The Rewards of Joshua and Caleb

From: Messages of God's Love: 1938

Joshua 14:6-14⁶Then the children of Judah came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, Thou knowest the thing that the Lord said unto Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadesh-barnea. ⁷Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart. ⁸Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the Lord my God. ⁹And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children's for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the Lord my God. ¹⁰And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. ¹¹As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. ¹²Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the Lord spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the Lord said. ¹³And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance. ¹⁴Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the Lord God of Israel. (Joshua 14:6‑14) and 19:49,50

You remember that twelve men were sent from the camp of Israel white they were in the desert land, to learn about the land and people of Canaan.

When the men returned, ten of them said it was not a safe land to go to because there were giants there. But two of them, Joshua and Caleb, said it was a good land and the Lord would help them go in. The people became very angry at them and tried to stone them, but the Lord saved them, and they were the only ones of the men who later got into Canaan (Num. 14:6-10⁶And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: ⁷And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. ⁸If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. ⁹Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not. ¹⁰But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. (Numbers 14:6‑10)).

In the Book of Joshua we learn that God had promised to give Joshua and Caleb special kind to be theirs and their children’s. Caleb asked for his part in a mountain, which was not easy to take from the men of Canaan who were mighty men, but he took it, although he was then eighty-five years old. And Joshua received his part also in a mountain and lived there. So these men were both very brave and strong, although they were not young. The reason they had so much courage was because they really believed God’s promises, and that He would help them.

A daughter of Caleb, also thought the land good to be used. Her father gave her and her husband a field and she asked for a part with a spring of water and her father gave her two places of springs, which would refresh them and others (Josh. 15:17-20¹⁷And Othniel the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, took it: and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. ¹⁸And it came to pass, as she came unto him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she lighted off her ass; and Caleb said unto her, What wouldest thou? ¹⁹Who answered, Give me a blessing; for thou hast given me a south land; give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs, and the nether springs. ²⁰This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families. (Joshua 15:17‑20)).

Perhaps you remember of some other daughters who asked for a share of land, because their father was dead, and there were no sons. These five sisters came to Joshua and he told them where their share should be (Num. 27:1-8¹Then came the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph: and these are the names of his daughters; Mahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah. ²And they stood before Moses, and before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes and all the congregation, by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying, ³Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not in the company of them that gathered themselves together against the Lord in the company of Korah; but died in his own sin, and had no sons. ⁴Why should the name of our father be done away from among his family, because he hath no son? Give unto us therefore a possession among the brethren of our father. ⁵And Moses brought their cause before the Lord. ⁶And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, ⁷The daughters of Zelophehad speak right: thou shalt surely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father's brethren; and thou shalt cause the inheritance of their father to pass unto them. ⁸And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a man die, and have no son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter. (Numbers 27:1‑8); Josh. 17:3-6³But Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, but daughters: and these are the names of his daughters, Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. ⁴And they came near before Eleazar the priest, and before Joshua the son of Nun, and before the princes, saying, The Lord commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brethren. Therefore according to the commandment of the Lord he gave them an inheritance among the brethren of their father. ⁵And there fell ten portions to Manasseh, beside the land of Gilead and Bashan, which were on the other side Jordan; ⁶Because the daughters of Manasseh had an inheritance among his sons: and the rest of Manasseh's sons had the land of Gilead. (Joshua 17:3‑6)).

Then there were some of the people who asked for more lands than were allotted to them, and they were told that they could take more (Josh. 17:14-18¹⁴And the children of Joseph spake unto Joshua, saying, Why hast thou given me but one lot and one portion to inherit, seeing I am a great people, forasmuch as the Lord hath blessed me hitherto? ¹⁵And Joshua answered them, If thou be a great people, then get thee up to the wood country, and cut down for thyself there in the land of the Perizzites and of the giants, if mount Ephraim be too narrow for thee. ¹⁶And the children of Joseph said, The hill is not enough for us: and all the Canaanites that dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both they who are of Beth-shean and her towns, and they who are of the valley of Jezreel. ¹⁷And Joshua spake unto the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power: thou shalt not have one lot only: ¹⁸But the mountain shall be thine; for it is a wood, and thou shalt cut it down: and the outgoings of it shall be thine: for thou shalt drive out the Canaanites, though they have iron chariots, and though they be strong. (Joshua 17:14‑18) and 19:47).

You see it is not greedy to ask for more of God’s gifts, because there is plenty for all, and He wishes to give. But His gifts now are not of fields or springs, but of joy and comfort of His Word, and He will add to our joy and knowledge, so we may also help others, if we value and use what He already has given.

ML 05/15/1938

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