Joshua 10 | Psalms 142–143 | Jeremiah 4 | Matthew 18

In Joshua 9, Israel fails to ask God before entering into a covenant with the Gibeonites. This is a serious breach in their obedience to Yahweh’s commandments, and in today’s reading, we find that Israel’s actions bring severe consequences—but that Yahweh nevertheless redeems Israel’s sin for his own glory.

In the geopolitical landscape of Joshua’s day, Israel does not yet possess the city of Jerusalem. In fact, Adoni-zedek, the king of Jerusalem, identifies Israel as his enemy. When Adoni-zedek discovers that the mighty city of Gibeon had made a covenant with Israel, he fears that his options are running out to protect himself from the Israelites and their God, Yahweh (Josh. 10:1–2).

So, Adoni-zedek forms an alliance with the other major kings of southern Canaan, and those five kings gather their armies together against Gibeon (Josh. 10:3–5). Gibeon immediately sends to Israel, pleading for their assistance in the battle. Now, this was a conflict that Israel had no business involving themselves in, except for the fact that they had sworn a covenant with Gibeon. So, to honor their agreement, Israel marches up against the five Amorite kings through the night (Josh. 10:9).

Through their entire march, Israel had to be wondering whether Yahweh would fight for them when they arrived. They were fulfilling obligations from a sinful, foolish mistake they had made, so would Yahweh protect them? Or would he turn them over to their own strength such that they would have to fight the armies of five kings after a sleepless night of marching?

Mercifully, Yahweh does fight for his people. Yahweh throws the armies of the Amorite kings into a panic, and he sends large hailstones from heaven, killing more of Israel’s enemies than Israel killed with the sword (Josh. 10:10–11). Finally, when the sun starts to set, which would have allowed some of the Amorites to escape, Yahweh keeps the sun up for an entire additional day (Josh. 10:12–14).

But something else comes out of this—since the five largest armies of southern Canaan were destroyed all at once in this single battle, the rest of southern Canaan was wide open for Israel to conquer. So, in Joshua 10:29–43, we read that the Israelites destroyed each defenseless city whose armies had just been defeated: Lachish, Eglon, Hebron, along with a couple other, smaller cities like Gezer and Debir (Josh. 10:29–43).

Yahweh, in other words, used Israel’s sin to expedite the conquering of the Promised Land by defeating all those armies at once because Yahweh is able to use even our sin for his own glory. Obedience is always better, but our God is powerful enough to use our shame and our scars for building the kingdom of Jesus Christ on this earth.

How have you seen God using your sinful past for his own glory?

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 9 | Psalms 140–141 | Jeremiah 3 | Matthew 17

Joshua is one of the high points in all the Bible. While Moses’s ministry was plagued by unbelief and rebellion among the Israelites, and while Israel will sink into idolatry again during the days after Joshua dies in the period of the judges, Israel’s time under the leadership of Joshua is largely characterized by covenantal faithfulness to Yahweh.

But only largely. The main exception is in Joshua 9, when Israel uncharacteristically fails to inquire of Yahweh about the Gibeonites who came seeking to make a treaty with them. And in doing so, Israel pledges to protect the very people whom Yahweh had commanded to be driven out of the Promised Land. From this story, we learn three main lessons.

First, this story underscores our need to seek God in prayer. The Gibeonites had planned out their deception completely, using worn-out sacks, wineskins, sandals, and clothes and bringing dried-out, crumbly food (Josh. 9:3–5) to make it appear as if they had traveled a long distance. While the Israelites were completely fooled by this display, Yahweh was not. If the Israelites had simply asked Yahweh for his guidance, he would have helped them see through the Gibeonites’ lies.

