Author: Andrew Timberlake

Psalm 7

A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD concerning the words of Cush, a Benjaminite.

1   O LORD my God, in you do I take refuge;
    save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,
2   lest like a lion they tear my soul apart,
    rending it in pieces, with none to deliver.
3   O LORD my God, if I have done this,
    if there is wrong in my hands,
4   if I have repaid my friend with evil
    or plundered my enemy without cause,
5   let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,
    and let him trample my life to the ground
    and lay my glory in the dust. Selah
6   Arise, O LORD, in your anger;
    lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;
    awake for me; you have appointed a judgment.
7   Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you;
    over it return on high.
8   The LORD judges the peoples;
    judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness
    and according to the integrity that is in me.
9   Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end,
    and may you establish the righteous—
  you who test the minds and hearts,
    O righteous God!
10   My shield is with God,
    who saves the upright in heart.
11   God is a righteous judge,
    and a God who feels indignation every day.
12   If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword;
    he has bent and readied his bow;
13   he has prepared for him his deadly weapons,
    making his arrows fiery shafts.
14   Behold, the wicked man conceives evil
    and is pregnant with mischief
    and gives birth to lies.
15   He makes a pit, digging it out,
    and falls into the hole that he has made.
16   His mischief returns upon his own head,
    and on his own skull his violence descends.
17   I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness,
    and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

The Psalms are great for helping us relate to God and worship Him. It’s wonderful to spend time in the word and grow in your knowledge of God at a head level. Use today to do your quiet time a little differently and try to grow in your knowledge of God at a heart level. We must always strive to move from knowing of God to knowing God.

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake 1

Joshua 9:1-27

1 As soon as all the kings who were beyond the Jordan in the hill country and in the lowland all along the coast of the Great Sea toward Lebanon, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, heard of this, 2 they gathered together as one to fight against Joshua and Israel.

3 But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, 4 they on their part acted with cunning and went and made ready provisions and took worn-out sacks for their donkeys, and wineskins, worn-out and torn and mended, 5 with worn-out, patched sandals on their feet, and worn-out clothes. And all their provisions were dry and crumbly. 6 And they went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant country, so now make a covenant with us.” 7 But the men of Israel said to the Hivites, “Perhaps you live among us; then how can we make a covenant with you?” 8 They said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them, “Who are you? And where do you come from?” 9 They said to him, “From a very distant country your servants have come, because of the name of the LORD your God. For we have heard a report of him, and all that he did in Egypt, 10 and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon the king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, who lived in Ashtaroth. 11 So our elders and all the inhabitants of our country said to us, ‘Take provisions in your hand for the journey and go to meet them and say to them, “We are your servants. Come now, make a covenant with us.”’ 12 Here is our bread. It was still warm when we took it from our houses as our food for the journey on the day we set out to come to you, but now, behold, it is dry and crumbly. 13 These wineskins were new when we filled them, and behold, they have burst. And these garments and sandals of ours are worn out from the very long journey.” 14 So the men took some of their provisions, but did not ask counsel from the LORD. 15 And Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them, to let them live, and the leaders of the congregation swore to them.

16 At the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, they heard that they were their neighbors and that they lived among them. 17 And the people of Israel set out and reached their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim. 18 But the people of Israel did not attack them, because the leaders of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel. Then all the congregation murmured against the leaders. 19 But all the leaders said to all the congregation, “We have sworn to them by the LORD, the God of Israel, and now we may not touch them. 20 This we will do to them: let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath that we swore to them.” 21 And the leaders said to them, “Let them live.” So they became cutters of wood and drawers of water for all the congregation, just as the leaders had said of them.

22 Joshua summoned them, and he said to them, “Why did you deceive us, saying, ‘We are very far from you,’ when you dwell among us? 23 Now therefore you are cursed, and some of you shall never be anything but servants, cutters of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.” 24 They answered Joshua, “Because it was told to your servants for a certainty that the LORD your God had commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you—so we feared greatly for our lives because of you and did this thing. 25 And now, behold, we are in your hand. Whatever seems good and right in your sight to do to us, do it.” 26 So he did this to them and delivered them out of the hand of the people of Israel, and they did not kill them. 27 But Joshua made them that day cutters of wood and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD, to this day, in the place that he should choose.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

Israel’s conquests caused the nations beyond the Jordan to pay attention and they started to form alliances to fight against Joshua and Israel.

