Hebrews 11:30

And what shall I more say,.... Intimating he had said enough to prove the definition of faith he had given; and that the elders, by it, had obtained a good report; and yet he had not said all he could; and that he had so much to say, that he could not say all:

for the time would fail me; either the time of life, and so it is an hyperbolical expression; or the time convenient for the writing this epistle; to enumerate all the instances of faith, and enlarge upon them, would take up too much of his time, and make the epistle prolix and tedious: this form of speech is often used by Philo the Jew (u), and by Julian the emperor (w). It may be observed, that many, who are not mentioned by name, do not stand excluded from being believers; and that the number of believers, under the Old Testament, was very large:

to tell of Gedeon; so Gideon is called in the Septuagint version of Jdg 6:11 and other places; and by Josephus (x), and Philo (y) the Jew, as here: he was a man, but of a mean extract, and had his infirmities; and even in the exercise of that particular grace, for which he is mentioned; but was, no doubt, a good man, and is commended for his faith; which appeared in ascribing former mercies and present afflictions to the Lord; in destroying the altar of Baal; in crediting the word of the Lord, that Israel should be saved by him; which he showed by the preparation he made, and in marching against a numerous army, with only three hundred men, and they but weak: all which may be seen in the book of Judges, Jdg 6:1 and

of Barak; who was before Gideon, as Jephthah was before Samson, and Samuel before David; for the apostle does not observe strict order, reciting these in haste. Barak, when the word of the Lord came to him, showed some diffidence, yet acted in obedience to it, under the sole direction and counsel of a woman; he engaged Sisera's vast army with a small number, and gave the glory of the victory to the Lord, Jdg 4:1.

and of Samson: who was a child of promise, and devoted to the Lord; he was famous for his great strength; he had his infirmities, but was, without doubt, a good man: the last act of his life seems to be a great instance of faith; he did it with calling upon the Lord; he was strengthened for it by the Lord; he acted, not as a private person, but as the judge of Israel; nor did he act from private revenge, but from zeal for God, and love to his country; and his intention was not to destroy himself, but his enemies; in which he acted as a type of Christ:

and of Jephthah; the Syriac version calls him "Nepthe", and the Arabic version "Naphtah"; he was base born; and, for a time, joined himself to vain men, but became a believer; and is marked for his faith, in ascribing the conquests of Israel in the wilderness to the Lord; in fighting with the Ammonites, whom he conquered; and in his conscientiousness, in observing his vow, Jdg 11:30.

of David also; a man after God's own heart, raised up to fulfil his will; whose faith appeared in his dependence on God, when he fought with Goliath; in encouraging himself in the Lord his God, when in exile and distress; and in believing his interest in the covenant of grace, when his house and family were in a disagreeable situation, and he just going out of the world:

and Samuel; a child of prayer, and early devoted to the Lord, who ministered to him, when a child; was always ready to hearken to his voice; was used very familiarly by him, and behaved with great uprightness, all his days; and had a good report of God and man:

and of the prophets; from Samuel to John the Baptist, who were famous for their trust in God, their faith in the Messiah, and for their honourable walk and conversation.

(u) De Creat. Princip. p. 735. Merced. Meret. p. 863. De Legat. ad Caium, p. 1037. De Somniis, p. 1116. (w) Orat l. p. 50, 62, 75. (x) Antiqu. Jud. l. 5. c. 6. sect. 2. &c. (y) De Confusione Ling. p. 339.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Heb_11:30

The walls of Jericho fell down

Feeble means and great results:

In the means employed by the children of Israel there was nothing adequate to so great and instant a catastrophe.

There was surely no visible or real connection between compassing the city in procession and the falling of the walls which followed. We learn from the whole of this part of our subject, that whatever obstructs the march of the people of God, God not only is able, but is pledged and willing to remove. Rocks shall start from their places--rivers shall abjure their channels--the fire shall fail to burn--wild beasts, ravenous with hunger, shall refuse to devour--rather than one jot perish from the least promise that God has spoken, or one grace be exhausted from the least heart that God has sanctified by His Holy Spirit. When we see these great effects follow in answer to faith, it may be asked, Why use means at all, since the means were inadequate? By His prescribing means, He showed that He is and that He was present in the midst of them; by prescribing inadequate means, He showed that that presence was omnipotent, and that all the glory of the issue of the enterprise must shine and rest upon His name. In other words, He would show that, while might was used and power was wielded, the victory was not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. Now let us look at this great lesson illustrated in the whole history of the Church of Christ--that magnificent and glorious results have ever followed in connection with the cause of Christ from weak and insignificant means. If I refer to a modern instance, there is no book in the English language that has given more tone to the English mind among the humbler religious classes than Bunyans Pilgrims Progress--a book so simple that a child can understand it, whose theology is so rich that all the tomes of a Calvin and a Luther do not excel it; and there is no book, let me say, that has left a finer and a more substantial impression on the mass of enlightened Christian minds than the Pilgrims Progress of John Bunyan. At Leicester he was appointed to stand sentry. A comrade came to him, and offered freely and gratuitously to take his place. The exchange was made, and a bullet struck the head of the comrade in three minutes afterwards; and if John Bunyan had been there, Pilgrims Progress had never been written, and its blessed effects would never have been heard of. Thus a very incidental, microscopic occurrence became the hinge of very precious effects. I might notice other evidences of the same truth. In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries perhaps the greatest obstruction to the progress of real religion was the want of books and the means of circulating knowledge--I say, before the era of the Reformation the greatest obstruction to the progress of real religion was want of books. A Dutchman, at Haarlem, was one day amusing himself by cutting out letters upon the bark of a tree, and after he had done so, the idea struck him that he might transfer impressions from the bark of the tree to paper. He did so; and in the course of a few weeks wooden types were carved, and printing was begun; and then literally the greatest obstruction to the progress of the truth, and the spread of living religion, was removed, when the walls of ignorance fell down before what the world would call an accidental thought, what the Christian would call the inspiration of his God, as unequivocal and as real as the command to blow the rams horns, and to lay the walls of Jericho level in consequence. Another obstruction to the spread of religion was the fact of nations being so severed. Continents and islands were separated by broad and almost impassable oceans. The sailor never thought of going far from the coast, still less of navigating wide seas. Accidentally, the world would say--by an inspiration from on high, the Christian believes--a man discovers the polarity of a piece of loadstone; and that discovery, so insignificant in itself, led to that intercommunion between our own and the most distant isles of the ocean, which has made continents our next door neighbours, oceans ferries, and consolidated the whole world into one community preparatory to the cement of the gospel, which will consolidate it into one happy and united brotherhood. We see in all these little means used and blessed of God to produce very great results. I must refer to another instance in the rise and progress of different missionary societies. For instance, the Moravian Missionary Society, one of the most useful of all the societies we have, was originated as follows: Two poor Greenlanders arrived in Copenhagen, where there was a Moravian congregation consisting of about six hundred persons. They looked upon these Greenlanders not as curious specimens of a savage race, but as having immortal souls that needed to be saved, and the grand resolution took possession of the Moravian heart that they should be brought to the knowledge of the gospel of Christ. These six hundred persons instantly conceived the project of preaching the gospel at Labrador, in America, at the East Indies, and even in Africa. They set about a work so disproportionately great, that the world laughed, but God smiled upon them, and at this moment these means are crowned with the most magnificent results. I do not know a society more honoured than the Moravian Missionary Society. After the storm and chaos of 1793, a poor cobbler in his stall, of the name of Carey, conceived the first idea, in this country at least, of sending the gospel to the heathen. Wilberforce, who introduced so much Christianity into the higher classes of society, had the magnanimity to say of this, I know not a more striking instance of the sublime than that cobbler on his stool conceiving the idea of carrying the gospel to the distant parts of the heathen world. That idea was conceived by that poor man, and at first the whole annual income of the Baptist Missionary Society was £13 2s. 6d.; it is now increased to some £30,000, if not upwards. Then the London Missionary Society took its rise very much from the preaching of Dr. Bogue. The Church Missionary Society, the Bible and Tract Societies, are all the creation of the last century, and all arose from the most insignificant of means, which have been crowned with the most magnificent results. Now, what does this teach us for the future? That if God has used the most despised of means for the accomplishment of the greatest and most precious results, we are to thank God that He has so honoured the past, and to look for that God to come unto us in the opening and veiled future, and to trust for triumphs of His presence, and monuments of what grace can do, that shall eclipse all that has yet been accomplished. (J. Cumming, D. D.)

