Joshua 22: Judging Without Prejudice and Preserving Unity

Introduction

“Today I am going to preach on a subject of which we are all guilty, even the best of us: prejudice.” By prejudice, the preacher of the Église Réformée Évangélique de Toulouse means judging or condemning a person or a group of people without knowing all the facts.

He admits to his own reflexes. When he heard about the demonstrations of the past few weeks, his first reaction was not to think of people seeking justice, but of blocked roads. And when he reads the Old Testament, he often expects the people of Israel to “do whatever they want.” Even before preparing this message, he had a prejudice against Israel.

Yet the passage of Joshua 22:10-34 shows a people who reacted well. An altar built beside the Jordan comes close to triggering a civil war, and the crisis ends in reconciliation. The preacher finds in it a way of handling accusations, in both directions, without prejudice.

Message Outline

1. An Altar That Threatens the Unity of Israel

The book of Joshua tells how God kept his promise by giving the promised land. After the death of Moses, Joshua leads the people to conquer the cities and divide the territories. In the first 21 chapters, God shows his faithfulness by giving Israel victory and rest.
The tribes of Reuben and Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh received their territory east of the Jordan. They had promised Moses to fight alongside their brothers until the rest of the land was conquered. They kept their word, and Joshua sends them home, urging them to stay faithful to God.
On their way back, they build near the Jordan an altar “great to look at” (verse 10). The whole assembly of Israel then gathers at Shiloh to go up and make war on them (verse 12).
The preacher's question: how can the building of an altar lead someone to say it deserves war?

2. Why the Western Tribes Reacted So Strongly

The nine and a half tribes of the west knew God's law well. Deuteronomy 13 asks, when a town turns to other gods, to inquire, investigate, and question carefully, and then, if the fact is established, to strike it. “It wasn't a personal thing,” the preacher stresses: they were not acting out of a sense of superiority, but because God had commanded it.
They did not rush into battle. Phinehas, accompanied by representatives of the other tribes, is sent to check whether what was heard is true.
They also remember Israel's past sins. In verse 17, the crime of Peor (Numbers 25): the people had followed other gods and a plague had struck them. In verse 20, the story of Achan, son of Zerah (Joshua 7): one man's sin had brought God's anger on the whole assembly, because Israel was not a sum of individuals but one people. These events were recent, and everyone knew them.
They do not stop at accusing; they offer a solution: if your land seems unclean to you, come and settle among us. They were ready to give up a large part of their own territory. “It was not a small sacrifice, but a great sacrifice,” because honoring God and preserving unity mattered more.

3. The Response of the Eastern Tribes

The eastern tribes do not take offense. They do not accuse their brothers of being too zealous or of exaggerating.
They begin by calling on God with three titles repeated twice: “The Mighty One, God, Yahweh” (verse 22). Not to appear spiritual, but to reassure their brothers: we serve only the true God, we have not abandoned him.
They acknowledge the seriousness of the accusation: if it were a rebellion, they would not deserve to be spared.
Then they explain their motivation: concern for the generations to come. They feared that one day the descendants of the west would say to theirs: “What have you to do with Yahweh, the God of Israel?” The altar was not meant for burnt offerings or sacrifices. It was a replica of the altar of Yahweh, a witness that east and west form one people.
The answer satisfies the western tribes, who recognize the wisdom of their brothers. The altar receives its name: it is a witness that Yahweh is God (verse 34).

4. When We Accuse: Lessons From the Western Tribes

Discussions about sensitive topics rarely take place with kindness, tact, and grace. “As Christians, we are not innocent of that.” Social media and the news media amplify the phenomenon: a person can be publicly torn down before the whole truth comes out.
Our perception is shaped by algorithms, by our background (for him, being American), and by our prejudices. About the same demonstrations, some saw images of violence, others saw high school students cleaning up after the march. How can we deliver justice without falling into a “witch hunt,” where people are condemned before the facts are established?
Take sin seriously. An accusation must not be played down. We can care for victims and comfort them, without drawing a hasty conclusion, because we do not have all the information.
Check the facts and let the person explain. We need to look for more information, through respected and trustworthy people. “We are not here to protect criminals,” but to know what really happened. Also avoid the “you always do that”: it is better to cite one or two recent, specific examples.
Explain the consequences. The western tribes pointed out that the sin was directed against God and affected the whole people. The goal is not to make everything about ourselves, but to help the other person understand the scope of their actions.
Be ready to sacrifice and propose a solution. For him this is the hardest part, because it asks more of the one who accuses. He gives an example that he presents as hypothetical: a person in the church who starts living with a boyfriend or girlfriend for lack of money to afford a place alone. Rather than attacking, we can host one of the two, help them find a roommate, or help them financially. “It also asks us, as a Church, to make sacrifices in order to love and help others.”

