Today I selected the book of Joshua to listen to while painting. The problem with so much of the Old Testament is that it requires extensive understandings about so much context/details and such to properly understood any one text (or passage/story/genre), and especially to know what we are to take away in understandings and applications.

Sometimes I just listen aloud and can get a sense of the flow or gist that isn’t caught up on every little detail, name or happening. This may be a good thing in some ways, but not in others.

Taking a midday break here to share a statement made in Joshua 22: 25 that really struck me as I listened aloud. It struck me conceptually, given a number of things. Most parents, whether Christian or not, are concerned about the influences of others that might sway our children away from that which we believe to be good, right and true and necessary for our children’s well-being.

It seems this verse is addressing a future concern that is based on current differences between parents of the same generation.

There’s a lot to dissect and unpack surrounding this one piece of the book of Joshua, and I really am not in any position to deeply comment upon–time wise or otherwise. As I read it on my computer, I do see that it involves some issue (or potential issue) between the Reubenites and the Gadites.

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Joshua 22:24-26

Common English Bible

²⁴ No! The truth is we did this out of concern for what might happen. In the future your children might say to our children, ‘What have you got to do with the Lord, the God of Israel? ²⁵ The Lord has set the Jordan as a border between us and you people of Reuben and Gad. You have no portion in the Lord!’ So your children might make our children stop worshipping the Lord. ²⁶ As a result we said, ‘Let’s protect ourselves by building an altar. It isn’t to be for an entirely burned offering or for sacrifice.’