Here is an excerpt taken from The Story: The Bible’s Grand Narrative of Redemption by Jon Nielson.

Act 2: Abraham to Samuel   |   Day 74

Joshua 6

Joshua didn’t really fight the battle of Jericho. Neither did the people of Israel. In fact, the battle of Jericho wasn’t much of a battle at all. God fought this “battle” for Joshua and the people, and it was a pretty one-sided fight.

If you don’t believe me, start by looking at the first few verses of Joshua 6. It’s there that God gives to Joshua one of the strangest battle plans in military history. He commands Joshua to march around the city of Jericho for six days straight, with the priests walking with the people, holding trumpets and carrying the ark. On the seventh day, the Israelite army is to circle the city seven times, after which the priests will blow the trumpets, the people will shout, and the walls of the city of Jericho will collapse before them. No military strategy. No careful plan for the invasion of the city. Just walking around it thirteen times, blowing some trumpets, and shouting. What’s God doing here? God is showing the people that he, and he alone, will fight for his people to bring them into the Promised Land. That’s how God begins his instructional speech to Joshua: “See, I have given Jericho into your hand” (6:2).

Everything happens just as God said it would. The people, led by Joshua, obey God’s instructions. They circle the city for six days, then seven times on the seventh day. The trumpets are blown, the people shout, and the walls crash to the ground. From there, it’s just a mop-up job for the Israelites; they just walk right in and meet with little resistance as they take control of the city. The writer of Joshua is careful to point out, though, what happens to one woman and her family, whose fate is different from all the rest of the inhabitants of Jericho. Rahab—that onetime prostitute who placed herself with God’s people in the fear of him—is saved by God’s people and becomes a part of God’s community. God shows his grace to this woman, even in the midst of the judgment that he brings on the enemies of his people.

We sometimes forget that we serve a God who doesn’t need our help. We are tempted to try to “help” him along in different ways. But God—now and always—wants to fight for his people. he wants to lead us, guide us, empower us—and save us by his gracious action in Christ. pray today that you would trust God to take care of you completely. Trust him to fight your battles—including your greatest battle against sin and death.