doorkeeper in the house of your God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness." If then ye have been awakened from your heathenish security, whatever terrors may have brought you to the feet of Jesus, bless God for them : and whatever hardships ye may endure in the service of your Lord, bless God for them also. If only ye submit to God, and take part with his people here, you shall have your portion with them to all eternity.]
joshua's victory over the confederate kings.
Josh. x. 24, 25. And it came to pass, when they brought out those kings unto Joshua, that Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said unto the captains of the men of war which went with him, Come near, put your feet upon the necks of these kings. And they came near, and put their feet upon the necks of them. And Joshua said unto them, Fear not, nor be dismayed, be strong, and of good courage : for thus shall the Lord do to all your enemies against whom ye fight.
THE Jewish history, considered merely as an history, is the most wonderful, and most instructive, that ever was recorded : but considered as a shadow of things to come, it has an interest peculiar to itself. The attention which it excites, is not that of speculative curiosity, but of practical concern : and every one who desires to obtain favour with Israel's God, feels himself bound to study it, in order to learn from it the character of God, together with the duties and privileges of his chosen people.
Having had frequent occasion, in our discouses on the Pentateuch, to shew, that the figurative import of this history is not imaginary, but real ; and that such an explanation of it is strongly intimated in the New Testament ; we may dispense with any remarks of that kind at present, and proceed to notice, in reference to the Christian's warfare, the defeat of the five confederate kings by Joshua ; a full account of which is given in the chapter before us.
The things which we shall more particularly refer to, are,
I. The occasion of the confederacy —
253.1 Joshua's victory over the five kings. 593
[The Gibeonites, who were a strong and powerful people, had made a league with Joshua, whilst all the other kingdoms of Canaan were determined to oppose him. This incensed all the other powers against them, especially their nearer neigh- bours, who considered it as betraying the common interest, and as facilitating the threatened subjugation of the whole country. To prevent the influence of such an example, and to punish those whom they regarded as traitors, five kings united their forces to go and smite Gibeon, before they should be able to obtain any assistance from their new ally. They accordingly went up with all possible expedition to attack the city, and to wreak their vengeance on its inhabitants.
Here then we may see what usually takes place when any of the enemies of Christ submit themselves to him. Their former friends and companions consider it as a defection from their standard, and a dereliction of their cause ; and often re- sent it with no little acrimony a: and though their
opposition does not in all cases proceed to the same extremity, it never fails to shew itself in a way of contempt and ridicule b. Satan too is indignant at losing one of his vassals ; and not only stimulates his subjects to commence hostilities against themc, but labours by all possible wiles and devices to reduce them to their former bondage d There is the same en- mity against the cause of Christ existing now as ever. As " the kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers took counsel together, against the Lord, and against his Anointed e," in the days of old, and the same rage continued against all the Apostles and Disciples in after agesf, so must it be, and so it will be, as long as Satan shall be permitted to exert any in- fluence over the minds of meng: earth and hell will combine against the Church of Christ ; and every one that enters into covenant with Jesus, shall have a powerful confederacy to contend withh.]