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18-19 The silver and gold and everything made of bronze and iron belong to the Lord and must be put in his treasury. Be careful to follow these instructions, because if you see something you want and take it, the Lord will destroy Israel. And it will be all your fault.[a]

20 (A) The priests blew their trumpets again, and the soldiers shouted as loud as they could. The walls of Jericho fell flat. Then the soldiers rushed up the hill, went straight into the town, and captured it. 21-25 (B) They killed everyone, men and women, young and old, everyone except Rahab and the others in her house. They even killed every cow, sheep, and donkey.

Joshua said to the two men who had been spies, “Rahab kept you safe when I sent you to Jericho. We promised to protect her and her family, and we will keep that promise. Now go into her house and bring them out.”

The two men went into Rahab's house and brought her out, along with her father and mother, her brothers, and her other relatives. Rahab and her family had to stay in a place just outside the Israelite army camp.[b] But later they were allowed to live among the Israelites, and her descendants still do.

The Israelites took the silver and gold and the things made of bronze and iron and put them with the rest of the treasure that was kept at the Lord's house.[c] Finally, they set fire to Jericho and everything in it.

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Footnotes

  1. 6.18,19 Be careful … fault: One ancient translation; Hebrew “Don't keep any of it for yourself. If you do, the Lord will destroy both you and Israel.”
  2. 6.21-25 camp: Rahab and her family were Canaanites and were considered unclean. If they stayed in the Israelite army camp, the Lord would not help the Israelite army in battle (see Deuteronomy 23.9-14). However, Rahab and her family later became part of Israel.
  3. 6.21-25 the Lord's house: A name for the place of worship, which at that time was the sacred tent.

19 All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron(A) are sacred to the Lord and must go into his treasury.”

20 When the trumpets sounded,(B) the army shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the men gave a loud shout,(C) the wall collapsed; so everyone charged straight in, and they took the city.(D) 21 They devoted(E) the city to the Lord and destroyed(F) with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys.

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