Chapter 6:
| Darby
| Geneva
| Gill
| Jamieson Faussett Brown
| Matthew Henry
| Matthew Henry Concise
| Wesley
| Index
| Bible Gateway |
Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Deuteronomy Judges
Joshua 6
Directions given to Joshua concerning Jericho, ver. 1-5. The
people compass the city seven days, ver. 6-14. The taking it, with
the charge to destroy it utterly, ver. 15-21. The preservation of
Rahab and her relations, ver. 22-25. A curse pronounced on any
that should rebuild it, ver. 26, 27.
Verse 3. Round about the city once - At a convenient distance, out of the
reach of their arrows. Six days - Every day once. This and the
following course might seem ridiculous and absurd, and is
therefore prescribed by God, that they might learn to take new
measures of things, and to expect success not from their own
valour, or skill, but merely from God's appointment and blessing;
and in general, not to judge of any of God's institutions by mere
carnal reason, to which divers of their ceremonies would seem no
less foolish than this action.
Verse 5. The wall - Not all of it; which was unnecessary, and might have
given the people better opportunity of escaping, but only a
considerable part of it, where the Israelites might fitly enter: for
Rahab's house was not overthrown, ver. 22. Flat - Hebrew. under
it, it was not battered down with engines which would have made
part of it fall out of its place; but it fell of its own accord, and
therefore in the place it did formerly stand in. God chose this way,
to try the faith and obedience of the people: whether they would
observe a precept, which to human policy seemed foolish, and
believe a promise, which seemed impossible to be performed:
whether they could patiently bear the reproaches of their enemies,
and patiently wait for the salvation of God. Thus by faith, not by
force, the walls of Jericho fell down.
Verse 6. Of rams horns - Of the basest matter, and the dullest sound, that
the excellency of the power might be of God.
Verse 7. Him that is armed - God would have them armed both for the
defense of themselves and the ark, in case the enemies should
make a sally upon them, and for the execution of the Lord's
vengeance upon that city.
Verse 9. The rereward - Which being opposed to the armed men, may
seem to note the unarmed people, who were desirous to be
spectators of this wonderful work.
Verse 10. Ye shall not shout - Because shouting before the time
appointed, would be ineffectual, and so might give them some
discouragement, and their enemies matter of insulting.
Verse 16. Shout - To testify your faith in God's promise, and
thankfulness for this glorious mercy; to encourage yourselves and
brethren, and to strike a terror into your enemies. Given you the
city - It is given to them, to be devoted to God, as the first, and
perhaps the worst of all the cities of Canaan.
Verse 17. Accursed - That is, devoted to utter destruction. This he
speaks by direction from God, as is evident from 1 Kings xvi, 34.
To the Lord - Partly because the first-fruits were appropriated to
God; partly lest the soldiers being glutted with the spoil of the rich
city, should grow sluggish in their work; and partly to strike the
greater terror into the rest of their enemies.
Verse 18. A curse - By provoking God to punish them for your sin, in
which they may be one way or other involved; or the whole camp
having sins of their own, God might take what occasion he saw fit
to inflict this punishment.
Verse 19. Vessels of brass and iron - Except that of which images were
made, which were to be utterly destroyed. Unto the Lord - Being
first made to pass through the fire, Num. xxxi, 22, 23. Treasury of
the Lord - To be employed wholly for the uses of the tabernacle,
not to be applied to the use of any private person or priest.
Verse 21. Young and old - Being commanded to do so by the sovereign
Lord of every man's life; and being informed by God before that
the Canaanites were abominably wicked, and deserved the
severest punishments. As for the infants, they were guilty of
original sin, and otherwise at the disposal of their creator; but if
they had been wholly innocent, it was a great favour to them to
take them away in infancy, rather than reserve them to those
dreadful calamities which those who survived them were liable to.
Verse 22. Harlot's house - Which together with the wall upon which it
leaned, was left standing, by a special favour of God to her.
Verse 23. Without the camp of Israel - 'Till they were cleansed from the
impurities of their Gentile state, and instructed in the Jewish
religion, and solemnly admitted into that church, for which
Rahab's good counsel and example had doubtless prepared them.
Verse 25. The harlot olive - For that general command of rooting out the
Canaanites seems to have had some exception, in case any of
them had sincerely and seasonably cast off their wickedness, and
submitted to the Israelites.
Verse 26. Adjured them - Or, made them to fear; caused the people, or
some in the name of all, to swear for the present and succeeding
generations, and to confirm their oath by a curse. Before the Lord
- That is, from God's presence, and by his sentence, as they are
said to cast lots before the Lord, chap. xviii, 8, 10, that is,
expecting the design from God. He intimates, that he doth not
utter this upon a particular dislike of that place, but by divine
inspiration. God would have the ruins of this city remain as a
standing monument of God's justice against this wicked and
idolatrous people, and of his almighty power in destroying so
great and strong a city by such contemptible means. Buildeth -
That is, that shall attempt to build it. So this curse is restrained to
the builder, but no way belongs to those who should inhabit it
after it was built, as is evident from 2 Kings iv, 18 Luke xix, 1, 5.
In his youngest son - That is, he shall lose all his children in the
work, the first at the beginning, others in the progress of it by
degrees, and the youngest in the close of it, when the gates use to
be set up. This was fulfilled, 1 Kings xvi, 34.
Verse 27. The word of the Lord was with him - (So the Chaldee:) Even
Christ himself, the same that was with Moses. Nothing makes a
man appear more truly great, than to have the evidences of God's
presence with him.
Chapter 6:
| Darby
| Geneva
| Gill
| Jamieson Faussett Brown
| Matthew Henry
| Matthew Henry Concise
| Wesley
| Index
| Bible Gateway |
Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Deuteronomy Judges
This version of Wesley's Notes on the Bible is a derivative of an electronic version, Copyright 1997, by Sulu D. Kelley. All rights reserved. Used by permission. It may not be modified or used commercially without permission of Wesleyan Heritage Publishing and Sulu Kelley. A special thanks to Mr. Kelley and Wesleyan Heritage Publishing for permission to create and post this version of Wesley's Notes on the Bible.
Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy
Joshua
Judges
Ruth
1 Samuel
2 Samuel
1 Kings
2 Kings
1 Chronicles
2 Chronicles
Ezra
Nehemiah
Esther
Job
Psalm
Proverbs
Ecclesiastes
Song of Solomon
Isaiah
Jeremiah
Lamentations
Ezekiel
Daniel
Hosea
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
Micah
Nahum
Habakkuk
Zephaniah
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachi
Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
Acts
Romans
1 Corinthians
2 Corinthians
Galatians
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
1 Thessalonians
2 Thessalonians
1 Timothy
2 Timothy
Titus
Philemon
Hebrews
James
1 Peter
2 Peter
1 John
2 John
3 John
Jude
Revelation
