[Music] Joshua 11 is the story of the defeat of the northern Canaanite armies when the people of Israel came into the land of Canaan crossing over the Jordan River uh first they fought against Jericho then they fought against AI uh then after honoring the Lord at Mount ibal and gism they offered their protection to a group of people known as the gibeonites and in protecting the gianitsos Tua chapter 10 the Lord gloriously fought on behalf of Israel and gave them the victory but now they had to address the northern Canaanite Kings and their armies so that's what this chapter deals with and let's begin by taking a look at it starting here at verse one I'm going to read to you all the way through verse 5 we're in Joshua 11 and it came to pass when Jain king of hazor heard these things that he sent to jobab King of madon to the king of shimron to the king of akisa and to the Kings who were from the north in the mountains in the plains south of Chino in the Low Land and in the heights of door on the west to the Canaanites in the East and the West the Amorite the hittite the parisite the jebusite in the mountains and the hivite below Hermon in the land of misbah so they went out they and all their armies with them as many people as the sand that is on the seashore in multitude with very many horses and chariots and when all these Kings had met together they came and camp together at the Waters of morome to fight against Israel after hearing about Israel's Total Conquest of the major powers that occupied the southern part of Canaan then the northern kings came together to defeat Israel they did it under the leadership of jabin king of hazor hazor was a city just north of the Sea of Galilee and it was a large and influential City in its time that influential King used his influence to gather together a large army and this huge Army reflected an attitude that they believed that they had to stop Israel at that time or they would be conquered all of this was prompted by what the northern Kings heard regarding Israel's success and victory understand the process here Israel's success a awakened more opposition against them now that same principle may be the experience of Believers today who find greater spiritual opposition as they dedicate themselves to the Lord into his service being in Christian Ministry for more than 40 years at this point I've seen it often I've seen a man or a woman gets serious about serving the lord it's as if they've accomplished a great victory in their life and they're really much more focused on the things of God in his kingdom than before and then immediately there seems to be some spiritual attack against them it could come in many ways but there's some spiritual attack that comes against them why well there's an old saying that whenever there's Revival the second party to be revived is the devil and that just kind of gets to the idea that whenever God is moving forward through his people that there is often a greater sense of opposition against them this opposition was evidence to Joshua and Israel that they were moving in the right direction and even though it was going to be a tremendous battle even though they had to really trust God in the midst of the difficulty they were doing what God wanted them to do despite the opposition so verse four says that they went out this confederation of Kings from the northern cities of can it says they and all their armies with them now two things here indicate that Israel faced new challenges first of all they faced a huge enemy Army did you notice that phrase in verse four as many people as the sand that is on the seashore in multitude there's no number given to the sides of this Army but that image like sand on a beach friends this was a huge huge Army that Israel would face the the single greatest army at least in size that Israel would face in their whole conquest of Canaan right here now in Joshua chapter 11 you're going to see the biggest battle of Israel's conquest of Canaan but it wasn't only the size of the army they had definite technological superiority over the people of Israel verse four says that they had very many horses and chariots that was technology in battle that Israel didn't have and the repetitive use of that phrase just indicates and and gives emphasis to the idea that these were fearful Fighting Machines that were coming against Israel Israel's soldiers pretty much only Advanced on foot they just had an infantry that was it they didn't have uh calvalry they didn't have uh the the arm Armored Division so to speak with the Chariots they didn't have those things they were just foot soldiers and they would be facing a huge enemy in size and an advanced enemy with Weaponry I want you to consider that as Israel came into the land of Canaan and when they began to conquer it the challenges seem to increase at each step think about it from Jericho to AI to the battle with the southern Kings now to this battle every step along the way the battle seems to become more intense now friends this is the experience of many believers they find that in some sense the challenges that face them in the Christian Life increase at each step Don't Be dismayed if that's the state you're in right now God wants to use each previous Victory as a springboard for what his people will face in the future you know you can