A Few More Days Around Jericho Wall

TheA Few More Days Around Jericho

Joshua 6:1-5

Joshua 6:1

Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.

Joshua 6:2

And the Lord said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour.

Joshua 6:3

And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.

Joshua 6:4

And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams' horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets.

Joshua 6:5

And it shall come to pass, 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 ascend up every man straight before him.

After the death of Moses, the people of Israel went on to conquer the Promised Land. This book tells the story, and demonstrates that God is well able to keep the promises He makes to His people. God made a promise to Israel that they would go to a land of milk and honey.

The strange battle strategy must have seemed ridiculous to the inhabitants of Jericho, but Israel was to learn from the outset that the campaign fro Canaan would be successful only if fought at God’s direction. It was to be a spiritual experience. Victory could come only on the basis of spiritual obedience. Jericho was strategic Canaanite stronghold. Archaeological excavations reveal that Jericho was oldest known city in ancient Canaan. Its age and location made it the most prominent city in that region. Its fall would open up the whole center of the land to the invaders.

When we look at the story of Jericho, we see the awesome power of God at work. We see how God is able to work great miracles through unusual ways.

Many of us have our Jericho walls in life. But I want you to know that whatever your Jericho wall is, God has already made the plan for you to defeat and conquer the enemy.

First we have to believe God. Joshua believed what God told him before he received the direction. See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof and the mighty men of valor. God told Joshua victory was already in place. The promise of the Lord (Josh. 6:2). It's possible that the Lord spoke these words to Joshua when He confronted him at Jericho (5:13-15). The tense of the verb is important: "I have given Jericho into your hand" (6:2, nkjv, italics added). The victory had already been won! All Joshua and his people had to do was claim the promise and obey the Lord.

Victorious Christians are people who know the promises of God, because they spend time meditating on God's Word (1:8); they believe the promises of God because the Word of God generates faith in their hearts (Rom. 10:17); and they reckon on these promises and obey what God tells them to do. To "reckon" means to count as true in your life what God says about you in His Word

Bible Exposition Commentary (BE Series) - Old Testament - The Bible Exposition Commentary – History.Note the march around Jericho had not began, Israel had not moved towards the city, but God tells Joshua I have given into thine hand.

Unfortunately we can’t see ahead as God can, all we know is that the Lord gave the promise to take care of us. Therefore as we go through life we have always be mindful that God will take care of you.

Secondly we must realize that God’s way of doing things is not the same as ours.

I foolish does it sound to march around a wall for seven days. The occupants of Jericho thought Israel had lost their minds. Can’t you see them laughing. But God’s way is always the right way. And in the end it will be the winning way.

Thirdly God wants us to shout before the victory. Most of the time we want to wait till the battle is over before we shout. But we must remember that God has already given the victory. How do we shout now? We shout because of faith and believing God. Because Israel was obedient to God, they took Jericho. Whatever your Jericho wall is, God can tear it down. Sometimes you may have to do things that seem strange, but the wall will come down.

The instructions of the Lord (Josh. 6:3-5). "Joshua did not take the city merely by a clever, human military tactic," wrote Francis A. Schaeffer. "The strategy was the Lord's."

Bible Exposition Commentary (BE Series) - Old Testament - The Bible Exposition Commentary – History.

When I think about Canaan, the things Israel had to go through to get there. I begin to think about our own life’s journey. We are on our way to Canaan, we might have some walls in the way, but some glad morning when this life is over Canaan will be our home. Yes just a few days around our Jericho walls, but start shouting now.

On Jordan’s stormy banks I stand And cast a wishful eye

To Canaan’s fair and happy land, Where my possessions lie.

All o’re those wide extended plains Shines one eternal day

There God the Son for ever reigns And scatters night away.

No chilling winds not poisonous breath, Can reach that health-ful shore

Sickness and sorrow, pain and death, Are felt and feared no more.

When shall I reach that happy place And be forever blest?

When shall I see my Father’s face And in His bossom rest?

I am bound for the promised land, I am bound for the promised land

O who will come and go with me? I am bound for the promised landFire of Jermiah

Jeremiah 20:7-9 (KJV) 7 O LORD, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived: thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me. 8 For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the LORD was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. 9 Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.

(20:7-18) Jeremiah, Response to Persecution, Prayer—Call, of God, Questioned—Discouragement, Example, Jeremiah—Word of God, Preaching, a Compulsion—Persecution, How to Conquer, Prayer—Despair, Example of, Jeremiah—Prayer, Results, Deliverance: the persecution Jeremiah suffered cut his heart to the core. The leaders and people had insulted, abused, and held him in contempt, hurting him very deeply. So he did what he knew to do: he went before the Lord in prayer and cried out for His help. Opening his heart to the Lord, God’s prophet poured forth his innermost thoughts and feelings. Crying out from the depths of his soul, he exposed four raw emotions with the Lord:

a. He was questioning God's call due to constant abuse: Was he deceived about his call?

