The Lord Has Chosen Zion

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(1 Chronicles 15:1) And David made him houses in the city of David and prepared a place for the ark of God and pitched for it a tent.

David had been in the process of moving the ark of God to the city of David when Uzzah was struck dead for touching the ark.  David was afraid to move it further, and it stayed at the home of Obed Edom for three months.  During that time David continued to build up the City of David which probably meant the houses or apartments of the royal palace.  He also prepared a tent for the ark.

(2) Then David said, "None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites, for them has the Lord chosen to carry the ark of God and to minister to Him forever."

It seems David had learned from his former mistake of bringing the ark in a cart.  He had probably searched out the law or sought the Lord and then planned to follow the law regarding the ark and the things of God.  He declared that only the Levites should carry the ark of God because they were the ones God had chosen for that task and for ministering to Him (Deuteronomy 10:8).

(3) And David gathered all Israel together to Jerusalem to bring up the ark of the Lord to its place which he had prepared for it.

David once again gathered all Israel together to bring the ark of God to the royal city (1 Chronicles 13:5) to the place David had now prepared for it.

(4) And David assembled the children of Aaron and the Levites:

David then assembled the priests, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites who were the ministers of God.

(5) Of the sons of Kohath, Uriel the chief, and his brethren a hundred and twenty;

Kohath was a son of Levi who was long dead by this time, but his descendant Uriel was chief of his family tribe, and he had a hundred and twenty of his relations with him.

(6) Of the sons of Merari, Asaiah the chief, and his brethren, two hundred and twenty;

From Levi's son Merari, Asaiah was the chief of his family tribe, and he had two hundred and twenty with him.

(7) Of the sons of Gershom, Joel the chief, and his brethren a hundred and thirty;

From Levi's son Gershom, Joel was the chief of his family tribe, and he had a hundred and thirty kinsmen with him.

(8) Of the sons of Elizaphan, Shemaiah the chief, and his brethren two hundred; (9) Of the sons of Hebron, Eliel the chief, and his brethren eighty; (10) Of the sons of Uzziel, Amminadab the chief, and his brethren a hundred and twelve.

Elizaphan was a son or grandson of Kohath, and Shemaiah was the chief of his family tribe, and he had 200; Kohath's son Hebron's posterity was led by Eliel, and he had eighty of his kindred with him; and Kohath's son Uzziel had posterity led by Amminadab their chief with 112 of his brethren.

(11) And David called for Zadok and Abiathar the priests, and for the Levites, for Uriel, Asaiah, and Joel, Shemaiah, and Eliel, and Amminadab, (12) And said to them "You the chief of the fathers of the Levites, sanctify yourselves, you and your brethren, that you may bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel to the place I have prepared for it."

David then called together Zadok and Abiathar the priests and all the leaders of the family tribes aforementioned and told them to prepare and sanctify themselves so that they might bring the ark of the Lord to the place David had prepared for it.

(13) "For because you did not do it at the first, the Lord our God made a breach upon us for we did not seek Him after the due order."

David told the priests and the Levites that because they had not consulted God about the proper order of things regarding the bringing of the ark to the royal city, they had failed to do things correctly, and God had made a breach on them by striking Uzzah dead because he had touched the ark.

(14) So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel.

So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves as David had told them to do so that they could bring the ark of the Lord to the City of David to its proper place.

(Psalm 132:1) (A Song of Degrees) Lord, remember David and all his afflictions,

My chronological study now takes me to Psalm 132, one of the fifteen psalms that were each called a Song of Degrees or a Song of Ascents.  According to some traditions, the Jewish priests sang some of these Songs of Ascent as they ascended up the steps to the temple in Jerusalem.  While perhaps they were not originally composed for this purpose, these psalms were later grouped together for use in traveling toward Jerusalem for the yearly Jewish festivals.  As David is spoken about in the third person, he may not have been the composer of this particular psalm, but then again, he could have written it in celebration of the day when he would bring the ark of the Lord to Zion.  That is why it is reasonable to place it here in a chronological Bible study.  

The psalmist began by asking God to remember David and all his afflictions, probably the difficulty he had even coming to the kingdom in the first place, but at this point, it might be the difficulty he was having bringing the ark to his city.

(2) How he swore to the Lord and vowed to the mighty God of Jacob, (3) "Surely I will not come into the tabernacle of my house nor go up into my bed, (4) I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, (5) Until I find out a place for the Lord, a habitation for the mighty God of Jacob."

Rather than a real vow that David swore to the Lord, since we know that David had already resided in his house in Zion, this demonstrated David's intense and immediate desire to make a place for the Lord.

(6) Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah; we found it in the fields of the wood.

The people had heard of the ark once at Ephratah in the tribe of Ephraim where the people were called Ephraimites or Ephrathites.  Then they found it in the fields of the wood at Kirjath Jearim, which literally meant "city of forests."

(7) We will go into His tabernacles; we will worship at His footstool.

This seems to denote ascent in this Psalm of Degrees:  "we heard...we found...we will go...we will worship."  You can see how they may have sung this Song of Ascent as they ascended up the steps to the temple in Jerusalem.  By what follows this verse seems to speak of the Lord's permanent place in Jerusalem.  It was here and there, but now it would be fixed, and the people would worship at His footstool, perhaps meant literally, as the ark of God sat under the mercy seat where God dwelt between the cherubim, so the ark could be considered His footstool.

(8) Arise, O Lord, into Your rest, You and the ark of Your strength.

Indeed, Lord, come into Your permanent resting place, You and the ark of Your law, Your strength.

(9) Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness and let Your saints shout for joy.

May the Lord's priests always be clothed with righteousness, and His saints will shout for joy in His holiness and salvation.  Joy and happiness will naturally follow righteousness and holiness.  The Lord was coming to His permanent place in Jerusalem to dwell among His people, and that was a joyous thing.

(10) For Your servant David's sake, do not turn away the face of Your anointed.

Because of the promises made to David, because the Lord had anointed David as king over His people, the request was that He not turn away from His anointed, David, but continue to be with him.

(11) The Lord has sworn in truth to David; He will not turn from it; of the fruit of your body will I set upon your throne.

May the Lord's promises continue to his posterity for His servant David's sake.  The Lord would not turn from His promises, and from David's lineage the Messiah would come, which seems to be the prophetic message here.

(12) If your children will keep My covenant and My testimony that I shall teach them, their children shall also sit upon your throne forevermore.

If David's descendants would keep the Lord's covenant and commandments, they would continue to sit on David's throne forever, but of course, they ultimately did not hold up their end of the covenant to follow the teaching of the Lord.

(13) For the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation.

The Lord Himself had chosen Zion to be the seat of His Church where He would dwell, and where He would place His Son to be the spiritual Head of His Church.

(14) This is My rest forever; here will I dwell, for I have desired it.

This was to be the Lord's resting place forever, where He would forever dwell.  This must be in the spiritual sense; He would dwell in Christ's Church forever.  The roots of His Church would be firmly planted in Zion where Christ would teach and offer salvation, and then His Church would continue in the spiritual sense with the Holy Spirit of God dwelling within His saints forever.

(15) I will abundantly bless her provision; I will satisfy her poor with bread.

The Lord will abundantly bless His Church; He fully satisfies the poor in spirit with the Bread of Life, Jesus Christ.

(16) I will also clothe her priests with salvation, and her saints shall shout aloud for joy.

What was requested in verse 9 will come to fruition in Christ's salvation, and His Church's saints will shout for joy.

(17) There will I make the horn of David to bud; I have ordained a lamp for My anointed.

There in the Christian Church, the Lord would make David's power and prosperity to grow.  In his house and lineage would come one eminent and glorious light, the Messiah. 

(18) His enemies will I clothe with shame, but upon Himself shall His crown flourish.

Though this could be said of the person of David, as the Lord would put to shame his enemies and his kingdom would flourish, I think it more properly refers to the spiritual David and his posterity.  The Son of David's crown would flourish and spread worldwide and forevermore.

The degrees or ascents are very visible in this psalm.  It moves from afflictions to promise to fulfillment to a crown forever.  Amen!

Samuel's Farewell Address as Judge

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(1 Samuel 12:1) And Samuel said to all Israel, "Behold, I have hearkened to your voice in all that you said to me and have made a king over you."

Samuel had done what the people asked and what God told him to do, and he anointed Saul as the Israelites' king.  In the last chapter, Saul led Israel to a great victory over the Ammonites, and he gained the admiration and support of the people.  Now the prophet Samuel began an address to the people, telling them how he had listened to them and had done what they wanted and found them a king.

(2) "And now, behold, the king walks before you, and I am old and gray headed, and behold, my sons are with you, and I have walked before you from my childhood to this day."

Samuel told the people that they now had a king, and he was old and gray, indicating his plan to step aside and let the king rule the people.  He told them he had walked before them since his childhood, and now his sons were with them, too.  His point was that they had observed him since his childhood, and they could observe his sons, as well, so they knew him well.

(3) "Behold, here I am. Witness against me before the Lord and before His anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Or whose ass have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or of whose hand have I received a bribe with which to blind my eyes? And I will restore it to you."

Samuel stood before the people encouraging them to tell him where he had wronged them.  Had he ever taken anything of theirs?  Had he defrauded or oppressed anyone?  If he had ever wronged anyone, he wanted them to tell him before God and His anointed king, and he would restore whatever he owed to them.

(4) And they said, "You have not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither have you taken anything of any man's hand." (5) And he said to them, "The Lord is witness against you, and His anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand." And they answered, "Witness!"

The people said Samuel had never done any of those things to wrong anyone.  Then Samuel told the people that God and His king were witnesses to the fact they had said that, should anyone later try to accuse him of something.  He had been fully cleared before God and the king of any misdeeds.

(6) And Samuel said to the people, "It is the Lord who advanced Moses and Aaron, and who brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. (7) Now therefore stand still that I may reason with you before the Lord of all the righteous acts of the Lord, which He did to you and to your fathers."

Samuel reminded the people that it was the Lord who raised up Moses and Aaron to lead the people, and it was the Lord who brought their forefathers out of the land of Egypt.  He asked them to stand there while he reviewed all the great and righteous things the Lord had done for His people.

(8) "When Jacob had come into Egypt, and your fathers cried to the Lord, then the Lord sent Moses and Aaron who brought forth your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place."

Samuel reminded the people about when Jacob and his family had gone to Egypt and stayed there.  The posterity of Jacob became greatly oppressed by Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and the people cried out to the Lord.  In response to their cries, the Lord sent Moses and Aaron to deliver them out of Egypt and into their promised land flowing with milk and honey and all good things.