The people of Gibeon were cunning and came up with a plan to save themselves without engaging in war with Israel. They took a lot of old and worn out supplies and clothes and saddled their donkeys with old, dry and crumbly food. Then they went to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal and said that they were from a faraway country, had heard of how God had been with them in Egypt and in their conquests before they crossed the Jordan. In maintaining their deceit, they cleverly didn’t include any mention of their conquests of Jericho or Ai because news of those wouldn’t have reached far and wide yet. They asked Joshua and the Israelite leaders to make a covenant with them. Israel was only expected to wipe out the cities of the Canaanite nations and was allowed to make peace with cities that were of a considerable distance from them (Deut 20:10-18; 7:1-2).

Joshua and the leaders made two key mistakes. Firstly they trusted the evidence of the worn-out clothing and supplies without requiring any other proof of where the Gibeonites said they came from. Secondly, and most importantly, they “did not ask council from the LORD” (v. 14). They trusted their word and made a covenant of peace with them. Only three days later they learned that they were their neighbours and should have been wiped out. The people of Israel complained to their leaders but they could do nothing because of their covenant. To go against the covenant, no matter how ill-advised it was, was worse because to go against their oath would bring the wrath of God on Israel. Joshua and the leaders acted with integrity and didn’t go against their oath but they still dealt with the Gibeonite’s dishonesty. Their punishment was that they would forever be slaves in Israel. They were set as woodcutters and water carriers specifically in service of the tabernacle.

It is a mistake to think that any decision is too easy to make without going to the Lord in prayer first. Why do we trust our own intuition in any situation when we rarely have all the facts? Is it not better to always consult God who knows everything and who promises wisdom to all who ask for it (Jas 1:5)?

Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan

The Greatest Command: Deuteronomy 6

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake

Joshua 8:1-35

1 And the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not fear and do not be dismayed. Take all the fighting men with you, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, and his people, his city, and his land. 2 And you shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king. Only its spoil and its livestock you shall take as plunder for yourselves. Lay an ambush against the city, behind it.”

3 So Joshua and all the fighting men arose to go up to Ai. And Joshua chose 30,000 mighty men of valor and sent them out by night. 4 And he commanded them, “Behold, you shall lie in ambush against the city, behind it. Do not go very far from the city, but all of you remain ready. 5 And I and all the people who are with me will approach the city. And when they come out against us just as before, we shall flee before them. 6 And they will come out after us, until we have drawn them away from the city. For they will say, ‘They are fleeing from us, just as before.’ So we will flee before them. 7 Then you shall rise up from the ambush and seize the city, for the LORD your God will give it into your hand. 8 And as soon as you have taken the city, you shall set the city on fire. You shall do according to the word of the LORD. See, I have commanded you.” 9 So Joshua sent them out. And they went to the place of ambush and lay between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai, but Joshua spent that night among the people.

10 Joshua arose early in the morning and mustered the people and went up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai. 11 And all the fighting men who were with him went up and drew near before the city and encamped on the north side of Ai, with a ravine between them and Ai. 12 He took about 5,000 men and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, to the west of the city. 13 So they stationed the forces, the main encampment that was north of the city and its rear guard west of the city. But Joshua spent that night in the valley. 14 And as soon as the king of Ai saw this, he and all his people, the men of the city, hurried and went out early to the appointed place toward the Arabah to meet Israel in battle. But he did not know that there was an ambush against him behind the city. 15 And Joshua and all Israel pretended to be beaten before them and fled in the direction of the wilderness. 16 So all the people who were in the city were called together to pursue them, and as they pursued Joshua they were drawn away from the city. 17 Not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel. They left the city open and pursued Israel.

