Reading for November 8th

Read 2 Corinthians 2.14-3.3
In 2.14-6.13: Paul's understanding of ministry.
In verses 14-17: Ministers sent from God.
The image is a victory march where the conquering general, along with his chief officers, lead his army in triumphal procession, the air filled with the burning of incense (1 Cor 4.9).
The aroma signifies life to the victors, death to the conquered.
In verse 17: Peddlers of God's word: teachers traveling around the Roman world were frequently accused of being in it for the money (4.2).
Persons of sincerity are people with pure motives (1.12).
In 3.1-3: Letters written on the heart.
Letters of recommendation: Acts 18.27.
A letter of Christ: Christ whose Spirit lives within human hearts is the content of the letter (1.21-22).
The image of God's message written on the heart is drawn from Jer 31.33.
Paul's best recommendation is the church itself.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 7th

Read 2 Corinthians 1.23-2.13
In 1.23-2.13: A painful visit recalled.
This visit apparently caused Paul to change the plans mentioned in 1.16.
Instead of going from Ephesus to Corinth, he must have gone north to Troas, then on to Macedonia, where he is now writing (2.12-23.
In 2.2: This person's identity is not known , but clearly the confrontation was painful for everyone involved-Paul, the person, the whole church (2.5-8).
In verses 3-4, 9: This letter better describes chs. 10-13 than 1 Corinthians, which does not reflect such distress, anguish, and tears.
It was apparently written from Ephesus after Paul returned from his painful visit to Corinth.
In verses 6-11: How the unnamed person was punished by the majority is not clear.
Perhaps the church excluded him from its presence or simply reprimanded him.
Paul's call for love and forgiveness and his remarks in v 9 suggest that the church sided with Paul.
In verse 11: Paul sees Satan as an active opponent (11.14; 12.7).
In verses 12-13: Troas was located on the northwestern coast of Asia Minor.
Titus probably delivered the "tearful letter" to Corinth.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 6th

Read 2 Corinthians 1.15-22

In 1.15-22: Paul's change of plans.

In verse 15: Double favor refers to Paul's two planned visits.

In verse 16: The route implied is Ephesus, Corinth (in Achaia), Macedonia (probably Thessalonica or Philippi), Corinth, Judea (1 Cor 16.5-8).

The trip of Judea would be to deliver the collection for poor Christians in Jerusalem (Rom 15,25-26).

In verses 17-20: To identify Christ as God's "yes" reflects the conviction that God's promises have been fulfilled in him (Gal 3.14-16; Rom 15.8).

In verses 21-22: His Spirit may be Christ's Spirit (Rom 8.9).

First installment is a commercial term "down payment," a gesture of good faith indicating the balance will follow (Rom 5.5; 8.23).

Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 5th

Read 2 Corinthians 1.8-14
In 1.8-14: Paul's recent despair.
Affliction ... in Asia: The circumstances of this crisis are not known.
It may refer to the riot described in Acts 19.23-41.
In verse 9: Sentence of death need not mean legal punishment.
It is probably a figure of speech for a chose shave with death.
In verse 12: Boast here and in v. 14 is used in a positive sense, meaning "source of pride" (Phil 2.16).
Frankness, sometimes rendered "simplicity," is being straight forward in one's dealings.
In verses 13-14: End ... day of the Lord Jesus refers to the time of Jesus' return (1 Cor 1.8; Phil 1.6).
Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 4th

Read 2 Corinthians 1.1-7
In verses 1-2: Greeting.
This greeting resembles other Pauline greetings (1 Thess 1.1; Phil 1.1-2).
Timothy joins Paul in addressing the church.
He had participated in the church's founding (1.19; Acts 18.5) and was well know to the church ( 1 Cor 4.17; 16.10-11).
In verses 3-7: prayer of blessing.
Pauline letters usually open with a prayer of thanksgiving (Rom 1.8-15; 1 Cor 1.4-9).
Here Paul uses the Jewish prayer of blessing ("berakah") found elsewhere in the New testament (Eph 1.3-14; 1 Peter 1.3-9).
Paul had recently experienced great affliction and suffering in his dealings with the church.
This has given way to consolation and a sense of relief that a serve crisis has passed.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 3rd

Read Joshua 24.29-33
In 24.29-33: Burial traditions.
In verses 29-30: Great age was a sign of exceptional faithfulness (Gen 50.26; Deut 34.7).
Timnath-serah was granted to Joshua in 19.49-50.
In verse 31: This looks forward to the book of Judges (compare Judg 2.9).
In verse 32: These traditions are reported in Gen 33.18-20; 50.24-25; Ex 13.19.
In verse 33: Eleazar has played an important role in Joshua (14.1; 17.4: 19.51;21.1).
Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 2nd