look back on the past places where where God has rescued you where he's given Victory where he's come through at a needful point and you can say that gives me a greater equipping a greater Foundation a greater trust in the Lord that he'll do it right here and right now that's why the Lord spoke to Joshua and this is what we see what the Lord said here in verse 6 the Lord said to Joshua but the Lord said to Joshua do not be afraid because of them for tomorrow about this time I will deliver all of them slain before Israel you shall hamstring their horses and burn their chariots with fire god made a definite promise I I like how God even put an expiration date on the promise tomorrow about this time Joshua I'm not going to tell you that it's going to happen it's going to happen in about 24 hours you're facing a new attack a greater challenge than ever before but God sent to Joshua a fresh confirmation of his promise for Israel Joshua needed it and the Lord provided it I'm taking it on the fact that Joshua needed it because verse 6 sayso not be afraid because of them it wouldn't be surprising to us that fear was something of an issue for Joshua and the people of Israel they looked at the lay of the land they looked at the size of the enemy they looked at the advantages that the enemy had they they swallowed hard and they said Lord we know you gave us the victory at Jericho we know you gave us the victory at AI we know you gave us the victory with the southern Kings but Lord this is a whole new challenge that's why God came and said to Joshua do not be afraid because of them you see God has a reason for everything that he does he would not have assured Joshua and the rest of Israel do not be afraid unless there was a reason for that specific encouragement so here comes the attack starting now at verse 7 I'm going to read through verse 9 so Joshua and all the people of war with him came against them suddenly By the Waters of morome and they attacked them and the Lord delivered them into the hand of Israel who defeated them and chased them to Greater sidon to the brook mispro and to the valley of mispah Eastward they attacked them until they left none of them remaining so Joshua did to them as the Lord had told him he hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots with fire don't you love the boldness and strategy of Joshua here he is greatly out numbered by the enemy understanding that the enemy has definite advantages and Technology over the army of Israel so what does Joshua do goes fellas the only thing we can do is attack and that's what they did they came against this large Advanced Army suddenly fighting with boldness fighting with the element of surprise Joshua came against the Canaanite armies with an unexpected ambush you know understanding how great the enemy was Joshua no doubt led by the Holy Spirit understood that it had to be something unique in their attack so he did not wait for the battle to come to him they went out and attacked and the result of it was as it says in verse 8 the Lord delivered them into the hand of Israel I just want you to think about this for a moment considering the size of the opposing armies considering the technology used by the Canaanites and considering the encouragement that was needed by Joshua put all those things together this was perhaps the largest and most consequential battle that Israel ever fought in the conquest of Canaan yet I want you to consider something the record right here in Joshua chap 11 gives us no record of an obvious miraculous intervention there were no falling walls as at Jericho there were no giant hailstones for Israel as there was in the battle against the southern Kings back in Joshua chapter 10 there was no obvious Supernatural intervention yet God equipped and empowered Israel in what we might call more normal ways you see instead of sending down hailstones from heaven God empowered each individual Israelite soldier with maybe an extra measure of strength an extra measure of skill an extra measure of courage God empowered Israel with with more familiar ways and Israel won the battle you know considering the size of the armies and the technology involved it's probably true that this was the most violent battle all of the Book of Joshua maybe the bloodiest as well we don't have any details here in Joshua chapter 11 but when you just consider the the the defeat of the enemy the size of the armies and all of it put together this was a tough bloody deadly battle you know we're told about all the Canaanite dead and that was absolutely true but don't forget there were many Israelites soldiers left bravely dead on the field of battle yet because of Joshua's boldness because of the supernatural help coming to Israel in natural ways the battle was won friends please don't miss this point don't wait for God to send what we might call an obvious Miracle God will so often work in and through what we might call supernaturally natural ways again I'm just so struck by the fact that nowhere in Joshua chapter 11 do we see or read of an obvious Miracle yet no doubt the Lord was with them they walked in obedience they walked in uh Faith they walked in boldness and God worked in them and through them to win the victory don't sit back and wait for God to perform an obvious miracle until you get involved doing what