Book of Joshua - Ch. 6, Vs. 1-27 (01/11/2004)

Park Meadows Church

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Turn to the sixth chapter of Joshua, Joshua number six.

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Now Jericho was greatly shut up because of the children of Israel.

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None went in and none came out. The king of Jericho, finding that the spies, they had escaped, though the city was kept shut by night, he took the proper precautions to prevent everything of any kind of coming in and coming out and him not knowing.

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We find that if men continue in known transgressions, they will bring themselves into difficulties and dangers from which they cannot escape.

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And the Lord said unto Joshua, see, I have given unto thine hand

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Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor.

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Now Jericho was a small city, but it lies in the middle of the land of Canaan.

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So Joshua, in his military wisdom and God's guidance, has decided to attack

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Jericho first. Now remember, the promised land has been given to them from way, way back.

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And they're just now coming to it. The language here that proposes already formed that this was about, some condition was about to arrive, and that although the king and inhabitants of Jericho were fierce and experienced warriors who would make stout and determined resistance, the

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Lord promised a certain and easy victory over them. I want you to look at Jericho as the world, and we as Christians, we are overcoming the world.

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The battle's already been done, but we have to fight the skirmishes each and every day.

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Three, and you shall encompass the city, all ye men of war, and go around about the city once.

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Thus shall you do six days. Now as we get deeper into this, this seems,

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Roger, like a foolishness that the men of war would march around outside.

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In 1 Corinthians 121, for after that in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not

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God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

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During the week, Joy, during the week, do you ever think of the

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Father? Yes, sir. Yes, sir. I hope we all do. Now the

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Lord is still giving Joshua his instructions for, and seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of ram's horn.

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And the seventh day, you shall encompass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with trumpets.

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Now, Roger, why do you suppose this was not once was enough?

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He's going around six days in a week. And here you have a symbolism here of the

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Lord's work, completing it, some of it with a number of completion.

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Also, too, you can see the commitment that the Lord has put into their minds that they're to do this.

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Normally, men of war want to do that at war. And they're wanting to charge, and scream, and holler, and attack.

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This is a period, you know, unusual for them, and I believe even difficult for them to say, well, this is how we're going to keep this.

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Does that mean like pouring them into tears or something? Yes. Well, it's to deeply impress with that supernatural power that God's going to show the children of Israel and the world, five, and it shall come to pass that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the walls of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him.

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Now, the Lord says, I'm going to give you success. But it is given in such a way as to try your faith.

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I can imagine walking around three or four times, they would become so bored that they just, if they could have, they'd quit.

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The Lord chose this way, to try the faith and obedience of the people, whether they would observe a precept, which was, to human policy, seems to be foolish, and believe a promise, which seemed to be impossibly performed, whether they could patiently bear the reproaches of their enemies and patiently wait for the salvation of God.

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Chapter 6, but it is by faith that Jericho is going to fall down.

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Six, 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 ram's horns before the ark of the

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Lord. Now, this was a different horn than was normally used, and it's plain to see that the

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Lord's in control here. Man wouldn't have done it in this manner.

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In fact, man couldn't do it in this manner. Seven, and he said unto the people, pass on, encompass the city, and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the

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Lord. And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken unto the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of ram's horn passed on before the

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Lord, and blue was the trumpets, and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed behind, or followed them.

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And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the trumpets, and the rearward came after the ark, the priests going on and blowing with the trumpets.

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And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, you shall not shout nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any words proceed out of your mouth until the day

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I bid you shout, then shall you shout. So the ark of the

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Lord encompassed the city, going about it once, and they came into the camp and lodged in the camp.

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And Joshua rose up early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the

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Lord. And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of ram's horns before the ark of the

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Lord went on continually, and blew with the trumpets. And the armed men went before them, but the rearward came after the ark of the

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Lord, and the priests going on and blowing with the trumpets. And the second day they encompassed the city once, and they returned into the camp.

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So they did six days. Now, it's not likely that the entire entourage of Israelites here went out.

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That'd be ridiculous. But the armed men, the fighting men, and this amounted to 600 ,000, so there can't be that many.

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We may therefore safely assert that only a select number such as was deemed necessary for the occasion were employed.

