Monthly Archives: March 2009

Joshua

Posted on by

Introduction

The Book of Joshua stands in a strategic place in the Old Testament Scriptures. The Books of Genesis through Deuteronomy form the Law, the first division of the Hebrew Bible. The Book of Joshua is the first book of the second division, known as the Prophets. The Prophets division is further divided into two sections, the first of which is the Former Prophets, which includes four books: Joshua, Judges, First and Second Samuel (One Book), and First and Second Kings (One Book). In our English Bibles, following the Septuagint and Vulgate, Joshua is the transition book from the Law (also called the Pentateuch) to the books of History.

In the Hebrew Bible and all of the subsequent versions, the name of the book is derived from its main character. The Hebrew name Joshua is equivalent to the Greek name Jesus, and means “Yahweh is Savior” or “Salvation of Yahweh.”

To determine the authorship of the book, consider several lines of evidence.

1) There are many eyewitness details that only Joshua could have known.

  • Joshua 24:26 states that Joshua wrote down at least his farewell address.
  • The language of the book suggests that it was written by a participant.
  • Unbroken tradition says that he wrote his book.

All of these matters point to Joshua as the author of the book.

2) The man Joshua was born a slave in Egypt. After escaping from that land during the Exodus, Joshua became Moses’ special assistant. Joshua witnessed the mighty acts of God in the Wilderness. Joshua was one of the twelve spies sent into the land, and he and Caleb brought the minority report that challenged the people to move forward in faith. As commanding general of the Israelite army, Joshua led the people in the conquest of the land.

3) The Book of Joshua records that after the death of Moses, Joshua led in the Conquest of Canaan and in the allotment of tribal territory. Since the Exodus from Egypt occurred in 1446 B.C., the Conquest of Canaan began in 1406 B.C. and continued for about six years; therefore the Conquest should be dated 1406-1400 B.C. The Tell el Amarna Letters (correspondence between certain city states in Canaan and Egyptian pharaohs) speak of invasions of Canaan by groups called the Habiru; these letters were addressed to Pharaoh Amenhotep III (1414-1378) and his son Akhenaten (1378-1367); some archaeologists see at least some connection between the Habiru incursions and the Hebrew Conquest of the Land. It is probable that Joshua lived another ten years at least, making the dates for the Book of Joshua 1406-1390 B.C.

In the Book of Joshua, Jesus is seen as the “Captain of the Lord’s Host.”

Outline

Preparing for Victory
Commission of Joshua, 1:1-18
Care over the Spies, 2:1-24
Crossing the Jordan, 3:1-17
Cairns of Stones, 4:1-24
Consternation of the Amorites, 5:1
Circumcision of the New Generation, 5:2-12
Captain of the Lord’s Hosts, 5:13-15

Prevailing in Victory
Central Campaign

  • Destruction of Jericho, 6:1-27
  • Defeat of Israel at Ai, 7:1-5
  • Discovery of Achan’s Sin, 7:6-26
  • Downfall of Ai, 8:1-35

Coalition of Southern Cities

  • Deception by the Gibeonites, 9:1-27
  • Defense of Gibeon Against the Southern Coalition, 10:1-43

Confederacy United with Hazor, 11:1-15
Comprehensive Summary of Conquests, 11:16—12:24

Partitioning after Victory
Compartmentalization of Individual and Tribal Territories, 13:1—22:9
Concern from Transjordanian Altar, 22:10-34
Challenging Address from Joshua, 23:1—24:28
Close of Joshua’s Life, 24:29-33

Suggested Reading Segments for Joshua

  1. 1-5, Preparing Joshua and the people
  2. 6-8, Beginning the conquest
  3. 9-12, Completing the conquest
  4. 13-17, Beginning the partitioning
  5. 18-21, Completing the partitioning
  6. 22-24, Conditions for continued occupation

Bible Reading Guides

Posted on by

In order to know what God has said we read His Book, the Bible. One suggested plan for reading is available here. The following Guides will assist is understanding the message of each book. For easy reference, the Guides are listed in the same order as the Bible, and according to the genre of the literature.

