The Gibeonites

The Gibeonites

When Joshua was about to conquer the land he was told to spare nothing but kill everything that drew breath. He was not to make a covenant with any of them.

When he inhabitants of Gibeon saw what he done to Jericho and Ai, they worked craftily. They put on worn-out clothes and took along old, dry, moldy bread. Then they went to Joshua and said that they were from a very far country, and asked if they couldn’t be at peace with Israel. Joshua and his men tasted of their provisions without asking counsel of the Lord. Then Joshua made a covenant with them. Three days later it became evident that the Gibeonites dwelled in their midst, but now Joshua had to let them live for the sake of the covenant he had made with them; he made them water carriers and wood cutters for the whole congregation.

“And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.” Rom. 8:10.

The flesh with its passions and desires has to be crucified in order for a person to belong to Christ and be a member of His body, which is the church. Our body must be dead so that we are not led by its passions and desires but rather by the head, who is Christ.

Hate is murder, and you cannot be a disciple of Jesus without hating your own life. It is impossible to love your life and at the same time learn from Jesus. A death has to occur if you are to be a member of the body of Christ, which is the church. You have to forsake everything. We have the same commandment that Joshua received. Just as he was to slay everything that drew breath, so we must do also to everything that is part of our self-life.

We are called to be a sacrificial priest of Jesus Christ. We must be awake so that no amount of selfishness is permitted to grow in the church and no one is met with approval who does not hate his own life or has not forsaken everything is met with approval.

However, just as the inhabitants of the land resisted Joshua then, so all the religious denominations resist the church now. They fear the power that is in the word of the cross, and they make alliances, but to no avail. Nevertheless, there are some among them who are like the Gibeonites. They realize that it is useless to offer resistance, and so they would like to be along in the church. But they are crafty. Just as the Gibeonites had worn-out clothes, wineskins, and stale, dry bread, so these people give the appearance of being tired of sin and worn out in the service of their self-life; they are dissatisfied with that dry, stale, moldy bread which they receive round about, and they would like to begin a new life. One tastes of their acknowledgment, and thinks that it sounds good. They are allowed in—approved and perhaps even praised on top of it. But it doesn’t take many days before one notices that their acknowledgment was not so true. Not all their garments were worn out. No, one can see that they clothe themselves with anger, malice, lying, pride, and the lust to rule. Col. 3:8-9. They have a good store of these things. They don’t just have old, moldy bread either; they also have dough that is newly leavened with malice and wickedness. And it is not sufficient that they eat it themselves; they also defile others with it. 1 Cor. 5:6-8. Consequently, one cannot do anything with these Gibeonites but make them slaves, for if such people were to gain power they would soon transform the church into a den of thieves.

It seems as if many people never become anything but such Gibeonites. They do not have the attitude of mind to enter into the death of Christ with all seriousness so that they can be set free. They love their passions at the same time as they attempt to keep God’s commandments. And then they sigh under the burden as they try to ease the yoke and make the way broader. Every once in a while one could be tempted to exterminate such Gibeonites, but that isn’t right either. If they have been allowed in, they must be left alone; but we must see to it that the word of the cross always keeps them in bondage; then there is the possibility that a few individuals may become so tired of sin that they will come to a true acknowledgment so that they are born again and become true Israelites. Perhaps some of the others will become so tired of their bondage that they will emigrate voluntarily.

There are not so few Gibeonites around who have become tired of keeping God’s commandments. They think it is bondage, and now they warn others against it. As soon as you mention anything about works and commandments to them, they reveal themselves right away as Gibeonites and call out: “Bondage!” By this they are easily recognized.