Responses to the Skeptic's Annotated Bible Cruelty Short List - Joshua

Joshua:

Joshua 6:21 - "They utterly destroyed everything in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.

The Israelites, at God’s command, destroyed Jericho and put to death all of its people. These people were far from innocent, and God gave them 400 years to repent since the time Abraham left the land. Their wickedness was infectious, and survival of that culture would have corrupted Israel’s worship of God. While it is never right for a human to decide who should live or die, God, who has the right to give life and take it, used Israel as his instrument of justice. The young children were mercifully taken out of a situation in which they had no chance to escape wickedness; they were escorted to heaven. Life does not ultimately end at death, after all. It should be noted that the one person who was obedient to God was spared (6:25), just like the people of Nineveh who repented at Jonah’s preaching.

Joshua 7:15 - "It shall be that the one who is taken with the things under the ban shall be burned with fire, he and all that belongs to him, because he has transgressed the covenant of the Lord, and because he has committed a disgraceful thing in Israel.

Achan, in the greater context, directly stole some of that which was commanded to be devoted to God and destroyed. Achan knowingly and intentionally rebelled against God. We may not know exactly why it was important that everything was destroyed, but God warned them of the consequences for disobedience (6:18). This was clearly a grave matter, whether or not we understand why. As for Achan’s family, they must have been equally guilty, sharing in the scheme to hold back items dedicated to God. If the punishment seems severe, we must remember that God has the right to take a life He created; He did it so that His mission to save the world through Israel would not be thwarted, and it occurred before the age of grace which commenced after God’s judgment was poured out on His Son.

Joshua 7:25 - "Joshua said, “Why have you troubled us? The LORD will trouble you this day.” And all Israel stoned them with stones; and they burned them with fire after they had stoned them with stones.

Please see the response to Joshua 7:15, which involves the same occurrence. One additional thing should be noted: 7:25 says that it is “The LORD” who brought punishment upon Achan. The community was merely carrying out God’s will. God is just in His judgments, and if not for His grace, we all might face such punishment for our rebellion against Him.

Joshua 10:10-11 - "And the LORD confounded them before Israel, and He slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, and pursued them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon and struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. As they fled from before Israel, while they were at the descent of Beth-horon, the LORD threw large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died; there were more who died from the hailstones than those whom the sons of Israel killed with the sword.

In this passage, “them” refers to the Amorite armies, led by Adoni-zedek, the king of Jerusalem. Clearly, they were the first to attack. God had given the land that these nations inhabited to Israel, and had they repented of their paganism, given the land to Israel, and worshipped the true God, they would have been spared. Instead, not only did they refrain from doing these things, but they attacked the very armies of God. It seems unclear why defending oneself in war should be seen as “cruel,” even from within a secular worldview. God also protected Israel by assailing their enemies with hailstones, and was just in doing so, like a father protecting his child.

Joshua 10:26 - "So afterward Joshua struck them and put them to death, and he hanged them on five trees; and they hung on the trees until evening.

Joshua, being led by God to carry out His will, sentenced the Amorite kings who attacked them to death. God has the right to demand the lives of those who have unjustly taken the lives of others and worshipped false gods, committing high treason against the King of the universe. The fact that these men were publicly hung was a gracious warning to others who might dare to fight against God. God does not simply kill on a whim, but He warns humanity of the trouble they will justly face if they oppose Him.

Joshua 10:40 - "Thus Joshua struck all the land, the hill country and the Negev and the lowland and the slopes and all their kings. He left no survivor, but he utterly destroyed all who breathed, just as the LORD, the God of Israel, had commanded.

The response to this passage is basically the same as the one for the extermination of the people of Jericho (see Joshua 6:21). The people inhabiting the land that God promised to Israel were utterly wicked. God, who alone grants life and is just in taking it, used Joshua as His instrument of judgment. Had Joshua acted on his own in taking human lives, it would be unthinkable. Rather, he carried out God judgment against the wicked. Innocent children were taken into the hands of God to care for them and rescue them from the evil of their cultures.

Joshua 10:42 - "Joshua captured all these kings and their lands at one time, because the LORD, the God of Israel, fought for Israel.

This verse refers to God’s assistance to Israel in carrying out His command to put to death certain pagan nations who lived in rebellion against Him. Please see the responses to Joshua 6:21 and 10:40.

Recommended Resource: When Critics Ask by Norm Geisler.

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