Covenant Centrality: Worship After Warfare Text: Joshua 8:30-35
Introduction: The Liturgy of Victory
We live in a pragmatic and restless age. Even within the church, we are constantly tempted to measure our success by the world's metrics: numbers, influence, cultural cachet, and the immediate, tangible results of our latest programs. After a great victory, our first instinct is to consolidate our gains, to press the advantage, to plan the next campaign. The world tells us that to stop is to lose momentum. But God's economy is different. God's people operate according to a different script, a different logic entirely.
Here in Joshua chapter 8, Israel has just come through a tumultuous sequence of events. They experienced a catastrophic defeat at Ai because of Achan's hidden sin. Then, after dealing with that sin in a severe and public way, they returned to Ai under God's direction and won a decisive, strategic victory. The momentum is theirs. The surrounding Canaanite kings are terrified. The logical next step, according to any military strategist, would be to press on, to continue the conquest, to capitalize on the fear and disarray of the enemy.
But what does Joshua do? He stops. He halts the entire military campaign, marches the entire nation, men, women, children, and the foreigners among them, about twenty miles north into the heart of enemy territory. And what do they do there? They hold a worship service. They engage in a great, solemn, public act of covenant renewal. This was not a detour from the mission; this was the entire point of the mission. The conquest of Canaan was not ultimately about real estate; it was about establishing a place where God could be worshipped according to His Word. This passage is a powerful rebuke to our modern, results-driven, "get-er-done" evangelicalism. It teaches us that true victory is not secured by the sword alone, but by glad and meticulous obedience to the public worship of God. Worship is not a break from the battle; it is the central act of warfare.
This event, commanded by Moses long before in Deuteronomy, is a formal, national declaration of allegiance. It is Israel planting the flag of Yahweh's law in the middle of the land He has given them. It is a statement that this land will be governed by God's Word, and its people will be defined by their covenant relationship with Him. This is not private devotion; this is public, corporate, national worship as the central act of a victorious people.
The Text
30 Then Joshua built an altar to Yahweh, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal, 31just 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. 32And 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. 33And 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. 34Then 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. 35There 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.
(Joshua 8:30-35 LSB)
Worship Founded on Obedience (v. 30-31)
The first thing to notice is that this great act of worship is an act of obedience.
"Then Joshua built an altar to Yahweh, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal, 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..." (Joshua 8:30-31a)
Joshua is not being spontaneous or creative here. He is not designing a worship service based on what he thinks might be inspiring or relevant. He is meticulously following the instructions laid down by Moses in Deuteronomy 27. This is the regulative principle of worship in action. God is to be worshipped in the ways He has appointed in His Word, and not otherwise. True worship is not about our feelings, our preferences, or our innovations. It is about glad submission to the commands of God. Worship is not an experience we seek; it is an act of obedience we render.
Notice where the altar is built: on Mount Ebal. This is significant. As we will see, Ebal is the mountain of the curse. This is not where we would expect to build an altar. We would think the altar, the place of communion with God, should be on Gerizim, the mountain of blessing. But the altar is placed on the mountain of the curse because the foundation of all our blessing is that Christ became a curse for us (Galatians 3:13). Forgiveness and fellowship with God are only possible because the curse has been dealt with through sacrifice. The way to Gerizim is through Ebal. The way to blessing is through the curse being absorbed by a substitute.
The construction of the altar is also specified:
"...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 8:31b)
This command, from Exodus 20:25, is a powerful theological statement. God wants an altar made of natural, un-worked stones. Why? Because if man "improves" the stones with his tools, he profanes the altar. This strikes at the very heart of all man-made religion. Man always wants to contribute something to his salvation, to add his own craftsmanship to the work of redemption. But God will not have it. Our salvation, and therefore our worship, must be founded entirely on His work, not ours. The uncut stones point to a worship that relies on God's raw provision, not our polished performance. It is a repudiation of all pride. We come to God on His terms, through His provision, or we do not come at all.
On this altar, they offer two types of sacrifices. First, burnt offerings, which signified total consecration and atonement for sin. The whole animal went up in smoke to God. Second, peace offerings, which were a meal of communion and fellowship, shared by the priests and the people in God's presence. This is the gospel pattern: first, sin is dealt with through substitutionary atonement (the burnt offering), and then, and only then, can we have fellowship with God (the peace offering). This is the structure of covenant renewal worship: we confess our sin, we are consecrated to God, and then we have communion with Him.
The Law Written and Read (v. 32, 34-35)
The centerpiece of this ceremony is the Word of God.
