Joshua 8:1-29
“Oh Lord stuck in Ai again”
I. Intro
II. Vs. 1-13 An opportunity to begin again
III. Vs. 14-24 Lessons in humility, courage and patience
IV. Vs. 25-29 Not drawing back your hand
Intro
You may recall that chapter seven started with the ominous words, “But the children of Israel committed a trespass regarding the accursed things”. Ah but look at the first words of chapter 8, “Now the Lord said to Joshua: “Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; take all the people of war with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land.” Oh how true the words of Paul in Romans 5:20 “where sin abounded, grace abounded much more”. What we are about to see in this section is the Lord bringing about victory where there once was defeat. Had Creedence Clearwater Revival been around at that time this toon may have been playing in the minds of the Israelites, you know the one that goes, “Just about a year ago, I set out on the road seekin’ my fame and fortune, lookin’ for a pot of gold things got bad, and things got worse, I guess you know the tune Oh, Lord, stuck in Ai again.”
Nothing my friend’s causes paralysis in our lives more than failure. You know the terrible “would of, should of, could of’s” but what is wonderful to see is that the Lord tells Joshua and the rest of the nation right after the confession of sin of Achan’s as the accursed things were spread out before the LORD that “See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land.” No delay, no hesitation just I’m giving you what you think you lost, what you’re certain you don’t deserve. Saint’s listen up failure needn’t paralyze you if you have agreed with God and dealt with the hidden things of your life by hiding them in His love then just as we saw last week there is an immediate “Door of hope in the valley of trouble”. The victorious Christian isn’t the one that never makes a mistake rather they are the ones that after they fail get up and obey the Lord as Paul admonished the Philippians in 3:13-14 “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” To press towards the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ one has to first be willing to “forget those things which are behind”.
Vs. 1-13 An opportunity to begin again
Vs. 1-2 Having dealt with sin now the Israelites are ready to deal with defeat. Henry Ford defined a mistake as “an opportunity to begin again, more intelligently.” Once the nation of Israel had judged the sin that had defiled their camp, God was free to speak to them in mercy and direct them in their conquest of the land. Warren Wiersbe writes, “No matter what mistakes we may make, the worst mistake of all is not to try again”. There seems to be always two reactions that often accompany failure:
- Discouragement over the past
- Fear of the future are the two
We look back and remember the mistakes that we made, and then we look ahead and wonder whether there’s any future for people who fail so foolishly. Sixty two times in the scriptures God exhorts us not to fear. The antidote to both these reactions is the same start trusting God’s word! The truth is God never discourages His people from making progress, ever if it is after our failure. As long as they obey His commandments, we will have the privilege of claiming His promises. Hear the words in 2 Chron. 16:9 where we are told that “the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars.” In Joshua’s first attack upon Ai he headed the word of his spies and didn’t seek God’s word and only took 3000 men to battle this time he seeks the Lord who tells him to take 30,000.
Vs. 2 Hey did you notice that God says here that unlike Jericho where they all the spoil was to be consecrated to the Lord here he says, “Its spoil and its cattle you shall take as booty for yourselves.” That means that had Achan’s only been patient the spoils of Ai would have been his. Oh dear ones how many times has our “nearsighted flesh” caused us to take what God would have willingly given us had we waited but a short time latter? God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him. When we run ahead of the Lord, we usually rob ourselves and hurt others. D.L. Moody once said “God never made a promise that was too good to be true,” but every promise must be claimed by faith.
Have you ever found it difficult to regain the ground you lost in your life? That is where we are in our text as God is going to deal with the defeat and lost at Ai. When we have failed at some point in our Christian lives, we need to know how to get back on track. Here we are given some keys to regaining victory upon ground where we were defeated:
- “Do not be afraid, nor dismayed”: They had to receive encouragement from God. Hey friends when we have blown it stumbled like Israel and Achan in Joshua 7 you have to confess it and then dealt with it and once you have done that you have to move on. What is past is past once you have confessed and repented and beating your self up over it one change the past and it will paralyze you for the future. Here’s what’s cool God wanted to use their failure in a way that was included in their victory. Notice that God told Joshua to take “all the people of war with you”. Here’s something that we need to realize God wasn’t bummed out and He didn’t want the nation to be either. Friend’s when we refuse to receive God’s grace and forgiveness once we have confessed and repented we are grieving Him. There are times we remain defeated Christians not because we haven’t dealt with our sin but because we have been unwilling to receive God’s forgiveness. The main reason for this is because we don’t “feel” that we deserve it and you know what you don’t but who does deserve God’s unmerited favor?