18 Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Stretch out the javelin that is in your hand toward Ai, for I will give it into your hand.” And Joshua stretched out the javelin that was in his hand toward the city. 19 And the men in the ambush rose quickly out of their place, and as soon as he had stretched out his hand, they ran and entered the city and captured it. And they hurried to set the city on fire. 20 So when the men of Ai looked back, behold, the smoke of the city went up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that, for the people who fled to the wilderness turned back against the pursuers. 21 And when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had captured the city, and that the smoke of the city went up, then they turned back and struck down the men of Ai. 22 And the others came out from the city against them, so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side. And Israel struck them down, until there was left none that survived or escaped. 23 But the king of Ai they took alive, and brought him near to Joshua.

24 When Israel had finished killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the open wilderness where they pursued them, and all of them to the very last had fallen by the edge of the sword, all Israel returned to Ai and struck it down with the edge of the sword. 25 And all who fell that day, both men and women, were 12,000, all the people of Ai. 26 But Joshua did not draw back his hand with which he stretched out the javelin until he had devoted all the inhabitants of Ai to destruction. 27 Only the livestock and the spoil of that city Israel took as their plunder, according to the word of the LORD that he commanded Joshua. 28 So Joshua burned Ai and made it forever a heap of ruins, as it is to this day. 29 And he hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening. And at sunset Joshua commanded, and they took his body down from the tree and threw it at the entrance of the gate of the city and raised over it a great heap of stones, which stands there to this day.

30 At that time Joshua built an altar to the LORD, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal, 31 just as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded the people of Israel, as it is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, “an altar of uncut stones, upon which no man has wielded an iron tool.” And they offered on it burnt offerings to the LORD and sacrificed peace offerings. 32 And there, in the presence of the people of Israel, he wrote on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he had written. 33 And all Israel, sojourner as well as native born, with their elders and officers and their judges, stood on opposite sides of the ark before the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD, half of them in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, just as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded at the first, to bless the people of Israel. 34 And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the Book of the Law. 35 There was not a word of all that Moses commanded that Joshua did not read before all the assembly of Israel, and the women, and the little ones, and the sojourners who lived among them.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

The morale in Israel must have been very low. All the joy that had followed the defeat of Jericho was drained by the defeat at Ai and all that had transpired as a result. Now that Achan’s sin had been dealt with, God once again told Joshua not to fear because He had given Ai and everything in it to them. They would defeat the city of Ai as they had Jericho. But they would not do it the same way. God is not confined to any one way of doing things. He may even change things up just so that we are constantly dependent on Him rather than forging ahead on our own.

At God’s command, Joshua set up 30,000 men to lie in ambush behind the city of Ai. Another 5,000 were set up between Ai and Bethel to protect the battle from any reinforcements. Then the main army came up and camped against Ai. The king fell for the bait and came out against Israel. Israel’s feigned retreat bolstered his confidence and all the men of Ai set out in pursuit of the Israelite army. At God’s command, Joshua raised his javelin to signal the ambush to move into the city. The ambush moved quickly to overthrow the city and set it on fire. When the men of Ai looked back they saw the city on fire but found they had no way to flee and they were completely destroyed.
It is interesting to note that the people of Ai numbered 12,000. It was not an insignificant number of people. Perhaps the spies and Joshua had been a little overconfident after Jericho in trying to take the city with only 3,000 men.

This time God allowed Israel to take the spoils of war. Ai was not devoted to destruction in the same way Jericho had been. If Achan had just been patient he too would have benefitted from this opportunity for enrichment. God asks to be first. There is a principle that is seen throughout the Bible that we should give to God first. If we obediently put God first, He regularly rewards us with blessings (see Mal 3:10). Instead of obedient patience, Achan’s greed cost him everything.

The chapter ends with another example of Joshua again doing what might be considered foolish in man’s eyes. Instead of continuing to secure the land through further military campaigns, he stops again to focus on God. They build an altar from uncut stones and sacrificed peace offerings to God. Then Joshua inscribed a copy of the law of Moses onto stones. All this was done because Moses had told them to (Deut 27:1-8). Then Joshua gathered everyone and read all the words of the law, including both the blessings and the curses. It was a reminder to everyone that if they were obedient, there would be blessing, and if they were disobedient, there would be judgement.

Do you feel like you’ve suffered a set back in your life and you’re battling to get up and continue on. The story of Ai is a reminder that God is a God of second chances. When sin is confessed, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9) and we are once again able to be used by God.

Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan

Balaam and the Donkey: Numbers 22

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake 2

Joshua 7:13-26

13 Get up! Consecrate the people and say, ‘Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow; for thus says the LORD, God of Israel, “There are devoted things in your midst, O Israel. You cannot stand before your enemies until you take away the devoted things from among you.” 14 In the morning therefore you shall be brought near by your tribes. And the tribe that the LORD takes by lot shall come near by clans. And the clan that the LORD takes shall come near by households. And the household that the LORD takes shall come near man by man. 15 And he who is taken with the devoted things shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has transgressed the covenant of the LORD, and because he has done an outrageous thing in Israel.’”

16 So Joshua rose early in the morning and brought Israel near tribe by tribe, and the tribe of Judah was taken. 17 And he brought near the clans of Judah, and the clan of the Zerahites was taken. And he brought near the clan of the Zerahites man by man, and Zabdi was taken. 18 And he brought near his household man by man, and Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken. 19 Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD God of Israel and give praise to him. And tell me now what you have done; do not hide it from me.” 20 And Achan answered Joshua, “Truly I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and this is what I did: 21 when I saw among the spoil a beautiful cloak from Shinar, and 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels, then I coveted them and took them. And see, they are hidden in the earth inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”

22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and behold, it was hidden in his tent with the silver underneath. 23 And they took them out of the tent and brought them to Joshua and to all the people of Israel. And they laid them down before the LORD. 24 And Joshua and all Israel with him took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver and the cloak and the bar of gold, and his sons and daughters and his oxen and donkeys and sheep and his tent and all that he had. And they brought them up to the Valley of Achor. 25 And Joshua said, “Why did you bring trouble on us? The LORD brings trouble on you today.” And all Israel stoned him with stones. They burned them with fire and stoned them with stones. 26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones that remains to this day. Then the LORD turned from his burning anger. Therefore, to this day the name of that place is called the Valley of Achor.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

God told Joshua to tell the people to consecrate themselves and prepare to have the devoted things removed from among them. They were to come forward in tribes. Lots would be cast for God to point out the offending tribe. Then they would come forward by clans within that tribe and again lots would be cast to identify the offending clan. Then the same would happen by household and then man by man. Finally, the offending man and all his possession would need to be burned, not just the stolen goods.

Joshua rose early and began to work through the tribes and the tribe of Judah was selected. Then the clan of the Zerahites was chosen. He continued to work through the smaller and smaller groups until Achan was identified. God already knew who the offender was. Why did God use such a long winded approach to identify Achan? God needed to impress on Israel the seriousness of disobedience to His commands. Secondly, this long process afforded Achan plenty of opportunity to step forward and confess that he had taken the forbidden things. Things might have turned out differently for Achan if he had confessed and called on God’s mercy in repentance.

Joshua asked Achan to confess what he had done to show that the process of lots had been led by God to identify the correct man. Finally, Achan confessed to what he had done. He admitted his sin and revealed all he had done but did not express any sorrow at having sinned against God or for the effect it had on the nation in bringing defeat and casualties on Israel’s troops.

Achan’s confession was confirmed as the stolen goods were found in his tent. It may seem harsh that the penalty for his sin was death but the penalty for all sin is death (Rom 6:23), in this instance, God wanted to communicate a severe warning to Israel of the consequences of disobedience to His commands. Why were Achan’s children killed with him? Deuteronomy 24:16 states that children were not to be killed for their parent’s sins, only their own, so we must assume that they were accomplices to the crime.

We are more likely to sin when we rationalise our actions as being less significant than they really are. Maybe Achan took the things because he thought he was really entitled to them after all he probably didn’t have much after wandering in the desert for so long. Maybe he looked at the beautiful coat and thought God wouldn’t deny him such a nice garment. Maybe he thought what he was taking was so insignificant that it wouldn’t be missed. This story serves as a reminder that any sin is a blemish that God cannot tolerate. Is there anything you have found yourself doing because you think it’s just not “that bad”?

Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan

Water from the Rock Part two: Numbers 20

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake 3

Joshua 7:1-12

1 But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things, for Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the devoted things. And the anger of the LORD burned against the people of Israel.

