The document provides commentary from multiple scholars on Joshua 6:1, which describes Jericho as being "straitly shut up" due to the Israelites. The scholars discuss the context around Jericho shutting its gates tightly out of fear of the Israelites. They also analyze the significance of God's instructions to Joshua to have the Israelites march around Jericho for six days and then seven times on the seventh day, which resulted in Jericho's walls falling down. The commentaries examine themes of God's power overcoming human fortifications, the importance of obedience to God's commands through faith even without understanding the outcome, and the need for perseverance in faith.

1. JOSHUA 6 COMME TARY
EDITED BY GLE PEASE
1 ow the gates of Jericho were securely barred
because of the Israelites. o one went out and no
one came in.
BAR ES, "This verse is strictly parenthetical. It is inserted to explain the declaration
commenced Jos_5:14, and interrupted by Joshua’s question and obeisance Jos_5:14-15,
but resumed in Jos_6:2.
Straitly shut up - See the margin, i. e., not only shut, but barred and bolted.
CLARKE,"Now Jericho was straitly shut up - The king of Jericho, finding that
the spies had escaped, though the city was always kept shut by night, took the most
proper precaution to prevent every thing of the kind in future, by keeping the city shut
both day and night, having, no doubt, laid in a sufficiency of provisions to stand a siege,
being determined to defend himself to the uttermost.
GILL, "Now Jericho was straitly shut up, because of the children of Israel,....
Or "it shut up", or "was shutting, and was shut up" (u); that is, the king and the
inhabitants shut it up within; the Targum says with iron doors, and bars of brass, and it
was blocked up without by the children of Israel:
none went out and none came in; none of their forces went out to make a sally on
the Israelites, or to seek to make peace with them; nor any of their neighbours went in to
them, to carry them any provision, or to assist them, or to be sheltered by them, not
being able to do it because of the camp of Israel.
HE RY, "We have here a contest between God and the men of Jericho, and their
different resolutions, upon which it is easy to say whose word shall prevail.
I. Jericho resolves Israel shall not be its master, Jos_6:1. It was straitly shut up,
because of the children of Israel. It did shut up, and it was shut up (so it is in the
margin); it did shut up itself, being strongly fortified both by art and nature, and it was
shut up by the obstinacy and resolution of the inhabitants, who agreed never to

2. surrender nor so much as sound a parley; none went out as deserters or to treat of peace,
nor were any admitted in to offer peace. Thus were they infatuated, and their hearts
hardened to their own destruction - the miserable case and character of all those that
strengthen themselves against the Almighty, Job_15:25.
JAMISO , "Jos_6:1-7. Jericho shut up.
Now Jericho was straitly shut up — This verse is a parenthesis introduced to
prepare the way for the directions given by the Captain of the Lord’s host.
K&D, "When Joshua had taken off his shoes, the prince of the army of God made
known to him the object of his coming (Jos_6:2-5). But before relating the message, the
historian first of all inserts a remark concerning the town of Jericho, in the form of an
explanatory clause, for the purpose of showing the precise meaning of the declaration
which follows.
(Note: If there is any place in which the division of chapters is unsuitable, it is so
here; for the appearance of the prince of the angels does not terminate with Jos_
5:15, but what he had come to communicate follows in Jos_6:2-5, and Jos_6:1
merely contains an explanatory clause inserted before his message, which serves to
throw light upon the situation (vid., Ewald, §341). If we regard the account of the
appearance of the angel as terminating with Jos_5:15, as Knobel and other
commentators have done, we must of necessity assume either that the account has
come down to us in a mutilated form, or that the appearance ceased without any
commission being given. The one is as incredible as the other. The latter especially is
without analogy; for the appearance in Act_10:9., which O. v. Gerlach cites as
similar, contains a very distinct explanation in Act_10:13-16.)
This meaning is to be found not merely in the fact that the Lord was about to give
Jericho into the hands of the Israelites, but chiefly in the fact that the town which He
was about to give into their hands was so strongly fortified.
Jos_6:1
“Jericho was shutting its gates (vid., Jdg_9:51), and closely shut.” The participles
express the permanence of the situation, and the combination of the active and passive
in the emphatic form ‫ת‬ ֶ‫ר‬ֶ ֻ‫ס‬ ְ‫מ‬ (lxx συγκεκλεισµένη καᆳ ᆝχυρωµένη; Vulg. clausa erat atque
munita) serves to strengthen the idea, to which still further emphasis is given by the
clause, “no one was going out and in,” i.e., so firmly shut that no one could get out or in.
CALVI , "1. ow Jericho was straitly shut up, etc Jericho is said to be shut up,
because the gates were not opened: as in time of war cities are guarded with more
than usual care. It is added, by way of emphasis, that they were sealed, or locked up,
(63) as if it were said that the inhabitants were attentive in watching, so as not to be
taken by surprise. Hence, as it could not be taken by stratagem, the only hope of
taking it was by open force. This tends to display the goodness of God to the
children of Israel, who would have been worn out by a long and difficult siege, had
not a substitute been early provided from heaven. Meanwhile there was a danger,
lest being forced into a corner, they might be consumed by want and famine, as
there was no means of obtaining food and provender in a hostile region. The Lord,
therefore, that they might not sit down despondently before one city, assisted them
by an extraordinary miracle, and opened up an entrance to them by throwing down

3. the walls, that they might thereafter have the greater confidence in attacking other
cities.
We now see the connection between the two first verses, in the one of which it is
said, that Jericho was shut up, and the children of Israel thus prevented from
approaching it, while in the other God promises that he will take it for them. He
makes this promise with the view of preventing them from tormenting themselves
with anxious thoughts. In one word, God, by this easy victory at the outset, provides
against their giving way to despondency in future. We, at the same time, perceive
the stupidity of the inhabitants, who place their walls and gates as obstacles to the
divine omnipotence; as if it were more difficult to break up or dissolve a few bars
and beams than to dry up the Jordan.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:1 ow Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of
Israel: none went out, and none came in.
Ver. 1. ow Jericho was strictly shut up.] Claudens, et clausa erat: but there is no
power or policy against the Lord. [Proverbs 21:30] The "Captain of God’s hosts"
was before the city, and therefore ευαλωτος η πολις, - as he told Phocas, - the town
was soon taken.
BE SO , "Verse 1-2
Joshua 6:1-2. Jericho was straitly shut up — They had shut up all their gates, and
kept a very strict guard at them, for fear of the children of Israel. And the Lord said
unto Joshua — There is great reason to believe, and indeed most commentators
agree, that this was spoken by the divine person who is said in the preceding chapter
to have appeared to Joshua in the form of a man, but who styled himself captain of
the host of the Lord, and is here called Jehovah, which shows that he was not of the
angelic order. It is probable that the king and people of Jericho had refused the
offers of peace which God ordered to be first sent to every city before they besieged
it, Deuteronomy 20:10; and, trusting to their forces, had taken up a desperate
resolution not to yield on any terms.
COKE, "Ver. 1. ow Jericho was straitly shut up— While every necessary
preparation was making in the camp of Joshua for the attack of Jericho, the king of
that city, on his part, took all possible precautions for his security. Having refused
the offers of peace, which were doubtless made him by the Hebrew general, (see
Deuteronomy 20:10.) and resolved to defend himself to the last extremity, he had
shut himself in Jericho, and set so good a guard there, that Joshua, who kept the
place blocked up, could carry on no intelligence with, nor know what passed in it.
The city, according to Onkelos, was shut up with gates of iron, and bars of brass; so
that no one could issue out either to fight, or to talk of peace. The adventure of the
spies, who had crept into Rahab's house, was a sufficient caution not to be satisfied
with keeping the place shut by night only. We may further observe, that the division
of the Bible into chapters and verses is not always very exact, and may frequently
mislead readers. This chapter should not naturally have begun till the 6th verse; for
the five first verses are a continuation of the discourse addressed by the Captain of

4. the Lord's hosts to Joshua, on shewing himself to him: or the foregoing chapter
should have ended at ver. 12 as the account of the appearance of the angel and of
the conference begins at ver. 13. It is certain, that the words in ver. 1 in this chapter,
are properly only a parenthesis of the sacred historian, prudently added to shew the
necessity of the miracle.
PETT, "Chapter 6. The Taking of Jericho With the Help of YHWH.
In this chapter Joshua is assured that, although Jericho is closely shut up, and there
was no obvious way in which Israel could enter it, it would be delivered into his
hands, and he is therefore directed, along with the army, to march round the city on
each of six days, accompanied by seven priests bearing the ark of YHWH, with
seven rams’ horns sounding. And on the seventh day they were to go round it seven
times in the same way, with the result that its wall would fall. Joshua communicated
this order to the priests and the people, and they did as they were commanded,
along with obeying other instructions he gave them, particularly that the city, and
all in it, should be devoted to YHWH and nothing spared, except Rahab and her
family and their possessions. Their mission was successful as YHWH had promised.
All in the city were destroyed, and the city itself was burnt with fire, while the gold,
silver, bronze, and iron were brought into the treasury of the house of YHWH.
Rahab and her father's household were saved alive, and the chapter is closed with
an adjuration of Joshua, cursing any man who should rebuild the city.
Joshua 6:1
‘ ow Jericho had closed the gates and were shut in because of the children of Israel.
one went out and none came in.’
The news of the advance of the Israelite army across the Jordan had resulted in the
people of Jericho shutting the city gates permanently. Those who lived around
would have moved into the city for safety and it would be crowded. But none would
now leave it until the Israelite army had passed. Their hope lay in the walls of that
city, which, while it was not a very large one, was very strong. They knew that with
their small numbers they were no match for the Israelites. But they had plenty of
food, for the wheat harvest had been gathered in. The whole pear-shaped mound is
only four hundred metres long (four hundred and thirty eight yards) and two
hundred metres wide at its widest point and the city would probably not occupy the
whole mound.
What could happen to someone found outside the city is illustrated in Judges 1:24. It
reads innocently enough but the man was probably given the choice of betraying the
city or enduring a most horrific time. He would probably have ended up betraying
the city anyway.
The archaeology of Jericho has produced a confusing picture. Garstang’s results
were questioned by Kenyon, and Kenyon’s results, based on doubtful premises,
have also been seriously questioned datewise (consider for example the criticisms of
Bryant Wood). The matter is at present in abeyance. So little has been excavated

5. that nothing can be accepted as demonstrated one way or the other. But the fact that
it was unoccupied for over four hundred years from this time would have meant
that few remains from this time could be expected to survive, due to weathering and
predators. Thus it is doubtful if the archaeological questions related to this period
will ever be solved. It was an ancient city going back to 8th millennium BC, having
even at that early time a stone revetment wall and at least one round tower with a
built in stairway. I was there in 1957 just after their discovery and vividly
remember the great excitement at what was then a totally unexpected find. There
are also remains of huts by the spring which go back even further.
BI 1-5, "Now Jericho was straitly shut up.
Shut up
An old writer says that every carnal heart is a Jericho shut up; God sits down before it
and displays mercy and judgment: it hardens itself in a wilful security and saith, “I shall
never be moved.” What numbers of men there are who close their hearts and keep them
barred against God! God might have thrown down the walls of Jericho at once, but you
must remember that He uses means to accomplish ends. God required Israel to walk
round Jericho. That was their part. God is not usually in a hurry. He can afford to wait
until the seventh day before bringing down the walls. I don’t read that the Israelites grew
tired of waiting on this occasion. They went at it day after day quietly marching ahead.
Here is a lesson of perseverance for us, We sometimes grow impatient. We see no good
resulting from our own labours, and are disposed to murmur. (Charles Leach.)
Seven trumpets of rams’ horns.
The blast of the trumpet
was, in the Jewish feasts, the solemn proclamation of the presence of God. And hence
the purpose of that singular march circumambulating the city was to declare “Here is the
Lord of the whole earth, weaving His invisible cordon and network around the doomed
city.”
1. Here is a confidence in the Divine presence, manifested by unquestioning
obedience to a Divine command. Joshua had spoken; God had spoken through him.
And so here goes; up with the ark and the trumpets, and out on to the hot sand for
the march. It would have been a great deal easier to have stopped in the tents. It was
disheartening work marching round thus. The sceptical spirit in the host—the folk of
whom there are many great-grandchildren living to-day, who always have objections
to urge when disagreeable duties are crammed up against their faces—would have
enough to say on that occasion, but the bulk of the people were true, and obeyed.
Now, we do not need to put out the eyes of our understanding in order to practise the
obedience of faith. And we have to exercise common sense about the things that
seem to us to be duties. But this is plain, that if once we see a thing to be, in Christian
language, the will of our Father in heaven, then that is everything, and there is only
one course for us, and that is, unquestioning submission, active submission, and,
what is as hard, passive submission.
2. Then here again is faith manifesting itself by an obedience which was altogether
ignorant of what was coming. We, too, have to do our day’s march, knowing very
little about to-morrow; and we have to carry on all through life “doing the duty that

6. lies nearest us,” entirely ignorant of the strange issues to which it may conduct. So,
seeing that we know nothing about the issues, let us make sure of the motives; and
seeing that we do not know what to-morrow may bring forth, nor even what the next
moment may bring, let us see that we fill the present instant as full as it will hold
with active obedience to God, based upon simple faith in Him.
3. Then, here, again, is faith manifesting itself by persistency. A week was not long,
but it was a long while during which to do that one apparently useless thing and
nothing else. Familiarity would breed monotony, but notwithstanding the deadly
influences of habit, the obedient host turned out for their daily round. “Let us not be
weary in well-doing.” (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
Religious work often seems impracticable
When we are in great religious moods, in sublime spiritual ecstasies, in immediate and
vital touch with God, we are not afraid to adopt apparently impracticable measures in
carrying out the purposes of righteousness and wisdom. What could be more ridiculous,
from a purely military point of view, than the directions given for the capture and
overthrow of Jericho? They had no relation to the event. The foolishness of God is wiser
than the wisdom of men. We cannot always judge things by appearances. We ourselves
are often startled by the want—apparent, at least—of adaptation of means to ends. The
religious method may always be called impracticable. It is very slow; it does not seem to
work with any immediate effect. What can be duller, slower, than what is generally
understood as teaching? Yet it is by teaching that the kingdom of heaven is to be
prepared for. It is a very slow method. One gleam from heaven’s own midday would
startle the world more surely t Why not this sudden outburst of intolerable glory?
Because there is no lasting in it, no power of duration and sustenance. Men cannot live
upon such visions. Things that are not are employed to bring to nought things that are.
Foolish things, little things, contemptible things, are used by the hand almighty to shake
down towers and walls and temples and capitals, and bring them to nought before the
throne of righteousness. Thus religion is not afraid of the impracticable—at least, of
what may appear to be impracticable to those who look only upon the surface. Religion
has never been afraid to claim prayer as one of its very pillars—the signature of its very
power. What can, from the outside, be more futile and ridiculous than to be speaking
into the vacant air—to exclude all living things upon the earth, and to speak to One we
have never seen, and pour our heart’s penitence, woe, hope, into an ear we cannot detect
amid all the clouds which float through the heavens? Yet religion says, “Continue instant
in prayer”; you have no other hope. Besides, processes may be long, and results may be
brought about in startling suddenness.(J. -Parker, D. D.)
The seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times.—
The compassing of Jericho
1. The posture was a walking posture, as it had no direct or probable tendency for
subduing the city, so it likewise seemed ridiculous to the rude citizens, who might
well scoffingly say, “What are these foolish people doing? Have they not had a walk
long enough for forty years in the wilderness that now they have a new walk round
about our walls, and that once every day for six days together? They desire indeed to
possess our city, but they may compass it long enough before that posture can

7. conquer it,” &c. Besides, this posture seemed perilous as well as ridiculous. Yet God
will make Jericho as well as His Israel know that He can give victory to their feet as
well as to their hands. God oftentimes delighteth to go some way of His own (which
is not man’s way) and worketh His own will by such means, and in such a manner, as
the world judges both perilous and ridiculous. As the greater was God’s glory in
effecting this great work, wherein Israel contributed nothing to it, so the stronger
was Israel’s faith in believing it should be effected, notwithstanding both the
difficulty, danger, and improbability of means and manner.
(1) The term of place or space of ground they walked was, negatively, not an acre,
or furlong, or any such measures of miles, nor was it a half-turn, but positively, it
must be a whole turn, a compassing the city round about. Had they not gone
round about, all had not been their own. They had conquered no more than they
had compassed, so had done their work but to half part. It looks more like
children’s play, in treading a maze, than any stratagem of warriors. All this was to
teach Israel not to expect success from their own prowess or policy, but merely
from the prescription and favourable presence of that God who can work what
He pleaseth, even by the most contemptible ways.
(2) The term of time unto which this action was extended, this compassing the
city, must be done once every day for six days together, but on the seventh day
they must surround it seven times successively (Jos_6:3; Jos_6:11; Jos_6:13-16).
Israel walks their circuit six times over for six days, and on each day return into
their camp. Nothing was effected in order to Jericho’s overthrow, so long a time
they are held in suspense, for the exercise of their faith and patience. (C. Ness.)
Work which seems aimless
God taught His people to work six days, apparently doing nothing. It is easy enough to
work for Christ when ground is manifestly being gained. Fighting is not hard work when
souls are won to Christ; when an enemy goes down at well-nigh every blow, and many
captives are delivered. It is far harder work to toil and do nothing. Thus Carey laboured
for a lifetime marching round letters and languages and dialects, and probably some
wondered how he could call that work for Christ. So David Livingstone spent his life in
walking up and down Africa, and some well-meaning and good men asked, “How can he
call himself a missionary? He is merely a geographer,” they said; “he has been
discovering the water-shed of a continent instead of carrying to its thirsty inhabitants
the Water of Life.” So little did they know of what was being done; so little, perhaps, did
Livingstone himself sometimes know. We can see now that in all that, to some, aimless
marching, England’s sympathy, America’s sympathy, the sympathy of all Christendom,
was being won for Africa; and that the heart of the whole Church of Christ was being
brought to feel, “Those negroes must no longer be made slaves; those men and women
must hear the gospel; the work of the great man who died upon his knees for Africa, and
whose heart lies buried in Africa, must not be suffered—under God, shall not be
suffered—to fall to the ground.” It is very hard, however, to learn to do what seems to be
nothing. It is hard for parents to teach their children, when all their labour seems so
useless; fruitless work is hard for other teachers, and hard for preachers. God shows us
here that it is enough for us to say, “Am I doing faithfully and prayerfully and zealously
what my Lord has bidden me to do?”
A justifiable Sabbath work

8. Was it not contrary to the spirit of the law to make no difference on the Sabbath? As the
narrative reads we are led to think that the Sabbath was the last of the seven days, in
which ease, instead of a cessation of labour, there was an increase of it sevenfold.
Possibly this may be a mistake; but at the least it seems as if, all days being treated alike,
there was a neglect of the precept, “ In it thou shalt not do any work.” To this it has
usually been replied that the law of the Sabbath being only a matter of arrangement, and
not founded on any unchangeable obligation, it was quite competent for God to suspend
it or for a time repeal it, if occasion required. The present instance has been viewed as
one of those exceptional occasions when the obligation to do no work was suspended for
a time. But this is hardly satisfactory explanation. Was it likely that immediately after
God had so solemnly charged Joshua respecting the book of the law, that it was “not to
depart out of his mouth, but he was to meditate therein day and night, to observe to do
according to all that was written therein,” that almost on the first occurrence of a public
national interest He would direct him to disregard the law of the Sabbath? What seems
the just explanation is, that this solemn procession of the ark was really an act of
worship, a very public and solemn act of worship, and that therefore the labour which it
involved was altogether justifiable, just as the Sabbath labour involved in the offering of
the daily sacrifices could not be objected to. It was a very solemn and open
demonstration of honour to that great Being in whom Israel trusted—of obedience to His
word, and unfaltering confidence that He would show Himself the God of His chosen
people. At every step of their march they might well have sung—“I will lift up mine eyes
unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.” The absurdity of their proceeding, to the
eye of flesh, invested it with a high sanctity, because it testified to a conviction that the
presence of that God who dwelt symbolically in the ark would more than compensate for
all the feebleness and even apparent silliness of the plan. It was indeed an exception to
the usual way of keeping the Sabbath, but an exception that maintained and exalted the
honour of God. And, in a sense, it might be called resting, inasmuch as no aggressive
operations of any kind were carried on; it was simply a waiting on God, waiting till He
should arise out of His place, and cause it to be seen that (Psa_44:3). (W. G. Blaikie, D.
D.)
PI K, "A Closed City
We have now arrived at what is perhaps the most interesting and instructive
incident recorded in this book, namely, the fall of Jericho, which appears to have
been the principal stronghold of the Canaanites. Up to this point everything had
been more or less preliminary and preparatory: now the real task before them must
be faced and tackled: the Canaanites must be dispossessed if Israel were to occupy
their goodly heritage. They had already received very great encouragement in
connection with the Jordan, where the Lord had so signally undertaken for them by
the might of His power. Having attended to the important duty of circumcision and
having kept the feast of the Passover, they were now fitted and furnished to go
forward. What a parable was that of the beginning of the Christian life! Having
been made the subject of the miracle of regeneration, plucked as a brand from the
burning, the sinner saved by Divine grace now enters upon a new life—one as
radically different in character as Israel’s after they left the wilderness behind.
Having obediently submitted to the ordinance of baptism and fed on the antitypical
Lamb, the believer is not to settle upon his oars, but is called upon to engage in

9. spiritual warfare and glorify God as "a soldier of Jesus Christ" (2 Tim. 2:3), serving
under His banner and doing exploits, overcoming his foes and entering into a
present possession of his inheritance.
Jericho was a frontier town and key city. It was a powerful fortress barring Israel’s
ingress. Its capture was indispensable before any progress could be made by Israel
in conquering and occupying the land of Canaan. It was the enemy’s leading
fastness, which doubtless they considered to be quite impregnable, and the
destruction of it would not only be a great encouragement unto Israel, but must still
further dismay the remaining Canaanites. In its overthrow we perceive how
different are the ways of God from man’s, and with what ease He accomplishes His
purposes. Here we behold how futile are the efforts of those who oppose Him, and
how worthless the refuges in which they vainly seek shelter. In this memorable
episode we are taught how the people of God are to act if they would have Him show
Himself strong in their behalf: how that carnal scheming and worldly methods are
given no place; but instead, faith, obedience, courage, patience, must be exercised, if
they would obtain the victory over their foes. In what is here to be before us we see
not Israel acting on the defensive, seeking to protect themselves from the attacks of
others, but rather, under Divine orders, taking the initiative and assuming the
offensive, which tells us there is an active side to the Christian warfare as well as a
passive one—something which is too often forgotten by many of us.
We must not lose sight of the close connection between what is now to be before us
and that which engaged our attention in the preceding article. There we beheld
Joshua alone by Jericho, verse apparently reconnoitering that fortress and noting its
formidable strength—compare our remarks on chapter 3, verses 1 and 2, where
Israel was required to take full stock of the flooded river which barred their
entrance into Canaan. While so engaged, Israel’s leader was suddenly confronted
with a mysterious Personage "with His sword drawn in His hand" who, upon being
asked, "Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?" replied, " ay, but as Captain of
the host of the Lord am I now come" (v. 14). Just as Jehovah had appeared to Moses
at the burning bush before he entered upon his great task of leading the children of
Israel out of the house of bondage and Moses received assurance that God had
"come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them out
of that land, unto a land flowing with milk and honey" (Ex. 3:8), so Joshua was then
given promise that an all-sufficient Leader would take charge of Israel’s host and
conduct them to complete victory. That we should link together Exodus 3:1-10, and
Joshua 5:13-15, is intimated by the fact that on each occasion the appearing of the
Lord was marked by the command, "loose thy shoe."
As stated in our last article, the second main division of the book of Joshua
commences at chapter 5, verse 13 (that section which has for its theme The
Conquest of the Land), and therefore it behooves us to pay extra close attention to
its opening verses. The incident described therein is not only introductory to what
follows in the next six chapters, but it furnishes the key to their right interpretation.
The appearing of the Angel of the Lord unto Moses at the burning bush had a
deeper design than the strengthening of his heart, being a symbolical representation
of the people of God then in "the iron furnace" (Deut. 4:20), the "furnace of
affliction" (Isa. 48:10), and that the Lord Himself was present with them in it: "in
all their affliction He was afflicted, and the Angel of His presence saved them" (Isa.

10. 63:9, and cf. Matthew 25:36; Acts 9:11). But in Joshua verse 13-15, the Lord is
viewed as no longer suffering in and with His people, but stands forth as their
Captain, to command and lead them in battle. It was plain intimation that this was
not Israel’s quarrel, in which they should seek Divine assistance; but Jehovah’s own
quarrel, and Israel was but a division of His "host." The wars of Israel are expressly
called "the wars of the Lord" ( um. 21:54). Israel’s destruction of the Canaanites
was no private vengeance, but Divine, because their iniquities were now "come to
the full" (Gen. 15:26; Lev. 18:25-28).
Far more was involved here than appears on the surface, and it is only by carefully
comparing Scripture with Scripture that we can discover what was really taking
place behind the scenes. The dispossession of the Canaanites from their native land
should cause us no uneasiness, for it was no unrighteous act on Israel’s part: rather
were they made the instrument of God’s holy judgment upon those who had
persisted so long in their abominations that naught remained but their
extermination. We need to look above the human side of things here, and
contemplate them in the light of that expression, "the wars of the Lord," for that is
what they were. It was more than human forces which were involved on both sides,
namely, Divine and infernal. Jehovah Himself was now waging war upon Satan and
his hosts. The Canaanites were devoted to idolatry and necromancy, using
divination, being enchanters, witches, charmers, consulters with familiar spirits;
and as Moses had announced, "because of these abominations the Lord thy God
doth drive them out before thee" (Deut. 18:9-14)! As the apostle also informs us,
"the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and not to God" (1
Cor. 10:20). God, then, was here waging war upon the powers of darkness, and, as
was evident at the Red Sea, none could withstand Him.
The subject is admittedly mysterious, yet sufficient light is cast upon it by the Word
of God to enable us to perceive something of its real character. When man
apostatized from God, he became the captive of the Devil; and when Christ came
here to effect the redemption of His enslaved people, He had first to conquer their
Captor. The Gospels make it clear that Christ’s conflict was far more than one with
men who hated Him, namely, against the Prince of this world—it was Satan who
"entered into Judas" and moved him to perform his dastardly work. The "strong
man armed" kept his palace, and his goods were in peace. But when "a Stronger
than he came upon him," He overcame him and took from him all his armor in
which he trusted, and "divideth his spoils" (Luke 11:21, 22, and cf. Isaiah 53:12);
"that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death" (Heb.
2:14); "having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of them openly,
triumphing over them in Himself" Col. 2:14). Likewise His soldiers are bidden to
"Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of
the Devil"; the reason given being, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but
against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this
world, against wicked spirits in the heavenlies" (Eph. 6:10, 11)! How little is this
realized!
" ow Jericho was straitly shut up, because of the children of Israel: none went out,
and none came in" (Josh. 6:1). This at once arrests our attention. They were not
willing to issue forth and fight against Israel in the open. The fear of the Lord was
upon them. What Jehovah wrought for His obedient people at the Jordan had

11. struck terror into their souls. They were made to realize that One was with them
who could not be withstood. "And it came to pass, when all the kings of the
Amorites which were on the side of Jordan westward, and all the kings of the
Canaanites which were by the sea, heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of
Jordan from before the children of Israel, until we were passed over, that their
heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more because of the children of
Israel" (v. 1). Consequently, their hope now lay in the height and strength of the
walls of Jericho. There they sheltered, yet in a spirit of uneasiness. When there is an
ungrieved Spirit in the midst of God’s people, not only are they made the subjects of
His quickening, fructifying and comforting influences, but those that are without
are awed by His power! It is the absence of His restraint which explains the present
lawlessness of society.
" ow Jericho was straitly shut up." The attentive reader will observe that the
margin has it, "did shut up and was shut up." It is an expressive emphasis in the
Hebrew like "dying thou shalt die" (Gen. 2:17) and "in blessing I will bless thee"
(Gen. 22:17). All the passages of ingress and egress were closed: the heavy gates
barred, the inhabitants shut in by the massive walls. But what could such measures
avail them? What are bolts and bars unto Him who can make the iron gate of a city
"open of his own accord" (Acts 12:10), and cause "all the doors" of a prison to be
opened when He pleases (Acts 16:26)? Verily, "except the Lord keep the city, the
watchman waketh but in vain (Ps. 127:1). How little is that apprehended by this
materialistic generation, who give little or no thought at all unto the agency of God
in human affairs! What a rude awakening awaits them at the moment of death, and
in the Day to come, when it shall be made to appear before an assembled universe
that any other refuge than Christ Himself in which sinners sought shelter, stood
them in no better stead in the hour of trial than Jericho did the Canaanites!
Jericho was one of those well-secured cities of Canaan of which it is said, "The cities
were walled and very great" ( um. 13:28) and which to the carnal spies appeared
utterly unassailable (Deut. 1:28). It was therefore a challenge to faith—just as was
Jordan. God did not work that first miracle before Israel’s faith was put to the
proof, but afterward. The priests bearing the ark were required, at the Divine
command, "When ye are come to the brink of the water of Jordan ye shall stand
still in Jordan" (Josh. 3:8), and it was not until they had complied with that order
that the Lord wrought so wondrously for them: "And as they that bare the ark were
come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the
brink of the water . . . that the water which came down from above stood and rose
up in a heap" (vv. 15 and 16). So it was at Jericho. The Captain of the Lord’s host
had declared He would undertake for Israel, yet here was this citadel barred against
them! Its gates were not opened by Divine hand, nor was its king panic-stricken so
that he surrendered to them. o; "Jericho was straitly shut up." That was what
confronted outward sight! So it is in our experiences today. "According unto your
faith be it unto you": it is in response to that, God works.
PETT, "‘And YHWH said to Joshua, “See, I have given into your hand Jericho, and
its king, and the mighty men of valour.” ’
The problem for Joshua was how the Israelites could breach the walls with the

12. means that they had at their disposal. Spears and swords would have had little
effect on them. But as he was pondering the situation YHWH promised him that it
was given to him by YHWH, and that its king and its soldiery would shortly be in
his hands. What was to happen would be decisive for the future. As the news of it
spread around (Joshua 9:3) the Canaanites would realise that it was pointless to
remain shut up in their cities as Yahweh could soon demolish their walls. It affected
their whole military strategy. This may explain why they always left their cities to
face Israel.
PEASE, MARCHI G FOR A MIRACLE Based on Josh. 6:1-21
By Pastor Glenn Pease
We don’t sing Onward Christian Soldiers marching as to war very much any
more, for we seldom see the relevance of being soldiers of the cross fighting the
forces of darkness. Marching seems irrelevant also, for even in the military world
the real force is now in the air and on the sea. The firepower of missiles and bombs
makes marching to war less vital. But the fact is, marching has been the key to
effective warfare all through history. George Washington won the war for
Independence by much marching.
On one occasion when the British were strung out over 12 miles Washington
asked his war council what they should do. General Charles Lee urged them to
wait, but younger men urged him to attack. Washington took the counsel of the
younger men, and his Continental Army marched out of Valley Forge onto the trail
of the British. The pipers lit into Yankee Doodle, and the sergeants called out
marching orders. With precision the American forces marched against a superior
foe, and they dwell them such a blow that the British never again underestimated
their American opponents.
There was much marching yet to do, but Washington motivated his men to
never stop marching until they forced the British to surrender and leave this land
free and independent. If you study the history of warfare, you will discover that
many, if not most, of the great victories that have changed the course of history were
decided by the marching men. In our age the march has been the key to victories in
the civil rights battles. Martin Luther King Jr. changed the history of our nation by
means of marches.
In 1965 black people in Alabama could not register to vote. King led a large
group marching to the courthouse to register. He and 2 thousand other blacks were
put in jail. When a black man was shot and killed by a state trooper, King called
for a march to the state capital in Montgomery. Governor Wallace forbid such a
march, but King defied the order. The state police attacked the marchers and sent
70 to the hospital. King did not back down, but he ordered another march. This
time 400 white ministers, priests and rabbis from all over the United States joined
the march. One of them died in the march, and the nation was shocked. President
Johnson and the courts got involved, and congress passed the Voting Rights Act of
1965. Marching won for blacks the right to vote without being hampered, and that

13. victory has changed the whole complexion of government in the U. S. Ever since
that victory, marching has been a means by which the masses get their message out
to the world. If enough people care enough about an issue to march it is a powerful
witness for their perspective.
As we look at the march around Jericho that led to the opening victory in
Israel’s conquering of the Promise Land, we see that the march was basically just
that-a witness. The march did not have any military value, for it did not take the
marchers anywhere but around the city. It did not give Israel the advantage of a
surprise attack, for it was done in broad daylight with the enemy watching. From a
military viewpoint this was the most futile march in the history of warfare. It may
have been a great idea for a parade, but it was worthless strategy for taking a walled
city. The enemy, no doubt, had a good many hearty laughs at Israel’s war games. It
was more like entertainment as they watched the march and listened to the
trumpets. The daily parade had to be the talk of the town, and everybody in Jericho
had to have seen it at least once. You can just imagine the mockery the citizens of
Jericho hurled out at the marchers.
It was probably very embarrassing for fighting men to march around the city
instead of building battering rams, catapults and ladders, which was the normal
preparation for taking a walled city. It was not that it was a hard task to do, for
Jericho was only about 9 acres of coverage, and so it took only about 25 to 35
minutes to march around it. These people had been marching for 40 years in the
wilderness, and so a half hour a day for one more week was a snap. But the
question is, why could God want His people to march like this when it was obvious
to all that it had no effect on the situation? The answer to that question is what
makes the march for Jesus a relevant activity for Christians in our day. Why does
God want His people to march? First of all because-
MARCHI G IS A MEA S.
I think we often view God as a superman who goes around doing marvelous
things and solving problems as an individualist. If you look closely at how God
actually operates in history, you see He is really more like the Lone Ranger with his
trusted companion Tonto. God does not enjoy working alone. He likes
companionship and cooperation. He desires that men work with Him to accomplish
His goals. Only Jesus could die for the sins of the world, but He gave the task of
taking this good news to the world to His disciples. He could have fed the 5
thousand with no help, but He used the lad’s lunch, and He used His disciples to
distribute it. Every chance He got He used some means to achieve His miracles so
that the natural and supernatural were linked as partners.
God used the womb of Mary to bring His Son into the world, and it is almost
always His method of working to use some natural means as a basis for miracles.
Jesus did not make wine out of thin air, but He used the water that was present. He
did heal at a distance using no means but His divine power, but usually He used a
natural means of conveying His power. He used the laying on of hands, the mud

14. and spittle, the washing in the water, or some other physical means. Why? It is
because Jesus is in His very being a combination of the natural and supernatural.
He represents the way God is as a being who delights in the combination and
cooperation of the two. So God uses means to do His will. He could bypass all
means, and sometimes He does, but usually He uses means to achieve His goals.
This gives man an opportunity to be partners with God in doing the miraculous.
This was the case with the march around Jericho. It is was God giving man a role in
His miraculous plan. God wants to make it a joint venture.
We have no idea what marching for Jesus will achieve. We may not see any
walls fall at all, but it will bear witness to the world that lovers of Jesus are alive and
well, and they are not ashamed to let it be known. It could be a means by which
God changes lives, and that is why we do it. We want to be available to God as a
means He can use to make a difference in the world.
If you see a beautiful and fruitful garden, you know somebody has put a lot of
time and labor into it. Only God can make the seeds grow and bring forth the
pleasure-giving flowers and food, but it will not happen if man does not do his part.
Almost all the beauty in civilization is a combination of the labor of God and man.
Cooperation is the name of the game in beautifying the city. If you take man out of
the picture, and have no watering, fertilizing and weeding, you will soon see how
true Augustine was when he said over 1500 years ago, “Without God man cannot.
With man God will not.” God is a user of means, and men are His major means,
and the marching of men is one of those means. It is one of the ways we cooperate
with God to make a difference.
Vincoe Paxton was a missionary nurse in China many years ago. She saw so
many people die for lack of modern medicine and surgery. Later she served as an
army nurse in Europe near the front, and she saw many American boys brought
back from the brink of death by means of advanced medical knowledge and
equipment. She realized how the grace of God works through human means. An
American boy of 20, who suffered a serious head wound, said to her, “But for the
grace of God I wouldn’t be here.” She reflected on that and wrote this paragraph:
“He did not know the long combined efforts of the United States
Army Medical Service: The batallion aid man who found him
in the mud and snow; the litter men bearing his dead weight on
their shoulders; the doctors and medical soldiers at the batallion
aid stations who had given him supportive treatment; the ambulance
drivers traveling with headlights reduced to the slits of cat eyes in
the total blackness over treacherous roads; the hospital where he
was operated. He could not go back to the test tube the lecture
room, the wheels of American industry and transportation, which
had placed these scientifically trained minds, skilled hands and
carefully prepared medical supplies at the front. He didn’t know
of these things. “By the grace of God,” he called it. And of course
he was right.”

15. God’s grace is not just a matter of luck, but it is directly related to man’s
recognition of the importance of means. If man does not devise means by which he
can cooperate with God, but just sits and lets God do it on His own, he will rob
himself of the power of God. God is a user of means. He used pagan powers to
punish Israel, and also to liberate them and get them back into the Promised Land
after their exile. God is using means to achieve His will all the time, and most
answers to prayer come through human agents as the means.
God often uses strange and unlikely means to achieve His goals. This march
around Jericho is a good example. What good is such a march? It is meaningless in
itself, and useless to achieve the goal. It is of no value for the miracle, but it
provides the context of obedience in which God is delighted to do the miracle. You
might say the march was of no value, but if Israel would have said this is nonsense,
and if they refused to march, it is not likely the wall would have come down. What
is likely is that they would have been marching in the wilderness for another 40
years until the next generation would have learned to cooperate with God and be
willing to become a means by which He could accomplish His purpose.
Marching does not do any miracles, but it provides God with a means by which
He can work miracles for His glory and man’s good. That is why Christians are
marching for Jesus around the world. They are marching as a means. They are
making themselves available to God to be a means by which He can give the
kingdom of God a victory over the kingdom of darkness. The second thing we want
to see is-
MARCHI G IS A MEASURE.
It is a measure of faith. There is only one reference to this event in the ew
Testament, and it is in the great faith chapter. Heb. 11:30 says, “By faith the walls
of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for 7 days.” What if they
would have said after 5 days, “This is stupid. It does no good. Let’s take the
weekend off and stop this ridiculous parade of folly.” There were, no doubt, people
saying something just like that, for they were experts at complaining and griping
about what they did not understand.
God tests the faith of His people and all people by asking that they do things
that are not of any obvious value. If they are obvious, it does not take faith. If you
can see any logical connection between obedience and the end result it is not a test of
faith. You have to believe God will honor your obedience even if it does not make
sense. aaman, the pagan army commander, had leprosy, and by the grace of God
a little Jewish girl, who had been taken captive, told him about the prophet Elisha
who could cure him. After much negation aaman finally a got message from the
prophet that said he should go and wash 7 times in the Jordan River and He would
be healed. Listen to his response to this prescription, which to him was as
meaningless as trying to conquer a city by marching around it.

16. “But aaman went away angry and said, I thought that he
would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name
of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure
me of my leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers
of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn’t
I wash in them and be cleansed? So he turned and went off in
a rage.” (II Kings 5:11-12).
Fortunately for him he had some servants with more light and less heat, and
they persuaded him to do what the prophet said. He did it, and he was healed. He
was right, of course, for 7 dips in the Jordan had nothing to do with healing leprosy.
If it did, the whole world of lepers would be lined up at the Jordan. The
prescription was not what healed him. It was his obedience to the will of God. His
servants had the faith to believe that God could use this means to heal their leader,
and their faith was honored with a miracle. God used this simple means to achieve
a marvelous healing. Had he not used the means, he would not have been healed.
The marching of God’s people around Jericho was the same as that dipping in
the Jordan. It was a measure of faith. And so it is with every march for Jesus. All
we can do is go by faith that God can use such a powerful witness to break down
some walls that keep people out of the kingdom of God. We march by faith because
we know God can use every means to do a marvelous work in the lives of others.
The essence of faith is action, which pleases God. Heb. 11:6 says, “Without faith it
is impossible to please God.” With faith it is possible, and that is what this march
around Jericho did. It pleased God that His people would obey His command and
get involved in cooperation with Him. When God is pleased with His people, they
are rewarded by His blessings. All their victory, wealth and joy in the Promised
Land came to them because they marched in faith.
An Eastern story tells of the king who proclaimed that when his new highway
opened the one who traveled it best on opening day would receive a purse of gold.
Everyone asked, “What does it mean to travel it best?” Each according to his own
interpretation made preparation for the contest. Some came on horseback and
others in chariots. Some came as runners to travel it on foot. Each was doing their
best to travel best. At one point in the road there was a pile of stones, and each
contestant complained that this hazard was left on the kings new highway. It was a
sorry sight, a disfigurement, and an obstacle they complained as they passed by the
heap of rough stones.
Only one runner stopped to clear the road of that pile of stones. Under them he
found a purse of gold coins. The king’s servants brought this man to the king and
he announced that that bag of gold belonged to the finder. The man exclaimed,
“There must be some mistake!” “ o,” said the king.” “The prize was for the one
who would travel my new highway best. The gold is yours, for he travels best who
makes the way easier and safer for those who come after.” He pleased the king by
doing what the king wanted done, and he was rewarded accordingly. So it was with
the march around Jericho. It pleased God, and they were rewarded with the

17. victory. We always win the victory when we are willing to be a means by which God
can work His will in the world.
2 Then the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have
delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its
king and its fighting men.
CLARKE,"And the Lord said unto Joshua - This is the same person who in the
preceding chapter is called the captain or prince of the Lord’s host, the discourse being
here continued that was begun at the conclusion of the preceding chapter, from which
the first verses of this are unnaturally divided.
I have given into thine hand Jericho, etc. - From Jos_24:11, it seems as if there
had been persons of all the seven Canaanitish nations then in Jericho, who might have
come together at this time to help the king of Jericho against the invading Israelites. The
Targum intimates that the place was very strong, having “gates of iron and bars of brass;
and was shut up so closely that none came out, either to combat or make offers of
peace.”
GILL, "And the Lord said unto Joshua,.... The same divine Person called in the
preceding chapter the Captain of the Lord's host, Jos_5:14, now with him, and who gave
him the following orders, instructions, and assurances:
see, I have given into thy hand Jericho, and the king thereof: which might be
concluded from the fear that was fallen upon the inhabitants of the city and their king,
and from their shutting themselves up so closely, not daring to come out against Israel:
and especially from this declaration and promise of the Lord; and which should be done
in such a manner, as that it would clearly appear to be of the Lord, and not men:
and the mighty men of valour; the military men, the soldiers, or army that were
under the command of the king of Jericho; or, as Kimchi reads it, "though" mighty men,
yet they should not be able to defend the city, or hinder its falling into their hands; for
what were they to the mighty God of Israel?

