Joshua 6:1-27 - Victory at Jericho
Introduction: Stacking the Deck
Welcome to The Well. I am so glad you are here tonight. We are experimenting a little bit with a new bumper video thing today. We realized at our new campus—which is why I’m late, by the way—that there are no stairs to the front of the stage. If our teachers want to worship, it’s a long walk to get around. So, thank you for being the guinea pigs while we play with the flow of things.
If you have your Bibles, we are in Joshua chapter six. If you missed last week, let me give a shameless plug for that message. Truthfully, I got to hear Mike teach it twice, and it was one of the best messages I have ever heard my dear friend teach in the twenty years I’ve sat under him. It dealt with a weighty subject: the issue of genocide as it relates to our Bible. It was biblically sound, pastoral, and scholarly. As the guy coming up after him to deal with the issue of Haram—what it means to put a city under the ban—it was very helpful for me that he set that up. If you missed it, it is definitely worth going back to take a look.
If you haven’t been with us for this series, you need to know one thing: God is completely stacking the deck against Himself over and over again. Chapters one through five are really about God making it as hard for Himself as possible. The Israelites cross the Jordan River, so now there is no retreat. Instead of building fortifications, they build a rock pile to the Lord. Then, God tells Joshua to completely incapacitate his entire army through circumcision. After that, they wait another day to celebrate the Passover. Militarily speaking, it is the most ridiculous plan ever conceived by man, but thankfully, God was the one driving the process.
The Captain of the Lord’s Host
As we saw last week, Joshua is staring at a fortified city. Jericho was one of the largest fortified cities in the land. As Joshua looks at it, he realizes he has no battering rams, no siege works, no rolling towers, and no catapults. He has an army with some slingshots, spears, and arrows—none of which are helpful for laying siege to a fortress. He also has no battle plan. He has no idea how this is going to be won or what the marching orders are.
Envision this as a leader: you have an estimated two million people behind you. You’re looking at these walls, and you know every single one of those people is asking, “How are we going to do that?” And you have no answer. In chapter five, Joshua drifts away from the crowd and has an encounter with a very special person. He is called the Captain of the Lord of Hosts. This appears to be a theophany—a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ. He’s standing there with His sword drawn. Joshua asks, “Are you for us or against us?” The figure basically says, “I don’t fight for them, and I certainly don’t work for you. In fact, take your shoes off, because the place you’re standing is holy ground.”
Joshua now has his orders. He’s getting a pre-action briefing from the Lord Himself. But first, we get a little “meanwhile, back in Jericho” update.
Joshua 6:1 (NASB)
Now Jericho was tightly shut because of the sons of Israel; no one went out and no one came in.
The city is on total lockdown. Why? Because of what we saw in chapter two. Rahab, the prostitute, told the spies that the hearts of the people had melted when they heard what God did to the Egyptians. Word had spread. The people in the city were terrified. They locked the gates, determined not to let any more spies in, but they had no idea how to stop a people who had just destroyed the most powerful nation in the region.
A Prophetic Victory
Now comes verse two. The Lord—the Captain of the Lord’s armies—gives the marching orders. He says, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and its valiant warriors.”
Joshua 6:2 (NASB)
The LORD said to Joshua, ’See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king [and] the valiant warriors.
Notice two things here. First, He says, “I have given Jericho into your hands.” This is what we call a “prophetic perfect.” Even though the battle hasn’t started, it’s already over. Second, the battle plan comes entirely from the Lord. This battle is about removing wickedness and putting an end to gross immorality that had gone unchecked for six hundred years. Judgment has finally come.
So, what is the plan? God tells Joshua to have the men of war march around the city once a day for six days. Seven priests will carry seven trumpets—shofars made of rams’ horns—before the Ark. On the seventh day, they are to march around seven times. Then, the priests will make one long blast. When the people hear that sound, they are to shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat. It won’t just have a breach in the gate; the whole thing will disintegrate.
Now, put yourself in Joshua’s shoes. You have two million people behind you and you say, “Okay, here’s the plan: we’re going to walk. We aren’t going to take out the water source or burn the grain fields. We’re just going to walk around and blow some horns, then go back to our tents.”
On face value, it sounds completely insane. It makes zero sense. But I appreciate Joshua’s obedience. Even though it didn’t make sense, he responded. He called the priests together and told them to take up the Ark.
