Joshua (/ˈdʒɒʃuə/), also known asYehoshua (Hebrew:יְהוֹשֻׁעַYəhōšuaʿ,Tiberian:Yŏhōšuaʿ,lit. 'Yahweh is salvation'),Jehoshua,[b][2][3] orJosue,[4] functioned asMoses' assistant in the books ofExodus andNumbers, and later succeeded Moses as leader of theIsraelite tribes in theBook of Joshua of theHebrew Bible.[5] His name wasHoshea (הוֹשֵׁעַHōšēaʿ,lit. 'Save')[6] the son ofNun, of thetribe of Ephraim, but Moses called him "Yehoshua" (translated as "Joshua" in English),[7] the name by which he is commonly known in English. According to the Bible, he was born inEgypt prior tothe Exodus.
The Hebrew Bible identifies Joshua as one ofthe twelve spies of Israel sent by Moses to explore the land ofCanaan. InNumbers 13:1 and after the death of Moses, he led the Israelite tribes in the conquest of Canaan, and allocated lands to the tribes. According tobiblical chronology, Joshua lived some time in theBronze Age. According toJoshua 24:29 Joshua died at the age of 110.
Joshua holds a position of respect amongMuslims, who also see him as the leader of the faithful following the death of Moses. In Islam, it is also believed that Yusha bin Nun (Joshua) was the "attendant" of Moses mentioned in theQuran before Moses meetsKhidr. Joshua playsa role in Islamic literature, with significant narration in thehadith.[8][9]
Name
The English name "Joshua" is a rendering of theHebrewYehoshua, and is mostly interpreted as "Yahweh is salvation";[10][11] although others have also alternatively interpreted it as "Yahweh is lordly".[12] Thetheophoric name appears to be constructed from a combination of theTetragrammaton with the Hebrew noun יְשׁוּעָה (Modern:yəšūʿa,Tiberian:yăšūʿā), meaning "salvation";[13][14][15][16] derived from theHebrew root ישׁע (y-š-ʿ), meaning "to save/help/deliver".[17][18] Other theophoric names sharing a similar meaning can also be found throughout theHebrew Bible, such as that of the son ofDavid אֱלִישׁוּעַ (ʾĔlīšūaʿ), whose name means "MyEl (God) is salvation".[19][20]
"Jesus" is the English derivative of the Greek transliteration of "Yehoshua" via Latin. In theSeptuagint, all instances of the word "Yehoshua" are rendered as "Ἰησοῦς" (Iēsûs), the closest Greek pronunciation of theImperial Aramaic:יֵשׁוּעַYēšūaʿ.[21][22][23][24] Thus, in modern Greek, Joshua is called "Jesus son of Naue" (τοῦ Ναυή,tû Nauḗ) to differentiate him fromJesus. This is also true in someSlavic languages following theEastern Orthodox tradition (e.g. "Иисус Навин",Iisús Navín, in Bulgarian, Serbian and Russian, but not Czech).
Moses Blesses Joshua Before the High Priest (watercolor circa 1896–1902 byJames Tissot)
Joshua was a major figure in the events of the Exodus. He was charged by Moses with selecting and commanding a militia group for their first battle after exiting Egypt, against theAmalekites inRephidim,[25] in which they were victorious.
He later accompanied Moses when he ascendedbiblical Mount Sinai to commune with God,[26] visualize God's plan for the Israelitetabernacle, and receive theTen Commandments. Joshua was with Moses when he descended from the mountain, heard the Israelites' celebrations around theGolden Calf,[27] and broke the tablets bearing the words of the commandments. Similarly, in the narrative which refers to Moses being able to speak with God in his tent of meeting outside the camp, Joshua is seen as custodian of the tent ('tabernacle of meeting') when Moses returned to the Israelite encampment.[28] However, when Moses returned to the mountain to re-create the tablets recording the Ten Commandments, Joshua was not present, as the biblical text states "no man shall come up with you".[29]
Later, Joshua was identified as one of thetwelve spies sent by Moses to explore and report on the land ofCanaan,[30] and only he andCaleb gave an encouraging report, a reward for which would be that only these two of their entire generation would enter the promised land.[31]
According to Joshua 1:1,[32] God appointed Joshua to succeed Moses as leader of the Israelites along with giving him a blessing of invincibility during his lifetime.[33][34] The first part of the book of Joshua covers the period when he led the conquest ofCanaan.
