Bringing down the walls

March 24, 2008

Joshua 6:7-10 ESV
(7) And he said to the people, "Go forward. March around the city and let the armed men pass on before the ark of the LORD."
(8) And just as Joshua had commanded the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams' horns before the LORD went forward, blowing the trumpets, with the ark of the covenant of the LORD following them.
(9) The armed men were walking before the priests who were blowing the trumpets, and the rear guard was walking after the ark, while the trumpets blew continually.
(10) But Joshua commanded the people, "You shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout."

We look today at Joshua taking the city if Jericho. God gave him some very strange instruction to take the city. March around the city once each day and on the seventh day, march seven times and then blow the rams horns. Then the city walls will come down and they can take over.

Now I do not know about you, but I can picture the guys walking around the walls. Each trip around they are looking at the walls asking themselves and each other when the cracks are going to show up in the walls. There was probably going to be a lot of doubt spoken. So Joshua did a smart thing. I do not know if God told him to do it or he did it himself. He told the people:

"You shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout."

In other words, march and keep your mouth shut. And this was for a good reason. Scientists in today's world have found there is a correlation between the words that we speak and what we become. I am not saying 'name it and claim it', but I am saying that if you speak negative things, then negative things begin to happen. If you go around saying that your marriage is a failure, that your kids are out of control, or what ever, then your mind gets that way and you will, deep in yourself, do things to make it happen.

Joshua had a wall to take down. He had to tell the people to keep their mouths shut. You have walls in your life. What do you have to keep quiet about?

Read through the Bible in one year in Historical order
Today
Joshua 5:1-8:35
Tomorrow
Joshua 9:1-11:23
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