Now in Joshua 22, we come to a very interesting incident
and conflict that almost caused a war between the tribes before they hardly get
settled into their inheritance because of the “great impressive altar” that the
two and half tribes built on the border at the Jordan River.
The word traveled quickly that the tribes east of the
Jordan had erected an altar. While these two and a half tribes had been very
sincere in what they did, their action was misunderstood; and the other tribes
prepared for possible war. But wisely, they waited while an official delegation
investigated what was going on. "He who answers a matter before he
hears it, it is folly and shame to him" (Prov. 18:13).
The delegation of ten princes, one from each tribe, was led
by Phinehas, the son of the high priest, a man who had already proved himself
courageous in defending the Law of the Lord (Num. 25; Ps. 106:30-31). It was
the responsibility of the tribal leaders and the priests to investigate every
situation in Israel that appeared to be a breach of the Law (Deut. 13). God had
instructed the Jews to destroy the altars of the heathen nations in Canaan and
not to build altars of their own. There was to be one altar of sacrifice at the
one sanctuary that God had appointed (Deut. 12; Lev. 17:8-9).
In Joshua 22:15-20, it's likely that Phinehas made this
speech, but note that his address represented the agreement of all the tribes.
Phinehas called what they had done "an act of treachery”, which
means Joshua had commended these two and a half tribes for their loyalty, and
now it appeared that they had proved faithless. They had “turned away”
(vv. 16, 18, 23, 29), which meant they were no longer following the Lord (see
v. 5). This word carries the idea of "backsliding," gradually moving
away from the Lord. The strongest word used was “rebel” (vv. 16, 18-19, 22,
29), which means deliberately resisting God's will and disobeying His Law. In
building an unauthorized altar, these two and a half tribes were guilty of
apostasy. "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness
is as iniquity and idolatry" (1 Sam. 15:23).
From the nation's recent history Phinehas cited two serious
cases of rebellion as warning to these tribes. The first was the participation
of Israel in the heathen rites of the Moabites, when the men committed harlotry
with the Moabite women (Josh. 22:17; Num. 25). As a result, 24,000 people died.
The second was the sin of Achan after the victory at Jericho, when he
deliberately took the spoils that belonged to the Lord (Josh. 22:20; see Josh.
7). His sin led to defeat at Ai and the deaths of thirty-six Jewish soldiers.
It also led to his own death and that of the members of his family.
This conflict between the tribes should remind us as believers
that we are all apart of the “household of God”, His Church, the body of Jesus
Christ, and what we do affects the whole body. Also, we shouldn’t even give the
appearance that we are worshipping the altars and gods of this world in our
attempt to worship the One and Only True God, through Jesus Christ! Being a
borderline believer can cause all kinds of conflict and mislead other believers.
Think about it!
God bless!
