“They Have Violated My Covenant”
Joshua 7:1-26; Acts 5:1-11
July 16, 2017 ● Download this sermon (PDF) ● Download bulletin (PDF)
Congregation of Christ: Today’s text makes Christians cringe, because when their families and friends hear this part of Israel’s history, they are asked, “How can your God commit genocide by exterminating all the men, women, children, animals and possessions of Jericho, Ai and other Canaanite cities?” Some even apologize, by accepting that the text is a mistake, or that they too reject this “holy war” in the book. But many others sway to the other end of the pendulum, saying that these texts are applicable even today, particularly against Muslims and Hindus who persecute and martyr Christians all over the world.
Critics of this text are many. Richard Dawkins, a popular self-proclaimed atheist, says that our God is an “evil monster.” He has one of the most blasphemous descriptions of God: “a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.” And that the destruction of Jericho is “morally indistinguishable from Hitler’s invasion of Poland, or Saddam Hussein’s massacres of Kurds and the Marsh Arabs.”[footnote]White Horse Inn, “Is God a Moral Monster?” January 12, 2014, https://www.whitehorseinn.org/show/is-god-a-moral-monster/. Accessed July 14, 2017.[/footnote]
We will answer these attacks against our God through our text today and next Sunday. Back in Chapters 5 and 6, after miraculously crossing the Jordan River on dry ground at its flood stage, God commanded Joshua and the Israelites to go and take Jericho. The Lord told them to march around the city walls for seven days. On the seventh day, after a long trumpet blast and a loud shout, God promised that the wall would crumble to the ground. And it did, but it was not by might and swords the Jericho fell, but by God who fought the battle for them.
The Covenant About “Devoted Things” (6:17-19; verses 10-11)
Surprise and ominous clouds greet us in verse 1 of Chapter 7, “But the people of Israel broke faith in regard to the devoted things.” Achan, who belonged to the prominent tribe of Judah, took some of these “devoted things.” What are these “devoted things”? Going back to God’s commands to Israel before the Battle of Jericho in Joshua 6:17-19 gives us the answer:
And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the LORD for destruction … But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it. But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the LORD; they shall go into the treasury of the LORD.
What do we think of when we read the word “devoted” in the Bible? We think of someone pious or dutiful in his duties toward God. We’re reminded of Simeon, “a righteous and devout” man who waited for the Messiah (Luke 2:25); of Cornelius, “a devout man who feared God” (Acts 10:2), and Ananias, “a devout man according to the law,” who restored Paul’s sight (Acts 22:12).
But in our text, the word “devoted things” means completely different. These things were devoted or dedicated by God to be destroyed by Israel. These things include every man, woman and child, animals and possessions of Canaanites. If anyone takes any of the devoted things – whether human beings, animals or things – for their own use or pleasure, the whole of Israel would be in trouble. They would all be liable to destruction as well. The only things that were not to be destroyed would be gold and silver, which were saved for the building of the temple.
Such was the severity of God’s covenant law about “devoted things.” So “the anger of the LORD burned against the people of Israel.” Achan alone violated the covenant, but God’s wrath was against the whole nation. It’s striking that the word “unfaithful” or “broke faith” is also used to describe an unfaithful wife (Num 5:12-13). The sin of Achan is likened to Israel being an unfaithful wife to her husband, the Lord God. That’s why idolatry is spiritual adultery, and God describes himself as a jealous God when a person devotes himself to a different god.
The church of Christ functions in the same way as God’s covenant nation Israel. When a member hurts, the whole church hurts; when a member rejoices, the whole church rejoices (Rom 12:15). “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together” (1 Cor 12:26) When a member suffers church discipline because of sin or error in doctrine, the whole church feels sorrowful. That’s why Paul also warns us that an unbiblical administration of the sacraments, particularly giving the Lord’s Supper to unbelievers, may result in God sending judgment against the whole church (1 Cor 11:27-30).
Defeat Follows Covenant Violation (verses 2-9)
Verses 2-5 briefly describe the action of the Battle of Ai. Joshua set his sight on the next city, Ai, just a few miles from Jericho. God had promised to be with them during the whole conquest of the Promised Land, so there should be no delay in building over their victory at Jericho. But alas! The conquest of Ai was not to be so easy!
