About seven chapters of the latter part of the book of Joshua detail the distribution of the land of Canaan to the tribes of Israel. You will not hear many riveting sermons on these chapters or read gripping theological books based on them. Like the Gospel genealogies, most readers (including myself!) would have a tendency [...]

When I became a graduate student in northern England, my wife and I moved into an apartment building owned by the university that was dedicated especially to international families. Right off of the main entrance of the building was a “common room,” a multipurpose hall for birthday parties, club meetings, movie nights, various “socials” planned [...]

The sixth chapter of the book of Joshua may be the most well-known chapter of the Bible among Americans in general. When I was in choir in high school, we sang Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho, the rich and sonorous black spiritual. Martin Luther King Jr. hailed this song as his favorite and drew [...]

Psalm 121 is one of the shortest psalms in the Psalter — a mere eight verses — yet it succinctly relates how Israel is meant to view its covenantal God: When I look up to the “hills,” I know my helper (who made heaven and earth) is ready to move, ready to aid (121:1–2). You [...]

My covenant. My people. My promise. My land. Thematically, these words echo throughout the whole book of Joshua — Israel’s claiming of the land offered to them by their covenantal God, YHWH.  The opening chapter of the book focuses on Joshua, who, as we noted last time, is told by YHWH to keep his focus [...]

My family owns the classic Indiana Jones trilogy on DVD and my favorite film in the series is Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), where the dashing archaeologist and adventurer pursues the legendary Holy Grail along with his father, Henry Jones Sr. — another scholar who has spent his life obsessed with finding this [...]

Looking Forward With these chapters, not only Deuteronomy but the entire Torah ends. As we come to the conclusion of our selections from Israel’s story, we look forward to the book of Joshua, which will be the Lectio focus for the fall. Moses also looks forward, attempting to prepare the people for a future in [...]

With this Lectio, we move back from narrative to law. In fact, the title of the book, Deuteronomy, means in Greek “Second Law.” It often gets referred to in abbinic writings as Mishneh Torah, or the repetition of the Torah. That title is a good description of its contents, because Deuteronomy contains a recapitulation of [...]

Many of the Lectios we have read this summer have been either serious or tragic: about God’s anger and punishment, about people who made grave mistakes, about important laws that provide guidelines for holy living. This week’s Lectio, however, has a different flavor — full of humor and irony.  (click here for full reading & [...]

Why Moses Is Not Allowed to Enter the Promised Land I have always thought that point number one makes this one of the saddest chapters in the entire Old Testament. Moses has long been Israel’s faithful leader and intercessor, through many difficult ordeals. Moses has had a close and intimate relationship with God — he [...]