"And he wrote there on the stones a copy of the law of Moses... 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." (Joshua 8:32, 34)
In the heart of a hostile land, Israel's first great public monument is not a victory stele boasting of their military prowess. It is the law of their God, written publicly on large, plastered stones for all to see. This is a radical act. It declares that this nation is constituted by, and will be governed by, the revealed Word of Yahweh. Their national identity is theological. Their constitution is the Torah. Every nation is governed by some ultimate standard, some law that is considered foundational. For Israel, that standard is the explicit law of God. For a nation to prosper, it must publicly acknowledge the authority of God's Word.
Then Joshua reads the law. All of it. The blessings for obedience and the curses for disobedience. This is not a seeker-sensitive service. He doesn't skip the hard parts. The whole counsel of God is proclaimed. The people need to know the terms of the covenant. They need to understand that their continued existence and prosperity in this land is contingent upon their faithfulness to their covenant Lord. Blessing is not automatic. It is the consequence of obedience. Cursing is not arbitrary. It is the consequence of rebellion. This public reading establishes the legal framework for their national life.
And notice who is included:
"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." (Joshua 8:35)
This is covenantal inclusion. Everyone is present. This is not just for the men, the soldiers, the leaders. It is for the women, the children, and even the resident aliens who had cast their lot with Israel. The covenant encompasses the entire community. The children are not excused to go play somewhere; they are there to hear the words of the law. They are covenant children, and they need to understand the obligations and promises of the covenant from their earliest days. The women are not secondary members; they are full participants in the covenant community. And the sojourners are welcomed in, demonstrating that the covenant has always had room for those who were not ethnically Israelites but who came by faith to shelter under the wings of Israel's God. This is a picture of the church, where there is neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, for all are one in Christ Jesus.
The Nation Between Blessing and Cursing (v. 33)
The physical arrangement of the people is itself a powerful sermon.
"And all Israel... were standing on both sides of the ark... 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." (Joshua 8:33)
Imagine the scene. The entire nation is gathered in the natural amphitheater of the valley between these two mountains. In the center is the Ark of the Covenant, the symbol of God's throne and His presence with His people. On one side, on the slopes of Mount Gerizim, the mountain of blessing, stand six tribes. On the other side, on the slopes of Mount Ebal, the mountain of cursing, stand the other six tribes. The Levites would then read the blessings and the curses, and the respective sides would shout "Amen!" in response.
This is a living parable. The nation stands physically between the two possibilities that lie before them: blessing or curse. Life or death. And at the center of it all is the presence of God, represented by the Ark. Their destiny depends entirely on their relationship to Him. This is the choice that God sets before every individual and every nation. "I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live" (Deuteronomy 30:19).
This ceremony is a national acceptance of the terms of the covenant. It is a corporate vow. By shouting "Amen," they are saying, "So be it. We agree to these terms. We accept the consequences of our actions." This is the foundation of a lawful society. It is the recognition that our choices have consequences, and that we live before a holy God who is the ultimate judge.
From Ebal to Calvary
This entire ceremony is a shadow, and the substance is Jesus Christ. This grand, national worship service in the heart of the promised land finds its ultimate fulfillment on another hill, outside another city.
The altar was built on Mount Ebal, the mountain of the curse. This points us directly to Golgotha. Jesus Christ, our substitute, went to the place of the curse for us. He became a curse for us, as it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree" (Galatians 3:13). The ultimate altar was the cross, and on it, the final and perfect sacrifice was offered. He was the ultimate burnt offering, wholly consumed in His devotion to the Father's will. He is our ultimate peace offering, through whom we have fellowship with God.
The law was written on stones, but it could not give life. It could only condemn. It revealed the standard, but it could not provide the power to keep it. But in the new covenant, God does something far better. He promises, "I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts" (Jeremiah 31:33). Through the work of the Holy Spirit, the law is no longer an external accusation but an internal principle of life. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes (Romans 10:4). He is the living Word, the perfect embodiment of the law.
The people stood between the blessing and the curse, and so do we. But the good news of the gospel is that Jesus stood on Mount Ebal for us, so that we might stand on Mount Gerizim forever. He took the full force of the curse that we deserved, so that we might receive the full abundance of the blessing that He earned. When we come to God in worship, we are not coming to a ceremony of potential cursing. We are coming to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem (Hebrews 12:22). We come because the curse has been exhausted at the cross.
Therefore, our worship, like Israel's, must be centered on the Word and the Covenant. We gather to hear the law and the gospel read and preached. We gather as a covenant community: men, women, and children. And we gather to renew our covenant with God, not by the blood of bulls and goats, but by partaking of the body and blood of the greater Joshua, Jesus, who has led us into our true promised land, the rest that is found in Him alone.