But the LORD said to Joshua, "Stand up! Why have you fallen on your face? But the LORD said to JoshuaThis phrase indicates direct communication from God to Joshua, emphasizing the personal relationship and leadership role Joshua holds. In the context of the Old Testament, God often spoke directly to leaders like Moses and Joshua, guiding them in their leadership of Israel. This direct communication underscores Joshua's role as Moses' successor and God's chosen leader for Israel. It also reflects the covenant relationship between God and Israel, where God actively guides and corrects His people. Stand up!
The command to "Stand up!" is both literal and metaphorical. Literally, Joshua is being told to rise from his position of prostration, a common posture for prayer and supplication in ancient Near Eastern cultures. Metaphorically, it signifies a call to action and responsibility. Joshua's leadership is being reaffirmed, and he is being instructed to address the issue at hand rather than remain in a state of despair or confusion. This command can be seen as a call to faith and obedience, reminiscent of God's earlier commands to Joshua to be strong and courageous (Joshua 1:6-9). Why have you fallen on your face?
This question highlights God's awareness of Joshua's distress and the situation's gravity. Falling on one's face was a sign of deep humility, repentance, or desperation. In the context of Joshua 7, this posture reflects Joshua's response to Israel's defeat at Ai, which was unexpected and demoralizing. The question implies that Joshua's response, while understandable, is not the solution to the problem. It suggests that there is a need for introspection and action rather than mere lamentation. This moment is pivotal, as it leads to the revelation of Achan's sin, which had brought about the defeat. The question also serves as a reminder of the need for holiness and obedience to God's commands, as seen in the broader narrative of Israel's conquest of Canaan. Persons / Places / Events 1. The LORDThe covenant God of Israel, who communicates directly with Joshua, guiding and instructing him. 2. JoshuaThe leader of Israel, successor to Moses, who is responsible for leading the Israelites into the Promised Land. 3. IsraelitesThe people of God, who are in the process of conquering the land of Canaan. 4. AchanAlthough not mentioned in this specific verse, he is the individual whose sin led to Israel's defeat at Ai, which is the context of this passage. 5. AiA city in Canaan where the Israelites faced an unexpected defeat due to disobedience within their camp. Teaching Points The Importance of ObedienceDisobedience to God's commands can have serious consequences, not just for individuals but for the entire community. Leadership AccountabilityLeaders are called to seek God's guidance and address issues within their community, as Joshua is instructed to do. God's Direct CommunicationGod speaks to His people, providing direction and correction when needed. We must be attentive to His voice. Repentance and RestorationWhen sin is present, it must be addressed through repentance to restore right standing with God. Courage in CorrectionIt takes courage to confront sin and make necessary changes, but it is essential for spiritual health and victory. Bible Study Questions 1. What does Joshua's response to the defeat at Ai teach us about handling setbacks in our own lives? 2. How can we ensure that we are listening to God's voice and not just reacting to circumstances? 3. In what ways can hidden sin affect not only individuals but also the larger community or church? 4. How does the account of Achan and the defeat at Ai illustrate the principle found in 1 John 1:9 about confession and forgiveness? 5. What steps can we take to be courageous leaders who address sin and seek God's guidance in our communities? Connections to Other Scriptures Deuteronomy 31:7-8Joshua is encouraged to be strong and courageous, a reminder of his leadership role and God's presence with him. 1 Samuel 15:22-23The importance of obedience over sacrifice, highlighting the consequences of disobedience to God's commands. Psalm 51:17The value of a contrite heart, which contrasts with the hidden sin in Israel's camp. Hebrews 12:1-2The call to lay aside every weight and sin, paralleling the need for Israel to address sin in their midst. 1 John 1:9The promise of forgiveness and cleansing when we confess our sins, relevant to the need for Israel to repent and be restored. People Achan, Amorites, Canaanites, Carmi, Israelites, Joshua, Zabdi, Zarhites, Zerah, Zerahites, ZimriPlaces Ai, Beth-aven, Bethel, Jericho, Jordan River, Shebarim, Shinar, Valley of AchorTopics Arise, Face, Fallen, Falling, Joshua, Liest, Rise, Stand, Thus, WhereforeDictionary of Bible Themes Joshua 7:10 5884 indecision Joshua 7:1-16 6024 sin, effects of Joshua 7:1-26 6173 guilt, and God
8479 self-examination, examples Joshua 7:10-12 8715 dishonesty, and God Joshua 7:10-13 8223 dedication Library Achan's Sin, Israel's Defeat
'But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the Lord was kindled against the children of Israel. 2. And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Beth-aven, on the east side of Beth-ei, and spake unto them, saying, Go up and view the country. And the men went up and viewed Ai. 3. And they returned to Joshua, and said unto him, Let …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureWhether one Can, Without a Mortal Sin, Deny the Truth which Would Lead to One's Condemnation?
Objection 1: It would seem one can, without a mortal sin, deny the truth which would lead to one's condemnation. For Chrysostom says (Hom. xxxi super Ep. ad Heb.): "I do not say that you should lay bare your guilt publicly, nor accuse yourself before others." Now if the accused were to confess the truth in court, he would lay bare his guilt and be his own accuser. Therefore he is not bound to tell the truth: and so he does not sin mortally if he tell a lie in court. Objection 2: Further, just as …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica Contention Over the Man Born Blind.
