In the book of Joshua, we learned how Joshua said to the people of Israel, “if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were 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. And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods”, and in chapter twenty-four and verse seventeen of Joshua, the people of Israel said, “the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt”, where we read,
For the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed:
The verse reads, “For the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, …” Joshua or the writer began with the words, “for the LORD our God” which means “because, since and on account that Jehovah who is the existing One and the proper name for the One True God our, the people of Israel’s, Supreme Deity”, “he it is that brought us up” or “he, Jehovah God, exists as the one who withdrew, carried and caused us, the people of Israel, to ascend” “and our fathers” which means “and our, the people of Israel’s, male progenitors and ancestors” “out of the land of Egypt” or “from the territory, region, district and country belonging to Egypt whose name means land of the Copts and was a country at the northeastern section of Africa, adjacent to Palestine, and through which the Nile flows”, “from the house of bondage” which means “separate and apart from the dwelling place and habitation pertaining to servanthood and slavery”. Joshua or the writer shared how the people of Israel declared that their Supreme Deity Jehovah God led them and their forefathers from the country of “Egypt” where they lived as slaves.
The verse goes on to say, “… and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed:” Joshua or the writer continued with the words, “and which did those great signs” which means “and who performed and produced the large, intense, important and distinguished miracles and tokens” “in our sight” or “within our, the people of Israel’s, physical eyes for appearance and vision”, “and preserved us” which means “and kept, guarded, protected and saved us, the people of Israel” “in all the way wherein we went” or “in each, the whole and everywhere in which we, the people of Israel, walked, proceeded, departed and moved”, “and among all the people” which means “and in the midst and middle of each, every, the whole and everyone of the human beings” “through whom we passed” or “in and out of the people that we, the people of Israel, crossed, marched over and traveled”. Joshua or the writer shared how the people of Israel acknowledged that Jehovah God performed mighty miracles and watched over them as they traveled among different people groups.
When we meditate upon the words in this verse, we see how the people of Israel acknowledged that Jehovah God lead them and their forefathers out of slavery in “Egypt”, and He performed powerful miracles that they observed. He watched over them as they traveled and was with them whenever they crossed the paths of other people. In other words, God cared for the people of Israel. God loves the people of Israel, and because they were to be the nation through whom all the world could be saved, (See Genesis 12:3; 22:18) God guarded and preserved them. He sent His Son Jesus through the people of Israel into the world to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind and raised Him from the dead after three days so when we put our faith and trust in Him as our “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and give us His Holy Spirit who will guide us into all truth and empower us to live according to that truth as we make our way through this world. (See John 3:16; 16:13; Acts 1:8)
Next time Joshua shares how the people of Israel say, “the LORD drove out from before us all the people”, 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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