Commentary - Joshua 12:1-6

Bird's-eye view

Joshua chapter 12 serves as a formal register, a divine accounting of God's faithfulness to His people. Before detailing the conquests under Joshua's leadership west of the Jordan, the Spirit first has the chronicler look back to what was accomplished under Moses on the east side. This is not mere historical bookkeeping. This is the recital of God's mighty acts, establishing a pattern of victory that is intended to fuel the faith of all subsequent generations. The chapter is divided into two clear sections: the victories under Moses (vv. 1-6) and the victories under Joshua (vv. 7-24). This first part, our text, functions as the preamble to the main event, reminding Israel that the God who gave them victory over the formidable kings Sihon and Og is the same God who will secure their inheritance in the promised land proper. It is a record of promises kept, of giants slain, and of land possessed, all of which serves as a potent type of the greater victory and inheritance we have in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The structure is straightforward and legal. It reads like a title deed, because that is precisely what it is. God is transferring ownership, and He is doing so on the basis of righteous conquest. The enemies of God were squatting on God's land, and He, through His appointed servants, evicted them. This chapter is the official record of that eviction, a testimony to the fact that God's kingdom advances, and the gates of Hell, or the fortified cities of Bashan, will not prevail against it.

Outline

Context In Joshua

Joshua 12 is a hinge chapter. It stands between the narrative of the conquest (chapters 1-11) and the detailed accounting of the division of the land (chapters 13-21). After the sweeping victories in the south and the north, the narrative pauses to take a breath and take stock. This list of defeated kings serves as the capstone to the story of the fight and the foundation for the story of the inheritance. By beginning with Moses' victories, the author intentionally links the work of Joshua to the work of Moses, presenting the conquest of Canaan as one unified campaign orchestrated by God Himself. Moses began the work, and Joshua is carrying it to its appointed completion. This continuity is crucial. It demonstrates that God's plan is not dependent on any single man, but rather on His own covenant faithfulness. The victories on the east of the Jordan were the down payment, the earnest, of the full inheritance God had promised.

Key Issues

The Kings of the East Struck Down

1 Now these are the kings of the land whom the sons of Israel struck down, and whose land they possessed beyond the Jordan to the east toward the sunrise, from the valley of the Arnon as far as Mount Hermon, and all the Arabah to the east:

The opening is formal, almost legal. This is a record, a testimony. The subject is "the kings of the land." The Bible takes geography and history with the utmost seriousness. These were real kings, with real territory, who were really defeated. The agents of this defeat were "the sons of Israel," but as the whole book of Joshua makes clear, they were only the instruments in the hand of God. They "struck down" these kings. The Hebrew word is visceral; it means to smite, to kill. This was not a polite negotiation. It was a holy war, a divine judgment against the accumulated filth of the Amorites (Gen. 15:16). And the result of the striking down was the possessing. Judgment for God's enemies means inheritance for God's people. The boundaries are laid out with precision: from the Arnon gorge in the south to the majestic Mount Hermon in the north. This is God's world, and He parcels it out as He sees fit.

2 Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon and ruled from Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, both the middle of the valley and half of Gilead, even as far as the brook Jabbok, the border of the sons of Ammon; 3 and the Arabah as far as the Sea of Chinneroth toward the east, and as far as the sea of the Arabah, even the Salt Sea, eastward toward Beth-jeshimoth, and on the south, at the foot of the slopes of Pisgah;

The first king on this divine hit list is Sihon. His story is recounted back in Numbers 21. When Israel sought peaceful passage, Sihon responded with belligerence, marching his army out to attack God's people. This was a fatal mistake. You do not pick a fight with the people whom God has determined to bless. The result was his utter destruction and the forfeiture of his kingdom. Notice the detailed description of his territory. This is not mythical land in some forgotten age. This is real estate. From Heshbon his capital, his rule extended over a significant territory, meticulously mapped out here. God is not interested in generalities; He is the Lord of specifics. The land that Sihon once ruled, from the Arnon to the Jabbok, now belongs to Israel. The slopes of Pisgah, from which Moses would view the promised land, were part of this conquered territory. Every square inch is accounted for, claimed under the banner of Yahweh.

4 and the territory of Og king of Bashan, one of the remnant of the Rephaim, who lived at Ashtaroth and at Edrei 5 and ruled over Mount Hermon and Salecah and all Bashan, as far as the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and half of Gilead, as far as the border of Sihon king of Heshbon.

Next up is Og, king of Bashan. If Sihon was a formidable foe, Og was terrifying. He is described as "one of the remnant of the Rephaim," which is to say, he was a giant. His bed, a massive iron bedstead, was nine cubits long, over thirteen feet (Deut. 3:11). This is the kind of enemy that makes armies tremble and spies bring back faithless reports. The Rephaim were a race of giants who were emblematic of the fearsome, demonic power that occupied Canaan. But for the God of Israel, a giant is just a taller target. The defeat of Og was a sign that nothing, no matter how intimidating, can stand against the purposes of God. His territory was also vast, including sixty fortified cities. But all of Bashan, right up to Mount Hermon, fell before Israel. The defeat of the giants is a crucial theme. It is a real-world, historical outworking of the promise in Genesis 3 that the seed of the woman would crush the head of the serpent. These giants are the seed of the serpent, and God's people, by faith, are crushing them underfoot.

6 Moses the servant of Yahweh and the sons of Israel struck them down; and Moses the servant of Yahweh gave it to the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh as a possession.

This verse provides the summary and the authority. Who struck them down? "Moses the servant of Yahweh and the sons of Israel." The leadership of Moses is highlighted, but he acts in concert with the people. And who gave the land away? "Moses the servant of Yahweh." He acts here as God's authorized agent. The land is God's to take, and it is God's to give. He gives it as a "possession" to the two and a half tribes who requested it. This land, east of the Jordan, was not part of the original promise to Abraham in the same way the land west of the Jordan was, but it became part of Israel's inheritance through righteous conquest. God is a God of abundance. The point is clear: God's servant, acting in God's name, has the authority to dispense God's blessings to God's people. This sets the stage for Joshua, who is Moses' successor. More than that, it sets the stage for the ultimate servant of Yahweh, the Lord Jesus, who through His conquest over sin and death, gives us an eternal possession, an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.

Application

So what does a dusty list of defeated Canaanite kings have to do with us? Everything. First, this is a record of God's absolute faithfulness. God promised Abraham land, and here we see Him delivering on that promise in spades. The God who toppled Sihon and Og is the same God who has made promises to you in the gospel. He does not forget, and He does not fail. We should read lists like this and have our faith bolstered. Our God is a keeper of promises.

Second, this is a record of spiritual warfare. The enemies Israel faced were not just men; they represented spiritual realities. Og was a giant, a remnant of a demonic line. His defeat was a foreshadowing of Christ's victory over the principalities and powers. We too are called to a conquest, not of land and cities, but of sin in our own hearts and strongholds of unbelief in the world around us. We do so not in our own strength, but in the strength of the one who has already defeated the ultimate giant of sin and death. We are called to possess our possessions, to live out the victory that Christ has already won for us.

Finally, this passage is a call to remembrance. Why record all these names and places? So that Israel would not forget. So that when future generations faced their own giants, they could look back and say, "The God who delivered Og into our hands will deliver this enemy also." We are a forgetful people. We must constantly be rehearsing the great deeds of the Lord, both those in Scripture and those in our own lives. The God who saved you at the cross is the God who will sustain you today and bring you home tomorrow. This ancient list is a title deed for Israel, but it is also a rock of remembrance for us, a testimony to the conquering power of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.