18. HE RY 2-5, "II. God resolves Israel shall be its master, and that quickly, The captain
of the Lord's host, here called Jehovah, taking notice how strongly Jericho was fortified
and how strictly guarded, and knowing Joshua's thoughts and cares about reducing it,
and perhaps his fears of a disgrace there and of stumbling at the threshold, gave him
here all the assurance he could desire of success (Jos_6:2): See, I have given into thy
hand Jericho. Not, “I will do it, but, I have done it; it is all thy own, as sure as if it were
already in thy possession.” It was designed that this city, being the first-fruits of Canaan,
should be entirely devoted to God, and that neither Joshua nor Israel should ever be one
mite the richer for it, and yet it is here said to be given into their hand; for we must
reckon that most our own which we have an opportunity of honouring God with and
employing in his service. Now. 1. The captain of the Lord's host gives directions how the
city should be besieged. No trenches are to be opened, no batteries erected, nor battering
rams drawn up, nor any military preparations made; but the ark of God must be carried
by the priests round the city once a day for six days together, and seven times the
seventh day, attended by the men of war in silence, the priests all the while blowing with
trumpets of rams' horns, Jos_6:3, Jos_6:4. This was all they were to do. 2. He assures
them that on the seventh day before night they should, without fail, be masters of the
town. Upon a signal given, they must all shout, and immediately the wall should fall
down, which would not only expose the inhabitants, but so dispirit them that they would
not be able to make any resistance, Jos_6:5. God appointed this way, (1.) To magnify his
own power, that he might be exalted in his own strength (Psa_21:13), not in the strength
of instruments. God would hereby yet further make bare his own almighty arm for the
encouragement of Israel and the terror and confusion of the Canaanites. (2.) To put an
honour upon his ark, the instituted token of his presence, and to give a reason for the
laws by which the people were obliged to look upon it with the most profound
veneration and respect. When, long after this, the ark was brought into the camp without
orders from God, it was looked upon as a profanation of it, and the people paid dearly
for their presumption, 1Sa_4:3, etc. but now that it was done by the divine appointment
it was an honour to the ark of God, and a great encouragement to the faith of Israel. (3.)
It was likewise to put honour upon the priests, who were appointed upon this occasion
to carry the ark and sound the trumpets. Ordinarily the priests were excused from war,
but that this privilege, with other honours and powers that the law had given them,
might not be grudged them, in this service they are principally employed, and so the
people are made sensible what blessings they were to the public and how well worthy of
all the advantages conferred upon them. (4.) It was to try the faith, obedience, and
patience, of the people, to try whether they would observe a precept which to human
policy seemed foolish to obey and believe a promise which in human probability seemed
impossible to be performed. They were also proved whether they could patiently bear
the reproaches of their enemies and patiently wait for the salvation of the Lord. Thus by
faith, not by force, the walls of Jericho fell down. (5.) It was to encourage the hope of
Israel with reference to the remaining difficulties that were before them. That suggestion
of the evil spies that Canaan could never be conquered because the cities were walled up
to heaven (Deu_1:28) would by this be for ever silenced. The strongest and highest walls
cannot hold out against Omnipotence; they needed not to fight, and therefore needed
not to fear, because God fought for them.
JAMISO , "See, I have given into thine hand Jericho — The language
intimates that a purpose already formed was about to be carried into immediate
execution; and that, although the king and inhabitants of Jericho were fierce and
experienced warriors, who would make a stout and determined resistance, the Lord

19. promised a certain and easy victory over them.
K&D 2-5, "Jos_6:2-5
“And the Lord said to Joshua:” this is the sequel to Jos_5:15, as Jos_6:1 is merely a
parenthesis and Jehovah is the prince of the army of Jehovah (Jos_5:14), or the angel of
Jehovah, who is frequently identified with Jehovah (see Pentateuch, pp. 106ff.). “See, I
have given into thy hand Jericho and its king, and the mighty men of valour.” (“Have
given,” referring to the purpose of God, which was already resolved upon, though the
fulfilment was still in the future.) “The mighty men of valour” (brave warriors) is in
apposition to Jericho, regarded as a community, and its king. In Jos_6:3-5 there follows
an explanation of the way in which the Lord would give Jericho into the hand of Joshua.
All the Israelitish men of war were to go round the town once a day for six days. ‫ת‬ ָ‫ח‬ ֶ‫א‬ ‫ם‬ ַ‫ע‬ ַ
... ‫יף‬ ֵ ַ‫,ה‬ “going round about the city once,” serves as a fuller explanation of ‫ם‬ ֶ‫ּות‬ ַ‫ס‬ (“ye
shall compass”). As they marched in this manner round the city, seven priests were to
carry seven jubilee trumpets before the ark, which implies that the ark itself was to be
carried round the city in solemn procession. But on the seventh day they were to march
round the town seven times, and the priests to blow the trumpets; and when there was a
blast with the jubilee horn, and the people on hearing the sound of the trumpet raised a
great cry, the wall of the town should fall down “under itself.” The “jubilee trumpets”
(Eng. Ver. “trumpets of rams' horns”) are the same as the “jubilee horn” (Eng. Ver.
“rams' horn”) in Jos_6:5, for which the abbreviated form shophar (trumpet, Jos_6:5; cf.
Exo_19:16) or jobel (jubilee: Exo_19:13) is used. They were not the silver trumpets of the
priests (Num_10:1.), but large horns, or instruments in the shape of a horn, which gave
a loud far-sounding tone (see at Lev_23:24; Lev_25:11). For ‫בש‬ ‫ע‬ ַ‫ק‬ ָ , blow the trumpet
(lit. strike the trumpet), in Jos_6:4, ‫ן‬ ֶ‫ר‬ ֶ ַ ְ‫ך‬ ַ‫שׁ‬ ָ‫,מ‬ draw with the horn, i.e., blow the horn with
long-drawn notes, is used in Jos_6:5 (see at Exo_19:13). The people were then to go up,
i.e., press into the town over the fallen wall; “every one straight before him,” i.e., every
one was to go straight into the town without looking round at his neighbour either on
the right hand or on the left (vid., Jos_6:20).
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:2 And the LORD said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine
hand Jericho, and the king thereof, [and] the mighty men of valour.
Ver. 2. And the Lord said.] The man Christ Jesus, [Joshua 5:13] that man of war.
[Exodus 15:3] "Jehovah is his name": "Jehovah, mighty in battle," [Psalms 24:8]
whose "weakness is stronger than men." [1 Corinthians 1:25]
PI K, ""And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho,
and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor" (Josh. 6:2). Very blessed is that.
The Lord graciously made free with His servant, and before the campaign opened
assured him of the complete success of the same. But let us not fail to call to mind
that which had immediately preceded this favor, for there is an inseparable moral
connection between them, which it behooves us to note. Joshua himself, the priests,
and the whole nation had exercised an exemplary obedience to the Divine will and

20. had manifested a real concern for the Divine glory—in circumcising the men and in
celebrating the Passover feast. It is ever God’s way to make free with us when
everything is right between Him and our souls. Thus we have illustrated and
exemplified here yet another effect that always follows when there is an ungrieved
Spirit in the midst of a company of saints. ot only does He awe those who are
without, but Divine communications are freely vouchsafed unto those who are
within! That ought to be a normal and regular experience, and not an occasional
and extraordinary one. As the Lord Jesus declared, "He that hath My
commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me; and he that loveth Me
shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him and will manifest Myself to him"
(John 14:21).
Above, we have said that this confronting of Jericho "straitly shut up" was a
challenge to faith, and that God acts "according to" our faith. But faith must ever
have a foundation to rest upon, and here one was afforded the same. That word
"See, I have given unto thine hand Jericho," was instructive and emphatic. "See"
was a definite call to view things with the eye of the spirit rather than that of the
body: contemplate this obstacle by faith and not by carnal reason. Just as at the Red
Sea the word was, "Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will show
you today . . . the Lord shall fight for you" (Ex. 14:13, 14). Yet they saw not that
"salvation" or deliverance outwardly until they had, in faith and obedience,
complied with the Divine order, "speak unto the children of Israel that they go
forward" (v. 15). They were required to "see" God’s promised deliverance by faith
before it was accomplished unto outward sight! It was the same thing here: "See, I
have given into thine hand Jericho." Have you, my reader, thus "seen" that blessed
One of whom previously you had only "heard" (Job 42:5)? Have you thus "seen
Him who is invisible" (Heb. 11:27)? Have you thus "seen your final and complete
victory over sin and death? Have you thus seen that place which your Redeemer has
gone to prepare for you? That is what faith is: "the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen" (Heb. 11:1)!
Instructions for Conquest
"And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the
king thereof, and the mighty men of valor" (Josh. 6:2).
That gracious declaration was not only a challenge unto the exercise of faith, and an
evidence of God’s bounty, but it was also designed to subdue all the workings of
self-sufficiency. The proud flesh remains in all God’s people, and the best of them
are prone to take unto themselves that credit and praise which belong alone unto
God. But that "See [take note of, keep steadily in mind, that] I have given into thine
hand Jericho" was meant to exclude all boasting. It was not only a word to
encourage and animate, but also one to humble, signifying that the success of this
venture must be ascribed unto the Lord Himself, apart from whom "we can do
nothing" (John 15:5). Victory over our enemies must never be ascribed to our own
prowess: rather are we to aver, " ot unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy
name give glory, for Thy mercy, for Thy truth’s sake" (Ps. 115:1). Jericho was
Israel’s by Divine donation, and therefore its capture was to be attributed wholly
unto the God of all grace. "What hast thou that thou didst not receive? ow if thou
didst receive, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?" (1 Cor. 4:7).
What need there is for that truth to be pressed today upon a boastful and

21. vainglorious Christendom!
When the people of Lystra saw the healing of the cripple, they sought to render
Divine homage unto Barnabas and Paul, which, when they beheld, "rent their
clothes and ran in among the people crying and saying, Sirs why do ye this thing?
we also are men of like passions with you" (Acts 14:14, 15). O for more of that self-
effacing spirit. How dishonoring it is unto God to have so many professing
Christians eulogizing worms of the dust and using such expressions as "He is a great
man," "a remarkable preacher," "a wonderful Bible teacher." What glory doth the
Lord get therefrom? one. o wonder the unction of the Spirit is now so generally
withheld! Moreover, nothing is so apt to destroy a preacher’s usefulness as to puff
him up with flattery; certainly nothing is so insulting to the Spirit and more
calculated to cause Him to withdraw His blessing than such idolatrous man-
worship. How much better to say, "Such a preacher is highly favored of the Lord in
being so gifted by Him." "The pastor was much helped by God in his sermon this
morning." "Every good and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from
the Father of lights" (James 1:17), and therefore it behooves us to thankfully
acknowledge the Giver and freely render unto Him undivided praise for every
blessing which He vouchsafes us through His servants, whether it comes in an oral
or written form.
"And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the
king thereof, and the mighty men of valor." Taking that verse as a whole, we may
perceive the Lord’s concern for His own honor. He is very jealous of the same,
saying "My glory will I not give unto another" (Isa. 42:8). Let us not forget that
Herod was eaten up of worms "because he gave not glory to God" (Acts 12:23)! It
was to prevent Israel’s committing this sin the Lord here made this affirmation unto
their leader. It was in order that His people might freely own, "He hath done
marvelous things: His right hand and His holy arm hath gotten Him the victory"
(Ps. 80:1). How often the Scriptures record such statements as these: "today the
Lord hath wrought salvation [deliverance] in Israel" (1 Sam. 11:14); "So the Lord
saved Israel that day" (1 Sam 14:23); "The Lord wrought a great salvation for
Israel" (1 Sam. 19:5); "The Lord wrought a great victory that day" (2 Sam. 23:10);
"By him [ aaman] the Lord had given deliverance unto Syria" (2 Kings 5:1). Alas,
how little is such language now heard! David had been taught this God-honoring
and self-abasing truth, as is shown by his words "Blessed he the Lord my strength,
who teacheth my hands to war, my fingers to fight" (Ps. 144:1). Such should be the
acknowledgment made by us in connection with our spiritual warfare and every
success granted us in the Christian life.
"And ye shall compass the city: all ye men of war, and go round about the city once.
Thus shalt thou do six days. And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven
trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times,
and the priests shall blow with the trumpets. And it shall come to pass, that when
they have made a long blast with the rams’ horns, when ye hear the sound of the
trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall
fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him" (vv. 3-
5). In view of the preceding verse, that may strike some of our readers as a very
strange requirement. If the Lord had definitely given Jericho into the hands of
Joshua, why were such elaborate preparations as these necessary for its overthrow?

22. Let those who feel the force of any such difficulty weigh attentively what we are
about to say. In reality, those verses exemplify and illustrate a principle which it is
most important for us to apprehend. That principle may be stated thus: the
disclosure of God’s gracious purpose and the absolute certainty of its
accomplishment in no wise renders needless the discharge of our responsibilities.
God’s assuring us of the sureness of the end does not set aside the indispensability of
the use of means. Thus, here again, as everywhere, we see preserved the balance of
Truth.
So far from the Divine promises being designed to promote inactivity on our part,
they are given as a spur unto the same, to assure us that if our efforts square with
the Divine Rule, they will not be in vain. The gracious declaration that God had
given Jericho into the hand of Israel did not discharge them from the performance
of their duty, but was to assure them of certain success in the same. That principle
operates throughout in the accomplishment of the Divine purpose. The truth of
election is not revealed in order to license a spirit of fatalism, but to rejoice our
hearts by the knowledge that the whole of Adam’s race is not doomed to
destruction. or are the elect mechanically delivered from destruction apart from
any action of theirs, for though they be "chosen to salvation," yet it is "through
sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the Truth" (2 Thess. 2:13)—unless the
Truth be embraced by them no salvation would be theirs, for "he that believeth not
shall be damned." Likewise the revealed truth that Christ will yet "see of the travail
of His soul and be satisfied" (Isa. 53), that "all that the Father giveth Him shall
come to Him" (John 6:37), does not render needless the preaching of the Gospel to
every creature, for that preaching is the very means which God has appointed and
which the Holy Spirit makes effectual in drawing unto Christ those for whom He
died. We must not divide what God has joined together.
It is the sundering of those things which God has connected—wherein He has made
the one dependent upon another—which has wrought so much evil and caused so
many useless divisions among His people. For example, in the twin truths of Divine
preservation and Christian perseverance. Our assurance of glorification in no wise
sets aside the need for care and caution, self-denial and striving against sin on our
part. There is a narrow way to be trodden if Life is to be reached (Matthew 7:14), a
race to be run if the prize is to be secured (Heb. 12:1; Philippians 3:14). We are
indeed "kept by the power of God,’ yet "through faith" (1 Pet. 1:5) and not
irrespective of its exercise; and faith eyes and makes use of the Divine precepts
equally with the Divine promises, and heeds God’s admonitions and warnings as
well as appropriates His comforts and encouragements. God has nowhere declared
that He will preserve the reckless and presumptuous. He preserves in faith and
holiness, and not in carnality and worldliness. Christ has guaranteed, the eternal
security of a certain company, but He was careful to first describe the marks of
those who belong to it: "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow
Me, and they shall never perish" (John 10:27, 28), but no such assurance is given
unto any who disregard His voice and follow a course of self-will and self-pleasing.
God’s promise of Heaven to the believer is far from signifying that he will not have
to fight his way there.
The appointed means must never be separated from the appointed end. Strength for
the body is obtained through the mouth, and health is not maintained without

23. observing the rules of hygiene. Crops will not be produced unless the ground be
prepared and sown. Yet in connection with spiritual matters we need to be
particularly careful that we employ only those methods and use none but those
means which God has appointed. "If a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not
crowned except he strive lawfully" (2 Tim. 2:5). For us to determine the methods
and select those means which appeal most to us when engaged in the service of God
is presumptuous, a species of self-will, laying us open to the charge of "Who hath
required this at your hand?" (Isa. 1:12); and for us to ask God’s blessing upon the
same is only seeking to make Him of our mind. Let us not forget the solemn warning
Pointed by the death of Uzzah, when the Lord God made a breach in Israel because
they "sought Him not after the due order" (1 Chron. 15:13). We must keep closely
to God’s "due order" if we are to have His approbation. That was one of the
outstanding lessons here taught Joshua. He was not left free to follow his own
devices, but must adhere strictly to the plan God gave him, following out His
instructions to the very letter if Jericho was to fall before Israel.
How passing strange those instructions must have appeared! How utterly
inadequate such means for such an enterprise! How futile would such a procedure
seem unto carnal reason! " o trenches were to be opened. no batteries erected, no
battering-rams drawn up, nor any military preparations made" (Matthew Henry).
Who ever heard of a mighty fortress being completely demolished in response to a
company of people walking around it? Ah, God’s ways are not only very different
from man’s, but they are designed to stain his pride and secure the glory unto
Himself. The leader and lawgiver of Israel was preserved in a frail ark of bulrushes.
The mighty giant of the Philistines was overcome by a sling and a stone. The
prophet Elijah was sustained by a widow’s handful of meal. The forerunner of
Christ dwelt in the wilderness, had his raiment of camel’s hair and a leathern girdle,
and fed upon locusts and wild honey. The Savior Himself was born in a stable and
laid in a manger. The ones whom He selected to be His ambassadors were for the
most part unlettered fishermen. What striking illustrations are these that "that
which is highly, esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God" (Luke
16:15)! Yet how needful it is to keep this principle before us!
Had Joshua called a council of war and consulted with the heads of the tribes as to
what they deemed the best policy to adopt, what conflicting advice he had most
probably received, what various methods of assault had been advocated. One would
have reasoned that the only way to subdue Jericho was by the starving out of its
inhabitants through a protracted siege Another would have counseled the use of
ladders to scale its walls by men heavily mailed and armed. A third would have
argued that heavy battering-rams would be more effective and less costly in lives to
the attackers. While a fourth would have suggested a surprise attack by secretly
tunneling under the walls. Each would have leaned unto his own understanding,
and deemed his plan the best. But Joshua conferred not with flesh and blood, but
received his commission direct from the Lord, and therein he has left an example for
all His servants to follow. The minister of the Gospel is responsible to Christ: he is
His servant, called and commissioned by Him, and from Him alone must he take his
orders. He has no authority except what Christ has given him, and he needs no
more. Joshua did not refer the instructions he had received from God to the
judgment of the priests and elders and ask their opinion on the same, but instead

24. acted promptly upon them, counting upon the Divine blessing, however his fellows
might regard them.
"When the Lord effects HIS purposes by such means and instruments as we deem
adequate, our views are apt to terminate upon them, and to overlook Him ‘who
worketh all things after the counsel of His own will.’ To obviate this propensity, the
Lord sometimes deviates from the common track and works by methods or
instruments which in themselves appear not at all suited to produce the intended
effect; nay, sometimes have no real connection with it ( um. 20:6-9; Ezekiel 37:1-10;
John 9:4-7). But it is our duty to use only those means which the Lord appoints or
allows, to submit to His will, and depend upon His blessing; and with patient
waiting and self-denying diligence, to expect the event: and we shall thus succeed as
far as is conducive to our real good. He takes peculiar pleasure in leading men’s
attention to His own truths and ordinances, in exercising their faith and patience, in
inuring them to submit their understandings implicitly to His teaching and their
wills to His authority, and in securing to Himself their praises and thankful
acknowledgements. In promoting true religion, especially, He works by means and
instruments which the proud, the learned, and the wealthy of this world generally
despise. The doctrine of a crucified Savior, God manifested in the flesh, as the only
foundation of a sinner’s hope of acceptance, and the only source of sanctifying
grace; preached by ministers, frequently, of obscure birth and moderate abilities,
and destitute of the advantages of eminent learning or eloquence; sometimes even
homely in their appearance and address" (Thomas Scott).
Looking more closely now at the instructions which Joshua received from the Lord
on this occasion, we see that once more "the ark" was given the place of honor,
being made central in the order of the procession. First were to proceed the "men of
war," then came the ark with seven priests in front of it with "trumpets of rams’
horns," and behind it came all the body of the people. The ark was the recognized
symbol of Jehovah’s presence, and its being carried before the congregation was to
intimate the victory was from Him. Very much indeed turns upon our realization of
the Divine presence—both as a restraint upon the flesh, and a stimulant to the spirit.
When assured that the Lord is not only for us but with us, fear gives place to holy
confidence. Deeply important is it for the servant of Christ not only to adhere
strictly to the terms of His commission, but also to rest upon His blessed promise,
"Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end" (Matthew 28:19, 20). Equally
necessary for the rank and the of God’s people to lay hold of that word, "I will
never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Joshua had received personal assurance of this
by the appearing to him of the "Captain of the Lord’s host" (Josh. 5:13-15), and by
the prominence accorded the ark: the whole congregation were given a visible
reminder of the same fact. All were to move with their eyes fixed upon the Captain
of their salvation, for none could stand before Him.
But the ark was also the repository of the tables of stone, on which were inscribed
the ten commandments. It therefore denoted that Israel now marched as subject to
the Divine Law, for only as they acted in obedience to its terms could success be
expected. As was pointed out in our articles on the crossing of the Jordan, Israel
marched into Canaan led by the Law: so here we are shown their conquest of the
land depended upon their compliance with its requirements. But more: the presence
of the ark here intimated that the Law was the minister of vengeance to the

25. Canaanites: their cup of iniquity was now full and they must suffer the due reward
of the same. Here the Law was "the minister of death" as the sequel demonstrated:
see verse 21.
3 March around the city once with all the armed
men. Do this for six days.
BAR ES 3-6, "The command of the Lord as to the mode in which the fall of Jericho
should be brought about is given in these verses in a condensed form. Further details
(see Jos_6:8-10, Jos_6:16-17, etc.), were, no doubt, among the commands given to
Joshua by the Angel.
Jos_6:4
Trumpets of ram’s horns - Render rather here and in Jos_6:5-6, Jos_6:8, etc.,
“trumpets of jubilee” (compare Lev_25:10 note). The instrument is more correctly
rendered “cornet” (see Lev_25:9, note). Various attempts have been made to explain the
fall of Jericho by natural causes, as, e. g., by the undermining of the walls, or by an
earthquake, or by a sudden assault. But the narrative of this chapter does not afford the
slightest warrant for any such explanations; indeed it is totally inconsistent with them. It
must be taken as it stands; and so taken it intends, beyond all doubt, to narrate a
miracle, or rather a series of miracles.
In the belief that a record is not necessarily unhistorical because it is miraculous,
never perhaps was a miracle more needed than that which gave Jericho to Joshua. Its
lofty walls and well-fenced gates made it simply impregnable to the Israelites - a nomad
people, reared in the desert, destitute alike of the engines of war for assaulting a fortified
town, and of skill and experience in the use of them if they had had them. Nothing line a
direct interference of the Almighty could in a week’s time give a city like Jericho,
thoroughly on its guard and prepared (compare Jos_2:9 ff and Jos_6:1), to besiegers
situated as were Joshua and the Israelites.
The fall of Jericho cogently taught the inhabitants of Canaan that the successes of
Israel were not mere human triumphs of man against man, and that the God of Israel
was not as “the gods of the countries.” This lesson some of them at least learned to their
salvation, e. g., Rahab and the Gibeonites. Further, ensuing close upon the miraculous
passage of Jordan, it was impressed on the people, prone ever to be led by the senses,
that the same God who had delivered their fathers out of Egypt and led them through
the Red Sea, was with Joshua no less effectually than He had been with Moses.
And the details of the orders given by God to Joshua Jos_6:3-5 illustrate this last
point further. The trumpets employed were not the silver trumpets used for signalling

26. the marshalling of the host and for other warlike purposes (compare Num_10:2), but
the curved horns employed for ushering in the Jubilee and the Sabbatical Year
(Septuagint, σάλπιγγες ᅷεραί salpinges hierai: compare the Lev_23:24 note). The trumpets
were borne by priests, and were seven in number; the processions round Jericho were to
be made on seven days, and seven times on the seventh day, thus laying a stress on the
sacred number seven, which was an emhlem more especially of the work of God. The ark
of God also, the seat of His special presence, was carried round the city. All these
particulars were calculated to set forth symbolically, and in a mode sure to arrest the
attention of the people, the fact that their triumph was wholly due to the might of the
Lord, and to that covenant which made their cause His.
CLARKE,"Ye shall compass the city - In what order the people marched round
the city does not exactly appear from the text. Some think they observed the same order
as in their ordinary marches in the desert; (see the note on Num_10:14, and see the
plans, Num_2:2 (note)); others think that the soldiers marched first, then the priests
who blew the trumpets, then those who carried the ark, and lastly the people.
GILL, "And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war,.... Joshua their chief
commander under the Lord, and all that were able to make war, even all above twenty
years of age; these were to compass the city, not in the form of a siege, but by a
procession around it:
and go round about the city once; or one time, for the first once in a day, and no
more:
thus shall thou do six days; one after another; that is, go round it, once every day, for
such a time. This order was given, according to the Jews (w), the twenty second of Nisan,
after the feast of unleavened bread was over.
JAMISO 3-5, "ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war.... Thus shalt
thou do six days, etc. — Directions are here given as to the mode of procedure.
Hebrew, “horns of jubilee”; that is, the bent or crooked trumpets with which the jubilee
was proclaimed. It is probable that the horns of this animal were used at first; and that
afterwards, when metallic trumpets were introduced, the primitive name, as well as form
of them, was traditionally continued. The design of this whole proceeding was obviously
to impress the Canaanites with a sense of the divine omnipotence, to teach the Israelites
a memorable lesson of faith and confidence in God’s promises, and to inspire sentiments
of respect and reverence for the ark as the symbol of His presence. The length of time
during which those circuits were made tended the more intensely to arrest the attention,
and to deepen the impressions, both of the Israelites and the enemy. The number seven
was among the Israelites the symbolic seal of the covenant between God and their nation
[Keil, Hengstenberg].

27. CALVI , "3.And you shall compass the city, etc The promise was, indeed, fit and
sufficient of itself to give hope of victory, but the method of acting was so strange, as
almost to destroy its credibility. God orders them to make one circuit round the city
daily until the seventh day, on which they are told to go round it seven times,
sounding trumpets, and shouting. The whole looked like nothing else than child’s
play, and yet was no improper test, for trying their faith, as it proved their
acquiescence in the divine message, even when they saw in the act itself nothing but
mere disappointment. With the same intention, the Lord often, for a time, conceals
his own might under weakness, and seems to sport with mere trifles, that his
weakness may at length appear stronger than all might, and his folly superior to all
wisdom.
While the Israelites thus abandon their own reason, and depend implicitly on his
words, they gain much more by trifling than they could have done by making a
forcible assault, and shaking the walls by numbers of the most powerful engines.
Only it behooved them to play the fool for short time, and not display too much
acuteness in making anxious and subtle inquiries concerning the event: for that
would have been, in a manner, to obstruct the course of the divine omnipotence.
Meanwhile, though the circulatory movement round the walls might have excited
derision, it was afterwards known, by its prosperous result, that God commands
nothing in vain.
There was another subject of care and doubt, which might have crept into their
minds. Should the inhabitants of the city suddenly sally forth, the army would,
without difficulty, be put to the rout, while, in long straggling lines, it was
proceeding round the city, without any regular arrangement that might have
enabled it to repel a hostile assault. But here, also, whatever anxiety they might have
felt, they behooved to cast it upon God; for sacred is the security which reclines on
his providence. There was an additional trial of their faith, in the repetition of the
circuit of the city during seven days. For what could seem less congruous than to
fatigue themselves with six unavailing circuits? Then, of what use was their silence,
(64) unless to betray their timidity, and tempt the enemy to come out and attack
besiegers who seemed not to have spirit enough to meet them? But as profane men
often, by rash intermeddling fervor, throw everything into confusion, the only part
which God here assigns to his people, is to remain calm and silent, that thus they
may the better accustom themselves simply to execute his commands.
Here, too, it is worthy of remark, that the instruments, given to the priests to blow
with, are not the silver trumpets deposited in the sanctuary, but merely rams’ horns.
The sound of the sacred trumpets would certainly have inspired more confidence,
but a better proof of obedience was given, when they were contented with the vulgar
symbol. Moreover, their movements were so arranged, that the greater number, by
which is understood the armed, went before the ark, while those who usually
accompanied the baggage followed. It was their part to take care that the rear did
not fall into confusion. As the term congregating, applied to them, was obscure, I
have rendered it by the corresponding term usually employed by the Latins. (65)
Some think that the tribe of Dan was thus employed, but this is uncertain, as they

28. were not then arranged in the manner usual on other expeditions.
BE SO , "Joshua 6:3. Round about the city once — At a convenient distance, out
of the reach of their arrows. Six days — Every day once. This and the following
course might seem ridiculous and absurd, and is therefore prescribed by God, that
they might learn to take new measures of things, and to expect success, not from
their own valour, or skill, but merely from God’s appointment and blessing; and in
general, not to judge of any of God’s institutions by mere carnal reason, to which
divers of their ceremonies would seem no less foolish than this action.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:3 And ye shall compass the city, all [ye] men of war, [and] go
round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.
Ver. 3. And ye shall compass the city.] At a just distance, no doubt, that ye may be
extra iactum. See 2 Samuel 11:20-21.
Thus shalt thou do six days.] All which time God held them in request: and
exercised their faith and patience.
PETT, "“And you shall surround the city, all the men of war, going about the city
once. Thus shall you do for six days.”
Each day for six days the men of war were to surround the city. It would not take
long, for the mound was not large (see above). The purpose was to terrify the
occupants, and also possibly to bring home to the Israelites the difficulty they would
have in breaching the wall. The men of war were probably the younger men of war
most suited to battle. Each time they came the inhabitants would prepare themselves
for an attack. And each time they would leave without attacking. It must have been
an eerie time for the inhabitants, especially in view of the silence of their enemy.
They would have expected yells and threats.
“Surround.” The word often means precisely that although in Psalms 48:12 it
specifically means ‘march round’, and it is used elsewhere of making progress in
one way or another (e.g. Exodus 13:18; umbers 21:4; umbers 36:7; umbers
36:9; Deuteronomy 32:10). The descriptions, with the armed men before, followed
by the priests with the Ark, followed by the remainder of ‘the people’, demonstrate
that here as well the surrounding was by marching round.
4 Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’
horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day,

29. march around the city seven times, with the
priests blowing the trumpets.
CLARKE,"Seven trumpets of rams’ horns - The Hebrew word ‫יובלים‬ yobelim
does not signify rams’ horns; (see the note on Lev_25:11); nor do any of the ancient
versions, the Chaldee excepted, give it this meaning. The instruments used on this
occasion were evidently of the same kind with those used on the jubilee, and were
probably made of horn or of silver; and the text in this place may be translated, And
seven priests shall bear before the ark the seven jubilee trumpets, for they appear to have
been the same kind as those used on the jubilee.
Seven times - The time was thus lengthened out that the besiegers and the besieged
might be the more deeply impressed with that supernatural power by which alone the
walls fell.
GILL, "And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams'
horns,.... The ark was to be taken up and carried by priests round the city. Ben Gersom
observes, that this was to direct the Israelites to keep and do according to all that was
written in it; that is, in the law, which was contained in it; but no doubt the design of it
was to show, that the subduing of Jericho, and the miracle that would be wrought, were
owing to the power and presence of God, of which the ark was a symbol: and before it
were to go seven other priests, with trumpets in their hands; which, according to our
version, were made of rams horns: in the original it is "jobelim", or "jubilee" trumpets.
Some think it means only such as they were to use in the year of jubilee; so Abarbinel
and others, as Masius and Noldius (x); that they had their name from Jubal, the first
inventor of musical instruments, Gen_4:21; for rams' horns are objected to because they
are solid, and not hollow; as if they could not be bored and made hollow, and fit for such
a purpose. The Targum, Jarchi, and Kimchi, interpret the word by rams horns, as we do
(y); and observe what R. Akiba said,"when (says he) I went into Arabia, I heard them
call; a ram "jobel"; and the trumpet itself is called "jobel", because made of a ram's horn
(z):"
and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times; in the same manner
as on the other days:
and the priests shall blow with the trumpets; which they were to do; and did
every day.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:4 And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of
rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the

30. priests shall blow with the trumpets.
Ver. 4. Seven trumpets of rams’ horns.] God usually goeth a way by himself, and
worketh his will by such means as the world judgeth absurd and ridiculous.
And the seventh day.] Which, probably, was the Sabbath day, wherein, "by the
foolishness of preaching," God still overturneth the strongholds of Satan, [2
Corinthians 10:4] by the priests blowing with their trumpets.
COKE, "Ver. 4. And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams'
horns— Some have observed, that rams' horns cannot be bored, and made so as to
give any thing of a strong sound; and therefore by rams' horns here, they would
understand trumpets made in the shape of rams' horns. But this supposed difficulty,
of making such an instrument of a ram's horn as may give a pretty strong sound, is
not well founded; it being certain, that the inside of these horns is no way hard, and
may easily be taken out, excepting a space at the point, of about four or five inches,
part of which is sawed off, in order to proportion the aperture to the mouth; after
which, the rest is easily pierced. We can assure our readers, say the authors of the
Universal History, that we have seen some of these trumpets, thus made, used by
shepherds in the southern parts of Germany.
And the seventh day you shall compass the city, &c.— Grotius very properly
observes, that the number seven is suited or appropriated to things sacred: it is
evidently so in this place. We shall not, however, insist upon it. The reader may
consult a variety of authors respecting the facts; particularly Drusius on the
passage, and on Leviticus 4:6.
PETT, "“And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the
Ark, and the seventh day you shall surround the city seven times, and the priests
will blow with the trumpets.”
Seven was the number of divine completeness among many nations. It was seen by
all as a sacred number. Something sevenfold was total. (In Sumerian religious
literature seven, along with three, were the only numbers ever used even though
they were a highly numerate nation, and it was from Sumer that Abram came).
Included in the surrounding of the city was the presence of the Ark. This
demonstrated to all that what was to happen would be the activity of YHWH, there
invisibly with His troops. The blowing of the trumpets and the silence of the soldiers
would draw all eyes to the Ark. We are left to imagine the growing fear and dread
in the hearts of the inhabitants.

31. 5 When you hear them sound a long blast on the
trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout;
then the wall of the city will collapse and the army
will go up, everyone straight in.”
CLARKE,"The wall of the city shall fall down flat - Several commentators, both
Jews and Christians, have supposed that the ground under the foundation of the walls
opened, and the wall sunk into the chasm, so that there remained nothing but plain
ground for the Israelites to walk over. Of this the text says nothing: - ‫תחתיה‬ ‫העיר‬ ‫חומת‬ ‫ונפלה‬
venaphelah chomath hair tachteyha, literally translated, is, The wall of the city shall fall
down Under Itself; which appears to mean no more than, The wall shall fall down From
Its Very Foundations. And this probably was the case in every part, though large
breaches in different places might be amply sufficient to admit the armed men first, after
whom the whole host might enter, in order to destroy the city.
GILL, "And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long blast with the
ram's horn,.... Continue blowing, and protracting, and drawing out the sound a long
time; which they did only on the seventh day; on the other days it was but a short blast
they made at a time; so that this being different, it would be a good sign and token to the
people to do what they are next directed to:
and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet; drawn out to a great length:
all the people shall shout with a great shout; at once, as when an onset is made in
battle, or a victory is obtained:
and the wall of the city shall fall down flat; or "under itself" (a); which Jarchi
interprets, in its place; that is, where it stood, and be swallowed up in it: so the
Targum,"and it shall be swallowed up under it;''yet so that somewhat of it should be
seen, as an attestation and proof of the miracle, as Kimchi; who says,"it means that it
should be swallowed up in its place under the earth, and a little of it appear above
ground for a memorial of the miracle:"
and the people shall ascend up, every man straight before him; just as they
were in the order of procession; for the wall being fallen everywhere, they would have no
occasion to make up to one certain place, as when a breach is only made in one place,
and the besiegers are obliged to go so many a breast to enter at it; but in this case they
might go straight up from whence they were, and enter the city without any obstruction

32. and difficulty.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:5 And it shall come to pass, that when they make a long [blast]
with the ram’s horn, [and] when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people
shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the
people shall ascend up every man straight before him.
Ver. 5. When they make a long blast.] Importing the triumph of their trust, the
victory of faith: for it was by faith that these walls fell. [Hebrews 11:30]
And the wall of the city shall fall down flat.] Corruet subtus se, that is, absorbebitur
a terra, saith Vatablus, it shall be swallowed up of the earth.
COKE, "Ver. 5. The wall of the city shall fall down flat— The Hebrew literally is,
shall fall under itself. The LXX render it, the walls shall fall down of themselves;
and Onkelos has it, the wall shall fall, and be swallowed up under itself. If we are to
believe the Jews, the walls of Jericho sunk entirely into the earth, without leaving
the least outward trace of them; so that the Jews entered into the city on plain
ground. But the text only says, that the walls fell down upon their foundations. The
latter clause, and the people shall ascend up, &c. is explained two different ways. 1.
Some are of opinion, that the walls of Jericho fell down only in particular places,
where wide breaches were made, through which the Israelites might pass with ease;
and this they suppose, because otherwise Rahab's house, which was annexed to the
city-wall, must have been overturned. 2. But others think, that the whole wall was
beaten down, and the house of Rahab only preserved; still more apparently to
display the irresistibility of that Power, which, while it overthrows, can yet exempt
from destruction: He killeth, and He saveth alive.
REFLECTIO S.—Jericho was now close besieged without, and close shut up and
guarded within, by the strength of the fortifications and the number of the
inhabitants; but the captain of the Lord's hosts assures Joshua that the place is his
own: and, to try the obedience of the people, as well as to spread the terror of such a
scene wide through the land, he issues a strange order. o military attack need be
made, no engines drawn to the walls, but only the ark of God be carried in solemn
procession six days round the city, by the priests, blowing with rams' horns,
accompanied by all the people; on the seventh day the city must be compassed seven
times, when, at the signal given of a long blast of the trumpets, the people must
shout together, and the walls shall fall down flat; so that every man may go up
instantly, and smite the inhabitants surprised and defenceless. ote; Though the
sinner's heart be walled and barred as fast as Jericho, the word of God, spoken by
his ministers, has mighty power to cast down the strong-holds of Satan; and though
the instruments seem weak as these rams' horns, yet that Divine power is with them
which nothing can resist.

33. BE SO ,"Joshua 6:5. The wall — ot all of it; which was unnecessary, and might
have given the people better opportunity of escaping; but only a considerable part of
it, where the Israelites might fitly enter: for Rahab’s house was not overthrown,
Joshua 6:22. Flat — Hebrew, under it. It was not battered down with engines, which
would have made part of it fall out of its place, but it fell of its own accord, and
therefore in the place it did formerly stand in. God chose this way to try the faith
and obedience of the people; whether they would observe a precept which, to human
policy, seemed foolish, and believe a promise which seemed impossible to be
performed; whether they could patiently bear the reproaches of their enemies, and
patiently wait for the salvation of God. Thus, by faith, not by force, the walls of
Jericho fell down.
PETT, "Verse 5
“And it shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when
you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout, and
the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, every man straight
before him.”
On the seventh day, once the city had been surrounded seven times, a long
distinguishing blast was to be made on the trumpet of ram’s horn. Then all the
people (probably indicating all the men of war) were to shout with a great shout and
the walls would collapse so that all the armed men could go straight before them
into the city. Horns always symbolise power (they are the effective armament of
both domestic and wild beasts) so that here there may be in the ‘seven rams’ horns’
the idea of expressing the divine perfection of the power of YHWH.
The long blast on the ram’s horn was possibly to symbolise the trumpet sound of
YHWH as in Exodus 19:16; Exodus 19:19; Exodus 20:18, introducing His power
revealed in what was about to happen. In Psalms 47 the sound of the ram’s horn
indicates the going forth of YHWH as King (Psalms 47:5-7), a psalm which also
links it with the people’s shout of triumph (Joshua 6:1; Joshua 6:5), when He goes
forth to subdue the nations and to grant an inheritance to His people (Joshua 6:3-4),
resulting in His reign over all things. Jericho was but the beginning of the revelation
of His power.
6 So Joshua son of un called the priests and said
to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant of the
Lord and have seven priests carry trumpets in
front of it.”

