Joshua 7:1, 10-12, 20-26
SS Lesson for 07/03/2011
Devotional Scripture: Heb 12:7-11
The outline of the lesson came from the Bible Expositor and Illumninator. This week's lesson reveals how God Deals with Disobedience. The study's aim is to show that our God deals sternly with disobedience in the lives of His children. The study's application is to illustrate that when we disobey God, He disciplines us and only through the removal of sin is the path to restoration.
Responses to Disobedience
It was a family vacation, and the father was driving as the family enjoyed the scenery of the mountains. At one point, the father changed from the secondary road to a tertiary one—that fine line on the map that indicates a road of lesser quality. Just as the car changed roads, a sign confronted them with a warning: Road Closed. In spite of reservations by others in the car, the father went ahead. He remembered having been here before, and he was confident that he could negotiate around any obstacle. The family would be able to enjoy even more spectacular views. Just before merging back with the first road, they came to a place where a bridge was being replaced. There was no way around. As they returned to the place where they had taken the more scenic route, they were greeted by a message with bold letters on the back of the sign that had been ignored: We told you so. That’s humorous, but warnings regarding expected conduct are often viewed as affronts to personal liberty. Authorities are to be challenged or disregarded. Compliance is optional. We think we know better.
Respect for authority should begin in the home. But the homes of today often deliver mixed messages on expectations. The guidelines often change as children are shuffled from the home of one divorced parent to another. Children seem to understand that emotional forces are at work that will make discipline by a nonparent difficult in blended families. Experts in family life recommend that families develop lists of expectations along with consequences for infractions. For this plan to work, there must be consistency in application. If a person in authority abdicates responsibility to enforce consequences, then family dynamics deteriorate. This is a lesson that is clearly evident in the Old Testament.
Lesson Background
Our four previous studies have shown that Israel’s determined obedience to God produced the successes that the previous generation forfeited because of disobedience. Some of the people experienced the full 40 years of punishment in the wilderness wandering. The evidence accumulated to show that the repeated disobediences and complaining by their ancestors was totally unacceptable behavior to God. The rebellious adults who left Egypt perished in the wilderness. The farewell address of Moses in the book of Deuteronomy also had a strong effect. Moses’ death took place a short time before the book of Joshua begins. In his speeches, Moses vividly contrasted the results for obedience and disobedience, not only for that generation, but also in the future (see Deuteronomy 27 and 28). Over 200 times Moses used the imperatives hear, do, obey, keep. The second generation—that is, the one that followed Joshua’s leadership—did well in listening and learning. Many good things happened as a result. The people pledged to obey Joshua. They accepted the news from the two spies sent to Jericho that the inhabitants of Canaan were terrified. The conquest of Jericho was completely successful. Simple obedience to God’s unusual battle plans produced a stunning victory. This was the first of three cities in Canaan that the book of Joshua says were burned. The others were Ai (Joshua 8:18, 19) and Hazor (11:11). From all outward appearances, the conquest of Canaan was going extremely well. But during the assault on Jericho, a deliberate, disobedient, defiant sin entered Israel. What would be the consequences for the nation of Israel, and what could be done about it to make things right again? That topic is the lesson for today.
One thing you learn as a parent regarding young children is that when you give them a command not to do a certain thing, they will probably become curious and try it. God had given specific instructions about the destruction of Jericho, and Joshua passed them on: "And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it" (Josh. 6:18). Every person in the city was to be slain, and everything was to be destroyed, except for certain valuables that were to be placed in the treasury of the Lord's house (vss. 17, 19). Jericho was the firstfruits of the land of Canaan. Could any instruction have been clearer than that? Surely there was a clear understanding of it in everyone's mind, and there would be no problem with adhering to it. But human nature is tricky, and our hearts cannot always be trusted. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jer. 17:9). This week we learn how easy it is to move away from God in times of prosperity. We have to be on guard against the sin of disobedience. The way God dealt with Achan's disobedience shows us how repugnant sin really is to Him. My memories of growing up in a godly home include the stern way my parents dealt with disobedience. It was not easy to endure. But I very quickly learned that the pathway to restoration is confession. When sin was not confessed, it weighed heavily on my heart. The sooner I confessed my sin, the sooner I found peace. One only has to read Psalms 32 and 51 to find how disobedience took its toll on David. Our lesson this week shows us how Joshua dealt with the sin of disobedience.
(Scriptural Text from the New King James Version; cross-references from the NIV)
1 But the children of Israel committed a trespass regarding the accursed things, for Achan the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed things; so the anger of the Lord burned against the children of Israel.