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Jericho could not have been a very large city if you can imagine walking around it in a day.

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Roger, how big a city? Well, take Corsicana, for instance.

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Could you walk around Corsicana in a day? It'd be a very long day.

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You'd be walking about less than three miles an hour. That's at a fast pace.

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So imagine if you're carrying the ark of the covenant and you're walking between one or two miles an hour. Yes. We say that it was a very small city, but it had a wall.

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15, and it came to pass on the seventh day that they rose up early about the dawning of the day and compassed the city after the same manner seven times.

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Now, we know it's a small city because they went around seven times. Only on that day they compassed the city seven times, and it came to pass that even at the seventh time when the priests blew their trumpets,

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Joshua said unto the people, shout, for the

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Lord hath given you the city. Now, let's go inside the city. This isn't written, but we can suppose.

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They have fighting men inside the city. They have a king. All cities of any size had a king.

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They have a sentry posted, Joy, and he's looking over the wall at the camp of the

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Israelites. Now, remember they've just crossed the sea, crossed the river, and that alone boggled their mind.

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The river actually dried up for them. But now the river's flowing full blast, and they're camped.

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Three million people in a camp had to be quite a few. Well, the sentry is looking, and he shouts back to the men inside, they're coming.

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And they all rush to the gate on the east side, and he says, no, they're turning.

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They're coming, and they're turning. They're going south. So what do you do, being inside?

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You rush to the south. And the sentry on the south said, yes,

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I can see them coming, but they're going right on by. Well, this proceeds inside, and I can see the army following them inside.

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They must have been in bewilderment. Then on the east side, the sentry says, well, they're all going back.

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Well, that left you very perplexed. And you haven't had much sleep, and you're not going to get much.

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But early the next morning, the sentry is looking and says they're coming again. So they're turning, and they're marching around, and they're going back.

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This goes on for six days. By the sixth day, you're kind of complacent.

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You don't know what they're doing, but you're not going to follow them around anymore. And the seventh day, they come real early in the morning.

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This is the first change that's taken place. So here they come.

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They get around, and they don't go back. They go around again. Well, this really confuses you.

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But nothing you can do about it. So they go around again.

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They go around seven times. Why seven, David? The number

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God told them to do. Yeah. Like Richard said, that's the number of complacent in the

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Bible. Well, they had said nothing.

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If you can imagine an army not speaking, not even making any noise except you're walking.

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And to shout means to testify your faith in God's promise, thankfulness for his glory, his message, his mercy.

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And to shout, this must have really, really disturbed the people inside the wall.

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But it fell down. Now, there's lots of theories on that wall falling, but let's see what the

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Bible says. 17, and the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein to the

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Lord. Only Rahab, the harlot, shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that were sent.

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Accursed means devoted. Joy, are you devoted to the

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Lord? Dennis?

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I'm devoted to the Lord? Yes. All right, Roger, are you devoted to the

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Lord? I've been. Or has devoted me.

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All right, that opens another door. David, are you devoted to the Lord? Yes, at this point.

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John? Yes. You and your family are devoted to the

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Lord? Yes. All right.

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It means utter destruction. Devoted means utter destruction?

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Yes. So you have placed yourself in God's hands.

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You know not what lies ahead, but to be devoted to him means you hold nothing back.

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Now, let me see here.

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The word devoted means that you are, or it has been utterly destroyed, appointed to utter destruction.

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The faith of the believer does not depend upon the shovel of the architect, archeological,

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I'll get it in a minute. It is by faith that these walls fell down.

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Jericho represents the world. And to the believer, it's strong and comfortable, formidable, and foreboding.

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The conquest depends upon faith. And he tells us that in the New Testament. Hebrews reveals how faith worked.

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We hear the song, Joshua fit the battle of Jericho. Now, did he?

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Roger? No. But it makes a catchy song.

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He didn't fight at all. He just marched around the city. God did the fighting.

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And to say it was anything else is rather ridiculous. Some say that an earthquake placed at that psychological moment when the priest blew the trumpet and all the people shouted, and the shock toppled the walls.

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Others say that a constant marching of the children of Israel around the wall loosened the wall and it fell down.

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Well, you can believe that if you want to. I like it just the way it's told in the word of God.