34. GILL, "And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests,.... Not the Levites and
Kohathites, whose business it was in common to bear the ark, but upon this occasion the
priests; not all of them, but as many as were sufficient for the purpose:
and said unto them, take up the ark of the covenant; by putting the staves into
the rings of it, and so carry it, Exo_25:14; see Num_7:9,
and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of
the Lord: See Gill on Jos_6:4.
HE RY, "We have here an account of the cavalcade which Israel made about
Jericho, the orders Joshua gave concerning it, as he had received them from the Lord
and their punctual observance of these orders. We do not find that he gave the people
the express assurances God had given him that he would deliver the city into their
hands; but he tried whether they would obey orders with a general confidence that it
would end well, and we find them very observant both of God and Joshua.
I. Wherever the ark went the people attended it, Jos_6:9. The armed men went before
it to clear the way, not thinking it any disparagement to them, though they were men of
war, to be pioneers to the ark of God. If any obstacle should be found in crossing the
roads that led to the city (which they must do in walking round it) they would remove it;
if any opposition should be made by the enemy, they would encounter it, that the priests'
march with the ark might be easy and safe. It is an honour to the greatest men to do any
good office to the ark and to serve the interests of religion in their country. The
rereward, either another body of armed men, or Dan's squadron, which marched last
through the wilderness, or, as some think, the multitude of the people who were not
armed or disciplined for war (as many of them as would) followed the ark, to testify their
respect to it, to grace the solemnity, and to be witnesses of what was done. Every faithful
zealous Israelite would be willing to undergo the same fatigues and run the same hazard
with the priests that bore the ark.
II. Seven priests went immediately before the ark, having trumpets in their hands,
with which they were continually sounding, Jos_6:4, Jos_6:5, Jos_6:9, Jos_6:13. The
priests were God's ministers, and thus in his name, 1. They proclaimed war with the
Canaanites, and so stuck a terror upon them; for by terrors upon their spirits they were
to be conquered and subdued. Thus God's ministers, by the solemn declarations of his
wrath against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, must blow the trumpet in
Zion, and sound an alarm in the holy mountain, that the sinners in Zion may be afraid.
They are God's heralds to denounce war against all those that go on still in their
trespasses, but say, “We shall have peace, though we go on.” 2. They proclaimed God's
gracious presence with Israel, and so put life and courage into them. It was appointed
that when they went to war the priests should encourage them with the assurance of
God's presence with them, Deu_20:2-4. And particularly their blowing with trumpets
was to be a sign to the people that they should be remembered before the Lord Their
God in the day of battle, Num_10:9. It encouraged Abijah, 2Ch_13:12. Thus God's
ministers, by sounding the Jubilee trumpet of the everlasting gospel, which proclaims

35. liberty and victory, must encourage the good soldiers of Jesus Christ in their spiritual
warfare.
III. The trumpets they used were not those silver trumpets which were appointed to be
made for their ordinary service, but trumpets of rams' horns, bored hollow for the
purpose, as some think. These trumpets were of the basest matter, dullest sound, and
least show, that the excellency of the power might be of God. Thus by the foolishness of
preaching, fitly compared to the sounding of these rams' horns, the devil's kingdom is
thrown down; and the weapons of our warfare, though they are not carnal nor seem to a
carnal eye likely to bring any thing to pass, are yet mighty through God to the pulling
down of strong-holds, 2Co_10:4, 2Co_10:5. The word here is trumpets of Jobel, that is,
such trumpets as they used to blow withal in the year of jubilee; so many interpreters
understand it, as signifying the complete liberty to which Israel was now brought, and
the bringing of the land of Canaan into the hands of its just and rightful owners.
JAMISO , "Joshua ... called the priests — The pious leader, whatever military
preparations he had made, surrendered all his own views, at once and unreservedly, to
the declared will of God.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:6 And Joshua the son of un called the priests, and said unto
them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of
rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD.
Ver. 6. And Joshua the son of un called the priests.] He yielded prompt and
present obedience, ready and speedy, without shucking or hucking, without delays
and consults; leaving us herein an excellent precedent.
PETT, "Verse 6
‘And Joshua, the son of un, 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 YHWH.”
YHWH had given his instructions to Joshua, possibly through a dream, or possibly
within the Tabernacle where Joshua, like Moses, was prone to go (Exodus 33:11) as
the chosen of YHWH. Joshua now passed them on to the priests. ote the switch
from ‘the Ark of the Covenant’ to ‘the Ark of YHWH’. ow that it was going into
battle the emphasis was on YHWH, the God of battle.
BE SO , "Verse 6
Joshua 6:6. Of rams’ horns — Of the basest matter and the dullest sound, that the
excellence of the power might be of God. The original words, however, here and
Joshua 6:4, ‫יובלום‬ ‫,שׁופרות‬ shoperoth jobelim, may be properly rendered, trumpets of
jubilee; that is, such trumpets as were to be blown in the year of jubilee. And many
prefer this translation, alleging that, as the horns of rams are not hollow, trumpets
cannot be made of them, even when bored, capable of giving any thing of a strong
sound. They would, therefore, understand the words here as signifying trumpets
made in the shape of rams’ horns. But others have urged that there is no difficulty
in making such an instrument of a ram’s horn as may give a pretty strong sound: “it

36. being certain that the inside of these horns is no ways hard, and may easily be taken
out, excepting a space at the point of about four or five inches, part of which is
sawed off, in order to proportionate the aperture to the mouth; after which, the rest
is easily pierced. And we can assure our readers,” say the authors of the Universal
History, “that we have seen some of these trumpets, thus made, used by the
shepherds in the southern parts of Germany.”
K&D 6-7, "Taking of Jericho. - In the account of this we have first of all a brief
statement of the announcement of the divine message by Joshua to the priests and the
people (Jos_6:6, Jos_6:7); then the execution of the divine command (Jos_6:8-20); and
lastly the burning of Jericho and deliverance of Rahab (Jos_6:21-27).
Jos_6:6-7
In communicating the divine command with reference to the arrangements for taking
Jericho, Joshua mentions in the first place merely the principal thing to be observed.
The plural ‫רוּ‬ ְ‫ּאמ‬ ַ‫ו‬ (“they said”), in Jos_6:7, must not be altered, but is to be explained on
the ground that Joshua did not make the proclamation to the people himself, but
through the medium oft he shoterim, who were appointed to issue his commands (see
Jos_1:10-11; Jos_3:2-3). In this proclamation the more minute instructions concerning
the order of march, which had been omitted in Jos_6:3-5, are given; namely, that ‫לוּץ‬ ָ‫ח‬ ֶ‫ה‬
was to march in front of the ark. By ‫לוּץ‬ ָ‫ח‬ ֶ‫,ה‬ “the equipped (or armed) man,” we are not to
understand all the fighting men, as Knobel supposes; for in the description of the march
which follows, the whole of the fighting men (“all the men of war,” Jos_6:3) are divided
into ‫לוּץ‬ ָ‫ח‬ ֶ‫ה‬ and ‫ף‬ ֵ ፍ ְ ַ‫ה‬ (Eng. Ver. “the armed men” and “the rereward,” Jos_6:9 and Jos_
6:13), so that the former can only have formed one division of the army. It is very natural
therefore to suppose, as Kimchi and Rashi do, that the former were the fighting men of
the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half Manasseh (‫א‬ ָ‫ב‬ ָ ַ‫ה‬ ‫י‬ ֵ‫לוּצ‬ ֲ‫,ח‬ Jos_4:13), and the latter the
fighting men of the rest of the tribes. On the meaning of ‫ף‬ ֵ ፍ ְ‫,מ‬ see at Num_10:25. If we
turn to the account of the facts themselves, we shall see at once, that in the report of the
angel's message, in Jos_6:3-5, several other points have been passed over for the
purpose of avoiding too many repetitions, and have therefore to be gathered from the
description of what actually occurred. First of all, in Jos_6:8-10, we have the
appointment of the order of marching, namely, that the ark, with the priests in front
carrying the trumpets of jubilee, was to form the centre of the procession, and that one
portion of the fighting men was to go in front of it, and the rest to follow after; that the
priests were to blow the trumpets every time they marched round during the seven days
(Jos_6:8, Jos_6:9, Jos_6:13); and lastly, that it was not till the seventh time of going
round, on the seventh day, that the people were to raise the war-cry at the command of
Joshua, and then the walls of the town were to fall (Jos_6:10, Jos_6:16). There can be
no doubt that we are right in assuming that Joshua had received from the angel the
command which he issued to the people in Jos_6:17., that the whole town, with all its
inhabitants and everything in it, was to be given up as a ban to the Lord, at the time
when the first announcement concerning the fall of the town was made.
BI 6-11, "Ye shall not shout, until the day I bid you shout.
Joshua taking Jericho

37. I. One of the essential attributes of a great leader—the power to repress the passions of a
nation of warriors: “Ye shall not shout,” &c. This was the command of a young ruler. The
temptation of the young and inexperienced is impatience. We but gradually learn the
lesson, “He that believeth shall not make haste.” Joshua, however, had learnt this. It is
easy to arouse a nation when new scenes suggest new possibilities, but it is difficult to
suppress emotions at such a time, and to insist upon silence “until.” This is one of the
tests of ruler-ship. Every general should be equal to this task. Joshua was.
II. One of the characteristics of a great people—willing obedience to the command to
repress their emotions at such a time as this. Joshua does not seem to have told them all
that the Lord had told him. Their ignorance of the final issue made obedience to the
command to go round Jericho for six days without giving vent to their feelings in one
single shout the more difficult, and on that account imparted to it a grander meaning. At
the outset the nation of conquerors had to conquer their own spirit. There must be a
reserve of force. Only those who can be silent can shout to good purpose. So has it ever
been with God’s servants. They have had their seasons of delay. Moses in Midian;
Christ’s disciples tarrying in Jerusalem “until,” &c.; Paul in Arabia; so here the people
who could persist in their apparently meaningless rounds “until” they were bidden to
shout, had the making of conquerors in them. The shout would have all the momentum
of the delay in it.
III. The divine method of accomplishing triumphs: “Not by might, nor by power, but by
My Spirit.” The triumph thus gained is often the consummation of patient waiting and
implicit obedience on our part. The world misunderstands the meaning of the apparent
monotonous routine of Providence, and asks sneeringly, “Where is the promise of His
coming?” All the while we know that the Lord is not slack concerning His promise, and
that every apparent delay hastens the final consummation. And “this is the victory that
overcometh the world, even our faith.” (D. Davies.)
PI K, "Seven Days of March
In our last we considered the instructions which Joshua received from the Lord
concerning Jericho; now we are to observe how the same were carried out. "And
Joshua the son of un called the priests, and said unto them, Take up the ark of the
covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of
the Lord. And he said unto the people, Pass on, and compass the city, and let him
that is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord" (Josh. 6:6, 7). It is therefore quite
evident from these verses that Joshua understood God’s promise "I have given into
thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor" (v. 2) as
meaning that, if His directions were faithfully and exactly executed, but only in that
case, would the city be supernaturally overthrown. That promise was to assure
Joshua that the Canaanites would be unable to successfully defend their city, and
that the Lord would make it manifest that He had delivered it up to Israel;
nevertheless they must act in full subjection to His revealed will.
This incident of the capture of Jericho is one which should be carefully pondered
and taken to heart by all the people of God today, especially so by His servants, for
if it be so it will supply a grand tonic to faith, and effectually counteract that spirit
of gloom which now so widely obtains. Alas, the majority of professing Christians
are far more occupied with what are called "the signs of the times" than they are
with the One in whose hand all "times and seasons" are (Acts 1:7). They are

38. walking by sight, rather than by faith; engaged with the things seen, rather than
with those which are unseen. The consequence is that many of them are cast down
and dispirited over present conditions, and only too often the preacher is apt to
regard the situation as hopeless. But that is to be of the same temper as the
unbelieving spies, who said "We be not able to go up against the people: for they are
stronger than we" ( um. 13:31), magnifying the difficulties which confronted them
and yielding to a spirit of defeatism.
If the minister of the Gospel be occupied with the smallness of his congregation, and
their unresponsiveness to his preaching; if he dwell unduly upon the lack of interest
on the part of the young people, and listens to the prophets of gloom, who ever give
the darkest possible interpretation to things, then he may well be dejected. But if his
thoughts be formed by and his own soul fed upon the Word of God, then he will
discover that there is no cause whatever for dismay. Scripture nowhere teaches that
God is seeking to convert the world, rather does it declare that He is visiting the
Gentiles "to take out of them a people for His name" (Acts 15:14). When giving
instructions to His servants, Christ bade them "take no anxious thought," for He
would have their hearts at rest, trusting, in the living God to supply their every
need; and also said "Fear not little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give
you the kingdom" (Luke 12:22, 32). He ever sought to strengthen their confidence in
the invincibility of God’s purpose, declaring "all that the Father giveth Me, shall
come unto Me" (John 6:37).
Instead of perplexing his mind with useless speculations about the ten toes of
Daniel’s colossus, the business of the minister of the Gospel is to faithfully carry out
the commission which he has received from his Master (Matthew 38:19, 20). Instead
of wasting time upon the newspapers and listening in to the wireless in order to
ascertain the latest threats of the Kremlin or menaces of the Vatican, let him give
more earnest heed to that injunction "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a
workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth" (2
Tim. 2:15). Instead of being so absorbed with the activities of Satan’s emissaries, let
him mix faith with that heartening assurance of the Most High, "For as the rain
cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth
the earth and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and
bread to the eater: so shall My Word be that goeth forth out of My mouth: it shall
not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall
prosper whereto I sent it" (Isa. 55:10, 11).
The Word of God is not outdated: "heaven and earth shall pass away but My words
shall not pass away" (Matthew 24:35). Then preach that Word in its purity, in its
fullness, with implicit confidence in its sufficiency. The Gospel of Christ is not
obsolete, but is still "the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth"
(Rom. 1:16). Then proclaim it, realizing that the curse of God rests on all who
preach any other (Gal. 1:8). Do you reply, I have, in my poor way, sought to preach
the Gospel as faithfully and earnestly as I know how: but so far as I can see, it has
been fruitless, and I am thoroughly discouraged. Then take heed, we beg you, to the
incident which is here before us. Get down on your knees right now and beg God to
bless this article unto you. Fervently implore Him to open your heart to receive the
same. Ponder afresh those words "by faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they
were compassed about seven days" (Heb. 11:30). Surely then "all things are possible

39. to him that believeth" (Mark 9:23)!
It requires no forced or fanciful effort of ours to show that Israel’s conquest of
Jericho adumbrated the victories won by the Gospel, when it is faithfully preached
and the blessing of God attends the same. As was pointed out in our last, Jericho
was one of the leading strongholds of the enemy: "the cities are walled and very
great" ( um. 13:28). Probably Jericho was the most powerfully fortified of any of
them, and as such it presented a formidable obstacle unto Joshua and his fellows.
evertheless, it fell before them in response to the punctual observance of the orders
which they had received from the Lord. It was in manifest reference to this that the
apostle declared, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty
through God to the pulling down of strongholds" (1 Cor. 10:4). How blessedly and
unmistakably was that demonstrated under his own ministry! How gloriously was
the same made evident in the days of Luther! How frequently has the same truth
been made to appear in various parts of the earth since then. And you, my brethren
in the ministry, have the same glorious Gospel to preach, and the same mighty God
to look unto to bless your labors!
Do you reply, But I am no Joshua, no Paul, no Luther? Then we remind you of the
apostle’s self-abasing and God-honoring words to those who were glorying in the
flesh. "Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed,
even as the Lord gave to every man. I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave
the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth;
but God that giveth the increase" (1 Cor. 3:5-7). The men whom God has most used
throughout the ages were those who rated themselves as nobodies! But you say, I
feel so weak and ill-equipped—God grant that such is your sincere language, for if
the contrary were the case, if you deemed yourself an able and well-qualified man,
you are no servant of Christ’s. Listen again to Paul, who with all his gifts and graces
contemplated the tasks before him in this spirit and attitude’ "who is sufficient for
these things?" (2 Cor. 2:16.)
Writing to those same saints and looking back to the days of his evangelistic labors
among them, the apostle declared "I came to you not with excellency of speech or of
wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know
anything among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. And I was with you in
weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling" (1 Cor. 2:13). Self-diffidence is no
disqualification for Christ’s service. It was not Paul that was "great," but rather
that the weapons he used when engaging the forces of evil were "mighty through
God"! And what were those "weapons"? Prayer, "the Sword of the Spirit, which is
the Word of God" (Eph. 6:17), and faith in the One who had commissioned him.
ote that we put prayer first. Does not the example of the supreme Preacher (Mark
1:35; Luke 6:12, 13) require us to do so? Did not the Twelve declare, "We will give
ourselves continually to [1] prayer and [2] to the ministry of the Word" (Acts 6:4)?
Then do thou the same. Concerning faith, we refer the reader again to Hebrews
11:30. ow fellow preachers, the same three "weapons" are available to us, and we
need no others for the glorifying of Christ and the execution of His commission.
ote well, ye preachers, our last sentence. We did not say that no other weapons are
needed in order for you to be eminently "successful" in your work, or that your use
of the same will ensure prompt "visible results." That must not be made your chief
concern nor immediate end: and if you make it such, a jealous God is most likely to

40. blow upon rather than bless your efforts. Your paramount care and principal
design must be the glorifying of God (1 Cor. 10:31): to make known His excellency,
to enforce His just claims upon the creatures of His hands, to bid men throw down
the weapons of their warfare against Him, and be reconciled to Him. If you be a real
servant of God’s He has sent you forth to magnify Christ: the salvation of sinners is
but secondary and subordinate thereto. God would have a universal testimony
borne unto the matchless worth of the person and work of Christ—the Gospel is a
"witness" (Matthew 24:14) to His perfections. God would have proclaimed far and
wide the amazing fact that His own beloved Son "became obedient unto death, even
the death of the cross" (Phil. 2:8), being wholly devoted unto the will of His Father.
It is of first importance that we should be quite clear upon the nature of the Gospel:
it is "the Gospel of God . . . concerning His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. 1:1,
3). In the Gospel is made known the Savior’s personal dignities: that He is the Lord
of glory, the Prince of life, the King of kings, the Creator and Upholder of the
universe. In the Gospel is revealed His amazing condescension and humiliation: how
that in obedience to the Father’s word He voluntarily and gladly, took upon Him the
form of a servant and was made in the likeness of sin’s flesh, tabernacling for a
season in this scene. In the Gospel is exhibited His holy and unique life: performing
the work which the Father had given Him to do. In the Gospel is displayed His
official glories, as Prophet, Priest and Potentate. In it is told forth His grace unto
sinners: dying the just for the unjust. In it is declared how that He magnified the
Divine Law and made it honorable, superlatively glorifying the Father thereby. In it
we are informed how that God rewarded His incarnate Son by raising Him from the
dead, and seating Him at His own right hand on high. Our business, fellow
preachers, is to proclaim that Gospel in its purity and fullness, that God may be
glorified, and His Son magnified.
Our commission is crystal clear. It is no other than this: "Speak unto them, and tell
them: whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear" (Ezek. 3:11). Our
business is to declare "all the counsel of God" and keep back nothing that is
profitable unto souls (Acts 20:20, 27). Our marching orders are the same as Jonah’s
(Jon. 3:2) and of Deuteronomy 4:2: "Preach unto it [the city] the preaching that I
bid thee." "Ye shall not add unto the Word which I command you, neither shall ye
diminish ought from it." Only by so doing will God be glorified and our souls
cleared from the awful charge of infidelity. But if we do so—and only by Divine
grace, earnestly and constantly sought, can we—we may safely leave "results" with
the Lord of the harvest. ay more, we may rest in full confidence on the promise
"them that honor Me, I will honor" (1 Sam. 2:30). But it must be left with Him as to
when and how He "honors." In the Day to come He will say "Well done, good and
faithful servant." Even now "we are unto God a sweet savor of Christ, in them that
are saved and in them that perish" (2 Cor. 2:15)!
But let us now take a more definite look at the instructions given to Israel’s priests
in Joshua 6:6. Observe carefully a significant omission therein, which silently but
decidedly confirms what has been said above. Joshua did not announce to them the
promise which he had received from the Lord in verses 2 and 5, but simply gave
them their marching orders, without any assurance that success would certainly
attend their efforts! In this, as in almost all things, Joshua was a type of Christ, who,
although receiving promise from His Father (in the everlasting covenant) of the sure

41. success of His undertaking (cf. Isaiah 53:10-12), yet when commissioning His
servants, gave them specific commandments but said not a word about their labors
being fruitful!—see Matthew 28, 29, 30; Mark 16:15, 16; Luke 24:46-49; John
20:21-23; Acts 1:7, 8. So here: the priests were told what to do, and that was all.
Unquestioning and unreserved obedience to their orders was what was required
from them: nothing more, nothing less. They were, first, to "take up the ark of the
covenant"; second, to "bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns"; and third, to go
"before the ark of the Lord." Let us now point out the typical significance of the
same.
The ark of the covenant was the symbol of the Lord’s presence with them, as their
"Leader and Commander" (Isa. 55:4). In like manner, Christ has assured His
servants "Lo! I am with you always, even unto the end of the world" (Matthew
28:20). That is to be realized by faith, and not by sense. The minister of the Gospel is
to go forward to the fight in the blessed consciousness that he is not alone: he is to
act with full assurance that the Captain of his salvation is with him. What a
difference it will make if he steadily bear the same in mind! Let him act accordingly.
Let the known presence of Christ serve both as a bridle upon the flesh, and as a
spur to his zeal. The priests "bearing the trumpets" at once identifies them as
adumbrating ministers of the Gospel sounding forth their imperative message. "Cry
aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show My people their
transgressions" (Isa. 58:1). "I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound
of the trumpet" (Jer. 6:17). "Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in
My holy mountain" (Joel 2:10). The apostle made use of this figure when he said "If
the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle" (1
Cor. 14:8).
The sounding of the trumpets by the priests on this occasion had a twofold design:
to strike terror into the hearts of the Canaanites: to inspire with courage and
confidence the people of God. And that is the twofold work of Christ’s servants.
First, to solemnly declare the revealed wrath of God against all ungodliness and
unrighteousness of men (Rom. 1:18): to announce His war against those who
continue in sin: to boldly declare "he that believeth not shall be damned." Thus did
the supreme Gospeler: Matthew 11:23, 24; John 3:18, 36! Second, to strengthen the
hearts of God’s people: "And if ye go to war in your land against the enemy that
oppresseth you, then ye shall blow an alarm with the trumpets, and ye shall be
remembered before the Lord your God, and ye shall be saved from your enemies"
( um. 10:9). "And it shall be when ye are come nigh to the battle, that the priest
shall approach and speak unto the people, and shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel,
ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear
not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; for the Lord your
God is He that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you"
(Deut. 20:2, 4). Thus is the preacher to encourage the saints in their conflict with the
flesh, the world, and the devil.
"And Joshua the son of un called the priests and said unto them, Take up the ark
of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the
ark of the Lord. And he said unto the people, Pass on and compass the city, and let
him that is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord" (Josh. 6:6, 7). Lack of space
prevented the completion of our remarks upon these two verses in our last. There

42. we dwelt at length upon the former one, and sought to show that Israel’s priests, on
this occasion, shadowed forth the ministers of the Gospel, and how that the
appointed (spiritual) weapons of their "warfare are made mighty through God to
the pulling down of strongholds" (2 Cor. 10:4). Care needs to be taken against
carnalizing that expression and interpreting it in a manner unwarranted by the
Analogy of Faith. It is not the Gospel converting people en masse (in a
body)—"Glasgow for Christ," "Chicago for Christ," as Arminian slogans express
it—but the delivering of individual souls from that powerful "refuge of lies" in
which the natural man is entrenched. The meaning of 2 Corinthians 10:4, is
explained in the next verse:
"Casting down imaginations [or "reasongings"] and every high thing that exalteth
itself against God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of
Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5). The heart of the natural man is stoutly opposed to God, being
filled with enmity against Him. It is fortified by the love of sin against every appeal
unto holiness. The unregenerate are so inured and hardened by habit and practice
that the Holy Spirit declares "Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his
spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil’ (Jer. 13:23). Their
wills are enslaved, so that they "will not come to Christ" (John 5:40). They are
steeled against both the terrors of the Law and the attractions of the Gospel.
Furthermore they are the captives of the devil (Luke 11:21; 2 Timothy 2:26), and
are unable to emancipate themselves. aught but a miracle of grace can free them,
and the means used by the Spirit in accomplishing that miracle is the preached
Word, effectually applied to the heart by His power. Then is the proud rebel
humbled into the dust before God, delivered from the dominion of sin and Satan,
transformed into a loving and loyal subject of Christ.
In the seventh verse of Joshua 6, instructions were given to the people. On this
occasion they were to accompany the priests! When crossing the Jordan the priests
went "before the people" (Josh. 3:6), and stood alone "in the midst of Jordan" until
"all the people had passed over" (Josh. 4:20). There they foreshadowed our great
High Priest, who "by Himself" opened a way through death for His people (see
Chapter Six). But here the priests typified the servants of Christ, as engaged on
their evangelistic labors. Consequently the hosts of Israel must now accompany
them. What a word is that for the rank and the of the people of God today! Only too
often has the minister of the Gospel to go forth alone. He does not receive that moral
and spiritual support to which he is entitled, and which he so much needs. o
wonder so many faithful preachers are discouraged when the prayer-meetings are
so thinly attended, and when so few are holding up their hands at the throne of
grace! O that it may please God to use this paragraph in stirring up professing
Christians to be more definite and fervent in praying for all godly ministers. Only a
preacher knows what difference it makes to have the assurance that the hearts of his
people are with him!
"And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken unto the people, that the seven
priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns passed on before the Lord, and
blew with the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them" (v.
8). Observe, first, how precise is the time-mark here of the priests’ action: they did
not move forward until the people had taken their allotted position according to the
instructions they had received from their leader. There was to be conjoint action:

43. the priests accompanied by the people—exemplifying what we have said in the
above paragraph. Second, since there is nothing meaningless or superfluous in Holy
Writ, note how the Spirit has again emphasized the rude nature of the priests’
"trumpets." o less than five times in this chapter are we told that those employed
on this occasion were made of "rams’ horns"—a cruder or meaner material could
scarcely be imagined. They were in designed and striking contrast with the
"trumpets of silver" which were normally used in the camp of Israel ( um. 10:1-
10). It was God pouring contempt on the means used—those which were despicable
in the eyes of men—that Israel’s pride might be stained and Himself glorified, for
His strength is ever made perfect through weakness.
Bearing in mind that Israel’s priests here foreshadowed the true servants of Christ,
their using trumpets of rams’ horns is deeply significant, albeit, very distasteful to
that pride of heart which glories in the flesh. It not only emphasized the feebleness
of the means used by God in accomplishing His purpose of grace, namely, that it
hath pleased Him "by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe" (1 Cor.
1:21), but also indicated the type of men God deigns to employ as His mouthpieces.
When our Lord chose the men who were to be His apostles and ambassadors, He
selected not those who occupied eminent stations in the world, nor those who had
passed through the schools of learning, but unlettered fishermen and a despised tax-
gatherer—that was the antitype of "the rams’ horns" in contrast with "the
trumpets of silver"—men of lowly origin, despised by those who are great and wise
in their own eyes! To effect the mightiest of all works, God employs what is to the
mind of the natural man the most inadequate means, in order that His wisdom and
power may be the more apparent. The Gospel does not depend for its success on
human wisdom—a fact lost sight of by the churches today.
That same flesh-withering truth is dearly expressed in 1 Corinthians 1:26-31,
though few have perceived it. The immediate design of the apostle in 1 Corinthians 1
and 2 was to show that the great and grand change wrought in the hearts of
believers is not to be ascribed to any wisdom or power possessed by the preacher
(who is hut a channel through which God condescends to work), but is to be
attributed wholly to the Divine grace in making his message effectual. The
Corinthians were glorying in human instruments, setting up one against another
(see Joshua 1:12), and the apostle shows how utterly baseless and foolish was such
glorying. He pointed out that it was not the learning of Paul nor the eloquence of
Apollos which could convert a soul, but that God must, from beginning to end,
accomplish the same. This he demonstrates by describing the type of instruments
which He makes to be vehicles of blessing unto sinners. "For ye see your calling,
brethren [i.e. ye perceive from your own calling out of darkness into God’s
marvelous light], that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not
many noble"—"are employed" (by God) is a far better and more pertinent
supplement than "are called."
"But God hath chosen [for His servants] the foolish things of the world to confound
the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things
which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath
God chosen; and things which are not [nonentities, nobodies] to bring to naught the
things that are." Thus, verses 26-28 are to be connected with the whole context, and
not simply with verses 24, 25. In them we behold again "the trumpets of rams’

44. horns"—God employing instruments which appear utterly inadequate to carnal
reason. That interpretation is clearly confirmed by "that no flesh should glory in
His presence," for the Corinthians were not glorying in themselves, but in their
ministers (Josh. 1:12; 3:4)! It is clinched by the next words: "But of Him [and not by
Paul, or Apollos, or any worm of the earth] are ye in Christ Jesus" (v. 30). Thus,
Paul was showing that it was not through learned philosophers nor highly trained
rabbins that the Corinthians had heard the Gospel of their salvation, but rather
through those whom both the one and the other regarded with contempt. If further
corroboration be needed, verse 31 supplies it!
God is jealous of His honor and will not share it with another. It pleases Him, as a
general rule, to select for His instruments those who have no glittering
accomplishments: rather, plain, simple, homely men. It is not silver-tongued orators
through whom He most shows forth His praises, but by those who have nothing
more, naturally, to commend them unto their hearers than that which resembles the
"rams’ horns"! His most eminent servants have not been those of royal blood, noble
birth, or high station, but taken from the lower walks of life. Luther, the principal
agent used by God in the mighty Reformation, was the son of a miner. Bunyan was
but a tinker, yet his book Pilgrim’s Progress has been translated into more
languages, had a much wider circulation, and been used in blessing to a far greater
number of souls, than all the writings put together of the learned Owen and
Goodwin! Spurgeon had neither university nor college training, nor was he a
graduate of any seminary! Though after God’s call to the ministry, each of them
studied hard and long to improve himself! In proportion as the churches have made
an idol of education and theological learning in their ministers, has their spirituality
waned: that is a fact, however unpalatable it may be.
7 And he ordered the army, “Advance! March
around the city, with an armed guard going ahead
of the ark of the Lord.”
BAR ES, "He said - The reading in the Hebrew text is “they said.” Joshua no doubt
issued his orders through the “officers of the people” (compare Jos_1:10).
Him that is armed - i. e. the warriors generally, not a division only. “The rereward”
Jos_6:9 was merely a detachment, and not a substantial portiere of the host; and was
told off, perhaps, from the tribe of Dan (compare the marginal reference) to close the

45. procession and guard the ark from behind. Thus the order would be
(1) the warriors,
(2) the seven priests blowing the cornets,
(3) the ark,
(4) the rear-guard.
GILL, "And he said unto the people, pass on, and compass the city,.... The
women and children, the young men under twenty years of age, the unarmed part of the
camp, as distinguished from the armed men:
and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord; to guard the ark,
protect the priests, and defend the people, should any sally be made by the enemy upon
them. These seem to design all the males that were above twenty years of age able to
bear arms, and fit for war; though some restrain it to the forty thousand of the tribes of
Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh, Jos_1:14.
ILLICOTT, "(7) Pass on, and compass the city.—The meaning of this proceeding
becomes clearer when we remember that the centre of the procession is the written
law of God. The ark is the vessel that contains it. The armed men that precede it are
its executioners. The priests who blow the trumpets are its heralds. It was this law
that had brought Israel over Jordan; this law that was henceforth to be established
in Canaan; this law that was about to take vengeance on the transgressors. The
whole law of Moses is but the expansion of the Decalogue; and the Pentateuch
contains an ample statement of the transgressions which had brought the
inhabitants of Canaan under the ban of the Divine law. The seven days’ march
round Jericho, in absolute silence, was well calculated to impress on the inhabitants
the lesson of “the forbearance of God.” “These things hast thou done, and I kept
silence.” For several generations the long-suffering of God had waited, while “the
iniquity of the Amorites was not yet full.” In the first year of the Exodus He had
threatened them, bringing the sword of Israel to their borders; and then He had
drawn back His hand from them, and given them forty years’ respite more. But now
the long-suffering of God had waited long enough. The shout that burst from the
lips of Israel was a signal that He would wait no longer.
Looked at thus, the shout of Israel at the sound of the trumpet on the seventh day
becomes no inapt figure of that which is connected with it by the language of Holy
Scripture—“the shout,” accompanied by “the voice of the archangel and the trump
of God,” which shall notify to the world our Lord’s second coming. “Our God shall
come, and shall not keep silence” any more (Ps. 1. 3 and 21; 1 Thessalonians 4:16).
COKE, "Ver. 7-9. And he said unto the people, Pass on— We apprehend, that it
was not only the soldiers who formed this procession, but that all the people joined
in it; that the armed men went before the ark; and that after it came the rest of the
people, making as it were the rear-ward. It is certain, however, that Onkelos, and
the Rabbis Solomon, Jarchi, and Kimchi, understand by the rear-ward, the single
tribe of Dan, which was thus appointed, umbers 10:25.; and they suppose, that

46. before the ark went armed only the troops of the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and of
the half tribe of Manasseh. But we keep to our version, which follows the LXX and
Vulgate. The Hebrew word ‫ףּמאס‬ measeph, which we translate rear-ward, signifies,
literally, gathered up; i.e. that company which closed the march, and collected
together all that belonged to the procession. We might translate it, the gathered
multitude. On the contrary, however, it must be owned, that it seems a little
improbable to suppose, that three millions of souls should every day have gone in
procession round Jericho for a week together, and on the last day seven times. On
this supposition, the city must have been very small. Perhaps, therefore, this
procession was composed only of the fighting men; and by the people we are to
understand, throughout the whole narration, only those who were armed.
PETT, "Verse 7
‘And they said to the people, “Pass on, and surround the city, and let the armed men
pass on before the Ark of YHWH.”
Some manuscripts have ‘he’. So these words were either those of the priests or of
Joshua himself. Either way they came from Joshua either directly or indirectly.
Verse 8 would support ‘he’, but as the more difficult reading ‘they’ may well be
correct.
The instruction was given to march round the city, surrounding it, the armed men
leading the way followed by the Ark of YHWH. ‘The people’ taking up the rear.
The latter may possibly also have included women and children so that all would see
the demonstration of the power of YHWH on their behalf, (but not necessarily. It
may be that only armed men were involved, both leading the way and following.
The Hebrew definite article regularly simply means ‘those I am talking about’). The
armed men to the front may have been the Transjordanian troops (Joshua 4:12-13),
‘the people’ the troops from the remainder, who would also have included older
men who wanted to be involved.
BE SO , "Verses 7-10
Joshua 6:7-10. Let him that is armed pass on — God would have them armed, both
for the defence of themselves and the ark, in case the enemies should make a sally
upon them, and for the execution of the Lord’s vengeance upon that city. The
rereward — Which, being opposed to the armed men, may seem to denote the
unarmed people, who were desirous to be spectators of this wonderful work. Ye
shall not shout — Because shouting before the time appointed would be ineffectual,
and so might give them some discouragement, and their enemies matter of insulting.
8 When Joshua had spoken to the people, the
seven priests carrying the seven trumpets before

47. the Lord went forward, blowing their trumpets,
and the ark of the Lord’s covenant followed them.
GILL, "And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken to the people,.... Both
armed and unarmed; had finished the orders and directions he gave them before
mentioned:
that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams' horns passed on
before the Lord; in his sight, and by his direction, and at his command given by
Joshua, and before the ark, the symbol of his presence:
and blew with the trumpets; a short blast as they went along; this they did on each
of the six days:
and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them; being borne by priests,
Jos_6:6.
JAMISO , "Jos_6:8-19. The city compassed six days.
the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets ... passed on before the Lord
— before the ark, called “the ark of the covenant,” for it contained the tables on which
the covenant was inscribed. The procession was made in deep and solemn silence,
conforming to the instructions given to the people by their leader at the outset, that they
were to refrain from all acclamation and noise of any kind until he should give them a
signal. It must have been a strange sight; no mound was raised, no sword drawn, no
engine planted, no pioneers undermining - here were armed men, but no stroke given;
they must walk and not fight. Doubtless the people of Jericho made themselves merry
with the spectacle [Bishop Hall].
K&D 8-10, "Jos_6:8-10
Execution of the divine Command. - Jos_6:8-11. The march round on the first day;
and the instructions as to the war-cry to be raised by the people, which are appended as
a supplement in Jos_6:10. “Before Jehovah,” instead of “before the ark of Jehovah,” as
the signification of the ark was derived entirely from the fact, that it was the medium
through which Jehovah communicated His gracious presence to the people. In Jos_6:9,
‫עוּ‬ ְ‫ק‬ ָ is in the perfect tense, and we must supply the relative ‫ר‬ ֶ‫שׁ‬ ֲ‫,א‬ which is sometimes
omitted, not only in poetry, but also in prose, after a definite noun in the accusative (e.g.,
Exo_18:20; see Ewald, §332, a.). There is not sufficient ground for altering the form of
the word into ‫י‬ ֵ‫ע‬ ְ‫ּק‬ , according to the Keri, as ‫ע‬ ַ‫ק‬ ָ is construed in other cases with the
accusative ‫ר‬ ָ‫ּופ‬ ַ‫,ה‬ instead of with ְ , and that not only in poetry, but also in prose (e.g.,

48. Jdg_7:22, as compared with Jdg_7:18-20). ַ‫ּוע‬‫ק‬ ָ‫ת‬ְ‫ו‬ ְ‫ּוך‬‫ל‬ ָ‫,ה‬ “trumpeting continually” (Eng.
Ver. “going on and blowing”). ְ‫ּוך‬‫ל‬ ָ‫ה‬ is used adverbially, as in Gen_8:3, etc.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:8 And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken unto the people,
that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns passed on before
the LORD, and blew with the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of the LORD
followed them.
Ver. 8. And the ark of the covenant.] Called also the ark of the testimony. [Joshua
4:16 Exodus 25:16]
PETT, "Verse 8
‘And so it was that when Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests bearing
the seven trumpets of rams' horns passed on before YHWH, and blew with the
trumpets, and the Ark of the covenant of YHWH followed them.’
Joshua having given his instructions to the people, whether directly or through the
priests, the seven priests with the rams’ horns ‘passed on before YHWH’. Here ‘the
Ark of YHWH’ is replaced by ‘YHWH’ Himself, for YHWH is seen as sitting on His
moveable battle throne, borne by the priests, ready to reveal His power against the
enemy (compare Ezekiel 1:16; Ezekiel 1:19 where the heavenly equivalent of the
Ark is seen as having heavenly wheels). The seven trumpets of rams’ horns
meanwhile sounded out the power of YHWH. In the description of the Ark both the
covenant and YHWH Himself are now given prominence. It was because they were
His covenant People that Jericho, and the whole land, ha been given to them.
PI K, "There is a third thing in verse 8 which claims our notice, namely, that the
seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns "passed on before the
Lord." This is generally understood to mean that they preceded the ark, but that
can scarcely be its significance, unless we are ready to conclude there is needless
tautology here, for the same verse ends by declaring "and the ark of the covenant of
the Lord followed them." What then is imported by they "passed on before the
Lord"? It is very much more than a bare historical detail, which has no relation
unto us today—alas that so few search for the present application to themselves of
all in the Bible. There is that here which the servants of Christ need to observe and
take to heart: something of vital importance and blessedness. That brief statement
reveals to us the inward condition of the priests. It expressed their attitude unto
Jehovah, and the Spirit of Truth delighted to record the same. Man looketh on the
outward appearance but God looketh on the heart; and the hearts of Israel’s priests
were engaged with Him, and they comported themselves accordingly. By carefully
comparing Scripture with Scripture we may ascertain the meaning of this clause.
In Genesis 5:24, we are told that "Enoch walked with God." In 1 Samuel 2:21, that
"the child Samuel grew before the Lord." In Deuteronomy 13:4, that Israel were

49. bidden to "walk after the Lord their God." While in’ Colossians 2:6, Christians are
exhorted "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him."
In those four prepositions we have an outline of the whole privilege and duty of the
saint in his relation to God. To "walk with God" is only possible unto one who has
been reconciled to Him, for "Can two walk together except they be agreed?" (Amos
3:2). Thus it is expressive of holy communion with God. To go or walk "before the
Lord" is to conduct ourselves in the realization that all our actions are being
scrutinized by Him: "For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He
pondereth all his goings" (Prov. 5:21). Thus it is expressive of holy fear. To walk
"after the Lord" is to live in complete subjection to His revealed will: "And the king
stood in his place and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord, and
to keep His commandments, and His testimonies, and His statutes, with all his heart
and with all his soul" (2 Chron. 34:31). There it is expressive of unreserved
obedience. To "walk in Christ" is expressive of union, like a branch in the vine, and
signifies to live by His enablement, strengthened by Him, "rooted and built up in
Him" as Colossians 2:27, explains it.
But the one passage which more expressly explains these words of the priests
passing on "before the Lord" is Genesis 17:1, when He said unto Abraham "I am
the Almighty God: walk before Me, and be thou upright." That was said, first, by
way of rebuke, right after his impatient and carnal conduct with Hagar. Second,
that was said for his instruction and encouragement: to show him that there was no
occasion for taking matters into his own hands. The Lord now made known Himself
to Abraham as "The Almighty"—El Shaddai—the fully competent One, able to
supply all his need, without the patriarch resorting to any fleshly devices. In view of
which Abraham was bidden to "walk before Me and be thou upright": that is,
count upon My infinite resources. Thus, when it is said that Israel’s priests "passed
on before the Lord," the meaning is that they acted in complete dependence upon
God’s all-sufficiency, confidently counting upon His undertaking for them. In the
light of Proverbs 5:21, it signifies too that they moved forward in God’s fear,
conscious that His eye was upon them, and therefore they dared not depart from the
orders which He had given them.
Let every preacher who reads this article endeavor to recognize that this too has
been recorded for his learning, his guidance, his encouragement. Let him seek to
realize, first, that he is beneath the all-seeing eye of his Master: that his actions are
"before the eyes of the Lord, and He pondereth all his ways." Let him bear that in
mind while he is out of the pulpit: that the One to whom he must yet render an
account of his stewardship takes note whether he is an idler and slacker, or one who
faithfully devotes his time to prayer and study, and not only to "sermon
preparation." And, second, let him view by faith the all-sufficiency of the One
before whom he walks, refusing to depart from His instructions, confidently
counting upon Him fulfilling His purpose by and through him. Let him constantly
call to mind that He is none other than "the Almighty," the self-sufficient Jehovah.
o other provider, no other protector is needed. It was because Abraham forgot
that that he stooped to fleshly devices; and when we forget it, we are very apt to
depart from His rule and resort to carnal methods. It is distrust of God which lies
behind the fleshly and worldly devices now so commonly employed in the churches.

50. 9 The armed guard marched ahead of the priests
who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard
followed the ark. All this time the trumpets were
sounding.
CLARKE,"The rereward came after the ark - The word ‫מאסף‬ measseph, from
‫אסף‬ asaph, to collect or gather up, may signify either the rereward, as our translation
understands it, or the people who carried the baggage of the army; for on the seventh
day this was necessary, as much fighting might be naturally expected in the assault, and
they would need a supply of arms, darts, etc., as well as conveniences for those who
might happen to be wounded: or the persons here intended might be such as carried the
sacred articles belonging to the ark, or merely such people as might follow in the
procession, without observing any particular order. The Jews think the division of Dan is
meant, which always brought up the rear. See Num_10:25.
GILL, "And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the
trumpets,.... Whom Jarchi, Kimchi, and Abarbinel, interpret of Reuben and Gad, and
the half tribe of Manasseh; that is, as many of them as Joshua took with him over
Jordan; though rather all the armed men in the camp are meant; at least along with
those mentioned went the standards of Judah and Ephraim:
and the rereward came after the ark; because the tribe of Dan was the rereward in
journeying, Num_2:31; hence the Targum paraphrases the words,"and the tribe of the
house of Dan went after the ark;''and so both Jarchi and Kimchi interpret it: but rather
the body of the people unarmed are designed; at least these were brought up by the
standard of Dan; or otherwise no place in this procession is appointed for them, whose
business it was to make the great shout on the seventh day with the rest:
the priests going on and blowing with the trumpets; the word "priests" is not in
the text, but is rightly supplied; for, as Kimchi and Abarbinel observe, this is not said of
the rereward, but of the priests, for they only bore and blew the trumpets; and so the
Targum reads,"the priests going on, &c.''
HE RY, "We have here an account of the cavalcade which Israel made about

51. Jericho, the orders Joshua gave concerning it, as he had received them from the Lord
and their punctual observance of these orders. We do not find that he gave the people
the express assurances God had given him that he would deliver the city into their
hands; but he tried whether they would obey orders with a general confidence that it
would end well, and we find them very observant both of God and Joshua.
I. Wherever the ark went the people attended it, Jos_6:9. The armed men went before
it to clear the way, not thinking it any disparagement to them, though they were men of
war, to be pioneers to the ark of God. If any obstacle should be found in crossing the
roads that led to the city (which they must do in walking round it) they would remove it;
if any opposition should be made by the enemy, they would encounter it, that the priests'
march with the ark might be easy and safe. It is an honour to the greatest men to do any
good office to the ark and to serve the interests of religion in their country. The
rereward, either another body of armed men, or Dan's squadron, which marched last
through the wilderness, or, as some think, the multitude of the people who were not
armed or disciplined for war (as many of them as would) followed the ark, to testify their
respect to it, to grace the solemnity, and to be witnesses of what was done. Every faithful
zealous Israelite would be willing to undergo the same fatigues and run the same hazard
with the priests that bore the ark.
II. Seven priests went immediately before the ark, having trumpets in their hands,
with which they were continually sounding, Jos_6:4, Jos_6:5, Jos_6:9, Jos_6:13. The
priests were God's ministers, and thus in his name, 1. They proclaimed war with the
Canaanites, and so stuck a terror upon them; for by terrors upon their spirits they were
to be conquered and subdued. Thus God's ministers, by the solemn declarations of his
wrath against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, must blow the trumpet in
Zion, and sound an alarm in the holy mountain, that the sinners in Zion may be afraid.
They are God's heralds to denounce war against all those that go on still in their
trespasses, but say, “We shall have peace, though we go on.” 2. They proclaimed God's
gracious presence with Israel, and so put life and courage into them. It was appointed
that when they went to war the priests should encourage them with the assurance of
God's presence with them, Deu_20:2-4. And particularly their blowing with trumpets
was to be a sign to the people that they should be remembered before the Lord Their
God in the day of battle, Num_10:9. It encouraged Abijah, 2Ch_13:12. Thus God's
ministers, by sounding the Jubilee trumpet of the everlasting gospel, which proclaims
liberty and victory, must encourage the good soldiers of Jesus Christ in their spiritual
warfare.
III. The trumpets they used were not those silver trumpets which were appointed to be
made for their ordinary service, but trumpets of rams' horns, bored hollow for the
purpose, as some think. These trumpets were of the basest matter, dullest sound, and
least show, that the excellency of the power might be of God. Thus by the foolishness of
preaching, fitly compared to the sounding of these rams' horns, the devil's kingdom is
thrown down; and the weapons of our warfare, though they are not carnal nor seem to a
carnal eye likely to bring any thing to pass, are yet mighty through God to the pulling
down of strong-holds, 2Co_10:4, 2Co_10:5. The word here is trumpets of Jobel, that is,
such trumpets as they used to blow withal in the year of jubilee; so many interpreters
understand it, as signifying the complete liberty to which Israel was now brought, and
the bringing of the land of Canaan into the hands of its just and rightful owners.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:9 And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the
trumpets, and the rereward came after the ark, [the priests] going on, and blowing
with the trumpets.

52. Ver. 9. And the rereward came after the ark.] Heb., The gathering host, that in their
march through the wilderness was wont to arise at the fourth alarm, and their
charge was to look that nothing was left behind. [ umbers 10:25] {See Trapp on
"Psalms 27:10"}
PETT, "Verse 9
‘And the armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and the
rearward went after the Ark, blowing with the trumpets as they went.’
YHWH’s instructions were followed obediently. The armed men led, followed by the
Ark and the priests blowing the rams’ horns, followed by the people, until the city
was surrounded. The watchers on the walls waited apprehensively for what would
come next.
In the last phrase ‘the priests’ is, as shown, not there in the Hebrew. It is to be
assumed. The point is that while it was the priests who blew the rams’ horns all
were seen as participating. This emphasises the importance of the action. The
sevenfold horns were depicting the power of YHWH about to be revealed.
PI K, ""And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the trumpets,
and the rearward came after the ark, the priests going on, and blowing with the
trumpets" (v. 9). Here our attention is directed away from the priests unto the
remainder of the children of Israel, and they are divided into two companies—those
who went before, and those who followed behind the ark of the covenant. The ones
taking the lead consisted of the fighting force, who were to advance when the walls
of Jericho fell down and slay those within the city This arrangement originated not
in the mind of Joshua, for at no point was he required to lean unto his own
understanding. The Lord had previously given orders through Moses that the
fighting men of the tribes of Reuben and Gad should "go armed before the Lord to
war . . . until He had driven out His enemies from before Him" ( um. 32:20, 21). It
was in obedience thereto that Joshua here acted. As the margin more correctly
renders, it was the "gathering host" of Israel who made up the rearward. In that
twofold division we may find a hint that only a few of the Lord’s people are
possessed of a courageous spirit and prepared to show a bold front to the enemy.
"And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make your
voice to be heard, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth until the day I
bid you shout; then shall ye shout" (Josh. 6:10). Here is the third item in the
instructions which Joshua gave to "the people." First, they had been bidden to
"compass the city"; and second, the armed men among them to "pass on before the
ark of the Lord" (v. 7); now they are enjoined to maintain strict silence as the long
procession wended its way around Jericho. Very precisely and emphatically was this
order worded: its threefold prohibition reminding us of the repeated interdiction of
Proverbs 4:14, 15, "Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of
evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away." There is no excuse
for ignorance of the Divine will: the things which God forbids us doing are as
plainly stated in His Word as those which He requires of us.

