“So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and all the fighting force with him, all the mighty warriors. The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have handed them over to you; not one of them shall stand before you.” So Joshua came upon them suddenly, having marched up all night from Gilgal. And the Lord threw them into a panic before Israel, who inflicted a great slaughter on them at Gibeon, chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon, and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah. As they fled before Israel, while they were going down the slope of Beth-horon, the Lord threw down huge stones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died; there were more who died because of the hailstones than the Israelites killed with the sword. On the day when the Lord gave the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua spoke to the Lord; and he said in the sight of Israel, “Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the valley of Aijalon.” And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in midheaven, and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. There has been no day like it before or since, when the Lord heeded a human voice; for the Lord fought for Israel.”  Joshua 10:7-14

{Scene: A break room. Coworker #1 pulls out a bottle of vitamins.

Coworker #2: What’s that?

Coworker #1: Vitamin D.

Coworker #2: Why do you take that?

Coworker #1: Because we live in Ohio, and we never see the sun.

Coworker #2: Wait a minute … they make a vitamin that gives you a tan?} (Sally Churley, Cortland, Ohio)

The sun stood still. Did you know there are historical documents that speak evidence to this extraordinary event? Read on:

“It is reported by historians that records of the Chinese during the reign of Emperor Yeo, who lived at the same time as Joshua, report ‘a long day.’ Also, Heroditus, a Greek historian, wrote that an account of ‘a long day’ appears in records of Egyptian priests. Others cite records of Mexicans of the sun standing still for an entire day in a year denoted as ‘Seven Rabits,’ which is the same year in which Joshua defeated the Philistines and conquered Palestine.” (Bible-Science Newsletter, Daily Reading Magazine, Supplement, Vol. VIII, No. 5, May 1978, Caldwell, Idaho.)

So, why is this important? It is as important as if they had found a pill that gives you tan. In a world where there is the continual effort to find historical proof for biblical stories, to know that other cultures report something that corroborates the account of Joshua 10 does not confirm my faith – in fact it proves nothing to me. My faith does not need any proof, for if my faith needed proof, then it would not be faith, Amen? No, the story of Joshua and the reports from Heroditus and the account known as “Seven Rabits” just puts a smile on my face – for G-d is amazing – period – end of story. And maybe one day they will make a pill that will give me a tan – but that will require proof.

Pastor Dave