Joshua's Last Words to Israel

Notes

"Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood." The student can easily determine that this has no reference to the flood of waters that covered the earth, because Terah and Nahor did not live on the other side of that. The Hebrew has simply the ordinary word for "river," and it is so translated in the Revised Version: "Your fathers dwelt of old time beyond the river." The river referred to is undoubtedly the Euphrates, beyond which the ancestors of Abraham lived, in "Ur of the Chaldees."

"Ye cannot serve the Lord; for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins." Josh. 24:19. The next verse sufficiently indicates that Joshua meant that they could not serve the Lord in sin; they could not at the same time be the servants of sin and the servants of God. It is impossible for the unrenewed man to obey God's requirements; he must fully yield himself as an instrument of righteousness before he can do what is right. Joshua would impress this thought upon the minds of the people, so that their allegiance to God might not be a mere formal expression, but in sincerity and understanding.

"He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins." This would seem to be the most discouraging part of the whole matter. Many who have no difficulty in understanding the first part of the verse—who can see that a man must change before he can serve God acceptably—are troubled over this seeming statement that it is useless to try, because God will not even do the first thing necessary, namely, forgive their sins. But if this were the idea designed to be conveyed, it would be contrary to the whole tenor of Scripture, which describes God as merciful and gracious, and says that he will "abundantly pardon."

The fact is that the common rendering, which is the same as the Revised Version, does not accurately express the idea of the original. The idea is that he will not look upon your sin with favor, as in Hab. 1:13: "Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity." The Jewish rendering is, "He will not have any indulgence for your transgressions, and for your sins." This rendering is in conformity with the declaration of Scripture. God cannot look with favor upon sin; he cannot grant indulgence for it. Sin is hateful to him, and he cannot endure it. But while he has no favor for sin, it is a truth that he has great favor for sinners; and it is a striking proof of the great love of God that he loves and receives those who are covered with the defilement of sin. It is true that "he will by no means clear the guilty" (Ex. 34:7 and Nahum 1:3); but he does far better than that,—he frees them from guilt, if they but come to him in humility and faith; for "if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9.