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So let's go back for just a minute.

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Joshua instructs the young men that had an encounter with the harlot to go and bring her out.

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A great problem that many believers have today is that they are trying, you're trying your best to fit the battle of Jericho.

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And you can't do it. What can you do, Dennis? Well, you can do what

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Israelite did next to the Bible. That's all you can do. And ye in any wise keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed.

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When you take of the accursed thing and make the camp of Israel a curse, and trouble it.

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Now we come to a very, very important part of this scripture.

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What does accursed mean, Roger? Besides devoted. He did tell us it means destruction.

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All right. They were to bring the gold, and silver, and vessels of brass, and iron are consecrated unto the

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Lord. They shall come into the treasury of the Lord. Not the wheat, not the barley, or straw, or anything that was usable in their existence.

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Now I want to know why the Lord asked for these things, and they were to not take anything out of the city.

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David, can you find in this whole thing a reason?

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Well, one thing I can think of is the right of conquest allows you to take all that kind of stuff when you win.

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And this points out that it wasn't they who wanted it, it was God, so it belonged to Him, not them.

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That's a very good point, because He is the one that did it.

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Now we'll see other cities that they take that they do get the booty, but this one, this is the first fruits, if you'll let me use that term, of the conquest of Canaan.

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And the first fruits belong to the Lord, do they not? And he claimed them.

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Now he claimed them absolutely, they didn't have any choice in it. In 20, so the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets, and it came to pass when the people heard the sound of the trumpets, and the people shouted with a great shout that the walls fell down flat, so that the people went up, everyone into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.

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The walls fell down flat. Must have been a lot of people killed in the falling of the wall.

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It was remarkable that the wall where the harlot's house didn't fall. What does that show us,

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John? I'm sorry, what was your question? You're not supposed to read.

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Not supposed to read ahead. No, I ask why the wall did not fall where the harlot's house was.

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Because God had said that she would be spared. That in itself.

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What? And her family. That in itself shows that it was the

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Lord that did it. 21, and they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep, and ass with the edge of the sword.

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Now, the sword was not used in taking the city. All they did was shout.

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But the sword was used after they took the city to eliminate everybody. Dennis, this seems awful.

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You've got men and women and children and babies. You've got livestock.

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You've got everything. And they were instructed to kill all of them.

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But it was an act that was ordered by God himself.

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He is the maker of all men. We have to keep that in mind.

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So to kill them must have been right, because the judge of all the earth can do no wrong.

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Nothing that breathed was permitted to live. Hence, the ox and sheep, asses were destroyed, as well as the inhabitants.

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Everything was destroyed, everything. But Joshua had said unto the two men that spied out the country, go into the harlot's house and bring out thence the woman and all that she hath, as ye swear unto her.

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Well, the Canaanites were wicked, and they deserved the most severe punishment.

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What about the babies, David? They were cursed, because they were part of the whole city that was cursed.

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That's right. They were killed. They were guilty of the original sin, and otherwise at the disposal of their creator.

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The manner in which the Israelites passed over Jordan and took the city of Jericho showed that while men obey

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God, they have no good reason to distrust his willingness or his power to do for them all which they need.

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Well, this is a fact of the bottom line. Why God has to destroy all the people, because only he knows that that's the only way they can take the land.

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Because he destroyed the bad so that the good can move in.

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That's right. Now, the bad has the country filled. They're keeping it tilled.

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They're keeping it worked. They're doing everything necessary. And here come the

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Israelites. But they've got to take it. They have to fight to get it. We have to fight our way through this world.

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It's not handed to us. Sir Lewis? Yes. I realize that when we talk about killing of old and young and women, that we have a problem because we look at ourselves, and we would not want that to happen to us.

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That's right. You know, warriors go into battle, and we expect casualties. However, again, we're looking at it at a human perspective.

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And God tells us that we are to give up everything. We are to forsake all. It's difficult for us to physically look at these individuals as something that is forsaken as well.

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It doesn't matter if it's young, old, a beautiful person, or a nun. It's all given up.

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And it's God's, and it's difficult for us to humanly put that in perspective.

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It's easier for us to kill an animal, per se, than it is a human, because we look at ourselves.

