Joshua 24:29-33 - "The Way of All the Earth..."

We have finally arrived at the very last verses of the Book of Joshua. From this wonderful book we have learned that victory in the Christian life comes by faith, not by fighting, or by feelings. We were taught many lessons that reminded us that when we seek the LORD in His Word and prayer, and put Him first, He will make us prosperous and give us good success (Joshua 1:8). But we also saw that when we neglect to seek God’s wisdom and will in our decisions, we will encounter defeat, disaster, and death. And the consequences of these choices will follow us for generations to come.   In Joshua 23:14, Joshua said, "Behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth.”  Joshua is giving his final words to the nation before he dies reminding them how the LORD has kept His promises and now, they need to keep their promise to love the LORD and obey and serve Him. They must put away all the idols of the false gods of both Egypt and Canaan.   The book closes with three burials of three great leaders of Israel. Joshua died at the age of 110 and was buried in his own inheritance. Eleazer the high priest (Num. 20:28) died and was also buried in Ephraim, near Shiloh, where his son Phinehas had property. The bones of Joseph were buried in Shechem in the plot of ground Jacob had bought from Hamor (Gen. 33:19). Shechem became an important city for Ephraim and Manasseh, who were the two sons of Joseph. Thus, it was fitting that their great ancestor be buried there. (See Gen. 50:25; Ex. 13:19; Heb. 11:22.)   Moses had named Joshua as his successor, but it's significant that God didn't tell Joshua to appoint a successor. The elders who had served with Joshua guided the nation after his death, but then the people went astray and began to disobey the Lord and worship the false gods of the Canaanites (Judg. 2:6-15). Why didn't the next generation know the Lord and what He had done for Israel? Because the people of Joshua's generation failed to keep their promise and teach their children and grandchildren to fear and serve the Lord.   God kept His promise and chastened His people, first by bringing other nations into the land (Judges 2:14-19), and then by taking the Jews out of their land. First into captivity in the Northern Kingdom to Assyria and later in the Southern Kingdom to Babylon. But one day the Lord will regather His people Israel and establish them in their land (Isa. 11-12; 51-52; Ezek. 36:24). Then "the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea" (Hab. 2:14).   On one occasion, David said to his friend Jonathan, “There is but a step between me and death” (1 Samuel 20:3). As we reflect upon the death of these three great leaders of Israel in these closing verses of Joshua, we need to remember that we are only one breath and one heartbeat from eternity. Hebrews 9:27 tells us that “It is appointed for a man once to die and after this the judgement.”  It doesn’t matter who we are, whether we are poor or rich, or famous or unknown, we will all face death one day.   Scripture teaches that all believers will appear before the Judgement Seat of Christ and will give an account of how we lived our lives (Romans 14:10-13; 1 Corinthians 3:13-16; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11). One day, all unbelievers will stand before the “Great White Throne” of God (Revelation 20:11-15).   Yes, one day we will all “go the way of all the earth” and after that stand before a holy God. Are you prepared for “that” day?   God bless!