This week’s Old Testament passage is from the end of the Book of Joshua. It shows a renewal of the Israelites’ covenant with Yahweh now that they have entered the Promised Land and behaved as they wanted instead of as God had commanded.
They had been worshipping other gods in addition to Yahweh, despite his command not to do that. The pull of the local culture was stronger than their obedience to God.
The passage begins with a very old Joshua (about 110 years old) calling the Israelites together for a pronouncement:
And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem; he summoned the elders of Israel, their heads, their judges, and their officials, and they presented themselves before God. 2 And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says Yahweh the God of Israel…” — Joshua 24:1–2a (LEB)
We read the introduction and then the lectionary cuts the passage in mid-verse (hence the “2a” designation) and skips ahead to verse 14. In that missing portion, Joshua relates God’s synopsis of the Israelite’s miraculous history through his beneficent power from the emancipation in Egypt in the Book of Exodus, through the interference of King Balak of Moab and the pagan prophet Balaam in the Book of Numbers, to victory at Jericho and other battles bringing them to the land they were enjoying—reaping harvests from vineyards and olive groves they didn’t plant.
Using that history as the preface for the renewal of their covenant, Joshua then tells the Israelites what God’s expectations are for them. They must choose. They can’t continue the relationship as they’ve been living it anymore— accepting Yahweh as their liberator and benefactor without obligation on their part.
“So now, revere Yahweh and serve him in sincerity and faithfulness; remove the gods that your ancestors served beyond the river and in Egypt, and serve Yahweh. 15 But if it is bad in your eyes to serve Yahweh, choose for yourselves today whom you want to serve, whether it is the gods that your ancestors served beyond the river, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve Yahweh.” — Joshua 24:14-15
The people respond as we would expect. They like the idea of God protecting them and will agree to anything. It’s like any other relationship we mess up. When confronted with our poor behavior and a demand that we change, we say we will, but often revert to our old ways soon thereafter.
And the people answered and said, “Far be it from us that we would forsake Yahweh to serve other gods, 17 for Yahweh our God brought us and our ancestors from the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery, and did these great signs before our eyes. He protected us along the entire way that we went, and among all the peoples through whose midst we passed. 18 And Yahweh drove out all the people before us, the Amorites who live in the land. We will serve Yahweh, for he is our God.” — Joshua 24:16–18
The passage ends here in our lectionary, but continues on in the Book of Joshua, as Joshua tells the people that they will not serve Yahweh, despite their promise to do so. They reaffirmed their dedication to Yahweh, and Joshua wrote their promise on a scroll and set a large stone under a large tree as a shrine to Yahweh commemorating their promise that day—a shrine he declared would be a witness against them if they ever violate their vow.
Joshua died soon after that (we’re not sure exactly how soon), before Israel spiraled into the cycle of depravity shown in the Book of Judges.
After these things Joshua son of Nun servant of Yahweh died; he was one hundred and ten years old. — Joshua 24:29
Joshua understood what Jesus and Paul would declare as well later: that we will serve a master. We are not created as independent entities; we have a natural inclination and need to worship something, and something else will fill the void if we don’t fill it with God.
“No one is able to serve two masters. For either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You are not able to serve God and money. — Matthew 6:24
Do you not know that to whomever you present yourselves as slaves for obedience, you are slaves to whomever you obey, whether sin, leading to death, or obedience, leading to righteousness? — Romans 6:16
Perhaps that great American theologian, Bob Dylan, put it best when he wrote:
You’re gonna have to serve somebody.
Well, it may be the devil,
Or it may be the Lord,
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody.
The same decision that faced the Israelites faces us today. Our culture calls God’s command of obedience “intolerant” and abhors Christianity for giving the world a savior whose salvation develops obedience from the saved. The false and pagan gods who would be appeased by whatever sacrifices the people felt like offering didn’t interfere with their prurient desires, and in fact, often intensified them. Our culture likes that concept; it meets their “tolerance” ideal.
There also was no objective standard against which behavior was judged; everything was relative (just like today). Our worldly focus distracts us from truly serving Jesus. Our donations to our church and charities are often based on what we have left to spare after paying for other stuff we consider more important.
A look at our checkbook registers (for those who still use them), or monthly budget, shows our priorities. Whom do we serve? Whom will we serve?
As Joshua tells us, we need to choose today who we will serve. Will it be the false gods of our culture we have set as idols in our lives, or will it be our Heavenly Father, who is one with Jesus and the Holy Spirit?
I pray that for us and our houses, we will all serve the Lord.
Grace and Peace,
Fr. Austin