6 Now Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel; none went out, and none came in.
This made Jericho as an impenetrable fortress. Even the gates weren't opened. They were on high alert and felt confident in their defenses. These folks knew of the God of the Israelites from the stories of parting the Red Sea and conquering the kings of Og & Sihon. But they saw him as a nature God (a god who could control natural things). They felt safe in a walled city. Jericho's walls were 25' high and 20' thick.
2 And the Lord said to Joshua: "See! I have given Jericho into your hand, its king, and the mighty men of valor. 3 You shall march around the city, all you men of war; you shall go all around the city once. This you shall do six days. 4 And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark. But the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him."
The Lord tells Joshua that they've been delivered into his hands, as if it was already done. How many of us would have looked at the Lord and said, "Are you crazy? Don't you see the walls?" We don't get the sense that Joshua had those thoughts, even when he hears the battle plan. This plan wasn't manpower and swords and arrows. It wasn't militarily penetrating the wall. This involved the priest and the Ark. There was no provision for either of these to be involved in warfare. The payoff of this plan was when everyone gave a shout that the wall would fall down.
This plan required belief. It required the people to trust in it. It required them to be part of it. Then the Lord would do the hard part. God wasn't reliant on them, He could have knocked down this wall any time he wanted. But He wants His children to be involved and in relationship with Him. He wants to exercise His power through His people.
Our battles with evil & sin are battles because we allow ourselves to fight; in fact, Christ conquered death and sin on the Cross. Our battle has already been won; all we have to do is step out in faith and accept the victory. How many victories have we missed out on?
What are God's plans? His plans are perfect.
6 Then Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the Lord." 7 And he said to the people, "Proceed, and march around the city, and let him who is armed advance before the ark of the Lord."
8 So it was, when Joshua had spoken to the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams' horns before the Lord advanced and blew the trumpets, and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them. 9 The armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard came after the ark, while the priests continued blowing the trumpets. 10 Now Joshua had commanded the people, saying, "You shall not shout or make any noise with your voice, nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I say to you, 'Shout!' Then you shall shout." 11 So he had the ark of the Lord circle the city, going around it once. Then they came into the camp and lodged in the camp.
12 And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord. 13 Then seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the Lord went on continually and blew with the trumpets. And the armed men went before them. But the rear guard came after the ark of the Lord, while the priests continued blowing the trumpets. 14 And the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. So they did six days.
15 But it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose early, about the dawning of the day, and marched around the city seven times in the same manner. On that day only they marched around the city seven times. 16 And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: "Shout, for the Lord has given you the city! 17 Now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it. Only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent. 18 And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it. 19 But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord; they shall come into the treasury of the Lord."
20 So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. And it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat. Then the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city. 21 And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.
The priest led the way with the Shofar trumpets. The Shofar was the trumpet of the Jubilee - see Lev. 25:9-10. For 6 days they were to march around the city once. On the 7th day they marched around 7 times with the priest blowing the trumpets. This was a violation of the Sabbath. Also, the Ark was not to go to war. This broke the law. The wall comes down as they were told and they destroyed the whole city and all that was in it.
What a strange way to take a city. This had to astonish this army. Was there no murmuring?
22 But Joshua had said to the two men who had spied out the country, "Go into the harlot's house, and from there bring out the woman and all that she has, as you swore to her." 23 And the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab, her father, her mother, her brothers, and all that she had. So they brought out all her relatives and left them outside the camp of Israel. 24 But they burned the city and all that was in it with fire. Only the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord. 25 And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father's household, and all that she had. So she dwells in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
26 Then Joshua charged them at that time, saying, "Cursed be the man before the Lord who rises up and builds this city Jericho; he shall lay its foundation with his firstborn, and with his youngest he shall set up its gates."
27 So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout all the country.
The 2 witnesses deliver Rahab to safety. This certainly has the feel of Passover as she is kept safe from the judgment right outside her door. That safety is guaranteed by a Scarlett thread. It also has the idea of the rapture; God setting His people in safety while he brings destruction in Judgment. Read Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25.
The actions of Joshua resemble the actions of Revelation. This picture of judgment is after the 2 spies enter in and offer safety by faith to Rahab. Is this a model of Christ's return? The use of the trumpets of Jubilee point toward the day of the final trumpet also. Will the return of Christ happen in Jubilee year? We can't draw final conclusions from this but we can surely see Christ in these scriptures. And the lessons that come from it can certainly be relevant to us. See 1 Corinthians 1:18 - 29.
The Jubilee year is talked about in Acts 2 & 3 sermon by Peter as the restitution of all things. In Jubilee year all slaves were free, all debt forgiven; all land reverted back to the original owner.
Joshua's curse in verse 26 on anyone who wants to rebuild it shows up in 1 Kings 16:34.
©2015 Doug Ford
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