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Joshua 6 Bible Study and Questions – Joshua and the Battle of Jericho

Outline

I. The people obey God by walking around the wall (1-16)
II. God gives victory, but the things in the city are under the ban (17-27)

I. The people obey God by walking around the wall (1-16)

Discussion Questions

• Is this encounter with the “LORD” the same encounter from 5:13-15? Explain.
• What battle plan was given to Joshua?
• Why do you think God chose to have them use this way to achieve victory?
• Did the people have a role or a responsibility? What? What traits were needed to fulfill the role God had given to them?
• What may have been the purpose of the trumpets?
• What do you think the people of Jericho were likely doing while the Israelites were marching around the town?
• Do you think it was difficult for the people to keep Joshua’s command to keep silent in verse 10? Why or why not?
• What was the purpose of the armed men and the rear guard (13)?
• What can we learn from God’s command to the people in this chapter?
• What can we learn from the people’s response?

Verse by Verse Commentary

1. Verse 1 – The people in the city knew Israel was near and closed everything up. Jericho was known for its massive fortifications. It was an extremely strong and powerful city, with good defenses. Generally, they would have been confident against invaders, but invaders didn’t normally have Yahweh on their side.

2. Verses 2-5 – If most armies had heard a commander give this strategy, they would have laughed. How can walking and blowing trumpets knock down a strong wall? With man it is impossible, but with God it is impossible. This was the first city they had attacked.

God wanted to teach them a lesson. It wasn’t by strength of arm that they could gain the victory. It was only through His strength. They couldn’t hope to do it by themselves, but had to wholly depend on divine aid. (Psalms 20:7.) Faith and obedience were essential. Here is the same lesson we have seen God teaching the Israelites in the first several chapters of this book. The lesson is that they must learn not to lean on their own understanding and not to trust in their own strength. God’s ways are higher than our ways.

How would you have planned to take this city? Some common strategies might be: sneaking in and opening the doors suddenly, building ladders to scale the wall, or tricking the people into coming out of the city. God did not need to rely on those strategies.

Notice that though the victory belonged to the Lord, the people also had a responsibility. If the people did not obey God and do it His way, He would not have knocked the walls down. The people’s role was very important. Disobedience would result in failure. It is interesting that God designed this plan (and many others like this). Success could only be attributed to God’s power. But a failure would be the people’s fault.

Application: This is also how we can have victory in our lives. It’s not by our intelligence or our planning or strategy or talent or skill. God not only wanted to teach this to the Israelites, but also to the people in the city and the surrounding nations. God is a jealous God. He doesn’t want a lot of boasters proud of their own power. If this plan were to succeed, it would clearly be by God’s power. So when you are successful, praise God.

When you fail, examine yourselves and see if it might be because of your own sin or disobedience. Also, we should make a habit of always seeking guidance from the Lord before making decisions and plans, or taking important steps in our lives. Are you trusting in your intelligence or money or strength instead of in the Lord? How would a person even know if he was trusting in these things rather than God?

3. Verses 6-10 – Joshua showed no hesitation whatsoever. He did not doubt God, question Him, argue, or laugh. Joshua was a good leader. He didn’t care that the people might laugh at him, ridicule him, or doubt. He wasn’t worried about his face. Neither did he take a vote nor ask the people to consider various plans. His response was very simple. Joshua obeyed God’s command and instructed the people under him to do the same. He didn’t show any hesitation or doubt. This is what a good leader does. He leads the way in what is right regardless of the response of the people under him.

Can you think of any examples of people in the Bible who gave up their own authority in order to follow the sinful desires of those under them? (Aaron and the golden calf, Adam in the garden, Saul when he didn’t destroy all of the Amalekites.) Can you think of any examples of leaders who stood up for what was right, even in the face of pressure or rebellion from those under them?

4. Verses 10-16 – The people persevered in this, even though they must have looked foolish to the people of Jericho. What do you think the people in Jericho may have been doing during this time? You can imagine what kind of insults were thrown their way. Perseverance is very important. They didn’t give up after one or two days, but they kept marching and marching and saw it through to the end.

What is more, in verse 10 Joshua commands them to be quiet and not let their voices be heard or even a word to come out of their mouths. This might have been the most difficult command to follow of any of them. Imagine how difficult it would be to keep your mouth shut in the face of incessant mocking/taunting.

Cross-References

On Silence:

Proverbs 17:28 – Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues.

Proverbs 18:6-7 – The lips of fools bring them strife, and their mouths invite a beating. The mouths of fools are their undoing, and their lips are a snare to their very lives.

Psalm 141:3 – Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips.

Isaiah 53:7 – He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.

