 Joshua 1 - 12 Questions and Answers |
| Q. How did Joshua begin his leadership of the people of Jacob/Israel? | A. Joshua 1:2-5 = With a mighty promise from God to always be there for him, just like He was for Moses. |
| Q. Roughly, where were the borders of the promised land? |
A. Joshua 1:4 = North = Lebanon Mountains South = The Negev Desert East = The Euphrates River West = The Mediterrannean Sea Includes the land of the Hittites. |
| Q. Weren't the Hittites Ham's descendants? | A. Yes. Noah's youngest son, Ham, would finally have his inheritance taken away from him. |
| Q. In what way would God show His presence near to Joshua? | A. Joshua 1:5 = No one would be able to stand their ground against Joshua as long as he lived. |
| Q. What did Joshua need to do on his part? |
A. Joshua 1:6 = 1). He needed to be strong and very courageous 2). Obey all the laws Moses gave him -- no turning away from them under any circumstance 3). Study the Book of the Law continually, meditate on it day and night. |
| Q. Why? | A. Joshua 1:8 = Only then would he succeed. |
| Q. What does God mean by "being strong?" | A. Joshua 1:9 = To not be afraid. |
| Q. What does God mean by being courageous? | A. Joshua 1:9 = To not be discouraged. |
| Q. Is being strong and courageous a choice then? | A. Joshua 1:9 = Yes. God commanded it of Joshua. |
| Q. What would Joshua draw his strength from? |
A. Joshua 1:9 = Knowing that the Lord his God was with him wherever he went. Note: Do we really understand this truth? If we did, we'd never be afraid, nor let any circumstance discourage us! |
| Q. What was the first command Joshua gave to the Israelites? | A. Joshua 1:10-11 = He commanded the leaders of Israel to go through their camps and tell people to get their provisions ready. In 3 days, they would cross the Jordan River and take possession of the promised land. |
| Q. Would all the men of Israel set apart to be soldiers fight the first time? | A. Joshua 1:12 = Yes, but only the men in Reuben's, Gad's and the half-tribe of Manasseh would lead the other tribes and help them conquer their territories. When the other tribes were finally victorious, they could claim their own lands. |
| Q. Did they intend to obey Joshua? | A. Joshua 1:16-18 = Yes. Fervently promising to do so! |
| Q. What did Joshua do before they set out? | A. Joshua 2:1 = He sent 2 spies to survey the land, especially around Jericho. |
| Q. Did they come home that night? | A. Joshua 2:1 = No. They stayed at the prostitute, Rahab's, house for the night. |
| Q. Were they found out? | A. Joshua 2:2 = Yes. And a local man reported them and what they were doing to the king. |
| Q. What happened next? | A. Joshua 2:3 = He sent orders to Rahab to turn the spies over to him. |
| Q. What did she say in reply? | A. Joshua 2:4-5 = She lied, telling the king she wasn't aware of who they were, and that the spies left and maybe he could catch them as they left the city, just as the gates shut for the night. |
| Q. Did Rahab know who these Israelite spies were? | A. Joshua 2:6 = Yes. She'd hidden them up on the roof, under piles of flax. |
| Q. Why did Rahab risk her life? | A. Joshua 2:8-11 = She and the rest of the people were scared to death to fight against the Israelites. |
| Q. Why? |
A. Joshua 2:8-13 = 1). God's deeds in Egypt through this time was well-known. 2). This led them to believe God was the true God above all else. 3). She wanted to save her family and herself, in exchange for helping them, after Jericho was conquered. |
| Q. Did the spies agree to save her household? | A. Joshua 2:14 = Yes. |
| Q. How did Rahab help them escape? | A. Joshua 2:15 = Her house was built into the city wall. She let them down by a rope through the window. |
| Q. What would the spies do after hitting the ground? | A. Joshua 2:16 = Rahab told them to go to the hill country and hide there 3 days, until the men searching for them returned, then they could go their way. |
