The stories of Caleb and Joshua are among those told repeatedly in Churches and Christian households. Dense with godly, moral and leadership lessons, I posit we would never exhaust the wealth of treasures buried in the lives and times of these two men.
There is a subtle but essential distinction I found in the lives of the two men. They were leaders from their tribes who were sent to spy out the promised land and report back to Moses and the people. These two men distinguished themselves in their answer and so received a reward of life (the greatest reward) from God.
Upon Moses’ demise, Joshua took over the reins of leadership of the nation of Israel. Joshua became the leader of Caleb too. Caleb remained a leader of his house, but the weight of the national leadership fell on the shoulders of Joshua.
When it was time to divide the large expanse of the promised land, Caleb came and reminded Joshua of Moses’ promise to him. True to that promise, which Joshua was fully aware of, Caleb was given the specific mountain his feet had trodden to possess. Caleb was right and specific in his request, and his desire was granted.
It is noteworthy that while Caleb was the first in his tribe to receive an inheritance, Joshua was the last in his tribe, and in the entire nation, to receive an inheritance.
Joshua received an inheritance from the children of Israel after he had divided the land for every tribe. He didn’t rush to take his first; rather, he made sure everyone had received their portion according to divine direction.
So, it was after serving others that the entire nation gave him an inheritance (see Joshua 19:49-50). He was given a city in Mount Ephraim called Timnath-Serah, meaning the portion that remains.
Basically, Joshua inherited what remained after proper distribution was done. In doing this, Joshua showed selflessness, temperance and true leadership.
There is a Nigerian proverb that goes thus: “When one man cooks for a village, the meal would finish quickly. But when a village cooks for one man, he can’t finish the meal.” The entire nation cooked for Joshua, and certainly, Timnath-Serah is more than Joshua can consume.
Truly, leaders eat last, but when they do, they eat the most.
