I Have Delivered Jericho Into Your Hands
Comments for Study 4

Joshua 5:1-6:27
Memory Verse: 8

BEFORE READING PLEASE CLICK HERE TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS.
BEFORE READING PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VIEW A MAP OF THE DIVISION OF CANAAN.
BEFORE READING PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VIEW A MAP OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OF ISRAEL.
BEFORE READING PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT ISRAEL'S HISTORY.
BEFORE READING PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR A LIST OF ISRAEL'S JUDGES.

I. Circumcise the Israelites (5:1-12)

>1. Who did the Canaanite kings know was on Israel's side? (1)

* Joshua 5:1 "Now when all the Amorite kings west of the Jordan and all the Canaanite kings along the coast heard how the LORD had dried up the Jordan before the Israelites until we had crossed over, their hearts melted and they no longer had the courage to face the Israelites."

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>What can be learned from their response to the Lord's work on Israel's behalf?

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>What is the proper response when we see the Lord working in another's life? (Matt. 12:13-14; Luke 13:10-14)

* Matthew 12:13-14 "Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus."

* Luke 13:10-14 "On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, "Woman, you are set free from your infirmity." Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God. Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler said to the people, "There are six days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath."

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>2. What did the Lord tell Joshua to do? (2-3)

* Joshua 5:2-3 "At that time the LORD said to Joshua, "Make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites again." So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath Haaraloth."

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>Why? (4-5)

* Joshua 5:4-5 "Now this is why he did so: All those who came out of Egypt--all the men of military age--died in the desert on the way after leaving Egypt. All the people that came out had been circumcised, but all the people born in the desert during the journey from Egypt had not."

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>What was the purpose of circumcision? (Gen. 17:9-14)

* Genesis 17:9-14 "Then God said to Abraham, "As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner--those who are not your offspring. Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant."

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>What can be said of the parents who did not circumcise their sons? (6-8)

* Joshua 5:6-8 "The Israelites had moved about in the desert forty years until all the men who were of military age when they left Egypt had died, since they had not obeyed the LORD. For the LORD had sworn to them that they would not see the land that he had solemnly promised their fathers to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. So he raised up their sons in their place, and these were the ones Joshua circumcised. They were still uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way. And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed."

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>What happened when this generation obeyed? (9)

* Joshua 5:9 "Then the LORD said to Joshua, "Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you." So the place has been called Gilgal to this day."

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>3. Considering their current situation why might it be hard to celebrate the Passover? (10)

* Joshua 5:10 "On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover."

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>What blessing did they enjoy after keeping the Passover? (11-12)

* Joshua 5:11-12 "The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate of the produce of Canaan."

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>What characteristic of faith did they display? (Rev. 14:12)

* Revelation 14:12 "This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God's commandments and remain faithful to Jesus."

* 1 John 5:3-4 "This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith."

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II. The Commander of the Army of the Lord (5:13-6:5)

>4. What was the first city they were going to encounter in the promised land and what kind of city was it? (13)

* Joshua 5:13 "Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?"

* Place name meaning moon.” Apparently the oldest city in the world and the first city Israel conquered under Joshua. Jericho is situated in the lower Jordan Valley, which, according to Genesis 13:10, “was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord.” The Old Testament town lies beneath tell es-Sultan near one of Palestine’s strongest springs. New Testament Jericho, founded by Herod the Great, was about one and one half miles southward in the magnificent wadi Qelt. The spring, ain es-Sultan, issues some 30,000 cubit feet of water daily which falls about 160 feet in the first mile of its course down many channels to the Jordan River six miles away, irrigating about 2,500 acres. The combination of rich alluvial soil, the perennial spring, and constant sunshine made Jericho an attractive place for settlement. Only about 6.4 inches of rain fall there per year (mostly between November and February), and the average temperature for January is 59 F, while it is 88F for August. Jericho is about 740 feet below sea level (accounting for its warm climate) but well above the Dead Sea eight miles southward which at 1,300 feet below sea level marks the earth’s lowest point. Thus Jericho could be called “city of palms” (Deut. 34:3; Judg. 1:16; 3:3; 2 Chron. 28:15) and has plenty of palm trees today. (Holman Bible Dictionary)

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>Who did Joshua encounter when he and all Israel were on their way there? (14-15)

* Joshua 5:14-15 "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, "What message does my Lord have for his servant?" The commander of the LORD's army replied, "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so."

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>Who do we know as the commander of the army of the Lord? (2-6; Zech. 14:3-5; Acts 1:9-12)

* Exodus 3:2-6 "There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, "I will go over and see this strange sight--why the bush does not burn up." When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, "Moses! Moses!" And Moses said, "Here I am." "Do not come any closer," God said. "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground." Then he said, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob." At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God."

