Outline of Joshua

Outline

The book of Joshua divides logically in the middle, with the first half focusing on Israel’s conquest of the land of Canaan and the second half on the distribution of the conquered territories among the Israelite tribes. Better, however, is an analysis of the book as four sections, each characterized by a key Hebrew word. The sound similarities between the Hebrew words yield the following pattern:

{abar Cross the Jordan into the land (chs. 1–5)
laqakh Take the land (chs. 6–12)
khalaq Divide the land (chs. 13–21)
{abad Serve the Lord in the land (chs. 22–24)

I. Crossing into the Land (1:1–5:15)

A. Joshua’s charge (1:1–18)


B. Joshua, the spies, and Rahab (2:1–24)

C. Crossing the Jordan (3:1–4:24)

D. Ritual renewal and divine encounter (5:1–15)

II. Taking the Land (6:1–12:24)

A. Jericho’s fall: firstfruits of war (6:1–27)

B. Israel’s failure: Achan’s sin; corporate guilt (7:1–26)

C. Israel’s renewal: Ai’s defeat (8:1–35)

D. Israel’s Canaanite covenant: the Gibeonite ruse (9:1–27)

E. Defense of Gibeon, conquest of the south (10:1–43)

F. Conquest of the north and a list of defeated kings (11:1–12:24)

III. Dividing the Land (13:1–21:45)

A. It’s yours, now take it! (13:1–33)

B. Western territories (14:1–19:51)

C. A land of justice and worship (20:1–21:45)

IV. Serving the Lord in the Land (22:1–24:33)

A. One nation, under God (22:1–34)

B. Joshua’s charge to Israel’s leaders (23:1–16)

C. Covenant renewal at Shechem (24:1–33)