Jericho

Joshua 1-6

After many years, Moses died. And God said to Joshua, "Lead My people across the Jordan River. Each place you set your foot will be yours. Just be strong and do not fear. For I am with you wherever you go."

So Joshua sent two men ahead to spy on a town called Jericho. When they got there, they stayed with a woman named Rahab. But when the king of Jericho heard they were spies, Rahab hid them on her roof. And when it grew dark, she helped them to escape.

"I have heard great things about your God," explained Rahab.

"Please promise me that you will not hurt my family when your people take Jericho."

God told Joshua exactly what to do in order to take the city of Jericho. First, Joshua gathered men into an army to march around the city. Then came seven priests, each one carrying a trumpet made from a ram's horn. Behind the priests came the ark of the covenant, and following the ark came more armed guards.

They paraded around the city of Jericho one time each day for six days. During this time, the priests blew on the trumpets, but everyone else marched quietly.

On the seventh day, the Israelites paraded around Jericho six times. All the while, the priests blew their trumpets, but everyone else remained quiet.

Then on the seventh time around the city, Joshua called out a signal. Everyone yelled and screamed and shouted - with all their might!

At the sound of that noise, the walls of Jericho began to crumble and then they fell, tumbling to the ground. And all who were inside the city ran in fear. All except for the woman Rahab - the one who had helped the two spies. She knew she would be safe. And she was.

The Walls Came Tumbling Down!

The Israelites may have felt foolish marching around the city of Jericho for a week instead of going into battle, but the LORD instructions were clear and the Israelites chose to obey.

We often think that God's instructions don't make sense, but let's follow the Israelites' exampleand take one day at a time as we follow God. Often, we will not see the logic of God's plan until we have completely obeyed his Word.

Deception Always Has a Price

Rebekah thought she was doing the right thing by sending Jacob away so he and Esau would not harm each other. Little did Rebekah know that sending Jacob away "for a while" would turn out to be twenty years!

Nor did she know that she would never see him again; Rebekah died before Jacob returned. Imagine how much happier their family could have been if they had trusted God to follow through with his plan.

We are often impatient and think that we need to help God along. True, we should simply just sit around waiting for God to do his thing. We do need to be careful about pushing and doing what we think is God's will. Many times God surprises us in showing us what he has planned. Let's keep our eyes and mind open to God's possibilities.