| Q. What color was the rope she used? | A. Joshua 2:18 = Scarlet (red). |
| Q. How would Rahab's family be spared? | A. Joshua 2:18 = When the Israelite soldiers attacked the city, they would leave her house alone. All Rahab's family would be in her house or else die outside. |
| Q. Did the spies make it back to the Israelite camp? | A. Joshua 2:23 = Yes. |
| Q. What was their report to Joshua? | A. Joshua 2:24 = They were confident that the Lord would give them the land because the people were terrified of the Israelites. |
| Q. Where were the Israelites camped? | A. Joshua 3:1 = In Acacia, on the other side of the Jordan River. |
| Q. How soon after the spies returned did they break camp and go forward? | A. Joshua 3:1 = Early the next morning. They camped on the banks of the Jordan River before crossing. |
| Q. What happened next? | A. Joshua 3:2 = Three days passed. Then the Israelite leaders went through the camp, giving instructions to the people. |
| Q. What were the instructions? | A. Joshua 3:2 = When they waw the Levitical priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant, they were to follow them. |
| Q. Why? | A. Joshua 3:4 = They needed a guide because they'd never been to that land before. |
| Q. How close could the Israelites follow the Ark? | A. Joshua 3:4 = Not close! A half mile behind, keeping a clear distance between them and the Ark. |
| Q. How did they prepare for battle? |
A. Joshua 3:5 = They purified themselves. Note: They didn't work out; they treated that preparation time as solemn and holy. How much better off we'd be if when getting ready for a storm, we'd get right before God! We love His help, but do we take the time to confess our sins and remove the obstacles we throw in our own paths on a daily basis? If we don't, how can we see the depth of God's wonders (v.5) in that storm? |
| Q. When did they set out to conquer the land? | A. Joshua 3:6 = The following morning. The Levitical priests picked up the Ark and led the people across the Jordan River. |
| Q. How many days passed between the time Moses died and they set out to conquer the promised land? | A. Joshua 3 = 10 days. |
| Q. Did God say anything that day? | A. Joshua 3:7 = Yes. He would make Joshua great in the eyes of all the Israelites this day. |
| Q. How? | A. Joshua 3:13 = Parting the Jordan River, just like the Red Sea. But it was done differently. |
| Q. How? | A. Joshua 3:13 = The Ark of the Covenant, which belonged to God, would lead them across the Jordan River. |
| Q. How? |
A. Joshua 3:13 = When the priests carrying the Ark feet touched the water, the water would pile up on either side. They'd stand in the middle of the riverbed on dry land, until all the Israelites were safe on the other side. Note: Notice the people could go near and even pass the Ark while the miracle took place. |
| Q. So the Red Sea parted and the Jordan River did too? | A. Yes. |
| Q. What happened to the Jordan's water? | A. Joshua 3:16 = It began piling up at a town upstream called Adam. |
| Q. And the water below that point? | A. Joshua 3:16 = It flowed on into the Dead Sea, until the riverbed was dry. |
| Q. How would they be sure to remember the experience? | A. Joshua 4:3 = Joshua chose one man from each tribe to get one stone each from the center of the riverbed, where the priests stood with the Ark, and pile them up where they camped that night, on the other side of the Jordan. |
| Q. So they had to go back into the sea to get the stones? | A. Joshua 4:3 = Yes. |
| Q. What did the stones signify? | A. Joshua 3:6 = They were used to build a memorial of the event, as a tool for teaching their children about the experience. |
| Q. Are there any more memorials of that event? | A. Joshua 4:9 = Yes. Joshua put a memorial just like it in the middle of the Jordan River where the priests stood holding the Ark. |
| Q. Who led the Jacob/Israelites across the Jordan? | A. Joshua 4:12 = The armed warriors fromthe tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh. |