For us, the situation is no different. We are weak, frail, and easily deceived, so that we desperately need God’s own wisdom if we are to follow him faithfully. As John Piper explains, prayer is our wartime walkie-talkie for getting precise battlefield instructions.1

Second, we should not overlook the fact that Rahab, the prostitute from Jericho, had also used deception with the Israelites. But, we should also recognize how dissimilar Rahab’s actions were compared with those of the Gibeonites. She lied to protect Israel’s spies, while the Gibeonites lied to protect themselves. Rahab threw herself at Israel’s mercy, while the Gibeonites manipulated Israel into a covenant. Rahab’s brave actions were motivated by faith, while the Gibeonites’ shameful actions were motivated by fear, as the Gibeonites themselves admit in Joshua 9:24. So, is your life characterized by unreserved trust in God, or are you willing to lie, cheat, and manipulate to protect yourself from whatever it is you fear?

Third, this story teaches us that sin brings consequences, which we will see in tomorrow’s reading from Joshua 10, when the Gibeonites summon Israel to protect them from their enemies. While God can and will forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness through the blood of Jesus Christ, we still may face consequences of our sin. It is wickedness and utter foolishness for us to continue in sin so that grace may abound (Rom. 6:1). Rather, let us ask God for grace not only to forgive our sins but to keep us from sin altogether.

Let us pray the prayer that our Lord taught us to pray: “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matt. 6:13).

1 John Piper, Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist, rev. ed., (Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2011), 177–78.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 8 | Psalm 139 | Jeremiah 2 | Matthew 16

In Joshua 8, two critical events take place. First, Israel goes into battle once more against Ai. Second, Israel renews their covenant with Yahweh on Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim. Both of these stories are important, since in yesterday’s reading Yahweh had threatened to abandon Israel if they did not purge the evil from their midst (Josh. 7:12).

Israel, for their part, did everything in accordance with the word of Yahweh. They devoted to destruction Achan and his family (along with the devoted things that he had stolen) so that Yahweh turned away his wrath from them. Then, they went back in battle, exploiting Ai’s confidence by pretending to flee once again but then rising up in ambush, burning the unguarded city, killing the warriors, and hanging the king of Ai on a tree until sundown (Josh. 8:15–29; cf. Deut. 21:22–23).

Israel’s relationship with Yahweh had been restored, so that Yahweh again fought for his people. But to reestablish their relationship even further, Joshua at that point fulfilled the commandment that Moses had spoken back in Deuteronomy 11:26–32 and again in Deuteronomy 27 by renewing Israel’s covenant with Yahweh on top of Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim.

There, they set up an altar of uncut stones, on which they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings (Josh. 8:30–32; cf. Deut. 27:5–7). Then, they set up large stones and covered them with plaster (cf. Deut. 27:2) in order for Joshua to write out all the words of the law on them. Half of the people stood on Mount Gerizim to represent Yahweh’s covenant blessings, and half stood on Mount Ebal to represent Yahweh’s covenant curses (Deut. 27:12–13), while the ark of the covenant and the Levitical priests stood at the center (Josh. 8:33). Then, the whole law was read in the presence of all Israel, and Israel feasted in the presence of their God (Deut. 27:7).

For us living today in the new covenant, our weekly worship on the Lord’s Day should be a covenant renewal ceremony, not unlike what Israel enjoys here at the end of Joshua 8. As we come each week, we hear Yahweh’s law convict us of our sin. Then, we remind ourselves of the finished work of Jesus Christ who has atoned for all of our sins, hearing the assurance that our heavenly Father has forgiven our sins for the sake of his Son Jesus. After that, we listen to the word of the Lord preached and then we feast with God at the Lord’s Supper.

This week, hear the word of the Lord, seek his forgiveness by faith in the atoning sacrifice of Christ, and eat and drink in his presence. The holy one of Israel will not lay a hand on you for the sake of his Son who died for you.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 7 | Psalms 137–138 | Jeremiah 1 | Matthew 15

I’ve never forgotten a short rhyme one of my Sunday School teachers taught us during my elementary years: “Achan stole the bacon.” It’s a silly phrase, but that light-hearted line is perfect to help children remember basic biblical content. I would not be the man I am today without those foundational building blocks that my Sunday School teachers worked hard to put in place.

