"And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take up the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it."
--Joshua 6:18 (NKJV)
From the daily Bible reading on April 16, 2013 of Psalm 74:10-23; Romans 13; Joshua 4-6:19.
God gave Joshua the plan to take Jericho, the first city the children of Israel approached after crossing the Jordan River and entering the Promised Land. A wall surrounded Jericho and the residents took refuge behind that wall for fear of the Israelis, as their reputation was becoming known in the land. The men of war of Israel were to walk around the city (the entire city only covered about nine acres, making for a relatively short hike) with the priests bearing the Ark of the Covenant at their head and seven priests blowing trumpets leading the procession. They did this for six days as instructed; one lap around the city each day, not saying a word, just marching to the sound of the trumpets. On the seventh day they made seven trips around the city, and on the last lap the trumpets blew a long blast and all the men raised up a mighty shout. The wall crumbled and fell and the army entered the city to take and destroy it as the Lord commanded.
Normally, when the armed men defeated an enemy, they would take prizes for themselves from the possessions of their fallen foes. But Joshua cautioned the men to be careful not to take any spoils of war for themselves and carry them back to the camp. God commanded that everything be destroyed, including all the inhabitants and animals, everything except for the gold and silver and any vessels made of bronze and iron, which were to be consecrated to the Lord and brought into His treasury. Only Rahab the harlot and all with her - her family and their possessions - were to be spared the destruction, because she had hidden the two spies sent out earlier from the camp of Israel. Joshua was very concerned that the men not take any "accursed things" as loot. The entire city was to be dedicated and devoted to God, and destroyed as a sacrifice to Him as the first fruits of Canaan. So in a way, everything in the city could be considered as belonging to God and forbidden from being taken as booty. Taking something dedicated to God that He did not give permission to take would be accursed. But another concern would be taking some object as personal treasure that had been used by the Canaanites in the worship of their gods. Such an item would be especially accursed and abominable to God. Bringing accursed objects into the camp could cause the entire people to be cursed.
This also serves as a warning to us today. We must be careful not to bring objects into our "camp" that would displease God, that He might deem accursed. We should not allow into our homes any symbols of false gods or anything that non-believers worship or revere, either used today or from the past. We should not allow pornography, hateful material, or other objectionable media into our homes or entertainment time. We should not allow hatred or lust into our hearts. We should not allow anything into our lives that we might worship with our time and resources more than we worship God. By bringing any accursed thing into our lives, we open the door wide for Satan to enter, and then we are cursed. Help us, Lord Jesus. Amen.
Father God, we thank You for all the wonderful gifts You give us and all the things You make available for us, but please forgive us when we fail to dedicate all to You, when we take the spoils of life for our own. Lord we seek Your special forgiveness when those things we hold dear are accursed in Your eyes. Help us, Lord, not to covet things, not to give our time and energy to anything ahead of You. We ask Your help and forgiveness in the name of Jesus our Christ. Amen.
Normally, when the armed men defeated an enemy, they would take prizes for themselves from the possessions of their fallen foes. But Joshua cautioned the men to be careful not to take any spoils of war for themselves and carry them back to the camp. God commanded that everything be destroyed, including all the inhabitants and animals, everything except for the gold and silver and any vessels made of bronze and iron, which were to be consecrated to the Lord and brought into His treasury. Only Rahab the harlot and all with her - her family and their possessions - were to be spared the destruction, because she had hidden the two spies sent out earlier from the camp of Israel. Joshua was very concerned that the men not take any "accursed things" as loot. The entire city was to be dedicated and devoted to God, and destroyed as a sacrifice to Him as the first fruits of Canaan. So in a way, everything in the city could be considered as belonging to God and forbidden from being taken as booty. Taking something dedicated to God that He did not give permission to take would be accursed. But another concern would be taking some object as personal treasure that had been used by the Canaanites in the worship of their gods. Such an item would be especially accursed and abominable to God. Bringing accursed objects into the camp could cause the entire people to be cursed.
This also serves as a warning to us today. We must be careful not to bring objects into our "camp" that would displease God, that He might deem accursed. We should not allow into our homes any symbols of false gods or anything that non-believers worship or revere, either used today or from the past. We should not allow pornography, hateful material, or other objectionable media into our homes or entertainment time. We should not allow hatred or lust into our hearts. We should not allow anything into our lives that we might worship with our time and resources more than we worship God. By bringing any accursed thing into our lives, we open the door wide for Satan to enter, and then we are cursed. Help us, Lord Jesus. Amen.
Father God, we thank You for all the wonderful gifts You give us and all the things You make available for us, but please forgive us when we fail to dedicate all to You, when we take the spoils of life for our own. Lord we seek Your special forgiveness when those things we hold dear are accursed in Your eyes. Help us, Lord, not to covet things, not to give our time and energy to anything ahead of You. We ask Your help and forgiveness in the name of Jesus our Christ. Amen.
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