Judges 20:23
“(And the children of Israel went up and wept before the LORD
until even, 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 children of Benjamin and the rest of the tribes of Israel were
in a civil war because of a heinous crime that had been committed in
Benjamin’s borders which had not been addressed. The rest of the tribes
of Israel thought Benjamin should have addressed this crime, but
Benjamin was not going to do anything about it. This resulted in a civil
war.
Joshua 20:3
“That the slayer that killeth any person unawares and
unwittingly may flee thither: and they shall be your refuge from the
avenger of blood.”
When God established Israel’s infrastructure, He commanded Joshua that cities of refuge be established for the person who kills “any person unawares and unwittingly.” This city was their refuge from the “avenger of blood.” It was the place where they could go and get a just trial to show their innocence from intentionally killing an individual.
Joshua 10:14
“And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the
LORD hearkened unto the voice of a man: for the LORD fought for
Israel.”
The day in the verse above was an amazing day. Joshua and Israel
were in pursuit of the five kings of the Amorites. As the day
progressed, they had not captured all of the kings, but the battle was
going well for God’s people. As the day began to come to an end, Joshua
realized the need for more time to fight this battle. Realizing this
need, he asked God to cause the sun to stand still until they won the
battle. So the sun stood still at Joshua’s request, and Israel won a
great battle.
Joshua 1:5
“There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”
One of the most daunting tasks that you will read about in the Scriptures is when Joshua took the reins of leadership after Moses died.
Deuteronomy 28:47
“Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;”
Have you ever been to a restaurant where the service was great but the attitude of the servers was terrible?
Deuteronomy 17:17
“Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.”
One of the common messages directed towards wives is for them to submit to their husband. Of course, this is not always taken with a good attitude, especially in a world that preaches that women have a right to do with their bodies what they want to do. However, there is a bigger reason that God gave this command.
Deuteronomy 11:19
“And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”
When God gives a child to a couple, they acquire a duty to teach them in the ways of the LORD. One of the greatest mindsets that a parent must acquire if they are going to turn their children out for the LORD is that the child does not belong to them, but the child belongs to God.
Deuteronomy 1:33
“Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day.”
An interesting statement is made about God’s guidance of Israel in the verse above.
Numbers 33:1
“These are the journeys of the children of Israel, which went
forth out of the land of Egypt with their armies under the hand of Moses
and Aaron.”
I was reading the journeyings of the children of Israel, when the
Holy Spirit reminded me of an important truth. I was reminded of Exodus
13:21-22 which says, “And the LORD went before them by day in a
pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of
fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: He took not away the
pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before
the people.”
What is so important to remember about these verses in Exodus is
that everywhere Israel’s journeys were recorded in Numbers, it was God
Who led them there. In other words, when they went to the bitter waters
of Marah, God was still there, and He led them there.
Numbers 27:17
“Which may go out before them, and which may go in before them,
and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the
congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.”
The verse above is the first verse of Moses’ response to God
telling him that he was about ready to take him to Heaven. Moses was
like any leader who had invested his life in people; he wanted to be
sure that there was someone who led the people after he was gone. It
wasn't that Moses doubted God’s ability to give them a leader, it was
just that he loved those people and wanted to be sure they had someone
to lead them down the right path.