1 Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in. 2 And the LORD said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty men of valor. 3 You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. 4 Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 And when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then 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, everyone straight before him.” 6 So Joshua the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD.” 7 And he said to the people, “Go forward. March around the city and let the armed men pass on before the ark of the LORD.”
8 And just as Joshua had commanded the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the LORD went forward, blowing the trumpets, with the ark of the covenant of the LORD following them. 9 The armed men were walking before the priests who were blowing the trumpets, and the rear guard was walking after the ark, while the trumpets blew continually. 10 But Joshua commanded the people, “You shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout.” 11 So he caused the ark of the LORD to circle the city, going about it once. And they came into the camp and spent the night in the camp.
12 Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the LORD. 13 And the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD walked on, and they blew the trumpets continually. And the armed men were walking before them, and the rear guard was walking after the ark of the LORD, while the trumpets blew continually. 14 And the second day they marched around the city once, and returned into the camp. So they did for six days.
(ESV)
STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?
- What is the writer saying?
- How do I apply this to my life?
The city of Jericho was locked up tight. No people were allowed to leave or enter. Rahab had told the spies that the people were terrified of Israel and had no fight in them. Despite the impressive fortress that stood tall before them, the Commander of the Lord’s army told Joshua, “I have given Jericho into your hand.” With God, it was a promise, already a done deal. Now the battle plan. Have everyone march around the city. Seven priests must each carry a ram’s horn trumpet and march in front of the ark and blow them while the reset of Israel march in silence, then return to camp. This was to be done for six days. On the seventh day, they were to march around the city seven times and then at the end, at the sound of the trumpet, they were all to shout and the walls would fall down and every soldier could advance forward into the city.
Joshua didn’t question God’s plan. He immediately gathered the priests and arranged for the seven priests with ram’ horns to march before the ark of the Lord. He sent out armed men in front of the priests and a rear guard after the ark. He reminded the people not to make a sound until he gave the order to shout. So they marched around the city with the ark of the Lord and the ram’s horns blasting just once and returned to camp. They did this every day for six days.
In the Bible, the number seven often represents completeness or perfection. In this battle, there were seven priests, seven ram’s horns, seven days, and seven circuits of the city on the seventh day. Perhaps a foolish plan for man but the perfect plan for God. The ram’s horns were “jubilee trumpets” used during Israel’s feasts to remind the people of God’s presence (Num 10:10). The conquest of Jericho was primarily a religious campaign, not a military one.
God’s battle plan must have seemed very strange. The entire army was stretched out around the city. They were vulnerable to attack from the wall above. Jericho could have opened its gates, charged and broken through Israel’s line. They had no escalade ramps or ladders to breach the high wall. And after they marched around once, they headed back to their camp. Imagine the abuses they started to receive by days four and five. Perhaps the people of Jericho started laughing at them and insulting them from the walls asking if they thought they could frighten them with a ram’s horn.
God’s ways may seem strange to us. They might seem completely counterintuitive when we look at them with the wisdom of the world. But God’s ways are always about obedience. God asks us to obey Him and trust Him to work things out for us. Too often we try to short-curcuit God’s work in our lives by doing things our way. We want sexual gratification and won’t wait for marriage. We want marriage so we marry an unbeliever instead of waiting. We want change or are fearful so we move job or city without first seeing if God is calling us to something new. Instead, God expects faithful obedience today while we trust Him for tomorrow. Are you trying to scale a high wall in your life while God is asking you to simply march around it quietly for now?
Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan
Aaron Becomes Priest: Leviticus 8