**Title: The Covenant of Conquest**
The sun hung low over the horizon, casting long shadows across the rugged hills of Moab. Moses, the aged prophet of Israel, stood before the vast assembly of the people—men, women, and children who had grown up in the wilderness, their hearts both eager and fearful for the land that lay before them. The Jordan River shimmered in the distance, the boundary between their wandering and the fulfillment of God’s ancient promise.
With a voice weathered by years yet firm with divine authority, Moses spoke: *”Hear, O Israel! The Lord your God is bringing you into a land flowing with milk and honey, a land of great cities you did not build, houses filled with good things you did not provide, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant. But when the Lord gives them over to you, you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy.”*
A murmur spread through the crowd. Some of the younger men clenched their fists, ready for battle, while others exchanged uneasy glances. The thought of war was daunting, and the nations beyond the Jordan were mighty—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—seven peoples greater and stronger than they.
Moses raised his hands for silence. *”Do not fear them,”* he commanded. *”Remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and all Egypt. Remember the great trials you saw with your own eyes, the signs and wonders, the mighty hand and outstretched arm by which the Lord brought you out. So shall He deal with all the peoples who stand in your way.”*
He paused, letting the weight of his words settle upon them. The memory of the Red Sea parting, of manna descending from heaven, of water gushing from the rock—these were not just stories but the very proof of God’s faithfulness.
*”The Lord has chosen you,”* Moses continued, *”not because you were more numerous than all peoples—for you were the smallest of nations—but because He loved you and kept the oath He swore to your fathers. Therefore, know that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands.”*
A young man near the front, his face bronzed by the desert sun, called out, *”But what if we intermarry with them? Would that not bring peace?”*
Moses’ eyes blazed with urgency. *”No! Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your hearts away from the Lord to serve other gods. Then the anger of the Lord will burn against you, and He will destroy you quickly. This is what you are to do: break down their altars, smash their sacred stones, cut down their Asherah poles, and burn their idols in the fire. For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. He has set you apart as His treasured possession.”*
The people bowed their heads, some in repentance, others in resolve. The command was clear—no compromise, no half-hearted obedience. The land was a gift, but it came with a demand: absolute loyalty to the God who had redeemed them.
Moses softened his tone, his voice now thick with promise. *”If you obey these commands, the Lord will bless you abundantly. He will love you and increase your numbers. He will bless the fruit of your womb, the crops of your land—your grain, new wine, and oil—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. You will be blessed above all peoples. No one will be childless among you or barren among your livestock. The Lord will keep you free from every disease, the terrible afflictions you saw in Egypt, but He will bring them on all who hate you.”*
A gust of wind swept through the camp, stirring the dust at their feet. The moment was sacred, the choice laid bare before them. Would they trust the Lord to fight for them? Would they remain faithful in the land of temptation?
Moses lifted his staff toward the promised land, his final words ringing with divine certainty: *”Do not be terrified by them, for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a great and awesome God. Little by little He will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land. He will deliver their kings into your hand, and you will wipe out their names from under heaven. No one will be able to stand against you.”*
As the sun dipped below the horizon, the people stood in silence, the weight of the covenant pressing upon them. The land ahead was both a promise and a test—would they walk in obedience and receive the blessing, or would they falter and face the curse?
The choice was theirs. The battle was the Lord’s.
