In the book of Joshua, we learned how, “there was none of the Anakims left in the land of the children of Israel: only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod, there remained. So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the LORD said unto Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. And the land rested from war”, and in chapter twelve and verse one of Joshua we discover how, “these are the kings of the land, which the children of Israel smote” where we read,
Now these are the kings of the land, which the children of Israel smote, and possessed their land on the other side Jordan toward the rising of the sun, from the river Arnon unto mount Hermon, and all the plain on the east:
The verse reads, “Now these are the kings of the land, which the children of Israel smote, …” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “now these are the kings” which means “the following exist as the royal rulers and leaders” “of the land” or “belonging to the territory, region, district and country”, “which the children of Israel” which means “that the offspring and progeny belonging to Israel whose name means ‘God prevails’ and is the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob” “smote” or “struck, hit, beat and killed”. Joshua or the writer shared how the following is a list of the royal rulers belonging to the territories that the offspring of “Israel” struck and killed.
The verse continues, “and possessed their land on the other side Jordan toward the rising of the sun, from the river Arnon unto mount Hermon, and all the plain on the east.” Joshua or the writer added the words, “and possessed their land” which means “seized, dispossessed and occupied their, the royal rulers’, territory, region, district and country” “on the other side Jordan” or “upon the opposite side of the Jordan whose name means ‘descender’ and was the river of Palestine running from the roots of Anti-Lebanon to the Dead Sea a distance of approximately 200 miles (320 km)” “toward the rising of the sun” which means “in the direction of the sunrise or east”, “from the river Arnon” or “separate and apart from the flowing waters belonging to Arnon whose name means ‘rushing stream’ and was a river and surrounding valley in south Palestine which forms the border between Moab and the Amorites” “unto mount Hermon” which means “to the rising above the plain known as Hermon whose name means ‘a sanctuary’ and was a mountain on the northeastern border of Palestine and Lebanon and overlooking the border city of Dan”, “and all the plain on the east” or “and each, every and the whole desert steppe and wilderness in the eastward direction”. Joshua or the writer shared how the people of “Israel” seized and occupied the territories belonging to the following royal rulers that were on the opposite side of the “Jordan” river where the sun rises and apart from the “Arnon” river, to the rising above the plain known as “Hermon” and every part of the desert wilderness in the eastward direction.
When we think through the words in this verse, we begin to see the “names” of the royal rulers who governed over the territories across the “Jordan” river that Joshua and the people of “Israel”conquered. “Israel’s” expansion was vast in the promise land, and because God gave these territories to them, many royal rulers and their people were exterminated. God is able to defeat any foe, and because He loves Israel and us so much, He sent His Only Begotten Son Jesus into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised Him from the dead after three days. When we yield our lives to Him 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 follow His lead as He conquers all enemies that war against our souls.
Next time we discover the names of the kings who were defeated, 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".
No comments:
Post a Comment