10 So the Lord said to Joshua: "Get up! Why do you lie thus on your face?
11 Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. For they have even taken some of the accursed things, and have both stolen and deceived; and they have also put it among their own stuff.
12 Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they have become doomed to destruction. Neither will I be with you anymore, unless you destroy the accursed from among you.
5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices
19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people.
9 Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
15 Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."
5 The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant.
10 they did not keep God's covenant and refused to live by his law.
37 their hearts were not loyal to him, they were not faithful to his covenant.
18 A certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" 19 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good — except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.'"
26 He who robs his father and drives out his mother is a son who brings shame and disgrace.
24 He who robs his father or mother and says, "It's not wrong" — he is partner to him who destroys.
2 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.
8 The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways, but the folly of fools is deception.
24 A malicious man disguises himself with his lips, but in his heart he harbors deceit.
25 Because he takes note of their deeds, he overthrows them in the night and they are crushed. 26 He punishes them for their wickedness where everyone can see them, 27 because they turned from following him and had no regard for any of his ways.
14 I will bring them back from captivity and return them to Upper Egypt, the land of their ancestry. There they will be a lowly kingdom. 15 It will be the lowliest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself above the other nations. I will make it so weak that it will never again rule over the nations. 16 Egypt will no longer be a source of confidence for the people of Israel but will be a reminder of their sin in turning to her for help. Then they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.'"
29 "Edom is there, her kings and all her princes; despite their power, they are laid with those killed by the sword. They lie with the uncircumcised, with those who go down to the pit.
8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power
7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
8 But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
20 And Achan answered Joshua and said, "Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and this is what I have done:
21 When I saw among the spoils a beautiful Babylonian garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. And there they are, hidden in the earth in the midst of my tent, with the silver under it."
22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent; and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver under it.
23 And they took them from the midst of the tent, brought them to Joshua and to all the children of Israel, and laid them out before the Lord.
24 Then Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, the silver, the garment, the wedge of gold, his sons, his daughters, his oxen, his donkeys, his sheep, his tent, and all that he had, and they brought them to the Valley of Achor.
25 And Joshua said, "Why have you troubled us? The Lord will trouble you this day." So all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones.
26 Then they raised over him a great heap of stones, still there to this day. So the Lord turned from the fierceness of His anger. Therefore the name of that place has been called the Valley of Achor to this day.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord" — and you forgave the guilt of my sin.
14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
13 He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
9 Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.
13 When Samuel reached him, Saul said, "The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord's instructions." 14 But Samuel said, "What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?" 15 Saul answered, "The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we totally destroyed the rest." 16 "Stop!" Samuel said to Saul. "Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night."
7 About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 Peter asked her, "Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?" "Yes," she said, "that is the price." 9 Peter said to her, "How could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also." 10 At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband.
28 "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out — those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power
6 But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.
18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness
The title of this lesson, “God Responds to Disobedience,” is true. But frequently there is a period of time between the sin and its punishment. Achan may have thought that the passing of time meant that he had escaped detection, but God knew that the sin had occurred. Sin has its wages. The sin of David with Bathsheba is another example of a person’s thinking that he has masterfully arranged to appear innocent. David created the illusion of being compassionate in marrying the widow of a fallen solider. Instead, David had coveted another man’s wife, committed adultery, and arranged for the husband to be killed. What looked like just another military casualty actually was the culmination of sinful actions. God responded to the disobedience, although he waited several months to do so (2 Samuel 11, 12). A caution must be expressed, however. Some tend to look on all reversals as divine judgments for sin. The example of Job proves that this may not be the case. Sometimes things just happen, and sometimes events will not be understood in this lifetime. Each Christian is to overcome through trust in God, thus being an example to others.
