January 13, 2024

Passage Read: Joshua 10-13
Meditation Verse: 11:20

Thought

The Canaanites received no mercy from God. They were to be completely destroyed. Some however would receive mercy from the Israelites, not for love of them, but because they chose to enslave them rather than destroy them. Perhaps they considered themselves more noble than the Lord, for offering mercy to people the Lord had set apart for destruction. It's a shame that the Lord didn't harden their hearts too; the Israelites and the Lord could have avoided much grief if they had obeyed the Lord.

Application

Not everyone is afforded mercy. And it is good that they are not afforded mercy. It is better for the rest of the people that the wicked among them are put to death. God knows best who should live and who should be destroyed. He has given instruction and principles upon which we can judge who should live and who should die. When we ignore those, we may think we're being noble, but really, we're corrupting ourselves and our descendants, so that they are given over to ever increasing sin, and come under the wrath of God, so as to become objects of wrath, many whom will also not receive mercy. I need to up my hatred of sin and deal with it according to the tools I've been given as swiftly as possible.