“Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.” And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped…” -Joshua 10:12b-13a
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
You have probably noticed that the days are getting shorter—at least they currently are in the Northern Hemisphere. Science was not my best (or favorite) subject in school, but I do find things with astronomy and meteorology to be quite fascinating. Check out, though, what happens in Joshua chapter 10! I would invite you to pause at this time and read Joshua 10:1-15. The events of Joshua 10 are part of the conquest of the Promised Land. God is giving the children of Israel, recently rescued out of slavery in Egypt and led for 40 years in the wilderness by Moses, the land that He had promised to Abraham and his offspring. God had already brought the walls of Jericho crashing down after the people marched around them for 7 days, blew their trumpets and gave a great shout. He had given them another victory over a city called Ai. In this text, five kings of the Amorites from different cities join together against Joshua and his allies at Gibeon. The Lord told Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hands. Not a man of them shall stand before you.” Trusting in this promise, Joshua led his men all night long on a march from Gilgal to Gibeon—some 17 miles with an elevation gain of 3000 feet!! Imagine doing this at night by the light of the moon! They surprised the Amorite’s, and the Lord threw them into a panic at Joshua’s sudden arrival. As the Amorites fled, the Lord rained down great hailstones on them decimating their forces. Yet, some of them remained and would probably have escaped in the coming darkness to fight another day. So, Joshua prayed to the Lord in verse 12 that He make the sun stand still so that they could pursue and overtake their enemies. We are told that the sun stood still and did not hurry to set for a whole day. I’m not sure what time of year it was when this took place—whether the days were getting longer or shorter—but no one had seen anything like this! The Lord kept the sun shining there for a whole day!! Did He stop the earth from rotating or do something different? We just don’t know what or how, but the One who created the earth and sun made the sun stand still for a whole day when He fought for Israel. Joshua and the children of Israel had a complete victory over those 5 kings of the Amorites who had opposed them.
As I reflected upon this account, I couldn’t help but think of another time when, although it was the middle of the day, the sun’s light failed. The sun’s light failed, but there on the cross in the darkness God was fighting for us. He was fighting and winning the full and complete victory that makes peace for us forever. “Blessed be the God of heaven…Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings…he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him. To you, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise…” (Daniel 2:19-23)
As the days shorten and the year marches on, we look to the ONE who holds the heavens and the earth in His hands. We look to the ONE who fights for us whether it is day or night, whether the sun shines or its light fails, and we give thanks to Him for nothing less than this: full victory over the darkness of sin and its prince the devil—Full victory over darkness and the shadow of death!