Again, as a brilliant military commander, he sent spies to take stock of the city’s defenses. The spies came back confident that they can take the city with only 3,000 warriors because the city was small, with only 12,000 people (Jos 8:25). So their defeat was a bad signal to the other Canaanite cities. If Ai was a small city, and they couldn’t take it with a small force, how could they take other larger and stronger cities in Canaan?
Some people think that Israel suffered this defeat because they were too confident, so that we don’t read of them praying and offering sacrifices to the Lord before the battle. They relied on their own might and skills, not on God’s promise of victory. As God’s new covenant people, we often fall into the same trap. When we think we’ve been good and obedient, we think that God blesses us. He gives us the desires of our hearts and prosperous days. Bad times drive us to our knees in persistent prayer to God. But we easily forget when we enjoy good things in life that God gives us.
So God reminds us that we don’t receive these blessings out of our own efforts. He reminds us often that we can do nothing without Christ who strengthens us. Sometimes these reminders come in the form of trials, sufferings and discipline. God “disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Heb 12:10-11).
But in this text, overconfidence and lack of prayer is an incorrect interpretation. Verse 1 already gave us the answer why they lost the battle: Achan violated the covenant prohibition against taking “devoted things” for himself, and God was provoked into anger against them.
So we read Joshua’s lament before God in verses 6-9. Joshua “tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the LORD, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same, and sprinkled dust on their heads.” The tearing of clothes and throwing dust on their heads were signs of mourning, especially over death, sin, or defeat. For example, when King David learned that his son Absalom killed all his other sons, he “tore his garments and lay on the earth” (2 Sam 13:31). When Israel was defeated in battle, a man came back to the high priest Eli “with his clothes torn and with dirt on his head” (1 Sam 4:12). When the high priest thought that Jesus had committed blasphemy, he tore his garments (Mark 14:63).
Joshua and the elders of Israel deeply mourned their defeat, so he asked God why he even brought the people across the Jordan River to have them destroyed by the Amorites. Then he wished that they had stayed across the river. His prayer reminds us of Israel’s grumblings in the wilderness against God. But Joshua was not like the rebellious Israelites. His prayer was a prayer of desperation, much like the desperate prayers of David in the Psalms.
He was not sinning, but he was concerned about two things. First, he feared, “The Canaanites and the other people of the country will hear about this and they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth.” When the people of the bigger and stronger cities of Canaan hear about this defeat against little Ai, they would be emboldened and gain confidence in fighting against Israel.
Second, Joshua was zealous for the honor of God’s name, “What then will you do for your own great name?” Like Rahab, the Canaanites have heard of God’s promise to Israel that he would give the land to Israel. And the evidence was there: mighty Jericho was easily defeated. Now, the tables are turned. Mighty Israel was defeated by tiny Ai. Their God cannot deliver! He is weak and not as powerful as we thought.
This was also the concern of Moses after Israel shrunk from the report of the ten spies. The Canaanite men were giants, and their cities were well-fortified. So the people complained that they would rather have died in Egypt or in the wilderness, than die at the hands of Canaanites (Num 14:2-3). God said he would destroy this rebellious people. But Moses pleaded to God that if God destroyed Israel, the Canaanites would say that the Lord is weak and cannot fulfill his promise. So Moses prayed, “please let the power of the Lord be great as you have promised” (Num 14:16-17).
