Bird's-eye view
This passage captures a pivotal moment in the history of redemption: the formal transfer of leadership from Moses to Joshua. After forty years of leading a stiff-necked people through the wilderness, Moses, the great lawgiver, is about to be gathered to his fathers. But God's purposes do not die with God's servants. Here, on the plains of Moab, with the promised land in view, the baton is passed. This is not a quiet, backroom affair. Moses commissions Joshua publicly, "in the sight of all Israel," establishing his authority and charging him with the task ahead. The charge is twofold: a command to be strong and courageous, and a promise that undergirds that command. The strength required is not native to Joshua; it is grounded entirely in the character and presence of Yahweh. The God who goes ahead, who remains with, and who will never fail or forsake His people is the only basis for true courage. This is the foundation upon which the conquest of Canaan, a type of the church's greater conquest, will be built.
The essence of the passage is a public and covenantal ordination. The command to be courageous is not a platitude or a bit of positive thinking. It is a requirement of faith rooted in the objective reality of God's promises. Fear and dismay are the natural human response to the immense task of dispossessing giants from fortified cities. But the word of God here directly confronts that natural response. The antidote to fear is not found in Joshua's military prowess or strategic genius, but in the steadfast, forward-moving presence of Yahweh Himself. He goes ahead, He stays with, He will not let go. This is the gospel logic that must animate all of God's people as they face their own impossible tasks.
Outline
- 1. The Public Commissioning of a New Leader (Deut 31:7-8)
- a. The Public Nature of the Charge (v. 7a)
- b. The Command for Courage (v. 7b)
- c. The Task of Inheritance (v. 7c)
- d. The Promise of God's Vanguard Presence (v. 8a)
- e. The Promise of God's Abiding Presence (v. 8b)
- f. The Promise of God's Unfailing Presence (v. 8c)
- g. The Consequent Prohibition of Fear (v. 8d)
Context In Deuteronomy
Deuteronomy is structured as a series of farewell addresses from Moses to the generation of Israelites poised to enter Canaan. The book is a renewal of the covenant made at Sinai, tailored for a new people in a new situation. Chapter 31 marks the very end of these addresses. Moses has just recited the blessings and the terrifying curses of the covenant. He has prophesied both Israel's future apostasy and God's ultimate faithfulness in restoring them. Now, the practical matter of succession must be handled. Moses, at 120 years old, is barred from entering the land because of his sin at Meribah (Num 20:12). His personal disqualification does not, however, thwart God's plan. This chapter arranges for the continuation of God's rule through two means: the written law, which Moses finishes and entrusts to the priests (Deut 31:9, 24-26), and a new human leader, Joshua. The charge to Joshua in our text is therefore a crucial part of ensuring the covenant's continuity. It is immediately followed by God Himself confirming the charge to Joshua (Deut 31:14, 23), underscoring that Joshua's authority comes not just from Moses, but from Yahweh directly.
Key Issues
- The Principle of Public Ordination
- The Relationship Between Command and Promise
- The Nature of Godly Courage
- Yahweh as the Divine Warrior
- The Typology of Joshua and Jesus
- The Doctrine of God's Faithfulness
The Ground of All Courage
We live in a soft age that has a sentimental and therapeutic view of courage. We think of it as something you muster up from within, a matter of self-esteem or believing in yourself. The Bible knows nothing of this. Biblical courage is not an internal resource; it is a logical response to an external reality. That reality is the character and promise of God. Moses does not tell Joshua to look inside himself for strength. He tells him to look outside himself, to look to Yahweh.
The structure of this passage is essential. First comes the command: "Be strong and courageous." Then comes the basis for the command, a threefold promise about God: "Yahweh is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you." The command is the roof, but the promises are the foundation and the load-bearing walls. Without the promises, the command is a cruel joke. It is like telling a man with no legs to run a marathon. But with the promises, the command is a glorious invitation. God does not command what He does not enable. The reason Joshua can be strong is that Yahweh is strong. The reason Joshua can be courageous is that Yahweh has already gone ahead to fight the battle. Our courage is never more and never less than our faith in the faithfulness of God.
