Difficulties can be disorienting, especially for people who are accustomed to success. That’s what many of us Americans are going through now. We expect our doctors and scientists to come up with cures for every disease. We expect our governments to be able to manage the economy and the environment to keep us safe and prosperous. So when we face difficulties our leaders can’t handle, we don’t really know what to do.

The people of Joseph, the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, came to Joshua with a similar frustration. Although all of chapters 16 and 17 listed all the land that had been allotted to them, they still wanted more. And why? Because they found the hill country too difficult to clear, and they were afraid to move into the lowlands because the Canaanites who lived there had horses and chariots, the most powerful weapons on the battlefield of the day. In the face of these overwhelming problems, they were looking for another way, an easy way out.

So, what did Joshua tell them? Instead of seeking a way around their problems, he said they should face them head-on. They should go up into the hill country and clear the forest. They should drive out the Canaanites, in spite of the iron chariots they rode into battle. In the same way, there’s no getting around this invisible enemy we all face. Our doctors and political leaders can’t just make it go away. We have to face it. We have to fight it, no matter how helpless it makes us feel.

So, what weapons can we wield? Well, in verse 17, Joshua reminded the Ephraimites and the Manassites that they were in fact a numerous, powerful people. In other words, he encouraged them to use the gifts they had, their strength and numbers, to face their problems. In the same way, we can use our knowledge of science. We can practice personal hygiene and social distancing, avoiding unnecessary trips and working from home. No matter how scared we are, there are things we can do. And doing those things will make a difference for us and for our loved ones.

But how can we be so sure we’ll win this fight? Well, how could Joshua be so confident that the people of Joseph would in fact be able to conquer the land allotted to them? Because in Joshua 13:6 God had made a promise regarding all the unbelieving people of the land: “I myself will drive them out from before the people of Israel.” The land was thus allotted to each tribe on the basis of God’s promise, even though it was up to each tribe to do the best it could to take up its inheritance.

And the same thing is true for all who trust in Christ, no matter how overwhelming our problems may seem. We must do the best we can, using all the skill and all the effort we have. But at the same time, we must rely completely on God for the results, seeking His face in prayer and trusting in His promises of salvation and blessing. For we can be sure that the God Who gave His only Son to save us will give us everything we need (Romans 8:32).

Joshua 17:14-18 (ESV)

14 Then the people of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, “Why have you given me but one lot and one portion as an inheritance, although I am a numerous people, since all along the LORD has blessed me?” 15 And Joshua said to them, “If you are a numerous people, go up by yourselves to the forest, and there clear ground for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you.” 16 The people of Joseph said, “The hill country is not enough for us. Yet all the Canaanites who dwell in the plain have chariots of iron, both those in Beth-shean and its villages and those in the Valley of Jezreel.” 17 Then Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, “You are a numerous people and have great power. You shall not have one allotment only, 18 but the hill country shall be yours, for though it is a forest, you shall clear it and possess it to its farthest borders. For you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have chariots of iron, and though they are strong.”