6 Now the gates of Jericho^(A) were securely barred because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in.

² Then the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have delivered^(B) Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. ³ March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. ⁴ Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns^(C) in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets.^{(D) 5} When you hear them sound a long blast^(E) on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout;^(F) then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.”

¹² Joshua got up early the next morning and the priests took up the ark of the Lord. ¹³ The seven priests carrying the seven trumpets went forward, marching before the ark of the Lord and blowing the trumpets. The armed men went ahead of them and the rear guard followed the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets kept sounding. ¹⁴ So on the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. They did this for six days.

¹⁵ On the seventh day, they got up at daybreak and marched around the city seven times in the same manner, except that on that day they circled the city seven times.^{(A) 16} The seventh time around, when the priests sounded the trumpet blast, Joshua commanded the army, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the city!^{(B) 17} The city and all that is in it are to be devoted^[a](C) to the Lord. Only Rahab the prostitute^(D) and all who are with her in her house shall be spared, because she hid^(E) the spies we sent. ¹⁸ But keep away from the devoted things,^(F) so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction^(G) and bring trouble^(H) on it. ¹⁹ All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron^(I) are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury.”

²⁰ When the trumpets sounded,^(J) the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout,^(K) the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.^{(L) 21} They devoted^(M) the city to the Lord and destroyed^(N) with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys.

Achan’s Sin

7 But the Israelites were unfaithful in regard to the devoted things^[a];^(A) Achan^(B) son of Karmi, the son of Zimri,^[b] the son of Zerah,^(C) of the tribe of Judah,^(D) took some of them. So the Lord’s anger burned^(E) against Israel.^(F)