the Lord tells you to do no God may send an obvious miracle if it pleases him of course he may this is the same God who knocked down the walls of Jericho it's the same God who rained down hailstones upon the army of the Southern Canaanite Kings but God can also work in more familiar ways and we should never despise that Joshua it says in verse 9 did to them as the Lord had told them you know Joshua not only fought with boldness courage he fought with obedience he did exactly what the Lord told him to do he even destroyed these Advanced Canaanite weapons the things that the Israelites did not have the war horses verse 9 mentions and the Chariots don't you think that there were at least some people around Joshua saying hey you know what we could sure use those horses Joshua we could make great use of those chariots why don't we take them and incorporate them into the army of Israel Joshua obediently and wisely said no we're not going to keep these weapon for our own Army instead our trust is going to be in God our trust is not going to be in sophisticated weapons there's a lesson here for us as Believers today the lesson has to do with the matter of what some people would call taking the devil tools there's many Christians who do not hesitate to use the horses and chariots so to speak of their spiritual enemy you know if uh if Satan is using a technology or a method or a media or something like that sometimes Christians will immediately rush in and say well we should use it too maybe not Perhaps Perhaps Believers should give more credit to the idea that God wants them to fight the battle on a different level altogether a level of complete trust in the Lord friends that's the place where Joshua was that's the place where all Israel was but they were obedient verse 8 says that they attacked them until they left none of them remaining Joshua fought with passion he fought with commitment he did not ease up until he had accomplished as much as possible let's continue on uh starting at verse 10 I'm going to read through verse 15 where it speaks of the defeat of hazor the head of the northern Canaanite kingdoms here we go starting at verse 10 Joshua turned back at that time and took hazor and struck its king with the sword for hazor was formerly the head of all those kingdoms and they struck all the people who were in it with the edge of the sword utterly destroying them there was none left breathing then he burned hazor with fire so all the cities of those kings and all their kings Joshua took and struck with the edge of the sword he utterly destroyed them as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded but as for the cities that stood on their Mounds Israel burned none of them except hazor only which Joshua burned and all the spoil of these cities and the livestock the children of Israel took as booty for themselves but they struck every man with the edge of the sword until they had destroyed them and they left none breathing as the Lord had commanded Moses his servant so Moses commanded Joshua and so Joshua did he left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses friends I just read those verses to you and we have to admit that it's the record of a sobering and staggering ing Judgment of God do you remember that phrase in verse 11 they struck all the people who were in it with the edge of the sword utterly destroying them the Staggering completeness of this destruction especially in human terms friends there there were almost an uncountable number of dead Canaanites this shows us the completeness of God's judgment against the Canaanites it also shows us Israel's obedience and thirdly it shows us the depravity of the Canaanites we have to take what's in the text it's hard to read it's hard to visualize but it's there verse 11 there was none left breathing now at this point it's very important for me to remind you that the Canaanites knew the Judgment of God was coming against them they were afraid of it that was what we knew from the interview with Rahab in Joshua chapter 2 that's what we knew from the interview with the gibit in Joshua chapter n no no no the Canaanites knew the Judgment of Yahweh was coming against them through the armies of Israel and they could have acted in faith like Rahab they could have surrendered like the giban or they could have left the area alt together but many maybe even most of them did not and all of those who remained fell under the Judgment of God God commanded a comprehensive judgment to be carried out not against only guilty individuals but a guilty Society or Community this is something that we need to understand as uncomfortable as it makes many people today isn't it curious that many people think today that God has no right to judge anybody God just doesn't have the right it's almost as if they would shake their finger in God's face and say who are you to judge anybody ladies and gentlemen God is a judge he's a righteous judge he's a great judge and that's not all he is but it's part of who he is and as a judge God is a righteous judge a good judge and God had had pronounced judgment against the Canaanites against not only guilty individuals they they weren't to go through and say well this individual and this individual let the rest live no sometimes a society a community a nation can become so guilty that God will