. Commend them on God's dealings with that.
Yes, that's right. The Lord has been favorable to us. They disarm Israel. It's as if they've taken the sword right off their sides.
They maintain this ruse. They refer to the mighty acts of the God of Israel. They do not refer to the recent mighty acts of the God of Israel at Jericho and Ai. And then the Gibeonites detail their journey in verses 11 to 13.
Therefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us saying, and here it is, take provisions. Journey to Israel. Offer yourselves as their servants. Make peace with that. to spare you from the wrath of their God.
We are your servants, now therefore make a covenant with us." Verse 12, this bread of ours we took hot for our provision from our houses on the day we departed to come to you. But now look, it is dry and moldy. And these wineskins which we filled were new, and see they are torn. And these our garments and our sandals have become old because of the very long journey.
Have you ever realized that people lie and people deceive? This always amazes me. Christians just get so perplexed that people take advantage of them. Are you kidding me?
This is a sin-sick world. People deceive, people lie, and people will take advantage of you. It is the reality. And I'm not saying we've got to be ultra suspicious of everybody and always suspect an ulterior motive.
But man, as Cromwell says, pray and keep your powder dry. Never underestimate flattery. Never underestimate deception. Never underestimate the tools the devil will use in and through people to try and usurp the church of the living God Almighty.
They offer the props. And they set those things forth as proof that they are telling the truth. I wonder if later on, as they reflect upon this, they said, man. a bit of moldy bread and some holes in sandals and we were taken by that? God forgive us.
The Lord oftentimes brings us through these sorts of things so that we will learn, so that we will cast ourselves upon him and depend upon him for his guidance and for his direction. So that's the deception of the Gibeonites.
The Indiscretion of Israel
Let's look thirdly at the indiscretion of Israel, verses 14 to 21. Verse 14a, they verify the story. Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions. Now some see here a covenantal meal, a covenantal meal.
That's not uncommon. When you cut a covenant, to engage in a meal with one another. I'm with John Gil, though. Why would the Israelites want to eat moldy bread?
They weren't any more in tune with eating moldy bread than you or I would be. I think they took the provisions to examine that. They took the provisions to check the mold themselves. They took the provisions to check the holes in the sandals.
Did it not dawn on them that people could deceive in this way as well? People could manufacture these particular props, but they were satisfied. The story checked out. It was verified as far as they were concerned, because verse 15 says, So Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them to let them live, and the rulers of the congregation swore to them.
So these props and this story offered by the Gibeonites was accepted by Joshua, was accepted by the leadership, and they then cut a covenant and swore to them that they would not kill them, they would not destroy them, they would not eradicate them. But of course, as we've already referenced, verse 14b gives us the issue.
Failure to Seek God's Counsel
But they did not ask counsel of the Lord. They did not ask counsel of the Lord, which they most certainly could have. They had the Urim and the Thummim that the priest used in order to seek answers from the Lord God concerning particular issues. Now in a matter this grave, in a matter this serious, of course you seek the Lord.
If you open up your cupboard in the morning and there's a box of Wheaties and a box of Cocoa Puffs, I do not believe that you need to sit at your kitchen table and seek the Lord as to whether you should have the Wheaties or the Cocoa Puffs. I don't think you need Urim or Thummim. I don't think you need to cast a lot. I don't think that you need to wait upon Yahweh to answer.
Have the cocoa puffs. You do not need to seek Him when it comes to, shall I buy the red shoes? Well, maybe that. But should I buy brown shoes or black shoes?
Don't buy red shoes. Looking at shoes, probably someone's going, oh, my red shoes. You don't need to do those sorts of things. But when it comes to making a treaty or a covenant with a people that you suspect might be inhabitants of the land, that you have been charged to kill and dispossess from the land, you had better seek the Lord.
When it comes to major life issues like, should I marry this girl or should I marry this guy? Seek the Lord. When it comes to certain jobs or certain things or certain big events, you must seek the Lord. Whether you have bacon with your eggs or not, God's not going to give you specific guidance with reference to that, unless you get a terrible report on your cholesterol, that's the Lord telling you lay off the bacon at least for a time.
Go to turkey bacon, maybe that'll be a little bit better on those numbers to bring them down. But you see this is not a small thing. This is not an insignificant matter. This is not a little thing.
These Gibeonites have come and they have cast themselves or they have initiated this covenant of peace. Let me just read a couple quotes. Again, from Dale Ralph Davis. He says, this episode raises pertinent questions for God's people.
He says, what's going on here is an independence. A cocky independence. This idea that, you know, I think I've got this. He says, do we need the guidance of God only when we are in doubt?