Old Testament

The Law or Pentateuch

History

 Poetry

Major Prophets

Minor Prophets

New Testament

Gospels

History

 Paul’s Letters

General Letters

Prophecy

Turkey, Greece, Rome Trip Summary, part 3

Posted on by

Where have I been? What has happened to receiving the iBulletin each week? A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I would be working on the slide presentations for the Bible Lands chapel at Talbot. I didn’t realize that, alng with some other unusual responsibilities, I would have to make choices in what would get done and what wouldn’t. I was able to complete the presentations for the Bible Lands chapel held last Tuesday, March 17. I wasn’t able to get the iBulletin sent out. However, I can breathe again!

You can view a web variation of the slideshow if you like. There is a photo of each site we visited as well as a photo of each person that we traveled with this year. The music is different than what was used at chapel, which gives it a different “feel.” Click here to see the slideshow: Turkey, Greece, Rome 2009. Now I am working on finishing the DVD. Soon we’ll be ready to announce when we will show slides at the church!

I originally thought this summary would divide into three or four parts. It looks like it may take a bit longer. Here is the next installment. Enjoy!

Wednesday, January 7 Colossae; Laodicea; Miletus; Didyma; Priene
Another adventurous day found us first at Ancient Colossae which has a refreshing cold-water stream near the tel now used for farming. Laodicea’s clogged terracotta pipes are featured prominently. Maybe they shouldn’t have refused the bailout offer from Rome after a devastating earthquake. An observation was made that no remains of any aqueduct has been found coming from Hieropolis (the location of hot water) to Laodicea. Lunch included a stop at Starbucks. Miletus was a quaint coastal city and indefensible. The Meander River has silted the harbor, pushing the ancient city center a couple of miles from the coast. The account of Paul meeting the Ephesian elders at Miletus was read in the theater. The Oracular Temple at Didyma was rebuilt by Alexander the Great but never completed.Today there are a few of the gigantic columns and several column bases. In diameter, these columns are much larger than those we would see at the Parthenon in Athens or the Temple of Apollo in Corinth. The procedure for discovering the will of the gods is unique. Breathing fumes escaping from deep crevices within the earth intoxicates a temple virgin. In this hallucinated condition the prophetess speaks erratic nonsense when asked a question by the priest. The priest then relays the always-ambiguous answer to the one seeking to know. Didyma is currently in need of a prophetess. From the bus we heard about the terraced hillside of ancient Priene (pronounced like “pre-” “in” and a long “A”). This city is built on successive terraced slopes of a hill on Mt. Mykale. From the top of the hill, at the Temple of Athena, you can see Miletus and Didyma. There was a significant Jewish presence there in the first century. In the evening we met with a pastor who talked about the state of the church in Turkey today. It is estimated that 5000 of Turkey’s 72 million citizens know the saving grace of Jesus Christ.

Thursday, January 8 Ephesus
The history of Ephesus crosses five time periods from the Bronze Age to the Byzantine. The Celsus Library didn’t serve as a backdrop for group photography when Paul and John were there. In the Roman Empire the Celsus library was third in size after Alexandria (Egypt) and Pergamum. The terrace houses gave us a glimpse of how and where the church may have met. One highlight after an entire day in Ephesus is the massive theater where warning signs are posted to not get too close to the edge (I sense a recurring theme here). All that is left of the Temple of Artemis (Diana) is one incorrectly reconstructed column (and a few ducks). The foundation of the third century Basilica of St. John remains and his burial under the altar is nearly certain.

Friday, January 9 Izmir; Sardis; Bin Tepe; Philadelphia; Akhisar (Thyatira)
From the acropolis at Izmir (ancient Smyrna), we viewed the remains of the commercial agora completely surrounded by the modern city. The Byzantine church building is dwarfed by the Temple of Artemis at Sardis. Artemis is a myth, Jesus is truth (large building not needed). Next to the synagogue remains in Sardis is the reconstructed gymnasium façade in what is now an open field. At warp speed we made it through “Bin Tepe” (which means “1000 mounds”), the burial grounds of the Lydian’s Royal family. The remains at ancient Philadelphia are few, covered by the modern city. No tour groups go to Akhisar (ancient Thyatira) because the seller of purple is out of town. We did and stayed overnight.

The Victory of the Cross | Isaiah 53:10

Posted on by

Isaiah 53:10. This is the sixth sermon in a series on “the Heart of the Old Testament Gospel,” based on exposition of Isaiah 52:13 through 53:12. In this message, the time between the Messiah Servant’s death and resurrection is revealed. Isaiah 53:10 is often called “the mystery of mysteries.” How could it have pleased God to “bruise” Jesus Christ? March 15, 2009.

Play

Podcast: Play in new window | Download