In yesterday's study we found the Lord instructing Joshua to take the whole army of Israel to Ai this time. Previously Joshua only sent three thousand men because that should have been enough to conquer the number of soldiers Ai had at its disposal. But there was sin in the camp of Israel and the Lord allowed the Israelites to be defeated so He could deal with the problem. Now that the matter has been taken care of, the Lord gives Israel's army a do-over by sending the soldiers back to Ai. This time He wants the whole army to go. The whole army---even those who did not go up against Ai the first time---feels discouraged. The whole army is saddened by the loss of thirty-six men in the first battle. The whole army is saddened by the sin that took place at Jericho which led to defeat at Ai. The Lord is going to encourage every fighting man of Israel by allowing every one of them to take part in the assault on the city of Ai.
"So Joshua and the whole army moved out to attack Ai. He chose thirty thousand of his best fighting men and sent them out at night with these orders: 'Listen carefully. You are to set an ambush behind the city.'" (Joshua 8:3-4a) In yesterday's passage the Lord, the commander-in-chief of Israel's army, instructed Joshua to set an ambush behind the city. Joshua carries out the Lord's instructions to the letter. He takes the whole army out but he sends his fiercest warriors to set up the ambush.
Joshua continues, "Don't go very far from it. All of you be on the alert. I and all those with me will advance on the city, and when the men come out against us, as they did before, we will flee from them." (Joshua 8:4b-5) Joshua and the men with him will march toward the front gates of the city. When the soldiers of Ai see them approaching, they will arm themselves for battle and come out to face the Israelites. The Israelites are going to pretend to be afraid of them and will take off running.
Joshua explains that Israel is setting a trap for the army of Ai. "They will pursue us until we have lured them away from the city, for they will say, 'They are running away from us as they did before.' So when we flee from them, you are to rise up from ambush and take the city. The Lord your God will give it into your hand. When you have taken the city, set it on fire. Do what the Lord has commanded. See to it; you have my orders." (Joshua 8:6-8)
The soldiers of Ai will be overconfident because they routed Israel the first time. The men of Ai also don't know exactly how many soldiers Israel has. Joshua only sent three thousand men the first time, and although Ai's soldiers can see that more than three thousand men are approaching their front gates on this second excursion, they don't suspect that thirty thousand more Israelite soldiers are stationed behind the city. All the armed men of Ai will take off after the fleeing Israelites and will leave their city open to invasion. In tomorrow's account of the battle we'll be told that "not a man remained in Ai" who did not go out in pursuit of Israel.
The Lord knows this is how the men of Ai will behave and that's why His battle plan will work. It's always best to follow the Lord's plans because He knows exactly how everyone involved is going to think or behave. He knows exactly how every detail of every circumstance is going to go. The plans we make for ourselves often look perfect to our eyes but they may lead to disaster. An opportunity that looks great today can reveal itself to be a huge mistake later on. That's why the wise King Solomon tells us to make all our decisions by this method: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:5-6) We must trust the Lord's instructions even when they don't make sense to us. We must trust the Lord's instructions even when we like our own idea more than we like His. Solomon was the wisest man on earth, according to the Bible, but he was just a man---just a human being like everyone else. That's why he understood the human mind and the human tendency to "lean on your own understanding". But human understanding isn't perfect. The human mind isn't capable of seeing many years into the future. The Lord's understanding is perfect and He knows everything that will ever happen. That's why we must submit to His authority when He says, "Don't go that way!," even when that's the very way we want to go. We must submit to His authority when He says, "Go this way!", when it's a way that doesn't make sense to us.
Joshua received the battle plan for taking the city of Ai from the Lord. That's why, when he passed the orders along to his soldiers, he said in verse 8 of our text today, "Do what the Lord has commanded. See to it; you have my orders." If the men will do what the Lord says to do, victory is guaranteed. The only way they can lose this battle is if they disobey the Lord. In tomorrow's study we'll find them following the Lord's instructions and taking the city.
No comments:
Post a Comment