Joshua 6-10

Chapter 6
The city of Jericho is closed down in preparation for a siege/battle with the Israelites. God instructed Joshua and the Israelite soldiers to walk in a circle around the walls of the entire city, once a day, for six days. On the seventh day they would circle the city 7 times, and 7 priests were to blow on 7 trumpets and the people were supposed to yell and shout. Then the walls of the city would fall, and the Israelites could enter the city- so this is what happened.

Joshua 6: 24-25
And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein: only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord.
And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had; and she dewlleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

Chapter 7
A man named Achan from the tribe of Judah took an object from Jericho that was something other than gold & silver, which was forbidden. We come back to him later.

Joshua sends two men to scout out the city of Ai next, and the scouts report that only about 3,000 men need to go conquer it. However, the 3,000 Israelites flee from Ai...

Joshua 7:5
And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men: for they chased them from before the gate even unto Shebarim, and smote them in the going down: wherefore the hearts of the people (the Israelites) melted, and became as water.

When Joshua heard this, it says he "rent his clothes". This is an eastern custom which means that the clothes get torn, and is a sign of extreme distress or sadness. Joshua asks the Lord what the Israelites should do, now that everyone in Canaan will know they lost a battle.

God tells Joshua that the Israelites lost the battle because of the accursed things that were taken out of Jericho. God says he won't help the Israelites any more until the accursed things are destroyed. God tell Joshua to call all the tribes, families, and individuals to inspection to find the accursed thing. He searches through the tribe of Judah and Achan confesses to taking a garment, silver, and gold for himself, and that it is all buried under his tent. Joshua's instructions from God were to kill whoever had the accursed thing, so that's what he did.

Chapter 8
God then instructed Joshua to take all the men of the Hebrew army and take the city of Ai. So Joshua sends 30,000 men to go behind the city. The plan is for Joshua and the other men to draw out the soldiers from the city by running away. When the soldiers are gone, the 30,000 will go into the city and overtake it, then set the city on fire. When this happened, they killed all the men of Ai and hanged their king.

Then Joshua built an altar made of stones, and the people sacrificed a peace offering to God. (war and peace in the same day, these people are busy!) Joshua then wrote the law of Moses on the stones, and read all the law to the people of Israel.

Chapter 9
All the other kings of cities in Canaan heard about what happened to Jericho and Ai and decided to band together to fight Joshua and the Israelites. The inhabitants of the city of Gibeon went so far as to disguise themselves as foreigners, come to pay tribute to the Israelites and trick them into signing a treaty with them.

Joshua 9:14-15
And the men (Israelites) took of their (Gibeonites) victuals and asked not counsel at the mouth of the Lord.
And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them.

Three days later the children of Israel learned that the people were their neighbors, but since they had sworn on the Lord to have peace with them, they could not attack them. Instead, they made the people to be the lowest class of people in Israel. The Gibeonites then said:

Joshua 9:24-26
...it was told thy servants, how that the Lord thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you, therefore we were sore aftread of our lives because of you, and have done this thing.
And now, behold, we are in thine hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do.
And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not.

Chapter 10
King Adonizekek of Jeruselem hears about the fate of Jericho, Ai, and Gibeon, and became afraid. He asks 4 other kings of nearby cities to help him battle Gibeon, because of the peace they made with Israel. Joshua and the Israelites battled with the 5 armies and chased them away from Gibeon. God sent stones falling from the sky to finish off those which ran away.

Joshua 10:11
...they were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword.

Joshua asks God to keep the sun and moon still in their orbits so that they can fight longer against these other armies. So the sun stayed in the sky a whole extra day.

Joshua 10:14
And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the Lord hearkened unto the voice of man: for the Lord fought for Israel.

Adonizekek and his 4 allied kings hid in a cave, when they were found, they were kept there until all their soldiers had been destroyed, then they were taken to the Israelits camp and hanged. The Israelites then went on to conquer the cities of Makkedah, Libnah, Lachish, the men of Gezer, and the cities of Eglon, Hebron, and Debir.