So if any of my many former Sunday School teachers and youth leaders are reading this, please accept my great gratitude for your tireless work over the years. And to those of you who labor weekly to teach children now, be encouraged to know that your lessons, rhymes, songs, and handouts really do have an eternal impact in the kingdom of Jesus Christ.

But even though I have heard this story several times before, I was struck on this last reading by the strong language Yahweh speaks against Israel in Joshua 7, as though I had never read it before: “Therefore the people of Israel cannot stand before their enemies. They turn their backs before their enemies, because they have become devoted for destruction. I will be with you no more, unless you destroy the devoted things from among you” (Josh. 7:12). Two phrases in this statement are brutal in their severity.

First, Yahweh declares that Israel has become “devoted for destruction.” This was a phrase that meant far more than even killing every person in the nation. To devote to destruction meant to kill every living thing (as Jericho was devoted to destruction in Joshua 6:21), but also to raze the city to the ground (again, along the lines of how Joshua placed a curse on the one who rebuilds Jericho in Joshua 6:26). Because of Achan’s sin, now Israel had been devoted to destruction in this way.

Second, Yahweh threatens that “I will be with you no more.” This isn’t the first time that Yahweh has stated that he would not go along with Israel into the Promised Land—this also happened after Israel worshiped the golden calf (Ex. 33:2–3), and only through the intercession of the covenant mediator Moses did Yahweh relent and remain in the presence of Israel. Here, though, the solution is simple: destroy the devoted things from among you.

So Achan was devoted to destruction, and as Israel’s wrath fell on Achan, we read that “Then the LORD turned from his burning anger” (Josh. 7:26). From this story, we learn two things: (1) our sin requires the full wrath of God as judgment, and (2) until someone pays that penalty, Yahweh cannot turn away from his burning anger toward us.

But this story also raises a question: What kind of covenant mediator would it take to remove God’s judgment from all who are guilty so that we will not be devoted to destruction ourselves as Achan was?

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 6 | Psalms 135–136 | Isaiah 66 | Matthew 14

At the end of Joshua 5, Joshua meets a mysterious man with a drawn sword. The fact that Joshua meets him near Jericho (Josh. 5:13) both suggests that Joshua had been spying on the city and also explains why Joshua would tensely ask the man to identify whether he was for Israel or for Israel’s adversaries. The mysterious man flatly denies the idea that he is a mere soldier fighting for one side or the other. Instead, he explains that his role is far greater than that: “No; but I am the commander of the army of the LORD. Now I have come” (Josh. 5:14).

Who might this be? We know that Joshua is speaking to God himself because Joshua falls down in worship (Josh. 5:14) and because the commander demands that Joshua remove his sandals, just as Yahweh had demanded of Moses when he appeared in the burning bush (Ex. 3:5). Yet, this figure (who is himself Yahweh) calls himself the commander of the army of Yahweh, rather than simply stating that he is Yahweh.

The text doesn’t tell us explicitly who this is, but there is little doubt that Joshua is talking to a pre-incarnate manifestation of Jesus—in theological vocabulary, a “theophany.” Many centuries before Jesus would be born to Mary in a stable in Bethlehem, he is here, leading the armies of Yahweh into battle on behalf of Joshua and all Israel.

The battle plan that Yahweh gives in Joshua 6:1–5 is quite strange. Jesus commands Israel to march around the city of Jericho for six days in silence, and then to march around the city seven times on the seventh day, with the priests blowing the trumpets and the people shouting until the walls fall down. Or, perhaps a better word than “strange” to describe this battle plan would be “passive.” Israel does nothing other than trust Yahweh to fight for them.

In fact, Yahweh does exactly that. The priests carry the ark of Yahweh to march around the city for six days, and on the seventh day, Yahweh gives the city to Israel, saving only Rahab and her family with her (Josh. 6:16–17). This is the battle plan that Yahweh gave Israel as he led them out of Egypt, as they marched through enemy territory in the wilderness, and as they enter the Promised Land to claim their inheritance. Israel’s specific tactics will change, but it is Yahweh who will win the battle.