Read Joshua 24.14-28
In 24.14-28: Joshua insists on religious fidelity.
In verse 14-15: Three types of gods had proved ineffective.
Abraham was taken away from the territory of the gods beyond the River (v. 3), and the gods of Egypt and of the Amorites could not protect their worshipers (vv. 5-7 and 8-13).
In verses 19--20: With a rhetorical jolt, Joshua warns Israel of the difficulties and the dangers implicit in their commitment: you cannot serve the Lord.
The obstacle is God's basic nature as a jealous God, one who is a passionately determined to be Israel's only God.
In verse 23: Incline your heart calls for personal conviction, not just outward conformity (1 Kings 8.58).
The demand to put away the foreign gods may reflect a ceremony of burying idols at Shechem (compare Gen 35.2-4).
In verses 25-26: Hoshua performed three actions to give structure and effectiveness to Israel's commitment: he made a covenant, wrote down its rules in the book of the law, and set up a witness stone under the oak (see Judg 9.6).
In verse 27: The stone is a witness int he sense of being a visible public reminder (compare 22.27, 34), but also because it was present when all the words of the Lord (that is vv. 2-13) were proclaimed.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for November 1st

Read Joshua 24.1-13

In 24.1-13: The saving acts of God.

In verse 1: A long list of participants emphasizes that all the tribes of Israel appeared before God, that is at the sanctuary of Shechem.

In verse 2: Thus says the Lord indicates that Joshua is speaking as a prophet.

In verse 3: The River is the Euphrates.

In verse 7: This protective darkness is mentioned in Num 22-24.

In verse 11: The detail that the citizens of Jericho fought relies on a tradition different from that of Joshua 6.

In verse 12: Hornet (Deut 7.20) may be a metaphor for panic (compare 10.10).

In verse 13: This description of the land reflects Deut 6.10-11.

Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 31st

Read Joshua 23.1-16
In 23.1-16: Joshua's farewell.
In verse 1: Joshua's great age (13.1) motivates an exhortation to faithfulness and a warning about the future.
Rest signals the end of the conquest (21.44; 22.4).
In verse 4: In spite of many victories, some enemy nations remain.
They represent both opportunities for further success (v. 5) and dangerous enticements to infidelity (vv. 7, 12-13).
In verse 6: Future success requires that the whole nation show the same undeviating obedience to the book of the law (Deuteronomy) that was enjoined on Joshua in 1.7-8.
In verse 12: Intermarriage would establish complex relationships between families resulting in religious disloyalty (Deut 7.3-4).
In verse 13: The metaphors of a snare and a trap signify loss of freedom, and a scourge communicates political oppression (1 Kings 12.11).
Exile from this good land is threatened three times (vv. 13, 15, 16).
In verses 14-15: The Lord has been trustworthy in keeping past promises (see 21.45), but this means that the Lord's threatened punishments are equally certain to take place.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 30th

Read Joshua 22.10-34
In 22.10-34: he altar of witness.
In verse 10: The story presupposes that only one altar for sacrifice is permissible.
Dissension focuses on whether this altar by the Jordan is evidence of apostasy (vv. 16-20) or actually a token of loyalty (vv. 22-29).
Its great size relates to its intended function as a visible witness (vv. 27-28, 34).
In verse 12: The story is told from the perspective of the western tribes, describing them as the Israelites to the exclusion of the eastern tribes ( also vv. 32, 33).
In verse 17: The incident as Peor is reported in Num 25.
In verse 18: The principle of collective responsibility means the whole nation is endangered by the rebellion of some (compare v. 20).
In verse 19: Territory outside of Canaan might be ritually unclean, a place where loyalty to the Lord would be impossible.
In verse 22: The eastern tribes begin with confessional exclamation (compare 1 Kings 18.19) and a hypothetical self-condemnation that asserts their fidelity in the strongest terms.
In verse 27: The eastern tribes repeatedly cite lists of sacrifices (vv. 23, 26, 29) to deny that they intend to offer them at the newly built altar.
Here they use a similar catalog to affirm their loyalty.
In verse 28: The altar's purpose is finally revealed.
It is only a copy, a replica pointing to loyal service at the legitimate altar at Shiloh.
In verse 34: The altar's name does not appear in the Hebrew text.
What is important is it function as a witness between us, that is, between the eastern and western tribes.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 29th

