HISTORICAL BOOKS
JOSHUA
CHAPTER
9
1. Now when all the kings who were beyond the Jordan in the hill country and in the lowland all along the coast of the Great Sea toward Lebanon-the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites-heard of this, 2. they gathered together with one accord to fight Joshua and Israel.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 1 to 2)
Oh God my Father, when this group ISIS imposed a threat on, the world, many nations united against them and joined in fighting them. In fact, the threat and battle is still on. However when sin crops up among us in the form of new trends such as cohabitation, mixed marriages we are not united on the same level, in fact, some of us as in the case of divorce gave their approval to such trends instead of uniting against the real enemy who is promoting such sinful trends. Amen
3. But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, 4. they on their part acted with cunning; they went and prepared provisions, and took out worn -out sacks for their donkeys, and wineskins, worn-out and torn and mended, 5. with worn-out, patched sandals on their feet, worn-out clothes; and all their provisions were dry and moldy. 6. They went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the Israelites, "We have come from a far country; so now make a treaty with us."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 3 to 6)
Oh my God evil can appear under different forms and can even give the impression of pity pain and even anguish until it reaches its objectives and then it shows its true colours once we are in deep sin. As You have told us many times we are to be very careful with whom we relate especially with those of different beliefs, for in a subtle way they may be trying to inflict spiritual harm on us.
7. But the Israelites said to the Hivites, "Perhaps you live among us; then how can we make a treaty with you?"
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 7)
When speaking with others oh God we are to be aware of what they say and mean by their words, for when doings so in relationships with others without our being aware others are learning many things about us even things that we do not say them. How we say something, our tone of voice, our choice of diction or words all reflect who we are, if we are crooked or honest and most of all our real self. The Hivites betrayed themselves when they asked for a treaty when all they wanted was to live among the Israelites. If they were to live according to the will of God, they would be in need of no treaty, therefore, their words reflected their sinful intentions.
8. They said to Joshua, "We are your servants." And Joshua said to them, "Who are you? And where do you come from?"
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 8)
Oh God my Father You created us as masters over ourselves, a perfect image of Your very self, however freely we sell this dignity to evil by means of our sins and degrade ourselves to the status of servants or slaves. Even though the Hivites were putting up an act to try to impress Joshua and lead him into a trap, we also use this technique of selling ourselves in different circumstances. There are circumstances such as job interviews where some even lie to sell themselves in order to fit according to the desired requirements but after they greatly regret it. Others sell themselves as slaves to males and females who dominate them and make them give them worship so much that they accept their status as being that of a slave, while others become slaves to their work, hobby or career at the risk of neglecting their families. My prayer oh God is that we become Your slaves bounded by chains of love and holiness and not by chains of steel Amen.
9. They said to him, "Your servants have come from a very far country, because of the name of the LORD your God; for we have heard a report of him, of all that he did in Egypt, 10. and of all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, King Sihon of Heshbon, and King Og of Bashan who lived in Ashtaroth. 11. So our elders and all the inhabitants of our country said to us, "Take provisions in your hand for the journey; go to meet them, and say to them, "We are your servants; come now, make a treaty with us."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 9 to 11)
Oh God my Father, on the premise of acting on Your will many negative things have been done as much as have been done on the premise on acting on given orders. Throughout the ages, Your name has been used in worship but has been also abused for negative means. Many people can appear to have good intentions as in the case of the Hivites, however, in reality, their intentions may be totally false. Many foreign people are taking Maltese wives in marriage and accepting to adopt the Roman Catholic Faith, however, these women at times end up abused by their husbands whose intention for marriage may have been only to obtain the visa to stay and live in Malta. Therefore, marriage may have been a means to reach the desired end.
12. Here is our bread; it was still warm when we took it from our houses as our food for the journey, on the day we set out to come to you, but now, see, it is dry and moldy; 12. theses wineskins were new when we filled them, and see, they are burst; and these garments and sandals of ours are worn out from the very long journey." 14. So the leaders partook of their provisions, and did not ask direction from the LORD.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 12 to 14)
Oh God my Father at times as in the case of Joshua we are more persuaded by the facts than by our faith as in the case of Joshua who believed the disguised Hivites without first, consulting You about the issue.
15. And Joshua made peace with them, guaranteeing their lives by a treaty; and the leaders of the congregation swore an oath to them.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 15)
Oh God, my Father when we act without consulting You the outcome may not always be according to Your will as in the case of Joshua myself and many others. We end up welcoming evil without actually being aware of what we are in for! I pray for protection during such moments, when my ways seem to be more attractive than yours. I am very sorry for willfully having sinned against You my God and Father.