At theJordan River, the waters parted, as they had for Moses at theRed Sea. The first battle after the crossing of the Jordan was theBattle of Jericho. Joshua led the destruction ofJericho, then moved on toAi, a small neighboring city to the west. However, they were defeated with thirty-six Israelite deaths. The defeat was attributed toAchan taking an "accursed thing" from Jericho; and was followed by Achan and his family and animals being stoned to death to restore God's favor. Joshua then went to defeat Ai.
The Israelites faced an alliance of fiveAmorite kings fromJerusalem,Hebron,Jarmuth,Lachish, andEglon. AtGibeon, Joshua asked the LORD to cause the Sun and Moon to stand still, so that he could finish the battle in daylight. According to the text, the Sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. This event is most notable because "There has been no day like it before or since, when the LORD heeded the voice of a man, for the Lord fought for Israel."[35] The LORD also fought for the Israelites in this battle, for he hurled huge hailstones from the sky which killed more Canaanites than those which the Israelites slaughtered. From there on, Joshua was able to lead the Israelites to several victories, securing much of the land of Canaan. He presided over the Israelite gatherings atGilgal andShiloh whichallocated land to the tribes of Israel (Joshua 14:1–5 and 18:1–10), and the Israelites rewarded him with the Ephraimite city ofTimnath-heres or Timnath-serah, where he settled (Joshua 19:50).
According to theTalmud, Joshua in his book enumerated only those towns on the frontier.[c]
When he was "old and well advanced in years",[36] Joshua convened the elders and chiefs of the Israelites and exhorted them to have no fellowship with the native population, because it could lead them to be unfaithful to God.[37] At a general assembly of the clans atShechem, he took leave of the people, admonishing them to be loyal to their God, who had been so mightily manifested in the midst of them. As a witness of their promise to serve God, Joshua set up a great stone under an oak by the sanctuary of God. Soon afterward he died, at the age of 110, and was buried atTimnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.[38]
The prevailing scholarly view is that theBook of Joshua is not a factual account of historical events.[39][40] The apparent setting of Joshua is the 13th century BCE[41] which was a time of widespread city-destruction, but with a few exceptions (Hazor,Lachish) the destroyed cities are not the ones the Bible associates with Joshua, and the ones it does associate with him show little or no sign of even being occupied at the time.[42] Given its lack of historicity, Carolyn Pressler in her commentary for theWestminster Bible Companion series suggests that readers of Joshua should give priority to its theological message ("what passages teach about God") and be aware of what these would have meant to audiences in the seventh and sixth centuries BCE.[43]Richard Nelson explained that the needs of thecentralised monarchy favoured a single story of origins, combining old traditions of anexodus from Egypt, belief in anational god as "divine warrior," and explanations for ruined cities,social stratification and ethnic groups, and contemporary tribes.[44]
It has been argued that the Book of Joshua holds little historical value.[45] The archaeological evidence shows thatJericho andAi were not occupied in the Near EasternLate Bronze Age,[46] although recent excavations at Jericho have questioned this.[47] The story of the conquest perhaps represents the nationalistpropaganda of the eighth century BCE kings ofJudah and their claims to the territory of theKingdom of Israel,[39] incorporated into an early form of Joshua written late in the reign of kingJosiah (reigned 640–609 BCE). The book was probably revised and completed after thefall of Jerusalem to theNeo-Babylonian Empire in 586 BCE, and possibly after the return from theBabylonian exile in 538 BCE.[48]
M. Noth (1930s)
In the 1930sMartin Noth made a sweeping criticism of the usefulness of the Book of Joshua for history.[49] Noth was a student ofAlbrecht Alt, who emphasizedform criticism and the importance ofetiology.[49][50] Alt and Noth posited a peaceful movement of the Israelites into various areas of Canaan,contra the Biblical account.[51]
W.F. Albright (1930s)
William Foxwell Albright questioned the "tenacity" of etiologies, which were key to Noth's analysis of the campaigns in Joshua. Archaeological evidence in the 1930s showed that the city ofAi, an early target for conquest in the putative Joshua account, had existed and been destroyed, but in the 22nd century BCE.[49] Some alternate sites for Ai have been proposed which would partially resolve the discrepancy in dates, but these sites have not been widely accepted.[52]
K. Kenyon (1951)
