Why was Hoshea’s name changed to Joshua?
When this question was asked of a group of clergymen, no one could answer. In fact no one knew who Hoshea was! Yet this question has great significance for the modern church.
A few clues were given.
Hoshea was an Ephraimite.
Moses knew him.
It sounds as though he had no father!
He was one of the leaders of the twelve tribes who were sent to explore the land of Canaan.
He was one of the two spies who did not die of the plague.
It was only then that some realised that Hoshea was the old name of Joshua, the son of Nun.
“Moses gave Hoshea son of Nun the name Joshua.” (Numbers 13 v. 16)
But why is this so exciting and relevant? The answer comes in the meaning of these names. Hoshea was born in Egypt, probably into a leading family of the tribe of Ephraim. The name may well have expressed the longing of his family and people to be delivered from slavery, for it means, perhaps wistfully, ‘Saviour’. After the escape from Egypt he became one of the leaders of the Israelites. It is very likely that Moses recognised that Hoshea would become the future leader of Israel when the land of Canaan was conquered.
The fickle children of Israel were known to have a weakness. They tended to forget that the Lord was in control and that it was he who would achieve his goals for his people. No wonder that Moses was not enthusiastic about the idea of the future leader being called ‘Saviour’. There was a real risk that Hoshea would get the glory and not God. His name was changed to Joshua, which means, ‘The Lord Saves’.
The lesson is clear. When the Israelites conquered the land, the credit must go to the Lord, not to the human leader of his people. Joshua certainly understood the significance of this. After the twelve spies returned from their 40 day exploration, ten of them were very pessimistic. They only looked at themselves and their own abilities.
“ ‘We can’t attack these people; they are stronger than we are.’ And they spread a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, ‘The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim . . . . We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.’ ” (Numbers 13 v. 31 - 33)
Contrast this with the way Caleb and Joshua thought.
“If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into the land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and (he) will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. (Numbers 14 v. 7 –9)
It is the Lord who saves. It is surely no coincidence that Joshua is the same word as Jesus. We sinners cannot save ourselves – The Lord saves. The victory is the Lord’s.
Many Christians are daunted by what seems to be the overwhelming opposition to the gospel today. The prospect of going in to conquer a land for Christ is not a war many relish. Yet our Lord tells us to trust him. As we obey Christ he will bring the victory. As we ‘spread the word’, he applies it to people’s hearts. There are many in our churches that have found their efforts at sharing the gospel to have been ineffective and demoralising. They haven’t ‘saved anyone’ so they stop trying. They stop talking about Jesus to non Christians, as if they are ashamed of Jesus (see Luke 9 v. 26) and the gospel (see Romans 1 v. 16). They moan about the church instead! Little changes - “All the Israelites grumbled” (Numbers 14 v. 2).
Surely this is why Hoshea’s name was changed to Joshua.
