Joshua (the person)

In short

Yep, the book is named after him. He was Moses’ chosen successor and led Israel’s conquest of Canaan. And above all, he is a man of outstanding character.

Why he is important

I mean, wow. Just read on.

Some stories about Joshua

1. Defeated Amalek (Ex 17)
2. Went on the Mountain of God with Moses, Ex 24:13-14 (and was not involved with golden calf)
3. “And Joshua the son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth,” Num 11:28
4. One of the (good) spies (Num 14:38)
5. “Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit,” Num 27:18
6. Chosen to replace Moses as leader (Deut 3:28)
7. “And the LORD commissioned Joshua the son of Nun and said, ‘Be strong and courageous, for you shall bring the people of Israel into the land that I swore to give them. I will be with you,’” Deut 31:23

And then he is in nearly every chapter of the book of Joshua (except chapter 16). He is the leader of the people in every way.

• Thirteen times, the phrase “The LORD said to Joshua” appears in the book
• He never seems to waiver in his faith in God
• He demands that the people consecrate themselves before the conquest (3:5) and that the males be circumcised (ch. 5)
• When there is sin in the camp, Joshua deals with is himself (ch. 7)
• He commands the sun to stand still! (ch. 10)

Theology and doctrine

The Greek translation of the name “Joshua” is “Jesus.” Modern translations distinguish this, but the KJV has Acts 7:45 as “Jesus” succeeding Moses before David. Stephen doesn’t mean Jesus Christ; he means Joshua.

Hebrews 4:8 does the same thing – “Jesus” there (read it in KJV) is referring to Joshua.

That passage is interesting, though, as there is a connection made from Joshua to the resting of God, with Jesus the high priest bookending the passage (chapters 3 and 4). Christ is compared to Moses in Heb 3:1-6 (as being better), and it seems Joshua is compared to Christ or God the Father in chapter 4.

The fancy term for this is that Joshua is a “type” of Christ.