Jericho & The Mighty Hand of God

The reputation of the Israelites and their God is making headlines in Jericho. They are shaking in their boots.

Joshua 2
:24 And they [the two spies] said unto Joshua,
        Truly the Lord hath delivered into our hands all the land;
        for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us.

Joshua 3
:9 And she [Rahab] said unto the men,
        I know that the Lord hath given you the land,
        and that your terror is fallen upon us,
        and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.
:10   For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you,
            when ye came out of Egypt;
        and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites,
            that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og,
            whom ye utterly destroyed.
:11   And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt,
        neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you:
        for the Lord your God,
            he is God in heaven above,
            and in earth beneath.

Joshua 6
:1 Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel:
    none went out, and none came in.

This is definitely a strategic advantage to God's people. The inhabitants of Jericho has had their confidence shaken--they should be easily conquered. Looking at it with with the five senses; Joshua should gather his military cabinet together and plan for the attack of Jericho. They have a huge army, it shouldn't be too much trouble.

    God has a different plan:

: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.
: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, [Hebrew - under it]
        and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him.

Once again the five senses reasoning is subdued to the spiritual power of God. It is a spiritual battle. God has a spiritual answer. God is going to fight the battle for them. The victory will not be by the hand of Israel but by the mighty power of God.

: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 rereward 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.

Let us take a minute to reflect on this. Picture in your mind the priests, a company of individuals in their robes, some carrying the Ark of the Covenant, some carrying and blowing trumpets, making a trip around Jericho a great walled city. Following them is the army of Israel, which is not small. Just the army from Gad, Reuben and the half tribe of Manasseh added up to 40,000 (Joshua 4:12, 13)*, that doesn't count all of the men able to go to war from the remaining tribes.

:12 And Joshua rose early in the morning,
    and the priests took up the ark of the Lord.
: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.
:14 And the second day they compassed the city once,
    and returned into the camp: so they did six days.
: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.
:16 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.
:17  And the city shall be accursed, even it,
        and all that are therein, to the Lord:
        [Accursed is devoted in Hebrew. This is the first fruits of the Promised Land
         and all of it is to be given unto the house of 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.
:18  And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed [devoted] thing,
        lest ye make yourselves accursed, when ye take of the accursed thing,
        and make the camp of Israel a curse,
        and trouble it.
: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.
: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 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.
: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.
: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.
: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.
: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.
: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.
: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.
:27 So the Lord was with Joshua;
    and his fame was noised throughout all the country.

The people believed God's promises and God brought it to pass. It had nothing to do with circumstances or personality. God made his Word available, i.e.; the walls of Jericho will fall flat when you march around it in a specific way. The people believed God's Word and received the promise. God has not changed, He will take care of us completely, it's in His Word.

Hebrew 11
:31 By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not,
        when she had received the spies with peace.

Rahab perished NOT; Jericho was totally destroyed except for Rahab's family.

God is no respecter of persons. When people believe; God takes care of them.

Matthew 1
:5 And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab ;
    and Booz begat Obed of Ruth;
    and Obed begat Jesse;
:6 And Jesse Begat David the king;
    and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias;

Rahab shows up in the Christline .

The reason Israel was successful was because they believed God. God's answer to the situation was spiritual. It is not an easy thing to always trust God when our lives are continually bombarded with five-senses facts and circumstances. This is where knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that God has the solution for every aspect of our lives is critical.

An awesome book about a man whose faith was unshakable is George Muller, Delighted in God! by Roger Steer. From the back cover:

Here is the definitive life story of the man who lived by prayer and faith alone, housing and feeding thousands of homeless children in England, advertising his financial needs to no one but God. As George Muller delighted and trusted in God, his prayers were answered in the most seemingly impossible situations.

George Muller didn't let the circumstances deter him from believing God and acting on what he knew to be true from the Word of God. It truly is a twentieth century inspiration. Just like Joshua and Israel believed and received so can we.

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*
  The tribes of Reuben, Gad and half of the tribe of Manasseh found good land in Jazar and Gilead which is where they were camping with Moses before they came into the promised land. They beseeched Moses to let them stay there and Moses agreed as long as they sent their armies to help the rest of the tribes clear Canaan, which they agreed to. This is recorded in Numbers 32 and referenced in Joshua 1:12-17 and 4:12 and 13.