Why Jericho fell; or, faith the condition of success in Foreign Missions

A great many really good people laugh at the story of Jerichos fall, as something impossible, and count the whole transaction as one of those semi-mythical events that find their parallel in the siege of Troy which Homer sang. But whether history, or myth, or poetry, the conquest of Jericho emphasises a great principle. Considered as a piece of military tactics, the whole performance seems the height of the ridiculous. Considered as an act of faith, it stands sublime. A pious rationalism has tried to explain the so-called miracle by the vibration of the walls at the trumpet blasts. But this seems to my mind to increase rather than to diminish the marvel The best explanation is, God foreknew that an earthquake was impending, and so ordered the marching and trumpeting that they should be finished at a moment coincident with the shock produced by the forces of Nature. But this is neither here nor there; His methods are none of our business. We have simply to look at mans part of the work, and the Bible does not explain this upon the vibration theory, nor upon any known laws of physics or aerostatics. On the contrary, it ascribes Jerichos overthrow not to a physical, but to a purely mental and spiritual cause. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down. Joshua and his soldiers did not stop to theorise nor rationalise, nor yet to discuss the relation between cause and effect. They just did what they were told, and left the rest to God. This is faith. Not the mere subscription to a creed, but such implicit and absolute trust in God, as leads men unquestionably to obey His commands and to believe His promises, without stopping to argue, or debate, or discuss. No ordinary battle was ever won, in which the private soldiers presumed to criticise the plans and tactics of the commander-in-chief. On the contrary, the prime condition of victory is absolute trust and confidence in the leader, and all the host acting as an unit. Jesus declares that through faith His disciples may remove mountains; and history is lustrous with thousands of apparently impossible feats wrought by men no different from the rest of the race, save in the greatness of their faith. As the topic of missions to the heathen occupies so large a space in our services and preaching, according to our Lords command, Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, believers and unbelievers in Christianity sadly or sneeringly ask the question, Why are not the heathen converted after all these hundreds of years? Why do not the walls of these pagan Jerichoes fall down? Read your Bible, friends. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, and just so soon as we Christians have somewhat of the same faith that possessed these Jews, just so soon will the strongholds of error be overcome. As a matter of fact, it is only during the last fifty years that any effort worth speaking of has been made by Protestant Christianity to convert the heathen. Men complain of the vast sums squandered to convert these pagans. Well, which is better, to send a million dollars to make men of our own flesh and blood moral, decent, respectable, as befits souls for whom Christ died, or to send a million dollars worth of rum to debauch them and make their savage condition more densely savage still? And how vast are these sums, think you, sent to foreign lands to teach men of their Heavenly Father and loving Saviour? Ten million dollars is the largest amount ever given in a single year to Foreign Missions, and this distributed among one hundred million Protestants, averages about ten cents for each soul. Here is munificence! Here is faith I Here is love to God and to man for you! And yet, despite the indifference and hostility of the Church at home, what hath God wrought? Behold the walls of Jericho that have fallen in less than fifty years, and this with a Christianity merely playing at missions, and not playing very hard at that. A few royal sons of God have had the faith through which alone all this has been done. Grand old Doctor Livingstone had faith enough to dwell thirty-three years in Africa, where glorious Bishop Hannington has lately laid down his life. Bishop Selwyn had faith enough to spend the best of his days among the South Sea savages, and his successor, Bishop Pattison, had faith enough to find in that same field a foremost place in the noble army of martyrs. I tell you it all sifts right down to a matter of pure faith, this business of Foreign Missions. Why is this? Simply because that the more truly religious a man is, the more he grasps the supernatural idea of Christianity, the more real become all the prophecies of God, the more binding all His commands. The armies of the living God march round the pagan Jericho, and blow the gospel trumpets. This is mans part of the business. The throwing down of the walls, this is Gods work. Not, the Lord will give, but, the Lord hath given you the city, The fall of Jericho was a mathematical certainty, just so soon as the conditions had been complied with. And so again, By faith the walls of Jericho fell down. By the same faith, too, the walls of China, the walls of India, the walls of Africa shall fall, can fall as well as not in our lifetime as a hundred or a thousand years hence. Oh! it makes me sick to hear people praying for the worlds conversion. Stop praying and convert it now! It is as easy as breathing, if you have faith in God. Why criest thou unto Me? methinks I hear God say. Speak unto My people that they go forward. (L. S.Osborne.)

The walls of Jericho--perseverance in faith:

One striking feature in Christian faith is that it is a most persevering faith.

1. No failures daunt it.

2. No difficulties alarm it.

3. No troubles quench it.

4. No taunts shame it.

Now the particular property and work of faith we are called upon to examine and contemplate is this persevering nature of it. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were compassed about seven days. Let us examine the full spiritual force of this.

(1) The city of Jericho was strong.

(2) The host which besieged and took the city of Jericho was a large and strong host, well tried and disciplined by the trials of the wilderness, led on by their leader Joshua. So the power which must besiege the wicked heart of man, and the sinful inclinations harboured therein, must be the soul well tried by sorrow and well schooled in adversity, strengthened by the Spirit of God.

(3) And the way they took the city was by encompassing it seven times, as God had appointed; so at length the walls fell down, and they entered. So also the enemies which our hearts contain must be subdued only in certain appointed ways--by prayer, the Sacraments, the Word of God, His public service, self-denial, and repentance. This, then, is the spiritual force and application of the text to ourselves.

And before I proceed to the particular examination of the subject let me make some general remarks on it.

1. It reminds us that our hearts, like Jericho, do harbour the enemies of God.

2. We are reminded how we must drive them out by the grace and the guidance of Christ. Men adopt many ways, but there is but one way. Some try to drive out bad passions by philosophy and learning. Another will try and overcome his bad heart by living away from the world. Another will try to overcome his sinful heart by works of charity, self-denial, and benevolence. Some people seem to think that natural kindness and morality makes up for, and so subdues the bad heart. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were compassed about seven days. Nothing but the grace of Gods Holy Spirit, applied to us through the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ, and gained by faith, can enable us permanently and really to subdue our hearts. But let us examine the more particular working and view of faith which this text suggests. Let us, then, see what this perseverance is

1. Perseverance requires a continual struggle, only to be ended with life itself.

2. But again, what is perseverance applied to? First, the repressing sin; secondly, the doing good. (E. Monro.)

The ruin of mystical Jericho

First of all, observe here that Jericho had mighty walls, and trusted in these walls; or else they would have come out and have made conditions of peace with Israel. And next you see here, that God overthrows their walls; and by what means? By poor and base means, by trumpets of rams horns. From hence, by analogy and proportion, we may see, first of all, that carnal men they build up walls, and put their trust in them. The second is, that God confounds these courses. The third is, that God doth it by weak and silly means, believed by faith. The last point is, that faith in the use of these means overcomes all.

1. Natural men, since the fall, they must have somewhat to trust to. Since man lost his first confidence, and communion with God, he turns to the creature; and men leave God in what measure they trust that. Every one will have some castle and wall of Jericho to trust to. Riches are the rich mans stronghold (Pro_11:16). Ahithophel trusted to a shrewd head and policy that proved his ruin afterwards. The Jews had outward sanctity to trust to, opposing it to the righteousness of Christ (Rom_10:6). Man will have a holiness, a wisdom, a strength, and power of himself in the things below here. Now the Spirit of God in the Scriptures takes notice of this proneness to false confidence (1Ti_6:17). And man, when he sets his heart upon false confidence, the issues are more dangerous; he will come against God; he doth not only set up these holds that he hath in rebellion against God, but he proclaims, as it were, defiance to God, and His word, and His ordinances, till afterwards God destroy all his false confidence, and bring him to shame. There are three mighty things in every natural man.

(1) This false reasoning and sophistry. There is no man will go to hell without reason. God is merciful, Christ is come, and others are as bad as I, and I hope in time to repent; this vile reasoning must be turned out of a man before he can be saved.

(2) Then there are proud thoughts. What, shall I yield to such a one as He? I am better than He; I understand these things as well as He. As that proud cardinal in Germany said, I confess these things that Luther finds fault with are naught; but shall I yield to a base monk? The proud rebellious heart of man is lift up in proud thoughts against God.

(3) And then there be forecasts. If I do thus, this danger will come of it; I shall provoke such an enemy; I shall lose such a friend; I shall endanger myself. Now, when the truth of God comes, down goes all these sophistries and all these forecasts; they all lie fiat when the Spirit of God comes in the power of the word. But naturally every man hath these; he builds up some castle against God; he builds up the walls of Jericho, and trusts in them too.

2. God first or last overturns all vain confidence in the creature. The walls of Jericho, down they must; and whatsoever exalts itself against God, either it shall end in conversion or confusion, because the time must come that God must have all the glory. Therefore let us make that use that Jeremiah doth (Jer_9:23). Let a man joy in none of these; but if he will joy, let him joy in this, that he knows the Lord, that he is in covenant with God.

3. God doth this by base and weak means. And the reason is clear, that He may have all the glory.

4. It was by faith in the use of means that the walls of Jericho fell down. If they had not depended upon God in their going about seven days, the walls had stood still. But here were other graces likewise that sprang from faith, that helped them also. There was a great deal of patience to go about after that silly fashion with rams horns seven days together. Here was patience, and perseverance, and hope. But, because faith doth enliven, and stirs up all, therefore that is named. In the whole chapter the exercise of other graces is attributed to faith, because they draw strength from that to quicken them all to their several offices. Strengthen faith, and strengthen all other graces whatsoever.

5. Now, let us by way of proportion raise them higher, and make use of them to other things. The walls of Jericho represent to us many things.

