Tag Archives: Anakim

Joshua 13-24:

Leave a reply

Dividing up the Land:
For many years the Israelites had still not yet conquered all of the land that the Lord had promised them.  “When Joshua was old and advanced in years, the Lord said to him: “Though now you are old and advanced in years, a very large part of the land still remains to be conquered.”” (Josh. 13:1)  This unconquered land included lands of the Philistines in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron.  As noted earlier, Gath is where David will later have to fight a remnant of the Amorites, the giant Goliath.  Caleb notes that even though he is now 85 years old, he is “still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me forth..” (Josh.14:11)  Caleb vows even in his advanced years to drive out the Anakim from the territory promised to him.  Joshua gives Caleb “Kiriath-arba” or “Arba,” which is also known as Hebron.  From Hebron, “Caleb drove out from there the three Anakim, the descendants of Anak: Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.” (Josh. 15:14)  Caleb is still driving out the giant Anakim from the land.  Joshua further designates all the different regions and lands for each tribe of Israel. They are to go forth and settle the land, and drive out the Canaanites from it, any that remain there.  “Jebus” the name used of Jerusalem at the time, is listed as still being occupied by the Canaanites.

Conquering the Land:
The ancient Near East writers often employed hyperbole to exaggerate their military victories and conquests.  Joshua seems to have done so here since all of the Canaanites were not totally driven out from the land.  But, any organized resistance to the Israelites presence is eventually eliminated.

Archeological Evidence, the Merneptah Stele, and Pig Bones:
There are generally two timeframes suggested for when Joshua and the Israelites conquered the land: (1) an early 15th century BC (1400’s BC); or (2) a late 13th century BC (1200’s BC) time of conquest.  Archeological evidence, including the “Merneptah Stele,” shows the presence of Israel in the land of Canaan by at least 1209 BC.  It shows a rapid growth of population and villages which could be explained by the Israelite migration there. [The Merneptah Stele is an Egyptian stele detailing their military conquests from the Egyptian King Merneptah from 1213 to 1203 BC, and it directly mentions the nation “Israel.”]  The archeological evidence of the towns from that time period significantly show little to no evidence of “pig bones,” which would be highly suggestive in distinguishing the Israelite settlements from the pagan Canaanite settlements.

Joshua Sets up the Meeting Tent in Shiloh:
“After they had subdued the land, the whole community of the Israelites assembled at Shiloh, where they set up the meeting tent.” (Josh. 18:1)  Shiloh becomes the new location for the Tabernacle and the Meeting Tent with the Lord.  Seven tribes of Israel had still not received their land heritage and settled the land, so Joshua instructed them to do so.  The Lord also instructs them to set up the “asylum cities” for those accused of unintentional homicide, so they can find refuge there.

The Promised Land Finally Settled:
“And so the Lord gave Israel all the land he had sworn to their fathers he would give them. Once they had conquered and occupied it, the Lord gave them peace on every side, just as he had promised their fathers.  Not one of their enemies could withstand them; the Lord brought all their enemies under their power.  Not a single promise that the Lord made to the house of Israel was broken; every one was fulfilled.” (Josh. 21:43-45)

Joshua’s Final Plea and Covenant Renewal:
“Many years later, after the Lord had given the Israelites rest from all their enemies round about them, and when Joshua was old and advanced in years, he summoned all Israel . .  said to them: “I am old and advanced in years. . .  Therefore strive hard to observe and carry out all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, not straying from it in any way, or mingling with these nations while they survive among you.  You must not invoke their gods, or swear by them, or serve them, or worship them, but you must remain loyal to the Lord, your God, as you have been to this day.” (Josh. 23:1-2, 6-8)

As for Me and My Household, We will Serve the Lord:
Joshua tells the Israelites they must choose who they serve. Do they want to serve “the gods your fathers served” or do they want to serve the Lord?  “Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if you be unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Josh. 24:14-15)  This is the famous final saying from Joshua often quoted by Christians “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

Covenant Renewal at Shechem:
Then, Joshua leads Israel in a Covenant renewal ceremony at Shechem.  “Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak that was in the sanctuary of the Lord.  And Joshua said to all the people, “This stone shall be our witness, for it has heard all the words which the Lord spoke to us.  It shall be a witness against you, should you wish to deny your God.” (Josh. 24:26-28)  The whole object of the Exodus was to occupy the Promised Land, and to use “the land” for the worship of the one true God, Yahweh. Now, that the land is settled, the Israelites can move on to the next stage of their Exodus, that is, to worship God. The purpose of the land is to worship God.  The land is to be a sanctuary of God, a theocracy, if you will.

The Death of Joshua:
Finally, at the age of 110 years old, Joshua died.  He was buried at “Timnath-serah in the mountain region of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.” (Josh. 24:30)  This is most probably the modern Palestinian village of “Kefr Haris” in the West Bank.  With that, the Book of Joshua, an epilogue to the Pentateuch (or, the five Books of Moses), comes to an end.

