22 God, even God the Lord, God, even God the Lord, he sees, and Israel will see--if it is in pride or in sin against the Lord,
Give ear in heaven your living-place, acting in mercy; and give to every man whose secret heart is open to you, the reward of all his ways; for you, and you only, have knowledge of the hearts of all the children of men:
For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, strong in power and greatly to be feared, who has no respect for any man's position and takes no rewards:
Though you see that I am not an evil-doer; and there is no one who is able to take a man out of your hands?
I the Lord am the searcher of the heart, the tester of the thoughts, so that I may give to every man the reward of his ways, in keeping with the fruit of his doings.
He said to him a third time, Simon, son of John, am I dear to you? Now Peter was troubled in his heart because he put the question a third time, Am I dear to you? And he said to him, Lord, you have knowledge of all things; you see that you are dear to me. Jesus said to him, Then give my sheep food.
But Jesus did not have faith in them, because he had knowledge of them all. He had no need for any witness about man; for he himself had knowledge of what was in man.
And they made prayers and said, Lord, having knowledge of the hearts of all men, make clear which of these two has been marked out by you,
And when Peter came to Jerusalem, those who kept the rule of circumcision had an argument with him, Saying, You went to men without circumcision, and took food with them. But Peter gave them an account of it all in order, saying to them, I was in the town of Joppa, at prayer: and falling into a deep sleep, I saw in a vision a vessel like a great cloth let down from heaven, and it came down to me: And looking on it with attention I saw in it all sorts of beasts and birds. And a voice came to my ears saying, Come, Peter; take them for food. But I said, No, Lord; for nothing common or unclean has ever come into my mouth. But the voice, coming a second time from heaven, said, What God has made clean, do not you make common. And this was done three times, and they were all taken up again into heaven. And at that minute, three men, sent from Caesarea, came to the house where we were. And the Spirit gave me orders to go with them, doubting nothing. And these six brothers came with me; and we went into that man's house: And he gave us an account of how he had seen the angel in his house, saying, Send to Joppa, and get Simon, named Peter, to come to you; Who will say words to you through which you and all your family may get salvation. And, while I was talking to them, the Holy Spirit came on them, as on us at first. And the words of the Lord came into my mind, how he said, The baptism of John was with water, but you will have baptism with the Holy Spirit. If then God gave them, when they had faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the same as he gave to us, who was I to go against God? And hearing these things they said nothing more, but gave glory to God, saying, Then to the Gentiles as to us has God given a change of heart, so that they may have life.
If, then, I am a wrongdoer and there is a cause of death in me, I am ready for death: if it is not as they say against me, no man may give me up to them. Let my cause come before Caesar.
Having in mind, then, the fear of the Lord, we put these things before men, but God sees our hearts; and it is my hope that we may seem right in your eyes.
The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be praise for ever, is witness that the things which I say are true.
Who only has life for ever, living in light to which no man may come near; whom no man has seen or is able to see: to whom be honour and power for ever. So be it.
And I will put her children to death; and all the churches will see that I am he who makes search into the secret thoughts and hearts of men: and I will give to every one of you the reward of your works.
And on his robe and on his leg is a name, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
For to go against his orders is like the sin of those who make use of secret arts, and pride is like giving worship to images. Because you have put away from you the word of the Lord, he has put you from your place as king.
For he has knowledge of the way I take; after I have been tested I will come out like gold.
If I have gone in false ways, or my foot has been quick in working deceit; (Let me be measured in upright scales, and let God see my righteousness:) If my steps have been turned out of the way, or if my heart went after my eyes, or if the property of another is in my hands; Let me put seed in the earth for another to have the fruit of it, and let my produce be uprooted.
If my land has made an outcry against me, or the ploughed earth has been in sorrow; If I have taken its produce without payment, causing the death of its owners; Then in place of grain let thorns come up, and in place of barley evil-smelling plants.
O Lord my God, if I have done this; if my hands have done any wrong; If I have given back evil to him who did evil to me, or have taken anything from him who was against me without cause; Let my hater go after my soul and take it; let my life be crushed to the earth, and my honour into the dust. (Selah.)
<A Psalm. Of Asaph.> God is in the meeting-place of God; he is judging among the gods.
For the Lord is a great God, and a great King over all gods.
O give praise to the God of gods: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.