53. o explanation was given the people, but simply the bare command: sufficient for
them that so God required. Pondering it in the light of Scripture, several reasons for
it and significations of it may be suggested. First and more generally, this injunction
for the people to preserve complete silence constituted a test of their obedience—
made the more real by their not being told why such an imposition was necessary.
For the mouths of such a vast multitude to be sealed during the entire march around
the city was no small test of their subjection unto the revealed will of Jehovah.
Second and more specifically, such decorous silence well became them on this
occasion. Why so? Because God was in their midst, and He is "greatly to be feared
in the assembly of His saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about
Him" (Ps. 89:7)—a verse which many preachers today need to press upon their
congregations, among whom much irreverence obtains in the house of prayer. If the
seraphim veil their faces before the Lord, how reverent should be our worship!
The "ark of the covenant" was the symbol of the Lord’s presence, and its being in
Israel’s midst on this occasion required that they conduct themselves with the
utmost propriety. God was about to speak loudly to the Canaanites in judgment,
and it was therefore fitting that every human voice should be stilled. There is "a
time to keep silence, and a time to speak" (Ecclesiastes 3:7). When Pharaoh and his
hosts were pursuing the children of Israel, and they were confronted by the Red
Sea, they were told, "The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace"
(Ex. 14:14). The case was a parallel one here: Jehovah was about to lay bare His
mighty arm and show Himself strong on behalf of His people, and it was meet that
they should be still before Him, in reverent expectation of the event. It was a case of
"hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God, for the day of the Lord [when He
acts in an extraordinary manner] is at hand" (Zeph. 1:7); "Be silent, O all flesh,
before the Lord; for He is raised up out of His holy habitation" (Zech. 2:13). The
profound silence observed by Israel’s hosts added impressively to the gravity and
solemnity of their procession.
Again; Israel’s being forbidden to open their mouths on this occasion supplied
another illustration and exemplification of the difference which marks the ways of
God from man’s. We are aware that some are likely to regard that statement as a
trite platitude, yet they are probably the very ones who most need to be reminded of
it here, for they are the least affected and influenced by it. God’s work is to be done
in His appointed way: but instead of that, much of what now pretends to be "His
work" is being done in the world’s way. God works silently, whether it be in
creation, providence, or grace. Vegetation makes no noise in the process of its
growth. God’s government, both of individuals and nations, is wrought secretly. The
miracle of regeneration is not perceptible to our senses, though its effects and fruits
soon become apparent. So it is in His dealings with our souls’ the Lord is not in the
wind, nor in the earthquake, nor in the fire, but in the "still small voice" (1 Kings
19:11, 12). We too should go about our appointed tasks in the same calmness’ "a
meek and quiet spirit" is of "great price" in His sight (1 Pet. 3:4).
Third, the silence required of "the people" on this occasion supplied another
important line in the typical picture furnished by this incident—though one which
certainly will not appeal to many in present-day Christendom. Israel’s capture of
Jericho unmistakably pre-figured the victories achieved, under God, by the Gospel.
The priests blowing with the trumpets of rams’ horns pictured the servants of God

54. preaching His Word. The forbidding of "the people" to open their mouths signified
that the rank and the of Christians are to have no part in the oral proclamation of
the Truth—they are neither qualified for nor called to the ministration of the Word.
owhere in the Epistles is there a single exhortation for the saints as such to engage
in public evangelism, nor even to do "personal work" and seek to be "soul
winners." Rather are they required to "witness for Christ" by their daily conduct in
business and in the home. They are to "show forth" God’s praises, rather than tell
them forth. They are to let their light shine. The testimony of the life is far more
effectual than glib utterances of the lips. Actions speak louder than words.
How vastly different was the typical scene presented here in Joshua 6 from that
which is now beheld in the so-called "evangelism" of our day! Here everything was
orderly, decorous and reverent. "The people" in the rear’ "the ark of the
covenant"—symbol of the Lord’s presence—in the midst: the "seven priests"
blowing with their trumpets: the "armed men in front. The absolute silence of all
the hosts of Israel—so utterly different from the war cries to which they were
accustomed—must have deeply impressed the citizens of Jericho. But not only is
there the marked absence of that dignified silence, gravity, solemnity, and
reverence, which befits all gatherings that are professedly engaged in Divine
worship, but modern "evangelism" is characterized by that which is noisy, vulgar,
and carnally exciting. How different the self-advertised "evangelists" of this
decadent age from the supreme Evangelist, who "suffered not the demons to speak,
because they knew Him," and who said to the cleansed leper "See thou say nothing
to any man" (Mark 1:34, 42)!
10 But Joshua had commanded the army, “Do not
give a war cry, do not raise your voices, do not say
a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then
shout!”
GILL, "And Joshua had commanded the people,.... When he gave them their
orders to pass on, and compass the city, Jos_6:7,
saying, ye shall not shout; that is, on any of the six days as they went round the city,
only on the seventh; for this being a sign of victory, it was not to be made until the day
when it should be obtained; otherwise, had they shouted, and nothing followed on it, it

55. would have exposed them to the contempt of the inhabitants of Jericho, and would have
put them in spirit, and hardened them:
nor make any noise with your voice; as laughing, singing, &c. This profound
silence was to be observed, to add to the gravity and solemnity of the procession; and on
account of the surprising miracle that was to be wrought, and particularly because of the
ark, the symbol of the divine Presence, borne before them; and when God in his
providence was about to speak in so awful a manner, and to do such a surprising work, it
was very fit and decent that they should be silent before him; see Hab_2:20,
neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth; no conversation or discourse
were to be had with each other as they passed along; for this is only to be restrained to
the procession; when they returned, and in their camp, they might talk and discourse as
at other times:
until the day I bid you shout, then shall ye shout; for as yet it seems Joshua had
not told them how many days they should surround the city in this manner, and on what
day the shout should be made by them.
HE RY, " All the people were commanded to be silent, not to speak a word, nor
make any noise (Jos_6:10), that they might the more carefully attend to the sound of the
sacred trumpets, which they were now to look upon as the voice of God among them;
and it does not become us to speak when God is speaking. It likewise intimates their
reverent expectation of the event. Zec_2:13, Be silent, O all flesh, before the Lord. Exo_
14:14, God shall fight, and you shall hold your peace.
V. They were to do this once a day for six days together and seven times the seventh
day, and they did so, Jos_6:14, Jos_6:15. God could have caused the walls of Jericho to
fall upon the first surrounding of them, but they must go round them thirteen times
before they fall, that they might be kept waiting patiently for the Lord. Though they had
lately come into Canaan, and their time was very precious (for they had a great deal of
work before them), yet they must linger so many days about Jericho, seeming to do
nothing, nor to make any progress in their business. As promised deliverances must be
expected in God's way, so they must be expected in his time. He that believes does not
make haste, not more haste than God would have him make. Go yet seven times, before
any thing hopeful appears, 1Ki_18:43.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:10 And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not
shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall [any] word proceed out of
your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout.
Ver. 10. Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise.] Turcae perpetuum silentium
tenent, ut muti. (a) The Turks, though when they storm a place they make hideous
outcries, yet in their camp they are marvellously mute; being no otherwise
commanded than by the beckoning or nod of their commanders. (b) This was
worthily wondered at by King Ferdinand’s ambassadors.
PETT, "Verse 10

56. ‘And Joshua had commanded the people saying, “You shall not shout, nor let your
voice be heard, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I
bid you shout, then shall you shout.” ’
The people were ordered not to make any sound while they marched. They were to
march in total silence, without shouting, without talking, without a murmur. There
was to be total silence, until Joshua gave the order and then they were to shout
loudly. This would have an unnerving effect on the watchers who would have
expected taunts and battlecries. The latter would have enabled them to shout back
and build up their own resistance, but shouting at a silent enemy was a waste of
energy. The silence stressed the presence of YHWH among them. In His presence
none dared speak (Habakkuk 2:20). It also demonstrated that the result was the
work of YHWH (Exodus 14:14). Their shout would declare His triumph (Psalms
47:1).
11 So he had the ark of the Lord carried around
the city, circling it once. Then the army returned
to camp and spent the night there.
GILL, "So the ark of the Lord compassed the city,.... Being bore by the priests,
who carried it round the city; it may as well be rendered and interpreted as it is by
Kimchi,"he, i.e. Joshua, caused the ark of the Lord to compass the city;''
that is, he gave orders to the priests to take it up, and go round with it on the first day:
going about it once; on that day, and no more; keeping at such a distance, as to be out
of the reach of stones or arrows cast from the walls of the city:
and they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp; the night following; not
only the priests that bare the ark, but those that blew with the trumpets, and all the
armed men, and the people.
HE RY, " One of these days must needs be a sabbath day, and the Jews say that it
was the last, but this is not certain; however, if he that appointed them to rest on the
other sabbath days appointed them to walk on this, that was sufficient to justify them in

57. it; he never intended to bind himself by his own laws, but that when he pleased he might
dispense with them. The impotent man went upon this principle when he argued (Joh_
5:11), He that made me whole (and therefore has a divine power) said unto me, Take up
thy bed. And, in this case here, it was an honour to the sabbath day, by which our time is
divided into weeks, that just seven days were to be spent in this work, and seven priests
were employed to sound seven trumpets, this number being, on this occasion, as well as
many others, made remarkable, in remembrance of the six day's work of creation and
the seventh day's rest from it. And, besides, the law of the sabbath forbids our own work,
which is servile and secular, but this which they did was a religious act. It is certainly no
breach of the sabbath rest to do the sabbath work, for the sake of which the rest was
instituted; and what is the sabbath work but to attend the ark in all its motions?
VII. They continued to do this during the time appointed, and seven times the seventh
day, though they saw not any effect of it, believing that at the end the vision would speak
and not lie, Hab_2:3. If we persevere in the way of duty, we shall lose nothing by it in the
long run. It is probable they walked at such a distance from the walls as to be out of the
reach of the enemies' arrows and out of the hearing of their scoffs. We may suppose the
oddness of the thing did at first amuse the besieged, but by the seventh day they had
grown secure, feeling no harm from that which perhaps they looked upon as an
enchantment. Probably they bantered the besiegers, as those mentioned in Neh_4:2,
“What do these feeble Jews? Is this the people we thought so formidable? Are these their
methods of attack?” Thus they cried peace and safety, that the destruction might be the
more terrible when it came. Wicked men (says bishop Hall) think God in jest when he is
preparing for their judgment; but they will be convinced of their mistake when it is too
late.
PI K, ""So the ark of the Lord compassed the city, going about it once" (v. 11).
And what follows? Therefore its walls at once fell down? o; "and they came into
the camp and lodged in the camp." Then they had all their trouble for nothing! o
indeed. But nothing happened: they were no forwarder, but just where they were
previously! That is estimating things by sight, and is an erroneous conclusion. Much
had happened. That which is of supreme importance had been accomplished. God
had been honored and glorified! How so? By the implicit obedience of Joshua, of the
priests, of the congregation of Israel. O that both ministers and laymen were more
thoroughly convinced that nothing honors God so much as our obedience. "To obey
is better than sacrifice" (1 Sam. 15:22)—the most lavish offering is unacceptable to
God unless it be made by one whose will is subject to His. Attending meetings,
contributing generously to His cause, busying ourselves in what is wrongly termed
‘Christian service," is worthless—yea, a species of hypocrisy—if we be not walking
in the path of the Divine precepts.
Unless what has just been said be laid to heart by both the public servants of God
and private Christians, the most important lessons of this incident will be missed. As
was pointed out in our last, the preacher who most honors Christ is not the one who
produces the largest "visible results," but he who sticks the closest to His
commission and preaches the Word most faithfully. So with the saints. The
Christian housewife who discharges her God-given duties in the home and the
domestic in the kitchen who conscientiously performs her menial tasks are as
pleasing and glorifying to Christ as the most self-denying missionary in the foreign
field. What is the one outstanding excellence in the Savior’s life and work which the
Holy Spirit has emphasized more than any other? Is it not that His meat and drink

58. was to do the will of Him that sent Him (John 4:34)! That there was no limit in His
subjection to the Father’s authority, that He "became obedient unto death, even the
death of the cross" (Phil. 2:8)! Say not that nothing was accomplished by Israel
here, but admire their God-honoring obedience, and seek to emulate them.
PETT, "Verse 11
‘So he caused the Ark of YHWH to go round the city, going about it once, and they
came into the camp, and lodged in the camp.’
ote that the stress here is on the Ark of YHWH It was the presence and power of
YHWH, the God of battle, which would make the difference. Then they all returned
to the camp and spent the night there.
12 Joshua got up early the next morning and the
priests took up the ark of the Lord.
GILL, "And Joshua rose early in the morning,.... Of the second day; to take care
of, direct, and prepare everything for another procession on that day; so active and
diligent was he to do the will and work of God, exactly and punctually:
and the priests took up the ark of the Lord; and carried it about as they had done
the day before.
JAMISO , "Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the
ark of the Lord — The second day’s procession seems to have taken place in the
morning. In all other respects, down even to the smallest details, the arrangements of
the first day continued to be the rule followed on the other six.
K&D 12-14, "Jos_6:12-14
The march on each of the next five days resembled that on the first. “So they did six
days.” In Jos_6:13, ‫עוּ‬ ְ‫ק‬ ָ‫ת‬ְ‫ו‬ does not stand for ַ‫ּוע‬‫ק‬ ָ‫ת‬ְ‫,ו‬ but corresponds to ‫עוּ‬ ְ‫ק‬ ָ‫ת‬ְ‫ו‬ in Jos_6:8;
and the participle ְ‫ך‬ ֵ‫ּול‬‫ה‬ is used interchangeably with the inf. abs. ְ‫ּוך‬‫ל‬ ָ‫,ה‬ as in Gen_26:13;
Jdg_4:24, etc., so that the Keri ְ‫ּוך‬‫ל‬ ָ‫ה‬ is an unnecessary emendation.
PI K, ""And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of
the Lord" (v. 12). othing escapes the all-seeing eye of the One with whom we have

59. to do. In human estimation this may appear a very trivial detail, nevertheless it is
one which the Holy Spirit delighted to notice and place upon imperishable record.
Why so? Because it marked the diligence, fidelity and zeal of those servants of the
Lord. Why so? Because they also inculcated yet another lesson which ministers of
the Gospel need to heed. They are expressly bidden to study and show themselves
"approved unto God, workmen who needeth not to be ashamed" (2 Tim. 2:15).
Slackness and slothfulness ill become those who claim to be the ambassadors of Him
who rose up "a great while before day" (Mark 1:35) and "early in the morning He
came again into the temple" to teach the people (John 8:2). That searching question
of His, "what do ye more than others?" (Matthew 5:47), is capable of many
legitimate applications—not least to the preacher. Does he spend fewer or more
hours per day in his study than do those who work for their daily bread!
PETT, "Verse 12-13
‘And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the Ark of YHWH,
and the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams' horns before the Ark of
YHWH went on continually (‘going they went’) and blew with the trumpets, and the
armed men went before them, and the rearward came after the Ark of YHWH, the
priests blowing with the trumpets as they went.’
As was his regular practise Joshua rose early in the morning. The people would be
roused too. There may have been the intention to miss the heat of the day. otice
again that the Ark was central. All was secondary to that. The procession was as
before, repeated in full for emphasis. The Ark of YHWH is mentioned three times in
order to emphasise it presence.
BI 12-27, "The wall fell down flat.
The fight of faith
Of uninspired poems, perhaps the most widely read are those which celebrate a siege—
the siege of Troy. Homer and Virgil have sung in noble numbers the praises of the heroes
in that world-renowned fight. Their qualities, deeds, reverses, successes, as thus
recorded, will live as long as such poetry has a charm for the human mind. But, after all,
the principles which animated Agamemnon, Ajax, Achilles, Nestor, Ulysses, and others
of these old-world heroes, were very commonplace. The play of human passion,
headstrong, self-willed, fierce, implacable, impure, treacherous, constitutes the base,
shaft, and capital of these poetic columns. The whole thing is of the earth earthy. It is the
fight of the flesh that we witness, not the fight of faith. In this chapter we have the record
of a siege of another sort, the description of heroes of a different spirit. There an
innocent city must be besieged for ten years because Paris ran off with a beautiful
woman. Here, after a seven days’ pause for possible penitence, the Lord’s host executed
judgment on a city of exceptional wickedness because God’s patience was exhausted.
There in long works elaborated by the genius of the world’s great poets we have many
pictures that command our admiration. Here in one little line the Holy Ghost presents a
picture far more marvellous and sublime, when He simply says, “By faith the walls of
Jericho fell down.”
I. Consider, then, this fight of faith; and first of all mark the foundation of the faith
whereby Jericho was overthrown. It was a well-founded faith, for it rested altogether on

60. the Word of God. “What are the marching orders?” This is the only question faith asks; if
it is convinced in regard to this, it can command mountains to be plucked up by the
roots and cast into the sea. As it was in the siege of Jericho so is it in the siege of
Mansoul. All must be done in faith, or nothing is done to good purpose. Faith asks, What
has God commanded? And the answer is clear as day: “Preach the Word.” “Testify of
Me.” We have something more to do than to defend the faith, or to apologise for the
gospel; we have to prophesy over the dry bones, knowing that in the power of that Word
they will rise up an exceeding great army.
II. Think also of the trial of his faith. The whole thing looked like child’s play. The means
seem to human wisdom utterly, ridiculously inadequate to the end in view. Even so in
our days faith is tried. What, it may be asked, are you to preach, preach for ever, to do
nothing but preach? Again, it must have been a trial to Israel to wait so long. If going
round Jericho is to accomplish the work, surely once round is as good as a thousand
times. If one shout will lay the walls flat, why not shout the first day, and make short
work of it? To try every mode of presenting the gospel, so as to reach the conscience and
influence the life of those who hear, but never to see any good result therefrom; to labour
in some degraded district to elevate the masses by the leverage of the gospel, and to see
them sink back like dry sand into their congenial degradation; to teach in the Sabbath-
school with earnestness and diligence, and never have the assurance that One soul is
savingly touched; to train up the children in the family with careful pains and earnest
prayers, and yet to find their hearts wayward and prone to evil—all these are sad and
trying experiences under which the heart is apt to sink discouraged and to ask, Is this
gospel the true power after all? For a cure to such faintness let us remember Israel.
Perfect victory comes soon or late to every soul who works in the energy of God’s Spirit
as God directs. Not only the walls of Jericho but mighty mountains are beaten small by
the worm Jacob. Still another part of the trial of Israel’s faith must have been the
thought of what their enemies had been saying and thinking. Say what we will, the
opinions and thoughts of our fellows have an influence over us, and cause either
gratification or discomfort. One of the severest trials to the faithful witness of Christ is
his critics. Some of them are unfriendly, and their aim is to destroy his influence. Some
of them are friendly; and their purpose is to extend his influence. If he is a foolish man,
weak in faith, he will be spoiled by either of them. He should try to get all the good out of
them that is in them; and if there is no good in them pay no more attention to them than
the Israelites did to the men of Jericho.
III. As we look at Israel in its march round Jericho we also see a good example of the
obedience of faith. We have need to imitate these warriors, and to remember that faith
without works is dead. Faith develops itself in and by docility. We can attain to victory,
the Divine blessing can rest on our labours, only as we work according to the Divine
plans, only as we obey His revealed will.
IV. We have stiff further in the conduct of Israel before Jericho a display of the courage
of faith. Faith is brave as well as obedient. Displaying its banners in the name of the
Lord, it can run through a troop, and overleap a wall. Faith never underrates difficulties;
faith never despises danger; but obeying God, it never quails before them, even when it
is most exposed. Walking in the path of obedience, it knows that the Lord will preserve it
from all evil, and therefore its heart never fails.
V. The patience of Israel’s faith is also plainly shown. The faith of these warriors was
enduring as well as courageous. This was like the finishing of their education so far as
patience went. Much mischief is often wrought by that natural impetuosity which rushes
forward before God has prepared the way, even as much ground is often lost by that lack

61. of patience which faints in the day of adversity, and gives in before the work is done.
Only by patient continuance in well-doing are great things accomplished.
VI. Though the faith of Israel was strongly tried before Jericho, still it was not without
true encouragement. Faith can always derive strength from some quarter: it can live
where all else would die. The command of God would encourage Israel. No word that He
speaks is vain. Also the very way in which they marched would strengthen their hearts.
They marched as God’s people, with Jehovah’s priests in their company, bearing the
sacred ark of God’s strength, before which all the might of man is weakness. The sacred
number seven, moreover, interwoven with their work, showed that there was order and
completeness in the task set before them, even though they might not be able to discover
them.
VII. Think, lastly, of the triumph of this faith. Nothing in Jericho was left alive. Thus
perished the enemies of Jehovah. Israel’s victory was complete. Behold in Jericho two
things—the might of man, as revealed in these walls and towers and stalwart soldiers;
the wisdom of man, as shown in their watchfulness, their care and precautions. Behold
also two other things—the foolishness of God in that aimless marching round the city;
the weakness of God in the sound of these rams’ horns, in the shout of these soldiers. See
the effect; the walls are a ruin, Jericho is burned with fire, the place is desolate. Learn
therefore that the weakness of God is stronger than men, and the foolishness of God is
wiser than men. (A. B. Mackay.)
The walls of Jericho
In various directions we may find a counterpart of these remarkable experiences.
I. In Christian experience. If Egypt represents our conflict with the world, and Amalek
our conflict with the flesh, the seven nations of Canaan represent our conflict with the
principalities and powers of wicked spirits, who resist our entrance into the heavenlies,
and our practical realisation of what Christ has wrought for us. Who is there amongst us
that does not know, or has not known, of something—a cherished indulgence, a
friendship, a pernicious entanglement—reared as an impassable barrier to the
enjoyment of those blessed possibilities of Christian experience which are ours in Christ,
but which for that reason seem beyond our reach? That thing is a Jericho. Now it cannot
be the purpose of God that anything, however deeply rooted, should shut His redeemed
ones out of the heavenly places, which are theirs in Christ—even though it should be the
result of their own sin, or mistake, the heirloom of early indiscretions, the entail of
trespass off the narrow path.
1. Be still. The hardest of all commandments this. That our voice should not be
heard! That we should utter our complaints to God alone! All this is foreign to our
habits and taste. As death is the last enemy to be destroyed in the universe of God, so
is the restraint of the tongue the last lesson learnt by His children. “Be still,” saith
God, “ and know that I am God. I will be exalted,” &c. And that soul may well be still
and wait which has learnt that the Lord of hosts is beside it, and the God of Jacob is
its refuge. To that Friend it hies to pour out its secret agony. In that home it nestles
as in the covert of a great rock, sheltered from the blast.
2. Obey. As in this story so in grace, there must be co-operation between God and
man. Only God can remove the difficulties that stand in the way of an entirely
consecrated and blessed life, but there are commands and duties which it is
incumbent on us to fulfil. In some cases we are withholding obedience that we

62. should give at once. There are things which we ought to do which we are not doing.
And there is equal danger in doing more than we should—endeavouring to scale
walls which we are told to encompass; shooting before the word of command has
been uttered; making the circuit of the city oftener than the once each day prescribed
by the Divine ordering. It is so hard to feel that we do more by doing less; that we
save time by resting quietly in our tents; that it is vain to rise early and late take rest,
because He giveth to His beloved while they sleep.
3. Have faith. Look away from all your preparations, and even from your God-
commanded acts, to God Himself; and as you do so your difficulties will melt away,
that stone will be rolled from the mouth of the sepulchre, that iron gate will open of
its own accord, those mighty walls will fall down fiat. And it shall come to pass that
the obstacle which threatened to make the best life impossible shall minister to such
an unfolding of God’s very present help as shall furnish fuel for praise in all coming
years.
II. In Christian work. The apostle speaks of strongholds that had to be cast down, and of
high things that exalted themselves against the knowledge of God; and asserts that he
did not war against such things according to the flesh, and that the weapons of his
warfare were not of the flesh, but mighty before God for the casting down of strongholds,
and for the bringing of every high and proud thought into captivity to the obedience of
Christ. Our only hope is to act on strictly spiritual lines, because we wrestle not with
flesh and blood, but with the wicked spirits that lie behind all that is seen in this world of
men and things. If we can overthrow the dark spirits that abet and maintain, we shall see
the system which they support crumble as a palace of clouds before the wind. Let us be
pure and holy, giving time to heart-searching in the presence of the Captain; let us lift up
the sacrifice and work of Jesus; let us blow the gospel trumpet of alarm and summons to
surrender; let us be much in silent prayer before God; let us cherish a spirit of unity and
love, as the tribes of Israel forgot their differences in one common expedition against
their foes; above all, let us believe in the presence and co-operation of God, and we shall
see the old miracle repeated, and the walls of Jericho fall down flat.
III. In the story of the church. This capture of Jericho is surely capable of being read as
a parable of things that are yet to be. We know that the world lieth in the power of the
wicked one. It has long boasted itself against God, with its mighty walls and gates, and it
would seem as if the time will never come of which psalmists and kings have sung and
spoken in rapturous phrase. In the meanwhile the various tribes of the Church of Christ
have been perambulating about the walls, subjected to much derision and mockery,
though sometimes a sickening premonition of approaching judgment must steal upon
the hearts of the votaries of worldliness. For nearly nineteen centuries the circuit has
been made, the trumpet-blast uttered, the testimony maintained. And surely the seven
days have nearly expired. (F. B. Meyer, B. A.)
The lofty city, He layeth it low
This incident teaches solemn truths as to God’s character and working, and animating
thoughts as to our duty as His soldiers. The true revelation of God is by His deeds, and
the Scripture words of prophet or psalmist, which we call revelation, are all bused upon
and draw out the significance of the history. The page of which this siege is the first
paragraph is written in blood, and is crowded with terrible entries; but it is a page in the
revelation of God, and its message, once delivered, is not set aside, though completed, by
the later pages, which tell of love as His very being. If God makes Himself known by His

63. doings as men do, the dream of a God whose love is so flaccid that He cannot punish is
baseless. But this same story reveals His long-suffering patience as well; for, not only
had generations passed, during which His thunder was silent, but even at this supreme
moment the cloud gathered slowly, and ample time was given to escape. The slow
minute-hand creeps round the dial for a long silent hour; but when it reaches the sixtieth
of the seconds, in each of which it might have been stopped, the bell rings out, and all is
over. God waits, that men may turn; but if they do not turn God strikes, and the stroke is
mortal. Now, all this is as true under the gospel as it was in the days of Joshua. The
message of love does not contradict the message of law, nor the revelation of the Father
set aside the revelation of the Judge. The lessons of stimulus for us are equally plain. The
Epistle to the Hebrews points to the fall of Jericho as a triumph of faith, and emphasises
the obedience to the strange command to compass the walls, and the patience which did
it seven days, as the tokens of the Israelites’ faith. So we may draw the lessons of the
conquering power of faith over all strongest opposition, of the way by which faith
becomes victorious, and of the tokens which will attest its presence. Jericho is a symbol
of the evils against which the individual Christian has in his own life to fight, but still
more of the banded and organised enemies arrayed against the Church. The great
Babylon shines through the little Jericho, and its fall comes about in the same fashion.
The faith which these fierce sons of the desert exercised was in form rude enough; but,
however little of a spiritual or refining aspect it had, it was still real confidence in God’s
help, and that, in its poorest form, makes the weakest strong, and turns cowards into
heroes, In its lowest operations, it will send men to dash themselves against stone walls
with desperate bravery, and to meet death as joyfully as a bride. Christians, who should
have it in its highest and purest energy, ought not to be less brave in the harder conflict
which is laid upon them—against evil in their own hearts and the organised iniquities of
society. The one victorious power is that of absolute confidence in God’s help.
Eloquence, learning, strategy, organising power, machinery, and wise methods, are all
very good; but an ounce of faith is worth a ton of them when the question is how the
walls of Jericho are to be got down. It will beget these qualities, they will never produce
it. Mark how faith conquers. It does so by bringing the might of God into the field. Faith
is not the battering-ram which beats down the walls, but only the hand which swings the
ram. God’s power is, if we may say so, set loose to work through our faith; and that faith
is mighty, because it opens the door for the entrance of His omnipotence. The slow
marches round and round the doomed city, and the war-cry, at last did not effect the
capture; but they were the tokens of the faith which brought into play the power which
did. We may learn, too, the tokens of faith. They are docile obedience and perseverance
therein. It is a slow task to leaven society with the principles of the gospel, which will
destroy deeply rooted and long-continued abuses. But we have to “keep pegging away,”
to use Abraham Lincoln’s homespun heroic phrase. If we can do no more, we can at least
blow the trumpet which proclaims that God is here and summons Jericho to surrender.
If we have to die before the seventh day comes, no matter. We shall have our share in the
triumph all the same, and, wherever we are, shall hear the great shout which tells the fall
of the bloody city, “ to be found no more at all.” (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
Jericho captured
I. God would have his people work. We daily insist upon it that works do not make a
man to live, but we equally insist upon it that spiritual life continually manifests itself by
holy deeds. The soldiers of God’s army, after they had crossed the Jordan, were not to lie
still in luxurious ease till Jericho’s walls should crumble down by slow degrees; and

64. though God determined to send Jericho to destruction on a sudden, yet His people are
not to sit still upon some neighbouring knoll and expect the catastrophe: they are to
labour, and Jericho is to fall as the result of their toil. Let us look at this work a little in
connection with this narrative.
1. You will observe that the work to be done by Israel was universal. There was a
place for each one to occupy. The men of arms were to go round the city, and with
them the priests were to march also. Both the ecclesiastical and the military castes
should be represented here. They must neither of them sit still. God would have His
people work universally.
2. But, next, He would have them work in His own appointed way. They are not to go
in a scramble—in a boyish race; there must be the soldiers in their troops, the priests
in their array, and then again, the men of war to bring up the rear. God would have
His people work according to His own revealed will. If I go upon a tour I do not
expect to see certain sights which have been guaranteed to me by my friend, unless I
agree to follow the little chart which he has mapped out for me. I cannot expect to
have that sublime view of the Alps if I refuse to climb a certain spot and stand there
and view the glacier and the snow peak glittering in the sun. And I cannot expect to
have God’s blessing in my ministry and in the Sunday-school class unless I keep to
“It is written,” and in all things have a tender conscience, and am jealous of myself
lest I err.
3. Then, again, remember, they encompassed the city daily. So does God call His
Church to work daily. The wheel must revolve again, and again, and again: it is that
perpetual motion of industry which produces wealth, and it must be the ceaseless
energy of our zeal which shall produce spiritual conquest.
4. Nor have we exhausted the metaphors with which our text supplies us, for surely
we may add that God would have His people work in faith. We are told that, “by faith
the walls of Jericho fell down.” Is the preaching of the gospel a power? If you think it
is not, never try it again. Is the gospel mighty to save? Will the gospel come out
victorious? If you have any doubt slink back to your cowardly repose, but let the man
whom God sends never doubt. If you have achieved no successes, if after fifty years
your trumpet of jubilee was exceeding small, if after fifty years it was something like
a ram’s horn that had not been bored, and could not make any noise at all, yet still go
on; your time for shouting has not come yet, but your time for compassing the city is
always present. Go on with it, go on with it, and God will not permit you to end till
you have won the victory. So let us notice once more under this head of work, they
worked with patience and courage, God kept this people labouring in the presence of
difficulty. Sometimes we get into the habit of shutting our eyes to difficulty; that will
not do: faith is not a fool, faith does not shut her eyes to difficulty, and then run head
foremost against a brick wall—never. Faith sees the difficulty, surveys it all, and then
she says, “By my God will I leap over a wall”; and over the wall she goes.
II. God would have his people wait. The delay must have sorely tried the faith and
patience of the Israelites. There are a great many brethren who seem to be perfectly
satisfied to rest at ease, but men of war do not generally seem to be of that temperament.
When I was in the military prison at Dublin I observed a form of punishment there. Men
were carrying large shot. A man took up a large shot and carried it to the end of the yard,
and he afterwards had to pick that shot up and bring it back again. I said, “How is it you
do not let them take all the shot to that end and pile them up there?” The officer said,
“We used to do so but it was no use, for when the fellows had piled them up they felt they
were doing something, but now we make them carry the shot from one end of the yard to

65. the other, and then back again, and back again, and they feel they have to work hard and
do nothing. That is always miserable work to the soldiers.” Many of our soldiers at
Sebastopol made bitter complaints at not being led to battle. And you will often have
heard young military men say, that they hate the inactivity of peace, they want to be
doing something. Now these men of war were kept for six days marching round and
round the city, and they must have felt themselves to have been doing very little all that
week. Though as men of war we would rather come to close quarters and see more done,
yet as men of God we must keep to our posts of duty, and learn how to wait. Besides this,
what rendered the waiting so very galling was (what must have struck their reason if it
did not assail their faith) the utter desperateness of the ease. How could they hope to win
that city by simply going round and round? “Give me a good ladder,” says one, “ a rope-
ladder and a couple of good irons at the end of it; just let me hear the clank upon the top-
stone, and I am your man to lead the ‘ forlorn hope,’ and there are fifty thousand of us to
follow, and we will soon have Judah’s standard waving on the top, and make the sons of
Jericho know what the sons of Abraham can do.” But no; they must just march round
the place till they have compassed the city twelve times. And so there are certain spirits
apt to say, “Could not we do more by adopting these methods and such other
expedients?” Now we know that God has His reasons for making us wait. It is for His
own glory we doubt not. We know that all things work together for good, and, we
believe, it will be ultimately for our profit. When I have read some masterly tragic poem,
and verse after verse has dwelt upon the horrible portion of the tale, did I wish it
shortened? Would I have the author leave out one of those dark verses? Not
I. God is writing a great poem of human history, the subject is the victory of truth, the
destruction of Antichrist. Let the history be long. Who wants it shortened? who wants a
brief story on so exceedingly interesting a subject as this, from so great an Author?
III. God would have his people win. The victory is very sure, and, when it comes forth,
very complete. Nothing could be more so. It may be very sudden also, and it will be very
glorious. But we shall get nothing by it, for when Jericho fell, nobody gained anything
except to offer it unto the Lord; so that we have to persevere in disinterested service, just
toiling on for the Master, remembering that when success comes it will all be His—every
single atom of it—the glory will be to Him and not to us. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Lessons from the fall of Jericho
I. The lesson of self-control. “Ye shall not shout” was perhaps a hard order to the
enthusiastic young soldiers of Joshua. Yet by putting the seal on their lips and
withholding arrow and missle they became victors. How grandly do the annals of
biography illustrate this duty of controlling one’s spirit! Under the clouds of aspersion,
maligning of motive, slanders, and jeers that darken the sun of truth, a good man is
often called to fight in the shade, to walk wearily and monotonously the round of duty in
silence and in patience. He who endures the contradictions against himself is like the
disciplined soldier who stands in the ranks, seeing the cowardly ruffian approach, pistol
in hand; he receives death calmly rather than break ranks, fire without orders, or
disobey commands. There are trying positions in life when we must wait silently till we
see the whites of the enemy’s eyes, or hold the linstock from the touch-hole even while
the hostile broadsides crash through our ship’s timbers. This hard and severe discipline
makes noble characters and turns the common man into a hero. It infuses in the soul the
right kind of fear—fear for the noblest, fear lest we fail in obedience to what ought to be
obeyed.

66. II. The lesson of perseverance. Jericho, the walled and apparently impregnable fortress,
is but a symbol of foes in the heart and evils in the world. The conflict is lifelong. God
calls us to what seems slow, tedious, patient methods. Sometimes He seems to shock all
worldly sense and maxims by His providences, which make even His children, for a time,
a by-word, a shaking of the head and wagging of the tongue to the ungodly. The
intrenched evil spirits laugh. Sometimes there is a kind of enemy that cometh not forth
but by prayer and by fasting. Abstinence and silence are laid upon us. Behold the Jericho
in us—habitual faults, hereditary vices, bosom sins. Behold in the Christian’s warfare-
opposition of science, falsely so called, in philosophy, in criticism, in infidelity, in war, in
intemperance, in vice, these are Jerichos that appear impregnable. The difficulties seem
walled up to heaven. Nevertheless, we are well able, with God’s help, to possess the land
and to take every city.
III. The power of faith and its gain by exercise. This tax on Israel’s courage—compelling
men of war, whose yell in charging is part of their offensive power, to make silence a
weapon—was laid on them for the strengthening of their faith. The whole affair appeared
irrational. But to those loyally obedient to the command of a leader inspired of God,
their act was in the finest strain of reason. The method selected, the means employed,
were those of the wisest and bravest; for Joshua, their leader, was a tried man. Nor,
without neglecting means, are we to think that the same means employed by others,
even mighty men of old, will serve us without faith. (W. E. Griffis.)
The fall of Jericho
I. The situation of the Israelites at this time. The wilderness is behind them. They are
standing on this side Jordan within the borders of the long wished for Canaan. But
though in Canaan, the land is not yet theirs. A powerful nation is in possession of it,
from whom they have still to take it if they would occupy it. And how are they to take it?
They are without military resources of any kind. And have we not shadowed forth here
the condition of many of God’s servants in our world? your own spiritual condition
perhaps at this moment? As you look backward you can see that much indeed has been
done for you. But now what is your situation? You are ready to say, “Almost as bad as it
was at first. We thought we were saved for ever, but we see now that our salvation is but
begun. Not only is heaven itself far off, but all that is heavenly and spiritual: it is yet to be
won. And how is it to be won? We know not. We have as many difficulties before us as
we have escaped, or more: and we are helpless as children.”
II. The town these Israelites have now to take.
1. It is a strong place. Oh, what a picture of Jericho within your hearts! Men of the
world look on their souls as what we may call an open country. Talk to them of the
holiness of the gospel and the happiness of the gospel, they never feel that there is
anything within them which shuts these things out of them. But what do some of you
think? or rather what do you know? If you are taught of God you will answer, “ We
know this—our whole soul is entrenched against Christ and His salvation. It is
covered all over with fortresses which shut Him out.”
2. It was a frontier town also. God gave them, you observe, a most formidable
difficulty to overcome the instant they set foot in Canaan. And so it is in the spiritual
life. Severe conflicts, we say, are for the aged Christian; heavy trials for the man who
has first borne light ones: the Lord deals gently with those who are inexperienced in
His ways. And this is quite true. But yet it frequently happens that the servant of God

67. has some one great difficulty to get over in the very outset of his course.
III. The means by which these Israelites took this strong city.
1. They were means which God had appointed. We no more know how to master
Satan or our own evil hearts than we know how to control the sea or direct the
clouds. The Lord therefore gives us instruction in all things. Our real wisdom is to be
mindful of our ignorance.
2. These means seemed most unlikely to succeed. So, too, in the spiritual warfare. If
we would have the strongholds of Satan pulled down in our hearts we must expect
God to give us many strange commands, and deal with us often in a very strange
manner. When we look to Him for strength He may answer us by making us feel our
weakness; and when we are determined to be zealous and active, and take our
enemies by storm, He may say, “Your strength is to sit still. In returning and rest
shall ye be saved.”
IV. The probable reasons why god appointed these strange means to overthrow this city.
1. A simplicity of obedience was certainly one thing this event was intended to teach
these Israelites. God’s commands, be they what they may, must not be trifled with.
We are not to sit in judgment on them; we must obey them.
2. A simplicity of faith was also inculcated here. God loves to be trusted as well as
obeyed. He delights in the confidence of His people.
3. The people were taught, too, by this transaction the importance of a patient
waiting on God. He consults our good, not only in the things He gives us, but in the
day and hour in which He gives them. They are not always ready for us the moment
we wish for them. We must generally wait for as well as seek them.
4. And one thing more Israel must surely have learnt here—to give glory to God. And
now let me speak to three classes of persons.
(1) To those who are in a situation like that of these Israelites while besieging
Jericho- such as are warring with some powerful evil which keeps them from the
enjoyment of some spiritual good. You want that sin vanquished, and so does
God; but He wants more. He wants all sin vanquished in you, and you made meet
for His heavenly kingdom.
(2) Others, it may be, have just gained such a victory as this. You are even now
rejoicing over some bosom-sin which the Lord has enabled you to overcome.
Happy are you! Never build that vile Jericho again. Never suffer it to be built.
Watch over its ruins lest they should unawares be raised up. And this also I
would say to you—rejoice still in the ruins of those guilty walls. Look forward to
other victories. If bought with a Saviour’s blood, you are destined to be
conquerors still, and “ more than conquerors,” triumphant conquerors, through
Him they loved you.
(3) But there may be some to whom all this is a riddle. “Seek to enter in at the
strait gate.” (C. Bradley, M. A.)
Jericho taken
I. The city which was to be taken. How vainly they reckon who leave God out of their
calculations! When He is with us no opposing host can harm us; but when He is against

68. us no earthly walls can protect us.
II. The means by which it was taken. These were very peculiar.
1. There was no natural fitness in the means to produce the end designed.
2. The means employed were such as would provoke the ridicule of the besieged.
3. The means employed produced no effect whatever for six days, nor even on the
seventh, until the shout was raised at the last.
III. The disposition that was to be made of the city. It Was to be accursed or devoted to
God. The Israelites in destroying the inhabitants of Jericho and the Canaanites generally
were but the instruments in God’s hand of carrying out His sentence. Lessons:
1. Retribution, though long delayed, comes at last. God’s judgments have leaden feet,
and so they come slowly; but they have iron hands, and so they strike deadly when
they come.
2. Faith does what God says, and asks no questions.
3. At the sound of the trumpets of the priests the walls of Jericho fell down. By the
preaching of the gospel the strong holds of sin and Satan are to be overthrown.
4. Let us not be impatient of results when we are doing God’s commands.
5. Success in our working for God is His doing, not ours, and so the whole glory of it
should be given to Him. (W. M. Taylor, D. D.)
The siege of Jericho
Consider the circumstances of this event as calculated—
I. To try the faith of Israel.
II. To give a pledge that God would fight for his people.
III. To secure all the glory to God.
IV. To show that judgment would be sure to fall on the devoted Canaanites. (C. D.
Marston, M. A.)
The overthrow of Jericho
Forty years before this God brought this people’s fathers to this same point, and to this
very opportunity, but faith in Him was at such a very low ebb that this deed could not be
done. He got them comfortably packed away under the clod, and at last raised up out of
their sons a more faithful generation to serve Him and to do His work. I can imagine
that when the sough of that strange, mysterious band of people who had been creeping
along the edge of the desert, so wonderfully guided, and so wonderfully fed, reached the
people of Jericho, and when at last they themselves began to heave in sight, old men in
Jericho would be saying to younger braves, “Be not afraid of them. These men’s fathers
came up against us, but when they saw the height of our walls, and the height of
ourselves, their hearts melted within them like water, and we have seen nothing of them
for almost a lifetime. Be not afraid of them.” But they were wrong. I can imagine other
men, who had been out doing the work of scouts and spies, saying as they gathered