| Q. How many warriors were there? | A. Joshua 4:13 = About 40,000. |
| Q. Were they prepared to fight? | A. Joshua 4:13 = Yes. They were fully armored. |
| Q. Did this experience solidify Joshua's leadership to the Israelites? | A. Joshua 4:14 = Yes. They revered him as they did Moses all his life. |
| Q. What did this miracle do? |
A. Joshua 4:24 = 1). It was a testimony to all nations of the power of God. 2). It helped the Israelites rear the Lord forever. |
| Q. Who were the first to know of this miracle? | A. Joshua 5:1 = The Amorite kings west of the Jordan, followed by the Canaanite kings, who lived along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. |
| Q. How did they react? | A. Joshua 5:1 = They were paralyzed with fear. |
| Q. What was the first order of business at Gilgal, where they camped? | A. Joshua 5:2 = To reestablish circumcision. No one had been circumcised since leaving Egypt. |
| Q. But wasn't that a careless move, since they were at a critical stage in taking the promised land? | A. Joshua 5:1 = Yes. But then their enemies were paralyzed with fear. They literally couldn't move! Godd thing because Israel's men couldn't either! Ouch! |
| Q. What does Gilgal mean? | A. Joshua 5:9 (Note) "Roll away." The name signifies their slavery in Egypt being rolled away after the circumcision healed. |
| Q. Where is Gilgal? | A. Joshua 5:10 = On the plains of Jericho. |
| Q. When did manna stop falling from heaven? | A. Joshua 5:12 = The day after Passover. They ate harvested grain and unleavened bread from the land they didn't even seed. |
| Q. Whose crops were they? | A. Joshua 5:12 = The people of Canaan's. |
| Q. Where did that famous line, "Are you friend or foe?" come from? | A. Joshua 5:13 = Joshua said it to a strange man with a sword, who turned out to be Michael, the Archangel. |
| Q. Who was Michael exactly? | A. Joshua 5:14 = Commander of the Lord's army! |
| Q. Jericho had strong gates and huge walls and the city was shut tight. Why? | A. Joshua 6:1 = They were afraid of the Isralites. No one was allowed to go in or out. |
| Q. How would the Israelites take the city? | A. Joshua 6:3 = They'd march around the city once a day for 6 days. |
| Q. In what order? |
A. Joshua 6 = 1st = The entire army 2nd = Priests with ram's horns 3rd = Priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant. |
| Q. What happened the 7th day? | A. Joshua 6:4 = They marched around the city 7 times with the priests blowing the horns. |
| Q. Then what? | A. Joshua 6:5 = The priests would blow their hrns in one long blast, which all the people would respond to with a mighty shout. |
| Q. What did that accomplish? | A. Joshua 6:5 = The walls of Jericho fell down! |
| Q. Were they allowed to talk during this action? | A. Joshua 6:10 = No. Not until it came time to shout. |
| Q. How did each day fare? | A. Joshua 6:11 = The priests blew horns and the people marched all day |
| Q. Did someone give the order to shout? | A. Joshua 6:16 = Yes. Joshua did. |
| Q. Did he keep the promise to Rahab? | A. Joshua 6:17 = Yes. (cf. 6:22). |
| Q. What was ironic about taking Jericho? | A. Joshua 6:16 = God gave them the city, which would then be completely destroyed as an offering to Him. |
| Q. Everything was destroyed? | A. Joshua 6:19 = Not included in Jericho's destruction were gold, silver, bronze and iron. |
| Q. Why? | A. Joshua 6:19 = These metals were considered sacred to the Lord. |
| Q. How loud did they shout? | A. Joshua 6:20 = As loud as they could. |
| Q. Were all people, including women and children, destroyed too? | A. Joshua 6:21 = Yes. Even cattle, sheep and donkeys -- everything else. |
| Q. How was Jericho destroyed? | A. Joshua 6:24 = With fire. |
| Q. Was Jericho rebuilt? | A. Joshua 6:26 = No. Joshua laid a curse on anyone who would try to rebuild Jericho. |
| Q. Yikes! What would happen? | A. Joshua 6:26 = It would cost him his firstborn and lastborn sons. |
