Joshua 1:8

• This Book of the Law (Hebrew torah, meaning "instruction") probably refers to the book of Deuteronomy (see Deuteronomy 4:44; 29:21; 30:10; 31:9–12). It includes Israel’s foundational law codes and God’s moral and spiritual instruction.

• God commanded Joshua to think about and speak God’s instruction day and night. This command means that Joshua was to focus on it continually (compare Deuteronomy 6:6–7; 17:18–20).

For emphasis, God told Joshua three times that he would need to be strong and courageous in order to be successful against the Canaanites. There were a lot more Canaanites than Israelites at the time.

The people also needed to obey all the instructions Moses had given them so they could:

• settle the land,

• establish farms with successful production, and

• build homes, villages, and cities.

The land belongs to God, as does the whole earth (Psalm 24:1). God brought Israel into Canaan as tenants, not as owners (Leviticus 25:23).

God confirmed Joshua as Israel's leader and the man to succeed Moses. God promised Abraham that those descended from him would possess the land of Canaan (Genesis 12:7; 15:7; 17:8). God repeated this promise to Moses (Exodus 3:6–8; 13:3–5; Deuteronomy 1:6–8; 6:10–19). Now, God was ready to fulfill this promise through Joshua.

Joshua led the army of Israel's first people who settled in the land God promised to give Israel. Joshua had victories against two Canaanite groups. First, he won battles in the south and then in the north. This allowed access to the hill country for settlement by the Israelites.