The Sound of Jubilee
It’s worth noting that the shofar was a trumpet of Jubilee. It wasn’t an instrument for playing “Reveille”; it was an instrument of celebration and worship. In the book of Leviticus, the Jubilee was when the game board of life was cleared—debts were forgiven and land was returned to original owners.
Leviticus 25:9-10 (NASB)
’You shall then sound a ram’s horn abroad on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the day of atonement you shall sound a horn all through your land. ’You shall thus consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim a release through the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, and each of you shall return to his own property, and each of you shall return to his family.
So, the procession begins: armed men in front, priests blowing trumpets and carrying the Ark, and more armed men behind. And Joshua gives a very specific command: total silence from the people. No shouting, no talking, just the sound of the shofars.
How long would this take? We often think of Jericho as a massive metropolitan city, but archaeologically, it was likely only six to eight acres. To give you perspective, our North Campus here is five acres. This wasn’t a day-long hike; it was a fifteen-minute stroll. Imagine being at the campfire that night. The guys are sitting around like, “Did you see what we did today? We went for a walk, didn’t say a word, and were back before brunch.”
They did this for six days. Rise, walk, blow the trumpet, return, repeat. What were the people in Jericho thinking? “These are the people who took out Egypt? These flute-playing guys?” Maybe they were starting to get overconfident. But on the seventh day, everything changed.
The Walls Come Down
On the seventh day, they rose at dawn and marched seven times. On the seventh circuit, the priests gave the long blast, and Joshua told the people, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the city!”
Joshua 6:20 (NASB)
So the people shouted, and [priests] blew the trumpets; and when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted with a great shout and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight ahead, and they took the city.
The wall fell flat. The text makes a point to say that the people went straight in from exactly where they were standing. Every part of the wall collapsed—except for one. One section stayed standing: the house of Rahab.
The city had been given time to repent. They had heard the stories for forty years, but they hardened their hearts. They chose to stay and fight, and so they were destroyed. But even in the midst of judgment, we see God’s grace. Joshua sends the two spies to find Rahab and her family.
Hebrews 11:31 (NASB)
By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace.
Rahab had been sharing the story. She had been whispering in the ears of everyone she loved that judgment was coming and they needed to repent. And because she believed, she and her entire household were saved. She was spared, and she lived in the midst of Israel from then on.
If you know the rest of the story, Rahab doesn’t just join Israel; she ends up in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. It’s a beautiful picture of redemption. I don’t know what your life is like, but it really isn’t about how you start; it’s about how you finish. I don’t care what you’ve done or how much shame you feel—the Gospel is enough to redeem you, just like it did Rahab.
The Curse of Jericho
After the victory, Joshua curses the city. He says that whoever tries to rebuild Jericho will do so at the cost of his firstborn and his youngest son. Now, I love how the Bible interprets the Bible. You might wonder if that ever actually happened. Well, centuries later, a man named Hiel tried to rebuild it.
1 Kings 16:34 (NASB)
In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho; he laid its foundations with the [loss of] Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates with the [loss of] his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.
Just as Joshua prophesied, Hiel lost his oldest son when he laid the foundation and his youngest when he set up the gates. God’s word stands.
So, what are the implications for us today? I think there are a few principles we can pull from this. First, the Lord is always accomplishing His purposes, even when it doesn’t make sense. Joshua must have been wondering why God didn’t just send a chariot of fire or an earthquake. Instead, he got a walking plan.
In your life, you will see things happen that feel like they are against you, not for you. We assume that because God is good, circumstances should always be good. But God is often doing something we can’t see. There was a guy in the Bible with a tough name, Habakkuk, who complained to God about the violence and injustice he saw.
Habakkuk 1:2-4 (NASB)
How long, O LORD, will I call for help, And You will not hear? I cry out to You, ‘Violence!’ Yet You do not save. Why do You make me see iniquity, And cause [me] to look on wickedness? Yes, destruction and violence are before me; Strife exists and contention arises. Therefore the law is ignored And justice is never upheld. For the wicked surround the righteous; Therefore justice comes out perverted.
Have you ever prayed like that? If you haven’t, you should, because you feel it anyway. Why sanitize your prayers? God knows your heart. And look at God’s response to him.
Habakkuk 1:5 (NASB)
’Look among the nations! Observe! Be astonished! Wonder! Because [I am] doing something in your days– You would not believe if you were told.
