Joshua 6:7

Jos 6:7 And he said unto the people, Pass on, and compass the city, and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the LORD.

Ver. 7. And let him that is armed.] Those two tribes and a half especially. {Jos 1:14; Jos 4:12-13}

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.

Jos 6:7-10. Let him that is armed pass on — God would have them armed, both for the defence of themselves and the ark, in case the enemies should make a sally upon them, and for the execution of the Lord’s vengeance upon that city. The rereward — Which, being opposed to the armed men, may seem to denote the unarmed people, who were desirous to be spectators of this wonderful work. Ye shall not shout — Because shouting before the time appointed would be ineffectual, and so might give them some discouragement, and their enemies matter of insulting.

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

This is chiefly meant by the Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh.

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

(7) Pass on, and compass the city.—The meaning of this proceeding becomes clearer when we remember that the centre of the procession is the written law of God. The ark is the vessel that contains it. The armed men that precede it are its executioners. The priests who blow the trumpets are its heralds. It was this law that had brought Israel over Jordan; this law that was henceforth to be established in Canaan; this law that was about to take vengeance on the transgressors. The whole law of Moses is but the expansion of the Decalogue; and the Pentateuch contains an ample statement of the transgressions which had brought the inhabitants of Canaan under the ban of the Divine law. The seven days’ march round Jericho, in absolute silence, was well calculated to impress on the inhabitants the lesson of “the forbearance of God.” “These things hast thou done, and I kept silence.” For several generations the long-suffering of God had waited, while “the iniquity of the Amorites was not yet full.” In the first year of the Exodus He had threatened them, bringing the sword of Israel to their borders; and then He had drawn back His hand from them, and given them forty years’ respite more. But now the long-suffering of God had waited long enough. The shout that burst from the lips of Israel was a signal that He would wait no longer.

Looked at thus, the shout of Israel at the sound of the trumpet on the seventh day becomes no inapt figure of that which is connected with it by the language of Holy Scripture—“the shout,” accompanied by “the voice of the archangel and the trump of God,” which shall notify to the world our Lord’s second coming. “Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence” any more (Ps. 1. 3 and 21; 1Th_4:16).

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

And he said unto the people, pass on, and compass the city,.... The women and children, the young men under twenty years of age, the unarmed part of the camp, as distinguished from the armed men:

and let him that is armed pass on before the ark of the Lord; to guard the ark, protect the priests, and defend the people, should any sally be made by the enemy upon them. These seem to design all the males that were above twenty years of age able to bear arms, and fit for war; though some restrain it to the forty thousand of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh, Jos 1:14.

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

He said - The reading in the Hebrew text is “they said.” Joshua no doubt issued his orders through the “officers of the people” (compare Jos 1:10).

Him that is armed - i. e. the warriors generally, not a division only. “The rereward” Jos 6:9 was merely a detachment, and not a substantial portiere of the host; and was told off, perhaps, from the tribe of Dan (compare the marginal reference) to close the procession and guard the ark from behind. Thus the order would be

(1) the warriors,

(2) the seven priests blowing the cornets,

(3) the ark,

(4) the rear-guard.

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

He said. Some manuscripts and Hebrew editions have, "they said," though the points shew it must be singular, whatever Michaelis may object in favour of the Masora. Leusen foolishly admits here a double literal sense. (Kennicott) (Haydock)

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).

God would have them armed, both for the defence of themselves and the ark, in case the enemies should make a sally upon them, and for the execution of the Lord’s vengeance upon that city.

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

7. And he said — Such in the Hebrew is the marginal reading, while the text is plural, and they said; that is, the subordinate officers, to whom Joshua made known the divine plan of the conquest. See chap. Jos_1:10, note.

Him that is armed — Literally, the armed one. The reference is collectively to the armed host of forty thousand from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Eastern Manasseh. These, according to chap. Jos_4:13, marched before the ark of the Lord.

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

And he said. The text has they said. Our translators follow the Masoretic emendation. If we follow the original we must suppose that the priests, or, as with Keil and Knobel, the Shoterim, (Jos_1:10) conveyed Joshua"s command to the troops.

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

Him that is armed - God would have them armed both for the defense of themselves and the ark, in case the enemies should make a sally upon them, and for the execution of the Lord's vengeance upon that city.

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