PROLOGUE — A Method of Warfare Overturning Common Sense
Joshua 6 records Israel’s first battle in the conquest of Canaan. But this battle is fought in a way found in no military manual — no siege weapons, no ladders, only marching and the sound of trumpets.
ACT ONE — Six Days of Silent Marching (verses 1–14)
“And the LORD said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour… And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.”
Once a day… for six days. God’s command was not an immediate attack, but a repeated, silent march over six days. This must have been less a military threat than an incomprehensible psychological pressure on the inhabitants of Jericho.
The people obeyed this strange command precisely.
“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.”
ACT TWO — The Seventh Day, Seven Times Around, and a Great Shout (verses 15–20)
“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. 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.”
The seventh day… seven times… shout. The repeated number “seven” — a number symbolizing completeness throughout Scripture — emphasizes the divine origin of this conquest. And finally, the dramatic result appeared.
“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.”
The wall fell down flat. No siege weapon was used — the walls fell through obedient marching and a shout of faith alone. Hebrews 11:30 explicitly records this event as an example of faith.
ACT THREE — Rahab’s Deliverance, and the Complete Destruction of the City (verses 21–27)
After the city fell, Rahab and her family were saved, exactly as the spies had promised (chapter 2).
“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… 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.”
She dwelleth in Israel even unto this day. Even at the time the author was writing this, Rahab’s descendants still lived within Israel — evidence that a foreign woman’s faith had actually become a legacy carried on through generations.
Joshua proclaimed a solemn curse over the rebuilding of this city.
“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.”
REFLECTION — A Victory Won Through Incomprehensible Obedience
What Joshua 6 teaches us is that God’s methods often transcend human logic and strategy. The silent march, the sound of trumpets, the shout — these were never acts of military wisdom, but acts of pure obedience. And through that very obedience, a seemingly impossible victory was achieved.
Even in circumstances you cannot fully understand, can you trust and obey God’s own way of doing things?
NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW
Joshua Chapter 7 — Achan’s secret sin, and the unexpected defeat at Ai that follows, unfold.
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