"They arrived at Geliloth on the Jordan (touching on Canaanite land). There the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh built an altar on the banks of the Jordan—a huge altar!" (Joshua 22:10 MSG)
Sounds innocent enough, so why all the hub-bub? This had me puzzled. They had been traveling together for almost 50 years. Together they wandered the land: they experienced miracles of God, the wrath of God, the Grace of God and the faithfulness of God. These nations, 12 tribes, were family. But, when a few of them moved away communication suffered.
I am still puzzled about the reaction of those who stayed on the West side of the Jordan to the altar the Reubenites, Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh built. When reading it I thought, "good, they are not deserting their faith practices." It would seem their bothers back in the Promised Land thought the worst and were preparing for battle.
Isn't that just like the human race? Isn't that so normal? We jump to conclusions without first getting all the facts. We assume the worst instead of trusting. But, when we read further we will learn that the next steps were smart and wise. More about this tomorrow...
Read Joshua 22:10 here
Listen to Joshua 22:10 here
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