Commuter Bible

If you’ve been a follower of Jesus for a while, chances are that you’ve heard many of today’s accounts before. Jesus cleanses the leper, calms the sea, casts demons out of people, and commissions His disciples to do the same. As you listen to today’s reading, don’t let familiarity keep you from contemplating how absolutely mind-boggling all of this would have been to those who witnessed it. How could anyone make sense of it? Such strong displays of power can only be done by One who is the Son of God.

Just as Moses did before Him, Jesus ascends a mountaintop in order to deliver a Word from God to those who were following Him. Unlike Moses, Jesus doesn’t need to wait for an authoritative teaching, for He Himself is the authority: Immanuel, God with us. As He begins His teaching, He assures the crowd that His words are not an alteration of God’s established commands; rather, Jesus came to fulfill the Law. And make no mistake: the words Jesus spoke would have been just as shocking to His audience then as they are to our modern sensibilities today. May we learn to trust and obey Him anew as we hear His words today.

The gospel of Matthew was written with a Jewish audience in mind, pointing frequently to the Old Testament to show how Christ was God’s promised Messiah and the fulfillment of the Law. Matthew looks back upon some 60 Hebrew prophecies throughout his text. Not only is He the long-awaited King, He is also the new Abraham, that is, the head of the new spiritual Israel comprised of all who follow Him. If that weren’t enough, Matthew also shows that Jesus is the new Moses; He is the greater prophet, teacher, and deliverer born among Israel’s brothers who gives perfect instruction from God.

The clans and families of Israel are settling in their lands and beginning to find rest when a report spreads across the lands that the tribes on the other side of the Jordan are rebelling against God. They ready themselves for war, knowing that God is a jealous God. Today’s reading ends with the burial of three leaders: Joshua, who experienced the exodus as well as the conquering of the Promised Land; Eleazar, the successor to Aaron in the priesthood; and finally, the bones of Joseph who had died in Egypt. It marks the end of an era and a shift in the tide of Israel’s history.

Now that the majority of the Promised Land has been conquered, the land is being divided by lot and by size according to the number of people in each tribe. Today’s reading is the last section of text detailing the division of the land, and as mentioned in the last episode, consider the excitement and the joy that Israel experienced as each family learned where they would live and work and thrive for generations to come. While the descriptions may seem abstract to us, they were concrete and tangible for Israel. Today’s reading ends with a joyful conclusion, so make sure to pay attention.

The work of conquering the Promised Land, in large part, has come to a close. Now it’s time to divide the land between the clans of Israel as Moses had instructed. To our modern ears, much of what we’ll hear today may not seem important or relevant. Try to imagine, however, if you and your family had been given large sums of real estate by the work of God’s mighty hand. Wouldn’t you find it important that the details about property lines be recorded for you and for future generations?

One coalition of nations has been defeated, but now another set of kings has set their sites on extinguishing Israel. The northern cities and their kings will soon be defeated, included those men called Anakim. These men were much larger than Israel, and it was the Anakim whom the original party of spies feared so much, saying they felt like grasshoppers in their presence. Now, Israel returns with a new generation led by none other than Joshua and Caleb, the Lord’s faithful spies who are the only men left of the former generation.

In our last episode, Israel had successfully crossed the Jordan on dry ground and defeated the walled city of Jericho, not by their own strength, but by the strength of God’s mighty hand over His Creation. God had instructed that all of Jericho be set apart to the Lord for destruction, with specific instruction not to take anything or else that man would also be set apart destruction. One man selfishly rejects this command, which leads to a heartbreaking defeat and a difficult task for Joshua.

It’s a children’s Sunday school classic that when taught, often emphasizes that we should faithfully obey the Lord. While this is certainly true, it would be a shame to neglect reflection on the power of God over His creation and created order. Not only does God mound up the Jordan River in a heap so that Israel can cross, He destroys the walls of Jericho without a single blow from the army of Israel. We see this as God executing righteous judgment, for as you may recall from Deuteronomy, the Lord is bringing Israel into the land, not because of Israel’s righteousness, but because of the wickedness of the nations inhabiting the land.

Moses has died, leaving Israel with a legacy of faithfulness, the Law of God, and a new leader. Before his death, Moses laid his hands on Joshua, his assistant, and the Lord blessed Him as Israel’s next leader. You may recall that Joshua has seen the land already, as Moses sent him with other men to spy out the land, and that he and Caleb were the only two spies who trusted in the Lord to deliver them through battle. This same Joshua is now in charge and begins to ready Israel to cross over the Jordan.