5. When We Are Accused: Lessons From the Eastern Tribes

Entrust your defense to God. The eastern tribes, though innocent, humbly placed their defense in the hands of Yahweh. “Even if you have the best possible defense, you must always ask for God's help,” because he is the one who changes other people's hearts.
Receive the reproach with humility. They did not answer “it's none of your business” or “calm down, you're overreacting.” They understood that their brothers were caring for them. We too, before getting defensive, should seek to understand the reasoning of the one who accuses us, without attributing to them any motive other than love.
Explain with heart and with reason. They gave both their emotional and their logical reasons, told how the idea had come to them, and showed how it would prevent problems in the future. If you have acted rightly, explain your position clearly without fearing you will not be believed: God is our judge, and you can trust him.

6. A Witness for the Church and the Path of Forgiveness

When we think a person is in sin, our reaction should not be to shame or destroy them. Nor should it be indifference, “because it concerns us, because we are one people in Christ.”
Taking the situation seriously, giving a chance to explain, proposing a solution: this is not an act of judgment or pride, it is caring for one another. The nine and a half tribes were ready to lose part of their territory to keep their brothers from drifting away from God.
A right reaction brings us together as a Church and itself becomes an altar of witness, a testimony to the glory of God for those on the outside.
If you are the one in the wrong, turn humbly to God and ask for his grace. Take your sin seriously, without trying to justify your reasoning in order to downplay its gravity. If possible, ask forgiveness from those you have hurt and be reconciled with them.
Forgiveness costs. Jesus forgave us all our sins, and it cost him his own life on the cross. On that cruel cross, he begged the Father to forgive those who had nailed him there (Luke 23:34). To honor Jesus Christ, we can in turn forgive and love our brothers and sisters.

Key Takeaways

No one escapes prejudice: judging without knowing all the facts is a reflex that the Bible teaches us to correct.
Faced with a presumed sin, we must take it seriously, check the facts, let the person explain, and propose a solution, even at the cost of a sacrifice.
When accused, we entrust our defense to God, receive the reproach with humility, and explain ourselves with heart and with reason.
A Church that goes through its conflicts this way becomes a witness, like the altar by the Jordan, that Yahweh is God.
We can forgive because Jesus forgave us, at the cost of his life.

Personal Application

What situation or person have you recently judged before knowing all the facts, under the influence of social media or your own background?
When someone close to you seems to be going astray, are you more tempted to overwhelm them or to tell yourself “it's not my concern”?
What concrete sacrifice would you be ready to make to help a brother or sister stay faithful to God?
The last time someone reproached you, did you try to understand the other person's concern before defending yourself?
Is there someone you need to ask forgiveness from this week?

Verses Cited

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did the altar built near the Jordan nearly cause a war?

The western tribes knew the law of Deuteronomy 13: a town that turns to other gods must be judged, after a careful investigation. They also remembered the sin of Peor and that of Achan, which had brought God's anger on the whole people. An altar in addition to the altar of Yahweh looked like a rebellion against God.

How should we react when we hear that a brother or sister may have sinned?

The preacher draws four attitudes from the western tribes: take sin seriously without jumping to conclusions, check the facts and let the person explain, explain the consequences of their actions, and propose a solution, even if it means making sacrifices yourself.

What should you do when you are falsely accused?

Like the eastern tribes, you entrust your defense to God, receive the reproach with humility by recognizing the other person's concern, then explain your position with both heart and reason. If you are in the wrong, you must take your sin seriously, ask forgiveness, and seek reconciliation.