He said, No; but [as] prince of the host of Yahweh am I now come. Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said to him, What says my lord to his servant?
The Lord divided the Jordan that His people might pass through dry-shod. This miracle greatly dispirited the Canaanites, and so prepared the way for an easy triumph for the invading Israelites. You would have naturally expected that the Lord would have bidden His people avail themselves immediately of this terror to strike a heavy blow at once, and press on with might and main before the enemy could take breath, and so sweep the land clear of the adversaries in a single campaign But it was not so. Instead of immediate activity, the children of Israel pitched their tents at Gilgal, and there tarried for a considerable season. For God is in no hurry. His purposes can be accomplished without haste, and though He would have redeem the time because our days are evil, yet in His eternity He can afford wait, and by His wisdom He so orders His delays, that they prove to be far better than our hurries. Wherefore, were the people to delay? That they might be obedient to commands which had been forgotten. In the desert, for diverse reason, circumcision and the Passover had been neglected. They were not visited with any chastisement on account of this neglect, for the Lord considered their position and condition, and winked at their error, but before He would use them He would have them fully obedient to His will. It cannot be expected that God should tolerate disobedient servants, and therefore they must stay awhile, till they had been attentive to the two great precepts of the Mosaic covenant. Dear friends, let us pause and ask ourselves, as believers, whether we have been in all respects conscientiously attentive to our Master's commands? If not, we may not expect Him to send a blessing to the church or to the world through us, until first of all we have yielded our willing obedience to that which He has prescribed for us. Are any of you living in the neglect of a known part of the divine will? Or are you undesirous of knowing some portions of God's will, and therefore willfully blind to them? My dear brother, you are cutting the Achilles' tendon of your strength. You can never overthrow your enemies like Samson while your locks are thus shorn. You cannot expect that God should send you forth to conquer and to bring to Him renown, when you have not as yet conquered your own personal indolence and disobedience. He that is unfaithful in that which is least will be unfaithful in that which is greater; and if you have not kept the Master's saying in the little vineyard of your personal history, how much less shall you be able to do it if He should entrust you with a greater field of service! Here then is the reason for Israel's delay, and it is a reason why at the commencement of our special services we should make diligent search for neglected duties, and promptly fulfill them.