Read Joshua 22.1-9
In 22.1-9: The eastern tribes return home.
In verse 4: Because rest has been achieved (21.44), the commitments made in 1.13, 15 can now be fulfilled.
Go to your tents reflects traditional language for the dispersal of the national assembly (1 Kings 12.16) or tribal militia.
In verse 7: Manasseh's situation is unique, with territory both east and west of the Jordan.
In verse 8: Sharing out the spoil of conquest corresponds to Israel's traditional custom (1 Sam 30.21-25).
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 28th

Read Joshua 21.1-45
In 21.1-45: Cities of the Levites.
In verse 2: Although Levi receives no allotment for agriculture, the tribe is assigned residence towns and grazing land.
For this command, see Num 35.2-8.
In verses 4-7: The levitical cities appear in four divisions.
Levi was divided into three clans, and the Kohathites were further subdivided into the descendants of Aaron (v. 4; the priests) and those of priestly descent.
In verses 13-19: The thirteen towns for the descendants of Aaron reflect an order source list.
The other three lists were created by collecting names from Joshua 13, 16-17, 19, and 20.
In verse 32: Because the source list (vv. 13-19) contained thirteen towns, Naphtali contributes only three towns instead of the usual four in order to achieve the ideal total of forty-eight (v. 41).
In verses 43-45: All has been achieved (v. 43) and all promises fulfilled (v. 45).
Rest on every side (v. 44) mans war has been replaced by peace (1.13, 15; 22.4).
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 27th

Read Joshua 20.1-9
In 20.`-9: Cities of refuge.
In verses 2-3: Murders were avenged by a near relative of the victim, the avenger of blood (v. 5).
Easily accessible cities of refuge prevented any miscarriage of justice in cases of unintentional manslaughter (Num 35.13-28; Deut 19.1-13).
In verse 7-8: Cities are designated for six regions, three on each side of the Jordan.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 26th

Read Joshua 19.1-51
In 19.1-51: The other six lots.
In verses 1-9: Because its territory lies inside that of Judah (vv. 1, 9), Simeon has no boundary description.
Its towns are listed in two districts (vv. 2-6 and 7).
In verses 6-10: For Zebulun, a detailed boundary description (vv. 10-14) is followed by a town list (v. 15).
The south border is traced westward from Sarid (vv. 10-11), then eastward from the same town (v. 12).
The east border is given in v. 13 and the north border is v. 14.
In verses 17-23: Issachar is described by a town list (vv. 18-21) followed by a small portion of north boundary (v. 22).
In verses 24--31: The boundary description for Asher is confusingly mingled with items from a town list.
In verses 32-29: The boundary description for Naphtali (vv. 33-34) is followed by a town list (vv. 35-38).
In verses 40-48: Dan's move north to a new home is reported in Judges 18.
In verse 51: The priest Eleazar cast the lot at the tent of meeting, which emphasizes that all was done in accordance with the will of God.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 25th

Read Joshua 18.11-28
In 18.11-28: The lot for Benjamin
In verses 12-13: Its boundaries are described in a counter-clockwise direction (vv. 11-20).
The north border parallels that of Ephraim (16.1-3).
In verses 15-19: The south border  parallels 15.5-9 (Judah's north border) but is given in the reverse direction (west to East).
In verses 21-24: Benjamin's two districts come from the same source as those of Judah (15.21-62).
Benjamin was split by the breakup of Israel after Solomon's death (1 Kings 12).
This district describes towns located in the northern kingdom.
In verse 25-28: This district consists of towns located in the kingdom of Judah.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 24th

Read Joshua 18.1-10
In 18.1-10: Dividing the land into seven portions.
In verse 1: So far the process of dividing the land has taken place at Gilgal (14.6).
Now it abruptly moves to the sanctuary of Shiloh, where the Lord is present in the tent of meeting.
In verses 4-5: The remaining seven tribes will engage in a lottery for territory.
In preparation, the land is divided in equitable allotments by a representative commission.
In verse 6: The division is conducted fairly by sacred lot under the Lord's supervision (compare v. 10).
In verse 9: The result of the commission's work is a document (NRSV: book) delineating the divisions by towns.
This seems to describe the source used to create chs. 18-19, in which town lists play an important part.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 23rd

Read Joshua 17.14-18.
In 18.14-18: More territory for Joseph.
In verses 14-15: Ephraim ans Manasseh together as the tribe of Joseph complain that they have too little land.
Joshua points out that their size gives them the resources to clear the highland forests.
In verse 16: Unsatisfied, they go on to lament that the military strength of the Canaanites keeps them from settling the plains.
In verses 17-18: The large population of Ephraim and Manasseh is actually not a problem, but an opportunity for an expansive future.
In addition to clearing the forests, they will eventually drive out the Canaanites.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 22nd

Read Josh 17.1-13

In 17.1-13: Manasseh.

