Josh 10:10-13 Jehova Yahweh, The Lord of The Supernatural

The LORD threw them into confusion before Israel, who

defeated them in a great victory at Gibeon. Israel

pursued them along the road going up to Beth Horon

and cut them down all the way to Azekah and Makkedah.

As they fled before Israel on the road down from Beth

Horon to Azekah, the LORD hurled large hailstones down

on them from the sky, and more of them died from the

hailstones than were killed by the swords of the Israelites.

On the day the LORD gave the Amorites over to Israel,

Joshua said to the LORD in the presence of Israel:

"O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the

Valley of Aijalon."

So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till

the nation avenged itself on its enemies, as it is

written in the Book of Jashar. The sun stopped in

the middle of the sky and delayed going down about

a full day.

Jehova Yahweh, The God of Miracles

Matthew Henry Commentary

I. The great faith of Joshua, and the power of God crowning

it with the miraculous arrest of the sun, that the day of

Israel's victories might be prolonged, and so the enemy

totally defeated. The hail-stones had their rise no higher

than the clouds, but, to show that Israel's help came from

above the clouds, the sun itself, who by His constant motion

serves the whole earth, by halting when there was occasion

served the Israelites, and did them a kindness. The sun and

moon stood still in their habitation, at the light of Your

arrows which gave the signal, (Hab. 3:11).

(A.) here is the prayer of Joshua that the sun might stand

still. I call it his prayer, because it is said (v. 12) he

spoke to the Lord; as Elijah, though we read (1 Kin. 17:1)

only of his prophesying of the drought, yet is said

(James 5:17) to pray for it. Observe,

[1.] An instance of Joshua's unwearied activity in the

service of God and Israel, that though he had marched

all night and fought all day, and, one might expect,

would be inclined to repose himself and get a little

sleep, and give his army some time to rest-- that,

like the hireling, he would earnestly desire the shadow,

and bid the night welcome, when he had done such a good

day's work-- yet, instead of this, he wishes for nothing

so much as the prolonging of the day.

Note, Those that wait on the Lord and work for Him shall

renew their strength, shall run and not be weary, shall

walk and not faint, (Isa. 40:31).

[2.] an instance of his great faith in the almighty

power of God, as above the power of nature, and able

to control and alter the usual course of it. No doubt

Joshua had an extraordinary impulse or impression upon

his spirit, which he knew to be of divine origin,

prompting him to desire that this miracle might be

wrought upon this occasion, else it would have been

presumption in him to desire or expect; the prayer

would not have been granted by the divine power, if

it had not been dictated by the divine grace. God

wrought this faith in him, and then said, "According

to thy faith, and thy prayer of faith, be it unto

thee." It cannot be imagined, however, that such a

thing as this should have entered into his mind if

God had not put it there; a man would have had a

thousand projects in his head for the completing of

the victory before he would have thought of desiring

the sun to stand still; but even in the Old-Testament

saints the Spirit made intercession according to the

will of God. What God will give He inclines the hearts

of His praying people to ask, and for what He will do

He will be enquired of, (Ezek. 36:37).

Now, First, It looked great for Joshua to say, Sun,

stand thou still. His ancestor Joseph had indeed

dreamed that the sun and moon did homage to him;

but who would have thought that, after it had been

fulfilled in the figure, it should be again fulfilled

in the letter to one of his posterity? The prayer is

thus expressed with authority, because it was not

an ordinary prayer, such as is directed and supported

only by God's common providence or promise, but the

prayer of a prophet at this time divinely inspired

for this purpose; and yet it intimates to us the

prevalency of prayer in general, so far as it is

regulated by the word of God, and may remind us of

that honour put upon prayer (Isa. 45:11), Concerning

the work of my hands command you me. He bids the sun

stand still upon Gibeon, the place of action and the

seat of war, intimating that what he designed in this

request was the advantage of Israel against their

enemies; it is probable that the sun was now declining,

and that he did not call for the lengthening out of

the day until he observed it hastening towards it period.