Verse by Verse Commentary
7 Then Moses called to Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land which Yahweh has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall give it to them as an inheritance.
The setting is crucial. Moses speaks to Joshua in the sight of all Israel. This is a public transfer of power, a formal ordination. There is to be no confusion about who is in charge after Moses is gone. Leadership in God's economy is not a matter of private ambition or backroom deals; it is a public charge, openly given and openly received. This public setting binds Joshua to his duty and commits the people to follow him. The command itself, Be strong and courageous, is a stock phrase for this transition, repeated by God to Joshua in the first chapter of the next book. It is a call to moral and spiritual fortitude in the face of daunting opposition. And why must he be courageous? Because the task is immense. He is the one designated to lead the people into the land and to oversee its distribution. Notice the interplay of divine sovereignty and human responsibility. Yahweh has sworn to give the land, that is the foundation. But Joshua is the instrument; you shall give it to them as an inheritance. God's sovereign decree does not negate the need for a courageous human agent to carry it out.
8 And Yahweh is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”
Here is the bedrock for that required courage. Moses stacks up four promises that leave Joshua no room for fear. First, Yahweh is the one who goes ahead of you. This is the language of a divine warrior. Yahweh is not sending Joshua out on a solo mission. He is the vanguard, the one clearing the path and engaging the enemy first. The conquest of Canaan is Yahweh's war, and Joshua is His general. Second, He will be with you. God's presence is not just out in front, but also alongside. He is not a distant commander but an abiding companion. This is the promise of Immanuel, God with us, which is the central comfort for God's people in every age. Third, He will not fail you or forsake you. The Hebrew words mean He will not let you drop, nor will He abandon you. This is a promise of God's absolute, unfailing faithfulness. Human leaders die, human strength wanes, but God's commitment to His covenant people is relentless. He will see the project through to the end. Given these three massive realities, the conclusion is inescapable: Do not fear or be dismayed. Fear is a rational response if the battle is yours alone. But if Yahweh goes before you, stays with you, and holds you up, then fear is not just an emotion; it is a form of unbelief. It is a practical denial of the promises just uttered. Dismay, a kind of shattering of one's nerve, is likewise ruled out. The man whose hope is in the faithfulness of God cannot ultimately be shattered.
Application
This charge to Joshua is, in principle, our charge as well. We are not called to conquer a literal Canaan, but we are called to the task of subduing the whole world for Christ through the gospel. The name Joshua is the Hebrew form of the name Jesus. The first Joshua was a type, a foreshadowing, of the true and better Joshua to come. The first Joshua led God's people into a temporary rest in a physical land. Our Jesus, through His death and resurrection, leads His people into the true and final rest of salvation.
The task before us seems just as impossible as the one that faced Joshua. We are to make disciples of all nations. We face spiritual giants in fortified cities of unbelief. And so the same command comes to us: "Be strong and courageous." And this command is grounded in the very same promises. Our Lord Jesus, the greater Joshua, has said, "Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matt 28:20). He is the one who goes before us, breaking down gates of bronze and cutting bars of iron in two. He is the one who is with us by His Spirit. And He is the one who will not fail or forsake us, for He has promised to build His church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Therefore, we must not give way to fear or dismay. When we look at the state of our culture, the weakness of the church, and the feebleness of our own hearts, it is easy to be dismayed. But we are not commanded to look at those things. We are commanded to look to God. Our courage is not based on the shifting sands of our circumstances but on the granite reality of God's character. He is faithful. He has sworn an oath. He has gone before us in the person of His Son. Therefore, let us get up and take possession of the inheritance He has promised, not with fear, but with the rugged joy of those who know their God cannot, and will not, fail.