Joshua 1:8
This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
Spoken to Joshua as the new commander after the death of Moses to lead Israel into the promised land with the assurance that God would be with him, the verse commands that the book of the law shall not depart from his mouth but remain continually in speech and thought through day-and-night meditation and study in order to know God's will and observe to do all that is written, turning neither to the right hand nor to the left, with strength and great courage and without fear because the Lord is with him wherever he goes. The book is the directions, requirements, reproofs and restrictions of God faithfully recorded in the books written by Moses, and to meditate means not to read hastily but to keep the Word with you, fix texts in memory, take one verse and concentrate the mind with prayer for the Holy Spirit until its thought and relation to the plan of salvation become clear and one's own. Careful obedience with strictest integrity makes the way prosperous with good success and victory, as fulfilled in Joshua's victories, because prosperity comes from making God the counselor and guide, asking wisdom daily from the Source of all wisdom and using first the sword of the Spirit while still being active in the work given to do. It forbids moving unadvisedly by trusting personal impulses and finite human wisdom and by making man the guide or setting aside God's counsel for one's own methods, especially under accumulated cares and strong misleading influences against righteousness, for dependence on God amid all cares was the secret of Joshua's victory. The same command keeps God's law continually before the mind to guide choices and conduct, giving parents a daily guide to keep it before their children as the great moral standard woven into every part of life, and requiring counselors to be unselfish people of faith and prayer who will not dare rely on their own wisdom but earnestly seek light from God.
Words and Setting
God spoke these words to Joshua as the new commander and general after the death of Moses, appointing him to lead Israel into the promised land and to divide it for an inheritance as sworn to their fathers. With the charge came the promise to be with him as with Moses and to give Israel the land. Faithful observance of all the commandments would make the conquest of Canaan easy, and this assurance removed Joshua's fear about leading Israel. His success in leading Israel and conquering Canaan depended on faithfully observing God's requirements, with God guiding him as He had guided Moses.
A place of connection with God's people in His work, such as Joshua acting alongside Moses, comes only by God's own appointment, made known by God's own instruction to His appointed leader.
The book of the law is the directions, requirements, reproofs, and restrictions of God faithfully recorded in the books written by Moses. Those words were spoken to Moses and came from Christ present in the pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night.
The command is that the book of the law shall not depart out of the mouth, but remain continually in speech and thought through day-and-night meditation, study, diligent searching, and sacred cherishing. Its purpose is to know God's will and to observe to do according to all that is written therein, turning from it neither to the right hand nor to the left. This obedience calls for strength and great courage, without fear or dismay, because the Lord God is with him whithersoever he goes. The law is thus to be kept continually before the mind to guide obedience, belonging to a wider practice of keeping it in remembrance and teaching it to the people.
The charge was given in mercy because Joshua as the new general faced real danger from strong misleading influences against righteous principles and commitment to righteousness. Those influences threatened to turn him aside from strict integrity, so God repeatedly charged him to be strong and very courageous and not to fear.
The charge to Joshua is the same as David's charge to Solomon to keep the law and prosper.
Obedience Brings Prosperity
Careful obedience with strictest integrity brings prosperity whithersoever one goes, making the way prosperous with good success and victory. The condition is that the book of the law commanded through Moses shall not depart out of the mouth but be meditated in day and night in order to observe to do according to all that is written therein, turning not from it to the right hand or to the left. Strength and great courage are required for such observance, with the assurance not to be afraid nor dismayed because the Lord God is with him whithersoever he goes. This was God's injunction to Joshua added to the promise to be with him and to give Israel the land, and the same charge as David's charge to Solomon to keep the law and prosper. The promise was fulfilled in Joshua's victories just before passing over Jordan.
Prosperity, success, and victory come from making God the counselor and guide and depending on Him, and this dependence amid all cares was the secret of Joshua's victory. Those with large responsibilities must walk in the path God marks out with a Counsellor whose wisdom is far above human wisdom, using first the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. Victory comes by asking for wisdom daily from the Source of all wisdom, while still being active in the work God gives every person to do. Joshua diligently searched the books, sacredly cherished everything that came from Christ enshrouded by the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, and meditated upon the words spoken to Moses in order to know God's will and observe to do it.
The command forbids moving unadvisedly by trusting personal impulses and finite and human wisdom, especially under accumulated cares and responsibilities like those of Joshua as commander of Israel. It forbids making man the guide instead of making God the guide. Depending on the counsel of God's Word continually meditated on and obeyed is to guide choices and conduct toward faithful obedience, while setting it aside for one's own wisdom and methods leaves a person acting in ways displeasing to God. Joshua was afraid to trust his own impulses, finite wisdom, and human wisdom.
Study and Daily Life
God's law and Word are to be kept continually before the mind through day-and-night meditation, remaining in speech and thought so that everything written in it is obeyed in choices and conduct. This keeping in mind belongs to a wider practice of keeping the law in remembrance and teaching it to the people, and it gives parents a daily guide to keep the law before their children's minds as the great moral standard woven into every part of life. Faithful attention and obedience to all that the law teaches is the way to a prosperous way and good success, requiring strict integrity, refusal to turn to the right hand or to the left, reliance on God as guide and counselor rather than on one's own wisdom and methods, and courage in the face of real danger from strong misleading influences against righteous principles and commitment to righteousness.
To meditate day and night means to keep the Bible with you, read it whenever there is opportunity, fix texts in memory, and study and cherish the Word in the heart rather than merely reading it hastily as other books are read. It means to take one verse and concentrate the mind upon it with mental effort and prayer for the aid of the Holy Spirit to ascertain the thought God has put there for the reader, dwelling on that thought until it becomes one's own and one knows what the Lord says. That dwelling is to continue during ordinary activities, even using moments such as walking the streets to read a passage and meditate upon it and fix it in mind, until its significance is clear and its relation to the plan of salvation is evident. One passage so studied until it is understood and remembered is of more value than many chapters read with no definite purpose and no positive instruction gained, for mere hurried reading is not enough.
Suitable time for study and meditation is important, for without it the mind cannot be as fruitful in the Word. Continual meditation on God and His character brings a clearer sense of His beauty, goodness, and love, uplifts the heart, and enables greater understanding and accomplishment through the power and light He gives.
The same command means that those holding positions as counselors must be unselfish people of faith and prayer who will not dare rely on their own wisdom but will earnestly seek light and intelligence from God about the best manner of conducting their business. Quoting this passage and related verses does not make a person's application of them true, for Scripture can be wrested to support a human message that it does not actually teach, as when the passage was misapplied as proof that one person had been appointed to Moses' position and another to Joshua's.