16. But when three days had passed after they had made a treaty with them, they heard that they were their neighbors and were living among them. 17. So the Israelites set out and reached their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim,. 18. But the Israelites did not attack them because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel. Then all the congregation murmured against the leaders. 19. But all the leaders said to all the congregation, "We have sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel, and now we must not touch them.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 16 to 19)
At times oh God, there are moments when even Roman Catholics were at a disagreement with the same authorities of the Roman Catholic Church. A typical case is when we were permitted to receive You in our hands instead of on our tongues. This decision had such an impact that there were some who experienced mental disorders such as the obsession that they were either contaminated through having unclean hands at the time of communion or deeply distressed that parts of Your body in the form of the Eucharist had gone down the toilet or become eaten by a creature and thus, that creature had become holy and similar issues.
20. This is what we will do to them; We will let them live, so that wrath may not come upon us, because of the oath that we swore to them."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 20)
Oh God my Father what is worse breaking our word with mankind, or breaking our word with You. In both circumstances we will experience the negative consequences, however, it seems that we prefer not to break our word or pact with humans than with You as in our case and even in the case of Joshua. I pray oh God that You give me the strength to keep my word and promise to You my God, even though I am still weak and at times I tend to break my promise time and time again. I pray oh God for Your forgiveness time and time again, for although I frequently confess my sins and promise not to do it again, I find myself doing the same sinful act. Oh God, my spirit wishes to obey You and keep my promise to You, but this body always creates in me the carnal desire to go against Your will. I pray oh God for Your deliverance and empowerment in relation to such a particular sin Amen.
21. The leaders said to them, "Let them live." So they became hewers of wood and drawers of water for all the congregation, as the leaders had decided concerning them.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 21)
Oh God my Father even though at times we may not totally agree with our leaders or rulers, or even our bosses at work, they may have good reasons for making such decisions such as that of following the will of God, therefore, we are to accept and obey as if we are obeying You, my God and Father, as long as no harm may result from such decisions. Amen.
22. Joshua summoned them, and said to them, "Why did you deceive us, saying, we are very far from you,' while in fact you living among us?
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 22)
Oh God, the evil one alienates us by giving us the impression that he does not exist, and that anybody can make mistakes or experience downfalls in life but not us, however, this is a distorted perception of reality and is totally false, for our sins are closer to us than we might think. We are harassed by the evil one who uses our weaknesses against us, in order to cause us to commit one sin after another.
23. Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall always be slaves, hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 23)
Oh God, my Father even though You created us as free beings, free to worship and to do good things we prefer to act and behave as slaves to our sinful self and act as second class humans. I pray oh God that you deliver us from this body of sin in which our souls are trapped in. Oh God, we wish to do Your will but it is only with Your help that we can do good things, for goodness does not dwell in us, for our nature rebels at Your presence. I also pray for Your deliverance oh God Amen for I am also a sinner conditioned by sin, however, You told us that we are masters of ourselves and not slaves. Amen. This means that with Your help we can achieve this aim.
24. They answered Joshua, "Because it was told to your servants for a certainty that the LORD your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land before you; so we were in great fear for our lives because of you, and did this thing.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 24)
Oh God if unbelievers show acts of faith, how much more are we to show our faith through acts of faith. These foreigners simply heard of your word and responded by means of an act of faith, even though their intentions were to save their skins, however, their actions justified their good intentions based on their belief in Your Word.
25. And now we are in your hand; do as it seems good and right in your sight to do to us."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 25)
Oh God these people in such a situation of life and death laid before Joshua the best criteria by which to settle any issue. These are the following;
During our times we generally consider the feelings in order to determine if an action is justified or not but, this is not a reliable means of reaching a sound conclusion for emotions are misleading in the sense that different people have different feelings, and our mood greatly affects our feelings, moreover decisions taken when our state of mind or emotions are not stable may be the consequence of bad choices.
Therefore, when it comes to decision making we are to apply the mentioned criteria. We are to pray to You my God for divine illumination in order to analyze if the action or object is good and then we can also analyze if the object or situation is in favor of Your teaching or 'Good News', which then makes it right. If the answers or conclusions are positive meaning that the action or thing is in itself good and acceptable to Your will and teachings we can then proceed in good faith, that we are acting according to Your will.
26. This is what he did for them: he saved them from the Israelites; and they did not kill them. 27. But on that day Joshua made them hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD, to continue to this day, in the place that he should choose.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 26 to 27)
Oh God when applying such criteria Joshua saved the life of these visitors and increased the workforce. The outcomes were both good and according to Your will.
