Problem: A great deal has been written on Joshua’s’ long day where the sun and moon stood still in the sky. What are we to make of this passage of Scripture? Was it meant to be understood literally, or figuratively? To answer that, let’s first take a look at it.
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Problem: The Gibeonites had heard about how Israel was taking down each and every one of their cities (Josh. 9:3). They banned together and deceived the Israelites by pretending that they had come from a “far country” (Josh. 9:9) –even though Gibeon is only about a day’s journey away. However, after finding out that they were enemies (Josh. 9:16), the Jews did not attack them (Josh. 9:18). Why would they honor an oath with these deceivers that became such a problem down the road in their history (see 2 Sam. 21:1ff)?
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Problem: The Bible teaches that we should tear down altars (Deut. 12:2-3), but here, Joshua builds an altar just like this.
Problem: Atheist Richard Dawkins considers the war over Canaan to be one of the most morally atrocious aspects of the OT.[1] In his book The God Delusion, he writes,
The Bible story of Joshua’s destruction of Jericho, and the invasion of the Promised Land in general, is morally indistinguishable from Hitler’s invasion of Poland, or Saddam Hussein’s massacres of the Kurds and the Marsh Arabs. The Bible may be an arresting and poetic work of fiction, but it is not the sort of book you should give your children to form their morals. As it happens, the story of Joshua in Jericho is the subject of an interesting experiment in child morality.[2]
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Problem: Archaeologist John Garstang dated the destruction of Jericho to 1400 BC (in the 1930s), which would place the destruction of Jericho perfectly in line with the biblical account. However, archaeologist Kathleen Kenyon dated it to 1550 BC (in 1952-1958). Kenyon’s reanalysis of the findings at Jericho has led the majority of scholars to disagree with Garstang’s original conclusions.
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Problem: We should not worship angels (Col. 2:18; Rev. 19:10; 22:8-9) or men (Acts 10:26; Mt. 4:10). However, Joshua falls down and worships the captain of the Lord’s host. Who or what was he?
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Problem: Joshua writes, “You may fear the Lord your God forever” (Josh. 4:24). John writes, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love” (1 Jn. 4:18). Should we fear God or not?
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Problem: Joshua 3:17 teaches that the Jews crossed the Jordan, but Joshua 4:4-11 states that they were still in the Jordan. Which is true?
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Problem: Critics believe that supernatural events like these are absurd. Is it possible that this event actually happened?
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Problem: The Bible condemns lying (Lev. 19:11; Prov. 12:22; Eph. 4:25). However, God blesses Rahab for lying to the Canaanites that were trying to capture the Hebrew spies. Theologian Wayne Grudem writes,
Nowhere in Scripture is there any verse like this, an explicit approval of a lie, even one told to protect innocent life. There are dozens of statements in Scripture about lies, and they always condemn them.[1]
John Calvin writes of this passage,
As to the falsehood, we must admit that though it was done for a good purpose, it was not free from fault. For those who hold what is called a dutiful lie to be altogether excusable, do not sufficiently consider how precious truth is in the sight of God. Therefore, although our purpose be to assist our brethren… it can never be lawful to lie, because that cannot be right which is contrary to the nature of God. And God is truth.[2]
Augustine writes of this passage,
Therefore, touching Rahab in Jericho, because she entertained strangers, men of God, because in entertaining of them she put herself in peril, because she believed on their God, because she diligently hid them where she could, because she gave them most faithful counsel of returning by another way, let her be praised as meet to be imitated… But in that she lied… yet not as meet to be imitated… albeit that God hath those things memorably honored, this evil thing mercifully overlooked.[3]
Was it wrong for Rahab to lie?
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Problem: Critics point out that Moses could not have written all of the Pentateuch, because the end of Deuteronomy (ch. 34) records his death.
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Problem: Moses explains, “If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, 12 you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity” (Deut. 25:11-12). What do we do with this bizarre law?
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Problem: This is recorded in Deuteronomy 25:1-3:
If there is a dispute between men and they go to court, and the judges decide their case, and they justify the righteous and condemn the wicked, 2 then it shall be if the wicked man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall then make him lie down and be beaten in his presence with the number of stripes according to his guilt. 3 He may beat him forty times but no more, so that he does not beat him with many more stripes than these and your brother is not degraded in your eyes.
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Problem: In one area of Scripture, it appears that a son will bear the sins of his father, yet in other areas, it seems that that is not the case. So which is it? The answer lies, as always, in examining the context of the statements. Ultimately, the Bible has no internal contradiction. It just takes looking and reading to figure things out.
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