Joshua 10:1-5

¹Now Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had taken Ai and totally destroyed it, doing to Ai and its king as he had done to Jericho and its king, and that the people of Gibeon had made a treaty of peace with Israel and had become their allies. ²He and his people were very much alarmed at this, because Gibeon was an important city, like one of the royal cities; it was larger than Ai, and all its men were good fighters. ³So Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem appealed to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish and Debir king of Eglon. ⁴“Come up and help me attack Gibeon,” he said, “because it has made peace with Joshua and the Israelites.”
⁵Then the five kings of the Amorites—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon—joined forces. They moved up with all their troops and took up positions against Gibeon and attacked it.

Sports

In sports competition, challengers would do their very best to defeat the reigning champion. The fans of the reigning champion are expected to support their favorite team. The fans of opposing teams are not expected to support the champion. The champion can never get 100% support from everyone. There’ll always be those who dislike champions.
In God’s kingdom, believers are victorious in Christ but not everyone is happy with it. Victory is sweeter with strong challenges than no challenge at all. The greater the challenge to overcome the stronger the Lord wants us to become in our faith in him.

Interestingly, when the Lord gave the promise land to Israel, it was not as simple as hand over event. The Lord did not remove the Canaanites first before the Israelites came in. The Israelites had to conquer the land. They have to go to war, why? Was going to war a strategy of the Lord for the Israelites to grow in their faith in Him?
The Amorites heard the success of the Israelites and they were alarmed.

1. Alarm

^{‎ 1}Now Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had taken Ai and totally ‎destroyed it, doing to Ai and its king as he had done to Jericho and its king, and that ‎the people of Gibeon had made a treaty of peace with Israel and had become their ‎allies. ²He and his people were very much alarmed at this, because Gibeon was an ‎important city, like one of the royal cities; it was larger than Ai, and all its men were ‎good fighters.

It’s very interesting that the name of the king of Jerusalem was Adoni-Zedek which literally means “Lord of Justice or Righteousness.”
And Jerusalem probably means “Foundation of Peace.”
When King Adoni-Zedek heard the exploits of Joshua, he found no peace. He and his people were frightened. They were scared greatly. Gibeon was greater city than Ai but they made treaty of peace with Israel. They knew that the Gibeonites were good fighters, and Adoni-Zedek appealed to other Amorite kings to help them attack Gibeon.
The kings of the Amorites expected that they will soon face the Israelites. They surely heard the news that the God of Israel had commanded Moses to give the whole land and to wipe out all its inhabitants from before them. But unlike the Gibeonites, the Amorites decided to take their stand and resisted Joshua and the Israelites.

It says in Proverbs 2:6-8, ⁶For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. ⁷He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, ⁸for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones

The Lord reserved success for those who please Him. Wickedness displeases Him. With Christ in us, we become God’s righteousness. Nothing from human origin pleases God.
But by the Holy Spirit, we become pleasing to God. On the path to success, there are successive challenges and pressures to be surpassed. No human effort can thwart or stop the plan of God. ‎The kings of the Amorites tried to resist Joshua and the Israelites. Joshua and the Israelites conquered Canaan eventually.‎ God promised success to Joshua.
It say in Joshua 1:8, ⁸Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.

Joshua proved that their success comes from the Lord. Joshua challenged the Israelites, and he resolved to serve the Lord together with his household. In which the Israelites responded to serve the Lord as well.
Is says in Joshua 24:14-18, ¹⁴“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. ¹⁵But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”
¹⁶Then the people answered, “Far be it from us to forsake the Lord to serve other gods! ¹⁷It was the Lord our God himself who brought us and our parents up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled. ¹⁸And the Lord drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God.”

Serving the Lord is never easy without the guidance of the Lord. Each genuine believer who resolves to serve the Lord will face resistance and challenges ahead.
Each individual is talented in one’s on view and right. But as believers, we believe that the Lord would guide us in our steps to accomplish His purposes. Even the simple-minded person can become wise when the command of the Lord is followed. Disobedience to the Lord’s command is never wise effort.
In Psalm 19:7, ⁷The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.

Joshua may not be the most talented war veteran but he was successful against their enemies because he trusted the Lord. The Amorites acknowledged that the Lord favored Joshua that was why they agreed when Adoni-Zedek appealed to them.

2. Appeal

³So Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem appealed to Hoham king of Hebron, ‎Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish and Debir king of Eglon. ⁴“Come up and ‎help me attack Gibeon,” he said, “because it has made peace with Joshua and the ‎Israelites.”‎
‎ ⁵Then the five kings of the Amorites—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish ‎and Eglon—joined forces. They moved up with all their troops and took up positions ‎against Gibeon and attacked it.‎
Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Debir were Amorite cities surrounding Jerusalem. King Adoni-Zedek appealed for help to attack Gibeon because they did not like Gibeon to help the Israelites if in case the Israelites attack them. The other Amorite kings agreed to help Adoni-Zedek because they were their relatives and they were also next to Jerusalem. Meaning, if Israel destroys Jerusalem, they will be next the victims.
Such is happening against Israel even in our generation.

Israeli Settlement

As populations expand, Israeli expands in the disputed territories in the ‎biblical Israel.‎ A resolution to stop the Israeli settlement expansion in West Bank was submitted to the United Nations. The resolution calls on Israel to “immediately and completely cease all settlement activity in occupied territories, including East Jerusalem.” UN stands on its position that all settlements on land Israel conquered in 1967 are illegal under international law. Israeli settlement expansion is “steadily eroding the two-state solution and ‎entrenching a one-state reality accordingly.

This event is very similar in the time of Joshua when the Israelites were expanding their territorial claim in Canaan. Whatever happens with Israeli’s right and the decision of the United Nation, does it mark the Lord’s restoration of His people in the Jerusalem?
In Amos 9:11, ¹¹“In that day “I will restore David’s fallen shelter— I will repair its broken walls and restore its ruins— and will rebuild it as it used to be.

In Zephaniah 3:20, ²⁰At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes,” says the Lord.

In Joel 3:1-2, ¹“In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, ²I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will put them on trial for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land.

The Jewish people may not be necessarily friendly to others but there are consequences whatever is done against or for them. Those who made the Israelites suffer will receive the consequences of what they did. The Lord said that He will gather all nations. Nobody is exempted. The Lord declares it. He will surely do it.
It says in Ezekiel 12:25, ²⁵But I the Lord will speak what I will, and it shall be fulfilled without delay. For in your days, you rebellious people, I will fulfill whatever I say, declares the Sovereign Lord.

Not many can believe that whatever the Lord declares He will fulfill. To believe that the Lord would fulfill whatever He says is a manifestation of faith in Him. Others are deceived to believe that they are obeying God. They don’t even know they are deceived. Pray and ask the Lord to help you know if you are obeying Him or not.

><((‘> … ><(((‘> tmec\2020 <‘)))>< … <‘))><