Facing this repeated error - arrogance, really - on the part of people, Moses gave a stern lecture to the Israelites as they were about to enter the Promised Land. He wanted them to be clear about why they were going to occupy or possess this land:
After Yahweh your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, “Yahweh has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness.” No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that Yahweh is going to drive them out before you. It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of these nations, Yahweh your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that Yahweh your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiffnecked people.
To make sure that that the people understood what Moses was trying to say, Joshua, who led after the death of Moses, reminded the people of this fact, and gave more details. Joshua was speaking around 1406 B.C., but cited events that happened prior to 1446 B.C.:
Joshua said to all the people, “This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your ancestors, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods.’”
Joshua is directing the people’s attention to the starting-point of their history: the beginning of the Heilsgeschichte, the beginning of salvation history. Abraham was called by God to be a foundation of the redemption process, not because Abraham was so righteous, but because God wanted to display His ability to defeat sin, death, and the devil.
Around 2091 B.C., God chose Abraham to be the head of tribe. This tribe, through a long and complex history, would become a nation. That nation would host the Messiah.
God chose Abraham to launch the process by which the Messiah would arrive. It was not because of Abraham’s righteousness that God chose him. Abraham lived in the city of Ur, east of the Euphrates, a part of the Babylonian region. It may be difficult to reconstruct exactly which belief system Abraham held prior to God’s call. But we can say with certainty that Ur was a civilization thoroughly steeped in polytheistic paganism, featuring gruesome human sacrifices.
In any case, Joshua informs us that Abraham’s father, Terah, worshipped idols.
When God rescued the people from slavery and brought them out of Egypt, around 1446 B.C., it was not because they had been so faithful and righteous. During the 400 years of the their time in that country, they had also worshipped idols. Joshua says,
“Now fear Yahweh and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve Yahweh.”
What is the impact of these texts 3,000 years later? We are reminded that we do not have our blessings - our material possessions, our spiritual faith, or our personal relationships - because we’re such nice people.
We are sinners. We are doubly sinful: once because we’re born with a corrupt nature, and twice because we commit our own sins.
But God gives us things far nicer than we deserve. The only reasonable option we have is to thank Him. We can sometimes do that by praising Him, and sometimes by serving our fellow human. It is comforting to know that we are getting better than what we’ve earned!
