“The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a man. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel! Then Joshua returned with all Israel to the camp at Gilgal.” (Josh 10:13-15 NIV)
It was the aftermath of the Gibeonite disaster. The Bible records: “the five kings of the Amorites – the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon – joined forces. They moved up with all their troops and took up positions against Gibeon and attacked it.” (Josh 10:5 NIV)
Because Israel had made a treaty with the Gibeonites, it was now their duty to go and fight for their ill-founded friends.
It is interesting that although it wasn’t God’s will for a treaty to be made with Gibeon, or any other people group in Canaan, God didn’t abandon Israel to the five kings. In fact, God used this situation to subdue those five kings, and to bring Israel five steps closer to possessing the land. Here are God’s words to Joshua: “Do not be afraid of them; I have given them into your hand. Not one of them will be able to withstand you.” (Josh 10:8 NIV)
And so it was. The Bible records that Joshua took the huge army by surprise, and that the Lord, Himself, threw the enemy into vast confusion. Israel then pursued them and continued to “cut them down”, and God sent large hailstones onto the enemy, to the point that the Bible says, “more of them died from the hailstones than were killed by the swords of the Israelites.” (Josh 10:11b)
But night was coming on, and there were still many of the enemy to be conquered, so many that Joshua found himself so wishing for a few more hours of daylight that he asked God to do the impossible: “O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.” (Josh 10:12b)
God came through for Joshua. I don’t know how He did it, but the Bible records that “The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day.” (Josh 10:13b NIV)
What a glorious sight that must have been! And what a powerful witness to the nations of the power and might of the One True God!
But wait a minute. Why would God bless a venture that was created outside of His will?
Because, friends, when we repent of our bad decisions, God knows how to turn them into something beautiful: “He has made everything beautiful in its time.” (Eccl 3:10-11 NIV)
I don’t know about you, but this thought gives me great comfort. Although I try to follow God’s will, sometimes the “will of Lyn” takes over, and I make bad decisions. Isn’t it wonderful that we serve a God who loves us despite our mistakes? Who, when we repent, will make something beautiful out of the mess we’ve created? Who will use the situation to His glory, and will even make the sun stand still in order to do so?
Friends, this isn’t license to wilfully go against God’s will. The consequences of our bad choices will more than likely continue to haunt us for the rest of our days. Remember, Gibeon was a thorn in Israel’s flesh throughout their entire history! But God sees our hearts. He knows when we repent of our past mistakes, and He recognizes a contrite spirit. And even better, He CAN and WILL make something beautiful out of those bad decisions! Who knows? He may even make the sun stand still!
Enough to ponder, but do ponder this: When we repent of our mistakes, God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). This means that He can and will make something beautiful out of the mess we created. Our job is to let Him!
Please join us next week for LESSONS FROM JOSHUA, Part 13: What to do About the Kings.
In His love,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Speech-Language Pathologist, mother of two teens, Author and Moderator for The Nugget, a tri-weekly internet newsletter, and Scriptural Nuggets, a website devoted to Christian devotionals and inspirational poems, www.scripturalnuggets.org, with Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org.
(To access the entire “Lessons From Joshua” mini-series, please click here.)