Monday, October 31, 2011
Monday, October 24, 2011
Sun Still Stands
They say that history repeats itself. Except sometimes it does not. Take, for example, the story of Joshua's campaign into southern Canaan. Perhaps you know it as the Day the Sun Stood Still.
There was no day like that before it or after it, when the LORD listened to the voice of a man; for the LORD fought for Israel.
Joshua 10:14
When my rabbit trail doubled back to cross paths with this story twice in the same week, I figured it was time to do some investigating on my own. I will share my discoveries, but first, here is a copy of the scripture form Joshua Chapter 10, verse numbers indicated:
9 ... Joshua came upon them suddenly, having marched up all night from Gilgal. 10 And the Lord threw them into a panic before Israel, who struck them with a great blow at Gibeon and chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon and struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 And as they fled before Israel, while they were going down the ascent of Beth-horon, the Lord threw down large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died. There were more who died because of the hailstones than the sons of Israel killed with the sword.
12 At that time Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord gave the Amorites over to the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel,
“Sun, stand still at Gibeon,
and moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.”
13 And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped,
until the nation took vengeance on their enemies.
Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. 14 There has been no day like it before or since, when the Lord obeyed the voice of a man, for the Lord fought for Israel.
First off, notice that there is no mention of "running out of daylight." I had been taught that as a child, but that claim is never made. At best, it has to be deduced from the word "until," but when interpreted literally, there is no indication that Joshua was desperate for more time.
Next up. we need a map. This is courtesy a nice little (free) program called biblemapper.com North is straight up.
Notice the sun at Gibeon. The moon is over the Vale of Aijalon to the west. The only times that you can simultaneously see the moon in the west and the sun in the east are the first few mornings after a full moon. If the sun is to the east, it is still morning. If the army of Israel had pursued the enemy to Beth Horon, and if they see the sun to the east over Gibeon and the moon to the west over Aijalon, then Joshua was not yet running out of daytime. (Was he, perhaps, planning ahead?)
Curiously, it is the Book of Jasher that makes the direct claim that the day was declining. These are the pertinent verses from the Book of Jasher, chapter 88:
60. And the Lord confounded them before the children at Israel, who smote them with a terrible slaughter in Gibeon, and pursued them along the way that goes up to Beth Horon unto Makkedah, and they fled from before the children of Israel.
61. And whilst they were fleeing, the Lord sent upon them hailstones from heaven, and more of them died by the hailstones, than by the slaughter of the children of Israel.
62. And the children of Israel pursued them, and they still smote them in the road, going on and smiting them.
63. And when they were smiting, the day was declining toward evening, and Joshua said in the sight of all the people, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon, and thou moon in the valley of Ajalon, until the nation shall have revenged itself upon its enemies.
64. And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Joshua, and the sun stood still in the midst of the heavens, and it stood still six and thirty moments, and the moon also stood still and hastened not to go down a whole day.
65. And there was no day like that, before it or after it, that the Lord hearkened to the voice of a man, for the Lord fought for Israel.
Another rather silly thing I was told as a child was that the earth stopped rotating. Forget the physics involved; I do not even want to go there! It is silly on a solely theological basis: Verse 14 said God listened to the voice of a man. The man never asked for the earth to stop, only the sun and moon.
If it were a global rather than a local miracle, Chinese, Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations were sufficiently developed at this time that if they had noticed a long day, it would likely have made their record books. In the Americas, where the Aztecs are known for their observation of the skies, there should be corresponding records or legends of a long night. It is also possible that the standing still of the sun and moon were limited to local observation around Beth Horon, and the reasoning for that possibility is linked to the hailstorm.
At least in the English translation, it seems that the hailstorm was occurring concurrently. For hail to be that deadly, it is likely that a combination of strong updrafts increased its size, and strong downdrafts increased the velocity of its fall. There were definitely some atmospheric peculiarities occurring at a fairly high altitude that day. True, hailstorms are usually short-lived, and neither lightning nor auroras look like the sun standing still, but it was a miracle, after all.
At the end of the day, a very long day, we are left with the inexplicable. The key point is God's choice of control: he listened and provided a completely unique answer.
My rabbit trail came upon this subject because my pastor has read the book Sun Stand Still by Steven Furtick. It is a book that pumps up one's audacity to pray for big things. When the pastor was giving his sermon on this, the Walter Mitty in me wanted to stand up and scream out, "You know that God getting the sun to obey him isn't very daring, don't you? Of course His sun, moon, and clouds will do what they are told! The truly bold prayers are prayed by people who ask God to change the wicked, because the wicked rarely listen to God by free choice."
