The Constitutional Convention of Canaan

Joshua read all the words of the law – the blessings and the curses – just as it is written in the Book of the Law. There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children, and the aliens who lived among them.

Joshua 8:34, 35

We recently read an article about alternative forms of worship. “Alternative” in this case means not just anti-traditional, but also non-biblical worship. Traditional Sunday worship is based on the objectivist position of the absolute authority of the Bible, whose truth is fixed and unchanging. But we live in a post-modern, post-Christian, multi-faith world governed by the worldview of evolution. Many modern women and men reject the traditional views of reality, morality, marriage, family, work, and worship, and, increasingly, these traditional views are being replaced by “alternative” ideas.

To attract people who reject biblical authority, alternative worship is now being offered even in evangelical churches. In such humanistic, anthropocentric worship services, everything is done to entertain the audience and make people feel good. These services offer coffee, live rock music, dialogue, dancing, meditation, and stand-up comedy routines by the minister. People are encouraged to come as they are, whether in T-shirts and flip-flops, or bathing suits. No one hears preaching on sin, repentance, justification or judgment, for everyone must feel loved, uplifted, and happy.

But we reject the evolutionary view of reality and its moral relativism. We believe the Bible is the very word of God, and that God’s authoritative word is the constitution of the church today, even as it was in the Old Testament. In fact, the first constitutional convention took place not in 1787 A. D., but around 1400 B.C., as recorded in Joshua 8:30-35.

The Constitutional Convention

Someone has said that the heart of the Old Testament is the book of Deuteronomy, and the heart of Deuteronomy is chapters 27 through 30. These chapters deal with the covenant Lord, the covenant people, and the covenant word that God’s people are to obey. Joshua 8:30-35 is a fulfillment of the commands the Lord gave in Deuteronomy 27 when he instructed the people of Israel through Moses what they should do when they crossed the Jordan River and entered the Promised Land.

Canaan was to be a theocracy in which the covenant Lord was to rule his people by his covenant word. The Lord told Joshua to inaugurate this theocratic kingdom with a constitutional convention in celebration of God’s law. Thus, we want to examine seven elements of this first constitutional convention.

1. The Participants

Who were the participants at this convention? Joshua 8 tells us: “All Israel, aliens and citizens alike, with their elders, officials and judges, were standing on both sides of the ark of the covenant of the Lord” (v. 33), and “There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel, including the women and children, and the aliens who lived among them” (v. 35). All the people of God in Israel attended – men, women, children, and the aliens who had submitted to the covenant Lord. No one was exempt from this gathering.

2. The Location

The location for the inauguration of the theocracy was prescribed in Deuteronomy 11 and 27. It was to take place near two barren mountains in central Canaan, Mount Ebal on the north and Mount Gerizim to the south. Mount Ebal was taller than Mount Gerizim by about two hundred feet. Between these mountains lay the Valley of Shechem, which was about five hundred yards wide. This formation of mountains and narrow valley resulted in a vast natural amphitheater with excellent acoustic qualities, so that what was spoken on one mountain could be heard clearly on the other mountain as well as on the valley floor.

This location is not without significance to the people of God. Abraham had built an altar to the Lord in the Valley of Shechem six hundred years earlier and offered sacrifices in response to a theophany in which the Lord promised him children and land (Genesis 12:6, 7). After returning from Mesopotamia with his family, Jacob bought a plot of land in Shechem for one hundred pieces of silver and built an altar, calling it El Elohe, the God of Israel (Genesis 33:18-20). It was in Shechem that Dinah, the daughter of Jacob by Leah, was defiled, provoking her brothers Simeon and Levi to kill the people of Shechem and take the spoils (Genesis 34). Jacob also dug a well in Shechem to which the Samaritan woman came centuries later to draw water (John 4:12). In the fourth century B. C. the Samaritans built a temple on Mount Gerizim, and they worship on Mount Gerizim even today. As a teenager, Joseph came to Shechem to look for his brothers (Genesis 37:14) and was later buried there (Joshua 24:32). The early church father Justin Martyr was also born near Shechem.

Joshua met with all the Israelites in Shechem, not only for the first constitutional convention of Joshua 8, but also for the last one, as recorded in Joshua 24.

3. The Law

The third element of this constitutional convention was the written word of God. The law of the covenant Lord was the constitution of God’s theocratic kingdom. Through Moses, the Lord instructed Joshua to write all the words of the law on whitewashed stone pillars that stood about six to eight feet high. So Joshua 8:32 says, “There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua copied on stones the law of Moses, which he had written.”

Not only did Joshua write the law on stone pillars for the people to read, but he also read it publicly to them. All the Israelites assembled at Shechem – thousands of men, women, children, and aliens – and listened as the entire word of the Lord was read aloud: “There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua did not read to the whole assembly of Israel” (v. 35).

What was the responsibility of the people in response to the reading of the law? They were to agree with it, just as they did in Exodus 24:7-8: “Then [Moses] took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, ‘We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.’ Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, ‘This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.'”