In verse 1: Elements of Manasseh tracing descent from Machir occupied territory eat of the Jordan.

In verse 2: Six clans traced descent through Manasseh's male heirs.

In verses 3-6: Five other clans descended from the female heirs of Manasseh, the daughters of Zelophehad.

Joshua fulfills the command of Moses reported in Num 27.1-11.

The south boundary parallels Ephiram's north boundary (16.6, 8).

In verses 11-12: Idealized boundaries did not always match the reality of tribal affiliation (compare 16.9).

Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 21st

Read Joshua 16.1-10
In 16.1-10: Ephraim.
In verses 1-3: As sons of Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh together make up the Josephites.
Their south boundary is also the north boundary of Benjamin (18.12-13).
In verses 5-9: Ephraim's north boundary is traced from its center point, first eastward and southward from Michmethath (vv.6-7), then westward from nearby Tappuah (v.8).
In verse 10: Gezer remained Canaanite until under Solomon (1 Kings 9.16-17).
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 20th

Read Joshua 15.20-63
In 15.20-63: The towns of Judah.
In verse 20: This description was taken from an authentic source cataloging the administrative districts of the kingdom of Judah.
The remainder of this list was first used to portray Benjamin (18.21-28).
In verses 21-32: Districts are grouped and labeled geographically.
The first district is in the south (v. 21; Heb., "the Negeb").
Each district concludes with an enumeration of towns, with their villages (v. 32).
In verses 33-44: Three districts are in the the lowland (Heb., "Shephelah").
In verses 45-47: This district of Philistine towns doe snot follow the pattern and was not part of the original source document.
In verses 48-60: Other districts are in the hill country.
In verses 61-62: One district is in the wilderness.
In verse 63: Jerusalem became part of Israel only under David (2 Sam 5.6-9).
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 19th

Read Joshua 15.13-19
In 15.13-19: A land grant for Achsah.
In verses 13-15:This parallels the account given in 14.6-15.
In verses 17-18: Although Achsah prods her husband to ask for a field, nothing of this sort apparently happens.
In verse 19: Instead she herself goes on to request springs of water from her father.
because her land is arid and she calls the land of the Negeb (the Negeb is, arid territory).
Achsah's story (paralleled in Judg 1.10-15) explains why the Othniel clan controlled both Bebir and two springs associated with Hebron.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 18th

Read Joshua 15.1-12
In 15.1-12: The boundaries of Judah.
In verses 1-4: Judah's south border (running east to west) is similar to Num 34.3-6.
In verses 5-11: The north border with Benjamin is reported in great detail from east to west and coincides with 18.15-19.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 17th

Read Joshua 14.1-15
In 14.1-15: Prelude to land distribution.
In verse 1: Joshua is joined by the priest Eleazar because casting sacred lot was a priestly monopoly (Deut 33.8).
In verse 2: Distribution by lot confirms that the results as in accordance with divine will.
In verse 4: The total number of allotments comes out to twelve because Joseph gave rise to two tribes and Levi received no territory.
In verses 6-12: Celeb claims a special grant of territory based upon his honest and loyal behavior as a spy (vv. 7-8; Num 13) and the promise of Moses (v. 9).
He supports his case by reference to his great age and warlike vigor (vv. 10-11).
It was Israel's fear of the Anakim (vv. 12, 15) that had caused the original problem (Num 13.28).
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 16th

Read Joshua 13.8-33
In 13.8-33: East of Jordan.
In verses 8-14: A general outline moves from south to north.
Aroer on the edge of the Wadi Arnon (v.9) form a boundary with Moab on the south.
Mount Hermon and the former kingdom of Og in Bashan mark off the north (vv. 11-12).
There are two exceptions: Gershur and Maacath remain as alien enclaves (v. 13) and the tribe of Levi receives no allotment (vv. 14, 33).
In verses 15-33: Reuben's territory is described by a line of extent drawn north from Aroer (v. 16) and a list of towns (vv. 17-20).
In verses 24-28: Gad lies to the north of Rueben.
Two boundary lines run northward from Hesbon and from Mahanaim (v. 26).
There is a short list of four towns in the first part of v. 27.
In verses 29-31: the clans of Manasseh eat of the Jordan occupy territory north and east of Gad.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 15th

Read Joshua 13.1-7

In 13.1-7: The land that remains.

In verse 1: Joshua's advanced age prompts the distribution of territory west of the Jordan (v. 7).

