The story of Joshua and the Gibeonites is a powerful lesson in just that. You see, Joshua, successor to Moses, found himself in a bit of a quandary. He'd made an alliance with the Gibeonites, a people who weren't exactly on anyone's "most trustworthy" list. They'd secured this treaty through trickery, pretending to be from a far-off land to avoid being slaughtered like the other Canaanite tribes (Joshua 9).
So, what did Joshua do when the Gibeonites were attacked? He hesitated. He really did. As Ginzberg tells us in Legends of the Jews, Joshua wasn't sure if he should come to their aid. After all, they’d deceived him!
But then, God spoke. The message? Profound. "If thou dost not bring near them that are far off, thou wilt remove them that are near by." It's a bit cryptic, isn't it? What it means is this: neglecting your obligations to those who are distant, even if they aren't the most deserving, can ultimately undermine your relationships with those who are close. Your integrity, once compromised, is hard to repair.
That was enough for Joshua. Duty called, and he answered.
And here's where the story gets truly epic.
God, it seems, was pretty pleased with Joshua's decision. In fact, He granted Joshua a few extraordinary favors in this conflict. Remember those hailstones that Moses held back during the plagues in Egypt? The ones ready to fall upon the Egyptians? According to the ancient stories, they were still hanging up there, waiting. Now, they were unleashed upon the Canaanites attacking the Gibeonites! Talk about divine intervention!
But the real showstopper? The sun standing still. Yes, you read that right. The sun. Stopped. In the sky.
The Zohar, the foundational text of Jewish mysticism, speaks of great wonders that have occurred since the creation of the world. And this, the sun standing still, was considered the sixth of these monumental events. Imagine the scene! A battle raging, and the sun just… pauses. Time seemingly suspended.
Why? So that Joshua and his army could complete their victory. So they could fulfill their oath to protect the Gibeonites.
It's a reminder that keeping our promises, even the ones we regret making, can lead to the miraculous. That sometimes, doing the right thing, even when it's hard, opens the door to something truly extraordinary.
What promises are you struggling to keep today? What "Gibeonites" are you hesitant to defend? Maybe, just maybe, this ancient story can offer a little bit of courage, a little bit of faith, and a whole lot of perspective.