1. The CURIOUS battle plan for Jericho.
Vs. 1-5
1) The ENEMY was terrified.
Vs. 1-2
The land of Canaan was divided up among a number of “city states,” each ruled by a king (see 12:9–24)

2) There were EXPLICIT battle plans to be followed.
Vs. 3-5
Here the tactics are revealed, and the agenda is set for the rest of the account. This is the answer to Joshua’s request,
“What does my lord say to his servant?” (5:14),
The point is that God had a plan, and He wanted His people to follow him by faith.

2. The COMMAND of Joshua is followed each day.
Vs. 6--14
1) The PRESENCE of God was represented by the Ark.
Vs. 8
The emphasis is not on the fighting men but on the ark of the covenant, the symbol of the divine presence.
Hebrews 11:30

2) The PURPOSE of the number 7.
In this plan the emphasis is on the number seven:
In biblical numerology the number seven represents completeness or perfection.

3) There would be a small PRACTICAL aspect of this parade around the city.
Vs. 9
The practical aspect would be the army itself.
But it was only representative of the whole army.
According to the military census of Numbers 26, there were over 600,000 men able to bear arms.

4) There would be a PERSONAL aspect to this parade around the city.
Vs. 10-11
The activities of the week were a test of the Jewish people’s faith and patience.

The Apostle James tells us that those who can’t control their tongues can’t control their bodies (James 3:1–2

5) The PATTERN of their march continued for six days.
Vs. 12-14
A few comments about the purpose of the Shofar.
-1 It was used to REMIND the people of coming judgment.
Zeph 1:16-17
-2 It was used in times of REJOICING
Ps 81:1-4
-3 It is a sound of the RETURN of the Messiah.
Zech 9:14, Zech 9:16
-4 It is a sound associated with the RESURRECTION of God’s people.
1 Cor 15:51-57

3. The CULMINATION of the battle is the destruction of the city.
Vs. 15-21
1) The DISCIPLINE that would be required from each of them.
Vs. 15-19
If everything in Jericho belonged to God, then to keep any of these things, for oneself would be to ally oneself with that which had to be destroyed.

2) The DEDICATION of materials to the treasury of the Lord.
Vs. 19
Ordinarily the soldiers shared the spoils of war (Deut. 20:14), but not at Jericho; for everything there belonged to the Lord and was put into His treasury (Deut. 13:16; 1 Kings 7:51).


4. The CONCEPT of God’s judgment needs an explanation.
Notice the DESTRUCTION of the city and its judgment.
Vs. 20-21

1) The RESCUE of Rahab and her family is a picture of salvation by faith.
When God’s wrath falls, it is only by faith in any provision of his grace, which he offers, that sinners can be rescued.
2) The REALITY of the destruction needs to be fully understood.
This is the first occurrence in the Joshua narrative of the concept of “devoted things”.
The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.”
The divine justice of the Canaanite conquest is a strong theme in the Old Testament.
Genesis 15:16
“for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.” Deuteronomy 9:5,
Judgment is always God’s final resort, and in this case it came after generations of provocation.
That wickedness or uncleanness is graphically described in Leviticus 18.
Lev 18:24-26

3) Everyone will be held RESPONSIBLE for their sins.
Rom 1:18-21

4) We must REMEMBER God’s purposes for Israel.

We must never forget that God put Israel in the world to be the channel for His blessing (Gen. 12:1–3), which involves, among other things, the writing of the Scriptures and the coming of the Savior.


5. The CONCLUSION of the amazing story of God’s grace in the life of Rahab.
Vs. 22-25
The two spies now return to the story, and with specific obedience to a direct command from Joshua.

6. The CHARGE of Joshua concerning the future of the city.
Vs. 26-27

1) The CURSE of the city because of its sin and idolatry.

2) The CONSEQUENCES men will face if they attempt to rebuild the city.
The curse was later fulfilled in the days of evil King Ahab (1 Kings 16:34).

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