Meeting the Divine

Joshua 5:13-15

¹³When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” ¹⁴And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” ¹⁵And the commander of the Lord’s army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.

In three brief verses, we find one of Joshua’s most extraordinary experiences; he meets the pre-incarnate Christ face to face. As Joshua scopes out the situation in Jericho with his own eyes, probably located somewhere near the city wall, he encounters a self-proclaimed “Commander of the army of the Lord”. Joshua doesn’t appear to be frightened, but instead curious and, I think, rather brave. He doesn’t run in fear or cower. Instead he engages ‘the man’ in conversation. Because this person looks like a soldier, Joshua wants to know whose side He’s on and questions Him rather boldly. The Commander’s answer is “No.” I believe this is in reference to the second half of Joshua’s question, “… are you for our adversaries?”

Joshua does what any of us would do in the presence of Almighty God; he falls to the ground and worships this Commander. Now we have our first clue as to who this might be, and the second clue follows. Joshua is instructed to remove his sandals, for the ground upon which he stands is holy. We have seen this before as Moses meets with God for the first time. He too is commanded to remove his sandals when he arrives at the burning bush, for he is in the presence of Holy God. We also know that this is God and not simply an angel (and I know that saying “simply an angel” seems like an oxymoron) because He allows Joshua to worship Him. Angels throughout the rest of Scripture do not allow themselves to be worshiped.

There are numerous occasions in the Old Testament where the pre-incarnate Christ comes into the scene in the form of a man. Those are called Christophanies or Theophanies. We this event in the life of Jacob when he wrestles with “A Man” on the bank of a river; Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace; Gideon threshing grain in the wine press, to name only a few. God is deeply and personally involved with His people from start to finish. As Joshua stands on the brink of claiming the inheritance God had promised His people, Jesus Himself come and instructs him. That Savior whom we read about as Commander of the Armies of Heaven now stands before His human commander to grant him strength and encouragement for the battles ahead.

Theophanies are not something we read about in the New Testament very much. Jesus does appear to Paul in the road to Damascus, resulting in his conversion, and John receives visions that include the Ascended and enthroned Christ. But we now have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and thus the need for Theophanies has perhaps passed. The next time we see Jesus face-to-face will be upon our death or His return, whichever comes first. Come quickly, Lord Jesus.