And still today, this is the battle plan that God gives for us, but with one small twist. We know that Yahweh eventually did become human, in order to fight for us. We have only to be silent, believing in Jesus’ victory over sin, death, and the devil, and moving forward to claim the inheritance that we have in Christ (Eph. 1:11–14).

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 5 | Psalms 132, 133 & 134 | Isaiah 65 | Matthew 13

Before Yahweh takes Israel into the land of Canaan to receive the inheritance he had promised to them for generations through their forefather Abraham, he requires that all the men be circumcised. This is the first time we learn that the generation born in the wilderness had not been circumcised, and the story raises several red flags.

At a strategic level, circumcising all the men at the same time was a tactical nightmare. In Genesis 34, we read the story about how the sons of Jacob tricked the Hivites into circumcising all their men on the pretense of allowing one of their men, Shechem, to marry their sister Dinah, whom Shechem had raped and humiliated. Then, while the men were still sore, Simeon and Levi slaughtered every man in the city.

Here in Joshua 5, Israel is in an absolutely vulnerable position, without any city walls to protect them and where all the kings of Canaan were desperate to find an advantage to take against them (Josh. 5:1). We should also remember that the land of Canaan is the home of the Hivites (Josh. 3:10), who after all those years would have loved to take revenge for the massacre perpetrated by Simeon and Levi.

But more significantly, what are we to make of the fact that Israelites have not been circumcised for the last forty years? The only explanation we get is in Joshua 5:6, where we read that this suspension of circumcision came because the Israelites “did not obey the voice of the LORD; the LORD swore to them that he would not let them see the land that the LORD had sworn to their fathers to give to us, a land flowing with milk and honey.” Clearly, this is a reference to Numbers 14, when ten of the twelve spies returned from the Promised Land to give a bad report of the nation, not trusting that Yahweh would protect and defend them as they entered the land.

Circumcision was a critical sign of Yahweh’s covenant with Israel, stretching all the way back to Genesis 17, since circumcision pointed beyond itself to the covenantal relationship that Yahweh had formed with Israel. Somehow, this “everlasting covenant” (Gen. 17:7) had been suspended for forty years. The Israelites who came out of Egypt but disbelieved Yahweh were not allowed to enter into the Promised Land and died in the wilderness.

Despite the fact that Israel had shattered their covenant with Yahweh for forty years, Yahweh nevertheless rolls back their reproach (Josh. 5:9) to consecrate them for taking possession of their inheritance.

And hundreds of years after this story, another Israelite would make himself vulnerable, exposing himself to great danger and torment in order to roll away the reproach from God’s people forever, and giving them a triumphant spiritual circumcision made without hands (Col. 2:11). Brothers and sisters, arise and claim your inheritance.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 4 | Psalms 129, 130 & 131 | Isaiah 64 | Matthew 12

The story of how Israel crossed the Jordan in Joshua is more important than simply a record of the route they took to enter the Promised Land. Rather, this event marks a decisive turning point in God’s history of saving his people and bringing them into their inheritance.

The first main part of this story surrounds the twelve stones, representing the twelve tribes of Israel, that Israel collected out of the riverbed of the Jordan to build a memorial of the event (Josh. 4:3). Crossing the Jordan was too important to slip into history forgotten—too important for Israel to forget and too important even for us living and reading the story today to forget. As a result, we have an entire chapter here drawing our attention to the fact that Yahweh commanded Israel to build a monument to the event on the far side of the banks of the Jordan.

