---

Makkedah

Joshua 10:28 On that day Joshua took Makkedah, and struck it and its king with the edge of the sword. He utterly destroyed them; all the people who were in it. He let none remain. He also did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho.

When you read such a verse you might think to yourself: "Oh, how cruel Joshua is, how cruel God is that He allows something like that to happen." And then to top it all: "Why is something so terrible written in a book?" There are things which we firstly only understand when we take a closer look, rather than just briefly skimming over them. God wants the following generations to learn from it and also wants to show us all something.

The different people living in Canaan at that time were so bad that God killed them. They sacrificed their children on the altars of their idols; human life had no meaning for them. It was not the first time that God brought judgment upon mankind, as a result of being so evil beyond all hope. The people at the time of Noah, Sodom and Gomorrah, the Egyptians, and also the scripture verse mentioned here, are examples of how God deals with people who do not want to be told what to do by Him. The place "Makkedah" means "crooked ways". God desires that every individual would walk upon His path and forsake his own "crooked ways".

Jesus says "I am the way, the truth, and the life", John 14:6. Without Him, not one single person has (eternal) life. It is necessary that every individual goes this way - God's way, if he wants to save his or her soul. Religion is unable to help him or her in this case. Only Jesus is the saviour. Everything which hinders us to walk this straight way should immediately be eliminated out of lives. Sometimes it is necessary to use force, and sometimes it is easy, but whatever - it needs to be done. It is essential that we understand that God is a holy God. And this holy God wants His people to be free from the slavery of sin and the spirit of this world. I.Peter 1:15-16: "But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. rw