2 Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth-aven, east of Bethel, and said to them, “Go up and spy out the land.” And the men went up and spied out Ai. 3 And they returned to Joshua and said to him, “Do not have all the people go up, but let about two or three thousand men go up and attack Ai. Do not make the whole people toil up there, for they are few.” 4 So about three thousand men went up there from the people. And they fled before the men of Ai, 5 and the men of Ai killed about thirty-six of their men and chased them before the gate as far as Shebarim and struck them at the descent. And the hearts of the people melted and became as water.

6 Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell to the earth on his face before the ark of the LORD until the evening, he and the elders of Israel. And they put dust on their heads. 7 And Joshua said, “Alas, O Lord GOD, why have you brought this people over the Jordan at all, to give us into the hands of the Amorites, to destroy us? Would that we had been content to dwell beyond the Jordan! 8 O Lord, what can I say, when Israel has turned their backs before their enemies! 9 For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it and will surround us and cut off our name from the earth. And what will you do for your great name?”

10 The LORD said to Joshua, “Get up! Why have you fallen on your face? 11 Israel has sinned; they have transgressed my covenant that I commanded them; they have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen and lied and put them among their own belongings. 12 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.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

This chapter opens with the word “but,” a word that has so often negates everything that goes before. Israel is rejoicing at the conquest of Jericho, but…. The problem was Israel broke faith. Israel didn’t do what God had required of them. How many had been disobedient? Only one. Just one man had been unfaithful but God deemed Israel to have been unfaithful.

Joshua, believing that God was with them, sent spies to Ai their next planned conquest. The spies came back saying they didn’t need to send all the people of Israel, just two or three thousand men would do it because the city was small. So Joshua sends a small army against a small city and they are chased back and thirty-six of their men are killed because God was not with them.

Joshua fell before the Lord and pleaded to know why God had abandoned them and handed them over to the hands of the Amorites. Joshua seemed to blame God and didn’t consider that the reason for their defeat might lie elsewhere. Joshua knew that word of their defeat would spread and then they would be surrounded and eliminated. What then would become of God’s great name [if His people were wiped out]?

God’s response was that the fault didn’t lie with Him, it lay squarely with the people of Israel who had sinned. Even though only one man had sinned, God used plural pronouns. He held the entire nation responsible because they collectively had sinned, not kept His covenant and had taken some of the devoted things, lied, and hidden them among their own belongings. Because of their sin they could not stand before their enemies. Instead of the land of Canaan being devoted to destruction, Israel had now become devoted to destruction. God would no longer be with them unless they destroyed the things devoted to destruction that were in their possession.

Only one man out of the entire nation of Israel sinned—but God noticed. Everyone was righteous except one, but God noticed. God cannot tolerate sin. In our own lives, we may do many, many things right and fail in only one area, but God notices and God cannot tolerate sin. Even if we have the tiniest blemish, we are unworthy of God’s presence. That’s why we so desperately need Jesus. We need the one who is perfect to be perfection for us. We need Christ’s righteousness so we can be in God’s presence and He can be with us. Even with Christ’s righteousness, we cannot allow sin to perpetuate in our lives and expect to live in fellowship with God. We must destroy the things that cause us to sin through repentance at the cross and removing the temptation from our lives. Is there any sin you are trying to hide from God that you need to confess and turn from?

Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan

Scouting Canaan: Numbers 13-14

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake 3

Joshua 6:15-27

15 On the seventh day they rose early, at the dawn of day, and marched around the city in the same manner seven times. It was only on that day that they marched around the city seven times. 16 And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the LORD has given you the city. 17 And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the LORD for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent. 18 But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it. 19 But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the LORD; they shall go into the treasury of the LORD.” 20 So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city. 21 Then they devoted all in the city to destruction, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys, with the edge of the sword.

22 But to the two men who had spied out the land, Joshua said, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring out from there the woman and all who belong to her, as you swore to her.” 23 So the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab and her father and mother and brothers and all who belonged to her. And they brought all her relatives and put them outside the camp of Israel. 24 And they burned the city with fire, and everything in it. Only the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the LORD. 25 But Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive. And she has lived in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

26 Joshua laid an oath on them at that time, saying, “Cursed before the LORD be the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho.

