FOLLOWING THE LORD WHOLEHEARTEDLY

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

These are the kings of the land whom the Israelites had defeated and whose territory they took over east of the Jordan, from the Arnon Gorge to Mount Hermon, including all the eastern side of the Arabah:

Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon. He ruled from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Gorge—from the middle of the gorge—to the Jabbok River, which is the border of the Ammonites. This included half of Gilead. He also ruled over the eastern Arabah from the Sea of Kinnereth to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea), to Beth Jeshimoth, and then southward below the slopes of Pisgah.

And the territory of Og king of Bashan, one of the last of the Rephaites, who reigned in Ashtaroth and Edrei. He ruled over Mount Hermon, Salecah, all of Bashan to the border of the people of Geshur and Maacah, and half of Gilead to the border of Sihon king of Heshbon.

Moses, the servant of the Lord, and the Israelites conquered them. And Moses the servant of the LORD gave their land to the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh to be their possession.

These are the kings of the land that Joshua and the Israelites conquered on the west side of the Jordan, from Baal Gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir (their lands Joshua gave as an inheritance to the tribes of Israel according to their tribal divisions - the hill country, the western foothills, the Arabah, the mountain slopes, the desert and the Negev —the lands of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites):

the king of Jericho one, the king of Ai (near Bethel) one, the king of Jerusalem one, the king of Hebron one, the king of Jarmuth one, the king of Lachish one, the king of Eglon one, the king of Gezer one, the king of Debir one, the king of Geder one, the king of Hormah one, the king of Arad one, the king of Libnah one, the king of Adullam one, the king of Makkedah one, the king of Bethel one, the king of Tappuah one, the king of Hepher one, the king of Aphek one, the king of Lasharon one, the king of Madon one, the king of Hazor one, the king of Shimron Meron one, the king of Acshaph one, the king of Taanach one, the king of Megiddo one, the king of Kedesh one, the king of Jokneam in Carmel one, the king of Dor (in Naphoth Dor) one, the king of Goyim in Gilgal one, the king of Tirzah one, thirty-one kings in all.

When Joshua was old and well advanced in years, the Lord said to him, "You are very old, and there are still very large areas of land to be taken over.

"This is the land that remains: all the regions of the Philistines and Geshurites: from the Shihor River on the east of Egypt to the territory of Ekron on the north, all of it counted as Canaanite (the territory of the five Philistine rulers in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron—that of the Avvites from the south, all the land of the Canaanites, from Arah of the Sidonians as far as Aphek, the region of the Amorites, the area of the Gebalites; and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal Gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo Hamath.

"As for all the inhabitants of the mountain regions from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim, that is, all the Sidonians, I myself will drive them out before the Israelites. Be sure to allocate this land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have instructed you, and divide it as an inheritance among the nine tribes and half of the tribe of Manasseh."

The other half of Manasseh, the Reubenites and the Gadites had received the inheritance that Moses had given them east of the Jordan, as he, the servant of the Lord, had assigned it to them.

It extended from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Gorge, and from the town in the middle of the gorge, and included the whole plateau of Medeba as far as Dibon, and all the towns of Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, out to the border of the Ammonites. It also included Gilead, the territory of the people of Geshur and Maacah, all of Mount Hermon and all Bashan as far as Salecah - that is, the whole kingdom of Og in Bashan, who had reigned in Ashtaroth and Edrei and had survived as one of the last of the Rephaites. Moses had defeated them and taken over their land. But the Israelites did not drive out the people of Geshur and Maacah, so they continue to live among the Israelites to this day.

But to the tribe of Levi he gave no inheritance, since the offerings made by fire to the Lord, the God of Israel, are their inheritance, as he promised them.

This is what Moses had given to the tribe of Reuben, clan by clan:

The territory from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Gorge, and from the town in the middle of the gorge, and the whole plateau past Medeba to Heshbon and all its towns on the plateau, including Dibon, Bamoth Baal, Beth Baal Meon, Jahaz, Kedemoth, Mephaath, Kiriathaim, Sibmah, Zereth Shahar on the hill in the valley, Beth Peor, the slopes of Pisgah, and Beth Jeshimoth — all the towns on the plateau and the entire realm of Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled at Heshbon. Moses had defeated him and the Midianite chiefs, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur and Reba—princes allied with Sihon—who lived in that country. In addition to those slain in battle, the Israelites had put to the sword Balaam son of Beor, who practiced divination. The boundary of the Reubenites was the bank of the Jordan. These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the Reubenites, clan by clan.

This is what Moses had given to the tribe of Gad, clan by clan:

The territory of Jazer, all the towns of Gilead and half the Ammonite country as far as Aroer, near Rabbah; and from Heshbon to Ramath Mizpah and Betonim, and from Mahanaim to the territory of Debir; and in the valley, Beth Haram, Beth Nimrah, Succoth and Zaphon with the rest of the realm of Sihon king of Heshbon (the east side of the Jordan, the territory up to the end of the Sea of Kinnereth). These towns and their villages were the inheritance of the Gadites, clan by clan.

This is what Moses had given to the half-tribe of Manasseh, that is, to half the family of the descendants of Manasseh, clan by clan:

The territory extending from Mahanaim and including all of Bashan, the entire realm of Og king of Bashan—all the settlements of Jair in Bashan, sixty towns, half of Gilead, and Ashtaroth and Edrei (the royal cities of Og in Bashan). This was for the descendants of Makir son of Manasseh—for half of the sons of Makir, clan by clan.

