Joshua 18: 10 ¶ And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD: and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions.
Joshua divided the Land for the tribe of Judah by casting lots before the Lord. Casting lots was like flipping a coin to decide who goes first. It seems to involve random chance. In Joshua 18 we see Joshua casting lots before the Lord. The Lord did not tell Joshua to decide about the land by casting lots. In fact, this comes on the heels of chapters of Joshua dividing the land and a history of God directing who God what area of the land. Sometimes it seems to be human wisdom and logic at work, other times it seems to be divine direction. In this case while Joshua cast lots it seems as if the expectation was that God would be at work in the casting of the lots to supersede pure chance. Can God use lot casting to make his choice? Any child can answer that quickly with, “God can do anything.” We ultimately place our faith in the Lord that He is even Lord over the casting of lots.
This is not a recommended way of discerning God's will but it can be an effective way of making fair choices between two or more options. It is like tossing a coin at a football game to see who goes first. No one thinks that anyone showed favoritism in the process. No one protests a coin toss. Sometimes people pray for favorable coin tosses and God may indeed superintend what happens when lots are cast or coins are tossed when it serves His purpose.
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