JOSHUA - Chapters 11 and 12 - The Kings Thirty and One
JOSHUA – Chapter 11 & 12
Joshua and Israel Smote the Kings Thirty and One
Tuesday Morning Bible Study
August 23, 3016, the Year of Our Lord
Pastor Carolyn Sissom
The Northern campaign posed the greatest test yet for Joshua---if nothing else, in sheer numbers. Joshua made war a long time (“many days”) with all those kings. It was seven years. Throughout his battles, we have seen a progressive nature to the severity of this warfare.
Psa. 84:7: “They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appears before God.”
This is true for Christians as we face and overcome our demons, then the Lord promotes us to war with the powers and principalities over nations.
11:1-3: When Jabin, king of Hazor heard about Joshua’s conquests of all the southern Canaanite kings, he sent for the kings of the north. King Jabin seems to have held a similar position of power and influence in the north to what Adonizedek, King of Jerusalem did in the south.
The names of the king are listed but I am summarizing them by region. There was Jobab in the north; two kings west of Nazareth in Asher; two kings near the Sea of Galilee and four kings south of Carmel. Here are ten kingdom powers. These ten formed Joshua’s greatest test. These kings (principalities and powers in the kingdom of darkness) “met together” and pitched together in a League at the waters of Merom.
The present battle over our nation is a league of political powers both nationally and internationally. All political powers that do not align themselves with the Kingdom of God are part of the kingdom of darkness. These powers are presently aligned against the Kingdom of God.
11: 4-5: “These kings all went out; they and all their hosts with them, much people, even as the sand that is upon the sea-shore in multitude, with many horses and chariots. When all these kings met together, they pitched together at the waters of Merom, to fight against Israel.”
Merom was a lake in northern Canaan, believed today to be ten miles north of the Sea of Galilee.
11: 6-15: “The Lord said to Joshua, Be not afraid because of them; for lo tomorrow about this time I will deliver them up all slain before Israel; you shall hamstring (cripple) their horses, and burn their chariots with fire. So Joshua came, and all the people of war with him, against them by the waters of Merom suddenly; and they fell upon them. The Lord delivered them into the hand of Israel, who smote them, and chased them to great Zidon, and to Misrephoth-maim and to the valley of Mizpeh eastward. They smote them until they left none remaining.”
Zidon is in Lebanon. Mizpeh and Misrephoth-maim appear to be eastern Canaan, now part of Syria??
“Joshua did to them as the Lord told him; he crippled their horses, and burned their chariots with fire. Joshua then turned back, and took Hazor. He smote the king with the sword; for Hazor was the head of all those kingdoms. They smote all the souls that were therein with the edge if the sword, utterly destroying them. There was not any left to breathe. He burned Hazor with fire. All the cities of those kings, and all the kings did Joshua take. He smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed them, as Moses the servant of the Lord commanded. But as for the cities that still stood in their strength, Israel burned none of them except Hazor only. All the spoil of these cities, and the cattle, the children of Israel took for a prey to themselves; but all the men they smote with the edge of the sword, until they destroyed them. As the Lord commanded Moses his servant, so did Moses command Joshua. Joshua left nothing undone of all the Lord commanded Moses.”
Today this kind of slaughter would be deemed as war crimes and genocide. However, the sins of the Canaanite nation had become so evil, and their hearts so hardened, they had to be destroyed. A Holy God will not continue to give grace to an evil creation.
The sure Word of Jehovah will always come to pass. The best-contrived policies and plans against God and his eternal purposes come to foolishness. Hab. 3:12: “You did march through the land in indignation. You threshed the heathen in anger. You went forth for the salvation of your people, even for salvation with your anointed. You wounded the head out of the house of the wicked by discovering the foundation unto the neck. Selah.”
Hazor - Human wisdom and knowledge -- Mainstream media
Shimronmeron – Pharisaical traditions – Never Trump movement
Achshaph – Witchcraft and the occult
Taanach -- Soulish whims and ways---liberals.
Megiddo – Popularity—power of the polls.
Kedesh – Man-made holiness standards---religion
Jokneam – Man-worship---King makers.
Dor – Worldly comfort---apathy.
Gilgal – Refusal to change---stubbornness and hardened heart.
Tirzah – Worldly pleasures—pleasure seeking generation.
11: 18: “Joshua made war a long time with all those kings.” Caleb was 85 when Canaan was conquered and 40 when Moses sent out the 12 spies. Then 38 of those years were spent in the wilderness wanderings. (40+38+7=85).
11:19-20: “There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel except the Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon. All other they took in battle. For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts, that they should come against Israel in battle, that he might destroy them utterly, and that they might have no favor, but he might destroy them as the Lord commanded Moses.”
As we are studying in Habakkuk, the·od·i·cy which is a vindication of God in his holiness and justice in establishing or allowing the existence of physical and moral evil. Joshua is a book of the judgment of God against evil. There are so many doctrines and theologies concerning a Holy and good God and his judgment of evil. I have settled it in myself. He is God! When a nation and its people become so wicked, there is a time of judgment. It has always been that way and it will always be that way. Empires and kingdoms have always risen and fallen as either instruments of judgment or instruments of blessing. These nations and their leaders are controlled by the Hand of God.
11:21-22: “At that time came Joshua and cut-off the Anakims from the mountains, from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the mountains of Judah, and from all the mountains of Israel; Joshua destroyed them utterly with their cities. There was none of the Anakims left in the land of the children of Israel; only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod, there remained.”
The Anakims are a symbol of terror. They were a race of giants. Joshua destroyed them utterly except in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod.
Today Gaza is home of the Palestinians who continue to terrorize Israel with bombs. Gath and Ashdod were taken by David in the battle against the Philistines. Goliath was a giant from Gath.
11:23: “So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lord said to Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes, And the land rested from war.”
In chapter 12: 1-6 the Transjordan land east of the Jordan was the earnest of the conquest under Moses. This became the lot of the 2-1/2 tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh. It is defined in Numbers 34:15 as part of the land of Israel.
Numbers 32 tells how the tribes of Reuben and Gad came to Moses to ask if they could settle in the Transjordan. Moses is dubious, but the two tribes promise to join in the conquest of the land. So Moses grants them this region to live in. Joshua affirms Moses’ decision and urges the men of the two and half tribes to help in the conquest, which they are willing to do. In Joshua 22, the Transjordanian tribes return, and build a massive altar by the Jordan. This causes the whole congregation of the Israelites to prepare for war, but they first sent a delegation accusing them of making God angry and suggesting that their land may be unclean. In response to this, the Transjordanian tribes say the altar is not for offerings, but is only a “witness.” The western tribes are satisfied, and return home.
In 12:7-24 we see the thirty and one kings of Canaan that Joshua and his army defeated on the west side of Jordan.
According to its Gematria (the use of letters instead of figures; our modern numerals were unknown to the ancients.) Thirty-One equals EL, the name of God.
Gematria /ɡəˈmeɪ.tri.ə/ originated as an Assyro-Babylonian-Greek system of alphanumeric code/cipher later adopted into Jewish culture that assigns numerical value to a word/name/phrase in the belief that words or phrases with identical numerical values bear some relation to each other or bear some relation to the number itself as it may apply to Nature, a person's age, the calendar year, or the like.
(This may be the source known as the Bible-Code.)
Chapter 13 is the principle of apportioning the land.
Carolyn Sissom, Pastor
Eastgate Ministries Church
Scripture from K.J.V. – I entered into the labors of Principles of Present Truth by: Kelly Varner. Comments and conclusions are my own and not meant to reflect the views of those whom I entered into their labors.