Application: Have you encountered opposition or mocking while serving the Lord? Can you share why and what your response was? Is there anyone in the Bible who faced mocking because of their decision to obey God? (Noah probably did while building the ark. Jesus did while hanging on the cross.) If God gives you a tough task, don’t begin it and then give up. Be a finisher! Don’t worry about others or what they think. Don’t be timid if you hear insults. Do what is right in order to please God. Each of us is supposed to please God rather than man. We don’t need to worry about what people think or say. We please God because He is the judge and He is sitting on the throne, no one else.

Seven is considered the perfect number in the Bible. It signifies completeness.

II. God gives victory, but the things in the city are under the ban (17-27)

Discussion Questions

• What was under the ban?
• What was supposed to happen to the things under the ban? Why?
• What happened when the people shouted and blew the trumpets?
• Who was not to be destroyed? Why? Who was saved along with her?
• What does this tell us about those who were to be destroyed?
• What can we learn about the consequences of sin? Who does sin affect?
• How do you understand God’s instructions to destroy everything in verse 21?
• Why did Joshua speak a curse on the person who would rebuild this city?
• What can we learn from this passage that is applicable to our lives today?
• Is there anything that God has banned for us that may tempt us?

Verse by Verse Commentary

1. Verse 17 – The people were not to take anything from the city. The gold and silver were to go into the temple. Everything else was to be destroyed. It was a way for God to remind the people that this victory was His. It was not by their own intelligence or strength that they won. God gave Jericho into their hands. All of the victories that they would achieve in the future (whether through supernatural miracles or not) were no less a result of God’s divine plan. God generally doesn’t ask people to give everything to Him, but in the Old Testament, He does ask for the first of what they receive, just as in the case of the first fruits being completely devoted to God. Giving of the first that someone receives is an act of faith. It also shows that God is the priority.

Everything belongs to the Lord. God did not always prohibit the people from taking for themselves the spoils of victory, but He always had the right to do so. Everything was His. The people in the city were His (He created them.) All of their material possessions were His (He gave them to them.) Their animals were also His. In this case, He decided that what He wanted to do with His own possessions was to destroy them. They were like the vessels of dishonor seen in 2 Timothy 2:20, “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.”

Cross-References

Psalms 24:1 – The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.

Deuteronomy 10:14 – To the Lord your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it.

Psalms 89:11 – The heavens are yours, and yours also the earth; you founded the world and all that is in it.

Leviticus 25:23 – The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you reside in my land as foreigners and strangers.

Application: Everything we have belongs to God. This should affect how we use it. How should you use your possessions, knowing that they belong to God?

• We should give to God the first of what we have, not the leftovers.
• We should give to God as much as we can, not as little as possible.
• We should seek God’s guidance when saving, giving, spending, or investing money.
• We should use what we have to build God’s kingdom (since it is God’s already.)
• We should not waste what He has graciously provided. Can you give examples of how we might sometimes waste? (Wasting includes being careless and breaking things, wasting electricity or water or food, buying new when the old is still acceptable, buying more than we need, etc.)

Keep yourselves from the things under the ban that you do not covet:

When we want something that God has not given us it is coveting. It is often easy to see coveting in children who often want the toy the other child is holding rather than the toy they have. But adults often covet as well. Can you think of any biblical examples of people who coveted? (Ahab, Herod Antipas)

Coveting falls under the category of the “lust of the flesh.” Like Ahab, we sometimes look at what other people have and wish we had it. Even if we don’t take action on those desires, it is still sin. It still shows a lack of gratitude to God for what we have. Modern-day advertisements are meant to feed people’s coveting nature. These ads show us the wonderful, carefree lives of people who own a certain type of car, phone, computer, appliance, etc. Many people also buy products not for their own usefulness, but because of wanting to project a certain image to those around them. The world of materialism we live in is meant to feed our coveting appetites. Social media is also a world that is often used both to covet and to elicit coveting in others. People post pictures of all the exotic places they have been and all the wonderful foods they are eating.

It is not inherently wrong to post nice pictures on social media, but there is a danger of beginning to begin focusing on the wrong things. There is a danger in bragging to others about what we have or have experienced. And there is a danger to wish that we could have those same experiences or things that others have. It is a danger of focusing on surface things that don’t have a lot of meaning, the physical world of what we can touch and see, rather than the intangible spiritual world. Here are a few things that we may covet (including believers):

• Possessions (car, phone, house, electronics, etc.)
• Job. We may tend to complain about our jobs and wish we had a job like so and so.
• Travel. We may tend to complain about how busy we are and wish we could travel like so and so.
• Relationship. We may complain about being single and wish we could have a happily married life like so and so. Or we may complain about the difficulties or burdens of marriage and wish we could have a carefree single life like so and so.

We know it is wrong to covet. (Psalms 10:3, Exodus 20:17, 1 Timothy 6:9-10). How do we guard ourselves from coveting? What is the opposite of coveting? How can we be more proactive to show gratitude for what we have so that we won’t fall into the temptation of coveting?

