The Fall of Jericho
Joshua 6Now Jericho was closed-closed because of the children of Israel. No one went out, and no one came in. YHWH said to Joshua, “Look, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and the valiant warriors. Y’all are to march around the city, all of your men of war, circling the city once. Do this for six days. Seven priests are to bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day, y’all are to march around the city seven times, while the priests blow the trumpets. When they make a long blast with the ram’s horn and when y’all hear the sound of the trumpet, have all the army give a loud shout. Then the city wall will fall down flat, and the people are to go up, every man straight in front of him.”
Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said to them, “Y’all pick up the ark of the covenant, and have seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark of YHWH.”
He said to the army, “Advance y’all! March around the city, and have the armed men go ahead of the ark of YHWH.”
And it was so. When Joshua spoke to the army, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns ahead of YHWH advanced and blew the trumpets, and the ark of YHWH’s covenant followed them. The armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and the ark went after them. The trumpets sounded as they went.
Joshua commanded the people, saying, “Y’all must not shout nor let y’all’s voice be heard. Don’t let any word proceed form y’all’s mouth until the day I tell y’all to shout. Then y’all are to shout.” So he caused the ark of YHWH to go around the city, circling it once. Then they came into the camp, and stayed in the camp. Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of YHWH. The seven priests carrying the seven rams’ horns in front of the ark of YHWH marched-and-marched, blowing the trumpets. The armed men went in front of them. The rear guard came after the ark of YHWH. The trumpets sounded as they went. The second day they marched around the city once, and returned into the camp. They did this six days.
On the seventh day, they rose early at the dawning of the day, and marched around the city in the same way seven times. On this day only they marched around the city seven times. At the seventh time, when the priests blew the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Y’all shout, for YHWH has given y’all the city! The city and all that is in it, is to be devoted to YHWH. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in the house may live, because she hid the messengers that we sent. But y’all must be careful when you are setting apart what is devoted for destruction. If y’all take from the devoted things, y’all will make the camp of Israel devoted for destruction and bring trouble on it. All the silver, gold, and vessels of bronze and iron are holy to YHWH, which must come into YHWH’s treasury.”
So the people shouted and the priests blew the trumpets. 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 in front of him, and they took the city. They utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, both young and old, and ox, sheep, and donkey, with the edge of the sword. Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Y’all go into the prostitute’s house, and bring the woman and all that she has out from there, as y’all swore to her.” The young men who were spies went in, and brought out Rahab with her father, her mother, her brothers, and all that she had. They also brought out all of her relatives, and they set them outside of the camp of Israel. They burned the city with fire, and all that was in it. Only they put the silver, the gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron into the treasury of the house of YHWH. But Rahab the prostitute, her father’s household, and all that she had, Joshua saved alive. She lives in the middle of Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
Joshua commanded them with an oath at that time, saying, “Cursed is the man before YHWH who rises up and builds this city Jericho. With the loss of his firstborn he will lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he will set up its gates.” So YHWH was with Joshua; and his fame was in all the land.