69. round their fires in Jericho and talked about the host that was on the way, “Ah, say not
so. Whatever these men’s fathers were, we have been out and seen the sons.” The spies,
no doubt, went back to Jericho and said, “Shut your gates! Man the walls! It is death or
victory this time.” There was something uncanny about the men and women who could
so sing praise to an invisible God. And the advice was taken. Jericho was straitly shut up.
They considered it no laughing matter this time. Only let God’s truth, in power, come
into the Church’s heart, and this immediate triumph will be secured. Jericho will be
straitly shut up. There will be a splendid division and separation, with a clear field and
issue of conflict definitely presented—all Jericho there, and all Israel here, and the
ground cleared in front for the contending hosts. But to-day, where are we? We do not
know what is Jericho, and what is Israel. We are all here and there; all mixed, hopelessly,
helplessly. But let us come near to God, as these Israelites after forty shameful years did.
Let us gather round Him. Let us lift up our hearts in faith and prayer to Him. Then He
will revive us, and this immediate sign will follow: the world will stop scoffing, the world
will stop insulting. But then notice still further, that this was a victory won, by faith
working through organisation. The cry on every hand is, “Organise, organise, organise.!”
I think that there is a little too much said about organisation. Still, we must not despise
it, and we must not forget that God is not the God of confusion, but of order. God does
His work by plan and system. I can imagine a small breed of Israelites—men far too like
ourselves—who on the first day’s round would have given vent to what we call “the
rationalising spirit,” and they would have said to their fellows, “Now, really, being
israelites has led us along some strange paths, but I will draw the line at this. As
intelligent, sensible men, what mortal connection can there be between our walking
round the wails with all this horn blowing and tooting and the down-coming of these
walls? “And do not the rationalists seem to have a deal to say for themselves? But when I
put it that way, you see how stupid it would have been, judged by the after results.
Always let us believe that faith in God is splendidly intelligent. And let me say, further, if
any of us have doubts—and just because we are human we have them—let us adopt
Joshua’s plan. If you have doubts keep them to yourself. Do not give them to me. I have
plenty of my own, and I will try and keep mine back from you. That is a grand plan for
doubts. Shut the mouth upon them. Let them be hermetically sealed. Do not let them get
the fresh air, and they will very likely wither and die. Less talking, and more walking.
Less conferring with men, and more simple, sublime, stupendous faith in the Word of
God. God has spoken, and God has sworn, “I will give Jericho into your hands, and its
mighty men of valour. Believe in Me.” And it turned out that that was the highest
wisdom. And, last of all, we see an organisation that was gloriously successful. On the
seventh day they compassed the city seven times; and, as surely as God had spoken the
word, the deed was done. He kept them from ventilating their doubts. He compelled
them to look to Him, and to trust in Him. He poured contempt on all their wisdom and
all their strength, so that their unbelief just withered away at the root, and died out in
their hearts because it had nothing to feed upon. To-day, where are we? Just where the
Israelites were; still, after all that has come and gone, only on the borders. The world still
needs to be taken captive for Jesus Christ. The first thing is to get our own hearts, our
own selves united—united round the Lord, and then knit together to each other as one
man. You will always find in Scripture that, when God’s people get united round about
Him, nothing can stand before them. Here they were united, and Jericho fell without a
stroke.(John McNeill.)
The fall of Jericho

70. (A Sermon to Children):—What do we mean when we pray for the Church “militant here
on earth”? We mean the fighting Church—the Church on the battlefield of the world.
Christians are God’s army, and every one—men, women, and children—must try to show
that they are good soldiers of Jesus Christ. What do you think is required of a good
soldier?
I. First of all he must be BRAVE. It has been said that an English soldier or sailor never
knows when he is beaten. The word coward does not seem to go well with the name
Briton. But there’s a better sort of courage than that of a fighting soldier; that is, the
courage of a Christian, which enables him to do right at any cost; which enables him to
bear sorrow and insult and loss for Jesus Christ’s sake. We all like to hear about acts of
bravery like that of the boy ensign, Anstruther, who at the battle of Alma planted the
colours of the 23rd Regiment on the wall of the great redoubt, and then fell, shot dead,
with the colours drooping over him like a pall. But the courage which is thought most of
in heaven is the courage to do right. The child who is brave enough to say “No” when he
is asked to do wrong; the boy or girl who can’t tell a lie to escape punishment; the
schoolboy who is brave enough to say his prayers with a whole bedroom of companions
laughing and jeering at him—these are the heroes whose names are written in God’s
Book.
II. What else must a good soldier be? Obedient. Can you remember any one mentioned
in the Bible who was a very tall, powerful, brave soldier, and yet not good soldier,
because he was disobedient? King Saul. If you really love the Lord, you will keep His
commandments. A soldier must not do what he likes, but what he is ordered to do.
Between you and the Paradise of God there lies a long journey, the enemy’s country,
where the devil and his angels will fight against you; but don’t be afraid, only be brave
and go forward, and follow Jesus your Captain, and you will be able to say, as Paul said,
“Thanks be unto God, who giveth us the victory, through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (British
Weekly Pulpit.)
The fall of Jericho
In the campaign against Jericho the children of Israel appear at their best. Never before
or afterwards did they act with greater unanimity or singleness of heart. There were
noble individual souls such as Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, Samuel, David, and
the prophets’ whom the writer of the book of the Hebrews could single out as worthy of
mention; but there were only two events in which the nation as a whole participated
which were specified in that splendid summary; namely, the crossing of the Red Sea as
on dry land and the marching around Jericho seven days. Had Israel gone forward as
they began, their course in history would have been like that of some mighty river, rising
in the mountains and carrying a crystalline current far onward towards the sea, its
waters unsullied by continuous flowing but sweet and clear to the very end. What makes
the fall of Jericho for ever interesting is the fact that it resulted from the faith and
obedience of the many. In this contest Joshua was hardly more conspicuous than the
humblest soldier in his army. The striking thing about the campaign is the sharp
contrast between the protracted preparation and the suddenness of the catastrophe.
This is often the case. The end comes quickly and easily because of the long and careful
preparation for it, the means being adjusted to the end. Only one thing then is needed,
namely, to trust in God and go forward. That is what Israel did and kept on doing until
the time came to shout. Then, because the people had done their part, God did His part.
The faith they showed was simple and implicit. It did not confuse the two spheres of

71. action, theirs and His. They did the walking and shouting, He overturned the walls. He
was the effective agent, they the instrumental agent. (S. E. Bushnell.)
The Christian conflict
I. God can use the feeblest instrumentalities to accomplish his purposes. If ever feeble
instrumentalities were used, surely it was now. Feeble instrumentalities! God has often
worked that way, and does so still. You remember proud Naaman! Many a time He has
used the little girl, the little child, to bring men to acknowledge Him. What happened
when the little child was born into your home? In the first place, it became the anchor
which held the mother to her home as never before. But it did more than this. It was the
connecting-link which bound together father and mother, husband and wife, in a closer
bond of affection and oneness than the marriage ring. The ring was the beginning of the
union, the coming of that little child was the completion of the union. Nay, it did more
than this even. Impressed by the fact that the little one would look to you for guidance in
matters of the soul and the better life, were you not forced to think how you had
neglected such matters yourself, and for the child’s sake, as well as your own, you were
driven to the Cross to seek salvation? Such things have often happened, and we trust
they may again. The Cross of Calvary was a feeble instrumentality. The preaching of a
crucified and risen and glorified Saviour has often been regarded as a feeble thing. And
yet, by the foolishness of preaching, God has won for Himself many thousands of the
bravest and noblest champions of His cause.
II. God wants all instrumentalities to fight against the forces of sin. Look at Jos_6:9. It
shows us that all the hosts of God were in that procession. God wants all, and the battle
needs all. Armed strong men—men of courage, confidence, faith—let these pass on in
front. Let them lead us in the battle. Priests, ministers, teachers—let them fall into line.
And then the rereward—the people. God wants all! He wants you, and the cause needs
you. Do you say you can’t carry arms? You are timid, and possess but little or no
strength? What of that? There is a place for you; see that you fill it. You can sustain and
encourage those who are in front, and you will best do this by filling your place in the
ranks. Do you say you can’t preach? Do you tell us that it is impossible for you to take the
pulpit or mount the platform, and address your fellows in eloquent words? You can
support and pray for those whom God has called to blow the ram’s horn and bear the
solemn and sacred ark of the covenant of the gospel. You can march, you can share the
conflict; God has a place for you. (Chas. Leach, D. D.)
The potency of inadequate instrumentalities
When we have clear indications of the Divine mind as to any course of action we are to
advance to it promptly and without fear, even though the means at our disposal appear
utterly inadequate to the object sought to be gained. No man goeth a warfare at his own
charges in the service of God. The resources of infinite power avail for that service, and
they are sure to be brought into play if it be undertaken for God’s glory and in
accordance with His will. Who could have supposed that the fishermen of Galilee would
in the end triumph over all the might of kings and rulers; over all the influence of
priesthoods and systems of worship enshrined in the traditions of centuries; over all the
learning and intellect of the philosopher, and over all the prejudices and passions of the
multitude? Who could have thought that the efforts of a poor German student in Berlin,
on behalf of some neglected children, would expand into the widespread and well-rooted

72. “Inner Mission” of Wichern? Or that the concern of a prison chaplain for the welfare of
some of the prisoners after their release would develop into the worldwide work of
Fliedner? Or that the distress of a kind-hearted medical student in London for a batch of
poor boys who “didn’t live nowhere,” and whose pale faces, as they lay on a cold night on
the roof of a shed, stirred in him an irrepressible compassion, would give birth to one of
the marvels of London philanthropy—Dr. Barnardo’s twenty institutions, caring for
three to four thousand children, in connection with which the announcement could be
made that no really destitute child was ever turned from its doors? When Carey on his
shoemaker’s stool contemplated the evangelisation of India, there was as great a gulf
between the end and the apparent means as when the priests blew with their rams’
horns round the walls of Jericho. But Carey felt it to be a Divine command, and Joshua-
like set himself to obey it, leaving to God from whom it came to furnish the power by
which the work was to be done. And wherever there have been found men and women of
strong faith in God, who have looked on His will as recorded in the Scriptures with as
much reverence as if it had been announced personally to themselves, and who have set
themselves to obey that will with a sense of its reality and a faith in God’s promised help
like that of Joshua as the priests marched round Jericho, the same result has been
realised: “The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad.” (W. G. Blaikie,
D. D.)
Discipline
1. Was it not of the nature of discipline that the men were to have arms, and yet were
not to use them? It is hard to have the weapon, to see the thing that is to be done,
and to know that the proposed thing could be done by the use of the weapon, and yet
to allow it to remain in disuse. This is part of the continual discipline of life; this is
what we are all called upon to do to-day. We do not use all our faculties; sometimes
we have almost to strip ourselves of our distinctive faculties, or to let them lie in
disuse, and to be doing everything by doing nothing. This is part of a deeply-planned
scheme of education. This is how Jesus Christ Himself conducted His own life in the
sight of men. He did not use all His faculties; He did not call into requisition all His
resources; He was quiet when He might have been restless, calm when He might
have excited a tumult which would have had all the effect of an unexpected and
irresistible storm. When one offered to defend Him, He said, “Nay, not thus; thou
dost not understand the spirit of the kingdom; thinkest thou that I could not now
pray unto My Father, and He would send twelve legions of angels, which would look
all these petty enemies into dismay? We must not use all our resources. We have the
strength, but do not resort to the tyranny of using it. Some things are to be
accomplished by submission, patience, meekness; knowing the righteousness of the
cause, we await the issue with imperturbable calm. But what a lesson this is to those
who are impatient! Life without discipline is life without dignity.
2. Was it not, further, of the nature of discipline for the men to be in the midst of
plenty and yet not touch it? (Jos_6:18-19). To keep men back from things which they
could so easily use and and so naturally appropriate, and to remain in comparative
poverty in the very midst of abundance, is not easy. When we do not want the things,
it is no trouble to let them alone; but when they are round about us, urging
themselves upon us, and are almost clamorous in their appeal that we should
appropriate them, to stand in their presence as with folded arms, and look upon
them, not with contempt, but with a judgment that values them, yet with a
conscience that will not appropriate them, is an attainment in religious manhood

73. which we must not expect to secure without long training. This is part of the mystery
of providence. Here it is that character discovers its quality. We are in reality what
we are in critical circumstances. It is the exceptional hour that is the key to the
lifetime. “Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.”
3. Is it not in the nature of discipline to be in great excitement, and yet not to express
it? “And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make
any noise with your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until
the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout” (verse 10). The instruction seems easy.
Obedience under such circumstances would be most difficult, Who can keep down
excitement—honest and honourable excitement? To shout under such circumstances
as are described in the text is natural. Inborn instincts may be profaned, and the very
voice of God within the soul may be mistaken. The whole kingdom of heaven is
hindered in some instances because people will not hold their tongues. God knows
when His people should shout, speak, pray, work; the distribution of parts,
functions, duties, is with God. Here we clearly see that much detail must go before
great results. It is not for us to take this work out of the Lord’s hand. Be patient in
the detail. It seems a long time since we began going round this awful hell. It seems
to be encroaching upon us, rather than we seem to be encroaching upon its heat.
Travel on! It is the fifth day; to-morrow is the sixth day; and the day after is the
seventh day. “The Lord shall suddenly come to His temple.” “I beheld Satan as
lightning fall from heaven.” How quickly he falls! (J. Parker, D. D.)
They burnt the city . . . and all that was therein.
Too polluted to be spared
Great were their offences whose possessions were too polluted to retain any value or
become of any service to the people of God, and who not only themselves became a
curse, but all that they had. This not unfrequently discovers itself in the transfer of ill-
gotten wealth—a curse comes with it, which a new possession does not wipe off, but
consumes and withers as though cankered and moth-eaten. It was not to enrich His
people with the spoils of conquest that the Captain of their salvation led the march of
triumph, but to inspire them with a holy detestation of sin, and especially the
corruptions and impurities of idolatry, as the just cause of His vengeance. Nothing so
entirely unfits men to live in this world, and so soon hastens them to another, even to
depriving them of the common pity and forbearance of God, as the corruptions of
idolatry, the sanctified impurities of a false religion. This proves infinitely worse in its
nature, and unspeakably more dangerous in its influence, than would the positive
absence or total obliteration of all that bears the name of sanctity. In this view the
admonition receives peculiar force as addressed by the apostle (1Co_10:20-21). (W.
Seaton.)
The silver and the gold.., they put into the treasury.—
Booty given to God
Other cities would be conquered and their booty be divided among the people, but in
this case all was to be given to God, No one was to be richer for those marches and that
tremendous slaughter except as every one was richer when the treasure was dedicated to
God. It was enough to be delivered by His help from so formidable a foe, who held the

74. two main passes to the hill country above, an enemy too powerful to be left unconquered
in their rear. Besides, all that was God’s was theirs. As well might a son begrudge the
increasing wealth of his father in whose prosperity his own interests were enhanced. But
the fact that one man, Achan, did covet and then conceal a goodly Babylonish mantle,
with some silver and gold that he found, shows how real was the temptation, yet how
magnificently it was resisted. Only one man among all those thousands played the thief.
How splendid, then, was the fidelity of the many! (C. S. Bushnell.)
Seems not this too severe to forbid the soldiers the spoils of the city
1. It was wonderful continency in the soldiery, now wanting all things of country
provisions, by their so long wandering in the wilderness.
2. Jericho was the firstfruits of that cursed country, so must wholly be devoted to
God, and offered up a whole burnt-offering.
3. The hungry soldiers might have been so glutted with the spoils of this rich city
that it would in all likelihood have made them fitter for idleness and luxury than for
marching forward in a martial conquest of Canaan.
4. The whole army being thus admonished by the prohibition of their expected prey,
might understand that the conquest of Jericho was accomplished solely by the
almighty power of God, and not by any of their prowess and valour, as was
afterwards done in subduing all the other cities.
5. This severity was exercised upon this city at their first landing in Canaan, to strike
the greater terror upon the other Canaanitish cities, which they had to conquer, and,
if possible, to bring them to repentance and submission. (C. Ness.)
Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive.—
Rahab saved
It has not been the lot of Rahab to share the devout interest which has been lavished on
Mary Magdalene. Our Correggios, Titians, and Carlo Dolcis have not attempted to
represent the spirit of contrition and devotion transfiguring the face of the Canaanite
girl. And this is not surprising. Rahab had never seen the human face of Jesus, nor heard
the words that dropped like honey from His lips. But though she was not one of those
whose contrite and holy love painters delight to represent, she belonged to the same
order, and in some respects is more remarkable than any of the New Testament
penitents. For her light was much dimmer than theirs who lived in the days of the Son of
Man. She was utterly without support or sympathy from those among whom she rived,
for with the exception of her own relations, who seem to have been influenced by herself,
not a creature in Jericho shared her faith, or showed the slightest regard for the God of
Israel. But the time has now come for her to reap the reward of her faith and its works.
In her case there was but a short interval between the sowing and the reaping. And God
showed Himself able to do in her exceeding abundantly above what she could ask or
think. For she was not only protected when Jericho and all its people were destroyed,
but incorporated with the children of Israel. No doubt the scarlet cord was hung from
her window, as had been arranged with the spies. And a happy woman she no doubt was
when she saw the faces of her old guests, and under their protection was brought out
with all her kindred and all that she had and led to a place of safety. It is a blessed time,

75. after you have stood fast to duty while many have failed, when the hour comes that
brings you peace and blessing, while it carries confusion and misery to the faithless.
How thankful one is at such a moment for the grace that enabled one to choose the right!
What do we not gain by patience when we do the right and wait for the reward? One of
the pictures in the Interpreter’s House is that of “a little room where sat two little
children, each in his chair. The name of the eldest was Passion, and of the other
Patience. Passion seemed much discontent, but Patience was very quiet. Then asked
Christian, ‘What is the reason of the discontent of Passion?’ The Interpreter answered,
‘The Governor of them would have them stay for his best things till the beginning of the
next year; but he will have them all now; but Patience is willing to wait.’” The case of
Rahab was one of those where whole families were saved on account of the faith of one
member. The head of a Hebrew house was eminently a representative man, and by a
well-understood and recognised law his family were implicated in his acts, whether for
good or for evil. Rut in this case the protector of the family, the member of it that
determines the fate of the whole, is not the one whom the law recognises, but his child,
his daughter. A woman occupies here a higher and more influential place, in relation to
the rest of the family, than she has ever held at any previous time. The incident comes in
as a kind of foreshadow of what was to be abundantly verified in after-times. This
narrative shows it to be in the line of God’s providence that sisters and daughters shall
prove instruments of deliverance to their relations. It is blessed when they are so even in
earthly things, but far more glorious when, through faith and prayer and unwearied
interest, they are enabled to win them to Christ, and turn them into living epistles for
Him. But let us now advert to the reception of Rahab and her household into the nation
and Church of the Israelites. At first they could be treated only as unclean until the rites
of purification should be performed. In the case of Rahab this was doubly necessary—
owing to her race, and owing to her life. Thereafter they were admitted to the
commonwealth of Israel, and had an interest in the covenants of promise. The
ceremonial purification and the formal admission signified little, except in so far as they
represented the washing of regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Ghost. “Where sin
abounded grace did much more abound.” When the enemy ensnares a woman, wiles her
into the filthiest chambers of sin, and so enchains her there that she cannot escape, but
must sink deeper and deeper in the mire, the case is truly hopeless. More rapidly and
more thoroughly than in the case of a man, the leprosy spreads till every virtuous
principle is rooted out, and every womanly feeling is displaced by the passions of a
sensual reprobate. “Son of man, can these bones live?” Is there any art to breathe the
breath of purity and pure love into that defiled soul? Can such a woman ever find her
home on the mountains of spices, and hear a loving bridegroom say, “My love, my
undefiled is but one”? It is just here that the religion of the Bible achieves its highest
triumphs. We say the religion of the Bible, but we should rather say, that gracious Being
whose grace the Bible unfolds. “The things that are impossible with men are possible
with God.” Jesus Christ is the Prince of Life. Living faith in a living and loving Saviour
can do all things. We wonder whether Rahab obtained much help in her new life from
the fellowship of those among whom she came when she joined the Church. If the
Church then was what the Church ever ought to be, if its outstanding members were like
the three fair damsels, Prudence, Piety, and Charity, in the Palace Beautiful, no doubt
she would be helped greatly. But it is not very often that that emblem is realised. And
strange to say, among the members of our Churches now we usually find a very
imperfect sense of the duty which they owe to those who come among them from
without, and especially out of great wickedness. It is quite possible that Rahab was
chilled by the coldness of some of her Hebrew sisters, looking on her as an intruder, a
reprobate, and grieved because their select society was broken in upon by this

76. outlandish woman. And it is quite possible that she was disappointed to find that,
though they were nominally the people of God, there was very little of what was Divine
or heavenly about them. So it often happens that what ought to be the greatest attraction
in a Church, the character of its members, is the greatest repellant. Will the day ever be
when every one that names the name of Christ Shall be a living epistle, known and read
of all men? But however she may have been affected by the spirit of those among whom
she came, Rahab undoubtedly attained to a good degree before God, and a place of high
honour in the Hebrew community. It was well for her that what at first arrested and
impressed her was not anything in the people of Israel; it was the glorious attributes of
their God. For this would preserve her substantially from disappointment. Men might
change, or they might pass away, but God remained the same yesterday and to-day and
for ever. (W. G. Blaikie, D. D.)
Cursed be the man . . . that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho.—
The unprosperous builder
Here is a terrible denunciation, under a curse, of the destruction of the family of that
person that should labour to build up Jericho again. As in blessing there are three things
considerable, that come near one another—a blessing, a prayer, and a prophecy—so is it
likewise in cursing: there is a prayer that God would pour forth His vengeance upon the
enemies of the Church, and a prophetical prediction that God will do it. “Cursed be the
man before the Lord.” That is, let him be cursed indeed. That that is done before the
Lord is truly and solemnly done. This was a solemn curse, a heavy curse, and it did truly
light upon him. And let him be cursed before the Lord, however the world bless him.
“That riseth and builds this city Jericho.” Why would not God have Jericho built again?
1. Partly because He would have it a perpetual remembrance of His goodness and
merciful dealing with His people, passing over Jordan and coming freshly into
Canaan; for we are all subject to forget. If this city had been built again, the memory
of it would have been forgotten; but lying all waste and desolate, the passers by
would ask the cause—as God speaks of His own people—“What is the reason that this
city lies thus?” And then it would give them occasion of speaking of the mercy of God
to His people. And likewise it would give occasion to speak of the justice of God
against the idolatrous inhabitants, whose sins were grown ripe.
2. And likewise it was dedicated to God as the firstfruits. Being one of the chief
mother cities of the land, it was dedicated and consecrated to God as a thing severed;
it was to be for ever severed from common use. There are two ways of severing things
from common use: one by way of destruction, as here the city of Jericho; another by
way of dedication, as the gold of Jericho. God would have this city severed from
common use, as a perpetual monument and remembrance of His mercy and justice.
3. And likewise for terror to the rest of the inhabitants; for usually great conquerors
set up some terrible example of justice to terrify others. Now, this being one of the
first cities after their passing over Jordan, God would have the destruction of it to
strike terror, together with this sentence of a curse, upon all that should build it
again for ever.
4. And then that this terrible sentence might be a means to draw others to come in to
God’s people to join with them, and submit, and prevent their destruction, seeing
how terribly God had dealt with Jericho. (R. Sibbes, D. D.)

77. The curse of Jericho
I. Let us listen to the curse pronounced. Such an act of destruction was clearly directed
in that law which Joshua was to ponder day and night. It was the first city that Joshua
had taken, and he was bound to act according to the directions laid down by Moses
(Deu_13:15-18). Joshua therefore had no choice as regards Jericho. Other conquerors,
for their own pride and self-glorification, have ordained that fair cities should be levelled
with the dust and their sites sown with salt. Thus was it with Troy, Carthage, Sidon.
Joshua did this as he did all things, in obedience to the Divine command. Jericho was
“cursed before the Lord,” i.e., from God’s presence and by His sentence. But did this
dreadful destruction serve any good purpose? Yes, truly. Here we have sermons in
stones, far more intelligible and emphatic even than those with which the book of nature
is filled. To begin with, inasmuch as they are tokens of a just and long-deferred judgment
on wickedness, they sound a loud note of warning to the impenitent. Especially do they
display the terrible nature of the sin of idolatry and its consequent evils. Would they not
be impressive witnesses against Israel in every evil day of apostasy? And would they not
also give encouragement to every faithful heart that strove to follow the Lord fully? Pious
souls could read these words writ in large characters on every one of them, “Not by
might, nor by power, nor by wisdom, but by faith, is the victory won”; and the practical
conclusion was plain: “Faithful to God, you can never know defeat.” Thus these stones
would also emphasise the truth, that in the greatest triumphs and the most brilliant
successes there is no room for pride or boastfulness or self-sufficiency on the part of
man. Always these stones would say, “His right hand and His holy arm hath gotten Him
the victory.” What a stimulus therefore to truthful and healthful effort would these
stones become!
II. But the time came when the curse was despised. It may seem incredible that a curse
so plain, so terrible, so memorable, should be thought so little of, but when we read the
Divine record we can clearly trace the causes of this sinful audacity. To begin with, there
was a popular cause for this despisal. It was done in a day when Israel’s God was
forgotten, when spiritual life was very low, when public sentiment was degraded, when
open impiety reigned in high places, and only one solitary man stood out an open
witness against the evils of the day. The very sins for which Jericho was destroyed were
rampant and popular in Israel (1Ki_16:30-33). How significant are the words, “In his
days.” There were many bad, but none worse than they. It is also instructive to notice
that the builder was a Bethelite. Hiel had come under the full influence of all the evil
principles that were rampant. He was born and bred, he lived and died, at Bethel, the
metropolis of idolatry, the place in which Jeroboam had set up his calf. There was also a
sceptical cause which led to the despising of the curse. Unbelief was at the bottom of
Hiel’s impious act, as it is the root of every evil work. Perhaps he had reasoned thus. The
curse, if there ever was any force in it, must have spent itself by this time. Unbelief forgot
whose curse this was. It could not get beyond the lip of Joshua to the will of the
changeless and almighty Jehovah. Or perhaps Hiel had said: “It is nothing but an old
wives’ fable, unworthy of credence; an old-fashioned jingle, without a particle of
meaning; an apocryphal curse, to explain an apocryphal miracle: or at the very utmost,
granting that it has some historical basis, it can be nothing more than the expression of
Joshua’s ill-nature and ill-feeling, and therefore is a fossilised manifestation of the
narrow, bitter, bigoted age in which he lived. The supposition that it is a Divine
proclamation is utterly absurd, utterly inconsistent with the nature of things. It would be
neither just nor wise nor loving in God to do so. Such a curse as that does not commend
itself to my conscience, reason, or heart, and therefore it is unworthy of credence.” Hiel,

78. having stood in the way of sinners, would not be long in sitting in the seat of the
scornful. And perhaps the governing and most potent of these concurrent causes was a
purely materialistic one. Hiel may have said to himself and others, “You see I am a
practical man of business. I am neither a prophet nor a prophet’s son. Profit, not
prophecy, is my forte. Now look, did you ever see such a splendid site?” (Had Hiel lived
in our days he could have drawn up a splendid prospectus for a limited liability building
company.) “And what a delicious climate this valley enjoys; even in mid-winter the air is
bright and balmy. And see, the building material is lying around, ready to be used. The
site can be got for an old song, on account of that ridiculous superstition about Joshua,
which has seared so many chicken-hearted noodles. Do you shake your head and say
there may be some truth in it? What care I? I see plainly how I can make money out of
this. You to your books and me to my buildings, and every man to his own trade.” It was
not so very difficult then for Hiel to despise the curse of Joshua; even so it is not difficult
for any one to despise the curse of the gospel. The spirit of the age, whether as expressed
by common talk, or the newspaper press, or current literature, is in favour of such a
despisal. There are also sceptical reasons which conduce to the same end. The record
which contains this curse is old and not trustworthy, say some. The curse is decrepit and
antiquated. The edge of the sword of judgment is blunt and its blade is rusty. The Lord is
slack concerning His threatenings. We are too enlightened and liberal nowadays to
believe in these things. But perhaps the great reason why men will not take heed to this
curse is because they are so absorbed in the things of time and sense that they can think
of nothing else.
III. Now notice the fulfilment of the curse. Hiel was full of his great life-work. The plans
have been drawn, the trenches have been dug, the stones arranged and prepared,
multitudes of labourers engaged. There is to be a grand opening ceremony at the laying
of the foundation stone; therefore the members of his family and his numerous relations
and friends flock from all quarters. It is a most auspicious occasion. But in the midst of
the ceremony his firstborn is seized with a sudden sickness; he falls in a swoon, and is
carried away from the crowd. But by and by a messenger with a sorrowful countenance
returns and whispers into Hiel’s ear, “Abiram is dead.” It was a terrible blow, in this
hour of his father’s triumph to be cut down. But perhaps, his friends would say, the
excitement of the ceremony was too much for him. He had never been very strong, and
was complaining for some time, and this must have been heat apoplexy, a Sunstroke. But
though Abiram’s death was a great interruption, the work must be carried on all the
same. At last it is all but finished. There is nothing left but the putting up of the gates.
Absorbed in his great undertaking, he has been able to drive away ominous thoughts and
what he calls superstitious fears I But there is growing on him, as he nears the
completion of the work, a nervous anxiety that he cannot drive away. On one thing he is
resolved—there shall be no public ceremonial at the closing of the Work, as there was at
the commencement. He will superintend the putting up of the gates himself, and not
permit any of his children to be present. As he was thus busily occupied at the finishing
touch of his great work, a messenger arrived in hot haste from Bethel, fourteen miles
distant, with the doleful news, “Segub is dead.” Thus was the curse of Joshua concerning
Jericho fulfilled. Learn from this how faithful are God’s words, the terrible as well as the
gracious. No jot or tittle of His truth ever fails. His word may remain in abeyance for
many years, but the lapse of time can never destroy its vitality, “ The Word of the Lord
endureth for ever.” See also how infatuated is unbelief, Every blow hardens rather than
softens. Behold also the bitter fruits of unbelief. Pleasant and profitable Hiel thought his
work would be; perhaps this very speculation was more for his children’s benefit than
for his own; but the solemn narrative teaches that there can be no lasting profit for us or

79. ours if we run contrary to God’s Word, if we deny His will.
IV. But we can turn to a more grateful scene, and consider the removal of the curse.
Jericho was rebuilt in disobedience to a command, in defiance of a threatening, and at
the awful cost of the builder’s children; yet it was not demolished. God had better things
in store for it. His prophets and His people were permitted to dwell there, and though
there was much theft was pleasant and attractive in it, it was an uncomfortable
residence. The curse seemed to hover over it and linger within its Walls (2Ki_3:19-22).
Thus the curse of Joshua is removed. Strange cure this; the old curse met by the new
cruse; the old word of judgment removed by the new word of healing. “Thus saith the
Lord, I have healed these waters.” How strange that the salt of the new cruse should
abolish the bitterness of the old spring—passing strange. Yet can we not here see the
symbol of higher truth? Can we not see Jesus and His salvation in this strange action of
that prophet so like Himself? Each human being is like Jericho. “The city of Mansoul,”
“the house we live in,” is it not like Jericho, pleasant for situation, fair in its outlook? Our
powers and faculties of mind and body, the possibilities of our nature, are all that could
be desired; yet the water of spiritual health is naught and the ground barren. We are
lying under a curse. But see, the Saviour comes. The wonder-working wood for the
bitterness of Marah and the wonder-working salt for the spring of Jericho, both picture
that cross and passion by which Jesus has removed the curse. Yes, and the world itself is
also like Jericho. Is it not fair and beautiful; most pleasant for situation? Every prospect
pleases. But there is a deadly drawback, “The water is naught and the land barren.”
Death reigns. “The whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain, waiting.” Yes,
waiting; waiting the coming of Him who brings healing and life and fruitfulness with
Him; to welcome whose arrival all creatures will shout for joy, for there shall be no more
curse. His presence will bless us with Eden again. (A. B. Mackay.)
13 The seven priests carrying the seven trumpets
went forward, marching before the ark of the
Lord and blowing the trumpets. The armed men
went ahead of them and the rear guard followed
the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets kept
sounding.
GILL, "And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams' horns before the

80. ark of the Lord,.... See Gill on Jos_6:4,
went on continually; or, "going they went" (b): kept on going, making no stop at all,
until they had compassed the city:
and blew with the trumpets; as they went along:
and the armed men went before them, but the rereward came after the ark
of the Lord; which the Targum paraphrases as on Jos_6:9,
the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets; See Gill on Jos_6:9.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:13 And 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 rereward came after the ark of the
LORD, [the priests] going on, and blowing with the trumpets.
Ver. 13. And seven priests bearing seven trumpets.] Here were many sevens, as also
in the Revelation. Many mysteries throughout the Scriptures are set forth by this
number: the Hebrew word signifieth fulness.
PI K, ""And 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 rearward came after the ark of the Lord, the priests going on
and blowing with the trumpets" (v. 13). The Hebrew word for "trumpet" (shophar)
has its first occurrence in Exodus 19:16, 19, where its loud blast was used to awe the
nation at Sinai: highly significant is the fact that it is mentioned just fourteen times
here in Joshua 6:7-22, or the number of perfect witness. The word for "rams’
horns" (yobel) is the one used throughout Leviticus 25, where twenty times it is
rendered "jubilee," so that as an alternative to "trumpets of rams’ horns" it would
be equally permissible to say "trumpets of jubilee." In the year of jubilee all slaves
were released and given their freedom, and all alienated estates were restored to
their original owners. In view of the oft-repeated "ye shall return every man unto
his possession" (Lev. 25:11, 13, 27, 28) and "the land of your possession" (v. 27) we
perceive the significance and appropriateness of the sounding of "trumpets of
jubilee" as Israel now began to possess their inheritance.
In that double meaning and purpose of the priests’ "trumpets of rams’ horns" we
have clearly intimated the nature of that twofold work to which God has appointed
His servants. Those trumpets had a mission and a ministry both unto the Canaanites
and to Israel: the one were to be awed and affrighted, the other to be cheered and
comforted. By faithfully preaching the holiness of God, the demands of His Law, the
sinfulness of sin, and the reality of its awful wages, the minister of the Gospel is to
strike terror into the hearts of the ungodly (2 Cor. 5:10), urging them to "flee from
the wrath to come." Unto those who give evidence that they have forsaken their
wicked ways and believed the Gospel, it is his privilege and duty to strengthen their
faith and gladden their hearts by announcing to them the liberty which they have in

81. Christ and the nature of that glorious inheritance which He purchased for them. In
other words, to proclaim the grand jubilee tidings, so that assurance and joy may be
the present portion of the redeemed. It is in the Epistles that the blessed contents of
the Gospel are most fully unfolded to the saints.
COKE, "Verses 13-15
Ver. 13-15. And seven priests, &c.— Whether Jericho was taken on a sabbath-day,
as the Jews pretend, or on another day of the week, it is very certain, that the
procession was made on the sabbath round about the city; and, consequently, that
the rest of that solemn day was then infringed. He, says Kimchi, who had ordained
the observation of the sabbath, commanded the sabbath to be broken for the
destruction of Jericho: so that, according to the principles of this learned Jew, we
are perfectly established in ours, namely, that the Angel who shewed himself to
Joshua was that Almighty Angel who issued the law of the sabbath from mount
Sinai; and that, as our Saviour remarked afterwards to the Pharisees, He who
enjoined the sabbath is always the Lord and disposer of it. ote; 1. We must
patiently persevere in the use of the means of grace, though we see not their
immediate good effect. 2. Wherever the ark goes, and the word of God leads, we
must follow it. 3. They who do so will surely succeed at last, and see the great
salvation of God.
14 So on the second day they marched around the
city once and returned to the camp. They did this
for six days.
CLARKE,"So they did six days - It is not likely that the whole Israelitish host went
each day round the city. This would have been utterly impossible: the fighting men alone
amounted to nearly 600,000, independently of the people, who must have amounted at
least to two or three millions; we may therefore safely assert that only a select number,
such as was deemed necessary for the occasion, were employed. Jericho could not have
been a large city: and to reduce it could not have required a hundredth part of the armed
force under the command of Joshua.

82. GILL, "And the second day they compassed the city once,.... Went round it one
time only; as on the first:
and returned into the camp: which was at Gilgal, Jos_5:10,
so they did six days: four more after these two successively, and proceeded in the
same order and manner as on those two days.
PI K, ""And the second day they compassed the city once, and returned into the
camp" (v. 14). A careful reading of the context shows that while Divine assurance
had been made unto Joshua himself that the Lord had given Jericho into his hand,
yet he made no mention of this when giving orders to either the priests, the people,
or the armed men: all were to act in what the world terms "blind obedience"—
without any promise of reward. It is also to be duly noted that while Joshua had
been informed by God how many days and times the enemy’s stronghold must be
encircled before its walls should supernaturally collapse (vv. 3-5), he kept this
knowledge to himself, leaving all under him in ignorance of how long this strange
method of procedure was to be continued. The absence of such information made an
additional demand upon the faith and obedience of Israel on this occasion. After
making one complete circuit of the city, the holy ark of Jehovah being carried aloft
in their midst, and all the host had returned to their camp without any tangible
result, it is much to their credit that they repeated the whole performance a second
time. Yet still there was not the slightest sign of God’s appearing on their behalf!
How striking then are the closing words of verse 14: "so they did six days"! After a
second and third encompassing of Jericho, without any apparent success, little
wonder had the people complained and said, What is the use of prolonging this
business? Admire then their persistency. How different was this generation from
their forefathers in the wilderness, who so quickly became discouraged and
murmured against their leader!—and never possessed their heritage! In contrast,
their sons vowed unto Joshua, "All that thou commandest us we will do, and
whithersoever thou sendest us we will go" (Josh. 1:16), and faithfully did they keep
their word. This too has been recorded for our instruction and for our
encouragement. Was there not a time, fellow-minister, when Christ made Himself
known and you asked "Lord, what wouldest Thou have me do?" Did He not in His
condescending grace answer "Son, go work today in My vineyard"? When you
received His call to devote the whole of your time and talents to His service, did you
not promise to spend and be spent in the same? Then be not weary in well doing, for
in due season ye shall reap, if ye faint not.
However impetuous be our spirit, the Lord is never in a hurry, and we are required
to wait His leisure. Every dispensation of God has its prefixed period: as the mercy
itself, equally so the timing of the mercy, is wholly in God’s hand. "The vision is yet
for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait
for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry ‘ (Hab. 2:3). It is not at our beck
and call: we can neither hasten nor retard the Almighty. "He that believeth shall not
make haste" (Isa. 28:16), but continue steadfast in the performance of duty. We
must neither fail through discouragement, nor adopt means of our own in order to

83. speed the issue. Two things are required of us: adhering strictly to the directions
which God has given us, trustfully and hopefully waiting His blessing on the same.
Patience must have her perfect work. Thus it was with Israel here. They fainted not
because the walls of Jericho fell not the first or second, nor even the fifth or sixth
day; nor did they take matters into their own hands and resort to another method.
Rather did they "Wait on the Lord, and keep His way" (Ps. 37:34).
"Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him" (Ps. 37:7) was the grand lesson
inculcated by this incident. Confide in the Lord’s goodness, count upon His power,
submit fully to His authority, or there will be no waiting for Him. Israel must have
implicit trust in the One who had given them their instructions through Joshua.
And so must we. We are to wait in obedience as servants, and in expectation as
believers. A desirous expectation concerning the future must be subordinated to a
meek submission to God’s will in the present. "Wait on the Lord, and keep His way,
and He shall exalt thee to inhabit the land" (Ps. 37:34). It is failure to "wait on the
Lord"—through giving way to the feverish flesh—which causes us to depart from
"His way"! Those who are in too great a hurry to acquire things take "short cuts"
which God has not appointed; but such who act in unholy haste are sure to repent at
leisure. But if we patiently tarry for God’s time, then we shall confine ourselves to
those means which He has assigned. Let preacher and layman alike lay hold of that
promise, "they shall not be ashamed [or "confounded"] that wait for Me" (Isa.
49:23).
PETT, "Verse 14
‘And the second day they surrounded the city once, and returned to the camp. So
they did six days.’
This was the second day, and what was done on this day and on the first day was
done also for the next four days. The Ark of YHWH, borne by the priests, went
round the city. The seven priests blowing the rams’ horns went before it. And the
armed men led the way and the people followed at the tail.
15 On the seventh day, they got up at daybreak
and marched around the city seven times in the
same manner, except that on that day they circled
the city seven times.

84. BAR ES, "On the seventh day - Most probably a Sabbath day. The rising early
would be necessary to give time for encompassing the city seven times. Jericho appears
to have been a city of considerable size and population; and each passage of the large
host round it could hardly have taken less than an hour and a half. Thus, with the
necessary intervals of rest, the evening would be at hand when Joshua gave the signal to
shout Jos_6:16; and the work of slaughter was probably commenced just as the hours of
the Sabbath were passed.
CLARKE,"The seventh day - they rose early - Because on this day they had to
encompass the city seven times; a proof that the city could not have been very extensive,
else this going round it seven times, and having time sufficient left to sack and destroy it,
would have been impossible. It is evident that in the course of these seven days there
must have been a Sabbath, and that on this Sabbath the host must have encompassed
the city as on the other days: the Jews themselves allow this, and Rab. De Kimchi says
“He who had ordained the observance of the Sabbath commanded it to be broken for the
destruction of Jericho.” But it does not appear that there could be any breach in the
Sabbath by the people simply going round the city, the ark in company, and the priests
sounding the sacred trumpets. This was a mere religious procession, performed at the
command of God, in which no servile work was done. Therefore Marcion’s objection,
that the God of the Hebrews showed a changeableness of disposition in commanding the
Sabbath to be kept sacred at one time, and then to be broken at another, is without
foundation; for I must contend that no breach took place on this occasion, unless it
could be made to appear that the day on which Jericho was taken was the Sabbath which
is very unlikely, and which none can prove. But if even this were to be conceded, it is a
sufficient answer to all such cavils, that the God who commanded the Sabbath to be set
apart for rest and religious purposes, has always authority to suspend for a season the
operation of merely ceremonial laws, or to abrogate them entirely, when the purpose of
their institution is fulfilled. The Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath.
GILL, "And it came to pass on the seventh day,.... Which Jarchi says was the
Sabbath day, and which is a common notion of the Jews (c); but whether it was or not, it
is certain that one of these seven days must be a sabbath, in which the several things
ordered were done, and the procession made. Kimchi observes, that their Rabbins say
this was the sabbath day; and he adds, what is pretty remarkable,"though they slew and
burnt on the sabbath day, he that commanded the sabbath commanded to profane the
sabbath in the subduing of Jericho;''with which compare what our Lord says, Mat_12:3,
that they rose early, about the dawning of the day; having seven times the work
to do they did on the other six days:
and compassed the city after the same manner seven times; after the same
manner as they had done the six preceding days:
only on that day they compassed the city seven times; whereas on the other days

85. they only went round it once, which distinguished this day from the rest.
JAMISO , "on the seventh day, that they rose early about the dawning of
the day, and compassed the city ... seven times — on account of the seven circuits
they had to make that day. It is evident, however, that the militia only of the Israelites
had been called to the march - for it is inconceivable that two millions of people could
have gone so frequently round the city in a day.
CALVI , "15.And it came to pass on the seventh day, etc Here, also, God seemed,
by leading the people so often round the city, not only to keep the matter in
suspense, but purposely to sport with the miseries of the people, who were fatiguing
themselves to no purpose. For why does he not order them suddenly to attack the
city? Why does he keep them in their former silence, even to weariness, and not
open their mouths to shout? But the happy fruit of this endurance teaches us, that
there is nothing better than to leave the decisive moments and opportunities of
acting at his disposal, and not, by our haste, anticipate his providence, in which, if
we acquiesce not, we obstruct the course of his agency. Therefore, while the priests
were sounding, God ordered a corresponding shout to be raised by the people, that
in this way he might prove that he is not pleased with any impetuosity which men
manifest at their own hands, but above all things requires a regulated zeal, of which
the only rule is not to move either tongue, or feet, or hands, till he order. Here, the
rams’ horns undoubtedly represented his authority.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:15 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early
about the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven
times: only on that day they compassed the city seven times.
Ver. 15. They compassed the city seven times.] In sign, saith one, (a) that the
perseverance and continuance in faith and the actions thereof, at last obtaineth the
victory: and that the nearer the end of the combat is, the more ought the faithful
man to bestir him therein.
PETT, "Verse 15
‘And so it was on the seventh day, that they rose early at the dawning of the day,
and went round the city in the same way seven times, only on that day they went
round the city seven times.’
This was not necessarily the Sabbath, but certainly one of the seven days must have
been the Sabbath. Thus the Sabbath law was abrogated for this event. The sevenfold
circling, the divinely perfect circling, was to demonstrate that the divine power of
YHWH was now about to be revealed. This sevenfoldness would have had deep
significance both for the Israelites and for the people shut up within the city. Once
the men of the city realised that they were marching round seven times on the
seventh day of marching the hearts of the men in the city would have grown cold
within them. They would have realised that this fearsome God was about to act.
And the men of Israel would have been aware of the same.

