Free press., 1907-10-05
JOSHUA, ISRAM'S
NEW LEADER
Sunday School Lesson for Oct. 6, 1907
Specially Prepared for This Paper
Specially Prepared for This Paper

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TIME.-The last of March or early in
April (Josh. 4: 10 compared with Josh.
1: I'D, B. c. 1851 according to our Bible
margins. Many scholars place it two
the Exodus.
PLACE.-The plain of the Jordan on
the east side. at the foot OF the Moabite
mountains. opposite Jericho.
Comment and Suggestive Thought.
Joshua, the New Leader.-5is Name,
originally Hoshea. the same as the
prophet Hosea, signifying salvation"
or help" To this was added after
wards (Num. IS: 16) "Je" for Jeho-
yah, and the name became Jehosua.
Jehovah is salvation" shortened to
Joshua, later modified in Neh. s: II
to Joshua, from which came its Greek
form in the Septuagint, Jesous. Jesus.
OF whom Joshua was in some respects
a type.
His Ancestry.-He was an Ephraim-
fte. a descendant of Joseph, through
Ephraim, and according to Chron. z:
22-27 he was the eleventh generation
from Joseph. His fathers name was
Nun. and his grandfather, Elishama,
was a captain of the army of the
Ephraimites, 40,5O0 in number, at the
organizations of the Israelites soon
after the exodus (Num. 2: Ii, etc,
compared with Chron. Z: 27).
His Birthplace-He must have been
born In Goshen in Egypt, where his
parents were in slavery.
We would know all of life If we COM
pletely understood any one life. 1t is
well to read what we can in Joshua's
Book of Life.
1. Matheson calls his life prosaic,
| commonplace, that Of an assistant to
| Moses. OF the three, classes of men
| those "in advance of their time. the
men up to their time, and the men fol
| lowing their time"-Joshua was one
| of the last type, without originality,
| obeying orders; his deeds only breathe
| through him, not from him. Thus
| the blind preacher makes Joshua
| comfort and strength and hope to the
vast majority of men.
This may be true of the earlier por-
| tions of his life up to the time Of this
| lesson. But now he comes to the re-
ward of his faithfulness as one who
! obeys orders. By obeying he has
! learned to command. By faithfulness
| things This is the only ladder that
may be climbed to the best. The
| one who would be an orator is
| told to learn the great orations by
| heart. The one who would be paint
er studies and copies the great artists.
| When the time came he was able to
enter the door to his great life-work.
2. A well-known scholar, says the
Temple Bible, considers the finest re-
| ligioUs conception in the book the ap-
| pearance to Joshua of the angelic Cap
| tain of the Lords host Josh. 5: 13-
| 15). 1t is noble illustration of the
truth that in the great causes of God
upon the earth, the leaders. however,
| supreme they seem, are themselves
! led" Joshua was great because he
! was under divine guidance, taught by
| divine wisdom, and therefore, humble
| and strong.
8. He was man of great courage,
| both physical and moral, as he had
shown in the battle with Amalek, and
| still more in action, in spying out the
land and in almost alone resisting
the clamors of the people.
4. He was a man of faith
5. He was deeply and intensely re-
ligious. through and through.
6. He came to have fine qualities
as a general,-keen observation,
| power to control, wise leadership, ce-
lerity of movement skilful, strategy,
boldness of attack.
Ebers, in his romance Joshua"
makes him, not without some proba-
bility, a captain prior to the Exodus,
| in the Egyptian army, well accustom-
| ed to campaigning.
The Difficulties in the Way.-These
+, were very great indeed.
l. The Jordan was at its food
| Josh. 3: 15), absolutely impossible
| for an army, much less for the whole
| people Of Israel. This made them safe
| from attack, but also prevented them
| from taking possession.
2. The people of the land dweIt in
walled cities against which the Israel
ties had no sufficient weapons.
| These obstacles rose like an i'm
| passable barrier of mountains before
the people. Impossible to overcome"
| was written all over them. 1t was like
| the task which Jesus set before his
L 01SCipiCS HACA ne Was dDOuL De
| crucified-twelve unlearned. unarmed
/ poor men to conquer the Roman en-
| pire. when one breath OF Cesar could
sweep them from the earth: to over
come the wealth, the world1iness, the
Seifshness. the sin, and crime of the
world. Lebanon was but a molehilI to
this mountain OF difficulty. The reo-
| pie were dismayed, disheartened.
hopeless almost to despair.
/ Practical Points.
| The path OF duty is like a direct
/ road to success, and moving from it
| in either direction leads to disaster
and defeat. Note the terms righteous
| ness. rectitude, uprightness and. in
/ matters of opinion. orthodox while