Joshua
23:2-3 Joshua summoned all Israel, its elders
and heads, its judges and officers, and said to them, “I am now old and well
advanced in years. And you have seen all that the Lord your God has done to all
these nations for your sake, for it is the Lord your God who has fought for
you.
Covenant theology is the
central theme in Joshua’s message to the people. The God of the Covenant to
Abraham, Moses and Joshua is the God of Israel. He alone has made possible what
they are now experiencing in the Promised Land.
Joshua’s message recounts
the past promises and the past warnings of punishment for disobedience that God
has fulfilled. His message repeats a common theme of reminding the people of
the blessings and curses that accompany God’s promises to them.
This chapter defines Israel
by her history with God. From the Fall, to the exodus from Egypt, through the
Wilderness wanderings and now after the successful battles to take the Promised
Land, Israel is the people for whom God fights against all the nations. He fulfills
his promise to be with them. Without His presence and His victories Israel has
no identity.
Rest is not the final word
for life in the land. Temptation lurks in the presence of the gods of the
peoples who remain living among the Israelites. Blessings will last only as
long as they remain totally faithful to Yahweh, God. When Israel begins to
experiment with other gods, trying to be like the other nations and worship
every god possible, their downfall is imminent. For them doom meant loss of the
land and aimless wandering, destruction, death and the scattering of the people.
Death is separation from God.
