{"id":53512,"date":"2019-04-10T13:29:24","date_gmt":"2019-04-10T10:29:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=53512"},"modified":"2022-11-03T11:31:15","modified_gmt":"2022-11-03T09:31:15","slug":"a-triumph-of-the-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/a-triumph-of-the-people\/","title":{"rendered":"A Triumph Of The People"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"entry-content\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[384,806,434],"acf":{"old_id":"53512","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":53309,"related_cahpter":"195","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"A turning point in the shifting balance of divine intervention and human initiative","content":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Like Moses before him, who raised his hands aloft at the battle against Amalek and kept them held high to inspire his people to victory (Ex. 17:11-12), \u201cJoshua did not let down his hand that grasped the spear until all of the people of the Ai had been subdued\u201d (Josh. 8:26). <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the aftermath of the victory, the people of Israel are permitted to take from the spoils of the town, thus providing another important contrast to the battle of Jericho. While some commentaries see in this license a prudent concession by Joshua in light of Achan\u2019s earlier failure, others detect another sign of the subtle shift towards more hidden divine involvement. At Jericho, the victory was God\u2019s alone. Here at Ai, the groundwork for the success was laid by Joshua\u2019s meticulous planning and the people\u2019s spirited fight. While God in the end provided the critical catalyst for the victory, it was a triumph that belonged to all of Israel. Therefore, the spoils are also given to them (as indeed they are in every other battle that is henceforth described in the book), to stress the significance of their initiative and to highlight their involvement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The victory over Ai thus provides us with an important lesson into the trajectory of the Book of Joshua, as it traces the anxious arc of decreased supernatural involvement and increased human initiative. This dynamic tension, in marked contrast to the miraculous tone of the vast majority of the wilderness narratives of the Humash, defines the rest of the Book of Joshua, the remainder of the biblical books, and the post-biblical history of the people of Israel until this very day. Like Israel of old, we must not lose sight of the fact that God is always aware, always involved, and always able to intervene at the decisive moment, albeit in a concealed manner. God\u2019s involvement is shielded from dim minds that equate trust with phony catechisms and predicate faith upon the supernatural house of cards known as miracles.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The message of the battle of the Ai is in fundamental opposition to that of the shallow practitioners who would magically fashion belief by applying the quick fix of divine wonders. Only the patient nurture of our trust that God is present in our lives can help us appreciate that God not only cares about us but that He guides us towards recognition of His concern.<\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">from: <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Joshua: The Challenge of the Promised Land <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(Jerusalem: Koren, 2015); chapter: Victory over the Ai <\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":53516,"id":53516,"title":"jo8-pendulum","filename":"jo8-pendulum.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo8-pendulum.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/a-triumph-of-the-people\/jo8-pendulum\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"jo8-pendulum","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":53512,"date":"2019-04-10 10:34:17","modified":"2019-04-10 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