(9) "And when they forgot the Lord their God, He sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the host of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them."

When their fathers had forgotten their Lord God and turned away from Him and toward idolatry, the Lord put them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the army of Jabin, king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor (Judges 4:2).  Other times the Lord sold them into the hand of the king of Moab (Judges 3:14), and into the hand of the Philistines (Judges 13:1).  Sisera, and the king of Moab, and the Philistines all fought against the Israelites and overcame them so that they fell into their hands.  It was a merciful thing when the Lord allowed His people to become oppressed by an enemy.  When they chose to turn away from Him, He allowed them to have what they wanted and turned away from them.  Then they would see their need for Him, which He knew to be the best for their welfare, and they would willingly come back to Him.

(10) "And they cried to the Lord, and said, 'We have sinned because we have forsaken the Lord and have served Baalim and Ashtaroth, but now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve you.'"

Each time they were oppressed by their enemy, the people would cry out to the Lord, repenting of their sins, praying that He deliver them from their enemy, and promising to serve Him only.

(11) "And the Lord sent Jerub-Baal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and you dwelled safe."

Samuel reminded the people how each time they cried out to the Lord and repented, He sent the people a deliverer, one in Jerub-Baal who was Gideon.  The Lord also sent "Bedan."  There was no judge named Bedan in the history of the judges.  Biblical scholars have different ideas about who this might be.  Some say it might refer to Samson, as it could be interpreted "of Dan" rather than as a name.  However, in 1 Chronicles 7:17, there was a Bedan who was the son of Ulam, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it was the same Bedan.  Other scholars think that the name was meant to be Barak, and others say that Bedan could be a textual corruption or a scribal error arising from the similarity of Hebrew letters. This theory suggests that the original text may have intended to refer to a different deliverer entirely.  Whoever was meant, the people would have understood who Samuel meant.  Samuel told the people that the Lord had also sent Jephthah and Samuel himself to deliver the people out of the hands of their enemies, and they had dwelt in safety.

(12) And when you saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, you said to me, "No, but a king shall reign over us when the Lord your God was your king."

Even though the Lord had always saved them from their enemies, raising up judges to deliver them, when Nahash king of the Ammonites came against them, they decided they would rather have a king, when the Lord had always been their king.

(13) "Now therefore, behold the king whom you have chosen, whom you have desired! And behold, the Lord has set a king over you. (14) If you will fear the Lord and serve Him and obey His voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then shall both you and also the king who reigns over you continue following the Lord your God."

Samuel told the people to observe the king whom they had desired.  Even though the Lord and Samuel saw it as a rejection of the Lord, still the Lord gave them the king they desired.  And He even told them through Samuel that if they would fear the Lord, serve Him, and obey Him, and not rebel against His commandments, then both the people and their king could continue in the Lord's guidance and protection, as always.

(15) "But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord and rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then shall the hand of the Lord be against you as against your fathers."

However, Samuel continued, if the people did not obey the Lord and rebelled against His commandments, then the Lord would be against them with His righteous judgments, just as He had done with their fathers.

(16) "Now therefore, stand and see this great thing which the Lord will do before your eyes. (17) Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord and He shall send thunder and rain, that you may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking for a king."

Samuel instructed the people to stand there and observe the great thing the Lord was about to do.  He pointed out that it was wheat harvest time.  He was going to call on the Lord to send thunder and rain, which was very unusual for that time of year.  Proverbs 26:1 speaks of things extremely rare and unheard of, like "snow in summer" and "rain in harvest."  Therefore, the people would know that it was the Lord sending the thunder and rain as judgment against them, that they would understand their wickedness in rejecting the Lord as their king.

(18) So Samuel called to the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

Samuel indeed called to the Lord, and He sent thunder and rain that day.  The historian Josephus said that He sent a terrible storm with thunder, lightning, and hail.  No wonder the people feared God and His power and Samuel who had such favor and therefore power from God.

(19) And all the people said to Samuel, "Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we do not die, for we have added to all our sins evil, to ask for a king." 

In their fear, they asked Samuel to pray for the people that they not die, for they could perceive and understand that they had added to their sins by asking for a king.  Note that the people had rejected Samuel as their judge in desiring a king, but they now called themselves his servants.

(20) And Samuel said to the people, "Fear not; you have done all this wickedness, yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart, (21) And do not turn aside after vanity which cannot profit nor deliver, for they are nothing."

Samuel told the people not to fear, for even though they had done all that wickedness, God was not going to destroy them as they feared, provided they follow Him and serve Him with all their hearts and did not turn aside to vain idols that could do nothing for them because they were nothing.

(22) "For the Lord will not forsake His people for His great name's sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people."

Samuel assured the people that God would not forsake them, not because of anything they had done, but for His great name because it had pleased Him to make them His people, again not because of their merit.  If God had given the people what they deserved, there would have been no more Israelite people and therefore no Christian church.  God's purpose in preserving His people was not yet accomplished, so He would always save at least a remnant of His people no matter how wicked they were.  

It pleased the Lord to make Israel His people, and it pleased Him to graft us Gentiles into the vine of Israel.  God first made us only for His pleasure and fellowship.  He did not need us for any fulfillment.  God is already all perfect.  It pleased Him to make us in His own image and after His own likeness (Genesis 1:26).  Micah 6:8 said that the Lord had shown us what was good, and all He required from us was that we "do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God."  Be righteous, love, and walk with God.  That gives Him pleasure.  However, we let sin come between us and God.  God is all-good and all-perfect and cannot abide in sin.  But because God's nature is love, He provided a way for us to remain in communion with Him through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ whose shed blood covers our sins.  Why would He do that?  Why not destroy us all because we did not live up to the purpose for which He created us in the first place?  Because He is love, and because it pleased Him to have us in fellowship with Him.

(23) "Moreover, as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you, but I will teach you the good and the right way."

I believe Samuel's point was that he would also forgive them for rejecting him as their judge.  He would not sin against the Lord by being arrogant and self-centered when the Lord Himself forgave His people.  He would not cease to pray for them as he always had, and he would teach them the good and right way of the Lord.

(24) "Only fear the Lord and serve Him in truth with all your heart, for consider how great He has done for you. (25) But if you shall still do wickedly, you shall be consumed, both you and your king."

In contrast to the fear Samuel spoke of in verse 20, this fear he spoke of was a reverential fear out of love for the Lord and the knowledge of how great and awesome He was.  He told the people to serve God in truth with all their hearts, considering all the great things He had done for them.  However, if they rebelled against their Lord and chose to depart from Him, they would be consumed.  Without God, they would be destroyed and die, and their king would not be able to save them, as he would perish with them.

The Tribe of Benjamin Nearly Destroyed

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Judges 20:1) Then all the children of Israel went out, and the congregation was gathered together as one man from Dan to Beersheba, with the land of Gilead, to the Lord in Mizpeh.

In the last chapter and post, a Levite man and his concubine had lodged in an old man's house in Gibeah in the tribe of Benjamin.  The men of that city had surrounded the house and banged on the doors insisting that the Levite come out so they could sodomize him.  He sent his concubine instead whom they used and abused all night, and she died.  The Levite had carved up her body and sent it all over Israel to let them know what had happened.  Now all of Israel from Dan in the far north to Beersheba in the far south met together in a group, also with the tribes on the eastern side of the Jordan.  I imagine the tribe of Benjamin was not included in this assembly.  They met before the Lord in Mizpeh, a city that lay on the borders of Judah and Benjamin (Joshua 15:38), a city near to Shiloh and said to be eight miles from Gibeah. 

(2) And the chief of all people, of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand footmen who drew sword.

The chief of each group of people, princes of the tribes and heads of families of all the tribes of Israel, except the tribe of Benjamin, presented themselves in this assembly of the people of God.  They numbered four hundred thousand armed men.

(3) (Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel had gone up to Mizpeh.) Then the children of Israel said, "Tell, how was this wickedness?"

The tribe of Benjamin heard that all the other tribes had gathered in Mizpeh, realizing they had been left out.  The children of Israel who had assembled together asked the Levite, as it appears from the next verse, how the wickedness they had heard about had come to be.

(4) And the Levite, the husband of the woman who was slain, answered and said, "I came into Gibeah of Benjamin, I and my concubine, to lodge. (5) And the men of Gibeah rose against me and beset the house round about upon me by night and thought to have slain me, and my concubine they have forced that she is dead."

The Levite told the chiefs of Israel how he and his concubine had come into Gibeah to lodge.  He told how men of Gibeah surrounded the house wanting him.  I suppose it's possible he imagined they wanted to kill him after they had sodomized him, but he left out the sodomy part which was their actual intent.  He said they forced themselves on his concubine until she was dead.  However, he actually was the one who gave the men his concubine in order to save himself.

(6) "And I took my concubine and cut her in pieces and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel, for they have committed lewdness and folly in Israel."

The Levite went on to tell how he had then cut his concubine into pieces and sent her throughout Israel so that they would see what lewd crimes and foolish wickedness had been committed in Israel.

(7) "Behold, all you children of Israel, give here your advice and counsel."

The Levite ended with asking the chiefs of Israel what they thought should be done.

(8) And all the people arose as one man, saying, "We will not any of us go to his tent, neither will we any of us turn into his house. (9) But now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah by lot against it. (10) And we will take ten men of a hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to fetch victual for the people, that they may do, when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin, according to all the folly that they have wrought in Israel."

All the people rose up in agreement as one saying that none of them would return to their homes.  They would cast lots to see who would go up against Benjamin.  They proposed to take ten percent of the men, 40,000, to fetch provisions for the rest of the men that they would be able to follow through with the punishment that Gibeah's wickedness deserved.  All of Israel rose up united as one because of the word of one man, and that man had not been totally truthful.  They should have risen up as one to enquire of the Lord before rushing to judgment on their own.

(11) So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man. (12) And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, "What wickedness is this that is done among you?"

All of Israel was united against Gibeah.  The tribes sent men through the tribe of Benjamin asking them about the wickedness that had been done within their tribe.

(13) "Now therefore, deliver the men, the children of Belial, who are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death and put away evil from Israel." But the children of Benjamin would not hearken to the voice of their brethren, the children of Israel.

The men of Israel made the reasonable request that the tribe of Benjamin deliver to them the sons of Belial who had done the wickedness to the Levite and his concubine, so that they might be put to death, thus removing the evil from among the children of Israel.  However, the Benjamites refused.  It was probably pride that kept them from submitting to their brethren, but by refusing to allow the Israelites to remove the evil from among them, the Benjamites were voicing their agreement with the evil.  Then again, perhaps they recognized the Israelites' rush to judgment and would not subject men of their own tribe to death without a fair hearing.

