HISTORICAL BOOKS
JOSHUA
CHAPTER
5
1. When all the kings of the Amorites beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites by the sea heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan for the Israelites until they had crossed over, their hearts melted, and there was no longer any spirit in them because of the Israelites.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 1)
Oh God does it have to be works of miracles and great wonders such as natural phenomenon which You use to pass on Your message in order to stimulate and convince us to believe in You. Do we need to witness with our own eyes or act on hearsay! If this was the truth our faith is based on the sand and is the fruit of fear more than faith in action. I pray oh God that when put to the test, my faith will be convincing if not solid, for as a human I am still weak.
2. At that time the LORD said to Joshua, "Make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites a second time."
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 2)
During different moments of our lives oh God You give us different messages. This year 2015 You are asking us to have mercy. As much as You have mercy on us, You wish us to have mercy both on ourselves and more on others.
3. So Joshua made flint knives, and circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath-haaraloth. 4. This is the reason why Joshua circumcised them: all the males of the people who came out of Egypt, all the warriors, had died during the journey through the wilderness after they had come out of Egypt. 5. Although all the people who came out had been circumcised, yet all the people born on the journey through the wilderness after they had come out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 6. For the Israelites traveled forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, the warriors who came out of Egypt, perished, not having listened to the voice of the LORD. To them the LORD swore that he would not let them see the land that he had sworn to their ancestors to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. 7. So it was their children, whom he raised up in their place, that Joshua circumcised; for they were uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised on the way.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verses 3 to 7)
In order to keep the flame of faith in You burning You told Joshua to circumcise, which is equivalent to our baptism the new entrants among the people, Your body of the Old Testament. However as the new body of the New Testament anointed by the Holy Spirit, we also need a new evangelization. We need to reach those new members of the Church as a whole and help keep burning the flame of faith in them, because through the course of time, their ancestors may have not passed on the faith, and the Spirit may not be that present and active in them.
8. When the circumcising of all the nation was done, they remained in their places in the camp until they were healed.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 8)
As in the case of the chosen people of God, while we are in a state of healing that can be emotional and even spiritual apart from the physical we are not to embark on hasty projects such as a change of job or embark on a new relationship at a point when we are still grieving over the hurts that we incurred from our previous one, or are still mourning over the loss of our beloved one as in the case of the death of a wife, husband or significant other. This interim period of waiting is more than healthy, because during this time that we can invest in prayer, we will be prepared to move on and make the necessary decisions that determine our future lives both on earth and in heaven.
9. The LORD said to Joshua, "Today I have rolled away from you the disgrace of Egypt." And so that place is called Gilgal to this day.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 9)
Oh god my Father I thank You for not holding against us our sins. As in the case of Egypt and Your chosen people and the corruption that they experienced while being exposed to false gods, You are also able to cleanse the world from the culture of death and sin that we are experiencing Amen.
10. While the Israelites were camped in Gilgal they kept the passover in the evening on the fourteenth day of the month in the plains of Jericho.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 10)
Although Your people were in a state of war with the people of Jericho, they did not neglect the celebration of the Passover, because it is from You oh God from whom we find our strength and power to move on in life. During the Christmas season if we do not stop to reflect on You and the greatest event of all time, when You decided to save us by becoming human, all the gifts and Christmas dinners and celebrations are of no value, for instead of drawing us to You they discourage us and push us on to a worldly road based on the pleasure of the body and sensual gratification as in satisfying our pleasure by eating and drinking only.
11. On the day after the passover, on that very day, they ate the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12. The manna ceased on the day they ate the produce of the land, and the Israelites no longer had manna; they ate the crops of the land of Canaan that year.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verses 11 to 12)
Oh God this was indeed a historical day for Your people. A new chapter had began for them, for they had now entered their promised land and began reaping the produce that had long since been promised to them by You by means of Abraham and the rest of his descendants meaning the patriarchs. Oh God as this important day had been fulfilled for Your people, one day we shall also be reunited in our promised land in heaven with You. On reflecting our promised land can also mean the goal that we had long been waiting for, after a long time of tribulation in Egypt that could mean a period of trouble and pain over some particular issue such as a loss of a family member, or even a career, or worse our relationship with You.
13. Once when Joshua was by Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing before him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and said to him, "Are you one of us, or one of our adversaries?"
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 13)
Oh God I thank You for all the support that You give me, even though at times I also need to question if the advice given is coming from You or from the evil one, who is also able to manifest itself by means of humans under the disguise of friendship. I pray oh God that during such circumstances You give me the inquisitive spirit to help me discern the content of the message and if this is according to Your holy will as in the case of Joshua.
14. He replied, "Neither; but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and he said to him, "What do you command your servant, my lord?" 15. The commander of the army of the LORD said to Joshua, "Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy." And Joshua did so.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verses 14 to 15)
During times of crisis oh God You send us people in Your name who encourage us and give us the encouragement to move on in life. As in the case of Joshua You sent this angel who manifested Your presence and spoke to Joshua and blessed him. I God I also offer You my challenges and tribulations and pray that You always be the commander of my army. May I always be a soldier of Your army and act according to Your Instructions as written in Your Word Amen.