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Yes. And humanly as to what we would not want to happen to us. That's all on a human perspective.

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That's right. And when we look at it from God's view, does it make any difference whether you're alive or dead?

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Dead. No. We find that the

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Israelites did that that they were told to do. Twenty -three.

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And the young men that were spies went in and brought out Rahab and her father, her mother, and her brother, and all that she had.

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And they brought out all of her kindred and left them without the camp of Israel.

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Now, I ask, why? Dennis? Why? Some say, why were they left out?

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Yes. Because they were not part of Israel. And I suppose, and they still probably, they were new to serving the

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Lord, although Rahab demonstrated faith in the Lord. They still had the old pagan way.

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And the law of the Israelites would not permit her to be in among them until she was purged.

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They did permit people to come in after they had, according to the law, the males been circumcised and go through a certain time.

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I don't understand that part. But they did not come straight in the camp.

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Twenty -four. And they burnt the city with fire and all that was therein, only the silver, the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron they put into the treasury of the house of the

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Lord. John, why, since the Lord's taken this for Himself, why did

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He choose the good things, the gold and the silver and all of that?

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I suppose there's going to be a use for them later and it needed to be the best thing. Well, that could be.

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Joy? I thought you had your hand up. No, but...

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Are you calling on me? Are you stumbling around waiting to get an answer?

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Why did God choose these things,

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Joy? They're the lastest things. They're the things

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He wanted us to say. They will honor

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Him because He is the power over all.

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These things are going to be in His temple. I think, you know, besides the people, everything else besides gold and silver and brass, everything else is perishable.

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Everything else is perishable. And so it's not just something that He wouldn't use down the road, it's something of a last.

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Why? David? Oh, I can see that.

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These people have already mentioned it. Could it be that this is what you would want?

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If you found any gold, you'd take it and hide it. If you found silver, you'd also glom onto that.

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God didn't need the gold or silver, but He knew it would be a great temptation to the people, and He still has to be obeyed.

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Joshua saved Rahab, the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had.

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And she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day, because she hid the messengers which

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Joshua sent to spy out at Jericho. Contrast for me, if you will, their first meeting, these spies with the harlot, and this last meeting,

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David. Well, the first meeting,

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I guess in a sense, they were at her mercy, and she could have hidden them or she could have exposed them to the enemy, and they would have been killed.

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And because she chose to hide them, she was spared some of this nasty people would have come, and then they'd come and take her, and victory.

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They're in control, and she's the one who needs saving this time, the deliverance, because she would be killed if they didn't hide her away.

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So the whole role was reversed. Yes, we see the reward of kindness, faithfulness, and performance of a promise, divine recognition of faith.

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26. And Joshua adjured, meaning beseeched, them at that time, saying,

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Cursed be the man before the Lord that riseth up and buildeth the city

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Jericho. He shall lay the foundation thereof in his firstborn and in his youngest son, shall he set up the gates of it.

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God would have the ruins of this city remain as a standing monument.

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27. And the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame was noise throughout all of the country.

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The unprosperous builder that would come later, cause of the curse here pronounced, that riseth and buildeth this city.

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Why would God not have Jericho built again?

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Roger? Well, like you mentioned, it was a sign.

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It was God's are the firstfruits. Also, too, the example of sin, and that it should not be revisited.

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Destroy it. Remain destroyed. All right.

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It was dedicated to him as firstfruits, and that strikes me as strange.

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Here is something utterly destroyed, just a burning heap, and it stands as a monument to God.

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That's rather strange, isn't it? Is there a picture there of the final construction?

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Yes. You know, when we honor God with something, we like to to think it looks fine in my eyes.

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That I gave this, or I built this, or this, or that. That's not thinking from God's way.

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Now, don't misunderstand, it can be that, but he needs nothing.

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And here he destroyed a city. We are to conquer in this life, and all of those things that we have conquered adds pleasure to God.

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He can look at those and say, that is of me. It's not always the pleasant and the unearing beautiful thing that is

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God's. That's man's view. Yes. That's right.

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That's right. Mm -hmm.

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Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm.

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Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm. No. That's right.

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Well, next week we'll find out something that happened during this week.

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Dennis dismisses, please. Thank you.