According to Challoner, why does the Lord command Josue to disable the horses and burn the chariots?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

Challoner says God orders this so his people will trust in him rather than horses and chariots. Scripture records the command before the battle at Merom and Josue’s actual obedience after the victory.

Chapter breakdown

Jabin, king of Asor, hears these things and sends to Jobab, king of Madon, and the kings of Semeron and Achsaph. He also sends to the northern kings in the mountains, the plains opposite Ceneroth’s south side, the levels and Dor’s regions by the sea; to Chanaanites east and west; to the Amorrhite, Hethite, Pherezite and Jebusite in the mountains; and to the Hevite at Hermon’s foot in Maspha’s land. They come with troops as numerous as the sand on the seashore and a great multitude of horses and chariots. All these kings gather at Merom’s waters to fight Israel.

The Lord tells Josue not to fear: tomorrow at this same hour he will deliver them all to be slain in Israel’s sight. Josue must hamstring their horses—disable them by cutting their leg tendons—and burn their chariots. Challoner’s separate note says God orders this so his people will trust in him rather than horses and chariots. Josue and all the army suddenly come upon them at Merom’s waters and attack. The Lord delivers them to Israel, which defeats and pursues them as far as great Sidon, Maserophot’s waters and the field of Masphe to the east. Josue kills them, leaving no remains, and obeys the command by hamstringing their horses and burning their chariots.

Josue immediately turns back, takes Asor and kills its king by the sword. Asor formerly headed all these kingdoms. He kills every soul dwelling there, leaves no remains, destroys all and burns the city itself. He takes, puts to the sword and destroys the surrounding cities and their kings as Moses, God’s servant, commanded. Verse 13 distinguishes the cities on hills and high places: except for them Israel burns the rest, and burns very strong Asor itself. Israel divides all the cities’ spoil and cattle among themselves while killing all the men. What the Lord commanded Moses, Moses commanded Josue, and Josue carries it all out, leaving no command undone.

Josue takes the hill country, south, Gosen’s land, plains, west country, Israel’s mountain and its plains. The extent includes part of the mountain going up to Seir as far as Baalgad by Libanus’s plain beneath Hermon; he takes, strikes and kills all their kings. He makes war against these kings a long time. Challoner’s separate note identifies seven years, referring to chapter 14:10. No city delivers itself to Israel except the Hevite in Gabaon; the rest are taken by fighting. The account says the Lord’s sentence is that their hearts be hardened, that they fight Israel, fall, receive no clemency and be destroyed as he commanded Moses. Challoner explains that hardening means having no thought of yielding or submitting, a judgment from God punishing their enormous crimes.

At that time Josue cuts off the Enacims from the mountains, from Hebron, Dabir and Anab, and from all Juda’s and Israel’s mountain country, destroying their cities. He leaves none of the Enacims’ stock in Israel’s land except in Gaza, Geth and Azotus, where alone they remain. Josue takes all the land as the Lord spoke to Moses and delivers it into Israel’s possession according to its divisions and tribes. The land rests from wars.

The story inside

Jabin sends to the named kings and peoples, who assemble troops, horses and chariots at Merom. The Lord’s assurance includes both timing and a command concerning that equipment. Josue’s sudden attack, the pursuit to named places and his obedience are recorded, with Challoner separately supplying the trust-in-God reason. Josue then destroys Asor and the surrounding kings and cities; the account preserves the distinction concerning burning hill cities and Asor and the division of spoil and cattle. It next gives the land’s extent, a long war, Gabaon’s exception and the judgment concerning resistance, with two more actual notes. The final removal of the Enacims retains three named places where they remain. The land is given in possession by divisions and tribes and rests from wars.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The command about military equipment is actually carried out. Josue must hamstring the horses and burn the chariots, and verse 9 says he does both. Challoner attributes the reason to trust in God rather than that equipment.
2
The account’s exceptions must remain visible. Verse 13 distinguishes hill and high-place cities in its account of burning, while Asor is burned. Gabaon alone delivers itself to Israel, and Enacims remain in Gaza, Geth and Azotus.
3
The duration and hardening explanations belong to Challoner. Scripture says the war lasts a long time; the note says seven years and cites 14:10. The note explains hardened hearts as no thought of yielding or submitting, not an invented account of repentance or later generations.

