Joshua 13-19: Driving out the “Canaanites” – obeying God

If you are reading the Book of Joshua, Chapter 13-19 would likely be boring to you.

It’s about distributing the land of Canaan to the 12 tribes of Israel. There are many difficult names to pronounce. What then is the purpose of all these? It may be meaningful to the Israelites, but not to us. It’s about their inheritance, not ours.

However, one phrase may be significant to them and to us: God said in Josh 13:6 – “I will myself drive them (Canaanites) out from before the Israelites, “As a reader, then I anticipate God to work in the Israelites to fulfill this, and drive out the Canaanites. So as I read the subsequent chapters, I find:

13:13 Yet the Israelites did not drive out the Geshurites

14: 12 Caleb said: “The Lord will be with me, and I shall drive them out, as the Lord said”

15:16 But the people of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites

16:10 They did not, however, drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer.

17:13 they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but did not utterly drive them out.

What I have learnt from here is that it seems that the writer is saying to the reader like me that only Caleb again obeyed God just like the 12 spies in the wilderness during the time of Moses. All other Israelites again failed to follow God command.

What then do these passages mean to me?
We should not spiritualize the passage and claim that the Canaanites allegorically represent sins in our lives which we need to drive them out. Rather the writer wants the readers to learn to follow what God has said, just like Caleb did. The key issue is trusting in God and obeying God in His Word. When we obey His Word, we can also be sure that He will guide us along the way.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you and watch over you. (Psa 32:8)

Mark Lim