<To the chief music-maker. A Psalm. Of David.> O Lord, you have knowledge of me, searching out all my secrets. You have knowledge when I am seated and when I get up, you see my thoughts from far away. You keep watch over my steps and my sleep, and have knowledge of all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue which is not clear to you, O Lord. I am shut in by you on every side, and you have put your hand on me. Such knowledge is a wonder greater than my powers; it is so high that I may not come near it. Where may I go from your spirit? how may I go in flight from you? If I go up to heaven, you are there: or if I make my bed in the underworld, you are there. If I take the wings of the morning, and go to the farthest parts of the sea; Even there will I be guided by your hand, and your right hand will keep me. If I say, Only let me be covered by the dark, and the light about me be night; Even the dark is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day: for dark and light are the same to you.
And the king made answer to Daniel and said, Truly, your God is a God of gods and a Lord of kings, and an unveiler of secrets, for you have been able to make this secret clear.
And the king will do his pleasure; he will put himself on high, lifting himself over every god, and saying things to be wondered at against the God of gods; and all will be well for him till the wrath is complete; for what has been purposed will be done.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Joshua 22
Commentary on Joshua 22 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 22
Many particular things we have read concerning the two tribes and a half, though nothing separated them from the rest of the tribes except the river Jordan, and this chapter is wholly concerning them.
Jos 22:1-9
The war being ended, and ended gloriously, Joshua, as a prudent general, disbands his army, who never designed to make war their trade, and sends them home, to enjoy what they had conquered, and to beat their swords into plough-shares and their spears into pruning-hooks; and particularly the forces of these separate tribes, who had received their inheritance on the other side Jordan from Moses upon this condition, that their men of war should assist the other tribes in the conquest of Canaan, which they promised to do (Num. 32:32), and renewed the promise to Joshua at the opening of the campaign, Jos. 1:16. And, now that they had performed their bargain, Joshua publicly and solemnly in Shiloh gives them their discharge. Whether this was done, as it was placed, not till after the land was divided, as some think, or whether after the war was ended, and before the division was made, as others think (because there was no need of their assistance in dividing the land, but only in conquering it, nor were there any of their tribes employed as commissioners in that affair, but only of the other ten, Num. 34:18, etc.), this is certain, it was not done till after Shiloh was made the head-quarters (v. 2), and the land was begun to be divided before they removed from Gilgal, ch. 14:6.
It is probable that this army of Reubenites and Gadites, which had led the van in all the wars of Canaan, had sometimes, in the intervals of action, and when the rest of the army retired into winter-quarters, some of them at least, made a step over Jordan, for it was not far, to visit their families, and to look after their private affairs, and perhaps tarried at home, and sent others in their room more serviceable; but still these two tribes and a half had their quota of troops ready, 40,000 in all, which, whenever there was occasion, presented themselves at their respective posts, and now attended in a body to receive their discharge. Though their affection to their families, and concern for their affairs, could not but make them, after so long an absence, very desirous to return, yet, like good soldiers, they would not move till they had orders from their general. So, though our heavenly Father's house above be ever so desirable (it is bishop Hall's allusion), yet must we stay on earth till our warfare be accomplished, wait for a due discharge, and not anticipate the time of our removal.
Jos 22:10-20
Here is,
Jos 22:21-29
We may suppose there was a general convention called of the princes and great men of the separate tribes, to give audience to these ambassadors; or perhaps the army, as it came home, was still encamped in a body, and not yet dispersed; however it was, there were enough to represent the two tribes and a half, and to give their sense. Their reply to the warm remonstrance of the ten tribes is very fair and ingenuous. They do not retort their charge, upbraid them with the injustice and unkindness of their threatenings, nor reproach them for their rash and hasty censures, but give them a soft answer which turns away wrath, avoiding all those grievous words which stir up anger; they demur not to their jurisdiction, nor plead that they were not accountable to them for what they had done, nor bid them mind their own business, but, by a free and open declaration of their sincere intention in what they did, free themselves from the imputation they were under, and set themselves right in the opinion of their brethren, to do which they only needed to state the case and put the matter in a true light.
Jos 22:30-34
We have here the good issue of this controversy, which, if there had not been on both sides a disposition to peace, as there was on both sides a zeal for God, might have been of ill consequence; for quarrels about religion, for want of wisdom and love, often prove the most fierce and most difficult to be accommodated. But these contending parties, when the matter was fairly stated and argued, were so happy as to understand one another very well, and so the difference was presently compromised.