Someone Has to be Last

O. T. #486  "Someone Has to be Last"
March 24, 2015
Joshua 19-Part 6
And the seventh lot came out for the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families.
Joshua 19:40

LET IT GLOW

I suppose it is safe to say that it is not fun being picked last, though I don't remember it happening to me in grade school. I was pretty good at sports at that time so I was usually picked in the middle of the line up for teams. Unfortunately, someone had to be last. So it was in the casting of lots for the  Promised Land distribution to the tribes of Israel. Who was last?

The seventh tribe whose lot fell on the tribe of Dan received their inherited land last. To the north of them was Ephraim, south was Judah, and east was Benjamin.

Two notable cities were in the territory of Dan: Ajalon, where the sun was commanded to stand still (10:12) and Joppa, where Jonah got on a ship going to Tarshish, away from Nineveh, where God wanted him to go preach.

And the coast of the children of Dan went out too little for them... verse 47
It is unclear whether the territory was too small for this tribe of 64,400 (Num. 26:43) or they conquered land beyond their assignment, Leshem.

The Danites failed to possess their original claim (Judges 1:34-36) later. They conquered land north of the Sea of Galilee and Hazor, and renamed it Dan (verse 47-48). (MacArthur)

Judges 1:34 NIV says, The Amorites confined the Danites to the hill country, not allowing them to come down into the plain.
So, at least a part of the tribe of Dan left, or were driven out of, their original territory, migrated north to fight against Leshem and took it.

How do we react when we are last? Jesus said in Matthew 19:30, But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.  Christians will end up the same-in heaven.


LET IT GROW

To make a long story short, Judges 18 tells us the Danites sent 5 spies to the city of Laish. They recognized a Levite priest living there. He explained that a man named Micah hired the Levite to be his priest, with all things provided plus silver. (This is not the Micah who wrote the book of his namesake, I checked. They were over 700 years apart.) The problem was, Micah had in his house idols, which they also worshiped. When the spies left, the priest went with them, taking his family and idols, too.
So when Micah discovered this, he angrily pursued, but the Danites were too strong, with 600 men at the gate, and Micah retreated without his graven images. Although this priest said the Danites would be blessed by God, it was not so, due to their keeping and worshiping idols, too. (verse 30) Laish was conquered by the Danites, but their ways of idolatry conquered them. The idols remained until Samuel's time.

What a disappointment. How many times were they told not to worship idols, but only worship God?
How many times are we warned not to do this or that and we disobey?

LET IT GO

Trust and obey, for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus.

Worship God and Him only.

Be satisfied with going last.