Joshua 23

Joshua, now advanced in age, calls a meeting with elders, judges, and officers of the nation. He reminds them of all that the Lord has done for them as they took the Promised Land from the Canaanite tribes. He describes how the "Lord fought for them" driving the pagan tribes from the land, only leaving pockets of them left at the time of this address. He tells them that due to the Lords favor, one of them chases a thousand of their enemies. He issues a warning to the nation of Israel concerning the temptation to intermingle with these remaining Canaanites. He tells them that failure to "keep and do all that was commanded in the Book of the Law of Moses" will only lead to these pagans in their midst to become snares and traps to the Israelites. He lays out two paths with vastly different outcomes. Path 1, the path of obedience to their God, the one true God, will lead to continued blessings and protection from their neighbors. Path 2, the path of rejecting God in order to follow the false gods of their neighbors will only lead to destruction and exile from God's land. We can draw parallels from this message regarding our own walk with the Lord and how we should view and interact with the world around us.