send judgment against it it's happened many times throughout church history or throughout the history of the world including church history and it happened in particular in Israel it happened later against Judah and Israel friends God brought this kind of judgment against Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis chapter 19 God did this against Midian in Numbers chapter 31 God did this with the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 2 Kings 17 God do this with the kingdom of the Southern tribes of Judah in 2 Kings 25 God did this with the flood in Genesis 7 in each of these cases and there's several more examples in the Bible children and others who were not individually responsible for the corruption for the Rebellion or for the degradation of a Nation or culture or Community or societ they also perished now it does not necessarily mean that their soul went to hell but it does mean that their life on this Earth was taken and all this is rooted in Understanding God's jurisdiction as judge as Genesis 18:25 says of the Lord that he is the judge of of all the Earth as such God has the right to judge not only individuals but also communities of all different sizes such judgments go beyond punishing individuals for their personal guilt judgment may come upon society as a whole including those who may not be personally and individually guilty such as children sometimes God will send these judgments directly as in The Genesis Flood or as in Sodom and Gomorrah sometimes God will send Nations as instruments of his judgment he did this with the Assyrians against the kingdom of the northern tribes in Israel and he did it with the Babylonians against the uh Kingdom of the Southern tribes that is Judah and in the conquest of Canaan God uniquely used his people that is Israel as an instrument of judgment this harsh judgment often makes people uncomfortable but it is rooted in both God's fundamental right to judge and in his merciful granting of much time for people to repent way back in Genesis 15: 16 God said that the sin of the Canaanites was not yet ripe God was giving them more time to repent and he literally gave them hundreds of years to repent and they did not take it and he even gave them it at the moment again I want to stress with you these Canaanite peoples could have taken the way of Rahab they could have taken the way of the giban ites I think the people of the city of sheam were another example a little bit of speculation there but of surrender to Israel they chose not to take those ways and therefore they and their cultures came under judgment we can rest in the knowledge that God is a righteous judge so it was a great can I use the word Slaughter but it was all in obedience to God the unique instrument of God's judgment against the Canaanites verse 16 thus Joshua took all this land the Mountain Country all the South all the land of Goan the lowland and the Jordan plain the mountains of Israel and the lowlands from Mount hak and the ascent to sear even as far as Bal God in the valley of Lebanon below Mount Hermon he captured all their kings and struck them down and killed them Joshua made War a long time with all those kings there was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel except the hivites the inhabitants of gibian all the others they took in battle for it was of the Lord to harden their hearts that they should come against Israel in battle that he might utterly destroy them and that they might receive no mercy but that he might destroy them as the Lord had commanded Ed Moses verse 16 is is a very interesting quick description of all the land of Canaan it's a general description but it's useful it describes the Mountain Country that was part of the central Highlands running north to south it describes the South that's the southern desert area it describes in verse 16 Goan that's the region between the Hill Country and the South it describes the Low Land that ran from north to south between the central Highlands and the coastal plain then verse 16 mentions the Jordan plain that's the valley containing the Jordan River and the Dead Sea continuing to the Gulf of aaba then verse 16 has the mountains of Israel that's the central Highlands that are called the hills of Ephraim and then the low lands mentioned in verse 16 are the coastal plains and so they took the whole land they gain gained control of the whole region even though they did not take every last City and every village the last of the Canaanites were not subjected to Israel's Authority until hundreds of years later during the reign of David there was a lot of work for the individual tribes to do and this is going to be a focus of much of the rest of the Book of Joshua notice this also in verse 18 where it says Joshua made War a long time with all those kings you know it's easy to read the record of the Book of Joshua and think it all happened quickly friends this was a war that lasted several years but by most estimates anywhere from five to seven years God was with Israel but this was not a quick work and there were many battles fought that are not recorded in the Book of Joshua this extended period that it took for Israel to conquer the land served God's purpose God intended for Israel to occupy the land little by little that's what it says in Exodus 23:30 and again in