(Jerusalem.) ^D John IX. 1-41. [Some look upon the events in this and the next section as occurring at the Feast of Tabernacles in October, others think they occurred at the Feast of Dedication in December, deriving their point of time from John x. 22.] ^d 1 And as he passed by, he saw a man blind from his birth. [The man probably sought to waken compassion by repeatedly stating this fact to passers-by.] 2 And his disciples asked him, saying, Rabbi, who sinned, this man, or his parents, that he should …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel The Eighth Commandment
Thou shalt not steal.' Exod 20: 15. AS the holiness of God sets him against uncleanness, in the command Thou shalt not commit adultery;' so the justice of God sets him against rapine and robbery, in the command, Thou shalt not steal.' The thing forbidden in this commandment, is meddling with another man's property. The civil lawyers define furtum, stealth or theft to be the laying hands unjustly on that which is another's;' the invading another's right. I. The causes of theft. [1] The internal causes …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments Confession of Sin --A Sermon with Seven Texts
The Hardened Sinner. PHARAOH--"I have sinned."--Exodus 9:27. I. The first case I shall bring before you is that of the HARDENED SINNER, who, when under terror, says, "I have sinned." And you will find the text in the book of Exodus, the 9th chap. and 27th verse: "And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the Lord is righteous, and I and my people are wicked." But why this confession from the lips of the haughty tyrant? He was not often wont to …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 3: 1857 Restraining Prayer: is it Sin?
"Thou restrainest prayer before God."--JOB xv. 4. "What profit should we have, if we pray unto Him?"--JOB xxi. 15. "God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you."--1 SAM. xii. 23. "Neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you."--JOSH. vii. 12. Any deep quickening of the spiritual life of the Church will always be accompanied by a deeper sense of sin. This will not begin with theology; that can only give expression to what God works …
Andrew Murray—The Ministry of Intercession The Practice of Piety in Glorifying God in the Time of Sickness, and when Thou Art Called to Die in the Lord.
As soon as thou perceivest thyself to be visited with any sickness, meditate with thyself: 1. That "misery cometh not forth of the dust; neither doth affliction spring out of the earth." Sickness comes not by hap or chance (as the Philistines supposed that their mice and emrods came, 1 Sam. vi. 9), but from man's wickedness, which, as sparkles, breaketh out. "Man suffereth," saith Jeremiah, "for his sins." "Fools," saith David, "by reason of their transgressions, and because of their iniquities, …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety Exposition of the Moral Law.
1. The Law was committed to writing, in order that it might teach more fully and perfectly that knowledge, both of God and of ourselves, which the law of nature teaches meagrely and obscurely. Proof of this, from an enumeration of the principal parts of the Moral Law; and also from the dictate of natural law, written on the hearts of all, and, in a manner, effaced by sin. 2. Certain general maxims. 1. From the knowledge of God, furnished by the Law, we learn that God is our Father and Ruler. Righteousness …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion Of a Private Fast.
That we may rightly perform a private fast, four things are to be observed:--First, The author; Secondly, The time and occasion; Thirdly, The manner; Fourthly, The ends of private fasting. 1. Of the Author. The first that ordained fasting was God himself in paradise; and it was the first law that God made, in commanding Adam to abstain from eating the forbidden fruit. God would not pronounce nor write his law without fasting (Lev. xxiii), and in his law commands all his people to fast. So does our …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety The Knowledge of God
'The Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.' I Sam 2:2. Glorious things are spoken of God; he transcends our thoughts, and the praises of angels. God's glory lies chiefly in his attributes, which are the several beams by which the divine nature shines forth. Among other of his orient excellencies, this is not the least, The Lord is a God of knowledge; or as the Hebrew word is, A God of knowledges.' Through the bright mirror of his own essence, he has a full idea and cognisance …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity Beth-El. Beth-Aven.
Josephus thus describes the land of Benjamin; "The Benjamites' portion of land was from the river Jordan to the sea, in length: in breadth, it was bounded by Jerusalem and Beth-el." Let these last words be marked, "The breadth of the land of Benjamin was bounded by Jerusalem and Beth-el." May we not justly conclude, from these words, that Jerusalem and Beth-el were opposite, as it were, in a right line? But if you look upon the maps, there are some that separate these by a very large tract of land, …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica The Covenant of Works
Q-12: I proceed to the next question, WHAT SPECIAL ACT OF PROVIDENCE DID GOD EXERCISE TOWARDS MAN IN THE ESTATE WHEREIN HE WAS CREATED? A: When God had created man, he entered into a covenant of life with him upon condition of perfect obedience, forbidding him to eat of the tree of knowledge upon pain of death. For this, consult with Gen 2:16, 17: And the Lord commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity The Holiness of God
The next attribute is God's holiness. Exod 15:51. Glorious in holiness.' Holiness is the most sparkling jewel of his crown; it is the name by which God is known. Psa 111:1. Holy and reverend is his name.' He is the holy One.' Job 6:60. Seraphims cry, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory.' Isa 6:6. His power makes him mighty, his holiness makes him glorious. God's holiness consists in his perfect love of righteousness, and abhorrence of evil. Of purer eyes than …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity Second Great Group of Parables.
(Probably in Peræa.) Subdivision F. Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. ^C Luke XVI. 19-31. [The parable we are about to study is a direct advance upon the thoughts in the previous section. We may say generally that if the parable of the unjust steward teaches how riches are to be used, this parable sets forth the terrible consequences of a failure to so use them. Each point of the previous discourse is covered in detail, as will be shown by the references in the discussion of the parable.] …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Joshua
The book of Joshua is the natural complement of the Pentateuch. Moses is dead, but the people are on the verge of the promised land, and the story of early Israel would be incomplete, did it not record the conquest of that land and her establishment upon it. The divine purpose moves restlessly on, until it is accomplished; so "after the death of Moses, Jehovah spake to Joshua," i. 1. The book falls naturally into three divisions: (a) the conquest of Canaan (i.-xii.), (b) the settlement of the …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Joshua 7:10 NIVJoshua 7:10 NLTJoshua 7:10 ESVJoshua 7:10 NASBJoshua 7:10 KJV
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