Joshua 6
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 6[a]
Jericho Overtaken. 1 Now Jericho was shut up tight on account of the people of Israel, none went out and none came in. 2 The Lord said to Joshua, “Behold, I have given Jericho, its king, and its mighty warriors into your hands. 3 Your soldiers are to march all around the city once, doing that for six days. 4 Seven priests will carry seven trumpets made from ram’s horns in front of the Ark. On the seventh day you are to march around the city seven times while the priests blow their trumpets.[b] 5 Then they will make a long blast on the ram’s horns. As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, have all of the people give a great shout. The walls will fall down, and the people will go on up, every man in a straight line.”
6 So Joshua, the son of Nun, summoned the priests and said to them, “Take up the Ark of the Covenant. Have seven priests holding trumpets made from rams’ horns precede the Ark of the Lord.” 7 He gave the command to the people, “Advance! March around the city with the armed soldiers walking in front of the Ark of the Lord.” 8 When Joshua finished speaking to the people, the seven priests carrying trumpets made from rams’ horns walked in front of the Lord and moved forward, blowing their trumpets, and the Ark of the Lord followed them. 9 The armed soldiers marched in front of the priests who were blowing their trumpets, and a rear guard followed the Ark. The whole time the trumpets were being blown. 10 But Joshua commanded the people, “Do not shout or raise your voices. Do not say a thing until the day I tell you to shout. Then you are to shout.”
11 So he had the Ark of the Lord carried around the city once. They then went back into the camp where they spent the night. 12 Joshua rose early the next morning, and the priests took the Ark of the Lord. 13 The seven priests carrying the trumpets made from rams’ horns went ahead of the Ark of the Lord, blowing on their trumpets as they went. The armed soldiers marched in front of them, and a rear guard followed the Ark of the Lord, with the trumpets being blown the whole time. 14 Thus they went around the city once on the second day, and then they returned to the camp. They did this for six days in a row.
15 On the seventh day they rose at daybreak and went around the city seven times just as they had before, but that day they went around the city seven times. 16 On the seventh time around when the priests blew their trumpets, Joshua commanded the people, “Shout out, for the Lord has given you the city. 17 The city and all that is in it are devoted[c] to the Lord. Only Rahab the prostitute shall live, she and all who are in her household, for she hid the spies whom we sent there. 18 But avoid those things that are dedicated, lest you call a curse on yourself when you take something that is dedicated and you bring a curse and destruction upon the camp of Israel. 19 All the silver and gold and objects of bronze and iron are dedicated to the Lord. They must go into the treasury of the Lord.”
20 The people shouted and the priests blew their trumpets. When the people heard the sound of the trumpets and the people let out a great shout, the wall collapsed, and each man went up in a straight line and they took the city. 21 They wiped out everything that was in the city, men and women, young and old, ox and sheep and donkey, by the edge of the sword.
22 Rahab’s Family Spared. But Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the countryside, “Go to the harlot’s house and bring her out to me, her and everyone who is with her, just as you promised her that you would do.” 23 So the young men who had done the spying brought out Rahab, her father, her mother, her brothers, and everyone whom she had with her. They brought out the entire family and left them outside of the camp of Israel. 24 They then burned the entire city with everything that was in it. Only the silver and gold, and the objects of bronze and iron were put into the treasury in the house of the Lord. 25 But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, along with her father’s household, and all that she owned because she had hid the spies whom Joshua had sent. She lives among the Israelites up to the present.
26 Joshua then said, “May the man who attempts to rebuild this city, Jericho, be cursed by the Lord. May he lose his firstborn[d] if he lays its foundation, may he lose his youngest if he sets up its gates.” 27 The Lord was with Joshua, and his reputation became known throughout the land.
Footnotes
- Joshua 6:1 The entire ceremonial that precedes the fall of Jericho gives the event the character of a liturgical action rather than of a conquest; God is at work in giving the Promised Land to his people, just as he was at the crossing of the Jordan. The account is therefore not to be taken literally but as giving religious expression to a real intervention of God, whatever the manner of this intervention may have been. The story combines two different traditions that cannot be fully harmonized. One describes a procession accompanied by the playing of trumpets; the other says that the war shout was uttered after seven processional circlings of the city made in silence.
- Joshua 6:4 Such trumpets were weapons of war, intended to frighten the enemy (see Jdg 7:8-20) or to direct military operations (2 Sam 2:28; 20:22; Neh 4:12-14), but they were also used in some religious ceremonies, where they were accompanied by acclamations (Lev 25:9; 2 Chr 15:14).
- Joshua 6:17 Devoted: a reference to the anathema (i.e., consecrated to God), by which inhabitants and animals were condemned to destruction; the warriors were obliged not to take any booty; any precious objects were reserved for the sanctuary. In this case, the anathema has the character of simple destruction rather than of a complete offering to God.
- Joshua 6:26 Lose his firstborn: this is fulfilled in 1 Ki 16:34 when Jericho is rebuilt by a man whose son subsequently dies.
Joshua 6
New King James Version
The Destruction of Jericho
6 Now (A)Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel; none went out, and none came in. 2 And the Lord said to Joshua: “See! (B)I have given Jericho into your hand, its (C)king, and the mighty men of valor. 3 You shall march around the city, all you men of war; you shall go all around the city once. This you shall do six days. 4 And seven priests shall bear seven (D)trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. But the seventh day you shall march around the city (E)seven times, and (F)the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him.”
6 Then 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, “Proceed, and march around the city, and let him who is armed advance before the ark of the Lord.”
8 So it was, when Joshua had spoken to the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the Lord advanced and blew the trumpets, and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them. 9 The armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, (G)and the rear guard came after the ark, while the priests continued blowing the trumpets. 10 Now Joshua had commanded the people, saying, “You shall not shout or make any noise with your voice, nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I say to you, ‘Shout!’ Then you shall shout.” 11 So he had (H)the ark of the Lord circle the city, going around it once. Then they came into the camp and [a]lodged in the camp.
12 And Joshua rose early in the morning, (I)and the priests took up the ark of the Lord. 13 Then 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 rear guard came after the ark of the Lord, while the priests continued blowing the trumpets. 14 And the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. So they did six days.
15 But it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose early, about the dawning of the day, and marched around the city seven times in the same manner. On that day only they marched around the city seven times. 16 And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city! 17 Now the city shall be (J)doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it. Only (K)Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because (L)she hid the messengers that we sent. 18 And you, (M)by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, (N)and trouble it. 19 But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are [b]consecrated to the Lord; they [c]shall come into the treasury of the Lord.”
20 So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. And it happened when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that (O)the wall fell down flat. Then the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city. 21 And they (P)utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.
22 But Joshua had said to the two men who had spied out the country, “Go into the harlot’s house, and from there bring out the woman and all that she has, (Q)as you swore to her.” 23 And the young men who had been spies went in and brought out Rahab, (R)her father, her mother, her brothers, and all that she had. So they brought out all her relatives and left them outside the camp of Israel. 24 But they burned the city and all that was in it with fire. Only the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord. 25 And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father’s household, and all that she had. So (S)she dwells in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
26 Then Joshua [d]charged them at that time, saying, (T)“Cursed be the man before the Lord who rises up and builds this city Jericho; he shall lay its foundation with his firstborn, and with his youngest he shall set up its gates.”
27 So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout all the country.
Footnotes
- Joshua 6:11 spent the night
- Joshua 6:19 set apart
- Joshua 6:19 shall go
- Joshua 6:26 warned
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