(14) But the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities to Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel.

The Benjamites gathered themselves together at Gibeah to actually go to battle against the rest of Israel.  It was much misplaced pride and arrogance that they believed one tribe could defend against eleven others, especially when the eleven just seemed to want to rid the evil from Israel.  If the Benjamites did not want to submit to another tribe they thought was rash and unjust, they could have themselves brought the evildoers forth for investigation and then appropriate justice and perhaps satisfied the rest of Israel, but they seem to have doubled down in their defense of the wicked doers.

(15) And the children of Benjamin were numbered at that time out of the cities, twenty-six thousand men who drew sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, which were numbered seven hundred chosen men.

The armed men of Benjamin who had gathered from all the cities to Gibeah, numbered 26,000, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah which added another seven hundred.

(16) Among all this people were seven hundred chosen men lefthanded; everyone could sling stones at a hair breadth and not miss. (17) And the men of Israel, besides Benjamin, were four hundred thousand men who drew sword, all these men of war.

Among the 26,700 armed men of Benjamin were seven hundred lefthanded men who could sling stones accurately and not miss their mark.  Perhaps this is one of the reasons that the Benjamites could have confidence that 26,700 of them could go up against 400,000 Israelites.

(18) And the children of Israel arose and went up to the house of God and asked counsel of God, and said, "Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin?" And the Lord said, "Judah first."

The Israelites went to Shiloh to the tabernacle of God to enquire of Him who should go up first into battle against the Benjamites.  The Lord, probably through the Urim and Thummim of the high priest, said that Judah should go first.  It is commendable that the Israelites still sought counsel of the Lord when they had started to fall away from the correct worship of Him as deduced from the past few chapters.  However, they only asked who should go first, already having determined on their own that they would go to battle against their brother.

(19) And the children of Israel rose up in the morning and encamped against Gibeah. (20) And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin, and the men of Israel put themselves in array to fight against them at Gibeah.

The Israelite tribes rose in the morning and encamped across from Gibeah. They went to battle against Benjamin, putting themselves in array to fight against the Benjamites at Gibeah, presumably with Judah going first.

(21) And the children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites that day twenty-two thousand men.

The Benjamites came out of Gibeah against the Israelites and killed dead on the spot 22,000 of them.  Why would God allow 22,000 Israelites to be killed when theirs seemed a just cause in trying to rid Israel of the evil sons of Belial?  They were also guilty of sin, of idolatry and worse, because everyone had been doing what was right in his own eyes and not adhering to the laws of God.  They had rushed to judgment without a fair hearing with two or three witnesses as was required.  They had been very zealous to avenge the death of the Levite's concubine but not so much to put away their spiritual adultery and idolatry that had been growing among them as evidenced by the past few chapters.  They had gone to God to enquire only who should go first in a battle they had already determined to embark on themselves, but as John Wesley wrote in his Notes on the Bible, they had gone to Him "with polluted hands."  They "should have pulled the beam out of their own eye, before they attempted to take that out of their brother Benjamin's eye."  Because they did not repent of their own sins before God, God did it for them, "bringing them through the fire, that they might be purged from their dross."  The Israelites should not have depended so heavily on their own numbers and strength.  The result was due to the will of God, and this fulfilled Jacob's prophecy about his son, Benjamin, that he would be ravenous as a wolf devouring his prey (Genesis 49:27).

(22) And the people, the men of Israel, encouraged themselves and set their battle again in array in the place where they put themselves in array the first day.

The men of Israel did not allow themselves to be discouraged after their loss of so many men.  They once again set their battle lines in the same place as before.

(23) (And the children of Israel went up and wept before the Lord until evening and asked counsel of the Lord, saying, "Shall I go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother?" And the Lord said, "Go up against him.")

The fact that this verse was put in parentheses tells me that it probably happened before verse 22, that it was further explanation for verse 22.  Otherwise, I don't see a good reason for making a parenthetical statement of something so important.  The Israelites had gone before the Lord and had wept before Him for some time and asked if they should even go to battle against their brother, and the Lord had told them to go against Benjamin.  Probably then the Israelites encouraged themselves and set themselves in battle lines again.

(24) And the children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day. (25) And Benjamin went forth against them out of Gibeah the second day and destroyed down to the ground of the children of Israel again eighteen thousand men; all these drew the sword.

The Israelites went to battle against the tribe of Benjamin the second day.  The Benjamites came out of Gibeah against the children of Israel and killed on the spot eighteen thousand of the Israelite armed men.  The fact that the Israelites were defeated again has me rethinking verses 22 and 23.  Perhaps the Israelites had encouraged themselves by their own will, and going before the Lord was secondary after they had already resolved what to do.  They wept before the Lord, but it was likely for their defeat only and not because they had sinned against the Lord.  The Lord always knows the truth of the hearts of men.  He told them to go up against Benjamin, but He didn't say they would defeat Benjamin.  Hosea 10:9 speaks specifically of this battle and states:

"O Israel, you have sinned from the days of Gibeah: there they stood: the battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity did not overtake them."

The Israelites had sinned.  It is interesting that this was now 40,000 of the Israelites who had been killed, a sort of tithe of the 400,000 that had initially gone to battle against their brethren.  Tithing acknowledges that all belongs to God.  It was God's will that both sides learn a lesson.  Both sides had sinned and required judgment.  Unfortunately, it seems we learn best after going through trials.  It was never God's plan that His people should fight against one another.  In fact, God had specifically told them in Deuteronomy 13:13-17 how to deal with "children of Belial," in that case, those who would spread idolatry.  If God's command and punishment against idolatry had been followed in the first place, evil would not have reached the level it had, and there would not be a civil war among the tribes.  

(26) Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up and came to the house of God and wept and sat there before the Lord and fasted that day until evening and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord.

It appears that the whole army of the Israelites with the rest of the people went to the house of God where they wept and fasted and offered burnt and peace offerings to the Lord.  It seems they had finally acknowledged their sins and desired to make atonement for them with their offerings.  They demonstrated their total dependence of Him.

(27) And the children of Israel enquired of the Lord (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days, (28) And Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days). saying "Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease?" And the Lord said, "Go up, for tomorrow I will deliver them into your hand."

The children of Israel again inquired of the Lord at the house of God where the ark of the covenant was in Shiloh, through Phinehas who stood before the ark with the Urim and Thummim.  They asked humbly if they should go again to battle against their brother or if they should cease battling.  They had truly repented and realized that they could not trust in their large numbers or in the justness of their cause, but must submit wholly to the will of God.  This time the Lord not only told them to go up to battle, but He promised them victory.

(29) And Israel set liers in wait round about Gibeah. (30) And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day and put themselves in array against Gibeah as at other times.

This time Israel set an ambush with men lying in wait all around Gibeah.  Then the rest of their army put themselves in formation just as they had done the previous times and went up against the tribe of Benjamin.

(31) And the children of Benjamin went out against the people and were drawn away from the city, and they began to strike the people, and kill, as at other times, in the highways, one of which goes up to the house of God and the other to Gibeah in the field, about thirty men of Israel.

The Benjamites went out against the children of Israel and were drawn out of Gibeah.  They struck the Israelites in the highways where it appears two highways met, one going to the house of God and the other to Gibeah in the field.  It appears that the Israelites divided the army of the Benjamites as some went one way and the others went the other way.  The children of Benjamin killed only thirty Israelites this time.

(32) And the children of Benjamin said, "They are struck down before us as at the first." But the children of Israel said, "Let us flee and draw them from the city into the highways."

The Benjamites thought they had struck down the Israelites as they had done before, arrogant in their own ability.  However, it had been the Israelites' plan to flee before them and draw them out of the city into the highways.

(33) And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place and put themselves in array at Baal Tamar, and the liers in wait of Israel came forth out of their places out of the meadows of Gibeah.

The Israelites had fled to a nearby place called Baal Tamar where they once again lined up for battle.  Also those who lay in wait around Gibeah came out from their hiding places to Baal Tamar.

(34) And there came against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and the battle was fierce, but they did not know that evil was near them.

I am imagining that the Israelite battle line at Baal Tamar went against the men of Gibeah who had been pursuing them as they pretended to flee, and then the men who had been lying in wait around Gibeah now came out of their hiding places around Gibeah, and that is the evil that the men of Gibeah had not expected to come up behind them.

(35) And the Lord struck Benjamin before Israel, and the children of Israel destroyed of the Benjamites that day twenty-five thousand and a hundred men; all these drew the sword.

The Lord gave the victory to Israel and destroyed 25,100 armed men of the tribe of Benjamin.

(36) So the children of Benjamin saw that they were defeated, for the men of Israel had given ground to the Benjamites because they relied on the liers in wait whom they had set beside Gibeah. (37) And the liers in wait hasted and rushed upon Gibeah, and the liers in wait drew along and struck all the city with the edge of the sword.

Indeed, it appears that the battle went as I had been imagining it.  The Israelites allowed the Benjamites ground as they fled from them because they knew the men lying in wait would come up behind them as they did.  They rushed upon Gibeah and struck all the city.  The Benjamites then saw they were defeated.

(38) Now there was an appointed signal between the men of Israel and the liers in wait that they should make a great flame with smoke rise up out of the city.

There had been an appointed signal between the Israelites and the men who were lying in wait.  Those lying in wait were to make a great fire in the city and when the Israelites saw the smoke from it, they would know that the city had been taken.

(39) And when the men of Israel retired in the battle, Benjamin began to strike and kill of the men of Israel about thirty persons, for they said, "Surely they are struck down before us as the first battle."

When the Israelites appeared to give up and start fleeing, that is when the Benjamites killed thirty men (verse 31), and they believed it would be the same as it had been in the previous battles that they would strike down the Israelites.

(40) But when the flame began to rise up out of the city with a pillar of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind them, and behold, the flame of the city ascended up to heaven. (41) And when the men of Israel turned again, the men of Benjamin were amazed, for they saw that evil had come upon them.

But when the flame arose out of the city, the Israelites turned back toward the Benjamites, and when the Benjamites saw the smoke of the city behind them and the Israelites turned back toward them, they were alarmed for they saw that disaster had come upon them.

(42) Therefore they turned before the men of Israel to the way of the wilderness, but the battle overtook them, and those who came out of the cities they destroyed in the midst of them.

