Every place that the sole of your feet shall tread upon ,.... That is, in the land of Canaan: that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses : See Gill on Deuteronomy 11:24 ; though the Jews extend this to all without the land subdued by them, and even to all the countries they now tread on, and are exiles in; but the limits of what the Lord gave them are fixed in Joshua 1:4 . read more
From the wilderness ,.... The wilderness of Kadesh and Sin, on the border of Edom; in the southeast corner, as Jarchi says, see Numbers 34:3 , and this Lebanon ; which though on the other side Jordan, and at a considerable distance, being the northern border of the land towards Syria, might be seen afar off; or it is expressed, because it was a well known place, as Kimchi remarks: even unto the great river, the river Euphrates ; which was the eastern border of the land, and to... read more
There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life ,.... What is promised to the people in common, Deuteronomy 11:25 ; is here particularly promised to Joshua their general; and which was fulfilled in him, and still more in Christ his antitype, who made an end of sin, destroyed the devil, spoiled principalities and powers, abolished death, and overcame the world: as I was with Moses, so will I be with thee ; to counsel and advise, guide and direct, protect... read more
The sole of your foot shalt tread upon - That is, the whole land occupied by the seven Canaanitish nations, and as far as the Euphrates on the east; for this was certainly the utmost of the grant now made to them; and all that was included in what is termed the promised land, the boundaries of which have already been defined. See Deuteronomy 34:1-4 , and see Joshua 1:4 ; (note) below. It has been supposed that the words, Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread... read more
From the wilderness and this Lebanon - Joshua appears to be standing with his face towards the promised land, and pointing out the different places, or their situation, with his hand, This Lebanon, etc. The utmost of their limits should be from the desert of Arabia Petraea on the South to Lebanon on the North: and from the Euphrates on the East to the Mediterranean Sea on the West. The Israelites did not possess the full extent of this grant till the days of David. See 2 Samuel... read more
Be able to stand before thee - Because God shall be with thee, therefore thou shalt be irresistible. This promise was most punctually literally fulfilled. read more
Verse 4 4.From the wilderness and this Lebanon, etc How the truth and fulfillment of this promise surmounted all the obstacles interposed by the wickedness of the people, though they did not obtain immediate possession of the whole territory, I have explained in the Argument. For although God had unfolded the inestimable treasures of his beneficence by constituting them lords of the country, it did not follow that their misconduct was not to be chastised. Nay, there behooved to be a fulfillment... read more
Verse 5 5.There shall not any man, etc As a contest was about to be waged with numerous and warlike enemies, it was necessary thus to inspire Joshua with special confidence. But for this, the promise of delivering over the land which God had given, would ever and anon have become darkened; for how vast the enterprise to overthrow so many nations! This objection therefore is removed. And the better to free him from all doubt, he is reminded of the victories of Moses, by which God had made it... read more
Joshua's Commission. This passage may be viewed under two main aspects: As these points of view suggest two perfectly distinct and independent lines of thought, it is obvious that they are better fitted for two separate discourses than for being combined in one. I. JOSHUA AS THE TYPE OF GOD 'S MINISTERS . 1. After the death of Moses, the task devolves upon his minister. So after the death of Christ, the task of conquering the world devolved upon His apostles, His... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Joshua 1:1-9
Honour is here put upon Joshua, and great power lodged in his hand, by him that is the fountain of honour and power, and by whom kings reign. Instructions are given him by Infinite Wisdom, and encouragements by the God of all consolation. God had before spoken to Moses concerning him (Num. 27:18), but now he speaks to him (Josh. 1:1), probably as he spoke to Moses (Lev. 1:1) out of the tabernacle of the congregation, where Joshua had with Moses presented himself (Deut. 31:14), to learn the way... read more