April 15, 2024

“A Witness”

Blessings folk!

The accusation of unfaithfulness to the Lord had been brought before the people of Reuben, Gad and half the tribe of Manasseh.

They responded…

Jos 22:21-29
Then the people of Reuben, the people of Gad,
and the half-tribe of Manasseh said in answer to the heads of the families of Israel,

“The Mighty One, God, the LORD! The Mighty One, God, the LORD! He knows; and let Israel itself know! If it was in rebellion or in breach of faith against the LORD, do not spare us today

for building an altar to turn away from following the LORD. Or if we did so to offer burnt offerings or grain offerings or peace offerings on it, may the LORD himself take vengeance.

No, but we did it from fear that in time to come your children might say to our children,
‘What have you to do with the LORD, the God of Israel?

For the LORD has made the Jordan a boundary between us and you,
you people of Reuben and people of Gad. You have no portion in the LORD.’
So your children might make our children cease to worship the LORD.

Therefore we said, ‘Let us now build an altar, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice,

but to be a witness between us and you, and between our generations after us, that we do perform the service of the LORD in his presence with our burnt offerings and sacrifices and peace offerings, so your children will not say to our children in time to come,
“You have no portion in the LORD.”’

And we thought, ‘If this should be said to us or to our descendants in time to come, we should say, “Behold, the copy of the altar of the LORD, which our fathers made, not for burnt offerings, nor for sacrifice, but to be a witness between us and you.”’

Far be it from us that we should rebel against the LORD and turn away this day from following the LORD by building an altar for burnt offering, grain offering, or sacrifice, other than the altar of the LORD our God that stands before his tabernacle!”
ESV

You can hear/read the panic in their voices.
Talk about a major misunderstanding.
They were being accused of leaving the Lord, when the truth was they were building an altar as a witness. Rebellion!

The Lord had allowed them to stay in the land east of the Jordan, land that had not been in the initial boundary of the land.

There was no rebellion.
They were concerned that in the future they would not be considered to be part of Israel.

It was not an altar to replace The Altar.
It was an altar to witness to the people of the future that they were Israel.

The other tribes jumped to conclusion.
At least they sought an explanation.
They got it.

Now, what would they do?

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