Additionally, it’s important to recognize that these stones were more than a mere historical marker—and especially, this wasn’t supposed to become a tourist trap with historical reenactments, guided tours, and cheap souvenirs. Instead, Joshua explains that these stones would serve as a sign among Israel (Josh. 4:6). God gave signs to bear witness to some important truth. God establishes the rainbow (Gen. 9:12–13, 17), circumcision (Gen. 17:11), the plagues against Egypt (Ex. 7:3, 8:23, 10:1–2, etc.), the blood of the Passover lamb (Ex. 12:13), and the Sabbath (Ex. 31:13), along with a few other signs that God gave for specific situations.

By providing a sign, God gave a physical symbol that points to significance beyond itself. So, just as a stop sign, by instructing you to stop your car before continuing, points beyond itself to city statutes, the authority of the government, and even to the societal desire for safety, so the biblical signs are symbols that point to Yahweh, his covenant, his law, and his love for his people.

What is the significance of this particular sign of the stone memorial, then? In verse 24, we learn that the sign is twofold: “so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.” On the one hand, Yahweh is bringing great fear and dread upon the people of the Promised Land, just as Rahab described in Joshua 2:9–11. On the other hand, this memorial is also for Israel, to help them to fear Yahweh their God forever. Our God is gracious to give us physical, tangible signs that reinforce the promises that he makes to us in his word.

In the New Testament, God gives us the signs of baptism and the Lord’s Supper to testify to the promises he makes in the gospel. What role should they play in our lives and our discipleship?

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 3 | Psalms 126, 127 & 128 | Isaiah 63 | Matthew 11

Perhaps the chief difficulty of the Christian life is that we are not always given clear directions about where to go, and even when we know what we are supposed to do, it is not always clear what the consequences will be if we obey. The situation was the same for the Israelites in Joshua 3, where the reward of the Promised Land stood before them, but the risks also loomed large.

First, Israel needs to know where they should go, since they “have not passed this way before” (Josh. 3:4). Joshua recognizes this, so he sends officers through the camp of Israel, instructing them to follow the ark of the covenant. The people were not to come near to the ark of the covenant, but they were to look to the ark for guidance as they entered into the Promised Land.

By commanding Israel to follow the ark of the covenant, Joshua was teaching his people something significant. The ark of the covenant represented Yahweh’s presence on the earth. It was where Israel kept the Ten Commandments (God’s written covenant with his people), and it was the place where the high priest would sprinkle blood once a year on the Day of Atonement. By this, Joshua was teaching his people that God himself would lead them, according to the terms of his covenant.

Second, Israel needs to know how they should go into the Promised Land. Specifically, they had to learn to walk by faith and not by sight. When Moses parted the Red Sea, he had been the one to trust Yahweh to deliver his people. But now that Moses is gone, that responsibility transfers to the priests. Joshua tells the priests what to do, but it is not until “the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan” (Josh. 3:13) that the waters stop flowing.

While we no longer look to the ark of the covenant to direct our steps, this story reminds us of the centrality of God’s written covenant with us in his word—a covenant inaugurated by the sprinkled blood of Jesus Christ himself. Although Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of his Father rather than physically leading us, we must nevertheless look to him by faith to guide our steps.

But also, we often do not get to see exactly where Jesus is leading us until we actually step out in faith. The priests had to step into the rushing river before God dried it up, and Jesus frequently does not show us how he will provide for us until our feet get wet as they sink into the rushing river. It is at that point that God provides, and often not before.

Where is Jesus asking you to go in obedience to him today?

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 2 | Psalms 123, 124 & 125 | Isaiah 62 | Matthew 10

When Joshua sends two spies into the city of Jericho, the men lodge in the house of Rahab, who was a prostitute (Josh. 2:1), likely in an attempt to stay under the radar of Jericho’s officials. The people of Jericho discover that Israelites have come into their city, but when the king sends a messenger to Rahab, asking her about the location of the spies, she lies to them, telling the king’s officials that they had recently left the city altogether (Josh. 2:3–5). In fact, Rahab had hidden them in stalks of flax on her roof (Josh. 2:6).