  “At the cost of his firstborn shall he
    lay its foundation,
  and at the cost of his youngest son
    shall he set up its gates.”

27 So the LORD was with Joshua, and his fame was in all the land.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

On the seventh and final day, Israel got up early and marched around Jericho in the same way, silent except for the seven priests blowing the rams’ horns and with the ark of the Lord between the front and rear guards, only this time they went around seven times. After the seventh circuit of the city, Joshua told them to shout because the Lord had given them the city. They all shouted and blew trumpets and the walls of Jericho miraculously came tumbling down, all except the portion where Rahab was staying with her family. Jericho was surrounded and every soldier advanced forward into the city from where he was standing. How did the walls of such a fortified city come tumbling down from just a shout? Because of Israel’s faithful obedience. Israel did what God told them to do trusting that God would do what He said He would do. Hebrews 11:30 tells us, “By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.”

Joshua sent the two spies to go and fetch Rahab and her family and all their belongings. Rahab and her family were taking outside the camp of Israel. Because they were Gentiles, Rahab and her family would have to be ceremonially cleansed and the men likely circumcised before they could identify with the people of Israel. Rahab’s story is a beautiful picture of God’s grace. Despite her past, she and her family were saved by faith in God. Rahab even became part of the Messianic line (Mat 1:5).

This passage tells us that Jericho was devoted to the Lord for destruction. It is also referred to as being under the ban. The city and everything in it was given over to the Lord by totally destroying it. The people of Israel were to take nothing from the city at all. Everything was the Lord’s. All the people and animals were to be killed. Some of the spoils, the items of silver and gold, bronze and iron were to be put into the Lord’s treasury but everything else was destroyed. Why complete destruction? God has every right to bring judgement on people and nations in sin and Canaan’s sin was full. God also intended to bless Israel in the land and use Israel as a blessing to the world but that wouldn’t happen if they were infected by the idolatry and immorality of the Canaanites. When Rahab had been saved and the city completely demolished and burned to the ground, Joshua pronounced a curse on anyone who tried to rebuild the city. The city was occupied briefly a few times and then 500 years later under King Ahab, in a time of apostasy, Hiel of Bethel attempted to rebuild Jericho’s walls at the cost of his two sons (1 Kings 16:34).

Sin is highly contagious. At this time in history we have a fresh understanding of what contagious means. God knew that Israel couldn’t live amongst people steeped in sin like the Canaanites and not be seriously negatively affected. We can’t live in close relationship with those who reject God’s ways and not be affected. We have a hard enough time staying away from sin without others encouraging us and making it seem okay. Who or what do you have in your life that is influencing you to sin? It’s often better to cut it off completely than be continually dragged away from God.

Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan

Complaints and Rebellion: Numbers 11-12

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake 2

Proverbs 12:1-11

1   Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,
    but he who hates reproof is stupid.
2   A good man obtains favor from the LORD,
    but a man of evil devices he condemns.
3   No one is established by wickedness,
    but the root of the righteous will never be moved.
4   An excellent wife is the crown of her husband,
    but she who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones.
5   The thoughts of the righteous are just;
    the counsels of the wicked are deceitful.
6   The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood,
    but the mouth of the upright delivers them.
7   The wicked are overthrown and are no more,
    but the house of the righteous will stand.
8   A man is commended according to his good sense,
    but one of twisted mind is despised.
9   Better to be lowly and have a servant
    than to play the great man and lack bread.
10   Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast,
    but the mercy of the wicked is cruel.
11   Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread,
    but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

Proverbs is a collection of wise sayings that are easily applied to everyday situations. Consider carefully which of the sayings you’ve read today are particularly applicable to you today and in the coming week. What do you need to change or do more of to make use of God’s wisdom in your life?