Do we not need to be careful when we begin to think? There is no need to consult the Lord on this matter. It's quite clear. No proposed course of conduct can be so clear to a Christian as to excuse him from the duty of seeking direction from above.
That's a quote from George Bush. Not George Bush, the former president, or either of the former presidents in the United States, but George Bush wrote a commentary on Joshua in the 1800s. Back to Davis. He says, Not that you have to ask the Lord whether you should get a haircut at four o'clock.
The scriptures do not require wilting in the everlasting arms, only leaning on them. But we must be aware of that subtle unbelief that assumes, I have this under control. This happens with young people. I don't want to pick on young people, but it does happen with them.
I've got this. I understand this. I know what I'm doing. It happens with older people as well.
I've got this. I know this. I've understood this situation. You really don't have anything that you can tell me.
Sometimes pastors or concerned people will see somebody doing something and they will gently encourage them, hey, have you thought, oh, oh, I've already got that all figured out. I've already got it all planned out. I already know what I'm going to do. Okay.
Well, that's what these men did. Davis goes on to say Joshua 9 warns God's people against such a cocky independence. He says, in the context of our various trials, we need wisdom to know how to function in those trials and circumstances. It is available from a giving God, and we are asked for it.
James 1. The context of, if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives to all liberally and without reproach. The context is one of trial in the Christian life. Blessed are you when you fall into various trials.
That's the point. The issue is that when you're in those trials, when you're in those difficulties, and you find that you need wisdom, ask God. Don't just flounder about in that trial without seeking the Lord. Davis says, our need is no different than Israel's.
Power and Wisdom Both Required
We need not only the power of God to overwhelm our obvious enemies, but also the wisdom of God to detect our subtle enemies. You see, they need power to overwhelm Jericho. They need power to overwhelm Ai. They need wisdom to be able to discern these Gibeonites.
You see, both elements are crucial. It's not just the power of God that we need, we need the wisdom of God. Just reading recently in my own private Bible time, What is Solomon known for? When God comes to him and says, what is it that you want, Solomon?
Solomon doesn't say, I want cars, I want boats, I want houses, I want women. He says, I want wisdom. God says, because you've asked for wisdom, I will grant that to you. Oh, and incidentally, I'll give you all these other things too.
It's wisdom that we most desperately need. So after having said, we need not only the power of God to overwhelm our obvious enemies, but also the wisdom of God to detect our subtle enemies, Davis finalizes by saying, unfortunately, the church too often craves God's power while it ignores God's wisdom. I think we need to learn that in this transaction or this treaty or this covenant with the Gibeonites. Again, should I get a haircut at four o'clock, Lord?
You don't necessarily need to inquire of the Lord for that particular one. But should I enter into this marriage relationship, this covenant? this treaty with this particular person. Seek the Lord. There may not be Yoram and Thummim today, but there are parents, there are elders in the church, there are wise people, there are people that have some help and can speak, not the authoritative prophetic voice of God, but counsel and advice that is given by God through his servants, through men and women in the life of the church.
Do not be like these Israelites. Verse 15, Joshua makes a covenant of peace with them, the rulers swear to them. And then notice,
The Deception Discovered
verses 16 to 18, the truth is discovered. It happened at the end of three days, after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors who dwelt near them. Imagine that. Do you think we messed up?
I mean, I guess why I'm smiling is because I see myself in this passage. You do something, right? You jump into something. And then you hear, maybe this wasn't the best idea.
And not only that, then they see it. They're marching through the very cities of the Gibeonites. It dawns on them, this is not a very far country. We've walked maybe 10, 12, 15 miles and here's three cities associated with the Gibeonites.
Do you think we messed up? This is what's going on. The hammer is starting to fall. So they hear that they are their neighbors that dwelt near them.
Verse 17, then the children of Israel journeyed and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Shephrod, Baroth, and Kirjath-Jerub. So when they see the city limits for Gibeon, their hearts sink. What have we done?
We believe their story? How did we ever fall for those props? Now, it doesn't say they did this, but I think I know sinners enough to realize that by this time, they're going, what have we done? And then notice, in verse 18, the children of Israel are restrained.
The children of Israel did not attack them because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord God of Israel. And all the congregation complained against the rulers. Now, the story takes an interesting turn at this particular time. I hope there's a psalm that presents itself to your mind when you read this narrative.
It might not right now, so I'll fill in the blank.
Faithfulness to the Oath
In Psalm 15, it describes a godly man. Who can ascend into the holy hill of Zion? Who can enter into the Lord's tabernacle? And then it describes this godly man, who I think really is only a description of Jesus Christ.
