March 6th, 2013
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

Encouraged and Renewed

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Opening Prayer

Loving Father, stir my heart to obedience today, and let me sing Your praise as I come to You now.

Read Joshua 8:1-17

[1] Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai. For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. [2] You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the city.” [3] So Joshua and the whole army moved out to attack Ai. He chose thirty thousand of his best fighting men and sent them out at night [4] with these orders: “Listen carefully. You are to set an ambush behind the city. Don’t go very far from it. All of you be on the alert. [5] I and all those with me will advance on the city, and when the men come out against us, as they did before, we will flee from them. [6] They will pursue us until we have lured them away from the city, for they will say, ‘They are running away from us as they did before.’ So when we flee from them, [7] you are to rise up from ambush and take the city. The LORD your God will give it into your hand. [8] When you have taken the city, set it on fire. Do what the LORD has commanded. See to it; you have my orders.” [9] Then Joshua sent them off, and they went to the place of ambush and lay in wait between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai-but Joshua spent that night with the people. [10] Early the next morning Joshua mustered his army, and he and the leaders of Israel marched before them to Ai. [11] The entire force that was with him marched up and approached the city and arrived in front of it. They set up camp north of Ai, with the valley between them and the city. [12] Joshua had taken about five thousand men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. [13] So the soldiers took up their positions-with the main camp to the north of the city and the ambush to the west of it. That night Joshua went into the valley. [14] When the king of Ai saw this, he and all the men of the city hurried out early in the morning to meet Israel in battle at a certain place overlooking the Arabah. But he did not know that an ambush had been set against him behind the city. [15] Joshua and all Israel let themselves be driven back before them, and they fled toward the wilderness. [16] All the men of Ai were called to pursue them, and they pursued Joshua and were lured away from the city. [17] Not a man remained in Ai or Bethel who did not go after Israel. They left the city open and went in pursuit of Israel.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Meditate

“Drop thy still dews of quietness, / Till all our strivings cease; / Take from our souls the strain and stress, / And let our ordered lives confess / The beauty of thy peace” (John Whittier, 1807-92).

Think Further

Israel’s covenant relationship with God has been repaired and now its calling to possess the land can continue. This time, however, the ban on keeping the booty is lifted. If this seems unfair to Achan, the answer is that our calling is to obey God in each situation and not make comparisons. The root cause of Israel’s failure has been removed. The people must have been asking, “Who can stand in the presence of God’s judgment?” Now the Father heart of God knew his people needed encouragement. Sensitivity and flexibility, as well as consistency, are part of the art of good fathering. 

Joshua’s hard disciplinary action would have taken its toll on him. Now he needed loving care before he could continue his leadership role. The challenge not to be afraid or discouraged (1) comes in nine other places in the Scriptures and it needed to be heard by the leaders before they could speak it to their people (Deut. 1:21; 31:8; Josh. 1:9; 10:25; 1 Chron. 22:13; 28:20; 2 Chron. 20:15, 17; 32:7). We need to take heed to this repetition in our own lives and in any leadership role we have. The Royal Navy has a frequently quoted regulation which says, “No officer shall speak discouragingly to another officer in the discharge of his duties.” The Bible goes beyond this negative prohibition and gives us a positive command, but we can only give encouragement in difficult circumstances if we are first recipients of that gift from God.

God now gives Joshua clear instructions on how to capture Ai. It would be no pushover and would require the involvement of the whole army, but with God’s guidance victory would be assured.

Apply

Who has given you encouragement? Thank them. Who can you encourage? Do it. Don’t delay in this God-given ministry.

Closing prayer

Lord, I pray for those who see this day before them and are discouraged. Lead them to Your unfailing strength.

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