Joshua 1:5

Stand before thee. Literally, “set himself up against thee,” that is, “successfully oppose thee.” God promised Joshua no more than He promises the Christian today. The Creator of the universe, the Father of eternity, has pledged all His resources to see us through; He promised no more than that to Joshua. God never makes provision for the Christian to retreat. He clears the way to Canaan if we go ahead; to retreat is often to die.

Fail thee. Literally, “slacken the hand from thee,” that is, “not give thee up.”

Nor forsake thee. The two Hebrew words reflected in the expressions “fail thee” and “forsake thee” are synonymous, and are used together here for emphasis. Any man may conquer who has the Lord on his side. Victory is then as certain in one place as in another. Joshua faced a great task with a people who had so often failed in the past. God here promises that He would not get them into a situation and then leave them there. He would see them through to the end. The same holds true for Christians (Matthew 28:20).