Impact - Day 4

Day 4 – Second Fiddle

Exodus 17:8-13
While the people of Israel were still at Rephidim, the warriors of Amalek attacked them. Moses commanded Joshua, “Choose some men to go out and fight the army of Amalek for us. Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill, holding the staff of God in my hand.”

So Joshua did what Moses had commanded and fought the army of Amalek. Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron, and Hur climbed to the top of a nearby hill. As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand, the Israelites had the advantage. But whenever he dropped his hand, the Amalekites gained the advantage. Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up. So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands. So his hands held steady until sunset. As a result, Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek in battle.

Our first exposure to Joshua comes from the battle with the Amalekites told in Exodus 17. This extraordinary story would read very differently if limited to the first and last verses:

Moses commanded Joshua, “Go out and fight the army of Amalek for us.” So Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek in battle.

Joshua is the clear hero. He holds the main stage. Surely, songs will be written about him. The only problem is the middle verses, where the results aren’t attributed to Joshua’s courage or leadership insight. Instead, everything depends on Moses’ arm strength. Joshua seems less crucial than Aaron and Hur, who hold Moses’ hands.

Side note: Once, as a chaplain at a high school, I supervised a basketball team warm-up. The players were doing stretching drills and calisthenics while my four-year-old daughter watched. Several players were facing a wall, jumping and tapping the wall as high as they could in quick repetition, when she turned to me and asked, “Daddy, what are they doing?” I explained it was an exercise designed to work on their jumping and to give them the stamina to keep their hands up on defense. She quickly responded, “Well, it would have been good for Moses to do this exercise. Then he wouldn’t have needed those men to hold his hands up.”

The Children of Israel revered Moses (at least, when they weren’t complaining to him or wanting him dead). Like a football quarterback, he received the credit or the blame for everything that happened. This made it hard for Joshua to emerge as a viable leadership candidate. He was on the JV team, back in the shadows, the water boy, second fiddle.

It reminds me of high school class officer elections where a student is voted class president, not because of work ethic or visionary ideas. More likely, they are elected for being popular among the student body. In the meantime, a deserving student in the vice president position (or with no elected position) picks up the slack and does the hard work with little or no recognition.

This is Joshua’s status in the closing days of Moses’ life as the multitude of Hebrews hovers over the Jordan River, longing to cross into what God has promised. They don’t know it yet, but God’s answer to their needs will shortly come off the bench from the third-string lineup. Another bold admission that God often prefers to use the lesser things.

1. Do you prefer to work behind the scenes or from the front? Why do you think that is?
2. Is there a portion of your life where you feel someone else keeps getting credit for your hard work? How do you react when this happens?
3. What new and potentially uncomfortable role(s) do you hear God asking you to consider? What is your response?