Vs. 3-8 Hey did you notices the different way the Lord works when one compares Ai to Jericho? Remember that the difference between a rut and grave is time and depth! The first time the spies came back with the advice that 3000 men were more than enough this time 30,000 went out and 25,000 of that was the ambush team. Now what this speaks to me is that you and I ought to never under estimate the enemy. Satan will always bring his “A” game all the more that we ought to heed the council of God in Ephes. 6:11 and, “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”
God delights in accomplishing victory out of our mistakes and often will have us go through failure in order to get us to listen to Him. At Jericho’s fall it was a test of faith, Ai’s defeat would employ a rare combination of humility courage and patience. 25,000 men became part of the decoy and it was this group that would humble out and fake being cowards that Joshua was to lead. This plan also involved patience as they had to wait for Ai to take the bait. The lack of all three of these aspects, humility, courage and patience had led to their defeat earlier.
- The next thing of note with reclaiming ground lost is that you have to be willing to obey NOW what you were unwilling to obey previously. The plan included sending 30,000 men instead of only 3,000 men which suggests that victory will be not only in obedience but as we give all our resources and attention towards it. Also note that the major part of this plan required humility as they were to act as cowards before Ai. They were to act like they did when they were defeated! The fact remains that the victory that we won yesterday will not bring you the power necessary to have victory in the battles for today. The greatest temptation that occurs after a great victory is the neglect to depend upon the presence and power of God in the present circumstance. It is only prayer in the hour of victory that makes the child of God realize that unless they maintain continual dependence upon the Spirit of God in prayer their victory will soon turn to defeat.
Vs. 9-13 Notice that God instructs Israel to go on the offensive. I say that because our natural tendency is to pull back and defend but that is not the best way to reclaim ground lost. Now spiritually speaking what is the enemy we face? Well one of them would be our old fallen nature which is the very area we need to be on the offensive. Paul said in Romans 13:14 that we are to, “put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”
Hey how cool is this that as the people were afraid and dismayed that “Joshua lodged than night amongst the people”. Friends that is what the body of Christ is called to do when we see those caught in despair after their failure we need to “lodge amongst them” to come along side them. Those of us who have failed need to come next to those who have failed to encourage them in Christ the victory is at hand and they will reap the spoils of their past defeat. Leaders need to lead and we do that by being honest and transparent about our past defeats and how God turned those into His victories.
5000 men positioned themselves between Ai and Bethel we are told in verse 9. Hem let’s see here they camped out between a “heap of ruins” and the “House of God” sounds like a great place to camp out and wait upon the Lord don’t you think? It further illustrates that to have victory in the area of defeat we need to make sure our heart is in the right position between “No confidence in ourselves” and “complete trust in the Lord”. It was on this place between these two cites that this unit of soldiers was to cut off the escape rout of the enemy once they realized that the 25,000 men they pursued outside the city was nothing more than a decoy.
Now though the plan involves more men it also involves the soldiers acting cowardly like they had prior in their defeat. Listen to me saints if we are to be victorious in areas where we have been badly defeated we will have to be willing to be humble and transparent. I can only imaging Joshua going to these 30,000 men and saying, “Ok fellows here’s the plan I need 5000 of you to lie in wait and 25,000 of you to act like cowards and run and I’ll ne leading the cowards today.” Oh how humbling it is for you and me to go to the areas of our life where we have been defeated and to do so admitting that we have failed. Ah but remember Paul’s words in 2 Cor. 12:10 “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” The defeat of those 3000 men the first time was do to pride and this time victory would be won through humility!
Vs. 14-24 Lessons in humility, courage and patience
Vs. 14-20 With the plan set and the soldiers willing to be humbled all that needed to transpire was its execution. Hey can I just make an observation here and that is to see that the victorious Christian life isn’t going to be achieved by simply knowing the truth it must be obeyed. I’m afraid far too often we continue to become defeated in the same areas of our lives because we tend to think that because we know something it will come out all right. Friend the Christian life isn’t lived in a test tube and it’s not the right equation on a test paper; no it is the willingness to obey the word of the Lord every day!
