Joshua 6
Leaders Prep Section
Watch this video, read these notes, and send the pre-written email (below) to your group 2-3 days before you meet.
Notes
Trust is the focus here – and trust is different than obedience. Obedience is the willingness to act…trust is the willingness to believe. If we’re in the military, obedience makes us jump from the plane, but trust allows us answers on the way down…like, “will my parachute open?” Trust allows us to lean on what will happen, before it happens. Without it, we wouldn’t be able to deal with all the unknowns. And life is full of unknowns, especially the night before war.
Group Guide Starts Here
Context of scripture
Mere words can barely convey what’s happening. Joshua is on his face, the earth around him made holy, receiving orders from God in the flesh, standing with drawn sword. Joshua is terrified.
Read Joshua 6:1-5
Jericho is one of the oldest known fortified cities in the ancient Near East.1 Built on an oasis (and called the ‘city of palms’2), it sat atop a 10-acre hill (giving high ground advantage), and contained an abundant natural spring. Translation? Jericho was capable of war by attrition. And God’s plan is to walk in circles and blow trumpets…foolish, right?
But wait. Could this be physiological warfare at its finest? Rahab, and now God himself have said the people in Jericho are racked with fear, their hearts melted. They’re in siege mode against a supernatural power. Tens of thousands of soldiers and their fearful God would circle the city like sharks…for days! This is one of the first documented battle plans built on physiological torture.
So, what you do you think…crazy idea or genius plan?
Read Joshua 6:6-14
This weeks long act may have served another purpose…to announce victory. Hittite texts from the 13th century B.C. describe royal processionals common after kings had won in battle. Multi-day processionals involved ‘chanters’ (announcing the kings dominance) and royal bodyguards (demonstrating the kings strength).
Imagine us marching alongside one another in complete silence, following God’s plan. How would this shared experience change us?
Is it easier to trust God when we’re with someone else? If yes, does that mean we don’t have enough faith on our own?
Read Joshua 6:15-21
Modern archeology shows the walls collapsed, not inward but outward and flat, creating a ramp allowing them to go up “into the city, every man straight before him.” Large, full jars of carbonized grain were found, marking the destruction at the springtime harvest (Joshua 3: 15)3 proving the siege happened quickly4 and the city had not been plundered. The layer of ash and burned debris covering the site was three feet thick.5
Read Joshua 6:22-27
With tens of thousands violently swarming into Jericho, only two men are charged with rescuing Rahab before something happens to her.
What experience in your life required the most amount of faith to get through?
Do you believe that having faith made any difference in that situation?