There was no day like that before it or after it, when the LORD listened to the voice of a man; for the LORD fought for Israel.
Joshua 10:14
When my rabbit trail doubled back to cross paths with this story twice in the same week, I figured it was time to do some investigating on my own. I will share my discoveries, but first, here is a copy of the scripture form Joshua Chapter 10, verse numbers indicated:
9 ... Joshua came upon them suddenly, having marched up all night from Gilgal. 10 And the Lord threw them into a panic before Israel, who struck them with a great blow at Gibeon and chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon and struck them as far as Azekah and Makkedah. 11 And as they fled before Israel, while they were going down the ascent of Beth-horon, the Lord threw down large stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died. There were more who died because of the hailstones than the sons of Israel killed with the sword.
12 At that time Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord gave the Amorites over to the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel,
“Sun, stand still at Gibeon,
and moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.”
13 And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped,
until the nation took vengeance on their enemies.
Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. 14 There has been no day like it before or since, when the Lord obeyed the voice of a man, for the Lord fought for Israel.
First off, notice that there is no mention of "running out of daylight." I had been taught that as a child, but that claim is never made. At best, it has to be deduced from the word "until," but when interpreted literally, there is no indication that Joshua was desperate for more time.
Next up. we need a map. This is courtesy a nice little (free) program called biblemapper.com North is straight up.
Notice the sun at Gibeon. The moon is over the Vale of Aijalon to the west. The only times that you can simultaneously see the moon in the west and the sun in the east are the first few mornings after a full moon. If the sun is to the east, it is still morning. If the army of Israel had pursued the enemy to Beth Horon, and if they see the sun to the east over Gibeon and the moon to the west over Aijalon, then Joshua was not yet running out of daytime. (Was he, perhaps, planning ahead?)
Curiously, it is the Book of Jasher that makes the direct claim that the day was declining. These are the pertinent verses from the Book of Jasher, chapter 88:
60. And the Lord confounded them before the children at Israel, who smote them with a terrible slaughter in Gibeon, and pursued them along the way that goes up to Beth Horon unto Makkedah, and they fled from before the children of Israel.
61. And whilst they were fleeing, the Lord sent upon them hailstones from heaven, and more of them died by the hailstones, than by the slaughter of the children of Israel.
62. And the children of Israel pursued them, and they still smote them in the road, going on and smiting them.
63. And when they were smiting, the day was declining toward evening, and Joshua said in the sight of all the people, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon, and thou moon in the valley of Ajalon, until the nation shall have revenged itself upon its enemies.
64. And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Joshua, and the sun stood still in the midst of the heavens, and it stood still six and thirty moments, and the moon also stood still and hastened not to go down a whole day.
65. And there was no day like that, before it or after it, that the Lord hearkened to the voice of a man, for the Lord fought for Israel.
Another rather silly thing I was told as a child was that the earth stopped rotating. Forget the physics involved; I do not even want to go there! It is silly on a solely theological basis: Verse 14 said God listened to the voice of a man. The man never asked for the earth to stop, only the sun and moon.
If it were a global rather than a local miracle, Chinese, Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations were sufficiently developed at this time that if they had noticed a long day, it would likely have made their record books. In the Americas, where the Aztecs are known for their observation of the skies, there should be corresponding records or legends of a long night. It is also possible that the standing still of the sun and moon were limited to local observation around Beth Horon, and the reasoning for that possibility is linked to the hailstorm.
At least in the English translation, it seems that the hailstorm was occurring concurrently. For hail to be that deadly, it is likely that a combination of strong updrafts increased its size, and strong downdrafts increased the velocity of its fall. There were definitely some atmospheric peculiarities occurring at a fairly high altitude that day. True, hailstorms are usually short-lived, and neither lightning nor auroras look like the sun standing still, but it was a miracle, after all.
At the end of the day, a very long day, we are left with the inexplicable. The key point is God's choice of control: he listened and provided a completely unique answer.
My rabbit trail came upon this subject because my pastor has read the book Sun Stand Still by Steven Furtick. It is a book that pumps up one's audacity to pray for big things. When the pastor was giving his sermon on this, the Walter Mitty in me wanted to stand up and scream out, "You know that God getting the sun to obey him isn't very daring, don't you? Of course His sun, moon, and clouds will do what they are told! The truly bold prayers are prayed by people who ask God to change the wicked, because the wicked rarely listen to God by free choice."
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