| Q. What can we learn from this event of history? |
A. 1). That God answers prayers. Sometimes He waits till the proper time. 2). Always, God wants us to be prepared and ready to do our part, and at the same time, to acknowledge Him for the victory. 3). God does the hard part; we do the rest! With boldness! 4). God is willing to answer our prayers. For miracles, He wants us to let the world and unblievers know we pray for their miracles, so when they get answers, they realize it was God. Just like the world did with Jericho's fall. 5). God brings us to the most powerful, impossible places so that He can demonstrate His power to all. We need the lesson; the world needs the testimony. And frequently, a Christian becomes famous for it! |
| Q. Was Joshua's greatness in the Lord enough for the Israelites to want to obey? | A. Joshua 7:1 = No. A man named Achan, son of Carmi, from the tribe of Judah, stole some of the things set apart for the Lord. |
| Q. What happened as a result? | A. Joshua 7:4 = They couldn't win the next battle. |
| Q. What was required for Israel to conquer her enemies? | A. Joshua 7:11 = To stay away from sin! |
| Q. How was the problem handled? | A. Joshua 7:19 = The culprit, Achan, was singled out and asked to confess his sin. |
| Q. Did he confess? | A. Joshua 7:20 = Yes. |
| Q. What happened to him? | A. Joshua 7:24 = He and his famiy, his cattle, tent and the stuff he stole were stoned to death, then burnt in a great heap. |
| Q. What had he stolen? | A. Joshua 7:21 = A beautiful robe, 200 silver coines and a bar of gold that weighed more than a pound. Also other silver. |
| Q. Where was the execution carried out? | A. Joshua 7:26 = In the Valley of Trouble (Achor). |
| Q. Was God satisfied? | A. Joshua 7:26 = Yes. |
| Q. Did the event shake Joshua up? | A. Joshua 8:1 = Yes! |
| Q. How did he get the courage to move on and try taking the city again? | A. Joshua 8:1 = God promised him it would happen now. |
| Q. Did God make any allowances on second attempt? |
A. Joshua 8:2 = Yes. He allowed them to keep the captured goods and the cattle. He also told them how to capture the city. Note: God will give us extra reassurance when we need it! I'm sure the soldiers needed the extra incentive to get moving again! |
| Q. Did God use the last battle with Ai to create a new plan? | A. Joshua 8:5 = Yes. And God acted as a general too! |
| Q. How did the Israeli army beat them? |
A. Joshua 8:3 = 1). 30,000 men charged from the front, turned and ran away when the Ai army came out. 2). Meanwhile, 5,000 men lay in ambush at the rear border of the town. |
| Q. How did the army of Ai see the attack from the front? | A. Joshua 8:6 = As a repeat of the last time they had to chase the Israelites away. The king sent every last man in pursuit. |
| Q. Did they realize they'd been tricked? | A. Joshua 8:20 = Yes. As soon as Joshua and the fleeing soldiers saw the city in flames, thanks to the Israelites who ambushed the town, they stopped running and attacked their enemies. |
| Q. Did they kill all the enemy? | A. Joshua 8:23 = Yes. Only the king survived. Joshua hung him on a tree till evening. |
| Q. What happened next? | A. Joshua 8:30 = Joshua built an altar to the Lord. |
| Q. How did he know how to do this? | A. Joshua 8:31 = He followed the instructions that Moses wrote in the Book of the Law. |
| Q. Did they repeat a ceremony? | A. Joshua 8:33 = Yes. The blessings and curses, and the reading of the entire law to everyone in Israel, including foreigners, heard it. |
| Q. Did word spread quickly of the Israeli victory? | A. Joshua 9:1 = Yes. |
| Q. How did they react? | A. Joshua 9:1 = Six kings combined their armies to defeat Joshua and the Israelites. |
| Q. Was Gibeon among them? | A. Joshua 9:3 = No. They decieved the Israelites into making a peace treaty with them. |