The Benjamites turned away from the Israelites to flee into the wilderness, but the battle overtook them.  Those Benjamites who came out of the city and the surrounding towns were also destroyed in the midst of the battle.

(43) They enclosed the Benjamites round about, chased them, and trod them down with ease over against Gibeah toward the sunrising.

The Israelites were then able to close in on the Benjamites all around, and they chased them and trod them down easily across from Gibeah toward the east, the sunrise.

(44) And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men; all these were men of valor.

The Israelites had killed 18,000 Benjamite soldiers.

(45) And they turned and fled toward the wilderness to the rock of Rimmon, and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand men and pursued hard after them to Gidom and killed two thousand men of them. (46) So that all who fell of Benjamin were twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword; all these were men of valor.

The Benjamites then turned and fled toward the wilderness to a rock called Rimmon, but the Israelites picked off five thousand of them in the highways.  The Israelites then pursued them to a place called Gidom and killed two thousand more of them.  Considering the Benjamites started with 26,700 men (verse 15), killing 25,000 was an almost total destruction.

(47) But six hundred men turned and fled to the wilderness to the rock Rimmon and abode in the rock Rimmon four months.

Either 600 Benjamites turned again and fled back to the wilderness to the rock Rimmon, or perhaps these were part of the thousands who had fled there previously (verse 45), and the Israelites killed of them there 5000, leaving 600 who managed to get away.  These 600 men abode in the rock Rimmon for four months.

(48) And the men of Israel turned again upon the children of Benjamin and struck them with the edge of the sword, as well the men of every city, as the beast, and all who came to hand; also they set on fire all the cities that they came to.

The Israelites turned from the wilderness and killed every man and beast they came upon and set on fire every city they came to.  That sounds as if they indiscriminately killed anyone they came upon, man, woman, child, or animal.  It seems excessive and beyond what was necessary to defeat Benjamin.  They had treated Benjamin as severely as they had the Canaanite nations.  They almost wiped out the entire tribe of Benjamin.  There had been much sin and slaughter on both sides because there was no judge or spiritual leader, and everyone did what was right in his own eyes (Judges 17:6).

Joshua's Farewell Address and Death

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Joshua 23:1) And it came to pass a long time after that the Lord had given rest to Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua waxed old, stricken in age.

Israel had divided the land of Canaan among the tribes, and the people lived in peace and rest from all their enemies surrounding them.  Several years had passed, and Joshua had become very old.

(2) And Joshua called for all Israel, for their elders, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and said to them, "I am old, stricken in age."

Joshua called to him all the elders and chief people in Israel, including heads of the tribes, judges, and officers.  He began by telling them that he had become very old.

(3) "And you have seen all that the Lord your God has done to all these nations because of you, for the Lord your God is He who has fought for you."

He reminded them that they had seen all that the Lord had done to the nations of Canaan for His people Israel.  He had fought for His people and had brought them to this point of peace and rest.

(4) "Behold, I have divided to you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even to the Great Sea westward."

I believe Joshua's point was that all of Canaan had been divided by lot to them, even the nations that remained unconquered.  Those unconquered parts, along with all the nations Joshua had cut off with the sword, all the way to the Mediterranean Sea, had been divided as an inheritance to the tribes.

(5) "And the Lord your God, He shall expel them from before you and drive them from out of your sight, and you shall possess their land, as the Lord your God has promised you."

Joshua encouraged the leaders of Israel that the Lord willed that they should inherit all of the land of Canaan, and He would drive the rest of the Canaanites out of their land, and they would be able to possess all of it, as their Lord had promised them.  It has been discussed before that they never did fully possess all the land that God had promised them because they were not obedient to the Lord to hold up their side of the covenant.  However, God said they would possess their land, and a passage in the book of the prophet Amos confirms that they eventually will possess it (Amos 9:15).

(6) "Be therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that you not turn aside from it to the right hand or to the left."

Joshua was giving the leaders of Israel the same words he had received from the Lord when the reins were handed over to him after the death of Moses (Joshua 1:7).  He cautioned them to be courageous in keeping the commandments of the law, that they not turn aside from it.

(7) "That you do not come among these nations, these that remain among you, neither make mention of the name of their gods nor cause to swear, neither serve them nor bow yourselves to them."

Specifically, Joshua cautioned them against going among the pagan nations of people that remained and acknowledging their gods.  They were not to even speak their names, much less swear by them, serve them, or bow down to them.

(8) "But cleave to the Lord your God as you have done to this day."

They were to cleave only to their Lord God through their obedience, service, and worship of Him alone, as they had done since their time in Canaan to that point.  It can't be said that they were always so faithful while in the wilderness.

(9) "For the Lord has driven out from before you great nations and strong, but you, no man has been able to stand before you to this day."

The reason Joshua gave for them always cleaving to their Lord was because of the good things He had done for them.  He had driven out great and strong nations from before them so that no man was able to stand before them even to that day.

(10) "One man of you shall chase a thousand, for the Lord your God is He who fights for you, as He promised you."

One man of them would be able to chase a thousand of his enemies only because it was their Lord who fought for them as He had promised He would (Leviticus 26:8, Deuteronomy 1:30).

(11) "Take good heed therefore to yourselves, that you love the Lord your God."

Joshua impressed upon them the need to be careful and on guard that they always love, honor, and obey their Lord God.

(12) "Else if you do in any way go back and cleave to the remnant of these nations, these that remain among you, and shall make marriages with them and go in to them and they to you, (13) Know for a certainty that the Lord your God will no more drive out these nations from before you, but they shall be snares and traps to you and scourges in your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good land which the Lord your God has given you."

For if they turned away from their Lord and attached themselves to the remnant of the pagan nations in their land and made and consummated marriages with them, they could know for absolute certain that their Lord would no longer go before them to drive out those remaining nations.  They would remain as snares and traps to them, very troublesome and distressing, drawing them into idolatry and immorality.

(14) "Behold this day, I am going the way of all the earth, and you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing has failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you; all have come to pass to you, and not one thing of it has failed."

Joshua told them that he was going to die just as all living things eventually do.  He was about to leave them without a human leader, but he reiterated why they should put all their love and faith and trust in their Lord God to lead them.  They knew in their hearts that He had not failed to give them any good thing He had promised.  All He had promised had come to pass; therefore, they should continue to have total faith in Him.

(15) "Therefore it shall come to pass, as all good things have come upon you, which the Lord your God promised you, so shall the Lord bring upon you evil things until He has destroyed you from off this good land which the Lord your God has given you. (16) When you have transgressed the covenant of the Lord your God which He commanded you and have gone and served other gods and bowed yourselves to them, then shall the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land which He has given to you."

However, Joshua warned them, just as the Lord had given them all good things as He had promised, He also most assuredly would bring bad things to them until they were destroyed off that good land if they turned away from Him and their covenant with Him to serve idols.  If they did that, His anger would burn against them, and they would perish quickly from off their good land that He had given them.  Just because they had all good things at that time, didn't mean they could keep them always if they chose to turn from their Lord.

I take note here that the number one sin that will always kindle God's anger against His people is idolatry.  It is just one of ten big commandments of the Lord, yet it is the one He always mentions that will cause Him to turn away from His people.  However, is not every sin rooted in idolatry?  It may be idolatry of money or power or even self, but there is always something that we choose to make more important than God and His commandments when we sin.  And when we choose something else over God, He may let us have our way, and He will turn away from us.  He will never force Himself on us; He gives us a choice.  However, we must live with the consequence of our choice.  When we begin to see all good things in our lives as blessings from Him, we naturally want to love and follow Him.  Why would we want to follow after some empty idol that can never give us more than some brief pleasure?  In God there is a lifetime of joy and fulfillment and eternal life.  Money and power or anything that we build of ourselves can never do that.

Joshua's farewell address continued in the next and last chapter of Joshua:

(Joshua 24:1) And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and they presented themselves before God.

Joshua then gathered all the tribes, and especially the leaders of Israel, the elders, the judges, the officers, and the heads of the tribes, to Shechem, and they presented themselves before God.  Shechem was a significant place in Israel's history as it was the place where the Lord made His promise to Abraham that He would give his descendants that land, and he built an altar there (Genesis 12:6-7).  Jacob had also built an altar there (Genesis 33:18-20).  Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal, where they shouted blessings and cursings (Joshua 8:33), were at Shechem.

(2) And Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the Lord God of Israel, 'Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nachor, and they served other gods.'"

Joshua spoke prophetically to the people the words of the Lord.  He began by telling them about their ancestors on the other side of the flood, or rather river, including Terah, the father of Abraham and Nachor, who served other gods.  The original word translated as "flood" most often meant "river" and was most of the time transcribed that way by the KJV translators, but for some reason they translated it as "flood" this time.  Perhaps the meaning might be that the people's ancestors since the flood had served other gods.  It was understood that before the flood all people except Noah and his family had served other gods, but for their fathers more recently to have turned to false gods would be a very grievous thing.  However, most Biblical scholars believe the meaning should be river rather than flood, and that Joshua spoke of their ancestors who had lived on the other side of the Euphrates River.

Some Biblical scholars think that the verse should read that their fathers, Terah, Abraham, and Nahor, served other gods.  Of course, it is possible that Abram served other gods as he saw his father do until God called him away from his family, but I saw no actual example of his serving other gods.  I read the verse as your fathers, including Terah, served other gods.  "The father of Abraham and Nachor" just described who Terah was.

(3) "'And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.'"

The Lord took Abraham out of that idolatrous family and place, telling him to get out of his country and away from his family and his father's house (Genesis 12:1).  He took him through the land of Canaan and told him He would give his descendants that land (Genesis 12:7).  The Lord indeed gave Abraham many descendants, and he had given him his son Isaac.

(4) "'And I gave to Isaac, Jacob and Esau, and I gave to Esau Mount Seir to possess it, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.'"

Isaac had two sons, twins, Jacob and Esau, who had been "two nations" in their mother's womb (Genesis 25:23).  God gave Esau an inheritance in Mount Seir, leaving the promised land of Canaan to Jacob's descendants alone.  However, first Jacob and his children went to Egypt.

(5) "'I sent Moses also and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did among them, and afterward I brought you out.'"

God sent Moses and Aaron to Egypt also to demand the release of His people who were in bondage in Egypt.  He plagued Egypt with ten plagues because they refused to let His people go, and then He brought them out.

(6) "'And I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea, and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea.'"

The Lord brought His people out of Egypt, and the Egyptians chased them with chariots and horsemen which would suggest they would soon be able to overtake the people on foot.  They chased them to the Red Sea.

