Battle of Jericho victory or failure

Strategic Battles of the BIBLE

The Battle of Jericho 
Was it a Victory?
Joshua 6
http://www.biblestudytools.com/nkjv/joshua/6.html

Was it a Victory?

For forty years rumors had come to the city of Jericho that the God of Israel had promised their land to the children of Israel.  Jericho had built a huge fortified city to prevent this from happening to them and to be able prevent its destruction. Joshua 6:1 tells us that Jericho was securely shut up.  No one in the town of Jericho went out of the town.  To live like this must be similar to the lives people have that live in an invisible prison because of the bondage's of sin. Today the enemy thinks many of its strongholds are secure and impenetrable by God’s people he doesn’t believe that we are growing stronger in Christ that we are changing into a stronger people then when we left Egypt.

The strategy God gave them for the very first battle in the Promised Land was for them to "shut up".  Forty years of whining and building false idols and disobedience was now over and it was time that they just trust not blindly but silently That God would deliver them. Joshua 6:2 tells them to “SEE”

 2 And the LORD said unto Joshua,  

See, 

I have given into your hand Jericho, and the king of Jericho, 

and the mighty men of valour.

The word “Valour” here is Defined (Strong’s Concordance #02428) Strength, might, efficiency, wealth, army, able, efficient, a force.  These men were quite able to fight and the children of Israel had not been in a battle for at least 40 years. Jericho was their first test in obedience and faith. Here is what God expected of them.

1.  All the men of war are to March around Jericho once a day for 6 days and one the 7 day to march around it 7 times.

2.    Be quiet don’t make any noise vs:10  Now Joshua had commanded the people, saying, “You shall not shout or make any noise with your voice, nor shall a word proceed out of your mouth  

 Now I must confess that It would be nearly Impossible for me to not say a word for 6 days It would take all the Grace of God and a miracle or two. 
But not make a sound I don’t know It would be a miracle.  The Children of Israel had been grumbling and complaining so long about “what did God just bring out of slavery to destroy us by starvation in the desert let’s go back whine, whine…………. Now they were required to walk around a fortified city full of strong efficient powerful warriors and shut up.  I must say I wonder how much God enjoyed that!

3.   On the seventh day the priest was to blow a long blast on the Ram’s horn or trumpet and then all the people were to SHOUT. 

4. They were not to take any of the accursed things for themselves. 

5. Only Rahab was to be saved everyone else was to be destroyed.  Rahab has saved the spies and helped them escape the city of Jericho and they told her to place a scarlet tread in her window have all her family there and then they would save her and her family. 
6. They were not to take any accursed thing no matter what for themselves and if they did the Camp of Israel would be a curse.

Joshua 6:7.  Now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction, it and all who are in it. Only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent. ¹⁸ And you, by all means abstain from the accursed things, lest you become accursed when you take of the accursed things, and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it

7.    All the silver and the Gold Vessels of Bronze and iron belonged to The Lord and they were to go into the treasury of the Lord! Joshua 6:19   but all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord; they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.”

So that is what they did and when on the seventh day they shouted the walls of Jericho fell to the ground and they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword, except for Rahab who they saved.

The final thing that Joshua did was to place a curse on anyone that rebuilt Jericho 
 Joshua 6:26 Then Joshua charged them at that time, saying, “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.”

So the fame of Joshua spread all over the land and the people of the land were afraid.

So what a great Victory........ or maybe if you move on to the next battle 

"The Battle of AI" 

Maybe Jericho was a huge failure for the children of God  stay tune til tomorrow for more of the story.