Last week it was observed that the conquest of Jericho marked a shining moment in Israel's history when the people followed the Lord's instructions precisely and completely. That was true in terms of the procedure they were given leading up to the conquest. Once the city was taken, however, one Israelite committed a serious violation of further directives. The Lord had unambiguously commanded that no personal plunder was to be taken from the city of Jericho; all valuables were to be given over to God—that is, destroyed in sacrifice to Him (Josh. 6:17-19). But one individual, Achan, could not resist the temptation to keep some items for himself (7:1). The result was a bitter setback for the nation in the attempt to take the next city, Ai (vss. 4-5). An investigation followed, and Achan was implicated through a divinely guided casting of lots. When he saw that his offense was exposed, Achan admitted his guilt. He confessed to Joshua, "Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel." If we were unfamiliar with this narrative, we might at this point be preparing ourselves for a heartwarming conclusion. Achan confesses his sin and is forgiven. Is that not the promised result? After all, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:9). But that is not what we see happen. Instead of being forgiven and welcomed back into fellowship with his people, Achan and his family were immediately taken to their execution by stoning. After that their bodies were burned. All of this was a warning to the people of the catastrophic consequences of sin. It is an uncomfortable account to read, and many prefer to simply pass over it. What are we to make of this admittedly grisly episode? Why did Achan's confession not "work" for him? Did it do him any good at all? Did he have cause to regret making it? The first point we must observe is that this was a criminal trial. Even today in a court of law, a confession of guilt does not carry the expectation of pardon for the crime. It might result in a mitigation of the severity of the sentence, but that is up to the discretion of the judge. Indeed, the essence of confession was not just an admittance of guilt but an agreement that the punishment attached to that guilt was just. In short, Achan was agreeing that he had committed a capital offense and that he deserved what was coming to him. (The fact that he spoke up only after his guilt was clear is another factor weighing against him. No one knows what might have happened had he spoken up at the outset.) Did Achan's confession reconcile him to God and save him from eternal punishment even though he suffered the earthly penalty? We would like to think so, but that depends on things we cannot know, such as the condition of his heart and whether he confessed in faith. The promise of I John 1:9 is directed to those who are already saved through faith in Jesus Christ. We are not saved by our confessions. As children of God, we are given the privilege of going to Him with our sin and finding His forgiveness. That may have been true for Achan; let us rejoice and give praise if it is true for us.
1. True victory can be had only when God is obeyed fully (Josh. 7:1)
2. Too often we blame God for our failures rather than recognize the consequences of our own and others' sin (vs. 10-12)
3. Beware lest your looking turn into coveting and your sinful coveting turn into action (vs. 20-21)
4. Public acts of judgment should always be based on demonstrable facts (vs. 22-23)
5. Our sin always impacts us and those around us (vs. 24-25)
6. Rightly dealing with sin is the only way to appease God's anger (Josh. 7:26; cf. John 3:36; Rom. 5:9)
Israel witnessed a great victory at Jericho, but they soon would learn that past victories do not guarantee future success. It is a lesson we need to learn as well. Victory in our spiritual battles is dependent on our continuing obedience to God.
Joshua had told the people of Israel not to take anything from the city of Jericho, for everything there belonged to God (6:17-19). However, that warning was not heeded by one man of the tribe of Judah, a man named Achan. While Achan was able to keep his sin hidden from others, the Lord was well aware of it.
The sin came to light only because Joshua went to the Lord in despair over what happened at the city of Ai. After the glorious victory at Jericho, Israel had suffered an inglorious defeat at Ai, a city that was far less formidable than Jericho (vss. 2-5). Joshua could not understand this demoralizing defeat in light of God's promise. The Lord revealed to Joshua that success at Ai could not be given because Israel had violated the command of God regarding the taking of things from Jericho (Josh. 7:10-12). This sin had to be dealt with if Israel was to be successful in the days ahead.
The Lord instructed Joshua on the procedure to be followed to reveal the guilty one (vss. 13-15). The people first sanctified themselves, thus recommitting themselves to their covenant with God. Then the sinner was revealed as God selected by lot the tribe, the family, the household, and finally the individual who had committed the sin. That individual was Achan. Once Achan was chosen, Joshua urged him to confess his sin and give glory and praise to God (Josh. 7:19). This Achan did, confirming his guilt and thus making the way for divine forgiveness. He did not excuse his sin but described the temptation that led him to take some of the silver and gold and a fine garment. This was confirmed by messengers who were sent to Achan's tent and found the stolen items. Whether Achan's confession was heartfelt or not, he at least had the opportunity to seek God's forgiveness. Punishment, however, could not be averted. Our "secret" sin affects other people, and in Achan's case it affected an entire nation. While we can be thankful to a merciful God who always offers forgiveness when we confess our sins and repent, in this life we may still have to suffer consequences for those sins. Such was the case for Achan. The items Achan had taken were brought before all Israel, as was Achan himself. Acting on orders from God, the people stoned to death Achan and his family. His family died along with him, quite possibly because they were aware of what he had done and thus were participants in his sin. Achan probably had every intention of following the instructions regarding Jericho, but his downfall was materialism. He put material possessions ahead of spiritual concerns. In our materialistic culture, we would do well to remember Achan and take warning.