(7) "'And when they cried to the Lord, He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them, and your eyes have seen what I have done in Egypt, and you dwelt in the wilderness a long time.'"

The people cried out in distress at the Red Sea.  The pillar of cloud that led them then went behind them and was a cloud of darkness to the Egyptians and light to the Israelites.  He then parted the sea and after His people crossed the Red Sea on dry land, He then let the waters back down to cover the Egyptians.  Many of the people who had been children at the time had seen what their Lord had done in Egypt.  They had been in the wilderness a long time, forty years, because of the unbelief of their fathers, and until those fathers had died in the wilderness.

(8) "'And I brought you into the land of the Amorites who dwelt on the other side of the Jordan, and they fought with you, and I gave them into your hand, that you might possess their land, and I destroyed them from before you.'"

The Lord brought His people to the kingdoms of Sihon and Og on the eastern side of the Jordan River.  Those nations fought with them, but the Lord had delivered their enemies into their hand and destroyed them so that they might possess that land.

(9) "'Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and warred against Israel and sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you.'"

Then Balak, the king of Moab, warred against the Israelites.  He called for the prophet Balaam to curse the Israelites.

(10) "'But I would not hearken to Balaam; therefore he blessed you still, so I delivered you out of his hand.'"

However, the Lord would not allow Balaam to speak curses to Israel, and he instead blessed them; thus the Lord had delivered His people out of the hand of Balaam and likewise, Balak.

(11) "'And you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho, and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, and I delivered them into your hand.'"

Then the Israelites crossed over the Jordan River and came into their promised land where the men of Jericho fought against them, but the Lord delivered their enemies into their hand.

(12) "'And I sent the hornet before you which drove them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites, not with your sword nor with your bow.'"

The Lord sent hornets before them to drive out the Canaanites including two kings of the Amorites.  I'm not sure if these were actual hornets or figurative speech about how the Lord drove out their enemies, not by the Israelites' swords or bows, but by the Lord's power only.  Twice the Lord spoke prophetically about sending hornets to drive out their enemies (Exodus 23:28, Deuteronomy 7:20), and here the Lord through Joshua said that He had done just that.  However, in the actual battles, it doesn't say that the Lord sent hornets.  Joshua 10:10 told how the Lord discomfited their enemies and chased them, but it said nothing about Him sending hornets.  However, it did say that He then sent hailstones.  Again in Joshua 11:8 it says the Lord chased their enemies, but it doesn't say it was with hornets.  Of course, that might be an ideal way to chase soldiers and kings, but I think if actual hornets were sent, scripture would have specifically said so.  In many other places in the Bible, scripture said specifically what sort of pest was being sent, and immediately after Joshua 10:10, scripture was specific about sending hailstones, so I just believe it would have been specific about sending hornets, as well, if He had sent them.  I truly believe this was figurative speech or perhaps a word that the translators were not familiar with, and it just meant that God Himself chased and drove out the enemy by His own power.

(13) "'And I have given you a land for which you did not labor and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; of the vineyards and oliveyards which you did not plant, you do eat.'"

The Lord had given His people a ready-made land that they did not have to dig and cultivate, and He had given them cities they did not have to build, and He had given them fruits of the land that they did not plant.  He had given them, as He had promised, a land flowing with milk and honey and many good things.

(14) "Now therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood and in Egypt, and serve the Lord."

Having concluded the words of the Lord in verse 13, these are the words of Joshua telling the people that because of their Lord's mercies and goodness in all that He had done for them, they should reverence Him and serve only Him in sincerity with no hypocrisy and in the truth found only in His word.  He had told them in verse 2 about how their fathers since the flood had served other gods, and he urged them to put away those false gods and serve their Lord God.

(15) "And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell, but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Joshua challenged the people that if it seemed evil, or say just burdensome and unpleasant, to serve the Lord, then they should choose whom they would rather serve.  Did they wish to serve the gods of their fathers or the gods of the Amorites who had been in their land before them?  Let their choice be whatever they wished, but as for Joshua, he was resolute in the fact that he and his house would serve the Lord.

(16) And the people answered and said, "God forbid that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods."

The people answered that they would never think of forsaking their Lord to serve other gods.

(17) "For the Lord our God, He who brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt from the house of bondage, and who did those great signs in our sight and preserved us in all the way in which we went and among all the people through whom we passed, (18) And the Lord drove out from before us all the people, even the Amorites who dwelt in the land; we will also serve the Lord for He is our God."

The people went on to explain why they would never think of forsaking their Lord, because of all the great things He had done for them.  He had freed them from bondage, preserved them wherever they went among enemies, and then drove out the enemies who had dwelt in the land He was giving them.  They declared their choice was to also serve the Lord their God.

(19) And Joshua said to the people, "You cannot serve the Lord for He is a holy God; He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins. (20) If you forsake the Lord and serve strange gods, then He will turn and do you hurt and consume you after He has done you good."

I believe both verses should be taken as one sentence.  I think Joshua's point was that the people would not be able to serve a holy God jealous that His people be only His and serve only Him, if they continued in sin.  As Jesus said in Matthew 6:24, "no man can serve two masters..."  They must wholeheartedly choose to serve their Lord or they would be forsaking Him, choosing another master, and then the Lord would turn away from them and that in itself would destroy them.  The Lord God is our only choice for life.  Since the beginning of time, since Adam and Eve brought sin on man, we sinful creatures are unable to stand before such a holy God.  It is only by His love and mercy that He gave us a way to be acceptable in His presence, but if we choose not to go that way, then we are doomed to be left in our sin, and in the righteous judgment of God, we have chosen to accept the consequences of sin, which is death.  God has set before each of us two choices, life and death, and He urges that we choose life if we want to live (Deuteronomy 30:19).  The other choice leads only to death.

(21) And the people said to Joshua, "No, but we will serve the Lord."

The people declared that they would not serve other gods but would serve their Lord God only.

(22) And Joshua said to the people, "You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen for you the Lord, to serve Him." And they said, "Witnesses!"

Joshua declared that they would be witnesses against themselves if they should turn away from their Lord after their testimony that day.  They would be self-condemned by their own words.  The people agreed that they were indeed witnesses to that truth.

(23) "Now therefore put away the strange gods which are among you and incline your heart to the Lord God of Israel."

Joshua told them therefore they were to put away the strange gods among them.  There may have been actual physical small idols of worship that had been kept from their fathers before them, or it might rather be that Joshua spoke of idols of the heart, secret sentiments they had toward some idol.  Whatever the idol that took their hearts away from their Lord, they were to put away, and they were to incline their hearts toward the Lord God of Israel only.

(24) And the people said to Joshua, "The Lord our God we will serve, and His voice we will obey."

The people confirmed that they would serve and obey their Lord God.

(25) So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.

Joshua established that covenant with the people and made it a permanent law that they and their descendants would always bind themselves to God only.

(26) And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and took a great stone, and set it up there under an oak that was by the sanctuary of the Lord.

Joshua wrote the words of their covenant established that day in the book of the law that would have been in the ark of the covenant which must have been with him at Shechem that day.  He took a great stone and set it up under an oak tree that was by that holy place of the Lord.  I don't believe this was meant to have been at the actual sanctuary.  The word that was translated as "sanctuary" also means "a consecrated thing or place, holy place."  Joshua had brought the people to Shechem to a holy place of their fathers, and there he placed a memorial stone which wouldn't have been necessary if they were at the actual sanctuary.

(27) And Joshua said to all the people, "Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us, for it has heard all the words of the Lord which He spoke to us; it shall be therefore a witness to you, lest you deny your God."

Joshua told the people that that stone would act as a witness of the covenant they had made, as it was a symbolic reminder of the words of the Lord that had been spoken there that day and of the witness against the people should they turn from Him.

(28) So Joshua let the people depart, every man to his inheritance.

With that, Joshua let the people go back to their lands that they possessed as their inheritance from God.

(29) And it came to pass after these things that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died a hundred and ten years old.

It was shortly after this that Joshua died at 110 years of age.  I think now is a good time to reflect on the reason why Joshua is always identified as the son of Nun.  Joshua is such an important figure in the Bible in his own right, and Nun is never mentioned other than being the father of Joshua.  As studied previously, I found that the original words were "Joshua bin Nun" rather than "Joshua ben Nun," which would have meant Joshua was the son of Nun.  "Bin Nun" or "binnun" meant the "understanding one."  From the beginning, Joshua was an excellent student of Moses and wouldn't leave the tabernacle even after Moses did (Exodus 33:11).  Additionally, he always demonstrated complete faith in God when others failed in their faith.  Perhaps this moniker of "Joshua the understanding one" did demonstrate that Joshua was a man in his own right.  

This time, in my study, I reflected on just the word "nun" which means "perpetuity."  The name Joshua, "yehoshua," means "Jehovah-saved."  Jehovah, the name of the Lord, the self-existent eternal God, which is what Jehovah means, saves eternally.  Was Joshua Jehovah-saved in perpetuity?  Biblical scholars often speak of Joshua being an Old Testament type of Jesus.  Actually, their names are the same in Hebrew, but in Greek in the New Testament, Jesus (in English) became Ieous.  Joshua was the one who brought the people into their promised land on earth, but Jesus brings them into the heavenly promised land.  Joshua succeeded Moses who represented the law, and Jesus's gospel succeeded the law.  Joshua made a new covenant with the people before he died, and Jesus brought a New Covenant of grace.  While names are very important in the Bible, and Joshua being eternally saved by Jehovah who saves, and being an Old Testament type of Jesus who was the one who ultimately fulfilled that salvation through His death and resurrection, I have to note that according to the genealogy in 1 Chronicles 7:27, Joshua was indeed the son of Nun.  Perhaps Joshua was always referred to as the son of Nun because all the symbology in both those names was the very essence of who he was.

(30) And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath Serah, which is in Mount Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash.

The people buried Joshua in his own inheritance in the mountains of Ephraim in the city which he built, Timnath Serah, on the north side of Mount Gaash in the mountainous region.

(31) And Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua and who had known all the works of the Lord that He had done for Israel.

The Israelites kept their covenant and served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all the days of the elders who had lived during the time of Joshua and beyond, men who had known all the things the Lord had done for His people.

(32) And the bones of Joseph which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, they buried in Shechem in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for a hundred pieces of silver, and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.

The Israelites had brought the bones of Joseph out of Egypt as he had requested (Genesis 50:25) and as Moses directed (Exodus 13:19).  They buried them in Shechem in a parcel of ground that Jacob had bought from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for a hundred pieces of silver (Genesis 33:19), in the land that became the inheritance of the sons of Joseph, specifically Ephraim.

