AM Bible Study Group; October 2, 2013
Joshua 6:1-27
Theme: By faith, the walls that hinder our victory in Christ come down.
(Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
In Chapters 3-4, we were told of how the people crossed the River Jordan and entered into the land that God was giving them. This, as we said before, was a picture of our crucifixion with Christ and our resurrection with Him into newness of life. And in Chapter 5, we’re told of how, having crossed over, they renewed their obedience to God at Gilgal. This is a picture of how we who have been raised with Christ now stand in ‘Resurrection Land’; and walk as His redeemed people who are destined for victory. And as we come to Chapter 6, we find that the people now begin to officially take hold of the inheritance God was giving them.
But there is a great lesson for us in the fact that, as soon they crossed the river and began to step into the land that God was giving them, they encountered the walls of Jericho. Similarly, we—who have stepped as it were onto ‘Resurrection Land’ and begin to take hold of our rich inheritance in Christ—almost immediately encounter ‘walls of resistance’. Victory comes through overcoming those walls in God’s way.
Let’s consider this chapter—and the lessons it teaches us about overcoming the ‘walls’ we encounter on our way to the victorious Christian life through faith.
I. IN TAKING POSESSION, THE PEOPLE ENCOUNTER WALLS (v. 1).
A. The people who occupied the land didn’t exactly open their doors to God’s people and welcome them in. We’re told, “Now Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel; none went out, and none came in.” It may have been, in part, an act of fear. After all— as Rahab had already affirmed—they knew about God’s work through them and were terrified (see 2:10-11). But it also may have been an act of defiant trust in their own defenses, and an act of resistance toward the God of Israel.
B. This reminds us that we, too, will encounter walls of resistance on our way to laying hold of our full inheritance in Christ. They might be walls that others put up against us, or they might we walls we discover because of our own frailties. But as the story of this chapter teaches us, “the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” (2 Corinthians 10:4). It doesn’t ultimately matter what the ‘wall’ may be; there is no victory God promises to give us that we cannot fully obtain if we will but trust in Him.
II. THE BRINGING DOWN OF THE WALLS REQUIRED FAITH IN GOD (vv. 2-7).
A. It must have seemed odd to the people of Jericho—watching from the walls—to see what it was that God commanded His people to do. Imagine as they watched from the walls as the people marched around the city in silence—with the ark of the God in their midst; and no sound from them but the blowing of the trumpets. It must have seemed odd to the people of Israel too. But the battle was His; and they did exactly what it was that God commanded them to do.
B. What if they had thought this whole procedure to be foolish; and simply stormed the walls—or had engaged in a siege, just like every other army would have done? Or worse—what if they had seen the walls and turned away, just as their fathers had done thirty-eight years earlier? They surely would have failed. But because they trusted in God’s command and obeyed Him, it is said in Hebrews 11:30, “By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days.” One of the great lessons of this passage is that we must trust God’s commands and act in faith in Him. Victory will be ours; but only on His terms—not in accordance with the ways of this world.
III. OBEDIENCE AND HOLINESS LED TO THE WALLS COMING DOWN (vv. 8-21).
A. The march around the wall would have accomplished two things—depending on which side of the wall one was watching from:
1. From the standpoint of the people watching on the wall and from within Jericho, a strong warning would have been given by the grace of God. Just imagine what would have being going on in the hearts of the people on that first day’s march. They knew the history of the people who were marching around their city. They would have seen what may have been about 600,000 soldiers marching—along with the priests and the Levites blowing the trumpets and the ark of the covenant in their midst. They would have either had to consider repenting while they could, or harden their hearts further against the God of Israel. And then, they would have had a chance again the second day. And the third. And the seventh day. And as if to accentuate the warning even more, on the seventh day, they would have seen the people march seven times around the city. Clearly the time was running short. The time of repenting was running out! Wouldn’t this have been an act of mercy on God’s part?
2. And from the standpoint of the people marching, this would have been a strong affirmation to them that the taking of the city was humanly impossible. They would have marched around the imposingly strong city wall—thirteen times in seven days; and would have seen for themselves that they could not penetrate it in their own power. But they would have had the trumpets blowing, and would have had the ark—the symbol of God’s presence in their midst.
B. Finally, we’re told that at the blowing of the trumpet and the shout of the people, the walls came down. Joshua told them to take the city, but not to take anything to themselves that was scheduled for destruction. This reminded them to be a holy people; but it also affirmed to them that they truly were going in! And at the sound of the shout, we’re told that the walls didn’t simply fall inward or fall outward. They fell flat, so that the people of Israel—already with swords in hand—could simply march in and take the city. This was God’s doing—and both those on the wall and those in the armies of God knew it! Trusting and obeying was the only way!
IV. GOD DIDN’T FORGET THOSE WHO TRUSTED AND OBEYED (vv. 22-25).
A. It must have been quite a sight to see the portion of the wall in which Rahab and her family lived still standing. The soldiers were told to go “into the harlot’s house’; and since she and her family lived in the city wall, that portion of the wall must have still stood erect amidst all the surrounding rubble. We’re told that she was rescued. Even though she was a foreigner, God did not forget her faith. She responded as all the others could have—and who would have survived if they had!
B. She, we’re told, even continued to live in the midst of the people. She herself went on to be the wife of Salmon (the son of a great leader in Judah), the mother of Boaz (who’s wife was Ruth), the great-great grandmother of King David, and eventually the ancestor of our Lord! For her—as well as for all the people of Israel—the walls came down!
V. THE WALLS—ONCE DOWN—WERE NOT TO BE PUT UP AGAIN (vv. 26-27).
A. Joshua—who was now a proven leader and held in great honor by the people—declared that the walls should not be rebuilt. Joshua said, ““Cursed be the man before the Lord who rises up and builds this city Jericho; he shall lay its foundation with his firstborn, and with his youngest he shall set up its gates” (v. 26). It would truly be an act of rebellion against God to rebuild this ungodly city. But this actually happened later in Israel’s history. 1 Kings 16:34 tells us that in the days of wicked King Ahab, “Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation with Abiram his firstborn, and with his youngest son Segub he set up its gates, according to the word of the Lord, which He had spoken through Joshua the son of Nun.”
B. This reminds us that, when God brings the walls of resistance down, they only go up again because we ourselves foolishly build them up. He gives us a victory that—for His purposes in our lives—is irrevocable. Perhaps Paul had this in mind to some degree when he wrote, “For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor” (Galatians 2:18). Once God has destroyed the walls of Jericho in our lives, we should never allow ourselves to build them up again.