(Now Jericho was closely besieged by the children [{288}] of Israel: none went out, and none came in.) And the Lord said to Joshua, "See, I have given into thine hand Jericho, and the king thereof, and the mighty men of valor. And ye shall march around the city, all the men of war, going about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days. And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark: and the seventh day ye shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. And it shall be, that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when ye hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall go up every man straight before him."
And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the Lord."
And they said unto the people, "Pass on, and march around the city, and let the armed men pass on before the ark of the Lord."
And it was so, that when Joshua had spoken unto the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of rams' horns before the Lord passed on, and blew the trumpets: and the ark of the covenant of the Lord followed them. And the armed men went before the priests that blew the trumpets, and the rear guard went after the ark, the priests blowing the trumpets as they went.
THE PLAIN OF JERICHO, LOOKING TOWARD THE JORDAN FROM THE HILLS TO THE WEST.
From a photograph taken by Prof. H. G. Mitchell and used by his kind permission.
A view of the Jordan plain, showing the desolate nature of the country.