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake 1

Psalm 6

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

1   O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,
    nor discipline me in your wrath.
2   Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing;
    heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled.
3   My soul also is greatly troubled.
    But you, O LORD—how long?
4   Turn, O LORD, deliver my life;
    save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
5   For in death there is no remembrance of you;
    in Sheol who will give you praise?
6   I am weary with my moaning;
    every night I flood my bed with tears;
    I drench my couch with my weeping.
7   My eye wastes away because of grief;
    it grows weak because of all my foes.
8   Depart from me, all you workers of evil,
    for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.
9   The LORD has heard my plea;
    the LORD accepts my prayer.
10   All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;
    they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

The Psalms are great for helping us relate to God and worship Him. It’s wonderful to spend time in the word and grow in your knowledge of God at a head level. Use today to do your quiet time a little differently and try to grow in your knowledge of God at a heart level. We must always strive to move from knowing of God to knowing God.

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Joshua 6:1-14

1 Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in. 2 And the LORD said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty men of valor. 3 You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. 4 Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 And when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, everyone straight before him.” 6 So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD.” 7 And he said to the people, “Go forward. March around the city and let the armed men pass on before the ark of the LORD.”

8 And just as Joshua had commanded the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the LORD went forward, blowing the trumpets, with the ark of the covenant of the LORD following them. 9 The armed men were walking before the priests who were blowing the trumpets, and the rear guard was walking after the ark, while the trumpets blew continually. 10 But Joshua commanded the people, “You shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout.” 11 So he caused the ark of the LORD to circle the city, going about it once. And they came into the camp and spent the night in the camp.

12 Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the LORD. 13 And the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD walked on, and they blew the trumpets continually. And the armed men were walking before them, and the rear guard was walking after the ark of the LORD, while the trumpets blew continually. 14 And the second day they marched around the city once, and returned into the camp. So they did for six days.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

The city of Jericho was locked up tight. No people were allowed to leave or enter. Rahab had told the spies that the people were terrified of Israel and had no fight in them. Despite the impressive fortress that stood tall before them, the Commander of the Lord’s army told Joshua, “I have given Jericho into your hand.” With God, it was a promise, already a done deal. Now the battle plan. Have everyone march around the city. Seven priests must each carry a ram’s horn trumpet and march in front of the ark and blow them while the reset of Israel march in silence, then return to camp. This was to be done for six days. On the seventh day, they were to march around the city seven times and then at the end, at the sound of the trumpet, they were all to shout and the walls would fall down and every soldier could advance forward into the city.

Joshua didn’t question God’s plan. He immediately gathered the priests and arranged for the seven priests with ram’ horns to march before the ark of the Lord. He sent out armed men in front of the priests and a rear guard after the ark. He reminded the people not to make a sound until he gave the order to shout. So they marched around the city with the ark of the Lord and the ram’s horns blasting just once and returned to camp. They did this every day for six days.

In the Bible, the number seven often represents completeness or perfection. In this battle, there were seven priests, seven ram’s horns, seven days, and seven circuits of the city on the seventh day. Perhaps a foolish plan for man but the perfect plan for God. The ram’s horns were “jubilee trumpets” used during Israel’s feasts to remind the people of God’s presence (Num 10:10). The conquest of Jericho was primarily a religious campaign, not a military one.

God’s battle plan must have seemed very strange. The entire army was stretched out around the city. They were vulnerable to attack from the wall above. Jericho could have opened its gates, charged and broken through Israel’s line. They had no escalade ramps or ladders to breach the high wall. And after they marched around once, they headed back to their camp. Imagine the abuses they started to receive by days four and five. Perhaps the people of Jericho started laughing at them and insulting them from the walls asking if they thought they could frighten them with a ram’s horn.

God’s ways may seem strange to us. They might seem completely counterintuitive when we look at them with the wisdom of the world. But God’s ways are always about obedience. God asks us to obey Him and trust Him to work things out for us. Too often we try to short-curcuit God’s work in our lives by doing things our way. We want sexual gratification and won’t wait for marriage. We want marriage so we marry an unbeliever instead of waiting. We want change or are fearful so we move job or city without first seeing if God is calling us to something new. Instead, God expects faithful obedience today while we trust Him for tomorrow. Are you trying to scale a high wall in your life while God is asking you to simply march around it quietly for now?

Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan

Aaron Becomes Priest: Leviticus 8

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake

Joshua 5:1-15

1 As soon as all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea, heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan for the people of Israel until they had crossed over, their hearts melted and there was no longer any spirit in them because of the people of Israel.

