Joshua 10:13

Hebrew Bible

11 As they fled from Israel on the slope leading down from Beth Horon, the Lord threw down on them large hailstones from the sky, all the way to Azekah. They died—in fact, more died from the hailstones than the Israelites killed with the sword. 12 The day the Lord delivered the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua prayed to the Lord before Israel: “O sun, stand still over Gibeon; O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon!” 13 The sun stood still and the moon stood motionless while the nation took vengeance on its enemies. The event is recorded in the Scroll of the Upright One. The sun stood motionless in the middle of the sky and did not set for about a full day. 14 There has not been a day like it before or since. The Lord listened to a human being, for the Lord fought for Israel! 15 Then Joshua and all Israel returned to the camp at Gilgal.

Habakkuk 3:11

Hebrew Bible

9 Your bow is ready for action; you commission your arrows. Selah. You cause flash floods on the earth’s surface. 10 When the mountains see you, they shake. The torrential downpour sweeps through. The great deep shouts out; it lifts its hands high. 11 The sun and moon stand still in their courses; the flash of your arrows drives them away, the bright light of your lightning-quick spear. 12 You furiously stomp on the earth; you angrily trample down the nations. 13 You march out to deliver your people, to deliver your special servant. You strike the leader of the wicked nation, laying him open from the lower body to the neck. Selah.

 Notes and References

"... In the cosmic arena, Yahweh is depicted as the one who musters the heavenly army (Isaiah 13:4). As the 'host of the heights' (Isaiah 24:21), the celestial bodies are depicted as the heavenly corps under the command of Yahweh. This 'host of heaven' is conceived as the creation of Yahweh, the members of which constitute his heavenly army (Isaiah 40:26; 45:12; Psalm 33:6; 103:21; 148:2; Genesis 2:1; Sirach 17:32; 24:2; 43:8). Indeed, the sun, moon, and stars may be depicted as composing this heavenly retinue (Joshua 10:12–13; Judges 5:20; Habakkuk 3:11; Daniel 8:10). While preparing for the conquest of Jericho, Joshua encountered his heavenly counterpart, 'the commander of the army of Yahweh', who appeared in the guise of a warrior to deliver a message prior to the conquest of the land (Joshua 5:14–15; see also Daniel 8:11). In this function, the members of this heavenly army might be conceived as angels, i.e., 'messengers of Yahweh. In Psalm 103:20-21 Yahweh's messengers, the mighty warriors, are included among his host, his ministers who do his will. When Jacob encounters the 'messengers of God', he responds by calling them 'the army of God', providing an etiology for the place name Mahanaim (Genesis 32:2–3) ..."

Freedman, David Noel The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (pp. 3721-3722) Yale University Press, 2008

 User Comments

Do you have questions or comments about these texts? Please submit them here.