Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

Bird's-eye view

After the glorious victory at Ai, which itself followed the bitter repentance over Achan's sin, Joshua leads Israel in a foundational act of covenant worship. This is not a detour from the conquest; it is the very heart of it. The conquest of Canaan is a type of the Great Commission, and this ceremony on Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim is the formal declaration of the terms of engagement. Israel is consecrating the land to Yahweh, establishing His law as the constitution of their new nation. They are not simply taking real estate; they are establishing a beachhead for the Kingdom of God. This passage is a beautiful picture of corporate, covenantal worship, where the entire community, from the elders to the little ones, stands before God to affirm His lordship. It is a national amen to the blessings and curses of God's holy law, a recognition that life and prosperity are found only in obedience to Him, and ruin is found everywhere else.

The entire event is a dramatic, living sermon. The altar of uncut stones preaches against man-made religion. The division of the tribes between the mountain of blessing and the mountain of cursing preaches the two ways set before all men. The writing of the law on the stones preaches the objective, unchangeable standard of God's righteousness. And the reading of the law to every man, woman, child, and sojourner preaches the corporate nature of our faith. This is not about private spirituality. This is about a people publicly binding themselves to their God.

Outline

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 30 Then Joshua built an altar to Yahweh, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal,

Right after a military victory, Joshua's first thought is worship. This is instructive. We are tempted to think that worship is what we do when we take a break from the real work. But for Joshua, and for us, worship is the real work. The battles are simply the application. He builds an altar to Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel. This is not some generic deity; it is the God who brought them out of Egypt and made promises to their fathers. And where does he build it? On Mount Ebal, the mountain of the curse. This is profoundly theological. The altar, the place of sacrifice and atonement, is erected precisely on the spot that represents God's judgment against sin. It is a gospel announcement before the gospel. The only way to deal with the curse is through blood sacrifice. Before any blessings can be enjoyed, the curse must be dealt with at the altar.

v. 31 just as Moses the servant of Yahweh had commanded the sons of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of uncut stones on which no man had wielded an iron tool; and they offered burnt offerings on it to Yahweh and sacrificed peace offerings.

Joshua's actions are not innovative; they are obedient. He does everything "just as Moses...had commanded." True worship is always regulated by God's Word, not by our bright ideas or emotional impulses. The command comes from Deuteronomy 27, and Joshua is fulfilling it to the letter. The altar itself is specified to be of "uncut stones." This is crucial. Man is not to "improve" upon what God has provided. The moment a man puts his tool to the stone, he is imposing his own will, his own artistry, his own righteousness upon the place of worship. This is the essence of all false religion. God requires a worship that is unadorned by human pride. The rough, natural stones declare that we come to God on His terms, with nothing of our own making. On this altar of pure obedience, they offer two kinds of sacrifices. The burnt offerings signify total consecration to God, the smoke ascending as a picture of complete surrender. The peace offerings were a fellowship meal, where the people ate in the presence of God, signifying communion and friendship with Him. Atonement (the altar on the mount of cursing) leads to consecration, which leads to communion.

v. 32 And he wrote there on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he had written, in the presence of the sons of Israel.

Having built the altar, Joshua now establishes the law. He takes large stones, likely plasters them over as commanded in Deuteronomy 27:4, and writes the law on them. This was a public monument. The constitution of Israel was not hidden away in some government archive; it was posted for all to see at the very heart of the land they were inheriting. This act declares that Israel is to be a people of the Book. Their national life, their personal conduct, their future, all of it is to be governed by the written Word of God. This is done "in the presence of the sons of Israel." God's standards are not secret. They are objective, public, and binding on all. There is no excuse for ignorance. The law stands there, written on stone, as a permanent witness to the covenant.

v. 33 And all Israel with their elders and officers and their judges were standing on both sides of the ark before the Levitical priests who carried the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, the sojourner as well as the native. Half of them stood in front of Mount Gerizim and half of them in front of Mount Ebal, just as Moses the servant of Yahweh had given a command at first to bless the people of Israel.

Here we see the whole nation assembled for this solemn ceremony. Notice the inclusivity: "all Israel." This includes the leadership, elders, officers, judges, and it explicitly includes "the sojourner as well as the native." The covenant of God is not based on ethnicity. Anyone who throws his lot in with the people of God and submits to the God of the covenant is part of the covenant community. This has always been the case. They stand on both sides of the ark, the symbol of God's throne and presence, which is situated in the valley between the two mountains. They are literally standing before God. Then the nation is divided. Half stand facing Mount Gerizim, the mount of blessing, and the other half face Mount Ebal, the mount of cursing. This is a living diorama of the choice set before them in Deuteronomy: life and death, blessing and cursing. Every single person in Israel is placed in a position where they must confront the two possible outcomes of their covenant relationship with God.

v. 34 Then afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the book of the law.

The visual demonstration is followed by an auditory one. Joshua reads "all the words of the law." Not a summary, not the highlights, but all of it. He reads the blessings for obedience and the curses for disobedience. The people hear, in detail, what faithfulness looks like and what unfaithfulness will bring upon them. This is the foundation of a healthy society: the public proclamation of God's Word. The people must know the standard. They must hear the promises of grace and the warnings of judgment. This public reading binds the conscience of the nation to the truth.

v. 35 There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded which Joshua did not read before all the assembly of Israel with the women and the little ones and the sojourners who were going among them.

This final verse is a magnificent summary that underscores two critical points. First is the completeness of the reading: "not a word...which Joshua did not read." There is no editing of God's message, no softening of the hard parts. The whole counsel of God is delivered. Second is the completeness of the audience: "all the assembly...with the women and the little ones and the sojourners." This is a federal vision of the covenant. The covenant is not made with isolated individuals. It is made with households, with a people. The women are not excluded. The children, the "little ones," are not sent to a separate program so the adults can have "real church." They are there, hearing the words of the law, the blessings and the curses. They are covenant children, and they are being brought up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord from their earliest days. The sojourners, too, are fully included. This is a picture of the church, a corporate body bound together under the Word of God, where every member, regardless of age, sex, or background, stands together before their King.