Joshua 11 begins in familiar fashion: an alliance of kings and armies is formed to fight against Israel (vv.1-5). The reassurance is also familiar (v.6), as is the truthfulness of God’s Word (v.8). The victory for Joshua and God’s people was total, their obedience total, and the judgement of God against those who had been given over to their sin was also total (vv.10-20, cf. Romans 1.24-28).
The final hurdle is perhaps the highest (metaphorically and literally). Back in Numbers 13 the spies’ report of people of great height, compared to which they looked like grasshoppers had made the people too afraid to enter the land promised to them. Here in Joshua 11 we see that trusting in God, totally, led them to victory over the Anakim from the hill country and there was none of the Anakim left in the land of the people of Israel. One rather famous descendent of those left in Gaza appears later in 1 Samuel 17 but for now, they’re out of the way. With this, the land had rest from war.
For you and for me, at the risk of being repetitive, again we see that total obedience to, and trust in, God is the only way that the people are victorious (v.6, 8, 15, 20c). Without being overly obvious, the same is true for you and for me. When we try and make a way in our power and strength we invariably come up short, even when we are on the precipice of something wonderful (Numbers 14.1-4). Rather, as a shepherd leads sheep that are willing, we need to follow first and forge ahead second. Today then, focus on just that: following first, forging ahead second.
James Travis 