Are you concerned and zealous for the honor and glory of the name of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ? Many people dishonor his name by invoking his name in cursing. They say that our God is dead or does not exist, and that the Bible is full of errors and contradictions. They laugh at the Bible’s signs and wonders and miracles, and the truth of Christ’s resurrection. They ridicule the morality and righteousness of Christians in the face of an immoral and unrighteous culture. They scoff at our faith in the Second Coming of our Lord (2 Pet 3:4). Are you willing to defend God’s honor and glory? Are you able to do this by training yourself in studying God’s Word, and what we believe and why? (1 Pet 3:15)
The Lord’s Judgment Against Covenant Violation (verses 12-26)
After Joshua appealed to God, God revealed to him the cause of Israel’s defeat at Ai: one of them violated the covenant by taking for himself some of the “devoted things.” So he is to conduct an investigation to find the covenant breaker. By casting lots, the field is narrowed down to one tribe, then to one clan, then to one household, then to one man. The man’s name is Achan. Joshua commanded him to “give glory to the Lord God,” “give him praise,” “tell me what you have done,” and “do not hide it from me.” How would he do these? By confessing his covenant violation. He confessed that he had taken silver and gold, and a beautiful robe from Babylonia and hid them in his tent.
The punishment was swift and severe. Not only Achan was to be put to death, but his whole household, his animals, and all his possessions, including the things he took from the spoil. His family ceased. He brought not only himself and his family to destruction, but also the entire nation. If he was not put to death, Israel would be destroyed. It was that severe of a sin and punishment. The irony of it all is that later, after Israel defeated Ai, God would allow Israel to take some of the spoil. If Achan had just waited a few days, he would have gotten what he desired.
After crossing the Jordan River, Israel built a stone memorial to God’s might and glory. Here, another stone memorial was built. But this stone memorial was not to praise God’s might and glory. It was a memorial to God’s judgment against covenant violation. Where Achan’s tent stood, a huge pile of stones that the people cast at Achan and his household was left. That place was later called “the Valley of Achor” – a word-play with “Achan” – which simply means “valley of trouble.” One man caused trouble to the whole nation of Israel.
Dear friends, God demands perfect obedience to his commandments. He demanded complete obedience from Israelites in renewing his covenant with them in the Promised Land. Canaanites, who were covenant breakers, were “devoted to destruction.” But when Israel violated the covenant, they too were liable to be “devoted to destruction” by God.
But when Christ came, he fulfilled God’s promise of a new covenant of grace, and we are to abide by his covenant laws, the Holy Scripture. How are we to perfectly obey God’s law when by nature we are sinners? We cannot and we will not, that’s why we sin every day of our lives. But we have our Lord Jesus Christ who perfectly obeyed all of God’s law, living a sinless life all the way to the cross. By faith in Christ, God credits to our account his perfect righteousness. So he declares us pardoned, acquitted of all our sins. But only because of Christ.
Because of the sin of Achan, his whole household was destroyed. Even the whole nation was in peril of destruction. This reminds us of God’s covenant with Adam. God’s covenants with man are always representative. Because he represented all mankind, when he sinned, all mankind inherited his sinful nature. And the penalty for sin is death, so all creatures die. There is no such thing as “innocent” men, women and children, including the people of Jericho. Even unborn infants already have sinful nature, as King David admits, “in sin did my mother conceive me” (Psa 51:5). That’s why even unborn infants barely in their first trimester die due to miscarriage, though they have not committed any sin yet. God’s complete destruction of Jericho and other cities in Canaan is merely a foreboding of a much more terrible judgment against all rebellious unbelievers when Christ returns from heaven, this time as the Conquering Warrior.
God’s wrathful and righteous judgment against sin did not happen only in the Old Testament. Our reading in Acts 5:1-11 is also a reminder to us that God cannot tolerate and let sin go unpunished in the church. Ananias and Sapphira were struck dead by God because they lied to God and the Holy Spirit. Like Achan, they coveted what was not theirs, since they promised to give all the proceeds to God. We don’t see this swift and severe judgment happen today, but God’s vengeance is sure to come one day someday.
But here’s the really good news. God’s covenant of grace is also representative. In his life, death and resurrection, Christ represented all who would believe in him. So we are united to him in his perfect obedience to the law. Jesus was a “devoted thing” to God, “devoted to destruction” for our sin. Our memorial stone to his death is the sacraments of the Lord’s Supper and our worship services. We remember his life, death and resurrection every Lord’s Day. Take comfort that we also represent our own families, though some of our children and grandchildren go astray. So today, remember that we dwell in in the shelter of his tent that would never be destroyed. And on the last day, we will dwell in the shelter of his new heaven and new earth forever.
