Did Jericho's walls fall on the Sabbath?

[Jack K]

I'm teaching through Joshua and wondering about the fall of Jericho. The text says the people marched around the city for seven days, and on the seventh day the walls fell and they took the city. But it doesn't specifically say this happened on the seventh day of the week, nor does it mention the Sabbath.

Given the well established pattern by that time of the Sabbath being special (40 years of no manna on the Sabbath), not to mention the fourth commandment, it seems sensible to assume God would be treating the Sabbath special. One wouldn't expect just an ordinary day of marching on the Sabbath. I'd expect either rest (which does not seem to have happened, as they marched every day that week) or the celebratory, victorious sort of "rest" that meant the fall of Jericho happened on that day.

What do you think? Did the walls of Jericho fall on the Sabbath? Can we know? And is there any reason to even bring it up in my teaching? Does it matter?

 

[SeanPatrickCornell]

My stance is if scripture is unclear on the matter (which it seems to be), then it doesn't matter.

 

[ProtestantBankie]

But marching around the walls was done each day - so the idea of the victory being given on the Sabbath is no more problematic than walking around the walls once and NO visible benefit being given.

At the same time, I cannot show that it is the Sabbath. But I do not believe it sinful to march round 7 times and lift up voices and instruments to God's praise that bring down the walls.

 

[Jack K]

I wasn't thinking any of it was a problem because of the Sabbath. Clearly, it was right to do. God commanded it. I'm just wondering if it teaches us anything about Sabbath rest (in the fullest sense) and the blessings associated with it. One of the resources I looked at suggested it was significant that the walls fell on the Sabbath, and I'm wondering if that book overstepped or got it right.

 

[SolaScriptura]

Of course it was on the Sabbath!!!

The priests blew their horns and the people shouted... and the walls fell.

This is an allegory of the fact that in the context of worship, the preachers trumpet the Gospel, the people respond in triumphal praise, and the walls of our sinful heart collapse...

 

[Contra_Mundum]

Ben,
I think that last emoticon you were searching for was:

 

[A5pointer]

seven symbolically, several literally? Could resolve the sabbath problem?

 

[SolaScriptura]

Ben,
I think that last emoticon you were searching for was:

True... Sorry for the sloppiness, I was in a hurry to get to Sportsman's Warehouse.

 

[SRoper]

We have a budding Matthew Henry here!

To answer the original question, I don't think we can know that the wall fell on the Sabbath, although some have certainly taught that.

 

[Peairtach]

Jack

I wasn't thinking any of it was a problem because of the Sabbath. Clearly, it was right to do. God commanded it. I'm just wondering if it teaches us anything about Sabbath rest (in the fullest sense) and the blessings associated with it. One of the resources I looked at suggested it was significant that the walls fell on the Sabbath, and I'm wondering if that book overstepped or got it right.

If such activity was going on on the Sabbath - as endorsed by the Lord - there is certainly there some practical and ethical instruction or indication, if it were needed, that (collective) evangelism can be done on all days by the NT Israel, and also, secondarily maybe, regarding the necessity of warfare on the Sabbath by the (Christian) state.