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The Scriptorium

Joshua's Commission

God outlined His vision for Joshua.

Joshua 1 (1)

After the death of Moses the servant of the L
ORD, it came to pass that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, saying: “Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them—the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your territory.” Joshua 1.1-4

Reflect and discuss.
1.  Why did God wait to speak directly to Joshua until after Moses had died? 

2.  What had God chosen and anointed Joshua to accomplish?

Think about it.
God had been preparing Joshua for this role for forty years. Previously, however, He had only spoken directly to and through Moses and Aaron. Now that they were dead, God made Joshua the new focus of His revealed Word and will.

What an awesome and terrifying responsibility!

These first verses of the book of Joshua focus on promises that go all the way back to Abram (Gen. 12.1-3). The promises God spoke to Abram, He reiterated to Moses (v. 3); now He speaks them to Joshua, showing that the events that are about to unfold are but the latest stage of a covenant that has been in place between God and His people for long generations. The significance of this will not be lost on Joshua, as we shall see.

God outlined the broad parameters of the vision Joshua was to pursue (vv. 3, 4). Joshua could not possibly have understood the full scope, much less all the details, of this vision, but the outlines are here. The rest would be filled in by stages as the work of gaining the land of promise progressed.

An important idea – one that will be learned the hard way, then repeated over and over – surfaces in the words “you and all this people” (v. 2). Gaining the promises of God is a communal effort. Those who think only of themselves, as well as those who refuse to take their part in striving to gain those promises, will find they are out of step with God’s plan.

Meditate and discuss.
1.  God entrusted Joshua with His Word, as He did with Jesus (Jn. 17.8). He has also entrusted His Word to us. How does this obligate us as the people of God?

2.  The vision God outlined for Joshua was vague, but it was sufficient for this stage of his calling. Why did God do this? What is the role of vision in gaining the promises of God? What are the broad outlines of God’s vision for your life?

3.  Gaining the promises of God is a communal effort. Why does this make the local church important to the life of faith? How many New Testament “one another” verses can you call to mind? How does this reinforce the communal nature of our calling to gain the promises of God?

“There are certain diabolical races of powerful adversaries against whom we wage a battle and against whom we struggle in this life. However many of these races we set under our feet, however many we conquer in battle, we shall seize their territories, their provinces and their realms, as Jesus our Lord apportions them to us.” Origen of Alexandria (185-254 AD)

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart, and help me today to…


Pray Psalm 90.1-17.
This psalm served Moses well as he led Israel for forty years. Let this psalm lead you in giving thanks and in seeking the Lord’s vision and work for the day ahead.

Psalm 90.1, 2, 12-17 (Landas: My Faith Has Found a Resting Place)
Lord, You have been our dwelling place from generations gone.
Before the mountains came to be, before the earth was born,
Before the worlds, and long before men on the earth first trod,
From everlasting long ago, O God, You are our God!

So teach us all our days to note that wisdom may be ours.
Return, O Lord, have pity on those servants who are Yours.
Each morning let Your love appear that we for joy may sing.
And make us glad for every day You us affliction bring.

Now let Your work to us appear; our children show Your might.
And let Your favor rest on us; show mercy in Your sight.
The work that You have given us, confirm, and to us show,
That we Your chosen path may walk and in Your precepts go.

T. M. Moore

Where does the book of Joshua fit in the ongoing story of God’s covenant? Our workbook, God’s Covenant, can help you discover the place in God’s work of redemption not only of Joshua but of all the books of the Bible. God’s Covenant is a valuable resource to guide you in all your studies in God’s Word. To order your copy, click here.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing adapted from The Ailbe Psalter. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006.

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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