2. Verses 20-21- God’s plan succeeded. The walls fell and Israel achieved a great victory. God’s plans will never fail. If we obey His word, we will surely achieve victory.

The command to destroy all the people of the city –

Joshua 6:21 – Then they devoted all in the city to destruction, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys, with the edge of the sword.

This was not a new command. It had been given concerning all of the Canaanites in Deuteronomy 7:2-6 and it was applied specifically to the Amalekites in Deuteronomy 25:17-19. There are several reasons given in the Bible why God told Israel to utterly destroy them.

Let’s be honest. This sentence makes us very uncomfortable. It seems to disagree with what we know of God’s love, mercy, and compassion. After all, Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me.”

Many ask the question, “Why did God command the killing of innocent children?”

When we are confused or uncomfortable, it could be easy to skip past something and bury our heads in the sand. However, it is more fruitful to slow down and look deeply at the issue, seeking to find an answer. As we study, we can grow in our understanding and faith as well as prepare ourselves to answer difficult questions the world may use to attack Scripture. We will look at a number of points on this issue as well as suggest more resources for further study.

A. Interpret hard-to-understand passages through the lens of the rest of Scripture –

Most people who seek to attack Scripture highlight a few difficult passages and hang on to those while ignoring the rest of the Bible. We should use the rest of the Bible to interpret these.

God is love. He loved the world so much that He sent His only Son to die in our place. Jesus did not die for the righteous. He died for the very people who wickedly killed Him. God is not spiteful and vindictive. He is loving and kind.

We must approach this passage on the basis that God is good. Everything He does is righteous. He always has a reason.

B. Why did God give this instruction?

He told us the reason already. If they failed to drive out the people, those who remained would be a snare to them. Their idolatry would infect the people and cause them to turn away from God.

Numbers 33:55 – But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then those of them whom you let remain shall be as barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they shall trouble you in the land where you dwell.

Deuteronomy 7:4 – For they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly.

This is, in fact, exactly what happened. Israel did not obey and drive out the people completely. The result was that those who remained turned Israel’s hearts to idolatry.

Their disobedience threatened the entire future of Israel. Saul did not destroy all of the Amalekites as commanded. Later, Haman, a descendant of the Amalekite king, Agag, almost exterminated the entire nation.

The Canaanite religion and culture were perhaps the most evil that has ever existed.

This is how God describes it.

Leviticus 18:25 – And the land became unclean, so that I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out its inhabitants.

Their religion included such practices as child sacrifice (some in fire). Numerous pits have been discovered filled with skeletons of small children, probably sacrificed by the Canaanites. It also included incest, bestiality, homosexuality, and cultish prostitution, both male and female. There is evidence that other people besides Israel disagreed with some of these practices, but the Canaanites were totally sold out to them.

Their civilization was like cancer. If a cancer is not completely removed, it grows and spreads. When a doctor cuts out cancer, some healthy tissue is also removed around the cancer to ensure that it is all removed.

If the Canaanite children grew up, they would assuredly be bitter about what had happened to their parents and the cycle of war would start all over again.

C. This happened because of sin – The sins of the parents affect the children. In World War II, many children died because of Allied bombs. Whose fault was that? Hitler or the Allies? The nazi leaders were at fault. It was their heinous policies that had to be stopped. As a result, there was a lot of collateral damage.

According to God’s perfect plan, the children are not punished for the father’s sin and vice versa.

Ezekiel 18:19-20 – “Yet you say, Why should not the son suffer for the iniquity of the father?’ When the son has done what is just and right, and has been careful to observe all my statutes, he shall surely live. The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

However, children can be and are often affected by their parents’ sins.

Deuteronomy 5:9 – You shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.

A child whose father is a criminal is more likely to grow up to be a criminal. A child whose parents divorce is more likely to divorce. The parents’ poor choices affect the children. That is the result of the cursed world we live in. We are all still experiencing the results of Adam’s sin. God is not to blame. Adam is.

In this case, the adult Canaanites who defied God and followed demonic religions are to blame for what happened to their civilization.

This situation shows us just how evil and infectious sin is. It is far worse than we realize. It corrupts people and society to the core.

We would be wise to heed this warning for ourselves, our families, and our nation.

D. God has judged entire societies before – There are several examples in Scripture of God judging entire people groups.

Here are the most well-known examples.

• The flood – The world was so wicked that the only solution was to wipe out almost everything. Sadly, many children died in the flood because of their parents’ refusal to heed Noah’s message.
• Sodom and Gomorrah – Because of their exceeding wickedness, these cities were destroyed by fire from heaven. Everybody in the cities, with the exception of Lot, faced the same result. Again, many children died because of their parents’ rebellion against God and His standards.

