GIANT-SIZED PROBLEMS                                            Joshua 11:1-20

‘Joshua waged war against all these kings for a long time. There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel, save the Hivites the inhabitants of Gibeon: all other they took in battle.  ’ (vv. 18-19)

Joshua was chosen by God to be Moses’ successor and was givne the task of leading the children of Israel into the promised land. In Joshua II, we read of the exploits of Joshua and his armies after they had crossed over the Jordan, and verse 18 points out something very significant: ‘Joshua wagged war against all these kings for a long time.’ Note the phrase – a long time.’ Isn’t this exactly what God had predicted? Had He not said hat some enemies would take a long time to overcome and would be driven out ‘little by little’?

However, in Joshua 15:14 are the exploits of Caleb, another great military strategist who appears to have gained a quick victory over the three sons of Anak – Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai and what significance do they have in God’s Word? You may remember that ten of the twelve spies who went into Canaan to evaluate the situation came back with a report that it contained ‘men of great stature… giants’ (Num. 13:32-33, AV) – among whom were the three sons of Anak. It was these giants, who struck terror into the hearts of the ten spies and problem which caused them to fear entering into the land yielded to a quick solution, while what they saw as a lesser problem took much longer to overcome.

PRAYER LINE: O Father, how can I thank You enough for placing within Your Word everything I need for effective Christian living. Help me to search the Scriptures daily so that might know more of You and Your wondrous ways. Amen. (EDWJ)