Joshua 7-12:

Leave a reply

Israel under the Ban and Conquering Ai:
Israel is immediately placed under “the Ban” (or “herem”) for destruction because Achan from their camp had violated the Lord’s commands by taking goods from Jericho that were under the ban.  The Israelites are subsequently defeated by the Amorites at Ai.  Joshua then inquires who disobeyed the Lord’s commands and took goods under the ban from Jericho.  Achan confesses to having taken the goods in his greed.  Achan is then taken outside the camp and stoned to death, then “..the anger of the Lord relented.”  (Josh. 7:26)  Once Achan is removed then Israel is able to conquer Ai with the Lord’s blessing. “Stretch out the javelin in your hand toward Ai, for I will deliver it into your power.”  (Josh. 8:18)  Israel then ambushed Ai, captured it and burnt it to the ground, destroying the entire population of the city.

Renewal of the Covenant at Mount Gerezim and Mount Ebal:
Once Jericho and Ai are conquered, Joshua and the Israelites head north to Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerezim, the locations where Moses had directed them to do the Covenant-Renewal ceremony once they were in the Promised Land (Deut. 27:1-26).  They are to erect twelve stones with a copy of the Law that Moses has given them.  Half shall stand on Mt. Gerezim to bless the people and the other half shall stand on Mt. Ebal for the curse.  There the Israelites “read aloud all the words of the Las, the blessings and the curses..” (Josh. 8:34)

The Gibeonites Spared:
A people called the Gibeonites, apparently part of the Hivites community, came to Joshua and offered to be their slaves if they would only not kill them, like they did Jericho and Ai.  Joshua and the Israelites’ fame had spread all across the land and the Canaanites were in fear of God and the Israelites’ attacking them.  Joshua decides to enter into an oath with them to spare them but they are made to be “hewers of wood and drawers of water” for the Israelites. (Josh. 9:27)  Just like Rahab, they are a pagan people who were shown mercy because they feared God and entered into covenant with his people.

Joshua’s Miraculous Victory over Gibeon:
From their base-camp at Gilgal, Joshua and the Israelites attacked the city of Gibeon, as five Amorite kings (of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon) united against Israel.  Yet, the Lord delivered them into Israel’s hands, and inflicted “a great slaughter on them at Gibeon..”  (Josh. 10:10) As the Amorites fled, Joshua and his troops pursued them.  At this point a miraculous divine intervention of hailstones are rained down of the Amorites killing many of them.  “..the Lord hurled great stones from the sky above them all the way to Azekah, killing many.  More died from these hailstones than the Israelites slew with the sword.” (Josh. 10:11)  Joshua then prayed to God that the day last longer, the sun and moon would miraculously not move, so he could pursue his total victory.  “The sun halted in the middle of the sky; not for a whole day did it resume its swift course.” (Josh. 10:13) The miraculous halting of the sun in the sky let daylight persist indefinitely while the Israelites pursued and destroyed the Amorites and Gibeonites.  Joshua eventually finds in a cave, and kills the five Amorite kings as well.  Thus, the miraculous hailstorm and halting of the sun helped Joshua and the Israelites to victory.

Joshua Conquers the Entire Countryside:
“So Joshua defeated the whole land, the hill country and the Negeb and the lowland and the slopes, and all their kings; he left none remaining, but utterly destroyed all that breathed, as the Lord God of Israel commanded.” (Josh. 10:40)  From there, all the lands and kings of Canaan were captured by Joshua in a single campaign, as “the God of Israel, fought for Israel.” (Josh. 10:42)  The Israelites then return to Gilgal, which remains their basecamp of operations for all their military campaigns in the Promised Land.

Conquering the Northern Confederacy:
After hearing of the Israelites’ victories, the northern Canaanite peoples formed a confederacy and attempted to attack Joshua and the Israelites. “And they came out, with all their troops, a great host, in number like the sand that is upon the seashore, with very many horses and chariots. And all these kings joined their forces, and came and encamped together at the waters of Merom, to fight with Israel.” (Josh. 11:4-5)  Yet, in another surprise attack, Joshua and the Israelites “struck them all down, leaving no survivors.” (Josh. 11:8)

Ongoing Conquest of Canaan:
“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 from Mount Halak, that rises toward Seir, as far as Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon below Mount Hermon. And he took all their kings, and smote them, and put them to death. Joshua made war a long time with all those kings. There was not a city that made peace with the people of Israel, except the Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon; they took all in battle. 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 utterly destroyed, and should receive no mercy but be exterminated, as the Lord commanded Moses.” (Josh. 11:16-20)  The Lord had placed all of the Canaanites under the ban (“herem”) for total destruction.  The reasons for this are multifaceted.  One of the reasons was that they were pagan idolaters who offered human and child sacrifice to demon-gods.

Destruction of the Anakim:
Another reason for the herem, total-destruction of the Canaanites was the presence of the giant Anakim and Rephaim, who were tall people opposed to the will of God.  Who they were is not exactly known, but may be by-products of the fallen angels (Gen. 6:1-4).  “And Joshua came at that time, and wiped out 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 utterly destroyed them with their cities. 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.” (Josh. 11:21-22)  Joshua and the Israelites completely wiped-out the Anakim, as the Lord had commanded them.  Yet, only a few are left in Gaza, Gath and Ashdod.  Gath is where David in the future will end up fighting the giant Goliath (1 Sam. 17:4), perhaps one of these Anakim remnants that Joshua failed to kill.

Joshua Conquers All of Canaan, and there is Peace in the Land:
“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.” (Josh. 11:23) When sin (allegorically symbolized by the Canaanites and Anakim) is conquered, then you will have peace.