86. PI K, ""And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early about the
dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times: only
on that day they compassed the city seven times" (v. 15). What a demand upon their
faith, obedience, and patience was this! After their apparently fruitless effort of
marching around Jericho once a day for no less than six days, now they were
required not only to do the same on the seventh day, but to then repeat the
performance no less than seven times more! And note well those words "after the
same manner." There was to be no change of procedure: seeming failure did not
warrant them in adopting other measures: they must adhere strictly to the Divine
directions unto the end. What a needful lesson is there pointed for us! ot only was
their testing protracted, but it became increasingly severe. Once a day for six days
had been unavailing; and six times more on the seventh day passed without any
Divine intervention; yet still they persevered! What cause for shame that we become
discouraged so easily and faint so quickly!
A brief word needs to be said about the repeated occurrence of the number seven
here: the seven priests, the seven trumpets, the seven days, and the seven
encirclements of Jericho on the seventh day cannot be without some design and
significance. The best comment we have seen thereon is John Owen’s: "The
compassing of the city once every day for six days, and the entrance into it on the
seventh, had respect unto the work of the creation. For God was now entering into
His rest with respect unto. His worship, in a new way of settlement and solemnity,
such as He had not erected or made use of from the beginning of the world. Hence
He frequently calls it ‘His rest’ (Ps. 95:11; 132:8, 14; Hebrews 3:11; 4:3, 11). And it
was a type of the new creation, with the rest of Christ thereon, and of believers in
Him. Therefore would God give here a resemblance of the first work of the labor of
the six days, and the reward they received on the seventh."
The Obedience of Faith
"And it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose up about the dawning of the
day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times: only on that day
they compassed the city seven times" (Josh. 6:15). Israel was now put to a more
exacting test than hitherto: once a day they had marched around Jericho for six
consecutive days, but on the seventh they must do so no less than seven times. That
illustrates a principle in the ways of God. In His dealings with His people the Lord
develops their graces by submitting them to a variety of trials, which are harder and
harder to bear. Was it not thus with "the father of all them that believe" (Rom.
4:11)? First, Abraham was called upon to leave his native land, and go forth not
knowing whither. Then, after receiving promise from God of a son, his wife for
many years remained barren. Finally, when the son was given and grown, the
patriarch was bidden to offer him for a burnt offering. Do not expect your path to
become easier, but rather that trials will be more severe. Why so? That the
sufficiency of God’s grace may be known.
Seek to visualize the course followed by Israel on this occasion: project yourself in
spirit among them: remember they were "men of like passions with you. For six
days they had apparently made fools of themselves before the eyes of the
Canaanites, and they did so unmurmuringly. Six times more they repeated the
process, yet without any Divine intervention or the slightest outward sign of success!

87. The powerful walls of Jericho stood as firm as ever! What was the use of making
still another journey around them when twelve had produced no tangible results?
But they made no demur, nor declined such a seemingly senseless waste of time and
energy. Instead, they carried out their orders. That is the most remarkable example
of united obedience recorded in the Scriptures—emphasized here by the Spirit’s
telling us twice in this verse that "they compassed the city seven times." Admire
then the grace of God which wrought so gloriously in and through them. He it was
who subdued their corruptions and made them willing in the day of His power.
Though trials increase in severity, so increased grace is given to bear them!
Here, as ever in Scripture, we should discern a blessed conjunction of the Divine
and the human, and the latter concurring with the former. God wrought secretly by
imparting to them the inclination and the impulse; they exercising the same by
obedient action. Though a much more severe test was made of them on this seventh
day, it is expressly recorded that "they rose early about the dawning of the day."
That is the spirit in which to approach our tasks and perform our duties: with
earnestness and enthusiasm, and not reluctantly and tardily. The more unpleasant
the task, the sooner should it be tackled and disposed of. The harder be the duty, the
more energetically should it be discharged. "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do
it with thy might" (Eccl. 9:10). This is not the time for the Christian to take his ease:
he must "labor" before he enters into his rest (Heb. 4:11). He is not called to picnic,
but to "fight the good fight of faith," and that implies strong opposition, and calls
for the putting forth of all that is within us, if victory is to be ours.
"And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets,
Joshua said unto the people, Shout, for the Lord hath given you the city" (v. 16).
ote well when that promise was made to Israel. ot until they had fully discharged
their duty, not until their obedience and patience had been severely tested, only
after they had completed twelve circuits of the city, were they assured that God
would deliver it into their hands. Does not that fact suggest that we make too much
of the promises, or rather too little of the precepts to which they are attached? There
has been a deplorable lack of balance at this point on the part of many preachers
and writers. Comforting passages have been taken from their setting, and promises
severed from the conditions by which they are qualified. The consoling of saints
rather than the honoring of God is too often the aim of the pulpit. The manifestation
of "good works" (Matthew 5:16) and the bearing of "much fruit" in our lives (John
15:8) are what most glorifies the Father.
"And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets,
Joshua said unto the people, Shout." Previously they had been enjoined to preserve
strict silence (v. 10). They were not to shout at their own caprice or pleasure, but
only as and when their leader bade them—they must be completely subservient to
his orders. ow the time had come for them to give one loud concerted shout. Why
so? To indicate the victory was sure. But this latter command was a harder one than
the former. The injunction to maintain a decorous silence was but a test of their
morale; but this order for them to give a grand and general shout made a very real
demand upon their faith and obedience, for it was to be made while the fortress still
stood intact before them! Easy enough to shout after the victory; but this was to be
given in assured anticipation of the same. It was faith’s shout of conquest. It had
been prophetically announced by Balaam, when he was moved to say of Israel, "the

88. Lord his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them" ( um. 23:21).
K&D 15-20, "Jos_6:15-20
On the seventh day the marching round the town commenced very early, at the
dawning of the day, that they might go round seven times. ‫ט‬ ָ ְ‫שׁ‬ ִ ַⅴ, in the manner
prescribed and carried out on the previous days, which had become a right through
precept and practice. On the seventh circuit, when the priests had blown the trumpet,
Joshua commanded the fighting men to raise a war-cry, announcing to them at the same
time that the town, with all that was in it, was to be a ban to the Lord, with the exception
of Rahab and the persons in her house, and warning them not to take of that which was
laid under the ban, that they might not bring a ban upon the camp of Israel. The
construction in v. 16, “it came to pass at the seventh time the priests had blown the
trumpets, then Joshua said, ... ” is more spirited than if the conjunction ‫ר‬ ֶ‫שׁ‬ ֲ‫א‬ ַⅴ had been
used before ‫עוּ‬ ְ‫ק‬ ָ , or ַ‫ּוע‬‫ק‬ ְ‫ת‬ ִ had been used. Because the Lord had given Jericho into the
hands of the Israelites, they were to consecrate it to Him as a ban (cherem), i.e., as a holy
thing belonging to Jehovah, which was not to be touched by man, as being the first-fruits
of the land of Canaan. (On cherem, see the remarks at Lev_27:28-29.) Rahab alone was
excepted from this ban, along with all that belonged to her, because she had hidden the
spies. The inhabitants of an idolatrous town laid under the ban were to be put to death,
together with their cattle, and all the property in the town to be burned, as Moses
himself had enjoined on the basis of the law in Lev_27:29. The only exceptions were
metals, gold, silver, and the vessels of brass and iron; these were to be brought into the
treasury of the Lord, i.e., the treasury of the tabernacle, as being holy to the Lord (Jos_
6:19; vid., Num_31:54). Whoever took to himself anything that had been laid under the
ban, exposed himself to the ban, not only because he had brought an abomination into
his house, as Moses observes in Deu_7:25, in relation to the gold and silver of idols, but
because he had wickedly invaded the rights of the Lord, by appropriating that which had
been laid under the ban, and had wantonly violated the ban itself. The words, “beware of
the ban, that ye do not ban and take of the ban” (Jos_6:18), point to this. As Lud. de
Dieu observes, “the two things were altogether incompatible, to devote everything to
God, and yet to apply a portion to their own private use; either the thing should not have
been devoted, or having been devoted, it was their duty to abstain from it.” Any such
appropriation of what had been laid under the ban would make the camp of Israel itself a
ban, and trouble it, i.e., bring it into trouble (conturbare, cf. Gen_34:30). In
consequence of the trumpet-blast and the war-cry raised by the people, the walls of the
town fell together, and the Israelites rushed into the town and took it, as had been
foretold in Jos_6:5. The position of ‫ם‬ ָ‫ע‬ ָ‫ה‬ ‫ע‬ ַ‫ר‬ָ ַ‫ו‬ is not to be understood as signifying that the
people had raised the war-cry before the trumpet-blast, but may be explained on the
ground, that in his instructions in Jos_6:16 Joshua had only mentioned the shouting.
But any misinterpretation is prevented by the fact, that it is expressly stated immediately
afterwards, that the people did not raise the great shout till they heard the trumpet-
blast.
As far as the event itself is concerned, the difference attempts which have been made
to explain the miraculous overthrow of the walls of Jericho as a natural occurrence,
whether by an earthquake, or by mining, or by sudden storming, for which the
inhabitants, who had been thrown into a false security by the marvellous procession

89. repeated day after day for several days, were quite unprepared (as Ewald has tried to
explain the miracle away), really deserve no serious refutation, being all of them
arbitrarily forced upon the text. It is only from the naturalistic stand-point that the
miracle could ever be denied; for it not only follows most appropriately upon the
miraculous guidance of Israel through the Jordan, but is in perfect harmony with the
purpose and spirit of the divine plan of salvation. “It is impossible,” says Hess, “to
imagine a more striking way, in which it could have been shown to the Israelites that
Jehovah had given them the town. Now the river must retire to give them an entrance
into the land, and now again the wall of the town must fall to make an opening into a
fortified place. Two such decisive proofs of the co-operation of Jehovah so shortly after
Moses' death, must have furnished a pledge, even to the most sensual, that the same God
was with them who had led their fathers so mightily and so miraculously through the
Read Sea.” That this was in part the intention of the miracle, we learn from the close of
the narrative (Jos_6:27). But this does not explain the true object of the miracle, or the
reason why God gave up this town to the Israelites without any fighting on their part,
through the miraculous overthrow of their walls. The reason for this we have to look for
in the fact that Jericho was not only the first, but the strongest town of Canaan, and as
such was the key to the conquest of the whole land, the possession of which would open
the way to the whole, and give the whole, as it were, into their hands. The Lord would
give His people the first and strongest town of Canaan, as the first-fruits of the land,
without any effort on their part, as a sign that He was about to give them the whole land
for a possession, according to His promise; in order that they might not regard the
conquest of it as their own work, or the fruit of their own exertions, and look upon the
land as a well-merited possession which they could do as they pleased with, but that they
might ever use it as a gracious gift from the Lord, which he had merely conferred upon
them as a trust, and which He could take away again, whenever they might fall from
Him, and render themselves unworthy of His grace. This design on the part of God
would of necessity become very obvious in the case of so strongly fortified a town as
Jericho, whose walls would appear impregnable to a people that had grown up in the
desert and was so utterly without experience in the art of besieging or storming fortified
places, and in fact would necessarily remain impregnable, at all events for a long time,
without the interposition of God. But if this was the reason why the Lord gave up Jericho
to the Israelites by a miracle, it does not explain either the connection between the blast
of trumpets or the war-cry of the people and the falling of the walls, or the reason for the
divine instructions that the town was to be marched round every day for seven days, and
seven times on the seventh day. Yet as this was an appointment of divine wisdom, it
must have had some meaning.
The significance of this repeated marching round the town culminates unquestionably
in the ark of the covenant and the trumpet-blast of the priests who went before the ark.
In the account before us the ark is constantly called the ark of the Lord, to show that the
Lord, who was enthroned upon the cherubim of the ark, was going round the hostile
town in the midst of His people; whilst in Jos_6:8 Jehovah himself is mentioned in the
place of the ark of Jehovah. Seven priests went before the ark, bearing jubilee trumpets
and blowing during the march. The first time that we read of a trumpet-blast is at Sinai,
where the Lord announced His descent upon the mount to the people assembled at the
foot to receive Him, not only by other fearful phenomena, but also by a loud and long-
continued trumpet-blast (Exo_19:16, Exo_19:19; Exo_20:14-18). After this we find the
blowing of trumpets prescribed as part of the Israelitish worship in connection with the
observance of the seventh new moon's day (Lev_23:24), and at the proclamation of the
great year of jubilee (Lev_25:9). Just as the trumpet-blast heard by the people when the
covenant was made at Sinai was as it were a herald's call, announcing to the tribes of

90. Israel the arrival of the Lord their God to complete His covenant and establish His
kingdom upon earth; so the blowing of trumpets in connection with the round of feasts
was intended partly to bring the people into remembrance before the Lord year by year
at the commencement of the sabbatical month, that He might come to them and grant
them the Sabbath rest of His kingdom, and partly at the end of every seven times seven
years to announce on the great day of atonement the coming of the great year of grace
and freedom, which was to bring to the people of God deliverance from bondage, return
to their own possessions, and deliverance from the bitter labours of this earth, and to
give them a foretaste of the blessed and glorious liberty to which the children of God
would attain at the return of the Lord to perfect His kingdom (vid., Pentateuch, pp.
631f.). But when the Lord comes to found, to build up, and to perfect His kingdom upon
earth, He also comes to overthrow and destroy the worldly power which opposes His
kingdom. The revelation of the grace and mercy of God to His children, goes ever side by
side with the revelation of justice and judgment towards the ungodly who are His foes. If
therefore the blast of trumpets was the signal to the congregation of Israel of the
gracious arrival of the Lord its God to enter into fellowship with it, no less did it
proclaim the advent of judgment to an ungodly world. This shows clearly enough the
meaning of the trumpet-blast at Jericho. The priests, who went before the ark of the
covenant (the visible throne of the invisible God who dwelt among His people) and in
the midst of the hosts of Israel, were to announce through the blast of trumpets both to
the Israelites and Canaanites the appearance of the Lord of the whole earth for judgment
upon Jericho, the strong bulwark of the Canaanitish power and rule, and to foretel to
them through the falling of the walls of this fortification, which followed the blast of
trumpets and the wary-cry of the soldiers of God, the overthrow of all the strong
bulwarks of an ungodly world through the omnipotence of the Lord of heaven and earth.
Thus the fall of Jericho became the symbol and type of the overthrow of every worldly
power before the Lord, when He should come to lead His people into Canaan and
establish His kingdom upon earth. On the ground of this event, the blowing of trumpets
is frequently introduced in the writings of the prophets, as the signal and symbolical
omen of the manifestations of the Lord in great judgments, through which He destroys
one worldly power after another, and thus maintains and extends His kingdom upon
earth, and leads it on towards that completion to which it will eventually attain when He
descends from heaven in His glory at the time of the last trump, with a great shout, with
the voice of the archangel and the trump of God, to raise the dead and change the living,
to judge the world, cast the devil, death, and hell into the lake of fire, create a new
heaven and new earth, and in the new Jerusalem erect the tabernacle of God among men
for all eternity (1Co_15:51.; 1Th_4:16-17; Rev_20:1; 21).
The appointment of the march round Jericho, which was to be continued for seven
days, and to be repeated seven times on the seventh day, was equally significant. The
number seven is a symbol in the Scriptures of the work of God and of the perfection
already produced or to be eventually secured by Him; a symbol founded upon the
creation of the world in six days, and the completion of the works of creation by the
resting of God upon the seventh day. Through this arrangement, that the walls of
Jericho were not to fall till after they had been marched round for seven days, and not
till after this had been repeated seven times on the seventh day, and then amidst the
blast of the jubilee trumpets and the war-cry of the soldiers of the people of God, the
destruction of this town, the key to Canaan, was intended by God to become a type of the
final destruction at the last day of the power of this world, which exalts itself against the
kingdom of God. In this way He not only showed to His congregation that it would not
be all at once, but only after long-continued conflict, and at the end of the world, that the
worldly power by which it was opposed would be overthrown, but also proved to the

91. enemies of His kingdom, that however long their power might sustain itself in
opposition to the kingdom of God, it would at last be destroyed in a moment.
16 The seventh time around, when the priests
sounded the trumpet blast, Joshua commanded
the army, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the
city!
GILL, "And it came to pass at the seventh time,.... Of their going round the city
on the seventh day: and at the seventh time:
when the priests blew with the trumpets; as they did every time they compassed
the city:
Joshua said unto the people, shout; both those that were armed, and those that
were not; they were to make one grand and general shout at once, as when victory is
obtained, or is sure, and so it follows:
for the Lord hath given you the city; intimating that it would be presently delivered
into their hands, and in such manner, that it would plainly show it was of the Lord, and
no other.
HE RY, " At last they were to give a shout, and did so, and immediately the walls
fell, Jos_6:16. This was a shout for mastery, a triumphant shout; the shout of a king is
among them, Num_23:21. This was a shout of faith; they believed that the walls of
Jericho would fall, and by this faith the walls were thrown down. It was a shot of prayer,
an echo to the sound of the trumpets which proclaimed the promise that God would
remember them; with one accord, as one man, they cry to heaven for help, and help
comes in. Some allude to this to show that we must never expect a complete victory over
our own corruptions till the very evening of our last day, and then we shall shout in
triumph over them, when we come to the number and measure of our perfection, as
bishop Hall expresses it. A good heart (says he) groans under the sense of his
infirmities, fain would be rid of them, and strives and prays, but, when all is done, until
the end of the seventh day it cannot be; then judgment shall be brought forth unto
victory. And at the end of time, when our Lord shall descend from heaven with a shout,
and the sound of a trumpet, Satan's kingdom shall be completely ruined, and not till
then, when all opposing rule, principality, and power, shall be effectually and eternally

92. put down.
JAMISO , "it came to pass at the seventh time, ... Joshua said unto the
people, Shout; for the Lord hath given you the city — This delay brought out
their faith and obedience in so remarkable a manner, that it is celebrated by the apostle
(Heb_11:30).
COKE, "Ver. 16. And—at the seventh time—Joshua said unto the people, Shout,
&c.— This shouting might be made in a two-fold view. It might be designed to
terrify the enemy, and to animate at the same time the Israelitish soldiery; and,
doubtless, it was also to express the faith of the whole people, and the confidence
wherewith they relied upon the divine promises. By faith, says St. Paul, the walls of
Jericho fell down, after they had been compassed about seven days. Hebrews 11:30.
PETT, "Verse 16
‘And so it was at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, that
Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for YHWH has given you the city.” ’
This was possibly the long blast of verse 5. The shout was to be a shout of
expectation of triumph. YHWH had given them the city!
BE SO , "Verse 16
Joshua 6:16. At the seventh time Joshua said, Shout — To testify your faith in God’s
promise, and thankfulness for this glorious mercy; to encourage yourselves and
brethren, and to strike a terror into your enemies. The Lord hath given you the city
— It is given to you to be devoted to God, as the first (and perhaps the worst) of all
the cities of Canaan.
17 The city and all that is in it are to be devoted[a]
to the Lord. Only Rahab the prostitute and all
who are with her in her house shall be spared,
because she hid the spies we sent.

93. BAR ES, "Accursed - Better as in margin, (“devoted” (Lev_27:28 note). In other
cases the inhabitants only of the towns were slain; their cattle and property became the
booty of the victors. But Jericho, as the first Canaanite city that was captured, was
devoted by Israel as first-fruits to God, as a token that Israel received all the land from
Him. Every living thing was put to death (Rahab and her household excepted) as a
sacrifice to God, and the indestructible goods were Jos_6:19 brought into the treasury of
the sanctuary.
CLARKE,"The city shall be accursed - That is, it shall be devoted to destruction;
ye shall take no spoils, and put all that resist to the sword. Though this may be the
meaning of the word ‫חרם‬ cherem in some places, see the note on Lev_27:29, yet here it
seems to imply the total destruction of all the inhabitants, see Jos_6:21; but it is likely
that peace was offered to this city, and that the extermination of the inhabitants was in
consequence of the rejection of this offer.
GILL, "And the city shall be accursed,.... Or, be a "cherem", devoted to the Lord, as
it follows:
even it and all that are therein, to the Lord; the city and the inhabitants of it
should be devoted to destruction, and the riches and spoil of it dedicated to sacred uses,
and not become the property of the Israelites; for as this was the first city in the had of
Canaan that was conquered, it was fit the firstfruits of the conquest should be the Lord's,
as an acknowledgment of his gift of the land unto them, and that the conquest of it was
owing to him; though it might be some mortification to the Israelites, and a trial of their
faith and obedience, that the first and so fine a city should not become their habitation,
but be utterly destroyed, and not to be built more; and all the riches of it either
consumed, or converted to other uses, and not their own. This Joshua thought fit to
declare to the Israelites, before the taking of the city, that they might know what they
had to do. The Jewish doctors generally suppose that Joshua ordered this of himself, of
his own accord and will; but Kimchi is of opinion that the Lord gave him this order,
which is most probable, yea, certain from Jos_7:11,
only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house;
she and her father's family, as she requested, and the spies promised; here the Targum
calls her, as elsewhere, Rahab the innkeeper or victualler; and so in Jos_6:22,
because she hid the messengers that we sent; and so preserved them from being
taken by the messengers of the king of Jericho, who were sent in pursuit of them. These
though sent only by Joshua, without the knowledge of the people, yet it being on their
account, and their good, and by him as their head and governor, is ascribed to them also.
This fact of Rahab's is observed by him as a reason for sparing her, and those that were
with her, when all the rest would be put to the sword; and is mentioned as an instance of
her faith, and of the evidence of it, Heb_1

94. HE RY 17-18, "The people had religiously observed the orders given them
concerning the besieging of Jericho, and now at length Joshua had told them (Jos_
6:16), “The Lord hath given you the city, enter and take possession.” Accordingly in
these verses we have,
I. The rules they were to observe in taking possession. God gives it to them, and
therefore may direct it to what uses and intents, and clog it with what provisos and
limitations he thinks fit. It is given to them to be devoted to God, as the first and
perhaps the worst of all the cities of Canaan. 1. The city must be burnt, and all the
lives in it sacrificed without mercy to the justice of God. All this they knew was
included in those words, Jos_6:17. The city shall be a cherem, a devoted thing, at
and all therein, to the Lord. o life in it might be ransomed upon any terms; they
must all be surely put to death, Lev_27:29. So he appoints from whom as creatures
they had received their lives, and to whom as sinners they had forfeited them; and
who may dispute his sentence? Is God unrighteous, who thus taketh vengeance? God
forbid we should entertain such a thought! There was more of God seen in the
taking of Jericho than of any other of the cities of Canaan, and therefore that must
be more than any other devoted to him. And the severe usage of this city would
strike a terror upon all the rest and melt their hearts yet more before Israel. Only,
when this severity is ordered, Rahab and her family are excepted: She shall live and
all that are with her. She had distinguished herself from her neighbours by the
kindness she showed to Israel, and therefore shall be distinguished from them by the
speedy return of that kindness. 2. All the treasure of it, the money and plate and
valuable goods, must be consecrated to the service of the tabernacle, and brought
into the stock of dedicated things, the Jews say because the city was taken on the
sabbath day. Thus God would be honoured by the beautifying and enriching of his
tabernacle; thus preparation was made for the extraordinary expenses of his
service; and thus the Israelites were taught not to set their hearts upon worldly
wealth nor to aim at heaping up abundance of it for themselves. God had promised
them a land flowing with milk and honey, not a land abounding with silver and gold;
for he would have them live comfortably in it, that they might serve him cheerfully,
but not covet either to trade with distant countries or to hoard for after times. He
would likewise have them to reckon themselves enriched in the enriching of the
tabernacle, and to think that which was laid up in God's house as truly their honour
and wealth as if it had been laid up in their own. 3. A particular caution is given
them to take heed of meddling with the forbidden spoil; for what was devoted to
God, if they offered to appropriate it to their own use, would prove accursed to
them; therefore (Jos_6:18) “In any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing; you
will find yourselves inclined to reach towards it, but check yourselves, and frighten
yourselves from having any thing to do with it.” He speaks as if he foresaw the sin of
Achan, which we have an account of in the next chapter, when he gives this reason
for the caution, lest you make the camp of Israel a curse and trouble it, as it proved
that Achan did.
JAMISO 17-19, "And the city shall be accursed — (See on Lev_27:28). The

95. cherem, or “anathema,” was a devotion to utter destruction (Deu_7:2; Deu_20:17;
1Sa_15:3). When such a ban was pronounced against a hostile city, the men and
animals were killed - no booty was allowed to be taken. The idols and all the
precious ornaments on them were to be burned (Deu_7:25; compare 1Ch_14:12).
Everything was either to be destroyed or consecrated to the sanctuary. Joshua
pronounced this ban on Jericho, a great and wealthy city, evidently by divine
direction. The severity of the doom, accordant with the requirements of a law which
was holy, just, and good, was justified, not only by the fact of its inhabitants being
part of a race who had filled up their iniquities, but by their resisting the light of the
recent astonishing miracle at the Jordan. Besides, as Jericho seems to have been
defended by reinforcements from all the country (Jos_24:11), its destruction would
paralyze all the rest of the devoted people, and thus tend to facilitate the conquest of
the land; showing, as so astounding a military miracle did, that it was done, not by
man, but by the power and through the anger, of God.
CALVI , "17.And the city shall be accursed, etc Although God had determined not
only to enrich his people with spoil and plunder, but also to settle them in cities
which they had not built, yet there was a peculiarity in the case of the first city; for
it was right that it should be consecrated as a kind of first fruits. Accordingly, he
claims the buildings, as well as all the moveable property, as his own, and prohibits
the application of any part of it to private uses. It may have been an irksome and
grievous task for the people voluntarily to pull down houses in which they might
have commodiously dwelt, and to destroy articles which might have been important
for use. But as they had not been required to fight, it behooved them to refrain,
without grudging, from touching the prey, and willingly yield up the rewards of the
victory to God, as it was solely by his nod that the walls of the city had fallen, and
the courage of the citizens had fallen along with them. God was contented with this
pledge of gratitude, provided the people thereby quickly learned that everything
they called their own was the gift of his free liberality. For with equal right all the
other cities might have been doomed to destruction, had not God granted them to
his people for habitations.
As to the Hebrew word ‫,חרס‬ I will now only briefly repeat from other passages.
When it refers to sacred oblations, it becomes, in respect of men, equivalent to
abolitions, since things devoted in this manner are renounced by them as completely
as if they were annihilated. The equivalent Greek term is ἀ‫ם‬ά‫טחלב‬ , or ἀ‫ם‬ά‫טולב‬ ,
meaning set apart, or as it is properly expressed in French, interdicted. Hence the
exhortation to beware of what was under anathema, inasmuch as that which had
been set apart for God alone had perished, in so far as men were concerned. It is
used in a different sense in the following verse, where caution is given not to place
the camp of Israel in anathema. Here its simple meaning is, excision, perdition, or
death. Moreover, God destined vessels made of metals for the use of the sanctuary;
all other things he ordered to be consumed by fire, or destroyed in other manners.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:17 And the city shall be accursed, [even] it, and all that [are]
therein, to the LORD: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that [are] with
her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.

96. Ver. 17. And the city shall be accursed.] Anathematised, proscribed, devoted to
destruction, offered up to God as a holocaust, whose pleasure it was that this people
should be thus hanged up in gibbets, as it were, for a terror to the rest, who might
hereby see what to trust to if they stubbornly stood out. The whole land was filled
with the filthiness of the people from one end to another; [Ezra 9:11] and might not
God begin to punish where he pleased
COKE, "Ver. 17. The city shall be accursed,—and all that are therein, to the
Lord— That is, Jericho, and whatever it contains, shall be devoted to utter
destruction, save what is expressly excepted in this and the 19th verse. Respecting
the Cherem, we refer to the Reflections at the end of Deut. ch. 20: It is necessary,
however, to add here, that if God used the utmost severity towards Jericho, even to
the forbidding to spare the wives and children, or to keep any spoil, which he had
allowed on other occasions, it was for reasons well worthy his supreme wisdom. On
the other hand, he ordered all the inhabitants of this city to be put to the sword, in
order to intimidate the rest of the Canaanites, and to determine them, by this act of
justice, to prevent, by accepting peace, or by flight, a punishment which their
enormous and wilful crimes rendered unavoidable. But then he forbad the Israelites
keeping any booty to themselves, that, on their entering into the land of Canaan,
they might the better understand that they had no right to the riches of that country
but what he gave them; and that he would ever continue to himself the power of
restraining that right as he should think proper.
PETT, "Verse 17
Joshua 6:17 a
“And the city shall be devoted, it and all that is in it to YHWH.”
This would regularly happen to a first conquest. It was the firstfruits. The idea was
that it became sacred to their God. Therefore all living things had to be put to death
as ‘devoted’ (cherem) to Him, while all possessions were separated to the treasury of
God. ot a single living thing was to be spared. ot a single possession was to be
appropriated to private use. All was YHWH’s. Joshua interpreted all this so
literally that he would even put a curse on anyone who in the future tried to rebuild
the city itself (Joshua 6:26). One reason for this was as a symbolic act demonstrating
the consequences of idolatry (Deuteronomy 13:10-17). Jericho here stood for the
idolatry of the land.
The practise of ‘devoting’ to a God was a common one. We can compare the words
of the King of Moab on the Moabite stone, ‘And Chemosh said to me: "Go! Take
ebo against Israel." And I went by night and fought against it from break of dawn
till noon. And I took it and slew all, seven thousand men, boys, women, girls, and
pregnant women, because I had devoted it to Ashtar-Chemosh. And I took thence
the altar-hearths of YHWH and I dragged them before Chemosh.” ote the use of
‘seven’ with its implication of divine completeness, and the dual name of the god.
ote also the reference to YHWH. ‘The altar-hearths of YHWH’ suggests that this
was a religious sanctuary which may well have been the reason why it was

97. ‘devoted’.
Joshua 6:17 b
“Only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because
she hid the messengers that we sent.”
One exception was to be made. Rahab and her family, with their possessions, would
be spared because of her assistance to the Israelite spies. Although ‘devoted’ to
YHWH she was redeemed by her actions in aiding YHWH’s servants.
BE SO , "Joshua 6:17. The city shall be accursed — to the Lord — That is,
devoted to destruction, by the right which God has to punish such as offend against
him. This he speaks by direction from God, (see 1 Kings 16:34,) whose will it was
that every thing in Jericho should be utterly destroyed, as well inanimate things by
burning them, &c, as men and cattle, by the edge of the sword; excepting only the
things that were found in the house of Rahab, and the vessels of silver and gold,
brass and iron, which were to be consecrated to the Lord, and put into the treasury
of the tabernacle. God seems to have caused the first spoils made in the land of
Canaan to be dedicated to his use, 1st, Because the first-fruits were appropriated to
him as his due; 2d, To signify that he was their leader, and that these victories were
owing to him; 3d, Lest the soldiers, being glutted with the spoil of this rich city,
should grow sluggish in their work; and, 4th, That on entering the land of Canaan
they might be made thoroughly to understand that they had no right to the riches of
that country but what he gave them; and that he would always keep to himself the
power of restraining that right as he should see proper. In the mean time the
severity enjoined to be exercised toward the persons of the people of the city, in
putting them to the sword, was undoubtedly worthy of his infinite wisdom, as well
as suitable to his holiness and justice: while it struck a terror into the rest of their
enemies, it might determine them to prevent, by accepting of peace, or by flight, a
punishment which their enormous and wilful crimes had otherwise rendered
unavoidable.
PI K, ""And the city shall be accursed devoted ["devoted"—margin] even it and
all that are therein to the Lord: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are
with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent" (v. 17). This
brings before us the dark side of the picture with the sole exception of Rahab and
her family all within Jericho were doomed. They were accursed, being idolaters and
flagrantly wicked. As such they were "devoted to the Lord," that is, set apart unto
destruction, to the praise of the glory of His justice. "The Lord hath made all things
for Himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil" (Prov. 16:4). True, God hath
made a difference between them according to His purpose of election, yet, whether
this one was "chosen to salvation" (2 Thess. 2:13) or that one was "before of old
ordained to this condemnation" (Jude 1:4), both alike were created for the Divine
glory. In the former, God makes manifest the riches of His mercy; in the latter, He
displays the purity of His holiness and the verity of His righteousness. God’s
burning hatred against sin and His power to execute vengeance on all accursed to

98. Him were solemnly demonstrated here at Jericho.
18181818 But keep away from the devoted things, so thatBut keep away from the devoted things, so thatBut keep away from the devoted things, so thatBut keep away from the devoted things, so that
you will not bring about your own destruction byyou will not bring about your own destruction byyou will not bring about your own destruction byyou will not bring about your own destruction by
taking any of them. Otherwise you will make thetaking any of them. Otherwise you will make thetaking any of them. Otherwise you will make thetaking any of them. Otherwise you will make the
camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring troublecamp of Israel liable to destruction and bring troublecamp of Israel liable to destruction and bring troublecamp of Israel liable to destruction and bring trouble
on it.on it.on it.on it.
GILL, "And you in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing,.... From
laying hold on, secreting, and enjoying as their own, what was devoted to another
use:
lest ye make yourselves accursed; or a "cherem", also devoted to destruction:
when ye take of the accursed thing; any part of it, be it what it will, gold or any
other metal, or raiment, and the like:
and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it; for being done secretly, and not
known who did it, the whole body of the people would be chargeable with it, and
suffer on account of it, unless discovered and punished, and as more fully appears
by an after instance.
JAMISO , "and ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing —
Generally they were at liberty to take the spoil of other cities that were captured
(Deu_2:35; Deu_3:7; Jos_8:27). But this, as the first fruits of Canaan, was made an
exception; nothing was to be spared but Rahab and those in her house [Jos_6:17]. A

99. violation of these stringent orders would not only render the guilty persons
obnoxious to the curse, but entail distress and adversity upon all Israel, by
provoking the divine displeasure. These were the instructions given, or repeated
(Deu_13:17; Deu_7:26), previous to the last act of the siege.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:18 And ye, in any wise keep [yourselves] from the accursed
thing, lest ye make [yourselves] accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and
make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it.
Ver. 18. Keep yourselves from the accursed thing.] This was a fair warning to that
foul sinner Achan; but D‫וסשע‬ ‫ציכןקסחלבפיבע‬ ‫פחע‬ ‫נבםפןכלןע‬ ‫ךבי‬ ‫,ויםןע‬ covetousness is
deadly, daring, and desperate, saith Isidor Pelusiot. (a)
COKE, "Ver. 18. In any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, &c.— "Be
sure not to carry off for your private emolument any of the spoil of your enemy: ye
are to consider it as a thing devoted to the Lord, and which you are not to touch, on
pain of being yourselves devoted to death; of drawing down upon you the immediate
curse of God, and of stopping the progress of your victories."
PETT, "Verse 18
“And you, under any circumstances, keep yourselves from the devoted thing, lest
having devoted it you take of the devoted thing. So would you make the camp of
Israel devoted and bring trouble to it.”
The warning is severe. They were devoting the city to YHWH and all were to ensure
they did not take for themselves anything they had devoted, for by bringing it into
any part of the camp of Israel they would make that part of the camp also ‘devoted
to YHWH’ and all in it would have to be slain.
BE SO , "Joshua 6:18. Keep yourselves from the accursed thing — It should
rather be rendered, the devoted thing, meaning the spoils devoted to the Lord.
These they were not to touch, on pain of being themselves devoted to death. Lest ye
make yourselves accursed — Lest you draw upon yourselves the immediate curse of
God, and so bring yourselves under the same sentence of destruction as the
inhabitants and things of Jericho are under. And make the camp of Israel a curse —
By provoking God to punish them for your sin, in which they may be one way or
other involved; for the whole camp having sins of their own, God might take what
occasion he saw fit to inflict this punishment.
PI K, ""And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make
yourselves accursed when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of
Israel a curse and trouble it. But all the silver and gold, and vessels of brass and
iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord"
(vv. 18, 19). Their being forbidden to enrich themselves by any of the spoils of war
was a further testing of Israel’s obedience. Thereby they were taught not to set their
hearts upon worldly wealth, nor heap up an abundance of it for themselves. As

100. Matthew Henry pointed out, God had promised them a land flowing with milk and
honey, not a land abounding with silver and gold, for He would have them live
comfortably in it that they might serve Him cheerfully, but not covet either to trade
with distant countries, or to hoard for after time." There was a special reason for
this prohibition being laid upon Israel here (for we do not find it repeated
subsequently) namely, that Jericho was the first fruits of Canaan, and therefore it
was most fitting that it should be entirely devoted unto the Lord, and its treasures
consecrated unto Him.
It is to be duly noted that Joshua was not acting on his own initiative nor was he
prompted by his own understanding when he proscribed the possessions of the
Canaanites, for Moses had given express orders, "The graven images of their gods
shall ye burn with fire: thou shalt not desire the silver and gold that is on them, nor
take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein: for it is an abomination to the Lord
thy God. either shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house, lest thou be a
cursed thing like it; but thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it"
(Deut. 7:25, 26). There we see once again how Joshua was in all things, like his
Antitype, regulated by Divine Law. Let us also point out how that this prohibition
supplied yet another line in the typical picture which the capture of Jericho presents
to us: when success attends the efforts of Christ’s servants, they must be
particularly on their guard against taking any credit unto themselves: all the glory
must be ascribed to God alone!
19 All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the Lord
and must go into his treasury.”
CLARKE,"But all the silver, and gold - shall come into the treasury - The
Brahmins will receive from any caste, however degraded, gold, silver, etc.: but to
receive from Shoodras food, garments, etc., would be considered a great
degradation. - Ward.
GILL, "But all the silver and gold, and vessels of brass and iron,
are consecrated to the Lord,.... Or rather, "for all the silver", &c. as the particle
here used sometimes signifies, and is so rendered (d): each of these metals, and
whatsoever were made of them, were set apart for the Lord, and dedicated to sacred
uses, and might not be converted to any other, unless what were upon their idols,
which were to be burnt with fire, Deu_7:25,

101. they shall come into the treasury of the Lord; be brought into the tabernacle, as
Kimchi and Abarbinel interpret it, into some apartment there destined for such
service, and which is clear from Jos_6:24; the same where the offering of the officers
was brought after the battle with Midian, um_31:54.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:19 But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron,
[are] consecrated unto the LORD: they shall come into the treasury of the LORD.
Ver. 19. But all the silver and the gold.] Only their idols of silver and gold were to be
utterly destroyed, [Deuteronomy 7:25 Exodus 32:20] for detestation’s sake, and
prevention of idolatry, that land desolating sin.
COKE, "Ver. 19. But all the silver, and gold,—are consecrated unto the Lord—
God requires, that all the silver, gold, brass, iron, and all other metal found in
Jericho, should be consecrated to the use of his sanctuary, and carried into his
tabernacle, to supply the wants of that sacred house; but, doubtless, first to be
purified by passing through the fire, according to the law, umbers 31:22-23 and
excepting the idols, which were to be absolutely destroyed.
Deuteronomy 7:25-26. The Jews say, that all these riches belonged to God, inasmuch
as Jericho was taken on a sabbath-day; but, as we before remarked, God required
them as a tribute and homage, by which the Israelites acknowledged that to his
power and goodness they owed the victory which now opened to them the entrance
and possession of the country.
PETT, "Verse 19
“But all the silver and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are holy to YHWH. They
shall come into the treasury of YHWH.”
These things were mentioned as the most valuable and desirable, but, as the people
were aware, everything in the city was devoted and belonged to YHWH exclusively.
othing must be retained for personal use. Their idols should be destroyed in fire
(Deuteronomy 7:25). Anything of value would go into the treasury in the Tabernacle
for religious use (compare umbers 31:54), probably after passing through fire or
water ( umbers 31:22-23). This would contribute to the lack of archaeological
artefacts as all would be gathered up that much more carefully because they were
YHWH’s. At this time the vessels of iron would have been imported and valuable.
BE SO , "Joshua 6:19. Vessels of brass and iron — Except that of which images
were made, which were utterly to be destroyed. Unto the Lord — Being first made
to pass through the fire, umbers 31:22-23. Treasury of the Lord — To be
employed wholly for the uses of the tabernacle, not to be applied to the use of any
private person or priest.

102. 20 When the trumpets sounded, the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet,
when the men gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in,
and they took the city.
CLARKE,"The people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down - There
has been much learned labor spent to prove that the shouting of the people might be
the natural cause that the wall fell down! To wait here, either to detail or refute any
such arguments, would be lost time: enough of them may be seen in Scheuchzer. The
whole relation evidently supposes it to have been a supernatural interference, as the
blowing of the trumpets, and the shouting of the people, were too contemptible to be
used even as instruments in this work, with the expectation of accomplishing it in a
natural way.
GILL, "So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets,.... As Joshua
had charged them, Jos_6:16,
and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet,
and the people shouted with a great shout; that is, gave a loud shout, on hearing the
long blast of the trumpets blown by the priests the seventh time, as they were no
doubt directed by Joshua, agreeably to the order given to him; see Jos_6:5,
that the wall fell down flat; the wall of the city of Jericho, as the Lord said it should;
see Gill on Jos_6:5,
so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they
took the city; they went up to it from the plain, where they were, and entered it
without any difficulty, the wall being fallen, and that everywhere: so that they went
directly from the place where they were, and went in right over against them, into
every quarter and, part of the city, and seized on it, and possessed it at once.
Various things may be observed concerning this surprising event; as that it was
supernatural, and cannot be ascribed to second causes, there being nothing in the
procession round the city, the blowing of the trumpets, or shout of the people, that
could occasion the wall to fall; and that no defences or fortifications are anything
against God, when it is his will a city should be taken, with whom nothing is
impossible; and that sometimes unlikely means are appointed and used by him for
doing great things, that the power may appear to be his by which they are done; and
that faith stops at nothing, when it has the word and promise of God to encourage
and support it; and that God does everything in his own time and way. The falling
of the walls of Jericho may be considered as an emblem of the fall of Babylon; these
two cities agree, as in their greatness, so in their wickedness, Rev_17:4; and as

103. Jericho stood in the way of Israel's inheriting the land, being a frontier and barrier
town; so mystical Babylon stands in the way of the kingdom of Christ, and its
spread in the world, and particularly of the conversion of the Jews, Rev_11:14. The
fall of Jericho was very sudden, and when not expected by the inhabitants of it; and
so will be the fall of Babylon, Rev_18:7; and as Jericho fell at the sound of rams
horns, the destruction of antichrist, or mystical Babylon, will be through the
preaching of the Gospel, Rev_14:6; and as the one was by the sounding of seven
priests, at the seventh time of sounding, on the seventh day; so the ruin of antichrist
will be at the seventh angel's sounding the seventh trumpet, and pouring out the
seventh vial, Rev_10:7; and as at the destruction of the one, so of the other, but few
saved from the common calamity, Rev_18:4; and both never to be raised up and
built again, Rev_18:21; And it may be considered also as an emblem of the
subjection of the Gentile world to Christ; which, like Jericho, or the moon, as some
observe the name signifies, is very changeable; and as that city, and the inhabitants
of it, an enemy to God, and his people, and yet made subject by the ministry of his
word; as particularly it will be when the kingdoms of this world shall become his: or
rather it may be an emblem of the subjection of particular souls to Christ, and the
means thereof; who are like the walled city of Jericho in their unregenerate state,
their hearts hard, stubborn, and inflexible, and enmity to God; are self-confident,
vainly puffed up in their fleshly minds, and shut up in unbelief, and kept and
guarded by Satan, the strong man armed; but all these strong holds of sin and Satan
are brought down and demolished in conversion; and that by means of the sound of
the Gospel, which is as despicable with men as the sound of the rams' horns were to
the inhabitants of Jericho; but is a jubilee and joyful sound, a sound of love, grace,
mercy, and salvation; and being accompanied with the Spirit and grace of God, is
the power of God unto salvation; and mighty through him for the removing the
hardness of men's hearts, and bringing them into subjection and obedience to
Christ.
HE RY, " The entrance that was opened to them into the city by the sudden fall
of the walls, or at least that part of the wall over against which they then were when
they gave the shout (Jos_6:20): The wall fell down flat, and probably killed
abundance of people, the guards that stood sentinel upon it, or others that crowded
about it, to look at the Israelites that were walking round. We read of thousands
killed by the fall of a wall, 1Ki_20:30. that which they trusted to for defence proved
their destruction. The sudden fall of the wall, no doubt, put the inhabitants into
such a consternation that they had no strength nor spirit to make any resistance, but
they became an easy prey to the sword of Israel, and saw to how little purpose it was
to shut their gates against a people that had the Lord on the head of them, Mic_2:13.
ote, The God of heaven easily can, and certainly will, break down all the opposing
power of his and his church's enemies. Gates of brass and bars of iron are, before
him, but as straw and rotten wood, Isa_45:1, Isa_45:2. Who will bring me into the
strong city? Wilt not thou, O God? Psa_60:9, Psa_60:10. Thus shall Satan's kingdom
fall, nor shall any prosper that harden themselves against God.
JAMISO , "Jos_6:20, Jos_6:21. The walls fall down.

