The book opens on the morning after a funeral. Moses is dead, and the man who has carried his bags and fought his battles for forty years is told to pick up the whole load and cross the river. God does not give Joshua a pep talk about his own ability. He gives him a promise — I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee — and one command, repeated until it cannot be missed: be strong and of a good courage.
A study in Joshua 1 · Arthur Baldwin · StandUp4Jesus.Org · 7 min read
Moses My Servant Is Dead
“Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them.”
Joshua 1:1-2
The work does not stop because the workman is buried. God’s first word to the new leader is blunt — Moses is dead — and then immediately forward-looking: now therefore arise. Israel had leaned on one man for forty years; God will not let the nation stall at his grave. Joshua is not asked to replace Moses, only to obey the same God. He had been in training the whole time, in a role Scripture keeps naming as service: “Moses’ minister,” the one who stood at the door while Moses spoke with God.
“Courageous, resolute, and persevering, prompt, incorruptible, unmindful of selfish interests in his care for those committed to his charge, and, above all, inspired by a living faith in God—such was the character of the man divinely chosen to conduct the armies of Israel in their entrance upon the Promised Land.”
Ellen G. White · Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 481
Every Place That The Sole Of Your Foot Shall Tread
“Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses… There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”
Joshua 1:3, 5
The land is already given — have I given, past tense — but it still has to be walked. The gift and the marching are not rivals: God hands over the whole country and then tells them to put their feet on it. And the promise that carries the campaign is not “you are strong enough” but “I will be with thee.” The phrase I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee is the same one Moses had spoken over Joshua in front of all Israel (Deuteronomy 31:6-8), and the New Testament lifts it straight out for anyone tempted to trust money instead of God: “he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5).
Be Strong And Of A Good Courage
“Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
Joshua 1:9
Four times in this one chapter someone says be strong and of a good courage — God to Joshua in verse 6, again in verse 7, again in verse 9, and finally the people back to Joshua in verse 18. It is a command, not a compliment. Courage here is not a feeling to wait for; it is an order to obey, and the ground for obeying it is stated every time: the LORD thy God is with thee. Joshua had good reason to be afraid — he had been one of the twelve spies, and he had watched the other ten talk a whole generation out of this same task.
“It was with great anxiety and self-distrust that Joshua had looked forward to the work before him; but his fears were removed by the assurance of God.”
Ellen G. White · Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 482
This Book Of The Law Shall Not Depart Out Of Thy Mouth
“This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.”
Joshua 1:8
The soldier’s handbook is a book. Before a single city falls, Joshua is told where his strength will actually come from: the written word, kept in his mouth, turned over in his mind “day and night” — the same picture the first psalm draws of the blessed man (Psalm 1:2). Note what “good success” is tied to: not military genius but doing “according to all that is written.” The conquest of Canaan is set up from the first page as an exercise in obedience, and the courage God keeps commanding has something solid to stand on — a promise that does not move.
