The Israelites defeat the city of Jericho
1The people of the city of Jericho had closed the gates of the city and they had locked them. They were afraid of the Israelites. No one could go out of the city or come in.
2The Lord said to Joshua: ‘Listen to Me. I will give Jericho and its king and soldiers to you. You will defeat them. 3You and everyone who can go to war must walk around the city. You must walk around the city every day for 6 days. 4You must let 7 priests go in front of the covenant box. Each one must carry a ram's-horn. On the 7th day you must walk around the city 7 times while the priests blow the rams'-horns. 5When you hear that the priests keep on blowing their rams'-horns together in one sound, all the people must shout to start the war. Then the walls of the city will fall down and your soldiers must go into the city. Everyone must move together and go straight forward.’
6Joshua called the priests and he said to them: ‘You must carry the covenant box and the 7 priests with the rams'-horns must walk in front of the covenant box.’ 7Then Joshua told the people: ‘You must start walking. You must go around the city. The men with weapons must walk in front of the covenant box of the Lord.’
8Everything happened as Joshua had told the people. The 7 priests with the rams'-horns walked in front of the covenant box and they blew the rams'-horns. Behind them were the priests who carried the covenant box of the Lord. 9The men with weapons walked in front of the priests and the other people followed behind them. 10Joshua told them: ‘Don't shout. You must keep quiet. Don't talk or make any sound before I tell you to, then when I tell you, you must shout the war_shout. Only on the day when I tell you to must you all shout very loudly.’
11The priests carried the covenant box around the city, then they went back to their camp and they stayed there for the night. 12Joshua got up early the next morning. The priests picked up the covenant box and they carried it. 13The 7 priests each had a ram's-horn and they walked in front of the covenant box of the Lord. They kept on blowing the rams'-horns. The men with weapons walked in front of them and the other people followed behind the covenant box of the Lord. The priests kept on blowing the rams'-horns. 14On the 2nd day they walked around the city again, and then they went back to the camp. They did this every day for 6 days.
15On the 7th day, they got up when the sun came up and they did the same. But they walked around the city 7 times. Only on this 7th day did they go around the city 7 times. 16When the priests blew the rams'-horns the 7th time, Joshua told the men: ‘Shout the war_shout, because the Lord will help you defeat the people of this city. 17But you must give the city and everything in it to the Lord and consecrate it. You must destroy the city. Only the prostitute Rahab and everyone with her in her house may stay alive, because she hid our messengers. 18And remember, you must be careful with everything that is consecrated to the Lord to be destroyed. Don't take anything that is consecrated to Him that must be destroyed. If you take something, then the camp of Israel also will be consecrated to the Lord to be destroyed and you will bring death into the camp. 19The silver and gold and everything made of bronze or iron is to be consecrated to the Lord. You must put it away in the store room of the Lord.’
20The men shouted the war_shout and they blew the rams'-horns. When the men heard the blowing of the rams'-horns, they shouted to start the war. The walls of the city fell down and the men went into the city. Everyone went straight into the city and they defeated them. 21They killed everyone and everything in the city, men and women, young and old people, cattle, sheep and donkeys. 22Joshua told the 2 men who had been spies: ‘You must go into Rahab's house and bring her and her family out. Do it, because you promised her you would do it.’
23The 2 young men who had been spies went and they brought out Rahab, her parents, her brothers and everyone in her family. The young men brought them to a place outside the camp of the Israelites. 24The men burnt down the city and everything in it. They took only the gold and silver and everything made of bronze and iron and they put it in the store room of the tent of the Lord. 25Joshua let Rahab and all of her family live. She lived among the Israelites and her descendants still live there, because she hid the messengers that Joshua sent to be spies in the land.
26After they had destroyed the city of Jericho, Joshua spoke to the people and said the Lord was their Witness. Joshua said: ‘I curse any man who tries to build the city of Jericho again. When he starts to build the city wall, his oldest son will die. And when he puts in the gates of the city, his youngest son will die.’
27The Lord was with Joshua and all the people in the land knew that he was important.