Test your recall

What reason does Challoner give for the command about horses and chariots, and where does the account record Josue carrying it out?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 23495–23517
Josue Chapter 11 The kings of the north are overthrown: the whole country is taken. 11:1. And when Jabin king of Asor had heard these things, he sent to Jobab king of Madon, and to the king of Semeron, and to the king of Achsaph: 11:2. And to the kings of the north, that dwelt in the mountains and in the plains over against the south side of Ceneroth, and in the levels and the countries of Dor by the sea side: 11:3. To the Chanaanites also on the east and on the west, and the Amorrhite, and the Hethite, and the Pherezite, and the Jebusite in the mountains: to the Hevite also who dwelt at the foot of Hermon in the land of Maspha. 11:4. And they all came out with their troops, a people exceeding numerous as the sand that is on the sea shore, their horses also and chariots a very great multitude, 11:5. And all these kings assembled together at the waters of Merom, to fight against Israel.
Lines 23519–23537
11:6. And the Lord said to Josue: Fear them not: for to morrow at this same hour I will deliver all these to be slain in the sight of Israel: thou shalt hamstring their horses, and thou shalt burn their chariots with fire. Hamstring their horses, and burn their chariots with fire, etc.... God so ordained, that his people might not trust in chariots and horses, but in him. 11:7. And Josue came, and all the army with him, against them to the waters of Merom on a sudden, and fell upon them. 11:8. And the Lord delivered them into the hands of Israel. And they defeated them, and chased them as far as the great Sidon and the waters of Maserophot, and the field of Masphe, which is on the east thereof. He slew them all, so as to leave no remains of them: 11:9. And he did as the Lord had commanded him, he hamstringed their horses and burned their chariots.
Lines 23539–23559
11:10. And presently turning back he took Asor: and slew the king thereof with the sword. Now Asor of old was the head of all these kingdoms. 11:11. And he cut off all the souls that abode there: he left not in it any remains, but utterly destroyed all, and burned the city itself with fire. 11:12. And he took and put to the sword and destroyed all the cities round about, and their kings, as Moses the servant of God had commanded him. 11:13. Except the cities that were on hills and high places, the rest Israel burned: only Asor that was very strong he consumed with fire. 11:14. And the children of Israel divided among themselves all the spoil of these cities and the cattle, killing all the men. 11:15. As the Lord had commanded Moses his servant, so did Moses command Josue, and he accomplished all: he left not one thing undone of all the commandments which the Lord had commanded Moses.
Lines 23561–23584
11:16. So Josue took all the country of the hills, and of the south, and the land of Gosen, and the plains and the west country, and the mountain of Israel, and the plains thereof: 11:17. And part of the mountain that goeth up to Seir as far as Baalgad, by the plain of Libanus under mount Hermon: all their kings he took, smote and slew. 11:18. Josue made war a long time against these kings. A long time.... Seven years, as appears from chap. 14.10. 11:19. There was not a city that delivered itself to the children of Israel, except the Hevite, who dwelt in Gabaon: for he took all by fight. 11:20. For it was the sentence of the Lord, that their hearts should be hardened, and they should fight against Israel, and fall, and should not deserve any clemency, and should be destroyed as the Lord had commanded Moses. Hardened.... This hardening of their hearts, was their having no thought of yielding or submitting: which was a sentence or judgment of God upon them in punishment of their enormous crimes.
Lines 23586–23598
11:21. At that time Josue came and cut off the Enacims from the mountains, from Hebron, and Dabir, and Anab, and from all the mountain of Juda and Israel, and destroyed their cities. 11:22. He left not any of the stock of the Enacims, in the land of the children of Israel: except the cities of Gaza, and Geth, and Azotus, in which alone they were left. 11:23. So Josue took all the land, as the Lord spoke to Moses, and delivered it in possession to the children of Israel, according to their divisions and tribes. And the land rested from wars.