(1) The kingdom of Satan in general, the power of the devil in himself and in his instruments, who hinders what he can, our coming out of Egypt to Canaan. He labours to come between us and heaven; to hinder us all he can by all means. He hath walls of many kinds; the strength of tyrants, the subtilty of heretics. But Christ came to destroy the works of the devil, as it is said 1Jn_3:8; and He Himself overcame Satan and triumphed over him, as it is Col_2:15. He triumphed over Satan himself, and He will triumph over Satan in all His members (1Jn_4:4).

(2) But besides Satan, there is in us much opposition that must be subdued before we come to Canaan. So it is with our own corruptions. There be these wails within us. Satan could not hurt us but that we betray ourselves. Now, by little and little all these walls shall fall; not all at once, as the wails of Jericho did. God by degrees will perfect the work of mortification and sanctification till He make us like His Son Christ, like our husband and head, that we may be fit for so glorious a head. (R. Sibbes, D. D.)

Faith the westport of the Church

I. SEE HERE THE DISCOURAGEMENTS OF FAITH.

1. The difficulty of the undertaking.

2. The inadequacy of the means.

3. The strangeness of the delay.

II. SEE HERE THE MANIFESTATIONS OF FAITH

1. In their joyous expectation.

2. In their undaunted perseverance.

3. In their utmost preparedness.

III. SEE HERE THE FOUNDATIONS OF FAITH.

1. The fact of Gods presence.

2. The fact of Gods command.

3. The fact of Gods promise. (C. New.)

The faith of man, and the energy of God

1. It is the prerogative of God to do whatever He pleases, and by whatever agency He chooses.

2. It is mans solemn duty to do whatsoever God commands.

3. Faith in God is indispensable to the fulfilment of Gods command.

I. THE FAITH OF MAN.

1. It was not faith in

(1) their benevolent sympathies;

(2) moral institutions;

(3) their notions of adaptations;

(4) merely the Divinity of the command.

2. It was faith in God--in His wisdom, righteousness, and power.

II. THE ENERGY OF GOD.

1. Whatever God commands, however it may seem to clash with our notions or intuitions, we should attempt.

2. Whatever Divine command we attempt to carry out, with faith in Him, we shall accomplish.

3. Whatever we accomplish, it will be through His energy, as the reward of our faith in Him. (Homilist.)

Impulse of nature counteracted by faith:

The impulse of nature was to attack that city; to try upon its bulwarks the skill of military science, as then understood, as by them possessed. The power of faith was shown in curbing that impulse; in submitting to an unexplained, unintelligible, severely trying, edict of inactivity; nay, in consenting to play what must have seemed a ridiculous part in the face of a warlike and disciplined host waiting to see what this intrusive, this presumptuous horde of rovers had to say for itself. How often has the Church, as a body, failed to understand the duty of refraining! How often has she rushed headlong upon some dimly-descried or imaginary Jericho with weapons quite carnal! What shall we say of the religious press, of the religious platform, of the religious controversy, of the religious conversation, so called, of this present age and country? Is it not a matter of simple fact, of sorrowful notoriety, that the armour, whether of attack or of defence, worn in this warfare, is of precisely the same material, and the same make, and all but the same colour, with that of the worlds quarrels and the worlds antagonisms? Certainly if the giant Jericho of this world, with its lying vanities, its covert or open infidelities, its harmful lusts, its crying sins, is ever to be brought low before the revealed presence of Jesus Christ, it will not be by the use against it of weapons forged in its own workshops--weapons of sarcasm and invective, weapons of strife and debate, weapons of insinuation and repartee, weapons of rhetoric and oratory, weapons of mans wisdom or mans strength. It will be--and, in whatever degree that victory has been foreshadowed, it always has been--by the quiet march, round the walls and towers of human pride and human luxury and human sin, of the ark of the holy covenant, of the Word and Sacraments of the New Testament, ministered and heralded by devout and devoted pastors, showing out of a good conversation their works with meekness of wisdom. And if this be true on the large scale, and with reference to ages and nations and communities, how must it be with individuals? How large a part of the action of faith, viewed as an instrument, as an influence, as a power, for God, lies, in their case also, in refraining! Show me the Christian wife, the Christian sister, the Christian daughter, who knows how to refrain, and I will predict for her an eventual success in influencing the husband, the brother, the father, towards her gospel. Not to answer again--not to urge matters of discord--not to insist on externals--not to wear a look of offence--not to irritate by a disdainful composure--not to speak against faulty but loved ones as though exiled from sympathy--always to pray, never to faint--seeking refuge, when refuge is necessary, from the strife of tongues, not in isolation, not in moroseness, but in the sweet tabernacle of Gods Presence--this sort of refraining, within the walls of homes, is worth all the testifying in the world for Christ against evil--nay, it is the noblest and the highest and the most ancient of testimonies--by faith, thus refraining, the walls of Jericho fell, not undermined, and not assaulted, but just encompassed for seven days. (Dean Vaughan.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Heb 11:30. By faith — The faith of Joshua and the Israelites in God’s promise; the walls of Jericho fell down — Being smitten by the hand of God, without any human force; after they were compassed about — In solemn silence, according to the divine command; seven days — How absurd a spectacle soever their procession might appear to the besieged. “As the land of Canaan belonged to the Israelites by a grant from God, the possessor of heaven and earth, it was proper that the first city which resisted them should be taken in such a manner as to demonstrate the truth of their title. And therefore God did not order them to attack Jericho with engines of war, but he ordered the priests, his immediate ministers, to carry the ark, containing the tables of his covenant, round the city daily for seven days, Jos 6:13; and to sound trumpets of rams’ horns, as summoning the inhabitants in the name of the God of Israel to surrender; the armed men going before, and the rearward following. And on the seventh day, having surrounded Jericho seven times, they raised a great shout, upon which the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city every man straight before him, Heb 11:20. Thus were the inhabitants of Jericho and all the Canaanites made to know the supremacy and power of the God of Israel, and how vain it was to make any resistance.” — Macknight.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Heb_11:30-31

Faith seen in the Jericho Associations.—“The sacred writer has lingered over the life and deeds of the greatest of the patriarchs, and of Moses the legislator of the nation: two examples only—differing in kind from those which have preceded, and peculiarly suggestive and important—have been taken from the history of the people after the death of Moses. Enough has now been said to guide all who are willing to search the Scriptures for themselves. With a brief mention of names which would call up before the minds of his readers achievements almost as wonderful as those on which he has been dwelling, he passes from the elders who received witness from God by their faith, and speaks in general terms, but all the more distinctly, of the triumphs which faith has won.” In these verses the practical power of faith is seen in two particulars, the second being illustrated in a case outside the covenant, showing that faith in God is the same thing, and meets with the same acceptance with Him, anywhere and everywhere.

I. Faith that could persist.—The daily march round the city of Jericho for six days, and the six times marching round on the seventh day, were distinct testings of faith. There could be no greater test than this—Can you keep on persistently doing an apparently useless, fruitless thing, in simple confidence that He who commanded the doing is surely working towards the realisation of His own purpose. Nothing strains us like having to keep on through failure.

II. Faith that could inspire devices.—We are not required to approve of the acts of Rahab. They are indeed to be judged in the light of the right and wrong which is applicable to war-times. Then stratagem to preserve life is universally recognised as honourable, and it almost necessarily includes deception. But we may see how practically the faith she had in Jehovah’s word influenced Rahab. It made her inventive, set her upon schemes, and sustained her in carrying through devices.

SUGGESTIVE NOTES AND SERMON SKETCHES

Heb_11:31. Rahab’s Faith and Falsehood.—Rahab was guilty of a falsehood; but here is an evidence of the truth of the history; her moral infirmity is not concealed or extenuated, although she had been received into the family of God’s people, and was dwelling in Israel, when the book of Joshua was written. Rahab had been brought up among the idolaters, who have little regard for truth; and she lived in Jericho, one of the greatest cities of Canaan. It was not to be expected that, all at once, she would become a lover of truth, and would think it sinful to employ an artifice to attain a good end. Her case was like that of the Egyptian midwives, who told a falsehood to Pharaoh in order to save the lives of the male children of Israel (Exo_1:17; Exo_1:21). In both cases God was “not extreme to mark what was done amiss,” but graciously accepted their acts of faith and mercy, although they were sullied and blemished by human infirmity; and thus He gently led them on to higher degrees of virtue.—Bishop Wordsworth.

Rahab’s Character.—Some commentators, following Josephus and the Chaldean interpreters, have endeavoured to make Rahab only a keeper of a house of entertainment for travellers—a gloss in striking contrast with the simple straightforwardness of the writer of this book, and inconsistent with the apostolic phraseology. Rahab had hitherto probably been but a common type of heathen morality, but she was faithful to the dawning convictions of a nobler creed, and hence is commended by Christ’s apostles for that which was meritorious in her conduct. Her protection of the spies has been stigmatised as traitorous, and her concealment of them as a piece of lying and deceit. But as to the first, it is evident that she was convinced that the cause of Israel was that of the true God, to oppose which would have been the greater sin. And as to the deception which she practised, there is no need to defend that which is not commended in itself. Rahab is not praised for her falsehood, but for her faith; although many Christian moralists, besides Paley, would defend deception in word and deed, when practised (as in this case) to save life.—W. H. Groser, B.Sc.

The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.

