The Walls of Jericho

Joshua 6:2-5

The LORD said to Joshua, “See, I have handed Jericho over to you, along with its king and soldiers. You shall march around the city, all the warriors circling the city once. Thus you shall do for six days, with seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, the priests blowing the trumpets. When they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, as soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and all the people shall charge straight ahead.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Joshua fit de battle of Jericho
He tell the boys with the horns get down and blow
They rear back aim they bells at the stars
And said beat me big daddy eight to the bar

"Let My People Go-Go" by The Rainmakers, lyrics by Bob Walkenhorst, from their self titled first album.

The key to the first two sentences in our reading is the multiple verb tenses. "The Lord said" is in the past tense. The Lord did say.

"I have handed," this one is a present perfect construction. This is kind of complicated, but it's something that has happened in the present with future implications. The Lord has handed Jericho over now, and in the future.

Finally we have "You shall march," a future verb. This will be done, you will do this.

Three verb tenses in two biblical verses. Who would have thought one of the most complicated aspects of understanding scripture is verb tense?

The Lord, in God's own time, has accomplished much through us. Even when we have not done what we are supposed to do, to the Lord it's as good as done. They haven't marched around the city yet, but the victory is already won. The victory is already won.

So it's time to tell the boys, or be one of the boys for that matter, and let the horns blow. Aim the bells at the stars, do it Dizzy Gillespie style if that'll do it for you, and hit it! Eighth notes all the way around big daddy, let the horns blow.

This is when the walls fall, when we are confident not in what we do, but in what the Lord has already done. This is why we answer the call of the Lord. Not out of an obligation, we don't answer the call because God can't work without us. Oh, no. We respond to the Lord out of thanks for what is already done by the Lord and will be done through us. This was Joshua's hope, this is our hope too.