The Altar of Misunderstanding Text: Joshua 22:21-29
Introduction: The High Cost of Suspicion
We come now to a moment of high drama on the banks of the Jordan. A civil war in Israel is brewing, and it is about to boil over. The tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have been dismissed with honor by Joshua, having fulfilled their duty to fight alongside their brothers. They have returned to their inheritance on the east side of the river, and the first thing they do is build a massive, conspicuous altar. From the perspective of the western tribes, this is an act of blatant schism. It is idolatry. It is a second altar, a rival to the one true altar before the Tabernacle at Shiloh. And so, the congregation of Israel, zealous for the Lord's honor, gathers for war.
This is a tinderbox. A misunderstanding, fueled by righteous zeal on one side and a poorly communicated act of piety on the other, is about to plunge the nation into bloodshed. We must understand that conflicts between brothers in the faith are often the most ferocious. When both sides believe they are contending for the truth, the stakes are ultimate. The western tribes were not wrong to be concerned. The unity of worship, centered on one altar, was a non-negotiable command from God (Deut. 12:5-6). The memory of Achan's sin, where one man's transgression brought judgment on the whole nation, was still fresh. The memory of the apostasy at Peor was still a raw scar. They were right to take rebellion against Yahweh with the utmost seriousness.
But zeal without knowledge is a wildfire. And in our passage today, we have the answer of the eastern tribes. Their defense is a master class in godly communication, in defusing a volatile situation, and in clarifying motives. They show us that sometimes the most explosive conflicts arise not from malice, but from a failure to understand. This passage is intensely practical for us. In an age of social media, hot takes, and instantaneous judgment, we are masters of imputing the worst possible motives to those with whom we disagree. We see an altar, we assume rebellion, and we gather our armies for war. But here, the eastern tribes teach us to appeal, to explain, and to call God as a witness to the integrity of our hearts. They teach us that sometimes, the thing that looks like an act of schism is actually a desperate attempt to prevent it.
The Text
Then the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered and spoke to the heads of the thousands of Israel. “The Mighty One, God, Yahweh, the Mighty One, God, Yahweh! He knows, and may Israel itself know. If it was in rebellion or if in an unfaithful act against Yahweh, do not save us this day! If we have built for ourselves an altar to turn away from following Yahweh, or if to perform a burnt offering or grain offering on it, or if to offer sacrifices of peace offerings on it, may Yahweh Himself require it. But truly we have done this out of concern, for a reason, saying, ‘In time to come your sons may say to our sons, “What have you to do with Yahweh, the God of Israel? And Yahweh has made the Jordan a border between us and you, you sons of Reuben and sons of Gad; you have no portion in Yahweh.” So your sons may make our sons stop fearing Yahweh.’
“Therefore we said, ‘Let us build an altar, not for burnt offering or for sacrifice; rather it shall be a witness between us and you and between our generations after us, that we are to perform the service of Yahweh before Him with our burnt offerings and with our sacrifices and with our peace offerings, so that your sons will not say to our sons in time to come, “You have no portion in Yahweh.” ’ Therefore we said, ‘It will also be that if they say this to us or to our generations in time to come, then we shall say, “See the copy of the altar of Yahweh which our fathers made, not for burnt offering or for sacrifice; rather it is a witness between us and you.” ’ Far be it from us to rebel against Yahweh and turn away from following Yahweh this day, by building an altar for burnt offering, for grain offering or for sacrifice, besides the altar of Yahweh our God which is before His tabernacle.”
(Joshua 22:21-29 LSB)
A Solemn, Triple Oath (vv. 21-22)
The response of the eastern tribes begins not with a defensive excuse, but with a massive, thundering appeal to God Himself.