Oh God I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer, however, I would also like to share the following links on 'Biblical Problem Solving'
Biblical Problem-Solving
God and Problem Solving
The Bible and Problem Solving
I thank You oh God for the Bible and its messages of Good News and Hope. During difficult moments of my life, I have stopped in silence, opened my pocket bible that I carry with me everywhere I go and every time You give me a message that confirms your understanding of my situation. Oh God when I feel understood by You I experience an enormous feeling of relief that You are with me in this situation.
Thank You Jesus and God my Father.
7. But the Israelites said to the Hivites, "Perhaps you live among us; then how can we make a treaty with you?"
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 7)
When speaking with others oh God we are to be aware of what they say and mean by their words, for when doings so in relationships with others without our being aware others are learning many things about us even things that we do not say them. How we say something, our tone of voice, our choice of diction or words all reflect who we are, if we are crooked or honest and most of all our real self. The Hivites betrayed themselves when they asked for a treaty when all they wanted was to live among the Israelites. If they were to live according to the will of God, they would be in need of no treaty, therefore, their words reflected their sinful intentions.
8. They said to Joshua, "We are your servants." And Joshua said to them, "Who are you? And where do you come from?"
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 8)
Oh God my Father You created us as masters over ourselves, a perfect image of Your very self, however freely we sell this dignity to evil by means of our sins and degrade ourselves to the status of servants or slaves. Even though the Hivites were putting up an act to try to impress Joshua and lead him into a trap, we also use this technique of selling ourselves in different circumstances. There are circumstances such as job interviews where some even lie to sell themselves in order to fit according to the desired requirements but after they greatly regret it. Others sell themselves as slaves to males and females who dominate them and make them give them worship so much that they accept their status as being that of a slave, while others become slaves to their work, hobby or career at the risk of neglecting their families. My prayer oh God is that we become Your slaves bounded by chains of love and holiness and not by chains of steel Amen.
9. They said to him, "Your servants have come from a very far country, because of the name of the LORD your God; for we have heard a report of him, of all that he did in Egypt, 10. and of all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, King Sihon of Heshbon, and King Og of Bashan who lived in Ashtaroth. 11. So our elders and all the inhabitants of our country said to us, "Take provisions in your hand for the journey; go to meet them, and say to them, "We are your servants; come now, make a treaty with us."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 9 to 11)
Oh God my Father, on the premise of acting on Your will many negative things have been done as much as have been done on the premise on acting on given orders. Throughout the ages, Your name has been used in worship but has been also abused for negative means. Many people can appear to have good intentions as in the case of the Hivites, however, in reality, their intentions may be totally false. Many foreign people are taking Maltese wives in marriage and accepting to adopt the Roman Catholic Faith, however, these women at times end up abused by their husbands whose intention for marriage may have been only to obtain the visa to stay and live in Malta. Therefore, marriage may have been a means to reach the desired end.
12. Here is our bread; it was still warm when we took it from our houses as our food for the journey, on the day we set out to come to you, but now, see, it is dry and moldy; 12. theses wineskins were new when we filled them, and see, they are burst; and these garments and sandals of ours are worn out from the very long journey." 14. So the leaders partook of their provisions, and did not ask direction from the LORD.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 12 to 14)
Oh God my Father at times as in the case of Joshua we are more persuaded by the facts than by our faith as in the case of Joshua who believed the disguised Hivites without first, consulting You about the issue.
15. And Joshua made peace with them, guaranteeing their lives by a treaty; and the leaders of the congregation swore an oath to them.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 15)
Oh God, my Father when we act without consulting You the outcome may not always be according to Your will as in the case of Joshua myself and many others. We end up welcoming evil without actually being aware of what we are in for! I pray for protection during such moments, when my ways seem to be more attractive than yours. I am very sorry for willfully having sinned against You my God and Father.
16. But when three days had passed after they had made a treaty with them, they heard that they were their neighbors and were living among them. 17. So the Israelites set out and reached their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim,. 18. But the Israelites did not attack them because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel. Then all the congregation murmured against the leaders. 19. But all the leaders said to all the congregation, "We have sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel, and now we must not touch them.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 16 to 19)
At times oh God, there are moments when even Roman Catholics were at a disagreement with the same authorities of the Roman Catholic Church. A typical case is when we were permitted to receive You in our hands instead of on our tongues. This decision had such an impact that there were some who experienced mental disorders such as the obsession that they were either contaminated through having unclean hands at the time of communion or deeply distressed that parts of Your body in the form of the Eucharist had gone down the toilet or become eaten by a creature and thus, that creature had become holy and similar issues.