This is the inheritance Moses had given when he was in the plains of Moab across the Jordan east of Jericho. But to the tribe of Levi, Moses had given no inheritance; the Lord, the God of Israel, is their inheritance, as he promised them.

Now these are the areas the Israelites received as an inheritance in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun and the heads of the tribal clans of Israel allotted to them. Their inheritances were assigned by lot to the nine-and-a-half tribes, as the Lord had commanded through Moses. Moses had granted the two-and-a-half tribes their inheritance east of the Jordan but had not granted the Levites an inheritance among the rest, for the sons of Joseph had become two tribes—Manasseh and Ephraim. The Levites received no share of the land but only towns to live in, with pasturelands for their flocks and herds. So the Israelites divided the land, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Now the men of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, but my brothers who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly. So on that day Moses swore to me, 'The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.'

"Now then, just as the Lord promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the desert. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I'm just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said."

Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inheritance. So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the Lord, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly. (Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba after Arba, who was the greatest man among the Anakites.)

Then the land had rest from war.

Joshua 12, 13 and 14

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

After chapters of conflict and conquest, seeing Israel win over most of Canaan and 31
kings (Chapter 12), we start to see in Chapters 13 and 14 where the Promised Land is divided up amongst the tribes of Israel.

Chapter 13 begins by telling Joshua that there was “still very large areas of land to be taken over” after which God specifically tells Joshua what is left to be conquered. Joshua was to take care of winning over all locations mentioned but God tells Joshua that He would drive out “all the inhabitants of the mountain regions from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim…the Sidonians”. The Lord concluded His guidance by telling Joshua to “be sure to allocate this land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have instructed you, and divide it as an inheritance among the nine tribes and half of the tribe of Manasseh”…nine and a half tribes because you’ll recall that the Lord had given a portion of the land east of the Jordan to the tribes of Gad, Reuben and half of the tribe of Manasseh. In fact, the remainder of Chapter 13 details the land division between these three groups. Of special note is the reference to Moses because the land was promised to the Reubenites, Gadites and half tribe of Manasseh under his leadership. You’ll also see where the Levites weren’t rewarded their own portion because God had commanded it…not that He didn’t want them to enjoy a good life. Quite the contrary. As His chosen worship leaders and tabernacle servants, the Lord had placed special requirements on Israel to make sure the Levites were always taken care of. The Levites were to be given “towns to live in, with pasturelands for their flocks and herds” (Joshua 14:4).

As Chapter 14 begins, we see where the Israelites were to begin dividing the land among the nine and a half tribes by lot but before this happened, we read where Joshua is approached by Caleb who comes to remind Joshua of a promise given him back when Israel had been on the brink of crossing the Jordan the first time. He tells Joshua, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, but my brothers who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly. So on that day Moses swore to me, 'The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.' “

Forty five years prior, Israel had made their exodus across the desert from Egypt to Mount Sinai and then to Kadesh Barnea, land right next to the Jordan with Canaan only a river crossing away. You’ll recall that Moses sent twelve spies, one from each tribe, into Canaan to scout it out. And when they returned, only Joshua and Caleb brought favorable reports, telling an assembled Israel that "The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them." (Numbers 14:8-9)

Well, the people didn’t listen and rebelled against God. And God in return placed an edict on that generation of Israel saying, “…as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the Lord fills the whole earth, not one of the men who saw my glory and the miraculous signs I performed in Egypt and in the desert but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times - not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their forefathers. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it. But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it”. (Numbers 14:21-24) So God had made a promise to Caleb who was now asking for what he saw as rightfully his as the land was about to be divided amongst the Israelites.

Scripture tells us that Caleb was “eighty-five years old” and “still as strong…as the day Moses sent (him) out”…as “vigorous to go out to battle” as he was before. So he asked for the hill country and vowed to drive out any remnant of Anakites remaining not just on his own but with the Lord’s help. So “Joshua blessed Caleb…and gave him Hebron as his inheritance”…all because he had “followed the Lord, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly”.

Through Caleb, we see the importance of standing firm on the truth even in the midst of opposition. The people were unwilling to listen to him and Joshua at Kadesh Bernea but neither man bent when under challenge. They stayed committed to their Lord and in the case of Caleb, followed God wholeheartedly. In other words, he was totally and earnestly devoted, determined to not allow anything or anyone to sway his obedience and loyalty to God. And for his staunch dedication, Caleb was rewarded with a gift of Hebron…which became his inheritance from God.

We too can expect to experience all of God’s richest blessings in life if we. Like Caleb and Joshua, commit ourselves to serve and follow God wholeheartedly…that is, follow Him and Him alone with our whole heart…not just a portion of it. Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21) so the only way to ensure that we are serving and following the Lord with all our heart is to make sure the Lord is the one and only treasure in our lives. Nothing or no one should ever come before Him…not now…not ever.

Question: Do you follow the Lord wholeheartedly? If your answer is no, now’s the time to make a recommitment to Him. He stands ready to receive you and manifest His richest blessings in your life in accordance with His will.

Ever keep in mind that God is 100% committed to us. Praise Him for that.
The least we can do is give Him the same commitment level in return…doing so with not just a part of our heart but the whole of it. Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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