22 TIME-LIFE MIRACLES OF FAITH
J
oshua, the sixth book of the Old Testament,
chronicles the Israelites’ occupation of the Prom-
ised Land led by Moses’ successor, the charismatic
warrior Joshua. Written after the Israelites’ exile
by the Babylonians, the tales in the book are un-
derpinned by a fervent hope of return.
As the story opens, Joshua has been newly appointed
by God to lead the Hebrews into the Promised Land. He
dispatches spies to assess enemy morale in the important
city-state of Jericho, which the Hebrews must conquer to
secure Canaan.
Receiving word that the citizens of Jericho are terri-
fied, Joshua is ready to proceed. He commands his camp’s
priests to carry the sacred Ark of the Covenant, the chest
containing the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments,
and to stop in the center of the Jordan River. As the priests
step into the waters, the Jordan parts, providing safe pas-
sage to the entire Israelite army. The troops circle Jericho’s
walls once a day for six days.
On the seventh day, they continue the pattern. Then,
on their seventh round, seven priests
blast their ram’s-horn trumpets while
the Israelites shout thunderously. In
a shower of mud and rubble, the walls
that surround and protect Jericho
crumble, and the Israelite army rushes
in to conquer the city.
Next, Joshua vanquishes Ai, another key city-state, and
erects an altar to God at Mount Ebal, in the north. The
frightened leaders of Gibeon, a prosperous town north-
west of Jerusalem, dispatch men disguised as foreign am-
bassadors to Joshua at his Gilgal camp. The move briefly
tricks the Israelites into forming an alliance with the
townspeople. When the Israelites discover the ruse, they
enslave the Gibeonites.
Soon, the Gibeonites’ neighbors, angry at Joshua’s ac-
tions, attack the Israelites. Fighting is fierce, but the Isra-
elites receive miraculous help from God, including “huge
stones” from heaven that rain down on the area, which
help turn the battle in their favor. As the frenzied fighting
continues, Joshua turns his face skyward and pleads, “Sun,
stand still at Gibeon, and Moon, in the valley of Aijalon.”
Miraculously, the heavenly bodies cease their move-
ments until the Israelites vanquish their enemies. As de-
scribed in the Book of Joshua, “The sun stopped in mid-
heaven, and did not hurry to set for about a whole day.
There has been no day like it before or since, when the
Lord heeded a human voice; for the
Lord fought for Israel.”
Joshua and the Israelites return to
Gilgal in triumph, the five Amorite
kings are eventually hanged, and the
Israelites continue their conquest of
Canaan. ▪JOSHUA&JERICHO
DAYLIGHT
TRIUMPHS
In a show of support, God stops the sun from setting so
that the Israelites can defeat their enemiesOLD TESTAMENTTHE ISRAELITE INVASION
The Israelite army and its trum-
peters brought down the walls
of Jericho. Joshua urged his army
onward, the Ark of the Covenant
in their possession (20th-century
Bible illustration).