1. Due to the constant abuse he had suffered, Jeremiah questioned God’s call to him (vv.7-8). He asked the Lord if he had been deceived about his call. It was difficult to believe that he had been deceived, for at the time of Jeremiah’s call, the Lord had already addressed his objections. And the Lord had thoroughly convinced him that he was truly called to preach God’s Word. Nevertheless, his preaching had borne no fruit. To the contrary, he had been ridiculed daily. Everyone was mocking him. Although he faithfully proclaimed God’s warning of His coming judgment, preaching the Word of God had brought him only persecution. People insulted and reproached him all day long (v.8). Jeremiah clearly needed what so many prophets of God need when they are discouraged: a reconfirmation of God’s call and mission.

b. He was still compelled to continue proclaiming God's Word

2. Despite Jeremiah’s discouragement, he knew that he could not deny or run from God’s call and mission. He knew that even if he left the ministry, he would still be compelled to proclaim God’s Word (v.9). God’s Word burned in his heart like a fire that consumed his bones, his entire being. He could not hide away the Word of God in his heart and mind and keep it only for himself. He could never stop sharing it with others.

c. He was continually persecuted

3. Clearly broken before the Lord, Jeremiah revealed the deep pain he felt because of the persecution he was suffering (vv.10-13). A scandalous campaign had apparently been launched against him in an attempt to defame his reputation as a prophet and keep the people from listening to him. They evidently took the saying that the prophet had so often used and turned it against him giving rise to a nickname for Jeremiah. When they saw him coming, his enemies would simply say, “Here comes ‘terror on every side!’” Whatever the case, Jeremiah’s enemies constantly opposed him. Even his friends turned against him. Seeking to stop his preaching, they sought to find out something criminal about him to report to the authorities.

But note the strong faith of Jeremiah (v.11). He knew that the Lord, like a mighty warrior, was protecting him (v.10). He knew not only that the Lord would cause his enemies to stumble and fall but also that God would punish them with eternal shame and dishonor.

Jeremiah’s major concern was that God vindicate Himself (v.12). He knew that the Lord examines the hearts and minds of people to determine who is righteous. Therefore, the Lord could execute true and just vengeance. The Lord could vindicate His prophet and the mission He had given him, the preaching of His very Word. The Lord was very capable of fulfilling everything Jeremiah had prophesied. By fulfilling the prophecies concerning His coming judgment, the Lord would vindicate both His Word and the cause of His prophet. Realizing this wonderful truth, Jeremiah broke out in praise to the Lord. He praised God for delivering the poor in spirit, true believers, from the wicked (v.13). With confidence flooding his heart, he knew that the Lord would deliver him. For since I spake, I cried out, etc.; rather, For as often as I speak, I must shout; I must cry, Violence and spoil; I can take up no other tone but that of indignant denunciation, no other theme but that of the acts of injustice constantly committed (not merely, nor indeed chiefly, against the prophet himself). Was made; rather, is made.

Verse 9

Then I said, etc.; rather, And when I say, I will not make mention of him, etc., then it becometh (i.e. I am conscious of a feeling) in my heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones; and I weary myself to hold it in, but cannot. The prophet has repeatedly been tempted to withdraw from the painful duty, but his other and higher self (comp. 'Old Self and New Self' in the 'Lyra Apostolica') overpowers these lower bayings for peace and quiet. The fire of the Divine wrath against sin burns so fiercely within him that he cannot help resuming his work.

d. He was gripped by deep despair, 15:10; Jb.3:3-10

4. After the Lord gave Jeremiah a deep sense of joy at the triumph over his persecutors, a sense of shame and despair seems to have come over Jeremiah (vv.14-18). Although most commentators interpret this passage as a continuation of his despair over his persecutors, more likely he sensed that he had miserably failed the Lord by questioning Him and His call. Having just broken out in a triumphant song, Jeremiah now turned to the Lord and confessed that he was such a miserable failure before the Lord that it would have been better if he had never been born. The day of his birth should be cursed, not blessed. Most, if not all, prophets of God have experienced this sense of unworthiness, this feeling of having failed the Lord. Most have even confessed that, if it were not for Christ, it would have been better if they had not been born.

Apparently the man who had brought the news of Jeremiah’s birth to his father was one of the abusive friends who were persecuting him. For this reason, Jeremiah pronounced a curse upon the man, a curse like the one God pronounced against Sodom and Gomorrah. Of course, this is a reference to the coming Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem, an attack that would utterly destroy the capital, even as Sodom and Gomorrah had been destroyed. Feeling that he had utterly failed the Lord, Jeremiah said that it would have been better for that man to have killed him in the womb than

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THE WORD WILL CREATE A FIRE THAT WILL MAKE US KEEP GOING