Hey did you notice that it was pride the caused the down fall of the Israelites the first time at Ai and it was pride that cause the defeat of those inhabitants at Ai? I say this because it is relevant to us in spiritual warfare satan will always try to get us to think that we can do something on our own apart from the Lord but it is this very fact that caused His defeat. Amazing to me that the most frequent tactic our enemy uses is the one he always fails in as well. That is why I continue with the truth that any doctrine any Christian practice that makes dependence upon God an absolute necessity and at the same time cause me to realize how great and wonderful He is not how important I am is right on the money! On the day that Jesus died upon the cross I’m certain that satan and the demonic kingdom were certain they had one but it was through the cross that they were forever defeated and we have gained victory through Jesus’ sacrifice. I say this to remind you that your greatest defeat, your most humbling mistake can and will be the place of the greatest victory if you will only humble your self and allow the Lord to raise you up! Oh that you and I would so be on fire as to set our cities a blaze with the gospel and the smoke would ascend into heaven (verse 20). Isn’t it great to see that as the city was on fire that the enemy “had no power to flee this way or that”? Oh dear ones what a word of encouragement for us to day as Paul reminds us in 2 Cor. 10:4 that “the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds”.
Vs. 21-24 Restoration is simply returning to fellowship with the Lord after our sin has broken our relationship. The journey from Gilgal to Ai would have been15 miles up hill and oft times that is about the way it feels to reclaim victory after a defeat. Allan Redpath makes this observation based upon this chapter, “A life of unbroken victory over sin is the purpose of God for every child of His, however God does not make it impossible for His children to instead He makes it possible for them NOT to sin.”
Some years ago, on a hot summer day in south Florida, a little boy decided to go for a swim in the old swimming hole behind his house. In a hurry to dive into the cool water, he ran out the back door, leaving behind shoes, socks, and shirt as he went. He flew into the water, not realizing that as he swam toward the middle of the lake, an alligator was swimming toward the shore. His father, working in the yard, saw the two as they got closer and closer together. In utter fear, he ran toward the water, yelling to his son as loudly as he could. Hearing his voice, the little boy became alarmed and made a
U-turn to swim to his father. It was too late. Just as he reached his father, the alligator reached him. From the dock, the father grabbed his little boy by the arms just as the
alligator snatched his legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war between the two. The alligator was much stronger than the father, but the father was much too passionate to let go. A farmer happened to drive by, heard his screams, raced from his truck, took aim and shot the alligator. Remarkably, after weeks and weeks in the hospital, the little boy
survived. His legs were extremely scarred by the vicious attack of the alligator but also present on his arms, were deep scratches where his father’s fingernails as they had dug into his flesh in an effort to hang onto the son he loved. The newspaper reporter, who interviewed the boy after the trauma, asked if he would show him his scars. The boy lifted his pant legs, and with obvious pride, he said to the reporter, “But look at my arms. I have great scars on my arms, too. I have them because my Dad wouldn’t let go.”
You and I can identify with that little boy. We have scars, not from an alligator, but the scars of a painful past. Some of those scars are unsightly and have caused us deep regret. But some wounds, my friend, are because God has refused to let you go. In the midst of your struggle, He’s been there holding on to you. You are His child and He wants to protect you and provide for you in every way. But sometimes we foolishly wade into dangerous situations, not knowing what lies ahead. The swimming hole of life is filled with peril – and we forget that the enemy is waiting to attack. That’s when the tug-of-war begins and if you have the scars of His love on your arms, be very, very grateful. He did not and will not ever let you go. Never judge another person’s scars, because you don’t know how they got them you sometimes they are scars because God loved us enough to not let us go.
Vs. 25-29 Not drawing back your hand
Vs. 25-29 According to Exodus 17 when Moses was leading the nation he fought the Amalekites at Rephidim. You may recall the story as Moses stood over the battle the Israelites prevailed as long as he held up his hands but as soon as they began to drop the Amalekites started to win so Aaron and Hur came alongside Moses to prop up his hand. What you may have forgotten about that story is that though Aaron and Hur propped up Moses’ hands it was Joshua that was in the valley of Rephidim fighting the battle. After the battle Moses built an altar to the Lord and named it “The Lord Is My Banner”. Fast forward many years and we are told in verse 26 that “Joshua did not draw back his hand, with which he stretched out the spear, until he had utterly destroyed all the inhabitants of Ai.” One last observation as it deals with having victory in areas where you have been defeated, keep your hand on the spear and keep it raised before the Lord until the enemy is defeated. Joshua no doubt remembered what it was like on the ground winning and then losing when Moses held up his staff and said man I’m keeping this staff up before the Lord until the enemy has been eliminated. Friends keep your knees bent, your heads in the word and your hearts lifted before the Lord until the enemy has been cast into the pit. Don’t you love the fact that Joshua didn’t back off, didn’t back down but went on the offensive until victory was theirs?
