Daily Lesson for March 24, 2020

Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Joshua chapter 15 verse 63:

“But the people of Judah could not drive out the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem; so the Jebusites live with the people of Judah in Jerusalem to this day.”

The great preacher of Riverside Church in New York City Harry Emerson Fosdick once said, “Nobody comes to church dying to know what happened to the Jebusites.”

Probably nobody reading this is dying to know that either. But I’m going to tell you regardless.

The Jebusites were the ancient people who lived in Jerusalem before the Israelites entered the Promised Land. As the whole of the land was parceled out, the tribe of Judah was given  ancient Jerusalem. But they, unlike most of the other tribes of Israel, were unable to vanquish and drive out the former inhabitants — the Jebusites. So, instead the two made peace.

That’s right; Jerusalem has been split as a city from the very beginning. And, apparently, the tribe of Judah made peace with that fact.

There is a time for war and a time for peace. And there are times for sheer acceptance. So the Jebusites live among us — so what?  Isn’t it better to live together in a thriving city than alone in a destroyed one?

So what happened to the Jebusites? Maybe, in the end, they became our neighbors and even friends.


A Prayer:

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Amen.”

NOTE: We’re reading the whole Bible through this year. Tomorrow’s Lesson comes from Joshua chapters 16-18.