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“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
— Joshua 1:9 (NIV)
This verse is not a suggestion. It is not a motivational slogan. It is a commandment from the mouth of God to a man standing on the brink of conflict, pressure, and spiritual responsibility. The song you’ve given simply sings back what God has already spoken. That is one of the most powerful forms of worship: singing the Word of God.
The central theme is this:
God never calls His people to a task without also giving them the grace, the authority, and the presence required to fulfill it. His command, “Be strong and courageous,” is always joined to His promise, “for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
We will see that this strength and courage are not based on human personality, temperament, or self-confidence. They are rooted in God’s presence and God’s Word, and they are essential for spiritual warfare, spiritual leadership, and daily Christian living.
Let us look at what the Word of God says.
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The context of Joshua 1 is one of transition, testing, and warfare.
### 2.1 The Situation
Moses, the great leader of Israel, has died (Joshua 1:1–2). For forty years, Moses had been the visible, prophetic, and spiritual authority over the nation. The people knew Moses. They had seen the Red Sea parted through him. They had received the Law through him. Now Moses is gone.
Into that gap, God speaks to Joshua, the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant. Joshua had been a military leader (Exodus 17:8–13), a faithful spy (Numbers 14:6–9), and a servant to Moses. But now God is not calling Joshua to be a helper. He is calling him to lead a nation into the Promised Land and into battle.
Joshua stands on the east side of the Jordan River, looking toward a land full of fortified cities, giants, and idolatrous nations. Humanly speaking, this is a terrifying assignment.
### 2.2 God’s Commission to Joshua
Joshua 1:1–9 is God’s direct commission. Notice how God speaks:
The past season is over; a new season has begun. There is no going back to the wilderness.
The land is promised, but it must still be possessed. There is a difference between inheritance promised and inheritance possessed.
Opposition will come, but it will not prevail.
The same presence that sustained Moses now rests on Joshua.
Within that framework, three times in Joshua 1 God repeats the same imperative:
The song simply takes these words and puts them on our lips, because what God spoke to Joshua in principle He speaks to every believer who is called to follow Him in the face of opposition and spiritual warfare.
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Two key Hebrew words in Joshua 1:9 will open this text for us: “strong” and “courageous.”
### 3.1 “Be Strong” – חָזַק (*chazaq*)
The word translated “strong” is חָזַק (*chazaq*). Its basic meaning is:
*Chazaq* is not merely emotional feeling. It involves a decision of the will and a taking hold of strength that God provides. It is used in contexts where one must grip something firmly and refuse to let go.
For example:
David did not wait for a feeling. He took hold of strength in God. In the same way, when God says to Joshua, “Be strong,” He is not saying, “Try to feel strong.” He is saying, “Lay hold of My strength, and stand firm.”
### 3.2 “Courageous” – אָמֵץ (*ametz*)
The word for “courageous” is אָמֵץ (*ametz*). It means:
*Chazaq* has to do with inner strength; *ametz* has to do with resolved courage, steadfastness in the face of pressure. It is the attitude that says, “I will not back down. I will not surrender to fear.”
So when the Lord says, “Be strong and courageous,” we could render it:
> “Lay hold of strength, and be firm and determined. Refuse to be moved by fear or discouragement.”
This deepens the lyrics. We are not just singing, “Feel brave.” We are singing, “By God’s command and God’s presence, I choose to take hold of His strength, and I set my heart to stand firm.”
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The lyrics follow three main strands of the passage:
1. God’s command: “Be strong and courageous.”
2. God’s prohibition: “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”
3. God’s promise: “The Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
4. God’s condition for success: Obedience to the Word.
Let us walk through these themes and connect them to the rest of Scripture.
### 4.1 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous.”
The first words are crucial: “Have I not commanded you?” (Joshua 1:9)
Strength and courage are not optional extras in the Christian life. They are commanded. Fear and discouragement are not harmless emotions; when tolerated, they become forms of unbelief and disobedience.
In Revelation 21:8, the “cowardly” are listed among those who will be excluded from the New Jerusalem. Why? Because cowardice is not morally neutral. It is the refusal to trust God when He has spoken.
For the believer, every divine command carries within it the grace to obey. God never commands what He does not enable. When He says, “Be strong and courageous,” He is at the same time imparting strength and courage to the one who receives His Word in faith.
Romans 10:17 says:
> “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”
When you sing this line, you are doing more than repeating a text. You are hearing God say it to you again, and faith rises.
### 4.2 “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged”
Here God gives a double prohibition: fear and discouragement.
#### 4.2.1 Fear
Fear is often the first weapon of the enemy. It paralyzes initiative, neutralizes faith, and magnifies problems. Scripture repeatedly commands God’s people, “Do not fear”:
Notice Paul calls fear a spirit. It is not only an emotion; it can be a spiritual influence that needs to be resisted. God does not give that spirit. He gives the Holy Spirit, who imparts power, love, and soundness of mind.
When God commands Joshua not to fear, He is also exposing the root: fear questions God’s character and God’s promise. The antidote is the revelation of God’s presence: “for the Lord your God will be with you.”
#### 4.2.2 Discouragement
“Discouraged” here (Hebrew root *chathat*) points to:
If fear attacks the future (“What will happen?”), discouragement attacks the present (“It’s no use. I can’t go on.”). Many believers are not defeated by some gross sin, but by discouragement, which causes them to give up.
Galatians 6:9 warns:
> “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Discouragement is one of Satan’s chief tools to make us give up just before the appointed time of harvest. That is why God commands Joshua, at the very threshold of inheritance, “Do not be discouraged.”
### 4.3 “For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go”
This is the foundation of all strength and courage in the Bible: the presence of God.
