Week 3: The Destruction of Jericho

Book of Joshua Chapters 5 & 6

Objective: 

The Destruction of Jericho

Resources:

• Book of Joshua - Fr Tadros Malaty Commentary (English)
• Catena Bible Commentary
• Fr Dawoud Lamie Bible study (Arabic)
• Fr Luka Maher Bible study (Arabic)
  

Reading:

Book of Joshua Chapters 5 & 6

Key verse(s):

"And the seventh time it happened, when the priests blew the trumpets, that Joshua said to the people: “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city! . Joshua 6:16

Comments:

Chapter 5

• Circumcision (verses 1-9)
• The Passover and the cessation of manna (verses 10-12)
• Joshua and the Commander of the Lord's Army (verses 13-15)
  • God reveals Himself through the events of our life to encourage us. You can feel Him if you seek Him from your heart, believe in His existence, and are willing to obey Him. He will make Himself known to you and guide you to live with Him.

Chapter 6 

• The marching around the city (verses 1-14):

  • The benefits of the people marching around the city include:

    1. Encouraging the people and instilling confidence and strength in their hearts to take Jericho.
    2. Testing the people’s obedience to God's commands, leading to their victory.
    3. Creating fear among the inhabitants of Jericho, who see the Israelites from the walls. Their fear could make their defeat easier and might even lead some to repentance and faith in God.
    4. Teaching the Israelites discipline and precision in warfare and in all aspects of their lives.
• The fall of the city and its destruction (verses 15-21):
  • God intended to destroy the inhabitants of Jericho because of their wickedness, as well as the animals, since they were used as sacrifices to idols or were worshiped themselves. This was to remove evil and everything associated with it, and to ensure that His people remain diligent in avoiding all forms of wickedness.
• Rahab's preservation (verses 22-27)

Review/recap questions:
**Servant may add more questions

• Why the Lord ordered Joshua to circumcise his people?
• What did the Israelites eat on the day after the Passover?
• What were the items allowed to be taken from Jericho to be consecrated to the Lord?
•  "Go and bring out the woman and all that she has” Who said this verse? To whom? What was the name of that
  woman?
• Why do you think Joshua burned Jericho?
• The number seven is mentioned several times in this chapter. What is its importance?

Homework:
**Servant may add more questions

• Now the children of Israel camped in ________, and kept the Passover on the _________ day of the month at
  twilight on the plains of ___________.
•  The commander of the army of the Lord had _________ in his hand.
•  How many days did the Israelites people march around the city?
  a) 40 b) 7 c) 8 d) 3
• What happened when the priests blew the trumpets and the people shouted on the seventh day?
  a) The walls of Jericho fell down b) Rahab escaped c) the spies ran away