Joshua 13: Promises Kept

Back in the 1990s when I was first starting out in ministry, there was a national movement among men called "Promise Keepers" which held stadium rallies and produced discipleship material.  This organization encouraged men to be "promise keepers" in their homes, churches and communities.  Our model in this was God, who has always been the ultimate "Promise Keeper."  When we hear such famous phrases as the "Promised Land," we must remember that this wasn't like some empty campaign promise.  It was actually a sacred promise made and realized.  The keeping of this promise is what the large section of Joshua 13-21 tells us about.

Joshua himself is old and advanced in years by this point.  God tells him as much matter-of-factly in verse 1.  Then He says, "Very much of the land still remains to be possessed...I myself will drive them out from before the Israelites; only allot the land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have commanded you" (vs. 1 and 6).  While there is still work to be done, the time has come to establish the boundaries among the tribes.

First the territory to the east of the Jordan is reviewed and the boundary lines set for the tribes of Reuben and Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh.  They desired the land that had been captured early on, under Moses.  God gave it to them on the condition that they would cross the Jordan with their brothers and fight for the rest of the land for the other 9 and one-half tribes.  The leaders promised, and these tribes kept their promise, too.

Although there are still hostile natives living in the region west of the Jordan, Joshua is commanded to parcel out this land, too, to the remaining tribes so that their homes may be established.  Throughout these chapters, the "promise" made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is now being kept!

As we will read at the conclusion of this section in Joshua 21: "Not one of all the good promises that that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass" (21:45).  The same is true for all of God's good promises - He is faithful to bring them about!  AMEN!