The Book of Joshua tells the story of how the Israelites, having left Egypt and ended their desert wanderings, moved (on the death of Moses) into the "Promised Land". We all know of Joshua fighting the battle of Jericho and how the walls came tumbling down, but the full story of the conquest and re-population may be less familiar. God's role, in supporting one side against the other in an aggressive war, as well as what happens to the natives, are controversial. Our concern will be, not questions of historical veracity or our religious belief, but to understand the story as reported in the Old Testament. We will read the book together in class. I will explore what the text says, with John Barton's 2001 Oxford Bible Commentary as a guide. You will need a King James Bible.