6 Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of Bnei-Yisrael—no one going out and no one coming in. 2 Then Adonai said to Joshua, “Look, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty warriors. 3 Now you are to march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once. So you are to do for six days. 4 Seven kohanim will carry seven shofarot of rams’ horns before the ark. Then on the seventh day you are to circle the city seven times while the kohanim blow the shofarot. 5 It will be when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the shofar, have all the people shout a loud shout—then the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people will go up, everyone straight ahead.”
6 So Joshua son of Nun summoned the kohanim and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant. Let seven kohanim carry seven shofarot of rams’ horns before the ark of Adonai.” 7 Then he said to the people, “Move forward, march around the city, and let the armed force march ahead of the ark of Adonai.”
8 And it was so. After Joshua had spoken to the people, seven kohanim carrying the seven shofarot of rams’ horns before Adonai went forward and blew the shofarot, and the ark of the covenant of Adonai followed them. 9 Also the armed force went before the kohanim who blew the shofarot, and the rear guard came behind the ark, while the shofarot continued to blow. 10 But Joshua ordered the people saying: “You must not shout nor let your voice be heard nor let a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I tell you ‘shout!’ Then you will shout.” 11 So he had the ark of Adonai go around the city, circling it once. Then they came into the camp and spent the night there.
12 The next day Joshua rose early in the morning. The kohanim took up the ark of Adonai, 13 and the seven kohanim carrying the seven shofarot of rams’ horns marched in front of the ark of Adonai and blew the shofarot, with the armed force marching before them and the rear guard marching behind the ark of Adonai, while the shofarot continued to blow. 14 So the second day they circled the city once and returned to the camp. So they did for six days.
Jericho’s Walls Come Down
15 Now on the seventh day they rose early, at dawn, and marched around the city in the same way seven times. Only on that day did they march around the city seven times. 16 Then on the seventh time, when the kohanim blew the shofarot, Joshua ordered the people, “Shout! For Adonai has given you the city! 17 But the city will be under the ban of destruction—it and all that is in it belong to Adonai. Only Rahab the harlot will live, she and all who are with her in the house, because she hid the scouts that we sent. 18 But you, just keep yourselves from the things under the ban. Otherwise you would make yourselves accursed by taking of the things under the ban, and so you would make the camp of Israel accursed and bring trouble on it. 19 All the silver and gold and vessels of bronze and iron are holy to Adonai, and must go into the treasury of Adonai.”
20 So when the shofarot blew, the people shouted. When the people heard the sound of the shofar, the people shouted a loud shout—and the wall fell down flat! So the people went up into the city, everyone straight ahead, and they captured the city. [a] 21 They utterly destroyed everything in the city—man and woman, young and old, ox, sheep and donkey—with the edge of the sword.
22 Then Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land: “Go into the harlot’s house and bring the woman and all who belong to her, as you swore to her.” 23 So the young spies went in and brought out Rahab, her father, her mother, her relatives and all who belonged to her. All her relatives they brought out and put them outside the camp of Israel.
24 Then they burned the city with fire and all that was in it. Only the silver, the gold and the vessels of bronze and iron did they put into the treasury of the House of Adonai. 25 But Rahab the harlot, her father’s household and all who belonged to her, Joshua spared. She has lived in the midst of Israel to this day, because she hid the scouts whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.
26 At that time Joshua made an oath saying:
“Cursed before Adonai is the man
who rises up and rebuilds this city,
Jericho! On his firstborn
he will lay its foundation,
and on his youngest son
he will set up its gates.”
27 So Adonai was with Joshua, and his fame was throughout the region.
Footnotes
- Joshua 6:21 cf. Heb. 11:30.