Exegesis Paper: Joshua 1:1-9, Context, Exegesis, Application of the Meaning

    EXEGESIS PAPER: JOSHUA1:1-9  Name Instructor Course Date   Background             In Joshua 1:1-9 God commissions Joshua as the leader of the Israelites following the death of Moses, and Joshua is tasked with guiding the people to the Promised Land. God promises Joshua that he will be the Israelites that no person will stand in his way as he was to fulfill God’s promise. “There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”   God also urges Joshua to be courageous and follow his laws while also meditating as commanded by God. The history of the people of Israel is one where the people were persecuted, but Go d had made a covenant with Moses his servant to deliver the people. God/ Yahweh installed Joshua as a leader and gives the reassurance that there is nothing to worry about as Joshua was capable of leading the people to the promised Land. God further encourages Joshua to follow his commandments for him to be prosperous during journey and after settling on the Promised Land. It is only when the people drew strength from God that he was able to fulfill their needs and desires. In encouraging Joshua, God understands the limitation of humans and their weaknesses and the Israelites had endured so much that some had doubts that God’s promise would be fulfilled. Commentary             Even as Joshua sought to lead the Israelites to Canaan he was more concerned with peace and living in the land promised by Yahweh, are much struggle and conflict. Besides being a promise, the land characterized fulfillment to the people of Israel, since it is the land that was chosen as their destination as the God’s people. The removal of obstacles validates Joshua’s feelings that God was on his side. It is as though, Canaan is haven to the Israelites where they are back to their spiritual home, and where they can finally live a good life.             The link between the books of Deuteronomy and Joshua is the Israelites journey to Canaan after the death of Moses, where there is a need for another leader to take over. The previous generation did not meet God’s expectations, and the people had been excluded. In any case, the people were promised the land inheritance, but then Moses was to prepare Joshua the incoming leader of the Israelites.  The leadership of Joshua was God’s plan as he was the heir apparent, and his reassurance that Joshua would lead if he was courageous. The succession plan then is effective in addressing the immediate needs of the people of Israel.             The first verse mentions Moses as being the servant of the Lord indicating that he was highly regarded, and now that he had died there was a need to for Joshua to take over where Moses had left. Joshua was referred as a minister, but this does not diminish his role in fulfilling God’s instructions. Since God was faithful was to the people of Israel he promised that he would not forsake Joshua the installed leader. As a lawgiver Moses was highly regarded, while Joshua was one of the people who urged him to take over the Promised Land. As such, Joshua played a major role rather than a peripheral role, while the themes of the land, leadership, law and God’s commandments are represented in the passages. The book of Joshua is a fulfillment of God’s promise and a continuation of Israel’s history with God, while the book offers glimpses of what to expect.  Joshua represents Israel as  nation of purple who stayed on in the identifiedareas to establish God’s fulfillment of   God’s purpose while connecting the land with God. The kings of Israel and Judah emerge later on, and since the people finally cross river Jordan in the book of Joshua this marks an important milestone for the Israelites who move from being people without land to those with land. The covenant previously anticipated in the first five books of the Bible is finally enacted in the book of Joshua, with the possession of the land and the chance to establish a house of God.  Since Yahweh’s will is manifested when the people follow his commandments, the consequences of people failing to heed the commandments are punished. God hates sin and this choice of Joshua as the leader of the Israelites is consistent with the observation that he was holy. As such, the evil or disobedient people who stood in the way of Joshua’s leadership would suffer dire consequences as God would fulfill his covenant to protect Joshua. The warnings against committing sin are also highlighted in other chapters of Joshua when the wicked Canaanites were punished for their decadent ways. Application of the meaning of the text             The passage Joshua 1:1-9 mirrors the message in the book of Deuteronomy, that God’s work continues uninterrupted, as evidence by the installation of Joshua after the death of Moses God acknowledges the place of Moses in getting the Israelites to the Land, and Joshua also assured that God will be with him, and even as the leadership changes the promise lives on. Even as the promises made to Moses in Deuteronomy are reiterated to Joshua, God further identifies the boundaries of the land that the Israelites were to inhabit. The conditions for fulfilling all of God’s promises determine the extent to which God fulfills his promises. This highlights that God is faithful but human beings also have a choice to follow his ways if they are to benefit from his grace. Prior to the people moving into the new territory some had rejected the choice of going to the Promised Land, having endured many hardships on the way. However, God reassured Joshua like he did with Moses, this assurance represents God fulfilling his promise and especially for those who believed his word