In the book of Joshua, we are learning what happened, “when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai, they did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up. And old shoes and clouted upon their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy. And they went to Joshua unto the camp at Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We be come from a far country: now therefore make you a league with us”, and in chapter nine and verse seven of the book of Joshua, we learn how “the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure you dwell among us” where we read,
And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure you dwell among us;
and how shall we make a league with you?
The verse reads, “And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure you dwell among us;” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “and the men of Israel” which means “and the male human beings belonging to Israel whose name means God prevails and is the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob” “said unto the Hivites” or “uttered, declared and proclaimed to the Hivites whose name means villagers and was the sixth generation of descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham, who were living in northern Canaan near Mount Hermon at the time of the conquest”, “peradventure” which means “unless, perhaps and suppose” “you dwell among us” or “you, the Hivites, remain, abide, continue and live in the midst and middle of us, the people of Israel”. Joshua or the writer shared how the male human being of Israel responded to the “Hivites” by suggesting the possibility of them living in the midst of them.
The verse continues, “and how shall we make a league with you?” Joshua or the writer added the words, “and how shall we” which means “and in what way will we, the men of Israel” “make a league with you” or “cut and cause an alliance, treaty, pledge and covenant with you, the Hivites”? Joshua or the writer shared how the men of Israel questioned the “Hivites” as to what way they could cause a “treaty or covenant” to be established with them.
When we think through the words in this verse, we learn how the “men of Israel” began to reason with the “Hivites” as they surmised that they could live in their midst. They wondered how they could form a “covenant” with the “Hivites”, and we shall discover their solution in our next verses. Once again, the people of Israel did not pray and seek God’s face for this situation. God wants us to appeal to Him for every situation in our lives, and when we receive His Son Jesus who was crucified on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised from the dead after three days as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us to guide us into all truth and help us to remember to call upon Him in every situation and circumstance we encounter.
Next time we learn how the men of Gibeon, “said unto Joshua, We are your servants”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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