Jericho and Sabbath Observance
By Editor
WE heartily indorse the following from the Sunday School Times, in answer to the question if the Jews in compassing the city of Jericho seven days did not thereby violate the Sabbath:— "The record stands that they compassed the city six days, and that on the seventh day they compassed it seven times. This leaves no room for questioning that one of those seven days was the Sabbath. The rabbinical tradition is that the marching began on the first day of the week, and that therefore the last day of the siege was the Sabbath. However this may be, there is nothing in the record that is inconsistent with the true observance of the Sabbath by the Israelites on every one of the seven days. Were they doing their own work on those days? By no means. They were simply following the ark of the Lord; and that is good business for any believer on the Sabbath, or on any other day of the week. The work of destruction in Jericho did not, probably, begin until sundown of the seventh day. In fact, the siege of Jericho was simply a protracted meeting of seven days, with extra services on the last day of the week." That last sentence has the flavor of originality.