Chapter 9:1-15
“And it came to pass, when all the kings which were on this side Jordan, in the hills, and in the valleys, and in all the coasts of the great sea over against Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof; “That they gathered themselves tether, to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord.”
Here we have a great gathering together of kings and peoples to fight against Joshua and Israel. These nations might war among themselves, but Satan unites the world to fight against the Lord and His people. They had seen Israel beaten in the first battle against Ai, and although the Israelites had triumphed in the end, still they calculated that Israel was not invincible. So by a sheer display of power they hoped to crush the invaders of their land.
But Satan is a crafty foe; he hides himself, and though he be so little seen, he is there nevertheless, working unceasingly to overthrow the Christian’s testimony and to corrupt and destroy the truth of God. While some of his servants resort to the sword, others have deceit and lying as their weapons of warfare. Satan first raises up this tremendous power to terrify Israel, while at the same time his ambassadors are on the way to suggest the Israelites make a league with them. Thus the men of Gibeon “did work wilily.”
These inhabitants of Gibeon thought to try and make friends with Israel, and this they did in a very cunning way. They took old sacks and wine bottles, they put on old worn-out shoes and ragged clothes, and they took old mouldy bread. And they came to Joshua pretending they had come from afar.
When asked who they were and where they came from, they replied: “From a far country thy servants are come because of the name of the Lord thy God: for we have heard of the fame of Him and all that He did in Egypt, and all that He did to the two kings... Sihon... and Og.... This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you; but now, behold, it is dry and mouldy; and these bottles of wine, which we filled were new; and behold, they be rent: and these our garments and our shoes are become old by reason of the very long journey.”
Alas, their soft words and flattery overcame the princes of Israel. Even Joshua was deceived, for he made peace with them; he made a league with the very people whom God had told them to separate from and destroy. But these Hivites were skillful men, and they gained the day.
It says the men of Israel “asked not counsel at the mouth of the Lord.” Scripture says, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” Prov. 3:5. The sorrowful results of that failure continued in Israel for centuries.
How many of us can look back upon a failure in our lives which brought a sorrow which we feel even today! But may we not be discouraged and give up. God’s grace is greater than all our failure, so while owning it, let us not “fail of the grace of God.” Heb. 12:15.
ML-09/11/1977