1406 BC
After the death of Moses, Joshuaβhis faithful assistant and the son of Nun from the tribe of Ephraimβbecame the leader of Israel. God had promised Joshua, 'As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not fail you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success' (Joshua 1:3-8). Joshua's leadership marks the transition from the wilderness generation to the conquest of Canaan. The generation that had murmured and rebelled had died in the wilderness, and a new generationβunburdened by the memory of slaveryβstood ready to enter the Promised Land. Joshua's first act was to send two spies into Jericho, who were hidden by Rahab the harlot. Rahab's confession of faithβ'The Lord your God, he is God in heaven above and on earth beneath' (Joshua 2:11)βearned her and her family salvation when Jericho fell, and she would become an ancestor of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5). Key Scripture: Joshua 1-2; Hebrews 4:8; CCC 68-69