Captain of the Host

Conquering Jericho

 

(Joshua 5:14,15)

"And he said, Nay; but as Captain of the host of the Lord am i now come. And Joshua fell on his face on the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant? And the captain of the Lord's host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so."

*Submitting to God's leadership means fearing God, yielding to His control and walking on holy ground. *

The battle of Jericho was a decisive challenge for the people of Israel. If Joshua and the people of Israel lost this battle, the conquest and control of the land would be extremely difficult. On the other hand, a great and decisive victory in this first battle would set a tone for future battles that would lead to victory and occupation of Canaan. God led Joshua and the Israelites to be totally prepared for the battle. Having crossed the Jordan miraculously, it might seem that the thing to do was to lead the army of Israel immediately into battle with the miracle of the crossing still fresh on their minds.

Those men born in the wilderness had never been circumcised. For some reason, the Israelites had not circumcised their children born during the wilderness journey. Circumcision was the sign of the Covenant God made with Abraham. Whether or not it was important to men, it was important to God. God ordered Joshua to make sharp knives and circumcise the men who were born in the desert.

I. The Captain of the Lord's Host

The men of war was now prepared. There was still a lesson for their leader to learn, and it was expressed in these verses. Leadership is a lonely business. Joshua would be required to make difficult and hard to understand decisions, and he needed to know for certain that God was leading him.

As Joshua looked out one day, he saw a man with a drawn sword. Joshua approached the man with the natural questions.  Are you for us or against us? Are you a friend or an enemy? To Joshua, there was no neutrality. You were either for the Lord's people or you were an adversary. The man simply told Joshua, No'. This man was the Captain of the army, or host, of the Lord. (angel) He was there to see that the will of the Lord was done. Joshua learned many valuable lessons from this encounter that every leader needs to know.

The appearance of this Captain of the unseen host of the Lord was proof to Joshua that God was in command. Every commander has a commander. Every leader has a leader. Every leader who will win a victory for the Lord must realize he is subordinate to Christ. Jesus cannot be our Lord unless we realize we are His servants.

Joshua had learned that, as far as God was concerned, the battle was already won. To be sure, the Israelites had battles to fight, but the outcome was never in doubt. God had promised this land to Israel, and His word was secure. The encounter with the Captain reminded Joshua that spiritual preparation was as important as physical preparation. Joshua was told that he was standing on holy ground. What made the ground holy was the presence of the Lord. Those who serve the Lord on any level must be spiritually prepared before they engage the enemy.

II. The Unique Plan for Victory

For many years Jericho had stood the ravages of war and attack. It was protected by the wall that surrounded the city. In times of siege, the people would shut the gates and simply wait until the enemy became discouraged and left. The many ancient walled cities testify to the effectiveness of this strategy. The people of Jericho were afraid of the army of Israel. When they saw the army approaching, they shut up the city and prepared for a siege.

Joshua was told to have his army march around the city once for six days. The priests were to carry the ark of the covenant and go before it with seven rams' horns. Then, on the seventh day the men were to march around the city seven times, and the priests were to blow the trumpets. When the trumpets sounded, the people were to shout and the wall of the city would fall down and the army of Israel would be able to enter and conquer the city.

If we serve the Lord and if we follow His plans for our lives, we are assured of a victory before we even begin.

(Romans 8:37)

"Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us."

We must remember that this was plainly a miracle. There is no natural explanation for what happened at Jericho and none is necessary. God made the earth, the He is in charge of all the powers that govern it. Men made the wall, and God easily made the wall fall down.

III. Victory over Jericho

Israel did as God told them to. The wall fell down flat and the soldiers  of Israel were easily able to enter and conquer the city. The order were clear. The army of Israel was to utterly destroy everyone in the city, and every animal in the city. They were to take the gold, silver, brass, and iron and bring it to the treasury of the house of the Lord. No one was to take anything in Jericho for himself. The victory was not about the power of Israel; it was about the power of God. The treasure was to go to God to show the army of Israel that it was by God's power they had won this victory.

The spies were sent to find Rahab and save her from the destruction. They found the red cord in her window and saved her and all those that were with her. When the destruction of Jericho was complete, Israel burned what was left and moved on. This battle established as a formidable force in Canaan and assured them of the power and presence of God among them. This was an obvious and evident lesson, that if God is for us, no one can successfully be against us.

**Jericho represents the world and worldly wisdom. Jericho represented the best human planning and technology. The great wall was built by men to solve a problem. It was the best men could do and it worked to a degree. **

***Israel represents the power and people of God.  The best men can do is folly and weakness in the sight of God. Men still build great structures to define our civilization, but God easily takes them away in the wind and the wave. ***

The people of Jericho thought they were secure inside their wall, but the real security and the real victory was among the nation that marched around their city that week. God was with Israel. Ancient Jericho is a distant memory in the minds of Historians; Israel is still a living and vital nation.

**Joshua believed God and the people believed what Joshua reported to them from God.

(Hebrews 11:30)

"By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days."

**We can win the victory over the world, when we will hear, believe and act on the Word of God. **

 

By Dinah Ramos

www.fghconline.com