In verses 2-6: A  parenthetical digression describes Philistine territory and areas to the north in Phoenicia and Lebanon as land yet to be conquered.

The Lord will eventually drive these people out but for now Joshua is to allot the land already conquered (v. 6).

Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 14th

Read Joshua 12.1-24
In 12.1-24: A list of defeated kings.
In verses 1-6: Moses defeated two kings east of the Jordan.
The territories seized from Sihon are delineated in vv. 2-3 and those of taken from Og in vv. 4-5.
In verses 7-8: Joshua seized territory from thirty-one kings (v. 24).
This description mirrors 11.16-17.
In verses 9-24: Jericho and Ai naturally come first (v. 9).
The five cities of 10.3 are listed in vv. 10-12a.
The four cities of 11.1 are listed in vv. 19-20.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 13th

Read Joshua 11.16-23
In 10.16-23: Culmination of the conquest.
In verse 16: The description parallels 10.40.
In verse 17: A line of territorial extent reaches from Mount Halak in the south on the border with Edom to Baal-gad somewhere near Mount Hermon on Israel's north (12.7; 13.5-6).
In verse 20: The stubborn hostility and incessant attacks of the enemy were the Lord's doing, part of a divine plan to wipe them out.
In verse 21-22: In Israelite folklore, the Anakim were ancient indigenous race of unusual statue.
In verse 23: The Lord has kept the promise made in 1.3-5, and Joshua has completed the task assigned in 1.6.
With the words the land had rest from war, the conquest draws to a close.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 12th

Read Joshua 11.1-15
In 11.1-15: Conquests in the north.
In verses 1-3: Deborah and Barak also confront a King Jabin of Hazor in Judg 4-5.
Jabin may have been a dynastic name for Hazor's kings.
Separate folk traditions about Hazor simply used this well-known name.
Jabin's response parallels the pattern of 10.1-5.
In verse 4: Israel's enemies had the advantage of horses and chariots, a sophisticated and expensive weapons system.
In verse 6:  To hamstring a horse means to cut its rear leg tendons so that it could no longer be used in war (2 Sam 8.4).
Israel was unable to support and use chariots until the reign of Solomon.
In verse 8: The Lord is always the real victor in holy war tradition.
In verse 11: The language for the holy war ban, no one left who breathed (also v. 14), is taken from Deut 20.16.
In verse 13: Israel did not destroy most captured cities, but took them over in accordance with the principle of Deut 6.10-11.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 11th

Read Joshua 10.16-27
In 10.16-27: Executing the five kings.
In verse 16: Makkedah was the southernmost limit of the enemy's flight (v. 10) and the starting point for the final phase of the campaign (v. 20).
In verse 20: In spite of Joshua's energetic pursuit (v. 19), survivors do escape to the fortified towns, thus setting up the need for attacks on Lachish, Eglon, and Hebron (v. 31, 34, 36).
In verse 24: Feet on the necks of enemy kings symbolizes total victory (Ps 110.1).
In verse 26-27: Exposing enemy bodies was a humiliating insult (1 Sam 31.10; 2 Sam 4.12).
Joshua obeys Deut 21.22-23.
These large stones were presumably a well-known landmark (compare 7.26; 8.29).
Comments or Questions...

Reading for October 10th

Read Joshua 10.12-15
In 10.12-15: The sun stands still.
In verses 12-13: A prose framework encloses and reinterprets an older poetic text from the Book of Jashar (see 2 Sam 1.18).
According tot he framework, Joshua's request to the Lord (v. 12) for extended daylight causes the sun to stop in its noon position (in midheaven, v. 13) and delay its setting.
The poem itself actually addresses the moon and sun, not God.
The poet calls upon them to freeze in stunned amazement at the scope of Israel's victory (compare Ex 15.16; Hab 3.11).
In verse 14: That the Lord fought for Israel perfectly summarizes the divine warrior tradition.
Comments or Questions..

Reading for October 9th

Read Josh 10.1-11
In 10.1-11: Victory at Gibeon.
In verse 1: News of Israel's success motivates enemy actions (compare 5.1; 9.1-2; 11.1-3).
In verse 2: Israel's treaty with Gibeon threatened Jerusalem's northern approaches.
In verse 3: These four cities are south and west of Jerusalem.
In verse 6: All the kings of the Amorites is an exaggeration to motivate Israel's response.
In verse 10: Panic is a standard weapon of the divine warrior (Ex 14.24; Judg 7.21-22).
The pursuit extends westward from Gibeon, down through the pass at the ascent of Beth-horon, then far southward.
In verse 11: Weather phenomenal are also weapons of the divine warrior (Isa 30.30).
Comments or Questions..