Joshua 17:12

Joshua 17:12 says, Yet the children of Manasseh could not drive out the inhabitants of those cities; but the Canaanites would dwell in that land.  The children of Manasseh were unable to drive the people out of Canaan.  We are not really told why, but it either had to be a lack of faith and/or commitment on their part, or the fact that God didn't want them to  I would have to go with one of the first two, and that is what Matthew Henry says, since God had told them to drive all the people out.  I do know that we cannot afford to allow things contrary to the will of God to continue to exist in our lives.  Verse thirteen states, Yet it came to pass, when the children of Israel were waxen strong, that they put the Canaanites to tribute; but did not utterly drive them out.  We need to remember that the children of Israel were not relying on their strength, but on the strength of God, so it was not a matter of becoming strong enough, but of being faithful enough.  Then, instead of driving the Canaanites out, the Israelites forced the Canaanites to work for them.  We can never hope to subject sin for our own purposes, but we must totally eliminate it from our lives.  Verse fourteen declares, And the children of Joseph spake unto Joshua, saying, Why hast thou given me but one lot and one portion to inherit, seeing I am a great people, forasmuch as the LORD hath blessed me hitherto?  The children of Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim, complained to Joshua about the size of their inheritance.  They said they were a great people, and therefore should have more land, even though they had failed to drive the Canaanites out.  We may often think that we deserve more from God because we believe that we are great in His sight, but we are instead to simply be thankful for what God has blessed us with.  Verse fifteen says, And Joshua answered them, If thou be a great people, then get thee up to the wood country, and cut down for thyself there in the land of the Perizzites and of the giants, if mount Ephraim be too narrow for thee.  Joshua told them if the land was too small then they should go up into the mountains and claim the land of the Perizzites and the giants for themselves.  This was evidently not a part of the land that was being divided.  In effect, Joshua told them if they wanted more land they could fight for it.  I don't believe that we should expect God to bless us more than anyone else simply because we are a Christian.  We are called to live by faith and fight against the evil in the world.  Verse sixteen states, And the children of Joseph said, The hill is not enough for us: and all the Canaanites that dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both they who are of Bethshean and her towns, and they who are of the valley of Jezreel.  The children of Joseph then said that the land was not enough and that the Canaanites lived there and that they had chariots and iron.  Once more, the children of Joseph were looking at the problem instead of looking to God, as the people of Israel often did.  I believe that today we often concentrate on the problems around us instead of simply following Christ by faith.  Verse seventeen declares, And Joshua spake unto the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power: thou shalt not have one lot only:  Joshua told Manasseh and Ephraim that they were a great people and had a great power, so they would not have just one lot.  Then verse eighteen adds, But the mountain shall be thine; for it is a wood, and thou shalt cut it down: and the outgoings of it shall be thine: for thou shalt drive out the Canaanites, though they have iron chariots, and though they be strong.  Joshua told them that they would have the mountain, once they had driven the Canaanites out.  If they were going to declare themselves a great people, then it was time for them to put their faith in God and not worry about the chariots of the people of Canaan.  If we want more blessing from God today, we may first need to rid our lives of the things that shouldn't be there and put all our faith in God.  Eevn then, we should not attempt to specify what God will bless us with.