Deuteronomy 7:22 using that exact phrase little by little why well I can think of a few reasons number one it gave the Canaanites time to repent if any of them were inclined to follow the examples of Rahab the gianitsos little friends I I I know how it is I know we wish that we could go to sleep one night and in the morning wake up with having victory over a sin that's been bothering us we go to sleep one night and we wake up and there's no more fear or anxiety we go to bed night we wake up and there's no more problems rarely does God work that way most the time the advances that he makes in our life are little by little and take some time that's how it was with the conquest of Canaan under the leadership of Joshua even though it seems to read very quickly in the book it took anywhere from five to seven years now why well another reason was in verse 20 we read this it was of the Lord to harden their hearts that they should come against Israel battle that he might utterly destroy them we're told that in part this judgment on the Canaanites was accomplished when God did Harden their hearts against Israel this hardening of men's Hearts is when God gives man up to the sin that's in his heart friends sometimes one of the most severe judgments of God is to give a man or a woman what they want Lord I don't want you anymore I don't want to have anything to do with you god may just say okay and that is Judgment it's not God's kindness again I want to emphasize God accepted truly repentant Canaanites who surrendered and submitted to the god of Israel again the examples were rare Rahab and her family the gibian ites the possibility of the city of sheam but what God would not accept was a grudging surrender a laying down of the sword without true submission to the god of Israel I like how the commentator madvig puts this I'm going to quote him here he says God hardened the Canaanites Hearts not to keep them from repenting but to prevent them from surrendering to Israel in unrepentance friends God arranged it and so moved to that there were only two options that was it it was either going to be total submission to the god of Israel and to the people of Israel or death judgment that was it God was not going to or did not want to allow an accommodation with the Canaanites and all this was done verse 20 says as the Lord had commanded Moses we need not think that God poured out an absolutely unique judgment upon the Canaanites he dealt with their hearts the same way he deals with all men's Hearts but God's grace will either Harden the heart of man or it will soften it let's continue on here verses 21 and 22 we read and at that time Joshua came and cut off the anakim from the mountains from hibron from deir from anab and from all the mountains of Judah and from all the mountains of Israel Joshua utterly destroyed them with their cities none of the anakim were left in the land of the children of Israel they remained only in Gaza in gath and in ashdod these two verses remind us of the complete victory that Israel had even against the most fiercesome Warrior people in the land the anakim you see some 40 years before it was fear of the anakim this tribe of exceptionally large and strong people that had made Israel too afraid to enter the land some 40 years before you'll find that recorded in numbers chap 13 and as sort of a crowning achievement upon Joshua's work at least here in Joshua chapter 11 they defeated the anakim which by the way is a promise that God made in Deuteronomy chapter 9 with that they would defeat the Fearsome anacom here this promise is fulfilled and what they did was they utterly destroyed them now friends I I can't read Hebrew I'm not a Hebrew scholar by any means at all but but I know how to read some of the commentators who are and one commentator Howard says that the way this section verses 21 and 22 is phrased in the Hebrew is really sort of harsh it's it's repetitive and um just sort of strong in the way that it stated it it's sort of trying to reflect the great victory that Israel had over these fearsome enemies the victory was so complete verse 22 it says that none of the anakim were left in the land of Israel here the foes that Israel feared so much 40 years before here they fell in defeat they were no match whatsoever for an army that trusted God was blessed by God and was directed by God I think it's interesting that Israel faced the anakim last at least in the record here in Joshua it was only after God had trained them in battle you know if you've been through the Battle of Jericho if you've been through the Battle of AI if you've been through the battle with the southern Kings if you went through the big battle here in Joshua 11 with the northern Kings this huge battle listen then taking on the anakim you you feel like hey I can trust God through this one through the many months and even years of Conquest you see when Israel 40 years before refused to enter Canaan out of fear of the anakim they did not realize that God would so guide events so that they would face this most difficult challenge last I praise the Lord that he knows how to manage the battles in the lives of his people and we should submit to God's wisdom and order in this you know a Believer today may be convinced that they have to go out and fight this enemy or that enemy first when really God