Joshua 6:1-11

Instructions for Attacking Jericho Joshua 6:1-11

Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.
2 And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor.
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.
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 priests shall blow with the trumpets.
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.
6 And Joshua the son of Nun 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.
7 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.
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.
9 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.
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.
11 So the ark of the Lord compassed the city, going about it once: and they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp.

1.

Why was Jericho straitly shut up? Joshua 6:1

The strongly fortified city of Jericho was shut up tightly because of the fear of the Israelite people which gripped the inhabitants. When all the kings of the Amorites who were on the side of the Jordan westward and all the kings of the Canaanites which were by the sea heard how the Lord had dried up the waters of Jordan from before the children of Israel, their hearts melted. There was no spirit in them any more because of the children of Israel (Joshua 5:1). These pagan people knew the Israelites were blessed by God himself. The actual Hebrew text says Jericho did shut and was shut up, an emphatic way of saying it was tightly closed against anyone going out or anyone coming into the city. The inhabitants were expecting an attack, and they were trying to prevent any infiltration of the enemy by securely locking up the city. They were also preventing any of the inhabitants giving aid to the Israelites or surrendering to them.

2.

What was the angel's commission? Joshua 6:2

All the Israelite men of war were to go around the town once a day for six days. As they marched in this manner around the city, seven priests were to carry seven jubilee trumpets before the Ark. This implies that the Ark itself was to be carried around the city in solemn procession. On the seventh day they were to march around the town seven times, and the priests were to blow the trumpets, When there was a blast on the jubilee horn, the people were to raise a great cry. Then the wall of the town would fall down.

3.

What were the seven trumpets? Joshua 6:4

The trumpets of rams-' horns are the same as the rams-' horn in verse five. They were not the silver trumpets of the priests (Numbers 10:1 ff.), but large horns, or instruments in the shape of a horn, which gave a loud far-sounding tone (see Leviticus 23:24; Leviticus 25:11). These horns were not the trumpets which were blown to signal the beginning of a march. They were the horns which were sounded as feast days were announced. The use of these horns for this predominantly military engagement would give a religious significance to the conquest of Jericho.

4.

In what order were the people to march? Joshua 6:7-10

The Ark, with the priests in front carrying the trumpets of rams-' horns, was to form the center of the procession. One portion of the fighting men was to go in front of it; the rest, to follow after. The priests were to blow the trumpets every time they marched around during the seven days. It was not until the seventh time of going around, on the seventh day that the people were to raise the war cry at the command of Joshua. Then the walls of the town were to fall.

5.

Why were the people to keep silent until the horns were blown? Joshua 6:10

The people were not to depend upon themselves at all for the conquest of the city until God had wrought His mighty act of deliverance. The sound of the trumpets of rams-' horns was to serve as a signal for the raising of the great war cry by the people of Israel. The blowing of a trumpet is frequently introduced into the writings of the prophets. The trumpet signaled the manifestation of the Lord in great judgments. The blowing of the trumpets and the raising of the war cry of Israel would encourage her soldiers to rise and fight. It would also throw terror into the hearts of the enemies.