104. So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets — Towards the
close of the seventh circuit, the signal was given by Joshua, and on the Israelites’
raising their loud war cry, the walls fell down, doubtless burying multitudes of the
inhabitants in the ruins, while the besiegers, rushing in, consigned everything
animate and inanimate to indiscriminate destruction (Deu_20:16, Deu_20:17).
Jewish writers mention it as an immemorial tradition that the city fell on the
Sabbath. It should be remembered that the Canaanites were incorrigible idolaters,
addicted to the most horrible vices, and that the righteous judgment of God might
sweep them away by the sword, as well as by famine or pestilence. There was mercy
mingled with judgment in employing the sword as the instrument of punishing the
guilty Canaanites, for while it was directed against one place, time was afforded for
others to repent.
CALVI , "20.So the people shouted, etc Here the people are praised for obedience,
and the faithfulness of God is, at the same time, celebrated. They testified their
fidelity by shouting, because they were persuaded, that what God had commanded
would not be in vain, and he, in not allowing them to lose their labor, vindicated the
truth of what he had said. Another virtue of not inferior value was displayed by the
people, in despising unlawful gain, and cheerfully suffering the loss of all the
plunder. For there cannot be a doubt, that in the minds of many the thought must
have risen, For what end does God please to destroy all the wealth? Why does he
envy us that which he has given into our hand? Why does he not rather gladden us
by furnishing us with the materials of thanksgiving? Dismissing these
considerations, which might have interfered with their duty, it was a proof of rare
and excellent self-denial, voluntarily to cast away the spoils which were in their
hands, and the wealth of a whole city.
The indiscriminate and promiscuous slaughter, making no distinction of age or sex,
but including alike women and children, the aged and decrepit, might seem an
inhuman massacre, had it not been executed by the command of God. But as he, in
whose hands are life and death, had justly doomed those nations to destruction, this
puts an end to all discussion. We may add, that they had been borne with for four
hundred years, until their iniquity was complete. Who will now presume to
complain of excessive rigor, after God had so long delayed to execute judgment? If
any one object that children, at least, were still free from fault, it is easy to answer,
that they perished justly, as the race was accursed and reprobated. Here then it
ought always to be remembered, that it would have been barbarous and atrocious
cruelty had the Israelites gratified their own lust and rage, in slaughtering mothers
and their children, but that they are justly praised for their active piety and holy
zeal, in executing the command of God, who was pleased in this way to purge the
land of Canaan of the foul and loathsome defilement’s by which it had long been
polluted. (66)
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:20 So the people shouted when [the priests] blew with the
trumpets: and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and

105. the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat, so that the people
went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.
Ver. 20. So the people shouted.] See Joshua 6:16.
The wall fell down flat.] See Joshua 6:5. So shall all our corruptions; in subduing
whereof, though the Lord require our daily eudeavours during the six days of this
life, yet it will never be fully done till the very time of death, which will be the
accomplishment of our mortification.
COKE, "Ver. 20. And—when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and—
shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat— When therefore the priests
blew the trumpets, the people, hearing the sound thereof, shouted with a great
shout, and the walls, &c. Houb. The miraculous nature of this event is so palpable,
that one cannot conceive how it could come into the minds of any to contest it, or
even to endeavour to assign natural reasons for it. The horrid art of war was in its
infancy at the time of Joshua; and it does not appear that any of the means found
out in subsequent ages for overthrowing the walls of cities, or making breaches in
them, were then in use. The invention of the battering ram is much later. Pliny
seems to attribute it to Epeus during the siege of Troy; but, in all probability,
Ezekiel is the oldest author who has mentioned this formidable machine, and
ebuchadnezzar the first person who used it, in the siege of Jerusalem, many ages
after the Trojan war. See Ezekiel 4:1-2; Ezekiel 21:27. As to gunpowder, every one
knows that that fatal composition was not found out till the 14th century of the
Christian aera; and even could we suppose the Israelites to have known any thing
bordering on the art of undermining the walls and ramparts of a city, and blowing
them up by means of any ingredient like gunpowder, would any one venture to say,
upon mere conjecture, that such was the practice before Jericho? Could they, in the
little time that had elapsed since they passed over the Jordan and invested Jericho,
have undermined that city? Besides, what are the steps they take there? What can
we find out in them that has the appearance of a siege? And who, on the contrary,
sees not in the promises of the general, and the processions of the soldiery, that a
miracle was expected? It is God who orders, God who directs every thing. The city is
attacked afar off: at the sound of the trumpets, and at the cries of the people, the
walls fall down. What machines, what warlike instruments, what a way of besieging
and taking a strong place! But, say some, Is it not possible for the walls of Jericho to
have fallen without any extraordinary operation of Divine power, and by the mere
sound of the voices and trumpets of the Hebrews? The rabbi, Levi Ben-Gershom,
hath started such a conjecture, though, notwithstanding, he acknowledges here the
miracle in the way we see it.
Amongst the moderns too this opinion hath been strongly defended, particularly by
the learned father Mersenne and Morhoff. They observe, that a violent noise is
sufficient to break to pieces the most solid bodies, or to agitate them at a
considerable distance; and they have collected together some curious particulars to
prove it: insisting, among others, on that related by Borelli, a celebrated

106. mathematician, as an eye-witness, that being at Taormina, a city in Sicily, about
thirty miles from mount AEtna, that volcano made an eruption, the noise of which
shook every house in the city, with circumstances which would not allow him to
doubt that this agitation proceeded from the mere trembling of the air, which
communicated itself to the houses. To facts these writers have added suppositions;
they have represented all the priests sounding the horns, and all the people blowing
the trumpets before the walls of Jericho; they have remarked upon the situation of
the city, placed in the midst of mountains, where the sound must consequently have
a greater effect than in plains: in a word, they have collected whatever might give
any colour to the paradox which they chose to maintain; and then they have
themselves concluded, that nothing of all this could satisfy them, and that they were,
at all events, obliged to acknowledge the Divine hand in the falling of the walls of
Jericho. How, indeed, the case being properly stated, can the fact be denied? The
question is not, whether walls may fall down by reason of sound, whatever it be; but
whether those of Jericho were overturned by the sound of the horns, by the priests,
and by the shouts of the people, as from a natural cause. We do not ask, whether
God could beat down these walls by the concurrent sounds of the horns and voices
of the Israelites, but whether the event so happened: and the Scripture says nothing
like it. Besides, divers reasons destroy the conjectures of Mersenne and Morhoff: 1.
However powerful we may suppose the noise made by the Israelites before Jericho;
yet, that city being so far distant as to be out of the reach of arrows and stones (as
interpreters reasonably presume they were), that noise could not but have lost much
of its force, and have considerably decreased on reaching the walls. 2. It must have
lost so much more of its strength, as it bursts into the open air; for Jericho was
situated, not in a narrow valley, but in a plain, overlooked by a mountain. See
Joseph. Bell. Jud. l. v. c. 4. 3. For the noise of the horns and voices of the Israelites to
overturn the walls of this city, it was necessary that it should be exactly
proportioned to the situation of those walls, and the matter of which they were
composed. ow, the precise knowledge of this exact proportion, and the issuing of a
noise well adapted thereto, though effected by the concurrence of never so many
instruments, and never so many voices, would alone be a great miracle. ay, 4 could
this noise alone have been able to overturn the walls of Jericho; yet it is much more
difficult to conceive why the trees in the neighbourhood, the tents of the Israelites,
and even all the people, should not have been thrown down in like manner. 5. Can it
only appear probable to ingenious men, that things so wonderful should be effected
by a violent sound, and without a miracle, though we see at this day, when the art of
war is brought to so high a pitch of perfection, how much money, labour, and blood
it costs, to attack and master well-defended places? Is it in the least probable, that so
much pains would be taken, so many skirmishes held, so many risks run, if, by the
noise of trumpets in a numerous army, the walls of the cities they attacked could be
thrown down. 6. And to conclude, How comes it to pass, that we never see the
frightful clamour of so many cannons, mortars, guns, which swallow up the sound
of the loudest instruments, and whose horrible din shakes the air as with thunder
round the besieged city,—how happens it, I ask, that we never see this noise alone
open breaches to the besiegers, and spare them the trouble of trenches, mines, and
assaults? But it is too much to stop to confute a supposition, which has engaged the
notice of the learned, merely because they are learned who have ventured to

107. advance it. We add but one word more: if any of the ancient fathers seem to have
attributed the falling of the walls of Jericho to the sound of the instruments and
voices of the people of Israel, it was from a supposition, that God had given to that
sound a supernatural and miraculous power. See Scheuchzer, vol. 4: p. 102.
PETT, "Verse 20
Joshua 6:20 a ‘So the people shouted when they blew with the trumpets, and so it
was that when the people heard the trumpet-sound, the people shouted with a great
shout.’
ote the concentration on the noise made. The trumpets sound and the people
shout. ‘The trumpet-sound’ is literally ‘the sound of the trumpet’, the singular
drawing attention to the sound rather than the trumpets. This was the long blast of
Joshua 6:5. ow the city would recognise that the moment had come for them to put
up stout defence. But they did not realise what was about to happen.
Joshua 6:20 b ‘And the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city,
every man straight before him, and they took the city.’
What caused the wall to fall flat? The basic answer was, YHWH. Whether it was by
an earthquake or tremor, or by resonance from the noise made which reacted on
unstable walls possibly crowded with defenders, it was to be seen as at the
instigation of YHWH. Thus it was not a matter of forcing their way through a
breach in the walls but simply one of going straight forward and clambering over
the fallen stones. The relatively few defenders, numbering in hundreds (even though
crowded with people from the surrounding countryside), and numbed by what had
happened, had no chance against the much larger Israelite force, numbering
probably around six hundred military units (Exodus 12:37).
PI K, ""So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets. And it
came to pass when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people
shouted with a great shout, that the walls of Jericho fell down flat, so that the people
went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city" (v. 20).
Here was the grand reward of Israel’s courage, obedience and patience. Looking at
it from one viewpoint, it must be said that the walls of Jericho fell down by the alone
act of God, for no human hand or power contributed to it in the least. Yet from
another viewpoint, the miracle may be justly attributed unto Israel: "By faith the
walls of Jericho fell down after they were compassed about seven days" (Heb.
11:30). From yet another angle it is equally permissible and correct to say that
Jericho fell in response to their implicit obedience. or is there the slightest
inconsistency in those three statements: far from being contradictory, they are
complementary if preserved in the above order. Though He certainly is not
restricted thereto, yet God is pleased, generally, to work in response to the faith and
obedience of His people.
It is a very serious mistake to suppose that faith is restricted to a resting upon God’s
promises: it is equally to be exercised in complying with His precepts. Trusting God

108. is only one part of faith’s work. It is far too little recognized that conforming to
God’s revealed will is also required of faith. Faith always has to do with God: He is
its Object and His Word is its Rule and Regulator. It was by faith that oah and his
family were delivered from the flood, yet it was because he took to heart the
warning God gave him, and being moved with fear complied with His directions and
"prepared an ark to the saving of his house" (Heb. 11:7). It was by faith that
Abraham received the land of Canaan for an inheritance, yet in order thereto,
when. he was called to leave his home he "obeyed and went out not knowing whither
he went" (Heb. 11:8). The man after God’s own heart did something more than
confide in Him: "I have believed Thy commandments" (Ps. 119:66) he declared. The
Divine commandments, equally with the Divine promises, were the objects of his
faith. Are they of your faith, my reader?
"By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven
days" (Heb. 11:30). For the benefit of the many young preachers who take this
magazine we propose to sermonize that verse, and at the same time summarize what
has been before us in Joshua 6. Let us consider the daring of their faith. When
Israel crossed the Jordan, they, as it were, burned all their bridges and boats behind
them. It was not only the "armed men," but the whole congregation which was
involved. Flight was impossible, and there was no fortress in which to shelter, nor
even houses to which they could retire. They were now in the enemy’s territory,
completely exposed to him. To advance unto Jericho and to march quietly around
its walls (within which were "men of valor"—verse l) seemed a perilous
undertaking, for what was to hinder the Canaanites from shooting at them, or
casting down rocks upon them? It was truly an adventure of faith, and it is
adventuresome faith which God delights to honor. Unbelief is hesitant and timorous,
but daring faith is confident and courageous. "The wicked flee when no man
pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion" (Prov. 28:1). O to be strong in the
Lord, and in the power of His might.
There are three degrees of faith. There is a faith which reposes on the truth of the
Gospel, when the weary and heavy-laden sinner comes to Christ and rests his soul
upon His atoning sacrifice. There is a faith which reckons, counting upon the
veracity and fidelity of God to fulfill His promises and undertake for us (Rom. 4:21;
2 Timothy 1:12). There is also a faith which risks, which dares something for the
Lord. That kind of faith was exemplified by Moses when he ventured to confront
the king of Egypt, and make known to him Jehovah’s demands. This daring faith
was manifested by David, when with naught but a sling and some pebbles he went
forth and engaged the mighty Goliath. It was demonstrated by Elijah, when single-
handed he contested with the hosts of Jezebel’s false prophets on Mount Carmel.
We see it again in Daniel, when he dared to be cast into the den of lions rather than
comply with the idolatrous edict of Babylon’s king; and when his three fellows
refused to be intimidated by the fiery furnace. We behold it again and again in the
ministry and journeys of the apostle Paul, who shrank not from perils of every
conceivable kind, that he might preach the unsearchable riches of Christ.
In the sequel to each of the above cases, we behold how God honored those trusting
and brave hearts. God may indeed severely try, but in the end it will be seen that He
never confounds or puts to shame those whose eyes are fixed steadfastly upon
Himself, seeking His glory. It is venturesome faith which He ever delights to reward.

109. When those who carried the man sick of the palsy were unable to get near Christ
because of the press, and therefore broke through the roof and lowered the sufferer,
so far from charging them with impudence or presumption "when Jesus saw their
faith" He owned the same by healing the sick man (Mark 2:5). When Peter essayed
to walk unto Him upon the sea, Christ rebuked him not for his rashness, but
because his faith wavered. Luther would not be deterred by his friends from going
to Worms, saying he would do so though every the on its houses were a devil.
George Muller feared not to count upon God to feed and clothe his two thousand
orphans, refusing to make an appeal (direct or indirect) for funds. How such
examples shame the churches today! How few are prepared to risk anything in the
Lord’s service!
Consider next the obedience of Israel’s faith—here the most prominent feature of
all. Joshua himself, the priests, the armed men, the body of the people, carried out
all their directions to the letter. The method prescribed and the means appointed
not only appeared to be utterly inadequate to reason, but senseless; nevertheless
they were strictly complied with. To do nothing more than walk around the
powerful walls of Jericho and for the priests to blow upon their trumpets of rams’
horns, seemed a childish and ridiculous performance, yet that was what they had
been bidden to do. Unquestioning submission to God’s revealed will, an exact
carrying out of His instructions. employing none other than those means which He
has assigned, is what God requires from us, both in the performance of our daily
duties and in that which pertains more especially to His worship and service. We are
forbidden to lean unto our own understandings or resort unto our own devices. God
has plainly declared His mind unto us in the Holy Scriptures, and they are to be the
alone Rule and Regulator of all our actions. Implicit obedience unto the Lord is
absolutely essential if we are to have His blessing upon our efforts.
Reader, the Divine commandments and precepts often appear strange unto fleshly
wisdom. How absurd did God’s order appear to the great aaman when he was
bidden to bathe his leprous body in the Jordan; yet there was no healing for him
until he complied with the same. How contrary was it to all human ideas for God to
send His prophet to be fed for many months by a widow who had naught but a
handful of meal and a little oil; yet under Him, it proved amply sufficient. What a
testing of Simon’s submission when Christ told him to let down the nets for a
draught: they had toiled all night and taken nothing, yet said the apostle
"nevertheless at Thy word I will let down the net" (Luke 5:5). How unreasonable it
must have seemed to the Twelve when Christ bade them tell the vast multitude to sit
down and only five loaves and two little fishes were in sight! And how unreasonable
does it now appear unto the majority of preachers and members to heed the call to
cast away all the fleshly and worldly devices which have been brought into the
churches, substituting fasting and prayer, and counting upon God to bless the
preaching of His own Word.
"The obedience of faith" (Rom. 16:26). Weigh well those words. Too often has it
been affirmed that obedience is an effect or fruit of faith. Obedience is an essential
element of faith: the one can no more be separated from the other than can the light
and heat of the sun. Where there is no true obedience, there is no real faith God-
wards. The Gospel requires obedience as truly as it does reliance, for it bids the
rebel sinner throw down the weapons of his warfare against God, to repent of his

110. wickedness, and to surrender to the Lordship and yoke of Christ. In 2 Peter 2:21,
the Gospel is designated "the Holy Commandment," and in 2 Thessalonians 1:8, we
are told that Christ will yet take vengeance upon them "that obey not the Gospel of
our Lord Jesus Christ" which goes on to give the solemn answer to that searching
question "What shall the end be of them that obey not the Gospel of God?" (1 Pet.
4:17), namely, they "shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the
presence of the Lord." The Gospel does far more than issue an invitation to "receive
Christ as a personal Savior" or offer pardon to all who do so; it first makes known
the holy requirements of God for us to forsake our evil ways and submit ourselves to
the just claims of Christ.
Christ "became the Author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey Him" (Heb.
5:9): not simply those who trust in Him. In like manner, the Holy Spirit is by God
"given to them that obey Him" (Acts 5:22). As we began, so must we continue, and
be able to say with David "Teach me good judgment and knowledge, for I have
believed Thy commandments" (Ps. 119:66). The commandments neither sway the
conscience nor incline the affections until they be received as from God. "As the
promises are not believed with a lively faith unless they draw off the heart from
carnal vanities to seek that happiness which they offer to us; so the precepts are not
believed rightly unless we be fully resolved to acquiesce in them as the only rule to
guide us in the obtaining of that happiness, and to adhere to them, and to do them"
(Manton). To "believe God’s commandments" is to hear His voice in them, to
submit to His authority, to have our hearts and actions governed by His revealed
will in them. If we heed not God concerning our present duties, we do but deceive
ourselves when we imagine we are trusting Him with respect to future privileges.
We must consent to the commandments as good and blessed in themselves, and love
them as issuing from our Father.
21 They devoted the city to the Lord and destroyed with the sword every living
thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys.
CLARKE,"They utterly destroyed - both man, and woman, etc. - As this act was
ordered by God himself, who is the Maker and Judge of all men, it must be right:
for the Judge of all the earth cannot do wrong. othing that breathed was permitted
to live; hence the oxen, sheep, and asses, were destroyed, as well as the inhabitants.
GILL, "And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city,.... All the inhabitants of
it, by the direction of Joshua, and according to the order of the Lord, Deu_7:1;
being guilty of capital crimes, which deserved death, as idolatry, incest, &c.

111. both men and women, young and old; neither sex nor age were spared:
and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword; in which creatures chiefly
lay the substance of the eastern people; see Job_1:3.
HE RY, "The execution of the orders given concerning this devoted city. All that
breathed were put to the sword; not only the men that were found in arms, but the
women, and children, and old people. Though they cried for quarter, and begged
ever so earnestly for their lives, there was no room for compassion, pity must be
forgotten: they utterly destroyed all, Jos_6:21. If they had not had a divine warrant
under the seal of miracles for this execution, it could not have been justified, nor can
it justify the like now, when we are sure no such warrant can be produced. But,
being appointed by the righteous Judge of heaven and earth to do it, who is not
unrighteous in taking vengeance, they are to be applauded in doing it as the faithful
ministers of his justice. Work for God was then bloody work; and cursed was he that
did it deceitfully, keeping back his sword from blood, Jer_48:10. But the spirit of the
gospel is very different, for Christ came not to destroy men's lives but to save them,
Luk_9:56. Christ's victories were of another nature. The cattle were put to death
with the owners, as additional sacrifices to the divine justice. The cattle of the
Israelites, when slain at the altar, were accepted as sacrifices for them, but the cattle
of these Canaanites were required to be slain as sacrifices with them, for their
iniquity was not to be purged with sacrifice and offering: both were for the glory of
God. 2. The city was burnt with fire, and all that was in it, Jos_6:24. The Israelites,
perhaps, when they had taken Jericho, a large and well-built city, hoped they should
have that for their head-quarters; but God will have them yet to dwell in tents, and
therefore fires this nest, lest they should nestle in it. 3. All the silver and gold, and all
those vessels which were capable of being purified by fire, were brought into the
treasury of the house of the Lord; not that he needed it but that he would be
honoured by it, as the Lord of hosts, of their hosts in particular, the God that gave
the victory and therefore might demand the spoil, either the whole, as here, or, as
sometimes, a tenth, Heb_7:4.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:21 And they utterly destroyed all that [was] in the city, both
man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the
sword.
Ver. 21. And they utterly destroyed all.] So God had commanded them;
[Deuteronomy 20:16-17] and the iniquity of these Amorites was now full. [Genesis
15:16] Let us look upon these writs of execution recorded in Scripture, and be
warned.
PETT, "Verse 21
‘And they devoted (utterly destroyed as an offering to YHWH) all that was in the
city, both men and women, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge
of the sword.’

112. Warfare is ever a dreadful business. Even practically speaking they dared not leave
men alive in their rear who could attack them from behind when they went on. And
to leave the women and children alone and undefended would have been
unacceptable. death would be seen as preferable. But here Jericho was the firstfruits
of their inheritance, and therefore dedicated to YHWH. And they were carrying out
God’s judgment on the particular wickedness of the Canaanites, their debased
idolatry and their sexual perversions, wickedness which if it was not destroyed
would in the end prove harmful to them (as later it did). one could be allowed to
live. They were under the judgment of God. The slaughtering of the animals, which
they would have liked to keep, demonstrates that it was not just blood lust.
BE SO ,"Joshua 6:21. Young and old — Being commanded to do so by the
sovereign Lord of every man’s life; and being informed by God before that the
Canaanites were abominably wicked, and deserved the severest punishments. As for
the infants, they were at the disposal of their Creator; and it was a great favour to
them to take them away in their infancy, rather than reserve them to those dreadful
calamities to which those who survived them were exposed.
K&D, "K&D, "K&D, "K&D, "Jos_Jos_Jos_Jos_6666::::21212121----23232323
After the taking of Jericho, man and beast were banned, i.e., put to death without quarter
(Jos_6:21; cf. Jos_6:17); Rahab and her relations being the only exceptions. Joshua had directed
the two spies to fetch them out of her house, and in the first instance had them taken to a place
of safety outside the camp of Israel (Jos_6:22, Jos_6:23). “Her brethren,” i.e., her brothers and
sisters, as in Jos_2:13, not her brothers only. “All that she had” does not mean all her possessions,
but all the persons belonging to her house; and “all her kindred” are all her relations by birth or
marriage, with their dependants (cf. Jos_2:13). Clericus is correct in observing, that as Rahab's
house was built against the town-wall, and rested partly upon it (Jos_2:15), when the wall fell
down, that portion against or upon which the house stood cannot have fallen along with the rest,
“otherwise when the wall fell no one would have dared to remain in the house.” But we must not
draw the further inference, that when the town was burned Rahab's house was spared.
(Note: The statements made by travellers in the middle ages, to the effect that they had
seen Rahab's house (Rob. Pal. ii. pp. 295-6), belong to the delusions of pious superstition.)
‫וגו‬ ‫חוּץ‬ ִ‫מ‬ ‫יחוּם‬ִ ַ ַ‫ו‬ (Jos_6:23; cf. Gen_19:16), “they let them rest,” i.e., placed them in safety,
“outside the camp of Israel,” sc., till they had done all that was requisite for a formal
reception into the congregation of the Lord, viz., by giving up idolatry and heathen
superstition, and turning to the God of Israel as the only true God (to which
circumcision had to be added in the case of the men), and by whatever lustrations and
purifications were customary at the time in connection with reception into the covenant
with Jehovah, of which we have no further information.

113. 22 Joshua said to the two men who had spied out
the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house and
bring her out and all who belong to her, in
accordance with your oath to her.”
GILL, "But Joshua had said unto the two men that had spied out the
country,.... Whom he had sent on that errand, Jos_2:1; and what follows he had said
unto them before the people entered into the city, and perhaps before the walls of it fell;
and indeed from Jos_6:16, it appears to have been said at the time he gave the people
orders to shout:
go into the harlot's house: he does not mention her name but they full well knew
who he meant:
and bring out thence the woman, and all that she hath; not so much her
substance, as her father's household, she had got together there, that they might be
saved, as had been promised her:
as ye sware unto her; so that this order was partly on account of her kindness to
them, Jos_6:17; and partly on account of the oath which they had taken, and which
Joshua would have inviolably kept.
HE RY 22-23, "The preservation of Rahab the harlot, or inn-keeper, who perished
not with those that believed not, Heb_11:31. The public faith was engaged for her safety
by the two spies, who acted therein as public persons; and therefore, though the hurry
they were in at the taking of the town was no doubt very great, yet Joshua took effectual
care for her preservation. The same persons that she had secured were employed to
secure her, Jos_6:22, Jos_6:23. They were best able to do it who knew her and her
house, and they were fittest to do it, that it might appear it was for the sake of her
kindness to them that she was thus distinguished and had her life given her for a prey.
All her kindred were saved with her; like Noah she believed to the saving of her house;
and thus faith in Christ brings salvation to the house, Act_16:31. Some ask how her
house, which is said to have been upon the wall (Jos_2:15), escaped falling with the
wall; we are sure it did escape, for she and her relations were safe in it, either though it
joined so near to the wall as to be said to be upon it, yet it was so far off as not to fall
either with the wall or under it; or, rather, that part of the wall on which her house stood
fell not. Now being preserved alive, 1. She was left for some time without the camp to be

114. purified from the Gentile superstition, which she was to renounce, and to be prepared
for her admission as a proselyte. 2. She was in due time incorporated with the church of
Israel, and she and her posterity dwelt in Israel, and her family was remarkable long
after. We find her the wife of Salmon, prince of Judah, mother of Boaz, and named
among the ancestors of our Saviour, Mat_1:5. Having received Israelites in the name of
Israelites, she had an Israelite's reward. Bishop Pierson observes that Joshua's saving
Rahab the harlot, and admitting her into Israel, were a figure of Christ's receiving into
his kingdom, and entertaining there, the publicans and the harlots, Mat_21:31. Or it may
be applied to the conversion of the Gentiles.
JAMISO , "Jos_6:22-25. Rahab is saved.
Joshua had said ... Go into the harlot’s house, and bring out thence the
woman, and all that she hath — It is evident that the town walls were not
demolished universally, at least all at once, for Rahab’s house was allowed to stand until
her relatives were rescued according to promise.
CALVI , "22.But Joshua had said unto the two men, etc The good faith of Joshua
in keeping promises, and his general integrity, are apparent in the anxious care here
taken. But as the whole city had been placed under anathema, a question might be
raised as to this exception of one family. o mortal man was at liberty to make any
change on the decision of God. Still as it was only by the suggestion of the Spirit that
Rahab had bargained for her impunity, I conclude that Joshua, in preserving her,
did only what was considerate and prudent.
We may add, that the messengers were not yet under any contrary obligation, as the
complete destruction of the city had not been declared. It is true, they had heard in
general, that all those nations were to be destroyed, but they were still at liberty to
make a compact with a single woman, who had voluntarily abandoned her
countrymen. But we shall afterwards meet with a far easier solution, namely, that
while the Israelites, by the divine command, exhorted all whom they attacked, to
surrender, by holding out the hope of pardon, the blinded nations obstinately
refused the peace thus offered, because God had decreed to destroy all of them. But
while all, in general, were hardened to their destruction, it follows that Rahab was
exempted by special privilege, and might escape in safety, while the others perished.
Joshua, therefore, judged wisely, that a woman who had voluntarily gone over to
the Church, was rescued thus early, not without the special grace of God. The case
of the father and the whole family is, indeed, different, but seeing they all
spontaneously abjure their former state, they confirm the stipulation which Rahab
had made for their safety, by the promptitude of their obedience.
Moreover, let us learn from the example of Joshua, that we do not sufficiently attest
our probity, by refraining from violating our promise intentionally and of set
purpose, unless we also diligently exert ourselves to secure its performance. He not
only allows Rahab to be delivered by her guests, but is careful to guard against her
sustaining any injury in the first tumult; and to make the messengers more diligent
in performing their office, he reminds them that they had promised with the
intervention of an oath.

115. TRAPP, "Joshua 6:22 But Joshua had said unto the two men that had spied out the
country, Go into the harlot’s house, and bring out thence the woman, and all that
she hath, as ye sware unto her.
Ver. 22. As ye sware unto her.] Romanis promittere promptum est: promissis autem,
quanquam iuramento firmatis, minime stare, said Mirchanes, the Persian general in
Procopius. (a) But Joshua was none such.
PETT, "Verse 22
‘And Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the country, “Go to the
prostitute's house and bring out from there the woman, and all that she has, as you
swore to her.” ’
In the excitement of victory Joshua did not forget the oath sworn to Rahab. His
sensitivity was revealed in sending to her the two men whom she knew, and his
wisdom was revealed in giving her some protection at a time when she might have
been very vulnerable. She was relatively safe in the house with its token on the
window, but once outside it she would be a target for any overexcited soldier.
This suggests that, although it was on the wall, her house had been preserved, or at
least not badly damaged, a further evidence of the hand of YHWH.
BE SO , "Verses 22-25
Joshua 6:22-25. The harlot’s house — Which, together with the wall upon which it
leaned, was left standing, by a special favour of God to her. Left them without the
camp of Israel — Till they were cleansed from the impurities of their Gentile state,
and instructed in the Jewish religion, and solemnly admitted into that church, for
which Rahab’s good counsel and example had doubtless prepared them. Joshua
saved Rahab alive — For that general command to root out the Canaanites seems to
have had some exceptions, in case any of them had sincerely and seasonably cast off
their idolatry and wickedness, submitted to the Israelites, and become members of
the church of God. She dwelleth in Israel unto this day — This shows that the book
of Joshua was written while Rahab was alive.
PI K, "The Discipline of Faith
"By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven
days" (Heb. 11:30). In our last we contemplated the daring and obedience of Israel’s
faith on this memorable occasion, and now we turn to observe the discipline of it.
We have reference to Joshua 6:10, where we learn that the people were commanded,
"Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any word
proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout." That injunction
constituted a very real test of their morale. For all that host of Israel to preserve
strict silence as they journeyed around Jericho’s walls was a severe restraint upon
their natural inclinations—the more so that no explanation for the same was
furnished them. There are times when to preserve silence is far harder than for us to
express, what is on our minds. The tongue is an unruly member, yet God requires us
to control the exercise of it, and there are occasions when to be mute is a

116. manifestation of grace which is honoring to Him. Such was the case when fire from
the Lord devoured the presumptuous sons of Aaron, and their father "held his
peace" (Lev. 10:3), and when David was sorely chastised by God and he was dumb,
and opened not his mouth" (Ps. 39:9)!
How often are the sinews of faith cut by the injudicious and unfriendly criticisms of
those who pose as our Christian friends, who so far from encouraging us to adhere
strictly to our Rule, would have us conform to this world! How often is the servant
of Christ hindered by the God-dishonoring counsels and carnal suggestions of
church members when he seeks to employ none but spiritual weapons! How much
mischief is wrought by those who are perpetually talking about the difficulties
confronting us! The soldiers of Christ must be trained: faith must be disciplined:
each one in the ranks of the Lord’s hosts must learn there is "a time to keep silent
and a time to speak" (Ecclesiastes 3:7). The children of Israel must neither make
any sally upon this garrison of the Canaanites, nor employ the customary war-cries
of assailants, but, instead, preserve a solemn silence as in sacred procession they
encompassed the city. That might have conveyed the impression that they were
lacking in spirit and zeal, thereby rendering them increasingly despicable in the
sight of their enemies, yet that was the manner in which they were required to
conduct themselves. God delights to make use of contemptible instruments and
means, that the glory may be His alone.
We turn next to consider the patience of their faith, which was conspicuously
evidenced here. The walls of Jericho did not fall down the first day nor the sixth
that Israel marched around them, but only "after they had been compassed about
seven days." or did they fall the first time they were encompassed on the seventh
day, but not until after seven circuits had been made on that day. o less than
thirteen journeys around them were completed before the power of God was
displayed. Why so? To test their patience as well as their courage and obedience.
They must be kept waiting on the Lord. "As promised deliverances must be
expected in God’s way so they must be expected in God’s time" (Matthew Henry).
Israel were required to carry out the orders they had received, to persevere in the
performance of duty, and leave the issue with the Lord. The race is not to the swift,
nor the battle to the strong, but to those who are steadfast and persistent. "It is good
[though we may not think so at the time] that a man should both hope and quietly
wait for the salvation [deliverance] of the Lord" (Lam. 3:26).
Observe how one Scripture throws light upon another: Hebrews 11:30, does not tell
us that Israel encompassed Jericho seven times on the seventh day, nor does Joshua
6 inform us that they did so "by faith." As pointed out previously, neither the
priests nor the people received any assurance from Joshua that success would attend
their efforts: they are seen there simply complying strictly and patiently with the
instructions they had been given. But in Hebrews 11 the Holy Spirit discloses to us
that they acted in faith. But how could that be, seeing they had no promise to rest
upon? We wonder if that question presents any difficulty to the reader. We hope
not, for it is a mistake to suppose there can be no faith in God unless we have some
definite word from Him to warrant it. So far as Scripture acquaints us, when
Abraham was told to sacrifice Isaac upon the altar, he received no promise that he
would be restored to him again; nevertheless, it was "by faith" he offered Isaac
"accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead" (Heb. 11:19).

117. David had no promise that he would slay Goliath, yet he had full confidence that
God would enable him to do so. Daniel had no guarantee of deliverance from the
lions, yet he "believed in his God" for protection from them (Josh. 6:23).
Faith has to do with a known God, with One who is a living reality to the soul, with
One who can be counted upon to undertake for us. It is God in His revealed
character, as made known to us in His Word, God in Christ in covenant relation to
us, who is the Object of faith. True, a definite promise makes it easier to act faith,
yet is not the Promiser greater than the promises, as the Giver is to all His gifts! And
when we are unable to locate a promise which precisely meets our particular case,
that should not deter us from having implicit confidence in God Himself. When
David was guilty of the terrible sins of adultery and murder, there was no sacrifice
under the law available for such crimes, but he had recourse to the known mercy of
God (Ps. 51:1)—the infinite mercy of an infinite God; nor was he confounded. So
with Israel before Jericho. They had for years been supernaturally fed in the
wilderness, and unfailingly guided by the pillar of cloud and fire. They had
witnessed the miracle-working power of Jehovah acting on their behalf in opening a
way for them through the Jordan. And now they confidently counted upon His
showing Himself strong in their behalf in overthrowing this mighty citadel.
Yes, it was "by faith," in the daring and obedience of faith, they acted, trusting God
to work for them. But He was pleased to put their faith to a severe proof: they were
required to exercise "the patience of hope" (1 Thess. 1:3), to persevere in the course
God had appointed, expecting Him to honor the same. Yea, to repeat their
performance again and again, and still without the least sign of their efforts being
rewarded. Why so? To make it the more evident that the conquest of Canaan was of
the Lord and not of them. Each fruitless journey around the city made it
increasingly apparent that their enemies were to be overcome not by their power
but by God’s. What a lesson is there here for each of us. "My soul, wait thou only
upon God, for my expectation is from Him" (Ps. 62:5). "Therefore will the Lord
wait, that He may be gracious unto you . . . blessed are they that wait for Him" (Isa.
30:18). But is it not at that very point most of us fail the worst? How easily we
become discouraged if our efforts do not meet with prompt success, or if our prayers
be not speedily answered! How impatient is the flesh!
"For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might
receive the promise" (Heb. 10:36). Indeed we have, for each of us is very prone to
say of the Lord, as his mother said of Sisera, "Why is His chariot so long in coming,
why tarry the wheels of His chariot" (Judg. 5:28). Speaking to His disciples, the
Lord Jesus declared, "Men ought always to pray, and not to faint" (Luke 18:1).
How much we need to take that word to heart! How often have we "fainted" when
victory was almost in sight! We become discouraged when our "Jericho" does not
fall the first or second time it is encompassed. Most of us find it much harder to wait
than to believe, yet we prove by painful experience that our fretful impatience
accomplishes no good nor speeds the desired event a single moment. Let us be more
definite and earnest in begging the Holy Spirit to work this grace of patience in us,
and to be "watching thereunto with all perseverance" (Eph. 6:18), assured that "in
due season we shall reap, if we faint not."
Consider for a moment the assurance of their faith—a striking proof of which was
given by them in what is recorded in Joshua 6:20. There we are told, "So the people

118. shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets, and it came to pass, when the
people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout,
that the wall fell down flat." Twice over in that verse does the Holy Spirit record
that which was so honoring to the Lord. During all their circuits of the city, they
had been bidden to maintain a complete silence, but when their obedience and
patience had been fully tested, they were ordered to "shout," for said their leader
"the Lord hath given you the city" (v. 26). But mark it well, that shout must be
made while the powerful walls still stood intact! It was therefore a shout of faith, of
confidence in God, of full assurance that He would appear in their behalf and
recompense their "patient continuance in well doing." That shout signified their
strong persuasion that victory was certain. That is what assurance consists of: an
unshakable belief that God will make good His Word, a steadfast reliance that He
will reward those that seek Him diligently (Heb. 11:6).
That concerted and loud shout of Israel before the actual event was one of confident
expectation. By such assurance God is greatly glorified. Though Abraham was
about a hundred years old and his wife’s womb dead, when he received promise of a
son he was "fully persuaded that what God had promised He was able also to
perform" (Rom. 4:21). When the son of the woman of Shunem died, so strong was
her faith that, though none had previously been restored to life, she confidently
expected her son to be revived (2 Kings 4)—her actions in verse 21 and her words in
verse 23 evince the same. Of our Lord’s mother it is said, "Blessed is she which
believed that there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from
the Lord" (Luke 1:45). To the distressed mariners Paul said, "Be of good cheer, for
I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me" (Acts 27:25). What examples
are these of the heart’s full reliance upon God while outward appearances were
quite unpromising! When Moffatt, the missionary who had labored for years among
the Bechuanas without seeing a single seal to his ministry, received a letter from
friends in England who wished to make him a present, asking him to specify what it
should be, he answered, "A communion set"! Months after, when it arrived, more
than a dozen converted natives sat down with him to remember the Lord’s death.
Say not "How wonderful" but "How deplorable I do not trust Him more fully."
Take note of the renunciation of their faith. Israel’s being forbidden to seize the
spoils of war, and being told that the silver and gold must be "consecrated unto the
Lord" (vv. 18, 19), teaches us that real faith takes no credit unto its subject, but
ascribes all the honor of its performances unto the Giver. Faith precludes all
boasting and self-congratulation (Eph. 2:8, 9). Faith belongs to those who are "poor
in spirit." So far from promoting Laodicean self-esteem, it humbles us unto the dust,
causing us to look away from self unto God. It is a self-emptying grace, moving us to
stretch forth the beggar’s hand. Consequently, it takes no praise to itself, but gives
the whole unto its Bestower. Its language is " ot unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but
unto Thy name give glory, for Thy mercy, for Thy truth’s sake" (Ps. 115:1).
Blessedly was this exemplified by Abraham. When the Lord gave him the victory
over Chedorlaomer, and the king of Sodom invited him to take the spoils unto
himself, Abraham answered, "I have lifted up my hand unto the Lord, that I will
not take from a thread to a shoe-latchet . . . lest thou shouldest say, I have made
Abraham rich" (Gen. 14:22, 23)!
Finally, behold the triumph of faith. "And it came to pass, when the people heard

119. the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall
fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before
him, and they took the city" (v. 20). othing can stand before faith: the most
formidable obstacles give way to it. "All things are possible to him that believeth"
(Mark 9:23) as the whole of Hebrew 11 clearly shows. The language of an expectant
faith is, "Through God we shall do valiantly, for He it is that shall tread down our
enemies" (Ps. 50:12), because faith looks away from self, with all its infirmities and
limitations, unto the Almighty. "This is the victory that overcometh the world: our
faith" (1 John 5:4): when it is in exercise, the world can neither enthrall nor
intimidate, for it elevates the heart above the creature. Israel’s capture of Jericho is
recorded for the encouragement of the saints of all generations, and our lengthy
consideration of the same will have been in vain unless it has put new life into us as
it has demonstrated afresh the invincibility of God’s purpose, the sufficiency of His
power, and His readiness to put it forth on the behalf of those who render implicit
obedience to His revealed will and count upon His rewarding the same.
"And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young
and old, and ox and sheep and ass, with the edge of the sword" (v. 21). For several
centuries the long-suffering of God had waited because "the iniquity of the
Amorites was not yet full" (Gen. 15:16). Forty years previously, in the first year of
the Exodus, the Lord had solemnly threatened them, bringing the sword of Israel to
the borders of Canaan, and then withdrawing His hand for a time, giving them a
further respite. But the period of waiting was now over. That united shout from
Israel was the sign that the Lord would tarry no longer, that the day of His wrath
was come. All the guilty inhabitants of Jericho were made a solemn and awful
sacrifice to the Divine justice. "The Canaanites were ripe for destruction, and the
Lord was pleased, instead of destroying them by a pestilence, a famine, an
earthquake, a devastating fire from heaven, to employ the Israelites as the
executioners of His vengeance, both for their warning and instruction, and for that
of all who read these records. Had an angel been commissioned to slay them (as one
did Sennacherib’s army: 2 Kings 19:35), who would have charged Him with iniquity
or cruelty? In all public calamities infants are involved and tens of thousands die
with great agony every year.
" ow either God is not the agent in these calamities, which opinion—though often
implied in man’s reasonings on these subjects—is not far from atheism; or they
must consist with the most perfect justice and goodness. What injustice then could
there be in ordering the destruction of a guilty race by the sword of His people? Or
what injustice can be charged on them while executing His express commission, as
ratified by undeniable miracles? It is evident that the hand of God would be far
more noticed in these uncommon events than if He had destroyed His enemies by
the ordinary course of second causes. The malignity of sin, with the indignation of
Goal against sinners, and His power and determination to inflict condign
punishment on them, would be far more conspicuous and impressive. In short, every
man who by reading the account of these awful judgments, in any age or place, has
been led to a deeper sense of the evil of sin, and warned to repent and seek mercy
from the Lord, will to eternal ages glorify the Divine wisdom and goodness, in the
very dispensations which embolden the blasphemies of the impenitent and
unbelieving" (Thomas Scott). "Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God"

