Grace Notes - Resolving Disputes April 2002

Grace Notes April 2002

Disputes within churches and between churches arise depressingly often. Some go on for years and cause great damage. Sometimes no attempt is even made at reconciliation and the attempts that are made seem to succeed only rarely. Any fool can start a quarrel (Proverbs 20:3) but it takes heavenly wisdom to resolve one.

The God who wants us to live at peace with one another has made available the wisdom that we need to deal with disputes. Perhaps it is not to the historical sections of the Old Testament that we would naturally turn to find a model for resolving disputes - yet we find in Joshua 22 exactly that. A potentially damaging dispute amongst the people of Israel was averted. More than that, the resolving of the conflict brought greater understanding and peace than before.

 The wars of conquest under Joshua were all but over. The land of promise had finally been possessed. The tribes of Reuben, Gad and half the tribe of Manasseh had been allocated territory to the east of the river Jordan on condition that before possessing it they would fight for their fellow tribes to ensure they could take possession of their land to the west of the Jordan. The famous admonition Be sure your sin will find you out (Numbers 32:23) is directed by Moses to the two and a half tribes in the event that they failed in their duty to their brothers.

 We can trace five steps in the resolving of the dispute: 

1. The initial ‘offence’ (v10) On their way back to their territory, with Joshua’s charge to hold fast to the LORD (v5) still ringing in their ears, the two and a half tribes stopped to build an altar to the LORD beside the river. It was a great, impressive altar (v10). But God had expressly forbidden the offering of sacrifices in any place other than the one he would choose (Deuteronomy 12:4-14). Later in Israel’s history kings were judged according to whether they had put away not only the worship of false gods but also the worship of the true God in unauthorised places. 2. Over-reaction (vv11-20)

There was one LORD and one altar of the LORD. The action of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh in building another altar was seen therefore as treachery. It looked like man-made worship, the beginning of apostasy. The news of the ‘rival’ altar built by the two and a half tribes was brought to the main body of Israel by a third party, who emphasised (perhaps in a rather alarmist tone) that the altar was sited on the west side of the Jordan. The people promptly mass at Shiloh to prepare for battle. But crucially they first take the step of sending a delegation of the ten leaders of the tribes, with Phinehas, son of Eleazar the priest, at their head. It’s always good to talk. ‘Jaw, jaw, jaw is better than war, war, war’, as Churchill famously observed. We should make it a rule always to check our assumptions before engaging in ‘battle’ especially if, as in Joshua 22, we have no direct knowledge of the situation. The western delegation goes on its mission falsely assuming that they were dealing with an act of wilful rebellion against the LORD. Such an act would expose the whole of Israel to swift judgement from the LORD. They charge the two and a half tribes accordingly (v16). It was an understandable reaction, motivated by godly zeal.

 3. Explanation by the accused side (vv22-29)

The two and a half tribes faced with the (unjustified) allegations being made against them do not react angrily. There is no need to because the allegations were untrue! There is no indignation, resentment, wriggling, evasion, or obfuscating. With a clear conscience they calmly appeal to God. ‘If our act has been one of treachery against God and his people, we are willing to suffer punishment.’ They proceed to give a convincing explanation for their actions: in fact the altar they had built was not intended to be used for offerings and sacrifices at all. They wanted it to be a memorial for future generations to testify that the tribes of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh to the east of the Jordan were just as much part of Israel as the tribes who had their land on the west. The altar was meant to be a replica; not because they wanted to set up rival worship but precisely because they too worshipped of the LORD and wanted future generations to know that. The Jordan was a considerable barrier and could lead descendants of the tribes on the western side of the divide to question whether the two and a half tribes on the other side were really part of genuine Israel. 4. Readily accepting the explanation offered (v30)

The western delegation accepted the two and a half tribes’ explanation at face value and did not question the truthfulness of the account they were given. In fact, Phinehas and the others were pleased to have their mistaken view corrected! So many disputes are prolonged because the ‘offended’ party will not accept that the behaviour or words in question are capable of being interpreted in any way other than that in which they have understood them. This is pride and it has to be mortified for any dispute to be settled. The whole people, hearing the delegates’ report, were pleased and praised God for the successful resolution. Talk of war quickly evaporated (v33). 5. Recognising the hand of God in the matter (v31)

This day we perceive that the LORD is among us…After the demanding effort and patience required in the peace-making process, there is palpable relief on both sides. Here the LORD bestowed a precious blessing (compare Psalm 133). Perhaps a New Testament parallel is to be found in the Jerusalem assembly, where delegations representing both sides in a potentially disastrous dispute, having reached a consensus, were able to say, It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us (Acts 15:28). Joshua 22 reminds us that peace-making is worth the effort!

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