Seeking the council of the Lord is a concept that continues to arise in Israel as Joshua and the Israelites mature under God. In chapter nine the surrounding kings of the land (Hivites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites and the Jebusites) who heard of Israel’s win over Jericho have decided to “gather together as one to fight against Joshua and Israel” (Verse 2)

However, when the Gibeonites heard of what Israel had done to Jericho and Ai they “on their part acted with cunning and went and made provisions and took worn-out sacks for their donkeys, and wineskins…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.” (Verse 3-6)

In essence the Gibeonites used trickery to make the Israelites think that because of their worn out bags, wineskins and sandals that they were coming from a distant country. But in realty they were of a neighboring land that God commanded to be destroyed in Deuteronomy.

Nevertheless, Joshua falls for the cleverness of the Gibeonites as they state “From a very distant country your servants have come, because of the name of the LORD your God” (Verse 9)

Therefore, I want to point out two themes from the story…

1. Joshua and the Israelites again fail to seek council from God with all decisions. The LORD is never mentioned in this chapter as a guiding force, which ultimately causes the Israelite to get deceived and sign a covenant with a people group they weren’t suppose to. And much like in our life when we hear something we like, we don’t seek God’s council to see if it is ultimately his will or not. We simply do what we want, thinking that we can handle the “easy” decisions in life.

2. God in his grace saves yet another group of people because of their faith in him. Much like Rahab the prostitute and her family, the Gibeonites feared the Lord, they understood his awesome power and were desperate for his mercy. They did lie, but is it any worse than what any other sinner does daily? We all lie, lust, steal and pervert the world in any number of ways. However, the Gibeonites showed their desperate need for the Lord as they were willing to give up their life and become servants to the LORD in order to save it.

“So he did this to them and delivered them out of the hand of the people of Israel, and they did not kill them. But Joshua made them that day cutters of wood and drawers of the water for the congregation and for the alter of the LORD, to this day, in the place that he should choose.” (Verse 26)

His Humbled Servant,

W.H. Carston