In 1951Kathleen Kenyon showed that City IV atTell es-Sultan (Jericho) was destroyed at the end of theMiddle Bronze Age (c. 2100–1550 BCE), not during theLate Bronze Age (c. 1550–1200 BCE). Kenyon argued that the early Israelite campaign could not be historically corroborated, but rather explained as an etiology of the location and a representation of the Israelite settlement.[53][54]
G.E. Wright (1955)
In 1955,G. Ernest Wright discussed the correlation of archaeological data to the early Israelite campaigns, which he divided into three phases per the Book of Joshua. He pointed to two sets of archaeological findings that "seem to suggest that the biblical account is in general correct regarding the nature of the late thirteenth and twelfth-eleventh centuries in the country" (i.e., "a period of tremendous violence").[55] He gives particular weight to what were then recent digs at Hazor byYigael Yadin.[55]
The Israelites led by Joshua crossing the Jordan River with the Ark, Old Sacristy, Milan Italy, 15th c.Robert Hecquet, Israelites led by Joshua Crossing the Jordan River
Inrabbinic literature Joshua is regarded as a faithful, humble, deserving, wise man. Biblical verses illustrative of these qualities and of their reward are applied to him. "He that waits on his master shall be honored"[56] is construed as a reference to Joshua,[57] as is also the first part of the same verse, "Whoso keeps the fig-tree shall eat the fruit thereof".[58] That "honor shall uphold the humble in spirit"[59] is proved by Joshua's victory overAmalek.[60] Not the sons ofMoses—as Moses himself had expected—but Joshua was appointed as Moses' successor.[61] Moses was shown how Joshua reproved thatOthniel.[62]
"God would speak to Moses face to face, like someone would speak to his friend. Then he would return to the camp. But his attendant, Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not leave the tent. Joshua never moved from the tent".[28] Didn't Joshua leave the tent to eat, sleep or attend to his needs? This praise shows that Joshua had complete faith in Moses, theTzaddik. One who has this faith is cognizant of the tzaddik in everything he does; he remains steadfastly with the tzaddik whatever he does.[63]
Moreover, Joshua, on dividing the land of Canaan amongst the tribes of Israel, made the tribes agree to ten conditions, the most important of which being the common use of the forests as pasture for cattle, and the common right of fishing in theSea of Tiberias.[64] Natural springs were to be used for drinking and laundry by all tribes, although the tribe to which the water course fell had the first rights.[65] Prickly burnet (Sarcopoterium spinosum) and the camelthorn (Alhagi maurorum) could be freely collected as firewood by any member of any tribe, in any tribal territory.
In prayer
According to Jewish religious tradition, upon makingAliyah by crossing the Jordan River to enter theLand of Israel, Joshua composed theAleinu prayer thanking God. This idea was first cited in theKol Bo of the late 14th Century.[66] Several medieval commentators noticed that Joshua's shorter birth name, Hosea, appears in the first few verses of Aleinu in reverse acrostic: ע – עלינו, ש – שלא שם, ו – ואנחנו כורעים, ה – הוא אלוקינו. The Teshuvot HaGeonim, aGeonic responsum, discussed that Joshua composed the Aleinu because although the Israelites had made Aliyah to thePromised Land, they were surrounded by other peoples, and he wanted the Jews to draw a clear distinction between themselves, who knew and accepted the sovereignty of God, and those nations of the world which did not.[67] In the modern era, religious Jews still pray the Aliyah inspired Aleinu three times daily, including on theHigh Holidays. The Aleinu prayer begins:
It is our duty to praise the Master of all, to exalt the Creator of the Universe, who has not made us like the nations of the world and has not placed us like the families of the earth, who has not designed our destiny to be like theirs, nor our lot like that of all their multitude.[68]
In Christianity
Most modern Bibles translateHebrews 4:8–10 to identify Jesus as a better Joshua, as Joshua led Israel into the rest ofCanaan, but Jesus leads the people of God into "God's rest". Among the earlyChurch Fathers, Joshua is considered atype of Jesus Christ.[69]
Joshua (Arabic:يُوشَعُ بْنُ نُونٍ,Yūšaʿ ibn Nūn[juːʃaʕibnnuːn], is not mentioned by name in theQuran, but his name appears in otherIslamic literature. In the Quranic account of the conquest of Canaan, Joshua and Caleb are referenced, but not named, as two God-fearing men on whomGod "had bestowed His grace".[71]
They said, "Moses, there is a fearsome people in this land. We will not go there until they leave. If they leave, then we will enter." Yet the two men whom God had blessed among those who were afraid said, "Go in to them through the gate and when you go in you will overcome them. If you are true believers, put your trust in God.
— Quran, sura 5 (Al-Ma'ida), ayah 22–23, Haleem translation[72]
Joshua is also referred to in the journeyMusa (Moses) took with him to findKhidr.
