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| 1 Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the face of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in. |
Jericho – A walled city about five miles from the Jordan. R5343:2
Typifying, for the Royal Priesthood, the weaknesses and shortcomings of the flesh. R4070:3
None went out – The salvation of the Lord cannot go out and come into the world with haste. C284*; R751:1*
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| 2 And Jehovah said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thy hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor. |
I have given – Our power over our natural desires (represented by the Jerichoites) must come from God. R1857:3
Into thine hand – The "old man" of our fallen nature is to be utterly destroyed by us as "New Creatures" under the lead of the real Joshua--Jesus. R1857:3
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| 3 And ye shall compass the city, all the men of war, going about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days. |
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| 4 And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. |
Seven times – Showing completeness. R1857:6
With the trumpets – Typifying the proclamation of God's Word against sin and showing that he is able and willing to give the New Creatures victory over their carnal propensities. R1858:4
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| 5 And it shall be, that, when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall go up every man straight before him. |
The wall – A necessity owing to frequent incursions from Syria and Egypt, being on a main line of travel. R5343:2
Showing that the natural appetites are protected by the will of the flesh, which must be broken down. R1857:3
Fall down flat – Possibly, though very unlikely, caused by vibrations of the musical chord, or by the march-step of the Israelites. R3087:6
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| 6 And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of Jehovah. |
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| 7 And he said unto the people, Pass on, and compass the city, and let the armed men pass on before the ark of Jehovah. |
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| 8 And it was so, that, when Joshua had spoken unto the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before Jehovah passed on, and blew the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of Jehovah followed them.
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| 9 And the armed men went before the priests that blew the trumpets, and the rearward went after the ark, the priests blowing the trumpets as they went. |
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| 10 And Joshua commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor let your voice be heard, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout. |
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| 11 So he caused the ark of Jehovah to compass the city, going about it once: and they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp. |
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| 12 And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of Jehovah. |
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| 13 And the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of Jehovah went on continually, and blew the trumpets: and the armed men went before them; and the rearward came after the ark of Jehovah, the priests blowing the trumpets as they went. |
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| 14 And the second day they compassed the city once, and returned into the camp: so they did six days. |
Six days – Nothing accomplished except the witnessing. Represents 6000 years in which sin has been entrenched and impregnable, and God's people have merely witnessed against it. R5344:1
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| 15 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early at the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times: only on that day they compassed the city seven times. |
Seventh day – Represents the great seventh day, 1000 years of Messiah's reign. R5344:1
Seven times – The citadel of evil will be surrounded completely. R5344:1
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| 16 And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, Shout; for Jehovah hath given you the city. |
Joshua – Type of Christ. A79
Shout – Not until we have faith in God's Word can we blend the shout of victory with the shout of the trumpet and see the obstacles fall. R4071:4
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| 17 And the city shall be devoted, even it and all that is therein, to Jehovah: only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent. |
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| 18 But as for you, only keep yourselves from the devoted thing, lest when ye have devoted it, ye take of the devoted thing; so would ye make the camp of Israel accursed, and trouble it. |
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| 19 But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of copper and iron, are holy unto Jehovah: they shall come into the treasury of Jehovah. |
Silver, and gold – Consecrated in advance for the furnishment and adornment of the Tabernacle and Temple. R5343:2
Of brass and Iron – Picturing true Israel's ordinary possessions. R4071:1
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| 20 So the people shouted. And the priests blew the trumpets: and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, that 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 before him, and they took the city. |
With the trumpets – Typifying the trumpet notes of the Royal Priesthood; of obedience to God and opposition to sin. R3087:4
Giving forth the Bible message that ultimately sin shall be destroyed. R5344:1
That the wall – Representing the strong walls of sin and error. R5344:1
Possibly weakened by vibrations of the trumpets and shouts. R3087:6
Fell down – Typifying the utter overthrow of the power of sin. R3087:4
Probably the tremor of an earthquake, under divine direction, caused the fall. R5343:6
Flat – Seems too strong a translation to represent properly the original. The wall crumbled in front of the Ark. The section of the wall where Rahab's house was did not fall. R5343:5
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| 21 And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, both young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword. |
Utterly destroyed – Typifying the complete extermination of sin in its every form. R3087:4
Showing how the "old man," our fallen nature, is to be utterly destroyed by us as New Creatures, under the lead of the real Joshua, Jesus. R1857:3, R4070:3
This was no injustice as they were all under the death sentence anyway. F174
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| 22 And Joshua said unto the two men that had spied out the land, Go into the harlot’s house, and bring out thence the woman, and all that she hath, as ye sware unto her. |
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| 23 And the young men the spies went in, and brought out Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had; all her kindred also they brought out; and they set them without the camp of Israel. |
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| 24 And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein; only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of copper and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of Jehovah. |
And the gold – Representing our treasures. R4071:1
And of iron – Representing our ordinary possessions. R4071:1
Into the treasury – All the spiritual Israelite possesses is to be consecrated to the Lord's service. R1858:1
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| 25 But Rahab the harlot, and her father’s household, and all that she had, did Joshua save alive; and she dwelt in the midst of Israel unto this day, because she hid the messengers, whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho. |
Saved Rahab – Typifying the rescue, at the time of Babylon's fall, of the Great Company. R4054:2
Shows that some of our members once enemies of the new nature may be so transformed as to become servants of righteousness, through full consecration. R1857:6, R4070:6
Dwelleth in Israel – She afterward married into the tribe of Judah; and has the honor of being one of the ancestors of our Lord. R4070:6
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| 26 And Joshua charged them with an oath at that time, saying, Cursed be the man before Jehovah, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho: with the loss of his firstborn shall he lay the foundation thereof, and with the loss of his youngest son shall he set up the gates of it. |
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| 27 So Jehovah was with Joshua; and his fame was in all the land. |
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