(33) And Eleazor the son of Aaron died, and they buried him in a hill of Phinehas his son which was given him in Mount Ephraim.

Eleazar the priest, the son of Aaron, also died, and they buried him in a hill of Phinehas, Eleazar's son, which had been given to him in Mount Ephraim.  The priests had no land of their own but were given cities in which to live, so the Ephraimites had undoubtedly given this piece of land to either Eleazar or his son, Phinehas.

So ends the book of Joshua.  Obviously, the last five verses couldn't have been written by him but were added after his death.  Once again, I can't help but reflect on what a great man Joshua was and how like Jesus he was, the perfect illustration of the Christ to come.  In addition to the similarities before mentioned, it doesn't appear that Joshua ever married or had any children.  He devoted his entire life to the service of God, from his time as a young man learning from Moses up until his death.  Of course, Joshua was only human and must have sinned sometime in his life, but I don't recall any such thing being recorded thus far in the Bible.  Joshua never worked to provide for himself and never asked for much.  Even the inheritance he had apparently once asked for (Joshua 19:50), he didn't ask for when the time came to divide up the inheritance, but the people gave it to him.  And it wasn't even a choice land but rather a rough mountainous region where he built the city of Timnath Serah.  He lived as a servant of the people and most importantly of his God, and he led his people to their rest in their promised land.  Jesus, about 1400 years later, would bring people to that true eternal rest.

Also notable in the last chapter of Joshua is the retelling of history and of the marvelous things the Lord had done for His people.  Throughout the Bible, the people were retold history so that they would never forget the goodness of the Lord, and so should we always reflect on the good things the Lord has done for us.  No matter what circumstances we find ourselves in, we can always be thankful for the greatest gift of all, eternal salvation in Him that was only possible through the sacrifice and death of Jesus Christ.

Cities Allotted to Levi

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Joshua 21:1) Then came near the heads of the fathers of the Levites to Eleazar the priest and to Joshua the son of Nun and to the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel.

In the past chapters and posts, Eleazar the high priest and Joshua, along with heads of the tribes, had divided the land and given inheritance to each of the tribes.  Then the people appointed cities of refuge among their tribes.  Now the heads of the Levites came to Eleazar, and Joshua, and those heads of the other tribes.

(2) And they spoke to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, "The Lord commanded by the hand of Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with the suburbs of them for our cattle."

The Levites reminded them that the Lord had commanded through Moses that they should have cities and suburbs within the other tribes, to live in and keep livestock.  The Levites had not been given a lot of their own as had been given the other tribes, because as the priests, God was to be their inheritance.  However, God did provide for them cities in which to dwell within the other tribes (Numbers 35:2).

(3) And the children of Israel gave to the Levites out of their inheritance at the commandment of the Lord, these cities and their suburbs.

The Israelites indeed gave to the Levites cities out of their inheritance in which to dwell, descriptions of which follow.

(4) And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites, and the children of Aaron the priest of the Levites had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of Simeon, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities.

The first lot came out for the Kohathites, descendants of Kohath, a son of Levi.  The children of Aaron the priest, son of Amram who was a son of Kohath, were the only priests of the Levites.  The other Levites assisted the priests and acted as ministers for the people.  The children of Aaron, the priests, were given cities out of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin, thirteen cities in all.

(5) And the rest of the children of Kohath had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Ephraim, and out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh west of the Jordan River, ten cities.

The rest of the Kohathites, Levites, but not priests, had their cities assigned by lot within the tribes of Ephraim, Dan, and the half tribe of Manasseh, ten cities in all.

(6) And the children of Gershon had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.

The children of Gershon, another son of Levi, had cities assigned by lot within the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half tribe of Manasseh east of the Jordan River.

(7) The children of Merari by their families, had out of the tribe of Reuben, and out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun, twelve cities.

The children of Merari, the third son of Levi, were given cities within the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun, twelve cities in all.  All the tribes were to give cities to the Levites as a sort of tithe.  They were to provide for the priests and the ministers who attended the priests and ministered to the people within each tribe.  Although it was a benefit to the other tribes to have Levite ministers living among them, it was the fulfillment of a curse made by Jacob, that because of their anger and cruel wrath, they would be scattered throughout Israel (Genesis 49:7).  A total of forty-eight cities were given to the Levites according to the commandment of the Lord (Numbers 35:7).

(8) And the children of Israel gave by lot to the Levites these cities with their suburbs, as the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses.

The Israelites gave by lot cities along with their suburbs within each of their tribes, just as the Lord had commanded.

(9) And they gave out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, these cities which are mentioned by name, (10) Which the children of Aaron of the families of the Kohathites of the children of Levi had, for theirs was the first lot. (11) And they gave them the city of Arba the father of Anak, which is Hebron, in the hills of Judah with the suburbs of it round about it.

The Israelites gave the children of Aaron who were of the Kohathites, cities, names which follow in the text, out of the tribes of Judah and Simeon.  First, they gave them the city and suburbs of Kirjath Arba, "city of Arba," Arba being a son of the Anakims, a race of giants among whom Arba was chief.  It was renamed Hebron (Joshua 14:15) and it lay in the hill country of Judah.  

(12) But the fields of the city, and its villages, they gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for his possession.

However, the fields and villages surrounding Hebron belonged to Caleb (Joshua 14:13).  He had been given Hebron, but as with all the tribes, he gave a city in which the Levites could dwell.  According to Biblical scholars, the suburbs of the Levitical cities were generally 2000 cubits, about 1000 yards.  Anything beyond that belonged to the tribe that was giving the city for Levitical use.

(13) Thus they gave to the children of Aaron the priest Hebron with her suburbs, a city of refuge for the slayer, and Libnah and her suburbs.

The Israelites gave the children of Aaron, the priests, the city of Hebron which was also a city of refuge (Joshua 20:7) and the city of Libnah and their suburbs.

(14) And Jattir with her suburbs, and Eshtemoa with her suburbs, (15) And Holon with her suburbs, and Debir with her suburbs, (16) And Ain with her suburbs, and Juttah with her suburbs, Beth Shemesh with her suburbs, nine cities out of those two tribes.

The priests also had the cities of Jattir, Eshtemoa, Holon, Debir, Ain, Juttah, and Beth Shemesh, in which to live and dwell.  They had a total of nine cities within the tribes of Judah and Simeon, Simeon being within Judah.

(17) And out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with her suburbs, Geba with her suburbs, (18) Anathoth with her suburbs, and Almon with her suburbs; four cities.

Out of the tribe of Benjamin, the Levitical priests had the cities of Gibeon, Geba, Anathoth, and Almon, four cities and their suburbs.  Anathoth and Almon were not listed among the cities within Benjamin's tribe in chapter 18 and must have been a couple of the smaller villages that were said to be part of the larger cities.  The cities within Benjamin were described as cities with their villages rather than cities with their suburbs.

(19) All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with their suburbs.

All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, totaled thirteen cities with their suburbs.

(20) And the families of the children of Kohath, the Levites which remained of the children of Kohath, even they had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of Ephraim.

The rest of the Kohathites, those who were not of Aaron and the priests, also had cities, theirs from the tribe of Ephraim.

(21) For they gave them Shechem with her suburbs in mount Ephraim, a city of refuge for the slayer, and Gezer with her suburbs.

The rest of the Kohathites were given the cities of Shechem, also a city of refuge (Joshua 20:7), and Gezer.

(22) And Kibzaim with her suburbs, and Beth Horon with her suburbs, four cities.

The Kohathites were also given the cities of Kibzaim and Beth Horon in the tribe of Ephraim.

(23) And out of the tribe of Dan, Eltekeh with her suburbs, Gibbethon with her suburbs, (24) Aijalon with her suburbs, Gath Rimmon with her suburbs, four cities.

Out of the tribe of Dan, the Kohathites were given the cities of Eltekeh, Gibbethon, Aijalon, and Gath Rimmon, a total of four cities.

(25) And out of the half tribe of Manasseh, Tanach with her suburbs and Gath Rimmon with her suburbs, two cities.

Two cities were given out of the half tribe of Manasseh on the west side of the Jordan River, Tanach and Gath Rimmon, which appears to be a different city than the one in the tribe of Dan.

(26) All the cities were ten with their suburbs for the families of the children of Kohath who remained.

The Kohathites who were not descendants of Aaron, and therefore not priests, had a total of ten cities within the tribes of Ephraim, Dan, and West Manasseh.

(27) And to the children of Gershon of the families of the Levites, out of the half tribe of Manasseh, Golan in Bashan with her suburbs, a city of refuge for the slayer, and Be Eshterah with her suburbs, two cities.

The Levites who were children of Gershon received the city of Golan, which was also a city of refuge, and Be Eshterah, with their suburbs, out of the half tribe of Manasseh on the eastern side of the Jordan River.

(28) And out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishon with her suburbs, Daberath with her suburbs, (29) Jarmuth with her suburbs, En Gannim with her suburbs, four cities.

The Gershonites were also given four cities out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishon, Daberath, Jarmuth, and En Gannim, with their suburbs.

(30) And out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal with her suburbs, Abdon with her suburbs, (31) Helkath with her suburbs, and Rehob with her suburbs, four cities.

They were also given four cities out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal, Abdon, Helkath, and Rehob, with their suburbs.

(32) And out of the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee with her suburbs, a city of refuge for the slayer, and Hammoth Dor with her suburbs, and Kartan with her suburbs, three cities.

They were given three cities out of the tribe of Naphtali, Galilee, also a city of refuge, Hammoth Dor, and Kartan.

(33) All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with their suburbs.

The total number of cities given to the Levitical tribe of the Gershonites was thirteen.

(34) And to the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with her suburbs, and Kartah with her suburbs, (35) Dimnah with her suburbs, Nahalal with her suburbs, four cities.

The rest of the Levites, children of Merari, were given four cities out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam, Kartah, Dimnah, and Nahalal, with their suburbs.

(36) And out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with her suburbs, and Jahaz with her suburbs, (37) Kedemoth with her suburbs, and Mephaath with her suburbs, four cities.

They were also given four cities out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer, Jahaz, Kedemoth, and Mephaath.

(38) And out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead with her suburbs, a city of refuge for the slayer, and Mahanaim with her suburbs, (39) Heshbon with her suburbs, Jazer with her suburbs, four cities in all.