I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:
Oh God I pray that we always obey Your will and walk according to Your ways and not according to the ways of the world. May we always be humble and subject to You every day of our lives. I believe oh God that You are always by our side especially during the critical moments of our lives, especially when the evil one makes a comeback with force against us. May I always follow Your instructions in a spirit of prayer and adoration as did Joshua Amen.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 2)
During different moments of our lives oh God You give us different messages. This year 2015 You are asking us to have mercy. As much as You have mercy on us, You wish us to have mercy both on ourselves and more on others.
3. So Joshua made flint knives, and circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath-haaraloth. 4. This is the reason why Joshua circumcised them: all the males of the people who came out of Egypt, all the warriors, had died during the journey through the wilderness after they had come out of Egypt. 5. Although all the people who came out had been circumcised, yet all the people born on the journey through the wilderness after they had come out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 6. For the Israelites traveled forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, the warriors who came out of Egypt, perished, not having listened to the voice of the LORD. To them the LORD swore that he would not let them see the land that he had sworn to their ancestors to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. 7. So it was their children, whom he raised up in their place, that Joshua circumcised; for they were uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised on the way.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verses 3 to 7)
In order to keep the flame of faith in You burning You told Joshua to circumcise, which is equivalent to our baptism the new entrants among the people, Your body of the Old Testament. However as the new body of the New Testament anointed by the Holy Spirit, we also need a new evangelization. We need to reach those new members of the Church as a whole and help keep burning the flame of faith in them, because through the course of time, their ancestors may have not passed on the faith, and the Spirit may not be that present and active in them.
8. When the circumcising of all the nation was done, they remained in their places in the camp until they were healed.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 8)
As in the case of the chosen people of God, while we are in a state of healing that can be emotional and even spiritual apart from the physical we are not to embark on hasty projects such as a change of job or embark on a new relationship at a point when we are still grieving over the hurts that we incurred from our previous one, or are still mourning over the loss of our beloved one as in the case of the death of a wife, husband or significant other. This interim period of waiting is more than healthy, because during this time that we can invest in prayer, we will be prepared to move on and make the necessary decisions that determine our future lives both on earth and in heaven.
9. The LORD said to Joshua, "Today I have rolled away from you the disgrace of Egypt." And so that place is called Gilgal to this day.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 9)
Oh god my Father I thank You for not holding against us our sins. As in the case of Egypt and Your chosen people and the corruption that they experienced while being exposed to false gods, You are also able to cleanse the world from the culture of death and sin that we are experiencing Amen.
10. While the Israelites were camped in Gilgal they kept the passover in the evening on the fourteenth day of the month in the plains of Jericho.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 10)
Although Your people were in a state of war with the people of Jericho, they did not neglect the celebration of the Passover, because it is from You oh God from whom we find our strength and power to move on in life. During the Christmas season if we do not stop to reflect on You and the greatest event of all time, when You decided to save us by becoming human, all the gifts and Christmas dinners and celebrations are of no value, for instead of drawing us to You they discourage us and push us on to a worldly road based on the pleasure of the body and sensual gratification as in satisfying our pleasure by eating and drinking only.
11. On the day after the passover, on that very day, they ate the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12. The manna ceased on the day they ate the produce of the land, and the Israelites no longer had manna; they ate the crops of the land of Canaan that year.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verses 11 to 12)
Oh God this was indeed a historical day for Your people. A new chapter had began for them, for they had now entered their promised land and began reaping the produce that had long since been promised to them by You by means of Abraham and the rest of his descendants meaning the patriarchs. Oh God as this important day had been fulfilled for Your people, one day we shall also be reunited in our promised land in heaven with You. On reflecting our promised land can also mean the goal that we had long been waiting for, after a long time of tribulation in Egypt that could mean a period of trouble and pain over some particular issue such as a loss of a family member, or even a career, or worse our relationship with You.
13. Once when Joshua was by Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing before him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and said to him, "Are you one of us, or one of our adversaries?"
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verse 13)
Oh God I thank You for all the support that You give me, even though at times I also need to question if the advice given is coming from You or from the evil one, who is also able to manifest itself by means of humans under the disguise of friendship. I pray oh God that during such circumstances You give me the inquisitive spirit to help me discern the content of the message and if this is according to Your holy will as in the case of Joshua.
14. He replied, "Neither; but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and he said to him, "What do you command your servant, my lord?" 15. The commander of the army of the LORD said to Joshua, "Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy." And Joshua did so.
(Historical Books Chapter 5 verses 14 to 15)
During times of crisis oh God You send us people in Your name who encourage us and give us the encouragement to move on in life. As in the case of Joshua You sent this angel who manifested Your presence and spoke to Joshua and blessed him. I God I also offer You my challenges and tribulations and pray that You always be the commander of my army. May I always be a soldier of Your army and act according to Your Instructions as written in Your Word Amen.
I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:
Oh God I pray that we always obey Your will and walk according to Your ways and not according to the ways of the world. May we always be humble and subject to You every day of our lives. I believe oh God that You are always by our side especially during the critical moments of our lives, especially when the evil one makes a comeback with force against us. May I always follow Your instructions in a spirit of prayer and adoration as did Joshua Amen.
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