Commander of the Lords Army
Another Title for the Angel of Yahweh
Joshua encounters the commander of the Lords army, just prior to laying siege to Jericho. Imagine the scene. The people of Israel have finally crossed the Jordan River into the Promised Land. They are camped near Jericho, a massive, fortified city that stands as their first great obstacle. Their legendary leader, Moses, is gone. The weight of an entire nation and the responsibility for a divine mission now rests squarely on the shoulders of one man: Joshua. The pressure must have been immense. Then Joshua meets the commander of the Lords army.
Joshua encounters the commander of the Lords army
Joshua 5:13-15 English Standard Version
The Commander of the Lord's Army
13 When Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. And Joshua went to him and said to him, “Are you for us, or for our adversaries?” 14 And he said, “No; but I am the commander of the army of the Lord. Now I have come.” And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped and said to him, “What does my lord say to his servant?” 15 And the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, “Take off your sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
It's in this tense moment, as Joshua is likely scouting the area and contemplating his strategy for taking Jericho, that he has a startling encounter. Joshua 5:13 tells us, "he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand." As a military leader, Joshua's first instinct is to identify a potential threat and determine his allegiance.
Joshua immediately challenges the stranger with a direct question: "Are you for us or for our enemies?" . The answer he receives is not what he expected and sets the stage for one of the most fascinating encounters in the Old Testament. The man's identity has been a subject of deep study for centuries, and figuring it out helps us connect the dots on how God reveals Himself.
The man's reply is stunning in its authority and its refusal to be boxed in by human conflict. "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come" (Joshua 5:14). This answer immediately elevates the encounter. This isn't just a soldier or an ally; this is the supreme leader of Heaven's angelic forces. He isn't there to take Joshua's side; he's there to take charge. Joshua's army is now seen as just one division in the LORD's much larger army.
Joshua's reaction tells us everything we need to know about the status of this commander. The Bible says, "Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, ‘What message does my Lord have for his servant?’" (Joshua 5:14). Joshua, the leader of a nation, immediately recognizes that he is in the presence of a superior being and offers worship. This act of worship is a critical clue to the commander's identity.
The commander’s next statement is the single most important key to unlocking who he is. He says to Joshua, "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy" (Joshua 5:15). And the text tells us, "And Joshua did so." If that command sounds familiar, it’s because it's almost the exact same instruction given to Moses decades earlier.
The commander of the Lords army was also
the Angel of Yahweh appearing to Moses at the burning bush
Exodus 3:1-6 English Standard Version
The Burning Bush
3 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God
Moses is on Mount Horeb when he sees a bush that is on fire but not burning up. As he approaches, God calls to him from within the bush, saying, "Do not come any closer... Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground" (Exodus 3:5). The parallel is unmistakable. The same command is given by the commander of the Lords army to Joshua, because the same holy presence is there.
This type of event, a visible appearance of God in the Old Testament, is called a "theophany." What's crucial here is that created beings, like regular angels, consistently refuse worship throughout the Bible.
Revelation 22:8-9 English Standard Version
8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”
By accepting worship and declaring the ground holy, the commander is claiming divine authority and status. A mere angel, no matter how powerful, would not do this. This tells us that Joshua is not just speaking to a powerful created being like the archangel Michael. He is speaking to God, or more specifically, a physical, visible manifestation of God.
The commander of the army of the LORD in Joshua 5 fits this pattern of the visible Yahweh perfectly. He possesses the authority and holiness of God Himself, just like the Angel of the LORD in Genesis and the divine presence in the burning bush. He is the earthly, visible version of the unseen God in heaven. The commander of the Lords army is not just in the hierarchy; he is at the very top of it. This understanding beautifully sets the stage for the New Testament's description of Jesus.
Colossians 1:15 English Standard Version
The Preeminence of Christ
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
Hebrews 1:3 English Standard Version
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
The powerful, sword-wielding commander Joshua met is the same person who would later come to earth to win the ultimate victory over sin and death.
The encounter served a vital purpose for Joshua. It taught him that the upcoming battle for Jericho was not his to win. The victory belonged to the LORD. Joshua was not the general in charge; he was a servant following the commands of his true leader, the divine commander who had already taken control of the situation.
So, who was the commander Joshua met outside of Jericho? The evidence overwhelmingly points to a theophany, a manifestation of God Himself. He accepted worship, declared the ground holy, and claimed supreme command over all of heaven's armies. For Christians, this is a powerful Old Testament glimpse of Jesus Christ in His role as the invincible King and warrior who fights for His people. It makes you wonder, how many other Old Testament encounters, like this one with the commander of the Lords army, were actually face-to-face meetings with the Son of God?