Principle
With Israel’s war against Jericho imminent, the Commander of the Army of the Lord appeared to Joshua.
Explanation
After the Israelite army had crossed the Jordan River and set up the memorial, it “just so happened to be” 😉 near the time for the Passover feast.
At GOD’s command, Joshua had all the Israelite males who had been born during the wilderness wandering circumcised at this time, because Israel had failed to obey GOD’s command to circumcise their newborn sons during that period of punishment.
After these events were completed, we read:
9 Then the Lord said to Joshua the son of Nun, “Today I have removed the disgrace of Egypt from you.” Thus he called the name of that place Gilgal.
Joshua 5:9 OSB
Therefore, the Israelites kept the Passover at the prescribed time, four days after having built the memorial for the Jordan River crossing.
On the next morning, the manna ceased, which GOD had rained from heaven for forty years, to provide for Israel during their journey from Egypt to Canaan. According to Joshua 5:12, the manna stopped on this day because Israel had eaten from the produce of Canaan.
It is with all of these things having been completed, that we are introduced to the Commander of the Army of the LORD.
13 And it happened as Joshua was at Jericho and looking up with his eyes, he saw a person standing before him and a drawn sword was in his hand; and approaching, Joshua said to him, “Are you an ally or from the enemy?” 14 He said to him, “I, the commander of the army of the Lord, now am here.” And Joshua fell on his face upon the earth and said to him, “Master, what do you command your servant?” 15 And the Lord’s commander said to Joshua, “Untie your sandals from your feet. For the place upon which you are now standing is holy.”
Joshua 5:13-15 LES2
Army or power? How about both!
In Joshua 5:14, according to the Apostolic Polyglot, the Greek word that the Lexham English Septuagint translates into “of the army”, is from δύναμις, meaning “Power, strength, ability, might, miracle.”
So, while the translators seem to point towards the idea that the Commander was referencing His authority over the heavenly creatures (angels+), when we consider the miraculous delivery of Jericho over to Israel, perhaps the Commander was alluding to what He (alone!) was about to do through the faith of Israel.
Divinity of the Commander
We have previously established that there are numerous appearances of The Angel of the LORD in Scripture where we can safely conclude that this “messenger” was GOD and no mere creature.
In this case, the English word “angel” is not found in the text, but the same concept is seen.
- This being makes some form of un-/super-natural appearance. The text doesn’t indicate that the Commander walked or rode into camp after a long journey. He just kind of appeared.
- Joshua fell into a worship posture and the Commander did not rebuke Joshua. Joshua knew only GOD was to be worshiped.
- The Commander told Joshua he was standing on holy ground because of the Commander’s presence.
Which Team are You?
We have previously established that there are different text families of the Bible and I’ve explained why the Septuagint is more reliable.
An interesting difference exists in this text of Joshua 5 between the Septuagint (LXX) and the Hebrew Masoretic Text (MT) used by most English Bibles, such as the King James and NIV.
In Joshua 5:13-14, when Joshua asked the Commander whether He was for Israel or Israel’s enemies, in the Hebrew MT, the Commander responds with a denial of allegiance. However, the Septuagint does not have this negative statement, indicating that the Commander’s response showed His allegiance to Israel.
Here’s the NIV containing the denial of allegiance:
13 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?”
Joshua 5:13-14 NIV
Many other Hebrew-English translations, including the official Masoretic Text, simply read, “No…” rather than, “Neither.” But it’s a denial nonetheless.
I’ve provided the LES2 translation of the Septuagint above, but here’s the Orthodox Study Bible version, as well, to show the absence of that negative phrasing:
13 Then it came to pass, when Joshua was at Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing before him with a sword drawn in his hand. So Joshua came near and said to him, “Are you for us or on the side of our adversaries?” 14 He said to him, “I am now come, the chief captain of the host of the Lord.” Then Joshua fell on his face upon the earth and said to him, “O Master, what do you command your servant?”
Joshua 5:13-14 OSB
When we think about it, how silly it would have been for GOD to deny being on Israel’s side after leading them all that way and after having just parted the Jordan.
In my opinion, this is another situation where the LXX makes more sense compared to the MT where there is a textual variance. This isn’t always the case between the two, but most often it is.
The Moses Parallel
GOD was drawing connections between the events of Joshua and that generation of Israelites with Moses and the previous generation of Israel who left Egypt.
On one hand, it was critical for these Israelites to respect Joshua as a leader equal to Moses—or at least equal to the current challenge and needs—so that they would complete the mission GOD had set for them. The fighting was about to begin.
And on the other hand, it was even more essential that Israel realize that the power came from GOD alone and that, ultimately, the human leader was interchangeable as long as GOD was with and for them. While Israel needed to heed Joshua’s lead, Israel needed to follow GOD, looking to the unseen rather than the seen.
For us, who have the advantage of the full historical view of Scripture, as GOD’s eternal plan was unfolding, we should appreciate how Joshua presents the completion, the closure, to Moses’ initiation and beginning. For example:
- Moses left Egypt; Joshua entered Canaan.
- Moses crossed the Red Sea; Joshua crossed the Jordan.
- Moses introduced circumcision (in the Law); Joshua renewed circumcision.
- Moses brought hope in dark times (Egyptian slavery); Joshua brought the fulfillment of promises and dreams (arrival in Canaan).
- GOD gave Moses a “holy ground” moment at the desert’s burning bush; GOD gave Joshua a “holy ground” moment at Jericho.
- Moses was chosen for a mission, tried it his way, and had to learn to wait on GOD; Joshua was the faithful sidekick, groomed to take over, who now had to trust that GOD was truly with him as He had been with Moses.
The Commander of the Army of the LORD had come to deliver that one final assurance to Joshua prior to the test of faith at Jericho.
Leave a Reply