I brought your father Abraham from the region beyond the River; I led you out of Egypt and brought you to your land. Joshua succeeded Moses as the leader of the community and it was during his tenure and leadership that God finally settled the Israelites in Canaan, the land which God had promised their ancestors. Joshua proved to be a worthy successor of Moses, and after completing his major task of leading the Israelites to the promised land, he sensed that his time was up. Today’s reading is taken from the final chapter of the book of Joshua that details the last days of Joshua. In what appears to be his last act as the community’s leader, Joshua gathers the community not to say his goodbyes but rather to lead the community in observing once more the Lord’s command of remembering the deeds of the Lord on behalf of the community (cf. Deuteronomy 6:10-12).
Joshua’s responsibility as a leader of the community was both political and religious. In addition to leading his people as they marched towards the promised land, he was also charged with ensuring that the community remained faithful to the Lord and to the covenant. One way of achieving this was to constantly remind the people of all that the Lord had done for them ever since the days of their great fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The mighty deeds of the Lord were to be taught by fathers to their sons and daughters to ensure that the deeds of the Lord were part of the community’s history. The community’s survival and prosperity depended on a faithful remembrance of God’s mighty deeds on her behalf. The terms of the covenant called for God to always act on behalf of the community (I will be your God) and the community to remain faithful to God by continually remembering God’s acts. It is this that Joshua wanted to leave as his legacy: making sure the community never forgot her past. For a prosperous future could only be built upon a glorious past that was committed to the community’s memory.