The first heap of stones was over the sin of Achan which reminded them of their failure. Here we have a heap of stones over the king of Ai which reminded them of their victory after the defeat.
Joshua 8:30-35
“Worship from the Mount of Bareness”
I. Intro
II. Vs. 30-31 An alter on Mount Ebal
III. Vs. 32-33 The Hound of Heaven
IV. Vs. 34-35 Words from the alter of sacrifice
Intro
In the 29th verse we were told of Ai’s king being hanged on a tree and a great heap of stones laid upon him and we start this section by noting that Joshua took the nation 30 miles north to erect another pile of stones this one an altar to the King of Kings. The monument at Ai was a memorial to God’s forgiveness and victory in the area of defeat and the memorial at Mt. Ebal proclaimed the greatness of the Lord. It must be noted that the timing of the building of this altar was in the midst of the nation’s military campaign when the entire region was afraid, yet the people took the time to reestablish the worship of God in a most unusual place. The timing of this should suggest to us that our worship must be based upon who God is not just what He does on our behalf. From the start until this location three battles have been fought with only two kingdoms and Israel’s record is 2 and 1 with 100 miles of territory gained. To say that this is still in the first quarter would be an understatement yet with the erection of this alter the nation is proclaiming victory over all the land. How could Joshua and the nation be so confident? Well we shall see that the clues to this are to be found in these verses.
Vs. 30-31 An alter on Mount Ebal
Vs. 30 Right after the victory over Ai Joshua builds an altar, a place of worship to the Lord but he does so in an unusual place on Mount Ebal. If you go back to Deut. 11:29 we read that Moses instructed the nation that, “When the Lord your God has brought you into the land which you go to possess, that you shall put the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal.” Then again in Deut. 27:4 Moses says, “When you have crossed over the Jordan, that on Mount Ebal you shall set up these stones, which I command you today, and you shall whitewash them with lime.” It is interesting to note that years before Moses words in Deuteronomy specifically listed the location of the alter to be on Mt. Ebal yet Moses had never and would never enter the land of promises. What this suggests to us that the location of this alter was be divine direction not a mere whim.
So Joshua led the people thirty miles north to Shechem, which lies in the valley between Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerizim. This was the very place that Abraham had come into the land and God gave it to him and his future generation. Here the nation obeyed what Moses had commanded them to do in his farewell speech in Deut. 27:1-8. What this shows is that Joshua saw both the victories and the defeat as an opportunity for the nation to make a new commitment to the authority of Jehovah as expressed in His Word. Mount Ebal means the mount of “bareness”, where as Mount Gerizim means “cut up or rocky”. Mount Ebal is rugged, barren and rocky where as Mount Gerizim is wooded and beautiful. It was these two mountains opposite about 2 miles apart with the city of Shechem in between where the tribes were divided and on Mount Ebal the curses of rebellion were to be spoken while on Mount Gerizim the other half of the nation was to proclaim the blessings of obedience.
Now I believe that the specifics as to the location have a deeper meaning for our lives and it is that we need to set up the altar to worship the Lord during times of bareness, times when we feel as if we are under a curse. Hear me out saints as most often we find ourselves worshipping the Lord only during times when we feel blessed when we are standing upon the “Rock” of the blessings of Gerizim but the Lord says, “Folks, I’m not just in love with you when things are going according to your expectations, I’m your Dad when things seem to be barren and your life seems to be under a curse!” The first lesson God teaches the nation is that He loves them even if there lives lie under a curse of a “heap of ruins” (Ai) or if the enemy has been defeated under a heap of ruins. I’m afraid that we tend to look at the situations and circumstances that we face as the determination of God’s love for us instead of His word. And I believe that is why God instructed Moses and Joshua to set up the Altar on the mount of “bareness and cursing” instead upon the “rock of blessings”.
Vs. 31 The second thing that we learn is that the place of worship on the “mount of bareness and curing” was to be erected with whole stones that “no man has wielded an iron tool”. Joshua was careful to obey Gods word in the construction of the altar:
- Exodus 20:25 told him not apply any tool to the stones picked up in the field: Thus no human work was to be associated with the sacrifice lest sinners think their own works can save them (Eph. 2:8-9).
