The Long Obedience and the Great Reward Text: Joshua 22:1-9
Introduction: The Anatomy of Faithfulness
We come now to a significant moment in the life of Israel. The long war for Canaan is over. The land has been subdued, the lots have been cast, and the tribes have received their inheritances. For seven long years, the men of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have fought alongside their brothers, fulfilling a promise made to Moses decades earlier on the plains of Moab. They had received their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan, but on the condition that they would not settle down until all of Israel had entered into their rest. Now, that day has come.
This passage is more than just a historical account of demobilization. It is a profound lesson in the nature of covenant faithfulness. In our day, we are catechized from every direction to pursue instant gratification. We want the prize without the race, the crown without the cross, the reward without the obedience. Our word is cheap, and our commitments are flimsy, lasting only as long as they are convenient or emotionally fulfilling. We are a culture of broken vows, from the marriage altar to the church membership roll.
But here, in the plains of Canaan, we see a different standard. We see the anatomy of faithfulness on display. These two and a half tribes are a living demonstration of what it means to keep your word, to fulfill your obligations, and to persevere in a long obedience in the same direction. What Joshua says to them, and what he gives to them, is a picture of God's ultimate commendation to His faithful saints: "Well done, good and faithful servant." This passage provides us with a robust theology of duty, blessing, and the essential connection between the two. It teaches us what it means to finish well, and what awaits those who do.
The Text
Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and said to them, “You have kept all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded you and have listened to my voice in all that I commanded you. You have not forsaken your brothers these many days to this day, but have kept the responsibility of the commandment of Yahweh your God. And now Yahweh your God has given rest to your brothers, as He spoke to them; so now turn and go to your tents, to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of Yahweh gave you beyond the Jordan. Only keep yourselves very carefully to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded you, to love Yahweh your God and walk in all His ways and keep His commandments and cling to Him and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.” Then Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went to their tents.
Now to the one half-tribe of Manasseh Moses had given a possession in Bashan, but to the other half Joshua gave a possession among their brothers westward beyond the Jordan. So when Joshua sent them away to their tents, he blessed them, and spoke to them, saying, “Return to your tents with great riches and with very much livestock, with silver, gold, bronze, iron, and with very many clothes; divide the spoil of your enemies with your brothers.” Then the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh returned home and departed from the sons of Israel at Shiloh which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession which they had possessed, according to the command of Yahweh by the hand of Moses.
(Joshua 22:1-9 LSB)
Commendation for a Promise Kept (v. 1-4)
The scene opens with Joshua, the commander-in-chief, formally addressing his troops from the eastern tribes.
"Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, and said to them, 'You have kept all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded you and have listened to my voice in all that I commanded you. You have not forsaken your brothers these many days to this day, but have kept the responsibility of the commandment of Yahweh your God.'" (Joshua 22:1-3)
Joshua's commendation is threefold, and it gets to the heart of true obedience. First, he affirms their faithfulness to the original command given by Moses (Numbers 32). They didn't get amnesia once Moses was gone. They honored the word of a dead man because it was the word of the living God. This is a direct rebuke to our modern obsession with "present leadership" and our tendency to discard the wisdom and authority of the past. Faithfulness has a long memory.
Second, they listened to Joshua's voice. They submitted to the new, delegated authority God had placed over them. This is crucial. It is one thing to honor a legendary figure like Moses; it is quite another to submit to the man who took his place, the man you fought alongside. Their obedience was not personality-driven; it was principled. They understood the chain of command, which is simply a reflection of God's created order.
Third, and most importantly, their actions are defined as keeping "the responsibility of the commandment of Yahweh your God." Their horizontal loyalty to their brothers was an expression of their vertical loyalty to God. They did not forsake their brothers because that would have been forsaking their God. This is the essence of the two great commandments. You cannot claim to love God whom you have not seen if you do not love your brother whom you have seen, and that love is not a sentimental feeling but a rugged, costly commitment. For seven years, they put the needs of the whole nation ahead of their own comfort and the desire to be with their families. This was covenant love in action.
Then comes the release. "And now Yahweh your God has given rest to your brothers... so now turn and go to your tents" (v. 4). The war is over. The promise is fulfilled. God has given His people rest. This word "rest" is a central theme in Scripture, culminating in the Sabbath rest we have in Christ (Hebrews 4). Their release from military duty was not a mere discharge; it was a participation in the blessing of God. They are now free to enter their own rest because they first secured the rest of their brothers. This is a fundamental principle of the kingdom: you find your life by losing it for the sake of others.
