Joshua Studies

The Conquest as a Religious Act 

The structure and content of the book of Joshua portrays the conquest of the land as a religious act of holy war. In the preparation for the conquest (1-5) the role of God is shown (1:2-5) as well as Joshua’s own responsibility (6-9). Throughout the story there is a lack of military language and strategy. The Israelites sanctify themselves. They follow the Ark. They circumcise themselves, celebrate Passover, and set up memorial stones after crossing the river. Joshua also has a Theophany like Moses. In the conquest itself (6-12) the military plan for Jericho resembles a cultic event. Yahweh fights for Israel (2; 10). The “kherem” or the “devotion to destruction” for the LORD is also established, and when Achan breaks “kherem” he and all associated with him is destroyed. In the allocation of the land (13-22), all of the tribes receive an allotment, God’s promise to Israel is fulfilled, the Levitical cities are established, and the inheritances are determined by “lot” (14:2; 19:51). In Joshua’s closing speeches and addresses it is stressed that God gave the Land (23:1, 3, 5, 9-10), he stresses obedience, warns about disobedience, and performs a covenant ceremony. In this is seen: God’s saving action (1-13), the command for the Israelites to either choose Yahweh or not (14-15), the declaration to serve Yahweh (16-18, 21-24), the recording of the covenant (25-27). All these show how the conquest is a religious act.

Joshua as a Second Moses 

Joshua is also portrayed as a second Moses. They both send spies into the land (Num. 13:1-3; Josh. 2:1), both led Israelites across a body of water (Ex. 14-15; Josh. 3-4), both had a Theophany (Ex. 3:1-6; Josh. 5:13-15), both carry the role of intercessor (Ex. 32:11-12; Josh. 7:7-10), there is a similarity between the lifting of Moses’ staff and Joshua’s sword in battle (Ex. 17:10-13; Josh. 8:18, 26), both are conquerors of territory (Num. 21; Josh. 1-12), and both give farewell addresses (Deut. 4-30; Josh. 23-24). Joshua is also portrayed as a faithful deuteronomistic leader with the extermination of the Canaanites (Deut. 7:1-2; 16; Josh. 6:21; 10:40; 11:15, 23), the Covenant Renewal (Deut. 11:29-30; 27:3-4; Josh. 8:30-34), also, the written Copy of the Law, the removal of bodies from trees (Deut. 21:22-23; Josh. 8:29; 10:26-27), Celebration of Passover (Deut. 16:1; Josh. 5:10), regulations for those who surrender (Deut. 20:10-11; Josh. 9:6, 8, 15), and he selects Cities of Refuge (Deut. 19:1-2, 8-10; Josh. 20:1-3, 7-8).

Joshua in Archaeology 

In Joshua, the portrayal of the conquest differs from recent archaeological data. Different historical/sociological models have been developed by scholars to explain the conquest in light of the Bible’s account and archaeology. One is the Conquest Theory. Support for this theory is that in archaeology certain cities showed Late Bronze destruction, such as Bethel, Hazor, and Debir. The problems with this theory are that many sites did not show destruction levels during this time period, such as Ta’anach, Megiddo, Jokneam, and, Makkedah. And some sites were not inhabited at all, including Jericho, Gibeon, and Ai. W.F. Albright was the main proponent of the Conquest Theory, along with scholars such as G. Ernest Wright and John Bright. Another theory was the Peaceful Infiltration Model, supported by Albrecht Alt and Martin Noth. The support for this is that it corresponded with both archaeology and the biblical text. Joshua 13:1; 23; 12 indicate that the destruction was not actually total. Also, cities said to be conquered in Joshua are shown to be unconquered in Judges, including Ta’anach, Megiddo, Gezer, Debir, Hazor, Jerusalem, and Dor. The problems with this model included methodological issues including a “romanticized” version of Bedouin life. Another theory was the Peasant Revolt Theory, supported by George Mendenhall and Norman Gottwald. Support showed that there was a sharp rise in the population of the central highlands during this time. The problem was difficulty accounting for the population explosion.

Joshua in the Context of the Deuteronomistic History 

The conquest of Joshua also relates to Deuteronomy. As previously stated, the promise of God in Moses is fulfilled in Joshua, Joshua follows the laws of Deuteronomy, and Joshua sets the stage for the rest of the Deuteronomistic History. He is a king-like figure like Josiah, he is faithful to God’s Law, and he establishes Israel in the Land with specific instructions. Later, Israel abandons the laws and becomes chaotic and conquered. However, Josiah restores the Law in later times. Joshua and Josiah book end each other. They are both king-like figures, both copy the Law, both read it to the assembly, and both celebrate the Passover. Not to mention the obvious similarities in both of their names.