Joshua 9:3-15
(3) And when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai, (4) They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up; (5) And old shoes and clouted upon their feet, and old garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and mouldy. (6) And they went to Joshua unto the camp at Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel, We be come from a far country: now therefore make ye a league with us. (7) And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell among us; and how shall we make a league with you? (8) And they said unto Joshua, We are thy servants. And Joshua said unto them, Who are ye? and from whence come ye? (9) And they said unto him, From a very far country thy servants are come because of the name of the LORD thy God: for we have heard the fame of him, and all that he did in Egypt, (10) And all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, which was at Ashtaroth. (11) Wherefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take victuals with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them, We are your servants: therefore now make ye a league with us. (12) This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you; but now, behold, it is dry, and it is mouldy: (13) And these bottles of wine, which we filled, were new; and, behold, they be rent: and these our garments and our shoes are become old by reason of the very long journey. (14) And the men took of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD. (15) And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.
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Though in a subservient position, the Gibeonites could still influence God's people, and their gods eventually ensnared the Israelites. Through deception, Joshua's exception to God's command to drive out the Canaanites set a precedent that allowed other pagan peoples to co-exist within Israel, ultimately leading to her downfall.
In all these events, a tension exists between God's sovereignty and man's choice, between God's will and "free will." Within the Christian zeitgeist floats an idea that because God is sovereign, everything that takes place must be His will—that if He wanted something different, He would have caused that other course instead.
Indeed, God is sovereign over all, and He does guide events according to His purpose. However, not everything happens because God has willedit, especially where sin is involved. We must differentiate between what God allows—a great deal!—and what He truly intends, desires, and enjoys. He has allowed countless sins that He could have prevented, yet Scripture rarely shows Him preventing someone from sinning or acting foolishly. He clearly does not intend or take pleasure in sin, but He allows it. He says to choose life—that is His will—but allows us to choose death (Deuteronomy 30:15-20).
The events relating to the Gibeonites show that God allows matters that do not please Him to play out. Though they are not what He intends, He will still bring about His purpose despite them. We must be careful about ascribing human behavior—especially human sin—to God, concluding that it must be God's will, or it would be different.
As we know, the ends do not justify the means. When it comes to doing God's will, how we do things can be just as important as what we accomplish. Cain concluded that one offering was as good as another, but God rejected it. Nadab and Abihu thought any fire would work for God's altar, and they died instantly and shockingly. How we do things determines whether God accepts the result—whether it is truly what He desires and pleases Him or whether He forebears as He does with countless other acts. How we act affects what we produce.
— David C. Grabbe
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