"Then the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered and spoke to the heads of the thousands of Israel. 'The Mighty One, God, Yahweh, the Mighty One, God, Yahweh! He knows, and may Israel itself know...'" (Joshua 22:21-22a)
Notice the gravity and formality of their answer. They do not fire back insults. They do not get defensive. They address the leaders, the heads of the thousands, and they begin with a threefold invocation of the divine name. "El, Elohim, Yahweh!" This is the most emphatic way possible to call God to the witness stand. It is as if they are saying, "The God of all power, the God of all gods, the covenant-keeping God of Israel! That God! He is our witness." They are stacking up the names of God to show the absolute seriousness of their oath.
They are not just trying to convince their brothers; they are appealing to the ultimate Judge who knows the heart. "He knows." This is the foundation of their defense. Man looks on the outward appearance, the big pile of stones that looks like a rival altar. But God looks on the heart. Before they explain their motives to men, they declare that their motives are already known to God. This is a profound lesson in conflict resolution. When you are misunderstood, your first appeal should not be horizontal, but vertical. Settle it with God first. Be confident that He knows your heart, and then you can speak with clarity and without panic to your accusers.
And then they say, "and may Israel itself know." They are not content with a private vindication before God. They desire unity with their brothers. They want the facts to be known. They are opening their books. They are saying, "We have nothing to hide. We want you to know what God already knows." This combination of a vertical appeal and a horizontal transparency is the key to dismantling suspicion.
Calling Down a Curse (vv. 22-23)
Having called God as their witness, they now call Him as their judge, inviting the most severe consequences if their accusers are correct.
"If it was in rebellion or if in an unfaithful act against Yahweh, do not save us this day! If we have built for ourselves an altar to turn away from following Yahweh, or if to perform a perform a burnt offering or grain offering on it, or if to offer sacrifices of peace offerings on it, may Yahweh Himself require it." (Joshua 22:22b-23 LSB)
This is breathtaking. They are not saying, "If we are wrong, we'll tear it down." They are saying, "If we have done what you suspect, then let the judgment you are threatening fall. Do not spare us. Let God Himself strike us down." They are taking the accusation with the same seriousness as the accusers. They agree entirely on the principle: rebellion and schism deserve death. They are not arguing about the law; they are arguing about the facts of the case.
They list the very sins they are being accused of: rebellion, unfaithfulness, turning away from Yahweh, and offering illicit sacrifices. They cover every possible wicked motivation. By doing this, they demonstrate that they understand the gravity of the law. They are not theological liberals trying to build a "seeker-sensitive" altar on the frontier. They are orthodox, zealous Yahwists who tremble at His word just as much as Phinehas does. They are saying, "We are on the same page theologically. We agree that what you are describing is a capital crime. Now let us tell you what actually happened."
This is how you build a bridge in a conflict. You find the common ground of shared principle first. You affirm the truth that your opponent is trying to uphold. The western tribes were zealous for the unity of worship at the one, true altar. The eastern tribes begin their defense by saying, "Amen! Far be it from us to violate that very principle."
The Fear Behind the Stones (vv. 24-25)
Now, having established their theological bona fides, they reveal their true motivation. And it is not rebellion, but a deep-seated fear of being excluded from the covenant people.
"But truly we have done this out of concern, for a reason, saying, ‘In time to come your sons may say to our sons, “What have you to do with Yahweh, the God of Israel? And Yahweh has made the Jordan a border between us and you, you sons of Reuben and sons of Gad; you have no portion in Yahweh.” So your sons may make our sons stop fearing Yahweh.’" (Joshua 22:24-25 LSB)
Here is the heart of the matter. The altar was not built to divide; it was built to unite. It was not an act of rebellion, but an act of pastoral concern for future generations. They looked at the Jordan River, that great geographical dividing line, and they saw a future problem. The river was a physical boundary, and they feared that in a few generations, it would become a spiritual boundary. Their children, living on the "other side," might be seen as second-class Israelites, or worse, as Gentiles with no part in the covenant.
Their great fear was that the children of the western tribes would say to their children, "You have no portion in Yahweh." To have no portion in Yahweh is to be cut off, to be excommunicated, to be without God and without hope in the world. This was their nightmare. The end result would be that their own sons would be made to "stop fearing Yahweh." The very thing the western tribes accused them of, promoting apostasy, is the very thing they were desperately trying to prevent.