By God’s command, six tribes were to stand on Mount Gerizim and six on Mount Ebal. Reuben, Zebulun, Gad, Asher, Dan, and Naphtali pronounced twelve curses from Mount Ebal, as recorded in Deuteronomy 27:9-26. As the people said “Amen,” they were, in effect, saying, “We accept the constitution of this theocracy, and if we fail to obey it, may God’s curse fall on us.” Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin stood at Mount Gerizim, the mountain of blessing, probably reading the words we find in Deuteronomy 28:1-14. Again, the people said, “Amen” at the reading of each blessing, accepting the word of the covenant Lord and acknowledging that they would be blessed if they obeyed it. Then the people also promised to abide by the constitution Joshua revealed to them.

=This constitution differs from that of the United States of America in that the latter was written by human beings in Philadelphia in 1787, but God’s law comes to us straight from heaven. “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16). Second Peter 1:20 tells us, “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation.” The constitution of the United States was the interpretation of a group of men and had nothing to do with heavenly revelation. But God’s constitution is different. Verse 21 says, “For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

That is why we do not practice “alternative” worship in this church. When we come together, we declare God’s authoritative word, the constitution of God’s church, by which we must regulate all aspects of our lives.

4. The Altar

The Lord also instructed Joshua to build an altar at the base of Mount Ebal, the mountain of curse. This altar was to be built of undressed, natural fieldstones. What was the symbolism of these uncut stones? Dr. Francis Schaeffer commented that no human skill was to be used on these altar stones because the Lord detests any demonstration of humanism and human righteousness. When we gather to worship, we must get rid of our own philosophies and worldviews and accept the view of reality given in the Holy Scriptures.

Why was the altar of sacrifice at the foot of Mount Ebal instead of Mount Gerizim? Because all have violated God’s law and are under a curse. “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness” (Romans 1:18), and “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). This is true for all people, including the chosen people of God. Thus, we must first come to the foot of Mount Ebal as sinners and see the various stones on which God’s unchanging law is written. When we come to God’s law, we must acknowledge our sin and guilt. But where there is law, there is also grace. God who gave the law through Moses also gave Aaron as high priest to offer sacrifices for the sins of his people. And God who spoke the law also commanded that an altar of undressed stones be built at the foot of Ebal, the mountain of curse.

What is the purpose of this altar? It is an altar of sacrifice. We are sinners; therefore, we need a perfect substitute to be sacrificed in our place.

5. The Sacrifices

This passage mentions two kinds of sacrifices to be made on the altar of Ebal: “On it they offered to the Lord burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings” (v. 31). A burnt offering is a holocaust, a sacrifice of total consecration, while a fellowship offering is one in which the worshiper receives a portion of meat from the offering and has communion with God and his people.

A sinful, cursed people can have fellowship with God only through the sacrifice of a perfect substitute. Deuteronomy 27:26 says, “Cursed is the man who does not uphold the words of this law by carrying them out.” We are required to obey all the law perfectly all the time, but the truth is, we cannot. But thanks be to God, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (Galatians 3:13). Jesus Christ was crucified on a cross as the cursed one in our place. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

That is why we must all begin at Mount Ebal, the mountain of law, curse, and sacrifice. We must confess our sins and put our faith in Christ’s perfect sacrifice of reconciliation. And as we live in covenant faithfulness to the constitution given to us in God’s infallible, everlasting word, we will move toward the mountain of blessing. In Galatians 3:14 we read, “[Christ] redeemed us” – that is, from the curse of the law – “in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to [us] through Christ Jesus.”

The Samaritans refused this principle of total depravity and built their temple on Mount Gerizim, the mount of blessing, against the biblical injunction. (PGM) They did so because they were depending on their own self-righteousness. This was also the problem of the Jewish people. As they trusted in their self-righteousness, they were metaphorically building their altar on Mount Gerizim, though they literally sacrificed at the temple in Jerusalem.

Paul diagnoses this problem of self-righteousness in Romans 9:30-10:4:

What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the “stumbling stone.” As it is written: “See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

We see the same problem in the prayer of the Pharisee: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get” (Luke 18:11, 12). In effect, he was saying, “Lord, I thank you that I don’t need you”! But the publican prayed, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

6. The Ark of the Covenant

Not only was there the law and the altar for sacrifice, but there was also the ark of the covenant, carried by the priests and symbolizing the presence of God. In Matthew 28:20 our Lord Jesus Christ promised us, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” The Lord never leaves nor forsakes his people; he is always in their midst.

This knowledge of the presence of God can be frightening as well as encouraging. In Revelation 2 and 3 we read that the Lord is in the midst of his church, with eyes like blazing fire. Everything is laid bare in his presence. He is called the heart-knower, for he knows our very thoughts. We may be able to deceive others – our father or mother or pastor or friends – but we can never deceive God.