* Zechariah 14:3-5 "Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him."

* Acts 1:9-12 "After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven." Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city."

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>Why might it be important for Joshua to see him now?

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>5. What was Jericho's situation when Israel arrived? (1)

* Joshua 6:1 "Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in."

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>Why? (2)

* Joshua 6:2 "Then the LORD said to Joshua, "See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men."

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>How did the Lord keep his word? (Ex. 23:27-30)

* Exodus 23:27-30 "I will send my terror ahead of you and throw into confusion every nation you encounter. I will make all your enemies turn their backs and run. I will send the hornet ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land."

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>6. What unorthodox war command was the Lord's instruction? (3)

* Joshua 6:3 "March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days."

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>What were the details? (4-5)

* Joshua 6:4-5 "Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams' horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in."

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>What was this foreshadowing? (Rev. 8:2, 6)

* Revelation 8:2 "And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets."

* Revelation 8:6 "Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them."

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III. The Seventh and Last Trumpet (6:6-27)

>7. What did the ark represent? (6-11)

* Joshua 6:6-11 "So Joshua son of Nun called the priests and said to them, "Take up the ark of the covenant of the LORD and have seven priests carry trumpets in front of it." 7 And he ordered the people, "Advance! March around the city, with the armed guard going ahead of the ark of the LORD." 8 When Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets before the LORD went forward, blowing their trumpets, and the ark of the LORD's covenant followed them. 9 The armed guard marched ahead of the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard followed the ark. All this time the trumpets were sounding. 10 But Joshua had commanded the people, "Do not give a war cry, do not raise your voices, do not say a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then shout!" 11 So he had the ark of the LORD carried around the city, circling it once. Then the people returned to camp and spent the night there."

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>Describe the procession. (12-14)

* Joshua 6:12-14 "Joshua got up early the next morning and the priests took up the ark of the LORD. The seven priests carrying the seven trumpets went forward, marching before the ark of the LORD and blowing the trumpets. The armed men went ahead of them and the rear guard followed the ark of the LORD, while the trumpets kept sounding. So on the second day they marched around the city once and returned to the camp. They did this for six days."

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>What must it have been like for the people in Jericho including Rahab and her family?

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>8. What happened on the seventh day? (15-19)

* Joshua 6:15-19 "On the seventh day, they got up at daybreak and marched around the city seven times in the same manner, except that on that day they circled the city seven times. 16 The seventh time around, when the priests sounded the trumpet blast, Joshua commanded the people, "Shout! For the LORD has given you the city! 17 The city and all that is in it are to be devoted to the LORD. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall be spared, because she hid the spies we sent. 18 But keep away from the devoted things, so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them. Otherwise you will make the camp of Israel liable to destruction and bring trouble on it. 19 All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the LORD and must go into his treasury."

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>What would be the reason the Lord wanted the Israelites to shout? (20-21)

* Joshua 6:20-21 "When the trumpets sounded, the people shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the people gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so every man charged straight in, and they took the city. They devoted the city to the LORD and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it--men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys."

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>9. Who did Joshua not forget? (22-23)

* Joshua 6:22-23 "Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, "Go into the prostitute's house and bring her out and all who belong to her, in accordance with your oath to her." So the young men who had done the spying went in and brought out Rahab, her father and mother and brothers and all who belonged to her. They brought out her entire family and put them in a place outside the camp of Israel."

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>After she and her family was rescued what did they do? (24-25)

* Joshua 6:24-25 "Then they burned the whole city and everything in it, but they put the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the LORD's house. But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her family and all who belonged to her, because she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies to Jericho--and she lives among the Israelites to this day."

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>What did this foreshadow? (Matt. 13:36-43; Rev. 14:14-16)

* Matthew 13:36-43 "Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field." He answered, "The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear."

* Revelation 14:14-16 "I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one "like a son of man" with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, "Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe." So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested."

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>10. Why might Joshua proclaim the curse in verse 26 and when was it fulfilled? (26; and 1 Kings 16:34)

* Joshua 6:26 "At that time Joshua pronounced this solemn oath: "Cursed before the LORD is the man who undertakes to rebuild this city, Jericho: "At the cost of his firstborn son will he lay its foundations; at the cost of his youngest will he set up its gates."

* 1 Kings 16:34 "In Ahab's time, Hiel of Bethel rebuilt Jericho. He laid its foundations at the cost of his firstborn son Abiram, and he set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, in accordance with the word of the LORD spoken by Joshua son of Nun."

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>What was the side effect of this victory? (27)

* Joshua 6:27 "So the LORD was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout the land."

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