Why would this woman turn against her own people and protect the Israelite spies? The answer is simple: she has come to fear Yahweh. The people of Jericho have heard all that Yahweh has done for Israel and a great dread has fallen over them (Josh. 2:8–11). But while this dread could have caused Rahab to betray the spies, she instead chooses to throw her lot in with theirs. She begs, then, that the men would spare the lives of her and her family when the army of Israel comes against Jericho (Josh. 2:12–13).

The spies promise that they will do as she asked, but only on the condition that she hang a scarlet thread outside her window. Just as Yahweh had passed over the Israelite houses with the blood of a lamb smeared on the doorframe, so also Israel would pass over any in the woman’s house when they saw the scarlet thread in her window.

As we will see in Joshua 6, the men of Israel keep their promise to Rahab and her family and spare their lives on the basis of the scarlet thread hanging out of her window—a beautiful picture of how God redeems his people. This story proclaims in advance the fact that King Jesus will one day come again to destroy the wicked from the earth, a fact that should cause dread to fall on the inhabitants of this earth who have rebelled against him. And yet, Jesus provides his own scarlet thread—his shed blood at the cross—so that any who trust in him will be spared from the wrath to come.

But the story doesn’t end there. Because of her faith, Rahab’s story is included in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11:31. And even more than that, Rahab the prostitute married a man named Salmon, the father of Boaz. Boaz married another foreign woman named Ruth, who gave birth to Obed, the father of Jesse. And Jesse was the father of a boy named David, the ancestor (according to the flesh) of our Lord Jesus Christ (Matt. 1:5–6).

The sovereign grace of God can reach, redeem, and commission even the least deserving of sinners—not only Rahab, but also you and me.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Joshua 1 | Psalms 120, 121 & 122 | Isaiah 61 | Matthew 9

In Joshua 1, we see one of the most extreme transitions in the whole Bible—for the first time since Exodus 1, Israel is without Moses. But at the same time, this first chapter carefully connects the leadership of Joshua back to the leadership of Moses, providing a glimpse into the path Joshua will eventually take to complete the work that God began under Moses.

First, Yahweh transfers the mantle of leadership from Moses to Joshua bluntly in Joshua 1:2: “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel.” While Yahweh does not fail to acknowledge that Moses (“my servant”) was special, he doesn’t suggest in the least that losing Moses is going to end the mission. Instead, he tells Joshua exactly what to do to lead Israel into the land of Canaan.

Keep in mind that Israel has been in the wilderness for a full forty years at this point. No one who actually witnessed the signs and wonders that Yahweh had done to bring Israel out of Egypt is alive anymore, aside from Joshua and Caleb (Num. 14:26–38). The people Joshua will lead have known no life other than wandering in the wilderness, but there will be no further delays. Yahweh commands Joshua to lead the people into Canaan immediately.

Second, the watchword for Joshua’s ministry is “Be strong and courageous,” a phrase that occurs four times in this chapter alone (1:6, 7, 9, 18). If you recall, this was the encouragement that Moses had personally spoken to Joshua in Deuteronomy 31:7, and Yahweh used it to commission Joshua at that point Deut. 31:23)—but now is when the burden of leadership will require Joshua to be strong and courageous.

Third, Yahweh tells Joshua explicitly in Joshua 1:7–8 that he must be careful to obey the law of Moses. This is critical because it demonstrates that the law was not just Moses’s pet project or hobby horse; rather, the law was Yahweh’s law, and Yahweh expects his law to continue governing Israel. The fact that Israel has a new leader does not mean that Israel has a new law. Instead, the ministry of Moses would serve as the foundation for the ministry of Joshua.

Fourth, Joshua reaffirms the decision of Moses (Num. 32) to give the Reubenites and the Gadites the land east of the Jordan, provided that they go to war until Israel gains all the land of their inheritance (Josh. 1:10–18).

In Joshua 1, we see God’s relentless, eternal focus. God continues to bury his workmen, while continuing his work—and not only after the death of Moses, but in our lives and churches also until the day that Jesus Christ returns to lead his people forever into their inheritance.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.