Joshua

JOSHUA 10: 12-14- “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.”
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.  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.”

Just recently, my husband sat reading this amazing story to my children.   Christiananswers.net   summarizes it this way.   “In Joshua 10, the Bible tells the story of the day when the sun–and time–stopped. The Israelites were fighting the Amorites in Canaan. During the battle, Joshua prayed for the sun and moon to stop, so he would have extra daylight to finish the task. Scripture records that this prayer was answered: The sun “delayed going down about a full day” (v. 13). The very objects in the sky that the Amorites worshipped fought against them!”

As I read the story, I could envision this brave warrior asking for the sun and moon to stop, and the colors of this colorway were born. Christian answers goes on to say,

“Several modern interpretations of the story have been suggested:

• Some say there was no actual miracle, but only the use of poetic language. The Israelites had fought so hard that it just seemed like two days of work in a row!
• Others propose that a cloud shaded the sun, keeping the day cool enough for the fighting to continue all through the afternoon. However, this relief from the heat would have benefited the enemy as much as Israel.
• Similarly, a solar eclipse has been suggested as causing reduced sunlight. But eclipses of the sun last for only a few minutes, not a whole day.

All of these explanations fall far short of the statement that there has never been another day like the one described (Joshua 10:14, cf. Habbakuk 3:11 – “…Sun and moon stood still in the heavens…”).

What really happened on that special day? As with all miracles, it is futile to speculate with scientific theories. The details are unclear, but we know that God could have refracted the light, or slowed the earth’s rotation, or stopped the entire universe–all with equal ease!

Time stopped for Joshua, and it ran backwards for Hezekiah (2 Kings 20:9-11).

God used this event as a special sign to show Hezekiah that he would regain his health. The sun’s shadow moved backwards by ten steps, probably five to six hours on the sundial. That is, the sun appeared to move eastward instead of westward. The conclusion is again the same, that such a miracle is beyond scientific explanation.

God may have temporarily reversed the earth’s rotation, including all its inhabitants, or the miracle in Hezekiah’s day could have been local instead of worldwide. The latter view is supported by 2 Chronicles 32:31, which describes envoys who traveled to the land where the miracle occurred.

Joshua and Hezekiah both made lofty requests of the Lord, that the very heavens might be altered. And God answered their prayers. The sun, moon, and stars obey the Creator who placed them in the sky by the power of his word.”

I also found an article that NASA may have found that “missing” day.  It is an interesting and though provoking read.  Regardless of the conclusions you may draw, I do know that God’s word says it is true, and I choose to believe it.

Psalm 119:160 – “All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal.”