Then Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give my daughter Achsah as wife.” And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, took it; so he gave him his daughter Achsah as wife. Now it happened, when she came to him, that she urged him to ask her father for a field. And she dismounted from her donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What do you wish?” So she said to him, “Give me a blessing; since you have given me land in the South, give me also springs of water.” — Judges 1:12-15
Men, before moving on, there are 2 points to make from the translations of names in these verses. 1st, the city that Othniel was asked to conquer was called Debir, or “giants” because of its inhabitants, and it was also called Kirjath-Sepher, meaning “city of books”. Kirjath-Sepher was a land of corrupted humanity. Giants were the product of fallen angels who had physical relations with human women in Genesis. Some scholars speculate that this corruption was part of God’s motivation for the flood of Noah. These Canaanites were so corrupted that the Lord wanted them eradicated.
When we think of an evil enemy, we often think that they would be dumb, barbaric, clumsy, and ugly. Take caution. Here, the enemy lives in the “city of books.” Books compel us to consider that they were learned people. They were likely sophisticated in academics, religious acts, and record keeping. The Canaanites were corrupted by the same enemy we face today, and that enemy is again at work in academics, false religion centers of “cultural agenda”, and they store information. The second point is in Achsah, the daughter of Caleb. Her name is translated “ornament” and is given in marriage to Othniel for conquering the city of Kirjath-Sepher.
We too have a hero in Jesus, who conquered corruption. The Father, our Lord God has given Jesus a bride, the church (believers). As Achsah was an ornament to Othniel, are you, a believing member of the total church, an ornament to Jesus and His mission on earth? As an ornament, what do we call attention to? Ornaments add luster to an arrangement, and distinguish seasons and occasions apart. Are we set apart from the common corruption that is of this world?
Move forward men. Do not underestimate our enemy. The enemy is conscious, intelligent, patient, cunning, and stores information for strategizing attacks on the people of God. Embody sanctification from the evil of flesh and this world through faith in Jesus, our Champion over sin.
Vance Durrance
