AUTHOR

The book of Joshua immediately follows the Pentateuch (Gn—Dt). In the arrangement of books in the Hebrew Bible, Joshua begins the section known as the Former Prophets. In the English Bible arrangement, it begins the section known as the Historical Books.

The book records the Israelite conquest of the land of Canaan under the leadership of Moses’s successor, Joshua son of Nun. The Israelite conquest was the fulfillment of the promise to the patriarch Abraham that his descendants would possess the land of Canaan (Gn 12:6-9). The book of Joshua continues where the Pentateuch leaves off, narrating events and placing them in a theological perspective. The book is named for its principal character, Joshua son of Nun. Joshua’s name means “Yahweh is salvation.” The name “Jesus” is a derivative of Joshua from the Greek Old Testament (LXX). Joshua was first mentioned in Exodus 17:9 where he was commissioned by Moses to lead the battle against the Amalekites. In Exodus 24:13 and Numbers 11:28 he was referred to as Moses’s assistant (see Dt 1:38). In the list of spies whom Moses sent to survey the land of Canaan, he was identified as Hoshea son of Nun (Nm 13:8) but at some point Moses had renamed him Joshua (Nm 13:16). Joshua became Moses’s successor in leading Israel to the land of Canaan (Nm 27:15-23; Dt 3:28; 31:23).

Though the best view of the authorship of the book of Joshua is that it is anonymous in its final form, it is clear from Joshua 24:26 that Joshua wrote certain portions of it. Critical scholars have typically asserted that the book was written later in history during the seventh and sixth centuries BC. However, the Talmud and some rabbis attributed authorship of the book to Joshua. The book derived its contents from eyewitness accounts of the events that took place during the time of Joshua; therefore, it is reasonable to infer that these events were recorded during the time of Joshua and preserved by subsequent generations (Jos 4:9; 5:9; 6:25; 7:26; 8:28-29; 9:27; 13:13; 14:14; 15:63; 16:10). Precisely when the book of Joshua came to exist in its present form is unknown.

THE CONQUEST

The Israelite conquest of the land is to be understood as a grant from the Lord. It is clear from every story in the book that the Lord was sovereign and exercised control of all events on behalf of the Israelites. Israel could not take credit for the many victories it won against nations that were larger and stronger. The clear theological message is that the Lord fought for Israel and that explains the victories.

These victories were won against nations whom the Lord had already determined to remove from the land of Canaan when their sinfulness would reach its developed and complete degeneracy (Gn 15:16). Though modern readers may question the morality of the Canaanite wars, they were divinely commanded precisely for a moral purpose. The inhabitants of Canaan had defiled the land with a sinfulness against the Lord that would also contaminate his people (Lv 18:24-25; Dt 20:18), and hence, ultimately his ultimate saving purpose for the world. Archaeology has revealed something of the decadent nature of Canaanite religion. One of its principal goddesses, Anath, was referred to as the “holy one,” yet she was a prostitute who savored carnage and sadism. Herein lies the divine justification for the dispossession of the Canaanites from the land.

THE RELIABILITY OF JOSHUA

The events recorded in the book of Joshua took place during the second millennium BC in the period immediately following the forty years of Israelite wilderness wanderings and the death of the entire adult generation of the exodus (except Joshua and Caleb). The date of the exodus has been the subject of much scholarly debate. Joshua apparently supports an early date for the exodus. The book refers to places and peoples best situated in the middle of the second millennium BC (e.g., the mention in Jos 13:6 of the Sidonians rather than the later more powerful people of Tyre). If the early date for the exodus (ca mid fifteenth century BC) is correct, then the events of Joshua occurred approximately in the late fifteenth century BC.

Critics often cite the book’s three dramatic miracles (the stopping of the Jordan River in 3:15-17; the collapse of Jericho’s wall in 6:20; and Joshua’s long day 10:12-14) as evidence of its legendary (i.e., fictional) character. But the Bible records miracles in many places, thus Joshua is not unusual in this respect. An anti-supernatural worldview may render miracles untenable to the critic, but anti-supernaturalism is a philosophical assumption, not a demonstrable scientific or historical fact. Most people today and historically have accepted the possibility of the supernatural because they have believed in a reality beyond nature. And this is certainly true of those who have personally come to know the God of the Bible through Jesus Christ.

It is important to note, however, that biblical narratives do not portray an indiscriminately saturated world of miracles. That is, the Bible does not read like the pagan mythologies of antiquity in which gods are constantly interrupting and disrupting ordinary human affairs. Biblical supernaturalism stands out in contrast because its miracles are not commonplace. The relative infrequency of biblical miracles may be seen in the fact that they constitute a small, albeit important, part of the narratives spanning approximately two millennia from the time of Abraham through the apostolic era. Moreover, certain critical turning points in biblical history are marked by more intense spiritual warfare and miracle. The life and ministry of Jesus Christ is the most obvious of these periods, and the exodus of Israel from Egypt with the subsequent conquest of Canaan represents another. The book of Joshua records the events at the close of this strategic era, and its three major miracles reveal the Lord’s sovereign work to install Israel in the land of promise.

In addition, many critical scholars have proposed that the Israelite conquest of Canaan portrayed in Joshua is not factual. The three major critical explanations for how the Israelites came to possess the land are: (1) the conquest model, which views the entrance of Israel into the land of Canaan as a massive hostile invasion resulting in destruction of cities and towns; (2) the peaceful infiltration model, which views the entrance of Israel into the land as a peaceful settlement among the Canaanites; and (3) the peasant revolt model, which views the situation as an internal political upheaval of peasants who revolted and toppled the existing Canaanite political system. The conquest model comes closest to the biblical account by acknowledging the invasion of Canaan by an external Israelite force. But critical assessments of this view typically overemphasize the violent destruction of cities and towns. The biblical account records that the only cities destroyed were Jericho, Ai, and Hazor (6:24; 8:28; 11:11,13). But the peaceful infiltration and peasant revolt models do not reflect the biblical account at all. Both are skeptical of the biblical account, reflecting an anti-supernatural bias in their attempt to offer alternative explanations for Israelite possession of Canaan. Yet neither model accounts for the biblical data. In the Bible, divine sovereignty is demonstrated in the victories of Israel. The Israelites entered the land of Canaan and took possession of it by the divine purpose and power of God who had already promised to give it to them (1:2-5).