The Lord was in the midst of his people in the Old Testament, and the Lord is in the midst of his true church today. Jesus said, “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20). God is with us to bless all who obey him and to discipline those who disobey.

7. Jesus in Shechem

Not only did Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, and Joshua come to Shechem, but Jesus the Son of Abraham also went there by his Father’s express command and met a Samaritan woman by Jacob’s well (John 4). Like her forebears, this woman refused to recognize her sins. She worshiped at Mount Gerizim, not in Jerusalem, and would not acknowledge her violation of God’s constitutional law.

This woman came to the well to get water, but Jacob’s well could only give her water that would make her thirsty again. Jesus offered her the water of eternal life, which she desired to receive, but first she had to go to Mount Ebal, the mountain of curses, because that is where God’s law is found. In other words, this woman had to first acknowledge her sin and lost condition before she could be saved. Jesus refuses to save anyone who comes on the basis of one’s own righteousness, for Jesus saves only sinners.

Jesus told the woman to get her husband. This was a heart-searching demand by the heart-knower himself, and the woman correctly acknowledged that she had no husband. But that was not good enough. Jesus then exposed her whole life of sin: “You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband” (John 4:17-18). This is complete exposure by Christ. And as he saw through her heart and displayed her sin, she confessed and repented of her sins.

Then the woman went and told her fellow Shechemites, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” (v. 29). They came out and also confessed him as the Messiah and Savior of the world. There is no salvation without repentance. There is no salvation without Mount Ebal. As the Messiah, Jesus gave the woman and her neighbors full forgiveness and eternal life on the basis of his soon-to-come, supreme, substitutionary sacrifice on Mount Calvary.

In Jesus Christ, the Word of God came again to Shechem and brought salvation. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. He is the King of Israel, the covenant Lord, the mediator of the new covenant. He is the altar, the sacrifice, and the priest. He is the King of the kingdom of God, who rules his church by his fixed and unchanging word. The Constitution Today

The first constitutional convention at Shechem teaches us certain truths: The Lord is King of Israel; the Lord’s word is the constitution of Israel; Israel must acknowledge its sin and receive salvation by grace through faith in the gift of sacrifice; God’s covenant people must regulate all of their lives by the covenant word; if they love God, they will keep his commandments; and, their obedience results in blessing while their disobedience results in curse, a principle that remains valid until the end of time.

As people of God, we are still required to regulate our lives by his constitution. Covenant people delight in the law of their Lord, and as we obey it, we shall go from blessing to blessing.

But we must understand that the visible church is never pure; it is always a mixture: chaff is mixed with wheat and trash with treasure, the sinners of the world hate the saints of the kingdom, and the Ishmaels of the flesh always persecute the Isaacs of promise. But soon the Lord of the church shall come and separate the wheat from the chaff, the trash from the treasure, saints from sinners, and Isaacs from Ishmaels.

Jesus Christ is the Lord of the covenant, and the constitution of his church is the completed canon of Scripture, which we are not to add to nor subtract from. The sixty-six books of the Bible given to us by the inspiration of God is the infallible covenant word by which he rules. So Jesus tells us, “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock” (Matthew 7:24), and “If you love me, you will obey what I command” (John 14:15).

Who are the people of God’s covenant? Those who join themselves to the covenant Lord through repentance and faith. “If you confess with your mouth ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). So we must first look at the law and see our guilt. Then we must move to the altar and put our trust in the once-for-all perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ on Mount Calvary. As we do so, he will forgive our sins as he forgave the sins of the Samaritan woman. Since all have violated God’s law and are under a curse, the sacrifice of Christ is the only basis for our justification. “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). As the elect people of God, we will then be enabled by the Holy Spirit to obey the constitution of our Lord. We will delight in it, as we read in Psalm 119, for God’s law is liberating, not imprisoning.

Why should we obey the heavenly constitution? Because the principle of blessing and cursing is eternally valid, ending in heaven or hell. As the Spirit pleaded through Moses, he still pleads with us today: “I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life” (Deuteronomy 30:19). This is serious business. We cannot wish hell, judgment, or death away, for these things are decreed in God’s constitution. If there were no judgment, God would not be moral.

Jesus Christ is coming again. This time he will purge evil, and there will be a final excommunication of those who refuse to obey his constitution. Matthew 25:34 tells us, “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.'” But verse 41 says, “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” – and all who follow the devil. And verse 46 says, “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

Brothers and sisters, today I set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. May God’s Holy Spirit motivate you to begin at Mount Ebal so that you may conclude that you have violated God’s law and are under his wrath. Then look at the sacrifice at the altar of Mount Calvary. Christ became a curse in our place that we might become the righteousness of God. Trust in him and move from the mount of curses to the mount of blessing through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And if you profess to be a Christian but have been living a backslidden life, I exhort you to repent this very day. Look to Christ, who is in the midst of us to forgive, to heal, to comfort, to enlighten, and to empower. Amen.