He does likewise, in the name of the King of kings,

arrest the moon, perhaps because it was requisite for

the preserving of the harmony and good order of the

spheres that the course of the rest of the heavenly

bodies should be stayed likewise, otherwise, while

the sun shone, he needed not the moon; and here he

mentions the valley of Ajalon, which was near to

Gibeon, because there he was at that time. Secondly,

It was bold indeed to say so before Israel, and

argues a very strong assurance of faith. If the event

had not answered the demand, nothing could have been

a greater slur upon him; the Israelites would have

concluded he was certainly going mad, or he would

never have talked so extravagantly. But he knew

very well God would own and answer a petition

which he himself directed to be drawn up and

presented, and therefore was not afraid to say

before all Israel, calling them to observe this

work of wonder, Sun, stand thou still, for he was

confident in Him Whom he had trusted. He believed

the almighty power of God, else he could not have

expected that the sun, going on in its strength,

driving in a full career, and rejoicing as a strong

man to run a race, should be stopped in an instant.

He believed the sovereignty of God in the kingdom

of nature, else he could not have expected that

the established law and course of nature should be

changed and interrupted, the ordinances of heaven,

and the constant usage according to these ordinances,

broken in upon. And he believed God's particular

favour to Israel above all people under the sun,

else He could not have expected that, to favour them

upon an emergency with a double day, He should

(which must follow of course) amaze and terrify so

great a part of the terrestrial globe with a double

night at the same time. It is true, He causeth the

sun to shine upon the just and the unjust; but for

this once the unjust shall wait for it beyond the

usual time, while, in favour to righteous Israel,

it stands still.

(B.) the wonderful answer to this prayer. No sooner

said than done (v. 13): The sun stood still, and the

moon stayed. Notwithstanding the vast distance between

the earth and the sun, at the word of Joshua the sun

stopped immediately; for the same God that rules in

heaven above rules at the same time on this earth,

and, when He pleases, even the heavens shall hear the

earth, as here. Concerning this great miracle it is

here said,

[1.] That it continued a whole day, that is, the sun

continued as long again above the horizon as otherwise

it would have done. It is commonly supposed to have

been about the middle of summer that this happened,

when, in that country, it was about fourteen hours

between sun and sun, so that this day was about

twenty-eight hours long; yet, if we suppose it to

have been at that time of the year when the days are

at the shortest, it will be the more probable that

Joshua should desire and pray for the prolonging of

the day.

[2.] that hereby the people had full time to avenge

themselves of their enemies, and to give them a total

defeat. We often read in history of battles which the

night put an end to, the shadows of which favoured the

retreat of the conquered; to prevent this advantage to

the enemy in their flight, the day was doubled, that

the hand of Israel might find out all their enemies;

but the eye and hand of God can find them out without

the help of the sun's light, for to Him the night shineth

as the day, (Ps. 139:12). Note, Sometimes God completes

a great salvation in a little time, and makes but one

day's work of it. Perhaps this miracle is alluded to

(Zech. 14:6-7), where the day of God's fighting against

the nations is said to be one day, and that at evening

time it shall be light, as here.

And,

[3.] That there was never any day like it, before or

since, in which God put such an honour upon faith and

prayer, and upon Israel's cause; never did He so

wonderfully comply with the request of a man, nor so

wonderfully fight for His people.

[4.] this is said to be written in the book of Jasher,

a collection of state-poems, in which the poem made

upon this occasion was preserved among the rest;

probably the same with that book of the wars of the

Lord (Num. 21:14), which afterwards was continued

and carried on by one Jasher. Those words, Sun, stand

thou still upon Gibeon, and thou moon in the valley of

Ajalon, sounding metrical, are supposed to be taken

from the narrative of this event as it was found in

the book of Jasher. Not that the divine testimony of

the book of Joshua needed confirmation from the book

of Jasher, a human composition; but to those who had

that book in their hands it would be of use to compare

this history with it, which warrants the appeals the

learned make to profane history for corroborating the

proofs of the truth of sacred history.

[5.] but surely this stupendous miracle of the standing

still of the sun was intended for something more than

merely to give Israel so much the more time to find out

and kill their enemies, which, without this, might have

been done the next day. First, God would hereby magnify

Joshua (Josh 3:7), as a particular favourite, and one

whom He did delight to honour, being a type of Him who

has all power both in heaven and in earth and Whom the

winds and the seas obey. Secondly, He would hereby notify

to all the world what he was doing for His people Israel

here in Canaan; the sun, the eye of the world, must be

fixed for some hours upon Gibeon and the valley of Ajalon,

as if to contemplate the great works of God there for

Israel, and so to engage the children of men to look

that way, and to enquire of this wonder done in the

land, (2 Chr. 32:31). Proclamation was hereby made to

all the neighbouring nations. Come, behold the works

of the Lord (Ps. 46:8), and say, What nation is there

so great as Israel is, who has God so nigh unto them?