1389 BC
Joshua, the faithful successor of Moses, died at the age of 110 after leading the conquest and division of the Promised Land among the twelve tribes of Israel. Joshua's leadership completed what Moses had begunβthe deliverance of Israel from bondage and their establishment as a nation in the land God had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. His bones were buried at Timnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash (Joshua 24:30).
Before his death, Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel at Shechem for a final covenant renewal. He reviewed the history of God's faithfulnessβfrom Abraham to the conquestβand then made a stirring declaration: 'But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord' (Joshua 24:15). The people responded that they too would serve the Lord, and Joshua set up a great stone under the terebinth tree near the sanctuary of the Lord as a witness to their covenant.
The Catholic Church sees in Joshua a type of Christ. The Hebrew name Joshua (Yehoshua) is the same as the Hebrew name Jesus (Yeshua). Just as Joshua led the people into the Promised Land, so Jesus leads His people into the true Promised Landβthe kingdom of heaven. The author of Hebrews writes that the Israelites 'did not enter [the rest] because of unbelief,' but Christ provides the true rest (Hebrews 4:8-11). Key Scripture: Joshua 24; Hebrews 4:8-11; Acts 13:20; CCC 68