Our next references to Bethel comes in the early part of the Book of Judges. The Israelite people are entering into the Promised Land to take possession of it. The tribes of Joseph, specifically Ephraim, were to gain possession of part of Bethel. Judges 1:22-26 tells us:
We had seen earlier that when the Israelites had attacked the city of Ai that the men of Bethel had joined the army of Ai in the battle, only to be destroyed. While Ai was destroyed as part of this battle, Bethel was not, and so Ephraim had to conquer the city.
The story tells us that a man from Bethel shows them how to get into the city, and so the army attacks and destroys all the occupants with the exception of this man and his family. The interesting part of the tale comes from the fact that spies had been sent to observe the city and had seen the man that they would ask for help. We have no idea what inspired the spies to focus on this man, but here we see a corrected version of what should have happened thirty-eight years earlier.
You may remember that after the Israelite people had left Egypt and went to Mount Sinai, that God then led them to the Promised Land where they were to take possession of it. They sent out twelve spies to search out the land, but when the spies returned ten of them gave a report that scared the Israelite people from attacking. As a result, God punished them by not allowing that generation to enter into the Promised Land. In Deuteronomy 1:19-39 Moses is retelling the story to the people before they enter to battle and claim their land.
19 Then, as the LORD our God commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites through all that vast and dreadful desert that you have seen, and so we reached Kadesh Barnea. 20 Then I said to you, "You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. 21 See, the LORD your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the LORD, the God of your fathers, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
22 Then all of you came to me and said, "Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to."
23 The idea seemed good to me; so I selected twelve of you, one man from each tribe. 24 They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and explored it. 25 Taking with them some of the fruit of the land, they brought it down to us and reported, "It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us."
26 But you were unwilling to go up; you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God. 27 You grumbled in your tents and said, "The LORD hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. 28 Where can we go? Our brothers have made us lose heart. They say, 'The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky. We even saw the Anakites there.' "
29 Then I said to you, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. 30 The LORD your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, 31 and in the desert. There you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."
32 In spite of this, you did not trust in the LORD your God, 33 who went ahead of you on your journey, in fire by night and in a cloud by day, to search out places for you to camp and to show you the way you should go.
34 When the LORD heard what you said, he was angry and solemnly swore: 35 "Not a man of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your forefathers, 36 except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land he set his feet on, because he followed the LORD wholeheartedly."
37 Because of you the LORD became angry with me also and said, "You shall not enter it, either. 38 But your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will enter it. Encourage him, because he will lead Israel to inherit it. 39 And the little ones that you said would be taken captive, your children who do not yet know good from bad—they will enter the land. I will give it to them and they will take possession of it.
They were intended to take possession at that point, but the spies had the people so fearful that they could not garner enough courage to fight the Caananite people.
We then come thirty-eight years later, and again spies are sent out. They are sent out to view the “House of God” and to find a way to advance into the city. These spies find a way to able to conquer the city and ensure victory. We do not know why they choose this man, but something about him must have made them believe that they could trust him. It makes me wonder if the spies earlier could not have found the same kind of people who would be willing to assist the Israelite people in their invasion in exchange for their safety. It seems that they were too afraid to even try and thus the Promised Land would have to wait.
I like how God often gives us a “do over” where we can correct a situation that we didn't get right the first time. While the circumstances may not be the same, and He did not move us back in time, we get a chance to correct something we did wrong before.
We are told that the man who helped them left with his family and moved to the land of the Hittites where he built a new city of Luz. I think this tells us a lot about what happens to those who take the “house of God” in an illegal way, and then are later expelled. The Pharisees would be an example. They believe that they are God's people and thus have the right to His Kingdom. This is true of many of the denominations today. They have usurped Christ's throne and have made their churches according to their individual beliefs, not being true to God's authority.
It will be when Christ returns as Joseph that He will set forth the truth that He is in control and that He is the rightful “heir” to the House of God. He will remove the denominational system, and send them out. He will attack the House of God (the churches), and take back what is promised to Him. This will probably mean that He will use some who are in the denomination to tell Him how best to conquer the denomination so as to remove that system.