120. (Rom. 11:22): the latter is as truly a Divine perfection as is the former.
In verses 22-25 we see how the promise given to Rahab in Joshua 2:14, 19, was made
good: "By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when
she had received the spies with peace" (Heb. 11:31). Therein we behold the mercy of
God unto those who really turn to and believe in Him. The inhabitants of Canaan
had heard of Jehovah’s drying up the waters of the Red Sea, and of Israel’s
destroying of Sihon and Og, but Rahab alone believed "that the Lord hath given
you the land" (Josh. 2:9, 10). She evidenced her faith by receiving the two spies with
good will, and sheltering those servants of God from their foes at the hazard of her
own life (illustrating the principle that faith ever requires self-denial), and by a
strict compliance with their instructions. The blessed consequence and sequel was
that she "perished not with them that believed not." The preservation of her house,
which was "upon the town wall" (Josh. 2:15), was as manifest a miracle as was the
falling down of all other parts of it, and typified the eternal security of those who
trust in the Lord.
Let us now briefly epitomize some of the many important lessons inculcated and
illustrated by the contents of Joshua 6:1. Closed doors and high walls are no
insuperable obstacle when God be for us and with us: Acts 12:10 (v. 1). 2. Faith is to
behold that which is invisible to sight and reason: John 8:56; Hebrews 11:1 (v. 2). 3.
Divine promises do not render needless the discharge of responsibility (v. 3). 4. God
pours contempt on human pride by appointing means which are contemptible in the
eyes of the world (v. 4). 5. Encouragements (v. 5) are not to be bandied about
promiscuously, but given to the diligent and faithful (v. 16). 6. The "ark," in which
was the Law and the "trumpets of jubilee" which announced the Gospel, tells, of the
preacher’s twofold work (v. 6). 7. The rank and the of God’s people are required to
support and hearten His ministers (v. 7). 8. The Lord’s presence with them
(Matthew 28:20) is what is to animate and regulate His ministers (v. 7). 9. The
position of honor is reserved for the ark and the priests: Hebrews 13:7, 17; 1
Thessalonians 5:12, 13 (v. 9). 10. Muffle not the Gospel trumpet and let it give forth
no uncertain sound: 1 Corinthians 14:8 (v. 9). 11. We must be "swift to hear, slow to
speak": James 1:19; 1 Peter 3:15 (v. 10). 12. All murmuring against God and
unwarrantable criticisms of His servants must be suppressed (v. 10).
13. God takes note of and appreciates thoroughness, the completing of each task
assigned (v. 11). 14. Punctuality, diligence, whole-heartedness, must ever
characterize the servant of Christ (v. 12). 15. Though no visible results appear, the
priests must blow their trumpets "continually" (v. 13). 16. Patience and
perseverance are called for in the discharge of all our God-given duties (v. 14). 17.
The more trying and difficult the task, the more earnestly should we set ourselves to
it (v. 15). 18. When success is delayed, our efforts are to be increased and not
diminished (v. 15). 19. We must not be discouraged over the lack of early success,
but let patience have her perfect work (v. 15). 20. God’s promise is to be faithfully
relied upon during the time when there is no indication of its fulfillment (v. 16). 21.
Though saints as such have no commission to speak in public, yet their mouths are
to utter the Lord’s praise (v. 16). 22. It is implicit confidence in Himself which the
Lord ever delights to honor—"when" (v. 16). 23. The whole world lieth in the
Wicked One and is under the wrath of God (v. 17). 24. We bring trouble upon
ourselves when we set our affection on earthly things (v. 18). 25. God never

121. confounds those who trust and obey Him (v. 18). 26. The most unlikely means are
used by God in the doing of great things (v. 20). 27. Eternal destruction is the
portion of all out of Christ (v. 21), eternal security of those who trust Him (vv. 22,
23). 28. Build not again the things you have destroyed or renounced: Galatians 2:18
(v. 26; cf. Psalm 85:8).
23 So the young men who had done the spying
went in and brought out Rahab, her father and
mother, her brothers and sisters and all who
belonged to her. They brought out her entire
family and put them in a place outside the camp
of Israel.
BAR ES, "The part of the wall adjoining Rahab’s house had not fallen along with the
rest. Rahab and “all that she had,” i. e., the persons belonging to her household, were
brought out and “left without the camp of Israel.” These words literally “made to rest
outside the camp of Israel” - indicate that being still in their paganism, they were
separated from the camp of the Lord. This was only for a time. They desired, and
eventually obtained, admission to the covenant of the chosen people of God Jos_6:25.
CLARKE,"Brought out Rahab, and her father, etc. - Rahab having been
faithful to her vow of secrecy, the Israelites were bound by the oath of the spies, who
acted as their representatives in this business, to preserve her and her family alive.
And left them without the camp - They were considered as persons unclean, and
consequently left without the camp; (see Lev_13:46; Num_12:14). When they had
abjured heathenism, were purified, and the males had received circumcision, they were
doubtless admitted into the camp, and became incorporated with Israel.
GILL, "And the young men that were spies went in, and brought out
Rahab,.... Not only went into the city, but into Rahab's house, which they knew again by
the scarlet thread hung out at the window of it. But here a difficulty occurs, how they

122. could be said to go into her house, when it was built on the town wall, Jos_2:15; and that
was now fallen down flat. Abarbinel thinks that when the spies went round the city, they
saw the scarlet thread in the window of her house, and set their eyes on the house, or
wistly observed it; and marked it in such manner, that after the fall of the wall they went
to the place of her house, and brought her out, though her house was broken down, and
no wall standing: but then they could not be said properly to go into her house, and
bring her out. Kimchi is of opinion that not all the wall of the city fell, but what was over
against the camp of Israel; and that the house of Rahab was on the wall on the other
side: but it seems by the account of it as if the whole wall fell; and the apostle says, "the
walls of Jericho fell down", Heb_11:30; all of them; and so the Septuagint version of
Jos_6:20."and the whole wall, or all the wall fell round about:''and I see not why it may
not be thought that the whole wall fell, excepting that small part alone which Rahab's
house stood; and that standing alone would make the miracle the greater, and show the
divine approbation of saving Rahab and her family: besides, if the wall sunk down in its
place all around into the earth, as the Jews understand the phrase; See Gill on Jos_6:5;
the house might continue on it firm and unmoved, going down with it to the surface of
the earth, where it may be supposed the top of the wall was; and so they might go in and
take her out, and preserve her from being destroyed with the rest of the inhabitants; and
not only her:
but her father and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had; all
other relations that were with her, particularly her sisters, which are in her request, Jos_
2:13; with all that appertained to her brethren and sisters, which is there expressed also:
and they brought out all her kindred; before mentioned, or if there were any other
of her relations she had taken into her house for safety; or "all her families" (e), for her
father's household might be branched out into various families, and become numerous,
and so be an emblem of the number of Gentile sinners saved by Christ the antitype of
Joshua:
and left them without the camp of Israel; until they, became proselytes, and
embraced the religion of Israel, as Kimchi remarks. However, being Gentiles, some
external rites and ceremonies were to be performed upon them, as well as a declaration
at least of their renouncing idolatry was required of them, before they could be admitted
into the camp of Israel; and which was required even of a proselyte of the gate, or of one
that was only a sojourner among them.
JAMISO , "they brought out all her kindred, and left them without the
camp of Israel — a temporary exclusion, in order that they might be cleansed from the
defilement of their native idolatries and gradually trained for admission into the society
of God’s people.
CALVI , "23.And the young men that were spies went in, etc God, doubtless,
wished those to be safe, whose minds he thus inclined to embrace deliverance. Had it
been otherwise, they would have rejected it not less proudly, and with no less scorn
than the two sons-in-law of Lot. But a still better provision is made for them, when,
by being placed without the camp, they receive a strict injunction to abandon their
former course of life. (67) For had they been immediately admitted and allowed to

123. mix indiscriminately with the people, the thought of their impurity might never,
perhaps, have occurred to them, and they might thus have continued to indulge in it.
ow when they are placed apart, that they may not, by their infection, taint the
flock, they are impressed with a feeling of shame, which may urge them to serious
conversion.
It cannot be meant that they were thus set apart for safety, lest any one in the crowd
might have risen up violently against them: for they would have been received by all
with the greatest favor and gladness, whereas they might have been attacked in a
solitary place more easily, and even with impunity. Their impurity, therefore, was
brought visibly before them, that they might not while polluted come rashly forward
into the holy meeting, but rather might be accustomed by this rudimentary training
to change their mode of life. For it is added shortly after, that they dwelt in the
midst of the people; in other words, having been purged from their defilement’s,
they began to be regarded in the very same light as if they had originally belonged to
the race of Abraham. In short, the meaning is, that after they had made a confession
of their previous impurity, they were admitted indiscriminately along with others.
By this admission, Rahab gained one of the noblest fruits of her faith.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:23 And the young men that were spies went in, and brought out
Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had; and
they brought out all her kindred, and left them without the camp of Israel.
Ver. 23. And left them without the camp.] Lest it should be defiled by them, till they
were proselyted. See umbers 31:19.
COKE, "Ver. 23. And left them without the camp— They were brought out of the
house, because that was to be burned with the rest of the city; but being unclean
they could not be received into the camp, as being a holy place, till they had abjured
paganism, embraced the religion of the true God, and been admitted into the body
of the republic of Israel by circumcision, and perhaps by baptism; though we cannot
say whether the use of this latter ceremony be so ancient.
PETT, "Verse 23
‘And the young men, the spies, went in, and brought out Rahab, and her father and
her mother, and her brothers, and all that she had. All her kindred also they
brought out, and they set them outside the camp of Israel.’
As they had sworn to do the two spies ensured the safety of Rahab and all her wider
family who had gathered in her house. We note, however, that ‘they set them
outside the camp of Israel’ in a camp of their own. They could not enter the camp
for they were ‘devoted’ and were idolaters, and thus defiling (compare Leviticus
13:46; umbers 5:3; umbers 31:13; umbers 31:19). Thus they must be kept
separate until they had undergone some cleansing ritual, including the renunciation
of idolatry, and, if necessary, circumcision (although they may have already been
circumcised) and incorporation into the congregation of Israel. This was
presumably required of them (see Joshua 6:25).

124. 24 Then they burned the whole city and
everything in it, but they put the silver and gold
and the articles of bronze and iron into the
treasury of the Lord’s house.
CLARKE,"Only the silver, and the gold - they put into the treasury, etc. -
The people were to have no share of the spoils, because they had no hand in the
conquest. God alone overthrew the city; and into his treasury only the spoils were
brought. This is one proof that the agitation of the air, by the sound of the people’s voice,
was not the cause of the fall of the city walls.
Vessels of brass and of iron - Instead of ‫כלי‬ keley, Vessels, the Septuagint, in the
Alexandrian copy, evidently have read ‫כל‬ col, All, with the omission of the ‫י‬ yod; for in
Jos_6:19 they translate πας χαλκος και σιδηρος, All the brass and iron: but this reading
does not appear in any of Kennicott’s or De Rossi’s MSS.
GILL, "And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein,.... As
Babylon the great, of which this city was an emblem, as has been observed; see Gill on
Jos_6:20; will be burnt with fire also, Rev_18:8,
only the silver and the gold, and the vessels of brass and iron, they put into
the treasury of the house of the Lord; See Gill on Jos_6:19.
JAMISO , "burned the city ... and all ... therein — except the silver, gold, and
other metals, which, as they would not burn, were added to the treasury of the
sanctuary.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:24 And they burnt the city with fire, and all that [was] therein:
only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the
treasury of the house of the LORD.

125. Ver. 24. And they burnt the city.] In obedience to God, though they had need
enough to have done otherwise. But men must silence their reason and exalt their
faith.
PETT, "Verse 24
‘And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was in it, only the silver and the gold,
and the vessels of brass and iron, they put into the treasury of the house of YHWH.’
This was a purifying ritual, devoting all to YHWH. Even the latter were probably
burned for purification before being put into the treasury ( umbers 31:22-23).
“The house of YHWH.” Compare Judges 19:18; Judges 20:18; Genesis 28:17; 1
Samuel 1:7; Exodus 23:19; Exodus 34:26. The ‘house of YHWH’ was the place
where He was to be approached, in this case the Tabernacle. As Genesis 28:17
makes absolutely clear ‘house’ here does not necessarily signify a building.
K&D, "Jos_6:24-25
After man and beast had been put to death, and Rahab and her relatives had been
placed in security, the Israelites set the town on fire with everything in it, excepting the
metals, which were taken to the treasury of the tabernacle, as had been commanded in
Jos_6:19. On the conquest of the other towns of Canaan the inhabitants only were put to
death, whilst the cattle and the rest of the booty fell to the conquerors, just as in the case
of the conquest of the land and towns of Sihon and Og (compare Jos_8:26-27; Jos_
10:28, with Deu_2:34-35, and Deu_3:6-7), as it was only the inhabitants of Canaan that
the Lord had commanded to be put under the ban (Deu_7:2; Deu_20:16-17). In the case
of Jericho, on the contrary, men, cattle, and booty were all put under the ban, and the
town itself was to be laid in ashes. This was because Jericho was the first town of Canaan
which the Lord had given up to His people. Israel was therefore to sacrifice it to the Lord
as the first-fruits of the land, and to sanctify it to Him as a thing placed under the ban,
for a sign that they had received the whole land as a fief from his hand, and had no wish
to grasp as a prey that which belonged to the Lord.
25 But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with
her family and all who belonged to her, because
she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies to
Jericho—and she lives among the Israelites to this
day.

126. BAR ES, "Even unto this day - These words are rightly noted as implying that the
narrative was written not long after the occurrences which it records.
CLARKE,"And she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day - This is one proof
that the book was written in the time to which it is commonly referred; and certainly
might have been done by the hand of Joshua himself, though doubtless many marginal
notes may have since crept into the text, which, to superficial observers, give it the
appearance of having been written after the days of Joshua. See the preface to this book.
GILL, "And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive,.... From perishing by the
sword, as the rest of the inhabitants did. Kimchi says, some interpret it of his giving her
food, and an inheritance by which she might live; and Josephus (f) intimates the same:
he says, he gave her fields, and had her in great honour and esteem; and it is the notion
of some Jewish writers, that he took her to wife, and that this is meant by saving her
alive; which sense Kimchi disapproves of, as being foreign; besides, it was not Joshua,
but Salmon, a prince in Israel, that married her, Mat_1:5,
and her father's household, and all she had; that is, he saved alive all her
relations, and it may be her cattle, if she had any; and those of her kindred also, as their
sheep, oxen, and asses, when those of others were killed, Jos_6:21. Some also
understand this of intermarriages of principal persons in Israel with some of her father's
fairly; but it only signifies that their lives were spared, when the whole city was
destroyed with the edge of the sword:
and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; which may be meant either
personally of Rahab, who was living and dwelt in the land of Canaan, when this history
was written; and serves to strengthen the opinion that Joshua was the writer of it, and to
explain the meaning of the phrase "unto this day", elsewhere used in this book; and to
remove any objection from it against his being the author of it; or else of her dwelling
there in her posterity, and so she might dwell in it unto the times of the Messiah, who
sprang from her, Mat_1:5,
because she hid the messengers which Joshua, sent to spy out Jericho; this
was the reason of her and her father's family being saved alive; See Gill on Jos_6:17.
JAMISO , "she — Rahab
dwelleth in Israel unto this day — a proof that this book was written not long
after the events related.

127. ELLICOTT, "(25) And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive.—“By faith the harlot
Rahab perished not with them that believed not” (Hebrews 11:31). And so Jesus
said to her who had ministered to Him in the house of Simon the Pharisee, “Thy sins
are forgiven;” and again, “Thy faith hath saved thee: go in peace” Luke 7:48; Luke
7:50). “Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works?” (James 2:25).
And she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day.—“Salmon begat Booz of Rachab”
seems certainly to refer to her (Matthew 1:5), though why she is called Rachab in
that place is not obvious. Rachab is not the usual form of the word, either in the
LXX. or in the other passages of the Greek text where she is named. It is not simply
a variation in the English spelling, but a difference in the original Greek.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:25 And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father’s
household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel [even] unto this day;
because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
Ver. 25. Even unto this day.] When this story was written, she was a great lady in
Israel, being married to Salmon.
COKE, "Ver. 25. And she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day— Rahab,
incorporated with the people of God, was still living there when this was written.
See ch. Joshua 4:9. Her family, doubtless, were initiated in like manner; and all who
belonged to her embraced the religion of Israel, or at least, renouncing idolatry,
without ever receiving circumcision, became proselytes of the gate. As to Rahab
herself, she married Salmon, the son of aasson, a prince of the tribe of Judah, and
one of the ancestors of CHRIST. Genebrand, in his Chronol. p. 13 following the
authority of some rabbis, says, that Joshua married Rahab; whence Mr. Berryer
concludes, that it was a grand-daughter of that name who was afterwards married
to Salmon. See his Hist. du Peuple de Dieu, tom. 3: p. 41. But as all this is without
proof, we hold, with Usher, that it was Rahab the harlot whom Salmon espoused.
However, as it was prohibited to marry Canaanitish women, (Deuteronomy 7:1.)
Rahab might, very probably, be a stranger settled at Jericho, as divers rabbis
inform us was the case.
PETT, "Verse 25
‘And Joshua saved alive Rahab the prostitute, and her father's household, and all
she had, and she dwelt in the midst of Israel even to this day, because she hid the
messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.’
ote the emphasis on ‘saved alive’. Thus was fulfilled the oath that they would live
(see Joshua 2:13-14). They did not remain long outside the camp for they became
members of the congregation of Israel. ‘Dwelt in the midst of Israel’ can signify
Canaanites dwelling among the Israelites in disobedience to God’s command
(Joshua 9:7; Joshua 13:13; Joshua 16:10), but that hardly applies here. It must
signify acceptance. (Perhaps however her family were given the option to move on
and out of the country - compare the man in Judges 1:26 - for they are not

128. mentioned).
“Even to this day.” A clear indication that this was written while Rahab was alive.
Alternatively we may read ‘she’ as signifying the whole family, but in context that is
an unnatural reading (‘she’ means Rahab in both the other cases).
26 At that time Joshua pronounced this solemn
oath: “Cursed before the Lord is the one who
undertakes to rebuild this city, Jericho:
“At the cost of his firstborn son
he will lay its foundations;
at the cost of his youngest
he will set up its gates.”
BAR ES, "Adjured - i. e. put an oath upon them; or, perhaps, actually caused them
themselves to take an oath (compare Mat_26:63). The words of the oath have in the
original a rhythmical character which would tend to keep them on the lips and in the
memory of the people.
Buildeth this city - i. e. rebuilds the fortifications. Jericho was at once occupied by
the Benjamites. Jos_18:21, and the natural advantages of the situation were such that it
would not be likely to be left long desolate. Joshua speaks in the text as a warrior. He
lays a ban on the re-erection of those lofty walls which had bidden defiance to God’s
host, and been by God’s signal interposition overthrown. Hiel, the Bethelite, reckless of
the prophecy recorded in our text, began and completed the circumvallation of the city a
second time (see the marginal reference). Hiel did not found a new city but only fortified
an existing one.
He shall lay the foundation thereof in his first-born - i. e. when he begins this
work his eldest son shall die, when he completes it his youngest shall die (see 1Ki_16:34
note).
This chapter read in the light of the New Testament has indications of a further import

129. and bearing than such as concerned Joshua and the Jews. As Joshua, the leader and
captain of the Jewish theocracy, is a type of Christ, so is Jericho to be taken (with all
Christian expositors) as a type of the powers opposed to Christ and His cause. The times
which prepare for the close of God’s present dispensation are signified in the days during
which the people obeyed and waited; as the number of those days, seven, the number of
perfection, represents that “fullness of time,” known only to God, at which His
dispensation will culminate and close. Thus the circumstances which lead up to the fall
of Jericho are an acted prophecy, as was that fall itself, which sets forth the overthrow of
all that resists the kingdom of which Christ is the head; and particularly the day of
judgment, in which that overthrow will be fully and finally accomplished. Paul, in
describing that day, seems to borrow his imagery from this chapter (see 1Th_4:16).
CLARKE,"And Joshua adjured them at that time - It appears that he had
received intimations from God that this idolatrous city should continue a monument of
the Divine displeasure: and having convened the princes and elders of the people, he
bound them by an oath that they should never rebuild it; and then, in their presence,
pronounced a curse upon the person who should attempt it. The ruins of this city
continuing would be a permanent proof, not only of God’s displeasure against idolatry,
but of the miracle which he had wrought in behalf of the Israelites; and for these reasons
God willed that it should not be rebuilt: nevertheless, he left men to the operation of
their own free will, and recorded the penalty which those must pay who should disobey
him.
He shall lay the foundation thereof, etc. - This is a strange execration; but it may
rather be considered in the light of a prediction. It seems to intimate that he who should
attempt to rebuild this city, should lose all his children in the interim, from laying the
foundation to the completion of the walls; which the author of 1Ki_16:34 says was
accomplished in Hiel the Beth-elite, who rebuilt Jericho under the reign of Ahab, and
laid the foundation of it in Abiram, his first-born, and set up its gates in his youngest son
Segub: this was 550 years after Joshua pronounced the curse. But we are not sure that
this means that the children either died a natural or violent death on this occasion for we
may understand the history as relating to the slow progress of the work. Hiel having
begun the work at the birth of his first-born, was not able to conclude before the birth of
his last child, who was born many years after: and as their names are mentioned, it is
very likely that the distance of time between the birth of each was well known when this
history was written; and that the extraordinary length of time spent in the work, in
which a multitude of vexatious delays had taken place, is that to which the prophetic
execration relates. Yet the first opinion is the most probable. We must not suppose that
Jericho had been wholly neglected from its overthrow by Joshua to the days of Hiel; if it
be the same with the city of palm trees, mentioned Deu_34:3. We find it mentioned as
an inhabited place in the beginning of Jdg_1:16, a short time after the death of Joshua:
And the children of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up out of the city of palm
trees, with the children of Judah, etc.; and this said city (if the same with the city of palm
trees) was taken from the Israelites by Eglon king of Moab, Jdg_3:13. The ambassadors
of David, who were disgracefully treated by Hanun king of the Ammonites, were
commanded to tarry at Jericho till their beards should grow, 2Sa_10:4, 2Sa_10:5. It
appears, therefore, that there was a city which went under this name long before the
time of Hiel, unless we can suppose that the city of palm trees was a different place from
Jericho, or that the name Jericho was given to some part of the circumjacent country
after the city was destroyed, which is very probable. After Hiel had rebuilt this city, it

130. became of considerable consequence in the land of Judea: the courses of priests lodged
there, who served in their turns at the temple; see Luk_10:30. There was a school of the
prophets there, which was visited by Elijah and Elisha, 2Ki_2:4, 2Ki_2:5, 2Ki_2:18; and
it was at this city that our Lord miraculously healed blind Bartimeus, Mar_10:46; Luk_
18:35, etc. At present, Jericho is almost entirely deserted, having but thirty or forty
miserable cabins in it, which serve for a place of refuge to some wretched Moors and
Arabs, who live there like beasts. The plain of Jericho, formerly so celebrated for its
fertility, is at present uncultivated, producing nothing but a few wild trees, and some
very indifferent fruits. See Calmet.
GILL, "And Joshua adjured them at that time,.... When the city was burnt and
spoiled; not that he adjured the people individually, or one by one, which was not very
practicable, but in a general way:
saying, cursed be the man before the Lord; let him be cursed by him with the
curses written in the book of the law; and let him be driven from him, from his presence,
as Cain was:
that riseth up, and buildeth this city Jericho; that rises up in future time, and
rebuilds it; for it cannot be thought that after such an adjuration anyone would start up
quickly, and rebuild it:
he shall lay the foundation thereof in his firstborn, and in his youngest son
shall he set up the gates of it; that is, while he is laying, or as soon as he has laid the
foundation of the city, his eldest son should die; and as he went on with the building,
other sons of his, if he had more than two, should be taken away by death likewise; and
by the time he has finished it, signified by setting up the gates of it, both for ornament
and security, his youngest and last son should die also; so that his whole posterity
should be taken alway, as a curse of God upon him for rebuilding the city; which was
fulfilled in Hiel the Bethelite, the rebuilder of this city in the times of Ahab, five or six
hundred years after this adjuration was made, when either it was forgotten, or, however,
little regarded: Maimonides observes (g), that this was made that the miracle might
remain in perpetual memory, for whoever should see the wall sunk in the earth, it would
be plain and clear to him that this was not the form of a building demolished, but that it
fell by a miracle; and yet this city became a very flourishing one in later times; we soon
hear of the school of the prophets in it, 2Ki_2:5; here, Strabo (h) says, was a royal
palace, where, as Josephus (i) relates, Herod died, and who speaks of an amphitheatre
and hippodrome in it; in this city sometimes the sanhedrim sat, and a great number of
the stationary priests dwelt, even half a station, twelve thousand of them, all which is
observed by Dr. Lightfoot (k); our Lord himself honoured it with his presence, Luk_19:1.
HE RY, ". Jericho is condemned to a perpetual desolation, and a curse pronounced
upon the man that at any time hereafter should offer to rebuild it (Jos_6:26): Joshua
adjured them, that is, the elders and people of Israel, not only by their own consent,
obliging themselves and their posterity never to rebuild this city, but by the divine
appointment, God himself having forbidden it under the sever penalty here annexed. 1.
God would hereby show the weight of a divine curse; where it rests there is no
contending with it nor getting from under it; it brings ruin without remedy or repair. 2.
He would have it to remain in its ruins a standing monument of his wrath against the

131. Canaanites when the measure of their iniquity was full, and of his mercy to his people
when the time had come for their settlement in Canaan. The desolations of their enemies
were witnesses of his favour to them, and would upbraid them with their ingratitude to
that God who had done so much for them. The situation of the city was very pleasant,
and probably its nearness to Jordan was an advantage to it, which would tempt men to
build upon the same spot; but they are here told it is at their peril if they do it. Men build
for their posterity, but he that builds Jericho shall have no posterity to enjoy what he
builds; his eldest son shall die when he begins the work, and if he take not warning by
that stroke to desist, but will go on presumptuously, the finishing of his work shall be
attended with the funeral of his youngest, and we must suppose all the rest cut off
between. This curse, not being a curse causeless, did come upon that man who long after
rebuilded Jericho (1Ki_16:34), but we are not to think it made the place ever the worse
when it was built, or brought any hurt to those that inhabited it. We find Jericho
afterwards graced with the presence, not only of those two great prophets Elijah and
Elisha, but of our blessed Saviour himself, Luk_18:35; Luk_19:1; Mat_20:29. Note, It is
a dangerous thing to attempt the building up of that which God will have to be
destroyed. See Mal_1:4.
JAMISO , "Jos_6:26, Jos_6:27. The rebuilder of Jericho cursed.
Joshua adjured them at that time — that is, imposed upon his countrymen a
solemn oath, binding on themselves as well as their posterity, that they would never
rebuild that city. Its destruction was designed by God to be a permanent memorial of His
abhorrence of idolatry and its attendant vices.
Cursed be the man ... that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho — that is,
makes the daring attempt to build.
he shall lay the foundation thereof in his first-born, and in his youngest
son shall he set up the gates of it — shall become childless - the first beginning
being marked by the death of his oldest son, and his only surviving child dying at the
time of its completion. This curse was accomplished five hundred fifty years after its
denunciation (see on 1Ki_16:34).
CALVI , "26.And Joshua adjured them, etc This adjuration, then, was not merely
to have effect for one day, but to warn posterity through all ages that that city had
been taken only by divine power. He wished, therefore, that the ruins and
devastation should exist for ever as a kind of trophy; because the rebuilding of it
would have been equivalent to an erasure effacing the miracle. In order, therefore,
that the desolate appearance of the place might keep the remembrance of the divine
power and favor alive among posterity, Joshua pronounces a heavy curse upon any
one who should again build the ruined city. From this passage we gather that the
natural torpidity of men requires the aid of stimulants to prevent them from
burying the divine favors in oblivion; and hence this spectacle, wherein the divine
agency was made conspicuous to the people, was a kind of indirect censure of their
ingratitude.
The substance of the imprecation is, that if any one ever attempt to rebuild Jericho
he may be made sensible by the unpropitious and mournful result that he had done
a cursed and abominable work. For to lay the foundations in his first-born, were

132. just as if he were to cast forth his son to perish, crushed and buried beneath the
mass of stones; and to set up the gates in his younger son, is the same thing as to
plan an edifice which could not be erected without causing the death of a son. Thus
he who should dare to make the insane attempt is condemned in his own offspring.
or did Joshua utter this curse at his own suggestion; he was only the herald of
celestial vengeance.
This makes it the more monstrous that among the people of God a man should have
been found, whom that fearful curse, couched in formal terms, could not restrain
from sacrilegious temerity. In the time of Ahab (1 Kings 16:34) arose Hiel, a citizen
of Bethel, who dared, as it were avowedly, to challenge God in this matter; but the
Sacred History at the same time testifies, that the denunciation which God had
pronounced by the mouth of Joshua did not fail of its effect; for Hiel founded the
new Jericho in Abiram his first-born, and set up its gates in his younger son Segub,
and thus learned in the destruction of his offspring what it is to attempt anything
against the will and in opposition to the command of God. (68)
ELLICOTT, "(26) Cursed be the man . . . that . . . buildeth this city Jericho.—As
the marginal reference indicates, the curse of Joshua was not incurred until Hiel the
Bethelite built the city, in the reign of Ahab. But the “city of palm-trees” is
(somewhat doubtfully) identified with Jericho, and this was occupied by the
Moabites under Eglon, not very long after the time of Joshua (Judges 3:13, &c.),
and seems to have been Eglon’s residence, where he was slain by Ehud.
The curse, fulfilled upon Hiel and his family, appears to have been finally removed
by the intercession of Elisha (2 Kings 2:18-22), at the request of the inhabitants.
TRAPP, "Joshua 6:26 And Joshua adjured [them] at that time, saying, Cursed [be]
the man before the LORD, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho: he shall lay
the foundation thereof in his firstborn, and in his youngest [son] shall he set up the
gates of it.
Ver. 26. Cursed be the man.] And yet there was found a man that durst rebuild it, [1
Kings 16:34] as if he would despitefully spit in the face of Heaven, wrestle a fall with
the Almighty.
In his firstborn.] God’s hand was very heavy upon William the Conqueror in his
issue, for his depopulations in ew Forest. (a)
PETT, "Verse 26
‘And Joshua charged them with an oath at that time, saying, “Cursed be the man
before YHWH who rises up, and builds this city Jericho. He will lay the foundation
of it with the loss of his firstborn, and with his youngest son he will set up the gates
of it.” ’
Having devoted everything to YHWH Joshua now devoted the mound itself to

133. YHWH. He put on it a curse, that a city should not be rebuilt on it (Deuteronomy
13:16), in the strongest terms he could think of. The loss of a firstborn and of a
youngest son were both seen as appalling tragedies, the former especially to a man,
the latter to a woman. This later remarkably came to fruition over four hundred
years later when someone did rebuild it (1 Kings 16:34). (This was unlikely to refer
to a recognised sacrificial ritual otherwise it would not have been seen as unusual).
Indeed Joshua may have intended it to be seen as signifying that the man’s whole
progeny would be destroyed one by one as the building progressed, from eldest to
youngest.
Such a curse on a ‘devoted’ city was seen as having great effect well beyond the
bounds of Israel. The same happened to Troy and Carthage which were deliberately
left desolate. It is ‘the wicked man’ who ‘dwells in cities that have been cut off, in
houses which no man will inhabit’ (Job 15:28).
This does not mean that no one ever lived there, for settlement did possibly take
place there (Judges 1:16; Judges 3:13 - although these may have been in tents at the
oasis - Joshua 18:21; 2 Samuel 10:5; 1 Chronicles 19:5), but the idea was that it was
not to be rebuilt as a city. (For the record ew Testament Jericho was not situated
on the old site).
BE SO , "Joshua 6:26. Joshua adjured them at that time — Hebrew, ‫,ישׁבע‬
jashbang, he made them to swear. As soon as the city was destroyed, it seems, he
convened the heads of the tribes, to signify to them that it was the will of God this
idolatrous city should never be rebuilt, and then engaged them to take an oath that
they would leave it in ruins. And they doubtless bound the people in like manner not
to rebuild it, on pain of the divine malediction. Cursed be the man before the Lord
— That is, from God’s presence, and by his sentence, as Joshua is said (Joshua 18:8
; Joshua 18:10) to cast lots before the Lord, expecting the decision from God. He
intimates that he does not utter this of himself, or in consequence of any particular
dislike of that place; but from Jehovah, and by divine inspiration. God would have
the ruins of this city remain as a standing monument of his justice against this
wicked and idolatrous people, and of his almighty power in destroying so great and
strong a city by such contemptible means. Thus Maimonides, the Jewish rabbi:
“Joshua pronounced a curse against those who should build up Jericho, that the
remembrance of the miracle which God had wrought by destroying it might never
be effaced; for all who looked on these ruins, thus sunk into the earth,” (he thought
the walls were swallowed up rather than overthrown,) “clearly saw them to be the
ruins of a city destroyed by a miracle, and not by the hand of men.” Cursed be the
man that buildeth this city — That is, that shall attempt to build it. So this curse was
restrained to the builder, but no way belonged to those who should inhabit it after it
was built, as is evident from 2 Kings 2:18; Luke 19:5. In his youngest son — That is,
he shall lose all his children in the work, the first at the beginning, others in the
progress of it, and the youngest in the close, when the gates were wont to be set up.
This was exactly fulfilled, as we read, (1 Kings 16:34,) Hiel the Bethelite built
Jericho: he laid the foundation thereof in Abiram his firstborn, who died in the
beginning of the work, and set up the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, who

134. died when it was finished, and the gates were setting up.
COKE, "Ver. 26. And Joshua adjured them at that time, saying, &c.— As soon as
the city of Jericho was razed and destroyed, Joshua convened the chiefs and elders
of the tribes, to signify to them the divine intention that this idolatrous city should
never be rebuilt. Accordingly, he engaged them by oath never to raise it again; and
these, certainly, bound the people in like manner, on pain of the divine malediction.
This prudent general thought himself unable to erect a monument better adapted to
the greatness of God, than to leave Jericho for ever buried in its ruins, thereby to
announce to posterity his justice against wicked and incorrigible idolaters, and his
beneficent power in favour of his people, whom he had caused to triumph over the
inhabitants of Jericho in the most miraculous manner.
Cursed be the man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho!—
It is not of himself, but in the name and by the order of Jehovah, that Joshua here
pronounces an anathema upon whoever shall dare to raise again the walls of
Jericho. The view in which we have placed this command was pointed out by
Maimonides. Joshua, says he, pronounced a curse against those who should build up
Jericho, that the remembrance of the miracle which God had wrought by destroying
it might never be effaced; for all who looked on these ruins thus sunk into the earth,
clearly saw them to be the ruins of a city destroyed by a miracle, and not by the
hand of men. More ev. p. ii. c. 5. We may see from this passage, that Maimonides
thought the walls of Jericho were swallowed up by the earth, rather than
overthrown. In ancient history we meet with repeated instances of like imprecations
and prohibitions to rebuild cities, whose perfidy or violence it was intended to
punish, and whose power it was feared should be again revived. Thus Agamemnon
cursed every one who should dare to build again the walls of Troy, Strabo, lib. xiii.
p. 898; Croesus those who should rebuild Sidena. Ibid. and Scipio Africanus those
who should attempt to repair Carthage. Zonar. Annal. lib. ix. p. 149. Cicero de Leg.
Agr. Orat. 2.
He shall lay the foundation, &c.— i.e. "All the children of such a man, from the
greatest even to the least, shall be smitten with a premature death before the
enterprise be finished; his first-born shall die when he begins to rear up the walls of
this city, and his younger when he setteth up the gates thereof!" This prophetic
malediction was literally accomplished about five hundred and fifty years after, in
the person of Hiel, the Beth-elite, who, under the reign of Ahaz, laid the foundation
of Jericho, in Abiram his first-born; and set up the gate, thereof, in his youngest son
Segub. When, tempted by the situation of the territory in which Jericho lay, Hiel
had ventured, through a criminal ignorance of Joshua's prediction, or rather
through unbelief, to rebuild this city at a small distance from the spot where it was
originally placed, no one made any scruple of settling there; and the design of God
seemed not to have been for prohibiting it. We see there a college of prophets; Elijah
and Elisha frequented it (2 Kings 2:15-18.); and after that our Saviour honoured it
with his presence and miracles. Luke 19:1; Luke 19:48. Long before Hiel's time,

135. some one had already raised some of the ruins of Jericho. We should at least
apprehend so, if Jericho was the same as the city of palm-trees; for this last
subsisted in the time of Eglon, Judges 3:13.; and it was at Jericho that David
ordered his ambassadors to remain till their beards, which had been cut off by the
command of king Hanun, were grown again; 2 Samuel 10:4-5. Jericho, at present, is
almost entirely deserted; having but thirty or forty little houses in it, which serve as
a retreat for some poor Moors and Arabs who live there like the beasts. The plain of
Jericho produces hardly any thing more than some few wild trees, and bad fruit,
which grow spontaneously without cultivation. We must not, however, pass over the
roses of Jericho, or its oil, so excellent for wounds, which they extract from a fruit
called by the Arabs za-cho-ne.
REFLECTIO S.— ow is the hour of Jericho's destruction come. At Joshua's
command, the hosts of Israel shout aloud; at the signal given by the trumpet's long
blast, and according to their faith, this proud city's walls fall down before them.
Such will be the triumphant shout of the Israel of God, when, under the conduct of
the divine Joshua, they shall, in the last hour of their warfare, see all their foes laid
low before them, and with their expiring breath triumph over death, their last
enemy, and march through the breaches of the grave to the possession of the city of
the living God.
K&D 26-27, "Jos_6:26-27
But in order to complete the ban pronounced upon Jericho in perfect accordance with
the command of God in Deu_13:17, and to make the destruction of it a memorial to
posterity of the justice of God sanctifying itself upon the ungodly, Joshua completed the
ban with an oath: “Cursed be the man before the Lord that riseth up and buildeth this
city Jericho; he shall lay the foundation thereof at the price of his first-born, and set up
its gates at the price of his youngest son” ( ְ denoting the price of a thing). The
rhythmical parallelism is unmistakeable in this curse. The two last clauses express the
thought that the builder of the town would pay for its restoration by the loss of all his
sons, from the first-born to the very youngest. The word “buildeth,” however, does not
refer to the erection of houses upon the site of the town that had been burnt to ashes, but
to the restoration of the town as a fortification, the word ‫ה‬ָ‫נ‬ ָ being frequently used to
denote the fortification of a town (e.g., 1Ki_15:17; 2Ch_11:6; 2Ch_14:5-6). This is
evident in general from the fact that a town is not founded by the erection of a number of
houses upon one spot, but by the joining of these houses together into an enclosed whole
by means of a surrounding wall, but more particularly from the last words of the verse,
in which ‫ה‬ָ‫נ‬ ָ is explained as ‫ה‬ָ ֶ‫ד‬ ְ ַ‫י‬ְ‫י‬ (lay the foundation thereof) and ָ‫יה‬ ֶ‫ת‬ ָ‫ל‬ ְ ‫יב‬ ִ ַ‫י‬ (set up the
gates of it). Setting up the gates of a town is not setting up doors to the houses, but
erecting town-gates, which can only be done when a town-wall has been built. But if
setting up the gates would be a sign of the completion of the wall, and therefore of the
restoration of the town as a fortification, the “founding” (laying the foundation)
mentioned in the parallel clause can only be understood as referring to the foundation of
the town-wall. This view of the curse, which is well supported both by the language and
the facts, is also confirmed by the subsequent history. Joshua himself allotted Jericho to
the Benjamites along with certain other towns (Jos_18:21), which proves that he
intended them to inhabit it; and accordingly we find the city of palms, i.e., Jericho,

136. mentioned afterwards as an inhabited place (Jdg_3:13; 2Sa_10:5), and yet it was not till
the time of Ahab that Joshua's curse was fulfilled, when Hiel the Bethelite undertook to
make it into a fortified town (1Ki_16:34).
(Note: Knobel's opinion, that the Jericho mentioned between the times of Joshua
and Ahab in all probability did not stand upon the old site which Hiel was the first to
build upon again, is at variance with 1Ki_16:34, as it is not stated there that he
rebuilt the old site of Jericho, but that he began to build the town of Jericho, which
existed, according to 2Sa_10:5 and Jdg_3:13, in the time of David, and even of the
judges, i.e., to restore it as a fortified town; and it is not raised into a truth by any
appeal to the statements of Strabo, Appian, and others, to the effect that Greeks and
Romans did not choose places for building upon which any curse rested.)
Jos_6:27
Thus the Lord was with Joshua, fulfilling His promise to him (Jos_1:5.), so that his
fame spread through all the land.
27 So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame
spread throughout the land.
CLARKE,"So the Lord was with Joshua - Giving him miraculous assistance in
all his enterprises; and this was what he was naturally led to expect from the
communication made to him by the captain of the Lord’s host, Jos_5:14, etc.
1. Many attempts have been made either to deny the miracle in the fall of Jericho, or
to account for it on natural causes. Reference has already been made to some of
these in the note on Jos_6:20. But to those who believe the Divine authenticity of
the New Testament, every objection of this kind is removed by the authority of the
author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, Heb_11:30; By Faith the walls of Jericho fell
down, after they had been compassed about seven days. Hence we find that it was
a miraculous interference; and that Joshua’s faith in the promise made to him by
the captain of the Lord’s host, was the instrument which God chose to employ in
the accomplishment of this important purpose.
2. The same is said of Rahab: By Faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that
believed not, when she had received the spies with peace, Heb_11:31. She believed
that the true God was on the side of the Hebrews, and that all opposition to them
must be in vain; and this faith led her to put herself under the Divine protection,
and in virtue of it she escaped the destruction that fell on her countrymen. Thus
God has ever chosen to put honor on faith, as the instrument by which he will
perform his greatest miracles of justice and mercy. God, who cannot lie, has given

137. the promise; he that believes shall have it accomplished; for with God nothing
shall be impossible, and all things are possible to him that believes. These are
Scriptural maxims, and God cannot deny himself.
3. On the curse pronounced by Joshua on those who should rebuild Jericho, it may
be necessary to make a few remarks. In ancient history we have many instances of
execrations against those who should rebuild those cities which had been
destroyed in war, the revival of whose power and influence was dreaded; especially
such cities as had been remarkable for oppression, insolence, or perfidy. Strabo
observes, lib. xiii., p. 898, ed. 1707, that Agamemnon pronounced execrations on
those who should rebuild Troy, as Croesus did against those who should rebuild
Sidena, in which the tyrant Glaucias had taken refuge; and this mode of execrating
cities, according to Strabo, was an ancient custom - Ειτε και καταρασαµενου του
Αγαµεµνονος κατα παλαιον εθος· καθαπερ και ᆇ Κροισος εξελων την Σιδηνην, εις ᅧν ᆇ
τυραννος κατεφυγε Γλαυκιας, αρας εθετο κατα των τειχιουντων παλιν τον τοπον. The
Romans made a decree full of execrations against those who should rebuild
Carthage, which had been the rival of their empire; and which, from its
advantageous situation, might again become formidable should it be rebuilt. See
Zonaras, Anal. The Ionians, according to Isocrates, pronounced the most awful
execrations on those who should rebuild the temples destroyed by the Persians,
that they might remain to posterity an endless monument of the impiety of those
barbarians; and that none might put confidence in a people who were so wicked as
to make war on the gods themselves. The other Greeks who had suffered by the
Persians acted in the same way, leaving the desolated temples as a public
monument of the enmity that should ever subsist between the two nations. See
Calmet, and see the notes on Num_22:6.
GILL, "So the Lord was with Joshua,.... Counselling and directing him what to do,
prospering and succeeding him in all that he engaged; the Targum is,"the Word of the
Lord was for the help of Joshua;''the essential Word, Christ the Son of God, called the
Captain of the Lord's host, Jos_5:14; and who, continued with him speaking to him and
giving him orders, Jos_6:2,
and his fame was noised throughout all the country; for his wisdom and
courage, for the wonderful things done for him and by him, and the great success that
attended him, through the power and presence of God with him; which struck terror into
the inhabitants of the land, and made his conquest of it the more easy.
HE RY, "Lastly, All this magnified Joshua and raised his reputation (Jos_6:27); it
made him not only acceptable to Israel, but formidable to the Canaanites, because it
appeared that God was with him of a truth: the Word of the Lord was with him, so the
Chaldee, even Christ himself, the same that was with Moses. Nothing can more raise a
man's reputation, nor make him appear more truly great, than to have the evidences of
God's presence with him.
PETT, "Verse 27
‘So YHWH was with Joshua, and his fame was in all the land.’

138. At what had happened fear spread throughout Canaan. The name of Joshua was on
every tongue. Or was it the name of YHWH? In the final analysis it was both. But
far more important was the fact that YHWH was with him.
BE SO ,"Joshua 6:27. So the Lord was with Joshua — The Chaldee interprets it,
The Word of the Lord was with him, even Christ, the eternal Word, the same that
was with Moses. othing makes a man more truly great than to have evidences that
God is with him.