God’s destruction of the Canaanites is the third major example in Scripture. It doesn’t happen often, but occasionally a people group goes so far astray that God’s remedy is to remove them from the earth before they contaminate the rest of his creation.

E. Israel was acting as God’s divine agent of judgment –

In the above examples, it is slightly easier for us to accept what happened because it was God directly doing it. In this case, He uses Israel as His agent. The situation, outcome, and judgment are the same. God merely uses a different means.

Would it be more palpable if He sent an angel?

This reminds us that being God’s chosen people was not all “milk and honey.” It came with sometimes heavy, serious, and even painful responsibilities.

F. We trust that the children went to heaven –

Most Bible scholars agree with the belief that children who die before the age of accountability are welcomed by God into heaven.

David believed that he would see his son again (2 Samuel 12:23).

In this case, difficult though it was, it would be far better for those children to go immediately into God’s presence than it would for them to grow up and be influenced by that wicked culture.

Bringing those children straight into His arms was the most merciful thing that God could do for them.

Isaiah 55:8-9 – For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

G. This is a narrative passage –

We need to be careful in how we interpret narrative passages. There is no command to “go and do likewise.” This was a very rare and unique command from God in response to a terrible dilemma. It cannot be used to justify war of any kind today.

Yet we can glean some principles from it, ones that are supported by other Scripture or by commentary from God or the author. One clear principle is that God is just and judges sinners.

Another is that we need to be extremely careful not to be influenced by culture or unbelievers around us and also not to leave any sin or foothold for Satan (Ephesians 4:27) in our lives. If we give a foothold to Satan, he will use it and influence our lives negatively, trying to turn us from God.

Application: Different applications can be made from this principle and could include such things as getting rid of music, movies, magazines, or books that are bad influences. We can also learn to renew our minds in God’s Word regularly and establish fellowship with people who can keep us accountable.

3. Verses 22-25 – Joshua also kept his word. Many nations would have gone back on it. After all, they had already spied out the land. They already achieved victory. Many would have just used Rahab. When she was no longer needed, they would cast her aside. However, Joshua and the spies did not do this. They kept their word and they saved her and her family and gave them a place to live within the nation of Israel.

We can learn from this. Firstly, if we make promises, keep them. God always keeps His promises and so should we. How can you make sure that you always keep your promises? The easiest way is to never make a promise that you are not sure you can keep. Do not tell your customer that you can have the product ready at an early deadline that you are not sure about. Do not agree to do a favor for people without knowing what it is. Do not make guarantees that are out of your power to keep. And then when you do make a commitment (like marriage vows, work contracts, rental contracts, etc.), hold up your end of the bargain even when it is not easy. In Proverbs 15:4, we learn that a righteous person swears to his own hurt, but doesn’t change. Rahab and her family were relying on the word of Joshua and the spies.

People also make plans and rely on you when you make commitments and promises. Don’t let them down. Let your “yes” be “yes” and your “no” be “no.”

Also, we should learn from this example to take care of the people who help us. Don’t just use somebody and cast them aside. The world does this. But this is not God’s way.
We have already discussed that everything belongs to God. Rahab and her family belonged to God and the rest of the people did as well. She and her family were saved, but everyone else was destroyed. What was the difference? She was a sinner. They were sinners. She was a Gentile. They were Gentiles. The difference is that she put her faith in the Lord. (See James 2:24-26.)

4. Verse 26 – The curse relates to the rebuilding of Jericho’s fortifications. I’m not really sure why this curse was proclaimed (perhaps because the city was dedicated to God and not to be a place of war). It was fulfilled later in 1 Kings.

1 Kings 16:34 – In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation at the cost of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

A man tried to rebuild the wall and his firstborn and youngest sons died.

5. Verse 27 – God had made Joshua’s name great. This exaltation didn’t come from himself, but from God. As we know, God exalts the humble. If we want God to lift us up we must serve Him humbly and not try to bring credit to ourselves. Joshua obeyed God to the letter. He had faith in God and he used his authority to influence all of the people to obey God as well. When you obey God like this, then He will build you up.

Main Points

A. Everything we have belongs to God. Do not be greedy for things that are not yours. Do not covet. Be a good steward of what God has entrusted to your care for His glory and for His kingdom.

God keeps His promises. Hundreds of years before He promised this land to Abraham and his descendants. He kept it. God doesn’t let any of His good words fall. We should keep our promises as well.

B. Salvation comes by faith and is available to everyone. Rahab was a harlot and a heathen. Yet through faith, she and her whole family were saved. We should never give up on anybody. No matter how impossible it seems that they will ever believe in Jesus, we should keep praying for them and witnessing to them.

C. Victory is God’s. We can’t have victory by our own power, might, or intelligence. The only way we can have true success in this life is by following the plan that God has laid out for us and obeying it completely. God can give you victory in your life as well. Seek to follow His way. Obey Him and He can knock down any obstacles in your path.