Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1888-10-27
THE FALL OF JERICHO.
LESSON ", FOURTH QUARTER, IN
TERNATioNAL SERIES, OCT. %.


condensed from Lesson Helper Quarterly, by
| permission Of H. S. Hoffman, Philadelphia,
publsher.l
When the power Of the Lord was seen On
behalf of His people, then the hearts of their
enemies failed them and there was no spirit
left in them ". II. Because there is so
little OF the power of God manifest today on
behalf of His people, by reason Of their un-
belief, therefore the enemies of God are rebel
lious and despise His people. As soon as the
nation had crossed the Jordan and entered
the land Joshua caused to DO circumcised all
who had been born since they had left Egypt,
! and then they kept the passover on the four
| tenth day of the month; thus with the re-
proach of Egypt rolled away, and living in
obedience to God, they were ready to go up
and possess the land, overcoming all OBJ
stacles. They had also eaten of the fruit of
the land, the mamma having ceased, and
thus they were strengthened for victory ",
I OLD. Another most interesting and inn
portant incident is recorded in the closing
verses of the fifth chapter, as last prepare
ton for their moving forward. Joshua, by
Jericho, sees man over against him with q
drawn sword in his hand, and approaches
him with the question: art thou for us or
Il
captain of the host of the Lord am / now
come" VIII Joshua submit to be ruled over
| and dictated to by another, or will he assert
his dignity and reply that he himself is cap
tain Of this hostl Blessed servant of the
Lord, he falls on his face and worships and
says, in meek subsection and obedience:
!. "Jericho was straitly shut up.n As if to
say, you cannot enter here, nor think to scale
these walls, for we are too strong for you.
I But there was one house in the city from
/ whose window hung a scarlet thread and in
which was gathered n company OF those
who feared and trusted in the God of Israel.
Blessed household of faith and precious sure
token of the scarlet line. (See ii, 1921; vi,
! 22-25) This present evil world is as GER
| tainly doomed to judgment as was the city
/ of Jericho, and although it may shut itself
! up in its fancied self security, tho time draws
near when it shall be said ''come, my people,
! enter thou into thy chambers and shut thy
/ doors about thee; hide thyself as it were
! for a little moment, until the indignation be
/ overpast; for, behold, the Lord cometh out
of His place, to punish tho inhabitants of the
! earth for their iniquityp Isa. XVI, 90, 21.)
In the days of Noah the world that then was,
being overlooked with water, persisted, but
this present world is reserved unto fire
I against the day of judgment and perdition
! of ungodly men. Oh Pet. ill, 6, ~ In tho
, days of Noah they were self indulgent, alb
sorbed in business, and comfortably settled
in doomed world all Indifferent to
tho righteousness required or tho judgments
threatened So also was it in Sodom in the
days Of Lot, and just SO was it in Jericho.
9. 'Sec, have given into thine hand Jer-
I icho." Thus said tho captain of tho Lords
{ host 20 Joshua, and this captain was mono
other than tho Lord Himself, tho same who
said TO tho Father concerning His followers:
'The glory which Thou gavest Me 1 have
given them" John xvii, 22) and who says
to us: "All things arc yours; 20 are my
witnesses; 60 We, therefore; 10, I am with
YOU" We have only to thankfully receive,
! gladly enjoy and hasten to possess fully the
! land of our inheritance, that thus We may
glorify God and honor His name We have
no right to see or fear difficulties of any
kind for He who is with us, whose we are
and whom we represent is the Lord God AL
might, maker of heaven and earth, the Lord
Jesus Christ, once dead but now alive for
evermorc, having the keys of Hades and of
death.
If as believers in Christ we do not enjoy
the riches Of His Grace while we wait for the
riches of His Glory, what can it DO on our
part but pure unbelief? And are wo not
thereby false witnesses, and guilty of great
ingratitudes
SIS. Hero are instructions clear and simple
for the seven days, and the result OF their
obedience is plainly stated to be the fall of
Jericho, not by their power or might but by
the direct hand Of God. The men Of war,
numbering over 100000 Num- XVI, sly were
20 compass the city once day for six days,
and on the seventh day they were to do it
seven times; seven priests, each with
trumpet of rams horn, were to precede the
ark of the covenant, blowing their trumpets,
the armed men going first; but until the
sew NTH time on the seventh day there was
no sound of human voice to be heard ".
10y, nothing but the sound of the rams horns
blown by the seven priests who marched be-
fore the Ark
Gil. As tho Lord commanded Joshua so
he commanded the people; nothing added,
nothing left out; he was simply Gods mouth
piece, Gods obedient servant, doing His win,
walking in His ways. The central object in
tho great procession was the Ark of tho
Lord and the only sound was that of tho
seven trulaocts; $50 tho Ark of the Lord
compassed tho city, going about it once"
Thus they did the first day and returned and
lodged in the camp at Gilgal The place of
rolling away the reproach of Egypt, keeping
the passover and submitting to tho glorious
Captain, is the only place to start out from
each morning and return to each evening;
the flesh rcckoned dead, 'not but Christ"
the blood cleansing Jesus Himself satisfying,
and our bodies living sacrifice into Him
each day and hour; this is the starting place
in the morning and the resting place In the
evening, and as we 60 forth each day it is to
bear the Ark and blow the trumpet; or like
Gideon's three hundred let the light shine and
blow the trumpet; in other words, bear
Christ about everywhere and sound
forth His praises as Redeemer and King.
12-1I ''And the second day they COM
passed the city once and returned into the
camp; so they did six days" just the samo
order of march, just the Same solemn pro-
cession, the blowing of trumpets the only
sound heard, and the same quiet return to
Gilgal without apparently any result; but
they were obcying God, and the result was