Joshua 6
1 Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the children of Israel. No one went out, and no one came in.
Now Jericho was closely shut up and besieged, and none went out of it, and none came in.
2 The LORD said to Joshua, “Behold, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and the mighty men of valour.
And the Lord said to Joshua, Behold, I deliver Jericho into your power, and its king in it, [and its] mighty men.
3 All of your men of war shall march around the city, going around the city once. You shall do this six days.
And do you set the men of war round about it.
4 Seven priests shall bear seven shofars of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day, you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the shofars.
And it shall be [that] when you shall sound with the trumpet, all the people shall shout together.
5 It shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the shofar, all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the city wall will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, every man straight in front of him.”
And when they have shouted, the walls of the city shall fall of themselves; and all the people shall enter, each one rushing direct into the city.
6 Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven shofars of rams’ horns before the LORD’s ark.”
And Joshua the [son] of Naue went in to the priests, and spoke to them, saying,
7 They said to the people, “Advance! March around the city, and let the armed men pass on before the LORD’s ark.”
And let seven priests having seven sacred trumpets proceed thus before the Lord, and let them sound loudly; and let the ark of the covenant of the Lord follow.
8 It was so, that when Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests bearing the seven shofars of rams’ horns before the LORD advanced and blew the shofars, and the ark of the LORD’s covenant followed them.
Charge the people to go round, and encompass the city; and let your men of war pass on armed before the Lord.
9 The armed men went before the priests who blew the shofars, and the ark went after them. The shofars sounded as they went.
And let the men of war proceed before, and the priests bringing up the rear behind the ark of the covenant of the Lord [proceed] sounding the trumpets.
10 Joshua commanded the people, saying, “You shall not shout nor let your voice be heard, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout.”
And Joshua commanded the people, saying, Cry not out, nor let any one hear your voice, until he himself declare to you the time to cry out, and then you shall cry out.
11 So he caused the LORD’s ark to go around the city, circling it once. Then they came into the camp, and stayed in the camp.
And the ark of the covenant of God having gone round immediately returned into the camp, and lodged there.
12 Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the LORD’s ark.
And on the second day Joshua rose up in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the covenant of the Lord.
13 The seven priests bearing the seven shofars of rams’ horns in front of the LORD’s ark went on continually, and blew the shofars. The armed men went in front of them. The rear guard came after the LORD’s ark. The shofars sounded as they went.
And the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets went on before the Lord; and afterwards the men of war went on, and the remainder of the multitude went after the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the priests sounded with the trumpets.
14 The second day they marched around the city once, and returned into the camp. They did this six days.
And all the rest of the multitude compassed the city six times from within a short distance, and went back again into the camp; this they did six days.
15 On the seventh day, they rose early at the dawning of the day, and marched around the city in the same way seven times. On this day only they marched around the city seven times.
And on the seventh day they rose up early, and compassed the city on that day seven times.
16 At the seventh time, when the priests blew the shofars, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the LORD has given you the city!
And it came to pass at the seventh circuit the priests blew the trumpets; and Joshua said to the children of Israel, Shout, for the Lord has given you the city.
17 The city shall be devoted, even it and all that is in it, to the LORD. Only Rahab the prostitute shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent.
And the city shall be devoted, it and all things that are in it, to the Lord of Hosts: only do you save Raab the harlot, and all things in her house.
18 But as for you, only keep yourselves from what is devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted it, you take of the devoted thing; so you would make the camp of Israel accursed and trouble it.
But keep yourselves strictly from the accursed thing, lest you set your mind upon and take of the accursed thing, and you make the camp of the children of Israel and accursed thing, and destroy us.
19 But all the silver, gold, and vessels of bronze and iron are holy to the LORD. They shall come into the LORD’s treasury.”
And all the silver, or gold, or brass, or iron, shall be holy to the Lord; it shall be carried into the treasury of the Lord.
20 So the people shouted and the priests blew the shofars. When the people heard the sound of the shofar, the people shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight in front of him, and they took the city.
And the priests sounded with the trumpets: and when the people heard the trumpets, all the people shouted at once with a loud and strong shout; and all the wall fell round about, and all the people went up into the city:
21 They utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, both young and old, and ox, sheep, and donkey, with the edge of the sword.
and Joshua devoted it to destruction, and all things that were in the city, man and woman, young man and old, and calf and ass, with the edge of the sword.
22 Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house, and bring the woman and all that she has out from there, as you swore to her.”
And Joshua said to the two young men who had acted a spies, Go into the house of the woman, and bring her out thence, and all that she has.
23 The young men who were spies went in, and brought out Rahab with her father, her mother, her brothers, and all that she had. They also brought out all of her relatives, and they set them outside of the camp of Israel.
And the two young men who had spied out the city entered into the house of the woman, and brought out Raab the harlot, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and her kindred, and all that she had; and they set her without the camp of Israel.
24 They burnt the city with fire, and all that was in it. Only they put the silver, the gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron into the treasury of the LORD’s house.
And the city was burnt with fire with all things that were in it; only of the silver, and gold, and brass, and iron, they gave to be brought into the treasury of the Lord.
25 But Rahab the prostitute, her father’s household, and all that she had, Joshua saved alive. She lives in the middle of Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
And Joshua saved alive Raab the harlot, and all the house of her father, and caused her to dwell in Israel until this day, because she hid the spies which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
26 Joshua commanded them with an oath at that time, saying, “Cursed is the man before the LORD who rises up and builds this city Jericho. With the loss of his firstborn he will lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he will set up its gates.”
And Joshua adjured [them] on that day before the Lord, saying, Cursed [be] the man who shall build that city: he shall lay the foundation of it in his firstborn, and he shall set up the gates of it in his youngest son. And so did Hozan of Baethel; he laid the foundation in Abiron his firstborn, and set up the gates of it in his youngest surviving son.
27 So the LORD was with Joshua; and his fame was in all the land.
And the Lord was with Joshua, and his name was in all the land.
