Joshua 8:30-33 NIV

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Joshua 8:33

Verse 33 33.And all Israel, and their elders, etc The third instance of obedience was the placing all the tribes on Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal to stand in six rows each over against each other. For they were so arranged that six stood on Mount Ebal, and an equal number on the opposite Mount Gerizim. The intervening space was occupied by the Levites with the ark of the covenant, that the Lord might be surrounded on all sides by his own people. It is said that Joshua stood that he might first... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30

EXPOSITION THE COPY OF THE LAW .— Then Joshua built an altar unto the Lord God of Israel in Mount Ebal. This passage has been pronounced to be an interpolation by Meyer, De Wette, Maurer, Rosenmuller, Knobel, and others. The LXX . does not introduce it here, but after Joshua 9:2 . For other authorities see below. It is very easy to see why its genuineness has been disputed. The Book of Joshua has many marks of having been written not so very long after the events... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

The fruits of victory. "Then Joshua built an altar unto the Lord.… And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses … And he read all the words of the law." There is always danger in the moment after victory. We remember how Hannibal lost, amid the enervating luxuries of Capua, the fruit of the battle of Cannae. The most seductive Capua to the people of God is spiritual pride, which seeks to take to itself the glory which belongs to God alone. Woe to those who sleep upon the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

The setting up the law. The provision for the due observance of God's law was one of the most remarkable features of the invasion of Canaan by Joshua. Twice was the command given in Deuteronomy by Moses ( Deuteronomy 11:29 , 36, and Deuteronomy 27:2-13 ), and the spot fixed on beforehand, no doubt because of its central position in Palestine. We have already observed, in the notes on Deuteronomy 5:1-33 ; on the scrupulous care to fulfil the provisions of the law with which the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

The altar on Ebal, and the reading and recording of the law. We come on this scene unexpectedly. War, with its stratagems, its carnage, its inversion of ancient order, was filling our mind. But suddenly, instead of the camp, there is the religious assembly; sacrifice instead of slaughter; instead of the destruction of heathen cities, the erection of monumental inscriptions of the law. The mustering of the whole people to learn and accept afresh God's great law. It was not a casual... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

Sacrifice and law. This religious solemnity is a fulfilment of the command given by Moses in Deuteronomy 27:1-26 . It is expressive of the fidelity of Joshua to the sacred traditions of the past, and his loyalty to the Divine order and the Divine authority. The time is appropriate for such public homage to be paid to the God of Israel. It is the "right hand of the Lord" that has done so valiantly in the recent victories; to Him be all the glory. The land has been taken possession of in... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:31

As Moses the servant of the Lord commanded (see Exodus 20:25 ; Deuteronomy 27:4 , Deuteronomy 27:5 ). Here, and in Joshua 8:33 , we find the writer making an extract from the Book of Deuteronomy. As has been before said, the natural explanation is that the Book of Joshua was written after the Book of Deuteronomy, and that the Book of Deuteronomy was written by Moses, or how could Joshua have carried out instructions which had never been given? The Elohist, Jehovist, and Denteronomist... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:32

And he wrote there upon the stones; i.e; upon the plaster, as we read in Deuteronomy 27:2 , Deuteronomy 27:4 . "The wall destined to receive the picture," and it was just the same with inscriptions—was covered with a coating of lime and gypsum plaster. The outline was then sketched with red chalk, and afterwards corrected and filled in with black. Thomson says that he has seen writings in plaster which could not have been less than two thousand years old. This passage shows that our... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:33

And all Israel (see Joshua 23:2 ; Joshua 24:1 , Joshua 24:2 ). The word כל is used very loosely in Hebrew (see Genesis 4:14 ). We need not, therefore, assume as a matter of course that the whole people, men, women, and children, were taken up to Shechem to behold this ceremony. It is quite possible that during all Joshua's marches and campaigns a large number of the people remained under guard at Gilgal (see Joshua 9:6 ), which remained the headquarters of the Israelites until... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Joshua 8:30-35

The account of this solemnity is very brief. An acquaintance with Deuteronomy 27:0 is evidently presupposed; and the three several acts of which the solemnity consisted are only so far distinctly named as is necessary to show that the commands of Moses there given were fully carried out by Joshua.It is difficult to escape the conviction that these verses are here out of their proper and original place. The connection between Joshua 8:29, and Joshua 9:1, is natural and obvious; and in Joshua... read more

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Joshua 8:33

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:30-35

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:31

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:32

The Pulpit Commentary - Joshua 8:33

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Joshua 8:30-35

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