VI

Examples from the conquest of Canaan to the time of the Maccabees

Heb_11:30-40

30By faith the walls of Jericho fell down,19 after they were compassed about [for] seven days. 31By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not [disobeyed], 32when she had received [after receiving] the spies with peace. And what shall I more say [what do I say further]? for the time would [will] fail me to tell [while recounting, διηγούμενον] of Gideon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthah [of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah];20 of David also, and [both of David and] Samuel, and of the prophets: 33Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 34Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword,21 out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight [became mighty in war], turned to flight the armies of the aliens [foreigners]. 35Women received their dead raised to life again [or from a resurrection, ἐξ ἀναστάσεως]: and others were tortured [on the rack], not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. 36And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover [and still further] of bonds and imprisonment: 37They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted [or were burnt]22, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented 38[outraged]; Of whom the world was not worthy: they wandered [wandering] in23 deserts and in mountains, and in dens and caves [caves and holes] of the earth. 39And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:24 40God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should [might] not be made perfect.

[Heb_11:30.—ἐπὶ ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας, for seven days.

Heb_11:31.—τοῖς ἀππειθήσασιν, with them that disobeyed,) not ἀπιστήσασιν, disbelieved.

Heb_11:32.—τί ἔτι λέγω, what do I say further, διηγούμενον, recounting narration.

Heb_11:34—ἐγενήθησαν ἰσχυροὶ ἐν πολέμῳ, became mighty in war.—ἀλλοτρίων, belonging to other lands, foreigners.

Heb_11:35.—ἐξ ἀ̓̓ναστάσεως, from or out if a resurrection.—K].

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

Heb_11:30. For seven days.—Ἐπί, of duration of time, as Luk_4:25; Act_13:31; Act_19:10. Πίστει is not to be connected with κυκλωθέντα (Grot.), and this latter does not mean beleaguered (Schultz and others).

Harlot.—Jac. Cappell. and others, following the Chaldee paraphrase, erroneously translate ἡ πόρνη, the hostess; others, with Braun, explain the word, the idolatress. It is taken from the history, Jos_2:2; Jos_6:17 ff. Her faith consisted in her strong practical confidence (Jam_2:25) in the victory of the Israelites, because their God was the omnipotent God (Jos_2:9). His miracles had not remained unknown also to the remaining inhabitants of Jericho (Jos_2:10), but they, making but small account of these, attempted to withstand the people of God (Jos_6:1).

Heb_11:32. Gideon, etc.—The order of succession is not chronological. But the author does not design such an enumeration, and he has scarcely had in mind any particular mode of grouping. Del., indeed, assumes three groups, of which the two first consisted of three persons each, and thinks that the author in the first group names Gideon as the greater hero of faith, before Barak, and in the second names Samuel after David, that he may attach to him the third group, viz., that of the prophets. But what authorizes such a triple division? And what purpose would suggest the introduction of Jephthah, who besides is placed after Samson, into the second group? Rather according to lect. rec., followed by Del., only Barak and Samson are more closely united by τε καί, as also David and Samuel, while between Gideon and Barak there is no connective particle. In like manner there is none between Jephthah and David, but before Jephthah, as before the prophets, is placed the simple καί. Lün. starts from the fact that David and Samuel are in all the MSS. connected by τε καί, and concludes from this that the preceding names were originally arranged in pairs. In that case the chronological objection would disappear, inasmuch as each new pair makes a new stage of historical progress, while in the successive pairs, the naming of the later before the earlier, is justified on rhetorical grounds, as bringing together the names of those who were coincident in time. But this ingenious conjecture rests on a combination of different readings, retaining the Rec. under the two modifications of placing (with D*.) καί before Barak, and (with A., 17, Vulg., Copt., Arm., and many Fathers) striking out τε καί before Samson. The καί before Jephthah is rejected, although found in D. E. K. L., nearly all the minusc., Chrys., Theodoret, Damasc, etc. Lachm. and Tisch., are consistent in striking out all the particles except the unquestionable τε καί before, and καί after Samuel This has also the authority of Sin.

Heb_11:33. Who subdued kingdoms.—The οἵ, who, refers not to the prophets, but to all the previously named persons, who, however, are merely adduced as examples, so that we are not to ask, in each individual one of the following statements, what person the author had specially in view. Many of the deeds and sufferings belong to persons who are not even particularly cited, but point us in general to the historical books of the Old Testament, from which the persons named are selected by way of example. The meaning, “obtain by conflict” (Böhme), can scarcely be established for καταγωνίζεσθαι [rather contending down, wrestling down=subduing.—K.].

Wrought righteousness.—Ἐργαζ. δικ. is hardly used in the purely ethical sense (Theodoret, Erasm., Schlicht., Grot., etc.), but refers to the acts and influence connected with the office of Judges, Kings and Prophets, 1Sa_12:4; 2Sa_8:15; 1Ch_15:14; 2Ch_9:8.

Obtained promises.—Beng., Bl., Ebr., etc., follow Chrys., Primas., Theodoret, in understanding God’s words of promise, and this not mainly His individual, but His Messianic promises. But the common reference of the words to the substance of the promises, better suits the connection; for if the believers failed to live to witness the promised salvation, Heb_11:39, yet they at least realized the fulfilment of special assurances. The plur. employed without the article, favors this view.

Stopped the mouths of lions, etc.—We might refer this to Samson and David, but the language points rather to Dan_6:18-23; as also the following example (by force of faith quenched the force of fire) is drawn from Daniel 3., or 1Ma_2:59. Perhaps the following examples point also to events belonging to the times of the Maccabees, although they have their parallel in the earlier period, e.g., 1 Kings 19.; 2 Kings 6, 20.; Jdg_16:28; Psa_18:30. The word παρεμβολή, signifying not merely an encampment, but an army in battle array, is among the favorite expressions of the First Book of Maccabees (Grimm at 1Ma_3:3). This, however, decides nothing, since the word has the same signification also, Jdg_4:16; Jdg_7:14, and the discourse immediately returns to 1 Kings 17, and to 2 Kings 4, by the mention of the women who received back their dead, ἐξ ἀναστάσεως, i.e., either by resurrection (Böhm., Bl., Lün., etc.) or from a resurrection=as raised again to life. These examples from the life of the woman of Sarepta and of the Shunamite, lead, however, again, immediately, to the martyrdom of Eleazer (2Ma_6:18 ff.), and of the seven brothers, along with their mother (2 Maccabees 7). The τύμπανον is regarded as an engine of torture in the form of a wheel, upon which the tortured person was stretched out like the skin of a kettle-drum, and frequently beaten to death. The better resurrection (κρείττονος ἀναστάσεως) is regarded by Œc. and Theoph. (by the latter hesitatingly) as contrasted with the resurrection of the ungodly to judgment (Dan_12:2); by Chrys., Beng., Böhm., Bl., De W., Ebr. and others, on the contrary, as in antithesis with ἐξ ἀναστάσεως, standing at the beginning of the verse; while Gerh., Win., Thol., Lün., etc., more naturally [Alford says “strangely”] place it in contrast with the previously mentioned ἀπολύτρωσις (deliverance) from their tortures, which was proffered them.

Heb_11:36. And others experienced mockings and scourgings, etc.—Scourgings (μάστιγες) and mockings (ἐμπαιγμοί) are spoken of, the former at 2Ma_7:1, the latter at id. Heb_7:7; Heb_7:10. We may presume with certainty, therefore, that these examples of suffering are suggested by the narratives there recorded, although the ἕτεροι δέ, immediately proceeds to introduce other, though kindred examples, among which we may doubtless recognize allusions to the mockeries heaped upon Elisha and Jeremiah. For not only is the stoning immediately mentioned which slew Zachariah, 2Ch_24:20, and the sawing asunder, which according to Jewish tradition, fell to the lot of Isaiah, but previously to these, bonds and imprisonment, which may be referred to Hannai (2Ch_16:10), Micah and Jeremiah, which are connected back by ἔτι δέ, with the mockings and scourgings, as if rising upon and transcending them. And the slaying by the edge of the sword, if not referring especially to the prophet Uriah, who was so executed by Jehoiachim (Jer_26:23), yet certainly must refer to the numerous executions of prophets in the kingdom of Israel (1Ki_19:10).—The goat skins, commonly black, expressed still more than the usually white sheep skins, the feelings and the condition of the prophets, who (2Ki_1:8) are called “hairy men.”

Heb_11:39. And all these received not the promise, etc.—This sentence refers not merely to the persons mentioned from Heb_11:35 (Schlicht., Storr), but to the whole body collectively (alike named and unnamed) of those whose faith has procured for them the good report which they have in the Old Testament. The participial clause must be resolved by although, not by since; for, in the connection, the sense of the clause cannot be that the ancients did not receive the promise because the faith which, in its nature, appertains to the future and the invisible, did not procure for them their good report. The statement, rather, is, that, notwithstanding the glory which they derived from their faith, they still did not obtain the promise. The singular τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν shows that the author is speaking not of special and individual promises, and which in fact have not remained unfulfilled, but of the fulfilment of the promise as such, i.e., the Messianic promise, which in the connection is determined still more definitely than the promise of the “eternal inheritance,” Heb_9:15, as that whose attainment presupposes the τελείωσις.

