13 And then this, while Joshua was there near Jericho: He looked up and saw right in front of him a man standing, holding his drawn sword. Joshua stepped up to him and said, "Whose side are you on—ours or our enemies'?"
14 He said, "Neither. I'm commander of God's army. I've just arrived." Joshua fell, face to the ground, and worshiped. He asked, "What orders does my Master have for his servant?"
15 God's army commander ordered Joshua, "Take your sandals off your feet. The place you are standing is holy."
Joshua did it.
I've been reading in Joshua lately. This passage jumped out at me.
Many scholars believe this is a Christophany, an early appearance of Christ before the incarnation.
But what strikes me is that He says He is on neither side.
That should be very sobering for all of us because it is so easy for us to think of things in terms of "our side" and "the other side" and to assume that The Lord will be on ours. That's how Joshua was thinking apparently. And I'm not criticizing him either because that's how I usually think myself.
Joshua definitely got the response right though.
I want to ask that same question: What orders does my Master have for me and then I want to carry them out.
2 comments:
It is interesting that we can all usually agree that everyone is a child of God and then expect Him to take sides.
I do wish though that all His commands were as easy as "take your sandals off".
good point
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