Commentary - Joshua 5:10-12

Bird's-eye view

In Joshua 5:10-12, we witness a monumental transition in the life of Israel, a pivotal moment that is packed with covenantal significance. Having crossed the Jordan on dry ground, a clear echo of the Red Sea crossing, and having renewed the covenant sign of circumcision, the people of God are now, for the first time, truly in the land. This is not a scouting mission; this is arrival. The passage before us details three crucial events that mark this transition: the celebration of the Passover, the partaking of the land's produce, and the cessation of the manna. These are not merely historical footnotes. They represent a profound shift from a state of wandering and supernatural dependency to a state of inheritance and mature responsibility. God is teaching His people, and us, that faithfulness in one stage of redemptive history prepares us for the next. The wilderness provision was for the wilderness, but the fruit of the land is for those who have come home.

This is a coming-of-age story for the nation. The miraculous bread from heaven, a daily sign of God's direct provision for a people who could not provide for themselves, is now withdrawn. Why? Because it is no longer needed. God's provision has not ended; it has simply changed its form. He now provides for them through the ordinary means of cultivation and harvest within the inheritance He has given them. This is a picture of the Christian life. We move from the milk of direct and constant intervention to the solid food of working out our salvation in the land God has given us, which is the world. The sacramental meal of Passover, eaten on Canaanite soil, stakes God's claim on the territory and declares that the long-promised redemption is now being possessed. This is a beachhead, a declaration that the kingdom has come.

Outline

Context In Joshua

These verses are the capstone of the "Crossing" section of Joshua (Ch. 1-5). Everything has been leading to this moment. The charge to Joshua, the spying mission of the two men, the miraculous parting of the Jordan, and the renewal of circumcision at Gilgal were all preparatory. They were God's way of setting His people apart and reminding them of their covenant identity before they fired a single arrow. Now, at Gilgal, which means "to roll," God has "rolled away the reproach of Egypt" (Josh. 5:9). This reproach was not just their former slavery but also the shame of the wilderness generation that died in unbelief. With the covenant sign renewed on their flesh, this new generation is now qualified to celebrate the covenant meal of Passover. This event, therefore, is not just a nostalgic look back at the Exodus; it is a forward-looking declaration of war, a sacramental planting of the flag. They are consecrating themselves for the holy war that is to follow in chapter 6 with the conquest of Jericho.

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 10 Then the sons of Israel camped at Gilgal and celebrated the Passover on the evening of the fourteenth day of the month on the desert plains of Jericho.

The first thing to notice is the location: they are camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho. They are on enemy soil. Jericho, a formidable fortress, is within sight. This is not a Passover celebrated in the safety of Goshen or the seclusion of the Sinai wilderness. This is a bold, defiant act of worship. Before they fight, they feast. Before the battle, the sacrament. This teaches us a fundamental principle of the Christian life: our warfare is fueled by our worship. We do not fight for a place at the table; we fight from our place at the table. The Passover was a remembrance of their redemption from Egypt (Ex. 12), a meal that looked back to the blood of the lamb that saved them from the angel of death. By celebrating it here, they are declaring that the same God who delivered them from Pharaoh will deliver Jericho into their hands. The date is precise, the fourteenth day of the first month, just as God had commanded. This is an act of meticulous obedience. Covenant faithfulness is the prerequisite for conquest.

v. 11 And on the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate some of the yield of the land, unleavened cakes and roasted grain.

The sequence is vital. First the Passover, then the produce of the land. Grace precedes works. Redemption precedes inheritance. On the very next day, they transition from a memorial of the past to a foretaste of the future. They eat the fruit of Canaan. This is not manna. This is food that grew out of the ground God had promised to them centuries before. They are eating the promise. The unleavened cakes connect directly to the Feast of Unleavened Bread that followed the Passover, a symbol of leaving the leaven, the corruption, of Egypt behind (1 Cor. 5:7-8). But here, the unleavened cakes are made from Canaanite grain. They are purging the old leaven while taking possession of the new land. The roasted grain was likely fresh, young grain from the early harvest. This is the first fruits. By eating it, they are acknowledging that the land and its bounty belong to the Lord, and He is the one who gives it to them. This is a meal of faith, an act of taking God at His word and enjoying the substance of what was promised.

v. 12 Then the manna ceased on the day after they had eaten some of the produce of the land, so that the sons of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate some of the produce of the land of Canaan during that year.

And here is the great turning point. The manna stops. For forty years, every morning except the Sabbath, they had awakened to God's direct, supernatural provision (Ex. 16:35). It was bread from heaven, angel's food. It was a mercy for their immaturity and their unbelief in the wilderness. But maturity means learning to live off the farm. God does not want His people to remain in a state of perpetual infancy, needing a daily miracle just to eat breakfast. He brings them into a land where the ordinary processes of planting, watering, and harvesting will yield their food. The provision is no less from God, but the means have changed. God is weaning them. This is a sign of His favor, not His displeasure. He is graduating them to the next level of responsibility. They are no longer wanderers; they are inhabitants. They are no longer just recipients of grace; they are stewards of an inheritance. The cessation of the manna is the closing of one chapter and the glorious opening of another. The type gives way to the reality. The shadow of heavenly bread is replaced by the substantial bread of the land, which itself is a type of Christ, the true bread who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world (John 6:32-35).

Application

This passage is a potent reminder for the Church that God's methods of provision change as we mature in our faith and as redemptive history advances. We must not make an idol of "yesterday's manna." There are times in our lives, particularly when we are new in the faith or in a spiritual wilderness, when God provides for us in overtly miraculous and direct ways. We should be grateful for this, but we should not demand it for the rest of our lives. God's goal is to bring us into our inheritance, to make us fruitful stewards who work the ground He has given us. This means embracing the ordinary means of grace: the preaching of the Word, the sacraments, the fellowship of the saints, and the daily grind of faithful work and obedience. The provision is still from His hand, but it comes through the soil, through our labor.

Furthermore, we see the pattern of worship before warfare. Before we engage the culture, before we confront the Jericho's in our lives or in our society, we must feast with God. Our strength for the battle comes from celebrating the victory already won by Christ, our Passover Lamb (1 Cor. 5:7). We are not trying to earn God's favor; we are operating out of the favor He has already lavished upon us. When we partake of the Lord's Supper, we are, in effect, celebrating our Passover on the plains of Jericho, reminding ourselves of our redemption and arming ourselves for the good fight. We eat the bread of the coming kingdom, and by it, we are strengthened to go out and take the land in the name of our King.