Heb_11:40. God having provided something better for us.—The reason of the fact just mentioned, is God’s gracious regard for us, which has led Him to adopt such an arrangement, that the actual receiving of the promise is accorded to us, if we abide in the faith, while yet those fathers who are eulogized for their faith, are not excluded, but attain in like manner the τελείωσις, only not without us, as would have been the case if their faith had been immediately rewarded with the promised good, and no interval had come in between the faith and the attainment. Since, then, the τελείωσις still, also, awaits us, and will be attained only at the second coming of Christ, we are, on the one hand, on a level with the fathers; and, notwithstanding our faith, have, like them, to submit to a period of waiting, which also gives ample scope for Christian endurance—while thus their life of faith can furnish us a comforting and stimulating example—and on the other a better thing (κρεῖττόν τι) has been provided for us. The fulfilment of the Messianic promise has, with the appearance of Jesus Christ and His entrance into the heavenly All-holy, become matter of historical fact, so that the prophecy of Jeremiah is fulfilled Heb_8:6 ff; Heb_10:15 ff. Even Abraham ἐπέτυχεν τῆς ἐπαγγελίας, Heb_6:15 ff., and the ἔσχατον τῶν ἡμερῶν (Heb_1:1), and the συντέλεια τῶν αἰώνων (Heb_9:26), lies already behind us. We have lived to behold the final revelation of God in Jesus Christ, and hence the Lord pronounces His disciples blessed, and declares them privileged above the prophets and kings of the Old Testament, Mat_13:17. Thus has something better been imparted to us than to them, comp. Heb_2:3 ff. This reference of the κρεῖττον to the nobler boon bestowed on us than was accorded to the ancients, harmonizes better with the language Heb_7:19; Heb_8:6, and with the general scope of the Epistle, than the explanation: “Something better, then, would have fallen to our lot, if they had received the final fulfilment of the promise.” The connecting thought would then be, that in such a case we should not have been born, inasmuch as the end of the world would have arrived, and with it that state of perfection in which is neither marrying nor giving in marriage, Mat_21:30.

DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL

1. The greatest and most important victories are not gained by the might of armies, nor even by mere patriotic heroism, but by the power of the Omnipotent God who, beyond their prayers and their comprehension, assists those who, in undoubting faith, adapt themselves to His arrangements, and employ the means which He points out to them.

2. Faith triumphs not merely over visible opponents and adversaries; it gives us victory also over spiritual foes, and makes those who were once sinners, associates and helpers of the servants of God, for which again God, to whom they have given honor, becomes to them a tower and shield, and bestows upon them grace unto salvation.

3. Faith, however, shows its beauty, power, and greatness, not barely in that which it accomplishes, overthrows, and attains, but also in that which it sustains, endures, and sacrifices. And in this, women are not inferior to men, but give them not unfrequently an inspiring example.

4. The life of believers in the world is a perpetual conflict with the world, whose severity evinces itself as clearly in their deportment as in their destinies. But the conflict is lightened by the fact that the inestimable worth of believers always shines forth more conspicuous and triumphant alike in their voluntary privations and sacrifices, and amidst violent oppressions and spoliations, while the world, on the contrary, by its denial, contempt, and rejection of those who, in the sight of God, are more highly esteemed than the whole world, condemns, punishes, and impoverishes itself.

5. The final goal to which God conducts believers, is perfection in Christ; and this embraces the entire person, includes thus the resurrection and glorification of the body, and pre-supposes, therefore, the second coming of Christ. It thus, therefore, equally awaits us as the members of the Old Covenant who fell asleep in faith, with whom we have in common the interval of waiting, trials of our faith, and sufferings for the sake of faith, so that they are, to us, examples and patterns in the various matters with which they have to do. For at the same time with them shall we attain this final and comprehensive perfection, and come to the common enjoyment of the same blessedness. Thus the prerogative which we have enjoyed, in that the first appearance of Christ was not, with us, a matter of expectation, but of realization, binds us to all the greater humility, thankfulness, and fidelity, by how much the more clearly we discern in this arrangement the grace of God, taking thought for our salvation.

HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL

The like state of mind, the like goal, and the like destiny of the believers of all ages.—The relation of the believers to the world and to God.—The enemies, conflicts, and victories of faith.—Dishonored in the world, honored with God.—The transformation produced by faith.—The certain fulfilment of the promises of God: 1, in its means; 2, in its conditions; 3, in its stages.

Starke:—He who dwells in heaven must assuredly laugh at those who defiantly trust to walls and ramparts.—In like manner, as at the sound of the trumpet and battle-cry of Israel, the walls of the ungodly city of Jericho fell, thus shall the trumpet voice of the Gospel overthrow the kingdom of anti-christ, Rev_18:2.—Sin separates from God; but repentance conducts to God (Isa_59:2; Jer_3:1).—Good works must be judged not according to the appearance, but according to their ground and internal character.—The Holy Scripture is so rich in beautiful and memorable histories and examples, that we have no need of the fabulous inventions of the monks, but enough for our right instruction in the word of God.—Oh God! how rich art Thou even in the gifts and treasures which Thou hast deposited in Thy saints!—Faith is stronger than powder and lead, than arrow, sword, and weapon of war. It can overcome even the devil himself, and quench his fiery darts (Eph_6:16).—Rather should we endure a violent death, than apostatize from the true religion.—The host of sacred martyrs is very comforting to all the suffering bearers of the cross; for we are no better than our fathers (1Ki_19:4). O Thou God that hidest Thyself! Thou leavest Thy children here to suffering and oppression, that they may have life and refreshment forever (Rev_12:12).—Much distress, trouble and misery upon earth; yet the sufferings of this present time are of no account beside the glory which shall be revealed in us (Rom_8:18).—O how are we put to shame who live under the New Covenant by the heroes of faith who lived under the Old.—Steadfastness in true religion under great affliction, is a proof of true faith in Christ.

Rieger:—Unbelief is always hatching distrust. “Surely there is no remedy; in great public calamities must all fare alike.” But faith trusts God in all ways.—God, in His economy and arrangement of times, has graciously cared for all. Even to the ancients He has vouchsafed, in their time, sufficient evidence for faith.

Hahn:—The world speedily forgets the deeds of its heroes, however much it may wish to perpetuate them; but God bears testimony to His own. This is genuine, and will remain.—If we can do no very great deed in our time, it is enough if we exercise victorious faith in endurance, as this is the task assigned to our time (ReHebrews Heb_11:13).—Even trivial acts, if they spring from faith, are highly esteemed of God.

Heubner:—Faith overcomes the world.—The richness of the Holy Scripture in instructive examples. The richness of the gifts that God has deposited in the saints.—The hidden value of the righteous is manifest in the sight of God.—The Christian should be exalted above the world, but the world should learn to be worthy of the godly.—How often do innocence and truth have to conceal and withdraw themselves. He, who shall yet dwell in the eternal mansions, now often wanders without a shelter.—Many pious men fail to live to see the fulfilment of their desires; but their salvation will not fail.—Heaven unites all.

Footnotes:

[16]Heb_11:26.—Instead of τῶν ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ read after Sin. D. K. L., 31, 44, 46, τῶς Αἰγύπτου.

[17]Heb_11:28.—The more correct orthography is ὀλεθρεύων after A. D. E., instead of ὀλοθρεύων.

[18]Heb_11:29.—After ξηρᾶς we are to add γῆς after Sin. A. D*. E., 17, 31, 47.

[19]Heb_11:30.—ἔπεσαν is to be read, after Sin. A. D*., 17, 23, 31, instead of ἐπεσε.

[20][Heb_11:32.—Moll follows Tisch. and Lachm. in omitting the καί connecting Gideon, Barak, etc., reading Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah.—K.].

[21]Heb_11:34.—Instead of μαχαίρας, Lachm. and Tisch., ed. 7, read μαχαίρης after A. D., as in Heb_11:37 after D*. In both cases the reading is supported by Sin. So also the reading ἐδυναμώθησαν, received by Lachm and Tisch. instead of the Rec. ἐνεδυνwhich in Sin. is only from a second hand.

[22]Heb_11:37.—Instead of ἐπειράσθησαν=tentati sent (Vulg. Ambros.), Luth. reads 1530, ἐπάρθησαν, were pierced through. The majority, following Erasmus, conjecture, inasmuch as πειρᾷνcannot be made=torture, an old error of the copyist, and introduce a word indicating death by fire, best ἐπρήσθησαν. In the Sin. this word follows the one given above [rather in Sin. the word is ἐπρίσηιαν].

[23]Heb_11:38.—The reading, ἐπ ἐρημίαις of Sin. A., 71, 73, 118, received by Lachm. and Tisch., ed. VII., appears to be an error of the copyist. The Rec. ἐν ἐρημ. is sustained by D. E. K. L.

[24]Heb_11:39.—Lachm. reads the plur., τὰς ἐπαγγελίας, after A. 80.

Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

11:30 The conquest of Jericho (Josh 5:13–6:27) offers another example of great faith, as the people acted in obedience to God’s unusual instructions.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Heb 11:30. Κυκλωθέντα) compassed about, without machines, LXX., Jos 6:6 (7). The faith of Joshua is virtually praised in this passage; and yet the miraculous arresting of the sun in his course is not mentioned, because there was to be nothing else like it in any future period: Jos 10:12; Jos 10:14.—ἐπὶ ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας) for seven days. In other places many sieges lasted many years.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Heb_11:30. The example of faith afforded by the Israelite people in connection with the siege of Jericho, Joshua 6.

Πίστει] on the ground of faith, which, namely, the people displayed. Wrongly Grotius, who supposes πίστει is to be construed with κυκλωθέντα.

ἔπεσαν] On the plural of the verb with the neuter plur., see Winer, Gramm., 7 Aufl. p. 479.

κυκλωθέντα] after they (daily with the ark of the covenant, heralded by trumpet blast) had been encircled (incorrectly Schulz, and others: beleaguered).

ἐπὶ ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας] for seven days, seven days long. Comp. Winer, Gramm., 7 Aufl. p. 381.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Jericho.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

The soundings of trumpets, though one were to sound for ten thousand years, cannot throw down walls, but faith can do all things [CHRYSOSTOM].

seven days--whereas sieges often lasted for years.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 30. The walls of Jericho fell down] This is particularly explained Jos 6:1, &c. God had promised that the walls of Jericho should fall down, if they compassed them about seven days. They believed, did as they were commanded, and the promise was fulfilled.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

30. By faith the walls of Jericho fell, etc. As he had before taught us, that the yoke of bondage was by faith broken asunder, so now he tells us, that by the same faith the people gained the possession of the promised land. For at their first entrance the city Jericho stood in their way; it being fortified and almost impregnable, it impeded any farther progress, and they had no means to assail it. The Lord commanded all the men-of-war to go round it once every day, and on the seventh day seven times. It appeared to be a work childish and ridiculous; and yet they obeyed the divine command; nor did they do so in vain, for success according to the promise followed. It is evident, that the walls did not fall through the shout of men, or the sound of trumpets; but because the people believed that the Lord would do what he had promised.

We may also apply this event to our benefit and instruction: for it is not otherwise, than by faith, that we can be freed from the tyranny of the Devil, and be brought to liberty; and by the same faith, it is that we can put to flight our enemies, and that all the strongholds of hell can be demolished.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(30) Seven days.—It is the persistence of Israel’s obedience (in the midst, we cannot doubt, of the unmeasured contempt and ridicule of their foes) during the seven days of almost total inaction (Joshua 6) that is here brought into relief.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

30. the walls of Jericho fell down] Jos_4:12-20.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

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

Ver. 30. By faith the walls of Jericho] So do daily the strongholds of hell, 2Co 10:4. {See Trapp on "2Co 10:4"} Wherein, albeit the Lord requite our continual endeavours for the subduing of our corruptions during the six days of this life, yet we shall never find it perfectly effected till the very evening of our last day.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

By faith the walls of Jericho fell down ... - Josephus, Heb 6:12-20. That is, it was not by any natural causes, or by any means that were in themselves adapted to secure such a result. It was not because they fell of themselves; nor because they were assailed by the hosts of the Israelites; nor was it because there was any natural tendency in the blowing of horns to cause them to fall. None of these things were true; and it was only by confidence in God that means so little adapted to such a purpose could have been employed at all; and it was only by continued faith in him that they could have been persevered in day by day, when no impression whatever was made. The strength of the faith evinced on this occasion appears from such circumstances as these: - that there was no natural tendency in the means used to produce the effect; that there was great apparent improbability that the effect would follow; that they might be exposed to much ridicule from those within the city for attempting to demolish their strong walls in this manner, and from the fact that the city was encircled day after day without producing any result.

This may teach us the propriety and necessity of faith in similar circumstances. Ministers of the gospel often preach where there seems to be as little prospect of beating down the opposition in the human heart by the message which they deliver, as there was of demolishing the walls of Jericho by the blowing of rams’ horns. they blow the gospel trumpet from week to week and month to month, and there seems to be no tendency in the strong citadel of the heart to yield. Perhaps the only apparent result is to excite ridicule and scorn. Yet let them not despair. Let them blow on. Let them still lift up their voice with faith in God, and in due time the walls of the citadel will totter and fall. God has power over the human heart as he had over Jericho; and in our darkest day of discouragement let us remember that we are never in circumstances indicating less probability of success from any apparent tendency in the means used to accomplish the result, than those were who encompassed this pagan city. With similar confidence in God we may hope for similar success.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The following examples are clear enough, if we look into the history and particular actions of those here named. It was a faith in God’s mercies and promises that gave them courage, resolution, and perseverance amidst all dangers and difficulties, against all afflictions and persecutions, that made them despise the short happiness of this mortal life, in hopes of an immortal happiness hereafter. Yet they who are so much commended and approved for their faith, received not the great promise of entering into the kingdom of heaven; and they who lived and died well, were indeed in a place of rest, but their souls were not admitted to the beatifical vision, to see and enjoy God in heaven, till our blessed Saviour [Jesus Christ], at his ascension, entered first, and opened as it were heaven’s gates for others to enter. In this God provided something better for us, who, after his coming, if we die without sin, and without any temporal punishments due to sin, our souls are presently happy with God in heaven. (Witham)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

This Divine faith, exercised by Joshua and Israel after their entrance into the Land of Promise, (who did, on God’s word and command, compass the impregnable walls of Jericho once every day for six days together, and on the seventh day seven times, sounding with trumpets of rams’ horns, and at last giving a shout), brought down these walls flat to the ground by the almiglity power of God, to whom they were as nothing, Jos 6:20. Faith in all this realized God’s promise to them, reached forth their love to him, and obedience in all particulars required by him, glorifying God, as the great Captain of their hosts, as he revealed himself, Jos 5:13-15; committing the work and event to him, who, by the breath of faith, doth crumble down these walls before them.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

30. Thus far we have only traced the leaving of Egypt. The whole desert history is omitted. On the borders of Canaan two instances are selected. One is the conquering faith of Israel at Jericho, premonitory of final possession; the other, the repentant faith of a pagan courtezan, symbol of Canaan’s submission, and encouragement to faith for deepest sinners of all ages.

Jericho—The great stronghold on the Canaanite side of Jordan.

Fell down—Man blew the trumpets, and God wrought the overthrow. The act of God was consequent upon the faith of man. Very concisely it is said, by faith the walls… fell.

Seven days—A week of persistent faith in Israel.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were compassed about seven days. (see Jos_6:1-21) The capture of Jericho may be selected for mention, not only because of its extraordinary character, but also as being the beginning of the campaign in Canaan, the first necessary conquest that opened the way to the rest. The history is not further pursued in detail, this being sufficient to suggest it all. Only, for a special reason, the case of Rahab has attention drawn to it.

Vers. 30-38. Exploits and endurances of faith.

The last two specific examples here cited are connected with the entrance of Israel into Canaan under Joshua.

1. The fall of Jericho. (Ver. 30.) That stronghold was not reduced as the result of a long siege. It was not successfully assaulted with engines of war. The only means employed were processions, trumpets, and shouts. But the Israelites did not doubt that the word of Jehovah would be fulfilled; and, as the Divine reward of their faith, which they had shown in a sevenfold or perfect manner in "compassing Jericho about seven days," the wall fell down fiat.

2. The safety of Rahab. (Ver. 31.) Rahab had been a heathen woman, and at one time a woman of abandoned character; but she is now known to the world only as a heroine of faith. The object of her faith was the God of Israel himself, and his purpose to procure Canaan for the chosen people. The ground of it was the miraculous passage of the Red Sea, and the overthrow of the Amorites. Its fruit was seen in her determination at whatever risk to befriend the two scouts, as being Jehovah"s servants. And the reward of Rahab"s faith lay in her preservation amid the general destruction, and the honor which she received in becoming an ancestress of the Messiah. In this chapter the author had begun at the beginning of Genesis; and he has been turning over the Old Testament Scriptures almost page by page, and finding everywhere noble specimen-deeds of faith. But the time would fail him were he to continue as he began. Although the galleries of Hebrew history are crowded with portraits of spiritual heroes, our inspired guide tells us that we may not linger any longer over individual pictures. He will permit us only a very hurried walk through the exhibition; for he is anxious to introduce us to the masterpiece of the whole the portrait of "Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith". (Heb_12:2) What a splendid sentence, or group of sentences, this in vers. 32-38! How rhetorically resonant, and how spiritually triumphant! These verses may be said themselves to form "one great, magnificent picture, full of figures individually striking, and admirably disposed with regard to one another" (Dr. Lindsay).

I SUMMARY OF DEEDS DONE THROUGH FAITH. (Vers. 32-34) The men of faith are all workers or soldiers.

1. Six famous heroes are mentioned by name (ver. 32). These are, four eminent judges; David, the illustrious king; and saintly Samuel, the first of "the prophets.

2. There follows a condensed and. vivid description of the achievements of the heroes of faith (vers. 33, 34). The preacher may verify every one of these references from those great eras of Jewish history which extended in succession from the time of Joshua to the age of the Maccabees.

