Joshua 5 concludes with a vision of the Lord. At first, Joshua didn’t recognize Him. But after the warrior identified himself, Joshua realized it was God. He was instructed to remove his sandals because he was on holy ground.
God wasn’t there to take sides; He came to take over the battle and secure victory for His people and His name.
Jericho’s Defeat
Chapter six starts with God giving Joshua instructions for winning the battle at Jericho. For six days, the priests were to walk ahead of the people with the ark of the Lord, blowing the shofar. The people would follow silently without saying a word.
On the seventh day, they were to march around Jericho seven times while blowing the shofar. At Joshua’s signal, the people would shout, and God would grant them victory.
The people didn’t know all that God had planned. It was a surprise, then, when the city walls came tumbling down. But they knew what to do next. They rushed the walls and won a victory that day.
Devoted to Destruction
In our YouTube videos, Rudy Ross often explains that the people of the land had at least 600 years to change their behavior. Despite this long period, they showed no change and were deemed devoted to destruction by God.
The Israelites, who were to conquer these people, were instructed to destroy certain items and not take them for their own use. If they coveted those items, they too would become devoted to destruction.
“As for you, keep away from the things devoted to destruction, so as not to covet and take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel an object for destruction, bringing trouble upon it” (Joshua 6:18).
Humanity’s sin began when people thought they could ignore God’s guidance and take what wasn’t meant for them.
Eve saw the fruit that the serpent claimed would make her wiser than God intended. She took it, ate it, and shared it with her husband. This act brought sin and disobedience into the world.
When God instructed His people during the conquest of Jericho, He warned them against falling into similar temptation. They were to obey God and not take matters into their own hands by coveting objects devoted to destruction.
Take a moment to think about world affairs. Could nations wanting what belongs to other nations be the cause of the death of thousands? Now, consider crime. Is coveting at the heart of the crimes we hear about so often?
Look at your own life. Think about the things you desire that God hasn’t given you. Maybe it’s a better job, a different personality, or a spiritual gift someone else has.
Why is the human heart so willing to covet but not live in gratitude for God’s gifts?
Rahab Rescued
Joshua 6 ends with the spies we met in Joshua 2 going to Rahab’s house to rescue her from the destruction of Jericho.
Rahab is noted in the book of James for her faith. She acted on her belief, and as a result, she and her family were saved from the destruction of Jericho.
You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. Likewise, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another road?
For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead (James 2:24-26).
Rahab expressed her faith when she told the spies, “The Lord your God is indeed God in heaven above and on earth below” (Joshua 2:11).
James is right when he notes that her faith was only effective when she put it into action. Sending the king’s soldiers on a wild goose hunt while hiding the spies was faith in action.
Rahab is a great picture for us today. Faith in God is essential, but faith becomes real and effective when it is lived by the man or woman of faith.
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 