The children of Merari also received four cities out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth, also a city of refuge, Mahanaim, Heshbon, and Jazer, with their suburbs.

(40) So all the cities for the children of Merari by their families, which were remaining of the families of the Levites, were their lot, twelve cities.

The children of Merari were given twelve cities in all.

(41) All the cities of the Levites within the possession of the children of Israel were forty-eight cities with their suburbs. (42) These cities were every one with their suburbs round about them, thus all these cities.

All the cities given to the Levites within all the other tribes of Israel numbered forty-eight, just as God had commanded (Numbers 35:7).  They were also given the suburbs, said to be about 2000 cubits, or about 1000 yards, round about the cities so that they would have space for livestock and provisions.

(43) And the Lord gave to Israel all the land which he swore to give to their fathers, and they possessed it and dwelt in it.

Thus the Lord had given to Israel all the land of Canaan as He had sworn to their fathers.  All the tribes having received their lots of inheritance, they possessed their land and dwelt in it.

(44) And the Lord gave them rest round about according to all that He swore to their fathers, and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the Lord delivered all their enemies into their hand.

At that time, the Lord gave Israel peace and rest in their land flowing with milk and honey as He had sworn to their forefathers.  Finally, they had settled into their promised land, that land promised so many years before, and there were no enemies before them, as the Lord had delivered all their enemies into their hand.

(45) There failed not one of any good thing which the Lord had spoken to the house of Israel; all came to pass.

Every good thing the Lord had promised Israel came to pass.  God's promises were exactly fulfilled down to the prophetic blessings and curses that told where some of the tribes might live.  "Your word is true from the beginning, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever" (Psalm 119:160).  Every word of promise God made from the beginning of the world is true and has never failed.  If anything has not yet been fulfilled, you can be sure it will be in the future.  The Lord is not slack concerning His promises, but is ever-patient, giving us all time to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).

Praise the Lord!

I have been following a chronological Bible study proposed by Skip Andrews.  About this and the past few psalms, Mr. Andrews wrote, "Although we may not be able to precisely date these Psalms at this time, their general themes fit the topics we have just read in Deuteronomy."  Continuing with Psalm 135:

(Psalm 135:1) Praise the Lord. Praise the name of the Lord, praise, O you servants of the Lord!

The author of this psalm, as well as the occasion on which it was written, is unknown.  Some commentators believe that the first short sentence was meant to be the title of the psalm--Praise the Lord.  The psalmist indeed began his psalm by exhorting the people, God's own people, meant to be His servants, to praise their Lord.  

(2) You who stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God, (3) Praise the Lord for the Lord is good; sing praises to His name for it is pleasant.

Those who stood in the house of the Lord, the priests and Levites, as well as the people who stood in the courts outside the temple, were exhorted to praise the Lord because He was so good.  They were exhorted to sing praises to His name because it was pleasant.  His very name was delightful to His people and cause for praise, but also it was pleasant to sing praises to Him.  Singing songs of praise very definitely lifts the spirit.  

(4) For the Lord has chosen Jacob to Himself, Israel for His special treasure.

The people were to praise the Lord because He was good, and also because He chose Jacob (Israel) to be His own special treasure, His chosen people.

(5) For I know that the Lord is great, and our Lord is above all gods.

The psalmist professed his knowledge that the Lord was great and above all other gods, that is, those who were falsely worshiped as gods, as there is really only one true God.  

(6) Whatever the Lord pleased, He did in heaven and in earth, in the seas and all deep places.

The Lord did and does whatever He pleases in the heavens, all the universe, and in the earth, in the seas and all the deep places of the earth.

(7) He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; He makes lightnings for the rain; He brings the wind out of His treasures.

The Lord causes the "nasi" to ascend from all over the earth.  As this verse speaks of weather-related things, "vapor" is the best translation here.  The Lord causes the mist to rise from the earth to water it.  However, interestingly, the word means more generally something raised or exalted and is literally 126 times out of 130 used in the Bible to mean a prince or some other type of ruler.  The Lord raises up all sorts of things and people for His purposes.  The Lord makes the rain and the lightning and the wind.

(8) Who destroyed the firstborn of Egypt, both of man and beast.

The Lord who raises up also brings down or destroys, as He did the firstborn of men and animals in Egypt.

(9) He sent tokens and wonders into the midst of you, O Egypt, upon Pharaoh and upon all his servants.

The Lord sent many signs and wonders, the miracles and plagues, in the midst of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his people.

(10) Who destroyed great nations and killed mighty kings, (11) Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan, and all the kingdoms of Canaan, (12) And gave their land a heritage, a heritage to Israel His people.

Their Lord was the one who destroyed great nations and mighty kings, including Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan, and all the nations and kings in the land of Canaan, and He gave their lands to His own people as an inheritance to them.

(13) Your name, O Lord, forever; Your memorial, O Lord, throughout all generations.

The Lord's name and His fame endures forever, throughout all generations, to the present when we still read of His glory and that will continue forever.

(14) For the Lord will judge His people, and He will repent Himself concerning His servants.

I believe the sense of "judge" here means that the Lord will rule and govern His people, more specifically, protect and defend them, because the verse went on to say the Lord would repent, which means to turn away, change Himself concerning His people who deserved complete destruction because of their many sins.  However, the Lord always repented from His plan to completely destroy them for their wickedness and always saved at least a remnant.

(15) The idols of the heathen, silver and gold, the work of men's hands.

The idols of the heathen nations were but silver and gold, something mere men fashioned with their hands.

(16) They have mouths, but they do not speak; eyes they have, but they do not see; (17) They have ears, but they do not hear; neither is there breath in their mouths.

Those manmade idols had mouths, but they couldn't speak; they had eyes and ears, but they couldn't see or hear.  They had no living breath in them; they were only objects made by man.

(18) They who make them are like them, and everyone who trusts in them.

Those who made those idols, as well as everyone who trusted in them, were as blind and stupid as those lifeless idols were.

(19) Bless the Lord, O house of Israel; bless the Lord, O house of Aaron.

The psalmist exhorted God's chosen people, Israel, to bless the Lord, and also the house of Aaron, the Levites and the priests, should also bless Him.  I often wonder how mere people can bless the Lord, as it is He who blesses us.  However, we can bless Him with our praise and worship and our adherence to His word.

(20) Bless the Lord, O house of Levi; you who fear the Lord, bless the Lord.

The psalmist indeed included the Levites among those who should bless the Lord, as well as all people who feared the Lord, those who respected and reverenced Him as Lord.

(21) Blessed be the Lord out of Zion who dwells at Jerusalem. Praise the Lord!

The Lord of Zion, representative of the kingdom of the Lord, also the physical city of Jerusalem, where He dwelt among His people, was to be blessed and praised.

This psalm briefly addressed the history of the Israelites but was mainly a psalm of praise.  It both began and ended with an exhortation to praise the Lord.  Matthew Henry called it one of the Hallelujah Psalms that praised the Lord.

The Lord's Continual Deliverance and Mercy

Continuing a chronologically ordered Bible study set forth by Skip Andrews, who stated, "Although we may not be able to precisely date these Psalms at this time, their general themes fit the topics we have just read in Deuteronomy":

(Psalm 106:1) Praise the Lord! O give thanks to the Lord for goodness, for His mercy forever.

The author of this psalm is unknown as is the occasion on which it was written, but like Psalms 78 and 105, it contains ancient history of the Israelites and was written for instruction in gratitude and admonition.  The psalmist begins by exhorting his listeners to praise their Lord God and thank Him for His goodness and mercy that endures forever.

(2) Who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord? Who can show forth all His praise?

The psalmist asked who could ever have the right words or be able to enumerate the countless mighty acts of the Lord.  Who could ever have words worthy enough to praise Him?

(3) Blessed are they who keep judgment, he who does righteousness at all times. 

Blessed are the people who observe and execute the righteous judgment of God, the one who continually follows the righteousness of God in all times and circumstances.

This hits me hard at this particular time, a time in which people want to separate God from culture and politics.  Today is Election Day and the end of "election season."  There are Christians who won't vote because politics are dirty or won't vote for Donald Trump because he is an immoral man.  However, they would vote for the opposition who kills babies up to the point of live birth, oversees the slave trade of 325,000 lost children coming across our borders, facilitates the death of a million young men in a war that cannot be won in Ukraine, for that matter, is pushing us toward World War III, encourages the sexual mutilation of children without their parents' consent, and on and on and on.  How can any Christian follow the righteousness of God by turning a blind eye and not doing the one small thing he or she can do, vote against unrighteousness?  As far as not voting for Donald Trump because he is immoral, David was an adulterer and a murderer, but he sought the righteousness of God and was called a man after God's own heart.

(4) Remember me, O Lord, with the favor to your people; O visit me with Your salvation.

The psalmist asked that the Lord remember him with the favor that He had for His people.  He asked that the Lord come to him with His salvation.  This looks to be a prophetic reference to the coming of Christ who would bring salvation.

(5) That I may see the good of Your chosen, that I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation, that I may glory with Your inheritance.

This is a prayer all Christians could pray.  We want to see the blessings of God's chosen people.  We desire to be called His people, and we do rejoice as His nation does.  And we rejoice in the blessings of His people and nation and are grateful that we were allowed to be grafted into it, and we are able to glory with God's inheritance.

(6) We have sinned with our fathers; we have committed iniquity; we have done wickedly.

The psalmist acknowledged that he with his nation of people had sinned and done wickedly just as their forefathers had done.

(7) Our fathers did not understand Your wonders in Egypt; they did not remember the multitude of Your mercies, but rebelled at the sea, at the Red Sea.

Their forefathers had not totally understood the meaning behind God's miracles in Egypt.  They were not just for the destruction of their enemies, but they proved the power of God, the one true God, over all the false gods of Egypt.  As the one and only true God, He deserved all their worship and gratitude, but they did not remember all His mercies and provision for them.  They often doubted God's power and providence when they had no reason to ever doubt it as He had always been there for them.  Even so soon after they had seen all the miracles in Egypt, when they saw Pharaoh and his armies coming behind them at the Red Sea, they doubted God's power to save them and wished to go back to Egypt (Exodus 14:10-12).

(8) Nevertheless He saved them for His name's sake, that He might make His mighty power to be known.

However, God saved His people, even though they had no faith in Him at that moment.  He saved them not for their sake, but that the world might know His mighty power to save His people.  And we who read about that event are able to know of God's mighty power that we may have faith in Him.

(9) He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it was dried up, so He led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.

The Lord rebuked the Red Sea and made it dry up for a path for the escaping Israelites.  He led them through the sea as if it were dry land just as the wilderness was.