2 At that time the LORD said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the sons of Israel a second time.” 3 So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the sons of Israel at Gibeath-haaraloth. 4 And this is the reason why Joshua circumcised them: all the males of the people who came out of Egypt, all the men of war, had died in the wilderness on the way after they had come out of Egypt. 5 Though all the people who came out had been circumcised, yet all the people who were born on the way in the wilderness after they had come out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 6 For the people of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, until all the nation, the men of war who came out of Egypt, perished, because they 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. 7 So it was their children, whom he raised up in their place, that Joshua circumcised. For they were uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised on the way.

8 When the circumcising of the whole nation was finished, they remained in their places in the camp until they were healed. 9 And the LORD said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” And so the name of that place is called Gilgal to this day.

10 While the people of Israel were encamped at Gilgal, they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening on the plains of Jericho. 11 And the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12 And the manna ceased the day after they ate of the produce of the land. And there was no longer manna for the people of Israel, but they ate of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.

13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” 14 And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the LORD. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15 And the commander of the LORD’s army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

(ESV)

STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?

  • What is the writer saying?
  • How do I apply this to my life?

💡How to do your quiet time

All the kings of the Amorites and the Canaanites were terrified once they heard that God had dried up the Jordan to allow the Israelites to cross over. They clearly knew they had no chance against an army that had the creator of heaven and earth on their side (see Rom 8:31).

Now you’d expect the army to ready for battle but God tells Joshua to circumcise all the men of Israel. This was not the second time they had to be circumcised but the first. It was the second time God had to command all Israel to be circumcised. All the men of Israel were circumcised before they left Egypt but because of their disobedience in the wilderness, God punished an entire generation. All those born during the wilderness wanderings had not been circumcised as they should have. The covenant of circumcision was given to Abraham and was a contract guaranteeing him that his offspring would continue forever and that his offspring would inherit the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession (Gen 17:7-8). Circumcision was the sign of that contract because it symbolised a complete separation from the sins of the flesh and a dedication to living holy lives. Before God would fight their battles in Canaan, they needed the sign of the covenant in their flesh. In the New Testament, Paul talks about a Christian being circumcised spiritually in Christ (Col 2:11)—the heart being circumcised from the sinfulness of the flesh.

The Israelites had crossed over the Jordan just in time to celebrate the Passover. Now that all the males had been circumcised, they were qualified to participate in this important event. Passover had only been celebrated once in the wilderness since the final plague of Egypt. This was only the third time they had celebrated Passover. The crossing of the Jordan would have brought back memories to those who crossed the Red Sea (those who were under 20 years old at the time of the Exodus had not been condemned to die in the wilderness and many of them would have been present). They would have had memories of their families killing a lamb and painting the blood on the doorposts of their homes in Egypt. The next day, the manna which had sustained them for so long stopped and they ate food from the promised land of Canaan. Despite their disobedience, God had continued to feed Israel with manna, miraculous food, every day for forty years. Now as they entered the promised land, they were able to eat the natural food available to them.

Joshua went to scout out Jericho, a fortified city that Israel had no real hope of sieging. When he looked up he saw a soldier with His sword drawn. Joshua asked if he was a friend or foe. His response caused Joshua to fall down in worship as he realised he was standing in the presence of God. It seems clear that Joshua was speaking with The Angel of the Lord, Jesus Christ as He appeared during Old Testament times. Joshua was not going to be the one in charge leading Israel into battle but Jesus, Commander of the LORD’s army would fight with and for Israel. The battle was the Lord’s. The presence of the Lord was sacred and so Joshua was given a command similar to Moses, to remove his sandals because the ground was holy.

When we face significant events we are often tempted to spend much time on physical preparation. But God is most concerned with our spiritual preparation. God wanted Israel sanctified and holy and then He would fight for them. If Israel had not done the spiritual preparation, they would have moved forward without God and would surely have lost. If we spend time preparing for things spiritually we are more likely to be led by God and have success in our endeavours. In what areas are you doing a lot of your own planning and not enough praying?

Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan

The Golden Calf: Exodus 32

Posted on by Andrew Timberlake 3