in his wisdom he would say to them no no no you wait you're going to face that enemy last just like God saved the anakim last for Israel the the few survivors among the anakim it says of there in verse 22 that they remained only in Gaza in gath and in ashdod that the anakim remain only in these coastal cities occupied by the Philistines and significantly the Giant Goliath came from the city of gath some 500 years later so here's the last verse here verse 23 so Joshua took the whole land according to all all the Lord had said to Moses and Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their divisions by their tribes then the land rested from war this marks another section of the Book of Joshua the power of the Canaanite Kings within the land had been crushed and in this sense Joshua took the whole land yet not every small town and Village had been conquered and OCC occupied that would be up to each individual tribe to do so in the land that would be apportioned to them there's a good analogy I could paraphrase it myself but I'm just going to read it to you from the commentator Howard he says this the Germans conquest of France in World War II involved the defeat of the French Army and the occupation of most all of France but it did not thereby mean that all the French people became German loyalists or that Germany permanently colonized France or that it killed every French citizen so too with many of the cities of Canaan which were conquered or subdued but only temporarily or only in part there was still a lot of work for Israel to do and we're going to see that in the coming chapters now there's a real analogy for us to make here it's with our own spiritual life Jesus Christ has conquered he's conquered in life and in death and we as Believers as those who are in Christ are to live out the conquest that Jesus has achieved let me read you a quote from the old Methodist commentator Adam Clark he said this those who finally reign with Christ are they who through his grace conquer the World the Flesh and the devil for it is only of those who thus overcome that he says they shall sit with me on my Throne as I have overcome and as I am set down with the father on The Father's Throne Revelation 3:21 and then Clark concluded with this question reader art thou a conqueror do your brother or sister are you a conqueror Jesus Christ has given you the resources and I'm not trying to present before you some vision of sinless perfection no no no we'll we'll leave that for for that's a that's a wrong idea and we're not talking about that but but there's just a discernable difference between a life that lives with God's power and strength and joy not that there's no difficulty there's plenty of battles to fight but there's a sense of of the Glorious conquest of Jesus Christ written all over that life I want that to be for you I also want you to consider here in verse 23 that it says that Joshua with the land he gave it as an inheritance to Israel now this is going to be the theme of much of the rest of the Book of Joshua the land was conquered in a general sense now it was up to the individual tribes to possess what God had granted them by inheritance and after all that verse 23 says then the land rested from war the end of this phase of Conquest was rest in a general sense but at the same time it was an invitation to the tribes to cooperate with God and to take what God had given them I like how Alan redpath puts it right here he says much territory was yet to be possessed but it was left to each tribe to possess what potentially it had received through the conquest of the whole people in which it had taken part each tribe was to apply individually the lessons it had learned in United War if it was to possess its inheritance that the tri failed to do so was not a reflection on the power of God but on the failure to take for themselves what Joshua had given and allotted to each one of them it's true and the principle applies for us today let's conclude with that idea and consider this as a way that Joshua 11 points to Jesus Joshua conquered the land yet there was still work for Israel to do in the same sense Jesus has already defeated the enemy The World the Flesh the devil Jesus has already conquered the land but he also calls his people into battle to gain what is theirs by inheritance one more quote from Alan redpath our Josh UA the Lord Jesus has taken the whole land all the fruit of Calvary is at the disposal of every one of his children and he holds out in his arms the whole of it to give it to you as your inheritance in this way the work of Joshua very much parallels the work of Jesus Christ and we need to receive it and walk in it we'll talk a lot about this theme as we continue on in the Book of Joshua father thank you thank you Lord that you move in naturally Supernatural ways that even though when Israel faced this tremendous battle against the northern Kings there's no record of an obvious Miracle but you were working miraculous things in very natural ways Lord we make ourselves available to you for just that kind of service and we ask that as we look to Jesus and especially his great victory at the cross and in his resurrection that you would fill us with a new appreciation of your great working power in and through us do it Lord we pray in Jesus precious name amen [Music]