(10) And He saved them from the hand that hated them and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy. (11) And the waters covered their enemies; there was not one of them left.

The Lord saved His people from the Egyptians who hated them.  Once His people had crossed through the sea, He brought the waters back down to destroy every one of their enemies.

(12) Then they believed His words; they sang His praise.

THEN they believed the Lord's words.  They had to see it once again to believe, and then they sang His praises.

(13) They soon forgot His works; they did not wait for His counsel, (14) But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness and tempted God in the desert.

However, once again, the people forgot His works of salvation and providence.  They did not ask God for His counsel, but followed their own desires and wishes, like when they lusted after meat when God had provided them with manna, the perfect nutritious food for their needs.

(15) And He gave them their request but sent leanness into their soul.

The Lord gave them their request when He gave them more quail than they could eat, but in their lust and gluttony, they ate till many were sick and died.  I believe the sense of the second part is that giving them what they desired rather than providing what God knew was better for them, it provided no good to them, but killed many and did nothing for their souls that would have greatly benefited if they had trusted in their Lord.

(16) They envied Moses also in the camp, and Aaron, the saint of the Lord.

The people were jealous and gathered themselves against Moses, and Aaron, the Lord's anointed high priest (Numbers 16:3).

(17) The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan and covered the company of Abiram.

The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan, one of the heads of the conspirators against Moses and Aaron.  Likewise, it did the same to the company of Abiram and others not mentioned here (Numbers 16:32 and Deuteronomy 11:6).

(18) And a fire was kindled in their company; the flame burned up the wicked.

The Lord sent a fire after that that consumed 250 men in their company of conspirators (Numbers 16:35).

(19) They made a calf in Horeb and worshipped the molded image.

The people urged Aaron to make an idol of a golden calf that they worshipped while Moses was on the mount with the Lord (Exodus 32:4).

(20) Thus they changed their glory into the image of an ox that eats grass.

The people had reduced their Lord, their glory, to a statue of a lowly ox that eats grass of the ground.  

(21) They forgot God their Savior who had done great things in Egypt, (22) Wondrous works in the land of Ham, terrible things by the Red Sea.

Because Moses had tarried so long on the mount with the Lord, the people had forgotten their Lord and all the wondrous things He had done for them and turned to a false idol of gold to worship (Exodus 32:7-8).

(23) Therefore He said that He would destroy them, had not Moses, His chosen, stood before Him in the breach to turn away His wrath, lest He should destroy them.

The Lord threatened to destroy the people and instead make a great nation from Moses (Exodus 32:10), but Moses beseeched the Lord to not destroy them, not for their sake, but for the sake of His glory in the eyes of the Egyptians and for the sake of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to whom He had made the promise, and the Lord turned away from His plan (Exodus 32:11-14).

(24) Yes, they despised the pleasant land; they did not believe His word, (25) But murmured in their tents and did not hearken to the voice of the Lord.

The people did not believe God's word about the fact that He was bringing them to their wonderful promised land flowing with milk and honey, but they murmured and complained that they should have never left Egypt (Numbers 14:2 and 14:27).  It's the reason the Israelites had to wander in the wilderness for forty years.

(26) Therefore He lifted up His hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness, (27) To overthrow their descendants among the nations and to scatter them in the lands.

God resolved to cut off the present generation of His people from entering the promised land.  That is the whole truth about why they had to wander in the wilderness for forty years.  He told them their children would have to bear their parents' sins against the Lord and wander in the wilderness for forty years until that present generation had died there.  Then their children would be the ones to inherit their promised land (Numbers 14:31-33).  However, their children's nation would be eventually overthrown in the Babylonian captivity, something I have not yet studied in my chronological study, and they would be scattered in foreign lands.

(28) They joined themselves also to Baal of Peor and ate the sacrifices of the dead.

God's people joined with the worshipers of Baal to worship him and eat the sacrifices of false dead idols (Numbers 25:2-3).

(29) Thus they provoked His anger with their inventions, and the plague broke in on them.

The Israelites provoked their Lord to anger with their imaginations and deeds.  The plague that broke out on them referred to a plague of death (Numbers 25:5).

(30) Then Phinehas stood up and executed judgment, and the plague was stayed.

When one Israelite had the audacity to bring a heathen woman into the camp and into his tent, Phinehas went into the man's tent and killed them both, and the Lord's anger was appeased, and the plague was stayed (Numbers 25:8 and 11).

(31) And that was counted to him as righteousness to all generations for evermore.

That action of Phinehas was counted to him as righteousness by the Lord, and He gave him a covenant of peace, to him and his descendants after him forever (Numbers 25:12-13).

(32) They angered Him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with Moses for their sakes, (33) Because they provoked His spirit, so that he spoke unadvisedly with his lips.

The people angered the Lord at the waters of Meribah, which means "strife."  Because Moses was angry with the people because they had once again provoked the Spirit of God to anger, he spoke and acted according to his own will and not according to the will of God (Numbers 20:10-12).

(34) They did not destroy the nations, concerning whom the Lord commanded them, (35) But were mingled among the heathen and learned their works.

The Lord had told His people to destroy the nations that inhabited their promised land (Numbers 33:52), but they did not completely destroy them.  This takes place later chronologically, but the Lord had warned about what would happen to them if they failed to completely destroy their enemies (Numbers 33:55-56), and that appears to be just what happened; they were mingled among the heathen they did not destroy and learned their ways.

(36) And they served their idols which were a snare to them.

The Israelites served the false idols of the heathen which proved to be a snare to them.  When we dabble in things we ought not dabble in, we open the door to trouble.

(37) Yes, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters to devils, (38) And shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was polluted with blood.

The Israelites actually sacrificed their sons and daughters to false gods.  They shed the innocent blood of their own children in sacrifice to the demon gods of Canaan, and the land was polluted with blood.  The first reaction is to wonder how they could actually do that!  But then immediately comes the realization that we do that in our country on a daily basis.  The innocent blood of babies, sons and daughters, sacrificed to demons of sexual lust and convenience.  Just yesterday I was thinking about this subject.  My niece has a beautiful baby boy, now about two years old.  She loves him dearly, more than life itself, but when she was pregnant and having some doubts and fears, she referred to him as a fetus.  That was her beautiful baby boy all along, growing inside of her, but that "fetus" could have been killed if his complications had been too great.  Would she ever dream of killing him now if he developed great complications?  Of course not!  Well, that was her sweet baby all along.  If a mother chooses to kill that baby just because she hasn't come to know and love him yet, that is pure selfishness for her own feelings with no thought for her baby who can feel the pain of abortion.  "There but for the grace of God go I."  I can just hear my immature selfish self in my 20's saying that the government shouldn't be able to tell me what I could do with my own body.  Totally cringe-worthy now; what about the body of that beautiful precious innocent baby growing inside of mine, totally dependent on me for life?  

(39) Thus they were defiled with their own works and went whoring with their own inventions.

God's people were defiled by their own actions because they sought demon gods to deliver them.  They were whoring after those false gods with their own imaginings of what they could do for them.  God's relationship with His people is often spoken of as a marriage relationship.  Jesus is often called the bridegroom and His elect are His bride.  One is being adulterous if he seeks after a false idol.

(40) Therefore was the wrath of the Lord kindled against His people, insomuch that He abhorred His own inheritance.

Once again the wrath of the Lord was kindled against His people as a flaming fire to destroy them.  Once again we read that the Lord abhorred His own people as we read in Psalm 78:59.  And once again we must understand that God did not really hate His people, for God loves all His creation, including all sinners.  He certainly hated their actions, and He treated them as if He abhorred them, rejecting them for a time.

(41) And He gave them into the hand of the heathen, and they who hated them ruled over them.

Chronologically, these events haven't happened yet in my study, but we know that the Lord would indeed allow their enemies to take them, and they would once again be ruled by people who hated them, back in their same situation before God led them out of bondage.  How often does God lead us out of bondage only to have us return to it basically of our own accord?

(42) Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.

Their enemies once again oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.  While that surely means they became subjects of their enemies, Dr. John Gill pointed out in his Exposition of the Bible, that the meaning may be that they were brought into subjection to their Lord by their enemies.  By their enemies, they were humbled before the Lord and realized their need for Him.  God's punishment of His people is always about bringing them back to Him, their only salvation.

(43) Many times He delivered them, but they provoked Him with their counsel and were brought low for their iniquity.

Many times the Lord delivered His people, but they always wound up provoking Him again with their thoughts and plans.  Then they would be brought low again, only to call on the Lord again to deliver them.

(44) Nevertheless, He regarded their affliction when He heard their cry.

Their loving and merciful and oh so patient God, knowing how they would always return to their wicked ways, had compassion on them when He heard their cries.  What a beautiful promise!  Even when we are weak and keep falling back into our sins, if we sincerely call out to God for His deliverance, He will hear our cries.

(45) And He remembered for them His covenant and repented according to the multitude of His mercies.

It's not that God ever forgets anything, but for the sake of His people, He turned back toward His covenant and His promise.  That is the Biblical meaning of repenting, changing course, turning back.  He once again because of His unlimited mercy, turned back to His people to fulfill His promises.  

(46) He made them also to be pitied by all those who carried them captives.

The Lord turned the hearts of His people's captors to have pity on them.

(47) Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from among the heathen, to give thanks to your holy name, to triumph in your praise.

Although we don't know the occasion that prompted this psalm, the psalmist was recalling all the times that the people had sinned against their Lord, but in His great mercy, He always came to their aid.  He was calling out to the Lord again to save His people and to gather them from the heathen where they might once again give thanks to their Lord for their triumph only in Him.  These words could have been said any time in history.  Think how pertinent they would have been after the Holocaust when God ultimately gathered His people back to their own state of Israel in 1948.

(48) Blessed the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting, and let all the people say, "Amen!" Praise the Lord.

The psalmist ended with praises to the Lord God of Israel who was and is to be blessed forever.  He is to be worshiped and praised forever for His mercies endure forever (Psalm 136).  Let all the people say, "Amen," which literally means "sure, truly, so be it, truth."  Praise the Lord!

Just like other psalms studied chronologically after Deuteronomy, this psalm included a history of the Israelites, but its main purpose was to show the mercies of God and to call on Him again.  As I type this on Election Day 2024, I call on Him to have mercy on our country, a mercy I know we don't deserve, but when has His people ever deserved His goodness and mercy?  Never!  He gives it out of His loving goodness, and I pray for that again.  Thank you, dear Lord!