Notice the covenant language: “the LORD your God.” “LORD” is YHWH, the covenant name. “Your God” makes it personal. Then: “with you wherever you go.”
The same promise runs through Scripture:
In the New Covenant, this presence is not just with us, but in us, through the Holy Spirit:
> “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16, ESV)
When the song repeats, “The Lord your God is with you wherever you go,” it is placing you in that same covenant line. Your confidence is never in yourself, your gifts, or your temperament. Your confidence is in the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of Jesus.
If God is truly with you, then whatever confronts you must confront God first.
### 4.4 “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law… do not turn from it… that you may be successful wherever you go.”
Now we come to a condition God attaches to success. This is often neglected in modern teaching.
There is a close connection between:
God tells Joshua:
> “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:7)
Then He explains further:
> “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” (Joshua 1:8)
There are three key actions:
1. Keep the Word on your lips – speak it, confess it, sing it.
2. Meditate on it day and night – think it, chew it, let it shape your inner world.
3. Do everything written in it – act on it, obey it in practical details.
Strength and courage are not abstract qualities. They are maintained and increased as we live in the Word and the Word lives in us.
The song’s emphasis on obedience—“Be careful to obey all the law… do not turn from it”—reminds us that you cannot separate spiritual courage from moral obedience. Many want courage without consecration. Scripture does not allow that.
Psalm 1 describes the “blessed man” who:
Joshua 1 is a direct parallel. When you align your thinking, speaking, and acting with God’s Word, you stand on solid ground. That is the foundation of true courage.
### 4.5 Spiritual Warfare Dimension
Joshua is about taking territory from entrenched enemies. For us, the primary warfare is spiritual:
> “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age…” (Ephesians 6:12, NKJV)
The command “Be strong” in the New Testament is repeated in similar terms:
> “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” (Ephesians 6:10, NKJV)
We are told to “put on the full armor of God” (Ephesians 6:11). This armor is essentially the practical application of truth: righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, the Word of God, and prayer. Just as Joshua was to obey the law and not turn from it, we are to take up the Word as a sword and stand.
Fear and discouragement are key strategies of the enemy. He wants to:
To counter this, you must, as Joshua, hear God say again and again:
> “Be strong and courageous… for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”
And then answer back by confessing and obeying the Word.
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How do we, in our daily lives, take this Word and live in it? I will outline four clear steps.
### 5.1 First: Receive the Command as Personal
Do not treat Joshua 1:9 as a historical slogan for someone else’s battle. Take it as God’s Word to you, in your situation.
You may be facing:
Say out loud: “The same God who spoke to Joshua speaks to me through His Word. This command is for me.”
Hebrews 4:12 says the Word of God is living and active. It addresses you now. The first step is a decision: *I accept this command. I choose to obey it.*
### 5.2 Second: Renounce Fear and Discouragement
Since God commands, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,” we must treat fear and discouragement not as harmless states, but as enemies to be resisted.
You can do this very practically:
For example:
“Lord Jesus, You have not given me a spirit of fear. I renounce the spirit of fear and the habit of discouragement. I refuse to agree with fear or hopelessness. I submit to Your command: I will not fear; I will not be dismayed.”
James 4:7 gives a simple order: “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
You submit when you accept God’s command. You resist when you reject the lies and influences that oppose that command.
### 5.3 Third: Anchor Yourself in the Presence of God
Courage is not maintained by willpower alone. It is sustained by awareness of God’s presence.
Cultivate this in specific ways:
Psalm 16:8 says:
> “I keep my eyes always on the LORD. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”
Courage flows from where you fix your gaze. If you keep your eyes on circumstances, you will be shaken. If you keep your eyes on the Lord, you will stand.
### 5.4 Fourth: Live in the Word—Speak It, Meditate on It, Obey It
Return to Joshua 1:8. This is God’s clear pattern for success:
1. On your lips – Begin to speak this verse regularly. Turn it into proclamation. Your words shape your inner climate.
2. In your mind – Meditate on it. Turn it over, phrase by phrase. Ask: “What does this mean for me today, in this situation?”
3. In your actions – Obey whatever the Word shows you. For Joshua, it was the Law of Moses. For you, it is the whole counsel of Scripture, centered in Jesus Christ.
John 14:23:
> “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.”
Obedience increases the manifest presence of God in your life. As His presence becomes more real, fear and discouragement lose their power.
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### 6.1 Proclamation
Speak this aloud, slowly, with faith. You may wish to repeat it several times.
> I receive the Word of God in Joshua 1:9.
> God has commanded me to be strong and courageous.
> I refuse fear; I refuse discouragement.
> God has not given me a spirit of fear,
> but of power, of love, and of a sound mind.
> The Lord my God is with me wherever I go.
> As He was with Moses and Joshua,
> so He is with me through the Holy Spirit.
> I choose to be strong in the Lord
> and in the power of His might.
> I set my heart to obey His Word,
> not turning to the right or to the left.
> By His presence and His promise,
> I will accomplish all He has assigned to me.
> In the name of Jesus. Amen.
### 6.2 Prayer
Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank You for Your unchanging Word. You commanded Joshua to be strong and courageous, and You promised to be with him wherever he went. I ask that by Your Holy Spirit You write this same Word on the hearts of Your people now.
Where there has been fear, let the revelation of Your presence drive it out. Where there has been deep discouragement, shattering of spirit, and weariness, I ask that You restore and strengthen. Release *chazaq*—Your strength—and *ametz*—Your steadfast courage—into every believer reading this.
Teach us to keep Your Word on our lips, in our minds, and in our actions. Draw us into daily obedience. Make us aware, moment by moment, that You are with us and in us. And as we walk in this, let us possess every territory You have promised, for Your glory, in Jesus’ name.
Amen.
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