- God asked for a simple stone altar, not one that was designed and decorated by human hands: “That no flesh should glory in His presence” (1 Cor. 1:29).
Friends it’s not the beauty of man-made religion that gives the sinner forgiveness, but the blood on the altar. The peace offerings, or “fellowship offerings,” were an expression of gratitude to God for His goodness. By these sacrifices, the nation of Israel was assuring God of their commitment to Him and that such commitment was based upon God’s goodness not theirs. The Alter was to be about God’s workmanship not man’s ability so that man would glory in the Lord not what they had created. The word for alter here is a word in the Hebrew that means “place of slaughter” and reminds the worshipper that without the shedding of innocent blood there is no forgiveness, no worship of God, it is God Himself that has provided the opportunity.
Hey friends God doesn’t want us to gather stones to chuck at sinners He wants us to gather stones to worship Him because He has provided forgiveness for our sins. Not a tool was to be laid upon those stones to remind them that no work of man can be added too His work of salvation. Years had passed since those words of Moses in Deuteronomy about writing God’s word upon the alter of stones at Mt. Ebal. The Law of God was inside the Ark and had traveled with the nation and across the Jordan, around Jericho and now was to be written upon the white uncut stones of the alter at Mt. Ebal. The importance here is that they were to be worshipping what God had done and will continue to do with out the help of men. It was to a monument of God’s greatness not man’s skill and ability. When we put this next to the fact that it was to be on the mountain of bareness it is a reminder that we have the tendency to try to help the Lord out when we don’t think He is working the way that He should. So this altar was to be built with whole stones and not fashioned by human hands as to say, “Just because you don’t think I’m working doesn’t mean that you should stop worshipping Me and trusting that I do all things well.”
During a particular difficult season in my life the Lord brought me to the song of the martyrs in Rev. 15:3. This song will take place in heaven before the Lord by those who witnessed intense cruelty at the hands of those who worshipped satan and we are told that “They sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: “Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the saints!” What’s important to realize is that these dear martyred saints are singing this song with complete and full understanding of everything that has transpired in their lives and they sing as a fact two things:
- Great and marvelous are Your works: They sing that with regards to what God did in their lives it was and is “great and marvelous”. There wasn’t one single work of God in their life that was anything less than “great and marvelous”.
- Just and true are Your ways: Second they sing that not only “WHAT” God did was great and marvelous the WAY in which He accomplished it was “just and true”. They couldn’t find one instance where the way God did something in their life was anything less than “just and true”.
Now if you are anything like me I can’t yet sing this song based upon knowing all the facts as those martyred saints sang but I do have a choice to sing it and praise Him based upon His character and nature!!
Vs. 32-33 The Hound of Heaven
Vs. 32 The distance from Ai to Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim was around 30 miles which was a good distance to move all the tribes of Israel some 3 million people. I’ve been to this area in Israel and it forms a nice outdoor amphitheater where all of them could hear the reading of the Word of God. Geographically this event shows us that the nation is now in control of controls the middle of Canaan and the highlands. Next we are told that they were to write on those stones a copy of the law of Moses. In the Middle East it was customary for kings to celebrate their greatness and victories by writing a record of their military exploits on huge stones covered with plaster. Ah but the secret of Israel’s victory was not their leader or their army; it was their obedience to God’s Law so they wrote of Him and His word of those stones and then read it before the people. This is already the fourth public monument of God’s greatness:
- Gilgal (stones from the midst of the Jordan)
- Valley of Achor (stones pilled over Achan)
- Ai (the stones pilled over the king)
- Mount Ebal (uncut white washed stones)
This was an altar of praise centered upon the Word of God and the key here was obeying the Word which was predicated upon relying upon the Spirit not the flesh. Again I can’t help but marvel at this whole scene of worship on a mountain of bareness with stones that represented God’s work not man’s with the Word of God written on them reminding them that success and joy was dependent not upon favorable circumstances but rather on obedience to God’s Word. The Bible is God’s instruction manual someone has well said that the Bible stands as an acronym for Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth and often we tend to want to blame God when things aren’t going well or to try and go around His Word but the Lord had them place His word upon the altar of praise.