II SUMMARY OF SUFFERINGS BORNE THROUGH FAITH. (Vers. 35-38) For the workers and soldiers of faith are also sufferers. Each expression in this eloquent. epitome may be amply vindicated from the same eras of Hebrew history, and especially from the later periods, the time of the prophets, of the Captivity, and. of the restoration. It is evident that the apostle has here prominently in view the sufferings of Judas Maccabaeus and his brave compatriots in the days of that monster of cruelty, Antiochus Epiphanes. The parenthesis in ver. 38, while it is in itself a sweetly beautiful exclamation, also sums up the character of the men of faith in a weighty monograph. Their persecutors condemned them as unworthy of living in the world; but, instead of that, the world was not worthy of them. These godly exiles and martyrs were "the salt of the earth." Their lives decked humanity, even in its periods of gross darkness, with a coronal of spiritual light. The apostle"s design in this chapter is to convince his readers that in trusting Christ, and daring and bearing all things for him, they are exercising the very same principle that made "the elders" of the Jewish nation the men they were. The apostle stops at the time of the Maccabees. But it is for us to remember that the exploits and endurances of faith have been as great in some respects greater (Joh_14:12) in New Testament times than in the ages before Christ. We are prone to draw oftentimes too sharp a line between what we call "sacred history" and profane history," and we sometimes forget that the living God is as really present in the one as in the other. Reflect then, in closing, upon the triumphs of faith:

(1) In the first century. E.g. John the Baptist; the multitudes whom Christ healed; the holy women who ministered to him; the apostles after Pentecost. Think of the faith of

(2) the world"s explorers and colonizers. Columbus, the Pilgrim Fathers of New England, Livingstone, etc.

(3) Our men of science. Newton, Kepler, Faraday, etc.

(4) The reformers. Wickliffe, Luther, Knox, Wesley, Chalmers, Howard, William Lloyd Garrison, etc;

(5) The missionaries. Columba, Xavier, Williams, Martyn, Patteson, Moffat, Alexander Duff, etc.

(6) The martyrs. Polycarp, Huss, Tyndale, Savonarola, Bunyan, the Covenanters of Scotland, etc.

(7) God"s hidden ones. " E.g. the business man who will rather lose his trade than soil his conscience; the Bible-woman, working amid squalor and vice in the back lanes of our cities; the dying believer, showing amid the pains of dissolution a beautiful resignation to the Divine will. There are multitudes living just now in obscurity, "of whom the world is not worthy," and of whom, until time shall have run its course, the world will never know.

Unquestioning faith expressed and vindicated. "By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, etc. Let us endeavor to exhibit the principal features of this example of the exercise of faith.

I FAITH IN THE DIVINE WORD OF DIRECTION AND PROMISE, Directions were given by the Lord to Joshua for the taking of Jericho, with the promise that on their fulfillment the wails of that city should fall to the ground. (Jos_6:2-5) This communication Joshua conveyed to the people; and they believed it, they received it as a message from God. They exercised faith

(1) in his righteous authority over them;

(2) in his power to fulfill his promises; and

(3) in his fidelity to his word.

In these respects their faith is exemplary; for his authority is supreme, his power is almighty, and his faithfulness infinite.

III FAITH IN THE DIVINE WORD WHEN THERE WAS NO NECESSARY RELATION BETWEEN THE DIRECTIONS GIVEN AND THE RESULT PROMISED. Generally speaking, in the Divine arrangements the means ordained are wisely adapted to accomplish the ends for which they are employed. But it is quite the opposite in the case now before us. The course of action prescribed and the consequence promised cannot possibly be regarded as cause and effect. The marching round the city, the blowing of rams" horns, and the uttering of great shouts, cannot by any stretch of imagination be looked upon even as means for leveling strong city walls to the ground. Such proceedings have no necessary relation with such a result. If related at all, the relation is altogether arbitrary. The things enjoined upon the Israelites were simply conditions with which they were to comply tests of faith and obedience; and the Lord guaranteed a certain result upon the fulfillment of the conditions. And without raising any objections or proposing any questions they believed his word. Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why.

And if we are assured of his will in any matter, we should follow it irrespective of appearances and of probabilities as they present themselves to our minds. When he commands, it is ours to obey. When he promises, it is ours to accept the promise, leaving the method of its fulfillment to him.

III FAITH MANIFESTED IN PRACTICAL OBEDIENCE. The Israelites proved the reality of their faith in the Divine communication by complying with its requirements. "It came to pass, when Joshua had spoken to the people, that the seven priests," etc. (Jos_6:8-20) Genuine faith always leads to a course of conduct in harmony with its own character. (cf. Jam_2:14-26)

IV FAITH LEADING TO PERSEVERING OBEDIENCE EVEN WHEN NO APPARENT EFFECT WAS PRODUCED BY THEIR ACTION. The Israelites went round the city as they were directed, "but not a brick of the walls fell; and they went round a second time, and a third, fourth, fifth, and sixth time, and still all the bricks were there, firmly cemented, and the walls stood. The defenders of Jericho would look on those wonderful walkers, and one can imagine them saying, "It is a new mode of assault you are adopting. We wonder how long you will have to walk before the walls fall; Jericho will stand for a long time if it is to be taken by walking." Nevertheless, the Israelites held in their hands the promise, and they felt it in their hearts," and they persevered in their obedience notwithstanding the utter absence of any sign of success. They completed the prescribed process, and then their obedience was rewarded with success. And in our case, faith and obedience must be persistent, though our discouragements be great. We are called to be "imitators of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises." "Ye have need of patience, that, having done the will of God, ye may receive the promise". (Mat_10:22 Rom_2:7 Rev_2:10)

V FAITH COMPLETELY VINDICATED BY GOD. "By faith the walls of Jericho fell down." When the Israelites had completely carried out the directions which the Lord had given them, "the wall fell down fiat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city." Thus the result fully justified their confidence and their conduct. And no one ever trusted God in vain. Faith, resting upon God"s word or character, honors him and gratifies him; and he will not, he cannot, fail the soul that trusts him. If we honor him with our hearty confidence, he will honor us with his glorious salvation. W.J.

Vers. 30, 31. Believers and unbelievers at Jericho.

I BELIEVERS OUTSIDE. No illustration of faith is given from the wanderings in the wilderness. In truth, those wanderings were conspicuous for unbelief rather than faith, for apostasy rather than fidelity. At times the people mounted high in faith, and then they fell as low. Just at the time they came to Jericho there was everything in the circumstances of their outward life to inspirit them. They were escaped from the wilderness, they had crossed the Jordan, the land of promise was under their feet. The faith asked from them, it will be observed, did not involve anything very difficult in practice. All they had to do was to march in a certain order for seven days round a fortified city. Still though the deed was not difficult, it was a deed of real faith. For the people might well ask what connection there could be between marching round the city and the downfall of it. And assuredly there was no connection of cause and effect between the mere marching and the mere falling. Another company might have marched till the day of doom without producing the slightest result. In the great works of the Church of Christ instruments are nothing save as the occasions of faith.

II UNBELIEVERS INSIDE. Our attention is specially called to their unbelief. The world would say, "Why should they be anything else than unbelieving? If Israel had come with all the regular appliances of siege, then the people of Jericho would have felt there was something to believe. Then a real danger would be reckoned as present." We have always to be on our guard against the deceitfulness of appearances, and especially against the appearances of safety. It was not by might, but by the word of Jehovah, that Jericho was to fall, and the procession round the city only signified that the word of doom had gone forth. The procession was a sign of the times. Who knows what might have happened in those seven days if only Jericho had wakened up to inquiry, repentance, and negotiation? Whereas the attitude of the people indicated the most complete self-confidence. It is one of the worst follies of unbelief that unbelievers are so assiduous in guarding against visible, external evils, and so negligent, so indifferent, with respect to the worst evils of all.

III ONE BELIEVER INSIDE. One, and only one. A woman of no very good reputation, and yet able to discern afar off the ill that was coming. What an encouragement to sinners the faith of Rahab is! For if in her heart could be lodged the power of faith, then what heart should be reckoned impenetrable? Rahab, with all her faults, stood far higher than many reputable people in Jericho. She had the one thing needful by way of beginning. Her faith saved her in the hour of temporal destruction to the other inhabitants of Jericho. But, of course, in the end her faith would do her no good unless it led to a life of righteousness and full obedience. Faith saved many in physical matters who came in contact with the miraculous workings of Jesus. But another power must come in, working conviction of sin and spiritual need. Then the faith which was found so mightily operative in the lower sphere will be found equally operative in the higher one. Y.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

By the faith of Joshua.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

The achievements of faith in the times of Joshua and later:

v. 30. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were compassed about seven days.

v. 31. By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.

v. 32. And what shall I more say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthah; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets;

v. 33. who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,

v. 34. quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to fight the armies of the aliens.

v. 35. Women received their dead raised to life again; and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection;

v. 36. and others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment;

v. 37. they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword; they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;

v. 38 (of whom the world was not worthy;) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.