But in verse 4b in Psalm 15, it describes this man as one who swears to his own hurt and does not change his mind." What you do see in the remainder of this passage is faithfulness on the part of Israel. They created a bad situation and they dealt with it. That's what manly, godly Christianity is all about. You see, it's not going to be the case that we never create situations.
It's not going to be the case that we never create problems. It's not going to be the case that we never sin. It's how do we deal when we're in it? Are we going to be responsible and man up and be faithful to our obligations or are we going to play like the worldling and change things up?
So let's look at what goes on here. Verse 18, the children of Israel did not attack them because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord God of Israel and all the congregation complained against the rulers. Now, this is the same idea, the same words, or the same concept that we find in Numbers 13 and 14, after the spies return. The people complain.
The people murmur. Well, here it's in place. I don't think the people are being indicted here for having this complaint against the rulers. The rulers mess up.
The leaders shouldn't have done this. The people are not unrighteous and unjust at this particular point to say, what did you do? Why did you do this? How did you fall for these props?
Why didn't you vet them better? Why didn't you verify their story? Why didn't you investigate? No, the people are upset about this.
Now, notice verses 19 to 21. The people are now informed about what has happened. Then all the rulers said to all the congregation, we have sworn to them by the Lord God of Israel. Now, therefore, we may not touch them.
You see, the people perhaps thought, because this oath was entered into based on deceit, We don't have to keep it. Now, some of the commentaries deal with that old question. When an oath is entered into deceitfully, are we duty bound to uphold our obligation? That's a debate for another time.
Notice what these men are convinced of in this instance. Verse 19 says, we have sworn to them by the Lord God of Israel. We have put Yahweh's name on this. We are not going to renege under the name of our God.
We are not going to be unfaithful under the name of our God. This we will do to them, verse 20, we will let them live lest wrath be upon us because of the oath which we swore to them." They understood this, that if we make this oath and we make this covenant and then we renege or we break that, then God the Lord might be upset with us and bring wrath to bear upon us. What they are saying in essence is that this is not a great situation. We did error.
We did sin. We were wrong in doing this, but maintain faithfulness to our covenant? We most certainly will. This shows something, I think, about leadership that can be trusted.
Leadership that isn't afraid to admit, yeah, we probably shouldn't have done this, but since we've done this, here's how we're going to see our way through it. We're not going to treat these Gibeonites any worse. I mean, they don't get treated well, but we're not going to kill them. We're not going to destroy them.
We're going to honor our obligations with reference to these particular men. They figured, the leaders figured, to break the oath would bring God's wrath upon them, to break the oath would dishonor the name of God as it was sworn in His name. The leaders swore to their hurt and they did not change. That's a great lesson for us.
Sometimes we enter into things and we find out we shouldn't have done it. You know, sometimes people make a purchase, and they say, wow, I shouldn't have done that. Don't default on the loan. You shouldn't have done it.
Be faithful, pay it off, and don't do it again. Don't just say, well, you know, I just can't do it. Well, why did you go into this? You need to be a man or a woman of your word.
If you sign the dotted line, then be faithful. Carry out your obligations. Davis says, again, Israel was stuck. They must not break an oath, though it had been wrongly obtained because they had wrongly neglected the wisdom of God.
What to do? I love this. Live as faithfully as they could within that twisted situation. That's just the reality.
Sometimes we're going to end up in a situation And the answer is faithfulness to the Lord God Almighty, even if it means that we hurt. He swears to his own hurt, and he does not change. Now notice, we have sworn. We will let them live, verse 20, and we will use them as woodcutters and water carriers.
Now, with reference to the house of God, there was a lot of wood that needed to be cut and a lot of water that needed to be carried. These Gibeonites were going to earn their keep. In Deuteronomy 29.11, woodcutters and water carriers are like the lowest echelon of society. If you happen to be a woodcutter or a water carrier, I'm not indicting you, I'm just telling you what Deuteronomy 29.11 says, verse 10.
All of you stand today before the Lord your God, your leaders and your tribes and your elders and your officers, all the men of Israel, your little ones and your wives, also the stranger who is in your camp, from the one who cuts your wood to the one who draws your water. So here in Joshua chapter 9, They say in verse 21, the ruler said to them, let them live, but let them be woodcutters and water carriers for all the congregation as the rulers had promised them. In other words, they will be our servants. They will live, but they will be confined to these particular tasks.
Joshua's Investigation of the Gibeonites
And then finally, verses 22 to 27 is when Joshua investigates the Gibeonites. Verse 22, then Joshua called for them and he spoke to them saying, why have you deceived us saying we are very far from you when you dwell near us? Now therefore you are cursed and none of you shall be freed from being slaves, woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God. So you see they're under a curse because they deceived.