Some of you have a little gray hair, which gives you the advantage of looking back a few decades. You can remember things you prayed for where God said “no,” and you threw a tantrum. But now you can see the scarlet thread of redemption. You see that God was accomplishing His purposes even when it felt like the sky was falling.
Growing Through Difficulty
We are a relatively “soft-handed” people when it comes to God. We don’t have many calluses or scars, so we assume if life is good, God is good. But if you look back at the times you grew the most spiritually, I bet they were surrounded by pain and difficulty.
In pastoral ministry, I’ve been with people in the most awful “coroner moments.” It’s heartbreaking. And yet, you see what God does through pain.
Romans 8:16-18 (NASB)
The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with [Him] so that we may also be glorified with [Him]. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
There is purpose in the suffering. It’s like going to the gym in January after a year off. You lift everything and hate yourself the next week because you’re in pain. But that pain is your body growing. Your spirit is developed through trials. If life is always easy, you’ll never grow. Paul says these “momentary light afflictions” are producing an eternal weight of glory.
2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (NASB)
For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
James tells us to consider it joy when we encounter trials because the testing of faith produces endurance.
James 1:2-4 (NASB)
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have [its] perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
As parents, we want to rescue our kids from everything. But if we always rescue them, they never grow. God, as a loving Father, does the same for us.
Worship as the First Move
In the midst of the unknown and the confusion of the battle plan, the first move for the people of God was worship. God set it up that way: blow the shofar. Turn to Me. Trust Me.
Psalm 13 is one of my favorites. The Psalmist starts by asking, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?”
Psalms 13:1-6 (NASB)
For the choir director. A Psalm of David. How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? How long shall I take counsel in my soul, [Having] sorrow in my heart all the day? How long will my enemy be exalted over me? Consider [and] answer me, O LORD my God; Enlighten my eyes, or I will sleep the [sleep of] death, And my enemy will say, ‘I have overcome him,’ [And] my adversaries will rejoice when I am shaken. But I have trusted in Your lovingkindness; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, Because He has dealt bountifully with me.
The circumstances don’t necessarily change by the end of the Psalm, but the Psalmist remembers God’s track record. He says, “I have trusted in Your lovingkindness… I will sing to the Lord.”
What is your first move when difficulty hits? For many of us, our first move is the flesh. We turn to medication, anger, numbing, or hiding. What would it look like if our first move was worship? It’s not saying there is no suffering; it’s saying that in the presence of suffering, we move toward Him, not away from Him.
Hope in the Midst of Judgment
Finally, notice that with God, there is always hope in the midst of judgment. Whether it’s the Garden of Eden, Noah’s Ark, or Sodom and Gomorrah, there is always a sense of grace.
Jericho was destroyed, but Rahab was saved. Salvation was universally offered through the narrow means God provided. She had to put the scarlet thread in the window. Only those who believed in God’s provision were rescued. That principle was true then, and it is true now.
The Bible says humanity has an issue called sin, and God will deal with that in judgment. But He provided a way out.
John 3:16-17 (NASB)
’For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. ’For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.
We tend to assume all the work was done on the cross. The work of salvation was done on the cross, but the work of judgment still remains. When Jesus returns in Revelation 19, He comes to bring judgment. But hope is offered before that day comes.
John 14:6 (NASB)
Jesus said to him, ’I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
Sin is a divine offense, and the only way to deal with a divine offense is a divinely provided sacrifice. Knowing that judgment is coming, He has given us hope. If you’ve never turned to Christ, I encourage you to do it. You will not be disappointed. It won’t always be easy, and you will still have trials, but you will have the One who rescues us.
God is always accomplishing His purposes, even when it makes no sense. Worship is the proper response to difficulty. And thanks be to God, there is always hope.
Closing Prayer
God, we are grateful for these practical lessons from a story centuries old. Thank You for the faith of these men and women who followed You through the impossible. Here You are, yet again, stacking the deck against Yourself and defeating a fortified city just because someone said “boo.”
You are a good and faithful God. Thank You for the privilege we have to walk out this messy process of life with You, knowing Jesus is the one who rescues us from the judgment to come. As we go about our week, help us to be mindful of You. I don’t know what the sufferings in each of our lives look like, but I know that You are faithful and accomplishing Your purposes. Teach us to turn to You and worship even when things are hard. We love You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.