On the Book of Joshua

by Surath Fernando

As I see it, the book of Joshua is one of war and conquest. God uses His faithful servant Joshua to instigate a holy war and deliver Israel the promised land.  In return, He asks for absolute faith and adherence to the commandments.  If anyone falls out of line, carnage ensues in the form of mass killings within and without Israel.

These acts are barbaric and brutal. Indeed, few would disagree that mass killings are anything otherwise. However, to my mind, these are tactics of war which we are seeing even today, 3000 years after Joshua's death.

Strategically speaking, as a war leader you need complete obedience from your troops.  Disobedience undermines the authority of the leader and endangers the entire war effort.

Two easy and effective options for maintaining discipline in the face of disobedience are either a gracious show of mercy or a swift death.

The latter is what happened to the clan of Zerah and the peoples of Ai and Jericho.  Specifically, the clan of Zerah act against the will of God and were punished with death.

The massacres of Ai and Jericho are the ultimate end to a holy war.  The Israelites are conquering the land. The land is inhabited by foreigners with different cultures and foreign gods.  Now I don't agree with this next point personally, it is my rational mind trying to make sense of the situation.  But perhaps Joshua believes that to let these people live would be to allow their religion to continue and be a possible threat.

To brutally wipe out the population, makes a statement about the power and willingness of these new kids on the block, the Israelites and their God, whilst also achieving a clean slate. The reason I state the last point is because we have seen this aspect of human behaviour repeatedly through history.  Think Hitler's holocaust against the Jews, the Christian crusades against Islam, and today's persecution of Christians in Muslim countries.

But to end on a more positive note, Joshua the man, does show what can be accomplished when you have a strong belief in yourself and in God. He went from being an Egyptian slave to Moses' right hand man and eventually the war leader of the Israelites. And he (almost) always exhibited faith in his dealings, consulting God with the main decisions in life. Through his faith and the power of God, he brought down the impassable walls of Jericho. He reminds us that sometimes in life, faith and faith alone is what we need to conquer our personal walls.