They're under a curse because they lie. But under that curse, they remain alive. They would be better off being living slaves than being freed dead men. And that's the arrangement that is struck here.
And then verses 24 and following. They say, we were told, we were afraid, and we submit to your rule. Verse 24. Man, on the one hand, you can't blame the Gibeonites.
I mean, you could blame them for lying and deceiving. But they heard that the God of Israel is sending his people in to utterly dispossess the land. They did not join this coalition of kings. And if you notice here, this coalition of kings, the Gibeonites had a different political structure.
There's no king mentioned. They have elders. in the city of Gibeon. They don't have a king. Maybe for that reason they felt a little bit unprotected and instead of joining with this coalition where they probably would have served as woodcutters and water carriers, they thought, hey, we'll cast ourselves on the mercy of Israel and cut wood and carry water for them.
So they answered Joshua and said, because your servants were clearly told that the Lord your 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 very much afraid for our lives because of you and have done this thing. So it wasn't a confession of faith like Rahab's. It was a confession of we don't want to die. That's it, that basic human instinct for survival.
And then verse 25, and now here we are, in your hands, do with us as it seems good and right to do to us. And then verses 26 and 27 is a summary statement. So he did to them and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel so that they did not kill them. And that day Joshua made them woodcutters and water carriers." Now notice, for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord, in the place which he would choose even to this day.
Now, we probably shouldn't make too much out of this, but they get some proximity here to the God of heaven and earth, don't they? I mean, I'd rather cut wood and carry water near the house of my God than live as a free man in the cities of Gibeon. George Bush recognized this. Again, not the former presidents of the United States.
He says, they were hereby brought into a situation where they would naturally acquire the knowledge of the true God and of his revealed will. And just the proximity of it, cutting wood and carrying water, again, the house of the Lord, or that central location, the altar of the Lord, in the place which he would choose. They did a lot of sacrifice. You need a lot of wood to burn that sacrifice.
You need a lot of water for the priests. There's a big labor there. They had to wash themselves. Everything had to be clean.
There would be a lot of wood and a lot of water necessary to service the altar of the Lord. Bush is right. They were hereby brought into a situation where they would naturally acquire the knowledge of the true God and of his revealed will. They were made to dwell in the courts of the Lord's house, were honored with near access to him in the services of the sanctuary, and thus placed in circumstances eminently favorable to their spiritual and eternal interests.
I mean, the Lord God of Israel, as we move through this passage, is very gracious. He doesn't destroy the Gibeonites. He doesn't destroy the Israelites for having not sought his counsel. They have a twisted situation.
They arrange the situation. And here, Israel now has woodcutters and water carriers. And these woodcutters and water carriers have come into close proximity, at least, to learn something of the true and living God. Matthew Henry says, and thus Israel's bondmen became the Lord's freemen, for his service in the meanest office is liberty, and his work is its own wages.
And this they got by their early submission. So perhaps we can't develop it too much in terms of what the Gibeonites got, but you can't miss it. They would be carrying wood, or cutting wood and carrying water, and they would be in proximity to the worship of the true and the living God. Certainly, they would learn many lessons concerning Yahweh.
Application
Well, as we conclude, a few things certainly present themselves from this chapter. First of all, seek counsel from the Lord. That's the take-home message, 14b. Pray.
Read the Bible. You know, when we seek counsel from the Lord, it doesn't mean that you drive up the back of Mount Shem. There's a parking area there, and then you walk the two-hour trip up to the peak and there seek the Lord. You don't have to do that.
You've got his word right here. That's what seeking the Lord is all about. It's about studying this book. It's about praying over it.
Seek the Lord. As well, check facts of those with whom you deal. Vet Gibeonites, as you are able. Realize, and I hate to be the bearer of bad news, that people will lie to you and deceive you.
I know that's hard to believe. People will tell you, you just sign here and you'll have a great deal. It doesn't always work that way. And then maintain faithfulness to your oaths even if it hurts.
Swear to your own hurt and do not change. That is the mark of a godly man. I mean, better is to avoid those sorts of oaths altogether. But if you contract one, you be faithful to it.
Do not be like the world. Do not be one who reneges or breaks those things that you have sworn to uphold. Well, let us close in prayer.
Closing Prayer
Our Father in heaven, we thank you for this passage of scripture and for the very practical lessons it holds out for the church. We ask that you would help us in these things, help us to be those who seek you in your word, who seek you in prayer, who seek you with godly counsel and and advice and wisdom from our older brothers and sisters, parents, all those means that you've given to us. As well, Father, we pray that you would just help us to be faithful, help us to be men and women of our word. And we pray that you would go with us now and watch over us and bring us together on the Lord's day, that we may worship you in spirit and in truth.
And we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.