4th Quarter Adult Lesson
The book of Joshua marks the transition from the leadership of Moses to that of Joshua. It begins with the story of the Israelites entering the Promised Land and ends with them settled in that land. Joshua, indeed, had a tough act to follow. That is, to pick up where Moses had left off. But that challenge was only the beginning. Joshua was to do what Moses never did: take the nation, after 40 years in the desert, across the Jordan and into Canaan, according to the promise that God had made to the fathers years before. “ ‘Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them—the children of Israel’ ” (Josh. 1:2, NKJV). The key to the whole story is found here, in the Lord’s words to Joshua: they are going to enter “ ‘the land which I [YHVH] am giving to them.’ ” Yes, Joshua is not going to do it alone, but only through the power and guidance of the Lord, who would have brought the people into the land a generation earlier had they obeyed their end of the covenant. Unfortunately, they didn’t, and thus, they met the consequences of their actions. During the preceding 40 years, Israel had faced the negative side of the covenant. Because of the people’s rebellion against God, the entire adult generation who had experienced the wonders and marvels of the Exodus, with the exception of Caleb and Joshua, perished in the desert.