Josh. 22-24
When the two and a half tribes returned to their side of the Jordan, they stopped and built a very large alter at the crossing point. When the rest of Israel heard of it, they came out, ready for war against their own brothers who had just kept a promise to them by helping clear the land of its former inhabitants. My first thought was how harsh that seems! But as I read on, I noticed a couple of things about their reaction.
First, they believed that their brothers might be rebelling against God, and it seems they had finally had enough of that. They had seen how the sin of one man fell on the whole congregation and they had seen the faithfulness of God when they walked in obedience to Him. They were not about to let these two and a half tribes send them back under God’s wrath! And, having read through the law, it seems this is how God would have them to react. They were to be swift to enact justice on those who turned from God’s ways; to rid the evil from their midst, in order to remain a holy nation to God.
But I also notice that they did not act solely on their assumptions. They gave the tribes a chance to respond to the charge against them. And, on hearing what they had to say, they believed that the motives were pure. It is not clear to me if they consulted the LORD in this decision, but assuming that they did, I see that they acted swiftly but with discretion, and it seems to me that it would not be a bad thing if we did the same in our own lives.
One other note – Balaam is mentioned again in Josh 24:9. When I read the story of Balaam, he seems to me to be seeking God in his decisions for the most part. But God’s words here give more of the impression that, even though Balaam knew He would not be successful in speaking anything God did not want him to say, he was still willing to try. In spite of the fact that Balaam inquired of God, he was not working for God. Balaam was working for himself. Had God not stopped him, Balaam would have been happy to curse God’s people for pay. It just shows again the importance of looking beyond actions to a person’s heart.
Luke 12:1-31
We should fear God because: 1. We cannot hide anything from Him and, 2. He has the power to cast into hell. But if we fear God, we need not fear, because we are of great value to Him and He is both completely willing and completely able to abundantly care and provide for us.