Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.
Jericho was tightly shut because Israel was near, with no one going out and no one coming in, its gates kept carefully closed and guarded by mighty warriors while watchmen on the walls marked every move of Israel. Inside, the people were filled with fear and terror at the silent daily circuit of armed men, priests with trumpets, and the ark, yet they inspected their strong defenses and felt certain they could resist any attack. This shutting was the first step in the conquest of Canaan, with Jericho as the key to be reduced first, and its taking was to proceed under God's direction and not by human wisdom, skill, strength, or methods of warfare. No human hand touched or took down the walls, lest man take glory to himself, for they fell suddenly by God's power through Christ and the armies of heaven under their Captain. Its glory therefore belongs to God alone, teaching that humble trust in God and faithful obedience to His will are as essential to the Christian in spiritual warfare as they were to Joshua in the battles of the Lord.
Jericho Shut Against Israel
Jericho was tightly shut because Israel was near, with no one going out and no one coming in. Its gates were kept carefully closed and guarded by mighty warriors because the children of Israel were outside the city. Watchmen on the walls marked every move of Israel's daily circuit with wonder and alarm and reported to those in authority.
Inside, the silent procession struck terror into priests and people, for they did not understand the meaning of armed men, seven priests with trumpets, the ark of God surrounded by divine glory, and the ordered tribes marching once each day. Though the procession and the ark filled them with fear, they remained uncertain what God would do and trusted in their defenses. They inspected their strong defenses and felt certain they could resist the most powerful attack. Many ridiculed the demonstrations as harmless while others were awed by their majesty and splendor. The repeated march alarmed them as they remembered that God had parted the Red Sea before this people and had just opened a passage through the Jordan, without knowing what further wonders He might work for them.
This shutting was the first step in the conquest of Canaan, with Jericho as the key whose reduction was to come first. Israel undertook its overthrow by marching out from Gilgal, the place of their first encampment in the promised land. The shut city sets the scene for the Lord's command to Joshua and Israel to take it by marching around it, showing that God's way of working may not fit human expectations or methods. Joshua did not attack at once but withdrew from the camp to meditate and pray that the God of Israel would go before His people. Christ, the Exalted One, as Captain of the host with drawn sword met him, assured him that Jericho with its king and mighty men of valor was given into his hand, and gave him instruction for capturing it.
God Gave the Victory
The taking of Jericho was to proceed under God's direction according to His plan. It was a victory with no parallel in the history of nations. It was won not by human wisdom, skill, strength, or worldly methods of warfare, but by simple means through God's help working with human effort. It was planned by the mighty General of armies and led by God joining heavenly and human agencies under their heavenly General and great Captain. The ark accompanied Israel as a symbol of God's presence.
No human hand touched or took down the walls, lest man take glory to himself. The walls fell suddenly by God's power through Christ Himself and the armies of the Lord's host under the Captain's direction. The overthrow was not by Joshua, a human general, human hands, or Israel's own finite strength. The sudden collapse rebuked Israel's earlier unbelief. The deliverance was to be kept fresh in memory and retold to children as a memorial.
The victory therefore gives Israel no ground for taking glory to themselves. No person is to be exalted or draw attention to himself for strength or reputation. Its glory belongs to God alone and the Lord alone is to be magnified and exalted. The work was accomplished by Christ Himself, not by Joshua. The Lord's Captain planned the battle so that God alone would receive the glory and no person would be exalted.
Trust and Obey Today
The opening of the conquest at tightly shut Jericho produced a victory with no parallel in the history of nations, won not by human wisdom, skill, or worldly methods of warfare but by simple means through God's help working with human effort. It teaches that God's help alone is the only sure ground of success, and that those who trust to their own wisdom will be disappointed. Humble trust in God and faithful obedience to His will are as essential to the Christian in waging spiritual warfare as they were to Joshua in fighting the battles of the Lord.
Jericho was the key to Canaan, yet its capture was not to be treated as a task accomplished by military strength alone. God had promised to give the country, and Israel was to trust Him to fulfill that promise rather than leave Him out of their plans. The battle was planned by the mighty General of armies in such simplicity that no human being could take glory to himself, and no human hand was to take down the walls lest man take the glory of the victory to himself. Victory comes from God rather than human strength or reputation, so people are not to draw attention to themselves or claim glory but to exalt the Lord. So today no one is to desire control, feel qualified to hold the highest place, or take glory for the work accomplished, for the great I AM in His own way plans how the work shall be done, instructs His servants, and works through whom He will, and the Lord alone is to be magnified.
Jericho was taken with not a human hand touching it, by the armies of the Lord's host under their heavenly General. The same armies under the great Captain will do many things for God's people now if men move in accordance with God's will and obey Him. That requires giving God a chance to work in His own way through His own appointed agencies instead of centering everything in one place under finite men and waiting for word from a human center before moving.
The taking of the shut city was to proceed under God's direction, with the ark accompanying Israel as a symbol of God's presence, and Israel's later attempt to fight without the ark or its appointed leaders was contrary to that direction. The capture was accomplished by God's power, not by a human general or human hands, for the Captain of the Lord's host directed the heavenly army and the walls fell. The conquest was easy when Israel bore the ark, and Israel later remembered it as proof that bringing the ark would give triumph over enemies. Yet strength was not in merely having the ark present but in obedience to the law contained in the ark, which represents God Himself. This deliverance was to be kept fresh in memory and retold to children as a memorial of God's deliverance.
