All of Joshua talks about Joshua's leadership and about the Israelites taking over the land that was promised to them. Joshua 9 talks about the Gibeonite deception. The Gibeonites feared the Israelites and feared them killing them, like they had many other people. So they made a plan to trick the Israelites into thinking they were from a far off country (they really were very close). They went to the Isrealites disguised (wearing clothes that looked worn) they said they wanted to make a treaty with the Isrealites and they lied when asked where they were from. The Israelites did not inquire from God before agreeing to make a treaty with the Gibeonite people (vs.14). The Gibeonites seemed like they were people from afar and seemed to be telling the truth so they thought 'why not' make the treaty? Soon after making the treaty the Israelites found out that the Gibeonites had lied to them. They found out that the Gibeonites were a neighboring city and in turn they had to keep their oath to not harm them and take down their city, instead they made the Gibeonites into servants (but in reading further into other books the Gibeonite people often caused trouble for Israel) . . . . This story stuck out to me. I started to think that there are so many times when things seem right. Things seem like the right answers or seem fine to do. Just like the Israelites thought like the Gibeonites seemed to be people they could trust. But as the verse says, Joshua 9:14: '.... but they did not inquire of the Lord." Things can seem right and seem like the Christian thing to do, or seem not harmful, or like something that is in our best interest, but we must remember to go to the Lord with all of our decisions and always inquire to what He wants. We don't want to be like the Israelites and believe lies and end up in regret and not getting what Christ wants to give us fully and having a hindrance in our journey of faith.
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