Judah could not dislodge the Jebusites, who were living in Jerusalem; to this day the Jebusites live there with the people of Judah. – Joshua 15:63

Today’s Scripture Reading (January 11, 2019): Joshua 15

Jesus reminded those who listened to his “Sermon on the Mount’ that “a town built on a hill cannot be hidden” (Matthew 5:14). The town or city on a hill was a metaphorical description that was supposed to describe his followers. There is something that is supposed to be fundamentally different about us that is intended to shine out to the world. I am convinced that that something was love. And the truth is that we have failed to love. As we recently moved through the Christmas season0, one of the familiar Christmas readings often includes this passage from Isaiah.

The wolf will live with the lamb,
    the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
    and a little child will lead them (Isaiah 11:6).

The reality of this prophecy is that love will reign between animals, which I believe that should be interpreted as being people and groups, where love does not usually reign. Maybe it means that there will be love in politics between conservatives and progressives, or even between Muslims and Jews and Christians within our society. It is this kind of love that seems to define the reign of the Messiah in our lives.

The truth is also that a city on a hill is easy to defend. Again, moving back to our illustration that Jesus intended the city on a hill to be one built on love, when I love I don’t have to worry about who it is that might overhear me. No videos are showcasing my hate that can be brought up by my enemies. I don’t have to defend myself; I just have to love consistently.

The book of Joshua says that Jerusalem was never taken by Israel. The Jebusites continued to live in the city, in the midst of Israel. And part of the problem was that Jerusalem was literally a city on a hill. It was impossible to miss, but it was also easy to defend. Jerusalem had a supply of fresh water, and it had a way of disposing of the waste. There is no evidence that love existed between Jerusalem and the rest of the area, just an uneasy truce between Israel and the Jebusites of Jerusalem. One group knew that they now lived amidst the enemy and the other was willing to allow the city to exist because they did not believe that they possessed the capability to take the city.

And this was the condition that would exist for the first four centuries of Israel’s history until David decided to take the city by moving his army through the sewer system. Davis would then make the city his capital, calling it the City of David. The comment that the Jebusites still lived in Jerusalem might give us some indication of when the Book of Joshua was written; that the Book of Joshua was written sometime before David took Jerusalem, sometime before 1010 B.C.E.  

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Joshua 16