The punishment of Achan and his household
This is the third straight week that our neighbor has mowed our front lawn without our having asked him to. The lawn hadn’t even gotten very scraggly.
It’s kind of him, but it’s making me nervous.
I’ve begun taking Samuel to the library for longish periods – something I only can do if Karin is with Daniel. (I couldn’t attend to Daniel and let Samuel loose in a public place; he’d get into trouble.) The main attraction of the library, for Samuel, is the huge variety of crayons and markers in the children’s play area. There are some cool toys there, too, but Samuel colors the whole while.
The attraction, for me, is that going to the library uses up a little more of Samuel’s day. I’ll say it again. A lot of parenting is just running out the clock.
Our pastor has been preaching through the book of Joshua. This week’s sermon was about Achan’s sin and how he and his household were punished for it. Why were Achan’s sons, daughters, oxen, donkeys, and sheep put to death along with Achan? Because they knew about the sin and didn’t do anything about it, said the pastor. They, too, were responsible. I’ve been told this quite a few times, but I can’t accept it. Achan’s sons and daughters may have been complicit in his sin. But his oxen, donkeys, and sheep? Naaaaah. Well, one might say, they’re just livestock; they don’t matter. But animals do matter, at least according to the last verse of the book of Jonah. They matter very much, and they’re blameless, yet they’re liable to be destroyed. Also, why do the Israelites bother to burn up Achan’s tents? Apparently, some sort of literal or symbolic cleansing is taking place; and if this is true concerning Achan’s household within Israel, why shouldn’t it also be true of the destruction of non-Israelites – and of beasts, tents, garments, and other goods – during the wars of conquest? But the idea of large-scale violent purging doesn’t sit well with us twenty-first century folk. Which is good; but it makes Joshua hard for us to understand.
It’s kind of him, but it’s making me nervous.
I’ve begun taking Samuel to the library for longish periods – something I only can do if Karin is with Daniel. (I couldn’t attend to Daniel and let Samuel loose in a public place; he’d get into trouble.) The main attraction of the library, for Samuel, is the huge variety of crayons and markers in the children’s play area. There are some cool toys there, too, but Samuel colors the whole while.
The attraction, for me, is that going to the library uses up a little more of Samuel’s day. I’ll say it again. A lot of parenting is just running out the clock.
Our pastor has been preaching through the book of Joshua. This week’s sermon was about Achan’s sin and how he and his household were punished for it. Why were Achan’s sons, daughters, oxen, donkeys, and sheep put to death along with Achan? Because they knew about the sin and didn’t do anything about it, said the pastor. They, too, were responsible. I’ve been told this quite a few times, but I can’t accept it. Achan’s sons and daughters may have been complicit in his sin. But his oxen, donkeys, and sheep? Naaaaah. Well, one might say, they’re just livestock; they don’t matter. But animals do matter, at least according to the last verse of the book of Jonah. They matter very much, and they’re blameless, yet they’re liable to be destroyed. Also, why do the Israelites bother to burn up Achan’s tents? Apparently, some sort of literal or symbolic cleansing is taking place; and if this is true concerning Achan’s household within Israel, why shouldn’t it also be true of the destruction of non-Israelites – and of beasts, tents, garments, and other goods – during the wars of conquest? But the idea of large-scale violent purging doesn’t sit well with us twenty-first century folk. Which is good; but it makes Joshua hard for us to understand.
