Getting Biblical in Daily Life
Jewish Perspective
Modern Judaism claims the Israelite history as its own. Unsurprisingly, that means that Joshua has always been a central, important text to the Jews as a community. The text reinforces the laws laid down my Moses, emphasizing the rewards and punishments granted to the Hebrew people, whether they were naughty or nice. David, commonly held as one of the central figures of Judaism, goes so far as to mention Joshua ambiguously in Psalm 87.
In Jewish liturgy, Joshua is found in the Haftarah, a series of selections found in the Nevi'im, the second portion of the Hebrew Bible.The Haftarah reading follows a reading from the Torah on each Sabbath,festival, or fast day. Even after all these centuries, Joshua is till getting his due. The coolest part? The Haftarah is usually chanted. So not only is Joshua still being honored, but songs are still being sung about him. Kind of like Beowulf, but better since no one really sings about Beowulf anymore.
Christian Perspective
Joshua = Jesus. That's true math for you right there. Christian faith commonly believes that Joshua is a precursor to Jesus, going so far as to call out the fact they share the same name. Wait, what? Yeah, that's right. We'll break it down for you.
Joshua—The English name for the Hebrew "Yehoshua," meaning "God saves" or "God is savior."
Jesus—The Latin name for Yeshua, the Aramaic version of Yehoshua meaning "God saves" or "God is savior."
Ergo—Jesus and Joshua share the same name.
But wait, there's more!
Joshua: Chosen to lead the Israelites to safety and freedom, leading them into the Promised Land, the kingdom of the Israelites.
Jesus: Son of God, chosen to lead humanity to safety and freedom, leading them to the Kingdom of God.
Don't you love it when connections are made?
Islamic Perspective
Unlike his status in Judaism and Christianity, Joshua is not seen as significantly important to Islamic tradition. In an account of the conquest of Canaan found in the Qur'an, Joshua is referenced along with Caleb as two God-fearing men upon whom God "had bestowed favor" (source). Sadly for Joshua and Caleb, they are not mentioned by name anywhere in the Qur'an, leaving them feeling like a footnote. Or that's how we assume they feel anyway.
Joshua, to his credit, is mentioned in other Islamic texts, mostly in relation to significant events such as the crossing of the River Jordan.