Joshua 6

The narrative of Israel's conquest of Jericho serves as a foundational account where the Lord grants victory not through traditional military siege, but through obedient liturgical action. It emphasizes that Israel's success in Canaan was entirely dependent upon Yahweh's direct intervention and the people's adherence to His commands.

• The Lord gives Joshua the unconventional tactical plan: marching in silence around the city for six days followed by a seven-fold procession on the seventh.
• The people, including the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant, obey the instructions with strict silence and order.
• On the seventh day, after the final circuit and the sounding of the shofars, the people shout, and the walls collapse.
• The city is placed under the 'herem' (ban of destruction), and Rahab's household is secured as promised, while the spoils of metal are devoted to the Lord's treasury.
• Joshua pronounces a curse upon any future builder of the city.

• Jericho (יְרִיחוֹ H3405) as the first major obstacle in Canaan
• Seven priests (כֹּהֵן H3548) with seven trumpets (שׁוֹפָר H7782)
• The Ark of the Covenant (אָרוֹן H727) leading the procession
• The mandatory silence of the army until the final shout
• The preservation of Rahab and her family

This passage establishes the conquest of Canaan as an act of holy war mandated by God, rather than a mere geopolitical expansion; it demonstrates that victory belongs to the Lord, not human strategy.

Faithful obedience to the specific, often counter-intuitive instructions of the Lord is the prerequisite for witnessing His divine power.

The text builds tension through the repetitive, silent processions of the first six days, leading to a climactic, explosive release of sound and power on the seventh day.

• I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour (v. 2)

• Ye shall compass the city (v. 3)
• Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice (v. 10)
• Keep yourselves from the accursed thing (v. 18)

• Lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it (v. 18)
• Cursed be the man before the Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho (v. 26)

• Jericho was a strategic, heavily fortified city guarding the ascent from the Jordan Valley to the central highlands of Canaan.

• Ancient Near Eastern warfare typically involved either direct assault or protracted siege by starvation; here, the use of a liturgical procession with the Ark (אָרוֹן H727) transforms the event into a divine demonstration of ownership and judgment.

• This chapter follows the renewal of the covenant at Gilgal and the appearance of the Captain of the Lord's host, setting the stage for the first conquest.

• Matthew Henry observes that Jericho serves as a 'solemn and awful sacrifice to the justice of God' on those who had filled up the measure of their sins. This emphasizes the judicial nature of the conquest rather than arbitrary violence.
• The ban (cherem) reflects the concept of total devotion to the Lord, which in other contexts implies total destruction to prevent syncretism.

• Hebrews 11:30 explicitly cites the faith of the people as the cause for the walls falling.
• Joshua 6:26 is historically fulfilled in 1 Kings 16:34, when Hiel the Bethelite builds Jericho.

• Jericho (יְרִיחוֹ H3405): Often associated with the moon deity or fragrance; here it is the objective of the conquest.
• Shofar (שׁוֹפָר H7782): A curved ram's horn, used for signaling and, in this instance, ritual proclamation.
• Accursed (H2764, חֵרֶם - cherem): In this context, it carries the sense of something set apart as exclusively holy to God, often through destruction (as a sacrifice) or dedication (the treasury).

• The silence of the people for six days is a crucial part of the ritual discipline; they were not permitted to act on their own human desires or military instincts.

• The specific nature of the 'long blast' (v. 5) of the ram's horn (יוֹבֵל H3104) is debated; some scholars interpret it as a specific, sustained signaling note, while others see it as a signal for the jubilation that follows.