20. This is what we will do to them; We will let them live, so that wrath may not come upon us, because of the oath that we swore to them."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 20)
Oh God my Father what is worse breaking our word with mankind, or breaking our word with You. In both circumstances we will experience the negative consequences, however, it seems that we prefer not to break our word or pact with humans than with You as in our case and even in the case of Joshua. I pray oh God that You give me the strength to keep my word and promise to You my God, even though I am still weak and at times I tend to break my promise time and time again. I pray oh God for Your forgiveness time and time again, for although I frequently confess my sins and promise not to do it again, I find myself doing the same sinful act. Oh God, my spirit wishes to obey You and keep my promise to You, but this body always creates in me the carnal desire to go against Your will. I pray oh God for Your deliverance and empowerment in relation to such a particular sin Amen.
21. The leaders said to them, "Let them live." So they became hewers of wood and drawers of water for all the congregation, as the leaders had decided concerning them.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 21)
Oh God my Father even though at times we may not totally agree with our leaders or rulers, or even our bosses at work, they may have good reasons for making such decisions such as that of following the will of God, therefore, we are to accept and obey as if we are obeying You, my God and Father, as long as no harm may result from such decisions. Amen.
22. Joshua summoned them, and said to them, "Why did you deceive us, saying, we are very far from you,' while in fact you living among us?
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 22)
Oh God, the evil one alienates us by giving us the impression that he does not exist, and that anybody can make mistakes or experience downfalls in life but not us, however, this is a distorted perception of reality and is totally false, for our sins are closer to us than we might think. We are harassed by the evil one who uses our weaknesses against us, in order to cause us to commit one sin after another.
23. Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall always be slaves, hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 23)
Oh God, my Father even though You created us as free beings, free to worship and to do good things we prefer to act and behave as slaves to our sinful self and act as second class humans. I pray oh God that you deliver us from this body of sin in which our souls are trapped in. Oh God, we wish to do Your will but it is only with Your help that we can do good things, for goodness does not dwell in us, for our nature rebels at Your presence. I also pray for Your deliverance oh God Amen for I am also a sinner conditioned by sin, however, You told us that we are masters of ourselves and not slaves. Amen. This means that with Your help we can achieve this aim.
24. They answered Joshua, "Because it was told to your servants for a certainty that the LORD your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land before you; so we were in great fear for our lives because of you, and did this thing.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 24)
Oh God if unbelievers show acts of faith, how much more are we to show our faith through acts of faith. These foreigners simply heard of your word and responded by means of an act of faith, even though their intentions were to save their skins, however, their actions justified their good intentions based on their belief in Your Word.
25. And now we are in your hand; do as it seems good and right in your sight to do to us."
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verse 25)
Oh God these people in such a situation of life and death laid before Joshua the best criteria by which to settle any issue. These are the following;
- If the action seems to be good
- If it is right in your judgement.
During our times we generally consider the feelings in order to determine if an action is justified or not but, this is not a reliable means of reaching a sound conclusion for emotions are misleading in the sense that different people have different feelings, and our mood greatly affects our feelings, moreover decisions taken when our state of mind or emotions are not stable may be the consequence of bad choices.
Therefore, when it comes to decision making we are to apply the mentioned criteria. We are to pray to You my God for divine illumination in order to analyze if the action or object is good and then we can also analyze if the object or situation is in favor of Your teaching or 'Good News', which then makes it right. If the answers or conclusions are positive meaning that the action or thing is in itself good and acceptable to Your will and teachings we can then proceed in good faith, that we are acting according to Your will.
26. This is what he did for them: he saved them from the Israelites; and they did not kill them. 27. But on that day Joshua made them hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD, to continue to this day, in the place that he should choose.
(Historical Books Joshua Chapter 9 verses 26 to 27)
Oh God when applying such criteria Joshua saved the life of these visitors and increased the workforce. The outcomes were both good and according to Your will.
Oh God I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer, however, I would also like to share the following links on 'Biblical Problem Solving'
Biblical Problem-Solving
God and Problem Solving
The Bible and Problem Solving
I thank You oh God for the Bible and its messages of Good News and Hope. During difficult moments of my life, I have stopped in silence, opened my pocket bible that I carry with me everywhere I go and every time You give me a message that confirms your understanding of my situation. Oh God when I feel understood by You I experience an enormous feeling of relief that You are with me in this situation.
Thank You Jesus and God my Father.
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