Joshua 11:10-15 – The Model of God’s Servant

Joshua seems to be presented in these verses as the model of God’s servant. This is hinted at in v12, but v15 is emphatic: “Just as the LORD had commanded Moses his servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did. He left nothing undone of all that the LORD had commanded Moses”. You can look up some of the commands that are referred to in Ex. 34:11-16; Num. 33:51-54; and Deut. 20:16-18.

Obedience in this case was not easy. It meant destroying or removing the native population of Canaan. As we’ve considered before in this book, this seems unnecessarily vicious – but that simply highlights how little we understand of the contagious spiritual cancer that was widespread throughout Canaan. We arrogantly pride ourselves on being kinder than God, but all we prove is that we haven’t a clue what holiness is.

Verse 15 seems to be saying: ‘Here is a model of God’s servant. His chief characteristic is that he obeys God’s commands’. It doesn’t sound very exciting, but it is a much needed witness to Israel (present and future) and to us about what really matters – especially in a leader, but in any Christian. It is far too easy to get caught up in the tide of ‘other ways’ of measuring which is a good church, a good leader or a good Christian. Too often it is more glossy criteria like numbers, appearance, gifts, size or many other things that we look at. This passage says: ‘Here’s a model leader and follower of God. He obeys God’s commands’. Jesus Christ, THE servant of God, had no other standard: “I always do the things that are pleasing to him” (John 8:29). 1 John 2:3 cuts through all the froth: “And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments”.