What is the meaning of Joshua 5:4? Now this is why Joshua circumcised them Joshua 5:4 opens with a clear explanation of purpose. Joshua isn’t acting on a whim; he is carrying out the covenant command originally given to Abraham: “This is My covenant that you are to keep…every male among you must be circumcised” (Genesis 17:10). • Joshua’s obedience echoes Moses’ earlier insistence that uncircumcised males could not partake of Passover (Exodus 12:44–48). • By circumcising the new generation before they fight for the land, Joshua aligns them with God’s promise and power (Joshua 1:7; Genesis 17:7). • The act reaffirms the unbroken line of covenant from Abraham through Moses to Joshua, emphasizing that victory in Canaan depends on faithfulness, not mere military strength (Deuteronomy 30:6). All those who came out of Egypt This phrase points back to the exodus generation, the people who witnessed the plagues (Exodus 7–12) and crossed the Red Sea (Exodus 14:29). • They had experienced God’s redemption firsthand, yet many remained hard-hearted (Psalm 95:8–11; Hebrews 3:16–19). • Mentioning them here contrasts the old, unbelieving generation with the new, covenant-renewed generation standing at the Jordan (Deuteronomy 29:2–4, 9). • God’s faithfulness is highlighted: He preserved Israel’s national identity despite forty years of wandering (Nehemiah 9:21). All the men of war The spotlight turns specifically to the fighting men who had been numbered for battle at Sinai (Numbers 1:3). • Their role was to enter Canaan, yet fear of giants and fortified cities led them to rebel (Numbers 13:31–33; Deuteronomy 1:28). • God decreed that every numbered soldier twenty years and older would fall in the wilderness (Numbers 14:29–30). • The new generation of warriors now preparing to fight Jericho is marked by covenant faith rather than fear (Joshua 6:2; Psalm 44:3). had died on the journey in the wilderness Their deaths were not random; they fulfilled God’s solemn oath: “In this wilderness your bodies will fall” (Numbers 14:32). • The forty-year delay was both discipline and purification (Deuteronomy 8:2–3). • Daily burials reminded Israel that unbelief carries real consequences (1 Corinthians 10:5–6). • By the time Israel camped at Gilgal, that generation was gone, making room for a people ready to trust (Deuteronomy 2:14–16). after they had left Egypt The clause underscores a tragic irony: the same people God saved from slavery never enjoyed the promised rest (Hebrews 4:6). • Deliverance from Egypt was only the beginning; ongoing faith was required to enter Canaan (Exodus 6:6–8; Hebrews 11:29). • God’s grace brought them out, but obedience was meant to bring them in (Deuteronomy 6:23). • The new generation must now embrace both aspects—redeemed from bondage and committed to covenant obedience (Joshua 24:14). summary Joshua 5:4 reminds us that covenant faithfulness is essential for experiencing God’s promises. Joshua’s act of circumcising the new generation reconnects Israel to the Abrahamic sign, distinguishes them from the unbelieving soldiers who perished, and positions them to receive the land God swore to give. The verse sets a contrast between a redeemed yet faithless past and a present generation ready to trust and obey, underlining that God’s victory belongs to a people marked by covenant loyalty. |
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