And remember when Moses said to his young assistant, "I will never give up until I reach the junction of the two seas, even if I travel for ages". But when they finally reached the point where the seas met, they forgot their salted fish, and it made its way into the sea, slipping away wondrously. He replied, "Do you remember when we rested by the rock? That is when I forgot the fish. None made me forget to mention this except Satan. And the fish made its way into the sea miraculously". Moses responded, "That is exactly what we were looking for". So they returned, retracing their footsteps. There they found a servant of Ours, to whom We had granted mercy from Us and enlightened with knowledge of Our Own.
The narration collected byBukhari reports that a man approached Moses after he gave a talk and asked him, "Who is the most knowledgeable person on earth?" Moses responded, "That would be me!" So Allah revealed to Moses that he should not have said this and there was in fact someone who was more knowledgeable than him. Moses was commanded to travel to meet this man, named Al-Khaḍir, at the junction of the two seas. Islamic scholars have argued this could be the northern part of theSinai Peninsula between theRed Sea and theMediterranean Sea, the southern part of Sinai where the Rea Sea splits into theGulf of Suez and theGulf of Aqaba, or theBosporus in Istanbul which is a strait between theBlack Sea and theSea of Marmara.
Hadith, exegesis, traditions
Joshua was regarded by some classical scholars as the prophetic successor to Moses (موسى)[d]Al-Tabari relates in hisHistory of the Prophets and Kings that Joshua was one of the twelve spies, and Muslim scholars believe that the two believing spies referred to in the Quran are Joshua and Caleb. Joshua was exceptional among theIsraelites for being one of the few faithful followers of Allah.
Significant events from Joshua's Muslim narratives include the crossing of theJordan river and the conquest ofBait al-Maqdis.[74]
The traditional Muslim scholastic commentaries has narrated the miracle which shown by Joshua as a sign that he is aprophet in Islam. Ibn Kathir gave commentary ofMusnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal Hadith that during the siege of Jerusalem, Yoshua prayed to God to withheld the sun until he won, which resulted in the day did not cease, and the sun only set after the Israelites under Joshua manage to capture the city.[75][76]al-Jalalayn says, "Ahmad [b. Hanbal] reported in his Musnad, the [following] hadīth, 'The sun was never detained for any human, except for Joshua during those days in which he marched towards the Holy House [of Jerusalem]'."[77]
Muslim literature includes traditions of Joshua not found in theHebrew Bible. Joshua is credited with being present at Moses's death and literature records that Moses's garments were with Joshua at the time of his departure.[78] InSahih Bukhari andSahih Muslim, Joshua is mentioned as Yusha' bin Nun and is the attendant to Moses during hismeeting with Khidr.[79][80][81] This hadith episode was used by scholars for the exegesis of Quran scripture chapterAl-Kahf about the journey of Moses.[82]
In the literary tradition of medieval Europe, Joshua is known as one of theNine Worthies. InThe Divine Comedy Joshua's spirit appears to Dante in the Heaven of Mars, where he is grouped with the other "warriors of the faith."[83]
According to legend,Mormon pioneers in the United States first referred to theyucca brevifoliaagave plant as the Joshua tree because its branches reminded them of Joshua stretching his arms upward in supplication, guiding the travelers westward.[85]
Israeli poster celebrating Yom HaAliyah (Aliyah Day) from the Yosef Matisyahu Collection
Religious holiday
The annual commemoration of Joshua'syahrtzeit (the anniversary of his death) is marked on the 26th ofNisan on theHebrew calendar. Thousands make the pilgrimage to theTomb of Joshua at Kifl Haris nearNablus,West Bank, on the preceding night.
Israeli Zionist holiday
Yom HaAliyah (Aliyah Day;Hebrew:יום העלייה) is an Israeli national holiday celebrated annually on the tenth of theHebrew month ofNisan, as per the opening clause of the Yom HaAliyah Law, as aZionist celebration of "Jewish immigration to theLand of Israel as the basis for the existence of theState of Israel", and secondarily "to mark the date of entry into the Land of Israel", i.e. to commemorate Joshua having led the Israelites across the Jordan River into the Land of Israel while carrying theArk of the Covenant.
