Rest From War. — KEN D. MILLER

10 And Joshua turned back at that time and captured Hazor and struck its king with the sword, for Hazor formerly was the head of all those kingdoms. 11 And they struck with the sword all who were in it, devoting them to destruction; there was none left that breathed. And he burned Hazor with fire. 12 And all the cities of those kings, and all their kings, Joshua captured, and struck them with the edge of the sword, devoting them to destruction, just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded. 13 But none of the cities that stood on mounds did Israel burn, except Hazor alone; that Joshua burned. 14 And all the spoil of these cities and the livestock, the people of Israel took for their plunder. But every person they struck with the edge of the sword until they had destroyed them, and they did not leave any who breathed. 15 Just as the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did. He left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses.

16 So Joshua took all that land, the hill country and all the Negeb and all the land of Goshen and the lowland and the Arabah and the hill country of Israel and its lowland 17 from Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir, as far as Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon below Mount Hermon. And he captured all their kings and struck them and put them to death. 18 Joshua made war a long time with all those kings. 19 There was not a city that made peace with the people of Israel except the Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon. They took them all in battle. 20 For it was the Lord’s doing to harden their hearts that they should come against Israel in battle, in order that they should be devoted to destruction and should receive no mercy but be destroyed, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

21 And Joshua came at that time and cut off the Anakim from the hill country, from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the hill country of Judah, and from all the hill country of Israel. Joshua devoted them to destruction with their cities. 22 There was none of the Anakim left in the land of the people of Israel. Only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod did some remain. 23 So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lord had spoken to Moses. And Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal allotments. And the land had rest from war. – Joshua 11:10-23 ESV

When Moses and the people of Israel had arrived at the borders of the land of Canaan the first time, he had sent in 12 men as spies and charged them with the responsibility of bringing back a report on conditions within the land. When they returned, they had good news and bad news. The land promised to them by God was abundantly fruitful and they had brought back samples to prove it. But there was a problem. The land was also full of well-fortified cities filled with well-armed people. The land of Canaan was literally crawling with potential enemies.

27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” – Numbers 13:27-29 ESV

The news of the spies kept the people of Israel from entering the land. It was the cause behind God’s decision to let that generation die off in the wilderness rather than allow them to enter the promised land – the place of rest. But 40 years later, Joshua and the next generation of Israelites were in the land and discovering first-hand that the report of the spies was true. The land was full of fortified cities and formidable enemies. And yet, as this chapter reveals, Joshua and the people of Israel methodically eliminated any and all competition. As they stepped out in faith, obeying the will of God, they experienced unparalleled military success. From Hazor in the north to Debir in the south, Joshua and his troops made their way throughout the land of Canaan, racking up an impressive list of victories over the Amalakites, Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites. All those mighty warriors that the 12 spies had seen and warned the people of Israel about, were falling before the forces of Israel. Even the descendants of Anak, the people of Anakim, This particular group had been singled out by the spies as especially significant because they were seen to be giants. And yet, they proved to be no match for the Israelites. We’re told “There was none of the Anakim left in the land of the people of Israel” (Joshua 11:22 ESV).

This chapter contains a summary of the military exploits of the people of Israel, but it is also provides an important reminder that this amazing feat was the work of God.

For it was the Lord's doing to harden their hearts that they should come against Israel in battle, in order that they should be devoted to destruction and should receive no mercy but be destroyed, just as the Lord commanded Moses. – Joshua 11:20 ESV

God did His part and Joshua and the people of Israel did theirs. “Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lord had spoken to Moses” (Joshua 11:23 ESV). Joshua did exactly what God had commanded Moses to do. He followed orders and enjoyed unprecedented success. He had learned an invaluable lesson at Jericho, that disobedience has consequences. He had also discovered the hard way, that making decisions without God’s input was costly. His alliance with the Gibeonites, made without God’s approval, was going to haunt the people of Israel for generations. And the Gibeonites are conspicuously mentioned in this chapter as the only nation that was spared by the Israelites.

There was not a city that made peace with the people of Israel except the Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon. – Joshua 11:19 ESV

Because of the unfortunate alliance Joshua and the elders made with the Hivites, they would remain in the land, protected from destruction and free to influence the Israelites with their pagan ways and false gods. This passing mention of the Hivites is important, because it reminds us that God had clearly included them in His list of nations to destroy.

1 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations more numerous and mightier than you, 2 and when the Lord your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. 3 You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, 4 for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods.” – Deuteronomy 7:1-4 ESV

The Hivites were idolatrous, worshiping the false gods Moloch, Baal and Ashtaroth. Their worship of these gods involved the sacrifice of children and temple prostitution. So, their presence in the land would have long-term ramifications on the people of Israel.

But in spite of this one blot on Joshua’s record, he obeyed God, doing exactly as he had been told.

So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the Lord had spoken to Moses. And Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal allotments. And the land had rest from war. – Joshua 11:23 ESV

This does not mean that all of Canaan had been defeated and occupied by the people of Israel. There were still Canaanites in the land. But Joshua had broken the will of the people who occupied the land, having put the fear of God in them. There was no part of Canaan where the reputation of the Israelites and the name of Yahweh had not been heard. But now, the individual tribes of Israel were going to be held responsible to perform the necessary clean-up operations in their respective portions of the promised land. They would have to finish what Joshua had begun. God had brought them to the land, provided them with a miraculous entrance into the land, and assisted them in conquering the nations that occupied the land. Now it was their turn to populate and possess the land. The Canaanites were no longer a significant military threat, but they would remain a spiritual threat for generations to come. The Israelites would take the period of rest from battle that God was giving them and turn it into a time of complacency and compromise. Rather than complete the task that God had given them, they would eventually choose to allow the Canaanites to remain in the land, intermarrying with them and even worshiping their gods. Living in the rest that God provides does not mean we should relax our guard. We should not let down our defenses and become complacent in our obedience to His will.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Ken Miller