Vs. 33 Next we are told that the people lined up on either side of the Ark of the Covenant which as we have seen was the representation of the presence of God amongst them. Here the focus is up recalling that no matter how things might seem God would not “leave them nor forsake them” (1:5b). “Oh I don’t know where the Lord is He left me, I know this because of my circumstances and my situation”, we say. But saints the Lord says otherwise His presence is right here amongst us as David cried out in Psalm 139:7-11
“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me; Even the night shall be light about me”.
Francis Thompson said it best in his 182 line poem that inspired the likes of J.R. Tolkien called the “Hound of Heaven”. Listen to his words, “I fled Him, down the nights and down the days; I fled Him, down the arches of the years; I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears I hid from Him, and under running laughter.” And in the final stances of his poem he writes of himself “How little worthy of any love thou art! Whom wilt thou find to love ignoble thee, Save Me, save only Me? To which the Lord replies “All which I took from thee I did but take, Not for thy harms, But just that thou might’st seek it in My arms. All which thy child’s mistake Fancies as lost, I have stored for thee at home: Rise, clasp My hand, and come!”
Vs. 34-35 Words from the alter of sacrifice
Vs. 34 According too Deuteronomy 27:11-13 the tribes were assigned their places in front of the two mounts Ebal and Gerizim, Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali were to be in front of Mt. Ebal, the mount of cursing; and Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh), and Benjamin were at Mt. Gerizim, the mount of blessing. The tribes at Mt. Gerizim were founded by men who had either Leah or Rachel for their mother, while the tribes at Mt. Ebal were descended from either Zilpah or Bilhah, handmaids of Leah and Rachel. The only exceptions were Reuben and Zebulun, who belonged to Leah but had lost his place due to sleeping with his fathers hand maid. In the valley between the two mountains stood the priests and Levites with the ark, surrounded by the elders, officers, and judges of the nation. The people were all facing the ark, which represented the presence of the Lord among His people. When Joshua and the Levites read the blessings of the Lord one by one (see Deut. 28:1-14), the tribes at Mt. Gerizim responded with a loud united “Amen!” which in the Hebrew means “So be it!” When they read the curses the tribes at Mt. Ebal would respond with their “Amen” after each curse was read. Hey friends today you and I also stand in a valley between two mounts:
- Mt. Calvary, where Jesus died for our sins
- Mt. Olivet, where He will return in power and great glory
Today believers aren’t living under the curse of the Law, because according to Gal. 3:10-14 Jesus bore that curse “on a tree” called the cross. So you and I are blessed with “every spiritual blessing in heaven places” according Eph. 1:3 because of the grace of God.
Then we are told that they “read the words of the law, the blessings and the cursings”. Half the people in front of the mount of blessings and half in front of the mount of cursings all heard both regardless of their location. Saints nothing will change our circumstances quicker than our response to His Word. To stand before the Mount Gerizim with blessings being bestowed yet not applied or followed would certainly bring defeat upon us. Ah but to stand before the bareness of Ebal and hear the curses that would come our way if we won’t chose to trust the Lord would equally change our circumstances. If you and I want to continue to put the enemy under a heap of ruins we need only heed the Word of God in our lives. People often wonder if they can still be a Christian if they do this and that in disobedience and I suppose practically they can as no lightening bolt comes down to destroy them but they can live victoriously in His grace that I know for certain.
Hey did you notice that the law was written on the stones of the alter of sacrifice? As if to say that the obedience to the law is possible through the sacrifice on the alter. It isn’t trough the law that we escape the judgment for our sin it is by Jesus sacrifice on our behalf. Also note that 1000 years later when Jesus met the Samaritan women by the well she pointed not to Mt. Ebal but rather to Mt. Gerizim and said it was their that they had built an alter to worship God and Jesus pointed back to the sacrifice not where it was located but to Himself.
Vs. 35 So the Law was read to which the response of the people after each one was read was amen. What a amazing scene as you would have heard in this natural amphitheater as the word of God was being read and the blessing being announced if you obey the word and the curses being announced if you don’t. They had recently seen the effects of this truth in their own experience with the defeat and then the victory at Ai. The clear understanding of this passage is that obedience leads to blessing and disobedience leads to a lack of blessing in our lives.
Finally they we are told that this word being read lack neither content no hearers as “all the word was read” to “all the people”. Friends if we are to reach the next generation we must be willing to reach that generation first with those who are in our homes. The time is now to impact this up coming generation which will inevitably inherit our mess and if we are to change the course of our community, country and world it will come from those whom live in our homes and sit at our tables!
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