| Q. How could that have happened? | A. Joshua 9:14 = They lied, swaid they journeyed a long way, when they were actually nearby. They dressed in worn out clothing, sandals and carried moldy bread to attest to this. |
| Q. Then we can't really blame Joshua for believing them, can we? |
A. Joshua 9:14 = But he was to blame! Up until this point in time, Joshua always consulted with God about all the details of his life. He did not consult God this time. Note: It is easy to think that once God helps us walk upright, we don't have to seek Him for every single issue in our lives. But we must! He will guide and direct us, but only if we ask. We are free to make mistakes and also to suffer the consequences of those mistakes. |
| Q. Why didn't they just disregard the treaty when they discovered their mistake? | A. Joshua 9:18 = The treaty was a vow before the Lord and they would not break any vow. |
| Q. Did this mistake cause disension amongst them? | A. Joshua 9:18 = Yes. The people grumbled against the leaders for this mistake. |
| Q. How did the leaders appease them? | A. Joshua 9:21 = The Gibeonites would serve them; chop wood and carry water for everybody. |
| Q. Why did the Gibeonites do this deception? | A. Joshua 9:24 = Because they knew what God promised Abraham and they believed it was now coming true. They'd rather be allies than dead! |
| Q. Was Gibeon a small city? | A. Joshua 10:2 = No way! It was as large as the royal cities! With mighty warriors! |
| Q. How did the other nations react to Gibeon becoming allies with Israel? | A. Joshua 10:5 = Not well. Five kings joined forces to attack Gibeon. |
| Q. Did Gibeon cry to Israel for help? | A. Joshua 10:7 = Yes. And Israel came. |
| Q. Did Israel have God's consent? | A. Joshua 10:8 = Yes! And His assurance of victory! |
| Q. Did the Israelites manage the enemy nations alone? |
A. Joshua 10:11 = No. God pummeled their enemies with hailstones too. More were killed with hailstones than with the sword! Note: Even if it looks impossible, it is always God's fight and He will always win. |
| Q. Did Joshua ever ask God to do powerful things to help them win a battle? | A. Joshua 10:12 = Yes. He asked God to still time itself and He did, until the battle was won. |
| Q. How did the nations see Israel after that battle? | A. Joshua 10:21 = No one dared speak a word against Israel. |
| Q. Was there a lesson Joshua taught the captains of Israel's army? | A. Joshua 10:24 = Yes. He called all the captains to come and step on the necks of the five kings of the armies they just defeated. As they stood there, Joshua said, "Don't ever be afraid or discouraged." Then to the Israel soldiers he said, "Be strong and courageous, for the Lord is going to do this to all of your enemies." He then killed all the kings. Their bodies were thrown back in the cave they were hiding in. |
| Q. Did Israel continue to fight? | A. Joshua 10:28-42 = Yes. In a single campaign, Joshua led Israel to victory, destroying all enemies mentioned up to now. No survivors were taken. |
| Q. Who was next to conquer after these five kings? | A. Joshua 11:1-3 = The northern kings, who allied forces of more than 20 kingdoms to fight against Israel. |
| Q. What was Joshua's reaction to this new and bigger enemy? | A. Joshua 11:6 = He prayed because God told him not to fear, they'd be destroyed by noon tomorrow. |
| Q. Why such brutal slaughter necessary? | A. Joshua 11:20 = The Lord hardened the enemy's hearts not to ask for mercy, causing them to fight them to the finish. |
| Q. Was everyone destroyed? | A. Joshua 11:22 = No. Some still remained in Gaza, Gath and Ashdud. There werre also hill cities left standing. Only one of the hill cities was destroyed. |
| Q. How did Joshua take control of the land? | A. Joshua 11:23 = According to the Law of Moses, dividing it up between the tribes. |
| Q. Was fighting over for a while? | A. Joshua 11:23 = Yes. The land rested finally! |
| Q. How many kings and their cities did Joshua and Israel destroy in all at this time? | A. Joshua 12:24 = 31 cities. |