Joshua 6:1

Joshua 6:1 says, Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.  Jericho was sealed behind the gates because of their fear of the people of Israel.  I believe more accurately they were sealed behind the gates because of their fear of the God of Israel.  God was not their God, so they feared Him and His people.  People today often seal their hearts against accepting Christ, because they don't want to acknowledge God as their God.  Whether they fear Him or just don't want to acknowledge Him is unimportant, since the result is the same.  Verse two states, And the LORD said unto Joshua, See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valour. God promised Joshua that He had already given the victory over Jericho and its king and men of valor to Joshua.  God didn't tell Joshua to prepare battering rams or any other device or ladders to bridge the wall.  God simply told Joshua that He was giving Joshua the victory.  Verse three declares, And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.  God's battle plan started with having the people of Israel simply march around Jericho for six days.  This does not seem like much of a battle plan.  Still, it required the people of Israel to obey God's command, and I am sure it probably made the people of Jericho feel a little more at ease.  After all, marching around the city didn't really affect them.  God's plan of salvation is very simple, and that is coming to Him through faith in Jesus Christ as one's Savior and Lord.  We are not to go out and force anyone to accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, and many lost people today who have built up walls around their heart do not feel that the gospel of Christ affects them at all.  No matter how many times the gospel is presented, they simply choose to ignore it.  Verse four adds, 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. The seventh day was to be different.  Seven priests were to bear the ark of the covenant, that represented God's presence with the people of Israel and seven trumpets while marching around the city seven times.  This had to have gotten the attention of those inside the walls of Jericho.  At some point in time, even the person who is the most adamant in denying God is going to be made aware of the reality of God.  God uses many different methods to accomplish this, but as followers of Christ we must be ready to do whatever He calls us to do, even if it seems somewhat foolish to us.  The priests and the people might have been wondering by the seventh day what was really going to happen.  We today might wonder at times if God's salvation plan is enough, but we must acknowledge that it is the only way to defeat sin in the world.  Verse five concludes, 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 flat, and the people shall ascend up every man straight before him.  The plan to get past the walls of Jericho was sounding trumpets and giving a loud shout.  When this was done, then the walls would be laid flat and the people of Israel could enter Jericho.  God could have just as easily leveled the walls by His own power, but He called on the people of Israel to obey His command and to be part of the victory.  Today, God could and does reveal Himself to everyone, and He can do so without our help, but He chooses to allow us to be a part of His victory.  We simply have to follow God's leadership in obedience.