What is the meaning of Joshua 23:3?

and you have seen everything

Joshua reminds the elders that their own eyes witnessed God’s hand at work.

• Memory anchors faith; personal experience counters future doubt (Deuteronomy 11:2-7; Psalm 44:1).

• Passing on eyewitness testimony preserves truth for later generations (Deuteronomy 4:9).

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that the LORD your God has done

The spotlight falls on God’s actions, not Israel’s.

• Every victory, from Jericho’s walls (Joshua 6:20) to the long‐day at Gibeon (Joshua 10:12-14), was unmistakably “the LORD’s doing” (Psalm 118:23).

• God’s track record proves His unchanging character (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8).

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to all these nations

The phrase recalls the full scope of conquered peoples.

• Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites—each fell as promised (Deuteronomy 7:1-2; Joshua 12).

• God’s judgment on the nations also warned Israel against adopting their practices (Deuteronomy 18:9).

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for your sake

The Lord’s mighty acts were covenant gifts to His people.

• He chose Israel “because He loved them” (Deuteronomy 7:7-8; Isaiah 43:4).

• Blessing Israel ultimately blesses the world through the promised Messiah (Genesis 12:3; Galatians 3:16).

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because it was the LORD your God

Joshua punctures any hint of human pride.

• Victory was never Israel’s military prowess (Deuteronomy 8:17-18).

• “The battle belongs to the LORD” echoes through Scripture (1 Samuel 17:47; Proverbs 21:31).

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who fought for you

God is portrayed as the divine warrior.

• “The LORD will fight for you while you keep silent” (Exodus 14:14).

• Jehoshaphat’s choir saw the same truth generations later (2 Chronicles 20:15-22).

• In Christ, believers still rest in a finished fight (Colossians 2:15; Revelation 19:11-16).

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summary

Joshua 23:3 calls God’s people to remember firsthand evidence of the Lord’s past victories, recognize that every triumph was His work, grasp the breadth of nations He judged, cherish that it was all done for their good, reject self-reliance, and trust the Warrior who still fights for His own.