After the children of Israel had finally crossed the Jordan by another miracle, they were given an opportunity to show their faith in the Lord at the siege of Jericho: By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, having been compassed about for seven days, Jos 6:1-27. It must have been no easy matter for the soldiers of the army of Joshua to march around the city day after day without so much as touching their hands to a weapon, pursued, moreover, by the taunts of the besieged. Worse still, when they, on the seventh day, marched around the city time and again, and yet were kept back from using violence before the time appointed by the Lord, this was undoubtedly a sore trial of their faith. Yet they continued until the word of the Lord was literally fulfilled and they could annihilate their enemies.

An incident that is recorded in connection with the same siege is that in which the harlot Rahab was concerned: By faith Rahab, the harlot, did not perish with the unbelievers after she had received the spies with peace. Even when Joshua was encamped at Shittim, before the people crossed the Jordan, he had sent two men to view the land which he intended to subdue first of all, Jos 2:1-2. In performing the work assigned to them, these men came to the house of Rahab, the chances being that they could get the information which they sought at this place. Rahab, however, though formerly a harlot, a notorious sinner, had been struck by the reports of the Lord’s fighting for Israel and had been converted to belief in Him. Accordingly, she received the spies in peace and saved their lives. This act of faith later saved her own life and that of her entire household, because she did not perish with her disobedient and unbelieving countrymen. She afterward became a member of God’s people, and her name appears in the list of the forefathers of Jesus.

But there are so many individual examples of faith in the records of the Old Testament that the inspired author summarizes: And what do I say further? For time would fail me while recounting of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David and Solomon, and the prophets, who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, extinguished the force of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were restored out of weakness, became mighty in battle, routed the armies of strangers. The writer purposely does not observe a fixed order of narration, in order to indicate the great number and variety of examples which he might enumerate if he but had the time and the space to do so. There was Gideon, who with only three hundred men routed the mighty army of the Midianites, Jdg 7:1-25. There was Barak, who with the aid of the prophetess Deborah routed Sisera and his host, after which Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, killed the invader as he lay asleep, Jdg 4:1-24. There was Samson, also one of the judges of Israel, who gained a number of victories over the Philistines, Jdg 14:1-20; Jdg 15:1-20; Jdg 16:1-31. There was Jephthah, who conquered the Ammonites, Jdg 11:1-40. The great deeds of David and Solomon in behalf of the children of Israel, the people of God, are so well known that they are also merely referred to, 2Sa 5:17-25; 2Sa 8:1; 2Sa 21:15-22; 2Sa 10:1-19; 2Sa 12:26-31. Some of these men and others subdued kingdoms, those of all the nations of the Canaanites being recorded; they ruled their people with righteousness and equity, 2Sa 8:15; they obtained promises, not only Messianic promises, 2Sa 7:1-29, but also some of a general nature, Jos 21:45; Jdg 7:7; Jdg 13:5; 1Ki 8:56; they stopped the mouths of lions, not only Samson and David, but also Daniel, Dan 6:22; Jdg 14:6; 1Sa 17:34-36; the very power of fire to burn and destroy they extinguished, as in the case of the three men in the fiery furnace, Dan 3:1-30; they escaped the edge of the sword, 1Sa 18:11; 1Sa 19:10; 1Ki 19:1-3; they were restored after an attack of weakness, Jdg 16:28-30; they became mighty in battle; the Lord being on their side, they were enabled to overcome all the resistance of their enemies. Such were the victories of faith.

But faith is equally strong in overcoming misery and suffering of every kind: Women received their dead by resurrection; others, however, were beaten to death, not accepting the deliverance, in order to obtain a better resurrection; but others endured the trial of mockings and scourgings, and still further of bonds and imprisonment; they were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were cut to pieces, they died in the slaughter of the sword, they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, suffering want, being abused, enduring affliction,—of whom the world was not worthy,—wandering over deserts and mountains, and in caves and in the holes of the earth. It is a long recital, which will fit practically every age of persecution in its principal points. Women, like the widow of Sarepta and the Shunammite, received their dead back from the embrace of death. In the case of others it is related (and the truth of history is here substantiated) that they were beaten to death, probably by being broken on a wheel, 2 Maccabees 6:17-28, and that they accepted this rather than perform a deed which conscience would not permit them to become guilty of; they knew, even if they died under the torture, a better resurrection awaited them at the end of time. Mockings and scourgings were endured by some of the martyrs at the time of the Maccabees, 2 Maccabees 7:1-7, and it happened often, as in the case of Jeremiah, that men were thrown into chains and imprisoned, Jer 38:9. They were stoned, as is related of Zechariah, son of Jehoiada, 2Ch 14:15, and of Jeremiah, the latter incident, however, not being verified in Scriptures. The most cruel death of being sawn asunder while still alive was inflicted on some of the Old Testament believers, 2Sa 12:31; Amo 1:3, an apocryphal account stating this also of Isaiah. Others were cut to pieces, ruthlessly murdered with the sword, and tortured in other ways, as some accounts of the Maccabean period relate. Being driven from their homes, they were obliged to cover themselves against the inclemencies of the weather by donning sheepskins or goatskins and living out in the deserts and in the mountains, wherever a cave or even a mere hole in the rock afforded them some shelter, 1Ki 18:4; 1Ki 18:13; 1Ki 19:4-13; 1Ki 1:1-53 Maccabees 2:28-29; 2 Maccabees 5:27; 6:11; 10:6. All these sufferings their faith enabled them to endure. Surely the remark that the world was not worthy of them gives us the estimate which the Lord places upon the steadfastness of these martyrs.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

After the faith of Moses and the Israelites at the Red Sea, we have here the faith of Joshua and the Israelites before Jericho, recorded and related. Jericho was a walled and well-fenced city, and a frontier town, that kept them from entering into Canaan. God commanded them not to fight, but to walk, to go round the city seven days, and he would give them an unexpected entrance into it; they believe and obey, and the success was according to their desire: By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, &c.

Here note, 1. The grace exercesed, faith: they believed God upon his word, they enter Canaan at this frontier town; God remembers his promise, and disappoints not the faith and expectation of his people.

Note, 2. The readiness and exactness of the people’s obedience; they compassed the town so many days, they do what God commands, and no more; here is no mount raised, no engine planted, no sword drawn, they only walk, not fight. Doubtless the men of Jericho made themselves merry with this sight, and said one to another, "What, will these men beat down our city with their eyes? Will they conquer us only by gazing upon us?"

And farther, as the army only must encompass the city, so must the priests blow the rams’-horns; a contemptible mean! had they made use of the silver trumpets of the sanctuary, that had been a good ground to hope for success, they being the symbols and sacred signs of God’s presence with them; but verily trumpets of rams’-horns seemed more fit to move laughter, than to do execution; yet assuredly no ram of iron could have been so forcible for battery as these rams’-horns, when God had appointed them. It is the praise of omnipotency ofttimes to work improbabilities.

Note, 3. The event and success which followed their faith, and accompanied their obedience, The walls of Jericho fell down. Nothing can stand before the power of God and the faith of his people. If we will believe God’s promises, and execute his commands, we need no shifts nor artifices, no power nor policy of our own, to work deliverance for us.

Learn hence, That when faith makes use of the means prescribed by God, though it cannot discern what influence the means can have to the end aimed at, yet the issue and event shall certainly be according to God’s appointment and faith’s expectation; By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after, &c.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

30. By faith the walls of Jericho fell. See Josh. 6:8–21.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

30. Ἱερειχώ. Jos 6:12-20.

ἕπεσαν. Neuters plur. sometimes take a plur. verb where the inanimate objects stand out in their plurality and separateness. Winer, p. 645.

ἐπὶ ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας. Ἐπὶ with the acc. denotes the period over which a thing extends, as in ἐπὶ ἡμέρας πλείους, Act 13:31.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

30.] A second example of the strength of faith in Israel generally. By faith (of Israel, who obeyed the command of Joshua through all the days, which to the unbeliever would seem irrational. Cf. Chrys., οὐ γὰρ δὴ σαλπίγγων ἠχὴ λίθους οἵα τε καταβάλλειν ἐστί, κἂν μυρία τις ἔτη σαλπίζῃ, ἀλλʼ ἡ πίστις πάντα δύναται), the walls of Jericho (more commonly τῆς Ἱεριχώ: but our Writer frequently omits the demonstrative article, see ver. 17; ch. 4:7; 7:11; 9:4) fell (cf. Jos 6:5, Jos 6:20. In the former of these it is πεσεῖται τὰ τείχη, in the latter ἔπεσεν ἅπαν τὸ τεῖχος: our Writer uses the plural verb with τείχη: each and every defence fell together), having been compassed about (see the narrative in Jos_6) during seven days (ἐπί, of time, with an accusative, gives the whole duration: see reff., and Winer, 49. 1. 2).

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

30. πίστει... ἔπεσαν) Josh. vi. The walls fell overthrown by faith which was shewn through a long trial by leader, priests and people.

The fall of the walls of Joricho is

the symbol of the victory of tho Church: Matt. xvi. 18.

Brooke Foss Westcott (1825–1901), The Epistle to the Hebrews (1889) and The Epistles of St John (1883) — public domain (pre-1929). Text recovered from Internet Archive / Google Books OCR scans. Westcott’s Gospel of John commentary is not included (its OCR lost the chapter running-heads required for reliable verse-keying). Some Greek quoted in the Hebrews volume is imperfectly rendered by the OCR.