Jericho was tightly shut because Israel was near, with no one going out and no one coming in, its gates kept carefully closed and guarded by mighty warriors while watchmen on the walls marked every move of Israel. Inside, the people were filled with fear and terror at the silent daily circuit of armed men, priests with trumpets, and the ark, yet they inspected their strong defenses and felt certain they could resist any attack. This shutting was the first step in the conquest of Canaan, with Jericho as the key to be reduced first, and its taking was to proceed under God's direction and not by human wisdom, skill, strength, or methods of warfare. No human hand touched or took down the walls, lest man take glory to himself, for they fell suddenly by God's power through Christ and the armies of heaven under their Captain. Its glory therefore belongs to God alone, teaching that humble trust in God and faithful obedience to His will are as essential to the Christian in spiritual warfare as they were to Joshua in the battles of the Lord.
Jericho Shut Against Israel
Jericho was tightly shut because Israel was near, with no one going out and no one coming in. Its gates were kept carefully closed and guarded by mighty warriors because the children of Israel were outside the city. Watchmen on the walls marked every move of Israel's daily circuit with wonder and alarm and reported to those in authority.
Inside, the silent procession struck terror into priests and people, for they did not understand the meaning of armed men, seven priests with trumpets, the ark of God surrounded by divine glory, and the ordered tribes marching once each day. Though the procession and the ark filled them with fear, they remained uncertain what God would do and trusted in their defenses. They inspected their strong defenses and felt certain they could resist the most powerful attack. Many ridiculed the demonstrations as harmless while others were awed by their majesty and splendor. The repeated march alarmed them as they remembered that God had parted the Red Sea before this people and had just opened a passage through the Jordan, without knowing what further wonders He might work for them.
This shutting was the first step in the conquest of Canaan, with Jericho as the key whose reduction was to come first. Israel undertook its overthrow by marching out from Gilgal, the place of their first encampment in the promised land. The shut city sets the scene for the Lord's command to Joshua and Israel to take it by marching around it, showing that God's way of working may not fit human expectations or methods. Joshua did not attack at once but withdrew from the camp to meditate and pray that the God of Israel would go before His people. Christ, the Exalted One, as Captain of the host with drawn sword met him, assured him that Jericho with its king and mighty men of valor was given into his hand, and gave him instruction for capturing it.
God Gave the Victory
The taking of Jericho was to proceed under God's direction according to His plan. It was a victory with no parallel in the history of nations. It was won not by human wisdom, skill, strength, or worldly methods of warfare, but by simple means through God's help working with human effort. It was planned by the mighty General of armies and led by God joining heavenly and human agencies under their heavenly General and great Captain. The ark accompanied Israel as a symbol of God's presence.
No human hand touched or took down the walls, lest man take glory to himself. The walls fell suddenly by God's power through Christ Himself and the armies of the Lord's host under the Captain's direction. The overthrow was not by Joshua, a human general, human hands, or Israel's own finite strength. The sudden collapse rebuked Israel's earlier unbelief. The deliverance was to be kept fresh in memory and retold to children as a memorial.
The victory therefore gives Israel no ground for taking glory to themselves. No person is to be exalted or draw attention to himself for strength or reputation. Its glory belongs to God alone and the Lord alone is to be magnified and exalted. The work was accomplished by Christ Himself, not by Joshua. The Lord's Captain planned the battle so that God alone would receive the glory and no person would be exalted.
Trust and Obey Today
The opening of the conquest at tightly shut Jericho produced a victory with no parallel in the history of nations, won not by human wisdom, skill, or worldly methods of warfare but by simple means through God's help working with human effort. It teaches that God's help alone is the only sure ground of success, and that those who trust to their own wisdom will be disappointed. Humble trust in God and faithful obedience to His will are as essential to the Christian in waging spiritual warfare as they were to Joshua in fighting the battles of the Lord.
Jericho was the key to Canaan, yet its capture was not to be treated as a task accomplished by military strength alone. God had promised to give the country, and Israel was to trust Him to fulfill that promise rather than leave Him out of their plans. The battle was planned by the mighty General of armies in such simplicity that no human being could take glory to himself, and no human hand was to take down the walls lest man take the glory of the victory to himself. Victory comes from God rather than human strength or reputation, so people are not to draw attention to themselves or claim glory but to exalt the Lord. So today no one is to desire control, feel qualified to hold the highest place, or take glory for the work accomplished, for the great I AM in His own way plans how the work shall be done, instructs His servants, and works through whom He will, and the Lord alone is to be magnified.
Jericho was taken with not a human hand touching it, by the armies of the Lord's host under their heavenly General. The same armies under the great Captain will do many things for God's people now if men move in accordance with God's will and obey Him. That requires giving God a chance to work in His own way through His own appointed agencies instead of centering everything in one place under finite men and waiting for word from a human center before moving.
The taking of the shut city was to proceed under God's direction, with the ark accompanying Israel as a symbol of God's presence, and Israel's later attempt to fight without the ark or its appointed leaders was contrary to that direction. The capture was accomplished by God's power, not by a human general or human hands, for the Captain of the Lord's host directed the heavenly army and the walls fell. The conquest was easy when Israel bore the ark, and Israel later remembered it as proof that bringing the ark would give triumph over enemies. Yet strength was not in merely having the ark present but in obedience to the law contained in the ark, which represents God Himself. This deliverance was to be kept fresh in memory and retold to children as a memorial of God's deliverance.