June 23, 2021
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in Joshua? Here’s today’s reading:
Joshua 12 (NIV)
List of Defeated Kings
1 These are the kings of the land whom the Israelites had defeated and whose territory they took over east of the Jordan, from the Arnon Gorge to Mount Hermon, including all the eastern side of the Arabah:
2 Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon.
He ruled from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Gorge—from the middle of the gorge—to the Jabbok River, which is the border of the Ammonites. This included half of Gilead.....Continue Reading
While chapters like this feel tedious to read I imagine to write down these accounts serve many purposes.
1. it is a great remembrance of all that were conquered at the hand of God.
2. in the context of the times it was written to keep track of all the lands that now belonged to the Israelites
3. it serves now as a record that we can look back on to know this happened and gives factual evidence to the things written in the Bible
Joshua 12
Yeah, these are difficult chapters to read, though I do appreciate how the NIV puts it into a nice table for us. Two things I remember when reading these
1) It lends authenticity that we are reading historical fact here, not fictional morality tales. Especially as archeologists continue to unearth evidence of this authenticity.
2) It demonstrates the scope of what God has accomplished here and how large His endeavors are.
Joshua 11
It was a different time in God’s economy and the promised land had to be won over. It is important to see that God worked through the context of human history to bring HIs people where they needed to be. He did His part, and up to this point, they did their part. It provides a reference point for all that God did and accounts for those who conquered and for those who were conquered.
Joshua gave their lands as an inheritance to the tribes of Israel according to their tribal divisions.
31 conquered kings