1 Meanwhile, the people of Jericho had been locking the gates in their town wall because they were afraid of the Israelites. No one could go out or come in.
2-3 The Lord said to Joshua:
With my help, you and your army will defeat the king of Jericho and his army, and you will capture the town. Here is how to do it: March slowly around Jericho once a day for six days. 4 Take along the sacred chest and tell seven priests to walk in front of it, carrying trumpets.
But on the seventh day, march slowly around the town seven times while the priests blow their trumpets. 5 Then the priests will blast on their trumpets, and everyone else will shout. The wall will fall down, and your soldiers can go straight in from every side.
6 Joshua called the priests together and said, “Take the chest and tell seven priests to carry trumpets and march ahead of it.”
7-10 Next, he gave the army their orders: “March slowly around Jericho. A few of you will go ahead of the chest to guard it, but most of you will follow it. Don't shout the battle cry or yell or even talk until the day I tell you to. Then let out a shout!”
As soon as Joshua finished giving the orders, the army started marching. One group of soldiers led the way, with seven priests marching behind them and blowing trumpets. Then came the priests carrying the chest, followed by the rest of the soldiers. 11 They obeyed Joshua's orders and carried the chest once around the town before returning to camp for the night.
12-14 Early the next morning, Joshua and everyone else started marching around Jericho in the same order as the day before. One group of soldiers was in front, followed by the seven priests with trumpets and the priests who carried the chest. The rest of the army came next. The seven priests blew their trumpets while everyone marched slowly around Jericho and back to camp. They did this once a day for six days.
15 On the seventh day, the army got up at daybreak. They marched slowly around Jericho the same as they had done for the past six days, except on this day they went around seven times. 16 Then the priests blew the trumpets, and Joshua yelled:
Get ready to shout! The Lord will let you capture this town. 17 But you must destroy it and everything in it, to show that it now belongs to the Lord. The woman Rahab helped the spies we sent, so protect her and the others who are inside her house. But kill everyone else in the town. 18-19 The silver and gold and everything made of bronze and iron belong to the Lord and must be put in his treasury. Be careful to follow these instructions, because if you see something you want and take it, the Lord will destroy Israel. And it will be all your fault.
20 The priests blew their trumpets again, and the soldiers shouted as loud as they could. The walls of Jericho fell flat. Then the soldiers rushed up the hill, went straight into the town, and captured it. 21-25 They killed everyone, men and women, young and old, everyone except Rahab and the others in her house. They even killed every cow, sheep, and donkey.
Joshua said to the two men who had been spies, “Rahab kept you safe when I sent you to Jericho. We promised to protect her and her family, and we will keep that promise. Now go into her house and bring them out.”
The two men went into Rahab's house and brought her out, along with her father and mother, her brothers, and her other relatives. Rahab and her family had to stay in a place just outside the Israelite army camp. But later they were allowed to live among the Israelites, and her descendants still do.
The Israelites took the silver and gold and the things made of bronze and iron and put them with the rest of the treasure that was kept at the Lord's house. Finally, they set fire to Jericho and everything in it.
26 After Jericho was destroyed, Joshua warned the people, “Someday a man will rebuild Jericho, but the Lord will put a curse on him, and the man's oldest son will die when he starts to build the town wall. And by the time he finishes the wall and puts gates in it, all his children will be dead.”
27 The Lord helped Joshua in everything he did, and Joshua was famous everywhere in Canaan.
1 Now Iericho was shut vp, and closed, because of the children of Israel: none might go out nor enter in. 2 And the Lord saide vnto Ioshua, Behold, I haue giuen into thine hand Iericho and the King thereof, and the strong men of warre. 3 All ye therefore that be men of warre, shall compasse the citie, in going round about the citie once: thus shall you doe sixe dayes: 4 And seuen Priests shall beare seuen trumpets of rams hornes before the Arke: and the seuenth day ye shall compasse the citie seuen times, and the Priests shall blow with the trumpets. 5 And when they make a long blast with the rams horne, and ye heare the sound of the trumpet, al the people shall shoute with a great shoute: then shall the wall of the citie fall downe flat, and the people shall ascend vp, euery man streight before him. 6 Then, Ioshua the sonne of Nun called the Priests and said vnto them, Take vp the Arke of the couenant, and let seuen Priests beare seuen trumpets of rams hornes before the Arke of the Lord. 7 But he said vnto the people, Goe and compasse the citie: and let him that is armed, go forth before the Arke of the Lord. 8 And when Ioshua had spoken vnto the people, the seuen Priestes bare the seuen trumpets of rams hornes, and went foorth before the Arke of the Lord, and blew with the trumpets, and the Arke of the couenant of ye Lord followed them. 9 And the men of armes went before the Priestes, that blewe the trumpets: then the gathering hoste came after the Arke, as they went and blewe the trumpets. 10 (Nowe Ioshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall nor shout, neither make any noyse with your voyce, neither shall a worde proceede out of your mouth, vntill the day that I say vnto you, Shout, then shall ye shoute) 11 So the Arke of the Lord compassed the citie, and went about it once: then they returned into the hoaste, and lodged in the campe. 12 And Ioshua rose early in the morning, and the Priestes bare the Arke of the Lord: 13 Also seuen Priests bare seuen trumpets of rams hornes, and went before the Arke of the Lord, and going blewe with the trumpets: and the men of armes went before them, but the gathering hoste came after the Arke of the Lord, as they went and blewe the trumpets. 14 And the second day they compassed the citie once, and returned into the host: thus they did sixe dayes. 15 And when the seuenth day came, they rose early, euen with the dawning of the day, and compassed the citie after ye same maner seuen times: only that day they compassed the citie seuen times. 16 And when the Priests had blowen ye trumpets the seuenth time, Ioshua said vnto ye people, Shoute: for the Lord hath giuen you the citie. 17 And the citie shalbe an execrable thing, both it, and all that are therein, vnto the Lord: onely Rahab the harlot shall liue, shee, and all that are with her in the house: for shee hid the messengers that we sent. 18 Notwithstanding, be ye ware of the execrable thing, lest ye make your selues execrable, and in taking of the execrable thing, make also the hoste of Israel execrable, and trouble it. 19 But all siluer, and gold, and vessels of brasse, and yron shalbe consecrate vnto the Lord, and shall come into the Lordes treasury. 20 So the people shouted, whe they had blowen trumpets: for when the people had heard the sound of the trumpet, they shouted with a great shoute: and the wall fel downe flat: so the people went vp into the citie, euery man streight before him: and they tooke the citie. 21 And they vtterly destroyed all that was in the citie, both man and woman, yong, and olde, and oxe, and sheepe, and asse, with the edge of the sword. 22 But Ioshua had said vnto the two men that had spied out the countrey, Go into the harlots house, and bring out thence the woman, and all that she hath, as ye sware to her. 23 So the yong men that were spies, went in, and brought out Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that shee had: also they brought out all her familie, and put them without the host of Israel. 24 After they burnt the citie with fire, and all that was therein: onely the siluer and the gold, and the vessels of brasse and yron, they put vnto the treasure of the house of the Lord. 25 So Ioshua saued Rahab the harlot, and her fathers houshold, and all that shee had; and shee dwelt in Israel euen vnto this day, because shee had hid the messengers, which Ioshua sent to spie out Iericho. 26 And Ioshua sware at that time, saying, Cursed be the man before ye Lord, that riseth vp, and buildeth this citie Iericho: hee shall lay the foundation thereof in his eldest sonne, and in his yongest sonne shall hee set vp the gates of it. 27 So the Lord was with Ioshua, and he was famous through all the world.