The Northern Campaign

\Joshua 11-12

            As in the south, so in the north. The conquest of the northern part of the promised land began with a coalition of enemies very conveniently gathering together so that Joshua could attack them all at once. Once again we have a note that Joshua moved fast and struck them unawares. It seems that Joshua was fighting a rather asymmetrical war, avoiding face-to-face confrontations and pitched battles in favor of surprise attacks.

            Again, the book of Joshua wants to celebrate the Lord’s gift of the promised land, but there are little notes that suggest the job wasn’t fully complete. For example, 11:13 tells us that the Israelites did not raze the cities. Perhaps the idea is positive: the Israelites would take over these fortified cities. Perhaps it’s not so positive: the Canaanites could re-occupy them.