1 NOW after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, [ “Joshua, the son of Nun, of the tribe of Ephraim, was first called Oshea or Hoshea, . . . [Numbers 13:16], which signifies saved, a saviour, or salvation; but afterwards Moses, guided no doubt by a prophetic spirit, changed his name into . . . Yehoshua or Joshua, which signifies he shall save, or the salvation of Jehovah; referring, no doubt, to his being God’s instrument in saving the people from the hands of their enemies, and leading them from victory to victory over the different Canaanitish nations, till he put them in possession of the promised land. . . . (Clarke, Bible Commentary, 2:3.) In other words, in the original Hebrew both Joshua and Jesus were the same name. The name Joshua means “Jehovah saves.” In Hebrew it is pronounced “Jeho-Shua.” That is the original pronunciation for the Savior’s name. Through Greek and then into Latin and finally into English it has transformed into “Jesus.” Accepting the Savior, Jeho-shua, re­quires stepping into a spiritual “gateway” or entering His kingdom. “Since the tribes of Israel under Joshua crossed the Jordan to enter Erez (land) Israel after the Exodus from Egypt, the Jordan river has come to have a deep significance for Jews, symbolizing the gateway to the homeland after years of wandering in exile in the desert. ] Moses’ minister, saying,

2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.

3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.

4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. [ Biblical Israel is generally thought of as that region south and southwest of the Lebanon mountains, north and east of Egypt, east of the Mediterranean coastal plain, and west of the Arabian desert. In dimension, Israel was roughly 150 miles from Dan to Beersheba, and at its greatest width it was about 75 miles across. The Lord promised Joshua that the original extent of the land promised to Abraham was to be given to Israel (see Genesis 15:18; Joshua 1:4). Although the Israelites who went into the promised land with Joshua were generally faithful and obedient, as a nation Israel soon returned to their old ways and lost the blessings promised to them of winning the whole land. Not until the time of David and solomon (about two hundred years later) did Israel control the land given in the original covenant and then only for a short while, for they soon lost the outermost parts of it again.]

5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. [ In otherwords Joshua - you are going to be doing my work, as a result I will be with you just as I was with Moses, you will have access to the same powers that Moses had. What comfort do you think that provided for Joshua? ]

6 Be strong and of a good courage: [The first thing the Lord tells Joshua to do is Be strong and of good courage. What does the Lord means by that? Why does a leader need to be strong, strong in what? Why does a good leader need courage? With any leader there will be times when things are not going as planned and you will need to have courage to maintain the course. Notice the Lord is going to repeat this direction three times. What is is that Joshua will need courage and strength to do? vs 7 ] for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.

7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, [ Keep the commandments. ] which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, [don't try to walk on the edges of the commandments - keep them as if they are black and white - don't make them gray.] that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.

8 This book of the law [the scriptures] shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: [ Study the scriptures day and night. ] for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. [ What do you think that Lord was trying to teach Joshua with this council? How are our ways made prosperous when we study the scriptures daily? ]

9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. [ How is this good advice but hard when we get down to the reality of life? Is it possible to always be strong, to never have doubt in ourselves? If so how? ]

10 ¶ Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,

11 Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the LORD your God giveth you to possess it.

12 ¶ And to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, spake Joshua, saying,

13 Remember the word which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, The LORD your God hath given you rest, and hath given you this land.

14 Your wives, your little ones, and your cattle, shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side Jordan; but ye shall pass before your brethren armed, all the mighty men of valour, and help them;

15 Until the LORD have given your brethren rest, as he hath given you, and they also have possessed the land which the LORD your God giveth them: then ye shall return unto the land of your possession, and enjoy it, which Moses the LORD’s servant gave you on this side Jordan toward the sunrising.

16 ¶ And they answered Joshua, saying, All that thou commandest us we will do, and whithersoever thou sendest us, we will go.

17 According as we hearkened unto Moses in all things, so will we hearken [ Hebrew "Shema" is translated here as hearken which means to "listen" and "obey". ] unto thee: only the LORD thy God be with thee, as he was with Moses.

18 Whosoever he be that doth rebel against thy commandment, and will not hearken [ Hebrew "Shema" is translated here as hearken which means to "listen" and "obey". ] unto thy words in all that thou commandest him, he shall be put to death: only be strong and of a good courage.