This is a profound irony. The symbol of their supposed rebellion was in fact a memorial to their desired inclusion. They were not trying to get away from the tabernacle at Shiloh; they were terrified of being cut off from it. They loved the unity of Israel so much that they built this great altar as a perpetual sign that they belonged to the whole.
A Witness, Not a Rival (vv. 26-29)
Finally, they state the precise function of the altar. It is a copy, a memorial, a witness.
"Therefore we said, ‘Let us build an altar, not for burnt offering or for sacrifice; rather it shall be a witness between us and you and between our generations after us, that we are to perform the service of Yahweh before Him with our burnt offerings and with our sacrifices and with our peace offerings, so that your sons will not say to our sons in time to come, “You have no portion in Yahweh.”’" (Joshua 22:26-27 LSB)
The explanation is crystal clear. This is not a functional altar for worship. No fire will ever be lit here. No blood will ever be shed here. It is a visual aid. It is a sermon in stone. Its purpose is to be a "witness," a perpetual testimony that the people on the east side of the Jordan serve the same God, worship at the same tabernacle, and are part of the same covenant people as the tribes on the west.
They even call it "the copy of the altar of Yahweh." It is a replica, designed to point away from itself and toward the true altar at Shiloh. When future generations on the west side are tempted to exclude their eastern brothers, the children of Reuben and Gad can point to this massive structure and say, "See? Our fathers built this to prove that we belong. This is our claim to the altar of Yahweh. This is our membership card, written in stone."
They conclude with one final, emphatic denial:
"Far be it from us to rebel against Yahweh and turn away from following Yahweh this day, by building an altar for burnt offering, for grain offering or for sacrifice, besides the altar of Yahweh our God which is before His tabernacle.” (Joshua 22:29 LSB)
They began by agreeing with the principle of their accusers, and they end by restating it in the strongest possible terms. They are not rebels. They are loyalists. Their hearts are with Yahweh and with His one, true altar. The entire affair was a tragic, but in the end, glorious misunderstanding. Glorious, because it was resolved not with swords, but with words. It was resolved because one side was willing to ask hard questions, and the other side was willing to give a gracious, clear, and God-fearing answer.
Conclusion: Building Bridges, Not Altars
This story is a permanent warning to the church against the sins of suspicion and hasty judgment. And it is a permanent encouragement to pursue clarity and understanding. The western tribes were right to be zealous for God's law. But their zeal was untempered by investigation. They saw a fact, the altar, and immediately interpreted it in the worst possible light. They failed to obey the principle of assuming the best until all the facts are in.
How often do we do this? We see a brother do something we don't understand. We hear a snippet of a sermon out of context. We read a provocative post online. And we immediately assume the worst. We impute motives of rebellion, compromise, or heresy. We gather our armies for a Twitter war, convinced we are Phinehas, spear in hand, ready to cleanse the camp of evil.
But the eastern tribes show us a better way. When accused, they did not return fire with fire. They appealed to God, they affirmed the truth their accusers held dear, they patiently explained their motives, and they clarified their actions. They loved the unity of the brethren enough to endure being misunderstood, and to work to clear it up.
Our unity in Christ is not based on geography. We are not separated by a river. But we are separated by denominations, by personalities, by worship styles, and by secondary doctrines. And we can be tempted to look at our brothers across these divides and say, "What have you to do with the God of Israel? You have no portion in Yahweh." We must fight that temptation with everything we have.
The true altar is not in Shiloh, and it is not on the banks of the Jordan. The true altar is Christ Himself. He is the place where God meets man. He is the one sacrifice for sins forever. And all of us who are in Christ, regardless of our tribe or location, have a full portion in Him. Our unity is not something we create, but a reality we are called to maintain. And we maintain it by being quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger. We maintain it by believing the best, and when we see something that looks like a rival altar, we go to our brother, ask for an explanation, and be prepared to be pleasantly surprised that what we feared was an act of schism was actually a monument to our shared faith.