Children’s Lesson for April 16, 2020
Joshua 6:1-20
Today’s story comes from Joshua 6: 1 - 20. Listen closely to see how many times the people had to walk around the walls and for how many days they had to march. The gates of Jericho were shut tight and guarded closely because of the people of Israel. No one went out. No one came in. The walls were huge! Houses even rested on top of the walls! Can you picture walls this big?
The Lord spoke to Joshua who was leading the Israelites. He said, “I have handed Jericho over to you. I have also handed its king and its fighting men over to you. God was going to give Jericho and all the people in Jericho to Joshua and the Israelites! God told Joshua:
“March around the city once with all of your fighting men. In fact, do it for six days. Have seven priests get trumpets that are made out of rams’ horns. They must carry them in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times. Have the priests blow the trumpets as you march. You will hear them blow a long blast on the trumpets. When you do, have all of the men give a loud shout. The wall of the city will fall down. Then the whole army will go up to the city. Every man will go straight in.” **Imagine this….. Having a wall fall down after marching around it 7 times and then shouting out loud. If you march around your house 7 times, and then yell, will your house fall down? No! Of course not! What does this show us about God and His power? God is all powerful. If God says something will happen, it WILL happen. Joshua trusted God and knew that if God said the walls would fall down, then they WOULD fall down!**
So Joshua, the son of Nun, called for the priests. He said to them, “Go and get the ark of the covenant of the Lord. I want seven of you to carry trumpets in front of it.” He gave an order to the men. He said, “Move out! March around the city. Some of the fighting men must march in front of the ark of the Lord.” When Joshua had spoken to the men, the seven priests went forward. They were carrying the seven trumpets as they marched in front of the ark of the Lord. They were blowing the trumpets, but they were not yelling or shouting. The ark of the Lord’s covenant was carried behind the priests. Some of the fighting men marched ahead of the priests who were blowing the trumpets. The others followed behind the ark and guarded all of them. That whole time the priests were blowing the trumpets, but not a sound came from anyone’s mouths!
Joshua had given an order to the fighting men. He had said, “Don’t give a war cry. Don’t raise your voices. Don’t say a word until the day I tell you to shout. Then shout!” So he had the ark of the Lord carried around the city once. Then the men returned to camp. They spent the night there.
Joshua got up early the next morning. The priests went and got the ark of the Lord. The seven priests who were carrying the seven trumpets started out. They marched in front of the ark of the Lord. They blew the trumpets. Some of the fighting men marched ahead of them. The others followed behind the ark and guarded all of them. The priests kept blowing the trumpets. On the second day they marched around the city once. Then the men returned to camp. They did all of those things for six days. Each day the men would march around Jericho blowing their trumpets and marching. They trusted God. God told them to do this, and they did exactly as God instructed.
On the seventh day, they got up at sunrise. They marched around the city, just as they had done before. But on that day they went around it seven times.
On the seventh time around, the priests blew a long blast on the trumpets. Then Joshua gave a command to the men. He said, “Shout! The Lord has given you the city!” The priests blew the trumpets, and as soon as the fighting men heard the sound, they gave a loud shout. Then the wall fell down! Every man charged straight in. They took the city just as God said they would, and they did it by obeying and trusting God!
Remember:
The people were to march around the city – silently – 1 time for 6 days
The priests were to blow their trumpets
On the 7th day they marched around 6 times – silently
On the 7th time around – they shouted and the walls fell down
Can you imagine what this must have looked like? What would that have felt like? You suddenly see the walls of a city fall down because you marched and shouted as God instructed. Joshua and the Israelites followed God’s instruction and they trusted God. We should trust God as well! Sometimes it is hard to trust God. We don’t see Him. We cannot touch him with our hands or see Him with our eyes, and it is hard to trust something you cannot see, but He is here! Faith is what allows us to know in our hearts that God will take care of us. As Christians, we need to remember that God is in control of everything, including us!
This week, I want you to think about the things that worry you. Maybe you are upset that you cannot see friends. Maybe you are upset that you cannot go to school or go out to eat with your family, but know that God is in control of all of this. God knows what we worry about and He takes care of us each and every day! He knows that it is hard to be away from friends and school, but He also knows how important it is to follow rules on how to keep safe. We need to trust God to take care of us by doing what He commands, just as Joshua and the Israelites did!
You are so loved,
Ms. Shantelle
Ask a parent to help you print off the activity sheets for this lesson. You can find them here.