The Charge for a Future Walk (v. 5)
Joshua does not simply dismiss them. He gives them a solemn charge, a rule of life for the peace that follows the war.
"Only keep yourselves very carefully to do the commandment and the law... to love Yahweh your God and walk in all His ways and keep His commandments and cling to Him and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul." (Joshua 22:5)
This is the shema in military dress. Notice the intensity of the language: "keep yourselves very carefully." The Hebrew is emphatic. This is not a casual suggestion. Peace brings its own temptations, often more subtle and dangerous than those of war. In wartime, the enemy is obvious. In peacetime, the enemy is comfort, complacency, and compromise. The greatest danger to Israel was not the Canaanites with swords, but the Canaanites with their idols and their daughters.
Joshua outlines a five-fold description of a faithful life. First, to love Yahweh your God. This is the foundation. Obedience that is not rooted in love is mere legalism, a joyless drudgery that God despises. Second, to walk in all His ways. This is about the practical, daily outworking of that love. It's not just about avoiding sin, but about actively pursuing the paths of righteousness. Third, to keep His commandments. Love is not a substitute for obedience; it is the engine of obedience. Fourth, to cling to Him. This is a word of intimate, personal relationship. It means to hold fast, to be glued to Him, to refuse to be separated. Fifth, to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul. This is total, unreserved devotion. God does not want a piece of your life; He wants all of it. He is not interested in being your co-pilot; He is the pilot, and you are His grateful passenger and crew.
The Blessing for a Job Well Done (v. 6-9)
Having given the commendation and the charge, Joshua now bestows the blessing.
"Then Joshua blessed them and sent them away... Return to your tents with great riches and with very much livestock, with silver, gold, bronze, iron, and with very many clothes; divide the spoil of your enemies with your brothers." (Joshua 22:6, 8)
The blessing has two parts. First, there is the formal, priestly blessing from Joshua, the leader of God's people. This is not just a "have a nice day." This is a pronouncement of God's favor, a tangible impartation of grace. We must recover a high view of the authority of spoken blessings from God's ordained leaders.
But the blessing is not just spiritual; it is gloriously material. They go home rich. They had spent seven years fighting for others, and now they return laden with the spoils of war. This is a direct fulfillment of God's promise to bless obedience. God is not a spiritual miser. He is not against wealth; He is against the love of it. He loves to reward the faithfulness of His people with tangible, physical blessings. The idea that holiness requires poverty is a Gnostic lie, not a biblical truth.
Notice the command attached to the blessing: "divide the spoil of your enemies with your brothers." The soldiers who fought are not to keep it all for themselves. They are to share it with the families who remained behind, who guarded the stuff, who kept the home fires burning. This is a beautiful picture of the body of Christ. Not everyone is on the front lines of the public battle, but all who are faithful in their station share in the ultimate victory and reward. The pastor in the pulpit and the mother changing diapers in the nursery are both serving the same King, and they will share in the same spoils of victory.
And so, they depart. They leave Shiloh, the center of worship, and head for home in Gilead. Their long tour of duty is over. They leave with a clean conscience, a leader's blessing, and full hands. They are a portrait of covenantal integrity.
Conclusion: Our Shiloh, Our Rest
This story is our story. We too are soldiers in a long war. We have been called to cross our own Jordan through baptism, to fight the good fight of faith against the world, the flesh, and the devil. We are called to a long obedience, not for seven years, but for a lifetime.
Like the eastern tribes, we are called to fight for the inheritance of our brothers. We are to bear one another's burdens, to contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints, and to not rest until the whole church enters into the fullness of her inheritance. We must keep the charge given to us, to love the Lord our God, to walk in His ways, to cling to Him, and to serve Him with our whole being.
And the promise is that one day, our Joshua, the Lord Jesus Christ, will summon us. He will stand before us and say, "You have kept the charge. You have not forsaken your brothers. You have been faithful." And He will give us our release. He will say, "Now, the war is over. Enter into the rest I have prepared for you."
And we will not go empty-handed. We will return to our true home, the heavenly country, with "great riches." Not silver and gold that rust, but the eternal spoils of victory won for us by Christ. And we will share that spoil with all the saints who have gone before, with all our brothers and sisters who fought the fight in their own generation. The great demobilization is coming. Let us therefore be faithful in our tour of duty, so that when our Commander summons us, we may receive His commendation, His charge for eternity, and His glorious, weighty blessing.