Tomb of Joshua
Samaritan and Jewish traditions
According to a Samaritan tradition, noted in 1877, the tombs of Joshua and Caleb were in Kifl Haris.[87]
It seems that old Jewish traditions once associatedMeron in theUpper Galilee with the burial site of Joshua.[89]
Islamic sites
TheBosporus fromJoshua's Hill (Giant's Grave) with a broken column, by Joseph Schranz (1803–1864/6), courtesy of the Ömer M Koç Collection
Joshua is believed by some Muslims to be buried onJoshua's Hill in theBeykoz district ofIstanbul.[90] Alternative traditional sites for his tomb are situated in Israel (the Shia shrine atAl-Nabi Yusha'),Jordan (An-Nabi Yusha' bin Noon, a Sunnishrine near the city ofAl-Salt[91][92]), Iran (Historical cemetery of Takht e Foolad in Esfahan[93]) and Iraq (the Nabi Yusha' shrine ofBaghdad[91]). A local tradition combining three versions of three different Yushas, including biblical Joshua, places the tomb inside a cave in the Tripoli Mountains, overlooking the coastal town ofel-Minyieh nearTripoli, Lebanon.[94][95]
^abBabylonian Talmud,Baba Bathra 56a;Beitza 25b, s.v.חצובא מקטע רגליהון דרשיעי. Quote: "ʻThe sea squill (Urginea maritima) amputates the leg of the wicked’. Explained byTalmudic exegete,Rashi, to mean a plant whose roots penetrate and go down deeply, without spreading-out to the sides at all, and they plant it between the boundaries of fields, with which Joshua [formerly] divided the country by designated borders for Israel." ʻAmputates the leg of the wicked’, [meaning], on theDay of Judgment, in the sense that they (the wicked) steal, and covet, and reappropriate the property bounds [of others], without taking a lesson from it" (END QUOTE). Cf.Hai Gaon (1921), "Hai Gaon's Commentary on Seder Taharot", in Epstein, J.N. (ed.),The Geonic Commentary on Seder Taharot - Attributed to Rabbi Hai Gaon (in Hebrew), vol. 1, Berlin: Itzkowski, pp. 13–14,OCLC13977130, s.v.יבלית inMishnahKeilim 3:6.
^Killebrew 2005, p. 152: "Almost without exception, scholars agree that the account in Joshua holds little historical value vis-à-vis early Israel and most likely reflects much later historical times.15"
^Maimonides,Mishneh Torah (Hil.Nizkei Mammon 5:3);Acha of Shabha,Sheiltoth, P. Ra’eh 147;Jerusalem Talmud,Baba Bathra 5:1. Even if the source of the natural spring were to originate in a distant tribal territory, and flowed along its course through another tribal territory, the people living in the territory where the water currently passes through have first-rights over the water.
^Abdullah Yusuf Ali,The Holy Qur'an: Text, Translation and Commentary, Note. 726 to verse 23: "Among those who returned after spying out the land were two men who had faith and courage. They were Joshua and Caleb. Joshua afterwards succeeded Moses in the leadership after 40 years. These two men pleaded for an immediate entry through the proper Gate, which I understand to mean, 'after taking all due precautions and making all due preparations.' Cf. 2:189 and n. 203. But of course, they said, they must put their trust in Allah for victory."
^M. A. S. Abdel Haleem, translator (2005).The Qur'an. Oxford University Press. p. 70.
Dirasatun Fil Ad-yan Al-Yahudiyah wan Nashraniyah, Dr Su’ud bin Abdil Aziz Al-Khalaf, Penerbit Adhwa-us Salaf, Cetakan I, Th 1422H/2003M
Mujaz Tarikhil Yahudi war-Raddi Ala Ba’dhi Maza’imil Bathilah, Dr Mahmud bin Abdir Rahman Qadah, Majalah Jami’ah Islamiyah, Edisi 107, Th 29, 1418-1419H
Shahih Qashashil Anbiya, karya Ibnu Katsir, Abu Usamah Salim bin Id Al-Hilali, Maktabah Al-Furqan, Cetakan I Th, 1422H
Tafsir Al-Qur’anil Azhim, Abu Fida Ismail Ibnu Umar Ibnu Katsir, Darul Kutub Al-Ilmiyah, Cetakan II, Th.1422H
^Muslim, Book 30, Hadith 5864: The Book Pertaining to the Excellent Qualities of the Holy Prophet (may Peace be upon them) and His Companions (Kitab Al-Fada'il)
^Berger, Uri; Glick, Alexander; Shemer, Maayan (2019)."Meron, Rabbi Shim'on Bar Yochai Compound: Final Report".Hadashot Arkheologiyot.131. Retrieved17 April 2024 – via online ed., posted 02/06/2019. Citing Reiner, Elchanan (2012). "Joshua is Simeon Bar Yohai, Hazor is Meron: Towards a Typology of the History of the Establishment of Galilee (Another Chapter in the Religious World of the Galilean Jews)".Tarbiz 80(2):1 pp. 79–218 (Hebrew).
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